← 2 years TOO Short…….
This week was my first stint teaching at Vacation Bible School. I was both excited and nervous at the same time. I'd received the lesson book for my assigned section a couple weeks ago. The plan was to read through it to get a feel for what I was going to do. After all I knock books out in a week or so all the time. Fast forward to me trudging through the information for Day 1, I got so overwhelmed that I closed the book and didn't open it again until it was absolutely necessary. I needed to move forward with a new plan, a different approach if I was going to make it…If I didn't want to panic or CHOKE.
So with a few days to spare, I decided to only look at the supply lists. While Day one's supply list was lengthy, several items were duplicated throughout the week. *huge sigh of relief* Once I made that realization, making and fulfilling the supply needs was pretty painless.
Next, instead of sitting down and trying to read through an entire week's worth of lesson plans, I decided to just read one day per day. Taking one small bite at a time.
Reading one day at a time allowed me to chew, swallow and digest the information much better. I was able to relax, renew my excitement and feel more confident in fulfilling the task I'd been entrusted with. I even noticed little details that I hadn't noticed before. I probably couldn't notice them because my focus was too broad.
Do you have a task ahead of you that you've been avoiding because it's too much to think about all at once? Let me encourage you to start small. Break the task into small bite-sized pieces, if possible, so that they're easier to chew, swallow and digest.
This entry was posted in Celine Saturdays and tagged Celine Parker, Celine Saturdays, choking, preparation, today, tomorrow, worry. Bookmark the permalink.


Morocco's history, places and experiences make it unique for incentives. Located in northern Africa, temperatures range from 120C to +250C, and the weather varies by location & season. Depending on your interests, it can be visited all year round, and transport/flights/logistics are easy, with many options. Morocco's diversity, geography and abundance of experiences make it ideal for incentives that are luxurious, adventurous and outdoors. Popular for business events such as incentives and leadership/strategy/client meetings, Morocco offers some undiscovered and memorable experiences.
Discover the country, its geography, flexible flights, inspiring hotels, memorable restaurants, history, people, culture, food, coastline, Sahara dunes, Atlantic beaches, Atlas mountains, cities, towns, Marrakesh, Fez, Casablanca, Tangier, Essaouira, Rabat, Agadir, Chefchaouen, Merzouga, Asilah, Toubkal, Dades Valley, secret riads, forgotten alleyways, open courtyards, palaces, hammams, palm groves, hidden gardens, gorges, valleys, lakes, and a fascinating mix of culture & people.
We have a variety of incentive packages from 4+ days, for groups of all sizes. Whether your team is just escaping the office, being rewarded or seeking a full-on incentive trip, we have flexible packages, which we'll design and personalise with you. Enquire below, and we'll send you ideas, itineraries, and prices within 48 hours.
Atlas Mountains • Berber families • Terres d'Amanar • Casablanca's art deco & medina • Rabat's architecture & gardens & food • Tangiers hidden beaches and thriving culture • Fez's restaurants & winding alley's • Agadir's water-sports and countryside • local souks • hot-air ballooning • Berber breakfast • hiking • mountain biking • horse-riding • climbing • desert camping • 4 x 4 mountain & desert trips • camel trekking • quad biking and more ..


Scandal's Bellamy Young and Ugly Betty's Vanessa Williams in a drama about suburbanites climbing to the top of a multi-level marketing cosmetics business? We'd be all in on that pyramid scheme! Luckily, the project might not be dead yet — ABC is redeveloping it.
Black Mirror's Toby Kebbell, Oscar nominee Catalina Sandino Moreno, and good ol' Jim Belushi would have starred in this crime drama about an ex-cop investigating a murder tied to sunken treasure in Gulf Coast Florida. The project is being shopped around, though, so maybe another network will plunder this golden premise.
#ABCSoWhite? It wouldn't have been if it had picked up this cop drama — starring Martin's Tisha Campbell-Martin and Love Thy Neighbor's Leigh Ann Rose — about five black sisters balancing their family lives with their NYPD jobs.
In another blow to on-screen inclusion, ABC passed on this comedy remake of the 1980s TV show, an update that would have seen New Girl's Hannah Simone playing an Indian-American superhero.
And speaking of canceled remakes of 1980s hits, CBS passed on the pilot for this female-led detective drama, which would have had Grey's Anatomy fan fave Sarah Drew and Blindspot actress Michelle Hurd follow in the footsteps of Sharon Gless and Tyne Daley.
The 1997 cinematic adaptation of James Ellroy's novel won critical acclaim and Oscar gold, but TV viewers won't get a small-screen version of this 1950s Los Angeles-set crime story — a drama that would have starred Sense8's Brian J. Smith and Justified's Walton Goggins.
From the mind of TV legend Norman Lear — of All in the Family, One Day at a Time, and The Jeffersons fame — came this comedy about speeding up when society expects you to slow down. The project is being shopped around, though, so hopefully, we'll see Two and a Half Men's Holland Taylor, Pretty Woman's Hector Elizondo, and Back to the Future's Christopher Lloyd on the tube soon.
As we get hyped for the broadcast network's new offerings for the 2018–2019 television season, we have to pour one out for the projects that didn't survive pilot season.


text:
Parashat Vayikra
Richard Amram Elofer
Parasha for the Week: Vayikra: Leviticus 1:1 – 5:26
Haftarah for the Week: Isaiah 43:21 – 44:23
Apostolic Writings: Mark 1:1 - 8
The Book of Vayikra (Leviticus), also known as Torat Kohanim — the Laws of the Priests — deals largely with the korbanot (offerings) brought in the Mishkan (Tent of Meeting).
The first group of offerings is called korban olah, a burnt offering.
The animal is brought to the Mishkan's entrance. The one bringing the offering sets his hands on the animal. Afterwards it is slaughtered and the kohen sprinkles its blood on the altar. The animal is skinned and cut into pieces. The pieces are arranged, washed and burned on the altar.
Various meal offerings are described. Part of the meal offering is burned on the altar, and the remaining part eaten by the kohanim. Mixing leaven or honey into the offerings is prohibited.
The peace offering, part of which is burnt on the altar and part is eaten, can be either from cattle, sheep or goatsThe Torah prohibits eating blood or fat.
The offerings that atone for inadvertent sins committed by the Kohen Gadol, by the entire community, by the prince and by the average citizen are detailed.
Laws of the guilt-offering, which atones for certain verbal transgressions and for transgressing laws of ritual purity, are listed.
The meal offering for those who cannot afford the normal guilt offering, the offering to atone for misusing sanctified property, laws of the "questionable guilt" offering, and offerings for dishonesty are detailed.
"VAYIKRA: PARASHA'S TITLE"
This week's parasha starts the study the Leviticus, this is the Greek name of this book. The Hebrew name of this book is Vayikra, which is the first word of the book and means: "And he called" the book starts saying: "Now Hashem called to Moses" (Leviticus 1:1). "Leviticus" is an appropriate name, because much of its content concerns the service of the "Levites" in the Tabernacle, the Temple and all the priestly ritual. That is why the Jewish tradition has called this book "Torat Kohanim" (the law of Priests).
We understand that the word Vayikra is a verb, and in biblical Hebrew the verb is placed first and the then the subject. However, there is a particularity in this first word of this book, the word Vayikra is written with the Hebrew letters וַיִּקְרָ֖א as we can see the last letter which is an Aleph is written in a smaller size than the other letters. Many explanations have been given about this phenomenon. But most of the commentators agree to say that this aleph and its reduced size reflect the humility of Moses.
When G-d told Moshe to write the word Vayikra "And He called", Moshe didn't want to write that last aleph. It seemed to Moshe that it gave him too much importance. How could he write that G-d called to him? Who was Moses, after all? A mere man. Moshe would have preferred to write Vayikar — "And He happened (upon him)." In other words G-d just "came across" Moshe, He didn't "go out of His way" to appear to him.
In spite of Moshe's protestations, G-d told him to write Vayikra — "And He called". Moshe wrote the aleph at the end of the word as G-d had commanded him — but he wrote it small. What's in a small aleph?
The aleph, first letter of the Hebrew alphabet, it is the letter that represents the "will," the "ego." It is the first letter of the Hebrew word "I" — 'Ani' or Anochi. When a person sees himself as the Big A, the Big Aleph, the "Number One," he is usurping the crown of He who is One.
When a person sees himself with humility as "a small aleph," then he makes room for the Divine Presence to dwell in him.
Moshe was the humblest of all men. Moshe made himself so little that he was barely in this world at all. He didn't even want to be a small aleph. He, as no man before or since, saw that there is only one aleph in all of Creation, only one Number One — G-d.
Moshe made his own aleph — his ego — so small, that he merited that the Torah was given through him.
According to the Jewish tradition, when Moshe had finished writing the Torah, some ink was left in his pen. As he passed the pen across his forehead the drops of ink became beams of light shining from his visage. That extra ink that was left in Moshe's pen was the ink that should have gone to write the Big Aleph; instead it became a corona of shining light to adorn the humblest of men. (Ba'al Haturim, Midrash Tanchuma).
"KORBAN – COMING CLOSER"
Since the Book of Leviticus includes the details of the sacrificial system, it is important to remember that "sacrifices" are introduced in this way "Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, 'When any man of you brings an offering to Hashem, you shall bring your offering of animals from the herd or the flock'" (Leviticus 1:2). There is no word in English, French or Spanish that adequately conveys the concept inherent in the Hebrew term "Korban," which is the common word for "offering." Unfortunately, this word has been used mostly in the sense of "sacrifice." It has taken on the connotation of destruction, annihilation, and loss — a connotation that is foreign and antithetical to the Hebrew concept of Korban. Even the original meaning of the Latin word "offero" in the sense of "offering" does not correspond to Korban in its full sense.
The concept of Korban, however, is far removed from all of these; it is never to be understood as a gift or a present. It is found solely in the context of man's relationship to G-d, and can only be understood on the basis of the meaning of the root "KaRaV".
The meaning of karav is "to draw closer," "to arrive at a close relationship with someone." Thus, korban serves to meet the needs of the one who offers the korban, and not the needs of the One to whom the korban is brought near. The will of the one who brings the Korban is that something of his own should come into closer relationship with G-d. "but your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear" (Isaiah 59:2). To come closer to G-d is the very essence of a Korban.
The purpose of a korban is to seek G-d's nearness "they delight to draw near to God" (Isaiah 58:2), which is good for a believer "But for me it is good to be near God" (Psalms 73:28).
When we understand this meaning of the word Korban it is understood too that G-d does not demand to be appeased through an offering, in accord with the blasphemous pagan delusion.
That is why it is not the name Elohim which is associated in the text with offerings, but the name YHWH, this name refers to G-d's attributes of mercy and love. He appears in the full force of His liberating love, which brings into being all of life, sustains its existence anew, and grants it a renewed future. The essence of an offering is not killing, but rebirth and renewal of existence. Spiritual and moral awakening and revival: entering into a life more noble and pure; renewing strength for such a life from the never-failing source of G-d's love.
"THE LEADER WHO SINS"
The bible has laws for everyone in Israel, even the leaders (king, prince, or president) who are not above the laws and must respect them. The Torah states: "When [If] the leader [nasi] commits a sin by unintentionally violating one of the Almighty's commandments which he should not have done..." (Leviticus 4:22). Rashi comments that the first word in our verse "asher" (when or if) is related to "ashrai" which means "fortunate." Fortunate is the generation in which the king brings an offering when he transgresses unintentionally the laws. All the more so will he regret it if he does something wrong intentionally.
The question arises why the Torah only states this here in reference to the king transgressing unintentionally. Why did the Torah not use this in reference to the High Priest or the Sanhedrin whose sacrifices are dealt with in previous sections of this Torah's portion?
The answer is that the High Priest had a high level of sanctity and the members of the Sanhedrin were great Torah scholars. Therefore, these factors contributed to their regretting the wrongs that they did. However, the king was a person with much power, and power gives a person such high feelings about himself that he is unlikely to admit that he has done anything wrong. For this reason, when the king with unlimited power admits that he has erred and regrets what he has done, it is fortunate for his generation.
Admitting that one has erred takes much courage. The more power that you have the greater the importance of having the intellectual honesty to admit that you have made a mistake. Take pleasure whenever you are brave enough to admit that you were wrong. This pleasure will give you the strength to accept the fact that what you have done was wrong.
Haftara: Isaiah 43:21 – 44:23
The book of Leviticus, called in Hebrew Vayikra is the book that God has revealed to Moses in order to teach the priests (kohanim) how to use the sanctuary. In addition of the inauguration of the sanctuary and the dedication of Aaron and his sons, this book is about the sacrifices that Israel had to offer to God for the forgiveness of her sins.
This Haftara of Isaiah is a confirmation that Israel has not been always faithful in her service to the L-rd "You have not brought me sheep for burnt offerings, nor honored me with your sacrifices." (Isaiah 43:23). However, before reproaching to Israel what is wrong the text start with a promise: "The people I formed for Myself, so they might declare My praise." (Isaiah 43:21), God's people has been formed by God with the purpose to praise Him, Israel praised Him from time to time in the wilderness but has been very fast in forgetting Him: "Yet you have not called on Me, Jacob, for you have been weary of Me, Israel." (Isaiah 43:22). And Isaiah continues saying: "You have not brought Me sheep for your burnt offerings; nor have you honored Me with your sacrifices. I did not compel you to serve offerings nor wearied you with incense." (Isaiah 43:23). God gave to Israel clear prescriptions how to praise Him, how to get forgiveness of their sins, how to worship Him. They have forgotten that it is God and only God who erase and delete their sins: "I, I am the One who blots out your transgressions for My own sake and will not remember your sins." (Isaiah 43:25), maybe they were contaminated by pagan worship, maybe they accepted pagan concept of God being pacified and calm down by their sacrifices, not remembering that Sanctuary's sacrifices were not there to pacify the wrath of an angered God, the sacrifices were commanded by God to teach them His love and the ministry of the Messiah who will purify His people: "'But now listen, Jacob My servant, Israel, whom I have chosen.' Thus, says Hashem who made you, and formed you from the womb, who will help you: 'Do not fear, Jacob My servant, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen'." (Isaiah 44:1–2). Yeshurun is an affective name that God has given to Israel, this name is from the root YaSHaR which means "straight" even though Israel is unfaithful God continues to see him as a righteous one, literally "the upright one."
The Lord is a God of love not a Lord of blood, that is why He is always ready to forgive, to bless His people with His spirit, "I will pour out my Spirit on your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants (Isaiah. 44:3). What a loving God, the God of Israel, a God who always demonstrate an unconditional love for His people.
At the beginning of this study of the book Vayikra (Leviticus), we start the study of the Besorah (Gospel) of Mark. Mark was, according to scholars, the first gospel written. The word Gospel or Besorah in Hebrew means "Good News' this book is the narration of the Good News of the revelation of the Messiah. In fact the Jewish tradition says that the Messiah is already here among us, he is just waiting for the right moment to reveal himself to the world as the Messiah.
A Parable is given in Sanhedrin 98a to illustrate this thought: It is written that Rabbi Joshua ben Levi met the Messiah at the gate of Rome among the lepers, and asked him "when will you come?" The Messiah answered "today." Meaning that the Messiah can come at any time, we have just to be ready.
The Besorah of Mark is different of the others gospel, it does not speak about the annunciation, the birth, and the childhood of Yeshua, this gospel starts directly with the ministry of Yeshua, as if he suddenly appeared: "In those days, Yeshua came from Natzeret in the Galilee and was immersed by John in the Jordan." (Mark 1:9).
Scholars have said that the author of this gospel was mark, the disciple of Peter, and since Mark was not a close disciple of Yeshua, it is considered that this gospel was written under the dictation of Peter. It is in fact the gospel according to Peter. In the letter Rabbi Shaul has written to the Galatians, he spoke about his ministry and the ministry of Peter, saying: "I had been entrusted with the Good News for the uncircumcised just as Peter was for the circumcised." (Galatians 2:7), that means Rabbi Shaul was sent to preach the gospel to the Gentiles, while Peter was sent to preach the gospel to the Jews. Thus, this confirmed that if this gospel of Mark was written by a disciple of Peter, who was a preacher among Jews, it has been written in the Jewish context in order to introduce Yeshua to the Jews.
Already, in the first century the Jewish people were reading the parashot, according to the tradition, this weekly ready of the Torah was established by Ezra, the scribe, when the Jewish people came back from Babylon to rebuild Jerusalem and the Temple. On a regular year, the Jewish calendar had 48 or 49 Sabbath (12 months, each month 4 weeks, and from time to time an additional week), that is why the gospel of Mark can be divided in 49 portions, reading a portion each week in parallel with the parashah.
The disciples of Yeshua followed the biblical calendar, which present the month of Nissan as the first month of the year, that is why we are reading now this gospel from the chapter one, the book Vayikra is read just before Pesach on regular year in Nissan, and on leap year on the additional month of Adar.
The Besorah of Mark starts saying: "The beginning of the Good News of Yeshua ha-Mashiach, Ben-Elohim. As Isaiah the prophet has written, 'Behold, I send My messenger before You, who will prepare Your way. The voice of one crying in the wilderness, 'Prepare the way of Hashem, and make His paths straight.' " (Mark 1:1–3). This starting of the Besorah is very Jewish, it does not start with Yeshua but with the Messenger that God promised to send before the coming of the Messiah. It is a important part of the messianic prophecies, that is why the Talmud speak strongly about the one who has to announce the coming of the Messiah, this annunciator is called Elijah the prophet, as Malachi pronounced a prophecy about him "Behold, I am going to send you Elijah the prophet, before the coming of the great and terrible day of Hashem." (Malachi 3:23), however, in the text of Mark, Elijah is not named; Mark quotes two texts of the Tanach even though he attributes both of them to Isaiah, the first text was from Malachi: "Behold, I am sending My messenger, and he will clear the way before Me." (Malachi 3:1) and the second text is from Isaiah 40, "A voice cries out in the wilderness, "Prepare the way of Hashem, Make straight in the desert" (Isaiah 40:3). Mark knows very well the teaching of the Bible and the expectations of the Jewish people. It is impossible to believe that anyone would be the Messiah, if he is not preceded by his annunciator. It was also the expectation of the disciples and their question to Yeshua, in the gospel of Matthiew: "The disciples questioned Him, saying, "Why then do the Torah scholars say that Elijah must come first?" (Matthew 17:10), his answer was clear, "Yeshua replied, "Indeed, Elijah is coming and will restore all things. I tell you that Elijah already came; and they didn't recognize him," (17:11–12) Matthew added his comment: "Then the disciples understood that He was speaking to them about John the Immerser." (Matthew 17:13), John the Immerser is this John that Mark speaks about at the beginning of the gospel "John appeared, immersing in the wilderness, proclaiming an immersion involving repentance for the removal of sins. All the Judean countryside was going out to him, and all the Jerusalemites. As they confessed their sins, they were being immersed by him in the Jordan River." (Mark 1:4-5). This immersion is not something new, it is a very Jewish practice called in Hebrew Tevilah (immersion) in the Mikveh (ritual pool). Everyone who has visited the land of Israel, and old cities and villages as Qumran, Massada, Jerusalem, Beit Shean, Magdala and many others remember that each of these cities have Mikvaoth (ritual baths). Usually, everyone enters the mikveh alone and immersed himself and then get out from it. But here John was immersing people, and before doing it, he asks people to repent, that is why it is written that he was "proclaiming an immersion involving repentance for the removal of sins" this repentance was necessary because of the coming of the Messiah. The Jewish tradition had a very dark picture of the generation of the Messiah, it is written in the Talmud: R. Nehorai said: in the generation when Messiah comes, young men will insult the old, and old men will stand before the young; daughters will rise up against their mothers, and daughters-in-law against their mothers-in-law. The people shall be dog-faced, and a son will not be abashed in his father's presence. (Sanhedrin 97a). The Messiah was coming, the current generation was a sinner generation, thus it was necessary to be sure that the people who were immersed knew exactly what they were doing in preparation of the coming of the Messiah. That is why among the disciples of Yeshua, were some who were first disciple of John.
The text describes John as a prophet, very close to the description of Elijah the prophet, "John wore clothes made from camel's hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey." His message was repentance and the coming of the Messiah: "After me comes One who is mightier than I am," he proclaimed. "I'm not worthy to stoop down and untie the strap of His sandals! I immersed you with water, but He will immerse you in the Ruach ha-Kodesh." (Mark 1:1–8). That is a strange idea: The Ruach ha-Kodesh, (Holy Spirit in English). Of course, the Messiah will be immersed in water, but also in the Ruach, Isaiah said: "The Ruach of Hashem will rest upon Him, the Spirit of wisdom and insight, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of Hashem." (Isaiah 11:2). This spirit of wisdom, insight, counsel, might, knowledge and fear of Hashem will be on Him, and according to John, not only on Him but also on everyone who will believe in him as the Mashiach of Israel. What a good news!
Parasha Yitro 2013
Parasha for the week: Yitro, Exodus 18:1 -20:23Haftara for the week: Isaiah 6:1-13 Overview This is the Torah portion containing the giving of the Ten Commandments. Moses' father-in-law, Jethro…
Parasha for the Week: Vaetchanan Deuteronomy 3:23 – 7:11Haftarah for the Week: Isaiah 40:1 - 20Apostolic Writings: Romans 7:7 - 20 Overview:We always read Parashat V'etchanan on the Shabbat after the…
Parashat Naso
Parasha for the Week: Naso Number 4:21 – 7:89 Haftara for the Week: Judges 13:2 - 25Apostolic Writings: Mark 4:10 – 20 Overview:The Torah assigns the exact Mishkan-related tasks to be performed by…
Parasha Masei
Parasha for the Week: Masei: Numbers 33:1 - 36:13Haftara: Jeremiah 2:4 - 3:4Brit HaChadasha: Romans 8:1 - 39
Parashat Terumah 2019
Parasha for the Week: Terumah: Exodus 25:1 – 27:19Haftarah for the Week: 1 Kings 5:12 - 6:13Apostolic Writings: Revelation 15 Overview:G-d commands Moshe to build a Mishkan (Sanctuary) and supplies…
Parashat Vayak'hel
Parasha for the Week: Vayakhel: Exodus 35:1 – 38:20 Aftarah for the Week: 1 Kings 7:13 - 51 Besorat Yeshua: Mark 15:42 – 16:6 Overview: Moshe Rabbeinu exhorts Bnei Yisrael (children of Israel) to…
Parashat Acharei Mot - Kedoshim
Parasha for the Week: Acharei Mot: Leviticus 16:1 – 18:30Parasha for the Week: Kedoshim: Leviticus 19:1 - 20:27Haftarah for the Week: Ezekiel 22:1 – 22:19; Amos 9:7 - 15Besorat Yeshua: Mark 2:1 - 17
Parashat Balak 2017
Parasha for the Week: Balak Numbers 22: 2 - 25:9Aftarah for the Week: Micah 5:6 - 6:8Besorat Yeshua: Mark 5:35 - 6:1 Overview Balak, king of Moav, is in morbid fear of Bnei Yisrael. He summons a…
Parasha Kedushim
Parasha for the Week: Kedushim: Leviticus 19:1 – 20:27Aftarah Ashkenazim: Amos 9:7 – 15Aftarah Sephardim: Ezekiel 20:1 – 20; 22:1 - 19Besorat Yeshua: Mark 2:1 - 17 OverviewThe nation is enjoined to be…
Parashat BehaAlotchah 2018
Parasha for the Week: Baha'Alotcha Numbers 8:1 – 12:16Haftara for the Week: Zechariah 2:14 – 4:7Apostolic Writings: Revelation 1:12 - 20 Overview:Aharon is taught the method for kindling the menorah.…
Parashat Va'Etchanan 2016
Parasha for the Week: Veitchanan Deuteronomy 3:23 – 7:11Haftara for the Week: Isaiah 40:1 - 20Besorat Yeshua: Mark 6:41 - 52
Parashat Ki Tisa 2016 -2
Parasha for the Week: Ki-Tasa: Exodus 30:11 – 34:35Haftarah for the Week: 1 Kings 18:1 - 39Besorat Yeshua: Mark 15:28 - 41
Parashat Ha'azinu 2017
Parasha for the Week: Ha'azinu: Deuteronomy 32:1 - 32:52Special Readings for Rosh Hashana 1st Day: Genesis 22:1-34 & Numbers29:1-6. Aftarah, 1 Samuel 1:1-2:102nd Day: Genesis 22:1-24 & Numbers29:1-6.…
Parashat Eikev 2019
Parasha for the Week: Eikev: Deuteronomy 7:12 – 11:25Haftarah: Isaiah 49:14 – 51:3Besorat Yeshua: Mark 6:41 - 52 OverviewIf Bnei Israel carefully observe all the mitzvoth (commandments) Moshe…
Parashat Naso 2015
Parasha for the Week: Naso: Numbers 4:21 – 7:89Haftarah: Judges 13:2 - 25Besorat Yeshua: Mark 4:10 - 20 OverviewThe Torah assigns the exact Mishkan-related tasks to be performed by the families of…
A Salty Jewish Tradition
The Torah says "And every offering of your grain offering…
Israeli Technology Aims to Improve Emergency Response
One American-born innovative former rabbi who relocated to…
How to Pick a Date
"Then Naomi her mother-in-law said to her (Ruth), 'My…
Only Israel
Only Israel - by Yedida Freilich.
Naaman & Gehazi
Rabbi Jeff Zaremsky shares his commentaries on the 2 Book…
Can Debt Be Immoral
A growing number of financial educators and economists are…
It is not by accident that song SPARROWS living in desert…
Almond, Carrot & Chickpea Burgers
Looking for a healthy alternative to hamburgers? Look no…
Lebanese Businessman Donates Hitler's Items to Israel
A Lebanese business man donated over $660,000 worth of…
"He who gives to the poor will not lack, but he who hides his eyes will have many curses."

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
One Saturday in October 1954 was my introduction to the Goody Goody. I was thirteen and a friend of mine and I were painting Halloween murals on O'Donnell's Drug Store window for a contest. My father pulled up to the curb and told me that he and mom had bought the Goody Goody. So began the Connelly family's venture into the restaurant business. By March 1955 I was carhopping and peeling potatoes. I have been working here ever since, and it's the only job I've ever had.
By 1954 Goody Goody had been open for six years. It was owned by Cecil Thompson, who named it. I've been asked before many times how it got the name Goody Goody but I don't really know. I've heard it was an expression of excitement or anticipation of a meal out. Johnny Mercer wrote the song Goody Goody in 1936, recorded by Benny Goodman and sung by Helen Ward. A phrase in the song "Goody Goody for you/Goody Goody for me" also could have been purpose enough to be used as a name.
The first business on this corner was in 1931.Mr. A.L. Vickery who owned the land opened the first A&WR oot Beer stand in St. Louis. It was open from March through October. There was a U-shaped counter with stools on both sides with a large root beer barrel at the point. There was carhop service as well as the inside seating. I am offering a $500 reward for a picture of theoriginal A&W Root Beer stand. With the increasing popularity of drive-up windows at fast food places, Goody Goody discontinued our carhop service in 1972.
Dad added the front addition along the sidewalk in 1957. This remodeling included the large, flashing Goody Goody sign. Our sign and the Budweiser sign along highway 40/64 downtown are part of just about five signs in St. Louis that go back tow hen the city allowed flashing neon signs.
The middle section of the building was built in 1968 just before I took over the business. My wife Laura and I built the two-story addition along with the lobby and the west dining room in August of 1990. The diner has a seating capacity of 112 people. Our full menu Carry-Out Dept. accounts for 27% of our business.
This neighborhood is rich in St. Louis food history. Besides this location having the first A&W, right next door was Melrose Pizzeria. The Fiore family first introduced pizza to St. Louis in 1946. Ed's White Front BBQ (for many Rodger's BBQ-1927) was located at the N.W. corner of Natural Bridge and Goodfellow. Another summer favorite place was Sam the Watermelon Man. Many celebrities like Bob Hope, that played the Fox and the Muny Opera, made Sam's a regular St. Louis stop. Ted Drewes' very first location in 1935 was just a 100 yards East of the Goody Goody.


text:
Throughout centuries, the Castle of Gingins welcomed many hosts. Its rich and fascinating history was fed by many lords and art collectors who enhanced its personality.
Origin of the Castle
To better understand which inspirations led to its creation, it is of interest to dwelve into its origins. At the beginning of the 15th Century, Jean II de Gingins, a lord filled with a rich military career and also founder of the Abbey of Bonmont becomes the Chatelain of Rivoli.
In 1441, he requests that the Castle of Gingins be built. At that time, it is known as the "Fortress" The Castle, most probably inspired by the Military architecture of Northern Italy would have, at first, displayed specific features of a medieval fortified building. It is also said that it would have been connected through an underground corridor to the Abbey of Bonmont. In 1659, after more than two hundred years of belonging to the Family de Gingins, the castle has a new owner. After that, and during 182 years it will be the property of many families, namely, the Quisard, the Boutel of Montpellier, the Schafisheim, the La Fléchère and Rouguin.
It is only in 1841 that a member of the Gingins Family recovers ownership of the Castle. And, as a testimony of its real status, the castle will remain in the hands of his ultimate descendant who will leave it to his niece Mrs. Béatrice de Watteville. This is the beginning of a new era for the castle. Her new owner honored her worthy inheritance and showed devotion and care to restore the Castle's original elegance. As a result, a series of restorations and enhancements took place both inside and outside the edifice. It was in 1953 that the Family Chabloz, a distinguished local family, became the owner of the Castle and provided Gingins with two trustees.
Between maturity and new youth
Throughout the ages, the Castle of Gingins underwent many arrangements. These, progressively, shaped its actual appearance. In the Sixteenth century, they gave birth to the remarkable staircase tower as well as to the French ceilings and the west frontage of the main building. In the Nineteenth century, the castle takes on a more neo-medieval character while retaining its authentic charms. It is also at this period that are created superb stables and the northern annex.
Artistic sensibilities and cultural influence
In the twentieth century, the mansion adds to its personality a new cultural and artistic sensibility. First of all, with Beatrice de Watteville, who decided to open the doors of the castle to the Public on Sundays and displayed the huge collection of paintings done by the Russian Artist Nicolas Gay. Furthermore, and more recently, the art collections of the couple Lotar and Vera Neumann were also presented to the public. Since 1963, the Castle has been the property of the Neumann family, who not only renovated it entirely but also kept it up to date and in excellent state. The Neumann art collection, including pieces of Art Nouveau as well as Old Masters and Swiss artists such as Ferdinand Hodler was of very high standard. For ten years, the Neumann Foundation has also been able to present to the public the world-renowned Art Nouveau collection of Lotar and Vera Neumann. Finally, it has also organized yearly three different exhibitions dedicated to artists from the 1900s. This gave to Gingins an important influence and placed the Castle on the cultural map of French speaking Switzerland.
To live in Gingins Castle is to be part of its history and be honoured to write its next lines.
gingins@barnes-international.com


$125,000 over 36 months to scale up the work of the GSI Teaching and Resource Center pilot program significantly, integrating research on student learning and its application more fully into Berkeley's programs for preparing graduate student instructors for current and future teaching. Where the pilot program reached 75 students directly and 810 indirectly, the scaled up program will reach 532 directly and 14,400 indirectly. Among the strategies for developing and delivering the enhanced program will require first-time graduate student instructors to take a one semester, discipline-based course on teaching. The GSI Teaching Center will identify 8 departments in 2012 and another 8 departments in 2013 that would like to integrate into their required course a module on how students learn, and design a seminar for the instructors of those courses who can then integrate the module into their teaching. Program assessment will take multiple forms, and results will be disseminated widely.


The James E. West Fellowship Award nationally recognizes individuals who contribute $1,000 or more in cash or securities to the East Texas Area Council's permanent East Texas Boy Scout Foundation. Individuals may contribute monies toward a fellowship in honor of someone else: an Eagle Scout, a Graduate, a Silver Beaver/Vigil Honor recipient,Scoutmaster/Cubmaster, Retiree, council president or special loved ones including non-Scouters, youth or adults.
Fellowships can also be provided in memory of a departed loved one, business associate or special Scouter or non-Scouter.
The award is named after the first Chief Scout Executive of the Boy Scouts of America who exemplified Ralph Waldo Emerson's observation that "an institution is the lengthened shadow of one man". Today, Scouting is the "lengthened shadow" of the more than three decades of the farseeing and dedicated leadership of Dr. James E. West.
Contributions to the East Texas Boy Scout Foundation through the James E. West Fellowship are never spent; only the interest is used to further the programs and outreach of the East Texas Area Council. As a member of the James E. West Fellowship, you may attend one of the Fellowship Weeks at Philmont Scout Ranch or Florida Sea Base. Contact (903) 597-7201 for more information.
Completed forms should be mailed to the Council Service Center at 1331 East 5th Street, Tyler, TX 75701 or faxed to (903) 597-0141 or sent via email. For more information on this or other endowment societies, please contact us at the Council Service Center (903) 597-7201.
What is a James E. West Fellowship Award?
The James E. West Fellowship Award is a recognition authorized by the National Council, BSA and presented by the East Texas Area Council for individuals and chartered units who contribute $1,000 or more in cash or securities to the East Texas Boy Scout Foundation. This contribution is in addition to, and should not diminish or replace, the donor's annual gift to Friends of Scouting Campaign.
Who was James E. West?
James E. West was appointed to the position of Chief Scout Executive in 1910 by the founding leadership of Scouting in America. West worked with Sir Robert Baden-Powell, Daniel Carter Beard, Ernest T. Seton, and many interested community leaders to give direction to the infant program of Boy Scouts of America. On January 2, 1911, West and others formed the National Council, B.S.A. During that year the Scout Oath, Law, badges and fundamental policies were established. Under his leadership over the next 33 years, Scouting grew and matured into the program we recognize and enjoy today. "Scouting today is the lengthened shadow of more than three decades of the farseeing and dedicated leadership of Dr. James E. West."
Who can Become a James E. West Fellow?
How is the James E. West Fellowship Recognized?
The James E. West Fellowship Award is an attractive 8 X 10 inch certificate, personalized with the honorees name, date of gift and presented in a bound presentation folder. In addition, there will be a distinctive lapel pin and an embroidered square knot and 2 limited edition Council Shoulder Patches. The recognition is immediate and may be presented after the commitment is paid to become a James E. West Fellowship member.


text:
Azure Security Deep Dive
By John Mello
Platform Best Practice Skill Level: Technical
Operating your Azure infrastructure in the public cloud requires a lot of consideration. Today's organizations may have data stored in traditional places, like data centers and on-premises networks, and data elsewhere, like in endpoints, with third-party vendors, and in the cloud. In those environments, identifying who or what is accessing data and ensuring access is limited is critically important. Just as perimeter defenses were once the prime way to protect data, now identity has assumed that role.
With identity as the new perimeter, organizations need to fashion their data protection strategy as if the network controls they've implemented don't exist. In that least privilege or Zero Trust world, anyone or anything that accesses data needs to be authenticated, not just once, but continually. What's more, they shouldn't be given more access than they need to fulfill their job.
Maintaining a Zero Trust environment can be a complex task. It can require the creation of thousands of rules to achieve the granular permissions needed to make the process work. That's why it's important for organizations to understand public cloud provider's security approach. With that, let's hone in on Azure security.
Let's take a deeper look into Microsoft Azure.
Microsoft is an immigrant to the cloud, migrating there from the enterprise world. The company realized early on that the cloud was an existential threat to its business, and that it had to make a strong cloud offering, or there would be no more Microsoft. That's why it has shown a tremendous commitment to Azure.
Azure was created for building, testing, deploying, and managing applications and services through its global network of data centers. It is built with customized hardware and has security controls integrated into its hardware and firmware components.
Microsoft has more than 3,500 cybersecurity experts working to keep Azure secure and an extensive threat intelligence operation that includes analysis of 18 billion Bing web pages, 400 billion emails, a billion Windows device updates, and 450 billion monthly authentications.
Azure security is based on Microsoft's Active Directory product, with some modifications for cloud operation. Because Active Directory is popular — it has a 95% market share in Fortune 500 companies — Azure will appear familiar to many IT professionals, which makes it comfortable for them to work with. On the other hand, because Active Directory has on-premise networking roots, some of its mechanisms aren't as well-suited to the cloud as some of Azure's competitors.
For example, multi-tenancy wasn't a Microsoft strong suit. Hence, some features that worked in on-premises deployments didn't work when they were cut and pasted into the cloud. In addition, some functions don't work the way they do in an on-prem world.
Nevertheless, because of the strong connection to Active Directory, it's easy to sync an enterprise Active Directory to Azure so all the identities, groups, and memberships from the enterprise just float into the cloud where all the controls on those things are preserved.
Microsoft's enterprise experience is evident in Azure in other ways, too. When designing Azure, Microsoft imposed tighter controls on setting up accounts to prevent scenarios where anyone with a credit card can spin up an account for an organization. Once an email domain is registered with an account, it's difficult to set up another Azure account with it. That helps avoid a problem that pops up in AWS where organizations don't know where all their accounts are. It also helps put a damper on the use of "Shadow IT" in the cloud.
Another strong suit of Azure is its use of encryption by default. It supports several encryption models. They include server-side encryption that uses service-managed keys, customer-managed keys in Key Vault, or customer-managed keys on customer-controlled hardware. With client-side encryption, keys can be managed and stored on-premises or in another secure location.
Microsoft Azure provides a foundation for your organization to host your infrastructure and applications while also providing some built-in security services and unique intelligence to protect workloads. Microsoft's included a breadth of security tools that span across identity, networking, data, and IoT and to help organizations manage their security posture.
Sonrai Security can help.
If your organization has implemented Microsoft Azure and your organization is not sure where risks maybe, Sonrai Security can help. Our platform delivers a complete risk model of all these identity and data relationships, including activity and movement across cloud accounts, cloud providers, and third-party data stores.
The Sonrai Security platform has been developed to help organizations improve security, ensure compliance and increase operational efficiencies for Microsoft Azure and other cloud platforms. Core to the service is the ability to gain a centralized and consistent view into cloud identity and data relationships, activity, and data movement across cloud accounts, cloud providers, and third-party data stores. Request a demo of the Sonrai Security platform to see if this solution is right for your cloud environment.


text:
Nawazuddin Siddiqui wraps up US, Australia schedules of No Land's Man- Cinema express
Nawazuddin Siddiqui wraps up US, Australia schedules of No Land's Man
Directed by Bangladeshi filmmaker Mostofa Sarwar Farooki, the film tells the story of a South Asian man who meets an Australian girl in the US
Published: 03rd January 2020
Nawazuddin Siddiqui has wrapped up the New York and Sidney schedules of his upcoming international film No Land's Man. Directed by Bangladeshi filmmaker Mostofa Sarwar Farooki, the film tells the story of a South Asian man who meets an Australian girl in the US.
No Land's Man won the Motion Picture Association of America and Asia Pacific Screen Awards' script development fund in 2014. It was part of the Asian Project Market at Busan and was chosen as the best project at India's Film Bazaar the same year.
The film is produced by Mostafa and popular Bangladeshi actor Nusrat Imrose Tisha via their Chabial outfit. Nawazuddin is a co-producer on the project.
Mostofa has directed internationally-acclaimed films Third Person Singular Number, Television, and No Bed Of Roses.
Nawazuddin Siddiqui was last seen in Housefull 4 and Motichoor Chaknachoor. His upcoming releases are Bole Chudiyan, Raat Akeli Hai and Serious Men.
Nawazuddin Siddiqui No Land's Man


text:
Q: Darboux Theorem for open interval http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darboux%27s_theorem_%28analysis%29
In order for function to have the  intermediate value property , according to Darboux Theorem, can we use open interval like $(a,b)$  or we must closed interval like $[a,b]$ ?
because in some books it's written differently than Wiki. (closed interval)
thank you.

A: I think $f(x)$ has to be differentiable on $(a,b)$ and continuous on $[a,b]$ (or equivalently the value $f(a)$ and $f(b)$ exist.) Differentiability at $a$ and $b$ cannot be defined in a simple manner.
On the other hand, if one requires differentiability on $(a,b)$ only, then $f(x)$ can be differentiable at every $x > a$, but $f(a)$ is not defined. For example $f'(x) \sim 1/x$ for $a=0$.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


The art of capturing your story.
From corporate video production to live broadcast events, our production crews will manage your production down to the detail. Our crews have years of experience managing video projects, from the simple one-camera shoot to a complex on-location event. We offer our clients a range of production packages from basic ENG camera package configurations, to custom, on-location custom systems designed for complex events.
Our professional production crews use creative approaches and the latest technology to ensure your video project comes in on time, on budget, and delivers on your video vision. We are committed to delivering professional, flawless productions every time, no matter what it takes.
VideoLink crews. Reliable. Experienced. Versatile.


Die erste gedruckte Version der Rede des Suquamish-Häuptlings Seattle erschien im Seattle Sunday Star, 1887-10-27, Seite 10.
Häuptling Seattle (Sealth) vom Stamm der Duwamish (Mutter), bzw. Suquamish (Vater) hielt seine Rede im Dezember 1854 auf das Angebot, bzw. die Aufforderung von Isaac I. Stevens, dem neuen Gouverneur für Washington, das Land des Stammes an die Regierung zu verkaufen und in eine Reservation zu gehen (bzw. sich mit einem wesentlich kleineren Stück Land zufriedenzugeben).
Der Arzt Dr. Henry Smith hat die hier abgedruckte englische Version, die wir von Prof. Tom Hess aus Kanada erhielten. offensichtlich nach weiteren Gesprächen mit Seattle geschrieben.
Ausführliche Erläuterungen wie es zu den einzelnen Versionen kam, findet man in der Literatur, z.B. E. Gifford und R.M. Cook (ed.) "Wie kann man den Himmel verkaufen ?", Lamuv Tb. 202, Göttingen, 1992.
Unser Verlag hat seit 1976 die inhaltlich gekürzte, andererseits stark ausgemalte Version von Ted Perrys Film nach William Arrowsmiths Text-Version in deutsch und englisch, zusammen mit einem Kommentar zur nicht-nachhaltigen Kultur der Weißen von Johnny Mohawk, veröffentlicht (Quelle: Die Unabhängigen, Okt. 1976) - es wurden 25.000 Heftchen verkauft.
Seit 1982 wurde diese Version in Esperanto und englisch mit Holzschnitten von Yac Yero veröffentlicht; Aufl. 2.000. Da Yac Yero (gest. 2008) die Holzschnitte in Kanada unter dem Eindruck dieser Rede - im Kontakt mit der Indianischen Kultur - geschaffen hat, sollen sie hier, zusammen mit dem zweisprachigen Text "verewigt" werden.
Da diese Textversion nicht die originale ist, und andere Versionen immer noch erhältlich sind, haben wir uns entschlossen sie nicht weiter gedruckt herauszugeben.
Our good father Washington - for I presume he is now our father as well as yours, since King George has moved his boundaries further north - our great and good father, I say, sends us word that if we do as he desires he will protect us. His brave warriors will be to us a bristling wall of strength, and his wonderful ships of war will fill our harbors so that our ancient enemies far to the northward - the Hydas and Tsimpsians - will cease to frighten our women, children and old men. Then in reality will he be our father and we his children. But can that ever be? Your God is not our God! Your God loves your people and hates mine. He folds his strong protecting arms lovingly about the paleface and leads him by the hand as a father leads his infant son - but He has forsaken His red children - if they really are His. Our God, the Great Spirit, seems also to have forsaken us. Your God makes your people wax strong every day. Soon they will fill all the land. Our people are ebbing away like a rapidly receding tide that will never return. The white man's God cannot love our people or He would protect them. They seem to be orphans who can look nowhere for help. How then can we be brothers? How can your God become our God and renew our prosperity and awaken in us dreams of returning greatness? If we have a common heavenly father He must be partial - for He came to His paleface children. We never saw Him. He gave you laws but had no word for his red children whose teeming multitudes once filled this vast continent as stars fill the firmament. No; we are two distinct races with separate origins and separate destinies. There is little in common between us. To us the ashes of our ancestors are sacred and their resting place is hallowed ground. You wander far from the graves of your ancestors and seemingly without regret. Your religion was written upon tables of stone by the iron finger of your God so that you could not forget. The Red Man could never comprehend nor remember it. Our religion is the traditions of our ancestors - the dreams of our old men, given them in the solemn hours of night by the Great Spirit; and the visions of our sachems, and is written in the hearts of our people. Your dead cease to love you and the land of their nativity as soon as they pass the portals of the tomb and wander way beyond the stars. They are soon forgotten and never return. Our dead never forget the beautiful world that gave them being. They still love its verdant valleys, its murmuring rivers, its magnificent mountains, sequestered vales and verdant lined lakes and bays, and ever yearn in tender, fond affection over the lonely hearted living, and often return from the Happy Hunting Ground to visit, guide, console and comfort them. Day and night cannot dwell together. The Red Man has ever fled the approach of the White Man, as the morning mist flees before the morning sun. However, your proposition seems fair and I think that my people will accept it and will retire to the reservation you offer them. Then we will dwell in peace, for the words of the Great White Chief seem to be the words of nature speaking to my people out of dense darkness. It matters little where we pass the remnant of our days. They will not be many. The Indians' night promises to be dark. Not a single star of hope hovers above his horizon. Sad-voiced winds moan in the distance. Grim fate seems to be on the Red Man's trail, and wherever he goes he will hear the approaching footsteps of his fell destroyer and prepare stolidly to meet his doom, as does the wounded doe that hears the approaching footsteps of the hunter. A few more moons. A few more winters - and not one of the descendants of the mighty hosts that once moved over this broad land or lived in happy homes, protected by the Great Spirit, will remain to mourn over the graves of a people - once more powerful and hopeful than yours. But why should I mourn at the untimely fate of my people? Tribe follows tribe, and nation follows nation, like the waves of the sea. It is the order of nature, and regret is useless. Your time of decay may be distant, but it will surely come, for even the White Man whose God walked and talked with him as friend with friend, cannot be exempt from the common destiny. We may be brothers after all. We will see. We will ponder your proposition and when we decide we will let you know. But should we accept it, I here and now make this condition that we will not be denied the privilege without molestation of visiting at any time the tombs of our ancestors, friends and children. Every part of this soil is sacred in the estimation of my people. Every hillside, every valley, every plain and grove, has been hallowed by some sad or happy event in days long vanished. Even the rocks, which seem to be dumb and dead as they swelter in the sun along the silent shore, thrill with memories of stirring events connected with the lives of my people, and the very dust upon which you now stand responds more movingly to their footsteps than to yours, because it is rich with the blood of our ancestors and our bare feet are conscious of the sympathetic touch. Our departed braves, fond mothers, glad happy-hearted maidens, and even our little children who lived here and rejoiced here for a brief season, will love these somber solitudes and at eventide they greet shadowy returning spirits. And when the last Red Man shall have perished, and the memories of my tribe shall have become a myth among the White men, these shores will swarm with the invisible dead of my tribe, and when your children's children think themselves alone in the field, the store, the shop, upon the highway, or in the silence of the pathless woods, they will not be alone. On all the earth there is no place dedicated to solitude. At night when the streets of your cities and villages are silent and you think them deserted, they will throng with the returning hosts that once filled them and still love this beautiful land. The White man will never be alone. Let him be just and deal kindly with my people, for the dead are not powerless. Dead, did I say? There is no death, only a change of worlds.


text:
Marina El Cid Spa & Beach Resort Premium Ai BLVD. EL CID UNIDAD 15, PUERTO MORELOS, , 77580
The beach hotel in the Riviera Mayan region is part of a newly developed complex just outside Puerto Morelos. It lies in the middle of the Coral national park and exactly halfway between Cancun and Playa del Carmen. The centre of Puerto Morelos is only a short walk away. Cancun international airport is about 25 km to the north of the hotel.--Built in 2005 in a combination of colonial and modern architecture, the luxurious all-inclusive complex comprises a total of 350 spectacular rooms and suites. The air-conditioned hotel features a lobby area with a 24-hour reception desk, a safe, a cloakroom, lift access, a café, a bar and a restaurant. Also on offer is a TV lounge, public Internet access, a WLAN access point and laundry and room services. Bicycle hire, a kids' club, a playground and a car park are also available. The hotel was designed with an all-inclusive concept, allowing guests to try new dishes and enjoy unforgettable meals. Friendly bar staff, wine and cheese-tasting, as well as romantic dinners in a private setting belong to the services on offer, as do tea-time, a coffee bar in the lobby with a selection of different coffees, Italian ice cream in the restaurant, champagne at sunset and much more.--The stylish rooms range from spacious junior suites to luxurious 3 bedroom suites, directly by the sea and in low buildings with a maximum of 4 floors. The amenities in each room include a double or king-size bed, air conditioning, a bathroom/ shower, a hairdryer, an iron and ironing board, a direct dial telephone, satellite/ cable TV, a balcony or terrace, a minibar, a tea/ coffee maker and a hire safe. In every 2 and 3 bedroom suite guests will find a Jacuzzi by the balcony. All suites have either a sea view or are directly on the beach.
Marina El Cid Spa & Beach Resort Premium Ai
BLVD. EL CID UNIDAD 15, PUERTO MORELOS, Mexico, 77580


text:
Language: EN ES
Oil, Gas & Other Natural Resources
Critical Power Supply
December 17, 2019 • 9:00 am PT / 12:00 pm ET
Alphadirect Virtual Conference Series, on "Capstone and the Renewable Future", Featuring James "Jim" Crouse, Capstone's Chief Revenue Officer
WebcastPresentation
February 6, 2020 • 1:45 pm PT / 4:45 pm ET
Capstone Turbine Q3 Fiscal Year 2020 Earnings Conference Call Webcast
WebcastMore Info
Award Winning Capstone CHP Installation...
IR Education
Award Winning Capstone CHP Installation Surpasses 700,000 Operating Hours
VAN NUYS, Calif., Jan. 29, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Capstone Turbine Corporation (www.capstoneturbine.com) (Nasdaq:CPST), the world's leading clean technology manufacturer of microturbine energy systems, announced today that the installation at Masonic Village in Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania has surpassed 700,000 operating hours.
Capstone microturbines generate electricity and heating at the 1,400-acre complex serving more than 1,700 residents since 1910.
Opened in 1910, Masonic Village is a 1,400-acre complex consisting of a continuing-care retirement community, children's home, and community service organization. When the village needed to update their old coal-burning plant with a more efficient and reliable solution, they turned to Capstone microturbines. In 2002, five natural gas-fueled Capstone C60 microturbines with third-party heat recovery modules were installed in a combined heat and power (CHP) configuration to provide the electrical and thermal solution for the facility.
E-Finity Distributed Generation, Capstone's exclusive Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern distributor, took over the site in 2007. Utilizing the Capstone product developments at the time, they upgraded the array from C60s to C65s, increasing the electrical output by 25 kilowatts (kW) and boosting the thermal efficiency by 47%. Masonic Village expanded their microturbine array by adding a sixth C65 with an integrated heat recovery module in 2011 to accommodate their growing energy needs. E-Finity has been overseeing and maintaining the Masonic Village installation since 2007 with the Capstone Factory Protection Plan (FPP).
The installation recently exceeded 700,000 total operating hours, with one of the C65 microturbines surpassing 135,000 hours alone. The microturbines have produced over 130,000-megawatt hours (MWh) of electrical and thermal energy, which is capable of powering 14,500 homes per year. The system has also helped Masonic Village reduce their carbon footprint by over 3,000 tons, generating carbon savings equivalent to eliminating 27 million miles driven by an average passenger vehicle.
"The Masonic Village installation truly sets our microturbine technology apart from other power generation technologies as I do not see a similar sized internal combustion engine or fuel cell having this type of reliability and longevity," said Darren Jamison, President and Chief Executive Officer of Capstone. "I understand that end-use customers like to focus on project first costs but what they really should focus on is overall system reliability, efficiency, uptime and length of continuous duty operation as that has much more impact on project economics and environmental benefits, not to mention operational resiliency," added Mr. Jamison.
Masonic Village is the recipient of the 2007 EPA CHP Partner Focus Award and is a final nominee for the 2018 EPA ENERGY STAR CHP Award for its continued highly efficient performance and significant ongoing environmental benefit.
"Capstone microturbines are long-term assets, designed to last in excess of 20 years," said Jeff Beiter, Managing Partner of E-Finity Distributed Generation. "Having approximately 17 years of continuous operation, Masonic Village is a testament to the longevity and reliability of Capstone technology. It is achievements such as this that clearly set Capstone microturbines apart within their own industry as leading class technology," concluded Mr. Beiter.
About Capstone Turbine Corporation
Capstone Turbine Corporation (www.capstoneturbine.com) (Nasdaq:CPST) is the world's leading producer of low-emission microturbine systems and was the first to market commercially viable microturbine energy products. Capstone has shipped over 9,000 Capstone Microturbine systems to customers worldwide. These award-winning systems have logged millions of documented runtime operating hours. Capstone is a member of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Combined Heat and Power Partnership, which is committed to improving the efficiency of the nation's energy infrastructure and reducing emissions of pollutants and greenhouse gases. A UL-Certified ISO 9001:2015 and ISO 14001:2015 certified company, Capstone is headquartered in the Los Angeles area with sales and/or service centers in the United States, Latin America, Europe, Middle East and Asia.
This press release contains "forward-looking statements," as that term is used in the federal securities laws. Forward-looking statements may be identified by words such as "expects," "objective," "intend," "targeted," "plan" and similar phrases. These forward-looking statements are subject to numerous assumptions, risks and uncertainties described in Capstone's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission that may cause Capstone's actual results to be materially different from any future results expressed or implied in such statements. Capstone cautions readers not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this release. Capstone undertakes no obligation, and specifically disclaims any obligation, to release any revisions to any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this release or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.
"Capstone" and "Capstone Microturbine" are registered trademarks of Capstone Turbine Corporation. All other trademarks mentioned are the property of their respective owners.
A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/61239d30-45e0-4065-b236-756a3e7cc9ab
Capstone Turbine Corporation
Investor and investment media inquiries:
ir@capstoneturbine.com
Source: Capstone Turbine Corporation
© Copyright 2020 Capstone Turbine Corporation All rights reserved. Powered by Equisolve


¿Crear ambiente para la paz?
Investigadores: Álvaro Villarraga Sarmiento; Fernando Sarmiento Santander; Magda López Cárdenas; Alfonso Insuasty Rodríguez; Yani Vallejo Duque y Yovanny Bermúdez, s.j.
Nota: No es costumbre del Análisis de Coyuntura de América Latina y el Caribe tratar temas a modo de monográfico, pero dada la dimensión de la promesa de cesar la guerra en Colombia consideramos pertinente dedicar este número a examinar el nuevo proceso que ahora se desarrolla.
kicpahttp://kicpa.snu.ac.kr/?document_srl=1940211/06/2018buy-social-website-traffic. dnn-services. clevio. mohaaaa. storyboard-books. ankorona. onsystem. langroud118.
statushttp://status.dhird.net/wildaedmon/all11/06/2018raviraj. snowgoer. buy-social-website-traffic. molweb. pyosewook. khda.kr. valongodovouga. die-leichte-kocherei.
myweboasishttp://www.myweboasis.com/messageboard/index.php?PHPSESSID=a29ni6clq21hh52gq6mtlp8b25&action=profile;u=63680511/06/2018helpdesk. epiup. s2slc. radio-sgom. cresign. xn---1-6kcatagi3d. clevio. campuscreators.
Frankrike Dimitri Payetdrakthttp://www.tumdekho.com/Frankrike-Dimitri-Payet-p-drakt-588708/06/2018Rather instructive looking ahead to returning.
Prima Maglia Evertonhttp://www.tiendasdecoralia.com/everton-home-jersey-p-italy25/05/2018Thanks meant for supplying these kinds of superb information.
fotballdrakt barnhttp://www.sybilmays.com/football-shirts-kids-c-norway25/05/2018Love the website-- really individual friendly and whole lots to see!
fodboldtrøjer børnhttp://www.localnannyservicecrew.com24/05/2018Wow because this is excellent job! Congrats and keep it up.
Hi there i am kavin, its my first time to commenting anyplace, when i read this paragraph i thought i could also make comment due to this brilliant piece of writing.http://deadpanunderwor45.unblog.fr/feed/02/07/2017Hi there i am kavin, its my first time to commenting anyplace, when i read this paragraph i thought i could also make comment due to this brilliant piece of writing.
Because the admin of this website is working, no doubt very soon it will be renowned, due to its quality contents.http://jollymotto185.jimdo.com/2016/03/04/shoe-lifts-for-leg-length-discrepancy/19/06/2017Because the admin of this website is working, no doubt very soon it will be renowned, due to its quality contents.


text:
Canadian Reggae World
Reggae For Life
JuLion's Post Election 2015 Canada - Jamaica
21st October, 2015
For a while there I felt more and more marginalized by the Canada that I was living in. The leader at the time was a Conservative, Stephen Harper, where I have come to expect those folks don't want to mingle with my kind. Not that I have issues with my personal worth but more to do with what the racist values of this planet have proven over and over and over again through history which was Harper's mandate and platform from which he operated.
"Don't you worry red man, we come in peace" or substituting slavery with the greatest system of yearly, centuries long degradation of the black races, "Here, sign a few of these treaties, borrow from the IMF and World Banks, give you a few more guns to kill yourselves in order to prove to you that you are unable to govern yourselves Jamaica / Haiti / Africa". Yes I am aware that the IMF is doing the same to Greece, Spain and Portugal but I have to bring my attention to Jamaica where I was born and haplessly watch as we become the poorest nation on this earth. "Proof that you people definitely cannot govern yourselves!"
History reoccurs because we always figure that it was an anomaly and will never happen again and while it starts again we act like it has nothing to do with us. We turn a blind eye because we have bills to pay, children to feed, jobs to keep and parties to attend. The holocaust, slavery, the random police shootings and brutality of black males weekly, are crimes against humanity yet we all go along because "that's just how it is" or "those people are animals any way so they deserve what happens to them".
Harper is a scary dude for sure! Yet it dawns on me that this guy, while spearheading Bill C-51 and Bill C-24 has the support of MANY because somehow, those bills got passed. There are MANY white Canadians who helped to pass those pieces of legislation. We act like Harper did it all by himself so now, the big bad wolf is gone. No my people those who support those ideologies of separation are our "friends", work mates, teachers, healthcare providers and LOTS of folks from different walks of life. More people than we care to admit, who enjoy their elitism and privilege, still give strong support to those bills and even if they are repelled at some point, I am not confused into thinking they can't and won't become re-implemented in the future times. History repeats...
For instance, it is / was perfectly clear that Harps didn't like native people much. Their women were disappearing at an alarming rate and he had no fucks to give. Aaaaand still doesn't! I hope the native vote helped to kick him out of office! Then he has a problem with Muslims and don't like them much either, so he goes out and picks on who? Their women of course! "Them there towel heads aint go get no legal representation in my country if they can't dress right!" Wherever this fellow had an issue he would pick on the women and we didn't defend them! I KNOW the Muslim votes helped to defeat this dude yet his racist / sexist polices are defended by many in this country. Stephen Harper is the tiny tip of a huge racist Canadian iceberg! He did not do all of this alone (I reiterate).
The big white elephant in the room!
The one that no one talks about and many who may take the time to read this will feign ignorance of "what white elephant" or shrug nonchalantly thinking, "It is the natural order of things, white privilege must be maintained". Some will say that I am the one who's racist and paranoid but heck, don't take my word, look back in history. It's the same story, century after century!
What disturbs me most is that during the time that it was happening none of us stepped up to stop this dude. We stood around and watched! We did not defend our women! If he were killing 1,400 white girls in Toronto you know there would be change long before he got to 14 murders! Why didn't we as a Canadian people do something sooner? Why didn't we protect our women? Easy answer, First Nations people aren't really Canadian because one has to be white to be truly Canadian with a family going back to several generations. Muslims? Sheeeeeet, they will never be Canadian!
It is my feeling that Stephen Harper should be charged with the murders of these women. When a leader maliciously kills the 'enemy' they and their generals are at times charged with war crimes. Harper should be tried, convicted and sent to jail! He should be put in general population with First Nation, Muslim and immigrant inmates where they can get their hands on him. Native Canadians became his 'enemy' and we still will do nothing to this guy! Oh crap, I forgot, they aint white!
The Canada I used to hear about around the world was a respected and revered people who could travel with way less harassment than Americans could for example, and somewhere along the way that changed drastically. I felt "Canadian" for a while, until recently of course. Now that I am officially a "2nd class citizen"! Blatant racism defended by some notion / excuse of national security. Word to the wise, when you are an asshole, you should learn to fight really well and employ the dirtiest tactics possible because folks will eventually want to retaliate so Steve was probably just beefing up for that battle.
Bill C-51 & Bill C-24!!!! These would become his shield.
Truth be told, the 2nd class thing isn't a huge surprise for me and many. I remember a time in 1988 when a Canadian won the Olympic gold medal, where a country rejoiced and celebrated as one, then there was a "steroid scandal" and that fellow was immediately "Jamaican born Ben Johnson" the very next day. What I knew then, as is proven by Bill C-24 is that racist behaviors are a constant here in Canada and are expected to be accepted as Harper was not yet the prime minister. Oh crap, it was another Conservative prime minister in Brian Mulroney. History repeats...
I know what some of those folks are saying, "Then why did you come to my country? Why don't you leave?"
Well, I came here as a youth and became Canadian is why. Dummy! I am a diehard Toronto Maple Leafs fan! I drink Tim Horton's coffee, complain during the seasonal temperature changes and paid taxes here all my life. Ok, had to drop a little satire in there because this isn't an angry rant (Lord KNOWS I have had a few of those in my past) yet more of a release of thought which I am afforded living in this amazing place that has allowed me to blossom as a human being.
I don't have to like or accept racism to love being Canadian.
This resounding result during this past election raised my Canadian pride because as many probably voted for Justin Trudeau based on the savvy, social media run campaign that the old redneck Stephen could not figure out, many simply voted against the redneck and are as happy as I to see him ride off into the sunset.
My romantic thought is that "humanity" prevailed.
Politics, balancing a national budget, foreign policy ideologies, change from leader to leader. Who's best for the country? Who's going to keep us employed? Who's going to make my life easier? Who's going to invest in my business and my life as an individual? Who's going to make my family feel secure?
From a fan boy standpoint, I grew up on Pierre Elliot Trudeau. He was a hero to many of us as children in Jamaica and when I got here, I was happy with that dude as my leader. He seemed to love Canada more than any man I could think of and made me feel included! I was always saddened when he lost an election yet he was always Trudeau. He was a rock star, an intellect, a pretty rude fellow when he wanted to be but most of all, a proud Canadian. I watched him vacation in Jamaica or wherever he went almost always with his children. He inspired me as a man and as a father. I loved how proud he seemed of his family and was never afraid to show his love for them.
The biggest knock on Justin coming in and will be used time and again in the future is that "Justin is just not ready. He aint no Pierre Trudeau!" Well, while the redneck leaned on that rhetoric during the campaign, Justin and his advisors showed their 'readiness" by kicking his ass. They ran an upbeat, positive, responsible, savvy campaign against Harper who spent MILLIONS trying to hang on to a job that he stunk at! They say that George W. Bush was America's worst president ever (charged with war crimes by the UN, I believe). In my estimation, Stephen Harper is the worst Canadian prime minister in this country's history! Justin is "ready" enough to eliminate the cancer that Harper is! I feel filled with hope for the first time in a LONG time! Sure, we all know politics and this could be just another politician with another story yet based on his pedigree I feel great hope.
A vote for "humanity" just happened. Now I seek even more! I am encouraged by this change to elevate my own place of birth. There is no reason that a country that produces billions in the tourist industry, creates the world's fastest runners, invents three distinctive types of music in Ska, Rocksteady & Reggae, and produces innovative, talented musicians, should have to have to live in abject poverty, murder, rape and hopelessness. The murdering of Jamaicans must cease! Will cease!
It is not self inflicted and we are all aware of that! It is an orchestrated phenomena tried and tested on all black nations as all history books will show.
I focus on the positive. I focus on the impact this tiny island's people has brought to the world for decades now. I know the true worth of Jamaicans. It is evident in the impact and influence of language, dress, music, dance, art, fashion, intellect that Jamaica has brought to this world. Jamaica's greatest asset and export is its people. We will figure this out. The time is now.
The IMF / World Bank white supremacists won't change. That is proven history!
Our hope is in humanity as it was here in Canada. Blessed to be a part of this shift! Proud to be Canadian! Proud of my Jamaican heritage!
Yes king love the I views as usual I A BUSS IT PAN DEM illusion dem baby deh ca fool wi the hole world soon wake up untill den we a STAND FIRM 1 love unity wi seh
CynRQi
Thanks for sharing. The time is now. #wetrending the #1Love #GlobalFamily Movement.
Good to read something from the heart and soul. Keep it real Julio.


For an elevated look to your design, choose the Metro White Matte Hexagon Porcelain Mosaic with a matte finish. Use this white tile to add new visual interest in any space like the bathroom, kitchen, living room, and more.
Whether you're looking to create an accent piece or give a bigger area unique appeal, you can upgrade your space with Metro White Matte Hexagon Porcelain Mosaic.


text:
✖ Goofy
Posted on Monday, January 14th, 2008
Yesterday I left for the Biloxi airport at 4:00am and was dreading the day to come. With four connecting flights ahead of me... all with very short layovers... the odds of something going wrong along the way was huge. First flight: Biloxi to Memphis - on time. Second flight: Memphis to Minneapolis - on time. Third flight: Minneapolis to Seattle - on time. Fourth flight: Seattle to Wenatchee - uhhhhhhhhhh... not so much.
Wenatchee was fogged-in, and not a single flight had made it into the city all day. Not surprisingly, my flight was also canceled. This meant I got to hang around the airport with a bunch of really cranky people while waiting to see if we were going to be bussed, or if I would have to find a hotel and get re-booked for another flight.
And so the bus it was.
Three hours on a bus with 56 of my closest friends.
Which was lovely, let me tell you.
And yet, that was nothing... nothing... compared to the torture I was forced to endure tonight.
Because tonight was when a group of us from work decided to go see National Treasure: Book of Secrets.
Don't misunderstand me here though... the torture wasn't in watching the movie. Sure it was a complete re-tread of the first movie with no real improvements or memorable story elements. Sure it had so many plot holes that I was pulling my hair out at the end. And sure it pained me to see the remarkable Helen Mirren lowering herself to appear in something so mediocre and poorly directed. But all that was to be expected.
What was NOT expected was that Disney would make you sit through a Goofy cartoon before the film actually started. I fucking HATE Goofy. I find absurdly stupid cartoon characters to be just a annoying and un-funny as absurdly stupid people. I mean, seriously, this shit is supposed to be humor?
Well, no thanks.
I prefer to take my crappy movies WITHOUT a shitty cartoon up front.
Goofy?
Sigh. I would gladly trade every Goofy cartoon ever made for a single new episode of Invader Zim.
borysSNORC says:
I think you gotta chill a bit Dave…. it's not Goofy's fault he's so reminds us all so much of George Dubya.
OK, remember our convo on my cartoon issues? This 'Goofy' observation summed up every cartoon I ever watched as a kid. I found them all stupid and if there's one thing I hate more than an APR going sky high with no advance warning, it's stupidity.
Only I forgot the name you called me. What was it again?
You know, I never really thought about it, but Goofy is pretty damn annoying…
You have no idea how big a deal this is in the Disney community. I haven't seen it yet, so I can't say one way or another, although I do enjoy the nostalgia of it, at least in theory.
It's all part of Lasseter's bringing back Disney.
Göran says:
National Treasure: Book of Secrets was a total let down. I was so disappointed and cranky when leaving the theatre I almost demanded my money back.
~jtm says:
Ah! Invader Zim… we love that in our house. My 13 y/o can probably quote you any line from any episode .
I thought you knew about goofy as you emailed me about it when I went to see the film. I however didn't grow up on Goofy so I enjoyed it – the film wasn't that bad either if you ignored the plot holes
serap says:
I quite liked goofy… and I never thought he was stupid as a kid, just really clumsy, sort of in a Laurel and Hardy way. But I haven't seen a goofy cartoon in a very long time, so really these are my thoughts as an 8 year old!
kapgar says:
And here I was thinking there was a slim chance you'd forgive the cartoon because of the HD plotline to it. Guess not.
Miss Britt says:
The passion here Dave is.. um… remarkable. 😉
"I mean, seriously, this shit is supposed to be humor?"
Only if you're five years old.
Avitable says:
But don't you see the irony? Goofy's actually the smartest one – he just pretends to be dumb so everyone underestimates him before he kills them all.
bogup says:
I always felt pity for Goofy since he couldn't help being constantly clumsy and stupid.
Foo says:
Shreddin' the Goof Man…Well, I've got mad respect for him, after all…he showed me the way in driver's ed.
I'm with you on not showing cartoons at a movie. Unless the movie is made for 5 years old then it just shouldn't be. I don't think anyone should be forced into Goofy without some sort of fore knowledge.
Many many (many) years ago I saw Journey in concert, night before the last day of 9th grade. Their opening band (I don't remember who it was) didn't show so they dropped big – BIG – screens over the stage and played 1/2 hr of cartoons until the band came on. Granted, it was Bugs Bunny, but still. I don't remember paying that much money to watch cartoons.
Have you put aside some money for a MacBook air ?.
It is sex in a metal case………….
ajooja says:
Helen Mirren was supposedly in "Raising Helen." It's not like every movie role movie has to be a Merchant-Ivory film. Besides, popcorn flicks pay the bills and give you the money to pursue your art.
The key is to not ruin your career like Cuba Gooding, Jr.
Couldn't agree more about Goofy. What an assbag!
Hilly says:
Ahhhh, *this* explains the mental breakdown in the middle of Disneyland. 😉
I too was offended by the dumbshittery that was the cartoon.
If they want to get all retro, why not just throw in a 10 min. GI Joe short? I'd even settle for the smurfs.
Now that I think about it, I guess I "put up with" Goofy. I didn't think much about it at the time; besides, I was much more of a Looney Tunes devotee than Disney. Disney was for Sunday night on TV and bringing us kick-ass DREAM BIG movies like Escape from Witch Mountain, Cat from Outer Space, Pete's Dragon and Herbie.
Yeah! Totally what's with that?
That and, like, blogs with cartoons in them!
kaelb says:
Now you are making me miss Invader Zim.
Lewis says:
too bad those wenatchee flights don't come through portland….you could come and hang with us. we're right by the airport! sorry for all of the trouble. ick.
I might not be too crazy on Goofy either, but the subject matter of the cartoon was spot-on for me. I was almost in tears by the time he got around to installing the surround sound..and sub woofer. "Front speakers..a little more to the side front speakers..front corner speakers.."
It was probably the same Goofy "short" that I saw before National Treasure 2 aswell (giant TV's…?).
I hated it too. I know Disney is Pixar, but they should defintely not try and copy those amazing creative shorts.
Sugar Kane says:
Goofy, Pluto, Mickey. I hate them all. The worst is that Taz fucker.
the patient says:
I know. What was up with that cartoon. I was incensed and amazed that people actually laughed. But then, people voted in the current president too. Now, a cartoon of Bush trying to set up a home theater system would have been hi-larious.


text:
Pokercast.eu
WinCake Poker
Poker Videos Streaming
Free Bankrolls
Free Cash Wizard
Pokerstrategy Quiz
Non US Free Bankrolls
Pokerstrategy
PokerNetOnline
US Free Bankrolls
Bankrollmob
YourPokerCash
Poker Source Online
XML Parsing Error at 1:1187. Error 23: EntityRef: expecting ';'
Back Poker World Live Poker Incredible true story of the geek behind online poker in the US
Incredible true story of the geek behind online poker in the US
Incredible true story of the geek behind online poker in the US who made $80m by age of 25 - then turned FBI rat when his life of cocaine, hookers, private jets and yachts came crashing down
Daniel Tzvetkoff's payment processing program turned online poker into a billion dollar industry almost overnight
Australian wrote the code as a teenager in his parent's basement in Brisbane
As a multimillionaire his 'toys' included a private jet, $7.8million yacht and a $70,000 Lamborghini. His home was worth $28million
Now new book tells how this masked a web of fake internet sites, money laundering and fraud on both sides of the Pacific
Reveals how personal betrayals destroyed Tzvetkoff's business and left him bankrupt and facing jail
And tells how he turned FBI informant, in witness protection over testimony that led to a string of indictments and online poker's 'Black Friday'
It was as much a boast as a challenge, yelled at his friend across the thud of a Las Vegas nightclub.
'You've got one hour and a one hundred thousand dollar budget to throw us the biggest party in town. What do you say?'
Sixty minutes later Daniel Tzvetkoff and a cohort of high rollers and hangers-on were partying in the Palm Hotel's Playboy Mansion Suite. Tzvetkoff swigged Cristal champagne straight from the bottle and lounged in the infinity pool. Naked girls snorted cocaine off each other's breasts and invited him to do the same.
Tzvetkoff was 25 years old. He could have anyone he wanted at the click of his fingers. He flew by private jet, drove Lamborghinis, Rolls Royces, Bentleys, Ferraris and more and his property portfolio was worth millions.
Winning: Daniel, right, poses with his business partner, attorney Sam Sciacca, in 2008 on the day he was named in Business Weekly Review's Young Rich List. His online payment processing system saw his personal wealth soar to an estimaged $80million
And on that September night in Vegas, 2008, he had no idea just how close to the sun he was flying or how catastrophically he would crash to earth.
Now, for the first time, a new book tells the story of the spectacular rise and fall of the Australian 'programming geek' who 'built' online poker in America…then tore it down.
James Leighton's 'Alligator Blood' – a title taken from poker slang for a fearless player – tells how, within three years of that night in Las Vegas, Tzvetkoff was living in witness protection in Harlem, New York. Bankrupt, a target of the mob and under threat of imprisonment, he turned FBI informant to become the man behind online poker's Black Friday.
On 15 April 2011, the Department of Justice raided three of the world's biggest online Poker sites: 75 bank accounts across 14 countries were frozen and billions of winnings, House 'rakings' and personal fortunes vanished in an instant. Within 48 Tzvetkoff went from high flying prodigy to dead man walking.
The film rights to the book have already been bought by Robert Luketic, the director and writer behind hit moves 21 and Legally Blonde.
Party people: Draped around his fiancee Nicole, far left, Daniel is pictured here at a costume party in Las Vegas hosted by Playboy magazine.
Unstoppable: Daniel poses with his arm round business partner Curtis Pope on a night out with fiancee Nicole, left, and friends in Los Angeles. The men were like brothers until Pope betrayed Daniel in the worst possible way
And certainly the story as Leighton tells it reads like a Hollywood script. Born in Ipswich, Australia, the grandson of refugees from Bulgaria, Daniel Kim Tzvetkoff, now 31, grew up in a middle-class neighborhood of Camp Hill on Brisbane's south side. He went to the nearby Catholic boys school, Villanova College.
He was quiet and picked on, a computer nerd whose IQ may have been sky-high but whose social skills were low. He retreated into a more comfortable realm of computers and programming. By the time he was 13 he was running his own web design business.
At 16, he was animating cartoons for the New York Times online. And by the time he left school in 2000, he'd come up with a software for processing online payments securely. It was ingenius and brilliantly timed. Internet sales were just taking off.
Morning after the night before: Daniel, right, with friend Joe Mannino. Earlier the men had partied all night in the Palm Hotel's Playboy Mansion Suite after Daniel gave Joe $100,000 and 1 hour to organise the party of their lives
Letting the good times roll: Daniel's fiance, Nicole, dances with a friend on the table of a Las Vegas club
In 2004 Tzvetkoff joined forces with Sam Sciacca, an attorney 12 years his senior who had the business acumen and savvy that Tzvetkoff lacked. The processing business Intabill was born and began doing a healthy trade processing payments for pharmaceutical companies, travel, music and porn.
The business partnership also led to Tzvetkoff meeting Nicole, Sciacca's pretty brunette assistant who would go onto be Tzvetkoff's wife and the mother of his son, now age 4 and daughter, now 2.
In 2006, at a tech fair in New York, Tzvetkoff and his expertise drew the attention of the powerhouses behind online poker. The Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act had been passed that year. For a high risk processor like Intabill it was the perfect storm.
The legislation made making or moving money online, for bets or wagers on any 'sporting event or contest or game of chance,' illegal. Online Poker companies argued that poker was none of these. It was a game of skill.
Most major processors pulled out, unconvinced of the legality of the business just at the time its earning potential was soaring.
Life in the fast lane: Curtis Pope poses next to the Ferrari given to him by Daniel. No-one knew that the younger man was siphoning off Intabill funds in the form or personal 'loans' to himself
Life's a beach: Daniel's purchase of a $28million property on Mermaid Beach brought a clamour of publicity that made his more cautious partner, Sam Sciacca, nervous
Tzvetkoff and Sciacca saw their chance and grabbed it. They signed with three major sites – PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker and Absolute Poker. From out of nowhere Intabill was suddenly a major player.
In a matter of months Tzvetkoff was earning $3million a week. He bought a Lamborghini and threw in $80,000 for an advanced driving coast. He splashed out on a $2.5million condo on the Gold Coast and set up home with his girlfriend, Nicole.
In 2007, Tzvetkoff earned an estimated $20million for his services to America's online poker industry and estimated that Intabill's business had grown '10 to 20 per cent' every month since its inception.
He bought one of the most expensive homes in Australia, a $28million beachfront home on Mermaid Beach and a $70,000 golf membership and his own V8 super car race team.
By 2008 he was listed on the Business Review Weekly Young Rich List, with his personal fortune estimated at $80million.
But for somebody making money in what was, at best, a legal grey area, such attention grabbing behavior was breathtakingly reckless. Legal forces in both Australia and the States began to take note.
Liquid assets: Among Daniel's many extravagances was this $7.5million 98ft yacht
High flyers: From left to right, Michael Hui, one of Intabill's money men, Daniel and Curtis Pope stand proudly in front of Daniel's newly acquired private jet
Under increasing scrutiny Tzvetkoff came up with ever more ingenious ways to ensure that money from online poker was clean as far as the banks and Australian and American governments were concerned.
He romped across continents, bouncing between Las Vegas, New York, Los Angeles, Brisbane and Sydney spending money at an even more alarming rate than he made it.
His behaviour became more and more flamboyant. He opened a nightclub called Zuri (Swahili for beautiful) in Brisbane. He had iron gates sourced from Argentinian banks, crystal chandeliers and cloth supposedly used in the Palace of Versailles. This was Tzvektoff's Bonfire of the Vanities as he burned through millions.
House of cards: Daniel added to his empire by opening the nightclub, Zuri, in Australia. It's interior, above, was an exercise in opulence and excess
In 2008 he became embroiled with Texan, Curtis Pope, a figure with something of the Wolf of Wall Street Jordan Belfort's brash charm.
Together with Pope, Tzvetkoff's exploits became ever more daring. He joined forces with Pope's company, Trendsact, and another called Impact Payments, run by an associate of Pope, John Scott Clark.
Both processed payday loans and soon billions of dollars of gambling proceeds were running through Trendsact and Impact Payment's books as just that.
Their excess and hedonism was extraordinary and the losses, when they came, jaw dropping.
In August 2008 a bank in Georgia through which Tzvektoff and his cohort filtered funds froze their accounts, seizing $10million of their money. Tzvetkoff demanded to be flown into Tbilisi to front up the manager.
Baller: Daniel's $70,000 Lamborghini with his personal license plate that read BALL R
High-roller: Daniel's Rolls Royce convertible, another treat to himself bought with sombody else's money
Just a little run around: Daniel's fiancee, Nicole stands next to her white Bentley, a gift from Daniel who was nothing if not generous with other people's money
Rumours of a Russian invasion were building pace and growing in credence but Tzvektoff, power-crazed and money-hungry paid no attention. The Intabill private jet was readied and Tzvektoff and a few trusted associates landed on Tbilisi tarmac at 5am.
As the furious Tzvetkoff 'negotiated' with the bank manager, Russian forces struck.
Bombs rained down, exploding in the streets outside. For once Tzvetkoff had to admit defeat. After a desperate dash to the airport they had to bribe an official to allow the jet to take off, flying into the sky still peppered with Russian fighter jets.
The man who killed Intabill: Curtis Pope double-crossed Daniel, locking him out of his business and his money and ensuring it went to the wall
If Daniel Tzvektoff had ever had any moral compass it was long gone.
And all the while Tzvektoff was playing an even more dangerous game than his partner, Sam Sciacca knew. In 2009 his poker site clients started complaining that they hadn't been paid though Intabill's books showed everything was up to date.
PokerStars was the first to press for the money which, on paper, Tzvektoff didn't have it.
When Intabill had joined forces with Pope and Scott Clark neither Tzvektoff nor Sciacca had wanted their names on documents signed.
But Tzvektoff assumed his partners would honour the gentleman's agreement they had struck. After all, the funds sitting in Trendsact's account were only there thanks to business that was really generated by Intabill.
But when he asked for funds to be released to meet a schedule of repayment agreed with PokerStars, Tzvektoff learned a very hard lesson in trust and betrayal.
Curtis Pope refused. Instead he went straight to the CEO of PokerStars with the promise of repayment in full. He had 'flipped' his former friend and business partners.
In one move he cut Tzvektoff and Sciacca out of their own business entirely. He let them twist in the wind, sick in the knowledge that 'their' money was firmly out of reach.
As James Leighton writes, 'Curtis had used PokerStars to kill Intabill.'
In a moment of drama that sums up the moral void at the heart of the world he had built, Leighton recounts the moment Tzvektoff realised what his former partner had done.
'"But why Curtis?" Daniel finally muttered, "Because I could," Curtis smirked in return, suddenly darting his thick neck forward, "Because you f***d this up for everyone and now I'm taking care of business."'
Opportunity: Tzvetkoff signed deals with three major players in the online poker market when other payment companies pulled out, fearful of the legal grey area. They were Full Tilt Poker, Absolute Poker and Poker Stars
Sciacca brought in a forensic accountant and found to his horror that his partner had been siphoning off funds from Intabill's account to his own personal one in the form of 'loans'.
In July 2009, less than 12 months after he had partied in a Las Vegas penthouse suite with hookers and sport stars, DJs and the super-rich, Intabill collapsed with not one cent in its account.
Tzvektoff was back on Australia's, Gold Coast dismantling what was left of his business and facing millions of dollars in law suits. Sciacca was suing him for $100million alleging he had falsified accounts and inflated company profits. The poker companies came after him for even more.
Tzvektoff thought things couldn't get any worse. Then he was arrested by the FBI.
Tzvektoff had angered a lot of pretty serious 'associates' who were owed millions. He had effectively acted as a 'firewall' between the gambling authorities and the people making the rackets. By skimming he had got on the wrong side of the law and the wrong side of the mob.
While he languished back at his parents' home in Australia he had no idea that the FBI was investigating him for money laundering and pursuing the allegations that he had set up a complex chain of fake websites and international bank accounts to conceal the fact that Full Tilt Poker, PokerStars and Absolute Poker were making money from online gamblers in America.
When he was foolhardy enough to show up in Vegas in April 2010 he was arrested by the FBI and charged him with masterminding a $540million racket over two years.
He personally owed his creditors, including the tax office, $143milion.
Tzvektoff was just relieved it was the feds not the mob pressing the gun to his back and telling him to move. At least he could make a deal with them.
Alligator Blood by James Leighton: The book that tells Tzvetkoff remarkable story
Faced with the prospect of up to 76 years in jail for money laundering, bank fraud and conspiracy charges, Tzvektoff became an informant whose testimony led directly to Black Friday - the day online gambling in the US was shut down.
Tzvektoff, his fiancée, Nicole, and their two young children were placed in witness protection in New York's Harlem while awaiting trial.
In the prosecutions that followed most of Tzvektoff's 'friends' and many of the characters who had joined him on his rooftop party in Vegas faced fines or jail terms.
He must have taken some satisfaction in the fact that Curtis Pope, the man who had 'flipped' him, was sentenced to 21 months after pleading guilty to crimes involving money-laundering conspiracies, bank fraud and gambling.
As for where all the money went, that is a question never really answered.
There is no evidence that the money promised to the online companies by Pope and Scott Clark was ever paid out.
And according to Leighton, 'Rumours persist that Daniel Tzvektoff may have managed to hide away some of the money he earned as neither the Intabill liquidator, nor the Department of Justice have found any evidence of the alleged missing millions.'
A fact that leaves open the tantalising possibility that for all the drama and risk and apparent loss Tzvektoff played a winning game after all.
Alligator Blood by James Leighton, published by Simon & Schuster, 5 June, Price $
Bonus : 100% up to 500$
Cake Poker
US POKER ROOMS
Victory Poker
VC Poker
Poker babes
Retrieve Username
Contact and Advertising
Copyright © 2019 Pokercast.eu. All Rights Reserved. The Source for High Quality Poker Streaming