Description The Data Entry operator is responsible for using the 10 key and typing skills to key dollar amounts from checks along with keying names and other data from the scanned documents. Work hours are designated by the Center Manager and will be changed as the work flow requires. Overtime, holiday and weekend work is mandatory as determined by the Center Manager.
Key designated information from the scanned documents. Quality checks batches of work and maintain your own productivity sheet.
Employee Quality Survey- Help improve on the "Top Box" rating on the Employee Quality Survey.
Cash Management External Customer Survey- Help improve on the "Top Box" rating on the Cash Management External Customer Survey.
Work habits- Maintain quality work habits (attendance and punctuality) as outlined in the department policies.
Legal requirements constituting a good check acceptable to be deposited in the corporate customer account.
At least 1 year of production experience required or the equivalent in education and experience.
Applicant must be available for overtime. Applicant must have a proven high performance in quality and production.
Description: Performs work in one or more functional area or unit, covering for absent employees or performing tasks as assigned; Tasks are often routine, repetitive and/or high volume. Duties may include: identifying and escalating workflow issues; providing clerica support to work directors, compiling daily support to work directors, compiling daily production statistics and/or other reports. Working under general supervision, resolves fairly routine problems that may require research from more than one source. Acts as information source to less senior staff.
Basic Qualifications: 2+ years of operations experience.
Minimum Qualifications: Ability to be flexible and perform multiple functions of general operation processing work. Possesses good multi-tasking skills.The Wells Fargo Utility Clerk role is a great opportunity for enthusiastic applicants who are seeking to gain a better understanding of the financial markets to build a financial services career. This position offers individuals interaction with highly skilled and successful managers in the financial services field. Tasks may include sales/telemarketing responsibilities as well as working closely with a financial advisor to assist in various client related tasks. Applicants will partner with financial advisor(s) to research and plan various aspects of client portfolios. Additional administrative, research and marketing tasks may be assigned based on office needs. Selected applicants will gain invaluable business experience, offering insight and understanding of Wells Fargo Advisors and working in full service brokerage firm.
Responsible for providing world-class service to our customers in an accurate, efficient, and professional manner. Must demonstrate the ability to have multiple contact types added to their skills. Required to meet productivity standards as set forth by the management team: and identify and report trends in contact drivers.
Requires close attention to accuracy to avoid errors which could cause moderately serious consequences; or work in which there is frequent opportunity for making errors of some importance that are not easily detected and could cause additional expense or result in employee or customer complaints.
Influence of others is restricted to routine interactions with managers, employees, supervisors, peers, and customers.
Requires some judgment with respect to a variety of routine clerical duties. Some analytical ability required gathering and interpreting data but problems are relatively simple.
Performs somewhat independently of others, but employee usually reports to supervisor several times per day. Supervisor checks activity and/or quality of work at least once or twice each day or before it impacts others. Subject wholly or in part to standardized practices and procedures, general work instructions.
Ability to work in coordination or cooperation with others (i.e., work as part of a team).
Ability to read, interprets, and retains a wide variety of information.
0-2 years of previous Customer Service Experience and First Link Multiple skills needed.


Spaghetti with bacon, eggs cream, onions and Parmigiano cheese.
Small pasta with a sauce made of basil, pine nuts, parmigiano cheese, garlic and extra virgin oil.
Thin noodles in a Porcini mushroom and cream sauce.
Spaghetti with mussels, clams, shrimps, cuttlefishes, squids, tomatoes, garlic, hot pepper and parsley.
Pizza with tomatoes, mozzarella cheese and basil.
Pizza with tomatoes, mozzarella cheese and italian hot salami.
Pizza with tomatoes, mozzarella cheese, anchovies and garlic.
Pizza with tomatoes, mozzarella, ham, artichokes, mushrooms and olives.
Creamy chocolate gelato, caramel sauce and dark chocolate pieces.
Chocolate cake, vanilla cream sauce and fresh strawberries.
Copyright 2008 © by Restaurant DiPechino.


Picasa Web Albums is a online photo organizer and sharing service from Google with 1G of free storage, where you can easily upload your photos and videos to share it online. You can upload photos and videos to Picasa Web Albums right from your web browser, or can use Google's Picasa software to upload entire albums at once. Picasa makes it easy to share; you can send a link to your uploaded photos, albums, or even your entire online gallery, all right from Picasa Web Albums.
Picasa Web photo organizer allows you to add name tags to the faces identified in your photos, geo tag photos and videos to record where they were taken, or order prints of your favorites from Picasa print partners. Each Picasa account gets 1GB of free storage, which is enough to post and share around 4,000 standard resolution photos. And you can upload original resolution photos, so you and your friends can download your photos in high quality to print and share. You can also download the Picasa Photo Organizer for Windows.


text:
Tags: US | Iran | nuclear | politics | Obama
Obama Says $400M for Iran Was Not Ransom for Hostages
Thursday, 04 August 2016 05:35 PM
President Barack Obama said Thursday that $400 million in cash airlifted to Iran in January didn't represent a ransom payment to secure the freedom of four detained Americans released the same day, and wasn't a secret.
"We were completely open with everybody about it, and it's interesting to me that this suddenly became a story again," Obama said during a news conference at the Pentagon after meeting with his national security advisers. "We do not pay ransom for hostages."
Republicans have seized on a report in the Wall Street Journal that the Obama administration sidestepped restrictions on banking with Iran by delivering the cash in foreign currency aboard an unmarked airplane. Critics of Obama's nuclear deal with Iran say the payment was ransom, a contention the White House has strongly denied; that it will encourage Iran to take more Americans hostage; and that it's likely the money will be funneled into terrorist groups.
"If true, this report confirms our longstanding suspicion that the administration paid a ransom in exchange for Americans unjustly detained in Iran," House Speaker Paul Ryan, a Wisconsin Republican, said in a statement. "It would also mark another chapter in the ongoing saga of misleading the American people to sell this dangerous nuclear deal."
Obama administration officials have dismissed the controversy as old news, noting that the settlement was fully disclosed by the White House and State Department at the time the Iran nuclear deal was announced.
"The United States of America does not pay ransom and doesn't negotiate ransoms with any country -- we never have and we're not doing that now," Secretary of State John Kerry said Thursday in Buenos Aires.
Defies Logic
Obama said that "hundreds" of Americans are held captive around the world, and that he has assigned officials across the government to work with their families to secure their release. It wouldn't make sense, he said, to pay the Iranians a ransom while telling other families that the U.S. doesn't pay ransom.
"The notion that we would somehow start now in this high-profile way, and announce it to the world, even as we're looking in the faces of other families whose loved ones are being held hostage and say to them, 'we don't pay ransom,' defies logic," Obama said.
The payment is the settlement of a decades-old dispute over returning Iranian funds from a weapons purchase placed by the government of Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi before he was ousted. And the delivery of the payment in foreign currency, officials say, was logical because U.S. sanctions prohibit deals with Iran using dollars and the U.S. has no banking relationship with the country.
"The only bit of news that is relevant on this is the fact that we paid cash," Obama said. Restrictions on U.S. banking relationships with Iran mean "we could not send them a check, and we could not wire them the money."
Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump used the report to attack Hillary Clinton, the former secretary of State and his Democratic opponent, saying she began negotiations with Iran.
Clinton did initiate early negotiations that led to the Iran nuclear deal, which was announced the day before Iran and the U.S. said they had settled the claim to the $400 million payment. But the disagreement over the money dates back decades, and it appeared likely that a Hague commission that oversees competing claims between the U.S. and Iran would have ordered the return of the money, plus a larger amount of interest, had there been no settlement.
Clinton dismissed concern over the payment as partisan in an interview Thursday with KUSA, a Denver television station, and defended the deal to curtail Iran's nuclear program.
"They want to continue to criticize the agreement, and I think they are wrong about that," Clinton said of Republican critics. "I have said the agreement has made the world safer, but it has to be enforced. And I've spoken out very strongly about how I will enforce this agreement."
Obama described the flap over the cash payment as a diversion from the success of the nuclear accord between Iran and world powers. "By all accounts, it has worked exactly the way we said it was going to work," he said.
© Copyright 2022 Bloomberg News. All rights reserved.
US President Barack Obama reiterated Thursday that $400 million that the United States helped airlift to Iran early this year was not a ransom for the release of American prisoners. Some of you may recall we announced these payments in January. Many months ago. They were...
US, Iran, nuclear, politics, Obama
Putin Spokesman: Russia Will Not 'Tolerate' NATO's Invasion of Ukraine
Russian President Vladimir Putin's spokesman says Russia will no longer "tolerate" NATO's eastward expansion and "gradua . . .
FAA Clears 45 Percent of Commercial Plane Fleet After 5G Deployed
The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said Sunday it had cleared an estimated 45% of the U.S. commercial airpla . . .

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Q: What is the correct way to use backgroundCompletionHandler in Alamofire? I'm not clear on how to use this properly but had seen other people doing this type of thing:
func application(application: UIApplication, handleEventsForBackgroundURLSession identifier: String, completionHandler: () -> Void) {
    manager.sharedInstance.backgroundCompletionHandler = completionHandler
}

In our similar implementation, at this point completionHandler is partial apply forwarder for reabstraction thunk helper...
Where manager is (despite being a singleton) essentially:
let configuration = NSURLSessionConfiguration.backgroundSessionConfigurationWithIdentifier("com.ourcompany.app")
let manager = Alamofire.Manager(configuration: configuration)

However this causes the following warning to be printed in the console:
Warning: Application delegate received call to -application:handleEventsForBackgroundURLSession:completionHandler: but the completion handler was never called.
I set a breakpoint here and at this point the message is already visible in the console and backgroundCompletionHandler is nil.
We're building against the iOS 9 SDK with Xcode 7.0 and currently using Alamofire 2.0.2
I originally thought this was introduced when we merged our Swift 2.0 branch but I'm also seeing the message with an earlier commit using Xcode 6.4 against the iOS 8 SDK.

Update 1
To address @cnoon's suggestions:

*

*The identifier matches - the configuration and manager are set inside a singleton so there's no way for it to be wrong.

*When adding and printing inside of didSet on backgroundCompletionHandler in the Manager class, the message is logged before the warning.

*When printing inside of the closure set to sessionDidFinishEventsForBackgroundURLSession on the delegate inside the Manager class, the message is printed after the warning.

*When overriding sessionDidFinishEventsForBackgroundURLSession and printing inside of it before calling backgroundCompletionHandler, the message is printed after the warning.

*As for verifying I have my Xcode project set up correctly for background sessions, I'm not sure how to do that and couldn't find any documentation on how to do so.

I should note that when trying to upload some screenshots from my phone I was initially unable to reproduce this issue in order to try these suggestions.
It was only after trying to share some photos that I was able to reproduce this again. I'm not sure or the correlation (if any) but it may be related to the photos taking longer to upload.

Update 2
The UIBackgroundModes are set exactly as @Nick described, and calling completionHandler() directly inside of application:handleEventsForBackgroundURLSession:completionHandler: does not display the warning.

Update 3
So, it appears I overlooked an small but important detail. There's a wrapper around Alamofire.Manager that doesn't expose it directly. The relevant part of its implementation looks like this:
private var manager: Manager

public var backgroundCompletionHandler: (() -> Void)? {
    get {
        return manager.backgroundCompletionHandler
    }
    set {
        manager.backgroundCompletionHandler = backgroundCompletionHandler
    }
}

and setting the completion handler in the AppDelegate executes that code path.
func application(application: UIApplication, handleEventsForBackgroundURLSession identifier: String, completionHandler: () -> Void) {
    myManager.sharedInstance.backgroundCompletionHandler = completionHandler
}

I've confirmed that the following change to expose the instance of Alamofire.Manager and access it directly does not produce the warning:
public var manager: Manager

//    public var backgroundCompletionHandler: (() -> Void)? {
//        get {
//            return manager.backgroundCompletionHandler
//        }
//        set {
//            manager.backgroundCompletionHandler = backgroundCompletionHandler
//        }
//    }

and in the AppDelegate:
func application(application: UIApplication, handleEventsForBackgroundURLSession identifier: String, completionHandler: () -> Void) {
    myManager.sharedInstance.manager.backgroundCompletionHandler = completionHandler
}

Based on this it appears that using a computed property to proxy the completion handler is the cause of the issue.
I'd really prefer not to expose this property and would love to know of any workarounds or alternatives.

A: It appears as though everything you are doing is correct. I have an example app that does exactly what you've described that works correctly and does not throw the warning you are seeing. I'm guessing you still have some small error somewhere. Here are a few ideas to try out:

*

*Verify the identifier matches the identifier of your background session

*Add a didSet log statement on the backgroundSessionHandler in the Manager class temporarily to verify it is getting set

*Add a log statement into the sessionDidFinishEventsForBackgroundURLSession to verify it is getting called as expected

*Override the sessionDidFinishEventsForBackgroundURLSession on the delegate and manually call the backgroundSessionHandler

*Verify you have your Xcode project set up correctly for background sessions

Update 2
Your computed property is wrong. Instead it needs to set the backgroundCompletionHandler to newValue. Otherwise you are never setting it to the new value correctly. See this thread for more info.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
India's most economical T20I bowlers in the last 5 years
In cricket, curbing the flow of runs, especially in the T20 format, is an art in itself. Changes like batting-friendly pitches, shorter boundaries, restrictive fielding rules, and fast outfield... Read More
A look at the India's pace battery which can set the WT20 alight
"India's current pace line-up reminds me a little bit of what the West Indies had back in the '80s and '90s" – that's what former Caribbean batting legend Brian Lara opined af... Read More
Who are the highest wicket-takers in the last three editions of the IPL?
When we look at the all time records of the Indian Premier League, Lasith Malinga will appear at the top of the list for most wickets by a bowler in the history of the tournament. On digging de... Read More
Jasprit Bumrah's form key to Indian team's success
Former ICC no. 1 bowler Jasprit Bumrah recently returned from an injury layout, but the quality of his game has seemingly declined if statistics are anything to go by. Jasprit Bumrah was wicketless fo... Read More
Kohli, Bumrah's failure at the heart of India's ODI whitewash against New Zealand
India's defeat in the recently concluded ODI series against New Zealand came as a shock to the entire world of cricket. It was not only because they lost but it was more so because of the way th... Read More
MS Dhoni to make his international comeback in March 2020?
According to a report in India Today, MS Dhoni might return to the international arena in March next year, that is just before the start of the 13th edition of the Indian T20 League. The Bangladesh Cr... Read More
Mohammed Shami turning the heat on in 2019
India pacer Mohammed Shami has scaled new heights in the ICC Test rankings for bowlers as he jumped eight places to seventh following his match-winning contributions of 3 for 27 and 4 for 31 in the fi... Read More
ICC Test Rankings: Mohammed Shami, Mayank Agarwal move up
The latest rankings released by the International Cricket Council (ICC) indicate that Indian fast bowler, Mohammed Shami, and opener Mayank Agarwal have reached their career-best positions. The duo go... Read More
Can Umesh Yadav stake a claim in the absence of Bumrah?
Umesh Yadav has been the highest wicket-taker among the Indian pacers in Tests at home since 2017. He has taken 40 wickets at an average of 22.62 and a strike-rate of 42.2 during this period. Yet, the... Read More
IND v SA, 1st T20I: Key players to watch out for
The three-match T20I series between India and South Africa will kick-off with the first T20I at Dharamsala on Sunday. Both teams have named pretty strong squads which boast of some quality players. In... Read More


Property insurance Cyprus. Insuring the purchased property is one of the requirements for obtaining credit in Cypriot banks. Even if you have the funds to pay the full amount due for your property with one installment, it would still be wise to buy insurance at the same time.
On principle the system of real estate insurance in Cyprus is virtually identical to the systems in other countries. However, indeed, there are peculiarities. Moreover, it would be good to know, what insurance events property owners usually have to deal with.
Try to resist the temptation to save a few Euros and first of all determine the balance between what you save and the accurate list of insurance risks that are important for you.
Real estate insurance agreement in Cyprus is done in a way so that it takes into account absolutely all nuances. The final form of an insurance agreement includes the full cost of housing, and the approximate cost of furniture, appliances, equipment, jewelry and the like, all described in the special graphs of the contract.
This ensures without a doubt that in the case when an insured event occurs, the property owner, who timely and properly insured his/her property in Cyprus, and everything what was in it, will receive full compensation claimed of the property value at the time of the insurance.
While insuring your property in Cyprus you do not have to be a citizen Cyprus, your citizenship can be of any country, and you can have a different permanent place of residence.


Personality is influenced by genetic and environmental factors1 and associated with mental health. However, the underlying genetic determinants are largely unknown. We identified six genetic loci, including five novel loci2, 3, significantly associated with personality traits in a meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies (N = 123,132–260,861). Of these genome-wide significant loci, extraversion was associated with variants in WSCD2 and near PCDH15, and neuroticism with variants on chromosome 8p23.1 and in L3MBTL2. We performed a principal component analysis to extract major dimensions underlying genetic variations among five personality traits and six psychiatric disorders (N = 5,422–18,759). The first genetic dimension separated personality traits and psychiatric disorders, except that neuroticism and openness to experience were clustered with the disorders. High genetic correlations were found between extraversion and attention-deficit–hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and between openness and schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. The second genetic dimension was closely aligned with extraversion–introversion and grouped neuroticism with internalizing psychopathology (e.g., depression or anxiety).


text:
Q: Spring JPA transaction with thread pool I am trying to understand why below code fragment does not work as expected.
I already have customer with id=1234 and name=A1. I am creating 2 callable tasks and asking them to execute transnational update method.
Both the transactions are running together(As i have introduced 1 second of delay after reading customer copy from database as shown in code) and read original customer with id=1234 and name=A1
One tries to update name from A1->A2 and other tries to update name from A1->A3
I was expecting at least 1 transaction to throw commit conflict/stale data exception but in below case both succeeds.
Could you help me to understand it well? Am I missing anything conceptually?
Main.java
    @Autowired
    CustomerService service;

    // Update address from A1 to A2
    Callable<String> t1 = new Callable<String>() {

        @Override
        public String call() throws Exception {
            service.updateCustomer("1234", "A2");
            return "T1 Done";
        }
    };

    // Update address from A1 to A3
    Callable<String> t2 = new Callable<String>() {

        @Override
        public String call() throws Exception {
            service.updateCustomer("1234", "A3");
            return "T2 Done";
        }
    };

    ExecutorService executorService = Executors.newFixedThreadPool(2);
    executorService.invokeAll((Collection) Arrays.asList(t1, t2));

CustomerService.java
@Transactional
public void updateCustomer(String customerId, String customerName) {
    try {
        Optional<Customer> currentCopyHandle = repo.findById(customerId);
        Customer currentCopy = currentCopyHandle.get();

        Thread.sleep(1000);

        ObjectMapper mapper = new ObjectMapper();

        String customerDetails = currentCopy.getDetails();

        ObjectNode writableDetails = (ObjectNode) mapper.readTree(customerDetails);
        writableDetails.put("name", customerName);

        currentCopy.setDetails(mapper.writeValueAsString(writableDetails));

        repo.save(currentCopy);

    } catch (Exception e) {
        throw new RuntimeException(e);
    }
}

Edit-1
Customer.java
It's an Oracle 12c compatible POJO, where field with name details is marked as @Lob and oracle12c table has json constraint
@Entity
public class Customer {

@Id
@javax.persistence.Id
private String cid;

@Lob
private String details;

public Customer() {
}

@PersistenceConstructor
public Customer(String cid, String details) {
    super();
    this.cid = cid;
    this.details = details;
}

public String getCid() {
    return cid;
}

public void setCid(String cid) {
    this.cid = cid;
}

public String getDetails() {
    return details;
}

public void setDetails(String details) {
    this.details = details;
}
}

Before I started this exercise, I had done below activity.
String json = "{ \"cid\" : \"1234\", \"name\" : \"A1\", \"address\" : \"India\"}";

service.saveCustomer1(new Customer("1234", json));

A: Thank you JBNizet!
Using optimistic locking by adding @Version property to my model here solved my problem.


From Rome to Milan through Florence, visiting charming villages in Tuscany and Umbria, trekking in Cinque Terre, enjoying Italian wine and Parmigiano! A tour which will satisfy even the most discerning guests!
Welcome to Italy! Our Tour Leader will meet you at the hotel. There, you will also meet your travel mates, who join you in this unforgettable trip around Italy! Let's have a coffee together just to know each other!
In the afternoon we will reach Villa Farnese in the town of Caprarola, about 50 km north-west of Rome. The villa, a pentagon-shaped building with a circular interior courtyard, is one of the finest examples of Renaissance architecture. Ornament is used sparingly to achieve proportion and harmony. You will be startled by the beauty of this palace and of the frescoes which decorate the walls of the rooms!
In the evening we will get to Orvieto in Umbria, one of the most interesting hill towns in Italy, perched up on volcanic rock, with a history that dates back to the Etruscans. Although just an hour from Rome, the architecture is different, with many of the buildings constructed out of tufo, a type of volcanic rock.
The traditional recipes of Orvieto, such as "Umbrichelli all'arrabbiata" (hand-made pasta with tomato and chili dressing) or "Zuppa di ceci e castagne" (chickpeas and chestnut soup), "Pollo alla cacciatore"(Italian hunter-style chicken) and Crescionda (cake with amaretto , flour, cinnamon sweet liqueur , eggs, bread crumbs ), together with white Orvieto DOC, will delight your dinner!
Today we will first visit Orvieto's main attraction, the 14th century Cathedral – a masterpiece of Gothic architecture with a glistening façade of stained glass, mosaics and sculptures. Then, a pleasant guided tour along a very easy route makes it possible to get to know Orvieto's underground world, created by its ancient inhabitants over about 2500 years of uninterrupted digging. A tour on a discovery of a millenary, surprising and unexpected "Underground City", which you will surely enjoy!
In the afternoon we will pass by Bagno Vignoni in Tuscany, a tiny and charming village different from all the others: actually, the main square is a pool 49 meters long and 29 wide, from the bottom of which bubble up a number of hot springs whose therapeutic quality has been renowned since antiquity! All this creates such a pleasant sensation that it will be hard to leave!
We will then get to Montalcino, one of the prettiest hill towns in Tuscany, where we will enjoy  a tour of a winery and tastings of wine! Actually, the dry wine Brunello di Montalcino is one of the best Italian reds! And in the surroundings rows of olive-trees and of precious grape vines and the yellow fields create an enchanting landscape. It will be unforgettable to have dinner in such a charming land!
Our first stop this morning will be the Abbey of Sant'Antimo, a former Benedictine monastery near Montalcino. In this elegant Romanesque edifice of the early 12th century we will possibly listen to the Gregorian chants of the Monks living here. Quite a moving experience!
We will then move to Pienza, a small city in Val d'Orcia, a land of mellow rolling hills, stately cypress trees and cozy farmhouses.  Pienza means "Pio's town", the Pope who decided to build the perfect palazzo for his papal court according to the ideas of the "Ideal City" drawn up by such artists as Piero della Francesca. From the loggia of the Palace you can enjoy a breath-taking panorama on the landscape all around! And for lunch don't forget to try the typical Pecorino cheese of Pienza, a real delight to the palate!
In the afternoon we will then get to Siena, famous for its summer horse-race, known as" Il Palio" and run in Piazza del Campo. We will visit Palazzo Pubblico and Torre del Mangia and you will be astonished by  the black and white of the Duomo and the beauty of the Baptistry. We will also see Fontebranda, the area in the heart of the Contrada dell'Oca which owes its name to the most famous fountain in Siena and we will have lunch. But, maybe, the thing that you are going to remember better, is the colour of the frontages and of the roofings, the renowned colour "Sienna", a pigment first produced during the Renaissance,  that makes the city lovely and warm. People who loves dessert won't be disappointed: cantucci (biscuits with toasted almonds), ricciarelli (soft biscuits with icing sugar), panforte (cake with fruit nuts and spices) and cavallucci (biscuits with honey, walnut, candied fruits and spices) will delight your palate!
We will start our daily tour with one of the most beautiful cities in Tuscany, San Gimignano, also known as the "Medieval Manhattan", thanks to its very old and impressive 14 towers that dominate the town skyline. Originally the towers were 72, built by patrician families probably to demonstrate their wealth and power. Seven of San Gimignano's towers are around Piazza del Duomo. The tallest tower is Torre Grossa, 54 meters high, dating back to 1298. We can climb to the top of the tower and enjoy a fantastic view of the city and the picturesque countryside! We will also visit San Gimignano 1300, a Museum which brings to life the city as it existed 700 years ago! It is not just a museum but an experience, where everything you see has been done entirely by hand!
Welcome to Florence, the land of Giotto and Dante! Today a guided sightseeing tour introduces us to the city's splendor. We'll visit the Duomo, Giotto's Campanile and the Baptistery, one of the oldest buildings in the city, in the Florentine Romanesque style with its famous bronze doors made by Pisano and Ghiberti in the 14th and 15th centuries. At midday we will  have lunch with "Panino con Lampredotto" in a typical Florentine market.
In the afternoon we will visit the Villa Medicea at Poggio Caiano, built by Lorenzo the Magnificent, which is beautifully situated in a large estate between Florence, Prato and Pistoia. The highlight is certainly the "Salone", (Great Hall), named after the Pope Leo X, splendidly decorated with allegorical frescoes celebrating the Medici family.
Today we will discover Pisa, the beautiful Tuscan town famous all over the world for its Torre di Pisa (Leaning Tower). Its construction started in 1173 but was finished at the end of the 14th century; the cylindrical tower, 54 meters tall, has eight floors, six of them with open galleries, and inside the spiral staircase has 294 steps leading to the top. Then we will visit the large square "Campo dei Miracoli" (Field of Miracles), with its Romanesque buildings, the Duomo and the Baptistery, to end with the Camposanto, the cemetery for noble citizens of Pisa in the past. Upon request we will be able to climb to the top of the tower (please note that advance booking is required).
After Pisa our Tour Leader will drive us to the unique, wonderful Cinque Terre National Park in Liguria, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1997. We will stay in Manarola, one of the five fishing villages which are part of the Park, perched high atop the rocky Mediterranean coastline.
Today is the day for trekking! From Rio Maggiore starts the "Via dell'Amore" (Lovers' Lane),  a well-paved coastal path linking Rio Maggiore with Manarola. Studded with stone beaches embedded in the cliffside, it offers stunning  sea views. Either by train or on foot we will also reach the other fishing villages: Corniglia, Vernazza and Monterosso. The vineyards, typical of this area, contribute to create a unique landscape with dry-laid stone walls, winding paths, enchanting beaches between cliffs and clear waters!
Leaving Cinque Terre will be hard, but our tour isn't finished yet! Let's get to Parma in Emilia Romagna, the region between the Po River and the Appennine Mountains. Parma is also known for its exquisite food products: the Parma ham called Prosciutto di Parma and the famous Parma cheese called Parmigiano Reggiano. We will visit a Parmigiano Reggiano factory, where we will see cheese masters at work: a very special way to get into the production culture of the area and to discover how a true gastronomic gem is made. A real "tasty" experience!
Parma is also an elegant city with a small historic center. Here we will visit the Cathedral, a great example of Romanesque architecture, and the Baptistery, built of pink marble in an octagonal shape.
We will then move to Castell'Arquato, one of the most beautiful little medieval towns in Italy, still appearing as it was in the early 10th century. We'll walk along the winding streets, climbing up to the central square, admiring the Fontana del Duca (Duke's Fountain) , the Torrione and Palazzo del Podestà, and finally the Castle or Rocca Viscontea. Castell'Arquato is in the area of the Colli Piacentini (Piacenza Hills), an important area for wine production. In the evening we will have a typical dinner enjoying Prosciutto di Parma and other salumi with Gnocco Fritto and Parmigiano Reggiano, together with a glass of good red wine Gutturnio or a white Ortrugo!
Today our Tour Leader will drive us to Franciacorta, in the Lombardy region, an area renowned for producing the best Italian sparkling wine. We will visit a winery and its hilly estate and enjoy the Franciacorta wine, the Italian sparkling wine that matches Champagne in terms of elegance and complexity!
After lunch we will get to Milan.
Milano is the Fashion Capital of Italy, so it shouldn't be surprising that there is some great shopping to be done in this city! We will stroll down the streets of the Quadrilatero d'Oro, admiring the shop windows of Prada, Armani, Verace, Ferragamo, Dolce & Gabbana and Valentino.
We will have time for shopping and strolling through the pedestrian centre of the city.


This recipe makes me wonder why I don't make fritters often enough. This is the way to make zucchini awesome or any other vegetable for that matter. Although there is one thing to watch out for when it comes to zucchini, so let's get into it!
Zucchinis are filled with water content. So as a general rule, I usually drain it out whenever I prepare anything that comes from the courgette family. I don't go overboard with this though, I squeeze out most of the water, not all of it, otherwise, you'll be there all day.
The best way to do this would be to sprinkle a bit of salt over the zucchini after grating it. Remember, salt breaks down ingredients and draws out moisture. So after allowing the salt to marinade in the grated zucchini for about 10 minutes, I just squeeze as much water as I can through a sieve.
I wouldn't say that you absolutely need to do this, but if you want to get the best quality product possible, I recommend it.
I noticed that the flour is the only thing that is preventing these fritters from being gluten free. So I thought "why not put gluten free flour to the test?". Turns out that you get a very similar result.
The flour itself both feels and looks different, and the batter will look different too in terms of colour and it's density. The end results however are more similar than you may think, but there is of course still a difference. To my surprise, the gluten-free fritters actually puffed up more. And they had smoother texture on the outside.
The gluten-free fritters were also a little more light and crispy, where as the regular fritters were more crunchy and dense. It's hard to say which one I preferred. Although I will say this, if you're gluten free, I can assure you that your not at a disadvantage when making these fritters. The gluten-free self-raising flour does just as good a job in this case, and you don't have to change the measurements.
Thank you so much for checking out my blog, it really means a lot! If you want to follow me on social media, I am on Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter and Instagram. Have an amazing day and I hope you make some epic fritters.
Crispy, golden zucchini fritters, little disks of awesomeness that will rock your taste buds.
Put the grated zucchini in a bowl and add a pinch of salt. Leave for 10 minutes so the salt starts extracting the moisture.
Meanwhile, whisk the egg, the stock, the ground coriander and a good pinch of salt and pepper in a large bowl until well combined.
Then, add half of your self-raising flour and whisk until there are no lumps. Add the other half of your flour and again, whisk until smooth.
Now would be a good time to spend 1-2 minutes squeezing as much liquid out of the zucchini as possible. Then, add it to the fritter batter along with your parsley and stir through.
Get some kitchen paper on a plate ready.
Pre-heat a large, preferably non-stick pan on medium-high heat. Once the pan is nice and hot, add your canola oil, then add about 2 tablespoons of batter per fritter. Fry your zucchini fritters for about 2-3 minutes on each side.
Transfer the fritters onto kitchen paper, then continue to fry the rest of your fritters until all your batter is used up. Add more oil if you need to.
Squeeze out as much water content out of the zucchini as possible.
If you are gluten-free, you use gluten-free self-raising flour instead of regular flour.
Beautiful (again!) Nick! These do look delicious- would you serve them as a side dish?? appetizer? I'd love to try them!
This is a perfect addition to my appetizer list, thank you!
Beautiful. I call mine savory pancakes, but fritters sound so much better! But I have to disagree with you. I've never prepped zucchini prior to making the batter. Once the zucchini is in the batter, it doesn't water. Whatever moisture is in the zucchini I simply balance with the amount of dry ingredients, in order to create the consistency I want. Try it sometime. You'll see.


Michael Myser is a freelance writer in Morristown, New Jersey. His writing can be found at michaelmyser.blogspot.com. Merrill Freund is a San Francisco-based PR veteran and triathlete novice. His semi-frequent ramblings can be found at themerrilllife.blogspot.com. They're co-hosts of the Gelf podcast, the Hack and the Flack.


Did you know that you're already awakened?
If that question resonates with you or raises your curiosity, then you're meant to read this. Nothing in this book is new. Yet how many times have you needed to hear or read something before it made an impact?
After the CLJ interview with Walsch (March issue) and his talk about Highly Evolved Beings, I had to read this book. I started it one night before bed, read ten chapters before I stopped to sleep, and finished it two days later. I felt he was speaking to me. And the truths contained in the pages of this book were what I needed to hear.
Alignment comes from moving in the direction of a particular force (thought) where the focus is desire (the Soul). All that matters is empowering your preference. What you choose to empower is up to you. You have free will, the freedom to create anything you choose. So if the purpose of everything is simply to be, to exist, then the decisions are always about being. It's not the result that counts; it's the process, the journey, the experience of your expression.
The point of this book is to let people know that they have awakened, even though they may not know that they know. But rather than tell everyone about awakening, it's up to us to behave the way awakened people would behave. To model that behavior so others will know how to be as well. Because the fastest way to awaken is to help someone else awaken.
So how does an awakened person behave? There are 16 ways that Highly Evolved Beings act. The first three ways are to see the unity in all of life, to always tell the truth, and to always do what you say. Easy to think about. Not so easy to carry out. To help integrate these new behaviors, Walsch gives us five tools that we can use on a daily basis, such as choosing a state of being. Life has less to do with what you do and more to do with what you're being while you do it. But he emphasizes that there's nothing to learn. We already know how to stop our negative thoughts and be more loving and act with compassion and kindness. We merely have to choose that behavior and repeat it—often.
Will you be one of the people who experiences life as Highly Evolved Being? Will you say yes? Because, in all sincerity, now is the perfect time for advancement. All it takes is a decision.
What's Up for You to Heal?
My dear friend and astrologer Michelle Gregg gave me a transit chart reading (where the planets are now) to help me understand what's going on energetically with the world and with me.
In the world perspective is Uranus/Pluto squared (challenging energy). This is a signal of tremendous transformation, big world changes. This same configuration took place in the 1930s-40s, the 1960s, and now, with major gender changes and shattered world views.
So how do I deal with that? Every night before bed I say the Forgiveness Prayer by Lisa Barnett. [You can find it on p. 48 of the March/April 2017 issue of the Conscious Life Journal.] I forgive all those who have hurt me, those I have hurt, and, last but not least, I forgive myself for any hurts to myself. And during the day, I catch my negative thoughts and turn them into positive ones by sending love, love, love to all parts of me.
What's coming up for you to heal? Find out what guidance Michelle has to offer.
Some years ago I hired a business coach to help me expand my gourmet brownie company. She gave me a multiple-choice question test to determine how I "am" in the world. The test included a number of statements that leaned toward Christian philosophy and I struggled with my answers since I wasn't raised in the Christian faith. After I finished the test, she tallied the results and pronounced that I resonated with the Service category. In my ignorance, all that came to mind was visions of missionaries in the jungles of Africa, and I surely did not want to do that or be that.
Now, after many years on my spiritual path, I have a greater understanding of the word "service." Service is how you operate in the world. It is a way of giving to others, of helping others. Using your gifts and talents to lift others up, to motivate, encourage, and inspire them. And that is truly my path.
When I sat in the quiet the other day, my question to my angels, guides, and Spirit was, "How can I be of service?" This is what I heard.
Go within and pray. Not a prayer as you usually think, but a pray-ing, a request, an envisioning of your desires. You are a magnificent manifestor. Just look at all you have created around you—your friends, your business acquaintances, your teachers and healers, the network of people who love and support you, your gorgeous house, your amazing body, the endless creativity you tap into. You want for nothing and yet you still have doubts. Cast those doubts aside and look within.
Look within to the peace of your heart. The white shining light that is unconditional love. That love is always with you, always for you, always beside you. It IS you. You cannot be without it. So when you are going out in the world let this love be your guide. When you are wishing and hoping and desiring something or someone, let this love be your guide. Ask yourself, "If I am love, what would I do? How can I be of service?" And then await the answer.
There is no need for patience. You do not need to test yourself with situations in which you can exercise patience. Simply be. Be with the love. Every moment. Every breath. Whenever doubt arises, ask again, "If I am love, what would I do?" And resonate with that feeling.
Let love fill the walls of your cells and echo through the chambers of your organs. Let love fill your muscles and bones and ligaments and radiate outward until your skin is glowing. Become a vessel of love. See that white light stream through you and surround you so that you are encased in love. And with this love, and from this love, is how you will be and do.
We are all here to love, so there is really nothing to DO but be the love that you already are. It is just a matter of remembering. A recalling of the divinity that you came from, that Sourced you, that place and time you return to when you dream. Be the love that fills you up and then watch in amazement what miracles transpire.
This is the blessing we give to you, the blessing that is yours and has always been yours. Be Love. That is all.
At long last, the answer to the great mystery of life can be summed up in three words: relax, release, rejoice. According to Michael Singer in The Untethered Soul, to achieve this wonderful state you simply open up your heart and allow life experiences to pass through you. Any worries, doubts, and fears you meet along the way can be overcome by letting go, and, if you follow his suggestions, you'll find the golden highway to Nirvana.
So why aren't you and the other seven billion people on the planet living this way?
We're entrenched in our routines. Even if they don't work, even if they're harmful, they're comfortable and safe. Anything else feels scary. Dangerous. So we erect roadblocks.
You know that inner voice, the one that nags, gives advice, even soothes and praises? That voice does its best to protect you, to keep you comfortable and safe. If something threatens your perceived safety, that voice goes into overdrive.
Your emotions also come into play. Pain, sadness, happiness, joy, fear, guilt, shame, the list goes on. Your feelings relate to experiences. If you were hurt in the past, you're likely holding onto that emotion in the present, and every time a similar situation occurs, that old pain crops up.
And all these thoughts and emotions require energy. As long as your energy flows, you feel good. But if something upsets you, disappoints you, frustrates you, etc., you close down. That thought or feeling sticks with you and you create resistance. The energy stops flowing and now you have a blockage.
To navigate these roadblocks, Singer instructs you to become aware. Watch your thoughts, watch your emotions, look at your reactions to those thoughts and emotions. Discover the you behind that inner voice. "What differentiates a conscious centered being from a being who is not so conscious is simply the focus of their awareness." Your problems come from your reactions. The narrower your focus, the more you center in your problems. When you feel an energy shift, relax and let it go. The more you do this, the easier it becomes.
The journey of conscious awareness requires a steadfast willingness to work through your fears. To face all of your thoughts and emotions with an open heart. To reach a point where you can separate your physical, mental, and emotional bodies from your spiritual Self. We suffer all the time, so much so that we don't realize it. But you can replace your old habits with a new awareness practice and leave the pain behind. All it takes is commitment—the beginning of spiritual growth.
The Untethered Soul is a metaphorical hand extended to show you a better way. If you're brave enough to take that hand, you'll embark on a path that has been guaranteed throughout the history of mankind to result in a life of unconditional love and happiness—namely, bliss.
Things are stirring and being stirred up around the world. In the United States, our new president is welcomed with both anticipation and dread, depending on which viewpoint you hold. For those of us who carry the light, it is critical that we stay steadfast and continue to heal. Continue to release. Continue to hold and shine our love wherever possible. We came here at this time by divine appointment. Stand in your faith and in your truth. Let that be the beacon that directs your path.
Lisa Barnett from Akashic Knowing shares a beautiful message from the Akashic Masters that addresses our situation. Please take the time to read this, and share it, and emulate the peace that we envision.
According to government studies in America, more than two-thirds of adults and almost one-third of youths are overweight and obese. So what's the answer? Go on a diet.
The problem with diets is that they're temporary. When they're over we go back to our old habits.
What we really need is a change—a lifestyle change.
In The Blue Zones Solution: Eating and Living Like the World's Healthiest People, Dan Buettner talks with people from Okinawa (Japan), Sardinia (Italy), the Nicoya Peninsula (Costa Rica), Ikaria (Greece), and Loma Linda (California). These individuals range from 60 to 104 and they're not frail and sickly. They're active and in good health.
In each culture, Buettner took careful notes on types of food, preparation, and eating habits. In Ikaria, the people rely on vegetables, whole grains, fruits, olive oil, and a little fish. Okinawans favor sweet potatoes, tofu, green leafy vegetables, and seaweed. In Sardinia, the foods are olive oil, lemons, beans, goat/sheep's milk, flat bread, and fava beans/chickpeas. The Seventh-day Adventists in Loma Linda emphasize nuts, whole grains, beans, and soy products. The secret of the Nicoyans is beans, corn, and squash.
Could this type of lifestyle happen in America? The answer is a resounding YES!
Blue Zone experiments took place in Albert Lea, Minnesota; Hermosa Beach, Manhattan Beach, Redondo Beach, California; and Muscatine, Iowa. Citizens changed their diets. Local restaurants included more healthy choices. City councils added bike lanes, park paths, and community gardens. Kids stopped taking the bus and walked to school. The results were phenomenal.
Does your life flow with serendipity? Vishen Lakhiani believes there's a universal force that governs us and we can all tap into it. All of us. Including you.
If you're living without serendipity, you're probably relying on thought patterns and beliefs you picked up as a child. In The Code of the Extraordinary Mind Lakhiani interviewed the top people in their game—Richard Brandon, Elon Musk, Ariana Huffington, Tony Robbins—and delved into their secrets. Then he reframed that information and put it into easy-to-understand pieces. You begin with the culture that surrounds you and the brules you live by. You learn how to recognize what no longer serves you, how to upgrade your beliefs and your systems for living, and how to bend reality. Then you discover the difference between means goals and end goals, and how to put it all together to have a life of purpose and meaning.
Each chapter comes replete with honest stories about Lakhiani's life, his gambles, what failed, and what worked. The writing style is mesmerizing because Lakhiani excels at storytelling and the information is motivating and encouraging. There's also an Online Experience (http://www.thecodexmind.com/extraordinary) that corresponds to each book chapter and contains numerous videos to further enlighten you on the chapter highlights. For example, in Chapter 4 – Rewrite Your Models of Reality, Lakhiani mentions a severe case of acne and how he cured it in four weeks through creative visualization. The online site contains both a video on creative visualization and a link for a free course. I was so inspired by his success that I made a recording around my own health issues and have been playing it twice a day.
But Lakhiani saves the best for last. At the end of the book is an Appendix where he describes his golden treasure, the 6-Phase Meditation. He discovered that a blend of methods/ideas produces a greater whole than the individual parts. There are six pieces to his meditation: compassion, gratitude, forgiveness, future dreams, the perfect day, and the blessing. By combining all of these into one meditation, you get the best of the best. He also developed an app for the meditation that you can download for free from Omvana.
The Code of the Extraordinary Mind is a fascinating book that will leave you well-armed to face the perplexing world of stress and high technology and come away with a more relaxed, purposeful, and blissful you.
How aware are you? Are you sleeping through life or vibrantly awake? Do unexpected situations easily affect you or do you choose your reactions and emotions?
We live in a world of chaotic beauty. Governments are crumbling, terrorism is on the rise, we're depleting the planet of the elements that sustain us. And yet we strive for peace.
When Neil Armstrong stepped on the moon for the first time, he uttered the well-known words, "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind." The same is true for each step made by an individual. You count. Your step counts.
So how do you make that step the best you can?
The planet has been raising its vibration in the past few years, attuning to a new frequency. We're not living in the Dark Ages anymore (even though it often feels that way). With advanced technology at our fingertips, we can communicate faster and better than ever before. We can share information faster and better than ever before. And, most importantly, we're being given the opportunity to feel our emotions faster and better than ever before.
As the Earth's vibration shifts around us, things get dredged up. Those old patterns and limiting beliefs that have run your life for so many years are rising to the surface. Knocking at your door. Screaming for recognition. It's time to eliminate them, to release the old and bring in the new. It's important to integrate mind, body, and spirit and have balance in our lives. This is where conscious awareness comes in.
Unfortunately, releasing isn't always fun. Feeling positive emotions like love, hope, and joy bring wonder and gladness into your being. Negative emotions, on the other hand, can make you feel like crap. So you resist. When an unruly emotion crops up, your first reaction may be to ignore it. Stuff it. Bury it deep inside where you won't have to worry about it. But you do worry. And that increases your negative vibration.
I'm a pro at resisting. As I move down my path on my spiritual journey, all kinds of patterns are coming up for release: grudges against people who have wronged me, guilt around money, worry that I'm unworthy or not good enough. They're not the truth, though. They're just perceptions. Beliefs that came through my ancestors. Words that I heard as a child. As I grow and expand, I'm learning to let go.
Over the next months we'll explore the connections between Mind, Body, and Spirit and how we can further deepen those and create more conscious awareness. For this introductory issue, I chose one of my favorite books The Game of Life and How to Play It by Florence Scovel Shinn, an artist, author, and metaphysical teacher. Written in 1925, it's chock full of beautiful examples of Shinn's dealings with her clients who requested help with finances, health, relationships, jealousy, resentment, and more. Shinn teaches that conscious awareness is the key to understanding. Through the knowledge of spiritual law, you can play the "game of life" and be more aware. Be more conscious. Truly understand the art of Giving and Receiving.
"Whatever a man soweth that shall he also reap." This familiar quote from the New Testament is a wonderful example of spiritual law. Since life is all about giving and receiving, then whatever you sow (what you send out in thought, speech, or action) is what you reap (what comes back to you). So if you think negative thoughts (you're unworthy, you hate the person who did you wrong, you'll never be as good as someone else) then what you receive is more negativity. But if you affirm that God, Spirit, the Divine is always acting in your best interest and there is more than enough for all, then you will receive the abundance that is divinely yours.
In other words, the more consciously aware you are about how you think, speak, and act, the more you step towards what you truly desire. Each morning I read several pages of this book to absorb the simplicity of the words and begin the day with inspiration. Next, I journal and thank my Chief Spiritual Officer for all the things I have and am currently grateful for and all the things I wish to have, as if I already have them. Thank you for my perfect health, wealth, love, and self-expression. I choose my words to convey the belief that I am abundant, I am in perfect health, I have wonderful friends and family, and my creativity abounds.
Since I started reading this book and doing my daily journal, miracles have happened. I'm healthier, happier, and more abundant. I also pay more attention to my thoughts and actions, often catching myself in the act of negative thinking and turning it into positive thinking. The more I can do that, the more I create the vibrations that will attract what I desire.
Conscious awareness takes practice. Sometimes it's one step forward and two steps back. But every time you're aware and making a conscious choice, one that resonates with you, you're taking a step in the right direction.
Read The Game of Life and go about your day with grace, hope, and (of course) more conscious awareness.


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HOMEBOOKSBadge of HonorSpecial ForcesBOX SETSCONTACTMore InfoThe SEAL's Surprise Mate
Margaret Madigan
Dr. Melinda Emerson is still reeling after her escape from Russian mafia terrorists. If she never sees or hears anything Russian again, it'll be too soon. She's ready to go back to researching a cure for Alzheimer's and to begin building a life with her new man, Grady "Buck" McCormick. But the Russians aren't done with her just yet.
Grady "Buck" McCormick likes to be in charge. But he loves Melinda more. Turns out it's not so easy for a single alpha male to learn how to be a partner rather than a leader, but he's determined to do it. That resolve is put to the test when his team gets orders for a new mission where the tables are turned and he must relinquish control, depending on Melinda to protect him.
The Russian mafia is back like a bad penny. They've been experimenting on the cognitive enhancing drug Melinda invented. Their version makes users obey orders without question, but it's also fatal. Melinda is sent along as a civilian consultant with two SEAL teams to infiltrate a secret Siberian lab, secure the head scientist, and retrieve all the research on the drug. But the mission goes sideways when Buck and several of the SEALs are injected, and Melinda is forced to find a cure, or lose the man she loves.
©2018 Jey Soliva


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Glenn Ljungström (Göteborg, Švedska, 7. rujna 1974.) bivši je gitarist sastava In Flames. Ljungström je bio dio prvobitne postave te skupine. Napustio ju je 1997. da bi uzdržavao obitelj. Poslije se pridružio Jesperovu privremenom projektu Dimension Zero, koji je napustio 2003.

Bivši sastavi
 In Flames – gitara (1993. – 1997.)
 HammerFall – gitara (1995. – 1997.)
 Dimension Zero – gitara

Diskografija
HammerFall
 Glory to the Brave (1997.)
In Flames
 Lunar Strain (1994.)
 Subterranean (1995.)
 The Jester Race (1996.)
 Black-Ash Inheritance (1997.)
 Whoracle (1997.)
Dimension Zero
 Screams from the Forest (1995.)
 Penetrations from the Lost World (1997.)
 Silent Night Fever (2002.)
 This Is Hell (2003.)

Vanjske poveznice

 Dimension Zero
 In Flames

Švedski gitaristi heavy metala
Melodični death metal

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
Terrazzo é uma comuna italiana da região do Vêneto, província de Verona, com cerca de 2.384 habitantes. Estende-se por uma área de 20,53 km², tendo uma densidade populacional de 119 hab/km². Faz fronteira com Badia Polesine (RO), Bevilacqua, Boschi Sant'Anna, Castagnaro, Castelbaldo (PD), Legnago, Merlara (PD), Urbana (PD), Villa Bartolomea.

Demografia

Comunas de Verona (província)


text:
13 Million Security Incidents Were Attempted to Hack Linux Systems friendhostingnet, carderprofitcc
Linux power systems are used in almost every platform including Super computers, high-speed trains even in space programs, and it dominates the cloud in which 96.3% of the top 1 million web servers are globally powered by Linux systems due to the stability, flexibility, and open-source.
Parallelly, cyber attack towards Linux powered systems are dramatically increased due to its contribution in every part of the technology and enterprise networks, where various flavors or distributions of Linux and Unix systems playing major roles.
Since Linux has a larger footprint, unknowingly systems administrators exposed their Linux systems, including the critical data open to the internet.
Researchers from Trend Micro analyzed with the help of Censys.io, a search engine, through which they have reported that nearly 14 million Linux-powered systems are exposed to the internet and open to access for the hackers.
When diving deep into the exposed systems, researchers also found that a Secure Shell Protocol (SSH) for Linux-based machines was found open for almost 19 million systems facing the internet, and it help hackers to attack the exposed system using botnets to initiate the brakeforce attacks.
In Deep analysis with the telemetry data collected by Trend Micro experts from January 2021, over 13 Million incidents were identified & recorded targeted by various malware families.
In this list, Coinminers are aggressively targeting the Linux-powered systems and Web Shells, Ransomware, Trojans, and other familiars observed next to it. These malware families are mainly targeting the following Linux distributions.
There is some windows malware that has been added to this list, which means that the attackers using Linux servers as a Command & Control server or storage.
Trend Micro Researchers uncovered the 15 most exploited vulnerabilities (Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVEs)) that target Linux-powered systems with the bits of help of the telemetry data.
During the investigation, out of 200 vulnerabilities, only 15 were actively exploited in wide or have existing proofs of concept.
Also, Web-based attacks on Linux systems are keep on increasing which is uncovered by researchers when comparing the spread of web and non-web attacks on Linux systems.
As result, 76% of the attacks are web-based, while only 24% of the attacks are non-web in nature that targeting the Linux environment.
Another report revealed that injection vulnerabilities and Cross-Site scripting vulnerabilities took the first 2 places for performing the highest targeted attacks.
In terms of non-OWASP security risks, Layering brute-force, directory traversal, and request smuggling attacks took the first 3 places.
Trend Micro researchers suggested various security measures to protect your Linux environments using native Linux tools and configurations of following:-
Following these basic Docker best practices that will help enterprises keep their containers secure:
friendhostingnet carderprofitcc
Политика безопасности. Создание благоприятной среды (часть третья) darknet-...


He also denied assertions from certain quarters that MPs had an unflinching allegiance to their political parties to the detriment of the interest of their constituents.
Rather, Mr Opare–Ansah said MPs made informed inputs into bills before they were passed and also scrutinised the government's initiatives to ensure the passage of good policies.
"I do not think one is justified in saying that our Parliament is a rubber stamp. This is my fourth term as an MP and I don't think I'm a rubber stamp," he said.
The legislator was speaking to the Daily Graphic during a training programme for MPs from the country's Parliament and the ECOWAS Parliament in Accra on monday.
The three-day programme is meant to equip the MPs and the supporting staff of Parliament with the requisite skills for generating evidence that will enhance the oversight function of Parliament.
It will focus on data collection, data analysis, monitoring and evaluation and also how MPs can speak to facts during contributions on the floor of Parliament to help them make more meaningful contributions.
The event was organised by the Centre for Learning on Evaluation and Results (CLEAR) of the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA), with support from the World Bank.
Critics have accused MPs of always supporting the stance of their political parties — either the ruling or the opposition parties.
That, critics say, has made Parliament a weak institution which has failed to effectively execute its mandate of putting the Executive arm of the government in check as required by law.
In his response, Mr Opare-Ansah, who is also a member of the ECOWAS Parliament, said such criticisms were far-fetched because people did not understand or had failed to appreciate the work of the legislators.
He gave many instances in which he said MPs defied the wishes of their political parties and took a different stance on a bill or certain appointments.
For example, he said, MPs defied the wishes of the government and made significant changes to the National Lotto Bill in 2006 before it was passed into law.
"The bill that the Executive was envisaging was the creation of a monopoly where only the government had the power to operate any form of lottery in the country. What we did was to convert the NLA into a regulatory body and allow other lotto marketing companies to come under the NLA to be able to sell their lotto products. This was far from what the Executive wanted," he said.
He gave another instance where Parliament added a component of youth employment to the Communications Service Tax Law.
"I remember Mr Inusah Fuseini was the one who made the proposal and we accepted it," he said.
Mr Opare-Ansah gave another instance where he filed an amendment for a 12-month delay in the implementation of the Right to Information Bill to allow the government to put the right infrastructure in place for a successful implementation.
To further improve the work of Parliament, Mr Opare–Ansah said there was therefore the need for the committees of Parliament to be strengthened since bills were discussed at the committee level before they ended up on the floor of the House.
He said MPs who were also Ministers should be excluded from Select Committees since those MPs were part of the policy formulation process in the Executive.
"Such MPs can be part of the Standing Committees and not the Select Committees which normally work on bills in Parliament.
The NDC MP for Anlo in the Volta Region, Mr Clement Kofi Humado, also said the strengthening of the committees of Parliament was the best way to ensure that Parliament discharged its mandate effectively.


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Column by Monica Grand Pre, posted on October 08, 2003
Across America an economic crisis is building like a tsunami after the eruption of a Richter 8 earthquake on the ocean floor. In response to this onrushing disaster, certain insightful people have chosen not to be crushed by the tides, but have sought higher ground with a very old solution: debt free local scrip.
There is simply no other credible means available to us with which we might address the crescendo of job losses and the debilitating erosion of the dollar's purchasing value in our communities from sea to shining sea. Although local currency systems cannot offer total relief from the depredations of the falling dollar, they can provide stable local economies for residents and small businessmen, as was once guaranteed under the law.
While our state legislators demand that we tighten our belts yet again, they expect us to continue funding everything from failing education programs to falling tourism and loser sports stadiums. We are told that another round of increases are necessary because "there just isn't enough money in the budget." Someone needs to tell them that there isn't enough money in our budgets, either.
On April 9, 2002, Scripps Howard News Service warned that what we were then experiencing was only the beginning: "I think the second wave is yet to come. We've just seen the tip of the iceberg," said Deborah A. Crabbe, a bankruptcy specialist and member of Foster, Pepper & Shefelman in Seattle, who also chairs the small business subcommittee of the American Bankruptcy Institute. "When the big boys go, you'll see it slowly trickle down. Next year at this time I think we'll be talking about the proliferation of mom-and-pop companies filing for bankruptcy." Too many Americans are now experiencing that second wave as it trickles, cold and wet, down the back of our exposed necks.
On April 28, 2002, Congressman Ron Paul said in a MSNBC television interview, 'Without the Federal Reserve, our money could not be inflated at the behest of big government or big banks. Your income and savings would not lose their value. Just as important, we wouldn't have this endless string of booms and busts, recessions and depressions, with each bust getting worse. They aren't natural to the free market; they're caused by the schemers at the Fed.'
According to Thomson Financial Media, in an article entitled, "Bankruptcy Filings Up 19% in 2001, Amid Recession," ". . . filings by American consumers and businesses jumped 19% last year, reaching an all-time high of 1,492,129 as the economy receded."
Thomson was right. The prodigal has come home to America. He has appeared in the form of an approaching financial storm, leaving families with nothing to save except the receipts of paid bills, or worse yet, the unpaid bills. For many, the only remaining bulwarks between home sweet home and a home under the boardwalk are low paying, multiple dead end jobs.
On September 26, 2003, Nicki Gondell, president and creative director of Trend House, a New York-based trend-forecasting firm, commented on CNN Money about the current "rampant unemployment, a collapsing middle class, extended work weeks, a shrinking dollar, mounting debt and bankruptcies."
An infusion of local scrip into a community's economy can ameliorate, as could no other instrument, crippling cash shortages due to unemployment, under-employment, personal financial distress and bankruptcies, once again establishing liquidity and equity in our local financial transactions.
But is local scrip a legal tender, you ask? According to the experts, local currency provides a completely legal, debt free and people friendly means of exchange, serving only the needs of the local community.
In "Rethinking Our Centralized Monetary System," law professor Lewis Soloman states, 'There is no legal prohibition to local scrip, community currencies or private exchange systems in the United States. The fact that there have been no challenges to the systems already in operation support that finding. Taxation operates under the same fundamental rules of trading with the national currency.'
"They're like Disney Dollars," says Betsy Holahan, a spokesperson for the Treasury Department. "There is no requirement that businesses must accept U.S. currency."
Armed with these facts, hundreds of communities throughout the U.S. have said, "no more." For example, the citizens of Lawrence, Kansas (pop. 80,000), who took control of their economic future and printed their own money. More than 100 Lawrence businesses accept the locally minted currency, called R.E.A.L. money (for Realizing Economic Alternatives in Lawrence). "We want people to realize where their money goes'which places are local and which are global." Elsewhere, the stark reality of insufficient income to cover the bare essentials continues to plague millions of other Americans who have no R.E.A.L. money, many of whom will ultimately be forced into bankruptcy and financial ruin.
So, what can we do? Could flourishing alternative money systems break the chains that have forced us to become bondsmen of the fraudulent fractional reserve dollar? Local currencies have proven to be an unqualified success in the revitalization of towns and cities in almost every demographic area where they have been introduced. Incredibly, simple trading vouchers are providing people with economic relief to overwhelming financial difficulties in towns where the people have finally said, 'The buck stops here.'
Dozens of towns have implemented various forms of local currency, from the LETS computerized system in Tucson, Canada, London and elsewhere, to Ithaca, New York's 'Ithaca Hours,' from the Southern Berkshires' "Berkshares" to the Massachusetts' 'Monterey General Store Notes,' and from San Francisco's 'Bay Area Bucks' to Chicago's 'Time Dollars.' Other colorful and functional local scrip systems can be found in towns all across the U.S., called by names such as "Deli Dollars" and "Barter Bucks." The most viable of these alternate cash systems appear to be based on the median hourly wage of $10.00, and some feature local scenes or personalities on the various denomination notes.
Local currency is a form of exchange that doesn't come to town, shake a few hands and then leave to buy a rain forest in South America, or wage war tens of thousands of miles from home in which the local community has no abiding interest. Local scrip is created and circulated for the singular purpose of sustaining and growing area businesses and providing residents with increased purchasing power. The easy exchange of local scrip is a win-win situation, wherein individuals can utilize their talents and skills to support themselves and become valued members of the local economy.
Scrip systems work in tandem with the current debt system rather than against it, as an infusion of local cash frees up shrinking federal dollars to cover expenses that cannot be served by local scrip, such as electric bills and mortgages. While federal dollars consistently shift wealth out of the area and into the major banking centers of the world, local currencies will continue to build the community.
There is simply no better way to restore equity and decency in our economy than in the local issue of currency, as it is fully backed by the productivity of the people who trade with it, and stabilizes the delicate balance between production and consumption. Once again, honest labor becomes the source of individual wealth, and pride in workmanship awakens from its long slumber. Surprisingly, any initial resistance to the acceptance of an alternative cash economy generally arises from the fact that most people have never dreamed of having such power over their own worth and wealth.
Initiating such a system requires a wide variety of talents and skills. It also demands devotion to the principles of a free market economy and the ability to take on huge amounts of responsibility. Additionally, developing a local economy should not be undertaken without considerable research, conviction and commitment.
The crux of the matter is, of course, the necessity of recruiting local merchants and business owners who are willing to accept local scrip in exchange for goods and services and to honor its value. Businesses that are obviously undercapitalized would be a first priority, which definitely describes most small merchants today, regardless of their product line or base of operation. Opting in or out of the system should be made as painless as possible, offering opportunities, benefits and flexibility to all participants.
Service providers and merchants who benefit from a local currency include contractors, restaurants, movie theaters, massage therapists, dentists, chiropractors, gift shops, herb stores, video rental stores, cottage industries, local manufacturers, and hundreds more, the current cash flow of which is inadequate for their needs. Non-profit organizations, volunteers and charities should also be encouraged to participate.
In one such plan, the merchant or service provider purchases a minimum of $100.00 scrip in various denominations at a 25% discounted dollar exchange rate. Additional scrip can be purchased at the same discount rate for personal use at other participating stores, or simply to put in the cash drawer for change. This revenue is applied to the cost of producing the scrip, which should be printed on specialty paper such as hemp, and counterfeiting prevention methods such as a numbering system are advised.
For every merchant or service provider who signs an agreement and receives $100.00 in the local currency, an equal amount is issued to the consuming public at no cost. One method for issuing scrip would be through lottery drawings. Another is through the partial payment of employee wage increases and/or bonuses by participating business owners who purchase additional local currency at a 25% discount rate. There are no requirements on the part of consumers to own and trade the local scrip, other than a willingness to spend it freely with participating businesses and service providers.
Retailers should be encouraged to seek out local crafters and producers of hand crafted goods and make them available in their stores whenever feasible. Profit margins should be predetermined by mutual agreement between the merchant and the producer to avoid potential conflicts. Additional incentive scrip bonuses could be offered to merchants displaying locally produced items.
A newsletter detailing where the scrip can be exchanged should be distributed as widely as possible, providing regularly updated lists of participating stores and the latest currency news of interest to merchants and the public. The newsletter would provide a low cost advertising medium for businesses to advertise to their "special" clientele while generating needed advertising revenue for the developers of the scrip system and building capital for further expansion of the currency.
An entry form can be included in each issue to be filled out by consumers and submitted for free awards. However, these awards must exactly parallel the issuance of scrip to merchants to maintain the balance. Drawings for these awards should be held a minimum of once per month by participating storeowners on a rotating basis to avoid any perception of favoritism. Thus, the ratio of currency in circulation to participating merchants is perfectly maintained, and the system grows according to the will of the community.
It is improbable that any two systems would be identical or interchangeable. However, in some regions, entire counties could fall within the boundaries of a given currency, and each developer is entirely free to create a system that reflects the needs of a particular area. Quite simply, there is nothing and no one who can prevent a determined individual or group of individuals from making this plan come alive in their town.
Monica Grand Pre
Columns on STR: 4
PDXcurrency (not verified), posted on May 02, 2010
It is wild to read this article from October 08, 2003. Monica has some real vision of how things work and writing about it 7 years ago before the sub-prime mess and the 'almost' crash of the economy. Community currency and local currency have begun to really take off in the US and Europe. TimeBanks are growing rapidly, hour exchanges and barter exchanges are becoming very common in small towns and big ones. I think there needs to be a more careful look at why some programs succeed like the Berkshares or Ithaca Hours and why many others fail after the initial excitement fades.
http://www.twitter.com/pdxcurrency
KingofthePaupers (not verified), posted on May 02, 2010
Monica Grand Pre: "It is improbable that any two systems would be identical or interchangeable."
Jct: Beautiful article though it is quite probable that all community currency systems are basically identical and interchangeable. In 1999, under the Time Standard of Money, I paid for 39/40 nights in Europe with a timebank IOU for a night back in Canada worth 5 Hours which I recorded on my public do-it-yourself timebank account: http://johnturmel.com/unilets.com No matter how you cut it, you can always tell me how many units of your currency you pay to the Hour so you can trade internationally in Hours while you can trade nationally in LETS Greencredits. It's only a matter of time until they merge into one big world-wide time-trading UNILETS timebank.
Airport Conversation
Functional Rights: The Elephant in the Parlor, Part II
Objectivist Resistance to Anarchy: A Problem of Concept Formation?
The Most Horrible Dream I've Ever Had...Over and Over and Over


text:
Mr-Mehra
Home News Nigel Farage threatens to launch anti-lockdown party as he hits out at Boris Johnson's draconian restrictions
Nigel Farage threatens to launch anti-lockdown party as he hits out at Boris Johnson's draconian restrictions
The Brexit Party leader has heaped pressure on Boris Johnson's restrictions
He said freedoms are being curbed and he has challenged the Government
Farage said he could form a party to counter the 'authoritarian' measures
Nigel Farage has threatened to start an anti-lockdown party as he criticises Boris Johnson's draconian measures to curb the rise in coronavirus cases.
The Brexit Party leader heaped pressure on the Prime Minister, saying the current restrictions are a threat to freedom.
He told The Times: 'We stood aside for Boris Johnson's government, now many are questioning why we bothered.'
Nigel Farage has threatened to start an anti-lockdown party as he criticises Boris Johnson's draconian measures to curb the rise in coronavirus cases
He previously lambasted the government's measures, accusing Mr Johnson of adopting an 'authoritarian' response to the crisis.
The former UKIP tweeted earlier this week: 'The PM says we are a "freedom loving country", but will fine you £10,000 and send the army in if he likes.
'This is authoritarian – I don't believe his promises on testing or the competence of the government. We didn't vote for this.'
The Prime Minister's decision to impose the recent 10pm curfew has been hit by criticism after it was revealed the move was not advocated by Sage - the panel of scientific experts chaired by Sir Patrick Vallance.
The Prime Minister's decision to impose the recent 10pm curfew has been hit by criticism
Sage members are said to be increasingly frustrated that they are being overruled while simultaneously being scapegoated for the harsher measures, according to the Daily Telegraph.
A former World Health Organisation director, Professor Karol Sikora, also highlighted concerns, saying: 'Where is the evidence? Closing a little early will just hurt so many business owners.'
Sage scientists are reportedly calling on the Government to release their advice to exonerate them from any part in mooting a pub curfew.
It comes as households in the Welsh town of Llanelli were banned from entering each other's homes and gardens from 6pm, with the nation's two biggest cities of Cardiff and Swansea following suit. Residents are also banned from entering or leaving the areas without a 'reasonable excuse'.
Britain's coronavirus R rate could now be as high as 1.5, government scientific advisers warned on Friday after rises in all regions of the country
It comes after lockdowns were already imposed in large swathes of the North East and North West of England. More than a quarter of the UK is under tighter restrictions, including half of the Welsh population.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock said there had been an 'acceleration of Covid-19 cases across the country, especially in the North West and the North East'.
'Working alongside our scientific and public health experts and local leaders, we are prepared to take swift and decisive action to reduce transmission of the virus and protect communities,' he said. 'I recognise the burden and impact these additional measures have on our daily lives but we must act collectively and quickly to bring down infections.'
Meanwhile London Mayor Sadiq Khan said the capital was at a 'very worrying topping point' with rising Covid-19 cases, NHS 111 calls, hospital admissions and patients in intensive care units.
Public Health England data shows only a handful of London's 32 boroughs are now seeing a sustained rise in infections - including Redbridge, Hounslow, Barking and Dagenham and Enfield. The data is set to be updated on Friday, but gives an indication of which boroughs are struggling the most
Nigel Farage threatens to launch anti-lockdown party as he hits out at Boris Johnson's draconian restrictions Reviewed by free heip on September 27, 2020 Rating: 5
Tags : News
world-peace-society 27 September 2020 at 19:27
The death of British trash is welcome!
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text:
Curry and James struggled from the field in Game 2. Curry made just 5 of 23 field-goal attempts, and James was 11 for 35.
But James' ability to control the tempo, work hard in the paint (16 rebounds) and set up teammates (11 assists) was the difference for the Cavaliers. Plus, of course, he scored 39 points.
James shot 48.8 percent in the regular season, but he's down to 42.3 percent in the postseason because he has had to take more shots after injuries to Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving.
The Warriors don't mind if James shoots more as long as he's not getting his teammates involved. In the Warriors' 108-100 overtime victory in Game 1, James scored 44 points on 18-of-38 shooting but had only six assists.
39, 16, 11 LeBron James' points, rebounds and assists for the Cavaliers in Game 2 of the NBA Finals
"Once again, I was knocking on the 40 door again," James said. "So they let me score (almost) 40 again. … I'm happy I'm able to do that in a win."
Allowing arguably the NBA's best player to shoot more is risky. If James keeps shooting, he'll likely have a game in which he makes closer to 50 percent.
"I'm not a high-volume shooter," James said. "I've never been in my career. But things have changed on our team, where the shots that Kevin and Kyrie would have (taken) now have been placed on myself and the rest of the guys as well.
"It's what needs to be done to help our team win. Am I going to be in the 30s (in shooting percentage) every game or things of that nature? I'm not sure. I would not like to. But if that's what the case has to be to help us win, then I don't have a choice."
And the Warriors must hope Curry regains his shooting touch. He has missed 17 of 21 three-point attempts in the Finals. He also has committed 10 turnovers.
"We haven't played well offensively in two games," Curry said. "We've made some plays when it counted and to keep ourselves in it or, like we did in Game 1, win the game. But we haven't really clicked."
Meanwhile, the Cavaliers are fine with how James is playing because it gives them the best chance to win. Even with his less-than-stellar shooting, he is averaging 41.5 points in the Finals.
In contrast, Cleveland has made Curry looks out of sorts.
"You credit their defense," said Curry, who is averaging 22.5 points in the series. "They've done something that maybe has taken us out of our rhythm, and we have to figure out what that is specifically. But I think we're still confident. We still believe that we're going to win the series."
Jason Jones: @mr_jasonjones
All games on Ch. 10
Game 1: Golden State 108, Cleveland 100 (OT)
Game 2: Cleveland 95, Golden State 93 (OT)
Tuesday: at Cleveland, 6p.m.
Thursday: at Cleveland, 6p.m.
Sunday: at Golden State, 5p.m.
Tuesday, June 16:
at Cleveland, 6p.m.*
Friday, June 19:
at Golden State, 6p.m.*
*If necessary
Evaluating a Heat-Chris Paul trade from every angle (it's mostly about the picks)
Kristian Winfield: Will D'Angelo Russell finally find a home with the Warriors?
Bob Ford: Ben Simmons decides not to show the world his shot just yet
Pistons claim F-C Christian Wood off waivers
Kemba Walker, Enes Kanter join Celtics


Eight concerts will form the 8th Edition of the International Spring Orchestra Festival taking place between the 22nd and the 26th of April at the Teatru Manoel.
Hosted every year in April, the International Spring Orchestra Festival is the brainchild of artistic director and Paris-based composer Karl Fiorini.
"I am delighted to say that organising this Festival has been an annual challenge however the very positive feedback that this event has been garnering kept confirming its growing popularity," says Mr Fiorini who started off this project with the establishment of the Association International Spring Orchestra Festival (ISOFestival) in December 2005.
Since then the Festival has seen the participation of some of the best of breed of Maltese talent including the likes of Brian Schembri and violinist Carmine Lauri.
"The aim of the festival is not just to make good music but also to serve as a platform for young local talent. The idea of the Festival is also to create partnerships with the invited orchestras – having artistic exchanges not based simply on an invitation to perform. Soloists are in turn invited to perform in the guest's artist homeland and perform Maltese compositions abroad," explained Karl Fiorini.
"This year will be truly unforgettable especially since Lucia Micallef will be making a comeback on the Maltese concert platform during this year's Edition. The Festival has also established a new partnership agreement with the European Union Chamber Orchestra of UK and will this year offer performances by Maltese talent including Brian Schembri, Charlene Farrugia and Clare Ghigo who will all perform together with the Argotti Ensemble and Cosmos Wind Ensemble," added Karl Fiorini.
The Cosmos Wind Ensemble will kick-off the ISOFestival on Tuesday 22nd April with a program of virtuosic and tongue-in-cheek works, some of which composed specifically for the Cosmos Ensemble, by local composers Veronique Vella, Albert Garzia and Ruben Zahra.
Mezzo-soprano Clare Ghigo will be teaming up with "l'enfant terrible" of Maltese pianism, Charlene Farrugia on Thursday 24th April to give us a rendition of works by de Falla, Obradors, Strauss, Kurt Weill and Rueben Pace, concert titled Songs my mother taught me. Some of us will remember Ghigo from last year's edition with a terrific interpretation of de Falla's El amor Brujo. This concert will leave the audience equally trilled.
On Friday 25th the Argotti string quartet comprising Maria Conrad, Nemanja Ljubinkovic Aureliano Balducci, and Akos Kertesz, will be performing Korngold's 2nd string quartet, two pieces for string quartet, by Dmitri Shostakovich and Ravel's famous String Quartet in F major. A must for string quartet lovers!
The ISOFestival will close on Saturday 26th April with Lucia Micallef playing four Bach keyboard concertos featuring the European Union Chamber Orchestra under the direction of Malta's most loved conductor, Brian Schembri.
This year's edition of the ISOFestival is being generously supported by the Ministry of Finance, the ADRC Trust, the Malta Stock Exchange and D&G Advocates.
Lunchtime concerts are at 12:30, Sala Isouard. Concerts are free, open donation at the door, except for Friday and Saturday's concerts. Reservations can be made on www.teatrumanoel.com.mt or [email protected] or by calling 2124 6389.
The first edition, held under the patronage of HE the President of the Republic of Malta was held in April 2007 and involved 25 musicians from different countries who convened in Malta for master classes with world renowned musicians and performed a week-long programme of six concerts. Year in year out, the Festival kept growing and although spanning a week, more and more musicians started being involved.
In 2010, the Festival ventured out of its confines of Teatru Manoel and saw the first outreach program with a concert at Mater Dei hospital. This edition saw 7 concerts which were all fully-booked. A year later, the outreach program was successfully repeated and also included the first educational workshops for children. Concerts were also performed at The Point shopping mall in Tignè as well as at Marsaskala's waste plant. Eleven concerts with the participation of 52 musicians and an attendance of over 2,000 patrons saw another fully-booked edition.
Last year, the Festival established a partnership with the Ensemble Télémaque, Marseille and the Marseille 20013 European Capital of Culture and involved 60 musicians.


According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), this flu season is an unusually severe outbreak with wide-spread instances of disease in 49 States with many schools being closed. The season started earlier than usual, which is never a good sign. CDC Deputy Director Anne Schuchat has said "This year's influenza season is proving particularly difficult". Hospitals do not have enough beds and the prevalence of the flu has led to shortages of anti-viral medications that if prescribed in the first 48 hours may shorten symptoms by a day or so.
This season's primary virus strain is H3N2, a deadly type of influenza A that tends to result in more severe illness and higher numbers of hospitalizations and deaths than other strains. H3N2 is especially dangerous for the frail elderly and children, although people between the ages of 50 and 64 are being hospitalized at alarming rates, second only to the elderly. As of this post, almost 100 children have already died from the flu.
Although some people view the flu as "merely" annoying and inconvenient, those suffering from influenza along with COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), asthma, emphysema, diabetes and other pre-existing conditions are at a higher risk of hospitalization or death, especially if they contract a secondary bacterial infection.
The influenza virus is difficult for the body to protect itself from, because it is able to mutate rapidly and frequently. This forces the immune system to constantly change its tactics to combat the latest version of the flu.
Infection by influenza triggers an intense immune inflammatory response in the lungs in the body's attempt to stop the virus from multiplying. The lungs' immune cells release cytokines, small molecules that signal and recruit other cells into the lungs to increase or decrease their immune and inflammatory responses.
But such a response can be a double edged sword. Too much inflammation causes lung damage on top of the damage already caused by the virus and secondary bacterial infections such as pneumonia. Additionally, although rare, if the balance of cytokines is significantly upset, the normal level of inflammatory cytokines may become too high, resulting in a cytokine storm (or cytokine cascade) that can kill a previously healthy individual in hours.
A properly balanced immune system, one in homeostasis, is more fully prepared to defend us against invasion by foreign agents, and is ready to help us combat an infection if we get one.
Eat healthful meals with an emphasis on whole grains and plenty of colorful vegetables and fruits.
Be physical active to help keep the immune system in balance; incorporate it into your daily life.
Get adequate amounts of rest and avoid fatigue.
Drink plenty of fluids to keep membranes moist and more resistant to invasion.
Wash your hands frequently and try to keep them away from your face.
Stop, or at least cut down, on your smoking—your lungs are struggling enough.
Consume a superior immune support supplement to help your immune system balance.
Dr. Hellen's passion is helping people have a better quality of life. Contact her by using this form, drhellen@drhellengreenblatt.info, or calling at: 302.265.3870 (ET, USA).


One of the more curious folk lps to cross my path. Five girls with lovely harmonies (sometimes with a guy or two joining in) backed by guitar, flute, recorder, banjo, and lots of violin in a strong classical context. A very simple sound high on charm with some unusual vocal stylings. Songs all adapted from Scripture, mostly Old Testament. Glad to see this Cincinnati label known for ultra low-tech home-grown projects has at least one album you can hang on to. (The Archivist, 4th edition by Ken Scott).
I have not acquired this album yet. Thank you Donald for the front cover on this album.