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A family of four are about to die in a car crash when the mother, father, and son become travelers. Charlotte, the daughter, retains her identity when the team's historian's transfer misfires, so MacLaren sends her to stay with her grandparents until the others complete their mission. Trevor, Carly, Marcy, and Philip are abducted and interrogated about the future until Carly kills their guard. David alerts MacLaren when Marcy does not come home, who is able to find and rescue the team with Officer Boyd. MacLaren was forced to cancel the team's mission with the family team, and Carly speculates this was their unidentified captor's goal.
Political strife and economic woes have taken a toll on Egypt's tourism industry in recent years, but travelers will soon have a new reason to visit. On the arid plains of Giza not far from the Great Pyramids, a modern monument is under construction that's more than two decades and nearly $1 billion in the making. The Grand Egyptian Museum will showcase the finest treasures of the pharaohs — including the body and golden funeral mask of Tutankhamen — in a structure spanning nearly 650,000 square feet.
From the Northwest Florida's Emerald Coast to the coral-reefed Keys, the state is filled with an array of activities for all ages and tastes. On a Florida vacation, families can plan several days of theme park fun in the Orlando area, or they can ride horses at a secluded ranch in central Florida, ride bikes along nature trails in north Florida, learn about astronauts and rocket science at the Space Coast or take one of the garden tours in Miami and Fort Lauderdale.
When historic rainfall pummeled California last February, the damage to Big Sur was severe. Mudslides cut off access to Highway 1, the region's only thoroughfare, from the south; then a crack ripped through the Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge, blocking the northern end. Almost overnight, this 90-odd-mile stretch of craggy coastline — long beloved for its sense of remoteness — became an island. Nearly a year later, Big Sur is stirring back to life. The bridge has been replaced and a major slide has been cleared. After an elaborate renovation, the 160-acre Ventana Big Sur has reopened as the first Alila property in the U.S. — and is a luxurious rival to Post Ranch. The place is a stunner, whether you're facing a forested canyon from the pool or enjoying pink and orange sunsets from the terrace. In addition to the plush ocean-view suites, clad in weathered wood, there are now glamping tents nearby that marry rusticity and comfort, with amenities like luxury linens and fire pits. —Jonah Weiner
Leaf-peeping and a thriving farm-to-table food scene (the country's first CSA sprouted here) lure out-of-towners to the bucolic far western corner of Massachusetts. But the arts have long been their own major draw: Tanglewood, the Clark Art Institute, and the Williamstown Theatre Festival all call the area home, as does MASS MoCA, a popular modern art destination housed in a circa-1800s textile mill in North Adams.
Cruise ships and luxe lodges are familiar sights in western Greenland, but more recently, the untamed tundra of the east has begun opening up. Natural Habitat Adventures is leading the push: two seasons ago it debuted Base Camp Greenland, a seasonal eco-lodge comprising eight rustic but cozy tented cabins, which visitors use as a home base for exploring East Greenland by boat, helicopter, and on foot. When you've had enough of the wilderness, return to the western shore. Upscale additions there include the glamping retreat Camp Kiattua, which has tipi-like tents with fireplaces and fur-draped furnishings, and the new Ilimanaq Lodge, which feels like the Arctic's answer to the overwater bungalow. Each of 15 Scandi-inspired cabins feature floor-to-ceiling windows and oceanfront terraces for whale-watching and iceberg-spotting. —Lila Battis
To better accommodate the millions who visit Iguazú Falls, a UNESCO site of 275 mighty waterfalls straddling the border of Argentina and Brazil, nearby Cataratas del Iguazú Airport is being modernized and enlarged. Within Iguazú National Park, the Ecological Jungle Train, which takes visitors on a 25-minute journey to the epic Devil's Throat cascade, is converting from gas to environmentally friendly electric trains. Starting this February, travelers will be able to bed down at the long-awaited Awasi Iguazú resort where 14 rainforest villas will each have plunge pools and guests will have access to a personal excursion guide and 4WD vehicles. Expect visits to native Guarani tribes, river kayaking, and jungle treks led by a resident biologist. Selvaje, an upscale 12-room lodge, will also open early this year and will offer a menu of couple-friendly activities, from picnics to spa treatments. For the ultimate in romance, though, Argentinean travel outfitter Mai 10 (run by Travel + Leisure A-List Agent Maita Barrenechea) can arrange private dinners alongside the falls under the light of a full moon. —Nora Jean Walsh
The logo of the red umbrella was created in 1870 when it appeared in a newspaper ad for the young insurance company. It was revived in the early 1960s, when it was given its signature red color by Harry W. Knettell, then the account executive for The Travelers and Vice President at the Charles Brunelle advertising agency. During the late 1960s Charles Brunelle was the largest advertising agency in Hartford, a city known as "the insurance capital of the world" due to the many insurance companies in that town. The Travelers was one of their many insurance company clients.[44][better source needed]
The Quisby $50+ Wyndham Garden Hotel Baronne Plaza $93+ The Whitney Hotel $99+ B on Canal $106+ Pelham Hotel New Orleans, La $116+ International House Hotel $118+ Royal St. Charles French Quarter/Downtown $119+ Royal Crescent Hotel $120+ Holiday Inn New Orleans-Downtown Superdome $122+ Chateau Hotel $122+ Holiday Inn Express New Orleans - St Charles $122+ Wyndham New Orleans - French Quarter $126+ French Market Inn $136+ Bienville House $141+
As Canada's token middle child, Edmonton has long gotten short shrift amid its glitzier sisters (we're looking at you, Toronto and Vancouver). But no longer — food and museum news is casting a spotlight on Alberta's capital city. After stints at Noma in Copenhagen and Manhattan's Daniel, chef Scott Downey returned to his hometown to open the Butternut Tree in September, with a focus on indigenous foods — grilled bannock with wild mushrooms and winged kelp; bison served with Saskatoon berry jus; maple-butter cake with black-currant jam. We're waiting to make our dinner reservations until the new Royal Alberta Museum opens its doors. Designed by Dialog architects on the site of a former Canada Post distribution center, the 419,000-square-foot space will include Ice Age horse fossils and a dig pit for children. To experience Edmonton's indie side, stay at Crash Hotel, an homage to the Ace, which opened last winter. Its themed Hi-Fi room walls are lined with vintage speakers, and hangover pills are at the ready in the mini-bar. —Kathryn O'Shea-Evans
Flight Montreal - Toronto (YUL - YYZ) C$ 128+ Flight Montreal - Toronto (YUL - YTZ) C$ 212+ Flight Winnipeg - Toronto (YWG - YYZ) C$ 212+ Flight Halifax - Toronto (YHZ - YYZ) C$ 262+ Flight Fredericton - Toronto (YFC - YTZ) C$ 278+ Flight Saint John - Toronto (YSJ - YYZ) C$ 279+ Flight Québec City - Toronto (YQB - YTZ) C$ 288+ Flight Fredericton - Toronto (YFC - YYZ) C$ 306+ Flight Québec City - Toronto (YQB - YYZ) C$ 320+ Flight Moncton - Toronto (YQM - YYZ) C$ 326+ Flight Edmonton - Toronto (YEG - YYZ) C$ 338+ Flight Vancouver - Toronto (YVR - YYZ) C$ 352+ Flight Halifax - Toronto (YHZ - YTZ) C$ 359+ Flight St. John's - Toronto (YYT - YYZ) C$ 359+ Flight Abbotsford - Toronto (YXX - YYZ) C$ 367+
Until now, Zambia has had little recognition as one of Africa's great safari destinations. Yet experts know it as the birthplace of the walking safari — as well as the home of some of the most highly trained guides on the continent. In South Luangwa National Park, visitors can expect to see more animals than baobab trees, while Liuwa Plain National Park is the setting for the world's second-largest wildebeest migration, when tens of thousands of the creatures head across the plain from neighboring Angola. Last year saw the arrival of Liuwa's first permanent camp: King Lewanika Lodge, a six-villa safari lodge overlooking a watering hole where hyenas and antelope gather. —Mary Holland
Once a sleepy second fiddle to Southern culinary powerhouses like Charleston and Nashville, Greenville is stepping into the limelight with hot new restaurants. The town will soon be home to an outpost of Sean Brock's heirloom-crop-focused Husk and a food-centric market hall called the Commons. Other recent additions include modern Italian spot Jianna from Michael Kramer (the opening executive chef of McCrady's in Charleston, pre-Brock) and the moody speakeasy lounge Vault & Vator. It's an impressive collection of quality restaurants for a city of just over 67,000.
Flight Oakland - Los Angeles (OAK - LAX) $55+ Flight San Francisco - Los Angeles (SFO - LAX) $91+ Flight San José - Los Angeles (SJC - LAX) $91+ Flight Houston - Los Angeles (HOU - LAX) $106+ Flight Houston - Los Angeles (IAH - LAX) $106+ Flight Dallas - Los Angeles (DFW - LAX) $123+ Flight Chicago - Los Angeles (ORD - LAX) $125+ Flight Seattle - Los Angeles (SEA - LAX) $125+ Flight Portland - Los Angeles (PDX - LAX) $137+ Flight New York - Los Angeles (LGA - LAX) $140+ Flight Orlando - Los Angeles (MCO - LAX) $163+ Flight Minneapolis - Los Angeles (MSP - LAX) $165+ Flight Detroit - Los Angeles (DTW - LAX) $166+ Flight Washington - Los Angeles (BWI - LAX) $173+ Flight Atlanta - Los Angeles (ATL - LAX) $178+ Flight Fort Lauderdale - Los Angeles (FLL - LAX) $178+ Flight Philadelphia - Los Angeles (PHL - LAX) $187+ Flight Newark - Los Angeles (EWR - LAX) $191+ Flight Boston - Los Angeles (BOS - LAX) $197+ Flight Raleigh - Los Angeles (RDU - LAX) $199+ Flight Chicago - Los Angeles (MDW - LAX) $201+ Flight Washington - Los Angeles (DCA - LAX) $204+
In January 2007, Travelers agreed to pay US$77 million to six states to settle a class action suit and end investigations into its insurance practices.[36][37] The charges involved paying the insurance broker Marsh & McLennan Companies contingent commissions to win business without the knowledge of clients, thus creating a conflict of interest.[38] Additionally, the investigation examined whether Travelers had created the illusion of competition by submitting fake bids,[39] thus misleading clients into believing they were receiving competitive commercial premiums.[40]
In 2004, the St. Paul and Travelers Companies merged and renamed itself St. Paul Travelers, with the headquarters set in St. Paul, Minnesota.[16] In August of that year, it was charged of misleading statements associated with the merger.[17][18] Despite many assurances from CEO Jay Fishman that the newly formed company would retain the St. Paul name, the corporate name only lasted until 2007, when the company repurchased the rights to the famous red umbrella logo from Citigroup and readopted it as its main corporate symbol, while also changing the corporate name to The Travelers Companies.[19][20][21][22]
Vincent asks the team to stand down and let him finish what he has been planning. When the team refuses to comply, Vincent holds the lives of Kat, David, Jeffery, Ray, and Grace over them, and forces them to reveal themselves as Travelers to the world. The team must make the choice between breaking protocol and thus risking being overwritten by the Director, or doing what they must to save the ones they've grown to care about since their arrival in the 21st.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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Steen's Retirement Opens Flexibility, Opportunity for Blues to Bolster Roster
By Carter Chapley December 20th, 2020
In the wake of the St. Louis Blues great and Stanley Cup champion Alexander Steen's decision to retire, we certainly must toast a great career but also remember that life goes on. The loss of the winger represents real challenges in filling his role as a first-line forward and as a leader in the locker room.
Steen expected to miss significant time this season, so while filling his spot in the lineup was planned and prepped for, the 36-year-old also represented a substantial financial commitment to the organization. While it is not a cut and dried redo opportunity to add depth to the lineup or potentially get a midseason acquisition, it certainly is worth looking at in terms of what precisely the Blues can do now and how some careful planning may open up new or different avenues for the organization to best benefit.
Real Money vs. Cap Money
Heading into the 2020-21 campaign, the Blues now-former alternate captain's total cap hit would have been $5.75 million. However, his real amount owed is less — only about $3.5 million, due to his contract's front-loaded nature (all figures provided by CapFriendly).
Still, in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic with finances very much at odds with traditional views of contracts and retirement, the Blues could recover some of the $3.5 million if the contract is insured. But the reality is that the larger number is far more valuable to the organization's hockey operations.
St. Louis Blues' Alexander Steen carries the Stanley Cup (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)
Before Steen's announcement, the Blues were a worrisome $1.175 million over the cap limit and had to eliminate that overage to become cap compliant. The retirement alleviates that problem and puts the organization back into the green, to speak, freeing up some cap space to use to fortify the current roster — more on that later. Unfortunately, due to the complexities of the salary cap structure, the answer to "how much money they have" isn't so clear.
Because Steen's retiring with an injury and being placed on Long Term Injury Reserve (LTIR), his contract will 100% come off the books and provide $4.575 million to spend. However, due to his injury and thus placement on LTIR coming during the offseason, the Blues' unspent money would no longer become available to them the second the season begins. However, should they be able to shed that $1.175 million overage before the season opens and wait to place Steen on LTIR when the regular season starts, all of the $5.75 million would become available to them to use.
If Steen is placed on off-season LTI, and no additional changes are made to the current roster, they would have roughly $4.575M in c/space to sign Dunn and any other roster moves they have in mind before the last day of camp.
However, unused space is lost once the season starts.
— CapFriendly (@CapFriendly) December 17, 2020
An apparent conundrum emerges. You can add now to a lesser financial extent or you can add later with a larger war chest, but you must move a player to become cap compliant to do so.
Before general manager Doug Armstrong and the Blues' front office brain trust can make the hard decisions about how best to spend this new money — and if they want to offload a contract in order go after bigger fish potentially — they have to get their own house in order.
Vince Dunn played 71 regular season games for the Blues last season and 78 the season before. He was a central part of the 2019 Stanley Cup run and a core member of a defensive group who will be without the services of their former captain Alexander Pietrangelo for the first time in a very long time.
Vince Dunn, St. Louis Blues (Jess Starr/The Hockey Writers)
Dunn is also the only current Blue without a contract, still sitting on the market as a restricted free agent. Last season he made a "measly" $722,500. That would be the least any player on the team makes this season, and the 24-year-old defenseman is due for a raise.
It's hard to say the exact value that Dunn could negotiate, considering this is not an open market negotiation. The Blues can lowball him to pretty much any degree they wish as it is unlikely he receives an offer sheet from any other club. There is an opportunity to get Dunn locked up for multiple years given this new space; however, it is equally possible the team goes for the lowest possible number to get more cash to spend on an impact free agent.
Regardless. A decision on Dunn has to get done to move on.
Evaluating the Market and Finding Targets
Those left on the free-agent market with less than a month left before the altered season start date are in an equally curious predicament in terms of money management. Like Mike Hoffman and Mikael Granlund, stars have been left at the altar with no deal and very few teams with cap space to fit them even without their desired pay raises.
Last season, Hoffman made $5.187 million with the Florida Panthers, and as it stands now, only seven franchises could cover that deal without taking into account potential internal caps. Free agents left on the market will have to accept significant pay cuts, which plays in St. Louis's favor. They now have cash and can set the market.
Regarding what kind of player the Blues go after, a forward seems to be a clear need. While a goaltender may be necessary as an insurance policy for Jordan Binnington, with leading scorer Vladimir Tarasenko likely to miss significant time after shoulder surgery, and now Steen out of the top line, an impact forward seems preferential.
Mike Hoffman, former Florida Panther (Amy Irvin / The Hockey Writers)
Hoffman and Granlund are the top free-agent candidates on the market, while the Blues current budget is on the lower side of the expected ballpark either candidate could fetch. With the Blues' ability to pay a competitive salary while also being the most competitive team (in the standings) of the group of now eight teams who can afford these players, St. Louis may be able to put together a very attractive package for the free-agent forwards.
The Blues have decisions to make now and the flexibility to make them. While time is running out to make a move and with news of the seasons start dates fast approaching, the team now has the luxury to make choices about if they want to improve the club, how to do that, or if they are comfortable standing pat and taking on the NHL with the group they have.
Sign up for our regular 'Blues Newsletter' for all the latest.
Vince Dunn


The City of Chicago and the Edwin F. Mandel Legal Aid Clinic of the University of Chicago Law School have reached a preliminary agreement to settle a major federal civil rights law suit, Williams v. Brown, brought by the Mandel Clinic against the Chicago Police Department. The case arose out of a police raid on a basketball tournament on the evening of February 22, 2001 at the Stateway Gardens Field House, a Chicago Park District facility serving the Stateway Gardens public housing development on South State Street.
On behalf of the approximately 250 to 300 men, women and children present in the Field House at the time of the raid, the Mandel Clinic brought a class action suit in U.S. District Court, alleging that the police had violated their constitutional rights to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures.
For three years, lawyers and law students associated with the Mandel Clinic have collaborated with members of the Stateway Gardens community in a human rights initiative known as the Stateway Civil Rights Project. The aims of the initiative are to improve police accountability and services to Stateway Gardens residents. Craig B. Futterman, an Associate Clinical Professor of Law at the University of Chicago and lead counsel for the Plaintiff class, indicated that "The reasons Plaintiffs brought this suit are twofold. First, we hoped to reform police practices in the Stateway community to foster respect for the human dignity and rights of public housing residents. My clients believe that this fundamental respect will improve police/community relations and trust to enable a true partnership around all too real public safety issues in the community. Second, we sought to address the harm caused by the police raid to a beloved community center and tradition that was widely regarded as a safe haven from crime and violence in the surrounding neighborhood. This settlement provides my clients with the opportunity to accomplish both of these goals."
Under the terms of the settlement agreed to in principle yesterday, the City will pay out $500,000, according to Mr. Futterman. Of this amount, approximately $100,000 will be distributed to the adults and children detained and searched during the raid; $2,000 will be distributed to each of the seven named plaintiffs who brought the case on behalf of the community; and the Mandel Clinic and civil rights attorney Tom Peters will recover $400,000 in lawyer"s fees and costs incurred in the course of the 2 � year litigation. Most of the money to the Clinic will support the provision of free legal services to indigent people who otherwise would lack access to counsel. In addition, the Clinic will make a donation of $85,000 to the Stateway Civil Rights Project.
"From the plaintiffs" perspective, this is an essential part of the settlement," said Jamie Kalven of the Stateway Civil Rights Project. "It"s at once an acknowledgement of the contributions of Stateway residents and an investment in the capacity of community human rights activists on the ground to continue monitoring the police. It also provides resources to help repair the damage done by the raid."
The basketball tournament"the Stateway Roundball Classic"was a longstanding community institution. It ran each winter for two months and was attended by players and spectators from across the South Side. In the tradition of "midnight basketball," organizers saw the tournament as an anti-violence strategy"an occasion for members of different communities to come together and for gang members to transcend their divisions by competing together on the basketball court.
"These night-time tournaments were designed to reduce violence and crime in the community by getting youth off of the street and engaging them in constructive, organized recreational activities," said Clyde Johnson of the Park District. "They were also established to build community, by bringing people from different CHA buildings and the greater neighborhood together in a community-based, family-oriented setting."
According to Mr. Johnson, in the thirteen-year history of the tournament--in the course of which hundreds of organized basketball games had taken place in the field house--"there had never been a significant episode of violence at a tournament game prior to the police raid on February 22, 2001."
On the night of February 22, more than 40 Chicago police officers, acting under orders from Commander Ernest Brown, raided the field house while the tournament was in progress. The police encircled the field house and blocked each possible exit, while other officers walked across the gym floor, ending the game in progress. Police announced to the spectators that the game was over and that everyone needed to leave the gym. Officers lined the spectators up and directed them to the lobby to be searched.
"Over the next two hours," said Mr. Futterman, "the police methodically subjected nearly all of the people present"from babies and young children with their mothers watching the games to basketball players in full uniform"to invasive, warrantless searches of their bodies and personal effects. Parents were searched in front of their children. Children were searched in front of their parents."
The police claimed to be acting on a tip from an informant that gang violence was imminent at the tournament, a claim vigorously contested by the plaintiffs and their attorneys. Mr. Futterman stated, "This was an indiscriminate and mass search. On the one hand, Chicago police Commander Ernest Brown claimed that he received dire information that several carloads of gang members loaded with guns were en route to the Field House for the purposes of an imminent gun battle with a rival gang in a place where hundreds of innocent children and adults had gathered. On the other hand, Brown did not dispatch a single officer to the Field House until more than two hours after Brown claimed he received the tip. Indeed, Brown testified that he did not post any police officers outside the Field House because such police presence would have stopped any would-be armed gangsters from entering the Field House. It is simply unbelievable that any police commander would be so callous as to let armed gangsters bent on gun violence into a facility alone with so many innocent children for more than two hours because the police would then have a better chance of catching the bad guys. Did these supposed armed gangbangers include women and young children? Babies in pampers?"
The lawsuit charged that in the end, the raid netted only one arrest"for disorderly conduct of one of the players who protested the police search of his nine- and ten-year-old sons whom he brought to see their dad play ball.
The police raid brought an abrupt end to community basketball tournaments at Stateway Gardens. The Stateway Roundball Classic has not been held in the years since.
"This police raid undermined our many years of hard work to make the field house a safe haven for the community," said Clyde Johnson. "It put to an end an important community tradition."
During the years this case has been working its way through the courts, the Stateway community has undergone dramatic changes as part of the CHA"s "Plan for Transformation." When the raid occurred, there were seven occupied high-rise buildings at Stateway. Today there are two buildings left; only one of which is occupied. The rest have been demolished.
Yet the Field House still stands. It is alive with activity and continues to play a vital role in the life of the community.
Brenda Williams was one of the lead plaintiffs who championed this case. The lawsuit stated that police searched Ms. Williams, her diaper bag, and her then 1-year-old daughter in the Field House. Ms. Williams did not live to see the results of her efforts. She died of breast cancer on July 31, 2003. "I"m especially proud that we were able to make real one of Ms. Williams" final wishes," Futterman said. "Brenda will always be remembered as having stood up for justice."
Hailing the settlement as "a major victory for the community," Andre Williams, lead plaintiff in the case, looked to the future.
"The first thing we"re going to do," he said, "is start up the Stateway Roundball Classic again."


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17 claims Boris Johnson made in his Kent speech - and the truth behind them
The Prime Minister was appearing at Detling Showground ahead of the leaders' debate in Maidstone live on BBC tonight
Ben AshtonContent Editor
Will RiderMultimedia Journalist
Boris Johnson made a speech in Kent today (December 6) (Image: BBC)
Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been visiting Kent ahead of the upcoming General Election.
The Conservative leader made a speech at Detling Showground this morning (December 6) ahead of the leaders' debate in Maidstone live on BBC tonight.
It was a speech in which he made a number of bold claims - several of which were aimed at trying to discredit the Labour opposition.
Jeremy Corbyn was the focus of much of what Mr Johnson had to say, as well as accusations about the Labour Party.
Jeremy Corbyn and Boris Johnson to go head-to-head in Maidstone for BBC leaders' debate
He did also put forward what he hopes to implement with a Tory government, should he win a majority in the election.
We've taken a look at what he said in his speech and run a fact-check on the claims to see how much truth there is behind them.
1. We had a parliament that was absolutely blocked, that was refusing to get Brexit done.
Boris Johnson said Parliament is in a 'rut' at the moment (Image: Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)
Boris Johnson attempted to push through his Brexit deal before the October 31 deadline and the EU Withdrawal Agreement Bill was approved by Parliament.
But shortly after, the motion to get all stages of the bill completed in just three days, before the deadline, was defeated by 322 votes to 308 after MPs objected that it would not allow time for adequate consideration.
Speaking at the time, a Downing Street source said: "Parliament and Corbyn have repeatedly voted for delay.
"On Saturday parliament asked for a delay until January and today parliament blew its last chance.
"If parliament's delay is agreed by Brussels, then the only way the country can move on is with an election.
"This parliament is broken.
"The public will have to choose whether they want to get Brexit done with Boris or whether they want to spend 2020 having two referendums on Brexit and Scotland with Corbyn."
2. £150 billion of foreign direct investment will come into this country as soon as Boris' deal goes through.
Boris Johnson has based that number solely on research carried out by Goldman Sachs, an American multinational investment bank and financial services company.
He says there will be a surge of foreign investment amounting to £150 billion if we "get Brexit done".
It contrasts with the government's own analysis last year that said the country would be economically poorer under every form of Brexit, compared with staying in the EU.
The Goldman Sachs report said: "We have identified more than $150bn (£116bn) of UK inflows that could be unlocked by some progress towards Brexit resolution. The upcoming election will reset the Parliamentary arithmetic and potentially clear the way."
3. 40 new hospitals – 20 upgrades.
There is no building work at any hospitals yet
BBC Reality Check said: "There will be a £2.7bn investment over five years for the first six hospitals of the 40 pledged.
"All are existing NHS hospitals and they all have one thing in common - there is no building work happening as yet.
"For the remainder of the pledge 21 trusts will initially share just £100m to develop the business cases necessary to secure funding for 34 projects."
4. 50,000 more nurses.
Channel 4's FactCheck service said: "Various reports quote Conservative sources as saying that the 50,000 target breaks down like this: there will be 31,500 newly recruited nurses, made up of 5,000 apprenticeships, 14,000 training bursaries and 12,500 overseas recruits.
"The other 18,500 out of 50,000 are nurses who will be encouraged to stay in the profession rather than quitting."
5. 20,000 more police.
The Conservatives will recruit 6,000 new officers in the first year, then the additional 14,000 in the next two years.
However, since 2010, there has been a reduction of more than 20,000 police officers.
Channel 4's FactCheck service said: "In March 2010, just before the Conservatives came in, there were 143,734. In March this year, there were 123,171. (See the full figures here – table H3).
"So you could say that the new officers will simply cancel out previous cuts and get us back to 2010 levels.
"The population of England and Wales is estimated to have gone up too – by around 3.5 million people since 2010.
"So if officer numbers returned to the exact levels they reached in 2010, there would still be fewer per head of population."
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6. A huge increase in funding, both for primary schools and for secondary schools.
The Conservative manifesto says: "We are investing £14 billion over three years to increase funding for every primary and every secondary school pupil in the country."
Kevin Courtney, the National Education Union joint general secretary, told The Guardian: "Johnson has made lots of empty promises on school funding – but his numbers don't add up.
"The latest funding announcement falls well short of settling the shortfall for every child. And crucially it fails to reverse the cuts schools have suffered since 2015."
Luke Sibieta, a research fellow at the Institute for Fiscal Studies, added: "Total school spending per pupil has fallen by 8 per cent after inflation since 2009 and by 5 per cent since 2015.
"The government has committed to extra funding of £4.3bn per year in today's prices, which will be enough to reverse cuts on average.
"However, that won't fully come in until 2022. It's therefore unsurprising to see analysis showing that most schools will have lower budgets in real-terms next year as compared with 2015."
7. Jeremy Corbyn has said he wants to disband NATO.
Jeremy Corbyn hasn't called for NATO to be disbanded since becoming Labour leader (Image: Finnbarr Webster/Getty Images)
Jeremy Corbyn has been historically critical of NATO's power and wrote in 2012 that "the obvious time for NATO to have been disbanded" was after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1990.
Channel 4's FactCheck service said: "Since becoming Labour leader, he does not appear to have called for the UK to leave NATO – or for the alliance to be disbanded.
"It remains Labour party policy for Britain to continue as a member of NATO and carry on spending 2 per cent of national income on defence."
8. The Conservatives are cutting business rates.
The Conservative manifesto says: "We will cut the burden of tax on business by reducing business rates. This will be done via a fundamental review of the system.
"As a first step, we will further reduce business rates for retail businesses, as well as extending the discount to grassroots music venues, small cinemas and pubs.
"That means protecting your high street and community from excessive tax hikes and keeping town centres vibrant."
9. The Conservatives are cutting National Insurance for 31 million people.
The Tory manifesto says: "We will raise the National Insurance threshold to £9,500 next year – representing a tax cut for 31 million workers.
"To help young people get a foot on the employment ladder, we abolished employers' National Insurance Contributions for under-21s and apprentices under 25."
10. John McDonnell says he wants to 'ferment the overthrow of the capitalist system'.
The shadow chancellor has told Reuters the line was a joke about beer-making but he agrees with the notion in principle.
He said: "I believe it. I am serious in my intent. I want to transform this economy.
"That means evolving into a system which can achieve that equality, that democracy, that fairness, and tackles the major challenges that we are facing."
11. A Corbyn-Sturgeon coalition would have two referendums – one on Scotland and another on the EU.
SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon wants another Scottish independence referendum (Image: Mark Runnacles/Getty Images)
Nicola Sturgeon has said the SNP would not agree to a coalition with Labour unless a Scottish independence referendum was guaranteed.
The decision for another Scottish independence referendum would of course still be down to the coalition government as a whole if it were to be formed following the General Election.
Labour clearly outlines its stance on Brexit and another referendum. Its manifesto says: "Labour will give the people the final say on Brexit. Within three months of coming to power, a Labour government will secure a sensible deal.
"And within six months, we will put that deal to a public vote alongside the option to remain. A Labour government will implement whatever the people decide."
12. Jeremy Corbyn will remain neutral in a second referendum, he doesn't have a deal and has no plan to get it.
Jeremy Corbyn told BBC Question Time: "My role and the role of our government is to ensure that that referendum is held in a fair atmosphere and we will abide by the result of it and I will adopt as Prime Minister, if I am at the time, a neutral stance so that I can credibly carry out the results of that to bring our communities and country together rather than continuing an endless debate about the EU and Brexit.
"This will be a trade deal with Europe or remaining in the EU.
"That will be the choice put before the British people within six months."
13. Keir Starmer is going to campaign for remain.
Sir Keir Starmer has admitted he is a Remain campaigner
A Labour conference was held in September 2019 and its members shut down a motion trying to force Jeremy Corbyn to explicitly back staying in the EU.
Speaking at the event, shadow Brexit secretary Keir Starmer said: "We had a vote and the vote went the way it did.
"I've said for some time, over and over again, that I would campaign for Remain so obviously I'm disappointed by the result."
14. Jeremy Corbyn opposes terrorists serving their full terms in jail.
Speaking after terrorist Usman Khan killed two people on London Bridge on November 29, Jeremy Corbyn said convicted terrorists should "not necessarily" serve a full jail term.
Mr Corbyn told Sky News: "I think it depends on the circumstances, it depends on the sentence but crucially depends on what they've done in prison."
He backed armed police who used lethal force to shoot Khan dead on London Bridge, saying they "had no choice".
He added: "If police believe an attacker is wearing a suicide vest and innocent lives are at risk, then it is right they are able to use lethal force."
15. Jeremy Corbyn wants to disband our armed services.
Boris Johnson's claims relate to a speech Jeremy Corbyn made at an event back in August 2012 in memory of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombing victims in August 1945 during WWII.
Corbyn did not say he wanted to disband the British Army but rather said it would be "wonderful" if every country around the world could achieve peace by abolishing their army and being proud of it.
Here's what he said that day: "Our message today is in memory of those that were so tragically and brutally and horribly killed at Hiroshima and Nagasaki - and all those that suffered the health defects and disfigurement of nuclear testing over the past 60 years.
"No more nuclear weapons. No more nuclear wars. No more wars. A world of peace.
"Wouldn't it be wonderful if every politician around the world instead of taking pride in the size of their Armed Forces did what Costa Rica have done and abolished their Army, and took pride in the fact they don't have an Army?
"And that their country is near the top of the global peace index. Surely that is the way we should be going forward?"
Kent General Election 2019
Voter turnout in every part of Kent
Just how Tory is your part of Kent?
Kent General Election results in full
MP opens up about antisemitic abuse
The result sends a very clear message
The Kent election - in memes
'Canterbury is best place in the world'
Sevenoaks' first ever woman MP
16. John McDonnell has said he would like to scrap MI5.
Labour's 2019 election manifesto says: "We will ensure closer counter terrorism co-ordination between the police and the security services.
"We will ensure the powers exercised by the security services are proportionate and used in accordance with human rights."
John McDonnell, of Labour, did face a row way back in 2015 for endorsing a statement which called, among other things, for MI5 to be disbanded.
However, Mr McDonnell later said he did not share the view on MI5 or know it was part of the statement when he posed with it.
17. Labour will put up taxes for people on incomes as low as £20,000 per year to the tune of £1,000 more in tax.
Labour will not increase taxes for anyone earning less than £80,000 per year. It will freeze the current income tax rates.
It will scrap the marriage allowance, though, which is £250 per year and when interviewed by Andrew Neil, it was put to him that millions of people are going to lose £250 a year and "they earn a lot less than 80,000".
Corbyn replied: "But they will also be getting a pay rise when we bring in a living wage. They will also be getting improvement in free nursery provision for two to four-year-olds."
Kent General Election 2019 odds: How the bookies say Kent will shape up
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WeatherKent weather: Icy blast to send temperatures plunging to -6C in KentBBC forecasters say we're in for a very cold night
Tunbridge Wells48 hour dispersal order put in place in Tunbridge Wells town centreOfficers say they've received complaints about groups of people behaving in an "antisocial manner"
Medway2 Medway GP surgeries rated inadequate after damning inspectionsOne has been placed into special measures and could be forced to cease operating
Entertainment11 Kent restaurants you can eat at for a fiverJanuary is always a tough month to get through financially, but it doesn't always mean you need to stay in to save the pennies


Though there are plenty of posed photographs in the Mortons archive, pin-sharp in focus and with the subject looking towards the camera, there's none better than this one, here reproduced, to capture what was the essence of legendary racer and hell-raiser Freddie Dixon, the original hard-man (in a time of hard-men) of motorcycle racing.
During the 1923 Senior TT and with his single-cylinder Indian bucking on landing, Dixon, as usual not wearing goggles, stands on the footboards (not footrests) of his 500cc side-valve racer, as he races to third place on the American machine. Somewhat ironically, Dixon would've preferred to race a Douglas – the machine used by the winner, Tom Sheard.
Born in 1892 in Stockton-on-Tees, Freddie Dixon was the second of eight children. Upon leaving school at 13, he worked for a garage in Stockton, before moving to the firm's Middlesbrough branch. He acquired his first motorcycle in 1909, started competing successfully in club events and then made his TT bow in 1912, on a locally made Cleveland – not the American make, but one made in Middlesbrough. It ended in retirement.
During the First World War Dixon became a staff sergeant in the Army Service Corps, then after the conflict set up his own business, while continuing with his motorcycling exploits.


For children age 4 through first grade, we are using a curriculum called Godly Play which was developed by an Episcopal priest based on the Montessori method of teaching. This curriculum focuses on teaching the vocabulary of the church and basic Bible stories.
For older children, we use the Children's Curriculum of the Virginia Theological Seminary. This is a thematic Sunday school curriculum that focuses on the symbols of the church, the lessons, Gospels and the purpose of the Book of Common Prayer.
Classes begin at 9:45 on the third floor of the church.


AD – this post contains some gifted items.
Just a quick post today, as I wanted to show you the update I've made to our hallway recently. I haven't broken the wheel up here, or anything like it, but we have had a subtle colour change and a mix up of wall decoration. When I made over the hallway in September '17 there were so many things I was delighted with – the painted stairs, the colour wall, the beautiful sideboard from Maisons du Monde, the Scandi accessories and the plywood pieces by MADE on the walls. But, and it was a hard one to admit, I had chosen the wrong colour for the main walls. Don't misinterpret me here, I love peach and I was really keen on the particular shade I chose, but it was one of those decorating decisions that I think we are all guilty of from time to time, where you choose something you love without giving consideration to the space you're putting it in. This shade could look so lovely in a contained space, particularly in a kitchen to my mind, but in a hallway it felt too bouncy, too attention grabbing and when the light occasionally hit it (in our usually dark hallway) I felt all kinds of regret!
Now, I sometimes think, particularly on Instagram, that it can look like us interiors bloggers are forever redecorating and changing rooms, like we have upteen hours of time on our hands to fill with new paint, new pieces and new styling. I'm really conscious that this can look irritating, unrelateable and more than a little wasteful – no matter how many dis-guarded pieces go to goodwill etc. So, I left this space for a year, knowing it didn't feel quite right and wondering if it would grow on me. It didn't, but I didn't want to throw the baby out with the bath water, there were still so many things I absolutely loved up here.
So last month I embarked on a mini refresh. There's a new shelf, some new art and new paint, but that's it. It's amazing how different a space can feel with a few tweaks. Paint is always the most accessible and transformative thing you can do in a home. I changed the paint colour to a timeless classic called Joas White by Farrow & Ball which sits somewhere within the spectrum of warm neutrals, it has a softness with just a hint of grey to stop it from feeling too candyfloss. I love how this shade sits on the walls here, it's completely unobtrusive but crucially it injects just enough interest not to feel flat or boring.
I kept my much loved colour wall as I am still so pleased with how much interest a few well placed lines of washi tape can achieve! AND I have also kept the peach paint I originally decorated with on a small slither of wall on one side of the bedroom door. As I said earlier, I do love this shade, it just wasn't right as a central colour, and as this small section of wall falls on the other side of the door to the colour wall I felt it didn't create a disjuncture for the eye.
As I've possibly mentioned several hundred times on here, I love natural history, it's one of the signature elements I return to again and again. Having bought the scissor coat hook from One Must Dash in our last flat, there was a print which had been on my wish list from this lovely graphic design company, who make beautiful prints from their Brighton workshop, ever since. It was just a case of finding the perfect spot for it. And the hallway is definitely the said perfect spot, cow parsley is one of my very favourite flowers so to have this skeletal floral print entitled 'I Do, I Do, I Do' of one is perfect for our home. Alongside this I also asked One Must Dash for one of their Abstract Body graphic print which looks perfect in the hall as a counterbalance to the lighter elements.
Alongside the I Do, I Do, I Do cow parsley print I have added a small metal shelf painted in one of Farrow & Ball's new colours Jitney, this is decorated with a few simple Scandi objects and some dried fennel from the garden which mirrors the main print on this wall.
So simple, but eh voila, a few licks of paint and a small scale restyle and the space feels fresh and new, and just how I want it to. What do you think? I'd love to hear in the comments below.
The Paint and prints used in this piece were kindly gifted after I approached the brands who produce therm. As ever, I only work with brands that I love and all opinions are honest and my own.
Lovely Ruth! I'm a lover of dark rooms and colour but went very neutral in my landing/hall and really feel it needed a lift. Put some brighter artwork in but loads of ideas here like shelves etc. Thanks!


text:
The Burger State
Ravenous? You better be, boy, when you stare down a Carl's Jr. burger. It's big and scary and will intimidate even the healthiest appetites. Women swoon and grown men nod in respect. It's a big burger with a big reputation and built with authentic American know-how from the bottom up.
The idea for Carl's Jr. came to life over 70 years ago in the glory days of the burger in the USA when diners and drive-ins ruled. This was America just after the war. Hopes and hairdos were high, and life was simple. No cappuccinos and definitely no tofu – just burgers and fries.
And Carl Karcher was following his American dream to make the best burgers on the planet by making them bigger and tastier than ever before. He wanted to use the best of everything, the crispiest lettuce, the freshest buns, the juiciest tomatoes – all stacked up good and proud so you'd eat it up with your eyes before it ever got close to your face.
We've made sure every burger has been big on that Carl's Jr. taste and big on quality ever since. No short-cuts. No compromises. It's always been about the food at Carl's. They may not make them like they used to. But we do.
© Carl's Jr.® New Zealand. Product and price information may vary by restaurant location from that provided on this website. Powered by Kentico CMS for ASP.NET Facebook Twitter Instagram


text:
Мухаммед аль-Мутаваккіль бін Ях'я (; помер 11 грудня 1849) — імам Ємену, онук імама Алі I аль-Мансура.

Джерела
 R.B. Serjeant & R. Lewcock, San'a'; An Arabian Islamic City. London 1983, стор. 89

Імами Ємену
Рассіди

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


BC Historical Books combines the traditional tools of bibliography with the new tools of the digital world to transform our understanding of, and insight into, the history and life of British Columbia.
Bibliography is the science of describing published works, and the bibliography of British Columbia is located in traditional printed bibliographies. The goal of the BC Historical Books project is to build a single searchable database of the bibliography of British Columbia based on full-text searchable versions of the books contained therein. The result will allow scholars, students and the public unparalleled access to knowledge about our province.
Volume I: Lowther, Barbara Joan Sonia Horsfield, Muriel Laing, and University of Victoria (B.C.). Social Sciences Research Center. A Bibliography of British Columbia; Laying the Foundations, 1849-1899,. Victoria, B.C.: [U of Victoria], 1968.
Volume II: Strathern, Gloria M., Margaret H. Edwards, and University of Victoria (B.C.). Social Sciences Research Centre. Navigations, Traffiques & Discoveries, 1774-1848; a Guide to Publications Relating to the Area Now British Columbia. Victoria, B.C.: Social Sciences Research Centre, 1970.
Volume III: Edwards, Margaret H., John C. R. Lort, and Wendy J. Carmichael. A Bibliography of British Columbia: Years of Growth 1900-1950. Victoria, B.C.: Social Sciences Research Centre, U of Victoria, 1975.
The University of British Columbia Library continues to add to the project from its Rare Books & Special Collections holdings, with the collection featuring over 1900 items as of July 2018.


After completing her Bachelor's degree in chemistry, Dalileh refocused her passion for learning to a passion for teaching. She devoted twelve years of her academic life to teaching chemistry in high schools in Iran. Dalileh's enthusiasm for learning prompted her to return to the halls of academia to pursue a Master's degree in Chemistry in the United States. This move offered a new cultural perspective and a new language in which to become fluent. It is in the Bay Area that Dalileh became a chemistry tutor and public school teacher in Alameda County. As a tutor, Dalileh excels in crafting her lessons to her students' needs.
Book an appointment with Dalileh here.


text:
Q: Invalid CONSOLE_SCREEN_BUFFER_INFOEX; GetConsoleScreenBufferInfoEx (kernel32) GetConsoleScreenBufferInfoEx invalid return value
I am trying to change the console's color palette. To get this done I first need to Get my ConsoleScreenBufferInfoEx and then Set it. The problem is that I can't even get a valid ConsoleScreenBufferInfoEx from the STD_OUTPUT_HANDLE.
The code below throws this error message:
System.ArgumentException: 'Value does not fall within the expected range.'
The handle is valid and yet I get this error. I have quadruple-checked every data type and related pinvoke entry - everything is looking good to me. There is no sample code for GetConsoleScreenBufferInfoEx and I haven't been able to find a working solution yet.
My sources:

*

*pinvoke: ConsoleFunctions (kernel32)

*msdocs: CONSOLE_SCREEN_BUFFER_INFOEX structure

*msdocs: COLORREF
Example App (.NET Core 3.1):
For this code to work, the project's build properties must allow unsafe code.
[Properties -> Build -> Allow unsafe code]
using Microsoft.Win32.SafeHandles;
using System;
using System.Drawing;
using System.Runtime.InteropServices;

namespace ScreenBufferInfoExample
{
    class Program
    {
        [DllImport("kernel32.dll", SetLastError = true)]
        public static extern SafeFileHandle GetStdHandle(int nStdHandle);

        [DllImport("kernel32.dll", SetLastError = true)]
        public static extern unsafe bool GetConsoleScreenBufferInfoEx(SafeFileHandle hConsoleOutput,
                                                                      out CONSOLE_SCREEN_BUFFER_INFO_EX ConsoleScreenBufferInfo);

        static void Main()
        {
            SafeFileHandle stdOut = GetStdHandle(-11);
            if(stdOut.IsInvalid)
                Marshal.ThrowExceptionForHR(Marshal.GetHRForLastWin32Error());
            CONSOLE_SCREEN_BUFFER_INFO_EX info = new CONSOLE_SCREEN_BUFFER_INFO_EX();
            info.cbSize = (uint)Marshal.SizeOf(info);
            if(!GetConsoleScreenBufferInfoEx(stdOut, out info)) {
                Marshal.ThrowExceptionForHR(Marshal.GetHRForLastWin32Error());// <- this gets thrown
                // System.ArgumentException: 'Value does not fall within the expected range.'
            }

            Console.ReadKey(true);
        }
    }

    [StructLayout(LayoutKind.Sequential)]
    struct CONSOLE_SCREEN_BUFFER_INFO_EX
    {
        public uint cbSize;
        public COORD dwSize;
        public COORD dwCursorPosition;
        public ushort wAttributes;
        public SMALL_RECT srWindow;
        public COORD dwMaximumWindowSize;

        public ushort wPopupAttributes;
        public bool bFullscreenSupported;

        [MarshalAs(UnmanagedType.ByValArray, SizeConst = 16)]
        public COLORREF[] ColorTable;
    }

    [StructLayout(LayoutKind.Sequential)]
    struct COORD
    {
        public short X;
        public short Y;
    }

    [StructLayout(LayoutKind.Sequential)]
    struct SMALL_RECT
    {
        public short Left;
        public short Top;
        public short Right;
        public short Bottom;
    }

    [StructLayout(LayoutKind.Sequential)]
    struct COLORREF
    {
        public uint ColorDWORD;

        public COLORREF(int r, int g, int b)
            : this(Color.FromArgb(r, g, b)) { }
        public COLORREF(Color color)
        {
            ColorDWORD = (uint)color.R
                         + (((uint)color.G) << 8)
                         + (((uint)color.B) << 16);
        }

        public Color GetColor()
        {
            return Color.FromArgb((int)(0x000000FFU & ColorDWORD),
                                  (int)(0x0000FF00U & ColorDWORD) >> 8,
                                  (int)(0x00FF0000U & ColorDWORD) >> 16);
        }

        public void SetColor(Color color)
        {
            ColorDWORD = (uint)color.R
                         + (((uint)color.G) << 8)
                         + (((uint)color.B) << 16);
        }
    }
}

A: pinvoke.net is often useful, but not always right.
As you need to pass information in and out of the GetConsoleScreenBufferInfoEx method, the parameter cannot be out, but needs to be ref.
So the correct declaration would be
[DllImport("kernel32.dll", SetLastError = true)]
public static extern unsafe bool GetConsoleScreenBufferInfoEx(SafeFileHandle hConsoleOutput,
    ref CONSOLE_SCREEN_BUFFER_INFO_EX ConsoleScreenBufferInfo);

called as GetConsoleScreenBufferInfoEx(stdOut, ref info).
(I just corrected the page on pinvoke.net accordingly)

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
100 Deep Questions To Ask Your S/O
By andreaedavis
1. What would your perfect day look like?
2. What is one behavior that you never tolerate?
3. What is your biggest passion in life?
4. Who is your biggest role model and why?
5. What is your favorite quote and why?
6. What is your biggest regret?
7. What's one thing you always procrastinate on?
8. What is your "life motto"?
9. What's something you're glad you'll never have to do again?
10. What does love mean to you?
11. Do you believe in soulmates?
12. What are your thoughts on having a family?
13. What is the biggest challenge you've ever faced in life?
14. What would you do tomorrow if you woke up with no fears?
15. Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
16. Where do you see yourself in 20 years?
17. What's your father like?
18. What's your mother like?
19. What is your biggest pet peeve?
20. What is the biggest lesson you've learned from previous relationships?
21. When was the last time you cried and why?
22. What is your happiest memory?
23. What's the most daring thing you've ever done?
24. Do you believe in love at first sight?
25. Do you usually follow your head or your heart when making decisions?
26. How do you want to be remembered?
27. Would you like to be famous? Why or why not?
28. What is your saddest memory?
29. If you could write a note to your younger self, what would you say?
30. What makes you feel alive?
31. Who inspires you?
32. What inspires you?
33. Do you believe in second chances?
34. Do you think destiny is real?
35. Who is your hero?
36. How have your priorities changed over time?
37. What memory instantly makes you smile?
38. If you could only eat three foods for the rest of your life, what would they be?
39. If you could have one superpower, what would it be and why?
40. If you had three wishes, how would you use them?
41. What do you like the most about yourself?
42. What are three things that you could never live without?
43. If you could choose to have been born in a different decade, which would you choose?
44. What is your most embarrassing story?
45. If you had one day left to live, how would you spend it?
46. What's your definition of intimacy?
47. How did you lose your virginity?
48. What are your biggest insecurities?
49. Is there anything you wish you could change about yourself?
50. Do you believe in fate?
51. Have you ever broken the law?
53. City or country?
54. If money was no object, what would your dream house be like?
55. What is the best advice you've ever been given?
56.What's the hardest decision you've ever made?
57. Do you think men and women can ever just be friends?
58. How would you describe your relationship with your family?
59. Is there a secret that you've never told anyone?
60. What lessons have you learned the hard way?
61. Are you religious?
62. What makes you nervous?
63. What makes you different from most people?
64. Do you have any hidden talents?
65. What is the biggest sign of weakness in a person?
66. Who was the most toxic person you've known?
67. What makes you angrier than it should?
68. Summer or winter?
69. What are you too hard on yourself for?
70. Cats or dogs?
71. What do you want to do when you retire?
72. What is your dream career look like?
73. Night out on the town or quiet night in?
74. Pizza or Chinese food?
75. What is your favorite movie?
76. What is your favorite book?
77. Do you forgive others easily?
78. What do you consider to be cheating?
79. What is your most valuable asset?
80. What is the first thing you notice about a person?
81. Which part of your past would you like to relive?
82. What is your life motto?
83. Would you rather become rich or famous?
84. What is your zodiac sign?
85. Do you believe in ghosts?
86. Do you have any siblings?
87. Do you believe in an afterlife?
88. Do you think it's easier to ask for permission or forgiveness?
89. What is the most beautiful thing in the world?
90. What is the ugliest thing in the world?
91. Do you miss anyone from your past?
92. If you had a chance to be anyone for a whole day, who would you be and why?
93. What would your ideal date be?
94. What's the best date you've ever been on?
95. Who is your celebrity crush?
96. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you choose to live?
97. If you can go back to do one thing differently, what would that be?
98. Can you sum up your life's philosophy in one sentence?
99. Which town/city did you grow up in?
100. What's your favorite childhood memory?


text:
Free Jazz – "Free" Side of Jazz Music
Free jazz is a type of modern music that doesn't follow the usual rules of tonal organization, bluesy chord progression, and swing rhythms.
The focus is now placed on spontaneous group improvisation. Due to the range of expressive tools, the sensuality, and intellect of free jazz music are recognized.
The free jazz style was established by pianist Cecil Taylor and saxophonist Ornette Coleman in the second part of the 1950s. It was also influenced by San Ra, Archie Shepp, Arthur Doyle, Barton Green, and the late John Coltrane.
Free jazz is seen as inventive and adventurous. Nonetheless, some music theorists see it as an effort to reconnect with the ethnic and religious foundations of traditional jazz.
In English, free jazz is called "abstract," "new phenomenon," and "avant-garde," though the latter is a much broader term that differs from free jazz in its compositional ideas. The term "free jazz" was coined in 1960 by Ornette Coleman for his album of the same name.
Free Jazz Definitions
The great majority of contemporary jazz forms use the performer's voice as their central element. Classical jazz, meanwhile, is based on compositional intentions.
E. Barban, a scholar of jazz forms, argues that any performance or artistic expression of music meets the criterion of an artwork. In this case, skill helps turn the musician's personality into a set of symbols that can be studied as works of art.
Similar to the counterculture of the 1960s and 1970s, Barban believes exaltation, spontaneity, affect, and mental preoccupation to be the most important artistic elements of free jazz.
At that time, a radical mass self-determination of black performers was occurring. They were coming into their own, and their music was breaking away from tonal structures, harmony, and the European way of doing things.
Free jazz has never attempted to conceal its ideological foundation, social protest, or radical nature. Because of this, it is very hard to come up with a single cultural philosophy for free jazz and organize it.
Free jazz is plainly centered on the self-awareness and authenticity of black people, yet despite this, the style is vulnerable to symbiotic fusion with other cultures, often those with whom it is in conflict. These crossings may reflect the desire to assimilate the spiritual and aesthetic characteristics of a different ethnicity.
Therefore, Indian culture, with its rich rhythm and Buddhist ideals, attracted free jazz. And Arabian designs made their way into it because many artists became Muslims.
Religion in general became a source of inspiration for free-jazz musicians, and you can hear it in the music and see it in the song titles, album names, and CD artwork.
Virtually all distinctions between noise and melodic sound are eliminated in free jazz. Its performers think that almost any sound may be included in the composition, even if it seems to have nothing to do with it at first.
You just need to be creative in digesting it and incorporating it into your improvisation. Modern academic avant-gardists use a similar strategy, making these two approaches comparable.


A plethora of sporting memorabilia items that have never before been auctioned will be up for grabs when Leski Auctions holds its Celebration of Cricket! Sale from 3pm Sunday September 2 at 727-729 High Street, Armadale.
The auction follows the recent closure of New South Wales' Central Coast Cricket Museum involving items on display for many years.
Other highlights include the collections of both a Melbourne and Sydney gentleman, along with various vendor items – again some of which have never before been auctioned.
Some of the more sensational lots include Ben Barnett's autograph book featuring the work of Arthur Mailey.
This is an autograph book titled "Australian Cricket Tour – England 1934" on the first page, followed by 18 full-page illustrations of team members and officials in the touring party.
Each is initialled "A.M." or signed "Arthur Mailey" and contains original signatures of the cricketers involved.
The Distinguished Visitors Book (blue leather with gilt embossing), intermittently maintained from 1953-1984, from the Old Swan Hotel in Harrogate, Yorkshire is another strong attraction.
An attractive display of the 1934 Australian tour to the United Kingdom – further entitled "The eighteenth Australian team and the first to tour England following the notorious 'Bodyline' series" – incorporates an official team photograph fully signed in ink in the lower margin.
A full size bat supported by a metal wall bracket is the feature of the Cricket Club Bar hanging sign from the Windsor Hotel in Melbourne, while probably the highest estimate lot ($40,000-$60,000) is Australian cricketing icon Sir Donald Bradman's correspondence to Nigel Ward who lived in Norfolk, England.
During the early 1990s, Ward was conducting personal research into Bradman's history and the archive comprises 49 hand and type written letters from the Australian legend (who retired in 1948 with a 99.94 Test batting average) dating from July 1990 to February 1999.
A late 19th century Royal Bonn cricket-themed beer stein with pewter lid, featuring Franz Anton Mehlem in vibrant colours, should attract strong buyer attention, while many auction goers will not be able to go past the original painting of late 19th century English cricket captain Dr W.G. Grace, signed "Payne" in the lower corner.
An Archie Jackson Stuart Surridge match-used bat, carrying his signature and brand above the words "AUSTN XI", should be another popular auction item.
Scottish-born Jackson played eight Test matches for Australia between 1929 and 1931 as a specialist batsman.
He debuted at age 19 against England and in the first inning scored 164 to become the youngest player to score a Test century. Sadly, he died from tuberculosis at only 23 years old.


text:
By Suzanne Bidlake
Creative experts line up to judge digital out of home contest
Anna Carpen, executive creative director at 18 Feet & Rising, Aaron Goldring, executive creative director at Partners Andrews Aldridge and Neil Richardson, creative director at Leo Burnett will be joining the judging line-up for the out of home Digital Creative Competition run by Ocean Outdoor, in partnership with Campaign.
"March for Giants": a winner in 2016
A 16-strong panel will select the best digital OOH ideas for campaigns that Ocean can bring to life on its screens in the UK or via The Alliance network in Madrid, New York and the Far East (Hong Kong).
Brands, agencies and creative teams have until September 8th to enter the free competition with a chance to share in the prize fund of £650,000 in media space. Winners winners will be announced at a ceremony at the IMAX in London on October 5th.
Two of last year's winners were an ad by WCRS for the Born Free Foundation which turned Ocean screens into virtual captive Orca tanks to mark World Orca Day, and "March for Giants" by 18 Feet & Rising, a campaign in which a herd of digitally-generated elephants marched across screens in the UK, US and the Far East.
The full 2017 judging panel is: Claire Beale, editor-in chief of Campaign; Gill Reid, board director, out of home, Mediacom; Glen Wilson, managing director of Posterscope; Stuart Taylor CEO of Kinetic; Chris Marjoram, managing director of of rapport; Andy Tilley, managing partner and chief strategy officer of Talon; Gareth Orr, head of OMD Create; Bill Moss, director of brand ventures and mall retail at Europe Westfield; Robin Behling, chairman of Feref; Sophia Amin director of PR and communications at IAB UK; Adrian Cotterill, editor-in-chief of Daily DOOH; Vasiliki Arvaniti, portfolio manager of Land Securities; and Ocean CEO Tim Bleakley.
Bleakley said: "Ocean invests in this competition to draw a new wave of global creative talent to the table, evolve the opportunities open to brands and to ensure that we market and implement every creative concept to the highest possible standards. Entering the competition is simple, but the rewards are multiple. And all you need to compete is a bold idea."
Advertising Media And Rising Leo Burnett Partners Andrews Aldridge
By Suzanne Bidlake recommends


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My London: Tiffany Saunders – Runway Director of Oxford Fashion Studio
Interviews | 08/11/2017 | Leave a Comment
Originally from Oxford, Tiffany Saunders grew up in the Cotswolds and was signed to a modelling agency aged just 15 years old. For the following 10 years, Tiffany continued to model which included shows for Oxford Fashion Studio back in 2010. During this time, Tiffany was also studying a Business & Events degree at Oxford Brookes University.
In 2014, at 25 years old, Tiffany was ready to take on life on the other side of the camera. Having always been interested in events and with a love and insight into the fashion industry, she started assisting with shows at OFS and, working her way up, she co-directed her first show later that year. Having been given creative freedom over the concept, the show took place in a converted prison, included a python called Ethel and was based around the story of lingerie.
From shooting to now discovering, over the years Tiffany's love for original, independent design has continued to flourish. Now as the Runway Director of Oxford Fashion Studio, Tiffany has worked on 87 photo shoots, 52 runway shows. She is now responsible for talent sourcing and creatively directing all OFS runway shows.
We caught up with Tiffany for the latest in our 'My London' interview series.
Favourite neighbourhood:
Ok this is a tough one to start! London is my favourite city in the world and so pinning down my favourite area is hard! I'd say top of my list has to be Notting Hill.
Favourite place for brunch:
I love 202 in Notting Hill, that place has the best French Toast in London! It also has a cool fashion / bookshop feel to it. I also loved Regent Street's Summer Streets in August – such a great idea and the food there from the surrounding cafes were delicious, made especically enjoyable by eating on a picnic bench boarded by what I think is one of London's most handsome streets.
Best coffee in London:
Ok, so I adore coffee. My absolutely favourite is the coffee at The Italian Garden cafe. I've also heard great reviews about the coffee and the Barista at the Tate Modern, so must give that a try soon.
Favourite gallery or museum:
The Victoria and Albert Museum is pretty special. I visit frequently and every time feel I experience it differently. The Wallace Collection and Natural History Museum are also amongst my favourites in London.
Tell us a secret:
I'm not great at keeping secrets.
Favourite place to shop:
This is tough. Right now I'd say Ted Baker is a solid choice, closely followed by Karen Millan and Selfridges.
Favourite place to find inspiration:
The Italian Gardens in Hyde Park. I find the water from the gardens really soothing to watch, and the beauty and tranquility of the statues and fountains inspiring.
Best London destination for a date:
Ok, see naturally I would suggest The Chesterfield Mayfair as a pretty perfect place for a date, surrounded by red carnations and their first class service – followed by a swift cab ride to Primrose Hill for a secret glass or two of sparkling at the top of the hill with that incredible view overlooking the city. However, for an early endurance test, signing up for a session at the Crystal Maze I feel could be an amusing alternative.
Favourite park:
Well, partly due to the constant supply of puppies, coffee and the Rolls Royce Ice cream truck I'd say Hyde Park is my favourite park in London. It's also right by where I live, so I get to enjoy it every day.
Favourite food market:
Definitely Portobello Road. I used to live on this market and the smells from the food every Friday and Saturday were sublime! Coupled with the Caribbean music this market was a weekly favourite pastime.
Your sanctuary in the city:
For me my sanctuary is to literally walk the streets of London. I love walking through areas of the city that hold special memories for me, to see what's going on and to almost feel like walking through a bunch of different film sets, from the tranquil peace of Knightsbridge Mews (I'm not sure you're actually allowed to walk through there), to the vibrancy of Covent Garden, to the wonderfully randomly placed Spitalfield City Farm. It's one of my favourite things.
People and places are a constant source of inspiration for me. My family, friends, my Director and my team. Surrounding yourself with wonderful people, people who you admire is important. That's key.
This season I'm loving:
Vanessa Gounden's The Question. I find her work captivating and her latest collection was outstanding.


The Anthony Awards were created in 1986, and are named after William Anthony Parker White (a.k.a. Anthony Boucher), a long-time Mystery critic for the New York Times. The Awards are presented annually at "Boucheron: The World Mystery Convention", for a variety of categories including Best Novel.