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jbabala@howardandhoward.com
"The lawyer of choice for clients' most challenging issues, most significant transactions, and most critical disputes."
John advises on significant transactions, complex financings, critical disputes, and daily operational issues. His clients include entrepreneurs, emerging growth businesses, international investment firms, and public companies who often operate in highly regulated industries, such as aerospace and defense, beverage alcohol, energy, finance, and healthcare. John regularly advises companies on acquisitions, equity/debt financings, joint ventures, licenses, and cross-border matters. He advises foreign companies doing business in the U.S., as well as U.S. companies doing business abroad. John invests the time to understand his client's objectives, key industry trends, and economic factors that affect those objectives, designing business solutions in legal terms to achieve the intended result. He is a skilled negotiator who recognizes both sides of any given legal position and knows the workarounds likely to lead to an agreement, but also knows how to prevail absent a mutually agreed outcome.
Our business is business–your business. We offer vast experience in a full array of corporate legal services.
University of Michigan Law School, 1995
Alma College, 1995
Cranbrook Kingswood
Alma College
President's Advisory Council
University of Michigan Alumni Association, Lifetime Member
Ronald McDonald House Charities of Southern California
Long Beach House, Founding Board Member
Los Angeles Economic Development Corporation
Business Law Section
Opinions Committee
Society of Corporate Secretaries and Governance Professionals
Smaller Public Companies Task Force
Illinois, 1998
Ohio, 1996
Formation and ongoing representation of Samson & Surrey Holdings Luxembourg, S.à.r.l., an artisanal spirits producer, including acquisitions of Few Spirits, Blue Coat Gin, Brenne Whisky, Widow Jane Whiskey, and Mezcal Vago. Representation also included debt and equity investments and general legal matters.
Represent leading retailer of appliances and tools, as well as lawn and garden, fitness, and automotive repair equipment in connection with real estate related joint ventures.
Represent leading provider of commercial, architectural, residential, and vehicle appearance and protection services in connection with international expansion and general legal matters.
Represented BAMKO, Inc., in its sale to Superior Uniform Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: SGC).
Represented bankruptcy trustee in sale of assets of Penthouse Global Media, Inc. to WCGZ Ltd. of the Czech Republic, including worldwide licensing of intellectual property.
Represented Sole Technology Inc. (Altamont, etnies, thirtytwo, and Emerica brands) in connection with growth capital investment by First Capital and Karlin.
Board of Directors Center of Excellence, "Data Science in the Boardroom," May 15, 2018, San Francisco, CA.
Board of Directors Center of Excellence, LA Summit, "Diversity in the Boardroom," November 30, 2017, Beverly Hills, CA.
Loyola Law School, Business Law Society Symposium, panelist, September 15, 2016, Chicago, IL.
Polsinelli PC, M&A Litigation Series, "Mitigating Litigation Risk at the Deal Table, Part 1," October 15, 2015, webinar.
Expert Webcast, "Business Succession Planning and Exit Strategies for the Closely Held and Family Owned Business," October 30, 2013, webinar.
ACG Conference, "Constructing a Great Deal: How to Get the Most Out of Your M&A Transactions," April 15, 2012, San Diego, CA.
National Small Business Conference, "Impact of Mergers and Acquisitions on Small Businesses," June 8, 2011, San Diego, CA.
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From startup to maturity, we help businesses grow and succeed—assisting them with getting deals done,
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My experience with EC-Council courseware and training material was beyond great. I have learned a lot about ethical hacking. I am glad that I got this opportunity to learn things that universities and colleges probably won't teach you as much as you can earn through EC-Council's programs.
Through the C|EH I had the opportunity to practice different methods to bypass firewalls, searching for weak points, and more importantly, how to patch it.
I recommend EC-Council courses to everyone I know, to help get the knowledge and the skills that people need in order to achieve their career goals.


Much has been written about aviation's environmental impact, but how are hotels addressing sustainability?
Companies are becoming increasingly aware of their carbon footprints and the impact their travel plans have on the environment. Cutting down on air travel is one route to improvement on this score (PwC, notably, has reduced its non client-facing flights by nearly 90 per cent since 2007). Using alternative forms of transport or encouraging lift-sharing is another. But what happens when you get to your destination? How much attention are companies paying to the "green" credentials of their accommodation providers – and what are hotels doing to be more environmentally and socially aware?
Travel buyers agree. "The priorities in the business world tend to be more about comfort and service levels, from check- in to landing," as one puts it. "While we maintain high levels of ecologically sound behaviour in offices, it is not a priority when travelling or staying in a hotel." Yet behind the initial scepticism, companies are increasingly aware of the issue. "This consideration is growing given climate change significance," says another buyer.
While it might not be a priority, it is moving up the agenda – so considering or implementing sensible eco-friendly policies on things such as accommodation can't hurt. So what are hotels doing to be more ecologically friendly? What should you be looking for?
The good news is that hotels in general are more aware of the importance of "sustainability". Given that the travel industry is at the sharp end of conspicuous consumption and related concerns about the climate, that makes sense.
According to Fairmont Hotels & Resorts' second Luxury Insights Report: Gateway to Home - Hotels as the Heart of their Communities, (developed from the Fairmont 2018 Global Luxury Travel Insights Study, which surveyed 2,725 travellers), 80 per cent of these travellers agree it is important "that the hotel provides recommendations of experiences that are not detrimental to the local community". A similar proportion says it matters to them that a hotel has "environmentally sustainable practices".
Hotels have been urging us to re-use our towels for decades, but we're moving beyond that. For example, the Fairmont St Andrews Bay hotel swapped disposable plastic water bottles for "specially-designed refillable water bottles", preventing 55,000 bottles from being disposed of each year.
Melia, meanwhile, made its debut as the third most sustainable hotel company (behind InterContinental and Hilton) in the world last year, according to sustainable investment agency RobecoSAM. Its research takes a wide-ranging view of sustainability – covering everything from corporate governance to environmental management. Notably, Melia came first in the environmental section. Why? The group works with independent, third-party specialists in sustainable tourism to manage and assess its programmes to mitigate the environmental impact of its hotels.
There's a similar message from Bankside Hotel, an independent property in the heart of London and a member of the Marriott Autograph collection. Douglas McHugh, general manager, says it employed Bouteco, a sustainability consultancy, to work on its policy and "to help us make a positive change to our communities and the wider world". The hotel now has solar panels on the roof, plus water-refilling stations throughout the hotel's public areas "to avoid single-use plastic". The hotel also plans to add beehives for honey production.
Crucially, the drive for a sustainable corporate culture goes beyond the hotel itself, and also goes beyond the basics of simply "be more green". Bankside tries to work with "suppliers and organisations that help us to demonstrate a kinder, more sustainable approach to hospitality". For example, Bankside's coffee supplier gives 15 per cent of its revenue to homeless charity Crisis. The hotel also tries to recruit locally and uses employment agencies and charities that aim to support women returning to the workforce (Women Returners), and prisoners currently in training for hospitality qualifications (The Clink).
It can be easy to associate "eco" credentials with the luxury end of the market, where "retreat" chic often plays a big part in branding. But more mainstream chains are focused on sustainability, too.
Take Premier Inn – one of its Edinburgh properties has teamed up with energy supplier Eon to become the first in the UK to generate its electricity from battery storage. The Gyle Premier Inn installed a five-tonne battery that charges up during off-peak hours. It is expected to be able to power the hotel for three hours per two-hour charge. It's also estimated to save the hotel £20,000 a year in energy costs – so there is a clear commercial incentive to make this technology work.
The longer-term significance here, in terms of sustainability, is that increasing use of battery storage is critical to making renewable energy a viable replacement source of energy generation. Premier Inn already sources its energy from renewables, but, as for the country as a whole, the problem with renewables (apart from nuclear power, which has other issues) is that they are intermittent. The sun doesn't always shine and the wind doesn't always blow. You still need fossil fuel as a back-up, even if, in theory, a country has sufficient solar panels and wind farms to generate all of its energy. But if this energy can be stored efficiently in batteries when it is generated, then released when it is required (often interacting with a "smart grid", which enables individual users on the grid to both take and give back energy as required), that goes a long way to solving the problem.
On a wider basis, the company has a sustainability programme entitled "Force for Good". Under the programme, all waste from Premier Inn is "diverted from landfill", including beds, pillows, duvets, which are 100 per cent recycled, cooking oil and other food waste. It was the first hotel and restaurant chain in the UK to "sustainably source all wild-caught fish", and more than 100 of its sites have solar panels.
Hilton, meanwhile, is one year into its plan to cut its environmental footprint in half and double its social impact investment by 2030. It is aiming to double the amount it spends with local and minority-owned suppliers, and doubling its investment in programmes to help women and youth around the world, as part of its Travel with Purpose corporate responsibility strategy.
"In reaction to the concern for climate change and the questions being posed by buyers, hotel companies have made green initiatives part of their branding strategy," notes David Mollov of hotel specialists TripBAM. "Many properties offer electric car charger stations, or preferred parking to electric vehicles." Yet if corporate customers want to see a wider-ranging commitment to these issues – one that goes beyond the power of branding and changing the odd car parking space ("greenwash", as it's sometimes called) – then there needs to be an acceptance by customers that longer-term sustainability requires investment.
"If travel buyers are serious about prioritising green initiatives, they must be willing to pay a premium in the short term to demonstrate to the hotel community that this is important… originally when high-speed wifi was new, travellers paid for it and hoteliers installed the systems because to not have good wifi was to lose the traveller. Now that it is more ubiquitous and the systems are in place, it's available for free.
It's not always easy to find good-quality information on sustainability, or to compare properties on this basis. One option is to look for hotels that have certifications from the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) – Melia is among the members. Certifications include the Biosphere certificate, which requires that a hotel strives to meet certain standards, such as maximising recycling, and putting in place requirements related to its supply chain (using local suppliers and fair trade products).


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Petronet LNG Net Profit More Than Doubles
By Rakesh Sharma
Updated April 26, 2011 10:42 am ET
NEW DELHI – Petronet LNG Ltd. Tuesday reported its quarterly net profit more than doubled, beating analyst estimates, and said it expects growth momentum to continue due to domestic gas shortages.
Net profit for the January-March period jumped to 2.06 billion rupees ($46.4 million) from 972.9 million rupees a year earlier, Chief Executive Ashok Kumar Balyan said at a news conference. Sales surged 67% to 39.85 billion rupees from 23.85 billion rupees.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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Blog 2read
Why are slides used in talks instead of document scrolling?
Slides are commonly used in presentations and talks because they provide a visual aid that can help to illustrate and reinforce the speaker's points. Slides can be used to display text, images, charts, and other types of information, and they can help to make a presentation more engaging and interactive. In contrast, document scrolling involves displaying text or other information on a screen or projection surface, and scrolling through the document as the speaker reads or discusses the information.
Slides have several advantages over document scrolling. First, slides allow the speaker to control the pace and flow of the presentation, and to highlight specific points or pieces of information. This can make the presentation more organized and structured, and can help the audience to follow along and understand the material. Second, slides can add visual interest and variety to the presentation, which can help to keep the audience engaged and attentive. Finally, slides allow the speaker to include a wider range of information and multimedia elements, such as images, videos, and animations, which can make the presentation more dynamic and engaging.
Overall, slides are often used in presentations and talks because they provide a useful and effective way to convey information and engage the audience. While document scrolling can also be a useful tool, slides are often preferred because they offer more flexibility and control over the presentation, and can make the material more accessible and engaging for the audience.
WebAssembly: TinyGo vs. Rust vs. AssemblyScript
In what sense is quantum computing a science?
Blockchains, What are they good for?
Achieving a Fair Stock Option Agreement: Negotiation Strategies for Employees
The Causes and Consequences of the Global Chip Shortage.
How to work with people who push back forcefully?
© Blog 2read 2023


How do I request a Mortgage Payoff Statement?
If you are a current customer, please complete this form.
Payoff request will be processed within 48 hours.
A signed Borrower's authorization must be included with the payoff request. Requests will not be processed without a signed borrower's authorization. Electronic signatures will not be accepted.
If the mortgage account has an escrow, we will freeze disbursements for insurance and taxes when the Payoff Statement is prepared. If the Loan is not paid off in full by the "Good Through" date on the Payoff Statement, normal disbursement for taxes and insurance will resume.
A Home Equity Line of Credit is frozen once the Payoff Statement is prepared. No further HELOC checks or Draw requests will be honored.


CargoLogic International Limited applies knowledge, creativity, expertise and experience in managing todays' complex logistics challenges.
We provide Air/Sea Cargo Forwarding. Air Sea/Sea Air freight forwarding services, Customers Brokerage and Handing for import and export (Clearing and forwarding) shipment.
This involve a complete Logistics service of picking cargo from the manufacturer's ware house or any other point of origin to the door step of the consignee at the final destination.
We provide Ocean/Sea Freight Transportation to major ports through confirming the best and most efficient way possible to meet your sea freight criteria. You can rely on us for quick cargo processing through our exclusive international network of agents.
As the name imply, this means the process of picking any cargo from point or port of origin to the point or final port of destination without having to customs clear and brought it to the consignee warehouse.
This nature of services requires professional hands as it handled with care and efficiency. Logistics and other aspect of the services to ensure efficiency at minimum cost.
Cargo Logic international Ltd was introduced and started operation in Nigeria transport sector as a full fledge Cargo Forwarding and Logistics Company in the year 2001. Made up of highly trained, Dynamic and Efficient staffs by extensive experience in Shipping and other related Logistics Services.
At CARGOLOGIC, We believe, that it is essential for importers and exporters to partner with experienced logistics service providers like ours, who can do more than documentations, customs clearance, cargo pick-ups and deliveries, because through the years we have handled wide varieties ranging from project cargo, perishables, oversize cargo and any nature of cargo both sea, air and rail globally.
Our driving forces are: innovation, creativity, new technological input and high quality standard services. These enables us to maintain strict service standards for all the time-definite services we offer, as you will know exactly when your shipments will be delivered regardless of the weight and size of the items you are shipping, because our delivery times are based on exactly what you ship to the final destination.
To provide our numerous customers with quality and efficient through value commitment in the mutually profitable relationship we've achieved and will continue to expand this within a business culture of dignity and respect for our employees, suppliers. The development of our staff is and will ever remain critical to our service. Every opportunity will be taken to create an understanding of customer's service and to maximise each individual's potential within business environment.
To be recognised as an integral customer service company with the best quality to service clients the best relation in cost ,benefit ,value ,proposal ,all of which will turn out in retaining leaders in the market of ours.
We handle--- Anyplace --- Anytime ---- Anything..... No Barriers!
We are capable of handling and delivering all shipments across the globe.
Simply decide what options you want and we will tailor our services to suit your individual requirements. Our services are flexible to meet your needs at a cost effective price.
Adedayo Plaza N0, 36, Abekuta Exp.Way, Cement Bus stop, Lagos Nigeria.


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Capital advises on WestBridge-backed MBO at Eque2
Private equity firm WestBridge has backed the senior management team at construction software company Eque2 to acquire the business from its existing shareholders, by investing £29m in the £46.5m deal. The transaction, led by a five-strong management team, provided a full exit for LDC.
Capital Law's corporate team (led by Tom Kelleher and with Philip Barratt, Gareth Williams-Davies, Catherine Golledge, Ellie Shanahan and Hakeem Din) advised the WestBridge team (with Peter Barkley, James MacLeay, Rebecca Sinclair, Guy Davies, Valerie Kendall, and Katherine Bond) on this investment – their largest so far. It is the sixth from the Westbridge II fund, and the 12th management buy-out that we have advised WestBridge on.
The investment gives WestBridge a 75% stake in Eque2, which supplies business management software to more than 2,700 customers in the construction, housebuilding and contracting industries. Revenues have grown significantly over the last four years and it has proven to be exceptionally resilient during the Covid pandemic.
Guy Davies, Managing Partner at WestBridge, said:
This transaction was a milestone deal for Westbridge completed to a very tight timescale with many complexities. As ever the Capital team rose to the challenge of this full blooded mid-market deal, were an integral part of our team and delivered when it counted. We are delighted with the support received which was a key element of making this transaction possible.
Tom Kelleher, who leads Capital Law's corporate team, said:
This acquisition is another major milestone for the WestBridge team, not only in terms of size but also because they delivered it in what continues to be challenging times and an incredibly competitive market. The whole WestBridge team, led by Pete Barkley, demonstrated why they are a great partner for management teams on these types of deals – commercial and pragmatic, working collaboratively with management to make the deal work. Eque2, with its strong and ambitious management team and WestBridge's backing, experience and expertise, is a business worth watching as it will no doubt continue to go from strength to strength.
Tom Kelleher
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Capital remains Wales' most active M&A adviser
Capital Law welcomes London partner to its Banking & Finance team
National Security and Investment Act 2021 receives Royal Assent


I help people to find better ways to cope with life's ups and downs, empowering them to come to terms with their situation and manage their emotions.
I use counselling skills to meet the individual needs of my clients and have a genuine interest in helping people improve their quality of life.
I offer a supportive space to help to explore their issues, build resilience and improve their overall wellbeing.
I am a registered BACP Accredited Counsellor; with over 8 year's post qualified experience in counselling adults. My case load has consisted of a wide range of clients in terms of age, abilities, cultures and presenting issues.
I am also a qualified clinical supervisor with a background in safeguarding.
I am experienced in delivering both short –term brief therapy and longer term support.
I have vast experience of working with a wide spectrum of issues and my specialist areas of interest are in work/employment issues, relationships, bereavement and loss, stress, anxiety and depression.
I offer a free 30 min telephone appointment to potential clients where we can discuss your needs and suitability for counselling.
Counselling is a talking therapy which can help with many difficult life problems – from coping with traumatic experiences and events, to dealing with stress, depression and anxiety or managing emotions and behaviours. People often choose to have counselling because they are experiencing difficulties and distress in their lives.
I use an integrative approach which means I incorporate skills and theories from different counselling models to best suit the needs of each individual.
Before counselling commences, each of my potential clients are invited to have an initial telephone assessment with me. This is free and lasts around 30mins. This assessment allows you to give me an overview of the issues you would like to address in counselling and the opportunity for you to ask me any questions.
I will ask information-gathering questions to identify your needs, hopes and expectations from counselling. This allows us both the opportunity to discuss if we can work together to achieve the focus discovered in the assessment to best meet your individual needs.
I am a qualified, experienced clinical Supervisor of Counsellors, Wellbeing, Health and Mental Health professionals with a background in safeguarding. I use an integrative approach to Supervision incorporating the Process and Developmental Models of Supervision. I work from a strengths based perspective to provide support and encouragement in a safe and confidential environment.
I tailor supervision to the individuals needs and adapt my approach in order to allow supervisees the space to reflect on their work, increase self-awareness and address their personal effectiveness.
I believe that trust and integrity in the supervisory relationship are an essential foundation to develop reflective practitioners who are effective, professional and ethical in their work.
My personal aim as a supervisor is that my supervisees will have a valuable experience from working with me. It is essential that this is a collaborative process between me and my supervisees. Therefore, regularly addressing the supervisory relationship and reviewing the supervision process is important to ensure that any difficulties are addressed and overcome.
I feel that building an open and trusting environment with clear boundaries and contracts around roles, responsibilities and expectations are key to its success.
What kind of things do people talk about?
This varies for each individual but might include your relationships, your childhood, your emotions, thoughts and behaviours, situations or events which you find difficult.
How will I know if counselling is for me?
This depends on the individual and will be discussed at the assessment. We would normally contract for an initial 4-6 sessions then review. During the assessment, the options of brief/time-limited counselling and open-ended counselling will be considered and discussed.
How often should my counselling sessions be?
Weekly or fortnightly sessions suit most people best, however, this will also be discussed with you in assessment and reviewed if need be.
This depends on the individual and will be discussed at the assessment. We would normally contract for an initial 4-6 sessions then review.
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I agree to inform you of any anticipated holidays or time off in advance so that we can plan your sessions around this.
As a registered, accredited member of the British Association of Counsellors and Psychotherapists (BACP) I am required to attend supervision to discuss my ways of working, all cases are anonymised and no identifiable information is shared.
Please complete and submit the below form and I will be in touch within 1 – 2 working days.


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Tag Archives: cuisine
Local (Culture)
The second of our three concepts of "local" refers to local culture. The food served at the establishment does not necessarily have to be grown in the garden next door for it to still represent the local culture. For instance, the self-dubbed "Creole Taqueria," Juan's Flying Burrito (http://www.juansflyingburrito.com), integrates Latin American culture with New Orleans' culture beautifully. Albeit "Americanized" cuisine, with plenty of cheese and variations of sour cream, it is still a sit down establishment where family and friends can congregate over burritos, tacos, quesadillas or enchiladas, much to the tradition of the Latin American way. Locals and visitors alike frequent this place- its hard to get a table around lunchtime any day of the week! As there are numerous people in business attire as well as scrubs, it seems that Juan's is the hot spot for taking a break from the daily grind.The "Mardi Gras" tacos, coupled with a full Saints drink menu and décor made from Mardi Gras beads give one the impression that the New Orleans vibe is still seeping in at this establishment. Those wanting to fully integrate both worlds can purchase a T-shirt sporting the logo "Hecho in Nola". Or, perhaps they can start a New Orleans traditional "second line" parade down Carrollton Avenue headed by a Mariachi band? Anything is possible in New Orleans where all culture is welcome, but local culture is celebrated fiercely.
Strategically Located Hidden Gems
Posted on March 4, 2012 by E. Piqueiras
I had never really been to the Restaurant Row Recovery area other than as a quick drive by on my way towards other parts of the city. As it turns out this area houses so many culturally important destinations that at times I felt like I didn't know the city at all. So often "we" rarely venture outside of our comfort zones and truly experience what else the city has to offer. I'd never heard much about many of these staples of New Orleans culture that were hidden gems in a sea of traffic and congestion. Yet, it seems like everyone already knew about these places, already understood their significance as a part of daily life. The almost limitless food options have made for a fun research experience.
So what and why should anthropologists care about food? I think it tells us about what we think is important, clearly not all of the options are nutritionally significant nor financially attainable for some but here you have all types of restaurants and people coming together in crowds to enjoy what this area has to offer. For the business owner, does this area attract people that would otherwise go elsewhere? With so many options what type of relationships are present? What, if any community organizations bind them together?
So why do these certain spaces attract people? What is it about the growth of this centrally located area that continues to grow and adapt to the major changes throughout the city? When we consider the disparity on what we spend our money on, we find that food and entertainment has a special place. Sometimes food as entertainment attracts us in ways we never thought of.
Thus far, some of the research teams have already delved into some of the big questions? Like why are these restaurants here? What are the relationships between them? As anthropologists, I think we want to know the hows and why, the histories and social structures behind what makes these restaurants tick but we rarely get to know their back stories. I've particularly enjoyed eating in many of these places in the process of initial "research" as a way to understand the clientele, the menus, the employees and even the environment.
It's been said that we are what we eat and what we eat reflects who we are. To some extent understanding food and our relationship with it, gives us a better understanding of our culture and what it means here in New Orleans. To some, New Orleans cuisine is a masterpiece of culinary craftsmanship full of flavors and combinations otherwise unknown to the world at large… while to others, it is largely just a deep fried over gluttonous mountain of sauces masking the purity and natural flavors of whatever the given dish may be. It seems like our relationship with food is complex and fraught with challenging contradictions, whether you are a local, a tourist or a new transplant to the city. Despite being the wealthiest nation in the world, 45 million Americans will rely on food stamps this month to put food on the table for themselves and their families. Food hardship, or the inability to afford enough food, affects families around the country, particularly those with children and throughout this city. So how does an area full of choices impact not only the surrounding community but the entire city at large? This area has a multitude of interesting selections but it is home to many staples of New Orleans culture that somehow potentially touch us all. Through investigations on the how's and why's perhaps we can learn just a little bit more about ourselves and our city in the process.
Exploring Their Connections
Posted on August 25, 2010 by Seth Gray
One of the objectives of our Restaurant Row Recovery Project is to try to better understand how restaurants have played a role, if any, in the relationships with, and within, the neighborhood and the Greater New Orleans area.
Obviously, as businesses, they compete to provide a service in exchange for an established price. From the other side, the consumer provides the restaurant owner and his employees a means of financial support. Bottom line is that these are businesses, and profitability is fundamental to their survival. But these local establishments seem almost as dependent upon their relationships as their bottom line. After interviewing some of the owners, employees, and customers of the Row it quickly became apparent that there was much more to this story.
For starters, most of the restaurant owners interviewed by my colleagues and I have described a type of local connection fundamental to their supply chain. Some, like the owner of EcoCafe, actively engage in more grass roots community networking, by striving to buy from local farmer's markets as much as is absolutely possible. Others like, Paul Ballard, founder and CEO of WOW Café and Wingery, as well as PJ's Coffee, are supplied by larger firms, but are nonetheless local. Frank, owner of Rinconcito, went so far as to express a sense of loss when he mentioned decreasing his seafood order from local supplier Vincent Piazza, Jr. & Sons Seafood Incorporated due to the BP oil spew plunging the demand for seafood. These all serve as examples of restaurants playing the role of consumer and local patron, but also express how each strives to maintain a connection to place.
Afternoon Delivery
The bartender and daughter of Delmy Cruz, owner of Fiesta Latina, echoed what Paul had said about being there not just to make money, but to serve a community in need. This got me thinking about what we, as consumers, need to have in a restaurant relationship. What is it we expect to get out of a restaurant beyond a quality meal? How are those expectations met? I know I enjoy going to the places where I know the staff. Making a connection to the people who work in my favorite haunts is fundamental to it actually becoming one of my favorites.
Paul talked about his amazement with the response to first opening after the storm. He said he had never heard so many heartfelt thank you's in his life. He recalls seeing people piling their MREs (Meals-Ready-to-Eat distributed by the military in the wake of Katrina) on the table while they ordered their first familiar meal in weeks. Paul says he will always remember how happy people were to be in one place eating wings of all things. To them, the folks at WOW were heroes. They brought back something familiar. They brought back a little bit of normality and Americana: beer, wings, and college football.
Above all, these examples go to show how restaurants can often play a much larger role in the neighborhood beyond providing substance to an already nourished population base. They can serve as counselors, organizers, entertainers, neighbors, and sometimes friends. Of course, for our study group it doesn't hurt to have a tasty baseline from which one can operate.
Telling Their Own Story
Posted on August 23, 2010 by foodanthro
I will start with the obvious: chefs and restaurants are trendy. Above all, chefs in fancy white tablecloth restaurants have become important players in the making of the symbolic economy (that is the one in which you buy things—a sports car, a zucchini, a house, shoes—because it means something to you, not just because you need it). Eating in their restaurants, reading and watching their interviews and TV shows and buying their cookbooks and other products are all part of the process by which we consumers make ourselves into the kind of people we think we want to be. Through all of the media they create, these restaurateurs tell their own stories and make themselves into who we think they are…and help give meaning to our own dining and cooking experiences.
The process through which some of the more savvy chefs define themselves is fascinating to watch. One of the difficulties faced by social scientists who want to study restaurateurs is precisely that they are great at telling their own stories. They are good at connecting with the desires and ideas that permeate our societies. The stories of chefs' lives, of the highs and lows of kitchen life, of the creative process in the restaurant, of difficult customers or unusual settings to prepare a meal all help create a kind of template that the rest of us can use to frame our lives, culinary or otherwise.
There are no famous chefs or media stars in our Mid-City restaurant cluster. But there are stories to tell, as we have already documented here. Perhaps more importantly, the restaurateurs are, in many cases, already telling their own stories. They use web pages and social media, along with more traditional media, to create this narrative. Restaurants like Mandina's and Brocato's have quite elaborate web sites, outlining their histories, including pre and post Katrina events, details about rebuilding and links to outside writing or video about them. Of course, they also include menus, addresses and hours as well as contact information. Not all the neighborhood restaurants have web sites (we list those that do on the right side of the blog) and not all of them have extensive information. Some of the restaurants also have Facebook pages and some may also use other social media as well. I am linked to several of them in this way and mostly get regular—and mouthwatering—reports of daily specials.
Still, the media are there and the restaurants are beginning to employ them to do more than simply announce specials. They are using them to tell their stories and thus shape the way we think about them. This is rapidly becoming an important part of how we can think about forces shaping the neighborhood and city. The manner in which the restaurant owners represent themselves through their web sites and social media shapes our knowledge about them and will eventually help contour our understanding of the neighborhood beyond their doors. All of this raises a lot of questions: why do some restaurants pursue this while others do not? (In our study, restaurants catering to recent immigrant populations seem less likely to have extensive web sites, for example.) Who reads the sites and what do they take away from that? As restaurants reach out in this way, are they fundamentally changing the dining experience?
The fact that the people we are studying are telling their own stories through these public representations raises another set of issues as well. What kinds of insights do anthropologists (or other social scientists) have that might be different from or complementary to information presented by the restaurants themselves? If we are going to make our work useful, we have to be able to put the restaurant stories into a broader context. We have to show how the restaurants in our cluster fit into and shape the contours of the city's broader culture and history. As the summer winds down and we start to look closely at our data, we will be concentrating on this. The restaurateurs continue to tell us their stories, both directly and through their public representations. Our job is to put this together and see if something emerges that gives us new ideas about restaurant clusters, neighborhoods, Mid-City and New Orleans. Stay tuned!
Minh-City Cafe
Posted on August 20, 2010 by katrenaann
One of my research adventures took place at Cafe Minh. It is located in what used to be Michael's Mid-City Grill before the storm. When the latter restaurant did not re-open Post-Katrina, Chef Minh Bui decided that it would be a fitting abode for his Cafe Minh.
With his roots in Vietnam, Chef Minh got his New Orleans start cooking at places such as Emeril's and Commander's Palace. After mastering his skills, he developed a Vietnamese-French fusion cuisine that contains hints of local Creole cooking. His first restaurant Lemongrass was opened next to Angelo Brocato's on Carrollton Avenue. A second location of Lemongrass located in the International House hotel was opened, and a third restaurant called 56 Degrees was also opened in the Whitney Hotel. Before Katrina, both the Carrollton location and 56 Degrees closed. After the storm, Chef Minh decided he wanted to return to Mid-City and opened Cafe Minh at its current location.
Cafe Minh fits perfectly in the Restaurant Row even though it is not physically in line with the others. About a block into Canal Street, it is still in close walking distance of the area, however. One thing we can recognize about the Restaurant Row is that even though there may be similar types of food (for instance, Wit's Inn, Venezia, Theo's, Papa John's and Domino's all have pizza), there is still enough variety throughout the restaurants that they are all able to survive. Among the Asian restaurants, you may find that Little Tokyo, Doson's Noodle House, Yummy Yummy, and even Cafe Minh have similar items on the menu. Yet because of the creativity of the chefs, the different environments of the restaurants themselves, and the specific cravings of those searching out food, co-existing is not a problem for these places.
Another similarity I have noticed between the Asian restaurants is that the owners or head chefs all learned to cook in their birth countries. This seems to come full circle as they originally learn to cook in the authentic way of their birthplace, then they end up drifting into another type of cuisine (whether it be another Asian cuisine or something completely different), and in the end, they come back to their original style of cooking, adding a bit of their own flair. That little bit of flair and originality is what sets each of these restaurants apart from the other.
During my visit, I discovered that the food at Cafe Minh is excellent, however, when one typically thinks of the item he or she is ordering, one might not get exactly what they are expecting. For instance, when I ordered the fried eggplant, I did not expect it to be topped with mozzarella, on top of tomatoes, on top of a bed of lettuce, on top of toast. It was amazing nonetheless. This is an example of Chef Minh's genius at work.
For dessert I had the white chocolate raspberry cheesecake, and it was divine. Colorful and divine.
Also, while visiting Cafe Minh, I immediately noticed all of the artwork on the walls. With the high ceilings and ambient lighting, I almost felt that I was in an art gallery for a moment. The bartender even told me that the artwork is rotated by several local artists throughout the year.
When wandering Mid-City and you find yourself wanting something different than the norm, try stopping by Cafe Minh. If anything, the experience is one you're unlikely to find anywhere else on Restaurant Row.
Paul Ballard, A New Orleans Inspired Wingman
This past week I had the opportunity to sit down with Mr. Paul Ballard, president and CEO of WOW Café and Wingery. Mr. Ballard is a larger than life kind of man with a captivating grin and a presence that leaves listeners hanging on his every word. His strong family ties and love for all things New Orleans were evident within the first several minutes of our encounter. We were just sitting down at a table overlooking a rainy Orleans avenue sipping cold brewed coffee when Mr. Ballard first surprised me by immediately thanking me for our interest in his company. For the first time in a long while I did not feel as though I were pestering someone who had more important work to do than indulge the curiosities of a budding young anthropologist. It was also about this time that I learned Paul was a title that Mr. Ballard was more comfortable with.
Paul is a first generation New Orleanian, who grew up in a music store, Tape City USA, owned by his parents. They operated locations in Metairie, the CBD, and on Carrollton Avenue. Paul said it was a big day for them when then franchisee Nancy Bounds opened the Mid City location. "It was exciting for us to be back in the neighborhood", Paul said with a smile. This excitement, he later claims, was one of the main reasons he and his brothers, also his partners in WOW, thought it was important to get back open after the storm.
Paul graduated from Tulane University with a degree in History and an intention of going on to Law School. It was while he was attending Tulane he met his wife, and future mother of his 4 children (the youngest only a matter of weeks old). Like many of New Orleans' college students he found work at several bars and restaurants around town. Sal & Sam's, which he defined as New Orleans Italian fine dining, required he wear a tuxedo and understand the importance of a good sauce, a notion that stuck with him as the WOW franchise began to grow.
Paul also recounted his experiences as a bartender at Rosie's Big Easy on Tchoupitoulas. "Having been around for the progression from 4 track and 8 track players to LPs and so on, working at Rosie's, just down from Tipitina's, was a blast. We grew up around the music". He went on to say how he feels very connected to New Orleans culture. He spent parts of his childhood all over this city, and says that when he sees a WOW in some of his old stomping grounds he cannot help but feel good.
Paul's narrative is a great example of how culture reshapes itself. He grew up part of New Orleans music and food scene. Now he and his wife are raising their own children in an entrepreneurial environment. They are exposing them to an avenue that is clearly one of the cornerstones of New Orleans identity: food. Hot wings and beer may not be the first thing you think of when you think New Orleans food, but the Ballard family has dedicated themselves to creating and spreading representations of New Orleans. I will explore more of this next week when I discuss the connections that Paul has established over the years including his links to PJ's Coffee founder Phyllis Jordan, and Chefs George Rhode and Paul Purdhomme.
Restaurant Criticism
Posted on August 8, 2010 by foodanthro
I wrote recently that I would not engage in any restaurant criticism here. And I won't. But an essential part of our research is figuring out where the restaurants—past and present—of our restaurant row fit within the complex New Orleans culinary universe. To that end, I have spent many hours lately digging around in old newspapers, magazines, guidebooks, newsletters, etc. to see how the restaurants have been evaluated over time.
Since the late 1960s, restaurant critics have played an important role in shaping discussions about restaurants and dining in New Orleans. For this project, I am looking mostly at material about our neighborhood, written and published locally. This is simply a way of making a very large amount of material more manageable. For another project, I am also looking into restaurant writing about New Orleans more generally, including some of the early efforts to legitimize the genre and the way it has changed over time, as the idea of culture, useful criticism, careers and other factors have come into focus.
1973 Edition of The New Orleans Underground Gourmet
Many people in New Orleans would agree that Richard Collin, author of the "New Orleans Underground Gourmet" (1970, Simon and Schuster), was the city's first real restaurant critic. He was also a history professor at UNO, where his work in food writing was not terribly well respected, both because it was not really academic work and because it probably did not seem like appropriate behavior for a scholar. UNO would look on such things differently today. That said, there is a relatively clear relationship between art, film and literary criticism and scholarship in related fields, so that it does not seem unusual for professors to write analytic as well as critical pieces for both scholarly and popular publications. The ties between academe and restaurant criticism are less obvious, at least from a disciplinary standpoint. Especially for a historian such as Collin.
Collin stirred up quite a bit of controversy with his writing, in the various editions of "The New Orleans Underground Gourmet," in his columns for New Orleans States-Item, and in a few other guidebooks about the city. His reviews were subject to protest at a meeting of New Orleans restaurateurs in 1975, with accusations that he lacked objectivity and, worse, that his wife, Rima Collin (also a UNO professor), had a professional interest in seeing some restaurants better rated than others. These kinds of accusations and debates go with the territory, as Frank Bruni, former New York Times restaurant critic, notes in his recent book "Born Round: The Secret History of a Full-Time Eater" (2009, Penguin). But the tone of the original confrontation with Collin seems to suggest that in the early 1970s, restaurateurs had not yet figured out how to make sense—and use—of restaurant writing.
However, it is also true that Collin, along with other critics in the early years of restaurant writing, did not hesitate to dole out cruel commentary on restaurants. Although such commentary still exists, many restaurant writers in New Orleans tend these days to only write about restaurants they can say nice things about, ignoring the rest. The reasons behind this are not entirely clear. Perhaps they feel they can leave the harsh comments to blog writers, on-line discussion boards like Urban Spoon, Yelp, Chowhound, etc. Collin, however, left us with some very amusing evaluations of restaurants in our neighborhood. Some include restaurants that have since become veritable institutions in New Orleans, which suggests that despite restaurateurs fear, it is possible to survive and even thrive despite the critical barbs tossed out by food writers. Here are a few pithy comments about defunct restaurants in our neighborhood:
On Hazel's Po-Boy, 208 N. Carrollton (where Taqueria Guerrero Mexico is today): "Hazel's serves cheap poor boys that lack distinction, as well as luncheon specials on paper plates." ("The New Orleans Underground Gourmet," 1973, p. 132.)
On Mid City Kitchen, 303 N. Carrollton (near the corner of Bienville and N. Carrollton, on the site of a defunct strip mall, unreconstructed since Katrina): "On some days this is one of the great places in town. On most days it isn't. Inconsistency mars the record of a brilliant Cajun burger, well seasoned hamburger poor boys, and excellent roast beef poor boys. On the bad days you wouldn't recognize them." ("The New Orleans Restaurant Guide," 1976, with Rima Collin, p. 165.)
All, of course, is not negative. Collin waxed poetic about many restaurants. In 1976, he wrote about Mandina's "This is what good old New Orleans neighborhood restaurants once looked like. Mandina's still does. A joy to look at and a joy to eat in." ("The New Orleans Restaurant Guide," 1976, with Rima Collin, p. 108).
Some evaluations change over time. But one that stays remarkably consistent is Brocato's, which Collin and every other critic I have come across has proclaimed magical. He writes that the cannoli "may well be the cheapest miracle in the world." ("The New Orleans Restaurant Guide," 1976, with Rima Collin, p. 72.) And despite my promise not to engage in any criticism myself, I will admit that I believe that this is still true, 34 years later.
Much can be learned from looking at the way restaurant writing has shaped our restaurants and our way of thinking about restaurants. Please let us know of any memories you have about restaurant writing, encounters with critics or ideas about how it should be done. Who are you favorite (and least favorite) critics? Tell us about them.
Pizza Galore
I spoke with two guys about pizza this week. One was James "Jammer" Orintas, one of the owners of Theo's Neighborhood Pizza, located on Canal, right near the intersection with Carrollton. The other was Dennis Scheuermann, the owner of Wit's Inn, which is on the corner of Carrollton and Iberville. Both had great insights into the neighborhood and the restaurant business. Orintas, along with his partners, is from Arkansas. Scheuermann grew up in the 9th ward and has deep roots in New Orleans. This contrast alone suggests that they both personify New Orleans at this point.
Both restaurants sell pizza. I am pretty sure that their pizza pies are made in substantially different styles (I've eaten Theo's pizza many times, but I have not yet tried Wit's Inn pizza…I'll try to make up for that soon). Theo's is a thin crust pizza that is often referred to as "St. Louis Style." I have heard that Wit's Inn pizza has a thicker, chewier kind of crust. They both seem to have a lot of fans (I am not going to try any restaurant criticism here, so you'll have to do your own research if you want to decide which one you like better). Theo's has only been in the neighborhood since mid-2009 (they have another location on Magazine Street), while Wit's Inn has been around much longer.
Interestingly, they do not see themselves as really competing with each other. Theo's serves beer and wine, but is primarily, as Jammer told me, a destination for families with kids who want an affordable and relaxing night out (indeed, I can verify that the place works for that – I've been with my kids, other people's kids, hordes of kids…). Wit's Inn has a full bar and a more diverse menu (they also do brunch on Sundays), pool tables and various electronic games-of-chance that only adults may use. Indeed, you must be 21 to enter Wit's Inn. Wit's Inn seems to be a mixture of sports bar and neighborhood hangout, with the addition of a full kitchen and professional chef.
All of which seems like a happy situation, with the potential for both businesses to thrive. Except that they are not the only pizza purveyors in our restaurant row. Venezia, just across Carrollton from Wit's Inn, is famous for its pizza. Just up the street, across the Great Divide, there are outlets for Papa John's and Domino's. If you are willing to travel slightly out of our research area, down to Banks street, you will find the Crescent City Pie and Sausage Company and Lazaro's Pizza, which is nearly a secret pizza purveyor as far as I can tell. (Just to confuse matters, the owners of Juan's Flying Burrito, which is around the corner from Theo's, also own Slice, another local pizzeria, but they do not have a location in the neighborhood.) New Orleans is not a town known for pizza. And yet, you might think we have more pizza places than po'boy shops.
And now, the Italian Pie folks are opening a new store at 125 N. Carrollton, on the same block as Fiesta Latina, Doson Noodle House and Wit's Inn. Italian Pie is a local chain with a fairly large number of stores across the metropolitan area. I have no idea what the new place will look like, but I do know that their pizza is popular with many people in New Orleans.
Which raises a question: is it possible to have too much pizza in a neighborhood? The immediate issue is one of competition and survival. Can all of these places thrive with so many different pizza options? There are subsidiary issues, like parking, that come to mind. Perhaps the different kinds of pizza make these all substantially different kinds of restaurants. Jammer pointed out that one of the things that makes the neighborhood attractive is the wide range of affordable dining choices, from various types of pizza, to different kinds of Latin American food, Italian, Chinese, Vietnamese, etc. Do people see the pizza places as too much of the same thing or do they differentiate between them, so that each draws on their own clientele? Does the collection of affordable restaurants bring in business for everyone?
What kind of mix of businesses, or just restaurants—succeed in neighborhoods? How do urban planners and policy makers think about this? There is some interesting stuff written about this—in urban planning literature, as well as in hotel, restaurant and tourism business literature (and if you have a favorite article or book to recommend, let me know!)—but take a look at this meditation on business diversity in Washington DC (part 2 is here). It raises an interesting set of issues about restaurant and business clusters that are worth thinking about. What has your experience been, in our restaurant row or somewhere else where restaurants congregate? Is there a pizza tipping point? Or even a point at which a neighborhood has too many restaurants? Or maybe not enough? And would that point be different in New Orleans, where people love eating in restaurants, than in a different city, where food is less central to the way of life?
Carrollton Avenue's Transformation
Posted on July 29, 2010 by aubryk
This is a photo of Carrollton's 3600 block circa 1950. Although it was taken several blocks from our research area, it is important to note that the same fate has befallen this strip of businesses as has happened on "the row" - they have since been replaced by 5 Happiness Restaurant.
When I explained to Arthur that part of my project was to map out a history of the neighborhood, he launched into a vividly detailed description of what "the row" looked like when the Brocato family moved there in 1979. The only other food establishments on the street at the time were Venezia (still standing) and Hazel's Po-Boy's, an establishment since closed. The Red Door Bar was also around back then, and according to Arthur its clientele isn't as rough and tumble as it was in the old days. Everything changes with time. The rest of the street was filled with businesses that were functional for the neighborhood. On one side, (Brocato's side) stood Fashion Forward, David's Beauty Salon, Johnson's Hardware, and a used car dealership where Kjean's now stands. Across the street was Ace's Pool hall (now Wit's Inn), a washing machine repair center (now Doson's), and a sign painting business. A bit further down the road towards City Park was Chaubaud's Marine, Music City, and a tire repair shop. There was also a small market nearby where neighborhood residents could grocery shop. The building where Brocato's itself now resides was three different bakeries beginning in the 1920's.
It seems as though this strip of Carrollton was a sort of one-stop-shop for daily errands. When I asked Arthur what he thought of the neighborhood now in comparison to what it was back then, he told me that things have definitely changed, but he isn't sure whether or not they've changed for the better. He explained that as far as a restaurant boom is concerned, he felt that "the row" had reached it's peak right before Katrina. Restaurants in general on Carrollton Avenue have come back strong post-K, but Arthur isn't sure that that's best for everybody's business. On one hand, he reasons, variety can bring people to the neighborhood more regularly to eat, but on the other, there might reach a point where there are too many establishments vying for a set group of clientele. Judging by the line out the door on a summer Friday night, I don't think that Brocato's has much to worry about. Nevertheless, it is fun to reminisce about spending a productive afternoon in the 70's on Carrollton where one could park the car and walk to get one's hair cut, pick out a new outfit, break for a classic Italian lunch and possibly wind down by playing some pool.
Arthur's mixed feelings about the numerous food establishments got me wondering what other residents of New Orleans and specifically Mid City think about the changes to the area. If you can recall what Carrollton was like prior to its present incarnation, please feel free to chime in and comment! I'd love to hear what pieces of history our residents have to offer.
This is the intersection of Carrollton and Esplanade circa 1950. Bayou St. John is to the viewer's left and City Park is to the right.
Photos: Upper- courtesy of www.old-new-orleans.com Lower: courtesy of www.neworleanscitypark.com


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The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp
Directed by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger • 1943 • United Kingdom
Starring Roger Livesey, Anton Walbrook, Deborah Kerr
Considered by many to be the finest British film ever made, THE LIFE AND DEATH OF COLONEL BLIMP, by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, is a stirring masterpiece like no other. Roger Livesey dynamically embodies outmoded English militarism as the indelible General Clive Candy, who barely survives four decades of tumultuous British history, 1902 to 1942, only to see the world change irrevocably before his eyes. Anton Walbrook and Deborah Kerr provide unforgettable support, he as a German enemy turned lifelong friend of Candy's and she as young women of three consecutive generations, a socially committed governess, a sweet-souled war nurse, and a modern-thinking army driver, who inspire him. COLONEL BLIMP is both moving and slyly satirical, an incomparable film about war, love, aging, and obsolescence, shot in gorgeous Technicolor.
Considered by many to be the finest British film ever made, THE LIFE AND DEATH OF COLONEL BLIMP, by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, is a stirring masterpiece like...
THE LIFE AND DEATH OF COLONEL BLIMP Commentary
This audio commentary, recorded in 1988, features director Michael Powell and filmmaker Martin Scorsese, a lifelong fan and champion of the films of Powell and Pressburger.
Martin Scorsese on THE LIFE AND DEATH OF COLONEL BLIMP
Filmmaker Martin Scorsese recorded the following introduction to THE LIFE AND DEATH OF COLONEL BLIMP in 2012. The piece was edited by Thelma Schoonmaker Powell.
THE LIFE AND DEATH OF COLONEL BLIMP Restoration Demonstration
In 2012, the Film Foundation completed a major restoration of THE LIFE AND DEATH OF COLONEL BLIMP, which was supervised by the Academy Film Archive in Hollywood. Filmmaker Martin Scorsese hosts the following demonstration of the restoration process.
Optimism and Sheer Will
Editor Thelma Schoonmaker Powell was interviewed for the following program in New York in 2012. She discusses THE LIFE AND DEATH OF COLONEL BLIMP and the career of her late husband, Michael Powell, and his partner, Emeric Pressburger.
Patton Oswalt on THE LIFE AND DEATH OF COLONEL BLIMP


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Ellie Collins and Marc Renshaw
For December's Artist of the Month we've selected Ellie Collins and Marc Renshaw who, as well as having their own artistic practices, collaborate together on '...Blip: a space for Art'.
Tell us a bit about yourself and your practice, how would you describe the work that you do?
My work often begins with writing and this becomes the catalyst for sound, film and objects that invite touch. The end result is usually an immersive installation that responds to the original narrative. The sensory nature of lived embodiment is a continuing theme and I'm interested in embracing futility and failure in pursuit of something ever richer, more abstruse and irregular.
At ...blip the work is viewed through glass so it's at a physical remove from the audience as they walk by on the street. This has forced a departure as it places limitations on my usual work, so I've needed to adopt a more conceptual approach.
Drawing has been central to my practice for many years. I've always had a compulsion to create images that I often combine with text. I'm constantly engaged in making artwork, and have in recent years used digital drawing processes increasingly as a primary tool of trade.
Themes such as loss, success and failure weave their way in and out of my practice where drawing serves an autobiographical or cathartic function.
I'm drawn to non-places and nowhere spaces; transitional zones such as business parks, airports, motorways and service stations in the futile hope that they will somehow provide a neutral platform in which to immerse oneself in the emptiness of failed capitalism.
I dream of being able to pull over at the M180 Services here in North Lincolnshire, to grab a coffee, open up the laptop, make an illustration for a high-end corporation, sit back and watch the dividends flow into my bank account. Of course I know this will never happen, but I still have hope...
How does collaborating benefit your practices?
...blip is the first formal collaboration we've shared with an audience in the 23 years since we met. That's not to say we haven't ever worked jointly, we do it in the form of a series of ongoing and evolving conversations that help us reflect and develop our work.
Our most enduring shared-project is Brinks, conceived from the perspective that an artist's job is to notice things. Brinks are the things we see every day on our commute to and from work. Grunge Girl, the wonky lamp post, the illuminated bollard on the edge of the village that outstayed its time, the man and dog who seem unusually affected by gravity, Musical Road... Brinks are born of a desire to stop time as we confront the sense of loss derived from knowing that 'now' will inevitably become 'then'.
Tell us about ...Blip: A Space for Art. How did it start and what type of projects do you do as part of the space?
...blip began when we saw that Axisweb had a couple of available Vacant Spaces in Grimsby. We went to look at the shop with a really open mind. When we learned more about Vacant Space we liked the totally flexible nature of the arrangement, with no fixed terms of engagement or specified outcomes. This has enabled us to work completely intuitively.
A year on, we've shown six installations, all of which have been activated in some way, from inflating and deflating sculpture to film, sound and stop-motion animation. We collaborated early on with London-based artist Tracey Payne whose urban perspective gave us fresh insight into the valuable role of an inexperienced art audience. We've since done some live performances and these have particularly engaged passers-by, creating a dynamic that privileges the viewer while framing the artists.
Tell us more about Ridgewell & Ducklop Property Services
In a recent study by the Royal Society for Public Health, Grimsby was ranked the unhealthiest high street in Britain. ...blip is located on Victoria Street South, a once desirable shopping area known locally as 'Top Town', where a steep economic decline has seen the closure of many established businesses and a rise in the number of bookmakers, pawnbrokers and fast food outlets.
We'd already questioned the property's potential uses in the future through live performance so it seemed fitting that its next manifestation should be an estate agent to market itself and some of the many other commercial properties that are standing empty.
Since taking on ...blip we've thought a lot about the building's history. From conversations with an archaeologist for the local council we know it was formerly a butcher's shop. A local shopper told us she worked there when it was a hairdressing salon in the Sixties and more recently it was a ladies outfitter.
Ridgewell and Ducklop has been our collaborative name-in-waiting for several years and it happened to be a perfect fit for a pseudo property management service.
What sort of reactions have you had from the inhabitants of Grimsby?
The first few installations we showed were a bit impenetrable and decontextualized for an audience completely unused to encountering contemporary art. We received quite a lot of hostile trolling online as a result of sensational local press coverage.
Over time we've increasingly chosen to use the shop and its contents as our concept and resource and the public gradually seem less resistant. Obviously repeated exposure to anything is desensitizing, so the fact that ...blip's been present for well over a year means people have become accustomed to seeing the art and hopefully are more receptive.
The advantage of showing work through the window is that there are no strings attached, people don't risk feeling self-conscious or daunted by crossing a threshold and as a consequence many people are happy to look, ask questions or give an opinion at street level. Several projects have been purposefully humorous and self-deprecating, making them more digestible.
We've also had several messages from former Grimsby residents with an interest in art, who'd read a piece about the future of Grimsby in The Guardian that featured ...blip, had come across our blog or saw Marc's regular posts on social media. These contacts have an acute awareness of Grimsby's socio-economic problems and an enduring interest in its ongoing fortune. These messages were really unexpected and helped motivate us at times when an apparent lack of local receptivity was pretty unrewarding.
What have you got coming up?
Our projects have become increasingly focused on the adversity facing Grimsby's town-centre, its unused buildings and the hope for a brighter future.
One of our performances this year (Art/Work ball) questioned the seeming dichotomy of art and work in a community where cultural opportunities are scant and employment is tenuous, with low pay and zero-hours contracts having replaced secure plentiful employment in the former thriving fishing industry. It could be argued that the least concern of Grimsby's general population is their cultural diet.
The presence of ...blip is a reminder that the potential for a place can be limited by imagination, but that people's ideas count for something and that daily life and art aren't mutually exclusive.
We have no firm plan for what's next, as ...blip is inherently intuitive and ever more responsive to news and events in the local area. Our proposition is simply the definition of 'blip' – to be an unexpected, minor, and typically temporary deviation from a general trend.
Ellie Collins on Axisweb >
Marc Renshaw on Axisweb >
https://www.blipartblog.wordpress.com
https://www.elliecollins.com
https://www.marcrenshaw.com


5 anime images in gallery. Tagged under Zelda no Densetsu.
Din, the Goddess of Power, is a recurring character in the Legend of Zelda series. She is one of the three Golden Goddesses of Hyrule. Din, along with her sisters Nayru and Farore, came down from the heavens and created Hyrule out of the chaos the land formerly was, each contributing her part in the process. Din, the Goddess of Power, formed the terrain of Hyrule. Upon departure, the three goddesses left the Triforce, the essence of their power, in the Sacred Realm. As the goddess of power, Din is closely associated with the Triforce of Power.


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Remodeling Activity and Spending Hit Highest Levels in Years
Posted on June 3, 2022 by mankatowebs
Find out where homeowners are putting their renovation dollars and more details from the 2022 U.S. Houzz & Home Study
Home renovation activity has reached its highest rate since 2018, according to the just-released 2022 U.S. Houzz & Home Study. Renovation spending, up 20% in 2021 compared with the previous year, also has hit its highest rate in four years.
Read on to see what's going on in home remodeling now, including how homeowners are spending their renovation dollars, how many people are going over their budget and which professionals homeowners are hiring to help with their projects.
Remodeling Activity and Spending Reach Highest Rates Since 2018
A larger share of homeowners (55%) tackled a home renovation project — including kitchen and bathroom remodels — in 2021 compared with previous years (53% in 2020, 54% in 2019 and 54% in 2018).
Decorating projects are popular as well. More than half of homeowners (55%) decorated their homes in 2021.
"Market fundamentals, including limited and aging housing stock, continue to propel the home renovation market," Marine Sargsyan says. "Homeowners are clearly committed to investing in their homes despite heightened product and material costs driven by supply chain disruptions, and are exploring diverse funding sources. This is especially pronounced among recent homebuyers, who rely heavily on cash from previous home sales to fund their projects and spend significantly more than the national median."
In 2021, median spend on renovation projects leaped 20% year over year, to $18,000. That follows a 15% jump in median spend from 2019 to 2020, according to Houzz.
Keep in mind that the median means that half of the people spent more and half spent less; it's not the average. Economists like to reference the median, or midpoint, figure rather than the average because the average can be skewed, can be volatile year over year and can be misleadingly high or low because of a single project that costs far more or less than others.
Higher-budget projects (the top 10% of spending) also contributed to the substantial growth. Spend on these top-end projects increased from $85,000 in 2020 to $100,000 or more in 2021.
The study gathered these median spending costs and other details from more than 67,000 homeowners who responded. The projects reported were handled with the help of pros, were DIY or combined the two approaches.
New Homeowners Spend the Most
Recent homebuyers comprise 10% of homeowners who renovated in 2021. Their median spend on renovation projects is $30,000, nearly double that of short-term ($19,000) and long-term homeowners ($15,000) who renovated. Short-term homeowners are those who have owned their home for one to five years, while long-term homeowners have owned for six years or more.
The number of projects recent homebuyers take on at a single time — an average of three to four rooms, along with updates to home systems such as electrical and plumbing — is potentially a contributing factor to the higher spend.
This new-homeowner group also has the highest spend for higher-budget projects (the top 10% of spending), at $175,000, compared with $100,000 for short-term homeowners and $90,000 for long-term homeowners.
Also, interestingly, while long-term homeowners make up the largest share (60%) of those who renovated in 2021, they have the lowest median spend overall ($15,000), as well as for higher-budget projects ($90,000).
Renovation Spend Increases for Almost All Interior Rooms
Median spend increased for almost all interior room renovations in 2021. Kitchens are the most popular room to update. In 2021, the median spend on kitchen remodels was $15,000, a 25% increase from 2020.
But other rooms saw even bigger spending increases year over year; guest bathrooms: 38%, to $4,400; living rooms: 33%, to $4,000; laundry rooms: 33%, to $2,000; and guest bedrooms: 28%, to $1,275.
Homeowners Plan to Spend More on Projects in 2022
A majority of homeowners (55%) plan to renovate in 2022, a small drop from the 56% who had planned to renovate in 2021. But for the first time since 2018, homeowners plan to spend more on their renovations than in the previous year. The planned median spend for 2022 is $15,000, a 50% increase from $10,000 in each of the past four years.
Common knowledge about supply chain issues and the increased costs of construction materials likely contributed to the rise in planned spending. "However, we know that the activity did not slow down, which suggests that the costs and prices did not impact the decision to renovate on a larger scale in 2021," Sargsyan says. "We have yet to see what happens in 2022. We are hearing from professionals in our community that the activity is likely to slow down in the next few months, while the spend will continue to increase slightly due to costs."
Homeowners who will tackle higher-budget projects (those in the top 10% of spend) in 2022 plan to spend $75,000, up from $60,000 in 2021.
Additionally, nearly half of homeowners (46%) plan to decorate in 2022, while almost 3 in 8 homeowners are planning repairs.
Outdoor Renovations Dip, Interior Ones Step Up
Renovations to outdoor spaces hit a peak in 2020, with 57% of homeowners tackling an outdoor project. In 2021, that share dipped slightly, to 54%.
But the share of homeowners remodeling interior rooms rose from 68% in 2020 to 70% in 2021. Updates to home systems and home exteriors saw a similar percentage increase.
As mentioned, outdoor renovations hit a high in 2020. So while updates to yard beds and borders, the most popular outdoor project, dropped 7 points in 2021 compared with the previous year, the share of homeowners making these upgrades (28%) returned to the more stable level seen in 2019.
Outdoor lighting upgrades are also popular (22%). And the share of homeowners adding or updating security systems, such as installing cameras and sensors, has become increasingly popular over the years. In 2021, 17% of renovating homeowners took on outdoor security system projects, compared with only 6% in 2015. And homeowners spent 25% more on home security systems in 2021 than in the previous year.
How Long Does a Remodeling Project Take?
Despite what many TV shows convey, remodeling projects can take months to complete — sometimes over a year. On average, homeowners spent nine or more months on a renovation project in 2021.
A large portion of that time was spent planning. The planning phase for remodels of any interior room was nearly twice as long as the construction phase. For example, homeowners spent an average of 8.6 months planning a kitchen remodel, while the construction phase lasted on average almost five additional months.
Homeowners Rely on Pros More Than in Recent Years
Nearly 9 in 10 homeowners relied on a pro for their remodels or upgrades in 2021. They hired slightly more construction pros in 2021 (38%) than in 2020 (36%), as well as more design-related pros (20%) compared with the previous year (18%).
Recent homebuyers tackled more projects than those who'd been in their home a while, and hired more pros as a result — 93% of them brought on pro help, compared with 88% each for short-term and long-term homeowners.
Specialty service providers were the most frequently hired professionals. This group includes electricians, heating and cooling specialists, plumbers, painters, carpenters, tile workers, masons and countertop pros.
Among the 38% of homeowners who hired construction professionals, general contractors (72%) comprised the largest group, followed by builders (30%), kitchen and bath remodelers (18%) and design-build firms (8%).
Of the 20% of homeowners who hired design-related pros, interior designers (37%) were the most common, followed by architects (29%), landscape architects and designers (29%) and kitchen and bath designers (26%).
The three most commonly hired pros among the 49% of homeowners using specialty service providers were electricians (38%), air conditioning and heating specialists (37%) and plumbers (35%).
Who Stays on Budget and Who Doesn't
Budgeting for a renovation project can be difficult. The volatility of material costs, surprise discoveries during construction and unplanned scope expansion all can affect a homeowner's budget. With that in mind, 34% of homeowners went over their remodeling budget in 2021.
That said, two-fifths of homeowners (39%) came in at or under their budget, while 27% reported having no initial budget at all.
Recent homebuyers were more likely to go over budget (45% did so) than short-term (34%) or long-term (31%) homeowners.
Cash Falls, Credit Rises
Cash from savings remained the top method of financing renovation projects in 2021, with 76% of homeowners choosing it. But that's a 7-point drop from the previous three years, when 83% of homeowners used cash.
Funding with credit cards increased. The share of homeowners financing projects with credit cards rose 6 percentage points, to 35%, in 2021 compared with the previous year.
Recent homebuyers were the most likely to rely on cash from a previous home sale in 2021. And long-term homeowners were the most likely of the three groups to use a secured home loan (17%).


text:
Torktumlare används för att torka blöta kläder efter att de har tvättats. En torktumlare påminner oftast till utseendet om en tvättmaskin och brukar normalt också placeras i närheten av en sådan. I vissa fall monteras till och med torktumlaren ovanpå tvättmaskinen om det är brist på utrymme. Denna typ av anordning med tvättmaskin och torktumlare ovanpå varandra kallas tvättpelare.

I likhet med en tvättmaskin är en torktumlare försedd med en liggande "trumma" som kläderna placeras i. Trumman snurrar med den blöta tvätten medan varmluft blåses in i trumman. På detta sätt blir kläderna efter ett tag torra.

Man skiljer på frånluftstumlare, kondenstumlare och värmepumpstumlare. En frånluftstumlare ansluts till ventilation och släpper därigenom ut all fukt. En kondenstumlare kondenserar vatten från luften innan den släpps ut och behöver därför inte kopplas till ventilation. Vattnet från en kondenstumlare samlas i en tömbar tank eller så ansluts maskinen till avlopp.

Den mest miljövänliga torktumlaren är däremot utrustad med en värmepumpsenhet. Värmepumpsteknologin gör att man kan torka på lägre temperaturer och på så sätt spara energi. Med låg energiförbrukning sänks även kostnaderna för torkningen, vilket annars är en väldigt energikrävande och dyr process.

Exempel på varumärken

 AEG
 Asko
 Bosch
 Cylinda
 Electrolux
 Electro-Helios
 Gorenje
 Hoover
 Husqvarna
 Kenny
 Kenwood
 LG
 Miele
 Podab
 UPO
 Whirlpool
 Zanussi

Se även
 Torktumlarludd
 Torkrum
 Torkskåp
 Klädstreck
 Mangel

Externa länkar

 How dryers work (hur torktumlare fungerar) Artikel på HowStuffWorks.com

Vitvaror
Tvättredskap
Torkning

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


Using toothpaste is definitely a good idea when it comes to taking care of your teeth. Used together with a toothbrush and floss, toothpaste can help keep your whole mouth healthy and clean.
Commercial toothpaste, however, contains many ingredients that are difficult to pronounce, and it can also be expensive. Making your own organic toothpaste is a great way to save money and naturally take care of your teeth.
When we eat, food particles stick to our teeth and gums. Bacteria turn this leftover food into acid that forms plaque and creates holes in our teeth called cavities.
Toothpaste has four basic elements that help clean away plaque and keep cavities from forming.
Abrasive – these help remove plaque, polish teeth and remove stains.
Fluoride – toothpaste acts as a fluoride delivery system. Fluoride helps teeth become more resistant to plaque in the present and future.
Soaping Agent – this provides the suds that form as you brush your teeth.
Flavoring – peppermint, cinnamon and vanilla flavorings are often used to freshen breath and encourage the use of toothpaste.
Other materials that you may want to improve the taste of your toothpaste include xylitol, an all-natural sweetener used in sugar-free gums, and essential oil in your desired flavor, like peppermint, orange or cinnamon.
This recipe is a basic one that generally lasts awhile if stored in a covered container in dry, cool place. You may want to start with a smaller batch in order to play with the ingredients and different flavors until you find one that's right for you.
Mix it all up until it becomes like a paste. If it's too dry, add hydrogen peroxide a little at a time to get the right consistency. Use it every day – twice a day – for a bright, healthy smile!
Kelly Wilson is a freelance writer and SEO consultant. For more information about keeping your teeth healthy, contact this dentist in Ridgefield, WA at We Love Smiles.
Healthy, quick, and packed with antioxidants, Acai Bowls can be topped with a wide variety of fruits, nuts, granola – you choose!
Granola, cereal, flax seeds, sesame seeds, fine ground peanut, ground walnuts, sliced almonds, dried cranberries, raisins, and shredded coconut.
This unique wrap from CHOW.com features a myriad of flavors that dance across the tongue! Lentils & hummus graced with pomegranate molasses and topped with a variety of spices and veggies – wow!
Combine potatoes, squash, oil, cumin, salt, turmeric, coriander, cinnamon, and freshly ground black pepper to taste on a baking sheet and toss to evenly coat the vegetables. Spread in a single layer and roast until vegetables are soft and browned, about 20 minutes. Let cool slightly on a rack.
Heat a large cast iron skillet or frying pan over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking, about 5 minutes.
Meanwhile take lavash and cut in half horizontally. Divide vegetables evenly among lavash pieces and dollop 3 tablespoons of hummus on top. Drizzle each wrap with 1 teaspoon of the molasses.
Fold the ends of the lavash into the middle, then roll burrito-style to close completely. Place a wrap in the heated skillet and toast until lavash is crispy on one side, about 2 minutes. Flip and toast the second side. Repeat with remaining wraps and serve.
What else can you do when your child refuses to eat anything green and seems to subsist on chicken-fingers and French fries alone?
1. Make food preparation a family affair.
The more you involve your kids in the preparation and selection of meals and snacks, the more willing they are to try healthy foods. Even a simple trip to the grocery store to allow them to pick out the fruits and vegetables for the week (each child in the family should get his/her own choice) can make a world of difference. Let older children find recipes online that sound good to them using healthy foods. Allow them to choose how the vegetable of the day is prepared and even help in the preparation.
2. Have a make-your-own smoothie party.
Fill bowls with various ingredients, such as berries, mango, spinach, broccoli, flax or chia seeds, and let kids pick what they want. They can even turn the blender on! They love to be in control!
3. Make your own salad.
The same trick will work for salads. But don't just include lettuce. Use seeds, fruit, dried peas—anything goes!
Make a quick salad dressing/dip or use a store-bought one and watch them eat string beans, carrots, celery, cucumbers, and any other veggie that you cut into strips for dipping.
5. Make veggie and fruit shapes.
Thinly slice carrots and cucumbers and use tiny cookie cutters to make shapes. Everything is more fun when it's in a shape (think silly bands).
6. Make a vegetarian soup at least one night of the week.
Pureed soups are great because you can't see what's in them (kale is easy to use this way). You'll be amazed what they'll eat when it's been whizzed in the blender or mixed with an immersion blender.
To get kids on the right track with healthy eating, visit www.MitchSpinach.com, a fantastic resource for parents, teachers, and kids. It offers creative, multidisciplinary lesson plans and outlines the importance of sound nutrition. Kids can print educational games, such as crossword puzzles and word searches that pertain to the healthy foods used in the Mitch Spinach books to reinforce what they have learned.
Keep the winter chill away with this hearty, cheesy soup from CHOW.com! Served with a crusty loaf of bread to dunk in the soup, what could be better?
Remove the florets from the broccoli head and cut them into 1-inch pieces. Place half in a large bowl and half in a small bowl; set aside. Cut off the bottom of the stalk and use a vegetable peeler to trim away the woody outer layer. Cut the stalk into 1-inch pieces and place them in the large bowl with the florets; set aside.
Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat until shimmering. Add the onion, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, peel the potato and cut it into 1-inch pieces. Add the potato, chicken broth, water, and reserved pieces of stalk and florets from the large bowl to the saucepan, season with salt and pepper, and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until the potato pieces and broccoli stalks can be easily pierced with a knife, about 20 minutes. Meanwhile, cut the remaining florets into 1/4-inch pieces; set aside.
Using a blender, purée the soup in batches until smooth, removing the small cap from the blender lid (the pour lid) and covering the space with a kitchen towel (this allows steam to escape and prevents the blender lid from popping off). Place the blended soup in a clean saucepan and return it to low heat. Add the reserved broccoli florets and simmer until they are tender and can easily be pierced with a knife, about 10 minutes. Stir in the cheese and sour cream. Taste and season with additional salt and pepper as needed.
Back in the 50s, as more and more advancements in efficiency were being made, theorists predicted that workers of the future would only work a few days a week, and they worried about how we might fill all the extra time we had when the world became more efficient with the help of technology. Well, the opposite has come to pass. Workers today, actually work more hours than they did 60 years ago, and advancements in technology are actually making it harder for us to let go of our work at the end of the day and find balance in our lives. If you've found that you are working even when you are not working, maybe it's time to make a change, focus on more things that you want to do, and spend more time with your family.
If you feel like you need more balance in your life between work, family, and relaxation, the first thing you need to do is set some boundaries. Pick a time in the day at which you will stop working and will not respond to phone calls or emails that relate to work. It can be hard, but you'll feel better about yourself if you can stick to it. Then you can set times for spending time with your family and doing other activities. For example, you could say that you end work at 5, spend time with family until 8, then focus on a "me" activity until 10—a time when you focus on something you want to do for yourself. When you set apart time for specific activities, you'll begin to feel more balance in your life.
One of the reasons it's hard for some people to find balance is because they don't know how to switch from their work life to their after-work life. If the transition from work to life isn't well defined, then it can be hard to separate the two. To help you along, you might try drastically switching gears when you plan to transition from one phase of your life to another. For example, if you stop work at 5, try going directly into playing a game with your children, or walking the dog when you get home. When you plan to have a transition, you will better adjust to your new schedule.
Many people work all the time because they feel like their work defines them. If that describes you, then it's time to redefine yourself. You need to step back and realize that you are more than your financial success or last quarter's performance review. You are a whole person who only does those other things so that you can eat and have a place to live. Start a new hobby, commit to spending time with you family, and you might begin to see your life from a whole new perspective.
Finding balance is really all about creating a new definition of yourself based on what you really want to get out of life. But the first step to achieving that balance is setting boundaries where you can explore other experiences and spend time on the things that really make you happy.
Diane Johnson writes about pell grants, and anything else that interests her. She enjoys traveling, reading, sledding, and sports.
"Mom" at Tiny Green Mom is thrilled to announce that The Winner of the Real Card Studio Giveaway is Darcy! We hope that you enjoy this beautiful stationery with your family this Valentine's Day! Thanks to everyone who entered this eco-fabulous giveaway!
Earth Mama® Angel Baby® is offering an eco-fabulous deal on their Monthly Comfort Tea! Currently, their USDA Certified 100% Organic and Certified Kosher Organic Monthly Comfort Tea is 25% off! Take advantageof this special offer for you or another mama in your life at www.earthmamaangelbaby.com.
Kushies (one of "Mom's" favorite brands!) has recently introduced a new online magazine for their customers, which promises to be a fabulous resource and enjoyable read for new parents! This monthly magazine will provide information on nutrition and recipes, parenting, play, new product announcements from Kushies, health, product spotlights and community feedback.
You can find it online at www.kushiesmagazine.wordpress.com.
Yes – the avocado is still in this uber-healthy guacamole from Whole Foods Market, but you are adding extra nutrients, as well! Best part? No one has to know! Serve this delicious appetizer with homemade tortilla chips and crunchy crudités.


text:
Archive | December 2016
in Blake, Consciousness, Jean Gebser, Nietzsche, Propaganda
Major Tom and the Starman
David Bowie has always been one of my favourite musicians. There's a touch of the Blakean about his music and his lyrics. This morning I woke up thinking about his song "Space Oddity", released in 1969, in connection with what I posted earlier about the astronaut or cosmonaut as the contemporary archeytpe of the Prodigal Son. Major Tom, lost in space as image of the contemporary ego-consciousness, became something of a pop cultural meme, even a cult figure, after Bowie released the song and Major Tom continued to pop up, on occasion, in some of Bowie's other lyrics.
in Blake, Consciousness, Narcissism, Nihilism, Propaganda
Is a Post-Conscious World Possible?
Is a "post-conscious" world possible as the logical conclusion to Blake's "Single Vision & Newtons sleep"? What if all the "post-everything" today just all adds up to "post-conscious" — the narrowing of consciousness to a nothing — the nothing otherwise known as "oblivion" or what William Blake referred to as "Non-Ens"?
That's the question I want to put to the readership today, especially after watching Adam Curtis's recent documentary HyperNormalisation — the follow up to his other great documentary The Century of the Self.
in Blake, Consciousness, Integral Consciousness, Jean Gebser
Wholeness and the Overview Effect
A "Renaissance" is a profoundly paradoxical and ambiguous affair, and usually an apocalyptic one. It just means "rebirth". There's no reason to idolise a Renaissance because it could just as well be the rebirth of Yeats' "rough beast" in his poem "The Second Coming" — the riddling sphinx-like creature slouching towards Bethlehem from the deep deserts who heralds the return of pharoahism and the god-emperor (which is one reason I remain quite uneasy about Jeremy Naydler's The Future of the Ancient World). "New Renaissance", as Ian Goldin and Chris Kutarna have it in their book The Age of Discovery: Navigating the Risks and Rewards of Our New Renaissance, could just as well be a rebirth of the shaman-king and emperor-god, and in that sense a regression rather than a new integration.


text:
Underclass Hero är Sum 41s femte studioalbum och släpptes den 24 juli 2007. Detta är också bandets första album utan sin tidigare gitarrist Dave Baksh.

Låtar på albumet
Underclass Hero - 3:16
Walking Disaster - 4:46
Speak of the Devil - 3:58
Dear Father - 3:52
Count Your Last Blessings - 3:03
Ma Poubelle - 0:55
March of the Dogs - 3:09
The Jester - 2:48
With Me - 4:51
Pull the Curtain - 4:18
King of Contradiction - 1:40
Best of Me - 4:25
Confusion and Frustration in Modern Times - 3:46
So Long Goodbye - 3:01
Look at Me - 2:03 (gömd låt)
No Apologies - 3:01 (bonuslåt för Storbritannien och Japan-versionerna)
This Is Goodbye - 2:28 (bonuslåt för Japan versionen)
Take a Look at Yourself - 3:24 (bonuslåt - iTunes endast)

Kuriosa
 March of the Dogs släpptes den 17 april 2007 hos alla digitala affärer, så som iTunes.
 Underclass Hero släpptes den 15 maj 2007.
 I låten Ma Poubelle sjunger Deryck på franska.
 March of the Dogs handlar om hur dum Deryck tycker att George W. Bush är.
 So Long Goodbye handlar om när Dave Baksh lämnade bandet.
 Den 14 juli 2007 läcktes hela albumet ut på nätet.
 Look at Me är en gömd låt på albumet.
 No Apologies är en extra låt som man endast får om man köper albumet i Storbritannien eller Japan.
 This Is Goodbye är en extra låt som man endast får om man köper albumet i Japan.
 Take a Look at Yourself är en extra låt som man endast får om man köper albumet via iTunes.
  Nu finns videon till With Me.

Externa länkar
chartattack.com (bekräftelse av låtarna)

Musikalbum 2007


Cover Reads: The Perfect Man, The Perfect Woman, And Santa Claus Are Leaving A Department Store. Who Is Holding The Door Open?
Inside Reads: The Perfect Woman, Of Course. The Other Two Don't Exist. Merry Christmas.
This high-quality, hilarious card by NobleWorks will share the gift of laughter with someone special this Christmas season. While the 'perfect woman' joke is always funny, this one will be sure to stick around for the entire season. Send your special message on this card made from the highest quality materials right here in the U.S.


Orbital ATK's uncrewed Cygnus freighter is scheduled to blast off atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida at 5:55 p.m. EST (2255 GMT). You can watch the launch live at Space.com, courtesy of NASA TV.
The Cygnus' path to space will take it nearly parallel to the U.S. East Coast, so the glow created by the two-stage Atlas V's engines should be visible in varying degrees along much of the Eastern Seaboard, weather permitting.
This is a condensed version of a report from Space.com. Read the full report. Follow Space.com @Spacedotcom, Facebook or Google+.