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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


In 2018, Saratoga County continued to be one of the fastest-growing counties in New York State, and for good reason. With an educated workforce, great companies from diverse industry sectors, and a vibrant quality of place, we possess all the attributes that make our community a great investment for businesses and residents. Who wouldn't want to invest, live, work, and raise a family here? Our future is bright, but it is important that we continue to lead the public and private sectors to plan for long-term growth. This means investing in infrastructure, developing our workforce, attracting talent, and encouraging our companies to innovate and invest in Saratoga County. Laying the foundation for future growth is the key to maintaining our economic prosperity today and long into the future.
Throughout 2018, the Saratoga Partnership marketed Saratoga County to businesses and site selectors throughout the world. We met with more than 75 companies and 60 site selectors to educate them on why Saratoga County is the ideal location for expansion. The Saratoga Partnership is why Saratoga County was successful in siting New York State's largest battery storage project, Key Capture Energy project in Stillwater; why Proctors – Universal Preservation Hall is transforming a former church in Saratoga Springs into a year-round world class arts and cultural venue in downtown Saratoga after we assisted them with assistance through the Saratoga County Industrial Development Agency; why the Saratoga Partnership is working with the Ellms Family Farm, who will be investing in a $10M Saratoga Farm Hub, an agritainment venue and farm incubator project. The Saratoga Partnership's pipeline of projects currently include over 37 companies that are considering investing and growing in Saratoga County. This pipeline represents over 1,200 jobs and $110 million in capital investment. Saratoga County is ripe for new investment and we anticipate more to come in 2019.
The Saratoga Partnership will continue to work with industry sectors throughout Saratoga County and the region, to address workforce challenges. Although Saratoga County's economy is strong, our businesses aren't immune to changes in our local and global economy. With low unemployment rates (2.9% Nov 2018) and a high workforce participation rate (68% of the workforce is working), our businesses are being challenged to find talent and fill in skills gaps left by baby boomers retiring from the workforce. This issue is not unique to Saratoga County. In 2018, the national unemployment rate—at 3.7% in November—sits near a 50-year low. Economist Hugh Johnson recently cautioned that our workforce shortage will impact economic output and new job growth if it is not addressed through workforce development.
Entering 2019, the Saratoga Partnership will continue to forge strong partnerships with our colleges and universities to develop innovative workforce development programs that meet the needs of the private sector. In January, we will be launching the first-ever Computer Coding workforce development program in Saratoga County in partnership with Albany Can Code, SUNY ADK and SUNY Schenectady. This program will train Saratoga County residents for high-paying tech job opportunities and fill the talent pipeline. The Saratoga Partnership will also launch Circles of 7 (C7) mentorship program to provide critical strategic business assistance to drive the success of entrepreneurs in Saratoga County. We will continue to work with our partners at SCORE, the SBA, Innovate518, CEG, and SUNY ADK, to deliver innovative tools that support the needs of our small businesses and spark the spirit of budding entrepreneurs.
To help our local communities plan for the future, the Saratoga Partnership has launched the Next Wave Communities program to assist local towns within Saratoga County in developing custom-tailored economic development plans. In 2018, the Town of Moreau became the inaugural Next Wave Community and we look forward to helping more communities throughout Saratoga County plan for a brighter future.
In 2018, we have seen uncertainty amongst our businesses about how to manage the global supply chains or deal with rising prices for imported components hit by tariffs. Heading into the new year, the Saratoga Partnership is prepared to assist our business community with these disruptions in global markets and grow their businesses. Through our Global Markets Advisory service led by Mary Estelle Ryckman, companies can draw on her 30 years of expertise in negotiating international trade agreements and supporting global commerce in Washington D.C. The Saratoga Partnership team is poised to assist the Saratoga County business community and work hand in hand with our communities to lay the groundwork for future business growth.
Our unique quality of life makes Saratoga County an ideal location to attract and retain talent and help our employers fill the jobs that exist today. However, maintaining and expanding economic prosperity cannot be taken for granted. The Saratoga Partnership's public-private model is one which is replicated and used around the world to conduct economic development and will result in a strong economy in 2019 and beyond.
To learn more about the Saratoga County Prosperity Partnership, call 518.871.1887 or visit saratogapartnership.org.


We live in a fallen world where sin and natural disasters run rampant. This was not the world God intended for us, but it is the one man chose. People ask how could God allow this to happen, my answer it is the life we wanted.
Though the world is no longer good, there is a promise in Romans that God will work things together for good in difficult times for those called by God.
The story vetted by Snopes started two years earlier in 1874 when the congregation wanted to build a church on land owned by a man named Samuel Slader.
The land was high and would offer protection from the flooding in this area regularly battered by storms. But Slader had other plans and was not interested in selling this prime location near the town's water front.
The congregation was forced to build at a less favorable location.
Over the next year and a half, they built a typical wood structure church with a tall steeple. Days before they were ready to dedicate it a hurricane hit the area on September 16-17, 1876.
Five feet of water surged inland out of Pamlico Sound lifting the church off its brick foundation causing it to float in the churning water.
According to reports, the church floated down a road and bumped into a corner store owned by George Credle on what is today Oyster Creek Road and US 264 Business street.
After hitting the store, the church verged to the right and slowly moved down the street. It bobbed in the water sailing for two blocks until it reached the corner of Church street.
The building took another left turn, crossing Carawan Canal where it finally got stuck on the higher elevated property owned by Samuel Slader. People reported that before it settled the church actually spun around so the front door was facing the street.
With the church now sitting on the very property the congregation had tried to purchase, Slader eventually took this as a sign from God and sold the land to the congregation.
Due to this miraculous provision, the church changed its name from Methodist Episcopal Church South to The Providence United Methodist Church. They eventually built a larger brick building on the property but kept the miracle church as a reminder of God's provision.


Desirable Hazelwood Ridge cul-de-sac home sits on large, flat lot that backs to Trails & Greenbelt! This 4 bd. home features main floor BR & 3/4 bath, Study, Mudroom. Gourmet kitchen w/ SS appls, quartz counters, large Island, hardwoods. Stunning FP w/quartz surround floor to ceiling, hand cut millwork, wood wrapped windows & upgraded carpet. Master w/2 WIC's, spa-like bath w/sep shower. Open Loft looks to below. Territorial views, privacy, stunning retreat w/conveniences of the city nearby.


I clearly prefer a photographic world without the presence of people. There is something about an empty plaza, or a blank hallway or a quiet vista that speaks so loudly to me. It's not that I don't like people (quite the contrary infact), but rather that I like the challenge of taking subject-free pictures in places that are otherwise bustling with activity.
Nevertheless, I do have a few choice 'people' shots—and today's snapshot is one of them. The brothers Bradshaw! My younger brother and I lead very different lives, in very different places. We continue to learn from each other's mistakes and successes, and stay surprisingly close despite the distance. But one thing is for certain… we know how to have a good time when we get together! And this is one of my favorite shots from a recent visit: muggin' for the camera at the local Funglass Shack (wearing wacky sunglasses with matching expressions)!
i love your site. i like your pictures. especially this one. in fact i've used the same wordpress template for my photo-blog.
Thanks Sean!! This was an experiment I wanted to test out. Kinda ran out of steam. I have focused more of my creative personal posting on to http://kc.br4dsh4w.com as time hasn't allowed me to update this site as I wanted to. Good while it lasted though.


I need a new website. I need you to design and build a website for my small business. I need a website which allows me to post updates for my product.
It should also have a login section that lets users update and read data from a cloud which is related to data retrieval and transmission to the devices (that the purchase from the site).
It's basically for a sensor cluster that ppl can buy and then read data from and send signals to.


text:
Q: iOS7 iPad Landscape only app, using UIImagePickerController I believe this is a common issue and many answers don't work anymore, many just partial, if you are under iOS7 and your iPad app is Landscape only, but you want to use the UIImagePickerController with source UIImagePickerControllerSourceTypePhotoLibrary or UIImagePickerControllerSourceTypeCamera.
How to set it right, so it's working 100%? And you don't get mixed orientations and avoid the error "Supported orientations has no common orientation with the application, and shouldAutorotate returns YES".

A: If your iPad app is landscape only in all conditions, just do these 3 steps :
1) In your app delegate
- (NSUInteger)application:(UIApplication *)application supportedInterfaceOrientationsForWindow:(UIWindow *)window {
    return UIInterfaceOrientationMaskAll;
}

2) Create a category header
#import "UIViewController+OrientationFix.h"

@implementation UIViewController (OrientationFix)

- (BOOL)shouldAutorotateToInterfaceOrientation:(UIInterfaceOrientation)toInterfaceOrientation {
    return UIInterfaceOrientationIsLandscape(toInterfaceOrientation);
}

- (BOOL)shouldAutorotate {
    return YES;
}

- (NSUInteger)supportedInterfaceOrientations {
    return UIInterfaceOrientationMaskLandscape;
}

@end

3) Create a category implementation
#import "UIImagePickerController+OrientationFix.h"

@implementation UIImagePickerController (OrientationFix)

- (BOOL)shouldAutorotateToInterfaceOrientation:(UIInterfaceOrientation)toInterfaceOrientation {
    return UIInterfaceOrientationIsLandscape(toInterfaceOrientation);
}

- (BOOL)shouldAutorotate {
    return YES;
}

- (NSUInteger)supportedInterfaceOrientations {
    return UIInterfaceOrientationMaskLandscape;
}

@end

Note: You don't need to import these categories anywhere, just enough they are compiled with the project
Note: no need to implement these methods in any VC
Note: no need to change your plist supported orientations
This is tested and working under any conditions

A: I have seen this code from Apple's Sample Code.
UIImagePickerController *imagePickerController = [[UIImagePickerController alloc] init];
imagePickerController.modalPresentationStyle = UIModalPresentationCurrentContext;

Due to this UIModalPresentationCurrentContext UIImagePickerController will be opened as per device's current orientation.

A: Apple's documentation says:
"Important: The UIImagePickerController class supports portrait mode only."
Although, it works fine in landscape for full screen and on iOS 6.
UIImagePickerController class reference

A: Thanks to Peter Lapisu suggestion above. It doesn't work for me (maybe i'm on iOS 8.3) but i was able to modified it to fixed my orientation issues. My codes are below
In app delegate
- (NSUInteger)application:(UIApplication *)application supportedInterfaceOrientationsForWindow:(UIWindow *)window
{
    return UIInterfaceOrientationMaskAll;
}

UIImagePickerController category
@implement UIImagePickerController (extensions)
- (BOOL)shouldAutorotate {
    return YES;
}

- (NSUInteger)supportedInterfaceOrientations {
    return UIInterfaceOrientationMaskAll;
}

- (UIInterfaceOrientation)preferredInterfaceOrientationForPresentation {
    return [[UIApplication sharedApplication] statusBarOrientation];
}

@end

UIViewController category
@implementation UIViewController (extensions)

- (BOOL)shouldAutorotate {
    return YES;
}

- (NSUInteger)supportedInterfaceOrientations {
    return UIInterfaceOrientationMaskAll;
}

@end

A: Although most answers recommend using .currentContext, I have found out after dismissing the imagepicker, everything was wrong.
On an Landscaped iPad, imho it's best if you would use .formSheet:
let picker = UIImagePickerController()
picker.modalPresentationStyle = .formSheet
picker.sourceType = .photoLibrary
picker.delegate = self
self.present(picker, animated: true)

A: Swift 4 solution
Make sure that when you are having the ViewController embedded in a NavigationViewController to have the fix there. It won't work adding this restriction to the ViewController then...
import UIKit

class MainNavigationViewController: UINavigationController {

    override var shouldAutorotate: Bool {
        return true
    }

    override var supportedInterfaceOrientations: UIInterfaceOrientationMask {
        return .landscape
    }
}

And of course the code mentioned above for the AppDelegate:
func application(_ application: UIApplication, supportedInterfaceOrientationsFor window: UIWindow?) -> UIInterfaceOrientationMask {
    return .all
}

Btw this is only necessary for iOS 10 and below. Apple seems to have fixed it from iOS 11 and above...

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


The swimwear is made from 82%Polyester and 18%Spandex with halter neck, side cut out, floral printed, slim fit and one piece.;82%Polyester,18%Spandex;Halter neck,wire free,side cut out,floral printed,slim fit;Style: Summer Beach Wear Swimsuit;As different computers display colors differently, the color of the actual item may vary slightly from the above images, thanks for your understanding.;It is our Asian size. You should choose one size larger. Please allow 1-2cm differs due to manual measurement, thanks..


2253 Welcher Avenue is a property located in Port Coquitlam, British Columbia. It is based in the neighbourhood of Central Pt Coquitlam in Port Coquitlam. Mary Hill, Coquitlam East and Nordel are nearby neighborhoods. Welcher Avenue has 11 postings currently for sale, while the community of Central Pt Coquitlam has 88 properties for sale. That's just 29.73% of the 296 total properties on the market in the city of Port Coquitlam. To live in Central Pt Coquitlam an estimated monthly mortgage of $2,384 is normal.* Homes go on the market for an average of $653,167. That is 11% higher than the average list price of $588,586 found across all Port Coquitlam homes for sale. Central Pt Coquitlam listed properties average 1,138 sq ft, 2 beds, and 2 baths. The majority of homes for sale in the neighbourhood around 2253 Welcher Avenue are houses. The 2 bed, 1 bath condo for sale at 203-2285 Welcher Avenue, Port Coquitlam is comparable and listed at $379,900. Another similar home is the 2 bed, 2 bath condo located at 103-2267 Pitt River Road, Port Coquitlam and priced for sale at $485,000.
Interested in what other suites this building has to offer? Take a look at the other 2253 Welcher Avenue condos. In love with the area? There are 63 Central Pt Coquitlam condos on the market. In addition, there are 91 Port Coquitlam condos for sale.
The building at 201-2253 Welcher Avenue is a apartment/condo.
There are currently no condos for sale at 2253 Welcher Avenue. Contact us for this building's price history or to see units in nearby buildings.


text:
An ongoing study of movies, stories, and the themes that fuel them
About Reel to Reel
What I've Watched (Alphabetical)
What I've Watched (By Series)
What I've Watched (Significant Shorts)
Scrooge Month Day 9: Michael Caine in THE MUPPET CHRISTMAS CAROL (1993)
Posted by blakemp
Director: Brian Henson
Writer: Jerry Juhl, based on A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
Cast: Michael Caine, Dave Goelz, Steve Whitmire, Jerry Nelson, Frank Oz, David Rudman, Don Austen, Jessica Fox, Robert Tygner, Steven Mackintosh, Meredith Braun, Robin Weaver
Notes: The early 90s were a rough time for the Jim Henson Studio. After Jim died in 1990, there was a serious doubt in the minds of many that the Muppets could go on. But before his death, Jim had begun working out a deal with the Disney studio to produce more Muppet films, with one of them being an adaptation of A Christmas Carol. After Jim died, his characters were passed on to other performers. This was the first theatrical production for the Muppets after Jim's passing, and the film is dedicated to him and Muppeteer Richard Hunt, who died in 1991. Although a musical and mostly comedic, this is a pretty faithful adaptation of the original novel, with Michael Caine playing Scrooge, new Muppets created for the three ghosts, and classic Muppets filling most of the other roles. Statler and Waldorf played Jacob and Robert Marley (rimshot), Fozzie Bear became Scrooge's old boss Fozziwig, Sam the Eagle was Scrooge's headmaster in school. Most notably, we got Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy as Bob and Emily Cratchit and Kermit's nephew Robin as Tiny Tim. The film's stroke of genius, something that gives it an added dimension of fun, is casting the Great Gonzo as Charles Dickens himself, and allowing him to act as narrator, with additional commentary by his oft-time sidekick, Rizzo the Rat.
Thoughts: Not to put too fine a point on it, but this may well be my favorite version of A Christmas Carol. Yeah, there are probably better films, but something about this one works for me. Maybe it's the amazing music by Paul Williams (who also wrote the songs for the original Muppet Movie). Maybe it's the silly charm that I still feel when I see humans and Muppets walking around a set together as if there was nothing unusual about that at all. Maybe it's because this is the movie that, in many people's hearts, proved that the Muppets could survive after Jim Henson was gone. Whatever the reason, I love The Muppet Christmas Carol like I do few other Christmas movies.
Michael Caine is, of course, an acting legend. He's done amazing work in dozens of fine films, such as Jaws: The Revenge, which made him the logical choice for Scrooge. His Scrooge starts out as bitter as any, but he has a quality of containment about him. He's mean and angry, but even in the first scene you get the sense that his greatest degree of hatred is turned inward. He seems like a man ready to explode, and few people present that quality as clearly as a man who is keeping everything inside. When the film ends, when he lets his emotion finally free, it's not anger but happiness that explodes into the old town. For all his lively parading through the streets, though, nothing serves to illustrate his reformation as well as the quiet moment where he approaches the charity collectors (here played by Dr. Bunsen Honeydew and his assistant Beaker) to give them a generous donation. Bunsen is speechless, but Beaker (always speechless) finds a way to express his gratitude: giving Scrooge the scarf from around his neck. The surprised look on Caine's face makes you believe it's truly the first Christmas present he's ever been given.
This wasn't Steve Whitmire's first time playing Kermit the Frog, but it was here that he really had to prove himself. The simple kindness and sincerity of America's favorite amphibian was perfect for Bob Cratchit… but it wouldn't necessarily have been all that funny in and of itself. The solution was to surround him with Muppet rats who alternately support him and sell him out when Scrooge bellows. It's a funny juxtaposition, and when he's paired off with Miss Piggy (Frank Oz) for the scene in the Cratchit home, her overbearing personality plays off of him in much the same way. Whitmire has had the Kermit job ever since. He acquitted himself well.
At one point, the plan was to use existing Muppets to play the three ghosts, but the filmmakers decided it would detract from the seriousness of the story. Instead, we got three all-new Muppet creations. Christmas Past is a softly floating, ethereal puppet that looks like a bizarre combination of elf and child, glowing and floating. In fact, the performance was filmed in a tank of water to give it the sort of weightless effect they wanted, then greenscreened onto the film. For such a simple effect it's remarkably effective, giving the ghost an ethereal quality that truly makes it look like it belongs to a different world than our own (or even an alternate version of our own where Muppets coexist with humans). Jessica Fox's Ghost takes Scrooge on the traditional trip through his past – the joy as he left school and went to Fozziwig's Christmas party, the heartbreak of losing Belle (Meredith Braun) when she realized he loved his money more than her. The song they sing together is devastating – she sings "The Love is Gone" with fresh sadness, while behind her Michael Caine joins in. Near the end she turns back and, just for a second, you think she's going to acknowledge the older Scrooge… but she doesn't. She can't hear or see him, of course, but the audience sees the agony in his face – the pain of a man forced to relive the greatest mistake of his life.
Christmas Present is presented in a form much in keeping with other versions. He's huge, of course, but cloaked in the traditional green robe with a holly wreath and a long red mane of hair. There's a nice tick they give the character, though – being the Ghost of Christmas Present, he has a difficult time focusing on the future or remembering the past, and frequently repeats himself. Throughout his segment, as he and Scrooge get closer and closer to the end of Christmas Day, the Muppet grows visibly older. At the end, he's practically ancient, and vanishes with the wind. It's a brilliant effect that gives a nice subtext to the movie. We've already seen that the Past is forever, and Present reminds us the now is transient. But what's coming next, the future… that can still be changed.
Caine sells the present scenes very well. When he realizes he's the butt of the joke at Fred's family party, there's genuine pain on his face. The scene at the Cratchit family house invites a few uncomfortable questions about a world where frogs and pigs are genetically compatible, and are exclusively male and female, respectively. You forget those things when Tiny Tim launches into his song, "Bless Us All." This part improves on many versions of the story. So often, you just see Scrooge look upon Tim and start to feel bad for him… his transformation is brought on more from pity than anything else. But here, as Tim sings his song you get an impression of just how good and pure a soul he is, and when he starts to cough Scrooge's change of heart is no longer that of a man who simply feels bad for a sick child, but a man grieving for a world that will be deprived of such light.
The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come, even in Muppet form, is a sight to behold. Although not quite the skeletal figure he sometimes is, he's got your standard robe and large, oversized hands that make it look like Michael Caine is being escorted by something wholly inhuman and terrible. This segment goes pretty quickly, rushing from one scene of terror to another before they get to Scrooge's tombstone. Once again, Caine proves himself, begging for his chance to change in a way that makes you believe in him, believe it's possible to change, maybe even regain a little of your overall faith in the human race.
Surrounding the whole film is Gonzo as Charles Dickens. His antics with Rizzo provide added energy and comedy in scenes that traditionally aren't that funny – when Scrooge holes himself up in his mansion before encountering the Marleys, for example. Gonzo is smart enough to know when to keep quiet, though, and in fact the characters make a show of running off and hiding just before Christmas Yet to Come pops in, then make a grand return for the finale. Using him as a narrator also allows this film to layer in much of Dickens's beautiful prose that rarely makes it to screen, as it's not dialogue. For that reason alone, that helps this stand as one of the most surprisingly faithful adaptations of the book I've ever seen.
I mentioned Paul Williams's music before, but it's certainly worthy of its own paragraph. The opening song, "Scrooge," is somehow gloomy and peppy at the same time – a snappy number about a miserable man. It perfectly encapsulates the character, even giving a hint that there may be goodness within him somewhere (although the Muppets quickly dismiss that notion). Kermit and Robin later sing "One More Sleep 'Til Christmas," a lovely, happy song that's worth singing every Christmas Eve. But the crowning gem is Christmas Present's number, "It Feels Like Christmas." There's something undeniably joyous about the song, something that clutches the heart and the ear so tightly that it bubbles out of me at random moments in the middle of July.
Fair warning, though – the theatrical release of the film and some of the subsequent DVD and Blu-Ray editions left out the duet between Scrooge and Belle, "When Love is Gone." Disney thought it slowed down the film too much, but when left out it kills the emotional impact of the scene, and furthermore hurts the finale, which contains a counterpoint mixed with "It Feels Like Christmas." My DVD, fortunately, includes it, and I'd never upgrade to a Blu-Ray that leaves it out.
If you haven't seen this version of A Christmas Carol before I can only presume that you hate the Muppets, hate Christmas, or hate joy itself. Again, I do not deny that there may be objectively superior adaptations of the book, but I very much doubt anything will ever take its place as my favorite.
The first Reel to Reel study, Mutants, Monsters and Madmen, is now available as a $2.99 eBook in the Amazon Kindle store and Smashwords.com bookstore. And you can find links to all of my novels, collections, and short stories, in their assorted print, eBook and audio forms, at the Now Available page!
Posted in 4-Icons, Comedy, Fantasy, Musical
Tags: 1993, A Christmas Carol, Brian Henson, Charles Dickens, Christmas, Dave Goelz, David Rudman, Don Austen, Ebenezer Scrooge, Frank Oz, Jerry Juhl, Jerry Nelson, Jessica Fox, Meredith Braun, Michael Caine, Muppets, Paul Williams, Robert Tygner, Robin Weaver, Steve Whitmire, Steven Mackintosh, The Muppet Christmas Carol
The Christmas Special Day 19: A Muppet Family Christmas (1987)
Directors: Peter Harris & Eric Till
Writer: Jerry Juhl
Cast: Jim Henson, Frank Oz, Dave Goelz, Richard Hunt, Kathryn Mullen, Jerry Nelson, Karen Prell, Steve Whitmire, David Rudman, Caroll Spinney, Gerard Parkes
Plot: Kermit the Frog (Jim Henson) and many of the Muppets are off to spend Christmas at Fozzie Bear's mother's house (Fozzie and Ma Bear performed by Frank Oz and Jerry Nelson, respectively). They arrive to find that Ma is about to leave, having planned on taking a vacation to Florida for the holidays. Doc (Gerard Parkes) and his dog Sprocket (Steve Whitmire) are renting the house for a quiet holiday. When the Muppets arrive Ma decides to call off her vacation, and Doc finds himself surrounded by strange creatures. (Perplexed, he asks Sprocket if the Muppets are like the "Fraggles" his dog often reports encountering back home.) As everyone settles in, Kermit gets a call from Miss Piggy (Oz again), who is finishing up a photo shoot and plans to join them later. A Turkey (Whitmire again) arrives at the door, having been invited by the Swedish Chef (Henson), and the poultry-loving Gonzo (Dave Goelz) tries to convince him that a turkey at Christmas is more likely to be the main course than a guest. As more Muppets arrive, the farmhouse begins to descend into chaos: the Turkey tells Chef that Sprocket is the turkey, Fozzie Bear attempts to start up a new comedy routine with a Snowman (Richard Hunt), and the Turkey starts to hit on Gonzo's girlfriend, Camilla. Scooter (Hunt) cheers everyone up with some home movies of the gang as babies, and just before Gonzo and the turkey come to blows, a group of carolers arrive: the Muppets' friends from Sesame Street. They come in, Bert and Ernie (Oz and Henson) engage Doc in small talk about the letter B, and Christmas Eve.
Chef gets the Turkey into the kitchen and begins sizing him up for the pan, but the Turkey deflects his attention by pointing out the most delectable dish of all: Big Bird (Caroll Spinney). The news reports a terrible storm approaching, and Kermit begins to worry about Miss Piggy, who still hasn't arrived. The different groups begin bonding, with Janice (Hunt) and Cookie Monster (Oz) "sharing" a plate of treats, drawing Animal (Oz)'s admiration, Oscar the Grouch (Spinney) offering to share his trash can with Rizzo the Rat (Whitmire), and Bert and Ernie leading the Sesame Street gang in a performance of "Twas the Night Before Christmas." Kermit gets a call from Piggy and tries to convince her to stay off the road during the storm. The pigheaded (rimshot) Muppet doesn't listen, though, and tries to hail a taxi. The Chef summons Big Bird into the kitchen, planning to prepare him for dinner, but is touched when Big Bird – feeling sorry for him spending Christmas so far away from his home in Sweden – gives him a present of chocolate covered birdseed. When Doc sees Kermit staring out into the snow again, he offers to head out and look for Piggy. As Kermit waits, his nephew Robin (Nelson) summons him to the cellar, where he's found what he believes to be a Fraggle hole. The two frogs wind up in the subterranean world of Fraggle Rock, where the Fraggles are in the midst of their own midwinter celebration, in which Mokey (Kathryn Mullen) is giving Boober (Goelz) a yellow pebble – which has been a present from Fraggle to Fraggle 37 times. Boober gives the pebble to Robin. As the Frogs return to the farmhouse, Doc arrives on a dogsled wearing a Mountie uniform – all things Miss Piggy just happened to have for him when he found her in the snow. After all, Miss Piggy knows how to make an entrance.
With everyone finally safe and warm in the farmhouse (which is now so tight on space Gonzo and Animal have to sleep on hangers on the wall), Ma Bear officially welcomes everyone to her home and Rowlf the Dog leads the extended Muppet family in their annual Carol Sing. The music summons the Fraggles into the farmhouse, and they join in. Gifts are exchanged – Kermit gives Piggy a mink, and Robin passes the Fraggle Pebble on to Grover – and in the kitchen, Jim Henson himself watches on and smiles… then recruits Sprocket to help him wash the dishes.
Thoughts: We finally get to Jim Henson's most famous family of characters, the Muppet Show Muppets, making the Henson company's final entry in our countdown. This special hits on several levels. First of all, it's full of fantastic Christmas music – in and of itself, that's enough to make it worth watching. We get a lot of traditionals in the Carol Sing at the end, as well as plenty of other songs throughout. There's also a song plucked from Fraggle Rock – the joyful "Pass it on" – and the show caps off with a slightly modified version of "Together at Christmas" from The Christmas Toy.
It's also impressive just how many different stories the special manages to juggle. Kermit and Piggy's story is ostensibly the A-plot, but it doesn't really have much more screen time than the Chef's attempts at dinner, Gonzo's rivalry with the turkey, Fozzie's new act, Ma's effort to find room for everybody, or the introduction of the Fraggles to the rest of the family. All of these things could command a larger chunk if they eliminated the other stories, but it would be a real loss to do so.
It's also worth noting that most of the stories are pretty original – no retreads of Dickens or Capra or O'Henry, even though Henson has turned to that well before. It's interesting to note, though, that of the four specials we've watched from the Henson company, all four have dealt with gift-giving and self-sacrifice on a fairly significant level. Food for thought.
But the thing that makes this legendary for fans of the Henson company is because this is the only time the casts of all three major Henson families came together on-screen. We saw the Muppet Show and Sesame Street characters interact on several occasions in the past, but throwing in the Fraggles (at the height of their popularity when this special was made) makes it… well, extra-special. There's even a small bit with the Muppet Babies, when Scooter shows the home movies, allowing us to see them as puppets for only the second time. (Their debut was in the feature film The Muppets Take Manhattan – for their own show, they were animated.) Unfortunately, due to rights issues with the music used in that scene, most of it was cut from the special's DVD release. There are actually several scenes removed or abbreviated for this reason, so a complete version has never made it to DVD. Even worse, because of the fracturing of the Jim Henson company, in which the Muppet Show characters were sold to Disney and the Sesame Street characters given to the Children's Television Workshop (now Sesame Workshop), the three families are now all owned by three different companies. Because of this, the DVD has been out of print for years, and can only be obtained used. Good luck – I managed to snag it when it was new and I've been watching the same disc for ten years, and it's now extremely hard to come by. (Although you can find the whole thing on YouTube, and it's worth it.)
Jim Henson was one of those creators that comes along once in a generation. While he wasn't the sole force behind the creation of the Muppets, and probably gets too much credit for Sesame Street in some circles, the fact that he was the epicenter of so many different creative movements in his too-short time on this planet is nothing short of astonishing. The fact that so many people continue to use his creations to tell new and wonderful stories 20 years after his death is astonishing. He made something magical and lasting, and this special is one of the few places you can see the scope of his talent all at once, all together, as it should be. That, in and of itself, is a Christmas miracle of a kind.
Posted in 3-The Christmas Special, Comedy, Musical
Tags: 1987, A Muppet Family Christmas, Caroll Spinney, Christmas, Dave Goelz, David Rudman, Eric Till, Fraggle Rock, Frank Oz, Gerard Parkes, Gerry Parkes, Jerry Juhl, Jerry Nelson, Jim Henson, Karen Prell, Kathryn Mullen, Kermit the Frog, Muppets, Peter Harris, Puppets, Richard Hunt, Sesame Street, Steve Whitmire
The Christmas Special Day 9: Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas (1977)
Director: Jim Henson
Writer: Jerry Juhl, based on the book by Russell & Lillian Hoban
Cast: Jerry Nelson, Frank Oz, Marilyn Sokol, Dave Goelz, Richard Hunt, Eren Ozker, Jim Henson
Plot: With three days to Christmas,Alice Otter (Marilyn Sokol) is having trouble getting together the money to give her son Emmet (Jerry Nelson) a happy holiday. Emmet sets his heart on a $40 guitar in a music store window, but their shopping afternoon is disrupted by the appearance of a group of rough animals calling themselves the Riverbottom Boys. As the Otters return home, Alice tries to discourage Emmet from getting too hopeful about Christmas, but the boy continues to dream about the days when his father was alive and money went farther. Alice is practically down to using her washtub as their only means of support, while Emmet uses his father's tools to do odd jobs. Both Alice and Emmet learn the town's upcoming Talent Competition has a grand prize of $50. Emmet's friends form a jug band and ask him to borrow his mother's washtub to make a bass, but Emmet refuses, knowing you can't make a washtub base without putting a hole in the washtub. Alice is reluctant to enter either, knowing her only way of having a dress for the competition would be to hock her late husband's tools. Later, as Emmet and Alice play on the frozen lake, they share memories of Pa Otter, and each becomes convinced that he would have made the sacrifice for the other's sake. Alice wants to buy her son the guitar he admired, while Emmet wants to use his share of the prize money to put a down payment on a piano to replace the one she sold some time ago. Emmet makes his washtub bass, while Alice sells the tools and buys fabric for a dress.
As Emmet's band practices, the Riverbottom Boys mock their efforts to win the talent contest. Their nerves are shaken even worse when they arrive at the contest to find the opening act is performing the same song they've rehearsed. They rush off to learn a new song, but the stage manager forces them back into the theater, afraid they'll miss their cue. Alice performs "Our World" to a thunderous round of applause, and Emmet's Jug Band follows up with "Brothers." The competition is supposed to be over, but the Riverbottom Boys come on and perform a harsh, angry rock number, "Riverbottom Nightmare Band." The Nightmare Band wins the competition, and the Otters are despondent. Outside they're told the judges liked both of their acts, but felt like they were missing a little something extra. Alice realizes what their songs were missing was each other. She begins singing and the jug band joins in, resulting in a beautiful combination of the two pieces, "Brothers in Our World." As they sing, the townspeople come out to listen. Doc Bullfrog, one of the judges, offers them a job performing at his restaurant – free meals included. As they walk home, Alice and the boys sing Pa Otter's favorite song in his memory.
Thoughts: The great Jim Henson makes his first (but most assuredly not last) appearance in our countdown with this 1977 TV special, adapting a folksy little tale with a hint of O. Henry and a lot of Henson-style sweetness. Although Henson was a veteran puppeteer at this point, and Sesame Street had been on the air for eight years, this special still shows some of the marks of early work and low budgets. The establishing shot is very obviously a model, control rods and seams are often all too visible, and the car the Riverbottom Boys ride through town looks like a wind-up toy. Amazingly all of these things actually contribute to the charm of the special. It gives it a homey, old-fashioned feeling that suits the characters and the world Henson and company created.
The plot has an interesting dash of "Gift of the Magi" in it, but with a clever twist. Rather than trading their own possessions for gifts (which turn out to be useless, thanks to their partner doing the same thing), in this special both Otters trade something important to the other in the hopes of getting the money for a decent present. I'm not quite sure what the message here is… "If you take away your family's only means of support, make sure you can use it to get them a musical instrument" seems like kind of a bizarre theme for the Christmas season. What makes it work, however, is how the movie uses the focus of the absent Pa Otter – Henson convinces us that both Otters are doing what they believe their late husband/father would do, which is what makes it not only acceptable, but admirable. It helps, I think, that they don't actually accomplish their goal. Losing the contest makes for a slightly less sugary climax, and the way they get their happy ending anyway feels more natural, more emotionally honest.
Emmet and Alice themselves are sweet, old-fashioned characters. There's a bit of saccharine to them, but just a bit – enough for the obnoxiously cynical among us to cling to in an attempt to deride this special, unfortunately. For the rest of us, the Otters are simply a hard-luck family in need of a break at Christmas.
The star of this special, I'd argue, isn't any of the Otters or even Henson, but songwriter Paul Williams. Williams would go on to have a great history with Henson and the Muppets, and the songs he composed for this special ("There Ain't No Hole in the Washtub," and "Bar-B-Que," for instance) have transcended Christmas and become folksy classics. There's an interesting phenomenon when you rewatch the special, though… having heard the "Our World"/"Brothers" mashup at the end, when you listen to each song performed on its own it feels oddly incomplete. "Brothers" especially sounds like a backing track, with odd pauses and harmonic notes that don't seem like a proper melody. It's been far too long since I first saw the special to remember if I would have noticed such a thing upon first viewing, but it stands out to me now. Also amusing, to a Muppet fan like me at least, is "Riverbottom Nightmare Band," which has some riffs and beats that seem to echo Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem in musical energy, if not in actual tone or message.
A few years ago, Williams wrote a few extra songs to expand the special into a full-length stage play, which ran for two Christmas seasons in Connecticut. Would that I could have seen that one – I'll bet it was magnificent.
For those of you wondering if the inclusion of this special means you won't be seeing any other Muppets in the countdown thanks to the "one-per-franchise" rule, the answer is heck no. Using the same logic that allows me to include multiple Rankin and Bass specials, I consider each "family" of Muppets a different franchise. Since this one doesn't include any of the Muppet Show or Sesame Street Muppets, except Kermit in an intro that is no longer included on the DVD, I hereby declare this a standalone film. You'll definitely see the Henson company again.
Posted in 3-The Christmas Special, Musical
Tags: 1977, Christmas, Dave Goelz, Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas, Eren Ozker, Frank Oz, Jerry Juhl, Jerry Nelson, Jim Henson, Lillian Hoban, Marilyn Sokol, Muppets, Puppets, Richard Hunt, Russell Hoban
What I Watched In… May 2018
What I Watched In… April 2018
What I Watched In… March 2018
What I Watched In… February 2018
What I Watched In… January 2018
Crappy Movie Roulette
Geek Punditry
Gut Reactions
I've Never Seen
Movies to Watch
1-Mutants Monsters and Madmen
2-Lunatics and Laughter
3-The Christmas Special
4-Icons
5-Freaky Firsts
6-Festive Firsts
7-Summer Series
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text: James Frewer, was born at Stowmarket, Suffolk about 1811. He was a stonemason at City Road, London when he married at St Margaret's Church, Ipswich on 3 October 1838, Anne Jane née Parker later Bugg, of Soane Street, Ipswich. In 1851 a 'mason', living on Woodbridge Road, Ipswich with his 36 year old wife and two children, James Buckingham (1844-1864) and Mary Ann Angelina 3, both born at Ipswich. Ten years later a 'mason & sculptor', living at 3 St Margarets Green, Ipswich with his wife Anne Jane and four children Mary Ann 13, Frank 9, Victoria Mandle 7 and Alice Eugenie 5, all Ipswich born. A sculptor and stone mason, living at Christchurch Street, Ipswich with works at 3 St Margaret's Green, when he was declared bankrupt on 10 March 1872. In 1881, a 'mason' living at Cemetery Road, Ipswich from where he exhibited at Ipswich Fine Art Club in 1884 a 'Carved Panel' (Statuary Marble), and in 1842 died much of the stonework on Woodbridge New Church and in 1862 he also sculpted the corbels on Stutton Church near Ipswich. His wife Anne Jane died on 14 February 1882 and James died at Ipswich in 1887, aged 76.


"I like how you see the potential in everyone's work," a student says to me today after Play Lab. I've heard this before in previous years from Play Lab participants, and I'm so happy to hear it again. Because what I teach here at the IWWG Summer Writing Conference happens in a different format than any of our other workshops. Participants start with me, often without any experience writing for the stage. But by Wednesday, each will have a monologue draft, a short scene, or a ten-minute play on its feet in our staged reading for an audience. We work swiftly, and participants risk a lot to get dialogue/monologue down on the page that's fit to put in an actor's hands for Wednesdays. I do love this - hearing the rough draft, sometimes a very rough, first attempt, to put a story in a theatrical format - and I do see the possibilities and help them to see them too. Because that is what a stage is: possibility. Surplus reality. Imagine. What if. . . I listen for the heart of the story. Thinking theatricality, is the fun, the freedom, the delight, the magic, the enchantment. I know participants are working their butts off rewriting and revising and learning. They are brilliant at supporting each other - what joy to see how helpful they can be to each other. The camaraderie in the room is tangible. We are working together. We're heading into great performances, I know this, even though some of them have doubt and uncertainty. I love what I get to do here.
And, yes, I also had a walk in the rose garden, of course!
And, as if this wasn't enough: I also got to go to a poetry workshop for myself; go to a board meeting, a committee meeting, have a deep conversation with a dear friend at lunch and dance furiously with a gang of women before listening to brilliant stories read in our All Voices Open Mic. Pretty good day. Pretty, pretty good.


Basketball drills used by James Harden before games.
Basketball drills used by Portland guard CJ McCollum.
Shooting drills used by Damian Lillard to prepare for games.
Here's a collection of basketball drills used by NBA All-Star Kyrie Irving.
Basketball drills used by San Antonio Spurs guard DeMar DeRozan.


A class in ceramics, a bowl of whipped cream, a pinwheel on a passing stroller. Inspiration all, but none I was aware of at the time, in the doing. Only later in the seeing did I realize, Of course, they're all right here, how could I not have known?
Without permission, bits and pieces of our experiences surprise their way into our work, unearthing our memories, revealing our stories, leading us to our roses.


These days herbal supplements have become very popular since people have started acknowledging and experiencing their benefits. These supplements are much better as compared to synthetically manufactured chemical supplements since our bodies absorb and make use of them more easily. However, there are different types of herbal supplements available in the market and it may thus be very difficult to select an appropriate one. Ginkgo biloba, bee pollen, aloe vera, ginseng and Echinacea are the most beneficial and common herbal supplements.
Bee pollen is also known as a super-food because it is very rich in minerals and vitamins. It consists of about ninety-nine important nutrients, which our bodies easily recognize and absorb for attaining maximum benefits. This herbal supplement is great for enhancing energy and is thus beneficial for athletes. It is a healthy alternative to consuming risky drugs, which generally have dangerous side effects.
Bee pollen has vitamin B that helps the body to increase its energy production. Individuals suffering from fatigue on a daily basis can make use of this herbal supplement for improving their daily energy levels.
Aloe vera is one of the most superior herbal supplements since it offers a large variety of health benefits. This plant belongs to the family of lilies and it not only appears to be water rich but is also succulent. There are however several varied species of aloe that are present in the dry areas of Africa. The species of aloe barbadensis miller is the best herbal supplement.
This herbal supplement is used mainly as a stimulant for the adrenal, kidney and spleen function besides restoring the body's vital energy. Individuals generally find ginseng to be energy boosting. Conventionally Chinese herbal medicine make use of ginseng for treating a wide range of disorders such as insomnia, loss of appetite, heart palpitations, a weak pulse, diabetes, asthma, angina, rectal prolapsed, hypertension and congestive heart failure.
In addition, ginseng also enhances a person's memory and acts as a sexual stimulant. This herbal supplement also helps in promoting a longer and healthier life besides treating disorders of the gastrointestinal tract.
Echinacea is a popular herbal supplement, which is mainly used for reducing any flu symptoms and for curing colds. It is not only a natural antibiotic but also is an amazing infection fighter. Echinacea is extremely advantageous for fighting lymphatic and glandular problems which is why people make use of it when suffering from a head cold.
This herbal supplement has a large variety of health benefits. It improves the efficiency of the body metabolism and increases the Brain's oxygen levels. It helps in treating impotence or male infertility. It is beneficial for treating ear and eye disorders. It also improves mental clarity and enhances long and short term memory.


Tonight, Dr. Andrew Hoff will receive the prestigious Outstanding Alumni Award for the College of Health and Human Services at the Top Dog Alumni Awards Gala. In honor of this great achievement, we'd like to share a blog we first brought you back in August, which provides a glimpse into Hoff's almost 40-year career with Fresno State. Congratulations Dr. Hoff!
If anyone knows the ins and outs of the Fresno state campus, it's Dr. Andrew Hoff. He recently retired this past June after 36 years of serving the Fresno State community. He credits his immeasurable time at the University as one that is profound, distinctive and most of all – unforgettable. As Hoff settles into a life of retirement, complete with moments of relaxation, home renovations and travels – he often finds himself back on campus, visiting with the administrators, faculty, and staff he has grown to know over the years.
And Hoff's presence on campus does not go unnoticed. As he sits in the brightly lit atrium of the Satellite Student Union on a calm August afternoon, just a week before the excitement of the fall 2014 semester begins, he is stopped mid-sentence by a former colleague, who jokingly asks if Hoff has returned from retirement. With a grin, Hoff says no. Later, he stops by room 178 of McLane Hall, where he previously spent a combined 12 years as both Associate Dean and Dean of the College of Health and Human Services.
The College of Health and Human Services holds a special place in Hoff's heart, as he not only was an alumnus of the college, but also taught in the department of recreation administration for 23 years before becoming Associate Dean in 1999.
About one year ago, after leading a decorated career that includes serving as both interim Dean and Dean of three of the eight colleges on campus, Hoff was ready to officially leave the fast paced academic lifestyle behind to focus on retirement. However, with just three weeks leading up to his final days on campus, Hoff received an offer in May 2013, that would prove to be the culmination of his career at Fresno State.
Under the appointment of then President John D. Welty, Hoff was named the new Interim Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, replacing Provost William Covino, who was leaving to become President at California State University, Los Angeles. After a lengthy and dedicated career with the University, becoming Provost was a welcomed final assignment in Hoff's time at Fresno State.
In what seemed like an act of chance, Hoff's last year at Fresno State coincided with incoming President Joseph I. Castro's first year. The two formed a close partnership, rooted in deep respect and admiration for one another. Castro has nothing but high praise for his short-lived, but trusted colleague of just one year.
"Andrew Hoff is a model citizen of Fresno State and in our community. He is immensely talented and has unquestioned integrity," Castro continued.
Hoff echoed Castro's sentiment, saying working alongside Castro during his inaugural year was an honor, and the perfect way to end his long-standing career with a University he takes great pride in.
Hoff's career with Fresno State initially began when he was a student in 1969. As someone who grew up in the countryside of Lodi, he always had a zest for adventure, which led him to double major in geography and recreation administration, in which he obtained bachelor's degrees in 1973 and 1975, respectively. He continued with the University and earned a Master of Science in recreation administration in 1978.
From 1976 to 1985, Hoff joined the faculty of Fresno State as a lecturer in the Recreation Administration Program. Afterwards, he and wife, Diana, found themselves in Salt Lake City, Utah where they lived for two years while Hoff worked toward his Ph.D. in recreation and leisure from the University of Utah.
Although they enjoyed their brief time in Salt Lake City, the noticeable dip in climate and snow packed winters just couldn't compare to the allure of California's coast and seasonal sunshine. And so they packed up their daughter, Shelley, and made the trek back to their beloved hometown in the Central Valley. Son, David, joined the family the following February.
Since that time in late '80s, life for Hoff never did quite slow down and now, after over almost four decades as a leading professional in the academic world, settling into retired life has proven to be quite the transition. He and Diana, who just celebrated their 44th wedding anniversary, currently live in the tranquil outskirts of Clovis. Hoff said it took a couple of months to settle into the relative calm of country living, free from the excitement of everyday life on campus.
In fact, a recent incident shows Hoff is finally settling in and slowing down the pace.
As he was driving down a long stretch of Clovis Avenue, just north of Barstow – a road he's taken quite often – he noticed something different. Sawyers Vintage Service, an automotive repair shop specializing in classic antique cars, caught his attention. And it was not because of its olive green building set amidst the backdrop of the large industrial area, nor was it because of the classic cars that were parked out front. As an avid car enthusiast and collector of Pontiac cars himself, Hoff was taken aback that he had never even noticed the business before, even though it had been there almost three years.


Over the past year or so, landlords in the buy-to-let sector could be forgiven for thinking they're on some kind of a hit list with further tax rules and additional fees which now apply to them. As a landlord you now have to deal with higher taxation, stamp duty surcharge on additional properties (making expanding a portfolio more expensive) and the phased removal of mortgage interest relief, which began last year, has also resulted in a further squeeze.
The tax changes ushered in from April 2017 mean the way landlords have to declare their rental income has changed, which will mean most landlords will see their tax bills rise.
So what are the new rules of engagement? And how will they affect you?
In April 2017 the government introduced a new system of calculating tax bills on rental income began. In essence, tax relief is at a flat rate of 20%. Landlords who pay basic rate tax would see no change, but those on higher incomes will find themselves losing out more in mortgage interest payments. This change in tax relief only affects private landlords – people who own their properties as individuals, rather than through a business.
Information from Consumers' Association Which? states that by April 2020 landlords won't be able to deduct all mortgage expenses from rental income to reduce their tax bill. Instead, landlords will be given a new tax credit. This will mean the income tax on someone's property profits and any other income sources will be calculated and then be granted a 'tax credit' worth 20% of the mortgage interest cost to offset against income tax. For some landlords, the result will mean the amount of tax owed will double and could even triple in some cases.
See example below created by Which?
Depending on your circumstances, the new system will potentially increase your tax bill in two ways. If you are a landlord with a higher or additional-rate taxpayer, you won't get all the tax back on your mortgage repayments. This is because the credit only refunds tax is at the basic 20% rate rather than the top rate of tax paid. It's also possible that as the landlord you could be forced into a higher tax bracket because you'll need to declare the income that was used to pay the mortgage on your tax return.
Given all the information above and the new changes ahead in the next couple of years, every landlord in the buy-to-let sector needs to be on top of their games when it comes to the law of the land, tax, and multiple properties.
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SRINAGAR: Country Head of HDFC Bank Ltd Abhay Aima Tuesday presented a cheque of Rs 1 crore to Minister for Finance, Labour Employment and Culture Dr Haseeb Drabu in Jammu as contribution to the Chief Minister's Fund for Relief and Rehabilitation of the flood victims.
Interacting with the HDFC Bank team, Drabu hoped for increase in business of the Bank for it to make a mark in the state's banking sector.
Various Private Sector Banks, he said, have been contributing "their bit" to the economy of the state and have also provided much-needed job avenues to the unemployed youth of the state.
State Head, Jammu and Kashmir HDFC Bank, Zubair Iqbal and other Cluster Heads were present on the occasion.


text:
Rådet för kommuner och regioner i Europa (Council of European Municipalities and Regions, CCRE-CEMR) är en organisation för samarbete mellan nationella kommun- och regionförbund i Europa, såsom Sveriges Kommuner och Landsting. Organisationen representerar därmed omkring 100 000 kommuner, landsting och regioner från ett trettiotal länder i Europa eftersom dessa i sin tur är medlemmar i ett nationellt kommun- eller regonförbund. CEMR är den europeiska grenen av den världsomspännande organisationen för kommuner och regioner, United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG).

Organisationen grundades i Genève 1951 av en grupp borgmästare och har senare utvidgats till att även omfatta regioner.

Se även
 Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions of Europe
 Europarådets kommunalkongress
 EU:s regionkommitté
 Assembly of European Regions
 Regionala lagstiftande församlingar
 Regionalisering
 Subsidiaritet

Externa länkar
 Council of European Municipalities and Regions (CCRE - CEMR)

Organisationer i Europa
Politik i Europa
Kommunala organisationer
Internationella offentliga organisationer
Organisationer bildade 1951

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


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GoPro and the NHL are Teaming Up
By Rebecca OConnell
NHL, NHLPA and GoPro / NHL, NHLPA and GoPro
Thanks to a recent partnership with Vislink, GoPro can now stream live HD footage. We can see that development in action at the 60th NHL All-Star weekend in Columbus.
GoPro and NHL's team-up means sturdy cameras adhered right onto the player's helmets, so fans at home can feel like they're right there on the ice. The footage will be broadcast during live games and on the social media platforms of the NHLPA, NHL and GoPro.
GoPro released a video featuring some prominent hockey players trying it out at the Devils' training facility in Newark (though strangely no Devils could make it). It's unclear if the cameras mess with the athletes' balance or speed, but they seem to be having a blast.
This could make shootouts even more exciting:
"The use of GoPro cameras will give fans a new perspective of the extraordinary speed and skill of today's NHL players," NHLPA's Mathieu Schneider explained to NHL.com. "We are excited to have GoPro working with us and the NHL to show the great athleticism of our players."
Hockey fans aren't the only winners here. As new official partners of the NHL, GoPro has an even better hold in the mainstream media. This new business deal is great marketing for GoPro, and it'll open up a lot of opportunities with other sports leagues. We might be getting a players-eye-view in a number of other sports some time soon—and who knows? Maybe someday we'll get first person perspective weather reports.
The first event to use this new feature will be the skills competition tonight at 7pm ET. Check out the full video below:
[h/t: TechCrunch.com]


Protagonists – characters of the most popular American animated film «Scooby Doo», Scooby and his friend Sheggi who got to Anubis's pyramid. To get out of this Egyptian labyrinth, it is necessary for them to pass a set of difficult stages. The task becomes complicated that ancient Egyptians blocked passes between rooms, stone blocks, it is necessary to move them, releasing itself the road to the following stage. Vases do not move, the number of movement of blocks, in each room is limited, after its expiration, there is Anubis and takes away life of the hero. The number of the remained movement is shown in the right bottom corner of the screen.


Two cruises were performed in May-June and October-November 1997 in the Ría de Pontevedra under strong downwelling conditions. Temperature and salinity data were recorded in short sampling periods to describe the changes in thermohaline property distribution in a short time scale. In order to obtain the residual fluxes in the Ría, a bi-dimensional non-stationary salt and thermal-energy weight averaged box-model was applied. Outputs from this kinematic model were compared with Upwelling Index, river flow and density gradient, resulting in a good multiple correlation, which proves the strong coupling between thermohaline properties and meteorological variability. Ekman forcing affects the whole area but mainly controls the dynamics of outer zones. The intensity of its effect on the circulation pattern within the Ría depends on the grade of stratification of the water bodies. River flow is more relevant in inner parts. According to estimated spatially averaged velocities, water residence time is lower than two weeks in outer parts of the Ría, and decreases toward the inner zones.


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Comprehensively Lessening Opioid Use Disorder Impact
The opioid epidemic is a profound public health crisis. In 2014, 92 million, or 37.8% of adults in the United States reported the use of prescription opioids. This and the availability of illicit narcotics fuels the crisis. Escalations in opioid use have been particularly profound among women of reproductive age. A greater prevalence of comorbid psychiatric disorders, gender-based violence, physical and sexual abuse, and chronic pain disorders likely contribute to disproportionate rates of opioid use and misuse among women compared with men. These demographic shifts have contributed to the rising prevalence of opioid use disorder during pregnancy.
Between 1999 and 2014, the prevalence of opioid use disorder during pregnancy increased from 1.5 to 6.5 per 1,000 hospital births per year. In 2017, there were 1,953 overdose deaths involving opioids in North Carolina—a rate of 19.8 deaths per 100,000 persons compared to the average national rate of 14.6 deaths per 100,000 persons.
Pregnancy-associated morbidity and mortality due to substance use is a major patient safety issue. Pregnancy is a unique opportunity to address the complex and often challenging health needs of women with opioid use disorder and provide interventions that can improve maternal and child health well beyond the perinatal period.
Each year, an estimated 15 percent of infants are affected by prenatal alcohol or illicit and prescription drug exposure. Prenatal exposure to alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs has the potential to cause a wide spectrum of physical and developmental challenges for these infants. There is also potential for ongoing challenges in the stability and well-being of infants who have been prenatally exposed, and their families if substance use disorders are not addressed with appropriate treatment and long-term recovery support.
Neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS) or neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome (NOWS) is a drug withdrawal syndrome in newborns following birth. The most recent data on the rate of babies born with NAS/NOWS in North Carolina is from 2014 hospital discharge data. From 2008 to 2014, the rate of NAS/NOWS increased from 1.8 cases per 1,000 hospital births to 8.2 cases per 1,000 hospital births.
The Perinatal Quality Collaborative of North Carolina will address this through an initiative that addresses issues relevant to the care of both moms and babies.
Work gets underway...
January 1, 2020 - It's January 1 - PQCNC and the Expert Team have begun the work of developing a charter, key driver diagram and metrics for this initiative in advance of a launch in January 2021. If you have experience, knowledge, expertise or Read more...
What do I need to do this week?
clOUDi Expert Team Working Documents
clOUDi Expert Team
clOUDi Expert Team Call Schedule / Registration


Association Rules or Affinity Analysis is a study on association of two or more than two items which occur in a single event. Event could be a purchase made at a store, clicks on web pages, calls made by a telephone subscriber and so on. It is more popularly known as "Market Basket Analysis", as one of most widely used applications is analyzing Customer transactions and finding dependencies between different items.
This technique can be applied in cases where dataset comprises of several records, with each record listing all items (grocery, calls, page clicks and so on) in a single event. Applications of Association Rule mining can range from cross-selling in Retail Industry and improving the design of Web pages to detecting anomalous incidences in Aircraft operations. As an example, association between several items could help a retail manager to place high association items together in the store, designing a catalog, promotional campaign or cross-selling of items. On the other hand, finding association of take-off from a particular airport, at certain time, with pilot having certain exeperience and so on to a potential hazardous take-off could boost safety.
Theoretically we would like to assess all possible combinations of items, in pairs, triplets and so on. However for practical datasets, it would lead to huge amount of combinations and computational time. A practical solution is to work in terms of "Frequent Item Sets" where item set is collection of items in a single event.
Frequent item sets are identified by a measure called "Support", which is proportion of all records which include a certain item set. Hence if [bread, butter] has been purchased in 40 out of 100 transactions, then support of [bread, butter] is 0.4 or 40%. All item sets which have support above a threshold (user defined) constitute the Frequent item set.
The idea of Frequent Item sets can be used for "Anomaly Detection", along with Neural Network, Naive Bayes, Clustering, Nearest Neighbors etc. Items below a certain threshold Support can be construed as Anomalous items, as they are infrequent as compared to other items.
Identifying all frequent item sets, uses a very efficient algorithm called "Apriori Algorithm", which performs this task very fast even on huge datasets, which is frequently encountered in practical scenarios.
First a Frequent Item set with just one item is collected, which satisfy the minimum support criterion. This needs simple count which is, for each item, how many transactions include the item. Frequent Item set for two items would be a subset of one item set, and so on. This makes this algorithm very efficient.
Prime objective of Association Rule mining is to find "strong rules" which signify a strong dependence between antecedent and consequent item sets. The measure used to assess the strength of a rule is called "Confidence". It is ratio of co-occurrence of antecedent and consequent items sets to the occurrence of consequent item sets. This can be illustrated by an example.
Out of 100000 transactions, bread & butter have been bought 1200 times. Out of these 1200 purchases, milk was bought 600 times. The association rule (if bread & butter then milk) has a support of 600/100000 = 0.6% and a confidence of 600/1200 = 50%. Confidence is essentially conditional probability in terms of the item sets.
However confidence can be misleading in certain cases. If two items have very high support, then even if they are independent (no association), we can have a very high confidence for them. As an example, if milk and bananas are bought in almost all the purchases, then confidence of the association (if milk then banana) would be high, even when there is no association between them. One way to circumvent this is to use a measure called "Lift Ratio". A benchmark confidence assuming independence of antecedent and consequent items is calculated, which is nothing but the support of consequent item. Lift Ratio is calculated by dividing the actual confidence with benchmark confidence. In the above example, if milk was bought 5000 times out of total 100000 transactions, regardless of whether they are bought along with bread & butter or not. In this case benchmark confidence for Milk is 5000/100000 = 5%. Hence the lift in this case for the rule (if bread & butter then milk) is 50/5 = 10. A value above 1 shows that the rule is valuable and higher the value, stronger the rule.
Please download the Example sheet and go through a very simple example. The example lists a sample of just 10 transactions involving some grocery items.
As discussed earlier, the first step is to find the Frequent Item Sets. We first find the single frequent items. In this simple illustration, the support for all the items are shown on the second picture on the right side. The items have been sorted in descending order of their Support. Since "white bread" occurs 7 times in 10 transactions, the support is 0.7 and so on. If we use a cut-off of Support equal to 0.5 (in practical large data sets, it would be a relatively smaller number. Using this criterion, rice and citrus fruit are ruled out from the Frequent Item Sets. In addition to that, any pair or triplet of items involving them would also not be part of the Frequent Item Sets (Apriori Algorithm).
Using the top four items from frequent item sets, we find out the frequent pair of items. Only white bread & tropical fruits emerge as frequent item, satisfying the cut-off of 0.5.
Hence we have 5 (4 single and 1 pair) frequent item sets. The Association Rules would be restricted to these items only. The bottom most picture on the right side shows the calculations of the strong rules. Association rules are "if - then" kind of sequence of items, where item corresponding to "if" are called "antecedent" and those corresponding to "then" are called "consequent".
Let us explore strength of the rule - if "white bread" then "tropical fruit". As discussed earlier, its confidence is number of times both of them occur together in the sequence divided by number of times "white bread" occurs (irrespective to whether "tropical fruit" was bought or not). The confidence for this rule is equal to 5/7 = 0.71. Please note how the confidence changes as the sequence is changed for the same set of items (if "tropical fruit" then "white bread").
However the more effective measure of strength of rule is "Lift" as discussed earlier. The Benchmark Confidence for "Tropical Fruit" is 6/10 = 0.6. Hence the Lift for first rule is 0.71/0.6 = 1.19.
None of the other rules have lift above 1 in this simple case.
Although this is an extremely simple example, the concepts are same even for practical data sets, where it is common to have millions of transactions, involving hundreds of items.


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Governance • Human Rights • Protest
To Dissent or Not to Dissent? Principles of Ethical Resistance for US Federal Servants
Guest post by Maciej Bartkowski.
The United States Department of the Treasury, 1919. Photo via Smithsonian Institution.
"I thought I was the president, but when it comes to these bureaucrats, I can't do a damn thing." – President Harry Truman
Since Donald Trump's assumption of the office of President on January 20, 2017, there has been an unprecedented waive of publications and reporting (here, here, here, here or here) describing real and potential resistance actions by the US federal bureaucracy against the newly-elected president and his policy agenda.
Many would correctly say that nonviolent resistance is an inherently better option than violent actions in fighting for what one believes. At the same time, the nature of nonviolent resistance is, in itself, neither good nor bad – it is the ends that the nonviolent resistance serves and the consequences it generates which matter. The ends and results of nonviolent resistance are especially important amidst current calls for bureaucrats to dissent against the current administration.
Among the general public, bureaucracy is rarely associated with a positive force for change. A popular British comedy serial from the 1980s, "Yes Minister", and its sequel "Yes, Prime Minister", portrayed civil servants as cold, unscrupulous, manipulative, and mischievous. In sum, they were arrogantly smart schemers that effectively thwarted the will of elected politicians. In addition to this unbecoming view of bureaucrats, more recent concerns have emerged that bureaucratic dissent may be a harbinger of an undemocratic and corrupt deep state in which elected institutions and officials are systematically undermined by self-interested bureaucrats. This, in turn, could pave the way for a strongman politician to rein in an unwieldy and unaccountable bureaucracy, resulting in greater centralization and concentration of power in the executive and, eventually, the emergence of an authoritarian state.
The potential for nonviolent resistance by bureaucrats to go astray – and result in even greater troubles for democracy than the current situation – begs the question: under what circumstances is it possible to call for and encourage US federal civil servants to defy a democratically elected US president and engage in nonviolent resistance against a policy agenda with which they disagree?
In such circumstances, articulating specific principles of ethical resistance can offer useful guidelines for federal bureaucrats, including reference points for those actions to be seen as legitimate and appropriate dissent. More precisely, such principles will help define ends of resistance as being informed by public good, ensure and augment the positive impact of such resistance on democratic practices, and mitigate potential negative consequences.
A number of existing documents offer helpful insights on the code of conduct of federal civil servants, including – but not limited to – the following: Standards of Ethical Conduct for Employees of the Executive Branch, the American Society for Public Administration (ASPA) Code of Ethics for public servants, and Dwight Waldo's ethical obligations for civil servants. These guides, in addition to a forthcoming International Center on Nonviolent Conflict manuscript by Elizabeth Wilson on human rights ethos of civil resistance, provide a wealth of relevant material to inform and develop a simple code of conduct on ethical dissent in public administration. A review of these texts illuminates at least eleven principles which can offer grounds and guidance for career civil servants to engage in civil defiance of elected officials and their policy agendas.
Principles of Ethical Resistance by Civil Servants:
Uphold constitution, rule of law, and democratic standards
Defend public interest no matter institutional or personal loyalties
Reject threat or use of violence
Reject suppression and repression of peoples' autonomy and political rights
Promote general welfare based on justice, fairness, equal treatment, and respect for differences of all citizens
Protect survival and well-being of future generations while taking into account a long-term interest of the society
Resist pressure to compromise professional integrity and fight for honesty and truthfulness based on facts and evidence
Encourage and organize dissent in and outside of the organization if this is the only remaining way to defend ethical and lawful conduct
Assess potential consequences of resistance actions against costs and risks of remaining inactive, compliant, or silent
Reach out to and partner with activated citizens to harness their engagement in developing, implementing, or defeating specific or general government policies depending on whether or not these policies advance public interest
Assist political superiors to the extent this assistance promotes the above-mentioned principles
The listed principles can provide a legitimacy benchmark for assessing the need for – and rightfulness of – nonviolent resistance undertaken by bureaucrats against democratically elected political leaders. At the same time, it is a personal decision of each and every civil servant whether or not to engage in dissent and, if so, what form such dissent would take. The identified principles for ethical dissent set the stage for career bureaucrats not to act or be seen merely as technocratic administrators, but as mobilized citizens that are empowered to wage a legitimate and pro-public struggle within their institutional setting if the situation warrants it.
Even though public trust in government is at its historical low (below 30%), federal agencies have enjoyed – what might come as a surprise given the negativity that surrounds central bureaucracy – relatively higher public confidence (above 60% on average over the last decade) than elected federal bodies such as the US Congress (just above 20%). Even the least liked federal agency, Treasury (the department in charge of IRS and tax collection), won the trust of 59% of US citizens in 2016.
Such public trust can be used and further harnessed by those bureaucrats seeking to stand up against harmful and/or discriminatory public policies put forth by elected officials. Towards this end, however, it is important that civil servants maintain an objective set of principles which will define and guide their rightful, peaceful resistance.
Maciej Bartkowski is Senior Director for Education and Research at the International Center on Nonviolent Conflict. You can follow him on Twitter @macbartkow.
Britain Bureaucracy Bureaucrats Civil Service Congress Harry Truman Nonviolence Trump United States US
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michael beer says:
this is very helpful. 1) I would add "international law" in addition to constitution. (also UK does not have a constitution)
2)There is always a principal of parochial versus global benefit. Other than UN civil servants, all are parochial in some fashion. When are you a human being first, end when do you put your national or local interests first.
3) principals 8 10 and 11 are really principles of "how". The other principals are "whether". I would not mix them up.
4)I think subservience to political authority is an important principle that may be overwhelmed by other more pressing principals…but should be mentioned.


deck joist spacing and pvc/composite materials (railing . i need to replace the deck outside my office, and i am planning on using . and composite materials say 16 on center (which is what i have).
decks.com. deck joist sizing and spacing the layout term for joists is "on center" which is the center to center measurement from one joist to the next. most decks use 16 on center spacing for joists.
minimum requirements for wooden decks and . - city of berkley, mi in order to establish the minimum requirements for building a wooden deck or porch . deck with a 4x8 beam, and joists that span 12 . joist spacing (on center).
span tables for deck joists, deck beams, and deck flooring, giving . deck beam span table deck joist span table deck joist rule of thumb deck porch . has been obviously over-spanned when joists are spaced 16 on center.
how wide should the floor joist be for a deck? | home guides | sf . most of these common species are listed on deck span tables along with the . this is typically 16, 20 or 24 inches, and is measured from the center of one board.
design - can i get away with 5/4 cedar decking across a 24 span in . jul 17, 2012 . the supports for the decking will be 24 center-to-center.using 5/4 x 6 cedar boards (actual dimensions 1 x 5.5 ) across a 24-inch span:.
recommended beam joist spans for deck framing - home guides the bigger you make your deck, the more you ask of the framing timbers that hold up . two-by-twelve douglas fir joists spaced 12 inches apart on center, for.
deck construction - california redwood association decks built of redwood are unique in their . is heartwood and comes from the center of the tree. about a 3/16-inch space between deck- boards for drainage.
deck joist layout procedure - inspectapedia.com deck joist layout - contents: how to lay out deck joists or floor joists for wood . joist spacing is commonly given as "on center" (o.c.), which means the.
building your deck - north american retail hardware association recommended spacing for common decking boards is as follows: . two lag screws at each end, and one at each wall stud (typically 16 on center) in between.
deck building basics - james dulley it has joists to support the flooring material (decking), and posts and beams . 5) along the inner string, measure out the center-to-center spacing for each pier.
joist layout for stronger decks | professional deck builder . mar 20, 2013 . how many decks have you been on that bounce or vibrate under foot? . spacing 2x10 joists at 16 inches, instead of 24 inches, on-center.


SAP Philippines powered by Mustard Seed Systems Corporation remains to be one of the most awarded SAP Gold Partner not only in the Philippines but in Asia Pacific as well. Just recently it received the "SAP Business One Top Net New Names," during the SAP Business One Innovation Summit conducted in Thailand. This is however not the first time that SAP awarded the company.
Mustard Seed became a certified SAP Business One Partner in 2010. In just a year it became a Silver Partner and was also awarded as the 1st Partner to sell SAP Business One Starter Package in Asia Pacific – Japan.
2013 – Appointed as MVAR in the Philippines; awarded as 2013 Partner Awards Net New Names SAP Business One.
SAP Philippines is dedicated in consistently provide you with the best SAP Business One packages and services so that your business will run simple. This is evidenced by our consistent recognition from SAP itself. This is also a testament of the continued support from our clients and partners.
For more information on SAP Starter Packages and SAP Package just contact us.
You can also check out various testimonials from our clients.