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Translating Your Heroes To The Silver Screen
Actually, not just the silver screen, the same dilemmas occur on TV too!
I'm talking about your beloved hero/heroine who makes the quantum leap from Kindle or printed page and lands squarely in front of you, a living, breathing, director's interpretation of someone you have known intimately for years and, frankly, now looks and behaves like a total stranger.
Helen Hayes as Miss Marple
Angela Lansbury as Miss Marple
Oh, the injustice, the bitter disappointment. The calumny even! How dare they? Why didn't they ask you? You'd have told them straight away that no way would Miss Marple pronounce 'enquiry' as 'inquiry' (Helen Hayes in A Caribbean Mystery), smoke a cigarette (Angela Lansbury in The Mirror Crack'd) or speak with a noticeable American accent (Helen Hayes and Angela Lansbury, to name but two).
Margaret Rutherford as Miss Marple
In the early 1960s, the wonderful Margaret Rutherford had a few outings in some wildly loose adaptations of Christie novels. I loved the films, as long as I forgot she was supposed to be playing Miss Marple. Agatha Christie herself was less than keen, although she too was a fan of the actress
The problem is, we all have our own vision. My Miss Marple is a very English, diminutive elderly lady, dressed in old fashioned sensible clothes (tweed skirts and jackets), who carries a sturdy handbag. She has white hair, tied back in a small bun, frequently dons a hat, and peers over small rimless glasses. She's the sort of woman you wouldn't take any notice of - unless you looked a little closer into those eyes. Then you would see a different person entirely. Sharp as a dagger, quick and unflinching, possessed of a phenomenal and undimmed memory, she scythes through the red herrings and leaves the poor old police inspector ten pages behind...
Joan Hickson - the Miss Marple
Imagine then my delight when Joan Hickson (Agatha Christie's own choice), portrayed her in a series of TV adaptations. Now I could settle back, relax and enjoy my Miss Marple solving crimes in precisely the way I knew she always did.
Geraldine McEwan as Miss Marple
Julia McKenzie as Miss Marple
Sadly, Joan Hickson passed away in 1998. Miss Marple, however, is immortal. Some of the other fine actresses who have been drafted in to play her include: Geraldine McEwan (can't put my finger on it, but something didn't quite work for me. A friend disagrees wholeheartedly), Julia McKenzie (in my opinion, the closest to Joan Hickson), - and then - er - Carey Mulligan?
Carey Mulligan. Miss Who?
Let's move on to Dame Agatha's other great detective. The Belgian with the primped and cossetted moustache - Hercule Poirot.
Peter Ustinov as Poirot
The late, great Peter Ustinov played him in Death On The Nile and five other films.His daughter was reportedly shocked when she saw him in rehearsal and exclaimed, "That's not Poirot! He isn't at all like that!", to which her father replied, "He is now!"
I agree with his daughter.
Albert Finney as Poirot
Albert Finney, another great British actor, portrayed him in Murder On The Orient Express. I know he was accalaimed for his performance but was he my Poirot? Er - sorry - no. For a start, his hair was all wrong. And the moustache wasn't elaborate enough. And he was too tall. Not a bit like...
David Suchet IS Poirot
Enter my perfect Poirot - David Suchet. From the top of his egg-shaped head, to the tips of his gleaming patent leather shoes, the tiny almost effeminate steps he takes, the perfect buttonhole and the authentic (for the character) accent, could there be any to rival his characterisation? For me, David Suchet simply IS Hercule Poirot.
Olympia Dukakis - Anna Madrigal
Moving onto Armistead Maupin for a moment, I had read and loved all the early Tales of the City books and felt close to the 'family' of quirky characters within their pages. The TV renditions generally worked for me, with some exceptions, but I loved Olympia Dukakis's portrayal of the eccentric, pot smoking landlady, Anna Madrigal. Now when I pick up those early books again (and the latest), I 'see' her whenever that character appears.
Tom Cruise - the 'pretty' Lestat
Entirely the opposite happened when I saw the film adaptation of Anne Rice's classic, Interview With The Vampire. I have yet to see my Lestat, but Tom Cruise certainly isn't it. Too pretty to be sexy enough for me. Now, give me Christian Bale and we could be talking...
Christian Bale - the next Lestat?
So, tell me, what have been your delights and disappointments? Who would you like to see play your favourite character?
Labels: agatha christie, anne rice, armistead maupin, Etopia Press, interview with the vampire, miss marple, olympia dukakis, poirot, tales of the city
Steve Emmett 6 March 2013 at 15:06
Best Marple ever was Margaret Rutherford IMO. Did you know that many years after those films were made I got to know Lawrence (Larry) P Bachmann who produced most of them? He was also a pretty accomplished novelist. The worst Marple was Helen Hayes. Best Poirot is Suchet - especially his later works like Orient Express, very dark and melancholy.
Catherine Cavendish 6 March 2013 at 15:16
We'll agree to differ over best Miss Marple - although I love Margaret Rutherford. She was the benchmark Madame Arcati and no one since has come close. No, I didn't know you knew Larry P. Bachmann - You certainly get around, Steve!
Joan Hickson and David Suchet take the palm for the Christie adaptations. Both display effortless intelligence. Joan Hickson also has a world weary compassion far removed from Geraldine McEwan's gleefully malicious approach.
I never saw the Tales of the City on TV. I'll have to remedy that.
the film adaptation of a novel that worried me the most was The Lord of the Rings. It all hinged on having the right Frodo and the right Aragorn. I think they chose pretty well. Certainly Mortensen did a hundred times better than the original choice, Stuart Townsend, would have done.
Thanks for dropping by, Elin. 'Tales of the City' is on DVD, along with 'More Tales of the City' and 'Further Tales of the City' I love them all.
Sheila Deeth 6 March 2013 at 23:00
Christian Bale as Lestat. Yes!!!
Thanks, Sheila. Too right!
AWesome!! One of the reasons I have given you my inspiringg nommie
Catherine Cavendish 12 March 2013 at 13:26
Thanks Shehanne!


Joe Hall (accordion) The Hall family was blessed with a hard-working father figure who provided in every way for his family of six out on the southwest Louisiana prairies. Even though Joe never had to work in the fields like most of the Creole share croppers since the days of the Civil War, his is an old soul. He did not necessarily break corn or pick sweet potatoes, but he did lend an attentive ear to the many kernels of ancient wisdom from his elders. They recognized him as the "anointed one " and willingly, Joe Hall accepted the torch of the Creole cultural flame. The American Cajun Blues & Zydeco Festival is a wonderful event to feature the music of Joe Hall & The Canecutters.
Marshall Baker (fiddle) grew up in Portland, Oregon USA. His father taught him to play the fiddle when he was six and he hasn't stopped playing since. He entered local and national contests and usually placing top five in the state championships. Marshall now tours with Joe Hall & The Cane Cutters and plays regularly on Bourbon Street at his view home in New Orleans, Louisiana. Baker describes fiddling as "having its own little subculture" and is honored to play with Joe Hall & The Canecutters.
Mark Palms (guitar) a musician who chased the heritage of traditional American music by studying knee-to-knee with cultural giants from West Virginia to West Africa. Mark joined forces with Joe Hall when they met in Louisiana at the Eunice Mardi Gras in 2005. He founded Fruge Records to support Louisiana artists (Nolton Semien, Mitch Reed) and as a member of The Cane Cutters or as a solo artist, Mark continues to honor the legacy of traditional masters through performing and teaching.
Bandleader, accordion player, and singer Carrier comes from a long line of distinguished musicians (he's the nephew of Roy Carrier and cousin of Troy "Dikki Du" and Chubby Carrier, to name just a few), a family where zydeco music was a pastime for holidays and family gatherings. He embodies both tradition and a unique style that is infused with his blues and R&B influences.
Along the way, he has worked and performed with many other artists from time to time, including the great Chess Records pianist Mr. Henry Gray, Sonny Landreth, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Corey Harris, Doug Kershaw, Chubby Carrier, Roddie Romero as well as New Orleans icon Dr. John.
His music has also been featured in the hit HBO series"True Blood", The LifeTime Network holiday movie "Christmas On The Bayou", as well as being a featured studio musician on numerous session for other artists.Along with C.C. Adcock Michael also wrote and recorded the theme song to the Amazon series pilot "Cocked".
He's released 5 solo records for ParishLine Records.
He's also written songs for Roddie Romero, Steve Riley, and others.
Michael can often be seen playing guitar for Brother Dege's Band The Brethren. No matter which format you find him in, go and check it out live, and see what the critics are raving about…this is the real deal.
He is performing for the first time in Germany at the 'American Cajun, Blues & Zydeco Festival' 2019.


Khartoum — Deputy Secretary General of the Sudanese Expatriates Organ, of Sudanese Abroad, Dr. Abdul-Rahman Sid-Ahmed, has praised the role of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in the implementation of a number of projects, notably the project of re-integrating returnees from Libya, Saudi Arabia and Egypt.
He said that the project contributes to enhancement of the joint EU Initiative between the Expatriates Organ and the organization, affirming that the voluntary return and reintegration of the Sudanese returnees from Libya is an extension of the cooperation and partnership between the Expatriates and the International Organization for Migration.
This came during a meeting in his office Tuesday with Dr. Eliza Anderson, the expert and consultant of the Regional Office of the International Organization for Migration in Nairobi, in the presence of Dr. Hassan Babiker, the Director of migration and organizations of the Expatriates Organ and Professor Amal Karrar, the Director of the Organization.
Dr. Aliza Anderson emphasized the organization's keenness to develop the cooperation between the organization and the Expatriates Organ in the projects of return and reintegration of returnees.
The Director of Migration and Organizations of the Sudanese Expatriates Organ, Dr. Hassan Babiker, has given a detailed account of the organ and its various initiatives and services for the migrants, stressing the keenness of the organ to enhance the communication and cooperation between the two sides.
Meanwhile, the Director of the Organization of Expatriates Organization, Amal Karrar Ibrahim Farah, stressed the importance of projects implemented in partnership with the International Organization for Migration, the most important of which is the project of the return and reintegration for the Sudanese returning from Libya, Niger, Egypt and Algeria and providing assistance to them.


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New study finds microplastics in waterways around Pennsylvania
by: Avery Van Etten
Posted: Mar 3, 2021 / 08:47 PM EST / Updated: Mar 3, 2021 / 08:47 PM EST
A PennEnvironment study released today found microplastics in every body of water researchers tested around Pennsylvania. A growing area of research, microplastics have been found in both wildlife and humans.
PennEnvironment researchers and volunteers collected more than 300 water samples from over 50 lakes, rivers and streams around the state, including several in Central Pennsylvania such as the Susquehanna River in Dauphin County, the Conestoga River in Lancaster County, and Codorus Creek in York County.
Microplastics are tiny pieces of plastic that are less than 5 millimeters long. Some plastics are produced this size, while others eventually break down into these minuscule bits.
"Plastics are not going to decompose ever. They'll just break down into smaller and smaller pieces," says Jodi Sulpizio, natural resources educator for Penn State Extension and coordinator of the Master Watershed Steward Program in York.
Related story: Plastic cleanup event on the Susquehanna River
These small pieces of plastic come in a handful of different varieties: microfibers come from clothing and textiles, micro fragments come from harder plastics, microfilm comes from plastic bags and other flexible packaging, and microbeads mostly come from cosmetic products.
PennEnvironment found microfibers at every site tested for this study. Microfragments were found at about 87% of the tested sites and microfilm at about 94% of the sites. Microbeads were seen at only one of the locations tested (the Delaware River Canal in Bucks County).
Microplastics are all over the place, including in our bodies. "It's in our air, so we breathe it. It's in our food, so we eat it. It's in our water, so we drink it. It's been found in rain, dust, it's been found in table salt, tap water, bottled water," Faran Savitz, conservation associate at PennEnvironment and author of the new report, said in a press conference on Wednesday.
Savitz cites a study commissioned by WWF that found that the amount of microplastics humans ingest in one week weighs the equivalent of a credit card.
Animals ingest microplastics, as well. Sulpizio notes that plastics have been found in the stomachs of birds, for example.
Microplastics also pose a potential threat because they can accumulate other pollutants that are present in the environment, David Velinsky, vice president for academy science at the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University, explained in the news conference.
The plastics can attract toxins like DDT and PCBs, which animals ingest along with microplastics. "This bioaccumulates [and] makes the contaminants move up the food chain," says Velinsky.
While the widespread presence of microplastics is becoming increasingly apparent, the exact effects of these minute materials are still being researched.
"We started to live this throwaway lifestyle, and it's coming back to us through the environment," says Sulpizio. She says one way to mitigate microplastic pollution is to make personal choices to limit the consumption of single-use plastics.
"We can think 'reduce, reuse, recycle,' but I think another one to add in there is 'refuse,'" Sulpizio says. Individuals can choose not to use straws or not to purchase the cucumber covered in shrink wrap at the grocery store.
Synthetic clothing also releases microplastic into the environment when it's washed, so Sulpizio suggests acquiring a filter for the washing machine to help catch some of the microfibers.
Sulpizio and Savitz also encourage regulatory agencies such as local, state and federal governments to enact policies addressing plastic pollution and the production of single-use plastics. The PennEnvironment report provides several specific recommendations.
"The results of this study should set off alarms for all Pennsylvanians who love our state's rivers and streams. The staggering amount of microplastics we found likely means that no river, lake or stream is safe from this increasingly common contaminant," says Savitz.
PennEnvironment will be holding a "Microplastics in PA's Local Waterways" webinar on Thursday, March 4, at 6 p.m. Those interested in attending can register here.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


This year's first supplier event was held at Sokos Hotel Presidentti 4th February 2016.
Workshop topics were assortment management, partner network and Alko online store.
Please find the workshop summaries as an attachment. All the other presented material from the event you can find here.


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Lagos, Nigeria: Multi-story building collapses in Lagos, Nigeria
The structure, situated on Gerald Roadway in the city's wealthy Ikoyi area, is a building and construction website for high-end apartment or condos. It is uncertain the number of individuals were within when it fell.
"I thought it was an earthquake when I rushed out of my apartment just after 3 p.m. I felt the building move and knew something was wrong," Olu Apata, a close-by citizen and the president of the Nigerian Bar Association, informed CNN.
Apata stated the structure has actually been under building and construction for the previous 2 years which the designer was at the website conference with potential purchasers previously on Monday.
3 individuals have actually because been saved from the collapse, according to a declaration from the Lagos State federal government, which included that the city's rescue system, fire service and ambulance service was on the scene.
The declaration did not suggest the number of individuals are presently missing out on.
The examination into the reason for the collapse is continuous, and authorities on the ground are assessing possible damage to the surrounding structures, the declaration stated.
Muhammad, a civil servant, informed CNN he remained in his workplace next door when the high increase boiled down. "We just heard an unusual loud sound from our office building and the building we're occupying was vibrating. So, I looked through the window, only to see the building collapsing floor after floor. And of course, we all ran to safety."
It took a while for rescue services to come to the scene. Hours after the collapse, numerous individuals were circling the website, helplessly surveying pieces of concrete stacked high in a stack. Residents were digging through the wreckage by hand.
Some in the crowd raged that a main emergency situation reaction had actually not begun.
Rather, rescue efforts were being performed by passersby such as Rashid Olamilekan, who informed CNN he had actually pulled 3 building and construction employees from the debris. "I am a Nigerian. I have to rescue my people," he stated. The saved employees had actually been required to the health center, Olamilekan included.
The Nigerian Red Cross were likewise there.
Structure collapses are not unusual incidents in Lagos, Nigeria's biggest city with a population of around 20 million individuals.
In 2019, the collapse of 2 different structures, consisting of one real estate a school, left lots of individuals dead.
A specialist informed CNN at the time that more than 1,000 structures were at threat of collapsing in Lagos.
AfricaLagosNigeria - CNNNigeria: Multi-story building collapses in Lagos
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عملیات کشاورزی در باغات مانند سمپاشی، آبیاری و ... در زمینه کشاورزی دقیق و رباتیک کشاورزی وابستگی زیادی به شکل تاج درخت و ساختار آن دارد. بنابراین داشتن مدل سهبعدی و نقشه عمق درختان میتواند مفید باشد. یکی از روشهای ایجاد مدل سهبعدی، استفاده از روش بینایی استریو است. مهمترین مرحله در این روش، تعیین نقاط متناظر است. برای انجام این کار ابتدا باید نقاط ویژه در هر تصویر شناسایی شوند. الگوریتمهای مختلفی بدین منظور نوشته شده است. در این تحقیق شش الگوریتم Harris-Stephens، Minimum eigenvalue، MSER، FAST، SURF و BRISK در فضاها و مولفه های RGB، G، HSV، H، YCbCr، Y، NTSC، Lab و a بررسی و مقایسه شد. نتایج نشان داد که الگوریتم SURF بهترین عملکرد را داشت. نقاط ویژهای که این الگوریتم تشخیص داد در اکثر فضاها ثابت بود که نشان از پایداری این الگوریتم در فضاهای مختلف دارد. بعد از الگوریتم SURF بهترین عملکرد را الگوریتم MSER داشت. این الگوریتم محصولات درخت را به عنوان نقاط ویژه تشخیص داد. اگر چه تعداد این نقاط کم است اما درصورتی که نتوان نقاط گوشه را در دو تصویر با هم مطابقت داد، از این نقاط میتوان به عنوان نقاط مشترک جهت تطابق استفاده کرد. الگوریتمها در فضاها و مولفههای HSV، H، YCbCr و NTSC بهترین عملکرد را داشتند و در فضای RGB و Y از نظر تعداد نقاط ویژه تشخیص داده شده پایدارتر عمل کردند.
One method of creating a 3D model is stereo vision. The most important problem in this method is the corresponding points. In this study, 6 algorithms included Harris-Stephens, Minimum eigenvalue, MSER, FAST, SURF and BRISK were compared in RGB, G, HSV, H, YCbCr, Y, NTSC, Lab and a spaces. The results showed that SURF algorithm had the best performance. Detected feature points by this algorithm were fix in most spaces, so this algorithm is stable in different spaces. After SURF algorithm, MSER algorithm had the best performance. This algorithm detected tree crops as feature points. Although the number of these points is low, but if cannot be matched corner points in two images together, these points can be used to match as common points (keypoints). Algorithms had the best performance in the HSV, H, YCbCr and NTSC spaces and they were stable in RGB and Y spaces in terms of the number of detected feature points.
Abdollahifard, M.J. (2009). View interpolation for three dimensional face modling. Msc thesis, Amirkabir University of Technilogy. Iran. (In Farsi).
Bay, H., Ess, A., Tuytelaars, T., and Van Gool, L. (2008). SURF: Speeded Up Robust Features. Computer Vision and Image Understanding (CVIU), 110 (3), 346-359.
Bhatti A. (2012). Current Advancements in Stereo Vision. Published by InTech. Printed in Croatia.
Blas, M.R., and Blanke, M. (2011). Stereo vision with texture learning for fault-tolerant automatic baling. Computers and Electronics in Agriculture 75, 159-168.
Bouguet, J.Y. Camera Calibration Toolbox for Matlab. (2004).Computational Vision at the California Institute of Technology.
Bradski, G., and Kaehler, A. (2008). Learning OpenCV: Computer Vision with the OpenCV Library. O'Reilly Media, USA.
Canclini, A., Cesana, M., Redondi, A., Tagliasacchi, M., Ascenso, J., Cilla, R. (2013). Evaluation of low-complexity visual feature detectors and descriptors. 18th International Conference on Digital Signal Processing, 1–7.
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Gil, E., Escolà, A., Rosell, J.R., Planas, S., Val, L. (2007). Variable rate application of plant protection products in vineyard using ultrasonic sensors. Crop Protection 26, 1287–1297.
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Gnathium californicum is a species of blister beetle in the family Meloidae. It is found in North America.

References

Further reading

Meloidae
Articles created by Qbugbot
Beetles described in 1905

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


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Central Bank says Japan is 'recovering'
The Bank of Japan issued a more upbeat assessment of the Japanese economy on Thursday, saying for the first time in more than two years that conditions were recovering.
TBOJ stuck with a pledge to expand the monetary base by 60 to 70 trillion yen ($709 billion) per year, as the economy is starting to recover moderately.
On this news the yen strengthened vs the USD to 98.76 .
What's key for Abenomics is Prime minster is to win the July 21 election , this would end the split parliament , this would enable Abe to push through changes to increase the competitive of Japan economy .Lets see!
Abenomics has had such a great effect on changing the mood in Japan , that's a huge success but isn't enough to make Japan grow .
Bank of Japan – Economy is indeed recovering
For the first time in more than two years, the Bank of Japan issued an optimistic statement about the state of the economy, saying that conditions were recovering.
In a self-praising move, the BoJ said that the aggressive monetary easing measures it implemented in April are working to stimulate the economy and reverse consumer-price deflation.
Following a two-day policy meeting, the bank said in a statement that, "Japan's economy is starting to recover moderately".
This therefore signals that the central bank is unlikely to take additional steps soon.
The announcement marks the first time since early 2011 that the bank formally described the economy as being on an expansionary path. In fact, the bank's official view has steadily brightened over the past six months.
Under Governor Kuroda, who took over last March, the BoJ has been pumping an unprecedented amount of money into the economy through increased purchases of government bonds. The board said on Thursday that it would stick with its goal of expanding Japan's monetary base at a rate of Y60tn to Y70tn a year.
Following the announcement, the yield on the 10-year Japanese government bond has traded in a tight range between 0.79 and 0.96% for nearly two months now.
Tony Evans
BOJ keeps stimulus
japan economy growing


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A Sultan and a...
07 Oct A Sultan and a Prime Minister
Posted at 05:49h in brunei	by	ABP-admin
The Sultan of Brunei, Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu'izzaddin Waddaulah, is one of the world's longest-reigning and few remaining absolute monarchs. The Sultan rules from the opulent golden-domed Istana Nurul Iman palace, located in Brunei's capital Bandar Seri Begawan, which is thought to be the world's largest residential palace. He was crowned in August 1968 following the abdication of his father, Sir Haji Omar Ali Saifuddin. After Brunei's independence in 1984, he appointed himself prime minister and, in 1991, introduced an ideology called Malay Muslim Monarchy, which presented the monarch as the defender of the faith. He is one of the world's richest individuals and in a country where the standard of living is high, enjoys popularity. Recently however, he has faced international criticism over the introduction of Islamic Sharia law in the country. The Sultan is the head of state and absolute monarch of Brunei and also serves as prime minister, minister of defence, foreign minister, and minister of finance. He is advised by several councils, which he appoints. The fact that the Sultan, in his capacity as prime minister, is head of the government means that the Sultan is also ultimately in charge of the Brunei Investment Agency. After Queen Elizabeth II, the Sultan is the world's second-longest-reigning current monarch. Observers have been curious how the once anglophile, polo-playing graduate of UK's Sandhurst military college has self-metamorphosed over the years into a devout Muslim enforcer of sharia law.
Key Facts for Investors
Demographic Advantage
Ease of Doing Business and Corruption
Government Structure and Society
Taxation Structure
A mix of history and nature
A secretive investment agency with a difference
A Sultan and a Prime Minister
Land of riches & zero income tax
Vision 2035 to build sustainable economy
Young, growing and contented population


Rich joined Colliers International in 2011. He has 23 years of retail real estate brokerage and development experience with significant automotive project specialization. His responsibilities include marketing, strategy implementation, coordination and review of market research with a special emphasis on financial analysis and leading lease review/negotiations. His well-developed technical knowledge of the real estate process gives him a broad understanding of the important principles that must be incorporated into a transaction.
Prior to joining Colliers, Rich was with SRS Real Estate Partners (formerly Staubach Retail). His experience over the last 23 years includes brokerage transactions along the East Coast, a variety of significant development projects, investment sales, and a specialty in the automotive world in transacting both dealerships and related property.


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Tears, frustration greet those applying for Pandemic Unemployment Assistance
April 28, 2020 Updated: April 29, 2020 9:24 a.m.
Facade with sign at office of the California Employment Development Department, an agency which assists in administration of Unemployment and Disability benefits, in downtown San Francisco, California, April 8, 2020. As a result of the COVID-19 coronavirus, a record number of Californians applied for unemployment benefits. (Photo by Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images)Smith Collection/ Gado via Getty Images
It wasn't easy, but self-employed people who had the patience and perseverance to deal with the California Employment Development Department's overloaded website Tuesday were finally able to apply for federally funded unemployment benefits.
Late Monday, EDD tweeted that it "will be able to take applications for PUA benefits at 10 a.m. Tuesday." The federal Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program provides up to 39 weeks of benefits to self-employed and other workers who don't qualify for regular state benefits and lost work as a "direct result" of the coronavirus.
Many people who logged into the department's UI Online site before 10 a.m. were able to apply.
Jennifer Bader started applying at 7:22 a.m.
"First it would take me in a circle," she said. Bader could enter her email and check "I am not a robot," but "when I would go to log in, it wouldn't take me to the page where I would put in my password. Then all of a sudden that page came up."
Completing the application "took about an hour. There were tears. This whole thing has been so frustrating," she said.
Bader owns Bohemian Hair in Clovis, a Fresno suburb. In late February, she curled Jill Biden's hair when the former second lady was in town ahead of Super Tuesday. About three weeks later, the salon closed amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Bader had previously applied for regular state unemployment benefits. EDD allowed and even encouraged this, presumably because workers who are employees under state law are eligible for regular state benefits, even if they're being paid like independent contractors. Truly self-employed people, including business owners, cannot get state unemployment.
Like many self-employed workers who applied for regular state benefits, Bader got a notice saying her benefit amount was zero. So on Tuesday she wasn't sure whether to reopen the old claim or start a new one and couldn't find answers. Unable to open the old claim, she finally started a new one, but was confused by differences she noticed. The old application asked for her gross income, the new one asked for net income. "I was worried about screwing myself up," she said.
Others who had previously applied for regular benefits — and got none — weren't sure what to answer when the questionnaire asked whether they had previously applied for benefits.
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Many people attempting to apply for the new pandemic benefits were stumped when they couldn't find a Pandemic Unemployment Assistance application on EDD's website. That's because there isn't one.
On Monday, the California Labor and Workforce Agency published on its website a list of frequently asked questions. No. 14 explained that "UI Online is the EDD's application portal for both regular (unemployment insurance) and PUA claims." All applicants start off with the same basic questions, and based on their responses, "the EDD will determine if your claim is processed as a regular UI claim or a PUA claim."
That was not obvious on the EDD website most of Tuesday.
"It's weird EDD buried the COVID-19 process (for pandemic benefits) within the application," said Lee Heidhues, a self-employed paralegal in San Francisco.
Heidus said he had to reload many pages and "a couple of times it kicked me out and I had to go back to the beginning. I was afraid I would have lost everything but I was able to log in and go back to where I was." The process took 30 to 45 minutes, "which I guess isn't too bad in the scheme of things," he said.
Working in law, Heidhues said he is used to doing research and dealing with state agencies.
"Other people who aren't used to this would probably give up," he said.
On social media, many applicants said the process took hours. In an email, one reader said it was "like trying to scale a wall lathered in grease. You make progress, then slip back down to ground."
Here's a time-saving tip from an applicant who discovered this through trial and error: When you enter your income, don't use a dollar sign, comma or decimal.
Tuesday afternoon, EDD announced it is "launching a new 'Guide to applying for unemployment benefits in California' page. The guide consolidates basic information about the process and takes customers to the UI Online system customers currently use for applying for regular UI." It also published the labor agency's new FAQs on the EDD site.
People who receive regular state benefits should note the last FAQ. It explains that while pandemic benefits are retroactive to the date you became unemployed, regular benefits are not usually retroactive; they begin when you file a claim. However, "If you apply for regular UI benefits, you will need to contact the EDD to request that the effective date for your claim be changed to the week when you became unemployed."
Asked about problems with the EDD website at his news conference Tuesday, Gov. Gavin Newsom said it's "not surprising the first few hours we've got to figure this out." Since March 15, EDD has sent out $5.3 billion in unemployment benefits, including $926 million on Sunday alone.
"Our expectation is, not only when the site is more stable today and tomorrow, the next few days, there will be 24- to 48-hour turnaround in terms of those checks being distributed," he said. Benefits actually come electronically, loaded on debit cards.


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jueves, septiembre 18, 2014
BANKS SHOWED TEPID INTEREST AS E.C.B. BEGINS PROGRAM OF CHEAP LOANS / THE NEW YORK TIMES
| Etiquetas: Banks And Banking, ECB, Europe Economic and Political
Banks Show Tepid Interest as E.C.B. Begins Program of Cheap Loans
By JACK EWING
September. 18, 2014
FRANKFURT — Banks borrowed less than expected from the European Central Bank in a disappointing start for a program intended to encourage more lending to businesses and households and to pump money into the ailing eurozone economy.
The central bank said on Thursday that it would allot nearly 83 billion euros, or about $107 billion, to 255 commercial banks next week. Estimates of how much money banks would borrow had varied widely, but many analysts said before the announcement that anything less than €100 billion would be a disappointment.
The program is part of a broader effort by the central bank to inject as much as €1 trillion into the eurozone economy, and the borrowing data on Thursday was closely watched as an indicator of whether the central bank would be able to meet its goal. The loans are meant to drive down the cost of borrowing and encourage lending, especially in countries like Italy and Portugal, where a lack of credit has impeded economic growth.
But Mr. van Vliet added that he did not think that the central bank would be alarmed by the outcome, because many banks may be waiting until December, when the E.C.B. will issue another round of the four-year loans.
In a statement, the central bank said the money would support lending and was part of a package that would have "sizable impact." In all, the E.C.B. plans to issue eight rounds of the loans through June 2016.
Modest demand for the loans could prompt the central bank to be more aggressive next month when it begins buying bundles of mortgages, credit card debt and other loans known as asset-backed securities in further efforts to stimulate the bloc's economy. The central bank has said that it will provide details of the securities purchases after its next monetary policy meeting, on Oct. 2.
Analysts regard the purchases of asset-backed securities as a mild form of quantitative easing, the large-scale purchases of assets that the Federal Reserve has used to funnel money into the United States economy. Unlike the Fed, the E.C.B. does not yet plan to buy government bonds. But pressure to do so could rise if demand by commercial banks for E.C.B. loans remains weak.
The euro rose slightly against the dollar in midday trading on Thursday, a sign that investors were not unduly worried about the low demand for the loans.
Under the program, banks can borrow money at a fixed annual interest rate of 0.15 percent for four years, but they must repay the money in two years if they do not use it to issue loans to businesses and individuals. The money cannot be used to finance real estate purchases.
The banks applied for €82.6 billion under the program, known as targeted longer-term refinancing operations, and will receive the money on Wednesday, the central bank said.
Continue reading the main storyContinue reading the main story
Despite the attractive interest rate, there was uncertainty as to whether banks would want the funds, either because of a lack of demand for credit or a dearth of creditworthy borrowers.
The central bank cash was likely to be most attractive to banks in countries like Italy, where the central bank interest rate was about 1 percentage point lower than market rates available to banks, according to economists at UBS.
"The cheap funding opportunity offered by the E.C.B. should benefit Spanish and Italian banks the most, in particular the second-tier banks," economists at UBS said in a note to investors on Tuesday.
In addition, many banks are behaving cautiously until they know how well they have fared in stress tests being conducted separately by the central bank.
The results of the stress tests, as well as of a comprehensive review of bank assets aimed at flushing out hidden problems, are due in late October. Many analysts expect banks to take fuller advantage of the cheap cash when the E.C.B. issues a second round of loans in December. By then, banks will have a better idea where they stand in the eyes of regulators.
Analysts predicted that the two rounds of loans together would add up to about €300 billion and that most of the money would be issued in December. The central bank has not said explicitly how much money it wants to inject into the economy through the various measures. But Mario Draghi, the president of the central bank, implied this month that the bank's goal was to add €1 trillion.
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James Pero
Lego's ? Block 'Mario 64' set may be its best Nintendo tie-in yet
Cute things happen when N64 and Lego collide.
You'd be hard-pressed to find two things that people Stan more than Lego and Super Mario Bros., which is exactly why combining them has captured a lot of people's nerdom, and consequently, their wallets as well.
But even with the success of Lego's existing Nintendo collabs, this upcoming Mystery Box, which meshes together several scenes from Super Mario 64 might be its best yet.
The 7-inch set actually encompasses three different scenes, which unfurl from inside the box when you push down onto the top. Dioramas pay homage to several classic levels, including "Cool, Cool Mountain," the "Bob-Omb Battlefield," and "Princess Peach's Castle."
You'll also get 10 "microfigures" to go along with the box, including a mustachioed Mario, fairly featureless Peach, and some polygonal little penguins. Like most of these Super Mario sets, however, it'll cost ya'...
That's a lot of gold coins for plastic blocks.
The good part is, if you're like a lot of people and can't wait to drop nearly $200 on a Lego set, you won't have to wait very long to do so. Lego's next Super Mario Bros. set will go on sale in October.
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