text:
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The Business Covenant: Sustainability & Community
Posted on August 12, 2014	by julianstodd
When Tesco opened a small branch in the village, it inevitably sounded the death knell for the old bakery next door. The village butcher and greengrocers weren't far behind. There were grumbles, indeed, there had been a protest, letters to the council, some controversy, but in the end, it's progress: what can you do. The perpetual march of the super brands, with their distribution hubs, their loyalty schemes and their own brand yoghurt.
We need a new Covenant, between business, government and society. One that delivers value over time.
The baker didn't exactly know my name, but he certainly recognised me by sight. He was of the community, part of the community in a way that the supermarket never can be. Or never could be anyway.
When my parents took out their first mortgage, they were interviewed by the Bank Manager, in his suit, who made the final decision. The hand written papers were drawn up and stored there, in the branch. Today: it's online. Things change and part of the disconnect we feel is between the local, which somehow belongs to us, and the multinational, which doesn't.
The competition is between Starbucks, the global brand, and The Dog House, the characterful local cafe. Both sit five minutes walk from my house, both employ local people, but one pays more tax in the UK and somehow feels like it's 'ours'.
There's a large insurance company i know, headquartered just around the corner. Most of my friends worked there at one time or another: spending a summer in the call centre after University, maybe doing IT support, one as a secretary. None work there anymore. Transient work, work to fill our time and fill our wallets for summers of BBQs and dreams of foreign holidays. Work to fulfil a need, not a vocation.
The world has changed: more brands, more multinational, more transient. Bigger businesses, bigger profits, less permanence. But something has been lost.
It's a naive oversimplification to blame the financial crisis on the Banks: government creates a regulatory framework, banks seek to optimise profits within that. Government creates space for competition in energy markets, companies try to maximise sales with clever adverts and obtuse contracts. Everybody wants organic, carbon neutral, gluten free pumpkin bread: everybody wants 'two for one' and cheaper fuel. It's a complex web of regulation, desire, profits and consumption.
But somewhere in the mix, we often lose something: we lose the 'local' aspect, we lose accountability and fairness, we lose our culture, we lose what's right.
'Right' is not shareholder value and dividends.
'Right' is not bigger profits and more stores.
'Right' is not a larger storefront or winter sale.
Right is about balance, about equality, about fairness and community value.
Right is about social justice and empathy.
Right is about permanence and commitment to the communities we live in.
It's a balance that's often missed.
There's a large office block downtown, by the station: or rather, there was. All that's left now is a pile of rubble and some steelwork pointing to the sky. Before the demolition was dereliction: ten years standing empty. Before that, a thriving financial service provider. But when times were tight, they shut up shop, leaving a gap in the landscape and a gap in people's careers.
Is that volatility right? Is it right to leave a building empty? Is it right to centralise resources and abandon the town, to offshore work to another continent? What's the nature of the covenant between communities, society, governments, shareholders and individuals.
Currently: it's too fragmented, too divisive, to much driven by money alone. It needs to be driven by values: shareholder value, sure, but also community value.
Look at the culture in the big Banks: the failings weren't caused by a small group of individuals. They were caused by permissive environments, by fractures in culture and rifts in trust. Fractures that open up when the disconnect between individual values and corporate culture becomes too great. When the cost of belonging exceeds the cost of integrity.
These organisations are out of balance, out of balance with the societies they exist within and, to a degree, to serve. Not in that older notion of 'service industries', but in the sense of social justice: we commit our time, our integrity, our effort to build these businesses up and deliver value. They, in turn, have a responsibility to us, as individuals and as a society. And government has a part to play too: instead of perpetuating the cat and mouse game of regulation and punishment, greater collaboration.
Many organisations want to do the right thing: they are simply unable to effect the change required. Part of that change will be generated through appropriate regulation, part through strong and clear leadership, much of it though is co-created as a local and community level. We need stronger engagement in this local change.
The CAIR model explores values: it runs facilitated conversations at every level, from execs to frontline staff, and can extend into the community. It's a structured tool to explore conversations about what's right and how we get there.
Whatever methodology is used, change is required: the imbalance we feel now is because of the disconnect between what's legislated for and what's just right. Legislation will never deliver 'right'.
I've written about equality widely: but why do we still have to fight this fight? Because, of course, there's an imbalance. The change is being driven from the top, but it needs to be co-created and co-owned throughout.
The cultural change required by the banks: this won't be driven just through 'change programmes' and half day workshops. It's got to be driven by a reassessment of what's right and, working back from that, how we do the right things. That happens through engagement at every level and by reaching out beyond the four walls into the community. Our communities. The communities that house and nurture us: do you want your organisational legacy to be long term, community value, or a pile of rubble?
Under the current framework, organisations make decisions to enter or leave markets, to expand or consolidate, to grow or to shrink, largely on financial value. That's a good thing, but we can do better. We can include community value: by rewarding and recognising long term commitment to communities, long term commitment to learning and development, long term commitment to change and equality.
It's not purely the responsibility of organisations, not purely the banks, the energy companies, the retailers, who have to do this: it's government and society too.
Look at the co-operative movement: John Lewis, owned by it's colleagues. Owned by the communities that it inhabits. It's not the right model for everyone, but it's a strong inspiration.
There's nothing wrong with making money: but get the community value right and you can make more money over time, whilst growing and building sustainable trust and integrity. People don't trust their banks, don't trust their energy company. Maybe it's time that trust was earned.
The starting point is reflection and engagement: understanding what the purpose is of the organisation and how it engages with it's staff, it's shareholders, it's communities. From there, we can understand the change required and work towards a better goal. Sustainable value: equality and growth, community based.
This entry was posted in Community and tagged Banks, business, Business Covenant, Community, community value, Diversity, Equality, Financial Crisis, Shareholder Value, Social Age, Society, Trust. Bookmark the permalink.
15 Responses to The Business Covenant: Sustainability & Community
Arti Rajesh says:
This was a great read. Very thoughtful.
Warm Regards, Arti Rajesh
Sent from Samsung Mobile
julianstodd says:
Thank you Arti 🙂
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Q: Solving Convex Optimization Program with Bound Contraints Let $0\leq L\leq 2nL<U$ and consider the convex program:
$$
\begin{aligned}
\min &\sum_{i=1}^n a_i^{-\frac1{2}} C_i\\
s.t. & \sum_{i=1}^n a_i \leq U\\
& a_i \leq U\\
& L\leq a_i,
\end{aligned}
$$
where $C_n>0$ are some fixed constants...
I know how to solve it using Lagrangian duality and Slater's condition if the last contraint is ommmited but how do I approach/solve this form of the problem?
I know that Slater's condition holds so its some sort of duality method but I can't resolve it..

So far I'm trying to setup the Lagrange dual... Clearly $\sum_{i=1}^n a_n \leq U$ implies each $a_n\leq U$ so the latter constrain is superfluous.. Therefore, the Lagrangian should be of the form:
$$
L(a_n,\lambda,\mu_n)=\sum_{i=1}^n a_i^{-\frac1{2}}C_n + \lambda \left(\sum_{i=1}^n a_i - U\right) + \sum_{i=1}^n \mu_i(L-a_i)?
$$
So by the KKT and Slater condition, we look for a zero of
$$
0 = \frac1{2}a_i^{-\frac{3}{2}}C_i + \lambda  - \mu_i
$$
which we solve (for each $i=1,\dots,n$) to obtain
$$
\begin{aligned}
-\frac1{2}a_i^{-\frac{3}{2}}C_i =&  + \lambda  - \mu_i\\
\therefore a_i^{-\frac{3}{2}} =&  \frac{-\lambda  +\mu_i}{2 C_i}\\
\therefore a_i^{\star}  =& \left(2\frac{C_i}{\mu_i-\lambda}\right)^{\frac{2}{3}}.
\end{aligned}
$$
However, this depends on $\lambda$ and $\mu_n$ so I don't know how to proceed further..Do we then maximize for $\lambda $ and $\mu_i$?

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


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text:
Bank of England Warns of Intensified Brexit Uncertainties
The Bank of England warned Thursday that uncertainties related to Brexit have "intensified considerably" since early November and are increasingly weighing on the U.K. economy.
Pan Pylas, Associated Press
LONDON (AP) — The Bank of England warned Thursday that uncertainties related to Brexit have "intensified considerably" since early November and are increasingly weighing on the U.K. economy.
While unanimously deciding to keep the bank's main interest rate unchanged at 0.75 percent, as expected, the nine-member rate-setting panel noted a series of negative economic developments amid the Brexit impasse.
Britain is due to leave the EU on March 29 but Prime Minister Theresa May has been unable to get lawmakers to agree her Brexit deal and is delaying a vote on it until mid-January.
At the moment, it looks like her deal, which foresees close ties between Britain and the EU on the trade in goods, will struggle to get through parliament. What would happen then is extremely unclear and the great economic concern is that Britain could crash out of the EU without a deal and without a transition period that will smooth the process to new trading arrangements.
As well a sharp fall in those U.K. stocks that primarily operate in the country and a further decline in the value of the pound, Bank of England policymakers said business investment was likely to remain weak and the housing market subdued.
"The further intensification of Brexit uncertainties, coupled with the slowing global economy, has also weighed on the near-term outlook for U.K. growth," the rate-setters said, according to minutes of their meeting on Wednesday.
Bank staff said the U.K. economy may only grow by 0.2 percent in the fourth quarter of the year from the previous three-month period, 0.1 percentage point lower than thought last month.
"The broader economic outlook will continue to depend significantly on the nature of EU withdrawal, in particular: the form of new trading arrangements between the European Union and the United Kingdom; whether the transition to them is abrupt or smooth; and how households, businesses and financial markets respond."
The British economy has slowed down since the country voted in June 2016 to leave the European Union and many forecasters are warning of a potential recession if no Brexit deal is agreed by the time Britain is due to leave the bloc.
Last month, the Bank of England itself said that in a worst-case scenario, the British economy could shrink by a massive 8 percent within a few months and unemployment and inflation would spike.
In that "disorderly and disruptive" scenario, four decades of economic alignment would be reversed, with tariffs placed on exports and border checks reinstalled, and restrictions could hit travelers and workers. Shortages of medicines and food could also materialize.
For many British businesses, the current stalemate in Parliament is worrying, especially those dependent on trading in the EU and that helps explain why business investment has been so weak of late.
Both Britain and the EU have this week ramped up their preparations for a potential no-deal outcome.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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to come to their local Southern New Hampshire Services office to apply.
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text:
Q: Creating an order processing system from magento? I want to create a small order processing website, but in time I want the application to be able to extend to an e-commerce solution as well. So I decided to go with magento.
But I am not sure, if magento can be stripped down to only an order processing system. By order processing I want:

*

*Guests should be able select products

*Should be able to add products to cart

*But at last, instead of processing the order by payment system, the order should be forwarded to email of administrators, who will contact them individually.

How to configure Magento this way??

A: Here is a full tutorial with all the files you will need, ready to download:
http://www.excellencemagentoblog.com/magento-onestep-checkout-remove-payment-method-step
This does mark orders with the code 'free', however, you words are our servants and not our masters and you could change the word free to 'telesale' (or whatever):

...the basic idea of removing any step from checkout is to see a set a
  default value for that step, so that magento order processing runs
  smoothly. So when removing the payment method step, i have set the
  payment method "Zero Subtotal Checkout" with code "free" as the
  default payment method.

A: If I got you well, you just want to avoid the CC processing,
In this case you can disable in Magento all payment systems except the 'Money/Check' one.

*

*Guests should be able select products

*Should be able to add products to cart

*But at last, instead of processing the order by payment system, the order should be     forwarded to email of administrators, who will
  contact them individually.

*

*Magento offers you catalog/cart system by default ( mail is mandatory during order )

*Magento offers you cart system by default

*You can disable all payment system except 'Money/Check' one. (this will let user confirm their order without any check on the payment).
Then you can contact all user checking the new orders in the backend ( user/guest email will be displayed along with the order display ) ...

Settings

*

*Add email notification for any new orders:

*

*Log in into admin area

*Go to System->Configuration

*In Sales section, click on Sales Emails

*Select the first section Orders.

*Enter your admin e-mail in the field "Send Order Email Copy To".

Now You will receive a new mail every new order.

*

*Manage Payment Methods:

*Log in into admin area

*Go to System->Configuration

*In Sales section, click on Payment Methods

*Disable all except Check / Money Orders
Now your customer could order without any payment detail.
I think Magento should suit you, in case the 'Money/Check' payment system is not good for you, you will need to create a new module and add a new payment system.
I hope this helps you answer your doubt

A: So, as I can understand, you want to finish customers work on the cart step. For example, by clicking Create an Order except Checkout.
Yes, you can use cart2quote or something like this.
The main idea is to save quote with quote items (from the session) after clicking Create an Order button. For example, you can get Quote and serialize it, get Quote items and also serealize them. When it is needed to show them to admin (in email or in admin section) - deserialize all info and display it. This will not be very easy, but is possible. May be it is better to customize some ready solution.


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The event will be held on Thursday 18th October starting with a Champagne reception from 7.30pm and seated for dinner at 8.00pm. Monsieur Thomas, will host the dinner guiding us through the wines, which will be served with specially designed food pairings.
For the last 130 years, Maison Joseph Drouhin has been in the hands of the Drouhin family. Today, the fourth generation is at its helm, still conveying the same passion that inspired Joseph Drouhin, the founder of the 'Maison', to create some of the best Burgundian wine anywhere. Drouhin has adopted the biological and biodynamic approach. Only natural products are used in the vineyards and all procedures show the utmost respect for the soil, the vine and the environment.
The style of Joseph Drouhin is an alliance between character, balance and harmony. Wines meant to be drunk young are fresh and subtle; wines dsigned for laying down develop with age tertiary flavours and complexity. The wines of Joseph Drouhin are found on the finest tables in the world – they bring out the best in Burgundy.
The cost of the evening is £125 per person. We have just 14 spaces available so do let me know if you would be interested in joining us, we would be very pleased to see you there.


Well, it's been a few days since I wrote a journal entry, mostly because I burned myself out on writing over the weekend. Friday night we had our Pathfinder game, which I really didn't want to miss, but I'd built up a buffer. Still, I fell a bit behind. On Saturday I was beset on all side by leaves. So many goddamn leaves. I more or less made my goal for the day. Sunday though. Sunday I buckled in, and wrote for upwards of six hours and made up my lost time, and enough so that I could pretty much take a day off on Monday. Which I did. To play video games with my friends.
« NaNoWriMo Journal Day 4: To Battle!	» NaNoWriMo Journal Day 13 (delayed): It's my birthday!


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The subject presents an overview of techniques utilized in switching networks (WAN) and in networks that are based on shared media (LAN). Functions of layered architecture are completed by important standards. Methods of communication (message passing, RPCs, distributed shared memory) and survey of important distributed algorithms are presented. Practice is oriented on application of some principles and on use of communication interfaces (UDP/TCP, RPC) in distributed programming.
1. Multicomputer systems, forms of distribution.
2. Switching technologies. Network optimizing.
3. Physical layer. Media, coding, modulation. Modems and interfaces.
4. Data link layer. Error handling, acknowledgement schemes, X.25 LAPB.
5. Network layer. Datagram, virtual channel, routing and flow control.
6. Media sharing, local area networks - bus and ring topologies.
7. Transport services. TCP/UDP interfaces.
8. Session layer. Connection control, synchronization.
9. Presentation layer. ASN.1 data representation, compression and cryptography.
10. Application layer. ISO OSI interfaces.
11. Message passing, remote procedure call, distributed shared memory.
12. Technologies OSF DCE, OMG CORBA, Java RMI. Mobile agents.
13. Distributed computation, global state, causality. Logical time.
14. Distributed algorithms: broadcast, exclusive access, selection, deadlock prevention/detection, quorum.
1. Internet communication, BSD sockets.
3. Protocols - FSM, Petri nets.
4. Implementation of acknowledgement scheme.
5. Effectiveness of acknowledgement schemes.
7. Routing algorithms, RIP and OSPF.
Tanenbaum A.: Computer Networks. Prentice Hall 1988.
Stallings W.: Handbook of Computer Communication Standards. MacMillan 1990.
Coulouris G.,Dollimore J.,Kindberg T.: Distributed Systems. 2nd ed. Addison Wesley, Wokingham 1994.


Marcin Barański, a Polish Volvo fan has released his second Volvo paper model. It is a 1:25 scale Volvo 244 model kit made of printed cardboard. The very detailed kit represents a model from the last generation which was produced from 1986 until 1993. The finished kit will feature excellent details as you can see on these photos from the previous model.
The printed paper sheets for one kit are offered as soft cover booklets which can be purchased for 9.90 € & shipping on his website or on ebay.
Future releases will include a Volvo 740.
I would love to buy these models as i am the biggest Volvo fanatic in the world! Can you email me back and let me know how we can get this posted to me. I live in Cape town South Africa!
He's the guy who conceived and designed this model.


"I like daffodils and orchids and sunshine and bubbles and kites and colorful tights and nailpolish and chai tea and small braids and…" The first paragraph of my online dating profile was a run on sentence list of things I liked.
My friend A, a semi-fearless traveler with a penchant for adventure, was appalled, and declared that it didn't reflect me at all. I believe she thought I was portraying myself as a Giggle Giggle Hair Girl to attract men.
I am not a Giggle Giggle Hair Girl. Not that I have anything against them — when that's their genuine personality — it's just not me. Not that I don't giggle — I am quick to laugh; one of my favorite games is fake laughing until you real laugh. But I am not so good with the clothing that fits and matches, let alone outfits with jewelry, scarves, shoes, and hair. Hair. I started cutting my own hair when I was college-poor, and I haven't stopped, even though my method of gathering it into a pony and lopping at it with kitchen scissors is hardly refined.
A thought I was putting on a Giggle Giggle Hair Girl facade, when in reality I was listing out the things that made me excited, many of which admittedly had a whiff of Zoey Deschanel to them. (Who tends to fit into another trope, but in the pursuit of coining mine, I will omit it here.) OK, but I don't want to live in a world where liking bubbles (seriously, go look at one) and kites (so magical) is relegated to the realm of GGHGs.
I have a secret fantasy of going door to door soliciting people to buy copies of "Death of a Salesman." I can understand your happiness at reading "Death on the Nile" while on the Nile.
I'm glad you contacted me! We're clearly meant to be friends.
He was too extroverted, I decided. And I wasn't crazy about the picture of him posing in front of flowers.
And then…then we skyped. For five hours. And everything changed.
I should have known when you didn't want to be seen reading Calvin and Hobbes on the metro.
As I was coming out of a previous relationship, I joked with people about "I should have knowns." I had spent over a year in a relationship, convinced that we would work out in spite of personality, cultural, and value differences. We would work through sheer determination. I kept trying to do x, y, z. And then I was just trying to try.
Relationships are hard. Marriage is hard. It's what everyone is always writing about, talking about, getting counseling for, wringing hands over, ending phrases in prepositions with.
Love is a choice. It's an action, a verb.
I still believe all of these things. But start with a good foundation.
We were long distance for over a year. Upside: it forced us to talk instead of do activities side by side. Downside: Sharing life over a screen is nothing like sharing life. Upside: We appreciated every moment we had together. Downside: This meant we were obnoxious to hang out with for everyone else.
…and I remember telling his sister that we were only disgusting because we were long distance. Not to worry. Things would change.
I know that if we stick this out that one day we will fall out of love and have to remember to fall back in again. That date nights will have to be scheduled, that we will have to remind ourselves to hold hands. Maybe we will have children and turn into sleep-deprived passive aggressives. We might hurt each other and wonder if forgiveness is ever possible. We might take each other for granted, stop communicating, dig into ruts. It will be work, it will be effort, it will be choices.
But. For now we are a shmoopfest. We are a stereotype. We look into each other's eyes and philosophize about what it means to stare into another's eyes. (Trust me, you should be glad we found each other because nobody else wants this mess.) We create lists of countries we will visit and countries we will live in. We spend hours over a beer at a brewery. We look at each other's hands, and cook for each other, and chase each other, and laugh. We laugh a lot. We are very seldom hungry.
He is buying groceries for a homeless man again. Why do they always want steak?
I was single for the first 22 years of my life. And I loved it. Being single was a wonderful experience for me, and the only reason I would give it up would be to be with someone who makes me better than I can be on my own. Who wants to join me in exploring the world. Who wants to live and give and share with others. Who takes my ideals and runs with them.
Who fits with me on an emotional, spiritual, physical, and intellectual level.
He didn't want a Giggle Giggle Hair Girl. But he did want her 2nd cousin, the Red Lips 40's Heels Girl. I only wear heels at weddings and funerals. I am slightly tilted when I walk. When I apply lipstick, I get a pinkish glow over and under my lips, and bits of red on my teeth.
I didn't want Creative Dreamer Man. I wanted Mechanical Engineer C++ Man. But then, I didn't know that being with him would be like coming home.
Ohhhhh, so romantic, sighhhhhh. You left out the bit about his movie-star good looks. Not that you are shallow like your auntie, or anything….
I AM shallow like my aunt. He is handsome shmandsome. But trying to keep it on the DL…he's strangely oblivious.


As we enter March, St.Patrick's Day is around the corner and I thought it would be fun to make a doll sized potted shamrock plant.
Step 1 – Take 10 inches of the green streamer and bunch it into a ball filling your pot half way.
Step 2 – Remove 12 green shamrocks from your garland and place a sewing pin through the center of each one. Set aside as shown above.
Step 3 – Place your styrofoam ball in the pot and then take 10 more inches of streamer, scrunch it into a ball and place it in the pot as shown above.
Step 5 – Place on your dolls table as a center piece for her to enjoy not just for St. Patrick's Day but all year round.
For today's post I used my Springfield Doll Olivia and she is wearing a shirt I made. The table cloth used in the photos is one dessert-sized paper napkin from my local dollar store. Olivia is also wearing a child sized Shamrock Necklace from my dollar store that I doubled and placed on her neck. The necklace also makes a great doll sized hair band as Chrissa shows off below.
Stop by next Friday for another fun craft!
awesome i can't wait to make it !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Karen, i just want to say thank you for all the great crafts you do!!!! and thank you for being on doll diaries i don't know what we would do without you!!!!!!
Fourthie! so cute! I need decorations for St. Patircks day for my dolls and this will be perfect!
Thank you ladies, you just made my day! What a nice way to wake up and find so many nice things said about me! You are all wonderful, and I do not know what I would do with all my crafts with out you to share them with!
this is just to darn cute. Love it. your creativity amazes me Karen.
Very nice! Fridays are fun when you start them off w/ crafts! Thanks Karen! Since you used your Springfield Collection doll for this craft, *waves to Olivia*, I want sneak in a little pitch for the SF Style Club. There are some new actiivities on there, including how to make a Shamrock wreath, and an ice-skating pond for your dolls! Check it out!
Thanks Sharry! There are some amazing things going on at SF Style Club! I truly love to share my ideas with you all!
I am all irish, I have red hair and blue eyes and my dads bday is on St. pats day!
This is really cute!!! you could make it out of other garlands too like flowers or hearts!!


text:
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There Is An Inherent Darkness And Sadness In The Music I Create
28/04/2019, Stef COLDHEART
Unknown Pleasures Records became a specialized record label when it comes to cold-wave music. At the end of 2018 they released the debut album of Kill Shelter. Driven by Pete Burns this solo-project hailing from Scotland deals with an extremely dark cold-wave style. "Damage" is maybe darker than The Sisters Of Mercy, Joy Division and Bauhaus all together. The work is more than an accomplished beginning, but still one of the best releases I've heard for quite a long time in this genre of music.
Your debut album "Damage" has been released a few months ago now. A debut album is always something special and definitely a challenge when it comes to catch the attention of listeners, promoters, media etc. What can you say about it right now and what kind of album did you want to accomplish?
I feel very fortunate that the debut Kill Shelter release sold out so quickly on Unknown Pleasures Records. The response has been incredible and I feel extremely lucky to have had so much critical acclaim in such a short period of time. Getting visibility for your music has always been challenging and it's even harder now given how much great music is created and published worldwide every day.
In terms of the album, I had a very strong vision and a concept for both Kill Shelter and "Damage" from the outset. As a producer, I wanted to unite like-minded artists from around the world, but what I hadn't taken into consideration was what an incredibly personal and emotional journey it was going to be.
I've been impressed by the darkness emerging from your music. The deep, vibrating bass lines are darker than the darkest 80s formations while the guitar play only accentuates the emotional part of the work. Tell us a bit more about this 'sound' and what does it say about the man, Pete Burns, hiding behind the musician?
The Kill Shelter 'sound' can be broken down into a few constituent parts namely; multi-tracked, treated guitar (no chords just arpeggios and phrases), solid underpinning bass lines, big room layered drum sounds and heavily processed synths. I think there is a beautiful space which lies somewhere between hope and melancholy and I always try to capture that in my work -there is a darkness, but there is also contrast and resolution and that natural tension is fundamental to the sound that I create. Unfortunately for me I'm definitely what you'd call a 'troubled' individual and I think that comes through in my music. I never want my work to be so introspective that the music stops speaking to people, but there is an inherent darkness and sadness in the music I create - I can't help it.
You're a multi-instrumentalist, but not a singer! What can you say about the instruments you played on "Damage", the way you played them and how did the recording of the album happen?
Guitar is my primary instrument, I play it every day and it has always been an outlet or channel for the way I'm feeling and it features heavily on "Damage". I create virtual synths and patches and that is an important part of my approach -I like to make things then distort them in one way or another. I blend a lot of my guitars with synths too so it blurs the lines a lot of the time in terms of the sonic landscape. I try to make the Kill Shelter work as accessible, immediate and meaningful as possible. There are quite a few technical elements that I bring to the writing process -I use a lot of subtractive EQ and automation and tend to work to high production values even at an early demo stage. I see production and song writing as one and the same.
You've worked with multiple guest singers. What have been the criteria to work with them, how did the collaborations happen and could it be an idea to get in search of a lead singer, the singer being often the 'image' of the band?
Damage was made by the quality of the contributors. I'd been a fan of all the vocalists that I asked to contribute and I'm still extremely honoured that they all said yes -each one has something very unique in the character of their voice and approach and you can hear that come through on the album. I've always said that "Damage" was about the contributing artists and not about me.
As you'd expect I'm recording a lot of new material and I had wondered what would happen if Kill Shelter had a front person -I won't rule out the idea, but I also have a wonderful selection of future collaborations lined up so I'm going to concentrate on that first. If you look at the EDM scene there are a lot of producers who feature vocalists -I'm just taking that approach and doing it in a completely different genre and it suits the way I work. However, saying that, watch this space as they say…
The title of your album and the dark compositions perfectly reflect the lyrical themes of the opus dealing with a dystopian vision about society and mankind. Tell us a bit more about this essential aspect of the work, the deeper meaning behind and the link between lyrics and the clips you've made?
Even although "Damage" took a relatively short time to write and produce I'd been carrying a lot of thoughts and ideas in my head for quite some time. This culminated in a trip to Croatia last year. We visited the abandoned, war-torn Kupari luxury resort and it had an incredibly profound effect on me. It's an unsettling reminder of the destruction that people cause and a place where nature is slowly trying to repair the shocking damage that has gone before. The cover photography was taken there and that's also where the underlying concept came together. I felt like I could see into the future and the past all at once -a heavy wave of mortality, futility and lack of regard for human life. Damage explores some of those ideas in various forms -though it's in no way a cold album, its warmth definitely lies in the darkness.
I think I understood you're not that fond of playing live shows while performances are often an opportunity to reach a wider audience –which today because of decreasing CD sales, seems to be more important than ever before. How come and are there eventually plans to go on stage with Kill Shelter?
I see Kill Shelter very much as a studio project and I'll have to swim against the tide in terms convention on that one. It's a tricky set up to replicate given the amount of contributors, but it is something I'm now giving serious thought to. Digital channels done well can bring reach so I'll be focusing on getting to a bigger audience through the next set of releases first. "Damage" will be out on vinyl this year so I'm really hoping that will help get to more people.
I'm preparing a special audio/visual DJ set that I will be doing as part of Rule Of Three with my good friend Christian (Schaefer) at the Cold Transmission/Disorder Festival in Cologne this July. I will have some special material and mixes prepared for that. It will also be a great opportunity to finally meet Karl (Antipole) and Pedro (Iamtheshadow) who contributed to "Damage" as well as meeting Silent Runners who were the first band I remixed as Kill Shelter back in late 2017.
Stef COLDHEART
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The 2016 NoteSchool Summer Summit for mentoring students will be held June 3rd and 4th at The American Airlines Conference Center in Fort Worth, TX. Think of it as two days of mentoring calls on steroids! Plus each day will conclude with a networking event where you can connect or re-connect with other NoteSchool mentor students from across the country!
This Is A Special Pre-Summit Bonus Class!
Entity Structuring for Asset Protection and Minimizing Taxes Class with Dyches Boddiford (also a fund-raiser for the Montague County Child Welfare Board…a very good cause). This class will be followed by an excursion to the Fort Worth Stockyards for the special class attendees. This will be more affordable than last year. The price will be $250 for a primary and $200 for a guest. Transportation to Fort Worth and dinner are included. Click here to find out more about this special class.
You must register to attend Summer Summit.
Due to demand, the room block for the American Airline Center has been SOLD OUT.
NOTE: As of May 4th, 2016 room blocks at American Airlines Center have been sold out.


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text:
GSA announces second agency to start Centers of Excellence program
The Department of Housing and Urban Development will be the second agency to start a Centers of Excellence program. (AlexRaths)
The Department of Housing and Urban Development is the second agency to team up with the General Services Administration to jump-start IT modernization through a Centers of Excellence program, the agencies announced Sept. 25.
"I'm thrilled HUD is teaming up with GSA to transform this agency into a more effective and efficient servant on behalf of the American people," HUD Secretary Ben Carson said in the press release.
"This is an important moment for HUD as we embark upon a campaign to modernize our aging technology and bring true financial integrity to everything we do."
The Centers of Excellence program, a partnership between GSA and the White House Office of American Innovation, first began in December 2017 with the U.S. Department of Agriculture as the lighthouse agency for the program.
Centers of Excellence look to industry for Phase 2 structure
The execution phase of a U.S. Department of Agriculture program for aggressively modernizing IT systems will rely heavily on industry input ahead of July contract solicitations.
USDA recently moved into Phase II of its CoE program, which focuses on implementation, with solicitations issued to the private sector in late July 2018.
"Today's announcement further demonstrates the strength, success, and momentum that the CoEs have already brought to bear in less than a year. I couldn't be more excited to build upon the work we have begun with USDA by implementing these best practices at an agency as customer-focused and citizen-facing as HUD," said GSA Administrator Emily Murphy.
According to the press release, HUD and GSA finalized their interagency agreement for the CoE program this week, and the agency will begin work on Phase I of the program, planning and organization, in the near future.
"In partnering with GSA's CoEs, HUD's business needs are our primary focus," said HUD Chief Information Officer David Chow.
"This first phase of the CoE will be led by program office experts with full IT support to streamline business processes and enhance taxpayers' overall experience."
GSA awards first Centers of Excellence contracts
The five awardees will be tasked with providing consulting and IT engineering services for the first phase of the new Centers of Excellence program.
The CoE program is designed to enable agencies to examine the specific IT needs of their organizations while also learning from the past experience of other agencies that went through the program before.
"With GSA's help we will transform how HUD operates across our agency and within our programs," said HUD Chief Financial Officer Irv Dennis.
"This first phase will help us identify the upgrades we need to bring our technology systems and accounting procedures into the 21st century. Overall, this is a great initiative we see often in the private sector and not often enough in the federal government."
According to the press release, awards for Phase II at USDA are also scheduled to be announced in the next few weeks.
More In IT & Networks
Attack on VA computer systems exposed personal information of about 46,000 veterans
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Would the White House consider a national cyber director?
The Cyberspace Solarium Commission wants a national cyber director in the White House. Would the White House be open to it?
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text:
The Things We Think We're Missing is the second studio album by American band Balance and Composure, released on September 9, 2013.

Track listing

Chart positions

References

2013 albums
Balance and Composure albums
Albums produced by Will Yip

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


Our reputation for providing high standards of carpet, upholstery, hard flooring cleaning / restoration and wood floor sanding and restoration have enabled us to expand into London.
Our staff are trained across carpets, upholstery, hard floors and wood floor sanding in your area. For carpet we include both bonnet cleaning and hot water extraction cleaning, our London team will ensure that your commercial building / home is hygienic and fresh. Our cleaners are vetted, provide references and complete DBS (formerly CRB checks) and you can trust that they will respect your property and your privacy.
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text:
package org.jboss.weld.tests.alternatives.weld930;

import javax.enterprise.inject.Alternative;
import javax.enterprise.inject.Produces;
import javax.inject.Named;

/**
 * @author Marko Luksa
 */
@Alternative
public class AlternativeProducer {

    @Produces
    @Named("product")
    public Product produce() throws Exception {
        return new Product("Alternative");
    }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
Special envoys' NK visit fails to overcome stumbling blocks in denuclearization talks
By Jung Min-kyung
Published : Sept 6, 2018 - 15:18 Updated : Sept 6, 2018 - 15:18
Despite North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's renewed vows to denuclearize, experts say the latest meeting between Kim and South Korea's special envoys failed to provide a breakthrough in the current stalemate in the nuclear negotiations.
According to Chung Eui-yong, who led a five-member delegation to Pyongyang on Wednesday, Kim reaffirmed his commitment to complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula while expressing his willingness to maintain cooperation with South Korea and the US.
"Chairman Kim Jong-un reaffirmed his firm commitment to complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, and expressed his willingness to closely cooperate with not only South Korea but also the United States to that end," the head of the presidential National Security Office said in a press conference held a day after his trip to the North.
Chung Eui-yong, head of the presidential National Security Office (left) talks to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (right) in Pyongyang on Wednesday. (Yonhap)
The trip, which was largely aimed at setting a specific date for what would be the third summit between Moon and Kim, was also expected to provide a breakthrough in the stalled negotiations between Washington and Pyongyang. The progress in talks has become increasingly stagnant following US President Donald Trump's decision last month to "postpone" a scheduled North Korea trip by his Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, citing a lack of progress in the North's denuclearization process.
Though North Korea's reiteration of its vows may seem promising, critics say the trip failed to bring tangible results that could quicken the pace of nuclear talks.
"The trip has failed to draw fresh 'added value' which could move forward the stalled denuclearization talks between the US and North Korea," said Shin Beom-chul, a senior researcher at the Asan Institute for Policy Studies.
"It only fueled concerns that North Korea is adamantly refusing to comply with the US demand to take verifiable denuclearization steps such as declaring a full list of its nuclear and missile stockpiles."
At Wednesday's meeting, Kim highlighted the pre-emptive measures the North has already taken -- including dismantling its Punggye-ri underground nuclear test site and a missile engine facility -- and said Pyongyang will take more active steps towards denuclearization if the US reciprocates the measures, Chung said.
"North Korea is asking the US to take the necessary steps first if it wants to see progress in talks," Kim Joon-hyung, an international studies professor at Handong Global University said.
But the expert also noted that it would have been difficult for Chung to propose that North declare its full nuclear program as denuclearization is mainly an issue between Washington and Pyongyang.
Meanwhile, Chung's visit has also set a new deadline for the opening of a joint liaison office in the North's border town of Kaesong. The launch of the office was initially scheduled for the end of August, but was indefinitely delayed on concerns of sanctions violations that came with stalemate in talks.
At the meeting, the two countries agreed to open the office before the third Moon-Kim summit, which is scheduled to be held between Sept. 18 and 20, according to Chung.
"The opening of the liaison office depends on the mood of the US-North Korea cooperation, so they would need to check the details in line with the sanctions against Pyongyang," Shin said.
By Jung Min-kyung (mkjung@heraldcorp.com)


A picture says more than a thousand words because sometimes words are not necessary to understand a message, and if this is achieved is thanks to the good work of a graphic designer.
Sure you've seen the memes, heard the jokes or met some graphic designer but I bet that if you were asked you wouldn't know how to define what a graphic designer does and that's why today we tell you more about what graphic design is and what are the main areas of work.
Graphic design is the profession that aims to create and transmit messages through the image. In order to achieve this objective, text and images are combined to reinforce and make a message clearer.
Graphic design is also called visual communication and is a profession in great demand due to the development of technology and the current ways in which human beings communicate. In order to do graphic design it is necessary to learn about topics related to visual composition, aesthetics, creativity and the handling of different tools and software with which you transform ideas and messages into graphic pieces.
Today's society demands a large number of visual products, in different formats and this is why graphic designers are professionals who develop in different specialties.
As a graphic designer you have the opportunity to work together with other creatives to create advertising campaign concepts. Think about your favorite advertising pieces, those that appear in the spectaculars of the big cities or the most important magazines: you can be in charge of materializing those ideas for different brands and businesses.
On the other hand, it may be that advertising is not your thing and what you like is to give personality to the brands and companies you work with, create unique and original logos. If so, then your talent will always be welcome in a branding or corporate identity agency.
Digital marketing agencies need the talent, knowledge and experience of a graphic designer to adapt brand identities and translate them into visual elements for social networks, internet advertising, email marketing, websites and more.
Editorial design is another area in which you can work as a designer, you and your team can be responsible for designing, layout and composition of various publications such as magazines, books, newspapers or digital books.
If in addition to a lover of visual aesthetics you also love to read then editorial design may be the ideal job for you once you graduate as a graphic designer.
Television stations, radio stations, newspapers and even digital media such as Collective Culture, Marvin and more, always need graphic designers to carry out a myriad of tasks ranging from the generation of their graphic identities, illustration, photography, image retouching, website development and even editorial design in some cases.
There are graphic designers who have made photo editing and manipulation their specialty. They are especially required for product and model photography sessions and are in charge of retouching and improving the images obtained in those sessions.
There are graphic designers who dedicate themselves exclusively to the generation of images, "drawings" that are born from their imagination and that are captured in digital media with the help of tools such as the computer, graphic tablets and touch screens.
The digital illustration, unlike the drawing, is born from the sketch in a digital medium and is created to accompany posters, T-shirts, animations, advertisements, books, comics and various applications on the Internet.
Have you ever wondered where brochures, cards and promotional products come from that you get on the street, at parties or events? Well, you should know that there are companies that are dedicated to printing these products and in most cases have graphic designers who are responsible for making these prints with the right quality.
Graphic designers are necessary in these companies to ensure the correct format of files, verify the quality of prints and adjust the images to the medium in which it will be captured.
Museums, galleries, cultural fairs, theatre companies, audiovisual production companies and many more also need graphic designers on their team. Cultural companies also need your help to develop illustrations, identities and advertising for their products, exhibitions and events.
In addition, unlike other areas of work, cultural companies will allow you to use your creativity more freely.
Government institutions, city councils, secretariats, among others, also need the powers and skills of a good graphic designer to create graphic pieces that pursue the common good.
It is possible that if you are reading this blog you have found yourself and have seen the covers and other images created by a graphic designer and that is why we tell you: yes, also small, medium and large educational institutions need to work with graphic designers.
The area of graphic design is so varied that there are more and more designers who are dedicated to the creation of graphical interfaces of platforms (either websites or applications). The site you're browsing right now, the buttons that invite you to ask for more information and even the menus that will help you make your journey easier, were created by a graphic designer who specializes in the user experience.
As you can see, the field of work of a graphic designer is enormous and one of the great advantages is that it allows you to work within a company or be your own boss. It also allows you to work not only in Mexico but also to migrate to different cities around the world. The important thing is always the dedication and the objectives you want to achieve.


text:
'The seizures have got more frequent and more violent'
"It's really frightening. You think 'is she going to be ok or do I have to phone for an ambulance again?'.
"What's she going to be like when she comes round? It's a daily struggle".
Kiley Lay's daughter Katie suffers from epilepsy. The 17-year-old from Essex has had the condition since she was two-years-old. but recently her illness has taken a turn for the worse.
"The seizures have got more frequent and more violent. She'll try and scratch herself and pull her hair. She's had 124 seizures since April."
'Not good enough'
Katie was having daily seizures in the summer, so her family turned to their GP for help.
They were told their daughter could be referred to a neurologist – but there was a waiting list.
The earliest she could see a neurologist would be February next year.
Kiley says: "We need the appointment brought forward because Katie's seizures were getting more prolonged".
Following a recent visit to A&E, a request for an urgent referral was made for Katie and she is due to see a consultant who specialises in epilepsy in early December.
But she will still have to wait until February to see a neurologist.
Katie said: "It made me angry because I can't really wait that long. I would love to be a free spirit and live my life."
A spokesperson for Basildon and Thurrock University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust told the programme: "There is a national shortage of neurology consultants and the trust has been proactively working to recruit specialist doctors."
It added one consultant was due to start in March 2018 and the trust was advertising for another.
'Failing patients'
Earlier this year, a report published by the Neurological Alliance found that that services to diagnose, treat and provide on-going care are failing patients across the spectrum of neurological disorders.
It surveyed 7,000 neurology patients in England about their experience of getting access to care and treatment.
It found that 23% waited more than 12 months to see a neurological specialist after their first visit to a GP.
Suzanne Dobson, chair of the alliance, said: "The impact is huge. For a few, it will mean that they didn't get treatment earlier enough and so bits of their conditions that many have been reversible, manageable, get worse during the period and they can't get that back."
Meanwhile, a separate report published in March by the Association of British Neurologists (ABN) found that the likelihood of a patient with a neurological problem being seen by a neurologist varies dramatically depending on where they are admitted.
It found one in five UK hospitals have access to neurologists on three days a week or less.
Another area of concern highlighted within the Neurological Alliance's research was the length of time it took to patients to get a diagnosis.
It found that 42% of patients saw a GP five or more times before seeing a neurological specialist.
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has recognised this as an issue and in January is due to publish new guidance for the health professionals like GPs to help them to better recognise neurological conditions.
The draft guidance says "a lack of support" to help non-specialists identify when a referral is needed, has led to "delays in referral for people with treatable or potentially serious neurological conditions".
Two years ago a Public Accounts Committee report criticised the wide variations in neurology care in England.
The committee's chair, Meg Hillier, MP said despite their warnings the situation had not improved.
"Evidence shows from our committee that in 2012 the system wasn't fit for purpose, that in 2015 it wasn't and from the evidence 5 live Investigates has shown me, and the Neurological Alliance have been reporting, it's not got any better. In fact it looks like its going backwards".
An NHS England spokesperson said a national advisory group on neurology was formed last year, bringing together patient groups within the Neurological Alliance, NHS England and other organisations.
She said: "Its aim is to direct the development of national work to improve outcomes for people living with neurological conditions".
A Department of Health spokesperson added: "We spend over £3 billion every year on neurological services and the number of neurologists in the NHS has increased by 37% since 2010.
"However, local services must also ensure patients with neurological disorders receive timely care and support and have access to specialists when they need it."
5 live Investigates is broadcast on Sunday 26th November 2017 at 11am GMT. If you've missed it you can catch up on the iPlayer.
"It's really frightening. You think 'is she going to be ok or do I have to phone for an ambulance again?'.
"What's she going to be like when she comes round? It's a daily struggle".
"The seizures have got more frequent and more violent. She'll try and scratch herself and pull her hair. She's had 124 seizures since April."
Kiley says: "We need the appointment brought forward because Katie's seizures were getting more prolonged".
Katie said: "It made me angry because I can't really wait that long. I would love to be a free spirit and live my life."
A spokesperson for Basildon and Thurrock University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust told the programme: "There is a national shortage of neurology consultants and the trust has been proactively working to recruit specialist doctors."
Suzanne Dobson, chair of the alliance, said: "The impact is huge. For a few, it will mean that they didn't get treatment earlier enough and so bits of their conditions that many have been reversible, manageable, get worse during the period and they can't get that back."
The draft guidance says "a lack of support" to help non-specialists identify when a referral is needed, has led to "delays in referral for people with treatable or potentially serious neurological conditions".
"Evidence shows from our committee that in 2012 the system wasn't fit for purpose, that in 2015 it wasn't and from the evidence 5 live Investigates has shown me, and the Neurological Alliance have been reporting, it's not got any better. In fact it looks like its going backwards".
She said: "Its aim is to direct the development of national work to improve outcomes for people living with neurological conditions".
A Department of Health spokesperson added: "We spend over £3 billion every year on neurological services and the number of neurologists in the NHS has increased by 37% since 2010.
"However, local services must also ensure patients with neurological disorders receive timely care and support and have access to specialists when they need it."


of organizations have experienced security incidents, due mainly to malware and human errors.
of organizations had operational issues, which were most frequently caused by accidental, incorrect or malicious user activity.
of respondents had compliance issues, mostly due to their inability to provide proof of compliance or quickly find required data.


But children's enrollment in religious education continues to drop.
For the first time since 2008, U.S. congregations in the Unitarian Universalist Association reported a membership increase in 2018. Although the decline each year from 2009 through 2017 was slight, and the increase in 2018 was only 980 members, the UUA is doing better than many similar religious groups in the United States.
Unfortunately, another trend in the congregational data continues to worry UU leaders. Religious education enrollment, which began dropping in 2002 even as membership was rising, continues to fall, with no sign of slowing down.
The UUA's 1,012 congregations in the United States reported 148,242 members during the February 2018 annual certification process, up 0.67 percent from 147,262 in 2017. Counting the twenty-one international congregations and the non-geographic Church of the Larger Fellowship, the total membership of the UUA was 154,715 in 2018, up 0.78 percent from 153,522 last year.
Compared to some faith groups, that's not bad. Mainline Protestant denominations—which share many demographic characteristics with the UUA, and most of which have embraced liberal positions in America's culture wars—have seen precipitous losses in membership since the 1990s. The Presbyterian Church USA dropped 4.6 percent last year; the Episcopal Church declined 1.9 percent; the United Church of Christ lost 3 percent. But liberal churches are not the only ones in decline. Roman Catholic parishes have seen widespread closures, and even the Southern Baptist Convention, the largest Protestant denomination and largest Evangelical body in the United States, counts fewer members each year.
Gallup surveys show that many Americans are simply giving up church-going. The percentage of Americans who say they belong to a church or synagogue dropped from 61 to 54 percent over the last ten years. During that same period, weekly churchgoers dropped from 30 to 23 percent, while those who say they never attend a service rose from 16 to 27 percent of the population.
In that context, the fact that UU membership has declined only 4.95 percent over a decade may be a kind of good news. Still, U.S. congregations lost 7,727 members since 2009, and our religious education programs shrank by 15,172 children—a drop of 27.37 percent, more than five times the rate of membership decline.
Why, if membership remains relatively stable, is the number of children formally connected to our congregations falling so dramatically?
In part, the enrollment decline parallels a drop in the birthrate as Baby Boomers stopped giving birth in the mid-1990s. Parents born between 1965 and 1981 are part of a much smaller age cohort, Generation X; most children in many UU congregations now have Gen X parents. And millennials, the generation that is projected to outnumber Baby Boomers in 2019, are delaying having children longer than earlier generations.
But even as millennials have children of their own, they may not bring their kids to church. A 2014 study revealed that one-third of millennials are not affiliated with any religious community.
Church attendance may be losing out to competing demands on children's time from sports or other activities, but surveys show declining rates of participation in those activities, too, except among upper-income families.


text:
Bonnie Jo Stufflebeam
"She captures a lovely intersection between the mundane and the mythic…"–Fantasy Literature
Stories & Poetry
Strange Monsters
Art & Words Show
Syfy's The Magicians Short
A Harry Potter Birthday
Art & Words 2020
On March 24, 2020 By BonnieJoStuffleIn Art & WordsLeave a comment
The Art & Words Show may be different this year, but it will go on. I'm thrilled to have selected this year's participants–ten writers and ten visual artists–and to have scheduled the show for Saturday September 26 from 6-9PM at Art on the Boulevard in Fort Worth, Texas.
However, the world may not be back to normal operations by then. In that case, rest assured, we will figure out an online option of some sort, working with the writers and artists to figure out the best solution.
For more info on how the show works, visit this page, but basically: ten visual artists and ten writers will use one another's work as inspiration. The resulting twenty pairs of art & words will be on display at the gallery (or online) for one week following the opening reception.
Below, I present to you the writers and artists who will be part of 2020!
Michelle Muenzler (Flower Mound, TX)
Michelle Muenzler, known at local science fiction and fantasy conventions as "The Cookie Lady", writes things both dark and strange to counterbalance the sweetness of her baking. Her work is in numerous science fiction and fantasy magazines, and she takes immense joy in crinkling words like little foil puppets.
Jerri Bourrous (Nacogdoches, TX)
Jerri Bourrous is a graduate of the Masters of Creative writing program at Stephen F. Austin University where she currently teaches. She lives in Nacogodoches, Texas, with her two dogs.
Fakoyede Seun (Lagos, Nigeria)
Fakoyede Seun is a Nigerian writer and school teacher. His work has recently appeared or is forthcoming in Sand Magazine, Slice Magazine, Bacopa Literary Review, and Vinyl Poetry.
Michael Stalcup (Bangkok, Thailand)
Michael Stalcup is a Thai-American poet living as a missionary in Bangkok, Thailand with his wife and three young children. He learned poetry from good Hip-Hop, the Bible, and really old sonnets — and loves seeing visual arts and poetry join forces. You can find more of his work at michaelstalcup.com.
Matthew Pitt (Fort Worth, TX)
Matthew Pitt is Associate Professor of English at TCU and author of two story collections: These Are Our Demands, Midwest Book Award winner; and Attention Please Now, winner of the Autumn House Prize. Individually-wrapped stories have appeared in numerous magazines and anthologies. His problematic poems appear exclusively in private notebooks.
Kelly Talbot (Indianapolis, Indiana/Timisoara, Romania)
Kelly Talbot has been an editor for Wiley, Macmillan, Oxford, Pearson Education, and other publishers. His writing has appeared in dozens of magazines and anthologies. He divides his time between Indianapolis, Indiana, and Timisoara, Romania.
Layla Al-Bedawi (Houston, TX)
English is Layla Al-Bedawi's third language, but she's been dreaming in it for years. Her work has been featured in Winter Tangerine, Bayou Magazine, Strange Horizons, Fireside Fiction, and elsewhere. She is a co-founder of Fuente Collective, an organization focused on experimentation, collaboration, and hybridity in writing and other arts.
Deborah L. Davitt (Houston, TX)
Deborah L. Davitt was raised in Nevada, but currently lives in Houston, Texas with her husband and son. Her poetry has received Rhysling, Dwarf Star, and Pushcart nominations and has appeared in Asimov's and the Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction. For more about her work, please see http://www.edda-earth.com.
Gayle Reaves-King (Fort Worth, TX)
Gayle Reaves-King has been writing since she could first hold a pencil. Her journalism awards include a share in the 1994 Pulitzer Prize in international reporting. Dallas Poets Community published her poetry chapbook Spectral Analysis, and her articles have appeared in regional and national magazines. The Texas native helps organize Pandora's Box Poetry Showcase, teaches journalism at UNT, and is working on her first nonfiction book.
JT Morse (Evergreen, TX)
JT Morse is a writer/photographer/editor with a passion for creative connection. Her work has been published by Interstellar Flight Magazine, Synkroniciti, ArtHouston, Nightmare Press, and other publications. She's active with Writespace, Comicpalooza, and the SFPA. Morse loves to write beneath a hundred-year-old, ivy-covered oak at her ranch in Evergreen, TX.
Suedabeh Ewing (Wylie, TX)
Achaemenid Griffin
Emily Knowles (Maine)
His Hand
Mark Noble (New Mexico)
Ezra Koehler (Texas)
Laura Hunt (Fort Worth, TX)
Before I Knew Her
Alex Sharp (Dallas, TX)
Rob Ramos (Galveston, TX)
Emily Ramser (Denton, TX)
Ashton, 31
James Rosin (Denton, TX)
Epidemic of Lies
Stacy Tompkins (Denton, TX)
Ancestral Root
On October 8, 2019 By BonnieJoStuffleIn Awards, Featured Story, Publications1 Comment
2019 isn't over yet
But I have had such a great year thus far, and as I know many people begin their awards reading this time of year, I'm going in early
The work I'm highlighting for your awards consideration
The work that has been closest to my hear this year is the short story "Every Song Must End" from the March Uncanny issue. You can find it online here. And the interview with Caroline M. Yoachim here.
The description: When Florence and Asher decided to pursue nonmonogamy, Florence didn't expect to fall so quickly for her new partner Henry. Polyamory proves a source of renewal for Florence, until Henry's wife gets a job that forces the two to move to Mars.
I'm currently working on a novel based on this short and so am still immersed in these characters and am looking forward to having another chance to highlight it in this post!
Look, I feel as weird about highlighting stuff for awards consideration as the next person!
But I do try to live my life with the confidence of a cat who thinks she belongs in the fresh hand towel basket
In further reading news, my story "In the City of Martyrs" was reprinted in audio form on LeVar Burton's podcast LeVar Burton Reads! Listen to it here.
I also had a hella successful Art & Words Show, went on a Wisconsin retreat, attended LaunchPad, finished a hefty revision of a novel, and went to Amsterdam (which wasn't writing related but WAS my first long plane ride since getting over my fear of flying and was very rad indeed!).
On May 1, 2019 May 1, 2019 By BonnieJoStuffleIn Art & Words1 Comment
We've chosen the participants for this year's Art & Words show, and it's going to be such a beautiful show. I'm psyched as all hell.
For more info on how the show works, visit this page, but basically: eleven visual artists and eleven writers will use one another's work as inspiration. All forty-four works (22 pairs!) of art & words will be on display at Art on the Boulevard from September 21 to September 27, with a reception and reading from 6-9PM on Saturday the 21st!
Cassandra Rose Clarke
Michelle Muenzler
Julie C. Day
Patricia Flaherty Pagan
Wen Wen Yang
Logen Cure
T.D. Walker
Clent Wyatt
Sebastian Páramo
John Williams–Skeletals
Isabel Crespo–Emptiness
Suedabeh Ewing–Storm Approaching
Ashley Henderson–Symptahy
Laura Hunt–With Hopes and Dreams
Etienne Illy–cuttlefish
James Rosin–Job 14.2
Alex Sharp–I Rise
Alex Stock–Separation
Stacy Tompkins–Ancestor
Anya Boz–Untitled
Awards Eligibility 2018
On December 3, 2018 By BonnieJoStuffleIn Original Fiction, Publications1 Comment
It's awards season, y'all, and that means the annual eligibility posts are out and about.
I'm thrilled to look back on this last year of my professional life; I taught my first classes for adults, heard LeVar Burton read my short story to a packed live audience, hosted another successful Art & Words Show, and published five works of short fiction.
Here's the two that I'm holding up for your awards consideration:
"The Crow Knight"—Beneath Ceaseless Skies (October 2018)
Synopsis: When an invincible black crow whose presence causes emotional and physical pain haunts the Lady Loreen, her knight and best friend Ser Wynn goes beyond the kingdom to find the only weapon that can destroy it.
"The Men Who Come From Flowers"–F&SF (September 2018)
Synopsis: Susan raises a garden of boy flowers who will one day become men; when she rescues an injured flower and takes the man as her lover, she is forced to choose between the man's love or his life.
"Angry Kings"
On April 26, 2018 April 26, 2018 By BonnieJoStuffleIn Original Fiction, PublicationsLeave a comment
I've got a novelette up at Beneath Ceaseless Skies today.
This one is called "Angry Kings" and was inspired by all the fairy tale stories of kings and their daughters and how terribly those daughters are often treated. I wanted to explore the psyches of such kings without offering forgiveness for their terrible behavior; the gap between understanding and forgiveness has been something I've been interested in for a good while. Analyzing someone's motives and empathizing with someone's troubles doesn't necessarily mean that we are condoning or accepting their behavior. And I've always felt a pull between these two states.
In "Angry Kings," Magritte escapes her evil king father. When she discovers that her father's ghost has long been separated from his body, she returns to the kingdom to try to bring back the kind father she barely remembers from her childhood.