text:
Beyond humans…
Anna Smyczynska
Ridley Scott's long-awaited sci-fi hit Prometheus came out on Friday, June 8 and it proves to meet all expectations. The story centers on a group of scientists who travels into space- where anything can happen. They have to face serious and dangerous obstacles in order to survive. There is not much more to give away from the plot- you simply have to see the movie.
The reviews for Prometheus varied, however, most critics praised the director's well-developed screenplay and aesthetically pleasing visuals. The movie has a close attachment to the Alien franchise- a masterpiece sci-fi film from years ago. The acting of Noomi Rapace, Michael Fassbender, and Charlize Theron, along with many more, is excellent and really brings the film to the next level.
This summer will bring more and more "must-see" films. Along with Dark Shadows and Snow White and the Huntsman, Prometheus is definitely one movie you will want to see in the theater!
25th Anniversary of 'Titanic': How Titanic Became an Under-the-Surface Sensation in Taliban-Ruled Afghanistan
In honor of Titanic's 25th anniversary, the iconic movie will be shown in movie theaters on February 10th this year. Because of how iconic this movie was internationally, there is an interesting story behind how the people in Afghanistan were able to see the movie when it was released, as they were under Taliban rule. All forms of entertainment were outlawed in Afghanistan when the Taliban initially took power there in the 1990s. Residents of Kabul and other cities frequently describe finding video and audiotape ribbons that were torn to pieces as if they had also been executed.
3 Tips and Resources for Beginner Screenwriters
Are you a fresh screenwriter looking to improve those tentative first drafts? Or are you a screenwriter-to-be, struggling to relay your creative vision onto those daunting white pages for the first time? As a former university student with a concentration in screenwriting and a couple of screenplays under my belt, I understand how it feels to feel lost when it comes to the ins and outs of writing industry-standard screenplays. Even if you aren't looking to pen the next big box office hit, knowing how to write a screenplay with engaging characters within industry standards can get you far. So, if you want to learn more about the basics of the craft, read on.
5 Anticipated Horror Movies of 2023
A new year means a slew of new thrills at the movies, and 2023 is shaping up to be a good one for horror fans. We'll see the return of a few beloved franchises as well as the introduction of original properties that'll be sure to leave you looking over your shoulder. Here are five of the most anticipated horror movies releasing this year, so don't miss them!
Most Anticipated Movies of 2023
It's still hard to believe that 2022 is officially over! This year saw theaters back at full capacity for the first time since the start of the pandemic. With this in mind, it is exciting to think about what 2023 will have in store for movie lovers. This year is sure to be packed with plenty of action and superhero flicks, along with some spine-tingling horror and a few throwback surprises! Here are some of the most anticipated movies of 2023 that critics and watchers can't stop talking about:
Angola, Do You Hear Us? Oscar Shortlisted Doc Takes on Mass Incarceration
One of the most important documentaries of 2022, Angola Do You Hear Us? Voices from a Plantation Prison has just been shortlisted for an Oscar nomination. The documentary follows esteemed playwright, Liza Jessie Peterson, as she performs her play The Peculiar Patriot for the incarcerated population living in Angola prison. The documentary follows her performance as it gets shut down in the jail and uplifts the voices of those who live there.
'Avatar 2: The Way of Water' Faces Boycott and Backlash Over Cultural Appropriation
Avatar 2: The Way of Water has come out, and critics are not happy. The sequel film to the original Avatar movie is facing calls for a boycott over its alleged "appropriation" of indigenous and African cultures. The film, a sequel to James Cameron's 2009 smash hit Avatar, focuses on the Na'vi, the blue-skinned inhabitants of an alien planet called Pandora.
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text:
namespace content {

class WebTestDelegate;

class MockWebUserMediaClient : public blink::WebUserMediaClient {
 public:
  explicit MockWebUserMediaClient(WebTestDelegate* delegate);
  virtual ~MockWebUserMediaClient() {}

  virtual void requestUserMedia(const blink::WebUserMediaRequest&) OVERRIDE;
  virtual void cancelUserMediaRequest(
      const blink::WebUserMediaRequest&) OVERRIDE;
  virtual void requestMediaDevices(
      const blink::WebMediaDevicesRequest&) OVERRIDE;
  virtual void cancelMediaDevicesRequest(
      const blink::WebMediaDevicesRequest&) OVERRIDE;

  // Task related methods
  WebTaskList* mutable_task_list() { return &task_list_; }

 private:
  WebTaskList task_list_;
  WebTestDelegate* delegate_;

  DISALLOW_COPY_AND_ASSIGN(MockWebUserMediaClient);
};

}  // namespace content

#endif  // CONTENT_SHELL_RENDERER_TEST_RUNNER_MOCK_WEB_USER_MEDIA_CLIENT_H_

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


We increase Internet visibility and traffic.
Convert more traffic into prospects.
Blog, website, social, drip content.
Marketing strategies for virtual advisors.
Smaller RIAs become bigger RIAs.
Read six tips you can being using to start improving your results.
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Looking for low cost, low risk ways to add new clients?
More and more financial advisors are getting it: blogging is an extremely effective way to generate leads and establish your image on the internet. In today's increasingly digital world, it's a must.
Most advisors report that their sites do not generate many leads for the firm. Whatever your investment in a financial advisor website, it should be paying for itself many times over in generating new prospects. In today's climate, this is no longer optional, as more advisors are reporting a decline in what was their primary source of new business: referrals .
First you have to start with savvy investors who are using the Internet to find and research financial advisors – however, not all investors are savvy.


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Saturday, 5th February 2022 - 7:30PM
Forum Melbourne
154 Flinders st (Corner Russell & Flinders Streets) Melbourne, VIC, Australia 3000
The Rubens are extremely excited to announce their biggest Australian tour to date – the 0202 Album tour Presented by triple j, the 27-date run will see the five-piece play a combination of metro and regional venues from May through July in celebration of their album '0202' The past year has seen The Rubens travel to North America, UK & Europe for headline tours, perform and release their MTV Unplugged Live In Melbourne album, slay the main stage unveiling their collaboration with punk hip-hop star Vic Mensa at Splendour In The Grass AND between all of that, bunker down to write and focus on new music. As part of their Chucka Bucka's initiative, the Menangle Mad Men have also embarked on 3 regional tours in the past 18 months – and the 0202 Album Tour is another tip of the hat to our music loving friends who may not live near a city - with the band revisiting some old regional favourites as well as some new towns they've never played before, including Bundaberg, Warrnambool, Shepparton and more.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Our Mini Cucumbers are the perfect on-the-go snack. Bite into them for a refreshing, no-prep snack or slice them up for a quick addition to an appetizer or salad.
A unique and colourful appetizer that's easy to prepare and bursting with fresh flavours. Makes a great snack, appetizer or side dish.


▪ Mosul cannot be liberated without an Iraqi Arab partner and a comprehensive game plan, both of which seem absent so far.
Of course, as close U.S. allies, the Kurds are already receiving military aid from the administration, which is funneled via Baghdad. U.S. forces are training two new Kurdish brigades (down from a proposed three, according to Hussein) and U.S. planes provide critical air support to the Kurds.
But Hussein's point is vital. The KRG is on the front line, defending almost a thousand miles of border that abut areas seized by the Islamic State. The KRG's foreign minister, Falah Mustafa Bakir, said the war effort costs $2 billion annually.
And the KRG has taken in 1.8 million refugees and displaced persons since the 2003 Iraq war, a 30 percent increase in the population of the region. That includes hundreds of thousands of Syrians, along with hundreds of thousands more religious minorities, including Yazidis and Christians, who fled the Islamic State.
"We welcomed displaced Iraqis regardless of religion and ethnic background," Hussein noted in an interview. This is a rarity in a region convulsed with sectarianism, but the KRG has received little economic help from Baghdad.
However, the harshest blow to the KRG's economy has to do with oil revenues, on which the Kurdish region depends to finance its budget. A dispute between the KRG and the central government over direct Kurdish exports of oil led to Baghdad cutting off budgetary support. Because of legal wrangling, the KRG has had to sell its oil at a sharp discount.
These problems have led to an $18 billion government deficit, even as oil prices continue dropping. Last week, violent protests broke out in one Kurdish province as the government fell further behind in paying public sector salaries.
These Kurdish emissaries made another essential point in their meetings at the State Department, the White House and on Capitol Hill: If there is going to be any attempt to retake Mosul in 2016, the Kurds will need more than an increase in financial assistance. They need a comprehensive approach from Washington that, in my opinion, has been lacking so far.
"We need more equipment for the fight in Mosul," says Bakir. "We need tanks, different artillery and rockets. We need sniper rifles, helicopters must be ready, and mobile hospitals, also.
"We will expect half a million refugees to come to Kurdistan. Who will take care of them?
Moreover, the Kurds cannot, and will not, liberate Mosul by themselves.
Right now, Kurdish forces hold terrain on the east, west and north of the city, which is an ethnic stew of Sunni Arabs and many minority groups. If the Kurds moved into Sunni or minority areas from the south, the population would accuse them of seeking to seize control.
It's far from clear that Iraqi security forces are ready to play that role, despite U.S. retraining, and despite their retaking Ramadi. The best of those forces, the Iraqi Counterterrorism Service, is overstretched; if its forces leave Ramadi, the Islamic State could start moving back in.
So, as the Kurds recognize, there must be a political dimension to retaking Mosul, one that involves Sunni tribes who fear persecution at the hands of a Shite-led Iraqi government – or at the hands of the Kurds.
▪ And a clear game plan for retaking Mosul, including steady pressure on Baghdad to be more politically inclusive of Sunnis.
Reach Trudy Rubin at trubin@phillynews.com.


A Russian defects at the DMZ, prompting a bloody shoot-out, and American planners react to a redeployment of the North Korean military. (More coming on this year).
"Since 1982 the North Koreans have been reorganizing their forces for greater mobility, and in 1984 a significant forward deployment of these forces began, greatly reducing our military warning and reaction time," previously classified US State Department memo, 1/85 (see the memo below).


when i stop thinking and all the voices in my head goes silent the devil gets chills down his spine. The devil runs in fear because he's knows what I'm capable of doing. Honestly I don't know what happened to me I changed a lot and now I scare the devil. He's worry about the day I die because he knows I'll come and clam my throne of spicks. I walk through the valley of the shadow of death and I fear no evil because it fear me all.
Awesome!!! this is amazing to me❤❤❤❤ I really love this writing.


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What are the chords?
Most contemporary recordings of songs aren't unaccompanied single melodic lines. They will sit in well-supported beds of chords played by supporting instruments or vocals, whose combinations can provoke deep emotional responses in us. Harmony is not just a musical metaphor - it really underpins the social aspect of what we're doing.
From a songwriting point of view, having the ability to use a chordal instrument, like a guitar or piano – instruments that can play several notes at a time - is a powerful tool. The chords you use and the way they're ordered (the progression) can point how a melody will literally come into existence.
But before you flinch and say 'but I'm a singer/drummer/saxophonist – are you saying I can't write songs because I can't play chords?' – no, I'm not. I'm saying that learning chordal instruments even at a really basic level can enhance your understanding of what makes songs work. It introduces you to some secret infrastructure – let's you look under the hood of your favourite songs and influences how you can write your own music more readily.
If you're a parent and your kid wants to play something, this is one of the reasons why learning either keyboards/piano or guitar is a really good musical starting point. They are one stop shops for creating rhythm, melody and harmony.
If you're a vocalist, singing harmonies is one of the most joyful things you get to do. And it's no surprise that many of our most successful musicians come from backgrounds where collective singing was commonplace in their childhood, from church to amateur theatre to the marae. Creating chords from your vocals is also an interesting way to use what you've got to develop a song.
Other entry points into what chord progressions can do are online chord generators like ChordChord and Autochord.
But hang on a minute – won't I be using the same chord progression as other songwriters?
Quite likely, yes. You can't copyright chord progressions, unlike melody and lyrics. Music education site Hooktheory.com undertook a detailed study of over 1300 songs charting on the US Billboard top 100 and found overwhelming that the most common pop song chord progression was:
I –V- vi –IV
The most common key was C major so this became:
C-G-Am-F
All over the internet are debates about the tyranny of this, the control that a handful of songwriter/producers have over popular music and the undue influence it gives them. I've linked two but you can google all pop music sounds the same and you'll go down a rabbit hole for a while.
What I want to do is show you how manipulating the 'magic formula' can quickly give you a myriad of combinations that can change the music you write by changing your chord progression, yet still use the same 'alphabet'.
Look what happens when you alter the order of chords but still start with the tonic or root note.
I-IV-vi-V
I-IV-V-vi
I-V-IV-vi
I-vi-IV-V
I-vi-V-IV
If we stay in C major it looks like this, your options look more like this:
C -F-Am-G
C-F-G-Am
C-G-F-Am
C-Am-F-G
C-Am-G-F
The other thing you can do very quickly is vary the length of time you stay on a particular chord – there's no rule to say each chord needs a whole bar of it's own. Try two beats on the first two chords and four on the second two. Or whatever combination you may like to try.
The point is not to feel stuck in a rut or trapped, but get comfortable shuffling chords around so they work for you and your songs to create the sound you want.
Talk more soon
Charlotte Yates
ps To read more on chord progressions, here's a more detailed article I wrote for Musician on a Mission
pps To join me on a songwriting workshop, here's a really great opportunity at Hanmer Springs, May 17-19.


When Michael Spencer was sick, I posted a couple of times asking my readers to pray. I wrote a lengthy tribute to him while he was still able to read and respond to it, and like 10,000 other bloggers quickly reported his passing. This post is much, much harder to write.


After being tied to an object to be lifted, the bag is inflated and will start to rise.
The amount of buoyancy provided by a Buoyancy Compensator; varies according to size of the BC and according to the purpose of the BC, e.g., a BC intended for use in cold fresh water will provide greater lift capacity than one intended primarily for use in warm salt water.
A dive boat with sleeping and eating accommodations. Commercial live aboard boats are usually between 50 and 130 feet long, and can carry from 10 to 30 divers for up to a week or more.
A diary of a divers dive history. Provides evidence of the depth and breadth of a divers experience.
A mask which has a smaller area between the glass and the diver's face, usually with separate lenses for each eye; requires less air to purge if becomes flooded.
There are 5 scuba glossary terms listed.


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Facebook Pulls Back The Targeting Curtain & Gives Users More Control Over The Ads They See
Ever wonder why you keep getting that workout ad on Facebook? Want to hide everything from that manufacturer? Today, Facebook has announced a new policy and feature that will give users clarity (and choices) on the messages that they view. Advertisers have flocked to Facebook Ads due to the massive amount of targeting options offered. […]
Greg Finn on June 12, 2014 at 8:53 am
Ever wonder why you keep getting that workout ad on Facebook? Want to hide everything from that manufacturer?
Today, Facebook has announced a new policy and feature that will give users clarity (and choices) on the messages that they view.
Advertisers have flocked to Facebook Ads due to the massive amount of targeting options offered. In the next few weeks, each user will be able to see how and why they've been targeted, pulling back the curtain on why they are seeing each ad:
Users will have the option to respond to the ad with the following old choices:
I don't want to see this
Hide all ads from this advertiser
… and also these two new choices:
This ad is useful
When clicking on the "Why am I seeing this?," users will be taken to a page that shows the specific advertiser, the interest-based targeting and will even allow users to remove interests if they are no longer warranted.
This will be coming to U.S. users in the coming weeks. For more information, see the official Facebook release.
Greg Finn
Greg Finn is the Director of Marketing for Cypress North, a company that provides world-class social media and search marketing services and web & application development. He has been in the Internet marketing industry for 10+ years and specializes in Digital Marketing. You can also find Greg on Twitter (@gregfinn) or LinkedIn.
Channel: Social Media MarketingFacebookFacebook: Advertising


Why do credit unions see superior loss experience in residential real estate loans?
In most financial industry discussions, credit unions receive little attention. It is not hard to see why. In a ranking of financial institutions based on asset size, the largest credit union, Navy Federal, comes in at number 38 and is less than half the size of the 24th-largest bank, Keycorp.1 Altogether, based on asset size, credit unions represent just 6% of the U.S. financial market. But our studies reveal that credit unions consistently distinguish themselves in an important way: They are superior in real estate loss experience to date.
Loss experience is a measurement of total losses with respect to a portfolio of loans. Total losses include all expenses associated with the sale of a home that a bank has acquired after foreclosing on a delinquent borrower. The delinquency status of these homes is also known as real estate owned (REO). In addition to the costs of maintaining and selling the REO home, banks may suffer additional loss when the sale price of the home is exceeded by the loan's current balance. Note that banks make a profit when the loan's current balance plus expenses associated with the home sale is exceeded by the sale price of the home.
Figure 1 shows a comparison of real estate delinquency rates, a leading indicator of losses, between banks and credit unions. These delinquency rates are determined as the total number of delinquent loans at the end of the calendar year divided by the total number of outstanding loans at year-end.
The delinquency rate of credit union loans is dwarfed by that of bank loans. In order to protect themselves from the potential losses associated with borrowers defaulting on their loans, both credit unions and banks generally require mortgage insurance from most home buyers who obtain a loan for more than 80% of the value of the home. Mortgage insurance benefits lenders by providing protection against losses associated with borrower default and also allows home buyers to purchase a home with as little as 3% down. These losses include the unpaid principal balance plus accumulated interest due under the loan and miscellaneous balances due less the net proceed of the sale of the home.
As an example, when doing a comparison of the state of Florida premium rates for United Guaranty Residential Insurance Company's (UGRIC) credit union loans versus its bank loans, the average premium rate is significantly lower than its non-credit union average premium rate. The comparison holds when looking at premium rates from comparable risk characteristics.
Do superior customer relations reduce risk?
Credit unions by their very nature are focused on their customers and their communities. Established as nonprofit, cooperative financial institutions, credit unions are owned and run by their members, who are linked by a common factor, typically geography or employment. Members pool their funds to make loans to one another and the profits are used to reduce interest rates on loans and increase rates on deposit vehicles. Many credit unions are run by a volunteer board, elected by members.
In general, credit unions have been less apt to securitize loans and more likely to hold them in portfolio. As a result, there is an incentive for greater underwriting scrutiny, given that most loans are held in portfolio. Risk retention has historically been and continues to be an important feature in underwriting practices for credit unions. The industry participants and regulators have recognized the value of risk retention as evidenced by the risk retention requirements found in the Dodd-Frank Act.
While credit unions are relatively small individually, their presence is widespread. According to the National Credit Union Association 2009 statistical report, there are more than 7,554 federally insured credit unions in the United States, with 89.9 million members and loans of more than $300 billion in real estate loans outstanding.
It may be precisely because credit unions are community-based that they are able to achieve superior loss performance. Credit union officers typically live and work in their communities, giving them ample opportunity to understand their markets and local economies. They also seem to have a strong sense of their customers' needs. For more than two decades, the customer satisfaction survey conducted by the American Bankers Association and Gallup consistently ranked credit unions higher than banks. It is possible that being better informed about customer needs and the local market helps credit unions enhance their underwriting performance even as they engender customer loyalty, which in turn helps reduce loan delinquency. It may also be that because credit unions are cooperative-based, the members demand higher standards of lending to ensure that their own interests in the credit union are met.
However these factors are considered for individual credit unions, the forecasting implications for the industry are clear: Credit unions demonstrate a clear and consistent advantage in real estate loan loss experience. Both credit unions and banks have adopted stricter underwriting policies because of the stresses of the current environment. It remains to be seen whether the historical superiority of credit unions will hold up in the current environment. Early indications suggest it may persist, but the jury is still out.
1 Based on data from http://www.creditunions.com and http://www.ffiec.gov/nicpubweb/nicweb/Top50form.aspx.
2 Based on a letter to Congress dated January 19, 2010, from Daniel A. Mica, president and CEO of the Credit Union National Association.


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Q: формат для чтения файла Как сделать что бы на сайте aspxотобразился текст из файла если сделать обычный .txt файл то текст  отображается Label1.Text = System.IO.File.ReadAllText(@"C:\Portal\Help.txt");но текст без форматирования просто вряд. Подскажите как можно реализовать что бы текст отображался отформатированный, т.е если текст жирный то и на сайте он должен быть жырным.

A: Немного быдлокод, но смысл ясен
Label1.Text = System.IO.File.ReadAllText(@"C:\Portal\Help.txt").Replace("<", " <").Replace(">", " >").Replace("\n", "<br/>");

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Q: SwiftUI: How can I change the color from the Button in alert? I'm new in SwiftUI and I would change the color from the "accept" button in alert if the dark mode is activated. The button should have a different color in light mode than in dark mode.
struct ContentView: View {
@State var alertShouldBeShown = !UserDefaults.standard.bool(forKey: "FirstStart")

var body: some View {
    VStack {

        Text("Hello World!")

        .alert(isPresented: $alertShouldBeShown, content: {

            Alert(title: Text("Disclaimer"),
                  message: Text("Placeholder"),
                  dismissButton: Alert.Button.default(
                    Text("Accept"), action: {
                        UserDefaults.standard.set(true, forKey: "FirstStart")
                  }
                )
            )
        })
    }
}

}

A: AFAIK You can't change the text and colours on the built-in Alert. You'll have you create your own custom alert.
For example:

struct ContentView: View {
    @State private var showAlert = false

    var body: some View {
        ZStack {
            Button(action: { showAlert = true }) {
                Text("Press")
            }
            if showAlert {
                Color.black
                    .opacity(0.1)
                CustomAlert(isPresented: $showAlert, title: "Disclaimer", bodyText: "Placeholder", buttonText: "Accept")
            }
        }
    }
}

struct CustomAlert: View {
    @Environment(\.colorScheme) private var colorScheme

    @Binding var isPresented: Bool
    var title: String
    var bodyText: String
    var buttonText: String

    var body: some View {
        ZStack {
            VStack {
                Text(title)
                    .bold()
                Text(bodyText)
                Button(action: { self.isPresented = false}) {
                    Text(buttonText)
                        .foregroundColor(colorScheme == .light ? .blue : .green)
                }
            }
            .padding(20)
            .background(
                Color.white
                    .cornerRadius(10)
            )
        }
    }
}

A: The color of the alert button is based on the tint/accent color of the app. This color can actually be dynamic for dark and light mode. The easiest way is to define the color in the asset catalog.
In the iOS 14 beta you can define the accent color for SwiftUI within the asset catalog without writing any extra code. If you want this to work in iOS 13 you should probably read this article. Use the UIColor(named: "") API if you want to use a color from your asset catalog that has different light/dark mode appearance.


Spread the love, spread the laughter, with this perky lavender and white arrangement! Bursting with snow-white alstroemeria, lavender carnations and delicate waxflower, this bouquet is finished with a glistening lavender ribbon for an extra special touch.
Offer them a bouquet blooming with fresh from the garden appeal. Pink roses, carnations, mini carnations and gerbera daisies and lush greens. Gorgeously arranged in a clear glass cube vase accented with a pink satin ribbon, this bouquet is a soft and graceful way to send your warmest sentiments.


Introducing the 2014 Chevrolet Impala. This 4 door, 5 passenger sedan still has less than 80,000 miles! It features a front-wheel-drive platform, an automatic transmission, and a refined 6 cylinder engine. It's equipped with tons of terrific amenities, but it won't break your budget. Like power windows, mirrors, and seats, 1-touch window functionality, a built-in garage door transmitter, a blind spot monitoring system, fully automatic headlights, tilt steering wheel, cruise control, and much more. Side curtain airbags deploy in extreme circumstances, shielding you and your passengers from collision forces. Our sales staff will help you find the vehicle that you've been searching for. We'd be happy to answer any questions that you may have. Please don't hesitate to give us a call.


text:
Certified Welcoming Blog
Harnessing a history of welcoming in Detroit
In April 2022, the City of Detroit, Michigan became the first place to become Certified Welcoming in the state. In this blog, we spoke with Roberto Torres, Director of Immigrant Affairs and Economic Inclusion for the City of Detroit, on the journey to achieve the Certified Welcoming designation. Background In 2015, the mayor of Detroit…
Leading in Maine: Portland's journey to become Certified Welcoming
In October 2022, the City of Portland, Maine became the first in the state to become Certified Welcoming and among the first in the New England region. In this blog, we asked Mary Davis, Interim Director of the city's Housing and Economic Development Department, and Angelina Klouthis Jean, a consultant for the city's Natural Helpers…
In October 2022, the City of Nashua, New Hampshire became the first city in the state and among the first in the region to become Certified Welcoming. In this Q&A interview, Mayor Jim Donchess shared a look back at the journey and vision for Nashua as a welcoming city. The City of Nashua was audited…
How becoming Certified Welcoming supports continuity in local programs in Dayton
Author: Maya Smith-Custer A common concern for local government welcoming programs is change, particularly staff change or organizational restructuring. While the goal is to institutionalize welcoming and immigrant inclusion work throughout local government, the work often relies on a few select staff within the local government to be the conveners and champions. As such, a…
City of Pittsburgh is now Certified Welcoming
Written by Feyisola Akintola, Special Initiatives Manager, Office of Equity, City of Pittsburgh Editor's note: On September 17, 2021, the City of Pittsburgh, PA became the twelfth place to become Certified Welcoming, and the third in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Read more about what the process was like. Pittsburgh has always been a commercial hub…
City of Erie is Now Certified Welcoming
(Photo above: Hailing from 22 countries, 52 new U.S. citizens are shown, Feb. 28, 2020, following a morning citizenship and naturalization ceremony at U.S. District Court in Erie. Credit: CHRISTOPHER MILLETTE/ERIE TIMES-NEWS) Written By Niken Astari Carpenter, New American Liaison, City of Erie Editor's note: On November 18, 2020, the City of Erie, PA became…
Leaning on Certified Welcoming values through the pandemic in Lucas County
Written by Mely Arribas-Douglas, Welcome TLC Librarian, Toledo Lucas County Public Library (Ohio) As part of our milestone in reaching 10 Certified Welcoming places this year, we hear from some of these places to see how becoming Certified Welcoming helped in the response to COVID-19, building resilience, and racial equity. In this blog, we hear…
Toward healing and uniting in Louisville
Editor's note: On March 13, Breonna Taylor, a Black medical worker in Louisville, KY, was shot in her home by police officers who entered her apartment as part of a drug investigation. Her murder, along with those of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, and countless others, sparked nationwide protests against police violence and racial discrimination. Welcoming…
How being Certified Welcoming builds resilience, inclusion in Dallas
Written by: Liz Cedillo-Pereira; Chief of Equity and Inclusion, Office of the City Manager, City of Dallas, TX & Vanna Slaughter; Senior Program Manager (retired), Office of Welcoming Communities and Immigrant Affairs, City of Dallas, TX As part of our milestone in reaching 10 Certified Welcoming places this year, we hear from some of these…


$39 Standing Room - Available at the box office on the day of the performance if the performance is sold out. Sam S. Shubert Theatre box office. 10am Monday- Saturday, 12pm Sunday. Cash or credit card. Limit 2 tickets. Standing room at back of the orchestra section. Subject to availability.
$89-$179 Regular Priced Tickets - For this ticket: $89-$179, added fees: $11 surcharge.


text:
Beercation Destination
Efraín Villa
Aurora Hunting and Craft Beering in Fairbanks, Alaska
You'll find wonder, adventure, and vibrant craft breweries in Fairbanks, Alaska. (Efraín Villa)
A winter escape to Fairbanks, Alaska, is as close as most of us non-arctic dwellers will ever get to visiting a distant, civilized planet; one populated by fascinating denizens and bedecked with beautiful, frozen landscapes encircling a cluster of vibrant breweries.
The city's otherworldliness helps explain the often-quoted slogan of Silver Gulch, the region's oldest brewery: "Fairbanks, where the people are unusual and the beer is unusually good."
Fairbanksans are also unusually hospitable, which is fortunate for tourists mystified by the quirks of subzero extremes and miniscule daylight spans. Locals seem to revel in taking visitors under their flannel-clad wings and patiently explaining the wondrous ways in which the laws of physics manifest differently in the Golden Heart City.
"Oh yeah, when you leave your car parked in 20 below zero, the air inside the tires compresses and the rubber hardens on the flat side," I overheard a cheery auto rental clerk explain to a confused customer. "We call it 'square tire.' That's why your drive might start off kind of bumpy, but the tires round off when they warm up a bit. You'll get used to it."
(MORE: Breweries with Hotels, Inns, Campgrounds and More)
Other wintry adaptations include the ubiquitous electric prongs on the front of people's bumpers, which serve as a not-so-subtle reminder that things are just different this far north. The plugs hook up to widely available outlets around town in order to keep the car's engine block toasty and operational.
For beer lovers, perhaps the most practical advent of all is the repurposed coozie, which acts as a pint mini-parka to ensure beer does not freeze while enjoying it outside near the glow of a patio "pallet bonfire." The locals are really enthusiastic about pallet bonfires, and since so much materia prima gets shipped to Alaska, pallets are never in short supply.
But the main winter peculiarity people from all over the world come to experience in Fairbanks is the inky black skies spontaneously erupting into dazzling, undulating curtains of colorful light. The aurora borealis is the obvious star of the show in these parts, and since the city provides access to many recreational amenities well within the auroral oval, it has become one of the world's prime northern lights viewing locations.
Hunting Aurora Borealis in Fairbanks
If seeing the aurora borealis is on your bucket list, you are in good company. It has been at the top of many people's bucket lists since before there were bucket lists, or even buckets.
Tourists in Fairbanks can stay at a yurt, like this one at Taste of Alaska. (Efraín Villa)
Ancient Algonquin indigenous people of North America believed the auroras were the light given off from the flames of a fire kindled by Nanabozho, their creator. Early Chinese cultures also turned to the power of story to explain this celestial phenomenon; their aurora lore likely gave birth to some of the mythical imagery we now associate with dragons. There are even legends falsely attributed to foreign tourists; the most popular being that some cultures believe conceiving a child underneath the auroras imparts special wisdom to the child. That belief is not prevalently held by any culture, but just in case, if the yurt's a rockin'… don't come a knockin'. Do stay in an ultra-cozy yurt, if you can, though. Staying in glamping yurts is an extraordinary way to chase the auroras, even if you do not plan on conceiving children in the near future.
Besides a cosmopolitan gathering of visitors, what should craft beer lovers expect to encounter while aurora hunting in Fairbanks?
(VISIT: Craft Breweries on U.S. Islands)
A Lively Fairbanks Craft Brewery Scene
At first, worldly beer enthusiasts might be surprised by Alaska's legal restrictions on the local craft beer scene. The tight regulations are designed to ensure that breweries are primarily manufacturing businesses instead of retailers, which is why under a brewer's license, taprooms are limited to serving 36-ounces of beer per customer per day and must close by 8 p.m. However, that does not mean beer lovers have to forego having a delicious craft beer in hand when aurora searching into the wee hours; enjoying to-go growlers or crowlers from the comfort of one's yurt, cabin, or lodge is very much a legal part of the brewing landscape in Alaska.
Other mainstays of breweries in other parts of the United States, however, such as live bands, games, big screens, and late-night closures, are not a legal given in Fairbanks' taprooms, but this is far from being a shortcoming. Stripped of modern inconveniences and distractions, patrons are left to engage in the throwback exercise of socializing with friends and strangers without artificial diversions.
And socialize they do!
Even though Fairbanks' craft breweries are the northernmost breweries in the country, they remain lively gathering places for both locals and tourists throughout the winter months. It is common to see food trucks serving up hot fare in frigid temperatures and beer enthusiasts enjoying their beers on outdoor patios, even when temperatures dip far below what most of us warmer-blooded weaklings would consider "patio weather."
As for the brewing standards in this city of only 31,000, the people-to-beer ratio is through the roof, so your chances of encountering high-quality beer are all but guaranteed, and unlike the auroras, clear skies are not required.
America's Northernmost Brewery
Silver Gulch Brewery is the northernmost brewery in America. It is about 12 miles north of Fairbanks in the town of Fox, Alaska, which is just a few degrees shy of being within the Arctic Circle. Its distance from city light pollution makes it an ideal spot for aurora hunters to enjoy a gourmet meal and craft beer while keeping an eye out for any sign of the auroras.
Charles 'Chilkhot' Ward is the co-founder of Silver Gulch Brewery in Fox, Alaska, about 12 miles outside Fairbanks. (Efraín Villa)
Some local delicacies you will find here include the moose barbecue bacon burger, blackened Alaskan halibut and a dozen craft beers on tap. The brewery's most popular beer is the Old 55 Pale Ale, a citric, malty delight brewed with American malt and Pacific Northwest hops.
This Fairbanks brewery stays open past the typical 8 p.m. closing time for taprooms, so aurora chasers can keep sipping well into aurora prime viewing time. If really lucky, the auroras can be viewed from the windows or decks on a clear night.
(MORE: Remarkable Brewery Taprooms)
HooDoo Brewing's '4-Ounce Bounce'
As the first brewery within Fairbanks' city limits, HooDoo Brewing is quickly becoming part of local Fairbanks folklore. Since HooDoo Brewing's owner, Bobby Wilken, is committed to preventing a single drop of customers' daily craft beer legal entitlement from being squandered on technicalities, a quirky 4-ounce pour glass is used to bridge the gap between pint glasses.
"We're legally capped at 36 ounces, but it's funny that our 4-ounce glass has sort of become part of the culture here in Fairbanks," says Wilken. "We think of ourselves here as a large home brewery serving high-quality beer to our friends, which means we want to be as generous as possible within the legal limits, and that means we don't do semi-filled pint glasses. We are the only brewery in town to provide two 16-ounce pours in a glass designed to accommodate a true 16-ounces with head and a real 4-ounce pour with head."
Bobby Wilken, founder of HooDoo Brewing in Fairbanks, Alaska, holds what locals call the "4 oz bounce." (Efraín Villa)
If you see someone holding the small glass, it is a likely sign that they are about to wrap up their beer drinking. Locals call the tiny pour the "4-ounce bounce," "penalty shot,'" and the cheekier ones refer to it as "the happy ending."
The selection of beer on tap changes frequently and Wilken is always tweaking his recipes so they stay fresh. If you are fortunate enough to be in town when the pumpkin spice beer is available, it is pretty much a delicious pumpkin pie slice in a glass. Also, the surprisingly tasty Roasted Garlic Stout is so much more than most of us ever thought a beer could be.
This Fairbanks craft brewery is a perfect place to meet locals. If you decide to keep the calories in check while vacationing, there is a running group that meets here every Thursday at 6 p.m. to start their weekly 5k run. Yes, even in winter.
The Solstice and Smoky Beers at Black Spruce Brewing Company
Something that becomes immediately apparent when exploring Fairbanks and interacting with locals is that everyone seems to be hyperaware of how many minutes of daylight were lost or gained on any given day and how far in the future or past the solstices and equinoxes are from the present. You get the sense it must be what it would have been like to hang out with Mayans or Incas. This helps explain Black Spruce Brewing Company's origin story.
The brewery was opened on the winter solstice of 2018–which, for those of us who cannot tell an equinox from a musk ox, happens on December 21. That was six months after co-owners Stephanie Haskins and Carey Fristoe tied the knot on the summer solstice of the same year. So if you are in town for any solstice, there will definitely be an anniversary party at Black Spruce Brewing Company.
Stephanie Haskins and Carey Fristoe are the founders of Black Spruce Brewing Co. in Fairbanks, Alaska. (Efraín Villa)
A unique aspect of Black Spruce Brewing Company is that it is a "dry brewery," which sounds like a contradiction in terms but essentially means that it is not connected to the municipal water system.
"In Alaska, we have to be especially aware of our environmental impact and in operating a brewery we have special circumstances that make us extra cautious of wasting valuable resources like water and electricity," says Haskins. "At the brewery, our municipal water gets delivered to us in big trucks, which sounds like an extra hurdle but we've managed and it has made us more aware of how much water we use."
As for what is brewed with all that Alaskan water, Fristoe early on noticed that locals tend to appreciate smoky flavors more than tourists, so several of their beers honor that homegrown taste.
"Here in Fairbanks, smoky flavors aren't at all exotic because we're used to eating smoked foods, like salmon," Fristoe says. "We sometimes have to convince tourists to give smoky beers a try, but we never have to sell it much to a local."
For some of that local smoky flavor, try the PM 2.5 Rauchweiss, which is a smoked hefeweizen, and then ask about the name to get a very interesting story about the clash between nature and man.
If you are visiting at the beginning of any month, Fairbanks hosts a monthly First Friday Art Walk in which Black Spruce Brewing Company participates by showcasing local artists' work. A portion of all art sales goes to non-profit organizations, including the Fairbanks Rescue Mission, Fairbanks Animal Shelter and the Fairbanks Arts Association.
(EPIC ROAD TRIP: New England Breweries Off the Beaten Path)
Fairbanks Brewery Keeps the Dive in 'Dive Bar'
Midnite Mine Brewing Company has been open for less than a year in the city's revitalized downtown. This newest Fairbanks craft brewery is the brainchild of Talon Mensik and his family. His grandparents bought the building in 2017 to take over the bar downstairs, while Mensik opted for launching his nanobrewery and taproom upstairs.
As a perennial watering hole, the old Midnite Mine bar catered to the clientele of the 1970s waning gold rush as well as the pipeline workers and coal miners that followed. Later, the bar served as a popular community gathering spot. Locals were happy to see it infused with new energy and a slightly new look under new ownership.
Talon Mensik shows off a beer at Midnite Mine, a nanobrewery in Fairbanks, Alaska. (Efraín Villa)
"We're protective of our dive bars in Fairbanks and this is basically a home brewery on not-so-powerful-steroids tucked away into one of Fairbanks well-known dive bars," says Mensik.
The relaxed vibe comes with some pretty amusing trappings, like rumors of a resident dog named Cleo being able to pick up customers' beer money and tips and deliver them to the register. "Cleo is like a friendly strip club bouncer," laughs Mensik. "She takes pride in nudging people to tip."
Patrons are able to sample not just the craft beers Mensik is cranking out on the one-barrel operation, but also other Alaskan brewers' creations. He says they do not offer growlers because "our beer is way too precious to sell in those quantities." Instead, they have some options of pre-filled 16-ounce crowlers available.
Parting Tips on Aurora Hunting
It is important to keep in mind that the northern lights are unpredictable and can appear any time during the night, or not at all. Generally, the best time to try to catch glimpses of the auroras is from 9 p.m. to 2 a.m. from August to April. Many hotels offer "aurora call" options, so the front desk can call your room if the auroras appear while you are sleeping off a night of brewery exploration. The duration of the auroras is also unpredictable, they can last just a few moments or long enough to give you time to drive away from light pollution for a better view.
Thankfully, there are so many amazing activities in the Fairbanks region besides aurora hunting, that even if the auroras do not cooperate during your visit, you can leave with amazing memories of exotic adventures. There are so many to list! There's dog mushing, ice fishing, snowmobiling (called "snow machining" in these parts), yoga with reindeer. If you head to the nearby Chena Hot Springs Resort, you can have a martini served up in a hand-sculpted ice glass at the ice museum and memorialize your time in the Last Frontier with a selfie of your elaborately frozen hairstyle.
With or without auroras, you will be in a stunningly beautiful region of the world, so sit back, take a long sip of your delicious Fairbanks craft beer and, once in a while, ease off from desperately scanning the gorgeous heavens in order to appreciate the remarkable wonders beneath it.
Aurora Hunting and Craft Beering in Fairbanks, Alaska was last modified: February 9th, 2022 by Efraín Villa
Efraín VillaAuthor Website
Efraín is a photographer, actor, writer and global wanderer whose endless quest for randomness has taken him to more than 50 countries in five continents. His writing has appeared on NPR's Weekend Edition, the Good Men Project, TravelWorld International Magazine, Zymurgy, as well as Spanish language publications. While not running his consulting firm in Albuquerque, he is busy devouring exotic foods in faraway countries and avoiding adulthood while wearing the least amount of clothes possible. His travel stories dealing with the messiness, humor and beauty of cultural collisions can be found on AimlessVagabond.com.


After pick-up by your personal English speaking guide at the airport in Banjarmasin transfer to hotel Swisbel, directly in front of Martapura river.
Visit to one of these traditional mines. In Martapura, famous in allSouth-East Asiafor its diamond, gems and gold market, visit of a gem grindery.
In Martapura, visit to shopping complex Cahaya Bumi Selamat, possibility to buy some gems. Then your trip continues next 125 km (approx. 3 hours) north-east toprovinceofHulu Sungai Selatan.
After breakfast in the lodge, you'll drive to Loksado village to reach Longhouse at Malaris village passing hanging bridge by walking in approximetally 15 minutes, here live the native of Dayak Bukit.
Then continiue to Tanuhi hot spring,you can relax on the swimming pool, return to lodge for having lunch.
Afternoon start for a sensational voyage on Amandit River on a traditional bamboo float!
Sekonyer Riveris a habitat for some rare alligator species, that's why swimming in the river is strictly forbidden. On the deck you will experience the tranquillity and also the roar of the jungle. This voyage is really an unforgettable experience! During your journey, your personal cook will prepare a delicious dinner.
After this unique experience trek back to Pondok Tanggui and then up the stream again approx. 2 hours toCampLeakey. Lunch will be served on deck.
Please, always follow the ranger's instructions and never feed Orang Utans by yourself and do not drink or eat in front of them! During dry season the place is commonly visited by wild Orang Utans as well.
After breakfast at Rimba Ecolodge check-out and embarking again your personal houseboat - return to Kumai then by car transfer to the airport for your next destination.


China's investment in property development expanded 10.2 percent year on year in the first five months of this year, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said Thursday.
The growth was slightly slower than 10.3 percent in the January-April period.
Investment in real estate development stood at 4.1 trillion yuan (about 650 billion U.S. dollars) in the first five months, according to the NBS.
Residential real estate investment reached 2.9 trillion yuan, up 14.2 percent year on year, with the growth flat with that of the first four months.
Investment grew fastest in the northeastern region -- 19.9 percent -- up 9.2 percentage points from the January-April period.
Real estate developers were built about 6.8 billion square meters of housing in the first five months, up 2 percent year on year.
Commercial housing sales measured by floor area rose 2.9 percent year on year, up 1.6 percentage points compared with the first four months. Sales in value climbed 11.8 percent, up 2.8 percentage points.
At the end of May, about 560 million square meters of housing was unsold in China, down 6.8 million square meters from a month earlier.


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Еудженіо Волк (; 4 лютого 1915, Чернігів — 17 червня 1995, Мальязо) — італійський військовий діяч, піонер італійського підводного плавання.

Біографія
Родина Еудженіо Волка належала до російського дворянства і після Жовтневого перевороту була вимушена мігрувати. Спочатку вона знайшла притулок у Константинополі, потім в Таранто і у 1919 році в Римі. У 1927 році Волк отримав італійське громадянство.

Друга світова війна
У червні 1940 року при Морській академії () в Ліворно було відкрито Школу бойових плавців (), командування якою було доручено Волку. Пізніше Волк переїхав у Ла-Спеція, щоб продовжити підготовку бойових плавців на борту крейсера «Сан Марко».

Після рейду на Суда-Бей 25 березня 1941 року, з метою протидіяти контрзаходам британців, спрямованим на недопущення атак 10-ї флотилії MAS на порти союзників Еудженіо Волк вивчав можливість використання мініатюрних підводних човнів, які могли би транспортувати бойових плавців Групи «Гамма» всередину портів союзників.

Під час перебування в Ліворно плітку 1941 року мав нагоду познайомитись з лейтенантом Еудженіо Массано (), який був новим заступником командувача школи в Ліворно, якою сам Волк командував незадовго до того, як висунув свою ідею. Волк представив свою ідею командувачу 10-ї флотилії MAS Вітторіо Моккагатта (), який, проте, відхилив її. Тим не менше, Волк розпочав відповідні тренування за допомогою командира одного з човнів типу «CB». Коли ця діяльність Волка стала відома, він знову був відправлений в Ліворно, але ці тренування викликали зацікавлення командування флоту, яке наказало Массано продовжити проект.

Після капітуляції Італії зустрівся з Юніо Валеріо Боргезе, який запропонував Волку прийняти командування групою «Гамма» 10-ї флотилії MAS, яка перейшла на сторону Італійської соціальної республіки. Заступником командувача був лейтенант Луїджі Ферраро ().

Після закінчення війни перебував у таборі для військовополонених на островах Лідо, де був розміщений в казармі «Пепе» (). У червні 1945 року офіцер ВМС Великої Британії Лайонел Креб () запропонував Волку та його плавцям взяти участь у розмінуванні порту Венеції. Полонені, які прийняли пропозицію, були доставлені на острів Сант-Андреа (), де розташовувалось командування Союзних експериментальних морських сил (), де вони користувались повною свободою на території всього острова; їх не тримали за ґратами та не охороняли.

Після закінчення цієї діяльності Волк разом із сім'єю вирушив до Аргентини, де йому було доручено організувати школу водолазів-рятувальників.

Примітки

Бібліографія
 Bruna Pompei, Eugenio Wolk «Lupo» — Comandante dei Gamma della X Mas, Ritter, 368 pag.

Див. також
 Група «Гамма»

Посилання
 Eugenio Wolk
 Anaim — Scheda — visto 3 marzo 2009
 Battaglione San Marco — visto 3 marzo 2009

Італійські військовики

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


A submersible drone to track and bait fish could dramatically change how anglers trawl the seas for their catch of the day.
Makers of the robotic PowerRay claim the underwater drone can give fishermen an up close and personal view of 30 meters beneath the waves - and can even entice aquatic creatures with a blue "fish luring light".
"The sonar system can detect fish up to 40 meters or 131 feet below the robot, making the total diving depth up to 70 meters or 230 feet with precision up to 10 centimeters or 3.9 inches," according to Beijing-based manufacturer PowerVision.
The 7-pound drone is being pitched as a tool for anglers, with recreational fishers encouraged to make use of its Wi-Fi capabilities to view images with VR goggles or on mobile devices.
A promo video for the PowerRay reveals how the machine aims to dupe prey by mimicking the underwater movement of fish and dropping bait remotely.
The underwater drone bears a strong resemblance to angler fish, which use "antennae" lures to draw in unsuspecting prey.
The device was just one of a number of futuristic developments to feature at the recent Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas.
"Recreational fishing is one of the lifestyle areas that has not seen major technology breakthroughs," PowerVision CEO Wally Zheng said.


Barry's Relatively Speaking shares the personal experiences and stories of genealogists found in the Everton Genealogical Helper Magazine collection on MyGenShare.com. H. D. Nunn shares the following experience.
This is an experience my great grandmother, Sidney D. Evans, had as a young married woman.
She was living in a log cabin in Johns Township, Appanoose Co., Iowa. Early one morning two horsemen came riding up, dismounted, and at gunpoint ordered her to feed them breakfast; which she did. After eating they rode off as suddenly as they had appeared. She did not know who she had fed until a week or so later when she received her newspaper. Jessie and Frank James had robbed the Griffinsville, la., bank the very same day she had been forced to feed breakfast to two strangers.


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Located in Clarksdale, Mississippi
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The Delta Blues Foundation General Fund is for those that want to contribute to the Museum, without having to choose a particular campaign.
With your contribution to the Foundation - the Museum can continue to grow through additional programs, exhibits and special events. However, the growth doesn't stop there - your contribution to the Foundation also gives the Museum the ability to expand and improve upon our current educational programs and exhibits.
All this and more - with Many Thanks to you.
Become a part of the Museum today by helping us continue to Keep the Blues Alive!
Here's how you can Donate to the Delta Blues Foundation:
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OR...Send your check or money order payable to Delta Blues Foundation to:
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Please be sure to note "General Fund" on your payment.
Donations of any amount are appreciated. Special naming opportunities are available, please contact the Museum for more details. Thank you for helping us to continue to broaden our efforts to preserve the Blues for generations to come.
Expanding the Experience
Since its creation in 1979, the Delta Blues Museum has worked to preserve, interpret, and encourage a deep interest in the story of the Blues.
We are the oldest music museum in Mississippi, and we honor the culture and the musicians that shaped this deeply rooted art form.
As a public educational institution, our vision is to ‐
Encourage a deep interest in the story of the Blues and those who shape, play and preserve it
Foster a clear and a comprehensive understanding of the relationship between the Blues and other forms of American music
Provide relevant, creative educational programs, performances, exhibits and visitor experiences
Create a museum environment where ideas are shared with objectivity and respect for our diverse audiences
With this vision in mind, the Delta Blues Museum continues to expand current exhibits, create new installations and expand upon our educational programs. Your donations will enable us to continue offering programs and exhibits to feature the history of Clarksdale's Blues culture, as told by the musicians and the music they created.
Delta Blues Museum
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The Delta Blues Foundation is a qualified 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization. All funds solicited through the Delta Blues Foundation are raised on behalf of benefiting the Delta Blues Museum. On-line tax deductible contributions to the Delta Blues Foundation include the Deeper Roots program and the General Fund (a monetarily unrestricted contribution made to the foundation in support of the museum). Memberships and the Buy a Brick program are funded directly to the Delta Blues Museum and are not considered tax deductible.
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DELTA BLUES MUSEUM HIGHLIGHTS
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I have know multi-talented artist Glenn Szegedy for a couple of years, having photographed some of his work for his portfolio. I only recently asked him to pose for a portrait though, after wanting to ask him for some time. Things get in the way. Time passes. I have found that I need to make myself go out and flip some bits on the digital sensor occasionally and not just sit on the merits (or lack) of what I have shot in the past. It's important for me to make things happen and not wait for them to occur, because they probably won't.
I wanted to photograph Glenn in his studio because it really provides an ideal background visually, and it reflects Glenn's way of working and maybe his style. He seemed to want to straighten up, but I wanted to capture his working world just as I found it.
You can also visit him at Western Avenue Studios in Lowell, Massachusetts.
One of These Things is Not Like The Other...one of these things is not the same (Apologies to Sesame Street!) This bit was always a favorite at my house when my son was little. But I was thinking this morning about photography (there's a shock), and how applicable this verse is. When we get started creating photographs the normal path to learning the art is to focus on technique and to imitate and emulate the masters. When I was a teenager my parents bought that great Time-Life book series on photography for me. I remember waiting anxiously for each edition to arrive and would get inspired by every page. The contemporary photographers at that time had a huge influence on me. My mind is still firmly rooted in the look of images created by Arnold Newman, Pete Turner, Irving Penn and Richard Avedon. But there's a time when you need to be yourself. Imitation, emulation and outright copying are fine for a while, but whatever your art may be it has, at some point, to stand out from the crowd; to be unlike the others.
Seth: When everyone has a camera, and everyone thinks they are a photographic artist, it's clear that access to the device is not a scarce resource. If that's all you've got, I'm not going to pay you. The art isn't in the taking of the picture. The art is in what you do the other 21 hours in a day.
If you don't like that, you should become an amateur and do what you love, but don't expect to get paid for it!
Independent portrait photographers who are consistently creating images that could be mistaken for those from a retail studio should take notice. Of course there are always clients who want a basic, "school picture day" portrait, but even there, it's really important to raise that bar. If some potential client is comparing a handful of photographers and, absent any referrals to or prior knowledge about them, they all present the same style and quality, and one is the Mall retail portrait store, then the only thing these photographers have to differentiate themselves is price and possibly location. Google the portrait store at your local Mall and you will come to a very quick conclusion as to which one wins on price. In fact, lowering your price will not even help, unless you make it $0. If this sounds familiar you are selling a commodity. Wikipedia, (which knows all :-), defines commodity as "some good for which there is demand, but which is supplied without qualitative differentiation across a market. It is fungible, i.e. the same no matter who produces it." Sound familiar?
Seth: Stop looking for more business! The most important thing is to reinvent what it is you sell and to overwhelm your current clients with the experience they encounter when they engage you. This is what word of mouth will come from. Not from better photos, not from a better brochure, not from a cheaper price.
Melissa said that she was nervous. I couldn't tell. But we talked about all kinds of things as I arranged lights and modifiers. Melissa works in health care, and her friend Matthew, who came with her to the shoot, works on a sustainable farming project, so we had lots to talk about. She even asked about me, which was really nice, so for a while we talked about music and photography. I was hoping that her nervousness had dissipated by this point, and I was happy to hear her say a little while into it that she was enjoying the shoot.
I think sometimes that a subject's nervousness is actually excitement. Excitement about the event, the process and the whole idea of being literally and figuratively, the focus of attention for that short time.
Like it or not, we all change. Change is a part of life. Change is good...right? Well, in any event, it also means that images of ourselves that we show to the world, which are meant to represent ourselves as we are today, need to be updated periodically. We've all seen the business headshot or talent headshot that was either shot in a style that looks dated now or that features the subject at their ideal age - however long ago that might have been. I don't exclude myself from this category! Recently, I had my son, who is a very talented photographer, photograph me for my web site, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc. I feel that professional photos of ourselves are an essential part of building an online personality. You can see my new images by checking out any of these sites. Please do! :-) The buttons are to your right.
Last week, one of my favorite Boston area actresses, Kristin Smith, asked me to do just such an update of her acting headshots. She wanted an outdoor setting, so we dodged the raindrops and braved the unbelievable black fly onslaught to get some great stuff. I haven't retouched these headshots, but clearly Kristin needs no improvement!
Now when I say "professional", please don't equate that with "formal", or "school-picture-day" style. While a certain style is often dictated by the usage that you foresee for a portrait, in many contexts, you and your photographer should feel free... be creative! These photos of Kristin are actor headshots, and therefore do need to have a certain look. But they can always have beautiful backgrounds, colors and lighting. Seamless background paper is easy and fairly fool-proof, but there are certainly more interesting ways to handle headshots. When you have your corporate or acting headshot done, definitely get the prerequisite style of shot done. But also try to do several different looks, backgrounds, outfits, and if possible, venues.


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US government, state government, Congress, government jobs &amp more.
Azil politic – Wikipedia
Law of the United States
Federal Register :: Suggested Search
Our Sick Body Politic | National Review
The Government Shutdown Was the Longest Ever. Here's the History.
Functions of Government
Political News – Washington DC Politics
Transactional Law Clinics
What Game of Thrones teaches us about politics
WARNING: The first two paragraphs spoil arguably the two biggest plot twists in Game of Thrones. Also, winter is coming. Fantastical as it is, George R.R. Martin's Game of Thrones, and the HBO series which has launched it into mainstream pop culture, is rooted firmly in the personal and political […]
WARNING: The first two paragraphs spoil arguably the two biggest plot twists in Game of Thrones. Also, winter is coming.
Fantastical as it is, George R.R. Martin's Game of Thrones, and the HBO series which has launched it into mainstream pop culture, is rooted firmly in the personal and political experiences of life. Martin is famous for holding no character above the world's cruelties, and showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss have remained loyal to the creed. Beheading the show's ostensible lead and moral anchor, Lord Eddard Stark (played by Sean Bean), in the first season's penultimate episode should be proof enough of that.
But Martin, Benioff, and Weiss resist the next cliché as well: Lord Stark's firstborn son and heir, Robb, far from avenging his father's death, is himself assassinated in even grislier fashion, along with his mother and his wife and unborn child. This scene, aptly referred to as "The Red Wedding"—did I mention it happens at a wedding?—has scarred the minds of readers and viewers alike. In a recent interview, Martin recalls getting letters from fans saying they promptly tossed their books into the fire after reading the Red Wedding scene 13 years ago, and tweets following last week's TV depiction of the same are largely in the vein of this: "NOPE I'M OUT I QUIT I'M DONE GAME OF THRONES HAS KILLED ME GOODBYE CRUEL WORLD IT WAS NICE LIVING."
But perhaps fans shouldn't have been surprised by the demise of so many "good guys." As queen-regent Cersei Lannister tells the ill-fated Ned Stark, "When you play the game of thrones, you win or you die."
Could this Westerosi aphorism apply to contemporary American politics? Our legislators don't have to worry about literal executions and massacres. But Cersei's remark is more than just a threat; it's a refutation of the righteous Lord Stark's entire approach to public affairs. In the game of thrones, as in the game of politics, there is no such thing as The Noble Loser.
"In books and movies when a major character dies, we're used to a bittersweet final moment. The death speech," Benioff told Entertainment Weekly. "You don't get that here at all. There's no redemptive moment. There's just horror and slaughter. You want revenge so quickly for it and you're not getting it, so you're deprived of even that satisfaction."
In its characters' machinations and hypocrisies, Thrones distances itself from a structure that can exist only in literature. The patterns it follows are those of life and history, in which good guys and good causes don't always win.
In the 2000 presidential election, Al Gore won the popular vote. If not for a contested Supreme Court decision, he would have won the electoral college as well. But Gore lost, and his role in U.S. history was overshadowed by his victorious opponent, President George W. Bush. Thirteen years later, it's Bush's policies (and the reaction to them) that inform our current political debate.
Barack Obama did not win in '08 or '12 because a majority of the country agreed with his left-of-center, pragmatic ideology. He won because those who agreed were aggressively pursued and encouraged to vote by the most successful political operation in U.S. history. There's a reason it's called "Game" of Thrones. Only those who play the game stand to win. And as the harsh medieval realities of Westeros influence the Thrones players' brutal tactics, 21st century American politics shapes the way our representatives try to influence public policy.
The catch, in Thrones and in life, is that the best players are often not the best leaders. Some manipulate the rules merely to retain their power—like the Lannisters do in Thrones—with little care for those they represent or rule.
"We're all in a survival mode, all of us are…It's just human," said Sen. Joe Manchin at the New York Ideas conference last month, in a discussion about why his bill to expand background checks on gun sales failed to pass. "In your job you're going to make some adjustments. Sometimes you do things you don't really agree with or like to, but you think 'I got to do this right now because my job my might depend on it, my livelihood.' Why would you put a politician any higher than that?"
The instinct for survival, Manchin argues, drove a number of those who agreed with expanded background checks to vote the other way. "'I've got to decide how much I want to take on,'" he says, imagining the thought process of one of his fellow pols. The gun groups have "'a lot of money…They might not be for me, but do they really have to go out and be against me?'"
If votes represent job security to politicians, and if money (through ads) can influence votes, then should it surprise anyone that politicians use hyperbolic, sometimes insincere rhetoric to gin up support from constituents and lobbyists?
Recently Senator Ted Cruz said he wants to "abolish the IRS." Forget that "it's the most complex idea in government since the invention of the IRS," as msnbc's Lawrence O'Donnell noted last week on The Last Word, "like saying we're going to get rid of rain." Forget that the likelihood of abolishing the IRS is basically zero in a divided government. Ted Cruz "has the highest net approval rating of major politicians in the state, besting Perry, John Cornyn, and Barack Obama," according to a recent PPP survey.
Let his opponents whine all they like about the insanity of his remarks. Ted Cruz is playing the game of thrones. And he's playing well.
All this is not to say that John Kerry is Ned Stark, or Dick Cheney is Tywin Lannister. There are no direct allegorical parallels. But the themes in Game of Thrones, wrapped as they are in dragons, magic, and white walkers, tell us something important about power and politics: the game itself is indifferent. Nowhere is this more evident than in the gruesome slaughter of good guys at The Red Wedding.
Fourth National Climate Assessment
Ecosystems and the benefits they provide to society are being altered by climate change, and these impacts are projected to continue. Without substantial and sustained reductions in global greenhouse gas emissions, transformative impacts on some ecosystems will occur; some coral reef and sea ice ecosystems are already experiencing such transformational […]
Im-Politic: Biden's Massive China Fakery
Clubs: The body politic | Rotary International
Berita Politik Hari Ini Nasional
International law is a 'political construct' and breaking it is 'routine', Tory MP says
UW Press – : Landscape, Nature, and the Body Politic From Britain's Renaissance to America's New World Kenneth Robert Olwig Foreword by Yi-Fu Tuan
Even After Years Of Brutal War, The Allies Were Not Prepared For Buchenwald's Horrors


Beat Drop Kids after-school programs for children ages 8-14 are for kids looking to develop their musical ability in a fun and modern way. Each program focuses on unique ways to create and/or perform.
This weekly class is for kids who love music and are interested in learning how to DJ.
A weekly class that teaches electronic music production using today's industry standard production software Ableton Live.


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Fort Necessity
National Battlefield Pennsylvania
Historic Weapons Program
The 4 1/2 inch mortar fired a 6 pound exploding bomb with an effective of range of approximately one quarter of a mile.
Fort Necessity National Battlefield offers daily living history programs during the summer months. These programs are conducted by park staff in period uniforms and dress. These programs generally conclude with a loading and firing demonstration of an historic black powder weapon used at either Fort Necessity or the Braddock Campaign. The demonstrations vary and are subject to change, but include a musket or artillery firing. All members of the park staff that conduct these demonstrations complete official black powder training according to NPS guidelines and are certified by the Park's historic weapons supervisor. For more information regarding Fort Necessity's Historic Weapons Program, please contact the Visitor Center at 724-329-5805 or contact Brian Reedy at 724-329-5470.
The basic infantry weapon used by combatants during both the Fort Necessity and Braddock campaigns was a smoothbore flintlock musket
A variety of black powder weapons were used by the various forces of British, French and Native Americans involved in the Fort Necessity and Braddock Campaigns of 1754 and 1755. The strengths and weaknesses of these weapons had a major impact on the final outcome of these campaigns.
Smoothbore muskets were the primary weapons. The main British musket used at the time was the .75 caliber King's Musket, Land Pattern. France relied on the .69 caliber M1728 model musket. Native Americans used a variety of lighter and cheaper made trade muskets, such as the .62 caliber Fusi de Chasse.
Muskets were not very accurate. They had an effective range at aimed point targets of only 60 to 80 yards. Rifles of the time had an effective range of 125 yards at aimed point targets. To get the most effective use out of their inaccurate weapons, armies fought in compact line formations, firing many guns at the enemy all at one time.
The tactic of firing muskets in by soldier in ranks increased the probability of hitting the enemy.
Despite the advantages of both range and accuracy offered by the rifle, armies of the time relied on the smooth bore musket. This was largely due to the ease, simplicity and speed of loading that the smoothbore musket offered over the more complicated and slower loading rifle. This difference was due to the simplicity of the design of the ammunition used by the smooth bore called the cartridge. The musket cartridge contained both powder and ball rolled together in paper. This combination simplified the loading process, eased the training of soldiers and sped up the load time of the weapon. In the time that it took to load and fire just one shot from a rifle, three could be loaded and fired from a smooth bore musket.
The Swivel Gun could fire grape shot or a half pound solid shot ball with an effective range at an aimed point target of only about 30 yards.
Artillery's principal use in the Ohio country frontier was intended for siege or defensive operations. During the Fort Necessity campaign of 1754, Washington's Virginia Regiment brought nine swivel guns that were the only artillery used at the battle. The swivel gun was designed for naval use to sweep the deck of enemy ships at close range with grape shot. It had little impact on the outcome of the battle at Fort Necessity. The following year the numerous siege guns brought by general Braddock's army for besieging Fort Duquesne included four 12 pound field guns, six 6 pound field guns, four 8 inch howitzers and fifteen 4 1/2 inch mortars. However, these pieces never reached their objective and were left behind by the British after Braddock's defeat.


Suffering from sparkly party dress fatigue already? Fear not, girlie and frou-frou isn't your only wardrobe option this Christmas. Chloë Sevigny and Rose Byrne both stepped out in off-beat androgynous fashion looks yesterday, and provided us with some major style inspiration. Chloë Sevigny went all out masculine in a loose fitting suit, but added feminine touches in her signature quirky way with a dogtooth check blouse, red lips and matching bow-topped platform courts. She brings new meaning to the phrase city slicker, eh?
Rose Byrne kept it a little more girlie and figure-fitting in cigarette trousers, a polka-dot shirt and patent pumps. Her all-important styling trick? Buttoning the shirt right to the top for a preppy, boyish feel. Think classic Alexa Chung and you're bang on the money.


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Weezer Bundle iPhone Christmas Carols on EP
Rivers Cuomo seeking musicians via YouTube
By Matthew Solarski
Citizens of the world without iPhones (I hear there are a few of you), weep not: Weezer feel your pain, and agree that just because you don't have some trendy gadget doesn't mean you should be denied the joy that is Christmas With Weezer.
As you'll recall, your fave fan-friendly foursome recently cut six holiday jingles for a Tap Tap Revenge-derived iPhone/iPod touch gaming app called Christmas With Weezer. At the moment, said jingles are available only to those who grab the game, but come December 16, anyone who can use iTunes or Amazon.com's MP3 service can score the Christmas With Weezer digital EP from DGC/Interscope, featuring all six songs "with full vocal harmonies." Who knew "The Greatest Man That Ever Lived" was Santa Claus?
And it wouldn't be a Weezer update without something else slightly wacky going down. It appears Rivers Cuomo is continuing his dual love affairs with YouTube (through which he conducted a fan-driven songwriting project earlier this year) and being kinda weird, having launched a search for musically-inclined web-users to help him perform a few songs off his recent Alone II: The Home Recordings of Rivers Cuomo. Rivers has already secured an a cappella group to back him through his cover of the Beach Boys' "Don't Worry Baby", and is now "looking for real top-notch, kick-butt pianists" to pound out the repeated chords of "I Was Scared":
Embed not available
The resulting (jam session-esque?) performance will apparently appear on Stereogum, and here's the weird part: Rivers seems to be slowing down his voice with each successive YouTube video. Okay then, dude.
Christmas With Weezer:
01 We Wish You a Merry Christmas
02 O Come All Ye Faithful
03 O Holy Night
04 The First Noel
05 Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
TagsWeezerRivers CuomoRock


How to a dynamic row in a table using Razor view in MVC4?
Home > DeveloperSection > Forums > How to a dynamic row in a table using Razor view in MVC4?
My problem is that I want this table like a grid control and when I click on "Add Customer" button, a blank row will be added in the grid control.
Re: How to a dynamic row in a table using Razor view in MVC4?


Nice! I just finished a masters degree under Seligman. Strengths are a key part. If I were you, I'd take the test on the viame.org website, cause then you can upgrade your results if you want. The basic thing is still free though.
The VIA strengths test is the only free psychometrically valid strengths test in the world. I am glad you are encouraging people to use it.
btw, we share a lot of the same strengths. Except my top strength is creativity. You though, with zest and humor, sound like more fun ; ) What did you think of your results?
Wow. looking around the blog more…so are you going to MAPP?
Yes. Immersion week will begin on September 4.


Shaky Kane(AKA the British gent Michael Coulthard) is a comics writer & artist who began his career working on popular British indy comics magazines such as Deadline, Revolver, and Escape Magazine. Kane's hallucinatory and psychedelic style stems from his love of classic punk rock flyer and poster art and comics masters like Jack Kirby, Ed 'Big Daddy' Roth, and Brendan McCarthy, just to name a few.
Coming off the heels of the critically acclaimed Bulletproof Coffin Volumes 1 & 2, Shaky Kane and writer David Hine return with this week's Cowboys and Insects 1-Shot(bottom image), published by Floating World Comics(distributed by Alternative Comics).
Additional credits: 2000 AD, Judge Dredd, Elephantmen, Tank Girl, and many more!


ISBN: 9780906094136 | Published by: Gibb Memorial Trust | Series: Gibb Memorial Trust Arabic Studies | Year of Publication: 1980 | Language: English	344p, H210 x W149 (mm) p.
Poems of 'Abid and 'Amir are found in other works but the 11th-century MS in the British Library on which this edition is based is unique. Both are tribal poets of the Jahiliyyah, the period before Islam. 'Abd ibn al-Abras, regarded as one of the best pre-Islamic poets, was contemporary with the greatest of them all, Imru' al-Qais of Kindah, and his poems reflect the events of the first half of the 6th century, such as the attempt and ultimate failure of the Princes of Kindah to impose their hegemony on the nomads of northern Arabia, among them 'Abid's tribe, the Bani Asad, who slew Imru' al-Qais's father, Hujr. 'Amir's tribe, on the other hand, dwelt in Central Arabia, some distance to the West of Mecca and he was a contemporary of the Prophet Muhammad. 'Amir remained pagan but, though he is credited by some accounts with bitter hostility to Islam, his poems are mainly concerned with war and rivalry with neighbouring tribes.


The number and types of network-connected wireless devices continues to grow unabated. BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) has become the norm, and enterprise networks have moved beyond connecting laptops, smartphones, and tablets. Now, the emerging IoT (Internet of Things) technology is bringing new device types to the enterprise in virtually every industry.
The shifting device landscape from corporate-owned to employee-owned, and users' growing reliance on the Internet, also puts device and application layer security in the limelight. Recent surveys indicate almost 50% of IT decision-makers rate wireless LANs among the two most vulnerable areas of their IT infrastructure.
On top of this unprecedented growth, users expect a more unified access experience— one that ensures consistent application and device policies across both wired and wireless environments, and across multiple devices per user.
Securing business communications, personal information, financial Transactions, and mobile devices involves much more than network access control. It requires scanning for malware, preventing access to malicious websites, end-point integrity checking, controlling application usage, and much more.
But typical Wi-Fi solutions do not cater to these requirements. They only address connectivity and access security. Security above Layer 2 is typically provided as an overlay by a variety of security appliances, or as a cut-down security feature inside the product, which often conflicts with any existing UTM or firewall on-site. Aspire Tech's network access solutions are different. They include comprehensive world-class network security at their core.
Aspire Tech's Secure Access Solution ensures the same award-winning security that is validated by independent certification agencies (NSS Labs, etc.) is available to every type of Wi-Fi deployment, from a stand-alone AP in an isolated office, to a handful of APs in a retail store, to thousands of APs deployed across a large campus or even a distributed enterprise.
To meet the diverse requirements of different use cases from large to small, on-premise versus cloud-based management, and organizational differences, different WLAN solutions and topologies have emerged.


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VerificationApplication2013
The Ubuntu Portugal community (Ubuntu-PT) is the community responsible for supporting, translating, and spreading Ubuntu in Portugal. This community is a group of volunteers who are dedicated not only to promote the use of the operating system Ubuntu and free software in general, but also to help and give support to the Portuguese users through our mailing list, IRC channel, etc.
We have a Community Council that consists of 5 members of the Portuguese community who are responsible for guiding the participation of the other members of the community, making decisions on the actions and projects developed and arbitrate in matters related to community image and behavior of its members. The Council members are Ana Figueiras (Coordinator), Flávio Martins, Jaime Pereira, Miguel Gomes and Tiago Carrondo.
The Ubuntu Portugal community also has a Social Media Team, a Translations Team, and an Events Team.
Date - 19 November 2013
Team Contact - Ana Figueiras
Membership - 201 as of 23 October 2013
Portuguese Community Council Members - Ana Figueiras (Coordinator); Flávio Martins; Jaime Pereira; Miguel Gomes; Tiago Carrondo.
Ubuntu Members - Ana Figueiras; Fernando Miguel; João Neves; Marco da Silva; Pedro Fragoso; Tiago Carrondo and others.
Launchpad Team - https://launchpad.net/~ubuntu-pt
Mailing List - ubuntu-pt on lists.ubuntu.com
IRC - #ubuntu-pt on freenode
Improve the organization of the Portuguese LoCo Team
Do better translations and improve consistency
Promote Ubuntu and the use of open source software in general - organize more release parties, have stands at fairs and other events, organize dissemination activities, etc.
Organize regular LoCo Team meetings
Spread Ubuntu
Ubuntu Portugal Global Jams
Ubuntu Portugal Release Parties - 10.04, 12.04, 13.04, and 13.10
Ubuntu Portugal Lisbon meetings
Ubuntu Portugal Online meetings
Open Week 2013 - C.F.R.P. de Alcoitão - Oct 15, 2013
Ubuntu event organized by the Flavitu - Linux project - Jul 4, 2013
Open Week 2012 - Sep 24, 2012
Ubuntu Portugal and PT Girl Geek Dinners Mix Event - Sep 19, 2012
Ubuntu presentation at the Software Freedom Day, in Lisbon - Sep 17, 2011
Ubuntu 9.10 CD distribution in Lisbon - Oct 31, 2009
Ubuntu stand at the First Free Software Forum, in Lisbon - Oct 12, 2007
We have a very strong online presence with a website always up-to-date and profiles in almost every social media website. Our Facebook page, with 864 likes, is where we share news, events, and occasionally help users that have questions and problems. Both the community and the translations mailing lists are pretty active also.
We are currently improving our translations team, trying to build more support material for the translations and improving consistency. Our translations team is currently led by Filipe Pinho and Maria Loureiro. The translations team has a separate mailing list.
Although we don't have a specific team for support we have been able to help the other users of the community with their problems through our communication channels. Help is usually provide through the mailing list, on local events and meetings, on the #ubuntu-pt channel, and occasionally also through our Facebook page. Most request are answered quite quickly.
PortugalTeam/VerificationApplication2013 (last edited 2013-11-03 17:03:39 by afigueiras)


Happy Monday!!!First of all, I want to give a BIG HUGE CONGRATS to Katie, the lovely diva who hosts this marvelous party, and her beautiful baby boy, Rocco. What a wonderful gift to be given! I wish the whole family the best! 😀 This past weekend has been a marvelous one!!With one exception… Heat. Wave. uuuuggghhhhh. It was all weird, cold and rainy exactly one week ago, and by Wednesday the temperatures were scorching again! This is day 4 of 105+ heat, and its funny because we can't wait for 9pm, when it reaches a nice, cool 90 haha! Of course, warm evenings are made all the more enjoyable when outside, and we finally got lights up on our gazebo!! Its so nice to just relax and stare at the lights like a moth enjoy the pretty lights!! Luckily it doesn't start heating up until about 9 am, so its finally gotten me back in the habit of early morning runs! Wake up, grab a nut butter stuffed date and off I go! There is no better time to run than first thing in the morning, the air is still (relatively) crisp, scented with dew and sprinklers, and the only sounds are the birds singing, and your feet hitting the pavement in tune with the earth's heartbeat (like that? Can I be a poet like you now TGITO?? 😉 ) Basically. Otherwise its too hot. And when I come back from the early morning runs, I have time (and motivation) to make fancier breakfasts!! This morning I made my mom and I blueberry cornmeal pancakes topped with fresh farmers market peaches! So good!Speaking of running, didn't I ever tell you guys??? I am officially signed up to run my first ever Half Marathon this October!! Whoo!! I'm sooo excited!! I've been wanting to run a half before I graduate basically since I discovered I actually liked running freshman year, and its finally happening! This is such a great testimonial to myself too, that I am finally in a place where I can run and be stronger, not weaker, from it. Its a symbol of the test I've had in high school, and that I can conquer anything I put my mind to. I am stronger than I gave myself credit for for so long, and I can tackle mountains (well, hills, but San Fransisco is crazy hilly so if you add them up, its a mountain. kapeesh?) Also Marvelous are Starbucks dates….with myself. But hey, if it motivates me to do my summer reading (I'd so much rather read books of my own choosing…). I heard from Amanda that if you order Starbucks cappuccinos dry, you get them perfectly foamy (my favorite part). She was right! Soy cappuccino, decaf and dry-I drank the coffee part and then added a dash of cinnamon to my cup of foam. Lets just say that I was that weirdo in the corner reading and eating foam with a coffee stirrer. #foamobsession #sorrynotsorry 😉 Marvelous still are farmers market hauls -especially at the end of the day so everything is even cheaper! We got that gigantic bag of peaches for only $2, and they are super ripe-almost jam like. I have to cook with them before they go bad!! We also found a beautiful head of crisp romaine, chinese spinach (its so pretty! Purple and green!), a pomegranate balsamic grill sauce, and fresh, handmade vegan ravioli! I've never had fresh pasta so I'm excited. A marvelous, refreshing, and simple salad for dinner (squash on the side) of Farmers Market romaine and tomatoes, plus cucumber, celery, red onion, avocado, tempeh, chickpeas, and a honey mustard dressing and lemon pepper (post photo). I've never had a crisper salad than one fresh from the farmers market that morning! And perhaps most marvelous of all? Its girls week! My stepdad is with his dad and cousin in Washington state this week, visiting museums and baseball parks, so my mom and I have had the house to ourself. Its officially Chocolate and Chickflicks week around here! Perfect for my newfound obsession with chocolate avocado mousse and Friends reruns. So with cool morning runs filled with deep thoughts, farmers market runs, and daily chocolate, life could not get any marvelous-er 😉Have you been caught in a heatwave this week?Whats your marvelous today?


Dr. Lenzy is sensitive to issues of multi-ethnic skin and is committed to providing her patients personalized care. Contact us to schedule an appointment today.
Find us in the Fairview Medical Center, directly across from Planet Fitness Gym.