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Tag: Alps
Making tracks in la Bella Italia
La Bella Italia…the land of Roman amphitheatres and medieval castles, the Alps and the Dolomites, the Tuscan hills and the mighty Vesuvius. The home of the Ferrari and the Vespa, of Giorgio Armani and Prada. The country that brought us pasta, pizza, Parmesan, and Prosecco. And gelato, let's not forget the gelato. The home of Venice, Milan, Florence, and of course, Rome, the eternal city. Being half Italian I've spent many a holiday in this wonderful country. But never have I been so excited to see the green, white, and red of il Tricolore.
Perfect weather to cross the border to Italy
I was woken from a deep sleep in the atmospheric Grand Saint Bernard Hospice by a sort of Gregorian chant, which was played into the bedrooms to summon pilgrims down to breakfast. I pulled back the curtain to reveal a cloudless sky. Perfect weather to cross the border to Italy.
Stepping over the border felt momentous. Like a homecoming, but also like the beginning of a journey of discovery. Italy is so familiar to me, it's my second home and a huge part of my heritage. Yet my journey to Rome would take me through unfamiliar territory, and would test my shameful language skills. I was excited – for the history, the culture, the landscape, for it all. And the food. I was ridiculously excited about the food.
The rocky slopes of the Italian Alps
Leaving the rocky slopes of the Grand Saint Bernard Pass behind I descended into the Valle d'Aosta, an autonomous region where both Italian and French are official languages. I was soon snaking through forests and along the Ru Neuf. I kept turning around to check that the mountains were still there. I was torn – I didn't want to leave them, but I was also eager to explore everything that waited for me on the road ahead.
Less than a few hours from the Swiss border, I felt like I was in a different world. The shiny Porches and 4x4s had been replaced with Fiat Pandas and Fiat Puntos, and occasionally an old school Fiat Cinquecento. Wooden chalets decked out with Swiss flags had been replaced by stone chalets with roofs made of slate tiles the size of tombstones.
Walking along the Ru Neuf
The charming village of Etroubles full of stone chalets with slate roofs
Italy is an assault on the senses. The houses and their perfectly manicured gardens ooze colour. The ortos (vegetable gardens) are pungent with the smells of tomatoes, figs, peaches, and kiwis, and they send your taste buds into overdrive. Italians don't talk, they sing. And when they don't sing, they shout. Whether it's a seemingly abrupt "Pronto" when answering the phone, or a conversation that looks and feels more like an argument, Italy is loud.
The Arch of Augustus, built in 35 BC
My alpine crossing felt like a distant memory as I walked into Aosta, a city with history that dates back to the Roman times, with ruins of towers, gates, theatres, and arches to prove it. But the mountains were never far away. Aosta is surrounded by peaks, ski slopes that descend into vineyards the closer they get to the valley floor. They provide the backdrop to every colourful, crumbling street no matter which direction you turn. And the streets are full of life. People shopping in the artisan boutiques, people queuing outside delis to buy the locally produced Fontina and Fromadzo cheeses, and people sitting in piazzas drinking Aperol Spritz.
The walk out of the Valle d'Aosta provided some of the most challenging days of my journey so far. Climbing and descending over 2,300 metres in two days, yet always staying between 400 and 700 metres above sea level. Days were spent going up to come down, going up again only to come come down again. And the blistering heat made things worse. But my efforts were rewarded with spectacular mountain views, and at the end of every climb there was always a photo to be taken and a chance to catch my breath.
The glorious Valle d'Aosta. Can you spot the hot air balloon?
Just as I was thinking that the only way to truly appreciate the valley's beauty is from above, a hot air balloon effortlessly flew past. What I would've given to be floating down the valley in that balloon. But then I realised that while you may get amazing views, you don't get to see how people in the valley live. You don't get to see the one seater Piaggio pick up trucks weaving their way along the twists and turns of the valley's roads. Or the vines growing on pergolas built on top of stone pillars called pilun, which absorb the sun's heat during the day and release it at night, creating a mild microclimate amongst the vines.
At times the steep, forest covered cliffs of the valley transported me to the jungles of Brazil and Vietnam. But then I'd spot one of the many medieval forts and castles perched on hilltops either side of the Dora Baltea River. They were the strongholds of Italy's noble families, who tussled for control over this important alpine crossing and collected tolls from those traversing it. Some were in ruins, and the path would take me through the rubble of their remains. But others were as imposing as they would've been in their hay day. Such as the Forte di Bard, which completely dominates the valley floor. It has the feel of being both impassable and impenetrable. And it almost was – it took two weeks for Napoleon and his army of 40,000 to push past the fort when invading Italy in 1800, following which he ordered its destruction (the fort that stands today was rebuilt in the 1830s).
The imposing Forte di Bard
Pont Saint Martin, dating back to the first century BC
Following Roman roads and crossing Roman bridges dating back to the first century BC, I continued making my way south to the city of Ivrea, home of the chef Antonio Carluccio, Olivetti the manufacturers of typewriters and computers, and a world class canoe slalom course. The valley started to broaden, and its walls began to sink into the ground until they disappeared. The plains of the Po Valley stretched out in front of me. I gave a nostalgic look over my shoulder, and said goodbye to the mountains. I couldn't quite believe that I had crossed the Alps.
Arrivederci Alps!
Rice was to dominate the next week of my walk, as I made my way through the Vercelli rice fields. Italy is Europe's largest producer of rice, an agricultural practice that dates back thousands of years. With rice comes stagnant water, and with stagnant water come mosquitos. The rice fields were full of them, and they had their fill of me.
Rice, rice, and more rice
Early mornings walking through the Vercelli rice fields
Early starts made for beautiful sunrises, but the sun was soon scorching everything in sight and I raced from the shade of one tree or derelict farmhouse to the next. When the sun wasn't shining thunderstorms filled the air, which gave some respite from the mosquitos until the skies cleared and they returned with a vengeance.
The bell towers of village churches were beacons in a sea of rice, drawing me in to a place of shelter from the sun and the storm. Some were tiny chapels, big enough for a congregation of twelve people. And others were unexpected masterpieces that wouldn't be out of place in the Vatican. After visiting the village churches I would procrastinate in the bars, which were full of people from morning until night. I joined them watching Formula 1 and Serie A football, was questioned about my thoughts on Brexit and Boris Johnson, and refuelled on gelato.
An unexpected find, the stunning inside of Chiesa di San Michele Arcangelo in Cavaglià
A much needed gelato stop
The monotony of the landscape was starting to get to me. Maybe it was the heat, or maybe the fumes from my insect repellant, but a sort of delirium set in. My mind wandered and I imagined myself walking through the backwaters of Kerala, half expecting a houseboat to float by at any moment.
Despite the mosquitos, the heat, and the storms, there is a certain kind of beauty in the rice fields. They create a landscape of vivid gold and green, and are full of birdlife – great egrets, herons, and sacred ibis to name but a few. And every few days my journey was, mercifully, broken up with a momentary change of scene. Afternoons strolling along the shore of Lago di Viverone and exploring the churches and cloisters of Vercelli, and sampling the city's traditional bicciolani biscuits in gelato form, helped to save my sanity.
Sunset on Lago di Viverone
Abbazia di Sant'Andrea in Vercelli
Something else that helped me to keep going through the rice fields, together with a good luck message that I received from Stephen Fry, was the attitude of the local Italians. They embrace the Via Francigena like it's a part of their family. Indeed it feels like Italy is the spiritual home of the Via Francigena – it means so much to the people here, and they are proud to be a part of it.
Children had tied "Buon viaggio" signs to lampposts, and there were tables outside houses with drinks and snacks for pilgrims. Cars stopped to ask me where I was going, and a man on a bicycle shook my hand as he pedalled alongside me. As I walked down the street I was met with shouts of "Brava!", and as I passed some elderly people sat in rocking chairs they whooped and hollered "A Roma! A Roma!". I've had requests to say a prayer for someone when I get to Rome, and to say hello to Papa Francesco, Pope Francis, from others.
A sign made by children wishing pilgrims a good journey
As I walked through the small town of Tromello, I stopped in a bar to have a drink and a snack. Before I'd even had time to sit down, an elderly man on a bicycle painted green, white, and red approached me and asked if I was a pilgrim. He asked if I wanted my pilgrim's passport stamped, and told me that he'd be back shortly. He returned together with a certificate and pin badge. We had a brief chat about where I'd been and where I was going, and after a "Mamma Mia!" and a throwing of hands in the air, he cycled off on his way.
The certificate and pin badge I received in Tromello
Finally there was a light at the end of the rice fields. And that light was the university city of Pavia. Having walked for 18 days without a rest, I was exhausted and in need of a pit stop. But rest days are never zero step count days, as there's always so much to explore.
Pavia's is one of the oldest universities in Europe and I seemed to have timed my visit with students arriving for the start of a new term. I dodged the canoodling teenagers on the Ponte Coperto (covered bridge), and explored the city's countless churches, marvelling at their melodious bell ringing. Once called the "City of 100 Towers" only five of Pavia's medieval towers still rise up into the sky. The towers were a symbol of a family's power, and the taller the tower the more powerful the family. A fresco in the Chiesa di San Teodoro helped me to imagine what the city looked like in the 1300s, a medieval Manhattan.
Two of Pavia's remaining Medieval towers
A fresco in Chiesa di San Teodoro depicting Pavia in the 1300s
Exploring Pavia's colourful streets
In an attempt to feel like everyone else in the city I shunned my hiking clothes, and instead of walking 30 odd kilometres I did as they did. I strolled the city's cobbled streets and sat in a piazza watching the world go by. But as I watched the world go by, I realised there's no way of hiding my pilgrim credentials. Everyone else was beautifully turned out, women in high heels and dresses and men in pressed shirts and blazers. I was in a scruffy dress that hadn't been washed for weeks. Everyone else had flawless deep olive tans that they'd been working on all summer. I had tan lines that made it look like I was wearing socks and shorts even when I wasn't.
It dawned on me that although you take a day of rest from your pilgrimage, you don't stop being a pilgrim. The tell tale signs are all there, and your pilgrim mindset is too. You're always wanting to say hello to everyone you pass in the street, until you remember that in cities that's not what people do. You're always noticing the little things that everyone else, rushing about in their daily lives, is too busy to observe. And you're always looking out for the Via Francigena signs pointing in the direction of Rome.
Sunset over Pavia's Ponte Coperto and Duomo
Besançon to the Swiss border, and beyond
August 23, 2019 August 23, 2019 1 Comment
Rivers, and mountains, and cheese…oh my!
The Via Francigena, the medieval pilgrimage route that I'm following to Rome, has taken me to countless places that I've never heard of before. I've discovered charming villages and fascinating cities, visited off the beaten track places that I would previously struggle to pin point on a map. But the jewel in the crown of the Via Francigena's magical mystery tour has to be the Jura Mountains, which stretch across the French-Swiss border. My days walking through this unknown land were pure joy. Its natural beauty, picturesque villages, delicious cheeses, and warm hospitality pulled at my heart strings and had me never wanting to leave.
A misty morning high up in the Jura Mountains
The road out of Besançon was like a cruel wake up call leading me up an impossibly steep hill that took me high into the clouds, looking down on the Citadelle de Besançon which itself towers over the city. The flat plains and undulating hills that I'd spent the last week walking through were far behind me. Everything was starting to feel alpine – the air, the evergreens, the cow bells, the wooden chalets. It was one of those moments where you have to pinch yourself. Had I really walked here from my house in London?
Beautiful Ornans, which sits at the base of the Vallée de la Loue
The stunning town of Ornans took me somewhat by surprise. I'd spotted it on the map and thought of it only as a well positioned lunch stop. But as I walked to the base of the Vallée de la Loue and turned a corner to see Ornans' houses reflecting in the river below, I wished I was staying for a week. The town was the birthplace of the nineteenth century French realist painter Gustave Courbet. And it not only has a beautiful museum in which his and others' works are displayed, but has attracted other artists and creatives whose wares are on sale in the town's gallery lined streets.
I watched kayakers amble downstream as I picnicked by the River Loue, enjoying some of the region's famous Comté cheese. It's nutty and mature, travels well in a hot backpack, and goes perfectly with a fresh baguette.
Ornans houses reflected in the River Loue
The Vallée de la Loue
Edging further along the Vallée de la Loue, its limestone walls seemed to get higher and its forests thicker. I ventured deep into the fir trees in search of what turned out to be one of my favourite overnight stays since leaving London. A few years ago a wonderfully friendly and refreshing French-Swedish couple turned their backs on town life and bought a plot of land in the countryside, creating an off grid haven that instantly transported me to some of my favourite backpacker haunts in Nepal, Thailand, and Patagonia.
They wanted to share their world with others, so created an association (a non-profit organisation) that transformed their home into a bar where friends can drink, a venue for pétanque tournaments, the site of a music festival, and the force behind community ski trips higher up in the mountains. I stayed in a log cabin in the woods, which they reserve for pilgrims, swam in the freezing cold river that runs through their property, and enjoyed an evening of home cooked home grown food, interesting conversation, and much laughter. And I was introduced to another local cheese, cancoillotte. It looks more like double cream than cheese, and is spooned on to bread, potatoes, or anything you like to give it the taste of gooey cheesy goodness.
Taking an ice cold dip in the river
Moving south I continued to climb higher, surrounded by lush greenery and the sound of the River Loue running down the valley. I passed baby donkeys, the odd cyclist, and the lovely village of Lods.
The lovely village of Lods
Walking through lush forests
Thunderstorms brought an end to the run of glorious weather. But what I lost in clear blue skies I gained in a thundering river and dramatic waterfalls. Mist filled the air and dew covered the forest floor. With the heavy rainfall "bonus" waterfalls appeared everywhere, and fallen trees created obstacles that I had to navigate over. At the head of the valley I reached the source of the River Loue, which springs out from the base of a huge limestone rock. Its power is harnessed by a hydroelectric plant, which powers 16,000 homes in the area.
Discovering dramatic waterfalls
The source of the River Loue
As I closed in on the Swiss border, past hilltop chateaux and along disused railway lines, I started to reflect on my time in France. I'd spent five and a half weeks walking through the country, a country that aside from some trips to Paris, some family holidays as a child, and some ski trips to the Alps, I didn't know very well. I didn't feel I knew French culture very well either, nor did I feel like I understood it.
There's been no better way to get to know France than to travel through it slowly, to places that are largely untouched by tourists. To places where people have welcomed me into their homes, invited me to eat dinner with them and observe the rituals of aperitifs and cheese boards. Where people have had huge amounts of patience with my pigeon French, but haven't let that stop us from talking, and laughing, and from them displaying acts of kindness that I will forever be grateful for. At times it left like my walk through France was never ending, yet as the end drew near I didn't want it to.
Waving au revoir to France
Formalities at the Swiss border were nonexistent, and I felt the urge to run through the fields singing "The Sound of Music" if only to mark the fact that I was in a new country. But I didn't need a customs official or to have my passport checked to evidence that walking through a small gap in a hedge had taken me to a different world.
The air on the Swiss side of the border felt different somehow, like it held the key to long life. And I drank in lungfuls of it. The roads were sealed with fresh tarmac, and their twists and turns were a playground for shiny straight-out-of-the-showroom Audi's, 4x4s, Porches, and Ferraris. Everything seemed to ooze wealth, not least the enormous Grand Designs chalets that dotted the mountainsides.
I quickly learned that the Swiss are a proud nation. Towns and houses are decorated with bunting and Chinese lanterns that carry the red and white of the Swiss Cross. Flags are everywhere – national flags, canton flags, and town flags. Were it not for the fast cars and high spec houses, it wouldn't have felt out of place for medieval knights to ride past on horses.
Just some of the Swiss flags on display in the town of Orbe
The colourful streets of Orbe
Walking through forests and colourful towns I got my first view of the Alps. It was a perfectly clear day and in the far distance Mount Blanc reared its head. I was overcome with emotion, standing and looking at the mountains knowing that I'd arrived at them on foot. I couldn't quite believe it, it felt surreal. And for the first time I really felt like I was doing this, I was really walking to Rome.
The Alps crept closer as I continued south towards Lausanne, until I stood on the shore of Lake Geneva and they towered over the water. All I could do was stop and stare, completely dumbstruck by the whole experience.
Admiring the Alps from Lake Geneva
Lausanne is a city that effortlessly blends the old and the new. Its old town, with its cathedral and narrow streets, tumbles downhill into a regenerated industrial area that oozes all things hip and cool. There's a South of France feel in the air, and the grand Belle Époque hotels lining the shore of Lake Geneva recall a time when Europe's middle classes travelled to Lausanne to take to its waters and enjoy the mountain air (and they still do).
The view from the bell tower of Lausanne's Cathédrale de Notre Dame
Lausanne's old town
The headquarters of the International Olympic Committee
Lausanne is the home of the International Olympic Committee, and it felt as though the Olympic Games were taking place in the city on a daily basis. As I strolled around on a day off, trying to be as inactive as possible, I saw archery, high board diving, beach volleyball, rowing, basketball, sailing, and everything in between. Everyone exuded a healthy, youthful glow. There was an energy about the city, and everywhere I looked it was alive. I began to wonder whether Swiss air really does hold the key to long life after all.
Relaxing on the shore of Lake Geneva


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As of November 1st, 2012, the Bank of Canada 5 year bench mark rate is being used to qualify mortgage applications where the interest term is variable and/or less than 5 years in length.
For both new home purchases, and debt consolidations, and mortgage refinancings, this is having and will continue to have an impact on many Canadians looking for mortgage financing.
Before we get into the direct impact, let's define what the B20 rate is.
Every Wednesday the Bank of Canada sets the bench market rate which is derived from an average of the posted 5 year fixed mortgage rates of the major banks.
The newly calculated B20 rate on Wednesday is then released to the public on the following Monday, and then put into use by mortgage lenders until a new rate is calculated.
At the present time, the B20 rate is approximately 5.25% even though the actual borrowing rate to secure 5 year fixed terms right now is more than 2 percentage points less.
Impact Of B20 Going Forward.
The B of C bench mark rate now needs to be utilized when calculating an applicants ability to debt service on any variable term or any fixed term under 5 years.
Because the B20 is considerably higher than the actual rates available in the market place, many consumers are not able to meet the debt servicing requirements attached to "A" mortgage offerings or the only "A" offering they can qualify for is a 5 year rate, pushing the market place more and more towards longer term fixed rate mortgages.
Coupled with the recent changes to loan to value ratios where the maximum allowable mortgage from a federally regulated lender is 80%, the B20 rate makes qualifying for a mortgage refinance to consolidate debt much more difficult to achieve.
This will impact home purchases as well as home purchasers are more likely to adjust their sights on properties they can afford under the new rules.
With mortgage refinancing, its a bit of a different story.
In a refinance mortgage for debt consolidation scenario, the debt already exists and the mortgage holder is trying to bring down the cost of overall debt and term it out over a longer period of time. So with less refinancing options available, cash flow stress will be harder to alleviate.
For anyone looking for variable rate mortgage, the spread between the current market rates for variable and the B20 rate is about 2.5%, or almost double current variable mortgage rates which are mostly at prime minus 0.20%, or 2.80%. So to qualify for that variable rate, you have to be able to show debt servicing ability for the B20 rate which in many cases will be impossible to do.
The better mortgage rates are now harder to qualify for.
On the flip side, if you can't qualify for a specific "A" mortgage rate right now, there are several very good sub prime offerings on the market that can work in the interim.
The key right now for all mortgage holders or prospective home buyers is to really understand your financial and credit profile to see what you can qualify for, and if you can't qualify for a mortgage with a bank or institutional lender then its going to be important to build a plan to get yourself into "Finance-able Position" to lower your rate in the near future.
The new rules are not likely going away any time soon, so there is going to be a period of adjustment.
Even if you don't need a new mortgage today, you would still be well served to gain an understanding of the new rules and see how your current level of debt, cash flow, and credit stack up against them.
One of the best ways to do this is to work with an experienced mortgage broker who can not only help you understand the changes in the mortgage qualifying process, but also calculate the numbers for different scenarios so you have a solid plan of attack moving forward for whatever your future mortgage needs may be.


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In Court, Experts Say Knoedler Ignored Warnings About Forgeries
By M. H. Miller
M. H. Miller
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Art dealer Glafira Rosales, who has admitted to bringing forged artworks to Knoedler.
More expert witnesses testified this week in the trial over a fake Mark Rothko painting in U.S. District Court in Manhattan. Domenico and Eleanore De Sole argue that the Knoedler gallery, and its president Ann Freedman, knowingly sold them the forged painting at a price of $8.3 million. The Rothko was part of a cache of counterfeit works—mostly by Abstract Expressionist artists, including Robert Motherwell, Barnett Newman, and Jackson Pollock—brought to the gallery at discount prices by Glafira Rosales, a Long Island dealer. Rosales said she was working on behalf of the heirs of one "Mr. X"—an anonymous collector with residencies in Switzerland and Mexico, whose name she declined to disclose to the gallery because, she claimed, the family wanted to remain private.
Jack Flam, the president of the Dedalus Foundation, which exists to support the legacy of Motherwell and in 2012 published the artist's catalogue raisonné, appeared on the witness stand on Wednesday. He offered further details into the story of Mr. X that he claims Knoedler perpetuated. Mr. X allegedly obtained his collection directly from the artists' studios, with the aid of David Herbert, an employee at both the Betty Parsons and Sidney Janis galleries, who had a documented relationship with Rothko and his contemporaries. Flam testified that he was told by Freedman that Herbert and Mr. X, a businessman said to have made a fortune in sugar, were in a homosexual relationship together. This, according to Flam, was the primary reason the gallery offered for keeping Mr. X's identity secret. But the story eventually shifted so that the two men were "just acquaintances," Flam said. Mr. X turned out to be the invention of Rosales, who, starting in 1994 and continuing for the next 15 years, brought Knoedler 40 fakes, all of which were painted by a Chinese immigrant living in Queens. Freedman resigned from Knoedler in 2009, and the gallery closed abruptly in 2011, after 165 years in business.
Flam saw one of Rosales's fake Motherwells, which eventually sold to collector Jay Shidler, in Freedman's office in 2006. Freedman told Flam that Motherwell had gone to Mexico as a guest of Mr. X in 1953, and that's when he purchased the painting. Flam told Freedman that there was no evidence of Motherwell having been to Mexico that year. Late in 2007, the Dedalus Foundation looked at reproductions of four previously unknown Motherwells, obtained from Rosales and seemingly from the collection of Mr. X, and concluded that "they were probably fakes."
"The consistency of the signatures" on the paintings Flam said, "was such that it looked like [they] had been done with a template."
There were other warning signs. "Stylistically, they did not hold water," Flam told the jury. "We believed that they were not authentic Motherwells." And yet, according to Flam, when he told Freedman this, she resisted the conclusion, calling the paintings' supposed provenance with Herbert "impeccable."
Throughout his testimony, Flam spoke with a professorial penchant for digressions, much to the ire of Charles Schmerler, a lawyer for Knoedler, who cut Flam off frequently. "Why don't I just go ahead and object now?" Schmerler said at one point, interrupting Flam as he started to say, "I'll speak slowly in case there's an objection." Even Gregory Clarick, one of the plaintiff's lawyers, for whom Flam was called as a witness, joined in. On one of his tangents, Flam began, "I should say that my wife—"
"No, you shouldn't," Clarick said, effectively ending this train of thought.
A painting, attributed to Robert Motherwell, that Glafira Rosales sold to art dealer Julian Weissman in a separate case.
During his cross-examination by Schmerler, Flam very nearly bordered on A Few Good Men territory as he responded to Knoedler's defense team. When asked if, in 2006 (the year Flam first saw a Rosales Motherwell), he had a general ability to spot inconsistencies in Motherwell's work, Flam wouldn't give a yes or no answer, arguing that it depended from painting to painting. Schmerler, somewhat predictably, was unmoved. Flam asked, "Do you want an honest answer, or do you want a prefabricated answer of what you are expecting?"
"All I want is the truth," Schmerler said.
"I'm trying to tell you the truth," Flam responded. "You seem resistant to it."
But Flam's testimony was ultimately some of the most damning for Knoedler and Freedman so far during the trial. He said Freedman had provided him with reports that the gallery had commissioned about the Rosales works from art historians Robert Hobbs and Stephen Polcari. Flam mocked these writings openly, characterizing them as hyperbolic. Hobbs's report called the fake Motherwells among the artist's "greatest works." Polcari went even further, Flam recalled. "I'm only exaggerating a little," he added. Portions of the reports by Polcari, who also testified this week, were read aloud to the court. Of the fake Motherwells, he said they "have obviously been chosen by a sharp eye[.]" In another report about a Rosales fake by a different artist, Clyfford Still, Polcari wrote, "In his mature work, the formal elements portray the emblematic struggle of mankind, nature, and inner strength and power. [The Rosales work] is an early statement of Still's fusion of these."
In 2008, Flam investigated two of the Motherwell paintings in-person—both purportedly from the artist's "Spanish Elegy" series, one from 1953, which Freedman owned, and another from 1955, which the gallery was trying to sell. Flam said the two works had the title of the series written—presumably by the artist—alongside the signature on the back of the canvas. In the 1950s, Flam said, Motherwell was only known to use the phrase "Spanish Elegy" in casual conversation about this work, and not as part of his signature. This set off another alarm bell. Another problem was the fact that the painting's support was warped, which should have caused cracks in the paint itself, but the paint appeared to be in perfect condition. "They looked more like the Elegies than the Elegies themselves," Flam said. "Even if they were real, they didn't fit into what Motherwell was doing in 1953 and 1955." Flam urged the gallery to submit the paintings to forensic testing.
James Martin, the forensic analyst who examined the two Motherwells later in 2008, testified on Thursday. Isaac Zaur, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, spent close to an hour establishing Martin's credentials. His clients include the FBI and the U.S. Attorney's Office. He explained in detail, with the help of photographic displays, the functionality of the equipment he uses—black lights, stereo microscopes, an X-ray fluorescence analyzer, a technique called fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, which, long story short, helps determine whether or not certain materials are present in a painting. Martin's testimony came across much like an autobiography. The court learned that Martin used to enjoy skateboarding, that he's married and raising a family, that black-light posters hung in his room as a child, that he hasn't published as much as he'd like, and that he calls his stereo microscope his "best friend."
Martin's report on the Motherwells found the anomalous presence of acrylic polymer emulsion paints. The paintings were from the 1950s, but, Martin said, according to a great deal of published evidence—books about the artist, for instance, and interviews with him—Motherwell did not begin using this kind of paint until the 1960s. He also found traces of paint—Red 170 and Red 188—that were not manufactured at the time the works were supposedly made. There was also evidence that an electric sander had been used on the paintings, something Motherwell was never known to use. (Flam testified that he had tried to track down an assistant from 1953 and 1955 who might have deployed such a tool, but found no evidence that one existed.) The report concluded that the analysis "is inconsistent with the understanding that the paintings were made and purchased in the 1950s."
In January 2009, Martin sent the completed report to E.A. Carmean, a former curator at the National Gallery in Washington, D.C., who was at the time working for Knoedler as a consultant. Knoedler sent the report back to Martin, with various hand-written edits. These were presented on a large screen for the jury to see. Carmean cut Martin's phrase about the analysis being "inconsistent" with the alleged dates of the works. ("Too broad, negative[,] and some elements have changed," Carmean wrote.) He also wanted to remove the details about the presence of Red 170 and Red 188. Martin had written that his examination of the paintings "[suggested] they were not made by Motherwell." Carmean wanted this sentence cut, and replaced with: "At this point in the analysis and research, no conclusions can be drawn regarding these two works."
An allegedly fake Pollock that Knoedler sold to hedge funder Pierre Lagrange. A resulting legal case was settled out of court.
"My sense was he was asking me to completely change my findings," Martin said. He went on to examine the De Soles' Rothko, and came to the same conclusion as with the Motherwells: that the work was not by the artist it had been attributed to.
Earlier in the week, Martha Parrish, a gallery owner who helped draft the code of ethics for the Art Dealers Association of America, appeared as an expert witness on above-board business practices for art dealers. Emily Reisbaum, a lawyer for the De Soles, asked Parrish what, in her experience, a reputable dealer would do if faced with a collection like the one that Rosales was bringing to Freedman—in other words, a hoard of previously unknown works by famous artists, sourced from an anonymous collector, with no documented provenance and a below-market price.
"A reputable dealer would run like hell," Parrish said.
Freedman is scheduled to testify on Monday.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
"""Contains definitions for the post-activation form of Residual Networks.

Residual networks (ResNets) were proposed in:
[1] Kaiming He, Xiangyu Zhang, Shaoqing Ren, Jian Sun
    Deep Residual Learning for Image Recognition. arXiv:1512.03385
"""

from __future__ import absolute_import
from __future__ import division
from __future__ import print_function

import tensorflow.compat.v1 as tf
from REDACTED.tensorflow_models.mlperf.models.rough.util import image_util

def conv2d_space_to_depth(inputs, filters, kernel_size, strides, block_size=2):
  """Strided 2-D convolution with explicit padding.

  The padding is consistent and is based only on `kernel_size`, not on the
  dimensions of `inputs` (as opposed to using `tf.layers.conv2d` alone).

  Args:
    inputs: `Tensor` of size `[batch, height_in, width_in, channels]`.
    filters: `int` number of filters in the convolution.
    kernel_size: `int` size of the kernel to be used in the convolution.
    strides: `int` strides of the convolution.
    block_size: space-to-depth padding block-size

  Returns:
    A `Tensor` of shape `[batch, filters, height_out, width_out]`.
  """

  def _round_up(kernel_size, block_size):
    remainder = kernel_size % block_size
    if remainder == 0:
      return block_size
    else:
      return kernel_size + block_size - remainder

  padded_k = _round_up(kernel_size, block_size)
  _, _, _, in_f = inputs.get_shape().as_list()

  # Create the padded kernel
  kernel = tf.get_variable(
      'kernel_conv2d_opt',
      shape=[padded_k, padded_k, in_f // 4, filters],
      initializer=tf.variance_scaling_initializer(),
      trainable=True,
      dtype=tf.float32)

  # Zero padded region
  mx = tf.constant([1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 0], dtype=tf.float32)
  kernel = kernel * tf.reshape(mx, [1, padded_k, 1, 1]) * tf.reshape(
      mx, [padded_k, 1, 1, 1])

  # Transpose to enable space-to-depth optimization
  kernel = tf.reshape(kernel, [
      padded_k // 2, block_size, padded_k // 2, block_size, in_f // 4, filters
  ])
  kernel = tf.transpose(kernel, [0, 2, 1, 3, 4, 5])
  kernel = tf.reshape(kernel, [padded_k // 2, padded_k // 2, in_f, filters])
  kernel = tf.cast(kernel, inputs.dtype)

  # Add a convolution operation using this kernel
  s = strides // 2
  return tf.nn.conv2d(
      input=inputs,
      filter=kernel,
      strides=[s, s, s, s],
      padding='SAME',
      data_format='NHWC')

def conv2d_norm_relu(inputs,
                     filters,
                     kernel_size,
                     strides,
                     is_training,
                     relu=True,
                     init_zero=False,
                     space_to_depth=False,
                     num_replicas=1,
                     distributed_group_size=1,
                     batch_norm_decay=0.9,
                     batch_norm_epsilon=1e-5):
  """conv2d followed by batchnorm and relu.

  Args:
    inputs: `Tensor` of size `[batch, height_in, width_in, channels]`.
    filters: `int` number of filters in the convolution.
    kernel_size: `int` size of the kernel to be used in the convolution.
    strides: `int` strides of the convolution.
    is_training: `bool` for whether the model is training.
    relu: `bool` if False, omits the ReLU operation.
    init_zero: `bool` if True, initializes scale parameter of batch
      normalization with 0 instead of 1 (default).
    space_to_depth: If True, we use the space-to-depth transformation.
    num_replicas: Number of replicas that participate in the global reduction.
      Default is set to None, that will skip the cross replica sum in and
      normalize across local examples only.
    distributed_group_size: Number of replicas to normalize across in the
      distributed batch normalization.
    batch_norm_decay: 'float' the decay rate of the BN EMA.
    batch_norm_epsilon: 'float' the epsilon used in the BN denominator.

  Returns:
    A `Tensor` of shape `[batch, height_out, width_out, filters]`.
  """
  if space_to_depth:
    inputs = conv2d_space_to_depth(
        inputs=inputs,
        filters=filters,
        kernel_size=kernel_size,
        strides=strides)
    inputs = tf.identity(inputs, 'initial_conv')
  else:
    if strides > 1:
      pad_total = kernel_size - 1
      pad_beg = pad_total // 2
      pad_end = pad_total - pad_beg
      inputs = tf.pad(inputs,
                      [[0, 0], [pad_beg, pad_end], [pad_beg, pad_end], [0, 0]])
    inputs = tf.layers.conv2d(
        inputs=inputs,
        filters=filters,
        kernel_size=kernel_size,
        strides=strides,
        padding=('SAME' if strides == 1 else 'VALID'),
        use_bias=False,
        kernel_initializer=tf.variance_scaling_initializer())

  initializer = tf.zeros_initializer() if init_zero else tf.ones_initializer()

  # TODO(b/147558625): remove the branch to always go to True path
  if distributed_group_size > 0:
    inputs = image_util.distributed_batch_norm(
        inputs=inputs,
        decay=batch_norm_decay,
        epsilon=batch_norm_epsilon,
        is_training=is_training,
        gamma_initializer=initializer,
        num_shards=num_replicas,
        distributed_group_size=distributed_group_size)
  else:
    inputs = tf.layers.batch_normalization(
        inputs=inputs,
        axis=3,
        momentum=batch_norm_decay,
        epsilon=batch_norm_epsilon,
        center=True,
        scale=True,
        training=is_training,
        fused=True,
        gamma_initializer=initializer)

  if relu:
    inputs = tf.nn.relu(inputs)

  return inputs

def resnet_v1(
    resnet_depth,
    num_classes,
    use_space_to_depth=False,
    num_replicas=1,
    distributed_group_size=1,
    batch_norm_decay=0.9,
    batch_norm_epsilon=1e-5):
  """Returns the ResNet model for a given size and number of output classes."""

  def model(inputs, is_training):
    """Creation of the model graph."""
    model_params = {
        18: [False, [2, 2, 2, 2]],
        34: [False, [3, 4, 6, 3]],
        50: [True, [3, 4, 6, 3]],
        101: [True, [3, 4, 23, 3]],
        152: [True, [3, 8, 36, 3]],
        200: [True, [3, 24, 36, 3]]
    }
    use_bottleneck, layers = model_params[resnet_depth]
    inputs = conv2d_norm_relu(
        inputs, 64, 7, 2, is_training, space_to_depth=use_space_to_depth,
        num_replicas=num_replicas,
        distributed_group_size=distributed_group_size,
        batch_norm_decay=batch_norm_decay,
        batch_norm_epsilon=batch_norm_epsilon)
    inputs = tf.layers.max_pooling2d(
        inputs=inputs, pool_size=3, strides=2, padding='SAME')

    for i in range(4):
      filters = 64 * pow(2, i)
      filters_out = 4 * filters if use_bottleneck else filters
      for layer in range(layers[i]):
        strides = 1 if (i == 0 or layer > 0) else 2
        shortcut = inputs
        if layer == 0:
          shortcut = conv2d_norm_relu(
              inputs, filters_out, 1, strides, is_training, False,
              num_replicas=num_replicas,
              distributed_group_size=distributed_group_size,
              batch_norm_decay=batch_norm_decay,
              batch_norm_epsilon=batch_norm_epsilon)

        if use_bottleneck:
          inputs = conv2d_norm_relu(
              inputs, filters, 1, 1, is_training,
              num_replicas=num_replicas,
              distributed_group_size=distributed_group_size,
              batch_norm_decay=batch_norm_decay,
              batch_norm_epsilon=batch_norm_epsilon)
          inputs = conv2d_norm_relu(
              inputs, filters, 3, strides, is_training,
              num_replicas=num_replicas,
              distributed_group_size=distributed_group_size,
              batch_norm_decay=batch_norm_decay,
              batch_norm_epsilon=batch_norm_epsilon)
          inputs = conv2d_norm_relu(
              inputs, filters_out, 1, 1, is_training,
              False, True,
              num_replicas=num_replicas,
              distributed_group_size=distributed_group_size,
              batch_norm_decay=batch_norm_decay,
              batch_norm_epsilon=batch_norm_epsilon)
        else:
          inputs = conv2d_norm_relu(
              inputs, filters, 3, strides, is_training,
              num_replicas=num_replicas,
              distributed_group_size=distributed_group_size,
              batch_norm_decay=batch_norm_decay,
              batch_norm_epsilon=batch_norm_epsilon)
          inputs = conv2d_norm_relu(
              inputs, filters_out, 3, 1, is_training,
              False, True,
              num_replicas=num_replicas,
              distributed_group_size=distributed_group_size,
              batch_norm_decay=batch_norm_decay,
              batch_norm_epsilon=batch_norm_epsilon)
        inputs = tf.nn.relu(inputs + shortcut)

    inputs = tf.reshape(inputs, [inputs.shape[0], -1, inputs.shape[-1]])
    inputs = tf.reduce_mean(inputs, 1)
    inputs = tf.layers.dense(
        inputs=inputs,
        units=num_classes,
        kernel_initializer=tf.random_normal_initializer(stddev=0.01))
    return inputs

  return model

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
/ News / Obituaries /
« Dawn Marie Oliveri Albert Regan Doyle»
Charles John Hoover
Special to the Reporter (sancapnews@breezenewspapers.com) , Island Reporter, Captiva Current, Sanibel-Captiva Islander
Charles John Hoover, 83, of Fort Myers, Fla. and Noblesville, Ind., died on January 25, 2014. He was married to Nancy Hoover for 10 years. She survives. Previously, he was married to Carol Hoover for 49 years who is deceased.
Hoover was born on April 16, 1930 in Milwaukee, Wis., and spent his youth in Terre Haute, Ind. He was a 1951 graduate of Purdue University majoring in Chemical Engineering and a member of Beta Theta Pi fraternity and the Gimlet organization.
He served in the Army at the Dugway Proving Grounds in Utah. After being honorably discharged in 1954, he began working at Dupont Chemical Company in Charleston, W.Va. He then moved to Indiana and worked for 31 years with Eli Lilly and Company, mostly in West Lafayette. He retired in 1988.
Charles John Hoover. PHOTO PROVIDED.
He was involved with Habitat for Humanity, Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation, Rotary, and St. Michael's Episcopal Church.
In addition to his wife, he is survived by two sons, John Hoover (Donna) and Tom Hoover (Sally); two stepsons, Clyde Brant (Jennifer) and Jeff Sommer; six grandchildren, Laura Santiago (Omar), Sarah Hartmann (Michael), Abby Hoover, Hilary Hoover, Grant Hoover, Griffin Hoover; five step grandchildren, Constance Sommer, Nicholas Sommer, Colin Brant, Kate Brant, Alexander Brant; and two step great grandchildren, Kennya Santiago, Karen Santiago.
A memorial service and reception will be held at 1:00 p.m. on Feb. 15 at Sanibel Community Church on Sanibel Island, Fla.
Memorial contributions can be made to Habitat for Humanity or the American Cancer Society.


We are excited to announce that the UMSA Foundation scholarship program is back for a second year. In 2017, UMSA launched the scholarship program to support professionals in the security and risk-related industries. The UMSA Foundation was launched in 2018 to better support continuing education for these security and risk professionals through the scholarship program and grants.
All applications will be accepted on the UMSA Foundation website.
The scholarship application opened on October 1, 2018 and will close on Friday, March 15, 2019- so head on over and apply today!
We're happy to support you on your educational path. Best of luck to you!


text:
package com.splunk.javaagent.hprof;

public class AllocSite {

	private byte type;
	private int classSerial;
	private int stackTraceSerial;
	private int numberOfBytesAlive;
	private int numberOfInstancesAlive;
	private int numberOfBytesAllocated;
	private int numberOfInstancesAllocated;

	public String toString() {

		StringBuffer sb = new StringBuffer();
		sb.append("type").append("=").append(getTypeString()).append(":");
		sb.append("classSerial").append("=").append(classSerial).append(":");
		sb.append("stackTraceSerial").append("=").append(stackTraceSerial)
				.append(":");
		sb.append("numberOfBytesAlive").append("=").append(numberOfBytesAlive)
				.append(":");
		sb.append("numberOfInstancesAlive").append("=")
				.append(numberOfInstancesAlive).append(":");
		sb.append("numberOfBytesAllocated").append("=")
				.append(numberOfBytesAllocated).append(":");
		sb.append("numberOfInstancesAllocated").append("=")
				.append(numberOfInstancesAllocated);

		return sb.toString();

	}

	public byte getType() {
		return type;
	}

	public String getTypeString() {

		switch (type) {

		case 0:
			return "normal object";
		case 2:
			return "object array";
		case 4:
			return "boolean array";
		case 5:
			return "char array";
		case 6:
			return "float array";
		case 7:
			return "double array";
		case 8:
			return "byte array";
		case 9:
			return "short array";
		case 10:
			return "int array";
		case 11:
			return "long array";
		default:
			return "unknown";
		}
	}

	public void setType(byte type) {
		this.type = type;
	}

	public int getClassSerial() {
		return classSerial;
	}

	public void setClassSerial(int classSerial) {
		this.classSerial = classSerial;
	}

	public int getStackTraceSerial() {
		return stackTraceSerial;
	}

	public void setStackTraceSerial(int stackTraceSerial) {
		this.stackTraceSerial = stackTraceSerial;
	}

	public int getNumberOfBytesAlive() {
		return numberOfBytesAlive;
	}

	public void setNumberOfBytesAlive(int numberOfBytesAlive) {
		this.numberOfBytesAlive = numberOfBytesAlive;
	}

	public int getNumberOfInstancesAlive() {
		return numberOfInstancesAlive;
	}

	public void setNumberOfInstancesAlive(int numberOfInstancesAlive) {
		this.numberOfInstancesAlive = numberOfInstancesAlive;
	}

	public int getNumberOfBytesAllocated() {
		return numberOfBytesAllocated;
	}

	public void setNumberOfBytesAllocated(int numberOfBytesAllocated) {
		this.numberOfBytesAllocated = numberOfBytesAllocated;
	}

	public int getNumberOfInstancesAllocated() {
		return numberOfInstancesAllocated;
	}

	public void setNumberOfInstancesAllocated(int numberOfInstancesAllocated) {
		this.numberOfInstancesAllocated = numberOfInstancesAllocated;
	}

}


text:
Вања Чобанов (Сента, СФРЈ, 26 август 1967) писац је и сценариста.

Биографија
Одрастао је на северу Војводине, у малом банатском градићу Чоки. Након средње школе у Сенти и студија на правном факултету у Крагујевцу, оснива породицу. Отац је Јована, Невена и Дуње. Живи и пише у земљи и иностранству.

Први роман,  Ако је до мене објављује 2010 године. Од тада, посвећен писању, објављује неколико романа и књига прича. Као сарадник, потписује сценарио за познати филм и ТВ серију Santa Maria della Salute

Радови

Романи
 Ако је до мене ( 2010, Каирос )
 Remedy for love ( 2011, Лагуна )
 Ready to wear ( 2012 , Лагуна )
 Ноћ ми те дугује ( 2014, Чаробна књига )
 Људи који седе у тами ( 2015, Чаробна књига )
 Кад слеп човек плаче( 2017, Прометеј )

Збирке прича
 Време које се никад више поновити неће ( 2012, Литера )
 Венеција у равници ( 2014, Чаробна књига )

Сценарији
 Документарни филм Богдан Дунђерски
 филм и ТВ серију Santa Maria della Salute

Референце

Спољашње везе
Вања Чобанов Блог: Again we can smile
Вања Чобанов - Интервју
Представљен роман Кад слеп човек плаче - Радио-телевизија Војводине

Сенћани
Рођени 1967.
Српски књижевници
Српски сценаристи

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
Home Web Specials 2016 Web Specials Astounding half million new voters registered in third quarter 2016!
2016 Web Specials
Astounding half million new voters registered in third quarter 2016!
Ong Kian Ming is concerned that voter registration activities may not be conducted on a level playing field.
In the recently released third quarter 2016 electoral roll update, an astounding 501,799 newly registered voters were added to the electoral roll. This is more than five times the number of newly registered voters in the second quarter of 2016 and five times more than the number of newly registered voters just before the 2013 general elections.
There are many reasons for the record number of newly registered voters in the third quarter of 2016. Many voters visited post offices to register themselves upon hearing the rumour that the registration deadline for the 14th general election, were it to be held in March 2017, was 30 September, 2016.
There was also an increase in voter registration activities, organised by political parties and various NGOs, in cooperation with officials from the Election Commission.
At the same time, one cannot help but be concerned that the voter registration activities are not being conducted on a level playing field. According to the 2015 Electoral Commission Annual Report, the commission appointed a total of 12,160 assistant registrars: 11,959 or 98.3 per cent of them are civil servants representing various government departments with only 48 or 0.4 per cent representing political parties, 30 or 0.2 per cent representing universities and 123 or 1.0 per cent representing NGOs.
With civil servants making such a large percentage of the assistant registrars, one cannot help but be concerned that some of them from departments such as Jasa, the Ministry of Information's propaganda unit, are being used to register voters selectively, especially in the marginal parliamentary and state seats.
READ MORE: Meningkatkan akses pengundian dalam pilihan raya
In order to reduce the public's fears that some of these assistant registrars are not abusing their status, the Electoral Commission should publish a detailed breakdown of the number of new voters registered by civil servants according to department, by individual political parties, by student representatives in each university and by each NGO.
Before the 13th general election, when many more political party representatives were appointed as assistant registrars, the Electoral Commission used to publish the number of newly registered voters by political party. There is no reason why the commission cannot continue to disclose this information for all the assistant registrars they have appointed.
In addition, in order to level the playing field, the commission should once again appoint representatives from political parties to be assistant registrars especially since the commission themselves are often short-handed and cannot spare the time go to places such as pasar malams at night to register new voters.
Better still, if the government can agree to Bersih's demand of automatic registration of voters when they reach voting age, then doubts about the number of newly registered voters can be significantly reduced.
Dr Ong Kian Ming is the member of parliament for Serdang.


text:
Cheneyville steht für:

 Cheneyville (Illinois), Ortschaft im Vermilion County, Illinois, USA
 Cheneyville (Louisiana), Ortschaft im Rapides Parish, Louisiana, USA


This Saturday, August 20th stop by Makaha Mangoes booth at the Makeke Waianae (Farmers Market) to learn about Mangoes, Grafting, Pruning, etc. Mark Suiso will be there to lead the instruction. The "Eat Local Challenge" goes on from the the middle of August to the middle of September with four weekends of great food and informative demonstrations about growing, cooking, and eating!


If your website takes too long to load, your customers will abandon their shopping carts. In fact, with anything that exceeds six seconds of page load time, you start losing 90 percent of your visitors. Especially in today's competitive market with customers expecting instantaneous page-load time, your business will truly suffer if your website has slow load time.
Slow performance affects everything from individual transactions, to customer retention and ultimately revenue. E-commerce businesses simply cannot afford to suffer a slip in performance. In 2006, the average online shopper expected a web page to load in 4 seconds. Today, that same shopper expects your page to load in 2 seconds or less. user's patience levels have been continuously decreasing. For e-commerce sites, web loading times are even more crucial than other sites. It has been found that a delay of microseconds can potentially cause a significant loss of revenue.


text:
Vladimir Ghiaurov
Vladimir Ghiaurov, son of the celebrated bass Nicolai Ghiaurov, was born in Sofia Bulgaria. He began his musical training as a pianist at the Conservatorio "Giuseppe Verdi" in Milan, Italy and continued his education in Austria at the Vienna Musik-Academie, where he studied conducting and composition. In Vienna he worked with Maestro Karl Österreicher, who considered him the most talented student he has ever had. Later on in Siena he worked with Maestro Franco Ferrara.
Mr. Ghiaurov made his conducting debut in Italy in 1980. Since then he has been invited by Opera Houses and Orchestras in France, Italy, Spain, Germany, Austria, Denmark, Norway, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Russia, Switzerland, Japan and Taiwan. He was a guest conductor at the Vienna State Opera, Moscow's Bolshoi Theatre, Berlin's Konzerthaus, Tokyo's Suntory Hall. For almost ten years he served as a principal conductor of the Philharmonic Orchestra of Plovdiv, Bulgaria. For three consecutive years (2003, 2004, 2005) he has been opening the season of Sofia National Opera, with Don Carlos, Macbeth and Otello. In 2005 he appeared with Rigoletto at the Opera Ireland in Dublin. In 2007 he conducted Il barbiere di Siviglia in Prague and Salzburg and in 2008 La fanciulla del West in Sofia.
His successful performances have been received with enormous enthusiasm by the international press and the audiences world-wide. He has collaborated with many prominent artists such as: Jörg Demus, Aldo Ciccolini, Viktor Tretiakov, Juri Boukoff, Mirella Freni, Anna Tomowa-Sintow, Ghena Dimitrova, Giorgio Zancanaro, Nicolai Ghiaurov, Ruggero Raimondi, Carlo Colombara.
Mr. Ghiaurov has recorded for the Bulgarian Radio and Television and a number of CD's has been released by Laser light, Gega New and Capriccio labels. Currently he is in preparation of two new CD recordings.
Click forward for further tracks:
Silvana Sintow Classicalia International
Promotions & Management - © 2020 - Impressum
Silvana Sintow-Behrens was born into a musical family and grew up travelling the major cities of the classical music world. Following piano and singing lessons throughout her childhood she went on to study musicology and theatre arts. A graduate of the London Theatre School, she performed as an actress in London and Edinburgh. Owing to the career of her mother, soprano Anna Tomowa-Sintow, she was immersed into the world of opera from a very early age on. She became fluent in seven languages and gathered extensive insights into the various facets of the music business.
She started her career as a public relations manager for BMG Classics/RCA in London, where she was soon in charge of illustrious artists such as Evgeny Kissin, Barry Douglas, James Galway and Yuri Temirkanov. The French recording label Erato Disques later appointed her Director of International Promotions and Artist Development in Paris. During this time, she became Daniel Barenboim's personal PR agent, a responsibility she then went on to carry out for Teldec Warner Classics in Berlin. She further handled the planning and coordination of Maestro Barenboim's recording projects with the Chicago Symphony, the Berlin Philharmonic and the Staatskapelle Berlin. At the same time, she was in charge of attending renowned singers such as Placido Domingo, Cecilia Bartoli, Thomas Hampson, Ferruccio Furlanetto and others. She also led the office for Erato Disques during the Salzburg Summer Festival and organized major press conferences for Erato and Teldec in Paris, Tokyo, Chicago, New York, Madrid, London, Amsterdam, Geneva, Berlin and Bayreuth for Maestro Barenboim, Kent Nagano, Gennady Rozhdestvensky, Armin Jordan, Ton Koopman, Claudio Scimone, Vadim Repin and Maxim Vengerov.
Silvana served as artistic advisor to the Athens Concert Hall, the Megaron, for eleven years. She further was active as personal assistant to Daniel Barenboim until the conclusion of his tenure at Teatro alla Scala Milan in 2014 and has worked with him on various projects in Berlin as well as for the West Eastern Divan Orchestra in Sevilla. In December of 2017 Silvana served as a member of the jury for the prestigious Maria Callas competition in Athens, held in commemoration of the 40th anniversary of the passing of the legendary soprano. In July 2018, she was a jury member of the 3rd International "Zinka Milanov" Competition in Rijeka, Croatia.
Silvana is the founder and director of Classicalia International Promotions & Management, her Munich-based agency through which she has been representing some of the finest singers and conductors for over two decades. She also enjoys working with talented young artists and holds regular vocal auditions and career coaching sessions allowing her to share her expertise and experience regarding the demands of building successful careers on the international music scene.


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A view of the main façade of the Château de Chambord looking from the garden area across the moat. The Château is built in the French Renaissance style. Scaffolding for either repairs or cleaning surrounds the left turret.


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Hugo and Nebula Award-Winning Science Fiction Writer
News and views from Hugo and Nebula Award-winning writer ROBERT J. SAWYER, author of 23 science-fiction novels including FlashForward (basis for the ABC TV series), Triggers, and Quantum Night. Member of the Order of Canada.
Website: sfwriter.com
Remembering Robyn Herrington 15 years on
Astronomy and Science Fiction
John A. Sawyer, R.I.P.
I have a Patreon page!
Did the U.S. have to drop atomic bombs on Japan?
Double Aurora Award win!
Where Star Wars beats Star Trek
Triggers, FlashForward, and Me
Kindle editions!
Donald Trump is president. How the hell did that happen?
The inner life of a man who had none
Today's history lesson
A repeat from one year ago today; more apropos than ever
Arrival review
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40 years since my first submission
by Rob - August 14th, 2016.
Filed under: Anniversaries, Short Fiction.
Forty years ago, on August 16, 1976, I made my first submission to a science-fiction magazine. I was sixteen years old.
I submitted a story called "Loophole" to a small-press magazine called Unearth: The Magazine of Science Fiction Discoveries, edited by John M. Landsberg and Jonathan Ostrowsky-Lantz.
I had almost no recollection of "Loophole" until I reread it last month. It features the Quintaglio race of intelligent dinosaurs that went on to feature sixteen years later in my novel Far-Seer. The story — doubtless quite rightly — was rejected eleven days after I submitted it with a personal note from Mr. Ostrowsky-Lantz.
(The original manuscript for "Loophole" and the personal note from Unearth's editor are now in the Robert J. Sawyer Archives at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario.)
Unearth had as its mission publishing new authors (plus, in each issue, one reprint of the first sale of an established author). According to the editorial in the first issue, the magazine was "a market solely for writers who had not yet made a sale, where their work would not have to compete with that of established authors … the only prozine to work exclusively with unpublished writers."
I stumbled upon the magazine at Toronto's Bakka Books (where I myself went on to work six years later) and bought the first issue there (pictured). It featured the first story by Paul Di Filippo, now a major name, ironically with an author's note saying, "Paul Di Filippo has announced that he is leaving science fiction for greener pastures. He has vowed that `Falling Expectations' is the last SF story he will ever write."
The magazine launched several other notable careers in its three-year run, including William Gibson, James Blaylock, Craig Shaw Gardner, Rudy Rucker, and Somtow Sucharitkul.
My actual first publication came four years later, in 1980, when I was nineteen: the story "The Contest" in my university's literary annual White Wall Review; that story went on to be reprinted in the anthology 100 Great Fantasy Short Short Stories, edited by Isaac Asimov, Terry Carr, and Martin Harry Greenberg.
Today, in 2016, I've essentially given up writing short fiction. I've done precisely one story in the last ten years, "Looking for Gordo," which was a nominee for Canada's Aurora Award, because the commission for that story, paying way more than I got as an advance for my first novel, was too good to turn down. But nonetheless, I had a nice little career as a short-fiction writer, which began (even if unsuccessfully) with that first submission to Unearth four decades ago:
I've had 45 stories published in total, with all but "Waiting for Gordo" collected in two volumes: Iterations and Other Stories and Identity Theft and Other Stories. The stories first appeared in a mix of classic genre venues such as Analog, Amazing Stories, and On Spec, original anthologies, and places that don't normally publish fiction, such as The Toronto Star, The Globe and Mail, Leisure Ways (the magazine of the Canadian Automobile Association), and The Village Voice.
My stories were nominated for the Hugo, Nebula, and Bram Stoker Awards; won Science Fiction Chronicle's Reader Award for best short story of the year; won Analog's Analytical Library Award for best short story of the year in that magazine; won five Aurora Awards; won France's and Spain's top SF awards (the latter a record-setting three times); and won an Arthur Ellis Award from the Crime Writers of Canada.
I had a story in the journal Nature; had a story read on CBC Radio; had a story produced as a planetarium starshow; had stories optioned for film; and had work reprinted in Hartwell's Year's Best SF and in The Penguin Book of Crime Stories.
My short fiction has been praised as everything from "quietly intelligent" (Booklist) to "gobsmacking" (Publishers Weekly) and "highly entertaining" (Quill & Quire). Of Identity Theft and Other Stories, Booklist said: "Sawyer's collection showcases not only an irresistibly engaging narrative voice but also a gift for confronting thorny philosophical conundrums. At every opportunity, Sawyer forces his readers to think while holding their attention with ingenious premises and superlative craftsmanship."
So: many thanks to Unearth and its open-door policy for inspiring a teenage kid forty years ago to take a stab at this crazy game of publishing science fiction. Even without accepting my story, you gave me my start.
Robert J. Sawyer online:
Website • Facebook • Twitter • Email
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2 Responses to 40 years since my first submission
What a lovely post!
I have a question: why did you stop writing short stories? Was it practical/economic concerns, or artistic reasons, or something else?
Love your modern brain!!!
© Robert J. Sawyer | powered by WordPress | designed by damien allen


claims. This summary deals with the disability discrimination provisions only.
panicked and did not know what to do.
from the pool. No advice was proffered by the carers.
cage but not to enter it.
the experience and that his epileptic seizures were exacerbated.
consulted the police would have realized that physical restraint was inappropriate and counter productive.
This is an interesting case concerned with applying the law of disability discrimination in the context of services.


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Q: angular directory slick execution I'm using the following plugin: http://vasyabigi.github.io/angular-slick/
I'm also using ng-repeat, so I'm experiencing that it's executing before the ng-repeat is done.
Is there any way to fix that?
<slick>

 {{ carfactory.name }}

Pris: {{ carfactory.price | currency }} kroner

Eier: {{ carfactory.ownerid }}

            Beskyttelse: {{ carfactory.protection }}

Antall igjen: {{ carfactory.amount }}

            <input ng-show="carfactory.amount > 0" class="btn btn-block" ng-click="vm.purchasecar(carfactory)" type="submit"value="Kjøp bil!">
            <p class="hotel-in alert alert-warning" ng-show="carfactory.amount <= 0">Gå ut av hotell for å kjøpe en bil.

</slick>

That doesn't work, but if I remove the repeater and copy+paste the code two times it works.
Any idea how to make the ng-repeat work, or how I can get the slicker plugin to wait until it is finished loading?
edit:
if i perform <slick init-onload="true" data="vm.carfactory" then i get the following error:
slider.unslick is not a function

edit: my controller is using     angular.module('garage',['slick'])

A: My assumption is that slick is called before the items in ng-repeat are rendered. You can try (re)executing the slick() function when the ng-repeat finishes rendering using the following code sample:

$last variable ensures that the function is called only for the last item (one time).
Just as a safety measure you can wrap the code in reloadSlick() with setTimeout() so its execution waits for the next event loop.
$scope.reloadSlick = function() {
  setTimeout(function() {... code here ...})
}

More references about ng-repeat rendering callback:

*

*Calling a function when ng-repeat has finished

*ng-repeat finish event

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


The majority of date ideas are most suitable for during the day or early evening. However, a late evening date can be romantic and fun. Whether you're looking for first ideas for the person you just met or you need a 100th date idea to re-ignite the flame after years together, late night date ideas can be a lot of fun.
Taking a stroll by moonlight illuminates the town in a completely different way and the far quieter atmosphere is conducive to some terrific conversation. Grab your significant other and go visit a quaint shopping area, or the neighborhood around your local coffee shop.
Depending on where you live safety might be a concern, so try to find a place that does have at least a few other people roaming around as well.
Nothing brings out someone's true character more than a little healthy competition and this is a late night date idea at home; no heading out required! To add a little spice to the night, the couple can come up with three fun challenges for one another. Simple ideas include cup stacking and solving Rubik's cubes, as well as more physical challenges like seeing who can do more situps in five minutes.
When you have this idea in mind for a particular night, invite your partner to come up with several challenges and you should do the same. Put them all into a hat and pick out three at random. The winner of the home triathlon can then be awarded a prize, like a sensual massage or a day free from chores where the loser must do the laundry and mop the floor.
Karaoke can be a private or a public affair. There are many karaoke bars across the country where volunteers can come up on stage in front of strangers to belt out their favorite songs. There are also several establishments in major cities where you can rent a private room with access to a huge library of songs. At home, there are games like Rock Band and SingStar that can provide a great karaoke experience too. Be silly, be romantic, or be everything in between during this late night activity.
The stereotypical date consisting of dinner and movie doesn't have to take place during conventional hours. What's great about visiting a 24-hour greasy spoon diner in the middle of the night is that it generally isn't busy, which allows for more intimate conversation. Share a milkshake and have a great talk over some comfort food.
What better way to end a romantic night of gazing up at the starry sky than to stay up until the wee hours of the morning to witness the sunrise together. Depending on the time of year, you may need to bundle up a little warmer or get out a little sooner, but it's well worth the experience. Research the best vantage points in your town to watch the sunrise together. These are often eastward-facing hillsides with unobstructed views or, if you're lucky, you may have an eastward-facing beach next to a large lake.
The bar and nightclub scene can be seen as a place to meet new people and get connected with new romantic interests. They may or may not be the best place for a date. Alternatively, seek out the more relaxing social bars and lounges in your area. The music tends to be more mellow and the atmosphere is more conducive to relaxing.
Enjoy some fancy cocktails and try to visit the lounge when there is live music. Most social lounges will have a schedule of events up on their website which will include a list of live performances.
Many pool halls and bowling alleys are open well into the wee hours of the night, particularly on weekends. Some of these establishments may appear to be a little grungier and they can get shadier at night, so do choose a pool hall that is in the nicer part of town and appears to be a little more respectable for your safety. On the far brighter side, many bowling alleys offer glow-in-the-dark bowling later at night on Fridays and Saturdays, so check with your local alley to see if this is available.
As with the home triathlon, playing some billiards and bowling can elicit some friendly competition. The cliche of learning how to line up a cue on a pool table cannot be ignored.
Just like the moonlit stroll idea, no one ever said that you couldn't have just as much of a good time at the beach at night as you can during the day; it just happens to be a very different kind of experience. It will be cooler, so you will want to put on an extra sweater. Pack a light meal, a beach towel, and a lantern or some other source of light.
Sit on the beach and listen as the waves come crashing in, all surrounded by the stillness and solitude of the night. This can be very romantic. Just make sure you check with local authorities to ensure that there are no restrictions against beach usage after certain hours.
Late night dates are all about having fun in unconventional ways.
Hold a spontaneous dance party by hooking up your phone or computer to a speaker if possible and create a fun playlist together. Spend the night learning each other's favorite songs and having fun dancing together. Learn how to bust a move like Shakira or follow some dance step diagrams if you both have two left feet.
Use ingredients that you have on hand to make a few unique snacks or desserts together. Not only is this a great way to bond, but you may come up with something amazing. If your cooking experiment turns out well, your shared dish can become a sweet tradition that you continue to cook together.
Build a fort together and throw in some extra blankets and pillows. Curl up inside and read a favorite book together. Take turns reading out loud to one another for a romantic reading.
Light some candles and take turns giving each other massages. This is a relaxing way to unwind with each other. Use aromatherapy oils and have fluffy robes ready to relax in when you finish.
Write a poem or song together. Take turns writing one line at a time and don't be afraid to make it silly! Record yourselves for posterity; you can upload it to social media if you want to share or keep it all to yourselves!
One of the keys to a great relationship is the willingness to try something new. Late night dates can add a new spin on old ideas and they may encourage more romantic surprises too. Whether it's because of scheduling or just the desire to do something different, going on a date late at night can be a great idea.


Any information which the Authority holds which relates to Assistant Chief Constable Alan Pacey's recent statement on funding for the policing of public transport to and from football grounds.
Dates for this year's Police Authority meetings, and those at which the budget will be discussed.
Agenda Item 4, 06 May 2008 Authority meeting.
All public papers, 08 July 2008 Authority meeting.
Agenda item 9 ("Collaborative Working between Home Office Forces"), 04 July 2007 Authority meeting.
Meeting papers giving an overview of the Force efficiency programme.
Report on Progress and Achievement Jun-Aug 2007, Human Resources and Remuneration Committee, 4 September 2007.
1, 3.3, 3.6, 3.7, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 30 September 2008.
Existence of BTPA investments in Iceland.


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Taleporia lefebvriella är en fjärilsart som beskrevs av Philogène Auguste Joseph Duponchel 1842. Taleporia lefebvriella ingår i släktet Taleporia och familjen säckspinnare. Inga underarter finns listade i Catalogue of Life.

Källor

Säckspinnare
lefebvriella


This short article focuses on repetitive reading with children- reading the same book over and over and over. The benefits of repetitive reading include: vocabulary & word recognition, pattern & rhythm, fluency, comprehension and confidence. It may feel like the film Groundhog Day to us, but it's worth it for our little readers!


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Interview: Jason Butcher of Immortal Ink tattoo shop
MarkW September 25, 2017 Interviews No Comments on Interview: Jason Butcher of Immortal Ink tattoo shop
The great thing about the London tattoo Convention is you get to watch top artists at work, and we managed to get a few words with one of my favourites. The owner and artists of Immortal Ink, Jason Butcher.
Hi Jason – first question is. What made you get into tattooing?
Oh…what a tough question that is…when I first saw tattoos I just loved it, I have no idea why, but there is something about it. I loved it, but the artwork of the time wasn't really what I was in to. Then I left it alone for a while. By chance I saw a couple of magazines with some people's work of the time; the early nineties, like Paul Booth and saw what they were doing and I thought it can be art like that…and that is when I said "I'm in". Seeing their work of that style made me realise everything is possible.
What were you doing before you decided to become a tattooist?
Oh God…just anything; a lot of nonsense jobs. I actually thought I just didn't like work, I thought I was one of that group. I've got to do this shit for the rest of my life, this is boring.
First tattoo you had done on yourself?
It's a cobra on my arm with a love heart and "Mum" in the scroll. I remember the guy put the scroll on it and I didn't even know what it was for. He asked, do you want a name in the scroll? I said "No". I had no idea that the scroll is to have a name in it. He said, "What about a girlfriend's name?" I said, "Err, no". My mate who was with me just said "What about 'Mum'"? I said, "Yeah, whatever". Obviously since then my mum has seen it and I did really do it for her, which is what I told my mum.
What was the first tattoo you did on someone?
Wow…I did a love heart on my brother's leg which had his girlfriend's name on it. This was twenty-three years ago…and they are still together. The tattoo is still there on him, but you can't read the name.
When did you open your own shop?
I opened a shop November 1999. I worked in the odd place here and there before that, but I'm self-taught…a scratcher. We opened in South Woodham Ferriers, Essex. I loved it there. We had ten years there. It just came time to move, we had outgrown it a bit, we needed a bigger space. So, we got the place in Chelmsford. I loved that shop, we had a lot of good memories there.
So a little about music. First band that you felt a connection with?
Wow. I'm not sure what the first band was…but the first thing that got me interested in anything music was seeing a punk. I saw a punk when I was very young and I liked what he was wearing, liked what punks were doing, it was another level. All my mates were into the mod scene. Which was cool, but it felt like it was what my parent's generation were into. But then, there was hip hop, mid-eighties electro hip hop, I just like things that feel like they are brand new, that style of hip hop, and when I saw those punks – it gave me that. It was exciting, and I just stood there thinking, what is this? This is amazing. Any of those movements like hip hop and punk had that fresh feel and newness and I wanted to be part of that. It's the same as tattooing, there's a connection, it's changed over the years with different people tattooing but I like to think there's still that punk element to tattooing. We don't want to lose that do we really, kind of being outsiders.
s there a record you can play and never get tired of?
The Specials, Anything by those guys. From being 10/11, I loved their music and still do.
If you had to tattoo a lyric on you…what lyric would it be?
I don't know what the exact lyric would be but, you know what, the thing that inspires me when I listen to music, is I want my art to feel like that music feels. It's hard to figure out how you get that feeling from it, but, I like Bob Dylan's music and I think my tattoos are bit like that sometimes. Yeah, a Bob Dylan lyric. Music has changed these days, you don't really hear a story in music any more. I wonder if that will ever comeback, probably all goes in cycles.
What advice would you give someone who is going to get their first tattoo?
Research your artist. Look around, don't make the mistake of going into your local one and going for anything, we've all done it, research your artist.
I've always believed that the number 13 is a number special to tattooists, what does it mean to you?
Doesn't mean anything to me. There's loads of stuff like that. It could mean something to some people, but I didn't get the memo.
Jason Butcher/Immortal Ink: official | facebook | twitter | instagram
Immortal InkJason Butcher
2017 Crew Review – MarkW, Writer/Reviewer
Band of the Day: The Wild & Free


With recent statistics suggesting that up to two thirds of European print jobs are yet to be fully automated1 - PrintFactory is using FESPA as a platform to show LFP businesses how they can start to close the gap by embracing cloud-based automated technologies. By showcasing how the technology can resolve some of the biggest challenges in large format workflows - including pre-press bottlenecks, wastage and inconsistency of output - the team hopes to address common fears around automation.
PrintFactory CEO & Founder, Erik Strik, commented: "Our goal to remove complexity from the workflow process drove us to develop an automation solution which gives wide format businesses peace of mind that their entire production workflow – from job submission to print – is running as efficiently as possible.
One of the unique features of PrintFactory's automated solution is 'dynamic nesting'. This uses deadline dictates priority (DDI) and just in time (JIT) techniques to test the most efficient output conditions before automatically delivering jobs to the RIP for output via the cloud. As the technology only commits jobs to a specific output device at the last moment, jobs can be automatically rescheduled or replaced with a different job if there is a change in priority or if a device goes offline.
PrintFactory Cloud also allows users to integrate existing MIS/ERP systems into their workflow for a true end-to-end automated production process, while its browser-based dashboard enables business owners to leverage insights from real-time data reporting.
The company's recent Version 6 software release delivered multiple enhancements to PrintFactory's automation features to support more efficient job management, web2print workflows and reduce waste based on output release criteria.
PrintFactory is inviting the industry to help it uncover some of the most common production challenges by running a survey in the lead up to FESPA Global Print Expo. Respondents will be able to enter into a draw to win a $75 Amazon gift card.
Visit PrintFactory on stand 1.1-C38 at FESPA Global Print Expo between 15th - 18th May to discover how automation can help your LFP business realise its profitability and productivity potential.


Postings concerning the Noyes and related families. See also the Alphadelphia Association page/archive, and the Freethinkers Town of Liberal Missouri page/archive. The Noyes are part of my line through my grandmother.
A good place to start for the Noyes-Brewer line is the Noyes-Brewer Family Line post. This gives the lines being researched for several generations. One can then peruse the category archives for the families or the articles lists below. There are two listings: one for Noyes posts and one for Brewers.
A convenient way to view all articles for the Noyes and Brewer families is to refer to the site map and look for the Noyes and Brewer categories.
My thanks ever goes to Nancy Benton who worked with me for many years on researching these families. She provided the great bulk of the Noyes and Brewer photographs and personal papers, and spent many hours going through papers and scanning these materials for preserving and sharing. Her time, efforts and her appreciation for preservation and sharing materials are what have made the Noyes-Brewer section of this site possible.


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Family Cinema Club
Cinema without the price tag! Our family film club is on every Friday night as part of 'Friday Night is Family Night' at Z-arts. Join us each week for a great film, goodie bags and popcorn galore.
Film Listings For January
Friday 17 Jan – Up – Up is a comedy adventure about 78-year-old balloon salesman Carl Fredricksen, who ties thousands of balloons to his house and flies away for a great adventure in the wilds of South America. But he soon discovers that his biggest nightmare has stowed away on the trip: an overly optimistic eight-year-old named Russell.
Friday 24 January – Inside Out – Growing up can be a bumpy road, and it's no exception for Riley, who is uprooted from her Midwest life when her father starts a new job in San Francisco. Like all of us, Riley is guided by her emotions – Joy, Fear, Anger, Disgust and Sadness. The emotions live in Headquarters, the control centre inside Riley's mind, where they help advise her through everyday life. As Riley and her emotions struggle to adjust to a new life in San Francisco, turmoil ensues in Headquarters.
Friday 31 January – Shark Tale – Oscar is a fast-talking little fish that dreams big. But his big dreams land him in hot water when a great white lie turns him into an unlikely hero. At first, his fellow fish swallow Oscar's story hook, line and sinker and he is showered with fame and fortune, but soon it becomes clear that Oscar's tale about being the defender of the reef is not all that it seems.
Book your free tickets below!
Fri 24 Jan 5.00pm Book now
Film & Digital


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Posted inHealth & Wellness
NC Gov. Cooper calls for federal help as Charlotte hospitals struggle with COVID surge
Seventy-two percent of people hospitalized and 83 percent of corona virus-related ICU admissions are unvaccinated
by Hannah Smoot January 21, 2022 January 21, 2022
North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper on Friday sought federal help in the Charlotte area as hospitals across the state face record numbers of patients hospitalized with COVID-19. The huge surge in COVID infections in recent weeks comes from the spread of the highly contagious corona virus variant omicron in the Charlotte region and across the state and country. North Carolina has set daily records for hospitalizations multiple times throughout January, including a new record set January 20, with 4,741 people hospitalized with COVID, according to the state.
Charlotte's largest hospital system, Atrium Health, is currently above 95 percent capacity for hospitalizations. The hospital system has already redeployed staff from urgent care and outpatient centers, limited non-emergency procedures and closed specialty centers. On Friday, the governor's office announced that Cooper, working with Atrium Health, has requested federal support for staffing capacity from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response.
The state is requesting resources including additional nurses from FEMA to help hospitals deal with COVID capacity.
Unvaccinated and in the Hospital
Across the state, 72 percent of people hospitalized and 83 percent of corona virus-related ICU admissions are unvaccinated, according to the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS). "The vast majority of people hospitalized with COVID-19 are unvaccinated," state Secretary for the DHHS Kody Kinsley said in a statement. He urged residents to stay up-to-date with corona virus vaccinations and wear a well-fitting mask when around other people.
COVID Hospitalizations Rising in North Carolina
Local experts have noted that omicron spread may be beginning to slow in Charlotte and around the state. Still, hospitalizations are typically called a lagging indicator – meaning COVID hospitalizations may slow days or weeks after COVID infections begin to plateau, and may even continue to increase.
Hospitalizations increased 23 percent last week compared to the previous week, according to the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS). The state tracks COVID hospitalizations by regional healthcare preparedness coalitions. Mecklenburg falls into the Metrolina Healthcare Preparedness Coalition, along with parts of 12 neighboring counties.
That region has the highest number of COVID hospitalizations across the state, with 1,109 currently hospitalized COVID patients, according to NCDHHS. The state has previously received federal COVID capacity support, Cooper said in a statement Friday. Earlier this month, FEMA provided 25 ambulances for North Carolina, which have been deployed to 11 counties and will remain in North Carolina until February 3.
This story is made available through our media partner The Charlotte Observer.
Tagged: Atrium Health, Charlotte, COVID-19, Federal Emergency Management Agency, Governor Roy Cooper, hospitalizations, North Carolina, Omicron, surge
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Family Ties Association invites 5 Southern Alberta Child & Family Services female youth to participate in a six week experiential skill development group. Through the six weeks youth will engage in a fun environment to increase their awareness and skill set in creatively coping with the day to day stressors that they experience.
Female Youth between the ages of 14 and 17 that is of status with Children and Family Services. Given the interactive nature of this group, girls attending must be able to participate in group activities and discussions without support staff attending. Before confirming a space in the group all interested individuals must first meet with facilitators for a pre session group introduction and screening. There is a required pre-session meeting between youth and their caregiver that will occur to ensure suitability.
Where is group being held?
The group will take place on Thursday nights starting October 25, 2018, and runs six consecutive weeks ending on November 29, 2018 . You can find us at our Gathering Space located at 911 3rd avenue North Lethbridge, AB.
· Be part of a safe and comfortable environment where it is okay to talk about our worries and stressors.
· Build a personalized coping box that can be taken home.
· Learn about how our brain can sometimes trick us, but we can take control of this.
· Learn about how we can cope creatively .
· Receive a creative expression journal.
· Experience an Escape Room on the final day to put all our new skills to practice!
Please see the Group Registration and have it completed by the legal guardian and returned to Family Ties Association either by email @ c.bellemare@familyties.ca; by fax 403.320.8878; or bring it into Family Ties Association office located at #206 909 3rd Avenue North.