I offer professional chapter book manuscript critiques.
Writing is a challenging, often frustrating, and very emotional journey. I recognize the great courage it takes to hand your work over for review and I appreciate the trust you place in me as a critiquer. Please know that I take this role very seriously.
With that in mind, my goal is to help you take your manuscript as far as it can go. This means two things: (1) I try to be as objective as possible and offer feedback that helps you tell your story in the best way that you can and (2) I am honest, thorough and comprehensive in my feedback, for that is the best way for me to honor your hard work.
First 10 Basic ($30) includes overall analysis of story structure and plot along with recommendations for addressing key problems or offering suggestions based on the first 10 pages of the manuscript.
Pro Critiques ($2/page) include in-line comments throughout the entire manuscript as well as a comprehensive feedback letter.
Please contact me with questions or for custom packages.
Karla's critiques are direct and honest. She not only can identify the weaknesses in the story arc and character development, but she can spot a word, phrase, or detail that jars. Critiquing is like a coin. It has two sides. Karla also identifies a story's strong points and encourages the author. Karla has a good understanding of what makes a good picture book and of the picture book market. You will always learn from Karla's critiques.
Karla provided an in-depth professional critique. Karla's vast knowledge accelerated my learning at a pace unparalleled from other critiques. I have also been fortunate to read some of her own writing. Her creativity is exceptional.
Karla offers a careful, thoughtful critique. One feels that she really cares about one's writing. Her comments make it clear how to improve a story with clear suggestions. I value her honesty.
If you would like to do your own manuscript critique, I've prepared a ten step guide which you can access for free by clicking on the image below.


The reversible Killashee men's gilet provides lightweight, stylish warmth. Team this indispensable men's gilet with a men's shirt or men's polo shirt and leather country boots for a country wear look or with men's deck shoes as sailing clothing. Killashee is part of the Dubarry men's jacket collection.
Men's' lightweight reversible gilet, with contrast tipping detail and zipped vertical pockets.


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Home Entertainment Such a great sun: Christophe ready to commit a bad blow?
Such a great sun: Christophe ready to commit a bad blow?
Such a bright sun makes his fans stressful. It's Christophe's turn to raise the tension. He could do the worst.
Fans of Such a Big Sun continue to be amazed. Today, Christophe will be talked about a lot. He then seems ready to commit the irreparable.
Since the beginning of the series, viewers have loved Such a Big Sun. It must be said that with a tailor-made script and characters more endearing than the others, the series hit the nail on the head.
In fact, in recent weeks the series has intensified. And that, the fans understood. So on the Web, Internet users keep discussing the program.
Indeed, the latter do not hesitate to give their opinions. They are trying to guess what will happen. The assumptions therefore fuse on social networks. Not surprising !
So fans of Un si grand soleil are present every night on France 2. And this week, they shouldn't miss a single episode. And for good reason, the series continues to accelerate.
Indeed, Christophe continues to make them his own. For several weeks he has been making a lot of talk about him. In the next episode, he would then be able to do the worst.
SUCH A BIG SUN: CHRISTOPHE ON THE POINT OF COMMITTING THE WORST?
Christophe may well surprise all fans of Un si grand soleil. And for good reason, he knows hard times. And in the next episode he seems to be up to something bad.
For his part, Julien informs Arthur that he will be home late using the excuse of a very important work meeting. But the young boy does not let himself be fooled.
At the same time, Johanna tries to provoke a meeting between Mickaël and Yvon. The goal is therefore to discuss the project. Moreover, the latter accepts and invites his friend to dinner.
But Johanna prefers to refuse to avoid ambiguity. She then explains that she has someone in her life right now. There are really plenty of love stories in So Big Sun.
He therefore does not hesitate to tell Christophe about this new relationship. Her friend is convinced that she is using him to achieve her ends. On the contrary, Mickaël thinks that this proposal deserves reflection.
Subsequently, Christophe then asks him to be very careful. So he seems on the defensive. Ouch!
Johanna then confides to Sabine her feelings for Julien. So she seems in love. She then goes to find the one who makes her heart beat at the seaside. This is the opportunity to get to know each other better.
Moreover, Christophe calls Cécile to cancel the meeting. He makes her believe he has an emergency at work. But in reality, he joins a man.
The latter hands him some money and they drive off together. Once again, the suspense is at its height in Un si grand soleil. To be continued.
PlayStation 5: Important Statement From Sony On Stocks
What is the Mysterious Cave Code in Fallout 76?

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


The premium handmade Banker Arbitrage by H.Upmann contains filler tobaccos from four nations rolled into a stunning Ecuador Habano wrapper. Fans of H.Upmann have taken delight in this extension line tribute to German bankers Carl and Herman Upmann. Packaged in a box of 15.
The Arbitrage size is 7x56.


Fix & Fill Expanding Foam is a quick setting polyurethane based foam which expands greatly on application and yields up to 50 times original can contents. Can be cut, sawn, plastered and sealed over after approximately one hour. Fills irregular gaps, fixes framework, insulates and sound deadens. Cans are fully litho printed for effective display.


LG Mobile Phones marks its entry to one of the most attractive market, which is surely going to catch up in the coming months for sure.
The market of tablets which has suddenly increased with the Apple iPad launched for the consumers recently. Since then many mobile phone makers turned their attention to the tablet making and LG boarded the bus with an 8.9 inch tablet LG Optimus Pad which they claim is the most appropriate size for a tablet. They say that their research suggests the size of Apple iPad which is 7inch is a little more than smartphones and Samsung's and Motorola's tablets which are of 10.1 inch could easily make to the PCs. Considering these facts LG decided to tread the middle path and give the users something of both the world in size.
For UK tablet users this comes as good news as the Cheap LG Optimus Pad Phones will be available to them with the leading networks on contract deals. This is the best way to get hands on the prized asset. Optimus pad is an Android based tablet running on the v3.0 Honeycomb.
The LG Optimus pad measures 243.8 x 150 x 12.7mm in dimension and weights 621gm. The device offers 3D LCD capacitive touchscreen to the users which display 16m color and offers a 1280 x 768 WXGA resolution on the screen. It also house 32 GB of internal memory. The device uses 1GHz dual core Nvidia's Tegra 2 processor as its brain behind the functionality of the device. There is 1080p HD video decoding and HDMI support that let you share 3D videos with TV. The LG Optimus Pad features some exciting specs like 3D recording and video capabilities. It houses two 5MP (megapixel) sensors, at the rear of the device.
If you want to be in the middle of the things, in size visit ukonlinephoneshop.co.uk and buy LG Optimus Pad on contract phone deals from any of the leading networks in UK.


The North Texas Soccer Annual General Meeting (AGM) will take place July 12-14, 2019 at the Westin Galleria in Dallas.
The 2019/2020 NTSSA Affiliation Fee is due prior to the 2019 NTSSA Annual General Meeting. Please fill out this form and send your affiliation fee to the State office no later than 5:00 PM Monday, July 1, 2019. This fee may be paid at the time of registration at the meeting.


There's a lot of conversation in the church today about partnering with parents. It's a big deal to me both as a pastor and as a parent. But sometimes it can be a struggle to know exactly how to go about partnering with parents.
Parents usually only hear from their child's leaders when their child has done something wrong. Train your leaders to catch their kids doing something right and to communicate that to their parents. Send encouraging notes and texts to parents during the week. When a parent informs you of a prayer request don't just tell them that you'll pray for them during the week, actually pray with them right then and there.
A parent's world is busy. There are school projects to help out with, practices and games to attend, appointments to keep track of, and family obligations to meet. Keep them in the loop through weekly and monthly handouts and emails, social media updates, and keeping your website up-to-date.
When a parent comes to you with an issue or concern, take it seriously. Follow-up with them as soon as possible or schedule a time to meet with them about it. Consider creating an anonymous survey that parents can fill out to give you input. Ask on social media how your ministry can better serve their family. Meet with key parents (both believers and non-believers) a few times each year to find out how you can partner with them more effectively.
Every parent is insecure on some level. Most of us are doing the best we can, but we're always on the look-out for others who can help us and our kids. When you and your team go out of your way to affirm, inform, and listen to the parents in your ministries you show that you're just the kind of partners we've been looking for.


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"Demand to Learn" discusses keeping children in classrooms.
What is the effect on a family when a mother is sentenced to prison?
A dialogue about issues that impact youth.
Jam out with Arizona-based bands to celebrate rights for all.
Featuring muralist and painter Lucinda Y Hinojos.
A film featuring stories of discrimination and hope.
A documentary about women across the U.S. under siege.
In Arizona, too many students are missing the opportunity for a quality education.
Demand to Learn is working to eliminate practices that push children out of classrooms. Hear how this ACLU of Arizona campaign is working with parents, students, and schools to make public education more equitable.
Arizona has the fourth highest incarceration rate in the nation and imprisons women at twice the rate of other states. Hear from formerly incarcerated people and others advocating for sentencing reform about the impact incarceration has on Arizona families.
Learn more about the ACLU of Arizona's Campaign for Smart Justice here.
Join youth artist facilitators from Rising Youth Theatre for a Kids' Table about student push-out in Arizona.
A performance where young people host a roundtable conversation about issues that impact youth, while adults are asked to observe, listen and learn.
Watch valley muralist and painter Lucinda Y Hinojos, who also goes by the name La Morena, create an image related to social justice, sketch it onto a canvas, and get the canvas ready for the community to paint.
Featuring stories of discrimination and hope, this film was conceived and filmed in Arizona but tells truly—and sadly—American stories.
From a young black male raised in Ferguson, Missouri, to an undocumented transgender woman living and working in a state where immigrant rights are more than just a headline, each writer shares a message about their understanding of the bigotry they face daily.
This documentary tells the stories of women across the U.S. under siege.
Every day, their ability to make their own decisions about their bodies, health, reproduction, sexuality and childbirth is under attack.
A traveling exhibition featuring 40 Arizona artists.
Although the exhibit will be on display in Tubac during the ACLU 100 Experience, the art pieces will be shown digitally during this Phoenix event.
Thank you for attending the ACLU100 Experience and learning how to reduce prison populations, protect immigrants, and ensure everyone's constitutional right to vote. We hope you enjoyed the performers, speakers, and artists who partnered with us for this event.
Learn more and get involved on our website or social media.


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Naše serdce (Наше сердце) è un film del 1946 diretto da Aleksandr Borisovič Stoller.

Trama

Note

Collegamenti esterni

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


Oxfordshire County Council announced today that Stonesfield has had the threat of closure changed following a review of its previous position that it should be closed as part of council cuts.
Stonesfield Library is among 43 libraries that are subject to another four-month consultation exercise starting today.
According to the announcement Stonesfield's library will not now be threatened with closure but will be required in three years to staffed by volunteer librarians.
The council's positive spin on this is that they will have support of library service support, and of course county library stock.
The staffing emphasis in these libraries would shift from county council staff to volunteers in a phased way over a three year period - however support from county council employed operational and professional librarians would continue.
Previously, the council proposed closure and possible reliance of mobile libraries or requirement to use Woodstock Library.


Our guest this week is the adventurer, explorer, philanthropist Paul Templer. We invite you to join us in the second of this two part special, as Paul recounts the events leading up to the day on the Zambezi river where he was confronted and attacked by an enraged hippo that so nearly ended his life. Or as Paul describes it – a bad day at the office.
His story is one of survival against the odds, bravery, despair and the determination to find meaning in his shattered life.
Find out more about Paul's work and The Templer Foundation which supports people to navigate lives affected by PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) as well as terminally ill and disabled children and their families.


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Singapore company QIP announces senior debt financing secured for 284-bedroom student accommodation project in Sheffield, UK
News provided by Q Investment Partners Ltd on Wednesday 28th Mar 2018
This is a significant milestone for Asian investors who are seeking access to UK PBSA assets.
The company has secured senior debt financing with UK-based Shawbrook Bank, a specialist funder that offers development finance within the residential real estate market
Working with QIP's real estate delivery partners in London, DML Development Managers Ltd, they have also secured construction group Bowmer & Kirkland, who will begin the build later this month
This represents a major milestone for Asian investors who want to access UK purpose built student accommodation assets
Singapore-based Q Investment Partners, a private equity real estate company, announced today that they have secured debt finance from UK bank Shawbrook for their purpose built student accommodation (PBSA) development in Sheffield, England.
UK real estate group Bowmer & Kirkland are confirmed as the main contractor and are scheduled to commence works in March 2018 under a fixed-price contract.
"This is a significant milestone for Asian investors who are seeking access to UK PBSA assets. Without companies such as QIP and our UK delivery partners DML, an investor would need local UK presence in order to secure the finance. This can make it an expensive, time-consuming and resource-heavy task," says Ben Hall, Senior Investment Manager of Q Investment Partners.
Asian overseas real estate investors are becoming increasingly interested in alternative forms of property investment in markets such as the UK. Traditional residential property routes are facing higher taxes and stricter regulations. According to QIP, this is having a positive impact on the purpose built student accommodation market.
"Regardless of Brexit, the UK maintains its appeal and Asian investors still want to hold UK investments," says Hall.
QIP's PBSA development in Sheffield was launched and closed in July 2017. The company has now secured GBP20m of debt finance from UK bank Shawbrook.
QIP originally sought debt finance throughout Asia, including Korea, Hong Kong, China and Singapore, before agreeing terms with Shawbrook in the UK.
"Securing senior and mezzanine development finance is becoming harder, particularly in the UK. We are delighted that we have secured debt finance from Shawbrook. They are a proactive bank, that understand regional markets across the UK and offer real estate expertise in development finance," says Hall.
Terry Woodley, Director of Development Finance at Shawbrook says, "This is an exciting transaction for us as we continue to support residential development projects across the UK. QIP is an incredibly experienced and knowledgeable partner who we are proud to be working with."
When it came to uncovering the right construction partner, the QIP team wanted to work with a contractor who had experience building PBSA, ideally in Sheffield, and an outstanding track record.
The pool of options was limited but one company stood out.
Rachel Warren, DML's development director, says, "We needed to find a main contractor who could work with us to achieve our strict budgets and timescales. We are impressed with their approach and believe we have the right building team in place. They are one of the UK's largest independent construction groups with considerable experience in delivering projects of this type."
Bowmer & Kirkland Regional Director, Steve Chambers, says, "We have a specialist team in place for projects such as QIP's Sheffield PBSA development. We are currently in the process of completing a scheme for Chinese investors, with a construction value of GBP67m, which is also in Sheffield. We understand how to build quality housing primarily aimed at overseas university students and how to work with companies such as QIP and DML on delivering value for investors."
Press release distributed by Pressat on behalf of Q Investment Partners Ltd, on Wednesday 28 March, 2018. For more information subscribe and follow https://pressat.co.uk/
Property Investment Real Estate Student Accommodation UK Property Finance Debt Finance Construction Private Equity Asia Asian Investors Business & Finance Construction & Property Personal Finance
Q Investment Partners Ltd
nicola.evans@neapmarketing.com
http://www.q-investmentpartners.com
A computer generated image of QIP's student accommodation development on West Street, Sheffield, due to commence construction this month.
Ben Hall, Senior Investment Manager at Q Investment Partners
* For more information regarding media usage, ownership and rights please contact Q Investment Partners Ltd.


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No decision yet on Dustin Pedroia's thumb injury
Brian MacPherson Journal Sports Writer brianmacp
BOSTON -- Dustin Pedroia said late Tuesday night he has a slight tear in the adductor muscle, but the Red Sox have made no decision yet on his status going forward.
"We're just waiting to see how I feel the next couple of days," he said. "The bruising in my thumb has gone down, so we're just waiting to see if I can play."
"With a guy that's as important to the team as he is, we're always hopeful to avoid a DL," general manager Ben Cherington said. "We haven't made a decision yet. If there's a way to manage it safely where it's in his best interest, the team's best interest and we can do it in a way that makes sense, we'll try to avoid the DL. But no decision's been made."
That a decision has not been made might be a reason for optimism that Pedroia might not be sidelined for an extended period of time. The second baseman did not play Tuesday and is unlikely to play Wednesday, but a trip to the disabled list is yet not a foregone conclusion.
Whether he lands on the disabled list or not, surgery is not expected to be required.
"That word was never used in any conversation we had today," Cherington said.
Before the game, that Pedroia could avoid the disabled list seemed unlikely. All that was left to determine for he All-Star second baseman -- and the heart and soul of the Red Sox -- was the length of time he'd be out.
An MRI performed Tuesday revealed swelling and bleeding from the muscle tear, "but the ligaments and tendons looked good from what I gather," Valentine said.
"I've played with injuries before," Pedroia said. "It's just a matter of me being able to swing with a brace on it. I'm going to go get something made and see how it feels, and if I can't do it then I think it's three or four weeks. Hopefully it's not that."
"We have to get all the information," Valentine said. "The risk of losing him for an extended period of time is not worth the reward of having him play sooner rather than later. We're not going to. We're just going to be intelligent, and he's on board."
The last appearance Pedroia made on the field Monday was when he made a terrific diving stop of a ground ball in shallow right field to get the third out of the fifth inning. It was just the type of play that has won him a pair of Gold Gloves.
But the injury likely occurred at the plate an inning before that, when Doug Fister jammed him with a fastball up and in. He popped the pitch up.
"When he sat down next to me on the bench, I knew he wasn't going to go back out on the field," Valentine said on Tuesday afternoon. "He wanted to. It was serious enough for him not to go back. It's serious enough, obviously, for him not to be in the lineup tonight -- and maybe more than tonight. I'm not sure."
That pitch exacerbated thumb soreness with which Pedroia has been dealing for about three weeks, a condition that prompted him to wear a brace and even to change his grip on the bat during batting practice.
Pedroia is hitting .295 with a .350 on-base percentage and .450 slugging percentage this season. In the last three weeks, however, he's hitting .272 with a .299 on-base percentage and .358 slugging percentage.
That the existing injury might already have affected his performance likely will be discussed as well.
"He's an amazing guy and an amazing healer, and sometimes he wills things," Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine said. "His mind right now is probably on the side of playing. I'm going to give it another day -- or even two -- to see how it feels and see how we can get all the information."
Losing Pedroia for an extended period of time would be a devastating blow for a lineup already without Carl Crawford and Jacoby Ellsbury -- as well as a small army's worth of other potential contributors.
With Jose Iglesias reportedly fighting back stiffness at Triple-A Pawtucket, the Red Sox are thin on contributors at middle-infield positions. Nick Punto, who replaced Pedroia on Monday and started at second base on Tuesday, has consistently looked overmatched at the plate. Nate Spears or spring training phenomenon Pedro Ciriaco might be first in line if Pedroia goes on the disabled list and Iglesias isn't healthy enough to go.
Twitter: @brianmacp


The fast-paced and ever evolving industries of digital video production, entertainment, and advertising rely heavily on the skills of talented graphic designers. For graphic designers with the right skill set and knowledge career opportunities abound in just about every industry imaginable. The key elements for landing top job design positions include talent, a demonstrable skill set, and a degree from a reputable design school or college.
Within the aforementioned industries, graphic design offers aspiring designers an array of specialities, ranging from digital animation and video design to publishing and merchandising to industrial and systems design. The career opportunities for skilled graphic designers are endless. Of the more than 500,000 designer jobs currently in the United States, nearly half are graphic design jobs.
While graphic designers are in high demand, they are not at the top of totem pole when it comes to making the big bucks. Salaries for graphic designers average from thirty thousand to about sixty thousand dollars a year, just enough to make a decent living. But it takes time, talent, and advancement to top positions within the design industry (i.e., Creative Director) if you want to greatly increase your earning potential. For those designers aspiring to top positions, it may be worth while to round out your graphic design education with courses in business or management, in addtion to earning a graphic design degree.
It's not uncommon to find graphic designers who are self-taught. However, you'll most likely require a minimum of a bachelor's degree in a design related discipline to qualify for most entry-level graphic design positions. A bachelor's degree in graphic design not only helps you develop a marketable skill set, but it will familiarize you with the latest design and editing softwares and technologies. As you earn your degree you'll want to develop a portfolio of your work and projects. Development of a comprehensive portfolio of your best work is essential to landing the best jobs.
Graphic design degree programs are available at the associate's, bachelor's, and master's level–but the a bachelor's degree is bar far your best option for getting started in this industry. Below you'll find a directory of a few of the most reputable graphic design programs offered by accredited online and campus-based design schools and colleges.


Parking/Access Road Notes: Parking lot is icy. A bucket loader had sanded by the time we returned, and was hard at work widening the road into the parking. THANK YOU!
Water Crossing Notes: The often-tricky crossing was OK, with care, but deceptive. Straight across looked smooth all the way but was THIN & dangerous; but looping slightly upstream (where others have left tracks) was safe. New snow cover may make it tougher to see what's risky.
Comments: The trail was well packed & crusted. Microspikes were just the thing--at least until the next snowstorm. We could see tracks where others had come in via the Forest Service access road, presumably to avoid the stream crossing. It looked as though they post-holed most of the way, though there was clearly older snowshoe compaction underneath.


This is After a Fashion, Esmé Weijun Wang's monthly column examining articles of clothing she owns, and the stories behind them.
I was perhaps fifteen when the doorbell rang, and because I was preoccupied, my brother, who is four years younger, answered the door. Because I now know that the man who had come to the door was my mother's stalker, I've injected the memory of his arrival at my childhood home with more detail than I actually possess. I remember—or think I remember—that he asked if the Volvo in our driveway was for sale. Never mind that there was no reason to think that the dark green family car would, in fact, be for sale; if it were up for sale, there would be a sign in its window, and it wouldn't be parked in our driveway where no one could see it from the road. But no matter: My brother told the man that he didn't know about the car, but that the man could call our mother, who would be able to tell him. He gave the man our mother's cell phone number, and then the man left.
What luck on the stalker's part. How could he have known that his gambit would earn him his target's private number? What had he been hoping for when he came to the house, the location of which he knew from following our mother home from work on a forty-five minute drive? Did he expect to find children when he got to the house? What would have happened if I'd answered the door instead, bearing an older and more wary face?
Hours later, with the sky darkening, our mother called the house phone. She calmly told me that she would be returning home with our Uncle Wayne—not a blood relative, but her boss—to pick us up. While we waited for her to come get us, I needed to check that all of the windows were closed and locked. I needed to check that all of the doors were closed and locked. We were not to open the door for anyone until she came to get us.
I don't remember being afraid, though I was old enough to know that something was wrong, and that it was important to obey her in this matter. In about an hour, she arrived with Uncle Wayne. They swept us into the car. For the next few nights, we stayed with my father's sister and her husband, and then we returned home.
Being the child of Taiwanese immigrants meant that I learned what was normal at my own pace. I didn't realize, for example, that it wasn't typical to wear jeans to bed until I was a teenager; though I'd been on sleepovers since grammar school, the difference between street clothes and sleepwear slipped my notice for years. I conflate the discovery of pajamas with the story of my mother's stalker because in one self-portrait, taken in the months after he came to our home, I am lying in bed, looking into the camera, and I am holding a butcher knife. I'm also wearing a flannel nightgown with lace trim, which means that I must have discovered pajamas by this time.
After the stalker, I slept with a knife by the bed because my mother had begun to sleep with a knife by the bed. My mother bought bulk packages of pepper spray for everyone in the family to use. A new alarm system, installed after my father came home from his business trip and finally learned about the stalker, meant that the windows in our home chirped when opened and closed. Getting some fresh air meant the inevitable, Chirrup . Closing the same window: chirrup . A birdsong, a warning.
I learned that the stalker, after speaking to my brother at our home, began to call my mother, whose tendency has always been to protect her children in all ways—and so I know that the version of events she told me later, at my aunt and uncle's home, is certainly far worse than what actually reached my ears. He'd told her that he wanted her . He'd been watching her for months. Now he knew where she and her children lived, and he was going to hurt them—the children—if she didn't give him what he wanted.
I learned later that he had been a gardener for the office building next to hers. Who knew how long he had been watching her, or how long it took for him to work up the nerve to follow her on the long drive home. How long he had waited between following her home and coming to that same house in the middle of the day, or how he'd invented the ruse of asking after the Volvo in the driveway.
I learned these things while my mother told me not to mention any of this to my father, whose business trip to China meant that he would be gone for a while yet longer. She didn't want to worry him, she said. When they spoke, she acted as though nothing was wrong, and my brother and I did the same when we spoke to him on calculated long-distance minutes about school and homework. His absence was normal to us—for years he only flew home on weekends, and for still more years he would be gone for months at a time. Men like Uncle Wayne served as surrogate fathers, and helped my mother deal with things such as the police, who did find the stalker, and gave him a stern talking-to. My mother assured me that the man had been sufficiently frightened by the police; he wouldn't come after us again. I neither believed her nor disbelieved her. I only knew that we would keep going.
The correlation between the stalker and my attachment to that flannel nightgown isn't obvious to me. I'd think that whatever hypervigilance I developed as a teenager would mean an even stronger attachment to sleeping in my street clothes, in case I needed to leap out of bed and run. The butcher knife makes sense to me. The pepper spray that I kept under my pillow makes sense to me. Not the nightgown. I don't know where it came from. I don't know where it went, though I still remember how it felt: soft, but not soft enough to feel easy; warm, but too warm to be of comfort. When I turn to sleepwear now, I tend toward silky, liquid things that don't rub against my skin, although a body is more vulnerable when it's comfortable and unaware—too likely to drowse when it ought to be awake, or sleep too deeply when it should be ready to fight. In adolescence, I made a sartorial concession without ever becoming too relaxed or revealed. A boy I loved told me that I dressed with aggressive modesty.
In graduate school I developed an intense desire to find a nightgown similar to the one I'd had back then. Etsy, as it turns out, is flush with frumpy flannel nightgowns; I could have a collection if I so desired, but I bought just one. In those years, I rarely slept in my bedroom, forgoing it and its Ikea bed for the 1970s mustard yellow couch in the living room, where I could watch marathons of Law and Order: SVU and Criminal Minds until I finally fell asleep.
But I watched every single episode, hungry. I fell asleep to episodes I'd seen three, four, or five times before. It was hard for me to fall asleep without the sounds of the voices of people killing and being killed and searching for those who had killed before so that they wouldn't kill again.
After the stalker, a few weeks after my mother, brother, and I returned to our home, patrol cars drove by on occasion, and then they stopped coming. My father flew back from China. In our beds, we slept.
Esmé Weijun Wang is an essayist and the author of The Border of Paradise: A Novel (Unnamed Press, 2016). Raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, she received her MFA from the University of Michigan, and has been awarded the 2016 Graywolf Nonfiction Prize, Hopwood Award for Novel-in-Progress, and the Elizabeth George Foundation Grant. She is currently working on a book about schizophrenia. Find her work at esmewang.com.


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'to sell sand in the Sahara': meaning and origin
Pascal Trégueretymology, USA & Canadacinema, economics, newspapers & magazines, phrases, politics, sports & games, USA
The phrase to sell sand in the Sahara and its variants refer to the supply of something to a place where it is not needed—synonyms: to sell refrigerators to the Eskimos and to carry coals to Newcastle.
In particular, could sell sand in the Sahara and its variants are applied to efficient salesmen, and, by extension, to persuasive persons—antonyms: couldn't organise a piss-up in a brewery and unable to run a whelk stall.
These are the earliest occurrences that I have found of the phrase to sell sand in the Sahara:
1-: From the account of a session of the Louisiana Senate, published in The Times-Democrat (New Orleans, Louisiana) of Friday 29th November 1907:
Upon which followed a debate of twenty minutes, eighteen of which were used by Mr. Millsaps, and in which the Senate accomplished about as much business as a man selling sand in Sahara.
2-: From The Woman in the Case, a short story by Lilian Bell, published in The Evening Chronicle (Charlotte, North Carolina) of Thursday 7th January 1909:
"Jeff," said the old man, "I've had words with Horace and cut him off without a cent—turned him adrift to earn his own living. He hasn't a dollar; he never has made one and never can. […] What the devil are you laughing at?"
"Laughing, sir? Why, at the idea that 'Tubbs' can't make money! Why, Mr. Gorman, at Princeton he was our ways and means committee. Horace Gorham not know how to make money! Why, he could make money in the Desert of Sahara selling sand to the natives! Old 'Tubbs' could sell shoestrings to a man with two wooden legs. Why, he was the whole finance committee of the Athletic Club! He could— Why, he was the cleverest man in the class!"
3-: From the column Rank and File, published in the Nashville Tennessean and The Nashville American (Nashville, Tennessee) of Sunday 24th August 1913:
Joe Kearney and Walter Dismukes, with the Brandon Printing Co., spent a few days in the house last week. Joe and Walter keep such a close watch on each other that when one finds the other is in he comes in also. It is said that these boys could sell sand to the inhabitants of the Sahara desert.
4-: From The Evening Star (Washington, D.C.) of Tuesday 2nd September 1913:
Financial Gift.
From the Boston Transcript.
The Washington lobbyist who admits that he has been making a good living selling public documents grafted from congressmen is the kind of genius who could go out to the Sahara and sell sand to the Arabs.
5-: From an article about Fielding Harris Yost (1871-1946), coach of the Michigan University football team, published in The Chicago Daily News (Chicago, Illinois) of Tuesday 8th November 1921:
In Yost's dreams, however, it is to be doubted if he ever pictured the confusion of scores and percentages which this year makes it about as easy to select the "champion" of the United States as it would be to sell sand in the Sahara desert.
6-: From How the Potato Peddler Became Mayor of Busy, Big Youngstown, O., published in The Philadelphia Inquirer (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) of Sunday 8th January 1922:
"Why, that fellow could sell refrigerators to Esquimaux." You have often heard someone thus refer to the selling ability of some individual, but you probably didn't believe that the man referred to could actually do it.
Out in the flourishing Middle West city of Youngstown, Ohio, there is a man who could not only sell refrigerators to Esquimaux, but who could also sell them a year's supply of ice to boot. His name is George L. Oles and he is the newly-elected mayor. […]
The astonishing element in Oles' election is not the fact that he was once a potato peddler, but how he got himself elected.
Applied psychology, finding the universal human note, that touch which appeals to human nature in everybody, and striking it through the medium of newspaper advertising—that was what elected Oles.
Oles' advertisements were masterpieces of human appeal. Any one who reads them cannot doubt his ability to sell refrigerators to Esquimaux or radiators in the Sahara.
7-: From Selling and Buying, published in The Muncie Evening Press (Muncie, Indiana) of Saturday 13th September 1924:
A good many failures are occasioned in the selling game by going at it from the wrong angle. You may need money but that fact does not concern one who is to buy you or buy from you. You must show your buyer that he can make a legitimate profit by following your selling suggestions.
And you must know your market. A good many failures are caused by those who would sell sand to the Sahara Arabs or start ice plants in the Arctic circle.
8-: From Do You Know These Men? New Cross-Person Puzzle Game, published in The Bakersfield Californian (Bakersfield, California) of Saturday 6th June 1925:
The idea of the puzzle is to run through the list of names appended to this story and see if you can select the man to fit the description:
No. 12. Has a car for every member of the family but the dog and is contemplating roller skates for the dumb brute. Could sell sand on the Sahara to the Spanish army. Knows his oil lands.
9-: From The Fun Shop, consisting of jokes, humorous anecdotes, etc., sent by readers, published in several U.S. newspapers on Friday 19th February 1926—for example in The Anaconda Standard (Anaconda, Montana):
A Gritty Sheik.
"Is he a good salesman?"
"Is he? He could sell sand on the Sahara desert!"—Glen Perrins.
10-: From the cinema column written by Grace Kingsley (1873-1962), published in The Los Angeles Times (Los Angeles, California) of Thursday 10th November 1927—Richard Dix (Ernst Carlton Brimmer – 1893-1949) was a U.S. actor:
Richard Dix on Location.
Believe it or not, the first shots of Richard Dix's new Paramount starring vehicle, "The Traveling Salesman," will be shot on the Mojave Desert. Just what Mal St. Clair, the director, has in mind, isn't certain, but it is possible he means to illustrate the old saying about a salesman being so good that he can sell sand on the Sahara.
'to sell refrigerators to the Eskimos': meaning and origin
'cucumber sandwiches on the lawn': meaning and origin


They laid the praise on thick.
Additionally Billy Currington and Jake Owen have been added to the WE Fest lineup.
Reba McEntire and Brooks & Dunn have been performing live in Las Vegas, and they're not ready to leave. The trio of legends have extended their residency into 2018.
With the 50th annual CMA Awards coming up on Wednesday (Nov. 2), many stars are reflecting on their favorite moments from country music's biggest night, including Ronnie Dunn.
Seven previous Entertainer of the Year winners have lined up to perform during the 2016 CMA Awards show, making it a one-of-a-kind year.


There aren't many things in this world that I hold closer to my heart than bacon and bourbon. Can you imagine, a festival that brings these two things together? That's exactly what's happening today at Bramhall, at 767 Congress St. in Portland.
According to the Facebook event page, the inaugural event will feature live music from six bands, five food vendors featuring bacon-centric dishes, and plenty of bourbon and local beer to keep everyone happy.
This definitely sounds like my kind of event! It starts today at 2pm. For more information, check out the Facebook event page.


text:
جامعة الزقازيق تشارك في تنظيم المؤتمر الدولي الثالث عشر للتخصصات الهندسية المتداخلة مع جامعة الطب والصيدلة والعلوم والتكنولوجيا برومانيا
A team of experts from the Measurement and Evaluation Center at the Ministry of Higher Education in a visit to review the implementation of the Zagazig University project in measurement and evaluation
The expedition to apply for a PhD in the UK from Newton's supervisor program
Minister of Higher Education opens professional development centers at Zagazig University on Monday
Announcement of the results of the Bachelor of the Faculty of Computing and Information at Zagazig University today
Free courses for sewing and embroidery for women and girls of Tal Rosen village by community service center at Zagazig University
Appointment of three new heads of departments in Zagazig
University and the Governorate together in a meeting attended by all parties: to overcome all the challenges for the development of the village of Tal Rosen in Belbeis
Vice President of Zagazig University meets with the delegation of students of Arab universities
Arab university students in the khair Masr farms to produce food kings
Zagazig University Continues Development: Training the youth of Tal Rosen village on computer maintenance
Zagazig University receives technical support team from the Ministry of Higher Education mid-month
Discussing the graduation projects in the Department of Materials of Zagazig Engineering
Apply for a PhD in the UK from Newton's Supervisory Program
Training courses on practical problems in the Egyptian judicial system at the Community Service and Environmental Development Center, Zagazig University
A special training program for Arab university students with Zagazig Engineering and students praises with the level of training
Important statement: Zagazig University announces about the incorrect publication For the establishment of a ceremony for one of the festivals team and are taking legal action against advertisers
Sports Education Girls Zagazig issued a statement With instructions that are of interest to the secondary students who are taking the capacity tests at the college
Zagazig University receives students from ten Arab universities for training
Zagazig Sciences Organizes 14th International Conference on Environmental Sciences 17 July
In the presence of all parties , Major General Hassan Al-Jendi, Secretary General of Al-Sharqiya Governorate, held an extensive meeting and Dr. Salim Saleh, an official of the development of the village of Tal Rozen ,Belbeis center and Which is being implemented by Zagazig University under the patronage of Dr. Khalid Abd El-Bary, President of the University and Dr. Othman Shaalan, Vice President for Community Service and Environmental Development, within the framework of the presidential initiative of Egyptian universities to support and develop the most needy villages.
The secretary-general of the province stressed on all the executive leadership in the province on the need to be present in the village in order to resolve and overcome all obstacles and challenges in front of the development plan in implementation of the instructions of Dr. Mamdouh Ghorab, Governor of Al-Sharqiyah, and praised with the effort to the university faculties in implementing the proposed development plan, which lasts for three months during the summer vacation and it was also decided to hold a periodic meeting to follow up on what has been accomplished on the ground in all sectors. For his part, Dr. Salim Saleh, the communication officer, gave a presentation on the proposed plan of the university, whether in the plan of developing the infrastructure environment, public services, awareness convoys, workshops and medical convoys through the community service sector and environmental development. He called for the need to provide support and assistance from all executive sectors and local leaders in the governorate, And the city of Belbeis.
The officials of the executive sectors in the governorate reviewed the problems under the development plan whether the infrastructure (sewage, drinking water, roads, electricity) or in the public service, "the primary school, the youth center, the proposal of the health unit and the post office and beautification of the village entrances..
Participated in attendance Eng. Mohamed Madkour, Engineering Advisor to the Governorate, and Dr. Khalid Fawzy, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Health, and Dr. Mahmoud Abdel Azim, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Youth and Sports, Eng. Hazem Al-Husseini, Deputy Director of Educational Buildings Authority, Eng. El-Sayed Al-Husseini, Head of the Belbeis Sector, Educational Buildings Authority in Belbeis, and Eng. Mohammed Salah Tawfiq, Deputy Director of Roads,Eng. Sobhi Taj El-Din, Director of the National Authority for Drinking Water and Sanitation,Eng. Imam Ahmad Al-Imam, Director General of Qaliubiya Irrigation,Eng. Wissam Mohamed Abdel Rahman, Director of Irrigation Engineering West Belbeis, Dr. Ramadan Abdel Hamid Hassan, Director of the Directorate of Education , Eng. Thana Abdul Hameed Hassan, Al-Sharqiya Electricity Sector, and Eng. Majid Abdel Hamid Khalil, director of village development in the governorate, and Essam Abdullah Ibrahim, vice president of the center of Belbeis. And Eid Mohamed Abdul Qader, head of the local unit
In the field, cleaning of the canals continues through the irrigation dams of West Belbeis, as well as the removal of the disinfection waste. The Faculty of Specific Education completed the wall paintings of the youth center's outer wall


text:
More on Depression
Depression Signs, Symptoms & Effects
Many people experience periods of sadness from time to time. During moments of stress, major transitions, the death of a loved one, or other stressful life events, it is common (and sometimes even beneficial) to feel sadness.
Learn about depression
However, sometimes a person may experience long periods of sadness, hopelessness, melancholy, or fatigue without any immediately apparent cause. These symptoms can interfere with a person's ability to live a full, productive life, and when these symptoms are severe or long-lasting, it is possible that that person is suffering from depression.
With proper treatment, which includes therapy and sometimes medication, depression is treatable, and many people who suffer from depression are able to experience relief. Unfortunately, people who suffer from depression may turn to drugs or alcohol in an attempt to cope with the pain they feel, but the use of substances often makes things worse. Both depression and substance abuse are serious problems that each can have devastating effects on a person's wellbeing. When they occur together, the potential for harm increases dramatically. The good news is that help and hope are available.
Depression Statistics
Nearly 120 million people worldwide currently struggle with depression, 16-18 million of whom live in the United States. Although depression is a highly treatable ailment, 80 percent of sufferers will never seek help. In addition, almost 25 percent of people who struggle with substance abuse also suffer from depression. Depression tends to occur most commonly in 18- to 25-year-olds and decreases with age. Over the next 20 years, depression may become the second most common cause of disability worldwide, and yet two out of every three people will not even realize they have depression.
Causes and Risk Factors for Depression
There is no one single cause for the development of depression. Most mental health experts agree that depression is caused by multiple factors, including both genetic and environmental components. Recent research in the field of epigenetics has suggested that certain environmental factors, such as abuse or chronic stress, can "switch on" certain genes and cause a person who has a genetic vulnerability to depression to manifest depressive symptoms.
Genetic: Some research has suggested that an imbalance of certain chemicals in the brain, such as serotonin, may be partly responsible for depression. As with many mental disorders, people whose relatives have depression are more likely to suffer from it themselves. Children who have one parent who is suffering from depression are nearly 30 percent more likely to develop depression, while children who have two parents suffering from depression are nearly 60 percent more likely to be depressed. While growing up in an environment with two parents who are battling depression may seem to be to blame, studies of identical twins have supported the link between genetics and depression. Physical ailments, such as obesity, can also increase a person's risk for developing depression. In rare cases, people with hormonal imbalances, such as hypothyroidism, can experience symptoms that mimic depression.
Environmental: While certain people may be born with a genetic vulnerability to depression, not all people with this genetic vulnerability become depressed. People who undergo significant life stressors, such as abuse, trauma, death of loved ones, divorce, and chronic stress, are more likely to experience depressive symptoms. Because not all people who experience these stressful life events become depressed, researchers suggest that depression is likely triggered by a combination of genetic vulnerability, temperament and personality, and environmental stress.
Gender (women are more likely to report depression, though many researchers believe men are more likely to be "silent sufferers" of depression)
Family or personal history of abuse, neglect, substance abuse, or mental illness
Poverty or other severe chronic stressors
Severe or chronic health problems
History of other mental disorders
Certain personality traits, such as dependence, pessimism, or low self-esteem
Signs and Symptoms of Depression
Depression can manifest differently in different people, and different forms of depression may have somewhat different symptoms. Some people can barely bring themselves to get out of bed while others may simply go through life feeling somewhat numb, gray, and lethargic but are still able to function. Across the spectrum, however, there are a number of similarities in depression symptoms:
Behavioral symptoms:
Lethargy or apathy
Falling behind in work or school
Emotional outbursts, including anger and tearfulness
Engaging in self-harming behaviors
Physical symptoms:
Unexplained physical pain or problems
Slowed movement; feeling as though one is "moving through molasses"
Changes in sleep patterns, appetite, or sexual desire
Cognitive symptoms:
Distractibility or poor memory
Slowed thinking, or feeling as though one is in a "fog"
Trouble making decisions
Excessive focus on guilt, past mistakes, or poor self-worth
Psychosocial symptoms:
Withdrawal from relationships or hobbies
Sadness more days than not
Feeling numb or disconnected
Loss of pleasure in activities one used to enjoy
Feelings of wanting to end one's own life
Effects of Depression
If left untreated, depression can have global negative effects, ranging from poor work performance to complete withdrawal from one's work and relationships. Depression can even be fatal if someone with depression completes a suicide attempt. Other effects of depression include:
Deteriorating health and increased risk of developing physical ailments, such as Type 2 diabetes
Engaging in dangerous or risky behaviors
Isolating oneself from family and friends
Decline in occupational performance
Development of disturbances within relationships
Depression & Co-Occurring Disorders
Often, in an attempt to cope with depression, a person may turn to alcohol or other drugs to numb the pain he or she feels. Although using substances may grant some relief in the short-term, the long-term consequences of substance use in conjunction with depression can be life-threatening. Furthermore, people suffering from depression may also meet criteria for other disorders, including:
Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
Eating disorders, such as anorexia, bulimia, or binge-eating disorder
Learn about Depression Treatment
"Wellness Resource Center gave me the strength and courage to want to heal. I've been battling depression for as long as I can remember, but now, thanks to WRC, I finally have my life back."
– Hailey K.


Stopped by 'The Art Store' in Henrietta, NY. What fun. So many pens and markers to try. I came home with Prismacolor Brush Markers in black, blue and sepia. A Pentel Outliner Marker in silver/blue and a Pentel Hybrid Technica 0.3 mm roller ball pen in black.
I like the various widths I can achieve with the Prismacolor brush markers. The brush tip is a bit more stable than the Micron Brush tips allowing, to me, more control. The size is also good for journaling. Many colors are available. They are acid-free, light-fast and waterproof.
The Pentel Outline Marker is interesting. It works best on uncoated paper. The store offered them in silver with black, blue or green outlines.
The silver is bold and shinny, the blue outline is very fine and medium in color. The marker bled thru to the back side of paper. I tested it on Canson Edition paper (pictured) and Strathmore 140# Imperial wc paper. The bleed wasn't as bad on the latter, but still would make the back side of a journal sheet unusable.
The Pentel Hybrid Technica pen is advertised as light-fast, fade-proof and water resistant. I argue with the latter. I wrote with it in my Moleskine (regular coated paper) on Canson Edition paper, and Strathmore 140# Imperial wc paper. I wet the pen lines with a waterbrush immediately and other lines after a few hours. Both test came up with black ink running. Not badly, but the paper did get gray.
I do like the way the pen writes. The .3mm is considered 'extra fine' and it also comes in .4 & .5 mm points.
Thanks so much for sharing this, Pam, I'm going to have to check out the brush markers from Prismacolor!
Thank you for the review! I find the Micron brush pens a bit too "flippy" and am glad to hear that the Pentels are firmer. I think I'd prefer that little bit of extra control.
I love new art supplies (and hearing about them)!
You're welcome, Elizabeth! I like the Faber Castell brush tips also. More firm. But I think the Pentel brush tips allow for more line variety.
Also like Hyatts Art Supply on Jefferson closer to East Henrietta Rd. Currently liking My PITT brush markers.
I forgot about Hyatts. I did get to the other store on Main Street in Rochester. The name escapes me at the moment. Also fun!


The Faculty of Pharmacy of the University of Granada was founded in 1850, shortly after similar faculties at the Complutense University of Madrid and the University of Barcelona . Its first full syllabus was approved in that same year by Queen Isabel II. It originally shared space with other faculties in the old multi-disciplinary university building in the city centre, which is now the Faculty of Law. At the moment the faculty has 205 teaching staff and 3,429 students reading the two degree courses and one diploma course offered within the general framework of pharmacy.
Apart from the usual lecture halls, laboratories and offices, the Faculty of Pharmacy has a conference room that can hold an audience of 500 and a smaller tiered salon for an audience of some 70 people. There is a specialised library and periodicals reading room and the publications office of the faculty's own journal, Ars pharmaceutica , which has been running since 1960. The faculty also has recourse to several scientific services, such as an electron microscope, nuclear magnetic resonance, a herbolarium, three computer rooms, a radiopharmaceutical unit, multidisciplinary laboratories, an exhibition hall, a pharmaceutical information centre and a photocopying service. Within the faculty there are several scientific societies and student associations: the Association of Past Students of the Faculty of Pharmacy (A 3 F 2 G), the Professor Vicente Callao Association, the IberoAmerican Pharmaceutical Association, the Latin-Mediterranean Pharmaceutical Society, the Granada Association for Students of Pharmacy (AGEF), the Granada Association for Food Science and Technology (CYTAGRA) and the Pharmacy Sports Union (UDF).
Finally, the Pharmacy Faculty houses two important museums: The Jesus Thomas Gómez Museum of Scientific Instruments and The Museum of History of Pharmacy.


text:
Rainbow Warrior: My Life in Color
Gilbert Baker
Clayton Delery
"Rainbow Warrior is an engaging read. It is funny, poignant, painful, and triumphant. It is never less than entertaining."
Gilbert Baker lived a life that was, at once, very public, and very much behind the scenes. As a gay activist living in San Francisco since the early 1970s, he met and worked with other prominent activists such as Harvey Milk and Cleve Jones, sharing with the latter a tumultuous working relationship that lasted for decades. But Gilbert Baker was not the kind of person to make an incendiary speech in front of a large crowd, or even appear in front of one, unless in the persona of Pink Jesus or one of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence.
Instead, he was the creator of one of the most enduring and widely recognized icons of gay liberation: the rainbow flag.
In this posthumously published autobiography, Gilbert Baker tells the story of how he, like Dorothy, made the transition from a sepia-toned life in Kansas to a sparkling city full of beautiful, colorful people. There is, however, a key difference: Dorothy's odyssey ends with a return to Kansas, where she realizes her heart's desire was always in her own back yard; once Baker gets to San Francisco, he never looks at Kansas again, except in a rear-view mirror.
Baker gives obligatory attention to his tortured childhood as an obviously gay boy in Kansas, and his equally tortured time in the military, but he deftly sketches out both periods in quick, light, strokes. By page 25, he is an adult, honorably discharged, and living in a queer Mecca he could never have imagined when growing up in Wichita. With more than 200 pages to go, he is ready to tell the story of how he became the gay Betsy Ross.
Though he tells many stories of his 45 years' work as an activist (not all of his endeavors being successful), two episodes deservedly receive the greatest attention: the creation of the first Gay Pride rainbow flag in 1978, and the creation of the mile-long rainbow flag for the 1994 Gay Pride celebration in New York, honoring the 25th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots. This flag, which was then the longest flag ever created (though Baker himself would break the record before his death) was one which Baker and other gay activists were determined would be carried past St. Patrick's Cathedral on Fifth Avenue, even as the archbishop and then-mayor Rudolph Giuliani were determined that it wouldn't.
Gilbert Baker, though a creative man, was not a big thinker. Very little of his book is consumed with broad theories or calls for social transformation. Instead, Baker's prose is very much like his work on his industrial sewing machine: carefully crafted and focused on the task at hand. Rainbow Warrior is an engaging read. It is funny, poignant, painful, and triumphant. It is never less than entertaining.
Clayton Delery is a writer specializing in LGBTQ history. His most recent book is, Out for Queer Blood: The Murder of Fernando Rios, and the Failure of New Orleans Justice, a finalist for a Lambda Literary Award for LGBTQ Nonfiction.


text:
using System;
using ReMi.Common.WebApi.Notifications;
using ReMi.Contracts.Cqrs.Events;

namespace ReMi.Events.ReleasePlan
{
    public class CheckListQuestionRemovedEvent : IEvent, INotificationFilterByReleaseWindowIdNotRequestor
    {
        public Guid ReleaseWindowGuid { get; set; }
        public Guid CheckListId { get; set; }

        public EventContext Context { get; set; }
        public Guid ReleaseWindowId
        {
            get { return ReleaseWindowGuid; }
        }

        public Guid RequestorId { get { return Context.UserId; } }

        public override string ToString()
        {
            return String.Format("ReleaseWindowGuid={0}, Question={1}, Context={2}",
                ReleaseWindowGuid, CheckListId, Context);
        }
    }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


As a New Jersey Family Law Attorney, I often get people that come to the office, and say, "I've Googled alimony, and I want to know, how does it work? How much do I have to pay? How long do I have to pay?" Those are always the primary considerations, but do you have an alimony case? Alimony is such a big-ticket item in the divorce.
The legislature here in New Jersey recently amended our alimony statute. Essentially, we have two components to alimony. We have cases where we'll have limited duration of alimony, where you're going to get alimony for a finite amount of time. Then we have open duration alimony, where there'll be other triggers that will determine how long the alimony will continue. The how much, it really does depend on the facts of your case. You have a primary wage earner, and maybe one spouse stayed home. The spouse that stayed home, is he or she entitled to maintain the standard of living?, which you hear many people say. Something that looks like the standard of living during the marriage, but alimony is based on need; it's based on the ability to pay, and it's also based on the marital lifestyle. There are many factors that you want to discuss with your attorney regarding whether you even have an alimony case, and if you do have an alimony case, how much and how long.
Do you know the different types of alimony that exist? Contact our New Jersey Family Law Attorneys for guidance. Let our experience help you.
This entry was posted in Alimony, New Jersey Family Law Blog, Tanya L. Freeman. Bookmark the permalink.


4: Then mom arrives... | And all is well. | Conlee makes a special visit to see the ladies, and Andy shows the guys one of Deirdre's wedding gifts.
7: Another gift; thanks Vicky. Nerves abound and wardrobes need help!
32: Love is patient, love is kind.
38: We have so much fun together!!


Many of us are starting the year doing a lot of evaluation. Evaluating ourselves, evaluating our fitness and health, and at work, evaluating our contributions. And some of us have decided to make changes.
– How can I convince my employees to make time for learning?
– How can we make learning part of the day instead of a tedious activity?
– What can we do to make content more interesting?
I've been asking these questions too, and in my search for answers, I found the best place to start was better understanding my employees (learners).
Here are my top 3 recommendations for facilitating a good learning experience.
Support employees so learning can happen available anytime, anywhere.
Workers don't confine their development to the "office" or typical work hours. In Degreed's "How the Workforce Learns" report, 85% of people said they learn at work, 67% do so on personal time and 18% are learning during travel or commutes.
While this feels like you might have less control than you'd like, it's actually a good thing for retention.
Benedict Carey, author of How We Learn and writer at The New York Times, actually recommends changing locations while learning. New scenery maximizes the number of associations tied to a certain memory and makes it easier to access when trying to reconnect with the content later on.
So, creating the environment and culture where employees feel that ALL the learning they do, wherever they do means increased valued and they'll likely retain information and make connections more effectively.
Stop worrying about millennials and boomers and start worrying about learner preferences.
I led a panel discussion last year on the generational differences in the workforce with eBay and BlueBeyond consulting. We had a representative from the 4 generations in the workforce today, and what surfaced was that societal trends, more than age, influence preferences for digesting information.
70% of the time, learning still happens on PCs. But smartphones (17%) and tablets (13%) account for 30% of digital development.
While there is some broad truth to generational differences, there were plenty of boomers in the room who prefer YouTube "how-to's" and a significant number of millennials who still to write things down and would choose face to face over IM.
When investing in new tech, consider more than efficiency.
Many L&D teams are trying to do more with less. Content that appeals to a broader audience, templates that standardize and one system that can do it all.
But how does this approach cater to the reality that we build skills over time, and from a variety of sources including books, conversations, and experience?
As Degreed's new Innovators Guide points out, the problem with this approach is that in a typical L&D environment, the content (as well as the systems, people, and work experiences) are isolated. They rarely work together to interact or share data. "As a result, they don't give anyone a useful picture of our learning activities or, more importantly, our skill-sets," said Todd Tauber, VP of Product Marketing at Degreed.
Instead, we need to consider the benefits of being in the age of technology, and thanks to things like APIs, organizations can form world-class systems from multiple, best of breed solutions. "This is the near future of learning technology: intelligent networks of tools, content, systems, people, and data all working together to empower your workforce to learn better, faster AND more cost-effectively," added Tauber.
Ready to learn more? Check out Degreed's Innovator's Guide.


Cars are convenient little buggers. They sit in the driveway ready to get us where we need to go. And they don't cost that much, right? Well, they kind of do.
The truth is, most Vermonters don't have a sense of how much it really costs to own and drive a car. That's why we've put together this easy calculator to help you be more conscious of your true driving costs. Ready to get started?
How much do you think it costs to operate your primary vehicle for one year?
What kind of car do you drive? Small Sedan or Hatchback Medium Sedan or Hatchback Large Sedan or Wagon Minivan SUV or Truck Did you buy it new or used? new used How many years have you owned your car? How much did you pay for it?
If you have one, how much is your monthly car payment?
What is your monthly insurance payment?
What is your annual membership fee?
What is your total monthly parking fee?
Note: We'll include registration and inspections automatically for you.
About how much do you spend on gas each month?
How much did you spend on repairs or replacements last year? Some common expenses include new tires, wiper replacement, a new battery, brake work, and exhaust work.
You're about to be more car conscious.
Depreciation is one of the most significant, yet most over-looked, costs of car ownership. A new car loses 18% of its value the first year you own it, and 11% every year thereafter. That means in just five short years, your shiny new car will be worth nearly 50% less then what you paid for it! That's real money out of your pocket if you ever decide to sell or replace it. And used cars don't fare much better. Whomever you bought it from took the biggest hit, but you can still expect to lose 11% per year in value as long as you own it. Who knew?!
Thanks for calculating your car cost and sharing your thoughts!


text:
Jada Pinkett Smith Is Slowly Changing Hollywood — & Her Own Career
Julie Sprankles
https://twitter.com/JulieLMS
Julie's Most Recent Stories
All of The Bachelor and The Bachelorette Babies
Every Shirtless Photo Kelly Ripa Has Posted of Hubby Mark Consuelos (You're Welcome)
Jennie Garth & Tori Spelling React to Jessica Alba's Claim She Couldn't Make Eye Contact on 90210
October 23, 2017 at 11:00am AM EDT
We've all heard the excuses. "There aren't more movies about women and for women because no one would watch them." "Female-driven movies don't do well at the box office." "Women aren't funny." (We're still wincing over that last one to be honest.) But then, every so often, a movie like Girls Trip comes along to smash those excuses. And, you know, the patriarchy.
Related story Chrissy Teigen Makes a Killer Point About Being Comfortable in Your Own Skin (Mom-Bod Boob Job & All)
More: Why Jada Pinkett Smith Boycotted the Oscars
There are many things to love about this movie, the primary one being that it puts four empowered women front and center. Regina Hall, Queen Latifah, Jada Pinkett Smith and Tiffany Haddish star as lifelong friends who head to New Orleans to attend the annual Essence Festival. Suffice it to say things get wild enough in the Big Easy to earn the movie every bit of its R rating.
With the film being released this week on Blu-Ray and DVD, Pinkett Smith hopped on a call with us to chat about the roles women play in Hollywood… both in front of and behind the camera.
Coincidentally, Pinkett Smith and Latifah (or "La" as Pinkett Smith has affectionately dubbed her) starred together in another movie about four strong women. That film, '96's Set It Off, featured the female leads as inner-city women driven by their own desperation to bank robbery.
In Girls Trip, the four female leads are each successful in their own way, among them an Oprah-like media maven and a Perez Hilton-style gossip guru.
When asked to discuss how Hollywood has changed in terms of diversity in the 21 years between the two films, Pinkett Smith said with a slight laugh, "We're making strides, you know? One day at a time, we're making strides."
In order to secure more roles of substance for women in general, Pinkett Smith says the key is "just getting more people — more women — in the position to greenlight movies, to recognize these stories as important."
Part of the rusty Hollywood cog that could use oiling is that of putting men in charge of telling women's stories.
"If Girls Trip is not your experience, you're not going to look at it as a movie that's important to make. In a male-dominated culture that Hollywood can be at times, you would look at this and go, 'I don't know if there will be enough women to see this.' Because that's your experience," Pinkett Smith said of the typical Hollywood thought process.
More: Jada Pinkett Smith on Marriage — Break the Rules & Discover a Whole New World
"So that's why it's important that we have people in Hollywood that are making these important decisions who come from various backgrounds that look at storytelling through many different kinds of lenses," she continued, adding, "Because everybody has a story to tell, and all of them are important — all of them! It's just about building Hollywood in a way that has a broad lens. That's it. And we're on the road to do that. We're doing it, slowly but surely."
Until the time when women, people of color and other marginalized groups of society are represented behind the camera, Pinkett Smith stresses that women in Hollywood can make a difference just by participating.
"I think even as women, when we take on projects like this as actresses, we have to be courageous enough — and most of us do — to speak about helping to craft the story and craft our characters to more authentic spaces," Pinkett Smith said.
"Even when we're just hired as actresses, we have a voice," she continued, "and it's really just creating those relationships with our partners to give us that room. I have to give Malcolm [Lee, director] and Will [Packer, producer] a lot of credit, because they really got out of the way in regards to allowing us to come in and craft these characters, craft moments, craft aspects of the story that were just more authentic to our experiences."
It wasn't a huge ordeal or contentious back-and-forth, either. In Pinkett Smith's own words, "There was no debating it. I really give them a lot of credit for that." They gave these smart, talented, funny women license to be themselves. Are you listening Hollywood?
Although Pinkett Smith is happy to cultivate the conversation through roles, the actor also has plans to spend more time behind the lens too. "Right now, my life is really just about having fun," she shared with us. "You know, creating beautiful experiences through art."
Currently, that means teaming up with one young woman in particular: her 17-year-old daughter, Willow.
"My daughter and I are going to do a musical collaboration together, which I'm really excited about," Pinkett Smith revealed. "We did our first little taster last night at Afropunk [Fest] […] I'm excited to be in one lane with my daughter sharing some creative life with her through music."
More: We Talked to Jada Pinkett Smith About Being a Real Nasty Woman
If you aren't already stoked about the chance to see the mother-daughter duo perform, Pinkett Smith left us with one more teaser about what the future could hold — for her, yes, but also for other women in Hollywood.
When asked whether she would ever consider giving a voice to women by hosting a talk show, the actor lingered strategically before responding. And while we can't tell you precisely what she said, we can tell you this: Smith is "in discussions."
Girls Trip is out on DVD and Blu-ray now.


Jon Truman is the pen name for Jan Munch. He is an ordained minister and founder of the internet Christian video ministry, Ads4Christ.Org. Besides "Adryel," Munch is the author of its prequel, "Angel," the Christian thriller, "Cadaver," and the end times novel, "Going Home. He lives with his wife Linda in East Tennessee.
"Adryel" is a sequel to the novel, "Angel." Twelve years have passed since the murder of Jesse Striker's Cherokee bride. Her murderer, who is serving a life sentence in a Georgia prison, escapes. With the help of his motorcycle gang, he terrorizes Jesse, his best friend and brother-in-law, Billy Whitecloud, and their families. Only by the grace of God and the help of the angel, Adryel, are they able to survive.


You might be forgiven for thinking that – of all things – the stars were equal above us. Too far, too big, too old, to be affected by anything that puny man could do. The stars look down upon us with benevolence or with despite, according to the mood of the poet, and our language is rich in reminders of how mankind has thought its destiny written in the stars. Star-crossed lovers look for lode-stars, and it sometimes seems that every writer stuck for a word has merely to look up to find his all-purpose answer in the stars. Shakespeare once called them the bad revolting stars. Traditionally, the stars affect us and we can do nothing in return. Yet now it seems that mankind's infinite capacity for messing things up has reached even to the stars.
In Thierry Cohen's series, Darkened Cities, we think we see bright night skies over cities. Very traditional, very poetical. Actually, what we're seeing is the opposite. These skies are an indictment and a lament. These are the skies that we don't see. They are also extremely clever photography, in which highly skilled execution provides rich layers of meaning.
The principal operation that has to take place before these pictures can exist is that the sky from one place has to be superimposed upon cityscape from another. The reason is simplicity itself. As every amateur astronomer knows, it is impossible to see this detail in the night sky above a city. Modern lighting provides a level of light pollution so high that looking into the urban sky is like looking past bright headlights while driving. Add to that the atmospheric pollution above any city, and you have a screen only barely penetrable by light. Stand in New York or Rio and look up, even on the most cloudless night, and you won't see Cohen's explosions of light. Yet it is there, blotted out only by man's interference.
The first photographer to split his photographs horizontally in two, specifically to even out the luminous balance, was the nineteenth century French master Gustave Le Gray. Le Gray, a fine technician at the very point of technology, found that the emulsions available in his day could not record equally well the bright sky and the twinkling water in the great series of poetic seascapes that he made in the 1850s, so he made them from separate negatives for sea and sky. The convenient straight line of the horizon helped him both to join them and to conceal the join from his viewers.
Cohen is also a fine technician, who has practised digital photography for longer than almost anyone else. But he is not practising for virtuosity alone. Cohen does not merely replace one sky with another for convenient photographic legibility. By travelling to places free from light pollution but situated on precisely the same latitude as his cities (and by pointing his camera at the same angle in each case), he obtains skies which, as the world rotates about its axis, are the very ones visible above the cities a few hours earlier or later. He shows, in other words, not a fantasy sky as it might be dreamt, but a real one as it should be seen.
This is a very powerful treatment. It is laborious in the extreme. To find places with the right degree of atmospheric clarity, Cohen has to go – always on the latitudes of our cities – into the wild places of the earth, the Atacama, the Mojave, the northern wastes of Mongolia. Who among us beyond a handful of professional astronomers would know if Cohen cut the odd corner by finding a good sky not quite so remote? But photography has always had a very tight relationship to reality. A good sky is not the right sky. And the right sky in each case has a huge emotional effect.
As more and more of the world's population becomes urban, and as we lose our connection with the natural world, so it becomes plain what damage is caused. Are there injurious effects of light pollution? Quite possibly. To people there may be physical connections to certain cancers, and there are surely psychological burdens of permanent day. To other natural life, flora and fauna, the damages are wide-reaching. The 'city that never sleeps' is made up of millions of individuals breaking natural cycles of work and repose. Lose sight of the sky, and you become a rat in a lab. We're all heading that way. It may come to it that we can never properly see the sky again. Already there are produced maps of the intensity of pollution by light which are so bright they're scary. There are still gaps where you might see the sky, but they're not where we all live.
Cohen hasn't simply shown us the skies that we're missing, by the way. His process is many degrees more complex than that. Notice how dead his cities look, under the fireworks display above? No lights in the windows, no tracers of traffic? Barely even reflections of the blazing starry glory above. That's because they are in fact photographed in the daylight hours, when lights are switched off or shine out less brightly. How clever this is, each photographic obstacle to Cohen's expression isolated, and solved to perfection.
There is an urban mythology which is already old, in which the city teems with energy and illumines everything around it. All roads lead to Rome, we were told. Cohen is telling us the opposite. It is impossible not to read these pictures the way the artist wants them read: cold, cold cities below, cut off from the seemingly infinite energies above. It's a powerful reversal, and one very much in tune with a wave of environmental thinking of the moment. Look at the work of Sebastiao Salgado, for example, who used to show specific areas of distress (geographical or social) until his subjects grew bigger until now (in the series entitled Genesis) he is working to tell us about the health of the planet itself. Thierry Cohen didn't merely find pictures that pointed so sharply to the blight that our mega cities have become, he couldn't. He made them instead, with patience and skill and the driving desire to be understood.
Night time is as attractive to photographers as it is to poets. One thinks in a moment of the terrestrial nights of such artists as Brassaï, for whom the night was a stage of its own. René Burri, the great Swiss photographer, rushed out into the New York blackout of 5th November, 1965 with only 8 rolls of film and made 40 of the greatest pictures of a city at night that you will ever see. Weegee loved the night, of course, and Nan Goldin, and Bill Brandt and dozens of other photographers of the city. It's particularly a city thing, you see. In the country, when it gets dark, you go to bed. It's in the cities that we go mad a little at night. Cohen's fine series shows that he understands this. Zoom in on one any of these pictures, I feel, and you'll find oily dark scenes from Weegee in every window.
Otranto Cathedral or the Cathedral of Santa Maria Annunziata (Saint Mary of the Annunciation) is the most important Christian church in the Italian city of Otranto and is the seat of the Archdiocese of Otranto. It was consecrated in 1088.
The mosaic running the whole length of the nave, sanctuary and apse is 12th century in date – it was commissioned by the first Latin archbishop of the city, Gionata, and created between 1163 and 1165 by a group of artists led by Pantaleone, a Basilian monk from the monastery of San Nicola di Casole. It shows scenes from the Old Testament and chivalric cycles, as well as figures from medieval bestiaries, arranged alongside a 'tree of life', showing human experience from the Fall to salvation.
A great mistery of art and faith has been kept for eighteen centuries in Otranto. This small town, at the tip of Salento, is famous in Mediterranean history for being besieged, conquered and sacked in 1480 by the Turks who attempted to build an Ottoman bridgehead on Christian Land. The last 800 men who withstood the attack were decapitated. The Otranto's Martyrs' skulls are stored in glass shrines by a side altar of the cathedral. Muslims demolished its facade but they didn't dare to destroy the inside, with its most precious treasure: a monumental mosaic covering the entire floor of the cathedral like a lavishly decorated carpet of colorful stones. It stretches for 16 meters, from the entrance to the altar. Crafted between 1163 and 1165, it is the largest in Europe, almost intact, resilient to the damage and wearing effect of time.
Thus, under a visitor's feet a fabulous, old time cartoon is shown. A spectacular encyclopedia that in the central nave revolves around the Tree of Life, a very long trunk with several rows of parallel branches. Two minor trunks run throughout the aisles. Among the 'vegetable spaces' biblical stories are depicted: Adam and Eve driven out of Eden, the building of Noah's Ark, Cain and Abel, the Tower of Babel, Solomon and the Queen of Sheba…And hidden among them, central characters from medieval tales can be found unexpectedly: King Arthur and Alexander the Great, as well as pagan myths such as Samson, Diana and Atlas. In a series of circles the twelve months of the year are depicted with their various seasonally-related working activities, in other words earthly everyday life. Elsewhere life in the Next World is evoked in Heaven and Hell. Some sixteen medallions hold the whole medieval bestiary with its ambiguous symbolism, while domestic, ferocious, exotic animals and bizarre creatures run around like in a fantasy free zoo. Along the path queries grow. Why are the Tree of Life's roots not sunk in the ground but rested on two elephants, a male and a female? Where does the cat in boots come from? What does a bearded centaur do with a chessboard on his head? What's the meaning of the writing PASCA next to a winged griffin?
Compelling stories that risk, though, taking over the real emotion. A direct and personal experience that no 3-D Avatar style movie can beat, because it is mind and eyes engaging, it excites memories, imagination and knowledge. Like an Ipad or an Xbox emerging from the darkness of the Year One thousand.
The layout of the monthly activity / Zodiac roundels, which are just to the west (underneath) of the crossing and span the entire width of the nave. January is top left, then read as you would script to December in the bottom right hand corner.