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'Saint Maud' director Rose Glass says 'elevated horror' is a 'snobby' term (exclusive)
8 October 2020, 7:01 am ·14-min read
Watch: Terrifying trailer for Saint Maud
Saint Maud director Rose Glass is 'not too bothered' about what genre people want to put the film in, but said the controversial term 'elevated horror' strikes her as 'a bit snobby'.
The debut filmmaker behind the new British chiller said that the genre of her story was not a big consideration during the writing process.
Maud follows Morfydd Clark's title character — a devoutly religious nurse — as she cares for a terminally ill former dancer, played by Jennifer Ehle, and is drawn into dark obsession.
"I'm not too bothered about what genre the film is, to be honest," Glass told Yahoo Movies UK.
Read more: Halloween 2020 viewing guide
"In my head, Maud has always been a f***ed up, hopefully fun character study which definitely veers into horror. That's always how I've thought about it."
Morfydd Clark in British horror 'Saint Maud'. (Credit: StudioCanal)
Glass said she finds the discussion around "elevated horror" understandable, given people's desire to mark out the difference between films like Saint Maud and rollercoaster multiplex rides like Insidious.
She added: "People want to have an idea of what kind of thing they're going to see and spend their money and time going to watch.
"So if somebody really wanted to see a horror film because they know they want to have lots of jump scares and for it to fulfil a certain kind of urge, then that's fine.
"I get why Saint Maud and some of the other elevated horror titles may not scratch that itch. I like to think that they do something else equally fun or interesting.
"The word 'elevated' slightly rubs me up the wrong way because it sounds a bit snobby."
'Saint Maud' director Rose Glass on the movie's set. (Credit: StudioCanal)
Glass said that she wouldn't describe herself as a horror specialist, but revealed she tends to be "attracted to stories that are dark and messed-up" and cited John Waters as her favourite director.
The 31-year-old filmmaker said her next movie will either be an America-set dark love story or a film with elements of body horror.
Read more: Most disturbing movie scenes of all time
She added: "I like films that are provocative and, for me anyway, the thrill of going to the cinema is quite a voyeuristic, illicit kind of feeling.
"I like the films where you feel like you're watching something you shouldn't be."
Read the full interview with Rose Glass, in which we discuss female filmmakers in horror, the directors who inspire her and how Saint Maud prepared Morfydd Clark for her Lord of the Rings role...
Morfydd Clark in 'Saint Maud'. (Credit: StudioCanal)
Yahoo Movies UK: I wanted to start really with the end. Obviously without spoiling anything, how often do people come up to you and say that final shot really destroyed them?
Rose Glass: I've heard that last shot has gone down well and people liked it, which is very gratifying. It's fun watching it in the cinema with an audience and knowing that it's coming.
It has been quite a long road for this film to get to UK cinemas, through the production and then with it premiering over a year ago. What has it been like to watch it coming out across the world and wonder when it would be released in its home country?
Very weird, but I guess everything is weird for everyone at the moment. The year before all this happened, just making a film in and of itself felt so surreal to actually be doing it. I've just been going with the flow.
We'd got all geared up to come out in America and we were a few days from getting on the plane to do a whole press tour. I was really nervous and stressed about it, but then I had got geared up to do it and it all got cancelled due to lockdown. So I had about a week of being like "oh for f***'s sake", but nothing puts your problems into perspective like a global pandemic.
Frankly, I've just been getting on with writing to be honest, which is quite a good distraction. It involves living like a hermit anyway, so lockdown leant itself to that quite well. That said, I am really looking forward to it finally coming out in cinemas. To me, it seems like the main thing happened already with when it had the premiere and festivals and all of that. That felt so big to me and the rest of the team that I keep sort of forgetting that it hasn't actually happened yet.
But I just walked past Hackney Picturehouse the other day and saw posters all over the doors, so that made it hit home a little more. It's very weird, basically, but very nice.
'Saint Maud'. (Credit: StudioCanal)
To take it right back to the start, how did this idea first come about for you?
I think I started coming up with a rough version of it towards the end of NFTS [National Film and Television School] where I did my MA, so that was in 2014. At that point, the hook I came up with that I thought sounded fun was like a two-hander between a young woman and God. God was going to be a voice you were going to hear throughout the film and it was much more like a weird, kind of f***ed up romance between the two of them.
But it started to feel a bit gimmicky when I started developing it and I became a bit more interested in Maud's relationship with her patient and the real world and how she got that way. Then it started building a little more into the mental health side of it.
There was a long, protracted development process. I think for the next couple of years I was just working regular jobs and reworking the story of Maud in a pitch document. Then eventually it got picked up by Film4, so then we were officially in development and writing the script for a couple of years. The story kept changing a lot and then it all happened. It's a combination of stuff that I'm interested in.
You mentioned the mental health element there, which is obviously a really tough thing to handle and get right. I'm keen to ask about your research process and any consultation you did with healthcare professionals?
I didn't give Maud a diagnosis while I was writing her. I tried to just write her fairly instinctually and then maybe, in hindsight, would look back and say "maybe she shows aspects of whatever diagnosis". But I'm not a psychologist and I didn't want it to be too much like: "this is an in-depth dive into schizophrenia, or PTSD, etc". Probably you can interpret what's going in her head in a number of ways, so I didn't want to be too prescriptive or pedantic about it.
I've always been interested in the disparity between what's going on in our heads and what we present to the rest of the world and how different those inner and outer universe can be. So it was fun and interesting to kind of push that theme, I guess. The whole film arose from an interest in that — how subjective and individual realities are and how dangerous that can be.
Poster art for 'Saint Maud'. (Credit: StudioCanal)
And how hard was it then, once you had all of that story in place, to find your Maud? Morfydd Clark is fantastic in this film.
She's great, isn't she? She was one of the last people we saw. We did quite a lengthy audition process over the course of like a year while I was still writing the script. We hadn't been greenlit or anything. I think a lot of the decision of whether or not the film would actually fall into place hinged on whether we could find Maud, because obviously if you can't find the right person to play that role then the whole film falls apart.
She was one of the last people we saw. She sent in a tape and just immediately on screen she has this completely haunting kind of look. She looked quite fragile, but then was actually quite spiky and intimidating. But then also she can be incredibly funny. It's a very contradictory character, or that's what we were aiming for anyway. I like stories that have unreliable narrators and main characters who are antiheroes. You're not sure whether you can trust them or not. It kind of seems closer to reality to me because I don't think anybody is ever totally one thing or the other.
It's quite a lot to demand, but she's a real chameleon. She's the source of fear in the film, as well as being the person we're afraid for. She was very versatile and certainly very fun and chilled to work with, so it was a surprisingly light atmosphere on set. I'd love to work with her again.
I'd love you to work with her again. She's fantastic!
If she has time between Lord of the Rings! Weirdly, Maud is maybe not such a bad prep for Galadriel. We know she looks great in a robe now and apparently Elvish is originally based on Welsh as a language, and she rocks a bit of Welsh in Saint Maud. So I take total credit for anything.
Read more: Tolkien fans aghast at Lord of the Rings nude scene rumours
So when she turns out to inevitably be brilliant in Lord of the Rings, you're taking the credit for that?
Exactly. I was a massive Lord of the Rings nerd when I was younger as well, so it's very cool.
Jennifer Ehle, Morfydd Clark and director Rose Glass attend the "Saint Maud" European Premiere during the 63rd BFI London Film Festival on October 05, 2019. (Photo by John Phillips/Getty Images for BFI)
One of the things that's great about Saint Maud is that it's a really full-blooded horror film. Are there other horror directors who have inspired you over the years or whose careers you take inspiration from?
Not specifically horror ones, to be honest. I'm kind of realising, having now made a horror film and gone round genre festivals with it, how lacking I am in my genre nerd credentials. I wouldn't call myself a horror buff. I'm definitely attracted to stories that are dark and messed-up. I've got a few different ideas for films and one of them is maybe kind of a horror.
In terms of directors who are personal sources of inspiration, for me it would probably be somebody like John Waters. I know he's not a horror director at all, but if anybody asks who my favourite filmmaker is, I tend to say him. His films aren't my favourite but, as a person, having the attitude he does towards filmmaking and storytelling seems so joyous and gleefully obscene.
Just absolute bravery, I think, to do whatever he wants.
Exactly, yeah. I sometimes worry that some films, or maybe the discussion around films nowadays, seems sort of timid. I like films that are provocative and, for me anyway, the thrill of going to the cinema is quite a voyeuristic, illicit kind of feeling. I like the films where you feel like you're watching something you shouldn't be. Films can give you a window into other people's lives in a way you'd never get to do in reality, so you might as well make it interesting.
John Waters attends a convesation with the public during the 72nd Locarno Film Festival on August 17, 2019. (Photo by Pier Marco Tacca/Getty Images)
I think the way we discuss films like this is quite interesting. Saint Maud has been pulled into this discussion around the strange term "elevated horror", and the fact you got picked up by A24 in the USA added to that. How do you feel about that term and that discussion?
The whole A24 thing and A24 horror — I didn't realise that was a thing. I didn't realise what a whole thing they are, because I'm not on Twitter. I was missing out on that one.
With the elevated horror thing, I kind of get why people want to make a distinction. People want to have an idea of what kind of thing they're going to see and spend their money and time going to watch. So if somebody really wanted to see a horror film because they know they want to have lots of jump scares and for it to fulfil a certain kind of urge, then that's fine. I get why Saint Maud and some of the other elevated horror titles may not scratch that itch. I like to think that they do something else equally fun or interesting.
The word "elevated" slightly rubs me up the wrong way because it sounds a bit snobby. I'm not too bothered about what genre the film is, to be honest. In my head, Maud has always been a f***ed up, hopefully fun character study which definitely veers into horror. That's always how I've thought about it. I've been told that people find it very scary, but I have lost all perspective on everything.
Watch: Are we in the age of elevated horror?
One of the things with horror today is the rise of so many great female voices. Is that something you've noticed, both in horror and in cinema generally?
In cinema generally, definitely. Not in horror specifically. I feel like a lot of people are saying there's a female horror renaissance and maybe I'm being a massive cynic, but I think that seems to come more from people wanting to have intellectual discussions about some intrinsic link between womanhood and horror.
It's great that there are more women making films that are getting out there. I think we're definitely benefiting from a lot of discussion and work that has been going on in recent years to get the industry and audiences as a whole aware of that.
But in terms of why there are more horror films that people point to, I think that horror has always been a genre that first-time directors are attracted to or that's often tempting. Sometimes they're easier to get made, there's more of a built-in audience, it lends itself to more creative storytelling and being able to play with more abstract things.
Read more: Welcome to the Blumhouse producer on horror diversity
I think it's great that we're starting to see more diversity in storytellers — both directors and writers. To me, the fact that I have been able to make a film is not that radical. I've been trying to do this since I was about 12 and I happen to be coming up at a time when people are particularly receptive, which is great. But I'm still a white, privately educated, middle class person, as are most directors. There are plenty of other obstacles in people's ways to try to get into the industry who come from different backgrounds.
More of it, basically. Personally, I worry with the way sometimes it gets talked about that it seems a bit of a kind of "eat your greens" sort of thing. For me, variety and diversity of storytellers is important, not just because of socio-political stuff, but also creatively. It makes for a more interesting, diverse selection of films for people to go and see, which is just better for audiences and more fun. With people who have more varied life experiences, whether that's because of their gender or sexual orientation or class or where they're from, you're going to have more interesting and diverse stories.
Just before I let you go, I wanted to ask about the other projects you mentioned. What is it you're looking to do next and are you looking to stay in the horror genre?
I can't say for definite, but I'm hoping to shoot something next year which is set in America and is a f***ed up love story of some kind. I've got another one, which has maybe got a foot in body horror. They're all weird mash-ups and we're not entirely sure what genre they are.
I'm always going to be interested in the weird, varied things that make people tick and trying to make them as surprisingly accessible and universal as possible. Watch this space. I'm really looking forward to getting on and doing another one.
Saint Maud is in UK cinemas from 9 October.


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Dimitri Shostakovitch
With all of the news about Russia in the media, I thought it would be a good time for me to talk about one of my favorite Russian composers, Dimitri Shostakovitch.*
Currently I'm reading an extraordinary memoir by the composer, Testament, a book I intend to review in the near future on this blog.
Aside from being a fan of his music most of my adult life, I've always been fascinated by Shostakovitch's life story.
Early on he was considered a young and upcoming talent in the Soviet Union, having attended the Petrograd Conservatory then under the famous composer Alexander Glazunov.
The career of Shostakovitch as a composer began to rise in the Soviet Union when he met the famous conductor Bruno Walter in 1927. Later that year Walter conducted Shostakovich's 1rst Symphony in Berlin.
But after the Soviet Union's propaganda organ Pravda attacked the Shastokovitch opera Lady Macbeth and in a 1936 article "Muddle Instead of Music," Shostokovitch was in danger…
Ski to Sea race-Canoe Leg
Yesterday I caught part of the last leg of the Ski to Sea Canoe Race just before the finish line at Hovander Park. And, I added some of my music.
E ī h w a z photographer, Youtube Artist.
E ī h w a z: A photographer is able to produce a dramatic group of black and white photos with minimal music using percussion, horns a drone effect and vocals for a strong dramatic effect. You can find it here.
Truth Tired, a reflection on the current politic
Why Do We Lie? That is the title of the latest National
Geographic magazine. It's amazing that such a question even has to be asked in this country. Yet it does and we will. The politicians who are lying will continue to do so until they are kicked out of office by the only entity that can do so: the citizens of the United States of America.
Truth Tired was written when others were tired of hearing the truth because facts just don't add up to the results that they're looking for. So they become Truth Tired. That's why I wrote this piece. I hope you like it.
Strangers in Their Own Land
If you want to look into why people lie and why others believe them check out this book

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


FF1 LOTUS Formula vibrates on the complete colour spectrum and the energy relates to the five elements of the Traditional Chinese Medicine, thereby creating harmony on all levels of consciousness.
Nelumbo nucifera, also known as Indian lotus, sacred lotus, bean of India, or simply lotus, is one of two species of aquatic plant in the family Nelumbonaceae. The Linnaean binomial Nelumbo nucifera (Gaertn.) is the currently recognized name for this species, which has been classified under the former names, Nelumbium speciosum (Willd.) and Nymphaea nelumbo, among others. (These names are obsolete synonyms and should be avoided in current works.) This plant is an aquatic perennial. Under favorable circumstances its seeds may remain viable for many years, with the oldest recorded lotus germination being from that of seeds 1,300 years old recovered from a dry lakebed in northeastern China.
Lotus-the flower of the Orient which symbolises peace and wisdom. White Lotus blossom is a water lily that grows from the depths of the muddy earth. The stalk is like a strong umbilical cord that bursts through the surface tension of the water producing huge green leaves which amplify the energy of the plant The flower is magnificent. The centre of the blossom is yellow and reflects the sunlight whilst the petals are the reflection of the moon as they reach up to heaven.
Peaceful thoughts, nobility, wisdom. Realisation and spiritual enlightenment.
TRAUMA: spiritually traumatised, tragedy, war, aggression or criminal assault.
White flowers have been gathered from all over the world and combined to produce a formula that has the capacity to balance the disharmony of mankind.
White flowers direct one's attention to disorders on a deep spiritual level and assist with the entire journey of life.
This is the most powerful Phytobiophysics formula used whenever there is a crisis in one's life.
Enables the uptake of all nutrients especially at times of vulnerablity.
Emotional level: Peaceful thoughts, cleansing rituals. Private thoughts, nobility and purity of thought, patience. Cool and dignified. Pause and then move forward. Fools rush in where angels fear to tread. Peace and tranquillity. Realisation.
Trauma: Blocked emotions on a spiritual level. Spiritual trauma on a very deep level. Tragedy such as loss of a child. The deep pulse in the abdomen. Complicity and secretiveness. War, aggression, attack, criminal assault, betrayal. victim of hatred.
Spiritual level: Realisation. The aura, spiritual emergence, spiritual enlightenment, contacting one's guide, opening up to heaven, spiritual cleansing. Perfection and spiritual beauty. Connection between heaven and earth.
Emotional level: Good fun person, the life and soul of the party, the active sports person, mountaineers, treckers etc. The lover of outdoors and the person who will bike or walk rather than travel by car.
Trauma: run down, exhausted and lacking vitality. Does not want to do anything, will always block suggestions of activities. The person who 'slopes off' whenever a job needs to be done, such as the washing-up etc.
Spiritual level: the spiritual mountaineer. White Narcissus Emotional Level: Vitality. Alive and vital, fit, active and sporty. Vibrant, full of love of life. Happy, strong and beautiful.
Antidote: toxic pollution trapped in the connective issues.


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Falang kan syfta på:

 Falang – en antik stridsformation.
 Falang (anatomi) – ledade rörben i händer och fötter
 Falang (organisation) – en grupp eller riktning inom en organisation

Se även
 Falangstär
 Falange Auténtica
 Falangistpartiet
 Falangistpartiet (Libanon)
 Leadbeaters falanger

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


A perfect decoration for Valentine\\\'s Day, Christmas, other holidays, party, wedding, etc.
We will refund you if you return the items within 5 days of your receipt of the items for any reason. However, the buyer should make sure that the items returned are in their original conditions. If the items are damaged or lost when they are returned, the buyer will be responsible for such damage or loss, and we will not provide full refund. The buyer should try to file a claim with the logistic company to recover the cost of damage or loss.


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Cemetery Trustees
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Road Agent - David Poklemba
23 McAdam Road
Mud Season
Pursuant to RSA 231:191, no motor vehicle having a gross weight of six (6) tons or greater shall operate on town-maintained gravel roads effective March 14 through May 15. Special exception may be granted by the Road Agent.
Snow & Ice Policy:
The Westmoreland Road Agent is responsible in making the determination to begin measures of salting, sanding, and/or snow removal based on the circumstances of the various types of storms that can occur.
Salt and/or sand are used as conditions may require and as available.
At about 1″ deep, salt is applied to the tar roads at approximately 500-600 lbs. per mile.
That done, if it is still snowing and expected or has accumulated 2-4 inches, the snow plows are hooked up and the plowing of all roads is started.
At the end of the storm, we apply more salt. During the storm, sand is applied to the steep hills and bad curves as needed. Ice storms are salted and sanded as soon as possible.
Order of Service:
The County facility is kept as clear as possible. On school days, bus routes are cleared first.
The responsibility to call off school is made by Supervisory Union #29, with input from local bus company. Local bus company has contact with Road Agent.
Glebe Road, Spofford Road, South Village Road, and River Road., doing the side roads as they are come to.
From time to time, during a long storm that is not accumulating very fast, the side roads will be skipped on one pass to keep the main roads clearer.
Truck Routes:
Truck Route: Partridge Brook, County hill, Glebe, River, Poocham, McAdam and Hatt Roads.
Truck Route: Spofford and South Village Roads, and all of East Westmoreland side roads.
Truck Route: Route 63 side roads, North-end roads, and part of East Westmoreland side roads.
Town to plow out the following buildings:
Highway Garage
Plow truck drivers will be available to assist police, ambulance and fire trucks to respond to an emergency situation. Drivers will maintain their regular routes unless dispatched by an emergency situation. Every effort will be made to assist while keeping out of the path of the responders.
In the case of a truck getting stuck or breaking down, procedure as stated will be adhered to as closely as possible.
Plow truck drivers are not obligated to plow to mailboxes and will do their best to not disturb any mailbox.
Plow truck drivers will adhere to requirements adopted by the Town of Westmoreland in relation to vehicle safety, conduct, and actions at the scene of an accident.
These requirements are set forth in the Town of Westmoreland Safety Program, Personnel Policy and Drug & Alcohol Policy.
The following parking policy is hereby adopted by the Board of Selectmen of the Town of Westmoreland per RSA 41-11: There is no parking on any maintained roads within the Westmoreland town limits. Any motor vehicle so parked on a public roadway in the Town of Westmoreland that interferes with the orderly flow of traffic and/or the ability to effectively clear a public roadway of snow or ice may towed at the expense of the vehicle owner.
Placing or causing to put any snow or ice on the surface of the traveled portion of any road is prohibited. This policy applies to private owners and/or private plow services(RSA 236:20).
If any person shall place any obstruction in a road which renders it unsuitable for travel, he shall be liable for all damages and costs which the town shall be compelled to pay to any person injured by such obstruction (RSA 236:39).
Parking on any road during a snow storm is prohibited. Private drivers should make every attempt to have stalled or stuck vehicles moved. Plow truck drivers are allowed to call for assistance in towing an abandoned vehicle if such vehicle is deemed by the plow truck driver to be a deterrent in clearing the road of snow. Plow truck drivers are required to call for police assistance if necessary.
Copyright © 2020 Town of Westmoreland - All Rights Reserved.


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Christopher Townsend is a visual effects supervisor. He has worked in the visual effects industry for over 20 years. For over a decade, he was an artist and supervisor at Industrial Light and Magic, and in 2007 became a freelance visual effects supervisor. He worked on Journey to the Center of the Earth, the first ever stereoscopic motion picture shot and released digitally, The Wolverine, Ninja Assassin, Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief and Captain America: The First Avenger. He was nominated for a BAFTA and an Academy Award for Best Visual Effects for his work on Iron Man 3, oversaw nearly 3000 shots on Avengers: Age of Ultron and was the overall supervisor for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 as well as Captain Marvel. In 2015 he was given an Honorary Doctor of Arts degree by his alma mater, Coventry University.

References

External links

Visual effects artists
Living people
Year of birth missing (living people)
Alumni of Coventry University
Nationality missing


1965 kam ich in Österreich zur Welt und wuchs in Vorarlberg auf. Nach dem Abitur studierte ich Psychologie und Vergleichende Literaturwissenschaft an der Universität Innsbruck, später dann Fotografie bei Sibylle Bergemann an der Berliner Schule 'Fotografie am Schiffbauerdamm'. An der Internationalen Sommerakademie für Bildende Kunst Salzburg war ich Stipendiat. Seit vielen Jahren lebe und arbeite ich in Berlin. Teilnahme an zahlreichen Einzel- und Gruppenausstellungen, u. a. am Fotosommer Stuttgart 2005, am Toronto Photography Festival 2005 in Kanada, an den Darmstädter Tagen der Fotografie 2006, an den Kaunas Photo Days 2006 in Litauen, am 3. Europäischen Monat der Fotografie in Wien 2008 und am Internationalen Fotofestival 2009 in Lodz (Polen).
Kindertagebucharbeit: 'Kommt ein Vogel geflogen…' – a photographic diary of a child (1973–1983) by Christoph Burtscher In 1973 my parents presented me my first camera – so I began taking photographs, when I was just a six year old boy. I observed my family and friends living and growing up in Vorarlberg, the western part of Austria, until 1983. Some years ago I began carefully sifting through these rediscovered family snaps which had survived two to three decades in some shoe cartons. While I tried to free the biographic picture material from its private family character and the context of the Seventies and early Eighties in such a way that the images are put to life in newly established sequences, I was often reminded of a quotation by the French writer and artist Hervé Guibert: 'If you open these cartons one day', he says, 'death jumps at you, but also life, both intertwined, covering and hidingeach other.'In order to keep the perspective of the boy, who took all of these family snaps, essays from primary school are accompanying the hotographs. One of them is called 'A bird comes flying by…' (1973): 'A bird comes flying by. A mother found a bird. She wanted to bring the little bird to Franz. But than the mother bird came. Oh no, the mother bird grabbed the baby bird from her hand. You see how much the mother bird loves the baby bird.A mother has lost her child. The child went up a mountain. The second kid stayed home. Then the firemen came. But they were afraid to go up the mountain. Then the mother went up the mountain'.


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The deaths of two Saudi sisters found duct-taped together on the banks of the Hudson river have officially been ruled a double-suicide.
Sisters Tala Farea, 16, and Rotana Farea, 22, washed ashore near the river off W. 68th St. in Riverside Park on Oct. 24. The city medical examiner on Tuesday ruled their deaths suicide by drowning.
The Farea sisters moved to the U.S. from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, in mid-2015, and family members said they were seeking asylum in the U.S. The Saudi government ordered their entire family return home.
Police said the sisters had told others they would rather die than return to Saudi Arabia, and a witness spotted them praying together in a playground in Riverside Park hours before their bodies were found.
Police suspected from the start that siblings took their own lives.
In November 2017, they ran away from their home in Fairfax, Va. When police there found them in December 2017, they were placed in a shelter for domestic violence victims, police said.
In August, the two ran away from the shelter and headed to New York City, staying at high-end hotels in Manhattan, including the Hyatt, Hilton and Knickerbocker hotels, and ordering room service, police said. They may have run out of money after Rotana maxed out her credit card.


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Film: East side of the 1500 block of Vine Street
Comedian | Director
Born Jan. 18, 1892 in Harlem, Ga.
Died Aug. 7, 1957 of effects of a paralytic stroke in North Hollywood, CA
Oliver Hardy was the rotund partner in the Laurel and Hardy comedy team.
Over a 20-year period Laurel and Hardy fumbled their way through some 200 films. They began with two-reelers at the Hal Roach Studios and eventually graduated into full-length features. These included "Pardon Us," "Pack Up Your Troubles," "Sons of the Desert," "Babes in Toyland," "Bonnie Scotland," "The Bohemian Girl," "Great Guns" and many others.
And always the format was the same: Hardy was the elephant on tip-toe, who always got stuck in upper berths, daintily fingers his necktie, twitched his ridiculously thin mustache, lost his too-small derby and rushed with clumsy gallantry to the distress of fair damsels—only to trip over a broom the simple-minded, open-faced Laurel had left in the way.
Some of the fair damsels, then just youngsters, whom Laurel and Hardy helped launch to film fame were Lupe Velez, Jean Harlow, Paulette Goddard and Vivian Blaine.
Hardy was in stock for four years and toured the South with his own singing act. He happened to be in Jacksonville, Fla., in 1913 when a movie company was there. They needed a fat comedian. And that was that.
The die was not permanently cast, however, until Hardy team with Laurel in 1927. He had come to Hollywood in 1918, codirecting pictures with Larry Semon and directing a few himself. It was Hal Roach who finally recognized the possibilities of Laurel and Hardy. Laurel, born of an English vaudeville family, had been kicking around the lot as an actor for a few years when the team was formed.
In their pictures Laurel called him Ollie, but away from the cameras the blimp-like Hardy was always Babe.
When Hardy died in 1957, although he and Laurel had not made a picture in Hollywood since 1945, the popularity of the slapstick team had been soaring again on television.
— Los Angeles Times Aug. 8, 1957
From the Archives: Oliver Hardy of Famous Movies Comedy Team Dies
Plaque Taken Off Oliver Hardy's Crypt Found in Locker
A Day of Laughter
Silent Screen Stars
Mae Busch
Three thoughts about Oliver Hardy
not only did oliver hardy deserve the star, but so much more. i never got the pleasure to meet Mr Hardy, but he has made me laugh and forget my troubles for years now. in a world that is full of fear and sorrow i can always turn to laurel and hardy for laughter. May God bless his memory forever!
" — cc kimmell, January 29, 2015 at 1:34 p.m.
The man is a legend, I am only 39 years old and to think he was born 120 years ago is crazy!!!!!! A true star, love the films!
" — Michelle Shilcock, August 8, 2015 at 1:47 a.m.
I am sure the fine folks of Harlem, GA, which holds an annual Oliver Hardy Festival to remember and honor their favorite son, would appreciate your correcting the spelling of their fair city. :-)
" — John Paschal, August 8, 2015 at 9:10 a.m.
Share a thought about Oliver Hardy
Did you ever meet Oliver Hardy? Share your memory.
Which other stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame have connections to Oliver Hardy?
Are other places in the world important to Oliver Hardy?
Does Oliver Hardy deserve this star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame?


Logic20/20 is looking for experienced Data Analysts (DA) to join our consulting teams, to assess functional requirements and evaluate business and data models. The DA will also interface with customers to assess business requirements, develop insights and perform data analysis while juggling multiple projects in a fast-paced environment.
Strong applicants will have a variety of technical and communication skills. Thorough knowledge of SQL queries, DAX, and IT system specifications are required, as well as the ability to communicate relevant issues to non-technical users. An undergraduate degree in technology or business is required, and applicants should have two (2) or more years of consulting experience with a large firm. The right applicant will demonstrate a track record of remaining calm under pressure, managing multiple deadlines, and exceeding expectations.
Work with Spring Boot, Spring Cloud, Cassandra, Kafka, and other technologies.
Work closely with peers across the organization to deliver cutting edge solutions.
Projects bring unique and interesting challenges; Business Systems Analysts solve one problem and move on to the next.
Build internal relationships while projects and challenges change.


Digital addiction is real, and a major reason behind it is that people want to chronicle every moment of their life and share it with the rest of the world. Often, we miss out on the real experience in this frenzy. Honestly, when was the last time you enjoyed a vacation without taking out your smartphone and clicking a couple hundred selfies?
The owners of Switzerland-based Ibis hotel chain know this all too well, which is why they are offering a 'social media sitter' who is essentially posts on Instagram and social media for you, while you actually enjoy your vacation.
Ibis even has a dedicated website named RelaxWePost for you to book and hire a social media sitter – we prefer 'Instagram Butler' – to set you free from your digital shackles and get refreshed while on vacation. Your sitter will post pictures of your lavish lifestyle, even as you are actually taking a dip in the pool.
You can choose from social media sitters with expertise in fields ranging from travel, lifestyle, fashion, architecture, beauty and nature among others. So, how much does hiring a sitter cost you? Well, it starts at $90 per day and goes up depending on your specifications, and the expertise of their Instagram sitter. Of course all your friends might find out that these are not your photos, as the sitters need to include the hashtag #postedbysocialmediasitter in the caption. You can always bury it under a ton of other hashtags.
This is just a pilot project by Ibis and is being seen as a marketing stunt, but there is more to it than just helping guests truly enjoy their vacations.
Multiple social media influencers from Europe such as lifestyle blogger Daniela Correria, famous German model Sara Leutenegger and lifestyle blogger Cristina Gheiceanu have been hired to share the best pictures and videos of the guests' vacation on their Instagram account.
The booking process for a social media sitter will close on November 30 for Ibis hotel rooms booked for the first two days of December. The service of these digital-detox agents is available at Ibis hotels in Geneva and Zurich.


text:
BMW's Epic New Zealand Adventure Comes To An End
New Zealand is often regarded as a motorcyclist's paradise, offering everything from twisting tarmac and beautiful scenery to challenging off-road trails on backcountry routes for the more adventurous. We've got it all.
While our relative isolation normally keeps the influx of foreign riders at bay, that all changed this week with NZ setting the stage for the seventh edition of BMW's International GS Trophy competition.
Founded in 2008, the invitation-only competition sees riders grouped into nationalised teams which are pitted against each other and the elements to successfully navigate some of the most challenging adventure riding imaginable. All these challenges are, of course, taken on aboard BMW's highly capable Gelande-Strasse (GS) badged machines.
Previous years have seen the GS Trophy take to the steps of Mongolia, the jungles of Thailand, the trails of Canada's Rocky Mountains and even further afield.
New Zealand was selected to host the seventh edition of the Trophy, in part, due to our diverse riding conditions.
"I think it's a dream destination for riders, and therefore the decision was taken that New Zealand as one of the most exotic locations would be the host of the seventh International GS Trophy, says BMW Motorrad's Head of Communications, Tim Deihl-Thiele. "I think all our guests and riders are super excited, including the internal team to come to visit this country."
"All of [the Trophies] have been super spectacular in terms of routes and types of scenic landscape, but the decision was made to go to New Zealand because this is maybe one of the most exciting countries worldwide in terms of landscape and looking at all these climate zone changes to the mountains to the sea, there's no other place like that."
BMW Motorrad is at pains to point out that the International GS Trophy "not a race or a rally" but instead is a team focussed event aimed at pushing riders and bike alike in challenging new terrain on a once in a lifetime adventure. The 140 riders embarking on the 2020 event will surely find that here.
A big change for the 2020 event is the move away from the legendary R series of GS Adventure motorcycles which have been the basis for the most recent International GS Trophy events. Instead, BMW Motorrad's newly launched F 850 GS is the bike which the international teams of riders tackled the best adventure riding challenges New Zealand has to offer.
While the exact route is still a closely guarded secret, we know the Trophy started in Rotorua while Coronet Peak bear Queenstown provided the finish line. Some 60% of the route was be off-road with the remaining 40% sealed, which allowed the riders to take in some of the remote and brilliantly twisty roads NZ is famous for.
In total, 22 teams from around the globe landed in Rotorua for the start of the International GS Trophy including riders from Australia, Argentina, China, the USA and United Kingdom with an all-female team and regional teams representing the Middle East, North Africa and South-East Asia included as well.
In addition to shipping the teams here, BMW Motorrad also provided 140 bespoke F 850 GS' which were specially built for the Trophy in Germany, an increase of 26 bikes over the last event in 2018, with each bike in an exclusive specification just for the International GS Trophy.
All 140 bikes are identical in keeping with the competition aspect of the GS Trophy, with each adorned in its own one-off black and yellow colour scheme with special GS Trophy graphics – including a New Zealand Flag – for the 2020 edition. In contrast with the black/yellow is gold anodizing on the forks and cross-spoked tubeless-spec wheel rims.
For the GS Trophy, BMW has also delved deep into the options list for the F 850 GS and selected a long list of equipment to help riders make the most of the middleweight GS during the competition.
Sure to make the most difference for riders are the inclusions of a host of electronic aids, with BMW's dynamic suspension adjustment and DTC traction control systems, Gear Shift Assist Pro quickshifter, and 6.5" TFT screen with BMW Motorrad Connectivity and the Riding Modes Pro (Dynamic/Enduro/Enduro Pro) all part of the built-in tech on offer on these exclusive bikes.
BMW is also, and quite naturally, outfitting all the bikes with an aggressive set of off-road rubber and bike protection to ensure the bikes make it to the end of the eight-day competition.
"It's a wonderful ride and so much fun, but what I like most is seeing the people connect, says Ralf Rodepeter, BMW's head of brand and product and the director of the International GS Trophy.
"Every day the teams are mixed so they ride every time with new nationalities and they'll have an adventurous experience together, which creates this bond and understanding. Bringing in teams from North Africa and the Middle East this year is especially exciting, so we can honestly say we have riders from all over the world and all walks of life. And this is the spirit of the GS, bringing diverse peoples and cultures together, learning about each other and discovering and enjoying nature, playing and adventuring."
After eight days exploring some of the country's best adventure routes, the 2020 BMW Motorrad International GS Trophy came to an end near Queenstown after starting in Rotorua.
In the age old tradition of leaving the best until last, day eight offered some of the most technical riding of this year's International GS Trophy, featuring a testing ride over the famous Nevis Road – New Zealand's highest public 'road' – with the offroad tour de force featuring a reputed 24 river crossings and countless difficult rocky sections along its near 70km length.
After a total of 2500km spread across both the North and South Islands
, the 2020 BMW Motorrad International GS Trophy reached its ultimate conclusion at Coronet Peak near Queenstown.
Taking the GS Trophy crown for the third time was team South Africa who narrowly beat back the close attentions of Teams France and Italy. This marks South Africa's third International GS Trophy win on the bounce, having won previously in Thailand in 2016 and Mongolia in 2018.
BMW Motorrad International GS Trophy 2020 Final Points Standings
1 South Africa 394
3 Italy 380
4 Netherlands 375
5 South Korea 361
6 Latin America 355
8 Russia 316
9 Mexico 295
10 Argentina 278
11 Middle East 268
12 Australia 264
13 USA 254
14 Nordic 246
15 UK 238
16 Thailand 222 17 Japan 218 18 Malaysia 208 19 India 200 20 Int. Female Team I 169 21 North Africa 146 22 Int. Female Team II 118


Due to the high sugar content in raisins, they don't need preservatives to keep them fresh. Also, raisins will keep their flavor, color and nutritional value for up to 15 months when stored between 40-50 degrees Fahrenheit. Raisins can also be frozen and thawed easily for later use.
Store your raisins in an airtight container to keep them fresh, soft and free from humidity that can cause the fruit sugar to crystallize on the raisins' skin. Also, store your raisins away from brick and concrete walls where they can absorb moisture.
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Kings XI Punjab would look to break into the top half of the IPL 2019 points table when they host Rajasthan Royals at PCA Stadium in Mohali on Tuesday. Kings XI Punjab are sitting at the fifth spot after eight games while Rajasthan Royals are placed seventh with only two wins in their kitty.
It has been a familiar story with Punjab. Like the last season, KXIP have started to fade out after a bright start to their campaign. One of the reasons for it is the unsettled combination. They have been chopping and changing squad since the start.
It's not over yet and Ashwin & Co. must come up with the best XI that can assure them a win.
Rajasthan Royals have had a mediocre season so far. Going by the look of things, they are too reliant on Jos Buttler. The others around him must fire consistently if they are to lift themselves from the position at the bottom of the table.
The books are predicting Kings XI Punjab WIN.


It's been a while…but it's all good!
I haven't posted to my blog for some time. There are reasons. They might come off as excuses so we'll not go there. I've been busy doing things other than posting to my blog, obviously.
Anyway, some of what I've been up to is helping other people become famous. That's a work in progress, of course. Interestingly, the process of doing publicity stuff for other people sort of contributes to the overall credibility of my writing platform. I kind of like that. You gain from helping others.
There's plenty of news to catch up on. Foremost, I'm branching out on social media. I've had accounts on the various platforms for quite a while but have focuses mainly on Facebook and Twitter. You might notice I have multiple accounts on Facebook. That kind of just happened. When I started out I actually created both accounts by accident. Long story that isn't interesting to tell. I used a moniker from an IRC chat server so that account was mainly used for people I had connected with from that part of my past. Some of the other social media accounts use the same moniker, though. SO, if you see my picture attached to an account under the user name "elgonewolf", that is me.
As I have mentioned previously in this blog, having a name like Elgon can be a challenge. And I have, at times, used "elgone' as a user name, kind of as a joke because that is often the best rendering of my name's pronunciation that most people can manage, until they know me for a while and know me well enough that I have corrected them on the pronunciation. It isn't hard. L-GUN. But over the year many have called me L-GONE.
The "wolf" ending to the moniker comes from the IRC chat where each of us pretended to be members of a wolf pack. Once initiated, you were allowed to tag on wolf to your username. There were a couple of hundred of us on that server. And for a few months we had fun creating adventures. There were a lot of former D&D people in the mix, as you might expect.
I bring all of that up because something special and related to it is coming next fall (2017). You see, I kept copious notes and records of all the adventures I created in those months. I mean, I am a writer. During a 13 week period in the summer of 2000 I generated the basic kernel of a plot and write 400 or so pages of story that was based on those notes. After seven additional years of revisions, additions, deletions, and such, THE WOLFCAT CHRONICLES began taking shape.
WOLFCATS was written from the middle out. One of the best ways I've ever found for overcoming writer's block is to just start writing. Where I start is somewhere in the middle of a story. Sometimes that's a climax. Then the process of writing the story becomes more like assembling a huge jigsaw puzzle. You have the first few pieces together and you just need to fill in the details by finding the other pieces that connect – like how did the characters get into the situation they are in. I do a lot of that with conversations between my characters. Now, not all those conversations make it into a book. Some are just day-to day things that may be nice to know stuff and provide oodles of background for the character's development but it may not be relevant to the story. In other words, I ended up with a lot of unused background story. Some of it was beneficial later on in the process of creating the rest of the series.
With WOLFCATS the middle part of the story composed between May and July 2000 eventually evolved, over the next four and a half years, to span 5 books. Concurrently I was writing parts of ONE OVER X that are still unpublished. And, I was helping a friend with a children's book. I've always had lots of trouble writing an ending that doesn't lead to something else. That why I write serials. And so, even as I was bringing the original storyline of WOLFACTS to a conclusion I was already beginning to tell the next part of the story. In what became an extended series of chapters that I decided were anticlimactic to the original storyline, the characters we leading me into a much more complicated and intriguing set of circumstances that also connected in some rather warped ways with ONE OVER X.
I continued writing about my characters in a separate book (book 6). It became clear that I had a lot more story left to tell than would fit into one book. And so I wrote another book. Half way through that one I realized that I needed a hell of a lot more information about my characters, their origins and relationships.
I had just finished a collaborative editing of the aforementioned children's book and my publisher at the time suggested that I might try writing a children's book of my own. I told him I write hard sci-fi and fantasy. He reminded me that J.R.R. Tolkien's LORD OF THE RINGS is prefaced by THE HOBBIT, a book originally intended to be a story about Middle Earth for his children.
With my notes about the characters and their background stories from the original 5 books of the WOLFCATS, I began writing a nice little children's story about the two main characters of THE WOLFCAT CHRONICLES when they were young. Within a few writing sessions it became clear that what was emerging was not a children's story at all. Instead it was the missing material I needed to complete the conclusion of the series. And so, As I concurrently wrote final book and a half of the story I was also composing what became the first two books of WOLFCATS, for first of which will be officially published in late 2017.
Currently I'm waiting for my substantive edits to come back for BECOMING THUPERMAN, which is my next book, to be published in February 2017. BT is the story of two kids and one week of their summer vacation. Besides playing baseball in the city park and riding their bikes everywhere they avoid a neighborhood dog with a bad attitude that guards reputed haunted house of the neighborhood. BT is being kids and the adventure of creating a new world for each day while, in the process, they discover that they have superpowers and the world in which they live is not entirely as "Normal" as the name of their city might indicate. Oh yeah, and there is an old maid who may or may not be a witch and her brother with whom she lives who looks like he might not be among the living.


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The model in this photo is a 2/3 and is wearing a small. Runs true to size! Unisex.
Rep your Preds Pride in this fun t-shirt. Let's go, NASHVILLE! Cotton, Rayon, and Polyester blend t-shirt. Unisex.


text:
Golice so naselje, ki se nahajajo v zgornjem delu Tuhinjske doline pod Menino planino v Občini Kamnik.

Kraj je zelo dobro izhodišče za peš pot na Menino planino.

Zgodovina
V arhivskih listinah se Golice v Tuhinjski dolini prvič omenjajo v urbarju posesti, ki je spadala pod kamniško deženo sodišče in ki je bil sestavljen okoli leta 1400. V Golicah, ki so v urbarju zapisane kot Golicz je bil takrat sedež župe, ki jo je vodil z župano Janez.  Kraj se navaja tudi v kasnejšem urbarju iste posesti, sestavljenem leta 1477.

Viri

Glej tudi
Seznam naselij v Sloveniji

Naselja Občine Kamnik


Interoperability is a Healthcare Challenge, but the Benefits are Amazing!
What Will the Top Trends in Healthcare IT Be in 2019?
New Guidelines from CMS to Promote more Interoperability Programs and Tech!
11 Impressive Exhibitors NOT to Miss at AHIMA 18!
The Annual AHIMA Conference is Coming! Tech Related Session Highlights!
Medical Technologies to Help Transform The Patient Experience?
HIMSS18 is NOW! Tech Sessions NOT to Miss!
HIMSS18 Exhibitors NOT to Miss this Year!


The Wallet Scrubber is used to sell currencies on your exchange that are too small to sell.
How does the scrubber work?
The wallet scrubber takes the leftover amount (dust) and creates a limit buy order, filling that particular balance to a point the exchange accepts it as a trading pair.
Afterward, the hopper will sell all the funds and leave no dust behind. This way the scrubber literally "scrubs" your wallet and only leaves your base currency!


text:
Loyz Energy buys into Thai oil-producing concessions for $82.5m
Mar 3, 2014, 9:46 am SGT
http://str.sg/tRs
Singapore-based energy exploration and production company Loyz Energy has agreed to buy a 20 per cent stake in three onshore concessions in Thailand for US$65 million (S$82.5 million).
These will be Loyz's first oil-producing concessions and are expected to immediately add to the group's cash flows, the group said on Monday.
Loyz will acquire the stake from Carnavon Thailand, a subsidiary of Australia-listed exploration and production company Carnavon Petroleum. The concessions are located in Thailand's Phetchabun Basin, about 300km north of Bangkok.
The concessions are producing at a rate of about 1,200 to 1,400 barrels of oil per day (bpd), Loyz said. It expects the production rate to rise to 3,000 bpd by June this year and 5,000 bpd by December, based on the field development plans in place by the operators, ECO Orient Energy (Thailand) and ECO Orient Resources (Thailand).
Loyz will pay US$33 million on completion of the transaction and will fund the remaining US$32 million from revenue generated by the producing wells at the concessions.
"This latest deal is our first foray into producing concessions and marks a turning point for the group," said Loyz managing director Adrian Lee.
"As soon as the agreement is completed, Loyz will enjoy immediate returns and positive cashflows from the producing wells at the three concessions, while seeing significant growth potential from exploration and improved production from existing operations."
Loyz shares dipped 2.5 cents to 34 cents as at 9.45am Singapore time, amid a fall in the broader Singapore market.


text:
Nella computer grafica, la struttura dati del winged edge è un metodo per rappresentare mesh poligonali nella memoria del computer. È un tipo di rappresentazione dei confini e descrive sia la geometria che la topologia di un modello. Vengono utilizzati tre tipi di record: record di vertice, record di bordo e record di faccia. Dato un riferimento a un record di bordo, è possibile rispondere a diversi tipi di query di adiacenza (su bordi, vertici e facce vicini) in tempo costante. Questo tipo di informazioni di adiacenza è utile per algoritmi come la superficie di suddivisione.

Funzionalità
La struttura dati del winged edge descrive in modo esplicito la geometria e la topologia di facce, bordi e vertici quando tre o più superfici si uniscono e si incontrano su un bordo comune. L'ordinamento è tale che le superfici sono ordinate in senso antiorario rispetto all'orientamento innato del bordo di intersezione. Inoltre la rappresentazione consente situazioni numericamente instabili.

Struttura e pseudocodice
I record di faccia e vertice sono relativamente semplici, mentre il record di bordo è più complesso.

 Per ogni vertice, il suo record memorizza solo la posizione del vertice (ad es. coordinate) e un riferimento a un bordo incidente. Gli altri bordi possono essere trovati seguendo ulteriori riferimenti.

 Allo stesso modo, ogni record di faccia memorizza solo un riferimento a uno dei bordi che circondano la faccia.
 Infine, la struttura del record di bordo è la seguente: si presume che un bordo sia diretto. Il record di bordo contiene due riferimenti ai vertici che costituiscono i punti finali del bordo, due riferimenti alle facce su entrambi i lati del bordo e quattro riferimenti ai bordi precedente e successivo che circondano la faccia sinistra e destra.

In breve, il record di bordo ha riferimenti a tutti i record adiacenti, sia quando si sposta attorno a un vertice adiacente che attorno a una faccia adiacente.
 class Edge {
   Vertex *vert_origin, *vert_destination;
   Face *face_left, *face_right;
   Edge *edge_left_cw,
        *edge_left_ccw,
        *edge_right_cw,
        *edge_right_ccw;
 }
 class Vertex {
   float x, y, z;
   Edge *edge;
 }
 class Face {
   Edge *edge;
 }

Computer grafica


At the forthcoming 2016 Networking and Distributed Systems Symposium we present case study on designing systems that are simultaneously secure and easy-to-use. Transparent ("zero-effort") authentication is a very desirable goal. But designing and analyzing them correctly is a challenge. At the 2014 IEEE Security and Privacy Symposium, a top conference on information security and privacy, researchers from Dartmouth presented a simple and compelling scheme called ZEBRA for continuously but transparently re-authenticating users. Through systematic experiments, we show that a hidden design assumption in ZEBRA can be exploited by a clever attacker. More technical details in the extended research report and in our project page.
Computing systems are pervasive. We need to authenticate ourselves to them all the time. All of us know the tales of woe trying to manage zillions of passwords. But unwieldy authentication and access control systems are not limited to computing — we struggle with multiple keys, loyalty cards and so on. This is what makes attempts to design transparent "zero-effort" authentication systems very compelling. The adjectives "transparent" and "zero effort" refer to the fact that the system is able to authenticate users without requiring them to do anything special just for the purpose of authentication. There has been a lot of work in trying to get the design of zero-effort authentication systems right and the security community has been making progress. But getting usability and security right is a difficult challenge.
Typically deauthentication is based on idle time limits: if you have not interacted with your device for a period exceeding some pre-set time limit, it will deauthenticate you. But therein lies the rub: if the time limit is too short, you will be annoyed at having to log in frequently and unnecessarily; but if the time limit is too long, you risk that someone else may use your unattended device. Transparent zero-effort schemes have been tried out before. One is BlueProximity which allows you to pair your Bluetooth-enabled phone with your PC. Thereafter your PC will use Bluetooth to sense your phone's presence in the vicinity and will automatically lock if it can no longer sense your phone. BlueProximity itself is not very secure (an attacker who knows the Bluetooth address of your phone can easily break BlueProximity) but it is an example of the class of zero-effort authentication solutions that rely on proximity detection via short-range wireless channels. Another prominent example of this class of solutions is the collection of various "keyless access" schemes found in high end cars. These systems have many problems: they are vulnerable to relay attacks, and they are not effective in situations where people step away from their devices (and would thus want to be deauthenticated) but do not walk away far enough so that their devices can no longer sense their presence — such situations are common in offices with cubicles or workstations in hospital wards and factories.
ZEBRA: This is where ZEBRA comes in with a very simple and elegant solution to the problem. In ZEBRA every user is required to wear a Bluetooth-enabled "bracelet" equipped with an accelerometer and a gyroscope in his/her dominant hand. As a ZEBRA user, when you first log into a device ("terminal" in ZEBRA terminology), it establishes a secure connection to your bracelet. Thereafter while you interact with your terminal, e.g., using its keyboard or mouse, the bracelet will send the measurements generated by your interactions over to the terminal which then uses a machine learning classifier to map them into a sequence of predicted interactions. Now your terminal has two different views of the same phenomenon of you interacting it: the first is the sequence of interactions it can directly observe via its peripherals like keyboard and mouse; the second is the sequence of predicted interactions inferred from the measurements sent over from the bracelet. Now you can perhaps see the logic behind ZEBRA: if the two sequences match, ZEBRA can conclude that the person who is interacting with it is the same person who is wearing the right bracelet for the current login session; if the sequences diverge, ZEBRA can promptly deauthenticate the current login session. ZEBRA calls this "Bilateral Recurring Authentication" — you can think of it as the Rashomon approach to deauthentication! It is simple, elegant, and, unlike biometric authentication, does not depend on the particular behaviour of the user being authenticated.
Hunting ZEBRA: Is ZEBRA secure? To evaluate this, authors of ZEBRA conducted experiments in which participants were asked to act as attackers. A researcher, acting as the victim, left the terminal ("terminal A") with an open login session moved to another terminal ("terminal B") and started interacting with it. The job of the "attacker" was to watch what the victim was doing on terminal B, mimic the same interactions on terminal A and try to avoid being logged out of terminal A by ZEBRA. Security 101 teaches you not to under-estimate the capabilities of attackers. Realizing this, ZEBRA authors arranged to give a generous handicap to their attackers: the victims actually announced aloud what they are about to do ("typing", "scrolling" etc.). The experiments showed that ZEBRA was able to deauthenticate all attackers even with this extra help.
We realized that there is a problem here: in the experiments, the "attackers" were asked to mimic everything that the victim was doing; is that the best strategy for the attackers? It turned out that ZEBRA was doing its bilateral comparison only when the terminal perceived interactions via its peripherals. But the terminal being attacked (terminal A) is under the control of the attacker. Therefore we conjectured that a clever attacker does not need to mimic everything that the victim was doing but can opportunistically choose to mimic only those interactions where he has a good chance of passing ZEBRA's bilateral comparison test!
Transparent, "zero-effort" authentication, which works by taking the user out of the loop of authentication decisions, is important. The need for it is demonstrated by already available production solutions that attempt to provide zero-effort authentication. But designing them correctly is subtle and difficult.
We showed that under a more realistic adversary model, ZEBRA, as it was originally designed, is not secure against malicious attackers. It is still an effective defense against accidental misuse. The fundamental problem in the design of ZEBRA is a case of tainted input — we are currently developing ways of improving ZEBRA.


This sophisticated design is a unique and unexpected take on Irish knitwear. Honeycomb and cable knit stitches beautifully intermingle to create this sophisticated look, infusing the design with classic Irish details. The asymmetric neckline lends the cardigan a trendy edge, while the cable knit details ground it as a classic design. Made from high quality Merino wool, this garment is luxurious and extremely soft, guaranteeing that it will quickly become a beloved design in your wardrobe.
The long silhouette makes it a cozy and comfortable option that still looks put together and fashionable whether paired with jeans, leggings or a dress.


Eyewear brand IOLLA has pledged its support to Orbis UK's See My Future appeal that aims to help screen and treat children for sight loss in Nepal.
The company will seek to raise awareness of the campaign by promoting its to its customers on its website and through social media.
IOLLA has been supporting Orbis' work since 2016 and has helped provide over 125 cataract operations.
Orbis aims to raise £850,000 through its See My Future appeal, with the UK Government agreeing to Aid Match every pound up to £2m that is donated between now and 23 June.
Orbis highlighted that a donation of £5.50, which will be doubled by the Government's Aid Match scheme, could provide two pairs of glasses to children struggling at school due to poor vision.
For more information on the appeal and to make a donation, visit the Orbis website.


text:
Tag Archives: Bet ng Bayan GMA
entertainment, hits, music, Philippines, reality show, songs, talent show, television
Born Out of Desperation: GMA's The Clash Premieres This Weekend
July 6, 2018 ralphierceABS-CBN, Ai Ai delas Alas, Andre Paras, Bet ng Bayan, Bet ng Bayan GMA, Christian Bautista, Daig Kayo ng Lola Ko, Daig Kayo ng Lola Ko GMA, GMA, GMA Network, GMA new programs, GMA new shows, GMA upcoming programs, GMA upcoming shows, Joyce Pring, Lani Misalucha, Pepito Manaloto, Pepito Manaloto GMA, Pepito Manaloto: Ang Tunay na Kwento, Pepito Manaloto: Ang Tunay na Kwento GMA, Pinoy Boyband Superstar, Pinoy Boyband Superstar ABS-CBN, Regine Velasquez-Alcasid, The Clash, The Clash GMA, The Clash GMA debut, The Clash GMA debut week, The Clash GMA first week, The Clash GMA maiden week, The Clash GMA opening week, The Clash GMA pilot, The Clash GMA pilot week, The Clash GMA premiere, The Clash GMA premiere week, The Clash TV show, The Voice franchise, The Voice Kids, The Voice Kids ABS-CBN, The Voice Kids Philippines, The Voice Kids Philippines ABS-CBN, The Voice of the Philippines, The Voice of the Philippines ABS-CBN, The Voice of the Philippines franchise, The Voice PH, The Voice Teens, The Voice Teens ABS-CBN, The Voice Teens Philippines, The Voice Teens Philippines ABS-CBN, To the Top, To the Top GMA, Your Face Sounds Familiar, Your Face Sounds Familiar ABS-CBN, Your Face Sounds Familiar: Kids, Your Face Sounds Familiar: Kids ABS-CBN, Your Face Sounds Familiar: Kids season 2 13 Comments
Desperation has become a theme for GMA in recent years.
Weekend primetime, in particular, is more of a mess for the Kapuso network than a blessing. After all, ABS-CBN's high-rating franchised talent shows like 'The Voice', 'Your Face Sounds Familiar' and 'Pinoy Boyband Superstar' has left GMA in a wretched state, always one step behind from the other.
And even when GMA tried to produce a talent show, they tend to make some unwise decisions and avoid any sort of competition against ABS-CBN's own. Remember when they aired 'Bet ng Bayan' and 'To the Top' on the not-so convenient late-night slots?
Fast forward to now and it looks like GMA has learned its lesson and is finally poised to give ABS-CBN a dose of its own medicine. Starting this weekend the network will introduce 'The Clash', an all-new singing competition to be hosted by Regine Velasquez-Alcasid.
A total of 62 aspirants selected from several nationwide auditions will compete in intense one-on-one battles to determine the country's next singing sensation. Judges Lani Misalucha, Ai-ai delas Alas and Christian Bautista will evaluate the performance of each individual and reveal the verdict in front of the audience.
Also part of 'The Clash' are Joyce Pring and Andre Paras. The two will provide some news on the preparations of each aspirant and give updates on their performance.
Having learned from the poor reception that 'Bet ng Bayan' and 'To the Top' earned, GMA made a smart move with 'The Clash'. The show would air not only on Saturdays but on Sundays as well, and in a more convenient timeslot.
But that does not mean they will have a fighting chance against 'Your Face Sounds Familiar Kids'. With the latter show currently earning ratings in the 30s, 'The Clash' should have its hands full dealing with this tough opponent.
Still, Kapuso viewers will be more than happy to see GMA produce a singing competition show once more. This is an opportunity that GMA is itching to do, and out of desperation, they delivered.
Now it is up to 'The Clash' to make an impact. But will it be more than enough to make the competition more meaningful?
'The Clash' airs every Saturday after 'Pepito Manaloto' and Sunday after 'Daig Kayo ng Lola Ko' on GMA.
To the Top's New Timeslot Shows GMA's Lack of Trust
August 28, 2015 ralphierceABS-CBN, Banana Split, Banana Split ABS-CBN, Banana Split: Extra Scoop, Banana Split: Extra Scoop ABS-CBN, Bet ng Bayan, Bet ng Bayan GMA, Gandang Gabi Vice, Gandang Gabi Vice ABS-CBN, GMA, GMA Network, Pinoy Big Brother: 737, Pinoy Big Brother: 737 ABS-CBN, Starstruck, StarStruck GMA, The Bottomline, The Bottomline ABS-CBN, To the Top, To the Top GMA, To the Top new timeslot 63 Comments
A new timeslot for 'To the Top' on Saturdays shows GMA's lack of confidence with the show. (Logo courtesy of GMA Network)
GMA is definitely not confident with 'To the Top'.
This past Saturday, GMA moved 'To the Top' to a new timeslot of 10:40 p.m. This means that it has to face both 'Banana Split: Extra Scoop' and 'The Bottomline', two ABS-CBN programs that merely cater to night owls.
Airing this late will definitely not bode well to the show, its participants, and its audience. The exposure of the boyband aspirants would have been more helpful if 'To the Top' were to air at an earlier timeslot and with a wider amount of viewers, but at 10:40 p.m., they will be severely handicapped.
While the Sunday edition will stick to its close-to-10:00 p.m. slot, this is still a period where GMA feels uncomfortable with. After all, the Kapuso network still has to worry about 'Pinoy Big Brother: 737' and 'Gandang Gabi Vice', and much like 'Bet ng Bayan' before it, 'To the Top' may still have no chance of success.
Despite its premise as a multi-platform reality show, 'To the Top' cannot depend on its online viewers alone. After all, television remains the most widespread medium to expose the talents, which 'To the Top' desperately needs.
That said, GMA appears to have little to no trust whatsoever in 'To the Top'. They are not confident that the show will succeed in a traditional media setup, which is why they moved it to a later timeslot to avoid getting humiliated.
'To the Top' seems like a lost opportunity than a blessing for GMA. It may be the first show to employ both a traditional and a new media setup, but it is clear that GMA is wasting its time on the show, given its treatment and promotion.
So much for being the first boyband competition in the country. Now let's see what they will do with 'StarStruck'.
entertainment, music, Philippines, reality show, songs, talent show, television
'To the Top' Avoids 'The Voice Kids'
July 20, 2015 ralphierceBet ng Bayan, Bet ng Bayan GMA, GMA, GMA Network, GMA new programs, GMA new projects, GMA new shows, GMA reality shows, GMA talent shows, GMA upcoming programs, GMA upcoming projects, GMA upcoming shows, Kantar Media, Kantar Media Ratings, Kantar Ratings, Kapuso Mo Jessica Soho, Magpakailanman, Magpakailanman GMA, Pinoy Big Brother, Pinoy Big Brother ABS-CBN, Pinoy Big Brother controversies, Pinoy Big Brother: 737, Pinoy Big Brother: 737 ABS-CBN, Pinoy Big Brother: 737 controversies, The Voice Kids, The Voice Kids 2 ratings, The Voice Kids ABS-CBN, The Voice Kids season 2, The Voice Kids season 2 ratings, To the Top, To the Top GMA 23 Comments
'To the Top"s upcoming weekend schedule will see them pit against 'Pinoy Big Brother: 737' instead of 'The Voice Kids' season 2. (Logo courtesy of GMA & 'To the Top' Official Facebook)
"Avoid 'The Voice Kids' at all costs."
This is the battle cry of a despondent GMA management upon revealing the schedules of the soon-to-air multi-platform reality boyband talent show 'To the Top'. Starting July 25, 'To the Top' will air every Saturday at 8:50 p.m. following 'Magpakailanman', and every Sunday at 9:40 p.m. following 'Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho'.
This means that 'To the Top' will only compete against 'Pinoy Big Brother: 737' rather than the 'The Voice Kids' season 2. With the latter having set a series ratings record of around 43% (according to Kantar Media) the previous weekend, GMA knows they're in a losing battle, and wisely did what's best for them.
But that doesn't mean 'To the Top' will beat 'Pinoy Big Brother' once they get underway. As it stands, PBB remains a serious contender despite the recent spate of controversies, and for GMA to make 'To the Top' even more interesting than its adversary, they need to raise the level of skill and entertainment value to win the viewers' hearts.
That said, a tough battle still lies ahead for 'To the Top'. Even though they'll no longer go head-to-head with 'The Voice Kids', they still have something to prove as far as ratings go, and that alone won't be easy.
entertainment, music, Philippines, songs, talent show, television
A New Rival for 'The Voice Kids 2'
July 16, 2015 ralphierceABS-CBN, Adrian Pascual, AJ Ajrouche, Bet ng Bayan, Bet ng Bayan GMA, boyband, boybands of the Philippines, Brian Lotho, Bryan Olano, Chino David, Cholo dela Cruz, Chris Yumang, Chrisanthony Vinzons, Edric Ulang, Filipino boybands, GMA, GMA Network, GMA News, GMA News and Public Affairs, Jonathan Ong, Joshua Jacobe, JP Palanca, Julian Trono, Ken Carpena, KPop, Lance Busa, Lharby Policarpio, Louie Pedroso, Luis Gragera, Madelle Paltu-ob, Martin de Vera, Mico Cruz, Miko Manguba, MJ Magno, Moy Ortiz, new GMA programs, new GMA shows, OJ Mariano, Philippine Allstars, Philippine boyband, Prince Paltu-ob, Reflex Gotangco, Ryan Cayabyab, Seph Manlapaz, Sonic Strike Audio, Sweet Plantado, The CompanY, The Voice Kids, The Voice Kids 2, The Voice Kids 2 ratings, The Voice Kids ABS-CBN, The Voice Kids season 2, The Voice Kids season 2 Philippines, The Voice Kids season 2 ratings, The Voice of the Philippines, The Voice of the Philippines ABS-CBN, The Voice PH, To the Top, To the Top GMA, upcoming GMA programs, upcoming GMA shows 31 Comments
'The Voice Kids' season 2 will be having a new rival.
Opposing the hit ABS-CBN singing talent show soon will be GMA's first multi-platform boyband competition in the Philippines, 'To the Top'. Produced by GMA News and Public Affairs, this program aims to discover the country's next great boyband.
Unlike other talent shows in the country, 'To the Top' did not conduct open auditions. Instead, it invited the best male singers from different schools and organizations to join and audition for the final 25 slots.
'To the Top' initially aired as an online-exclusive series where they document the journey of each finalist from being soloists/group members to being members of a boyband. These webisodes were hosted by Julian Trono, who was intensively trained in KPop.
The remaining 25 finalists were then trimmed to 14, with the 11 eliminated finalists competing for four wildcard slots that was decided through social media votes. The 18 finalists who will see action in the televised portion of the series are:
AJ Ajrouche
Lance Busa
Ken Carpena
Mico Cruz
Cholo dela Cruz
Martin de Vera
Luis Gragera
Joshua Jacobe
MJ Magno
Miko Manguba
Seph Manlapaz
Bryan Olano
JP Palanca
Adrian Pascual
Louie Pedroso
Lharby Policarpio
Edric Ulang
Chris Yumang
The 18 singers will then be divided into groups of six, and will be housed together and undergo further vocal and dance training in preparation for their performances. They will then be judged based on their singing and dancing ability, as well as their cohesiveness.
The panel of judges will be led by accomplished composer Ryan Cayabyab, and will be joined by The CompanY's Moy Ortiz, Sweet Plantado and OJ Mariano. The quartet will also act as vocal coaches for the three groups.
The dance coaches will be Philippine Allstars alunmi and two-time World Hip-Hop champions Madelle and Prince Paltu-ob, and international breakdance champion Reflex Gotangco. The sound and music department will be led by Sonic State Audio's Jonathan Ong, along with Chino David, Chrisanthony Vinzons and Brian Lotho.
'To the Top' was originally scheduled to air this Saturday, July 18, but for some unknown reason, it was moved to July 25. The show is expected to compete against 'The Voice Kids' season 2, which is currently on a hot streak as far as ratings are concerned.
By all accounts, GMA should have their hands full in this latest endeavor. Opposing 'The Voice of the Philippines' and its kids edition has been a difficult ordeal for the network, having seen its most recent talent show 'Bet ng Bayan' fail against the said ABS-CBN program.
That said, a daunting task awaits 'To the Top' as it nears its premiere. Will this show provide a tougher competition to 'The Voice Kids', or will it fall in the same manner as 'Bet ng Bayan'? We'll see.
dance show, entertainment, Philippines, reality show, talent show, television
'Marian' Ends Tomorrow. Will 'Bet ng Bayan' Finally Air on Saturdays Too?
December 5, 2014 ralphierceABS-CBN, Bet ng Bayan, Bet ng Bayan GMA, Bet ng Bayan Saturdays, Bet ng Bayan weeknights, Despedida de Soltera, Dingdong Dantes, GMA, GMA Network, GMA Telebabad, Kapuso Mo Jessica Soho, Kapuso Mo Jessica Soho GMA, Magpakailanman, Magpakailanman GMA, Marian, Marian final episode, Marian finale, Marian GMA, Marian GMA final episode, Marian GMA finale, Marian GMA Season 2 finale, Marian GMA series finale, Marian Rivera, Marian Season 2 finale, Marian series finale, The Voice Kids, The Voice Kids ABS-CBN, The Voice of the Philippines, The Voice of the Philippines ABS-CBN, The Voice of the Philippines Season 2, Wansapanatym, Wansapantym ABS-CBN 40 Comments
Take a bow, Marian Rivera.
After over five months, 'Marian' will officially air its final episode tomorrow. The dance show's finale will feature a dance number starring Rivera and her fiance Dingdong Dantes, along with highlights of their 'Despedida de Soltera'.
No third season will be produced, as Rivera expressed the need for rest in preparation of her wedding on December 30.
Debuting on June 21, 'Marian' hoped to be GMA's solution to its ongoing ratings woes on Saturday evenings. Instead, the show failed to live up to the hype, losing on a consistent basis to ABS-CBN rivals 'The Voice Kids', 'Wansapanatym', and 'The Voice of the Philippines' during its run.
While Marian Rivera was undoubtedly GMA's top female star, the fact that their biggest asset failed to deliver in the ratings may have affected the network's morale. The truth is, 'Marian' was basically intended to keep her on television, but as it turned out, not even her skill in dancing can keep audiences interested.
Looking ahead, GMA will now have a vacancy to fill on their Saturday night lineup come December 13. The question is, will 'Bet ng Bayan' fill that void?
When the second season of 'The Voice of the Philippines' added a Saturday edition on November 8, it gave GMA a huge mismatch. This forced the Kapuso network to switch the timeslots of both 'Marian' and 'Magpakailanman' the following week, but even with that change, it still failed to beat the former.
Meanwhile, the first two months of 'Bet ng Bayan"s run had been uneventful. The reality talent show would have given 'The Voice of the Philippines' a run for their money*, but instead, they were handcuffed by the lack of airtime space on Saturday nights, and the extended running time of 'Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho' on Sunday nights.
That said, getting rid of the 15-minute recap shows on weeknights in favor of a 90-minute episode on Saturday nights should give 'Bet ng Bayan' a more competitive spot on weekends. More importantly, it should provide a little more breathing room for GMA Telebabad to thrive upon.
Still, the fate of the vacated timeslot of 'Marian' will be up to GMA management. Hopefully they make the right decision as soon as possible.
Note: 'The Voice of the Philippines' season 2 debuted on October 26, three weeks after 'Bet ng Bayan' premiered.*
The Voice PH Returns, Poses Huge Challenge to Bet ng Bayan
October 24, 2014 ralphierceABS-CBN, ABS-CBN new programs, ABS-CBN new programs October 2014, ABS-CBN new shows, ABS-CBN new shows October 2014, ABS-CBN reality shows, ABS-CBN talent shows, AGB Nielsen, AGB Nielsen Ratings, Alex Gonzaga, apl.de.ap, Bamboo Manalac, Bet ng Bayan, Bet ng Bayan GMA, Bet ng Bayan GMA 7, Bet ng Bayan GMA Network, Gandang Gabi Vice, Gandang Gabi Vice ABS-CBN, GMA, GMA Network, I Do, I Do ABS-CBN, Kantar, Kantar Ratings, Lea Salonga, Luis Manzano, Lyca Gairanod, Marian, Marian GMA, Mitoy Yonting, Robi Domingo, Sarah Geronimo, The Voice Kids, The Voice Kids ABS-CBN, The Voice of the Philippines, The Voice of the Philippines ABS-CBN, The Voice of the Philippines Season 1, The Voice of the Philippines Season 2, TNS Kantar, TNS Kantar Ratings, Toni Gonzaga 46 Comments
A new challenger awaits 'Bet ng Bayan' this Sunday.
The second season of 'The Voice of the Philippines' will air starting October 26 and every weekend thereafter on ABS-CBN. The popular reality singing show will replace 'I Do', whose finale is set tomorrow night.
The first season of 'The Voice of the Philippines', which ran from June 15 to September 29, 2013, was won by Team Lea's Mitoy Yonting. A spinoff, 'The Voice Kids', ran from May 24 to July 27, 2014, and was won by Team Sarah's Lyca Gairanod.
Returning as judges for season 2 will be Sarah Geronimo, apl.de.ap, Bamboo Manalac and Lea Salonga. Toni Gonzaga and Luis Manzano will reprise their roles as hosts, while Robi Domingo and Alex Gonzaga will join as its 'V-reporters'.
Since it premiered in June of last year, 'The Voice of the Philippines' became one of ABS-CBN's highest-rated programs. TVPH season 1 finished in the top five in both Kantar and AGB Nielsen, with ratings usually hovering over 20% or better.
The success of the show (and its spinoff 'The Voice Kids') was so tremendous that GMA's attempts to tweak their programming on weekends always backfire. Not even the entry of 'Marian' helped GMA's dire weekend situation.
Perhaps due to apparent jealousy over ABS-CBN's reality show success, GMA finally decided to create their own talent show, which became 'Bet ng Bayan'.
Nevertheless, GMA's weekend problems continued even with their latest creation on board. 'Bet ng Bayan' was pitted against 'Gandang Gabi Vice', easily GMA's biggest weekend threat, and as expected, the former struggled in the ratings.
Without a Saturday show to begin with ('Bet ng Bayan' has a 15-minute recap show on weeknights instead), it is clear that 'Bet ng Bayan"s chances against 'The Voice of the Philippines' won't be any better. Considering TVPH's overwhelming ratings success in Season 1, it will be a very daunting task for GMA to overcome this juggernaut.
The season premiere of 'The Voice of the Philippines' should give GMA every reason to fear. Better act now, or else.


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Blog Kiosk: 12/14/2015 - Dodger Links - Some Odds and Ends
As you may know, yesterday was the 59th anniversary of the day the Dodgers traded Jackie Robinson to the hated Giants. This was during the tail end of Jackie's career. He was 37-years old and nearing an end to his playing days.
After several weeks of leaving everyone in the dark, Jackie finally announced that he would hang them up. He wrote to the Giants essentially saying, "it's not you, it's me," and penned an exclusive piece for "Look" magazine for the world to see.
Contrary to legend, Jackie did not retire because he hated the Giants. Instead, he decided to leave the game on his own terms (and with a great job waiting with "Chock Full o' Nuts"). BTW, his deteriorating relationship with the Dodgers may have played a part, as well. Per a letter penned by Jackie to Dodger GM Bavasi in 1961:
The atmosphere that has existed since 1956 has been regarded by me as something a person of my temperament must expect from people who do not believe in the things I believe in, but felt an organization like yours must be pretty small if records were destroyed because of personality differences. I merely wanted to make it a complete break if this was the desire of the Dodgers organization.
Ouch. Photo above via Cut4 on twitter. Below are more links to check out:
Holy Moly! Call me a monkey's uncle. I guess the Greinke deal did happen out of nowhere. Via Ken Rosenthal at FoxSports, "How Diamondbacks landed Zack Greinke in 330 minutes."
The D-backs already had made free-agent right-hander Johnny Cueto a $120 million offer, an offer that the pitcher had rejected. They were focusing on less-expensive pitchers, on trades. But, as Hall recalls, he and Kendrick kept saying to each other, "Maybe we're doing the wrong thing here. Should we go after Greinke?"
Sometime that morning, Kendrick finally decided that the answer was yes. He had figured out a structure of deferred payments that could make a $200 million contract work. He made the call to Hall, setting in motion a frantic, whirlwind afternoon that led to Greinke becoming the highest-paid player, by average annual value, in major-league history.
All in a matter of 5½ hours.
Via an AP story on ESPN, "Zack Greinke hints deal for return to Dodgers was nearly agreed on."
Zack Greinke was minutes from agreeing to sign with another team when he received word the Arizona Diamondbacks were interested.
Greinke wouldn't identify the other club, but the question was about his former team, the Los Angeles Dodgers, and he answered with a smile, so it seems it was not hard to decipher.
Zach Links at MLB Trade Rumors spoke with Johnny Cueto's agent and mentioned the Dodgers:
Dixon could see Cueto forming a strong rotation alongside Adam Wainwright, Michael Wacha, and Carlos Martinez, but he could also envision his client looking good in Dodger blue next to Clayton Kershaw in L.A.'s rotation. Those are just two of the fits that Dixon can see for Cueto at this stage and he's still willing to wait for what he feels is an appropriate pact.
Via Jim Rome at CBS Sports, "Dave Roberts on Chapman deal: 'I don't think that we closed the book'
"I don't think that we closed the book on that. I know that we are excited about potentially making that trade," Roberts told The Jim Rome Show. "And obviously, if you see Chapman on the mound and he's dominate out there and we were going to be better for it. So obviously, with what happened, we are just kind of letting the process kind of play out and we will try to circle back if that's the case, but obviously, we're looking at definitely other options. I'm not going to tie ourselves to that right now, but we will kind of let things play out for sure."
Cary Osborne at Dodger Insider takes a look at the very first tweets by several Dodger players.
By ernest at Saturday, December 12, 2015 0 comments
Links Labels: Aroldis Chapman, Blog Kiosk, Dave Roberts, Diamondbacks, Giants, Jackie Robinson, Johnny Cueto, Zach Greinke
Blog Kiosk: 12/14/2015 - Dodger Links - Some Odds ...


A refugee from Eden, he has come to Babylon.
He finds it all so interesting, too bad it must go down.
And in Eden they are ready to make sure the world survives.
But if the Earth could be unravaged, then we all could get along.
If not, there are arrangements made to tumble Babylon.
Tell us, is is this a prediction, or is this a threat?
The refugee says, "I don't know, it hasn't happened yet."
To challenge Mighty Babylon with our technology.
Because you do not see it does not mean it is not real.
Since long before Atlantis fell, Eden has watched on.
Believe me, there is power that can tumble Babylon.


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At least three of San Diego's joint-use playground parks have limited or eliminated public access to playgrounds in North Park, Normal Heights, and Kensington, and no one knows who is responsible.
After three days of inquiries, the city Parks and Recreation Department and the San Diego Unified School District found answers — though contradictory. Each initially said the other is responsible for unlocking gates at the end of the school day and locking them in the morning to provide secure campuses.
Calls to the city parks department resulted in a referral to the city's communications department, which did not respond for a day, then said that opening the pseudo-parks is the school district's responsibility.
Calls to the mayor's office resulted in referrals to the communications department.
When informed of the contradictory answers, they stopped responding and began collaborating — the media folks, that is. Whether or not Parks & Rec is working with the school district with renewed interest is unknown.
Normal Heights Community Planning Group members say problems with public access to the park have plagued the neighborhood for years. Planning group members, including chairman Jim Baross, embraced the idea for the school, built in 2006. They soon found the park promise didn't come true.
"When school is not in session, including apparently their Afterschool programs, the Normal Heights Elementary shared spaces are to be open for public use — all four gates," Baross said in an email. "Responsibility for opening seems unclear and too often forgotten."
Normal Heights Elementary School has a unique design in that the east end opens at the southwest corner of Ward Canyon Park. That gate is usually open after-hours and is locked during school hours. The playground is on two levels: a larger area that is lower and to the east; and a smaller area at the west end, where the school's main buildings are located. The gates at the west end — almost two blocks from the Ward Canyon entrance — are almost never unlocked after school except during school events.
It feels unsafe to walk far into the area, and this reporter, who has been more than a dozen times in the past year, rarely sees other people inside the joint-use park — and has never seen any gates other than the east gate to Ward Canyon Park unlocked. Even those are often locked.
"There's been a ten-year battle over public access," said Scott Kessler, executive director of the Adams Avenue Business Association.
"Gate broken" sign at Garfield Elementary suggests using "far side gate"
Garfield Elementary School, at Oregon and Meade streets, recently restricted public access to weekends and hand-written signs say as much. After this reporter made contact with the principal (who refused to answer questions) the signs were taken down but gates remained locked Monday and Tuesday nights (October 31 and November 1).
"There is a facility solution that is being worked through after some incidents involving property damage, with some additional fencing at that school," school-district spokeswoman Cynthia Reed-Porter said. "As I understand it, the school building wasn't fenced off and there was some vandalism."
Vicki Granowitz, from the North Park Planning Group, said that councilmember Todd Gloria's former communications director, Adrian Granda, told her the closure was the result of people bringing dogs (allowed as long as they are on leashes) but not picking up poop.
"Staff can't get it cleaned up in time for the school day — the few are ruining it for the many," she said. "So the school decided to close it during the week.... These aren't dog parks, they're primarily for the schools and primarily for children."
The mayor's office echoed the dog-poop scenario in an email late Wednesday — contradicting Reed-Porter's statement that there had been vandalism to the building.
Franklin Elementary, between Meade and Monroe on Copeland, closed its gates to the public in the past month, according to planning group members.
Community members say that a child was bitten by a dog at Franklin, but the district could not confirm that. According to community members, the school staff put up signs saying that organized sports and dogs are not allowed. The signs were removed early this week and it is not clear whether the gates are being opened to the public or not.
The joint-use rules published by the school district say that dogs on leash are allowed and make no mention of rules for organized sports.
Reed-Porter has worked with the city before to create more joint-use parks and amenities. She says that neighbors to park-playgrounds have a lot of concerns and often oppose the projects.
San Diego has more than 75 joint-use school playground/park agreements and has entered into at least 32 more agreements to develop with the school district. The agreements, in theory, bolster the city's parkland numbers, particularly in park-starved communities — including Normal Heights, North Park, and Kensington.
The city's brochure touts the operating agreements as the solution to the shortage of parks in the built-out areas of the city. The "parks" are funded by the city through developer impact fees and money from ballot initiatives, including Prop ZZ, according to the brochure.
While the city touts the joint-use parks as a win-win-win, residents who can't use them don't see it that way.
CaptainObvious Nov. 3, 2016 @ 4:24 p.m.
Is it illegal to cut a lock on a gate that is supposed to be open?
Visduh Nov. 3, 2016 @ 9:56 p.m.
Nothing surprising here at all. The slobberin' city gets together with the slobberin' school district and works out a deal that promises things to fed-up residents. Before the work is even finished both entities have totally and conveniently forgotten the deal, and go their merry ways. Why don't/can't they work in concert to deliver on the commitments? Well, both are mismanaged and misgoverned agencies with their own set of fools in charge and a host of political priorities that guarantee that they want different things. And the final factor is that to do this right, as in the way it was promised, actually requires some of their underworked and overpaid employees to WORK. And that's where it all breaks down; just where the rubber meets the road.
AlexClarke Nov. 4, 2016 @ 7:49 a.m.
suzledeboer Nov. 4, 2016 @ 8:20 a.m.
Wonder if keeping the gates locked is a way to prevent the homeless from setting up their camps in the parks. If so, it is not working at Ward Canyon Neighborhood Park.
fraidycat3 Nov. 4, 2016 @ 1:42 p.m.


Our group, established in 2000, loves and enjoys yosakoi. We believe in developing the youth through sound mind and body programs such as this. Our young members are from nursery school to junior high school. We dance and participate in volunteer activities at various establishments. We will be dancing to a song that highlights the special features of Obu City.