Every successful business owner benefits from the wise counsel of a select group of experts, who offer a differential diagnosis that brings fresh air and information into the room and drags us out of the echo chamber of our auto-pilot habits and ingrained perspectives.
No, our real advisory board must be carefully curated. One must know whose advice generally should be heeded and whose advice basically should be ignored. The advisory board that we consult can be informal. It is not necessary to create a formal board unless the business demands it. But we should check in regularly, to find out what is new on the horizen, figure out how to solve problems faster, brainstorm intriguing new ideas and overall learn how to work not just hard, but smart.
As numerous experts repeatedly recommend, listen to your clients and receive a wealth of information. Customers give the outside-in, other side of the desk view and what they value most can be surprising. You cannot always fathom what customer priorities will be and you won't know until you let them tell you.
Customers are essential members of our advisory board. The client represents the marketplace and when the market speaks, business owners must listen. Ask for customer feedback in the form of evaluations, surveys, or plain old Q & A over coffee. Ask what they like about your products and services; ask what would enhance the experience of doing business with you; ask about upcoming trends in their organizations and figure out what you can monetize.
Likewise our accountant, attorney and other professional service providers, through the unique prism of their specialty, may offer useful advice that can have a positive impact on the business. A wise business owner creates an environment where employees know that their opinions and advice are welcomed, respected and at least occasionally implemented.
Do speak with experienced people within your industry, including competitors. Many will be happy to share a few pearls of wisdom with you, especially if they operate in another geographic locale. Marketing tips and other promotional strategies can be good topics to discuss, as could the types of services that resonate most with clients these days. If your summer vacation means travel, don't be afraid to do some soft-touch networking. You might get some timely advice from a seasoned pro.
Additionally, I think you will find it useful to have also a structured advisory board esperience and for this I recommend membership in a peer group, also known as a CEO forum or roundtable. Groups consist of perhaps a dozen business owners in non-competing industries, are often segmented by number of employees and annual revenues and usually meet monthly for about 2 hours. The idea is to assemble a group of business owners who share a similar profile and who therefore have the perspective to offer relevant advice and support to fellow members.
When properly facilitated, group members function as each other's board of directors. There is guidance and support on decision-making. Members celebrate successes. New ways to consider and resolve business challenges are put forth. Opportunities may be discovered, goal setting is encouraged and members hold one another accountable for progress and achievement. Peer roundtables can provide a welcome source of support and inspiration and do much to overcome the isolation that many business owners experience.
This week, we flip the script and examine the thought processes and procedures that ought to be followed when we are hired for a project. How do ya like them apples?
1.) Determine what work needs to be done. This should be obvious, but a surprising percentage of project managers do not have a clear idea of the scope of the job. They may furthermore have an unrealistic view of the time, resources and information needed for successful project completion. These are the managers who hire a Freelancer to work 10 hours /week for 4 weeks, when 20 hours /week for 8 weeks is what the project requires. This information is imperative for accurate project budget development.
2.) Determine the relevant qualifications most likely needed to successfully perform tasks associated with the project. Resist the temptation to gratuitously demand degrees and certifications simply because in a tight economy it is possible to do so, under the mistaken notion that this will ensure that the best candidate will be hired. Pieces of paper are not necessarily an indicator of ability. Experience is a much more reliable indicator of competence and therefore should be the primary qualification sought.
3.) Research the price range for consultants within the specialty. This information is also necessary for accurate budget development. Verify that adequate funds will be in hand, so that Freelancer invoices can be paid on time.
4.) Interview three or four candidates if this project has not been outsourced previously. First, gauge what level of talent is available. Second, learn to recognize candidates who are able to do the job. In this economy, there is a large pool of high quality talent available within most specialties. These individuals can bring skills and insight to a project that a hiring manager may not have considered and they may be able to effect a better outcome than was originally envisioned. Some candidates may have a better understanding of what is needed to successfully complete the project than the manager.
5.) Clearly describe the project scope to those who are interviewing and review again for the Freelancer who is ultimately hired. Again, this seems obvious, but a disappointing number of project managers fail to disclose certain specifics of the project. Inevitably, this results in disappointment and frustration for all concerned. Failure to accurately describe project specs is most unfair, because whose "fault" is it when expectations are not met?
6.) Confirm the availability of the Freelancer most likely to be hired and speak with one or two of his/her clients as a reference check.
7.) Develop a written contract/proposal that clearly details project specifications and expected outcomes or delieverables, hours /week, project start and end dates and pay scale. In some situations, the Freelancer hired will provide this document. Both the project manager (or responsible organization representative) and the Freelancer should sign the contract/proposal, with a photocopy given to the Freelancer.
8.) Require that the Freelancer hired signs a confidentiality/nondisclosure agreement. This will allow staff to feel comfortable to candidly discuss pertinent business matters in the presence of the Freelancer. Find a template online or ask an attorney to prepare a standard template that can be generally used for consulting needs.
9.) Introduce the Freelancer to staff, starting with those with whom he/she will regularly work or encounter. It is a good idea to inform staff that a Freelancer will be hired for the project. It is a better idea to verify whether there are staff in-house who have both the ability and time to take on the project, if only the manager was smart enough to ask!
And so we are drifting through the summer doldrums. As heat and humidity rise, our focus and motivation fall. Summer is the slowest period for Freelancers and most others, with the exception of landscapers, building contractors, wedding planners and those in the tourist industry.
For the majority, summer means billable hours that evaporate like the morning dew on roses. But who can afford 10 weeks of idleness? Savvy business owners know it is wise to make hay while the hot sun shines and use the summer months to position themselves to create business in the fourth quarter and beyond. A business slowdown need not mean no business activity. Summer is the perfect time to pick up the thread of what slipped off the radar screen earlier in the year.
You may start this productive cycle by reviewing your business model. How efficient is your operation? How much does it cost to make a sale? Just how profitable is your business, anyway? What processes could be streamlined? What technology could make service delivery, customer contact and/or administrative functions easier, faster or less expensive?
By the way, did you meet your sales projections for the first half of the year? Might it be time to hire help, so that productivity can increase, customer service improved or administrative functions executed in a more timely fashion?
What emerging priorities and concerns are on the horizon that may excite or agitate your clients and how might that impact your business? You have the next few weeks to catch up on industry magazines, websites, white papers and blogs and find out what you need to know to stay competitive and understand what may change in your marketing message or service options and delivery.
Summer is also a great time for professional development. Look for certifications to pick up, or courses and workshops to attend. If you can budget it, use this time to boost your skill set and make yourself appear more of an expert to clients and prospects. Along the way, you'll meet a few people you should know.
Summer is a time of more flexible schedules and despite vacations, it's a good time to collar people and arrange those meetings that no one had time for between January and June. So go back through your notes and remind yourself of whom you wanted to meet with and send out a few emails. What intriguing and mutually beneficial proposal will you present?
Finally, summer is an excellent time to do the prospecting that you've been putting off for six months. Ask colleagues for introductions and maybe do some selective cold calling. Make it a point to make inroads on new business development. I'll bet that slippery someone whom you've been chasing since last year is more available in July and August.
By taking the initiative, you will see that summer is the best time to evaluate, investigate and create business opportunities that will give you a cushion of revenue that will get you through next year's summer doldrums!
A 2005 survey of American Express small business customers found that 49% had cash-flow concerns, with accounts receivable as the primary concern, and 9% of that group worried that their cash-flow troubles were sufficiently serious to impede their ability to compete for new business.
A 2007 survey of 2000 Freelancers found that 77% of us have had trouble getting paid at some point in our careers as independent workers. Of the 77%, late payments have been endured by 85% at least once; 42% have been stiffed at least once; and 34% have received less than the invoiced amount at least once. The survey also found that Freelancers spend 4 hours/month on average pursuing late or unpaid receivables.
Since Freelancers are excluded from the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), which would require the Department of Labor to assist us by investigating claims of involuntary unpaid labor (slavery!) and would authorize the Commissioner of Labor to bring criminal proceedings to recover wages owed, we are more than a little vulnerable to this growing phenomenon.
Our options are weak. Hiring an attorney is costly and does not guarantee payment of monies owed. Small Claims Court is time consuming and winning a judgment does not guarantee payment. Writing a thorough contract, which specifically details services requested, pricing, invoice due dates and late fees doesn't help much either if a client lacks the ability to pay, or simply refuses to pay within a reasonable time frame (big corporations are infamous for this).
Smaller businesses may be caught between a rock and a hard place: they can't pay you until someone pays them. Big corporations have the power to dictate payment terms favorable to their own cash-flow objectives. Over the past several years, including the so-called "booming economy" years, many big corporations brazenly increased the turn-around time on accounts payable to their small vendors —because they could.
So what's a Freelancer trying to maintain respectable cash-flow to do? Take every precaution and watch for signs of problem clients. Before taking on a new client, maybe ask around and find out if you know who's done business with the company. Maybe check out the BBB and find out if a complaint has been filed and its resolution.
Establish project milestones and attach an invoice to each one. First, discuss your project with the client and get agreement on the scope of the project and the time table. At the contract signing, get a deposit of 10-25 %. At key junctures in the project, get another 20-25% payment, if possible. The goal is to avoid the trap of waiting for a large sum of money at the project's completion, when the client possesses the complete deliverable. Hint: if the client is unable to make the initial deposit on time, brace for trouble!
Pay attention to client motivation—are they looking for quality work, or the cheapest price? If a customer comes to you primarily for price, then price is what will make that client leave you. Moreover, they will use price to manipulate you. So do not be desperate! It's hard, I know, when you're just trying to be solvent. But customers like that pay the least money, cause the most headaches and may not pay what they owe, on time or otherwise. They are best avoided.
Beware the client who is in a big rush, frazzled and frenetic. This person will appear suddenly and may also be overly concerned with price. Once the deliverable is in hand, your invoices will be ignored, as he/she is always "too busy" to deal with annoying things like paying you. Insist on receiving as much payment up front as you can (try 50% down, including a premium for speedy delivery). You may never see the rest of the money, or you will have to chase and wait.
Beware also the OCD type who is hyper-controlling and fussy. If you must go there, be excruciatingly clear about the project scope, deadlines, expectations, project milestones, etc. Put everything in writing and make sure they agree, sign off and are prepared to make all milestone payments. This client will be tough to satisfy and will pick you apart, demand revisions and may withhold payment, claiming that you haven't delivered satisfactorily.
Put into writing how many revisions are included in the project base price plus the price for revisions. Consider adding 25-30% to your usual quote to make up for the time you'll spend responding to incessant emails, phone calls, criticism and demands.
If collecting receivables is a persistent problem for you, then it is likely that you are not qualifying clients properly or your product is considered deficient. Clearly define your deliverable. Set expectations for your services and make sure that you understand what the client wants and the client understands what you will deliver. A verbal agreement should precede a written proposal/contract that specifies the work you will do, the timetable and payment due dates and should be signed by both you and the client.
The most successful Freelancers skillfully promote the urban legend that we provide exceptional services, solutions and expertise that clients can absolutely depend upon. That perception creates trust and gives our clients the confidence to bring us in when a project is approved for outsourcing. Your client is convinced that when you are on the scene, an excellent job will be done and with a minimum of fuss. You will make them look good.
Competitive intelligence will provide important building blocks for your story. One must periodically assess the strengths and weaknesses of major competitors: compare and contrast products and services offered, observe how they market themselves, make note of selling points that are emphasized and learn how you stack up. It helps us to look from "outside in" at how our services and business practices might be perceived by clients.
Compare your services to those of competitors: what do they do sufficiently well that motivates clients to hire them?
What do they do incompletely or perhaps poorly?
Who is on their client roster and which are their target markets?
Who are the front runners among your competitors and how did they get there?
What relationships and/or competitive advantages do they leverage to get business?
What is showcased on their websites and in other marketing materials?
Does an internet search bring up good PR or anything noteworthy?
With whom do they collaborate or partner?
What services do you offer that your competitors do not and what value do your clients place on those services?
Audit your customer groups—have you ignored a possible niche market?
What relationships might you leverage to give you the edge when submitting bids and obtaining referrals?
What common themes do you see in the marketing messages of your competitors? What do the front runners say to clients?
Where do you see yourself as offering the better value proposition? How can you most effectively communicate that to clients?
How can you retool your message to highlight services or buzzwords that grab the clients? Reflect those in your marketing materials, advertisements and on your website. Incorporate into your elevator pitch and sales talking points.
Build a PR campaign around an event that features you—a speaking engagement, a workshop you will present, the relaunch of a service. Send out press releases and follow up with phone calls. Develop relationships with the business press by taking the right person to lunch or coffee and talk over ways to get your name mentioned.
Advertise, however modestly, in publications that your target audience follows. Advertisements should lead to editorial, however brief, being written about you.
Cultivate relationships within the industries that you service, either directly with those who may hire you, or with those who can influence decision makers.
Keeping an occasional eye on competitors will yield many benefits. Competitive intelligence keeps us in the loop about which clients are hiring and the demand for workers within our field, keeps us abreast of the activities of our professional peers, makes benchmarking possible and helps us to sell our services more effectively. Competitors help us to sharpen and clarify our approach to business. They make us better.
Competitors need not be sworn enemies, despite the adversarial position that must be assumed when vying for market share. Competitors have much to teach us about doing business. In fact, judiciously cooperating with competitors is good business. There may even be occasions when competitors will collaborate. Frenemy is perhaps the best way to describe the ideal relationship to our competitors. Use them as you strategize to grow your client list.
Business has been rather soft for the past several quarters, thanks to the tanking you-know-what and alas, the sales girls at Saks and Neiman's have not seen me for a while. When cash was in hand, I built up quite the wardrobe. I shopped prodigiously and wisely and my outfits still look good (thank you Donna Karan!).
Now when I look for something to wear to a meeting or party, I must shop in my closet. Lately, I've been thinking of ways to apply that practice to my business. How can I wring more action out of what I already have in-house?
In terms of resources expended and conversion rates, maximizing business opportunities within one's client roster is easier and more cost-effective. I pretty much know what my clients want from me. Still, I wonder if there are ways to up-sell or entice with additional services? I wonder if I might have opportunities within other departments in an organization?
To figure it out, I did some low cost market research. As usual, the best way to learn what clients need is to directly ask them. Inviting a client to lunch or coffee, away from workplace distractions, sets the stage for a productive exchange of information.
A good conversation opener is to inquire about new initiatives and/or challenges in the client's organization. Ask next what you might adjust re: delivery of services, service offerings and business practices that will make things easier for your client. From there, review the full list of your services. Clients often will not remember all that you do. This information alone may inspire your client to envision new roles for you, perhaps even in those coveted other departments in the organization.
Guide the conversation to become a brainstorming session that will reveal where, when and by whom value-added up-sells would be appreciated. Arrange introductions to decision makers and obtain important endorsements of your work. Learn the names and titles of gatekeepers and key influencers.
Client needs fall into two buckets: anticipated and unanticipated. The former needs are what you and your client will discuss over lunch. You may be able to propose how your services can address some of these needs. They are organizational goals and objectives and have a budget and timetable attached.
The latter needs require good luck and timing on your part. Maintaining communication will improve your odds of hitting the jackpot. These client needs are ad hoc and often spring up suddenly. They may constitute a headache, if not an emergency, and they sometimes must be quickly addressed.
1). Meeting or exceeding client expectations every time.
2). Creating follow-up opportunities that are not perceived as either desperate or annoying.
Some Freelancers like to keep a calendar, so that they will remember to contact clients at regularly scheduled intervals, sometimes with a newsletter. The receipt of relevant information is usually welcome, but my advice is to tread lightly. Many vendors may be competing for your client's attention in various ways and saturation point will eventually be reached. Respect boundaries at all times.
My standard approach is to announce a new workshop to clients, whether or not I expect them to buy. Someone could surprise me! Client needs evolve in response to changes in the business environment, as do yours and mine. What was brushed off last year may be important now.
Sending news of a workshop is a "safe" way to contact clients. It violates no boundaries; it demonstrates my expertise; and it will get my name into their prefrontal cortex, so that if an unanticipated need arises or unexpected money is dropped into their budget, I"ll be more likely to receive an email.
A clever and indirect method of client contact is to make a referral. You will receive significant validation when that third party contacts your client and lets them know that you made the recommendation.
Maintaining contact with clients post-assignment is an effective strategy to mine additional revenue from your client list. For $20.00 or less, you can invite your client to update you on anticipated needs and learn about new organization priorities, concerns, fresh business opportunities for you and the decision makers and influencers who control access, plus get advice on how to improve your business practices and hone your competitive edge. Additionally, you will learn how to craft a sales pitch based on selling points that you will emphasize when promoting those same services to similar clients, new or current.
To attract revenue from unanticipated client needs, devise unobtrusive ways to maintain the contact by offering value to the client. Announce new services, speaking engagements or classes; send a newsletter if you dare; make strategic referrals; maybe send links to articles that you know will be of special interest. Make it a point to extract more sweet water from the well.
Adopting customer-centric business practices is now THE survival mechanism of necessity for Freelancers, as well as businesses large and small. Particularly for service providers, the battle to escape the dreaded label "commodity" is on. No one can afford to be just another replaceable face in the crowd. The "me, too" era is over.
In order to keep customers coming back for more, Freelancers are compelled to demonstrate unique value to those with whom we do business. It's the best way to stay ahead of the competition and make your name come to mind when a project needs to be done or a referral made.
While providing top quality products and services that meet or exceed customer expectations is our number one mission, another important mission is to take a look at our business practices from the sight lines of our customers—from the outside, looking in. Assess the experience that customers have when doing business with you.
To make that happen, find out all that you can about what really brings them to your door, or to the door of competitors. What assumed but unspoken set of objectives and expectations do they have? What alternatives exist that might possibly allow them to achieve those objectives without you? How easy, or cumbersome, is it to do business with you?
Your website plays a role in this process, especially if yours is an online business, or customers typically search the web for your category of business. List with GoogleMaps and Yahoo Local to help customers and prospects find you. SEO friendly algorithms and key words will also give your website presence a boost.
Furthermore, your website should promote and reflect your brand very well. Display core products and services prominently, along with information that will answer frequently asked questions and get customers on the road to doing business with you.
If anything on your site is time sensitive, e.g. your list of speaking engagements, keep that updated. Present a website that is easy to read, conveys relevant information in clear and simple language, is not overly text heavy, contains an appealing "call to action" and is easy to navigate.
Wherever appropriate, leverage social media tools to provide additional communication channels for your customers. 2.0 is not only for communicating your brand and message, but also for letting people holler back. Another method to get the heads up on customer priorities is through the online service, Survey Monkey. A brief survey that contains well designed questions will elicit useful information and may shatter a few illusions.
A thriving business is built on the customer: retention, satisfaction and growth. The products and services we sell, the way these are delivered and the prices we charge are all based on what our customers need and accept. To keep the cash flowing, stay current with customer priorities and learn their thoughts about what your business does well, what your competitors do poorly, what you could offer that will make their lives easier and what they are willing to pay to have it all. If you can solve those mysteries Freelancer friend, you will have yourself a nice little business!
Thanks for reading. To those who are keeping score, Freelance: The Consultant's Diary reached the one year milestone on June 16, 2010.
Some business owners hire a bookkeeper because they loathe even the thought of diving into financial waters. Their strengths are "front of the house" sales and marketing and not "back of the house" accounting and finance.
While it is smart to outsource what you know you won't do and thus make sure that what must be done will be done, ignorance of business financial management is unwise. You may hate it, but little by little you must learn to understand those docs and interpret what they reveal about how to effectively manage your business.
Another practical way to keep tabs on business finances (and make sure that your bookkeeper is honest) is to do a monthly bank reconciliation. Does the record of deposits and withdrawals make sense to you? Are the signatures on checks and withdrawal slips correct and authorized? Some businesses hire a separate bookkeeper to perform this function, so that an unbiased pair of eyes can scrutinize the financials and will be unafraid to question anything that looks questionable.
Learn the types of businesses that he/she has worked with. It is useful to hire a bookkeeper who has worked with clients in your industry (but not direct competitors) or with clients of a similar profile (e.g. Freelancers). An understanding of expectations and common practices, typical problems and good solutions will then be brought to the table.
Ask about your candidate's education, certifications and professional society memberships. Education and associations reflect the level of professionalism and priority that the candidate places on his/her career. This quality will likely be demonstrated in work done for clients. See also the candidate's web site and/or LinkedIn page.
Inquire about the candidate's employment history prior to going into business independently. Previous employment in corporate finance is a big plus. Especially if this person will take charge of your books, you'll want someone who knows how to analyze the financials and make smart recommendations. You want more than a data entry clerk.
Tell the prospective bookkeeper what you need managed. Do you need payroll and payroll tax services, handling of accounts payable and receivable, financial statements and tax prep for the accountant (data into QuickBooks), or complete management of your books?
Confirm the fee schedule. Depending on your location and the services requested, expect to pay $50-$100/hour. The more services you need, the more per hour you will pay.
Find out your candidate's availability. Many bookkeepers have a full or part time job, or a second business. Make sure your candidate can be there when needed.
Occasionally, I am asked to refer a bookkeeper. The one time I was able to make such a referral, the whole thing blew up in my face. I introduced a former student in the business plan course that I sometimes teach to a restaurant owner friend. Unfortunately, Ms. bookkeeper flaked out and never came through. The restaurant owner and I are still pals, thank goodness. The bookkeeper's contact info has been deleted from my files.
A couple of months ago, a member of one of the CEO forums that I lead hired a bookkeeper whom I've known for 20 years (the referral was not mine). Because my colleague is a smart cookie, she decided to review the financial statements that were generated by her new bookkeeper. Right away, there was a problem. A significant data entry error was made— yet somehow the bookkeeper managed to make the numbers balance. Fortunately, my colleague was able to recognize the problem and call it to the bookkeeper's attention.
The interesting thing is, her now former bookkeeper is highly regarded by many. She has a sub-specialty in forensic bookkeeping and regularly testifies in court proceedings. So I guess that's where she learned all the tricks! My colleague was mortified. Thank God that was not my referral.
I deduce from these incidents that a reliable bookkeeper may be difficult to find. A sharp and trustworthy bookkeeper is a hugely valuable asset for your business. They can spot and resolve money drains and alert you to money saving practices that you never knew existed. A good bookkeeper is worth their weight in gold.
Like many Freelancers, I keep my own books. I invoice, make deposits, pay bills, record transactions in Excel, receive the 1099s and pay the taxes. June 15 is fast approaching, quarterly tax time folks! I manage to stay on top of things.
Nevertheless, at some point it may become too expensive to perform certain administrative tasks. Working and looking for work are the primary focus of the self-employed. Our time and energy are best applied to making sales calls, networking, prospecting, staying visible and generating income through our projects. When administrative tasks encroach upon the time available to make money, it then becomes cost effective to outsource those functions.
It is the responsibility of every business owner to develop a basic understanding of the financial statements. Our ability to make sound business decisions depends upon it. A good bookkeeper (and accountant) will further analyze the data and provide more sophisticated advice for you.
Because they possess intimate knowledge of your financial history and flow of business capital, bookkeepers know where you are most vulnerable and know where the bodies are buried. A dishonest or sloppy bookkeeper can really hurt you. The best way to protect yourself is to know what's going on, so that like my colleague, you can read financial statements and periodically review your bookkeeper's work. You'll have a fairly good idea of what the numbers should look like and know what questions to ask if things don't quite add up.
To get started on the path to understanding financial docs, I recommend that you first examine the Pro Forma Cash Flow statement. It's like a household budget and is easy to read. Pro Forma Cash Flow gives reasonable estimates of expected business income and expenses for a given month. Go next to the Cash Flow Statement, which might be generated either monthly or quarterly. This document shows what was actually spent on business expenses and how much money was actually paid to you.
From those statements, move on to the Profit and Loss. It's not much different from the Cash Flow Statement. Notice that several categories on the P & L are also found on the Schedule C tax form, Profit or Loss From a Business. Lastly, take a look at the Balance Sheet and notice it's resemblance to a bank statement. The Balance Sheet records your net worth at a given time, the tally of business assets and liabilities, and is usually generated quarterly.
Next week, learn what you can do to make sure that the bookkeeper you hire is both a top drawer professional and appropriate for your business needs.


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The Working Forest - Your #1 source for forestry and forest industry news.
FPInnovations receives three prestigious awards
By: The Working Forest
FPInnovations is celebrating after receiving consecutive accolades from well-respected industry associations in September.
On September 15, the Canadian Institute of Forestry-Institut forestier du Canada (CIF-IFC) honoured FPInnovations as the 2015 Canadian Forest Management Group Achievement Award recipient. The award recognizes outstanding achievements made by teams or groups of natural resource managers, researchers or non-government-organization groups in the field of forest resource-related activities in Canada.
The CIF-IFC also named Anne LeBrun Ruff, FPInnovations' Provincial Leader for the Atlantic Region, as the recipient of the James M. Kitz Award for her outstanding contributions to innovation, peer-to-peer collaboration, and sustainable forestry. The award recognizes the contributions of forest practitioners newer to the profession.
Later in the month, FPInnovations' research leader Conroy Lum received the L.J. Markwardt Award from ASTM International for his extensive contributions to the development of standards for the engineering use of wood and wood-based materials in building construction.
The awards follow a series of accolades awarded to FPInnovations' staff this year.
In March, three outstanding researchers at FPInnovations – Erol Karacabeyli, Michael Paleologou and Paul Morris – received prestigious honours given by respected industry associations for their exceptional contributions and accomplishments in the forest industry.
In February, FPInnovations' Provincial Leader for Ontario John Pineau was named one of the recipients of the Ontario Forest Industry Association's Forest Sector Champion Awards. In the same month, FPInnovations' President and CEO Pierre Lapointe was presented the John S. Bates Memorial Gold Medal, the most prestigious award given by the Pulp and Paper Technical Association of Canada to recognize a leader's contribution to the science and technology of the pulp and paper industry.
"We are honoured and are very proud of these awards. As a world-leading, knowledge-driven R&D institute, we believe that people are our most important asset and such awards are confirmation of that simple fact. We thank each of the esteemed associations that continue to recognize our hard work, inspiring and motivating us to bring exciting new innovations and continuous improvement opportunities to the sector." stated Pierre Lapointe President and CEO of FPInnovations.
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An ENDOWMENT can be a lasting legacy for a loved one at West Lynn Garden.
Trees planted in the garden can be selected and endowed in memory of your loved one.
A cast metal plaque with the name of the loved one is placed at the base of the tree. The plaque is included in the cost of an endowment and upkeep of the tree is taken care of by the West Lynn Garden Society for a period of 10 years.
A one year membership to West Lynn Garden is included with an endowment. When the membership expires you can then choose whether to renew your membership or pay the current entry cost each time you visit.
Either way, you can continue to visit your tree and remember your loved one.


#AD If you have cats or dogs at home, then you know that sometimes our furry friends can be plagued with those little nuisance pests, fleas. Fleas are so very small, but they can be quite a big headache for you and your pets.
There are a lot of products on the market for getting rid of those dreaded fleas. But many of them are full of chemicals that can be harmful to you or your animals and they often cost a lot of money. So, what are your options for getting rid of fleas if you don't want to use unnatural, expensive products?
We're going to discuss the 5 best natural flea remedies for cats and dogs. The information below will help you to rid your pets of those nasty little bugs for good.
Apple cider vinegar is one of nature's most amazing substances and is great at preventing and treating diseases, regulating blood sugar levels, lubricating joints in the body, and a long list of other things. But it is also good at getting fleas to leave your dog or cat alone.
You can simply take a spray bottle and combine two parts apple cider vinegar with one-part water and voila! You've got yourself a solution to spray on your pets that won't harm them at all and doesn't even kill the fleas. The fleas will jump off of your pet instead. You can keep them from coming back by wetting your pets' coats with this solution every 3-4 days and combing it through their hair.
Salt water is a natural repellent for fleas. You can mix salt in with some water to make a solution that you can use to clean parts of your home with. You can clean floors and walls with the salt water solution to repel fleas away from your home. Another trick is to actually sprinkle salt on your carpeted areas in your home. The salt will kill any eggs or larvae that are in the carpet fibers.
Diatomaceous Earth is a rock that is made out of ancient tough shelled algae. To use it, you will have to grind the rock into a powder. The powder is not harmful to humans or animals, but it should be used with caution. You'll want to make sure you do not get it in your nose or your eyes.
The way DE works is that it dehydrates the fleas. You can use it by putting on some gloves and covering your hands with the powder. Then rub the powder all over your pets' hair. As added protection, sprinkle the powder over furniture in your home and your pets' beds.
There are plenty of flea collars that are full of harsh or harmful chemicals. You don't have to use those though. You can make your own flea collar that is all natural and won't harm your pet at all.
First, purchase a cheap cotton or nylon pet collar. Looking for such items is easy, there a lot of pet supplies online that carries this item and they can really affordable.
Flea dips are another popular way to rid cats and dogs of fleas. But the chemicals in those flea dips are not good for your pets or for you. You can do a flea dip at home though that is not caustic or expensive and will actually provide you and your animal with a bit of aroma therapy.
You can make a mild version of a flea dip using fresh rosemary. Here's how you do it.
Boil 2 cups of fresh rosemary for 30 minutes.
Strain the rosemary liquid out into a bowl.
Dispose of the leftover rosemary leaves.
Add warm water. Up to about a gallon is good. Base the amount on the size of your pet.
Let the dip cool enough to where it will be comfortable for your animal.
Pour the brew over your dog or cat until the animal is completely soaked.
Allow your pet to dry naturally.
As more and more research is done, we are finding out that some of the ingredients in products that were made to rid our pets of fleas that were once considered to be safe and harmless are, in fact, quite dangerous for animals. It's been found that animals are suffering from nervous system complications and thyroid toxicity problems that are being caused by some of the most popular ingredients used in flea products.
Another active ingredient, Imidacloprid, has been proven to damage the heart, brain, gonads, liver, spleen, lungs, and adrenals in dogs. It can also cause weakness in the muscles and respiratory problems. In pregnant dogs, it causes birth defects as well.
Pyrethroids that are used as spot treatments have been linked to causing heart attacks, seizures, and brain damage in animals. Permethrin is one of these kinds of chemical treatment ingredients. It, specifically, has been shown to cause liver tumors and lung cancer.
With so much being discovered about what these unnatural substances can do to our pets, it's a much better idea to go with a healthier alternative when you're trying to relieve your animals of their fleas and choose one of these natural remedies.
Natural flea remedies will rid your cats or dogs of fleas and prevent them from coming back without harming the animals or you either. We love our pets. Many of us think of them as part of our families. So, we want to care for them as we would our family members. Don't spend a bunch of money on harmful toxic flea products that can hurt your pets. Choose a healthier, safer, natural flea remedy, and you and your pets will be healthier and happier for it.
These are some great tips……ty!
Trip to the beach, dip in the sea haha.


Thoughts on Amway, Scientology, Herbalife and the cult of 'belief'.
All ideas and products are marketable goods, as long as there is a void of demand. It is the main precept of the system of capitalism. Under this banner, both the good and the bad take refuge. Believers in cult like 'religion' or 'business' paint themselves as entrepreneurs or messiahs.
Man invents his gods to fill voids. What he chooses to believe, like natural selection, determines what he is, or hopes to become, whether one will be followers or leaders in the open market of ideas and argument. People long for 'something to believe in'. Man seeks answers to the problems of life. It is in this void where the charlatans, the messiahs, the entrepreneurs, the preachers, the kingpins and dictators arise.
Movements come and go. Just as many businesses fail, ideas are subject to failure as well. How could man, for instance, have been so insane to believe that slavery was a good and natural thing? Mythology of religion taught that slaves were to obey their masters? Belief, therefore, heavily determines what is acceptable, whether these beliefs are founded in truth or falsity.
Where no man is an island, all are conditioned to become 'joiners.' It is what one chooses that can determine the outcome of the individual and ultimately of society.
While it seems absurd that people would choose to join any totalitarian regime, the question becomes clouded by ignorance. Those with the best of intentions do not see the snare, or the mistake of belief. They believe they are the lucky ones, the insightful believers that have discovered some truth and now are willing not only to follow its precepts, but to proselytize, to move it forward.
Cult like behavior is more the norm than the the exception. It is an offspring of the human experience. Rebellion and upheaval is the father of movements like the Third Reich. The void is filled by those who want the power to dictate and control a down-line pyramid of followers willing to believe the propaganda, the plan.
All men have a cloud of belief hanging over their head, it colors their world. Sadly, black clouds will arise, threatening. The 'prison of belief' is the causation of war and ultimately threatens men on so many levels.
Predators fear the presence of a superior.
L. Ron Hubbard feared the predator of the United States government and went into hiding for many of his final years to avoid being held to account for fraud. His cult followers continued to 'puff themselves' up in the face of their mounting taxation problems with the U.S. government, and the defection of heretics who were revealing the the absurdity of their supposed 'religion' by revealing the cult's secrets.
Other cult initiators operates very much in the open under the guise of being a successful businessman. They hide in the open under 'Orwellian banners' of 'patriotism' and 'charity.' They employ armies of lawyers to suppress the disaffected, and avoid being held to account in courts of law and of governmental regulation. The initiators of the Amway and Herbalife cults fall into this category.
Forbes Article "Climb to the Top"
Quixtar Amway Business Analysis -- "The Web's largest public collection of Quixtar and Amway information"
What's Wrong With Multilevel Marketing?


Ienki Ienki offers a covetable selection of puffer coats and jackets, finished in its signature rounded silhouettes. Saccharine hues and nipped-in waists bring that feminine effect the brand prides itself in maintaining. Launched in 2016 by the Kiev-based Dima Ievenko, the brand, pronounced as "yenki yenki," soon rocketed to street style stardom with fashionistas sporting the puffy designs during winter-time Fashion Weeks. Drawing inspiration from rounded shapes, the brand has modernized outerwear – it's turned the down coat into an indispensible statement layering piece.


text:
Waxing Gibbous on 12 June 2022 Sunday
Moon phase on 12 June 2022 Sunday is Waxing Gibbous, 12 days young Moon is in Scorpio.
Moon phase for 12 June 2022 Sunday 12:00 UTC
Lunar calendar 2022 | June 2022
Waxing Gibbous is the lunar phase on 12 June 2022, Sunday . Seen from Earth, illuminated fraction of the Moon surface is 94% and growing larger. The 12 days young Moon is in ♏ Scorpio.
13 June Jun
14* June Jun11:52
Moon* ♐ Sagittarius
Previous main lunar phase is the First Quarter before 4 days on 7 June 2022 at 14:48.
Moon in ♏ Scorpio
Moon is passing about ∠24° of ♏ Scorpio tropical zodiac sector.
Lunar disc appears visually 3% wider than solar disc. Moon and Sun apparent angular diameters are ∠1946" and ∠1889".
Strawberry Moon after 1 day
Next Full Moon is the Strawberry Moon of June 2022 after 1 day on 14 June 2022 at 11:52.
Full Moon in Sagittarius ♐ after 1 day on 14 June 2022 at 11:52
Last Quarter in Pisces ♓ after 8 days on 21 June 2022 at 03:11
New Moon in Cancer ♋ after 16 days on 29 June 2022 at 02:52
First Quarter in Libra ♎ after 24 days on 7 July 2022 at 02:14
The length of the lunation is 29 days, 15 hours and 22 minutes. This is the year's longest synodic month of 2022. It is 19 minutes longer than the next lunation's length. The lengths of the following synodic months are going to increasing with the true anomaly getting closer to the value it has at the point of New Moon at apogee (∠180°).
The length of the current synodic month is 2 hours and 38 minutes longer than the mean synodic month length. It is 4 hours and 25 minutes shorter compared to 21st century's longest synodic month length.
Lunar orbit position on 12 June 2022 Sunday 12:00 UTC
Moon before apogee
10 days after point of apogee on 2 June 2022 at 01:14 in ♋ Cancer. The lunar orbit is getting narrow, while the Moon is moving towards the Earth. It will keep this direction over the next 2 days, until the Moon reaches the point of next perigee on 14 June 2022 at 23:21 in ♐ Sagittarius.
Moon in descending node
Moon is in descending node in ♏ Scorpio at 10:02 crossing the ecliptic from North to South to meet ascending node 12 days later on 25 June 2022 at 07:10 in ♉ Taurus.
14 days since the beginning of current draconic month in ♉ Taurus, the Moon is navigating from the second to the final part of the cycle.
Moon before southern standstill
10 days since the previous standstill on 1 June 2022 at 22:32 in ♋ Cancer when the Moon has reached North declination of ∠26.943°, the lunar orbit is extending southward over the next 2 days to face maximum declination of ∠-26.924° at the point of next southern standstill on 15 June 2022 at 10:59 in ♑ Capricorn.
Syzygy in 1 day
In 1 day on 14 June 2022 at 11:52 in ♐ Sagittarius the Moon is going to be in a Full Moon geocentric opposition with the Sun and thus forming the next Sun-Earth-Moon syzygy alignment.


Mayor Paula Hicks-Hudson will participate in the Mayors' Institute on City Design (MICD) in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma from May 18 to 20, 2016. Since 1986, the Mayor's Institute has helped transform communities by providing critical urban design support to mayors. Toledo is among just eight cities from across the country participating in the session this week in Oklahoma.
During the 2 ½ days mayors present a range of design challenges, from waterfront redevelopment to transportation planning. The assembled professional resource team identifies issues, offers suggestions and discusses potential solutions. Continued interface opens new perspectives and sparks new ideas.
"My hope is for a broader design perspective that can be used to unite the City of Toledo on both sides of the Maumee River," said Mayor Hicks-Hudson. In keeping with Mayor Hicks-Hudson's pledge not to use taxpayer dollars for any travel that is not critical, all expenses related to the trip, including transportation, hotel and meals are covered by MICD.
The Mayor's Design Institute has spurred successful projects throughout the nation and in other Ohio cities. More information and testimonials can be found at www.micd.org. MICD is a leadership initiative of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the American Architectural Foundation.
Posted by Stacy Weber on Tuesday, May 17, 2016.


text:
Q: Doesn't show pizzas' names on pizzas.html under many-to-one relationship [Python Crash Course exercises 18-8] I wanted to follow the methodology in Python Crash Course Ch. 18 on building the learning_logs app to build the pizzas app. However I'm stuck at displaying the pizzas' name in pizzas.html.
There should be 2 pizzas, named "Hawaiian" and "Meat Lovers". I added both using the admin account. Checked through the shell that both are stored in Pizza.objects.all() so I guess it's the problem to recall them.

Some codes for you all's reference:
views.py:
from django.shortcuts import render

from .models import Pizza

# Create your views here.

def index(request):

    """ The home page for Pizzeria. """

    return render(request, "pizzas/index.html")

def pizzas(request):

    """ Show all pizzas available. """

    pizzas = Pizza.objects.all()
    content = {"pizza": pizzas}
    return render(request, "pizzas/pizzas.html", content)

models.py
from django.db import models

# Create your models here.

class Pizza(models.Model):

    """ Pizza available. """
    name = models.CharField(max_length = 50)

    def __str__(self):

        """ Return a string representation of the pizza name. """
        return self.name

class Topping(models.Model):

    """ The toppoings on the pizza. """

    pizza = models.ForeignKey(Pizza, on_delete = models.CASCADE)
    text = models.CharField(max_length = 250, unique = True)

    def __str__(self):

        """ Return a string representation of the toppings. """
        return self.text

urls.py:
from django.urls import path, include
from . import views

app_name = "pizzas"

urlpatterns = [
    # Home page
    path("", views.index, name = "index"),

    # Show all pizzas.
    path("pizzas/", views.pizzas, name = "pizzas"),
]

pizzas.html:
{% extends 'pizzas/base.html' %}

{% block content %}

Pizzas

        {% for pizza in pizzas %}

{{ pizza }}

        {% empty %}

No pizza duh.

        {% endfor %}

{% endblock content %}

Expected to see both "Hawaiian" and "Meat Lovers" appears in the list under "Pizzas" in localhost:8000/pizzas.html but instead shows "no pizza duh". What do I miss?
I did see changing the relationship to both models would help solve the problem but if I don't, how can I change the other parts to get what I expect?

A: You don't have anything called pizzas in your template context; you named the variable pizza.
You should change the context to use pizzas:
content = {"pizzas": pizzas}

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When one stops to pray and ponder God in silence, and falls asleep, feeling safe and secure because of God's comforting goodness.
After lunch, Shelly sat under the tree and began to contemplate life and God. With the warmth of the sun on her shoulders and the light breeze at her back, her pondering quickly turned into medinapitation.
Get a Medinapitation mug for your mama Nathalie.


text:
Stollberg/Erzgeb. is een gemeente en plaats in de Duitse deelstaat Saksen. De gemeente maakt deel uit van het Erzgebirgskreis.
Stollberg/Erzgeb. telt  inwoners.

Geboren
Jörg Weißflog (1956), Oost-Duits voetballer

Gemeente in Saksen

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You are visiting the placeholder page for Ellen Bates. This page is here because someone used our placeholder utility to look for Ellen Bates. We created this page automatically in hopes Ellen Bates would find it. If you are not Ellen Bates, but are an alumni of Wharton High School, register on this site for free now.


text:
using namespace Math3D;

#define CACHE_DEBUG 0

GeometryManager::GeometryManager()
{

}

GeometryManager::~GeometryManager()
{
  if(!cache.empty())  {
    fprintf(stderr,"~GeometryManager: Warning, destruction of global objects is out of order?\n");
    for(std::map<std::string,GeometryList>::iterator i=cache.begin();i!=cache.end();i++) {
      fprintf(stderr,"Destroying GeometryManager, have %d items left on name %s\n",(int)i->second.geoms.size(),i->first.c_str());
    }
  }
  Clear();
}

void GeometryManager::Clear()
{
  for(std::map<std::string,GeometryList>::iterator i=cache.begin();i!=cache.end();i++) {
    for(size_t j=0;j<i->second.geoms.size();j++)
      i->second.geoms[j]->cacheKey.clear();
  }
  cache.clear();
}

ManagedGeometry::ManagedGeometry()
{
  appearance = new GLDraw::GeometryAppearance;
}

ManagedGeometry::ManagedGeometry(const ManagedGeometry& rhs)
{
  operator = (rhs);
  //if you're not careful with the cache you can copy appearance pointers directly without any record
  if(cacheKey.empty())
    appearance = new GLDraw::GeometryAppearance(*appearance);
}

ManagedGeometry::~ManagedGeometry()
{
#if CACHE_DEBUG
  if(Empty()) {
    assert(appearance.getRefCount() == 1);
    assert(appearance->geom == NULL || appearance->geom == geometry);
    assert(cacheKey.empty());
  }
  else {
    printf("Destroying ManagedGeometry %s, appearance ref count %d\n",(cacheKey.empty() ? "uncached " : cacheKey.c_str()), appearance.getRefCount());
  }
#endif
  RemoveFromCache();
}

bool ManagedGeometry::Empty() const
{
  return geometry == NULL || geometry->Empty();
}

SmartPointer<Geometry::AnyCollisionGeometry3D> ManagedGeometry::CreateEmpty()
{
  RemoveFromCache();
  dynamicGeometrySource.clear();
  geometry = new Geometry::AnyCollisionGeometry3D;
  appearance = new GLDraw::GeometryAppearance;
  appearance->geom = geometry;
  return geometry;
}

void ManagedGeometry::Clear()
{
  RemoveFromCache();
  dynamicGeometrySource.clear();
  geometry = NULL;
  appearance = new GLDraw::GeometryAppearance;
}

bool ManagedGeometry::Load(const std::string& filename)
{
  //these lines are sort of like Clear(), but the appearance is kept
  RemoveFromCache();
  dynamicGeometrySource.clear();
  geometry = NULL;
  if(appearance) appearance->geom = NULL;
  //keep appearance

  if(0==strncmp(filename.c_str(),"ros:",4)) {
    return LoadNoCache(filename);
  }

  ManagedGeometry* prev = ManagedGeometry::IsCached(filename);
  if(prev) {
    cacheKey = filename;
    //printf("ManagedGeometry: Copying data from previously loaded file %s\n",filename.c_str());
    if(!prev->geometry->CollisionDataInitialized()) {
      Timer timer;
      prev->geometry->InitCollisionData();
      double t = timer.ElapsedTime();
      if(t > 0.2)
	printf("ManagedGeometry: Initialized %s collision data structures in time %gs\n",filename.c_str(),t);
    }
    geometry = new Geometry::AnyCollisionGeometry3D(*prev->geometry);
    //geometry = prev->geometry;
    appearance = prev->appearance;
    //appearance->geom = geometry;
    manager.cache[filename].geoms.push_back(this);
#if CACHE_DEBUG
    printf("ManagedGeometry: adding a duplicate of %s to cache.\n",filename.c_str());
#endif
    return true;
  }

  if(LoadNoCache(filename)) {
#if CACHE_DEBUG
    printf("ManagedGeometry: adding %s to cache.\n",filename.c_str());
#endif
    cacheKey = filename;
    manager.cache[filename].geoms.push_back(this);
    return true;
  }
  return false;
}

bool ManagedGeometry::LoadNoCache(const std::string& filename)
{
  RemoveFromCache();
  dynamicGeometrySource.clear();
  geometry = new Geometry::AnyCollisionGeometry3D;
  if(appearance) appearance->geom = NULL;
  //keep appearance

  //load from scratch
  const char* fn = filename.c_str();
  if(0==strncmp(fn,"ros:PointCloud2//",17)) {
    //it's a ROS topic
    if(!ROSInit()) return false;
    dynamicGeometrySource = filename;
    geometry = new Geometry::AnyCollisionGeometry3D(Meshing::PointCloud3D());
    appearance->Set(*geometry);
    Meshing::PointCloud3D& pc = geometry->AsPointCloud();
    printf("ManagedGeometry subscribing to point cloud on ROS topic %s\n",fn+16);
    return ROSSubscribePointCloud(pc,fn+16);
  }
  else if(0==strncmp(fn,"ros://",6)) {
    //it's a ROS topic
    if(!ROSInit()) return false;
    dynamicGeometrySource = filename;
    *geometry = Geometry::AnyCollisionGeometry3D(Meshing::PointCloud3D());
    appearance->Set(*geometry);
    Meshing::PointCloud3D& pc = geometry->AsPointCloud();
    printf("ManagedGeometry subscribing to point cloud on ROS topic %s\n",fn+5);
    return ROSSubscribePointCloud(pc,fn+5);
  }

  //TODO: ROS Mesh messages?

  const char* ext=FileExtension(fn);
  if(ext) {
    if(Geometry::AnyGeometry3D::CanLoadExt(ext)) {
      Timer timer;
      geometry = new Geometry::AnyCollisionGeometry3D();
      if(!geometry->Load(fn)) {
        fprintf(stderr,"ManagedGeometry: Error loading geometry file %s\n",fn);
	geometry = NULL;
        return false;
      }
      double t = timer.ElapsedTime();
      if(t > 0.2)
	printf("ManagedGeometry: loaded %s in time %gs\n",filename.c_str(),t);
      if(geometry->type == Geometry::AnyGeometry3D::TriangleMesh) {
	if(geometry->TriangleMeshAppearanceData() != NULL) {
	  appearance = new GLDraw::GeometryAppearance(*geometry->TriangleMeshAppearanceData());
	  appearance->Set(*geometry);
	}
	else {
	  appearance->Set(*geometry);
	}
      }
      else {
	appearance->Set(*geometry);
      }
      return true;
    }
    else {
      fprintf(stderr,"ManagedGeometry: Unknown file extension %s on file %s\n",ext,fn);
      return false;
    }
  }
  else {
    fprintf(stderr,"ManagedGeometry: No file extension on file %s\n",fn);
    return false;
  }
}

ManagedGeometry* ManagedGeometry::IsCached(const std::string& filename)
{
  std::map<std::string,GeometryManager::GeometryList>::const_iterator i=manager.cache.find(filename);
  if(i==manager.cache.end()) return NULL;
  if(i->second.geoms.empty()) return NULL;
#if CACHE_DEBUG
  printf("ManagedGeometry: retreiving %s from cache.\n",filename.c_str());
#endif
  return i->second.geoms[0];
}

bool ManagedGeometry::IsCached() const
{
  return !cacheKey.empty();
}

const std::string& ManagedGeometry::CachedFilename() const
{
  return cacheKey;
}

void ManagedGeometry::AddToCache(const std::string& filename)
{
  if(!cacheKey.empty()) {
    if(cacheKey != filename)
      printf("ManagedGeometry::AddToCache(): warning, item was previously cached as %s, now being asked to be cached as %s?\n",cacheKey.c_str(),filename.c_str());
    return;
  }
#if CACHE_DEBUG
  printf("ManagedGeometry: adding %s to cache.\n",filename.c_str());
#endif
  cacheKey = filename;
  manager.cache[cacheKey].geoms.push_back(this);
}

void ManagedGeometry::RemoveFromCache()
{
  if(cacheKey.empty()) {
    return;
  }
  std::map<std::string,GeometryManager::GeometryList>::iterator i=manager.cache.find(cacheKey);
  if(i==manager.cache.end()) {
    printf("ManagedGeometry::RemoveFromCache(): warning, item %s was not previously cached?\n",cacheKey.c_str());
    cacheKey.clear();
    return;
  }
  if(i->second.geoms.empty()) {
    printf("ManagedGeometry::RemoveFromCache(): warning, item %s was previously deleted?\n",cacheKey.c_str());
    cacheKey.clear();
    return;
  }
  for(size_t j=0;j<i->second.geoms.size();j++) {
    if(i->second.geoms[j] == this) {
      i->second.geoms.erase(i->second.geoms.begin()+j);
      if(i->second.geoms.empty()) {
        manager.cache.erase(i);
#if CACHE_DEBUG
        printf("ManagedGeometry: removing %s from cache.\n",cacheKey.c_str());
#endif
      }
      cacheKey.clear();
      return;
    }
  }
  printf("ManagedGeometry::RemoveFromCache(): warning, item %s pointer was not previously cached?\n",cacheKey.c_str());
  cacheKey.clear();
}

void ManagedGeometry::SetUnique()
{
  if(cacheKey.empty()) return;
  SetUniqueAppearance();
  std::map<std::string,GeometryManager::GeometryList>::iterator i=manager.cache.find(cacheKey);
  if(i==manager.cache.end()) {
    LOG4CXX_WARN(KrisLibrary::logger(),"ManagedGeometry::RemoveFromCache(): warning, item "<<cacheKey.c_str());
    cacheKey.clear();
    return;
  }
  if(i->second.geoms.empty()) {
    LOG4CXX_WARN(KrisLibrary::logger(),"ManagedGeometry::RemoveFromCache(): warning, item "<<cacheKey.c_str());
    cacheKey.clear();
    return;
  }
  if(i->second.geoms.size() > 1) {
    //has duplicates, actually have to copy the geometry and remove this
    geometry = new Geometry::AnyCollisionGeometry3D(*geometry);
    OnGeometryChange();
    RemoveFromCache();
  }
}

void ManagedGeometry::TransformGeometry(const Math3D::Matrix4& xform)
{
  if(geometry) {
    SetUnique();
    geometry->Transform(xform);
    geometry->ClearCollisionData();
    SetUniqueAppearance();
    RemoveFromCache();
    OnGeometryChange();
  }
}

void ManagedGeometry::OnGeometryChange()
{
  //may need to refresh appearance?
  if(geometry && appearance)
     appearance->Set(*geometry);
}

ManagedGeometry::AppearancePtr ManagedGeometry::Appearance() const
{
  return appearance;
}

bool ManagedGeometry::IsAppearanceShared() const
{
  if(cacheKey.empty()) return false;
  std::map<std::string,GeometryManager::GeometryList>::const_iterator i=manager.cache.find(cacheKey);
  if(i==manager.cache.end())
    return false;
  if(i->second.geoms.empty())
    return false;
  for(size_t j=0;j<i->second.geoms.size();j++) {
    if(i->second.geoms[j] != this && i->second.geoms[j]->appearance == appearance) return true;
  }
  return false;
}

void ManagedGeometry::SetUniqueAppearance()
{
  if(appearance && appearance.getRefCount() > 1) {
    appearance = new GLDraw::GeometryAppearance(*appearance);
    if(!cacheKey.empty()) {
      //detach references to this' geometry
      std::map<std::string,GeometryManager::GeometryList>::iterator i=manager.cache.find(cacheKey);
      Assert(i != manager.cache.end());
      for(size_t j=0;j<i->second.geoms.size();j++) {
        if(i->second.geoms[j]->appearance->geom == geometry)
          i->second.geoms[j]->appearance->Set(*i->second.geoms[j]->geometry);
      }
    }
  }
}

const ManagedGeometry& ManagedGeometry::operator = (const ManagedGeometry& rhs)
{
  RemoveFromCache();

  geometry = rhs.geometry;
  appearance = rhs.appearance;
  appearance->geom = geometry;
  cacheKey = rhs.cacheKey;
  if(!cacheKey.empty()) {
    manager.cache[cacheKey].geoms.push_back(this);
  }

  return *this;
}

void ManagedGeometry::DrawGL()
{
  if(!geometry) return;
  Assert(appearance->geom != NULL);
  if(appearance->geom == NULL)
    appearance->Set(*geometry);
  appearance->DrawGL();
}

bool ManagedGeometry::IsDynamicGeometry() const
{
  return !dynamicGeometrySource.empty();
}

bool ManagedGeometry::DynamicGeometryUpdate()
{
  if(0==strncmp(dynamicGeometrySource.c_str(),"ros://",6)) {
    if(ROSHadUpdate(dynamicGeometrySource.c_str())) {
      OnGeometryChange();
      return true;
    }
  }
  return false;
}

GeometryManager ManagedGeometry::manager;

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text:
Formula One Manufacturers
Formula One Races
Formula One Teams
Formula One Tracks
NASCAR Drivers
NASCAR Teams
NASCAR Tracks
More Racing
Alain Prost was born near Saint Chamond in the Loire region of central France on February 24, 1955. Although Alain was a physically small boy he had unlimited energy and would give his everything as he took part in many sporting activities including football where he broke his nose several times. At the age of 14 years he discovered kart racing on a family holiday and from then on he became obsessed with it, winning several karting championships. In 1974 he left school to take up racing full time and supported himself by becoming a kart distributor and tuning engines.
In 1975 he won the French senior karting championships and as a prize was given a season in Formula Renault where he won two driving titles and moved to Formula Three. During 1978 and 1979 he won both the European and French F3 championships, which made him wanted property by several Formula One teams. With much consideration he chose to sign up with McLaren for the 1980 season. His first Formula One season was inundated with accidents, breaking his wrist in one and suffering from concussion in another. One of the points of concern was that these accidents were caused mainly from mechanical failures and the other was Alain's increasing loss of confidence in how the McLaren team was being run. With that he broke his two-year contract and moved over to Renault.
His first Formula One win came at the 1981 French Grand Prix at Dijon and from there on he kept up his winning streak with nine wins during his time with Renault. However, a change was inevitable, so Alain Prost and his wife Anne-Marie and their son Nicolas moved to Switzerland where Prost again joined the British-based team, McLaren in 1984. His six seasons with McLaren saw him win thirty races, three driving titles and runner-up twice. During 1985 and 1986 he became the first back-to-back French World Champion since Jack Brabham ten years ago. In 1987 he beat Jackie Stewart's 14-year-old record when he won his 28th Grand Prix.
In 1988 between Prost and Ayrton Senna they contributed a total of 15 victories to McLaren-Honda. From then on there was intense rivalry between the two, which drove the sport's greatest drivers to heights of success and controversy unheard of before. McLaren continued to dominate throughout 1989 but with the Prost-Senna feud reaching the stage of out-right hatred, Prost decided to leave McLaren and join Ferrari. Prost won five races in his first year with Ferrari but lost the season end championship in Japan to fellow rival, Senna.
In 1991 Alain Prost failed to win a race and due to his public criticism of the team he was fired. The year 1992 saw him as a TV commentator but Prost returned to racing in 1993 and joined William-Renault where he won several races bringing his tally up to 51 wins. When faced with having Senna as his Williams team mate Prost decided to retire and instead become a TV commentator as well as working as an advisor and test driver for McLaren.
From 1997 to 2002, Alain Prost created and ran Prost Grand Prix. Since then he has regularly taken part in the Andros Ice Race series, as well as several bicycle races.
alain prost f3 formula one france karting mclaren williams
Press Releases on Auto Racing.com
Every now and then something truly remarkable happens in the auto racing world. New engine advancements or new tire constructions – it could be anything but it's usually something that helps the car and passenger to go faster, further or do better than ever before. Most of us may not be able to see these advancements in person, but we can usually hear all about it at a Press Release.
Sell your Racing Car on Auto Racing.com
Are you thinking about selling your race car, but worry about the hassle of dealing with "tire kickers" and paying big bucks for newspaper ads? If so, think about listing your racer at Auto Racing.com's Sell Your Race Car section. Our site attracts large numbers of race car enthusiasts, a good number of whom may have some interest in purchasing your race car! By advertising ...
Watch some celebrity race events
Celebrity Race Events are a wonderful opportunity to enjoy the racing vibe, do some celebrity spotting and have a lot of fun. Often held for the benefit of a local or national charity, Celebrity Race Events are held at various times and places throughout the year.
Bruno Senna
Jody Scheckter
Kamui Kobayashi
Keke Rosberg
Mika Häkkinen
Nicolas Hülkenberg
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Now that Raminus has forwarded you to Hannibal, go through the purple portal to the second floor of the Arch-Mage's Tower to talk with him. His job for you is to seek out Mucianus Alias and ensure his safe travel back to the Arcane University. Alias is not a member of the Guild, but he has been feeding information to the Guild about the Necromancers. Distrust has grown and Battlemages have been dispatched to his last known location. You need to get there before the Battlemages take him out. Alias is at Nenyond Twyll, which is south of the Imperial City.
When you enter Nenyond Twyll, the only remaining Battlemage will greet you. It looks like this was a trap. Fithragaer is the last one alive and he urges you on. The two of you will clear out this Necromancer hole. Unfortunately, Fithragaer will run towards the first enemy and be squished in a trap.
Fight your way past a few undead enemies and some Necromancers. The real battle comes when you go through your first door to Riellesel. Inside, you'll find a Necromancer who decides to kill you. Dispatch her and walk down the hall to a large open room. It has a middle walkway swarming with Necromancers and undead enemies all primed to kill you. The water pools on each side have a switch that you can hit under the surface to reveal a Varla Stone (one switch on each side for two stones). These are worth quite a bit of money. Once you have everything cleaned up, look for another button on the back of this room. This opens a secret door to the back room where Mucianus is waiting. The only problem is that he has been turned into some kind of zombie. Get a good look at his ugly mug and then go back to the Arcane University to make your report.
You can now ask Raminus Polus for advancement and be granted the status of Warlock.


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iHeartRadio is now turning podcasts into books
Keep diversifying that podcast revenue
By Ashley Carman / @ashleyrcarman
Feb 21, 2020, 4:41 PM UTC |
iHeartMedia, the radio station company that's pushed into podcasts, is now getting into the books business. The company announced yesterday that its Stuff You Should Know podcast series has signed a four-book deal with Flatiron Books. The first book, Stuff You Should Know: An Incomplete Compendium of Mostly Interesting Things, will be released this fall and will "answer all the questions readers didn't know they wanted to ask." Start thinking of those questions!
This isn't the first podcast series to get a book deal — Barnes & Noble even made a whole list of books based on or inspired by podcasts — but the news comes at a time when podcasting hype is palpable. Multiple companies, like iHeart and Spotify, are making content deals with big names and betting their businesses on the success of those shows.
Ad revenue isn't the only way they're hoping to make money, however. Gimlet Media, which Spotify acquired in 2019, specialized in making sponsored shows and also helped create an Amazon Prime video series based on its podcast Homecoming. iHeart, on the other hand, seems to think books might provide another source of untapped revenue. We're coming into a world where a podcast isn't just an audio series but also a book, TV show, movie, and whatever other medium networks can brand.
More from Tech
Thursday's top tech news: another Cybertruck delay
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hedaBATIK
love batik with patience
SHOPPING GALLERY
Behind The Brain MUGS
BATIK & Shibori Workshop
July 4, 2011 hedabatik
History of Batik
It is taken from Wikipedia source http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Batik
Wax resist dyeing technique in fabric is an ancient art form. Discoveries show it already existed in Egypt in the 4th century BCE, where it was used to wrap mummies; linen was soaked in wax, and scratched using a sharp tool. In Asia, the technique was practised in China during the T'ang dynasty (618-907 CE), and in India and Japan during the Nara period (645-794 CE). In Africa it was originally practised by the Yoruba tribe in Nigeria, Soninke and Wolof in Senegal.[5]
Wax-resist dyed textile from Niya (Tarim Basin), China
In Java, Indonesia, batik predates written records. G. P. Rouffaer argues that the technique might have been introduced during the 6th or 7th century from India or Sri Lanka.[5] On the other hand, JLA. Brandes (a Dutch archeologist) and F.A. Sutjipto (an Indonesian archeologist) believe Indonesian batik is a native tradition, regions such as Toraja, Flores, Halmahera, and Papua, which were not directly influenced by Hinduism and have an old age tradition of batik making.[6]
The carving details of clothes worn by Prajnaparamita, 13th century East Java statue. The intricate floral pattern similar to traditional Javanese batik.
Rouffaer also reported that the gringsing pattern was already known by the 12th century in Kediri, East Java. He concluded that such a delicate pattern could only be created by means of the canting (also spelled tjanting or tjunting; pronounced [ˌtʃanˈtiŋ]) tool. He proposed that the canting was invented in Java around that time.[6] The carving details of clothes wore by Prajnaparamita, the statue of buddhist goddess of transcendental wisdom from East Java circa 13th century CE. The clothes details shows intricate floral pattern similar to today traditional Javanese batik. This suggested intricate batik fabric pattern applied bycanting already existed in 13th century Java or even earlier.
Batik was mentioned in the 17th century Malay Annals. The legend goes when Laksamana Hang Nadim was ordered by Malacca King, Sultan Mahmud, to sail to India to get 140 pieces of serasah cloth (batik) with 40 types of flowers depicted on each. Unable to find any that fulfilled the requirements explained to him, he made up his own. On his return unfortunately, his ship sank and he only managed to bring four pieces, earning displeasure from the Sultan.[7][8]
In Europe, the technique is described for the first time in the History of Java, published in London in 1817 by Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles who had been a British governor for the island. In 1873 the Dutch merchant Van Rijckevorsel gave the pieces he collected during a trip to Indonesia to the ethnographic museum in Rotterdam. Today Tropenmuseum houses the biggest collection of Indonesian batik in the Netherlands. The Dutch were active in developing batik in the colonial era, they introduced new innovations and prints. And it was indeed starting from the early 19th century that the art of batik really grew finer and reached its golden period. Exposed to the Exposition Universelle at Paris in 1900, the Indonesian batik impressed the public and the artisans.[5] After the independence of Indonesia and the decline of the Dutch textile industry, the Dutch batik production was lost. The Gemeentemuseum, Den Haag contains artifacts from that era.
Due to globalization and industrialization, which introduced automated techniques, new breeds of batik, known as batik cap ([ˈtʃap]) and batik print emerged, and the traditional batik, which incorporates the hand written wax-resist dyeing technique is known now as batik tulis (lit: 'Written Batik').
At the same time, according to the Museum of Cultural History of Oslo, Indonesian immigrants to Malaysia brought the art with them. As late as the 1920s Javanese batik makers introduced the use of wax and copper blocks on Malaysia's east coast. The production of hand drawn batik in Malaysia is of recent date and is related to the Javanese batik tulis.[9]
In Sub Sahara Africa, Javanese batik was introduced in the 19th century by Dutch and English traders. The local people there adapted the Javanese batik, making larger motifs, thicker lines and more colors. In the 1970s, batik was introduced to the aboriginal community in Australia, the aboriginal community at Erna bella and Utopia now developed it as their own craft.[10]
All about BATIK
Published by hedabatik
View all posts by hedabatik
Previous What is BATIK?
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BTB Exhibition at The Hub 2019
My artworks into souvenirs
Exhibition: Behind The Brain 2018
Ancient Art of Batik in Woodford 2017
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Billie Eilish strongly defends her friendship with Drake
ABC/Image Group LA
Billie Eilish has one thing to say to those hating on her friendship with Drake: Grow up.
Backing up, the controversy started in a November interview with Vanity Fair, when the Grammy winner opened up about her relationship with the 33-year-old rapper, who she called "the nicest dude I've ever spoken to."
She also clarified that she never met Drake in person and that they only talk over text.
Unfortunately, fans began expressing concern for the 18-year-old and began calling her friendship with Drake inappropriate due to their significant age difference.
Ina recent interview with Vogue, the "bad guy" singer clapped back at her haters and is setting the record straight. "The internet is such a stupid-a** mess right now," groans Eilish. "Everybody's so sensitive."
It should be noted that Eilish deleted her Twitter in 2018 because she was tired of being attacked for her opinions.
Continuing the topic of Drake, the "everything i wanted" artist points out, "A grown man can't be a fan of an artist? There are so many people that the internet should be more worried about."
Infuriated, Eilish explained the hypocrisy she sees in her critics, adding, "Like, you're really going to say that Drake is creepy because he's a fan of mine, and then you're going to go vote for Trump? What the f*** is that s***?"
Eilish, who turned 18 in December, will vote in her first presidential election this year. While the proud vegan hasn't endorsed a specific candidate, safe to say that she'll definitely be voting blue thanks to this recent interview.
Selena Gomez explains why she condemned Big Tech, calls out YouTube for spreading misinformation
Justin Timberlake confirms he and Jessica Biel welcomed 2nd child, Phineas
With Corinne Bailey Rae's blessing, Ritt Momney lifts fans' spirits with "Put Your Records On" cover


A nation of stunning contrasts between ancient and modern, and home to an endless amount of unique, vibrant cultures, India is an exciting country for any expat to relocate to. With the excitement comes many challenges in terms of adapting to this new environment. With the help of our local consultants to prepare you and get you established, you can expect an excellent beginning to your new life in India.
Are you planning to emigrate to India? If so, there is plenty to do in preparation. Contact us today to discuss how we can help organize your relocation!
Eurohome Relocation has more than 20 years of experience in helping expats relocate worldwide. Our local team of specialists can assist with everything necessary to make a successful transition.
We are fully familiar and aware of how to navigate Indian immigration regulations. We are available to teach our clients about typical cultural habits and etiquette. We can advise about necessary documentation as provide guidance to help our clients quickly settle in, acclimate, and feel at home.
What should you take into consideration when relocating to India?
You can apply for a tourist visa online, which is a relatively quick process. If you would like to stay for a longer period of time, you will need to apply for a work permit. This is much more difficult to obtain. This application is not available online and you will need to personally go to the embassy. Without the help from an experienced expert, this process can be time-consuming.
If you would like to emigrate to India together with your partner, this is only possible if you are married. Living together as an unmarried couple is forbidden in India. Therefore, the best advice for couples is to get married before you move there.
In India, English is widely spoken and you can get along well in nearly all situations using English. Learning one or more of the many Indian languages is not necessary.
Living in India is relatively cheap. With a western income, you can live well in India. But be aware that living in an expat gated community is just as expensive as in other countries and the price of gasoline is as expensive as in western countries.
Expats that move to India almost always experience a culture shock. This is caused by the heat, the crowdedness, the traffic and the smells all around. Cultural training is therefore advised. Attending this kind of training will help you understand and adjust to the different ways in India.
If you invite Indian people to visit you, always be sure to serve vegetarian food. There are very few Indians who eat meat, and you will not see meat on menus in restaurants either. Similarly, alcoholic drinks are uncommon and drinking in public is inadvisable.
The Indian caste system is complex. In Indian companies, this plays a role, but in international companies it does not. Foreigners are not expected to understand the nuances of this system.
To get to your office, it is advisable to arrange an Uber taxi as this is safer and more reliable than getting a taxi on the street. Public transportation is difficult for foreigners as it is often very crowded and there is no English translation available. Walking, cycling and driving are also not the best options to get around the large cities. For expats, it is sometimes preferable and affordable to arrange a private chauffeur.
If you hire an Indian person to work in your company, don't only look at his or her education level. Many Indian people are highly educated, but that does not necessarily indicate their work level. For instance, an Indian that comes from a rich family is often well-educated but lacks work experience.
If you would like to thank someone, do not buy a bottle of wine, but rather a box of candy instead.
Eurohome is active on a global scale and handles a full range of relocation services in each country. Our main priority is to help each client make a successful transition into their new country by taking a proactive, highly organized and always communicative approach throughout the entire relocation process. Our experienced relocation specialists will personally provide valuable local information and are prepared to answer any questions our clients and their families will have about their new home.
Thanks to our participation in international relocation networks, such as ERC (Employee Relocation Council) and EuRA (European Relocation Association), we can assist you with your relocation no matter which country you are relocating to.
Questions or interested in our services?


First Floor 178 sq. ft.
Add value to your home and earn extra income with this charming garage apartment plan. Ideal for a college student or rental property, this 1-car, drive-thru garage plan has plenty to offer. Take a look at the main level where 658 square feet of unfinished space offers ample parking for one car with extra room for storage. Or, consider the extra deep, drive-thru bay, perfect for storing a boat. Simply pull straight thru the garage without the hassle of backing up. The half bath is handy saving steps to the main home when working in your garage or yard. Whether you choose to use the living quarters as a private space for your college student or guests or you plan to rent it out, rest assured the 864 square foot second floor is modest, yet comfortable and efficient. The kitchen combines with the living area creating a spacious feel in the gathering areas. Furthermore, sparkling windows draw the sunshine indoors. Two bedrooms boast roomy closets and share a deluxe bath. Note the generously sized storage closet, covered entry, interior stairs and main level laundry closet all offering convenience. Charming and budget conscious, this garage apartment plan with storage and boat parking is sure to please you.


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Trans Remembrance Day Film Screening w/ELOP
In partnership with ELOP, Poplar Union will be hosting a night recognising Trans Awareness Day with an evening of short-film screenings exploring the realities and experiences of trans and queer people, curated by founder of Women Over 50 Film Festival, Nuala O'Sullivan. The screenings will be followed by a Q&A session discussing representation on screen and behind the camera.
Lovely Poet Alice (4mins)
Alice, a spoken-word poet, shares her hopes and fears of life as an older woman.
Heather Has Four Moms (2018) (14mins)
On Heather's 15th birthday, Mom's wife must convince Mom, and Mom's ex, and Mom's ex's partner that it's time for Heather to have "the talk".
I'm Fine (2016) (23mins)
Tong and Cai Yun, in their 50s and 70s respectively, have seen a lot of changes in the Taipei Tongzhi (LGBTQ) landscape. A reflection on gender, perception, moving apart and coming together.
Tell Me I'm Forgiven (2018) (4mins)
The life and times of two lesbian variety stars of the 1920s is examined, accompanied by extracts from recordings they made.
Rose and June (2016) (6mins)
An old-timer of Bugis Street, Singapore, 78-year-old divorcee Rose, tells us her story before and after transitioning.
About Nuala
Nuala O'Sullivan is the founder of Women Over 50 Film Festival – a celebration of older women in front of and behind the camera. At the BBC World Service she created, wrote and produced the interactive, online soap opera, The Flatmates, for English language learners. Nuala is also the author of Teaching English in South-East Asia and English Grammar Workbook for Dummies. She has written plays for theatre and has been a series writer for the BBC Radio 4 drama Brief Lives.
In 2014 she wrote and produced a short film, Microscope, and it was her experience of submitting this short to film festivals and attending festivals that brought home to her how underrepresented older women were on both sides of the camera. She set up Women Over 50 Film Festival as a positive and practical response to this lack of visibility so that older women in film would have a platform dedicated to them and their work.
Nuala is a volunteer for Switchboard the LGBT+ Helpline.
ELOP is a LGBTQ+ mental health charity, providing a range of services for the LGBTQ+ community and in Tower Hamlets provides the Tower Hamlets LGBTQ+ Community Forum, working to improve services for LGBTQ+ community and challenge inequality.


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PM Rishi Sunak stole my job, says Lorry Driver
Guide to this year's St Leger favourites
Galileo Chrome wins the St Leger last year
The final English Classic race of 2021 takes place at Doncaster on Saturday, September 11. The St Leger is run over a mile and six furlongs and Hurricane Lane is the hot favourite to win the race. Let's take a look at the leading contenders for this race.
Hurricane Lane
The favourite to win the St Leger is trained by Charlie Appelby and owned by Godolphin. This horse was sired by the legendary Frankel but is its dam that is important here. That's because Gale Force was a winner over long distances and that's a key factor for the St Leger. Seeing out the 14 furlongs is so important in this race, but this runner shouldn't have any stamina problems.
Hurricane Lane has won five out of six races, the only defeat being when finishing third in the 2021 Epsom Derby. Both of his front shoes came off in that race, so the poor run can be excused. Since that defeat, Hurricane Lane has won the Irish Derby and the Grand Prix de Paris at Longchamp. The ground is always an important factor, and this runner has had successes on good ground but also very soft and heavy, so a few rainy days won't be a concern at all.
Adayar
Hurricane Lane's only defeat came in the Epsom Derby, and it was Adayar who was the winner that day. It wasn't a win that was expected but he has followed up that win with success in the Group 1 King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Qipco Stakes at Ascot. Mishriff finished second in that race and has since won a Group 1 race at York.
Adayar is also trained by Charlie Appelby, and it will be interesting to see which of his runners will have William Buick on board as he rode Hurricane Lane in the Epsom Derby. Can Adayar be as effective over this longer distance as he has been over a mile and a half? Looking at his pedigree, there has to be doubts over this being the case. Not since 1987 has a horse won the Epsom Derby and the St Leger in the same season.
Hurricane Lane and Adayar would be good picks for an accumulator. It's thrilling if all your selections are winners, leaving just one to be successful. There will be some good odds available for the St Leger so including this race would be interesting. It's good to read some information about backing racing accumulators to increase your chances of winning.
Galileo Chrome wins last year's St Leger
Ottoman Emperor
Trained by Johnny Murtagh, Ottoman Empire is yet to taste defeat on turf. All four of his races have been won, the most recent being a Group 3 success at Glorious Goodwood. This is a big step up in class though for a horse that won a handicap race at Gowran Park in June. His trainer believes that his runner has a live chance of winning this classic but is probably best to be backed each way.
Mojo Star
This Richard Hanon-trained runner finished second behind Adayar in the Epsom Derby. Since then, he's finished fifth nine and a half lengths behind Hurricane Lane in the Irish Derby but was hampered in that race. Mojo Star won his first ever race last time out at Newbury in a Class 3 maiden stakes, a level way below this Group 1 race. Seeing out the distance isn't entirely certain but could be a good each-way bet.
Sir Lucan
Irish trainer Aidan O'Brien has won this race five times. He has plenty of entries this year. Sir Lucan could be the one that improves over this longer distance. Last time out, he finished fourth in the Great Voltigeur Stakes at York this week. That was run over 12 furlongs and he put in a strong performance towards the end of the race. More favourable evidence is a win over 11 furlongs earlier this year, so lasting out an extra furlong looks more than likely.
Wordsworth is another O'Brien runner. He was second in that 11-furlong race won by his stablemate Sir Lucan but only lost by a neck. Travelling an extra furlong looks possible but Sir Lucan looks the better prospect and has been beaten by other leading contenders mentioned in this article.
This is the oldest classic and was first run in 1776. Another exciting race looks likely this year, so make sure you don't miss the St Leger on Saturday September 11.
Horses going out of their way to impress champion Blackmore
Dominic Raab calls RAF to coordinate safe return of holidaying Government officials


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Gotham Knights
League of Legends Trailer Teases New Champion
By Tanner Dedmon - July 15, 2020 11:38 am EDT
Riot Games released a new League of Legends trailer on Wednesday giving us a stylish preview of a new champion coming to the game. The trailer shows a slain swordsman who "must decide if he will make peace with his past—or be consumed by it" as he struggles with his new place in the afterlife and the events that brought him there. This character shown is connected to the Spirit Blossom event and is the second of the two champions teased earlier in the year. July 22nd was mentioned in the trailer, so we can look forward to that date to see more about the champion and the event.
The Ionian swordsman in the trailer finds himself in the afterlife where he instinctively reaches for his blade only to find it's not with him. After traveling for a while with a companion serving as his guide, he diverts to a more sinister location where he confronts his past.
If you've been keeping up with League of Legends leaks and rumors recently and have some understanding of different champions' backstories, you likely already have an idea of who this character is. This champion is thought to be Yone, Yasuo's half-brother. Yasuo's lore said the two were close, but when Yasuo was framed for the death of a revered elder who Yasuo apprenticed under, Yone was honor-bound to challenge him. Yasuo won the duel and killed Yone.
Yone confronts this memory after deviating from the main path in the trailer when he finds his own body slain on the ground. After a fight with a demon, Yone is seemingly returned to the living world, though not exactly as he was before. Part of the afterlife – including the demon – seems to have come back with him, thus giving us the masked assassin who's been teased numerous times in the past.
As for Yone's abilities, we can only tell so much from the cinematic, but a blend of swordplay and otherworldly powers is expected. We know he's indeed an assassin just like Yasuo is and that he's not a Darkin despite what his appearance and weapon might indicate. There certainly looks like there's an internal struggle still raging within him based on the trailer and past teasers that showed him with one red eye and one blue, but it's unknown now how his two sides will manifest themselves on Summoner's Rift.
League of Legends still has to release Lillia before we get to Yone, so look forward to that champ's release first while we wait to learn more about the assassin.
Mortal Kombat Movie First Look Revealed
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The Last of Us HBO Series Director Reportedly Revealed
Dungeons & Dragons TV Show In Development


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LA Sparks
Daily News Store
Mexican Independence Day parade, festival held…
Mexican Independence Day parade, festival held in East Los Angeles
Danza Azteca traditional Aztec dancers perform at the 69th East LA Mexican Independence Day Parade & Festival Sunday in East Los Angeles.
By City News Service | news@socalnews.com |
PUBLISHED: September 13, 2015 at 12:01 p.m. | UPDATED: August 28, 2017 at 6:48 a.m.
EAST LOS ANGELES >> The 69th East LA Mexican Independence Day Parade & Festival was held Sunday, with Los Angeles Galaxy and Mexican national team forward Giovani dos Santos as the grand marshal.
• Photos: East Los Angeles Mexican Independence Parade
The parade began at 10:30 a.m. at the corner of Cesar Chavez and Mednik avenues. The mile-and-a-half parade ended at Belvedere Park at Mednik and First, where the Grand Festival was held.
Other participants included Mayor Eric Garcetti, state Senate President Pro Tempore Kevin DeLeon, D-Los Angeles, high school and college marching bands and an equestrian charro group.
• Video: Mexican Independence parade and festival in East L.A.
The Grand Festival following the parade included traditional food and music, raffles, face painting and arts and crafts.
The parade was organized by the Comite Mexicano Civico Patriotico, a nonprofit organization dedicated to maintaining Mexican traditions, and the Mexican Consulate of Los Angeles.
City News Service is a regional wire service covering Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and San Diego counties. Its reporting and editing staff cover public safety, courts, local government and general assignment stories. Contact the City News Service newsroom at 310-481-0404 or news@socalnews.com.
news@socalnews.com
We'll be toast in a billion years
We'll be toast in a billion years
Notre Dame boys basketball team manager creates viral moment by playing on senior night
LA restaurant tops Yelp's Top 100 Places to Eat, along with 5 more in the county
Man fatally struck by sanitation truck in Sherman Oaks
LA County supervisors move to stop 'insensitive' sale of guns by Probation Department
Things to do in the San Fernando Valley and LA area, Jan. 26-Feb. 2
Last week LA officials touted new renter protections – but two must still get approved