Once upon a time, the Emperor Blarr was told that the people in the south were dying from thirst.
"Sire, Your Capital City here in the North has endless supplies of water", assured Mervin-the-Dowser. The Emperor decided to grant to the people of the south the water that they needed.
Grand Vizier Bludge did as he was told, but not for long. He returned to the Emperor, "Sire," he said, "My spies tell me that your water is being wasted by the people of the south in the most profligate and irresponsible manner." He brought forth elaborately woven and finely spun tales from his spies. Sadly, Emperor Blarr agreed to let Grand Vizier Bludge take steps to control the wastage. Did he know that, at that moment, he had sealed his own doom?
The Grand Vizier appointed members of the Court to a Commission to control the Benefice of Emperor Blarr. He rewarded the Commissioners liberally - with a proportion of the water. They promptly used these allocations to purchase goods and influence with the thirsty and needy people of the south. This brought them benefits for the City and the Court and so they prospered mightily.
Emperor Blarr discovered that his influence and power were waning. He raged and cried out, but his Court was too busy scheming and dealing to get more influence. Grand Vizier Bludge smiled his sick lizard grin.
Suddenly, after a military set back, the Courtiers deposed Emperor Blarr and sent him into exile to beg for gold in foreign Courts. They acclaimed Grand Vizier Bludge as their new Emperor. His cunning plan was complete – except for the small matter of securing his own rear.
Grand Vizier Sweethart carried out the Emperor's command, and, bowing low to the High Priest Gee Shin, installed "Efficiency-By-Healthy-Wind-Of-Competition". He appointed many Agencies for each Commissioner and decreed that each should receive a generous allocation of water for their own use. He prescribed that each supply of water should be divided into many separate pools, regularly, and that the Agencies should compete with each other for each distribution from each of these lakes. To keep everyone on their toes, from time to time, he decreed that water should be moved from one lake to another, to better balance The Emperor's Benefice. Systematic spillage was, of course, only a small price for "competitive efficiency".
The Agencies worked spasmodically to distribute such water as reached them, once it had trickled erratically through the pools of the Commissioners. They all worked very much harder and longer to make sure they won their bid for their next allocation of the precious fluid. The Commissioners and the Agencies were now well accustomed to the benefits and power that came with distribution rights, therefore bidding had to be their main priority.
The Emperor Bludge announced at regular intervals that even more massive amounts of water were being distributed – and expected the people to love Him for His Benefice. And, all the while, the Emperor's spies kept Him informed so that, in all the land, nothing was done or said about which He did not know. Anyone who incurred His displeasure was threatened (by His Mighty Fist or His Imperial Hairdryer) that their share of the water could be limited, or denied Wherever it appeared that anyone was acquiring too much influence, a further Agency was appointed to further sub-divide their water allocation.
After many years of the Emperor Bludge's rule, all the Commissioners and the Agencies had become well accustomed to this "competitively efficient" way of conducting the Emperor's state. They took great care not to displease the Emperor Bludge or his creature Grand Vizier Sweethart. They all now depended on their entitlement of water with the power and lifestyle it purchased for them.
Disaster was not expected, but it came nevertheless.
Mervin-the-Dowser staggered white faced into Court. "There is a massive liquidity crisis. It is situation RED. Resource Exhaustion Syndrome is clearly indicated", he mumbled quietly (as was his wont). "I don't understand" cried Grand Vizier Sweethart (as was his wont), "Spell it out for me". Mervin-the-Dowser shouted (nearly), "The wells have run dry. The water has run out. There Is No More Water! Is that clear enough for you?". Grand Vizier Sweethart fainted, but in a brief flash of consciousness, announced that "Everything is under control. All will be well. We have a sound system". The Emperor Bludge declaimed that "Evil Genies have spirited away the water, this is a totally unforeseeable disaster brought on by malign forces".
The enraged Courtiers protested loudly, "Where are the allocations of water to which we are entitled?" The Agencies wept and wailed, "Oh save us! Save us! We are being consumed by The Abyss".
· What will become of Emperor Bludge and Grand Vizier Sweethart?
· Will the Commissioners and Agencies also perish from this de-hyd-ration?
· What will become of the Empire?
· Can Mervin-the-Dowser find any more water?
· Is it really too late for the people of the south?
Is there a Lesson in this Fable?
Far too many, we are certain. Here are two from our Competitive Strength perspective.
This Fable illustrates the terrible consequences when the principles of Total Quality Management are applied by those that either do not understand them, or wilfully corrupt them for their own purposes.
We are focused on Exceeding Expectations and the massive Comparative Competitive Advantage that is the result of the effective pursuit of Excellence, which in turn is achieved through the effective application of the principles of Total Quality Management (TQM). This has been proven and quantified by robust research.
§ One of the principles of TQM is that everyone in any organisation is the Customer of everyone else in that organisation and should act accordingly.
o What the principles of TQM do not say is that this means that everyone should set up, administer, and incur the cost of, a complex contractual apparatus to negotiate and award these customer relationships.
§ Would only a simpleton such as Grand Vizier Sweethart think that, perhaps? Or is this just cleverness without intelligence?
· Or was he just having a laugh?
§ Did he mishear in the Temple of High Priest Gee Shin? Or was the sermon unclear?
§ Another principle of TQM is that every transaction causes waste and that they should therefore be reduced to the absolute minimum; we call this LEAN Thinking nowadays.
o What the principles of TQM do not say is that you should fragment a process and introduce multiple extra activities for the purposes of control or manipulation.
§ Would only a devious despot such as Emperor Bludge enforce something so unproductive and wasteful, perhaps? Or is this also clever but deeply unintelligent behaviour?
§ We could answer this only with an objective measure of the intellect of Emperor Bludge; objective as distinct from how his Courtiers rate it.
In this Fable, the overwhelming mixture of patronage, over-bureaucratisation, over-control, corruption through entitlement, ignorance and complete disregard for outcomes, has doomed this Empire to The Abyss. A very sticky end awaits all – nobody has any reason to laugh here – there will be tears before bed time..
Please take a hard look at your own organisation. Are there any of the works of the Emperor Bludge or Grand Vizier Sweethart that you might recognise anywhere? Have you placed your faith in Economic Divining and how sure are you of your Mervin's foresight? Do you assume that you cannot trust your people? Do you have any Commissioners and Agencies that you really do not need? Are you shuffling resources unnecessarily? Are you approaching The Abyss and not realising it?
Maybe not, we hope so. However, here is the question that we believe you must ask yourself in these uncertain and turbulent times - are you anywhere near achieving your full Comparative Competitive Advantage?
You can find out more about your potential, or contact us, on our ChangeWORLD web site at the Competitive Strength page, or discover more details on the Competitive Strength Report website.
"You're Having a Laugh … Seriously?" is brought to you by Steve Goodman and Tony Ericson of ChangeWORLD. For even more serious information and comment go to our website and our other three blogs:- Exceeding Expectations Capitalism or Common Sense & Business Bloop of the Month Award.
With the publication of Lord Turner's plans for "tougher regulation" of UK financial services (didn't notice anything about having to ask permission to go to the toilet – a grave omission in our view) we thought we would share this little story with you. It was sent to us by our longtime business associate and partner Terry Murphy, author and publisher of the Achievement Process. In the form of a light hearted parable it gives the clearest explanation we have seen to date of how the world's banking and financial system collapsed.
Linda is the proprietor of a bar in Cork. In order to increase sales, she decides to allow her loyal customers - most of whom are unemployed alcoholics - to drink now but pay later. She keeps track of the drinks consumed on a ledger (thereby granting the customers loans).
Word gets around and as a result increasing numbers of customers (still mostly unemployed alcoholics) flood into Linda's bar. Taking advantage of her customers' freedom from immediate payment constraints, Linda increases her prices for wine and beer, the most popular drinks. Her sales volumes and profits increase massively.
A young and dynamic "customer relationship manager" at the local bank recognizes these customer debts as valuable "credit assets" and increases Linda's borrowing facilities. He has no concerns since he has the debts of the alcoholics as collateral and Linda's apparent healthy profit margins means she can afford the premium interest rate the bank has charged. Also he beats his loans targets hands down.
At the bank's corporate headquarters, these premium interest rates enable expert bankers to transform the loan into DRINKBONDS, ALKBONDS and PUKEBONDS. These securities are then traded on markets worldwide. No one really understands what these abbreviations mean or exactly what the assets are behind them. What they do understand is that their prices continuously climb and the securities become top-selling items. The expert bankers beat their targets hands down and are rewarded with substantial bonuses.
One day, although the prices are still climbing, a risk manager of the bank takes a different view of the value of these debts and others like them and changes the risk criteria, thus triggering a demand for repayment of Linda's loan. He is of course fired in due course for his negativity but not before the demand for payment has been executed.
The drinkers cannot pay back the debts to Linda's bar (it hadn't occurred to them that they would ever be asked to) and consequently Linda cannot meet the repayment demand and has no choice but to file for bankruptcy.
DRINKBOND and ALKBOND drop in price by 95 %. PUKEBOND performs better, stabilizing in price after dropping by 80 %. There is, as with everything that went before no rational explanation for this difference.
The suppliers of Linda's bar, having granted her generous credit terms and, encouraged by their bankers and advisors, invested in these securities are suddenly faced with a dire situation. Her wine supplier goes into administration; her beer supplier is taken over by a competitor.
The bank however is saved by the Government following dramatic round-the-clock negotiations with leaders from the governing political party (and vested interests). The funds required for this purpose are obtained by a tax levied on the non-drinkers.
Everyone we have relayed this story to has reacted in much the same way. "Finally an explanation I can understand, that's exactly what happened." Much has been written about the lessons to be learnt from the credit crunch but for us this little story highlights three in particular.
1. Alcoholics are only concerned about getting the next drink. So if you give them a drink they will drink it and if you give them another they will drink it and so on. The transactions produce no value as the one consumes the other and vice versa.
2. A wise old mentor of ours once said, "Profit is someone's opinion, cash is fact. Stick to facts".
3. Every party will have a pooper. However the damage has been done long before the pooper triggers the consequences. So don't blame the party pooper.
Now please read the story again, can you spot the connections?
"You're having a laugh ... seriously" is brought to you by Steve Goodman and Tony Ericson. It is one of our "Excellence Quartet" of blogs promoting the cause of Excellence as the key to prosperity. Each blog has a new article each month using a recent business/financial topic to highlight different perspectives and conclusions from those obtained using conventional thinking and techniques. You can read the other three blogs at "Exceeding Expectations" , Business Bloop of the Month Award", "Capitalism or ... Common Sense" .
If ever there was a story that would elicit the response, "you're having a laugh … seriously?" then the whole bonus debate is it. Digging into the comment and opinion on this has shown me just what I have been missing.
For a start let's stop all this nonsense about a bonus culture being a bad thing. The word "bonus" is Latin for "good". Now we all know that anything where the root of meaning is based on an ancient classical language is a fundamental truth. Therefore bonuses are by definition a "good thing" and my conscience is clear!
Next not having any money does not mean that you can't pay a bonus. RBS, having lost £28bn of theirs and everyone else's money is still seriously intending to pay bonuses to its staff. Gordon Brown has demonstrated how to do this on a national scale. So if it's a "good thing" and you don't even need any money, what's the problem?
You can even get a "guaranteed bonus". As long as you turn up, answer a few phone calls and stare at your computer screen as if you know what's going on then you get your bonus, come what may. You even know how much it is going to be, which helps with planning luxury holidays, ordering a Lamborghini etc.
The trend now is for the basic salary, plus of course all accompanying benefits, to be paid simply for occupying the position. If you are actually expected to do anything you only do it if there is a bonus attached, which is only fair. After all simply being Chairman of 43 different companies is a big enough job in itself. And of course each bonus must also be many times greater than the salary, to reflect the relative difficulty of "doing something".
The public sector has gone further. Here, there is no need for a guarantee. Because bonuses are a "good thing" civil servants are now being awarded them for doing exactly what they always have done, as inefficiently as they always did. As the public sector mostly does what it has always done, the bonuses are de facto guaranteed.
This logic has been taken further in what I call the "Twilight Zone" between the public and private sector. This is where something must appear to be getting done, but must not disturb the status quo so it actually never gets done. This is truly tricky work. One of the stars of the Twilight Zone (poor pun intended) is the SFA. (Financial Services Authority – I shall continue to call them the S****F***A** until they do actually do something). Significant bonuses have been paid for not spotting the Northern Rock problems, not spotting the risks in HBOS even when brought to their attention and completely missing any signs of the impending credit crunch. Still room for improvement though, hence the appointment of Sir James Crosby, previous Chief Exec of HBOS as the SFA Deputy Chairman (now resigned!), who knows all about bonuses.
So a bonus is a good thing and no money is no barrier to payment. A guarantee helps but the public sector experience shows this is no longer necessary because a bonus can become an entitlement. Make sure that there is a clear differentiation between salary and benefits, which are simply for the position and a bonus which is for actually doing something. Even better if all or part of the bonus can be paid for succeeding in doing nothing.
This is the remuneration package I need to negotiate for myself. On second thoughts I'll book the luxury holiday and order the Lamborghini first. Then I'll know how much bonus I deserve.
Seriously though … Financial incentive devices can skew behaviour and results in alarming ways. They need to be carefully thought through and regularly reviewed. Two quotes explain why. "Tell me how you will measure me and I will show you how I will behave". (Eli Goldratt The Goal) "You need to be careful what you ask for, more than likely you're going to get it". (Ralph Waldo Emerson) If you incentivise people to earn large amounts of money in a short time that is exactly what they are likely to do. The rest is collateral damage. Take extreme care.
"You're Having a Laugh … Seriously?" is brought to you by Steve Goodman and Tony Ericson of ChangeWORLD. For even more serious information and comment go to our website and our other two blogs:- Exceeding Expectations & Business Bloop of the Month Award.
It's that time of year when you can confidently forecast that there will be numerous predictions for the coming year from numerous "experts". So here are our "non-expert" forecasts for 2009.
January - More retailers go into administration, most, including MFI are sold on in "pre-pack deals" to managements and/or previous owners convinced that if you keep on doing what you have always done it will eventually work.
M&S revises Christmas sales figures downwards. This is due to record returns by women of unsuitable lingerie bought as Christmas presents by their male partners hoping to be cheered up. M&S share price plummets.
February - MFI goes into administration again due to new owners being unable to follow the instructions in the "prepack" deal.
Gordon Brown confident "that the British people will overcome the challenges of the current economic difficulties – which started in America". British people think "no mate that's your job".
March - Bank of England having already reduced interest rates to zero, tries "buy one get one free" offer on any loan to anyone for any purpose. Appears to work at first, then Carcraft runs out of stock.
M&S announce surprise increase in sales. Share price soars.
April – Public sector construction projects announced in January to create 100,000 jobs appear to be working as 50,000 new staff are recruited for planning departments, public inquires etc.
M&S revise sales figures down as most were again items of lingerie, bought as Easter presents by men still hoping this would lead to them being cheered up. M&S shares plummet.
May - Pound reaches parity with Matebele Gumbean. UK tourist board reports record bookings at UK holiday destinations. The only vacancies left for the school holidays are at a caravan site near West Hartlepool and they are selling fast. Travel firms cut overseas holiday capacity to just one hotel in Iceland.
Government announces new initiative to kick start the economy involving sale and lease back of all government buildings and investing the proceeds in refinancing the banks (yes, again!). The deal is done with a Middle East financial consortium called The Arab Lending & Investment Bank, known as TALIBank.
June - Alistair Darling apologises for Treasury inadvertently including Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle, Sandringham and Balmoral in the sale and leaseback deal. "I apologise most sincerely that the Queen no longer has anywhere to live. On the upside we would never have raised the amount we did without these buildings being included. They are about the only ones left that have any real value".
Bank of England now employing SAS to break into banks at night and stuff more cash into their vaults to try and get lending moving. This is known as "quantitative easing".
July - Banks still not lending. Begins to dawn on Mervyn King that they have actually forgotten how to, as they have all focused solely on rebuilding their balance sheets in order to get free of government control. BoE sets up special task force to scour the nation's golf courses to find retired bank managers who remember how to lend. This fails as few would admit they had worked for a bank, ("we were only following orders") apart from Fred Goodwin, but he could only remember how to borrow.
Holiday season starts and right on cue the heavens open with record rainfall in all UK tourist destinations. "This is what Woolworths was for, somewhere to go on a wet afternoon in West Hartlepool" summed up the feelings of holiday makers.
Oil drops below $2 a barrel. OPEC, having already reduced production levels to zero, starts giving away top spec Range Rovers with every 10 gallons of petrol to boost demand.
September - First signs of recovery, Jaguar/Landrover start recruiting, MFI is relaunched. "This time our business plan has the top clearly labelled" said a management spokesman.
Public sector construction projects still stalled. Government sets up urgent inquiry to report by 2012 and recruits 25,000 people for new task force to tackle delays in the planning system. Only 25,000 new jobs to go now and without even starting a single project!
October - Governments around the world take co-ordinated action to restructure the world's economy, involving a wave of company mergers and takeovers. However a proposal to merge French Connection with the band Take That is blocked on the grounds that they have already been getting away with FCUK for far too long.
First public sector construction project is announced, new offices for Planning Delays Task Force.
November - Banks still not lending. BoE tries new approach involving paying obscene levels of bonuses to bankers who lend money. Within days, credit markets unfreeze and economic growth resumes.
House prices recover, fifteen shopping mall projects started and 125% mortgages reintroduced. "Job done "says Gordon Brown. "No mate, but you are" says British public.
December - Record pre-Christmas retail sales fuelled by easy credit and hordes of Matebele tourists (pound now worth 0.5 of a Matabele Gumbean), with M&S reporting a big rise. M&S shares plummet.
In spite of the further falls in the pound travel industry reports massive excess of demand over supply for overseas holidays in the sun by families washed out of their UK holidays in 2009. (Hotel in Iceland withdrawn due to lack of interest).
Seriously though …Whilst these predictions are entirely fanciful we would not be surprised if some turn out to be correct. Current experience should tell us that even the most far fetched possibilities can become a reality. In spite of this most of us run our lives, our businesses and even our governments on the basis that there won't be any surprises. Quote from Woody Allen "God's idea of a joke is watching humans make plans for the future".


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Q: PowerPivot Grouped Average DAX I'm trying to model some outbound calling data in PowerPivot. We have reps across multiple locations, and in general we breakdown our outbound calling into two periods of the day (before and after 12pm).
We can export data from our phone system a list of every call made for a day -- let's say an example is as follows:

+------------+-------------+-------+-----------+-------------+
|    Date    | Call Length | Agent | Workgroup | Call Period |
+------------+-------------+-------+-----------+-------------+
| 01.01.2016 | 00:05:26    | Sam   | Sydney    |           1 |
| 01.01.2016 | 00:15:05    | Sam   | Sydney    |           1 |
| 01.01.2016 | 00:55:22    | John  | Sydney    |           2 |
| 01.01.2016 | 00:45:11    | Sam   | Sydney    |           2 |
| 01.01.2016 | 00:04:52    | John  | Sydney    |           1 |
| 01.01.2016 | 00:01:52    | Timmy | London    |           1 |
| 01.01.2016 | 00:02:21    | Timmy | London    |           2 |
| 01.01.2016 | 00:05:21    | Karen | London    |           1 |
| 02.01.2016 | 00:15:21    | Sam   | Sydney    |           1 |
| 02.01.2016 | 00:42:44    | Sam   | Sydney    |           2 |
| 02.01.2016 | 01:52:22    | John  | Sydney    |           1 |
| 02.01.2016 | 00:53:24    | John  | Sydney    |           1 |
| 02.01.2016 | 00:05:53    | Kerry | Sydney    |           2 |
| 02.01.2016 | 00:43:43    | Sam   | Sydney    |           2 |
| 02.01.2016 | 01:08:00    | John  | Sydney    |           2 |
| 02.01.2016 | 00:13:52    | Timmy | London    |           2 |
| 02.01.2016 | 00:25:44    | Timmy | London    |           1 |
| 02.01.2016 | 02:58:31    | Karen | London    |           1 |
| 02.01.2016 | 00:08:37    | Timmy | London    |           2 |
| 02.01.2016 | 00:12:28    | Karen | London    |           2 |
+------------+-------------+-------+-----------+-------------+

What I'm trying to calculate is the average daily time spent on phone per Workgroup, eg. on average how long is each agent on the phone at each location.
I'm guessing the arithmetic is as follows:
Measure 1: Total talk time for each Agent (eg. sum of all talk time for the day)
Measure 2: Average agent total talk time per workgroup (eg. sum of the above grouped by workgroup, divided by number of agents in that workgroup)
The output might look something like this (but doesn't have to be):

+------------+-----------+-----------------------+-----------------+-----------------------------+
|    Date    | Workgroup | Total Number of Calls | Total Talk Time | Average Talk Time per Agent |
+------------+-----------+-----------------------+-----------------+-----------------------------+
| 01.01.2016 | Sydney    |                    11 | 03:02:42        | 1:34:53                     |
|            | London    |                     4 | 02:24:51        | 01:13:41                    |
| 02.01.2016 | Sydney    |                     5 | 01:52:05        | 00:56:51                    |
|            | London    |                    52 | 10:11:23        | 03:51:11                    |
+------------+-----------+-----------------------+-----------------+-----------------------------+

Apologies if I'm unclear it what I'm asking.

A: Slicing your data on a pivot table will do the calculations.
you only need the following calculations:
DurationOfCall  :=sum(MyTable[CallLength])

NrOfCalls   :=countrows(MyTable)

AvgDuration :=DIVIDE([DurationOfCall],[NrOfCalls])

this will give the following result (on your sample dataset):

Workbook with testcase: attachment

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Throwable Torch Mod adds a very interesting combination of torch and mucus, using it you can create sticky torch. This device will be useful when lighting of ravines and dangerous caves, because you will not have the ability to put an ordinary torch. You will need to take your hand sticky torch and throw it into the nužnoû side as soon as the torch touches the block he attached to it as an ordinary torch.
Now when you hover your cursor over the mob in the top left corner appears the number of his life upon impact will show how much damage you have caused.
In the lower-right corner of the interface appears, which shows the status of the used armor, weapon or tool.
Bedrock Tools Mod adds the ability to create game heavy-duty and effective tools and armor of bedroka. But if that's not enough, you can find new ore Bedrokium from which you can create a set of unique black armor and tools. All of this though and make wild imbalance in the game, but will significantly speed up the ore extraction and dungeons.
Global mod that adds a new dimension to the game with new amazing mobs, bosses, buildings and other interesting things.
MOD adds to the game the opportunity to craft armor, tools and weapons of the standard materials (lapis lazuli, Redstone, etc.).
This mod is very useful because it adds to our game night observation devices. Now you can skraftit′ this device and no longer return for torches.
Night surveillance devices impose night vision effect. Due to this effect the character will be able to see in the dark.


European Council President Donald Tusk reveals his plans for Brexit.
The payments that London must make to the EU to settle financial commitments made when it was a member are considered one of the most difficult Brexit issues.
Twenty-seven EU leaders on Saturday formally approved their guidelines for Brexit negotiations at a summit in Brussels.
The EU 27 insist on a "phased approach", namely that Britain settle the terms of its divorce before any talks on a future trade relationship can start, hopefully by the end of 2017. "Before discussing the future, we have to sort out our past," Tusk said on Saturday.
The first divorce issue the EU wants to settle is the fate of the 3.2 million EU citizens living in the UK and 1.2 million Britons on the continent.
EU rules currently guarantee people to live and work wherever they choose in the bloc, as well as giving them and their families access to welfare benefits.
Poland and Hungary, with big populations in Britain, have demanded that EU citizens who have already been living in the UK for five years should have the option to remain permanently.
Tusk said this was the "number one priority" and urged a "serious British response".
Luxembourg Prime Minister Xavier Bettel said the demands on London were estimated at between 40-60 billion euros ($42-65 billion), a politically toxic figure that Britain disputes.
"This is the most politically sensitive point in the first phase," a senior EU source said, adding that it is better to tackle it sooner than later.
"Sometimes if you have to go to the dentist you want to postpone it as much as you can, but you have to deal with it," the source said.
It would be an EU external border after withdrawal but Dublin has warned of renewed conflict if the issue is not handled with extreme care.
"In view of the unique circumstances on the island of Ireland, flexible and imaginative solutions will be required, including with the aim of avoiding a hard border," the guidelines say.
The EU 27 separately backed a clause in the summit minutes — but not the guidelines — advocating automatic membership for Northern Ireland after Brexit if it ever reunifies with Ireland.
The guidelines say that talks on future relations — particularly an EU-UK trade deal — should only start once the EU 27 unanimously agree there has been "sufficient progress" on the divorce questions.
The EU 27 guidelines say they are aware that talks on a trade deal are too complex to be completed by Brexit at the end of March 2019, and so "transitional arrangements" are therefore possible.
However, they must be "clearly defined" and "limited in time", with a hard deadline that is previously agreed.
In the transitional deal, Britain would still remain under EU control and jurisdiction, with ultimate oversight by the European Court of Justice. This is a bitter pill for London.
The rocky outcrop in southern Spain has belonged to Britain since 1713 and is regularly reclaimed by Madrid.
The guidelines state that "no agreement" after Brexit between the EU and Britain could apply to Gibraltar without a bilateral agreement between Madrid and London.


Penguin published their King Penguin series between 1939 and 1959.
A number of these books have bird related subjects. These are listed at the top of the page.
A full list of King Penguin books is given at the bottom of the page.
Illustrated with colour plates after John Gould's Birds Of Great Britain.


Description: Crucifixion is described in many ancient writings, but not until 1968 did anyone ever find the remains of someone who was crucified. Jehohanan was crucified and buried in a tomb in the time of Christ giving us insights into how victims were nailed to the cross. Still graphic today, the skeleton shows the evidence of crewel nails and excruciating pain. This presentation is in Power Point format.


Last year my colleague, Mona Johnson, wrote an article explaining why eggs at Farmers Markets cost more than they do in the grocery store and explained that in some cases they cost more to produce and distribute them than the farmer gets for them. It was a sound piece of reasoning, delivered with direct, intelligent prose – just the type of thing we expect from Mona. As an added bonus, someone got all tricky with the Excel and gave us a pie chart so readers who like visual information could absorb facts too.
This isn't one of those occasions where someone immutably explains how $1.99 is actually more expensive than $7.
7 bucks is 7 bucks and a dozen eggs from any of our Markets are going to cost you more than the store. Even in the wake of the massive recall call of 500 million eggs, there are other good reasons to get a dozen from the Farmers Market.
My confession, most eggs I buy come from the grocery store. Occasionally, I score a dozen from a coworker whose father raises chickens. These 'below the radar eggs', $3 a dozen, bypass Federal and State regulations and licenses, an option vendors at PFM don't have. Mostly my premium eggs come from a farmers market, costing 2-4x more than grocery store brands, these eggs are worth the price.
Food has 2 major variables – the ability or the cook and the quality of the ingredient – the latter always trumps the former, good ingredients not only make good food; good ingredients make even a novice cook look like Alice Waters. For special occasion food, like a poached egg over sautéed chard and polenta or a vanilla embedded pastry cream that nests between blueberries and a tart, a good egg is hard to beat (not technically, they whisk fine, but you know, for flavor).
For these meals, I spring for eggs from Jacobs Dairy, whose hens feed on whey and possess a built-in creamy texture, or enjoy the Van Gogh golden yolks from Reister Farms, or buy a ½ dozen duck eggs from SuDan or closer to my home, I pop for a dozen of Wes Coulter's Wag eggs from King Market….
You can pick up eggs from growers like Wag's Wes Coulter at the King and PSU Markets (See Video in the below), Dancing Chicken sells eggs at 23rd and Shemanski. Reister and Raymond Kuenzi at Buckman. Greenville Farm sells eggs at 23rd. Jacobs is at every local Market in the Portland area, Persephone, Raynblest and others sell their eggs at various Markets. Treat yourself to something good.
In other exciting market news, Buckman Market's Reister Farms has their wildly popular lamb sausages again! Fry them up with some sweet peppers from Denison Farms, sprinkle over some creamy chevre from Dee Creek Farm and you will eat quickly, and well.
Real Good Food will be making their monthly appearance at the NW 23rd Market. Real Good Food sells wonderful extra virgin olive oil that is just begging to be drizzled over fat, juicy tomatoes and fragrant basil from Groundwork Organics or Spring Hill Farm—dollop with creamy ricotta from Jacobs Creamery, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and enjoy! For the main course, put some fresh albacore tuna from Stonewall Banks Seafood on the grill along with sweet corn from Winters Farm.
Also at NW 23rd, season sponsor COUNTRY Financial will be bringing a prize wheel. Stop by their booth and Spin to Win fun prizes.


text:
Ribbon-cutting marks major upgrade at Missoula airport
MISSOULA - There's still work to be done at the new Missoula Montana Airport terminal, but crews are adding the finishing touches while aiming for a May opening.
It seems like a pre-pandemic lifetime ago when the airport started construction on the new terminal in 2018.
But through all the COVID-19 disruptions, the contractors and airport's "Team MSO" prevailed, and were ready to show off the nearly finished terminal to a select group Tuesday morning.
"In addition to all in this commitment, we're delivering a truly state-of-the-art facility with everything from an automated beverage system, geothermal heating, cooling, lighting, electric window glazing. And escalators, yes escalators. And when that escalator goes into service, it will be the only escalator in Western Montana." - Missoula Airport Authority board member Adriane Beck
The new $67 million terminal becomes the new "hub" for passenger air operations, with new ticketing areas, and a direct baggage handling system where travelers can merely check luggage, instead of dragging it through the airport.
The project is also under budget. Something earning praise from US Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT) who is happy to see impact and development funds put to good use.
"It's up to the local communities to really utilize these dollars in a way that makes sense for those communities, and that's what's happened here," Sen. Tester said.
Dennis Bragg/MTN News
"We've seen them make smart investments in infrastructure that's going to stand the test of time," Sen. Tester continued.
"Team MSO embodies everything Montanans know. Everything is much easier if we work together, added airport director Brian Ellestad.
But what impresses the most is how the terminal's vision, of improving vision, is apparent at every turn.
The view from the waiting area is absolutely stunning. In fact, you may not want to catch your plane, as the open windows show a complete view of the Missoula Valley and the mountains.
Windows upon windows are really the theme of the design.
Travelers will enjoy Missoula area food and beverage vendors can listen to control tower traffic in the observation area, complete with a "flight chart" wall and gas fireplace.
The outcome certainly impressed former airport director Cris Jensen, who kicked off the project and came back from Reno today to see the results.
"You know it's great. It really makes me proud to see what the community's accomplished and all the partnerships that have made it happen. And it's going to be amazing for generations to come. This will set the airport up for future growth, future airlines, future visitors. And so, it's really nice and it really does make me proud." - former Missoula airport director Cris Jensen
The terminal should become operational in May.
Construction of the new terminal racked up some pretty impressive numbers since construction began in the fall of 2018.
The new terminal includes more than 89 miles of electrical wire throughout the facility, nine miles of piping, over 22,000 square feet of glass and 1,034 tons of steel -- including one column weighing nearly 26,000 pounds.
The state-of-the-art baggage handling system will not only improve efficiency and security but will also be fast, requiring just seven milliseconds to read a luggage tag.

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Elon Musk Is Still Bitching and Moaning About Paying Taxes
Last month, Democratic leadership floated the idea of a "billionaire tax" as a way to help pay for Joe Biden's Build Back Better plan. Based on the fact that, at present, the richest Americans in the world pay basically nothing in taxes as a proportion of their wealth, and frequently pay zero dollars and zero cents in income tax since they are largely paid in stock, the plan proposed taxing them on their annual gains, instead of simply when they sell their stocks and other publicly traded assets. A lot of people didn't like this idea, and, not surprisingly, the richest guy in the world with a current net worth of $338 billion was one of them. Taking to Twitter to pan the proposal, Elon Musk insisted that "entrepreneurs" are better at "capital allocation" than the "tricksters" in the government and then had the balls to claim that a tax on billionaires would ultimately hurt the middle class, writing, "Eventually, they run out of other people's money and then they come for you."
Luckily for Musk and the other handful of people who make more money tweeting from their toilets than the majority of Americans will see in the courses of their entire lives, the billionaire tax died a quick and unceremonious death; within days of the Tesla cofounder's outburst, it had already been scrapped.
But apparently it's continued to live rent-free in Musk's head, and on Saturday, he again took to Twitter to express what a stupid idea he thought it was. Writing, "Much is made lately of unrealized gains being a means of tax avoidance, so I propose selling 10% of my Tesla stock. Do you support this?" Then he put in a little poll for users to vote "yes" or "no," adding "I will abide by the results of this poll, whichever way it goes," and "Note, I do not take a cash salary or bonus from anywhere. I only have stock, thus the only way for me to pay taxes personally is to sell stock," which was seemingly an attempt to make people feel sorry for him, but just further proves how deeply messed up the situation is. Also, yes, he doesn't "take a cash salary or bonus," but, we're guessing, is still able to feed and clothe his family, likely by borrowing money at ultra-low interest rates in order to access cash without having to pay taxes on it, a process known as "buy, borrow, die."
Anyway presumably, Musk expected most people to respond to the poll by saying, "No, of course not!" and "Fuck the feds, stay strong, brother!" and "You're God's gift to the universe, the government should pay YOU taxes!" Instead:
Twitter users said Elon Musk should sell 10% of his Tesla Inc. stock, a stake valued at about $21 billion, after the chief executive polled them and pledged to abide by the outcome of the vote. Voters backed the share sale by a wide margin, with roughly 58% in favor of a sale and 42% opposed, according to the polling data posted on Twitter. More than 3.5 million votes were cast.
Since the poll closed, Musk does not appear to have commented on the results, or be particularly bent out of shape about them. That might be because he already planned to sell stock anyway (because he's worried about tax rates going up), or because this whole thing is a joke to him and being able to say he cut a check for billions because Twitter users told him to is how he entertains himself. But he definitely still seems pretty pissy toward anyone who has the audacity to point out that it's not actually fair that he pays so little in taxes relative to his wealth, as evidenced by his exchange with Senator Ron Wyden, the author of the billionaire tax (RIP).
So edgy! So cool! Kind of like the time Musk called Vernon Unsworth "pedo guy" because Unsworth, who helped rescue the children trapped in a flooded cave in Thailand, suggested Musk's idea to use a submarine to free the kids wouldn't have worked.
Anyway, this is probably not the last we'll hear from Musk re: the plight of being the richest man in the world. Sorry if you are some middle-class salary-earning king who can't understand.
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Relais St-Denis is a smoke-free property.
Situated in Saint-Sauveur, this hotel is within a 15-minute walk of Les Factories Vallee Saint-Sauveur and Mont Saint-Sauveur. Polar Bear's Club is 2.4 mi (3.9 km) away.
An outdoor pool, a fitness center, and a spa tub are available at this smoke-free hotel. Free continental breakfast is provided, as well as free WiFi in public areas, free self parking, and a free manager's reception. Other amenities include a steam room, a conference center, and massage/treatment rooms.
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Relais St-Denis offers 42 air-conditioned accommodations with fireplaces and DVD players. Accommodations are furnished with queen sofa beds. Televisions come with cable channels. Accommodations at this 3-star hotel have kitchenettes with refrigerators, microwaves, and coffee/tea makers. Rooms have detached private bathrooms. Bathrooms include separate bathtubs and showers with jetted bathtubs, bathrobes, complimentary toiletries, and hair dryers. This Saint-Sauveur hotel provides complimentary wired and wireless Internet access. Business-friendly amenities include desks, safes, and phones. Additionally, rooms include irons/ironing boards and ceiling fans. Housekeeping is provided daily.
A complimentary continental breakfast is served each morning between 8:00 AM and 10:00 AM. The hotel offers a complimentary manager's reception on select days.


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Biden on recession: Remain calm, all is well
MADISON — Admitting you have a problem is the first step toward recovery. Unless, of course, you are President Joe Biden and his Democrat pals, who have spent much of the past week coming up with new definitions for recession.
While the latest economic data show the U.S. economy contracted for the second straight quarter — the standard definition of recession — old Joe says he's not hearing the same signs.
"That doesn't sound like a recession to me," Biden told reporters Thursday as he stumbled through a set of White House talking points painting a rosier economic outlook.
It was reminiscent of Kevin Bacon in the final bedlam scene of "Animal House." Remain calm, all is well.
All is not well, as Americans face the highest inflation rate since the devastating recession of the early 1980s and the Federal Reserve hikes interest rates in a desperate attempt to control soaring prices.
Biden's own Commerce Department on Thursday estimated gross domestic product fell by 0.9% in the second quarter after falling by 1.6% in the first quarter. That certainly meets the traditional definition of a recession long used by economists, including Biden's economic advisors.
But that didn't stop the administration from pulling a Bill Clinton, parsing what the meaning of 'is' is.
"Even if that (second quarter GDP) number is negative, we are not in a recession now. I would warn that we should be not characterizing that as a recession," Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen claimed on "Meet the Press" on Sunday.
"The first step out of a recession is to recognize you are in a recession. Yet President Biden refuses to even acknowledge this, attempting to redefine in Orwellian fashion what a recession is," U.S. Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Allouez) said. "It is time for Democrats to recognize reality, abandon their obsession with Build Back Better, and stop the war on domestic energy production."
Nope. Biden and the Dems are doubling down on all that. On Thursday, the Democrat-led House passed another big spending bill, dumping another $280 billion on the inflationary fires to boost the U.S. semiconductor industry.
"Record high inflation and plummeting real wages have long been a recipe for a recession. Today's negative GDP report makes clear what every American has felt for several months now, we are entering a recession, no matter how hard the Biden Administration tries to redefine it," U.S. Rep. Bryan Steil (R-Janesville) said. "Congress and the Biden Administration need to admit the damage their policies are causing and change course."
Nope. Biden and congressional Democrats — including former leftist nemesis Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W. Va.) — are pushing a massive, ill-named Inflation Reduction Act that will do anything but reduce rapidly rising prices. The bill tosses $433 billion in government-printed money for the radical left's extreme climate change agenda and more subsidies for the Affordable Care Act. It also socks corporations with higher taxes.
In short, the recipe for a more debilitating recession.
"Today's GDP numbers showing the United States in a recession is a direct result of misguided spending and energy policies," said Kurt Bauer, president and CEO of Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce. "While regrettable, the recession presents federal policymakers with an opportunity to reverse course and embrace domestic energy independence and other policies that will lead our country back to economic growth."
WMC urges the Biden Administration to:
Stop stifling investment in the oil and gas industry by vilifying domestic fossil fuels
Stop opposing critical energy infrastructure, including oil and gas pipelines
Abandon policies and regulations intended to stop or limit domestic fracking
Stop Climate Czar John Kerry's campaign to prevent banks from lending to the oil and gas industry
Abandon plans to raise taxes on businesses and families
Abandon plans to further inflate consumer prices with reckless new spending.
Nope. The Biden administration won't do any of that. *See above.
But the president and his leftist friends will tell you that all is well as you see your wages and your savings devoured by soaring prices, as more businesses fail because they can't keep up with escalating costs.
In Bidenese, admitting there is a recession is counterproductive to the big government struggle, comrade.
One response to "Biden on recession: Remain calm, all is well"
Michael David Lee
After the internet is gone, Joe Biden will be remembered as the President who invented happiness. We sometimes forget that our villains are also people.


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text:
Leviticus – Summer 2018
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Founded on 8 April 1983 by Sr. Maureena Fritz and Sr. Anne Anderson in Toronto, Canada, Bat Kol Institute became a registered non-profit organization based in Jerusalem, Israel in 1992. Today, the institute is an international association of Christian women and men who are committed to study the Word of God within its Jewish context and to incorporate these studies into their Christian self-understanding in a manner that respects the integrity of both traditions. Alumni have founded centres in the Philippines, South Africa, India, United States, Canada, Australia, Ireland, Brazil and a number of other international venues.
Bat Kol Institute's program was closely integrated into the Ratisbonne Institute in Jerusalem (since 1987), and now, as an independent institute, maintains much of the curriculum and the faculty that were connected with Ratisbonne.
Each July, Bat Kol Institute organizes intense month-long graduate level courses in Jerusalem, accredited by the Gregorian University in Rome, the University of St. Michael's College in Toronto, and several other international universities.
Bat Kol is a Hebrew phrase that means "daughter of a voice." She is the daughter of God's Voice and her dwelling places range from the loftiest heights of human thought to the lowliest of hearts on earth. No place is closed to her presence. After the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem in 70 of the present era, one of our ancients exclaimed, "I heard a divine voice cooing like a dove, and saying, 'Woe to the children on account of their sins.'"
2023 © Bat Kol. Crafted with love by SiteOrigin.


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Founder of a discount and coupon web store Couponhaat, Vipin Kumar Yadav says, "I noticed e-commerce portals were providing deals and coupons on almost every product. I was tempted to keep checking for the best offer but then buying an item would become a tedious process," says Yadav.
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Do you think Couponhaat has what it takes to be able to overcome its challenges and survive in this competitive market? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below.


Dear Ryan do a satanic ritual.
That is one big closet!
Dear Ryan, can you make your friends believe that ur dead?
Dear Ryan, can you burn water?
Where there is a bin, there is a way.
How he do the last trickshot tho??
If you look carefully enough he actually does trick shots during his flashback.
Dear Ryan, can you do pen trick shots?
Dear Ryan, can you do a whole video about bottle flipping?
Dear Ryan can you do a thousand years of pain to your friends?
what have paco done to his eye?
Ryan you lier you said you dont do trickshots!!!


"We understand we must prove to the public we deserve their support and trust and we want to try to achieve this in the areas we stand for election this coming May, but also all year round thereafter. The public are sick and tired of the negative politics in Northern Ireland, and the shocking dereliction of duty by all of the parties elected to stormont who have not taken their seats for over 2 years!
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If we analyze the causes of severe accidents in the world nuclear industry, we find in most cases common root causes: project deficiency, human error. The fundamental remedy of these root causes is only possible through improvement of nuclear education. Development of the nuclear education standards for the nuclear industry staff and the certification system for teaching staff are proposed. Recommendations with mandatory for the nuclear industry staff disciplines, appropriate knowledge and skills were developed. Propositions for the principles and structure of the certification system for teaching staff are formulated. The risk of emergency situations and accidents in nuclear industry will be significantly reduced.
Safety culture should be studied as a generalization, systematization discipline at the end of the course.
Methods of safety culture level assessment.


Google just this week released iOS and Android versions of its YouTube apps that are specifically tailored for kids. On the face of it, and especially to those not in possession of a little bundle of joy or two, the move may seem a bit superfluous. If you do happen to have a two-year-old that's obsessed with watching Thomas the Tank Engine videos though, it'll make absolutely perfect sense.
In fact, mine loves using the iPad in general, not just for catching up on what latest shenanigans Thomas and his band of merry locomotives have managed to get themselves into. He has games that revolve around Thomas, or Peppa Pig for that matter. He likes to use the app that lets him tap parts of an image and paint it. Sort of like those felt-lined things we used to color in with markers when we were kids. Or at least we did in the UK.
Regardless of whether you had the pleasure of not having to worry about staying between the lines or not, there's little argument that kids enjoy an iPad, and mine certainly enjoys the iPad 2. I didn't buy it specifically for him by the way, I'm not that bad. It was handed down for his enjoyment and no doubt subsequent destruction at the hands of a cup of juice. He almost enjoys it too much, but that's a discussion for another time.
What I want to discuss right now is the lack of user accounts on iOS devices.
Now I know this has been argued ever since the first iPad put in its much anticipated appearance back in 2010, but I'm going to get into it again now. Partly because it's just starting to affect me, and so now I suddenly care, but mostly because it's the kind of feature many thought would get added in due course. Yet here we are, iOS 8 and a handful of hardware revisions later and still we're bereft of user accounts on iOS. It may not matter on an iPhone because it's an inherently personal device, but tablets? Well, they're not.
So why do I suddenly have a bee in my bonnet about user accounts, or the lack thereof? Well, I'm sick and tired of things going missing.
I keep finding photos deleted from Dropbox. I keep finding photos of the boy's feet in Photo Stream. I end up with apps that disappear because he's figured out how to make the icons jiggle around and it's funny. Deleting them is just a byproduct.
Now I know that at least 100% of you are now screaming at your screens that I should enable the various parental controls that Apple has seen fit to add to iOS over the years, and to a point you're right. I can stop apps from being deleted easily enough right there. It's not rocket science.
Oh, and I can stop photos from appearing in Photo Stream by turning it off. I can stop Dropbox files from going walkabout by either deleting the app or protecting it with a PIN. But that doesn't cover the other apps that I have signed into Dropbox, and not all have a PIN feature to enable.
More importantly, I shouldn't need to do all this at all.
See, while the iPad 2 in the household is ostensibly the boy's, it also gets used by my wife when needed and I pick it up when the iPad mini 2 is hiding in my bag or wherever I threw it after another failure playing AG Drive. So, it needs to have Photo Stream on. It needs Dropbox. It needs my apps and yes, I need to be able to manage the 16GB of storage by deleting things. I'm human, and have been known to forget things every once in a while. Forget to turn parental controls back on after a marathon app purge and the boy continues my take-no-prisoners cull for me, whether I want him to or not.
I'm acutely aware that some of the problems can be fixed by fiddling, by remembering to flick switches each and every time I use the iPad in question and just generally being better at everything. I know that Guided Access will stop him from being able to switch out of whatever app I launch for him too. Apart from he constantly wants to switch between his favorite apps in a seemingly bi-minute basis. It's doable, yes. Is it realistic? Not on your life.
Maybe I shouldn't have such high expectations, but that's not the kind of thinking we tend to follow as Apple fans and users.
What's so infuriating is that all of this could be so easily fixed with a feature to switch accounts. I could have my account, with all the bells and whistles turned on. I could have one that my wife has set up for her accounts, and I could have another that has my son's games installed and whatever apps I choose available to him. I could, if I wanted, even stop Wi-Fi from working on a per-account basis too, but maybe I'm thinking too much at this point.
It's this kind of thing that I expect Apple to excel at – giving users the power to do what suits their circumstances. Instead we get ads that show people making movies or musicians peddling Garageband-inspired music. All I want is a way to lock the thing down depending on who uses the thing.
Is it really too much to ask in 2015, of a company that seems to reckon it can make electric cars?
Oh, and before everyone starts; yes I know letting a 2-year-old use an iPad will stunt his growth, make him single for his entire life and stop him from ever getting a job. He'll probably grow up to be a mute recluse too. We all know iPads do that.


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Home / Historic Dartmoor / Widgery's cross
Widgery's cross
Tim Sandles March 19, 2016	Historic Dartmoor Leave a comment 18,065 Views
As you drive along the A386 between Okehampton and Tavistock you may notice a cross sited on a distant tor upon the skyline, this is 'Widgery's Cross' or the 'Jubilee Cross'. For 118 years the granite cross has stood looking over the western expanse of moor. The cross was erected by William Widgery to commemorate the Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria in 1887. Widgery's Cross holds three distinctions amongst the realms of Dartmoor crosses, firstly it is the only cross constructed of blocks of granite as opposed to being hewn from a single slab. Secondly it is the most visible of the crosses as it can be seen from many places on the moor. Thirdly the cross is the tallest of the all the Dartmoor granite crosses which stand outside of a cemetery. The cross stands on a tor commonly known as Brat tor, however, it has also been known as Brai, Widgery, Broad and Lur tor and stands at an altitude of 452 metres.
Widgery's Cross is constructed from 10 courses of granite blocks and is capped with a rough slab. It has been suggested that the reason for this method of construction was to give the structure a greater stability which when one considers the exposure of the site would help the cross withstand the elemental forces imposed on it. The cross reaches a height of 12.99ft and has an arm span of 4.5ft, the words "W. Widgery, Fecit, Jubilee VR" are inscribed on the eastern side of the base stone. Widgery's Cross is orientated on a east – west alignment which assists in its visibility from afar.
William Crossing indicates that the siting of the cross places it "in harmony with the wild surroundings," further adding:
"this and its position, which is singularly striking, would suffice to show that the hand which set it up was guided by the eye of one who knew how to happily blend the work of art with that of nature.", 1987, p117.
It is hardly surprising that the cross was sited by someone with an appreciation of the landscape as William Widgery was a noted dartmoor artist. He was born in North Molton in 1826 where as a young man he trained as a mason. Widgery then moved to Exeter where in his spare time he took to painting and was completely self-taught. He first learnt his painting skills by copying and selling some of Landseer's and Bonheur's work. An Exeter man called Thomas Hext spotted some of Widgery's paintings which were hanging in a inn and soon persuaded the artist to give up his job and take up painting as a career. Many of his paintings were of the western tracts of Dartmoor which he soon became to love. It did not take him long to set up a studio and expand his travels to include the coasts of Devon and Cornwall, Switzerland and Venice. By 1883 it was estimated that he had painted over 3,000 pictures and sold everyone of them. As his fame grew it was said that his work was normally sold before it had left his easel. His work mainly consisted of landscapes using both oil and watercolour but occasionally he turned to portraits. It has been suggested that in his paintings he used more than a modicum of 'poetic licence', William Crossing recounts how a passer-by met Widgery painting on the moor and:
"… stopped to look over his shoulder at his work. He could not recognise the view before him as that which the artist was painting. In the foreground instead of a marsh there appeared a rocky stream. 'Mr Widgery', said the visitor mildly, 'there is no river at the foot of that hill.' 'Isn't there?' returned the artist, without looking up; 'well' there ought to be." , 1966, pp121-2.
In Crossing's opinion, William Widgery along with John Syer were the "pioneers of Dartmoor painting," 1966, p.121. It is said that because Widgery never had any formal art training he developed a style of his own which contributed greatly to his success. In 1881 George Pyecroft wrote of the artist:
"It is impossible to say that "Widgery is of the school of so-and-so," although at the present time all the young painters are copying him. He has a style quite peculiar to himself, a style in which he catches effects, portrays rural scenes and wild landscapes boldly, and with very little finish… His pictures are well composed, and he has the power of selecting picturesque bits, and of arranging his subject in a bold easy manner, that appears utterly unstudied. He possesses the 'ars celare artem' (it is art to conceal art) to perfection his touch is remarkably light and free; his colour is entirely without crudity of heaviness; he never uses any blue but cobalt, and every variety of green and grey he makes with this, the lightest of colours. He mixes a little of the pigment with all his tints, and thus carries a softening atmospheric effect over the whole of the work."
There was an article in The Times dated the 14th of April 1870 which relates how several of Widgery's paintings were hung in the first class waiting room at Exeter's St. David's railway station. These depicted scenes from Chagford and the Teign and were painted in his "well-known and striking style."
In 1880 Widgery built a house and studio on the edge of Lydford where he lived for 10 years. This building is now The Lydford House hotel and from which can clearly be seen Widgery's Cross and who rather fittingly now offer painting holidays. In 1861 Widgery had a son called Frederick John who went through formal art training and in later years became another famed and prolific Dartmoor artist. William Widgery died in 1893.
One of Widgery's patrons was an Exeter man called Kent Kingdon who purchased a number of his paintings and upon his death bequeathed them to the Royal Albert Memorial Museum in Exeter.
Today, William Widgery's paintings command a high price when they come onto the market they easily fetch sums in thousands of pounds. Personally, whilst both father and son have produced excellent work I do favour the work of Frederick Widgery as all his moorscapes truly capture the spirit and light of Dartmoor. Below are examples of both William and Frederick Widgery's work and to me there is a delicate subtlety to Fredrick's picture but as with all art, it is a very personal thing.
Crossing, W. 1966 Dartmoor Worker, David & Charles, Newton Abbot.
Crossing, W. 1987 The Ancient Stone Crosses of Dartmoor, Devon Book, Exeter
Harrison, B. 2001 Dartmoor Stone Crosses, Devon Books & Halsgrove Pub, Tiverton.
Le Messurier, B. 2002 Dartmoor Artists, Halsgrove Publishing, Tiverton.
Sandles, T. 1997 Pilgrimage to Dartmoor's Crosses, Forest Publishing, Liverton.
Starkey, F. 1983, Dartmoor Crosses, Starkey, Exeter.
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Starvation Company
Ever since parts of Dartmoor has been used for training there have been a whole …


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Thirty-three dead and dozens injured in Afghanistan mosque blast
By Mostafa Salem and Ehsan Popalzai, CNN
Updated 1:08 PM EDT, Fri April 22, 2022
Thirty-three people are thought to have died in a blast at a mosque in Afghanistan's Kunduz province, according to the Taliban.
Among the dead are children, according to Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid, while a further 43 people were injured in the explosion.
Mujahid said the blast took place during Friday players at the mosque in the Imam Sahib district of Kunduz province.
It comes a day after explosions also struck Kunduz, and another city, Mazar-i-Sharif in northern Afghanistan. Separate explosions hit learning facilities in western Kabul on Tuesday, killing students.
Medical staff move a wounded youth on a stretcher inside a hospital after three blasts rocked a boys' school in a Shiite Hazara neighbourhood in Kabul on April 19, 2022. (Photo by Wakil Kohsar / AFP) (Photo by WAKIL KOHSAR/AFP via Getty Images)
Wakil Kohsar/AFP/Getty Images
At least six dead as multiple explosions hit Kabul schools
Private Afghan channel TOLO news said that the blast targeted the Mawlawi Sekandar mosque.
CNN is not able to verify the number of dead but a witness speaking to CNN on condition of anonymity said that bodies were seen after the explosion.
The source required anonymity due to the politically sensitive nature of the attacks, and fear of reprisal from the government.
A series of deadly blasts, mainly targeting the Hazara Shia community, have rocked several Afghan cities over the past week.
Most of this week's attacks were claimed by ISIS affiliate group and Taliban rival ISIS-Khorasan (ISIS-K).
Nobody has yet claimed responsibility for Friday's explosion.


The Women's Center's Arlington facility was selected to be this year's event beneficiary.
"These funds will help us to continue providing counseling and crisis services in Arlington to help women, men and children overcome violence, crisis and poverty," said Nadia DiStefano, public relations director at the agency.
Mosey through the silent auction and maybe you'll lasso a leather patchwork rug, golf outing, Thornton Bed & Breakfast stay, jewelry, art, entertainment tickets, dining cards or other treasures including a resort stay for your pet. Live auction swag features a Bossier City, La., hotel/casino trip, a dazzling piece from Oro Fino Custom Jewelers and a Rangers suite.
Hix will emcee the evening and perform with his band, The Holla, doing popular standards and lots of good ol' rock 'n' roll.
A Dazzling Diva raffle basket containing a Michael Kors purse, Sekonda watch, Hermes fragrance, gifts cards, Carlo Orsini jewelry and other prizes valued at $900 will go home with a lucky winner. And a 50-50 raffle means cash for the winning ticket holder. For the adventurous, purchase mystery boxes worth at least $25 and a chance to win a box containing $100 cash.
Some funds raised at the party will fund the eight scholarships the club awards each year to one student from each Arlington high school along with a scholarship to one outstanding senior who plans to be a teacher. Since the program began in 2004, the club has awarded more than $145,000 in scholarships.
Tickets are $15 per person and are available at the door or purchase in advance by calling the office at 817-277-7666.
The entire family can participate in the 1.5-mile lap around Globe Life Park in Arlington on Saturday during the Walk With Me fundraiser hosted by Easter Seals North Texas. After the walk, attendees will enjoy a community fair with many vendors and organizations as well as a kids zone with fun activities.
"We hope that those who are passionate about making a difference will join us for a morning filled with entertainment, fun and our signature walk," said Jennifer Friesen, vice president at Easter Seals North Texas.
Registration is free and includes a complimentary T-shirt. You can sign up the day of the walk, but Easter Seals is encouraging teams to register ahead of time to enable them to get their family and friends involved.
Sign up at www.WalkWithMe.org/NorthTexas or call Megan Smock at 817-759-7914.


Bringing together dOwnhill's self-titled EP and Hippie Doom Squad's Live Volume EP (and adding a couple of cassette-exclusive tracks in the process), the Belarus-based label Riff Dealers assembled this split to show-case these two bands to new listeners, as well as those who may have heard one band but not the other.
dOwnhill leads first, opening with a deep fuzz rumble on "A Rake's Progress", and soon moving into full deployment of their sludgy/stoner/doom blend of music. Shredded vocals arc over the bass-strengthened riffs and heavy rhythms from the drums, keeping things gnarly but violent as the group delivers their spine-jangling beats. They also avoid locking themselves into a single mode, as change-ups like the acoustic (but thoroughly low-tuned) opening of "Nvnces†" and the clean/dirty switches of "Burial at Sea" make obvious, but there's a darkly psychedelic under-current carrying through most of their material.
On Hippie Doom Squad's side, a corroded sample loop carries the intro through industrial clanking and on into some live crusty sludge with a high slide towards punk. Near-gurgled vocals and cranked-out bass ensure adequate grime, a few more dirty-sounding vocal samples get dropped into the grinder, and squeals of feedback cut in semi-regularly. Throw in a crushed cover of Queen's "We Will Rock You", and HDS turn out a seriously debaucherous set of songs.
Physical copies of the split are still available for order through Riff Dealers' BandCamp, or if you're more digitally-inclined, you can pick up each side individually (though you'll miss out on the bonus tracks that way). In any event, be sure to check out these two up-and-coming sludge collectives, and play it loud.


Hi everyone! I've been reading through these forums and have learned a lot! I'd like to share my story and maybe get some advice on what questions to ask or things to bring up at a doctor's appointment. Sorry, this is really long.
I decided to stick with the gluten free diet and have been gluten free for almost 10 years. Over the years I have still had issues with diarrhea and abdominal pain, enough to negatively impact my life. I've had to miss work and school, cancel on plans with friends, etc. I used to travel internationally (13+ hour flight) twice a year and I would eat nothing while I traveled so I would run the risk of dealing with diarrhea in the airport or on the plane. Obviously none of this is normal but I was so traumatized by how that first GI doctor treated me that I didn't want to go back.
About 5 years ago I ended up having issues with pain in my chest and joints. The chest pain was determined to probably be inflammation in the cartilage between my ribs (costochondritis) and the rhuematologist I saw wanted to do blood tests for celiac when I told him about the diarrhea, which came back negative. He made me an appointment with a GI doctor for a colonoscopy but I cancelled it because I was scared.
In 2016 I got pregnant and around 5 months into the pregnancy started having a constant tenderness in my right upper quadrant. My OB thought it was my gallbladder so I had an ultrasound done which showed no stones so the OB said it was probably just normal pregnancy pains. The pain was still there when my daughter turned one so I went to my PCP. She tested me for H. Pylori (negative) and gave me a PPI to take for 6 weeks, which did nothing. I demanded a referral so I was sent to another GI office. I saw a nurse practitioner first who told me it was possible to still have gallbladder issues without stones so she sent me for a HIDA scan which was just barely outside of normal range. I saw the GI doctor at my follow up appointment and he was not convinced it was my gallbladder. He said he wanted to do and endoscopy and colonoscopy and, if those were normal, he'd send me to a surgeon to remove my gallbladder.
So I did the endoscopy and colonoscopy the same day. The doctor said the endoscopy showed some inflammation in my esophagus but didn't seem worried about it. He also said he found a few polyps in my colon but he didn't think they were anything to worry about. Pathology didn't show anything concerning about them. So I was sent to the surgeon and had my gallbladder out. This was well over 8 months ago.
I felt really good after my surgery, no more pain, no more diarrhea. I was worried because I heard that diarrhea problems were common after gallbladder surgery. I thought this maybe had solved my problems.
However, in the past month or two, things have gotten so much worse. The diarrhea is so unpredictable and if I have anything I need to do during the day I basically can't eat anything at all. Even that isn't enough sometimes. I had a meeting to go to at school recently so I avoided eating anything before hand and I still got sick. It came on so suddenly while I was driving I couldn't even pull over anywhere. It was the most embarrassing thing that has ever happened to me.
The stomach pains have been awful too. It gets so bad some times that I can't even stand up straight and I come very close to telling my husband to take me to the ER. It often feels like I'm going to have a bad diarrhea episode but then when I go to the bathroom I struggle to pass anything and if I do it's hard, dry stool.
I'm currently in nursing school and dealing with this plus school is so stressful. On the days I have clinical I don't eat until I get home. I've lost 30 lbs since August. I'm worried because next semester I'll be in the hospital for clinicals a lot more and for 12 hour shifts so I don't know what I'm going to do.
I've made an appointment with a new primary care doctor so that I can get a referral to a GI specialist. It really sounds like Crohn's or something else that I'm dealing with, which terrifies me. Any input or suggestions for me? I'd appreciate anything anyone can share.
I am so sorry you are going through all this. There is clearly something going on with your digestive system. I would absolutely go and see another GI to get another opinion.
Now, of course I am not a medical professional, I am just speaking from personal experience with having Crohn's since 2011. Since you had an endoscopy and colonoscopy done and neither showed significant inflammation. I would definitely ask the next GI doctor that you see, to please do a capsule endoscopy. This will show what is going on in your small intestine. It could be that your inflammation is occurring there!
The endoscopy does not show your small intestine and the colonoscopy only shows your large intestine. So, to rule things out, I think its imperative for you to see what is going on in your small intestine. If it were me, I would really press for that test to be done. It's super easy. You just swallow a pill that has a camera inside of it. When I did it, I was in a horrible flare with my Crohn's and I had zero pain, it was so easy. So don't be scared.
Also, I am curious if they did blood work on you. For example did they check your C-Reactive Protein? Also, how about your Red Blood Cell, White Blood Cell count, iron level and vitamin D level?
Keep us posted. Hope this helped. And feel free to message me whenever.
Thank you for your reply Elizabeth! I am definitely interested in trying the capsule endoscopy. I have always wondered if there was something the tests I've had are missing so it seems like that would be a good route to try.
As far as blood work goes, I had my Vitamin D level checked once and it was extremely low (don't remember the exact value, but the doctor was a bit shocked). I don't think I've had any of the other blood tests run though. I'm guessing it would probably be a good thing to ask for these tests?
I have an appointment with the new PCP this Thursday. I'm hoping it doesn't take too long to get in with a new GI. Maybe I'll ask the PCP about ordering some blood tests while I'm waiting for a GI appointment.
Thanks again! I'll post with updates for sure!
Yes, definitely ask your PCP to run those blood tests for you so you can get the ball rolling, at least I would! If your vitamin D still shows low, take a liquid supplement to boost it up.
Well, I went to see my new PCP yesterday and it was really disappointing and frustrating. He didn't let me talk at all. In fact, as soon as him and his med student walked in the room he was telling me I had IBS with constipation (???) and was rattling off meds for the student to put into the computer. I could only get in a word or two before he'd interrupt me. I started crying (from anger and frustration mostly) and told him this is seriously impacting my life and I had concerns I wanted address so he told his med student to prescribe me an antidepressant and antianxiety med. I finally yelled at him that I lost 30 lbs in the past 3-4 months and then he changed his tune. He said maybe inflammatory bowel was the issue instead of IBS (I never got the chance to mention it at all, he arrived there on his own). So he starts saying things like, "oh but IBD patients usually have bad night sweat." Yeah, like me. "Oh, and mucous in the stool is a problem with that too." Yup.
So, he agreed I needed to see a GI doctor and wrote me a referral. He ran some blood tests (almost none of the ones I asked for). Hemoglobin and hematocrit were normal. WBC count normal. ESR normal. All of that is a little disheartening.
Not sure when I'll be going to the GI yet.
It's been a while, but I'm finally getting something done in regards to figuring out what's wrong with me.
I saw the GI doctor in January. He was really unhelpful and told me my symptoms were due to my gallbladder removal. I told him I've been dealing with these issues for around 10 years and he snapped back "yeah but it's worse now, isn't it?" Well yeah, it has always had times when it's exceptionally bad, I'm assuming flares. So he prescribed me a cholesterol medication that binds to bile and theoretically will keep diarrhea from happening if that is indeed the cause. I tried it because my symptoms have been exceptionally bad lately and the only thing it did was cause painful constipation after one pill. The doctor told me to lower the dose if that happens but I was taking the lowest dose possible.
The doctor also said he wanted me to have a CT done and a chest x-ray. His theory with the chest x-ray was that I might have lost all this weight due to lung cancer…even though I don't have any symptoms of lung cancer whatsoever. It was at this point I knew I needed a new doctor. I went home and looked at my info on the office's patient portal and he had listed all kind of symptoms I don't have and never said I have.
My insurance kept denying pre-approval for the CT scan and I was frustrated with nothing happening. Everything has been so bad lately as far as my symptoms. I've had to leave clinical early this semester because of my symptoms and it was incredibly embarrassing and is affecting my grades. Luckily, being in nursing school, my instructors are all nurses and are all understanding and really helpful. One has helped me trying to figure out what to eat on those long 12 hour clinical days and even helped me find a new GI doctor.
Finally got approval for the CT and decided to do it even though I'll be seeing a new doctor soon. I'll be having it tomorrow. I'm really nervous that it will show nothing wrong. I just want to know what's wrong so I can know what to do to fix it.
I go see my new GI doctor on March 15. He has excellent reviews and is considered an "expert" in Crohn's and UC. My husband works with a woman who has UC and sees this doctor. So I'm hopeful it will be a good step forward.


This Sweda coffee mug includes a one color logo. Multi-color imprints are an available option.
The Wake-Up Classic Coffee Cup is a double wall insulated white plastic cup. A contrasting bold color silicone texture grip and matching color plastic twist-on lid provided branded opportunities to match a logo. A white gift box is included as is a one color imprint, setup and proof with multiple color imprints available on this promotional coffee cup. Not microwave or dishwasher safe.


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Sequencing is the new microscope
One of my biggest personal fears is working in the wrong field to achieve the goal I care about. If you were around pre-1900s, and wanted to contribute to biology, you should have been a physicist (Robert Hooke, a physicist discovers the first cell, making a better microscope is a major driver of progress). In which field should you work to maximize progress in biology today?
Tools are fundamental to progress in science. Many of the best scientists in history made their own tools. For example, Isaac Newton was one of the foremost experimentalists of his time - the most vivid theme permeating his notebooks is the constant creation of new tools. Other examples include Louis Pasteur, Edward Bluchner, and Michael Faraday with his own legendary notebooks. These scientists didn't just ask questions and extrapolate based off of existing data - they were excellent toolmakers. They create new experimental apparatuses to answer the questions that came to mind.
This is biology's century
For the longest time, looking at stuff and breeding animals was effectively our version of biology. That and some pretty uneducated guesses about what human organs did.
That changed in the 1600s - microscopes allowed us to see all the way down to the cell. The first revolution in physics gave us optics (we could see a lot more stuff a lot better), and Newton's laws of motion (we could centrifuge and pipette things accurately). Understanding physical principles in the second physics revolution - electromagnetism and thermodynamics - allowed us to run western blots (from the principle of charge) and make incubators that could cool as well as heat
As the progress of physics ramped up in the early 1900s, so did biology. JJ Thomson's device for looking at cathode rays became the first mass spectrometer. X-rays were found - now used, not just in hospitals for treatment and diagnosis, but also as invaluable biological reagents. NMR gave rise to MRI. Einstein's general relativity didn't make much of a dent, but the photoelectric effect allowed us to understand and manipulate fluorescence. Microscopes got way better - the Nobel in Physics was won for phase-contrast microscopy, then electron microscopy. Marvin Minsky patented the first confocal microscope.
The flywheel of biological tools
But something interesting happened around the 1950s. If you look at the most important techniques in biology, in the second half of the 1900s, they're all driven by tools discovered in biology itself. Biologists aren't just finding new things - they're making their new tools from biological reagents. PCR (everything that drives PCR, apart from the heater/cooler which is 1600s thermodynamics, is either itself DNA or something made by DNA), DNA sequencing (sequencing by synthesis - we use cameras/electrical detection/CMOS chips as the output, but the hijacking the way the cell makes DNA proteins remains at the heart of the technique), cloning (we cut up DNA with proteins made from DNA, stick the DNA into bacteria so living organisms can make more copies of it for us), gene editing (CRISPR is obviously made from DNA and with RNA attached), ELISA (need the ability to detect fluorescence - optics - and process the signal, but antibodies lie at the heart of this principle), affinity chromatography (liquid chromatography arguably uses physical principles like steric hindrance, or charge, but those can be traced back to the 1800s - antibodies and cloning have revolutionized this technique), FACS uses the same charge principles that western blots do, but with the addition of antibodies.
There are some exceptions. Chemical peptide synthesis might be one. Microscopy is still in large part driven by physics on a certain level - Cryo-EM and lattice light sheet microscopy were iterations on known physical principles (albeit longstanding known ones). But even there the analogy falters. If you'd asked a physicist in the early 1900s how we'd figure out the complicated, tangled structure of DNA, he'd probably say to look at it with a microscope. Sequencing has become the new microscope. It's easier for us to cross-link, fragment and sequence a full genome to figure out its 3-dimensional structure than it is for us to figure that out by looking at it head-on. We used to rely on photons and electrons bouncing off of biological sample to tell us what was going on down there. Now we're asking biology directly - and often the information we get back comes through a natural biological reagent like DNA. Which we then sequence using motors made from the DNA itself!
These tools don't just find new biology, they're also being used to change it. Look to the market, where biology-driven therapeutics are coming out in droves. The first generation of drugs came from natural products - for the most part things created by living organisms, but more approachable from a chemistry perspective. A 100-atom structure could come from a living thing, but also be created through a set of chemical reactions. But then, in the 1980s, we cloned insulin and growth hormone, and used living things to make the drugs that previously had been isolated by purification. Antibodies became the wonder-drugs of tomorrow. These are complex 100K-atom molecular structures, so we didn't make them - we let cells and bacteria do that work for us. Viruses similarly - we used them as tools to understand genetics, now we're using them to blow up tumors (look up 'oncolytic viruses') and change our genes. We're using biological tools to program and deploy cells to fight cancer and autoimmune disease. In the future, one can imagine taking advantage of an even more complex level of biological hierarchy - interfacing with and using our nervous system (and here I turn it over to the enthusiasm of the BCI folks).
But the point isn't just the obvious - that this is biology's century, that we're seeing an incredible wave of drugs come to market. The point is that something truly unique is happening in biology today.
Something special happens when a field becomes self-reinforcing. Previously, biology looked to physics and other disciplines for tools to break open new frontiers. But, empirically, since the 1950s, that has all changed. We don't make mutant mice with x-rays and microscopes - we figure out the gene we want to go after, and we use high-precision biological tools to change it. Computer science has certainly played an important role in processing all of the information now streaming out of biological systems, but the major advances - the core things driving progress in biology forward - have come from biology itself. Biology is eating physics (and, some would jokingly suggest, based on the outperforming endurance of DNA compared to any modern hardware and the plausibility of biological computation, possibly computation itself).
Naively, if we can expect n new discoveries / t tools we have, if the tools are static, maybe that's a fixed number of discoveries per year. But if the number of tools increases, then we get more discoveries. What if that number increases as a function of n?
This is important because it's a self-reinforcing loop. The more things in biology we discover today, the faster we can discover things tomorrow. Biologists are the new engineers. But their tools look a lot different than any we've seen before. Sequencing is the microscope of tomorrow. And sequencing was built by biological tools.
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Laura Deming
I like science and startups. For more on longevity, go to ldeming.com/longevityfaq. You can email me at ldeming.www@gmail.com - I'd be excited to get coffee and discuss science, math, optimizing supply chains and art. "Thus it is our duty, not to prophesy evil, but to fight for a better world" - Karl Popper
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