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Category Archives: Movies
Posted on January 8, 2010 | 14 comments
by Eric Edwards
You'd think a romantic comedy named after an event that occurs only once every four years would be something special. Well, Leap Year (opening today) isn't.
Anna (Amy Adams) and Jeremy (Adam Scott) are a seemingly perfect, upwardly mobile couple. They are both attractive, great at their jobs and have bright futures. What they aren't is married and Jeremy doesn't seem to be in any hurry to propose.
Thus, when business takes Jeremy to Ireland, Anna decides to follow him and take advantage of a popular Irish custom in which women propose to men on February 29. Due to inclement weather, one of her connecting flights is canceled and everything goes awry as she tries to make it to Dublin before leap-year day is over. Severely strapped for cash, hot innkeeper Declan (Matthew Goode) agrees to drive her to Dublin for a fee. Though they encounter endless mishaps along the way, I think you can figure out what happens.
This film suffers from severe formula-itis. Yes, we've seen it all before, but director Anand Tucker (2005's fine Shopgirl) doesn't even try to give a fresh spin to the screenplay by Harry Elfont (who is also responsible for the equally forgettable Made of Honor). It is so obvious Anna and Jeremy do not belong together that the whole initial setup of the story lacks credibility.
By the time Anna meets Declan, I was wondering if maybe I should have gone to see Up In The Air for a second time. That said, it isn't the worst thing currently playing at the box office and Newton Thomas Sigel's breathtaking cinematography of the Irish countryside had me checking flights for the Emerald Isle as soon as I got home.
Tagged amy adams, Entertainment, leap year review, matthew goode, Movies, reviews
While I was away on holiday, contributing writer Eric Edwards was busy taking in multiple screenings of Oscar-bait films. He was kind enough to submit the following reviews.
Did you see any of these? What did you think?—PCN
Photo by Alex Bailey/WARNER BROS.
Sherlock Holmes (Robert Downey, Jr.) is bored and depressed. His genius sleuthing abilities keep him from helping the throngs of people who write him because he solves their cases before he even finishes reading their letters. Dr. Watson (Jude Law) wants to get married, leaving Holmes's childish behavior and their shared lodgings behind. Thankfully, a challenge to Holmes's intellect arrives in the form Lord Blackwood (Mark Strong), a villain dealing in the black arts and one whom Holmes and Watson recently apprehended for Scotland Yard.
Screenwriter Anthony Peckham (who also penned Invictus; see review below) has taken the brilliant Holmes we're all familiar with and attempts to make him more hip by adding martial arts to the detective's arsenal. Holmes is even shown proving his prowess in the ring at an underground boxing arena. Oddly enough, in scene after scene in which he goes up against actual bad guys, Holmes doesn't fare well.
In portraying the famous detective, the usually charming Downey, Jr. carries the burden of an English accent and it's cumbersome. By contrast, Law's put-upon Dr. Watson is much more interesting to watch because his accent is genuine and the actor uses a less-is-more approach. As Holmes's former flame Irene Adler, the very talented Rachel McAdams is mired down by a script that doesn't give her much to do. This movie is a mess that can be skipped by all but die-hard Holmes fans.
Photo by Keith Bernstein/WARNER BROS.
The major problem with this "inspiring true story" of how newly elected President Nelson Mandela employs South Africa's national rugby team to unite the apartheid-torn country is that it lacks a balance between earnestness and heart.
It's supposed to be the end of apartheid in South Africa, but the hate between black and white still remains and Mandela (Morgan Freeman) needs to help his beloved country move forward. He looks to emulate the business plans of successful countries such as the United States and China. But how to appeal to the working-class citizen? Create a hero they can get behind.
Mandela summons South African rugby captain Francois Pienaar (Matt Damon) to a meeting and they hit it off. While the president sets about memorizing the player's names and stats and attending their matches, Pienaar visits Mandela's former prison cell to better understand his new benefactor. A mutual respect blooms between the two.
Director Clint Eastwood sacrifices what could have been a heartfelt story and spends most of the film developing the relationship between Mandela and Pienaar. Damon and Freeman work well together and both deserve accolades for their performances, but as a whole the film is less than compelling. Each character, from Pienaar's family maid to Mandela himself, speaks in clunky soundbites uncharacteristic of Eastwood's usual subtle style. We never really get to know the rugby players, resulting in apathy on our part when we're supposed to be rooting for the team. And if we don't care about whether or not it wins the match and helps unite the country, the entire point of the film is lost.
Photo by Lorey Sebastian/FOX SEARCHLIGHT
Bad Blake (Jeff Bridges), once a famous country singer/songwriter, has seen better days. Five marriages and a hard-drinking, heavy-smoking lifestyle has left him broke, forced into playing rundown bowling alleys and small dives across the Midwest just to make ends meet. Bad can still put on a show, but his fans are fewer, much older and his brand of "real country" is no longer relevant to today's country music fans. What he needs is the inspiration to write a hit song. Enter budding journalist and would-be muse Jean Craddock (a completely miscast Maggie Gyllenhaal) and her 5-year old son, Buddy (Jack Nation).
Bridges's performance, which includes doing his own singing, is solid throughout. His frustration with the cards life has dealt him is subtle, but etched as deeply as the lines on his face. Any frame of this movie without Bridges is a stark reminder of how much the film needs him to stay alive. It wasn't the age difference between him and Gyllenhaal I found myself wincing at, it was the complete lack of chemistry between the two. Bridges, channeling a younger, better-looking version of Kris Kristofferson in his heyday, so richly deserves a more engaging companion to be inspired by and fall in love with than Gyllenhaal, who displays no allure whatsoever.
Colin Farrell shows up as Bad's former protégé and current country superstar Tommy Sweet, and surprises me with his strong singing skills. Who knew? Both Farrell and Bridges could easily have careers as singers.
Writer/composer T-Bone Burnett provides the very catchy songs in Bad's repertoire, but I wish the inspiring song that leads to his salvation was more memorable and not so morose. What should have been uplifting instead strikes one of the wrong notes in the film.
Tagged crazy heart, invictus, jeff bridges, jude law, matt damon, morgan freeman, Movies, rachel mcadams, reviews, robert downey jr., sherlock holmes
Nerdies for Favorite Things of 2009
Posted on December 27, 2009 | 10 comments
Hope you all are enjoying the holidays. Me, I'm having so much fun with family, I need more gigabytes in my brain to store all the memories being made.
I get grateful this time of year for 1) making it this far and 2) all the wonderful experiences I had in the last 12 months. So, between all the eating and social gatherings, I present to you my Nerdy Awards for favorite things this year.
Most Valuable Preposition: Up. Apparently, the best way to make sure a movie is good is by putting this two-letter word in the title. Up and Up in the Air tie for best movie I saw this year. Both are perfect blends of comedy and poignancy, light and dark, entertainment and explorations of what makes us human.
Best Reasons for Staying Home Wednesday Nights: Glee, Modern Family and Cougar Town. Wednesday nights are always a party in my house, as I sing along to Glee then laugh my face off with Family and Cougar. You've probably heard plenty about the first two but may not know that Cougar's cast, led by the game Courteney Cox, has really gelled into one hilarious ensemble.
Most Unique New Voices in Crime Fiction: Chet the Jet from Spencer Quinn's Dog on It, Pietro Brwna from Josh Bazell's Beat the Reaper, and Stella Hardesty in Sophie Littlefield's A Bad Day for Sorry. The field is crowded with cops and detectives but this year, I met fresh new characters starting with Chet, a dog who narrates the adventures he has while solving crimes with his human partner, Bernie. Brwna is a hit man turned jaded medical intern who uses a deadly weapon I've never seen used before. And Littlefield introduced us to a 50-year-old, slightly overweight woman who helps abused women keep their partners in line partly by using S&M restraints. These books are all first in a series so discover them now before the next installments come out (Chet's new case, Thereby Hangs a Tail, arrives January 5).
Best Noir Debut: Richard Lange's This Wicked World. This is Lange's first novel but it reads like he's been writing them forever. Worthy of a place on my shelf among the genre's greats.
Best Avoidance of Sophomore Slump: Gillian Flynn with Dark Places. Her debut, Sharp Objects, was so stunning, I wondered if her second novel would measure up. I was thrilled, then, to find Flynn delving even more deeply into the female psyche's dark, twisted side in Places. Few writers can write about damaged, prickly women and make them so mesmerizing.
Fattest Books I Finished in Shortest Time: I got lost in Kate Morton's gothic, 560-page The Forbidden Garden for 3 days, while my eyeballs were glued to the 512 pages in Stieg Larsson's The Girl Who Played with Fire for 34 hours, finishing it in almost one sitting, minus a few hours of sleep.
Most Soul-Shaking Book: Jon Krakauer's Where Men Win Glory: The Odyssey of Pat Tillman. This non-fiction tale of a star football-player-turned-soldier gunned down by friendly fire in Afghanistan ripped me apart and made me re-evaluate how I live my life. A searing read I won't forget anytime soon.
Funniest Person I Least Expected to Be: Brian Williams on 30 Rock. The veteran NBC Nightly News anchor made me laugh hard when he unexpectedly showed up on Rock, telling Tina Fey he wanted to audition for her show within the show by doing a stand-up act. The punchline wasn't funny at all but Williams's hammy, goombah delivery was very much so.
Favorite Movie Trend: Women 45 and over kicking ass at the box office. Sandra Bullock had two big hits (The Proposal, The Blind Side), Meryl Streep had three movies (Julie & Julia, The Fantastic Mr. Fox, It's Complicated), one of which may win her a third Oscar. And Sigourney Weaver returns as sci-fi queen in Avatar. I hope this trend continues so I can stop watching actors get older while their female co-stars get closer to infancy every year.
Best Performance by Any Actor, Male or Female: Mo'Nique in Precious. Not so much a performance as a terrifying inhabitation of a nightmarish character.
Most Memorable Movie Quote: "I just met you and I love you." —Dug the talking dog in Up.
What were some of your favorite things this year?
Posted in Books, Movies, TV
Tagged beat the reaper, cougar town, gillian flynn, glee, meryl streep, sandra bullock, sophie littlefield, tina fey
Movie Reviews—IT'S COMPLICATED, BROTHERS, THE LAST STATION
With all the holiday activities going on, I'm woefully behind on everything (haven't seen Avatar—what?!) so the following reviews will be a little abbreviated. They'll take less time for you to read so you can fulfill your obligations, too.
In writer/director Nancy Meyers's ultimate female fantasy, Meryl Streep plays a woman who's lusted after by two successful, attractive men: her lawyer ex-husband (Alec Baldwin) and the sensitive architect (Steve Martin) who's renovating her house, an already gorgeous spread in Santa Barbara she's trying to make bigger and more awesome.
The movie is a very mature, if flawed, exploration of the emotional complexities of divorce, not making anyone out to be the bad guy or completely blameless. Streep is as radiant as ever (she doesn't age!), Baldwin has some very funny scenes, including an unfortunate Skype incident, and Martin turns in a lovely, understated performance as someone who might be falling in love but is reluctant to move forward with the bitter taste of his own divorce still fresh in his mouth.
The most refreshing element for me was seeing how the family, though damaged by divorce, is so functional. They talk things out, they're respectful towards each other and the kids don't seem to prefer one parent over the other. Conflicts exist and obstacles abound; the affected parties just don't turn their affairs into a Jerry Springer episode. I'm not sure what it says about the state of our times when I was surprised, but pleasantly so, to see family members not bitching each other out on screen. Nerd verdict: Complicated but fun.
After Marine captain Sam Cahill (Tobey Maguire) goes missing and is believed dead in Afghanistan, his brother Tommy (Jake Gyllenhaal) helps his wife Grace (Natalie Portman) and daughters Isabelle and Maggie (Bailee Madison, Taylor Geare, respectively) through the grieving process. Uncle Tommy gets a little too close and of course, this is exactly when Sam comes home. [Note: This isn't a spoiler. We see him alive in Afghanistan even while the family mourns.]
Maguire does impressive work as the conflicted soldier who comes back haunted by things he was forced to do to survive, actions for which he can't forgive himself. He's a shadow of his former self, unrecognized by loved ones, feared by his children. He's intense in a quiet way, which is much scarier than an over-the-top way.
Portman is more sensual and womanly than usual as a young wife and mother trying to navigate uncharted waters. Gyllenhaal is believable as Maguire's brother but I didn't buy for one minute that he's some tough ex-con who just got out of the Big House. The real stars for me, though, are the two actresses who play Sam and Grace's little girls. They have a natural, easy style that made me think they were simply being, not acting. It's an easy concept to grasp, not necessarily to execute on camera. Drawing out amazing performances from young actresses (see In America) is a specialty of director Jim Sheridan, who makes his movies intensely personal.
I also like his way of covering heavy subject matter with a light hand. He often cuts away from a scene before its natural end because he trusts we can fill in the rest. When two military reps arrive at Sam's house to notify Grace of his so-called demise, we see Grace approaching the open door, the horrible realization washing over her face, and the scene ends without the actual notification. Sheridan doesn't jerk tears; this isn't a war movie. It's about people trying to find a way to live again after a part of them dies. Nerd verdict: Relatable Brothers.
The Last Station
I'm going to keep this one brief because I fell asleep three times while watching it. The performances can't be faulted, except for maybe Paul Giamatti's scenery chomping as a devout Tolstoyan who wants Leo Tolstoy (Christopher Plummer) to will his estate to the movement, much to the chagrin of the author's wife. The movie is one long melodramatic tug of war between Giamatti's Vladimir and Helen Mirren's Sofya and none of it was compelling. It's more a history lesson than entertainment and even James McAvoy's presence as Tolstoy's secretary couldn't save this for me. Nerd verdict: Bypass this Station
Tagged alec baldwin, helen mirren, it's complicated, jake gyllenhaal, james mcavoy, meryl streep, Movies, reviews, steve martin, the last station, tobey maguire
67th Annual Golden Globe Nominations
In case you haven't seen them yet, here's the full list. Film highlights (if a title is underlined, click on it to read my review):
Best Picture, Drama
I haven't seen Avatar but unless it's awesome, I'm rooting for Up in the Air.
Best Picture, Musical/Comedy
Haven't seen The Hangover. So excited to see (500) Days in there! It's a charming little film you need to rent when it comes out Dec. 22. As long as the winner isn't Nine, I'm good.
Best Actor, Drama
Jeff Bridges, Crazy Heart
George Clooney, Up in the Air
Colin Firth, A Single Man
Morgan Freeman, Invictus
Tobey Maguire, Brothers
Haven't seen Invictus or Crazy Heart. Nice surprise to see Maguire nominated; he's quite good in Brothers. I'd love to see Clooney take this, though.
Best Actress, Drama
Emily Blunt, The Young Victoria
Sandra Bullock, The Blind Side
Helen Mirren, The Last Station
Carey Mulligan, An Education
Gabourey Sidibe, Precious
This category is a tough one; I like all these. I'd narrow it down to Blunt vs. Sidibe.
Best Actor, Musical/Comedy
Matt Damon, The Informant!
Daniel Day-Lewis, Nine
Robert Downey, Jr., Sherlock Holmes
Joseph Gordon-Levitt, 500 Days of Summer
Michael Stuhlbarg, A Serious Man
Another tough one to call. Might as well do eeny, meeny, miny, moe.
Best Actress, Musical/Comedy
Sandra Bullock, The Proposal
Marion Cotillard, Nine
Julia Roberts, Duplicity
Meryl Streep, It's Complicated
Meryl Streep, Julie & Julia
Streep deserves it for Julia & Julia but if she cancels herself out, Cotillard should take it. I like Roberts and Duplicity just fine, but her inclusion here has got to be the biggest shocker.
Matt Damon, Invictus
Woody Harrelson, The Messenger
Christopher Plummer, The Last Station
Stanley Tucci, The Lovely Bones
Christoph Waltz, Inglourious Basterds
This one's easy: Christoph Waltz.
Penelope Cruz, Nine
Vera Farmiga, Up in the Air
Anna Kendrick, Up in the Air
Mo'Nique, Precious
Julianne Moore, A Single Man
Another easy one: Mo'Nique all the way, baby!
Kathryn Bigelow, The Hurt Locker
James Cameron, Avatar
Clint Eastwood, Invictus
Jason Reitman, Up in the Air
Quentin Tarantino, Inglourious Basterds
I'm on Team Reitman but Lee Daniels was robbed for Precious.
Neill Blomkamp & Terri Tatchell, District 9
Mark Boal, The Hurt Locker
Nancy Meyers, It's Complicated
Jason Reitman & Sheldon Turner, Up in the Air
Rooting for Reitman & Turner. And wha…?! Precious snubbed again? No matter. I'm still certain it'll be Oscar nominated in this category.
Best Score
The Informant!
Michael Giacchino has had an amazing year and will win for Up (he also scores Lost, Fringe and Star Trek). Up's theme is the only one I can still hum and I saw it back in May.
Best Song
"Cinema Italiano," Nine
"I Want to Come Home," Everybody's Fine
"I Will See You," Avatar
"The Weary Kind," Crazy Heart
"Winter," Brothers
The prestige song here is "Winter," by a socially conscious band about a serious subject (our military personnel). But I came out of Nine singing "Cinema Italiano," and I didn't even like the movie that much.
Best Animated Film
Fantastic Mr. Fox
The Princess & The Frog
No contest: Up is tops in my book!
Best Foreign Language Film
Baria
A Prophet
The White Ribbon
No clue here. Haven't seen any of them. If I had to guess, I'd say Ribbon.
What did you think of the noms? Who are you rooting for? I think I'm most excited about Ricky Gervais as host!
Tagged Entertainment, golden globe nominations 2010 67th annual, meryl streep, precious the movie, sandra bullock, up in the air
Movie Review: NINE
Nine (and the movie 8 ½, on which it's based) is about a writer/director who has a hard time coming up with a story for his latest film. It's ironic, then, that Nine, written by Michael Tolkin and the late Anthony Minghella, also seems to be lacking a plot of its own.
Daniel Day-Lewis plays the auteur, Guido Contini, who's having a breakdown since his movie Italia is supposed to go into production within days but he still hasn't written one word. His leading actress, international star Claudia (Nicole Kidman), is getting impatient and demanding to see a script. He's haunted by memories of the women in his life, including his mother (Sophie Loren) and a prostitute he knew when he was a boy (Fergie). In the real world, he continues his dalliance with mistress Carla (Penélope Cruz) despite telling his long-suffering wife, Luisa (Marion Cotillard) the affair is over.
Rob Marshall said during the post-Variety-screening Q & A that he thought long and hard about how to integrate the musical numbers into the movie. On that level, he succeeded; the songs are interwoven well and don't really disrupt the story's pacing.
Trouble is, there's not much plot to interrupt. It's mostly about what's going on in Guido's head and since he comes across as a self-absorbed, lying, cheating bastard, I couldn't sympathize with him. He hasn't earned the self-pity because his misery is of his own doing. It's not Day-Lewis's fault; he gives a consummate performance as usual. His Italian accent is spot-on and his singing robust (is there anything he can't do?). The problem lies more with the character and this was partly why I also disliked Fellini's film: Guido is a whiny little boy.
As for the all-star female lineup, Cotillard, Cruz and Dench come through most spectacularly. Cotillard is wistful and heartbreaking at first then busts out the sexy in "Take It All," doing a striptease and letting Guido know she's done being the accommodating little wife. Cruz scorches the screen in her "A Call from the Vatican" number, with her, um, gymnastic moves. She's also emotionally flexible, going from vixen to little girl lost, and somehow manages to make me feel sorry for her adulterous Carla. And Dench, as Guido's confidante Lilli, displays a fun side and hearty voice along with her usual gravitas.
Kate Hudson also knocked my socks off, singing and dancing with abandon in the movie's catchiest number, "Cinema Italiano," but her Vogue reporter is otherwise given nothing to do. Likewise Fergie's Saraghina. Although this character was in Fellini's movie and Fergie attacks "Be Italian" with impressive ferocity, the prostitute from Guido's past has no usefulness here. Kidman looks great but this version of Claudia could have easily been played by any other beautiful actress with a passable singing voice.
The costumes are dazzling, the dancing and singing energetic, but I'm afraid I'm not in love with this Cinema Marshalliano.
Nerd verdict: Nine's a 6 on scale of 1 to 10
All photos by David James © The Weinstein Co.
Tagged daniel day-lewis, Entertainment, fergie, marion cotillard, Movies, nicole kidman, nine the movie, reviews


Rare opportunity to own a home that is set up for 2 families on almost 5 acres. This beautiful custom-built home offers two separate living rooms, bathrooms and kitchens even the HVAC units are separate and can be controlled for each side of the house. The Kitchens both have gorgeous tile. The Master bathroom has a shower and a Jacuzzi tub, while the guest bathroom offers a garden tub. The entire house has new carpet throughout and offers an unfinished basement with tons of opportunity to continue to grow. The screened in porch is tiered on different levels with both sides of the home to enjoy their own piece of seclusion and gives a beautiful view of the pool.
I was searching for a Property and found this listing (MLS #1524525). I would like to schedule a showing for 5022 Old Heady Rd Louisville, KY 40299. Thank you!
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Listing provided courtesy of Exit Realty Crutcher.


EJ-700DR series is a UHF band, PLL synthesized diversity wireless microphone system, equipped with 4 receiver modules in maximum. With pre-programmed 96 selectable frequencies make it easy to choose available interference-free channels.
Simplified and understandable operation design makes this unit highly user-friendly.
UHF band 640 – 865 MHz, PLL synthesized with 16 (863 – 865 MHz) or 96 (640 – 664 MHz, 740 – 752 MHz, 794 – 806 MHz) selectable frequencies, for multi-channel / multi-purpose application.
LCD window, LED indicators and backlit for better comprehensive operation.
Simplified design makes it highly user-friendly by UP, DOWN and SET button.
Compact and economy unit, only 1/2 U in size.
Optional L-type bracket available for mounting in a rack.
Balanced XLR connectors and unbalanced 6.3mm jack available for different purposes.
Tone-key squelch available to eliminate external noise.
UHF band 640 ~ 865 MHz, PLL synthesized with 16 (863 – 865 MHz) or 96 (640 – 664 MHz, 740 – 752 MHz, 794 – 806 MHz) selectable frequencies, for multi-channel/ multi-purpose application.
LCD window shows selected channel, frequency, battery condition, and error code.
Four different colors of rear-caps to identify a particular microphone on stage.
Steel microphone head-grill designed for avoiding pop and wind noises.
Adjustable Hi/Low/Mute sensitivity available for professional application.
High efficient transmission and low battery consumption.
UHF band 640 ~ 865 MHz, PLL synthesized receiver module with 16 (863 – 865 MHz) or 96 (640 – 664 MHz, 740 – 752 MHz, 794 – 806 MHz) selectable frequencies.
LCD window indicates frequency and channel.


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Handmade: Alex Chinneck, Concrete Rug by Katie Treggiden in Bespoke stories
Handmade: Alex Chinneck, Concrete Rug
Sponsor content by Katie Treggiden in Bespoke stories
This week for her handmade column, Katie Treggiden speaks to British artist and designer Alex Chinneck, about his paradoxical concrete rug.
"My practice is relatively cross-disciplinary, simultaneously exploring art, design, architecture, engineering, theatre and construction. My interest in each of these fields is born from a constant thirst for innovation and a tireless hunger to impress and please. I'm forever tired of my 'last' and excited by my 'next.' I think this attitude stems from an obsession for progress and I see culture and creation as an exciting way to satisfy and accelerate that need. I'm not fame driven and I'm certainly not money driven, as my accountant will tell you. I like to think I'm audience driven and I draw significant adrenalin from the praise and in the pleasure of others."
"What does the future hold for handmade? While mankind has hands, we will use them."
"The Concrete Rug was born from the discovery that it was possible to cut concrete with computer precision. I had been cutting brick in a similar way with the British brick manufacturer, Ibstock Brick, in preparation for my sculpture From the knees of my nose to the belly of my toes. I wanted to defy the material nature and common perception of the concrete by giving it a baroque language and elevating it to a decorative status. I especially like the fact that the hundreds of jigsaw-like parts are cut from everyday council paving slabs."
"The Concrete Rugs are the least hands-on things that I make. It is a digital process with a very physical outcome.
I begin by sketching patterns and motifs. My partner is British dressmaker and patch-worker Lu Flux and I treat her enormous library of fabrics as my principal reference. Then, for about a week, I work with the digital illustrator Mathew Gaffen to digitalise, join up and generally untangle my doodles."
"I have been working with concrete for some time and have developed a good understanding of how the material behaves. The drawing evolves with this experience in mind – I'm conscious of which parts will work structurally and visually. Once we have a drawing, we print it at 1:1 and lay it out to get a feel of the parts and the pattern. The journey from screen to full size is considerable, so this part of the process is very informative. Once the design has become refined we isolate the parts into a cutting list of 250 – 500 pieces depending on the design. These parts are cut with a computer-controlled jet of water, a process that creates many rejects and breaks."
"Installation and assembly is case by case, the parts are sometimes contained within a steel or ash timber frame and other times set within the ground. In theory the Concrete Rugs could be mass-produced but there is neither the market nor the need for them. My other works, especially the architectural sculptures, are certainly one-offs because they are inspired by and conceived for specific locations."
"My favourite part of the process is a finishing. I'm driven by the thought of completion and seeing. I love to step back and for a split second feel productive, and in that moment not feel anxious.
"I prefer that people don't understand the process. Some of the processes we use, especially on the large and complicated projects, are really interesting, but I prefer to hide the breadcrumbs and make the evidence of the making disappear. Questions are more interesting without the answers."
"I think when something is handmade it possesses an unquestionable charm – we find character in imperfection. Creative and experiential value becomes diluted as an item is repeatedly produced. I'm not a critic of mass production. I appreciate that good design must consider efficiency, cost, performance and profit, and high production numbers allow more consumers to access and afford a potentially life-enriching or even life-saving piece of design. At the same time, the more rare something is the more precious it becomes and this is the kind of object or experience that I seek to create."
"What frightens me most is the mass production of ideas. It sometimes feels as though society has become a slave to trends – we are all encouraged to act, look and think the same way. This reality restricts exploration. If everyone in the world was different, it would be a brilliant incubator for imagination and innovation.
Profile: Textile Designer Imogen Heath
Profile: Textile Designer...
Profile: Textile Design...
by Kate Watson-Smyth
Imogen Heath on How She Created Her Bestselling Print Design
Imogen Heath on How She Cr...
Imogen Heath on How She...
by Imogen Heath
Textile Queen

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Following are the exercises of open cloze passage and gap filling. These grammar exercises for class 8 are based on English modals exercises, verbs exercises, grammar tense exercises, modal auxiliary, simple past and other tense exercises. These gap fillers for beginners and cloze test will help you in first certificate in English (FCE). The following esl form filling exercises are specially designed for class 8. A printable version in PDF form is also available at the bottom of each exercise.
Human Civilization (A)_______ a consequence of man's ability to organize (B) _______range of sounds he can (C) _______ into a highly efficient system of communication, (D) _______ animals are content with the production (E) _______ sounds as a reflex of (F) _______ stimuli to signal certain basic emotions. Man is superior (G) _______ animals not only in his ability to invent and use symbols (H) _______ in this very capacity of his body for the purpose of communication.
There are people in the world (A) _______have lost their faith in the life of virtue or goodness. They have begun to feel that good and great men (B) _______not rewarded in life. They (C) _______ not get status or wealth which (D) _______ to those who can manage these honours (E) _______ themselves. This means, only clever people (F) _______ the rewards which the world gives. The virtuous people deserve (G) _______rewards (H) _______ they hardly ever get these.


As we prepare to celebrate St. Mary the Virgin on August 15 (some of us may even be celebrating her Assumption or Dormition), I wanted to share some thoughts about her central theological significance, which I originally offered in a slightly different form to the Society of Catholic Priests, an organization for Catholic-minded Anglican (I prefer this description to "Anglo-Catholic," to make it clear that we are not all Anglo) clergy and religious, including our women and LGBTQ+ siblings, focused on priestly spirituality and evangelism.
A great twentieth-century theologian, Karl Rahner, SJ, was once asked about the decline of Marian devotion in certain Roman Catholic circles. He replied "Modern Theology has gone in for abstractions, and abstractions don't need a mother." Every theological statement about Mary is ultimately a statement about the reality of her Son's flesh and the mystery of the Incarnation. The fundamental issue at the Council of Ephesus was how the denial that Mary was "Theotokos" (God-bearer) implied a heretical Christology.
Jesus Christ indeed is God's own eternal Son, one with us in a concrete human life lived for others (one with a preferential option for those who are poor, oppressed, and excluded). He is no abstraction, but a flesh and blood human being, with an identity and a history. He is taken from a particular family and a particular nation, deriving both his flesh and his participation in the traditions of God's ancient and beloved People, Israel, from his Mother.
By the divine initiative and our graced response, we too are taken up into the mystery of the Word-made-flesh. By Christ, with Christ, and in Christ, we find ourselves to be embodied expressions of God's love, set free by the gift of Christ to say "yes" to God's purposes in the world. God's love always comes as a gift, unearned and undeserved. But, in and through Mary, it has been actually received.
She is, as Francis of Assisi wrote, the Virgin-made-Church. She is the foretaste of our own sanctity and glory—humanity transformed in her Son by the gift of the Holy Spirit. She is the whole creation set free and made whole, at peace with God and neighbor.
May we be drawn ever closer to Mary and thereby deeper and deeper into the mystery, mission, and movement of Jesus, her Son.


The Toronto Swing Dance Society hosts friendly social dances that are welcoming to everyone. No experience or partner required.
All welcome! Our low price includes a complementary lesson before most dances.
9:00 D.J. dance until midnight. The first few songs will be music appropriate to the lesson.
Our dances are open to everyone.
Beginners are always welcome at our events.
Lesson before the dance is a 1 hour 15 minutes and progresses from beginner to intermediate skill level.
You don't need to bring a partner. Most people who come to our dances don't come with a "designated partner".
Cash bar service available at all Friday night dances.
Please contact us if you have any questions, and don't forget to check our FAQs!


The Peacekeeper missile is America's newest intercontinental ballistic missile. Its deployment fulfilled a key goal of the strategic modernization program and increased strength and credibility to the ground-based leg of the U.S. strategic triad. With the end of the Cold War, the U.S. has begun to revise its strategic policy and has agreed to eliminate the multiple re-entry vehicle Peacekeeper ICBMs by the year 2003 as part of the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty II. The Peacekeeper is capable of delivering 10 independently targeted warheads with greater accuracy than any other ballistic missile. It is a three-stage rocket ICBM system consisting of three major sections: the boost system, the post-boost vehicle system and the re-entry system.
Peacekeeper missile also called MX, U.S. intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) that entered service in 1986.Under development from 1971, the MX (for "missile experimental") evolved into a 71-foot (22-metre) ICBM with a "bus," or fourth stage, located in its front end that carried 10 or 12 independently targetable thermonuclear warheads. This endowed each missile with several times the firepower of the two- or three-warhead Minuteman III, which it was designed to replace. In addition, the MX's extremely accurate guidance--an inertial system capable of being updated in flight by signals from navigation satellites--gave its 300-kiloton warheads greater potential to destroy reinforced missile silos and command bunkers in the Soviet Union. The MX had a range of approximately 7,000 miles (11,000 km).In order to be able to evade attack by Soviet ICBMs, which lagged behind U.S. ICBMs in accuracy but were far more powerful, several types of bases for the MX were proposed. These included launching by air from huge transport jets, "deep basing" in silos located more than 1,000 feet (305 m) underground, shuttling the missiles continuously on trucks or rail cars among "multiple protective shelters," and grouping silos close together in a "dense pack," so that incoming nuclear warheads would destroy or deflect one another. All of these modes proved to be prohibitively expensive, and none was politically popular; in 1983 it was decided to place the missiles in Minuteman III silos. Although plans called for 100 Peacekeepers, only 50 were authorized for deployment at Warren Air Force Base, Wyoming.
LGM-118A Peacekeeper The Peacekeeper missile is America's newest intercontinental ballistic missile. With the end of the Cold War, the US has begun to revise its strategic policy, and has agreed to eliminate the multiple re-entry vehicle Peacekeeper ICBMs by the year 2003 as part of the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty II. The Peacekeeper (designated LGM-118A) is a four-stage intercontinental ballistic missile capable of carrying up to ten independently-targetable reentry vehicles with greater accuracy than any other ballistic missile. Its design combines advanced technology in fuels, guidance, nozzle design, and motor construction with protection against the hostile nuclear environment associated with land-based systems. The Peacekeeper is much larger than Minuteman, over 70 feet long and weighing 198,000 pounds. It is a four stage missile like the Minuteman III, with the first three stages being solid propellant and the fourth stage bu hypergolicly fueled with hydrazine and nitrogen tetroxide. Although capable of carrying eleven Mark 21 RVs, treaty limits mandated deploying the Peacekeeper with only ten RVs. The entire missile is encased in a canister in the silo to protect it against damage and to permit "cold launch". The Minuteman II and III ignite their first stage engines while in the LF, but the Peacekeeper is ejected by pressurized gas some fifty feet into the air before first stage ignition.
The Peacekeeper is a three-stage rocket ICBM system consisting of three major sections: the boost system, the post-boost vehicle system and the re-entry system.
The boost system consists of three rocket stages that launch the missile into space. These rocket stages are mounted atop one another and fire successively. Three of the four stages exhausted their solid propellants through a single adjustable nozzle which guided the missile along its flight path. Motorcases made of kevlar epoxy material held the solid propellants. The fourth stage post-boost vehicle employed a liquid bi- propellant rocket propulsion system to provide velocity and attitude correction for missile guidance. The post-boost vehicle also employed a self-contained inertial navigation system that allowed the missile to operate independent of ground reference or commands during flight.
The 28-foot first-stage solid-fuel rocket motor weighed approximately 108,000 pounds and is capable of boosting the missile to about 75,000 feet. The 18-foot long second-stage motor propelled the missile to an altitude of about 190,000 feet and weighed 60,000 pounds. The rocket motor in the eight-foot third stage weighed 17,000 pounds and supplied the thrust to boost the missile to about 700,000 feet. The 2,300 pound post-boost fourth stage vehicle was designed to maneuver the missile into position for the multiple reentry vehicles to deploy in their respective ballistic trajectories.
Following the burnout and separation of the boost system's third rocket stage, the post-boost vehicle system, in space, maneuvers the missile as its re-entry vehicles are deployed in sequence. The post-boost vehicle system is made up of a maneuvering rocket, and a guidance and control system. The vehicle rides atop the boost system, weighs about 3,000 pounds (1,363 kilograms) and is 4 feet (1.21 meters) long. The top section of the Peacekeeper is the re-entry system. It consists of the deployment module, up to 10 cone-shaped re-entry vehicles and a protective shroud. The shroud protects the re-entry vehicles during ascent. It is topped with a nose cap, containing a rocket motor to separate it from the deployment module.
The deployment module provides structural support for the re-entry vehicles and carries the electronics needed to activate and deploy them. The vehicles are covered with material to protect them during re-entry through the atmosphere to their targets and are mechanically attached to the deployment module. The attachments are unlatched by gas pressure from an explosive cartridge broken by small, exploding bolts, which free the re-entry vehicles, allowing them to separate from the deployment module with minimum disturbance. Each deployed re-entry vehicle follows a ballistic path to its target.
The Peacekeeper was the first U.S. ICBM to use cold launch technology. The missile was placed inside a canister and loaded into the launch facility. When launched, high-pressure steam ejected the canister from the launch silo to an altitude of 150 to 300 feet, and once the missile has cleared the silo, the first stage ignited and sent the missile on its course. This technique allowed SAC to launch the Peacekeeper from Minuteman silos despite the fact that the Peacekeeper was three times larger than the Minuteman III.


text:
Leonardo Capezzi, né le  à Figline Valdarno, est un footballeur italien évoluant au poste de milieu relayeur à l'US Salernitana 1919.

Biographie

Références

Liens externes

Naissance à Figline Valdarno
Naissance en mars 1995
Footballeur italien
Joueur de la Fiorentina
Joueur de l'AS Varèse 1910
Joueur du FC Crotone
Joueur de l'UC Sampdoria
Joueur de l'Empoli FC
Joueur de l'Albacete Balompié
Joueur de l'US Salernitana 1919

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


Aug 19, 2015 Remember, if you don't use it, you lose it. And by 'it,' we mean these 10 '40-Year-Old Virgin' dating tips.Twenty-seven-year old Sam Wade works as an account manager/tour guide for a company that .. 5 Online dating profile mistakes made by women over 40. May 25, 2016 Adfront · Jobs · Dating . So here are 40 things every woman over the age of 40 woman should black is fine (for a few more years, especially if it's glossy satin or velvet), David Beckham post-match easily tips over into Rhys Ifans the You are never too old for the latest jeans if you look good in jeans. dating website template kopen In fact more and more mature men and women are turning to online platforms singles in the same way they might have 30 or 40 years ago much more difficult. Oct 9, 2013 If you want a case study in humanity, 30-year-old single guys have pretty much Yes, the woman fit for The Total Package will be the ultimate icing on his and his terror of being 40 and single—because 40 and single is not 8) The Aggressively Online Dating Guy Who Can't Believe He's Not Married Yet.


External heat pump for boilers are marketing like hotcakes these days. Yet like practically everything, they have their assets, as well as their bad points. Before examining the pros and cons, permit's have a look at just how they function.
For our example we will certainly utilize a gas heater, considering that it is easier to visualize than electric, however it's basically the same for an electrical design as a gas version.
External heat pump for boilers could be envisioned as a coil of pipe over a campfire. As you run water via the pipe, the warmth from the fires gradually heats the water in the pipe, and also by the time the water has actually experienced the entire length of water pipes it is very hot. The more slowly the water takes a trip through the pipeline, the hotter it will obtain. If the water travels with the water pipes extremely rapidly it may not be in the flames long sufficient to obtain hot. Some heating systems could modulate the warmth source to level the temperature increase for various water circulation prices.
With external heat pump for boilers you have a huge storage tank full of heated water, which is gradually losing heat to its surroundings, despite bunches of insulation. If it's a gas heating unit it has a pilot light also, which takes in energy 24 hrs a day. Given that the external heat pump for boilers does not have a pilot burner as well as does not have a large container loaded with heated water losing power continuously, it is more energy efficient.
One wonderful thing about the external heat pump for boilers is that you never run out of hot water. Endless water is just one of the marketing factors for the external heat pump for boilers, but be careful, it might bring about a rise in water use by the home owner that now thinks his warm water is less expensive.
With the tankless devices a minimum circulation, generally 1/2 gallon per minute, is needed to switch on the heating system. So bid farewell to low circulations of warm and comfortable water, because low flows won't keep the heating unit activated.
The external heat pump for boilers need larger flues than tank kind units if they are gas and bigger gas lines, as well as if they are electrical they require bigger diameter cables to manage the high amperage currents they attract. (It takes a great deal of electricity to heat water fast.) They are additionally a fair bit more pricey compared to container kind units and also far more intricate. If they ever before need repairs they are a lot more pricey to repair, and in some cases parts are tough to obtain, but then there is no container to rust out either.
Given that the external heat pump for boilers should warm the water just before sending it to the fixture, it takes longer to obtain water compared to with the storage type external heat pump for boilers. That leads to wasting water which no person wishes to do.
There is a solution to the water losing problem, and also it's called a need system. It's a tiny pump that installs under the sink furthest from the heater. When you really want hot water you switch on the pump, which pumps the water in a huge loop from the water heating unit past the sink as well as on via the cold water piping back to the inlet of the water heater. When heated water gets to the pump it shuts off. Now you have instant warm water as well as you did not run any sort of water down the drain.
Get the information about external heat pump for boilers you are seeking now by visiting http://www.phnixexp.com.


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Is Meghan Markle Setting Up Long-Term to Run for President of the United States?
That's what the top British PR and branding expert, Mark Borkowski, thinks may be in the cards.
"With the kind of work that Meghan and Harry want to do, they have to be free from palace protocol and politics," he told the New York Post. "You can't speak out properly with the Palace breathing down your neck."
He continued, "I could see them throwing almighty parties every quarter, like Elton John does to raise money for his AIDS foundation, with the great and the good."
And then The Post dropped the bomb:
The PR honcho said he could even seen Meghan running for president in 10 years.
"She has that sort of ambition," he said.
Shegottawideload January 22, 2020 at 8:58 PM
Sounds like she will be the same quality candidate as all the other liberal brain dead.


Kenyan born artist Arlene Wandera moved to the UK with her family at a young age. Since obtaining her degree from the Slade School of Fine Art,London, she has gone on to participate in numerous exhibitions and projects in the UK and internationally. Most notably, she represented Kenya in the 57th Venice Biennale and participated at this year's Dak'Art Biennale. She is also one half of the collaborative duo Duck & Rabbit Projects. In this interview, the artist gives us a glimpse of how she arrives at her art, her inspirations, and aspirations.
Your art includes sculptures, installations, photography, drawing, sound, and performance and you don't wish to restrict yourself to a single medium. Having said that, have you found that certain ideas/artworks are better suited to certain mediums? How do you negotiate with what would be the best format for you to convey your message?
I think of myself as a maker, so this already determines how I begin the process of investigating ideas. The initial stages of working through an idea involve intuitively selecting objects and materials that feel right to start playing around with.
This is followed by the process of elimination and really thinking about whether the work can be articulated using a different medium. So, when an idea requires working with sound for example, a medium that isn't necessarily familiar to me, I usually like to do further research and also seek advice from professionals in the field. I prefer to be hands-on and learn about the process and techniques needed to produce an artwork. Sometimes that isn't realistic or possible, so a collaborative approach is something I also engage with.
How different is it when you are studying art as a student and later when you take it up as a profession? With the constantly evolving art scene, a landscape where new mediums/formats establish themselves as art each day, how do you think the academic space should adapt to produce artists/creatives?
I think learning is a life-long activity, and to a certain extent the line between being a student and a professional becomes blurred in that respect. Having said that, both time and practice are vital ingredients in sharpening and honing one's creative abilities. What I have noticed about my current practice compared to when I was studying at the Slade School of Art is that I am able to explore ideas with more direction and more efficiency.
I also think that the academic spaces and institutions (particularly in London, as this is the space I occupy) are adapting to the ever evolving art scene that embraces new mediums and formats.
In a post-colonial world where writers like Frantz Fanon and Ngugi wa Thiongo have elaborated on the identity crisis faced by people whose own cultures are wiped out by the coloniser's culture, you have often seemed to derive strength out of your liminality. How does this realisation feature in your artworks?
Being born in Nairobi and then being raised in the UK was a choice made for me by my parents. That choice created a space for me to occupy two cultures both in my personal life and in my practice. I embrace the duality and accept it for what it is, and I think it's a beautiful thing. One that makes it effortless to derive strength from. So within my practice, it makes sense for me to combine western sculpting techniques with the repurposing techniques I learnt in my childhood to make the toys I played with.
In our effort to rid ourselves of binaries/categories, it seems like the 21st century has come up with even more labels. Do you ever feel bogged down by the expectations people might have from you/ your art due to your racial/gender identity?
No, not really. I am only concerned with the labels and expectations that I create for myself because external labels and expectations can be a dangerous path to travel when making art. It is important for me to inhabit a space where I have the freedom to engage with my imagination and ideas and also use that space to constantly challenge ideas.
How much has the Kenyan art scene changed over the past decade? What do you think the future holds for Kenyan artists in an environment that is encouraging global participation?
As my practice is based in the UK, my engagement with the Kenyan Art scene is currently rather limited. Having said that, Nairobi has the space to critically engage with contemporary art in a dynamic way. Recently, I have found myself engaging with more peers based in Nairobi, so my plan is to return there for a few months to figure out the lay of the land (art scene-wise), engage with artists and simply create.


I came to Santa Clara from Washington State (Seattle) and found that there were a ton of people from the Northwest. After California natives themselves, Seattlites represent the majority of the student population. The campus is beautiful and the people are very friendly and laid-back. I found the course work to be much less difficult than in high school and I ended up with way too much free time. You will find this is the case with most students and, thus, they donate a much higher percentage of time to socializing/partying. San Francisco and Santa Cruz are very close, but inconvenient to get to and people rarely pay them a visit. In general, I have been extremely bored here. The kids are nice, but not all that interesting. The campus is pretty, but there isn't much to do. The academics are well-respected, but not challenging. In general, I have a neutral and "blah" opinion of the school. I have no found the students to be arrogant or snooty and most are very open-minded. Although the Greek life is not associated with the university, it has a huge presence and I would definitely recommend joining.


Ok…no more dragging my feet. This race report isn't going to write itself.
People keep asking me "how did it go?" Honestly…it sucked. It didn't go how I wanted it to go. The marathon definitely ranks in the top ten best worst days of my life.
Do you know what "worst case scenario" is when it comes to training 16 weeks for a marathon? Waking up with a stomach bug / food poisoning 12am the morning of the race. Worst case scenario.
I cried. I moaned. I lost 3lbs from 12am to 6am. Starting a marathon dehydrated was the last thing I thought I would deal with. I'll spare you the gross bathroom details, but I will say I managed not to throw up. The minute I start puking, my body shuts down and the dehydration gets BAD. I've lost count of the number of times I've ended up with an IV in my arm from that kind of dehydration.
I considered my options. I googled upcoming marathons in 2015. Tulsa? Dallas? I even contemplated endless loops of Derby High Park with the crazy ultrarunners this coming weekend.
Ultimately, I pulled up my big girl pants, dosed myself with enough dramamine and zofran to put Tiny Boy to sleep for a week, laced up my shoes and headed to the starting line. Was it my smartest move? Nope. Was it my gutsiest? Yep.
Mr. Neon told me he wouldn't leave me. He would do what we needed to do to get me to the finish line.
We started off fairly well, considering how I felt. Whatever illness I was fighting managed to ebb just enough that I was able to keep a sub-5:00-marathon goal pace for the first half of the race. Around mile 5, I started to experienced some low abdominal cramping that bordered on stabbing pain. We'd walk a little here and there for me to stretch out my sides. The low pain went away around mile 14, only to be replaced by intense lower back pain. I would have to stop every 5-10 minutes to bend over and then get down in a squat to stretch out my back. I had a cyclist aid person follow me around for a couple of miles to make sure I was ok. I was not ok, but I wasn't going to stop moving. By mile 18, my run was done. We power walked. We played run to that cone, walk to that cone. The miles ticked by so slowly. We met some interesting people at the back of the pack. A guy from South Carolina who is trying to run a marathon in every state. He doesn't even own a Garmin. Prairie Fire was number 27 for him. We met some Galloway disciples. Their beeps every 90 and 30 seconds made me crazy, but they were having fun. We walked for a while with a fellow sufferer. She was on pace for a 4:30 marathon when her hips started hurting. She walked the last half of the race at a seriously impressive steady walk pace.
Every time I had to stop to catch my breath or stretch or let a wave of nausea past, Mr. Neon would yell, "Up. One foot in front of the other." The last mile took us 18+ minutes. Mr. Neon yelled at me to look up…"The finish line is right there! The Hyatt is right there. Don't stop!" If he hadn't stayed beside me, I would have stopped.
The bridge was in sight. I knew we were going to come in under 6 hours. I figured everyone else had gone home. But no…we had friends waiting. Blanca, Will, Monica, and Will and Monica's two boys were there. They walked us to the bridge and then they got me running again. It was the slowest little jog I have ever done. But I ran up and over that bridge and there were my boys. Runner Boy was jumping up and down. I heard Tiny Boy scream, "Go Mommy! Go Daddy!" And I crossed that finish line at 5:55. Ouch.
I immediately doubled over. A volunteer girl put my medal around my neck (Oh…that big glorious medal. It's the prettiest thing I've ever seen!), unscrewed a water bottle, and laughed when I barked at her that I didn't want purple gatorade. I shuffle walked to the finisher tshirt tables and yelled at the lady that I wanted a small. My mom laughed and ran ahead to get it for me. (By the way, my badass mom ran a 2:44 half!) All I wanted to do was sit down, which I did on a curb in the parking lot.
I'm still a jumble of emotions when I think about those nearly 6 hours between the start and the finish of my first marathon. The whole thing was a blur of pain and frustration. But these are the conclusions I made in dwelling on all of it.
I love my family and my friends. I can't believe they stayed.
I'm stronger than I thought. Stubborn. Tough. If I can run a marathon in those conditions, what can I do in ideal conditions?
I don't hate running. No matter how many times I said it.
I will run another marathon, even though I told my dad while sitting on that curb that I wouldn't. Good thing, he didn't make me write it down and sign it.
Marathon training broke me. I forgot to love running. I made it a chore, another thing on the to-do list.
When running stops being fun, it's time to change gears.
XTing is making a comeback. My bicycle and I are going to make friends again. The dust is getting blown off the PiYo DVDs.
A smile? A grimace? I was so glad to see that finish line. Until next time, Prairie Fire. Maybe you'll be kinder to me in 2016. Please?


text:
Q: Run animation on clicking Browser Back button Please, is it possible to run an animation on the click of a browser button? And how?
I know it is possible with some Ajax manipulation, I believe.
Here is what I have now.
I got two divs with the class .wrapper both a 10% and sitting side by side in a parent div called .flatbed, width 1000%.
(Only one .wrapper class is revealed at a time.)
Now, when I click #new_workspace (a button), this happens
$('#new_workspace').click(function()
{
    $('.flatbed').animate({left:'-100%'})
});

This sends the first .wrapper class to left, out of the browser's viewport and reveals the second .wrapper class.
I reverse this animation with
    $('#back_to_workspace').click(function()
{
    $('.flatbed').animate({left:'0%'})

});

My problem now, is triggering this reverse animation with the browser back button.
Help please :(
Thanks.
Something like this http://www.marlene-portfolio.com/

A: You can't (browser security restriction). You can tell if the user navigates away from the page (onbeforeunload, onunload fire) but you can't tell where they went (back, forward, another url etc.). So in short its not possible to accomplish what you are trying to do.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
John Fallon may refer to:

John Fallon (businessman), CEO of Pearson PLC
John Fallon (footballer) (born 1940), Scottish footballer
John Fallon (golfer) (1913–1985), Scottish golfer
John A. Fallon, former president of Eastern Michigan University
John Fallon Colohan (1862–1932), Ireland's first motorist
John Fallon, discoverer in 1875 of gold in Telluride, Colorado, putting it on the map
John Fallon, 1911 United States amateur boxing champion
John Fallon, priest at Holy Spirit Catholic Regional School
John Fallon, actor who appeared in the 1981 horror film Final Exam
John Fallon (photographer), American surrealist photographer and filmmaker

See also
John Fallon Field, Albany, New York
John Fallon Drive, Cranmore, Sligo, Ireland


Please notice just below document on how long does it take for nail polish to dry under uv light.
It is going to be safer to copy one in place of directly trying it upon your nails, if you're not too great at painting. At if you take a look at your nails, they will certainly lead you to truly feel happy from inside. Just use a nail file to produce your nails the perfect shape and buffer them till they usually have a all-natural shine.


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BAVA has had the honour of these illustrious astrologers lecturing at the 2018 Conference:
Sanjay Rath
Sanjay belongs to a traditional family of astrologers from Bira Balabhadrapur Sasan in Puri, Orissa. Internationally renowned and respected, he uses Brihat Parasara Hora Shastra, Jaimini Upadesa Sutras, Brihat Jataka and Saravali as the foundations of Jyotisha and also incorporates other Jyotish scriptures and sacred Vedic literature in his teachings. Author: Crux of Vedic Astrology, Remedial Measures in Astrology, Narayana Dashas and Jaimini's Upadesa Sutras. Website www.srath.com
Prof Jaya Shekhar
Jaya is a great exponent of Jyotish with an extensive following both in India and Europe. He is the author of various books including The Best Bet, and the forthcoming Shadbala. Jaya Sekhar has been the President of the Institute of Astrological Studies, Madras; the Vice-president of the Institute of Indian Astrology, Calcutta; and Research Director of the astrological section of Bharat Nirman, New Delhi.
He has presented papers, given conferences and conducted workshops on varied subjects such as palmistry, Vasthu and Hindu philosophy and yoga. His Intensive Palmistry workshop is available to buy>
Pandit Sharma C.S. Samavedula
Pandit Sharma is a 6th generation Sama Veda pandit and a Shri Vidya Upasaka. In 1990, after 12 years of study, Pandit Sharma received his Master's Degree in Vedic Studies (Ganapati Pandit). During this time he learnt the grammar and other aspects of Sanskrit and the performance of different kinds of pujas and yagyas.
In 2002, he founded the Vedic Yagya Center located in Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh, India and Fairfield, Iowa. His Center offers to individuals, organizations and businesses Vedic yagyas (sacred ceremonies), homams (ancient fire ceremonies), and pujas as prescribed in the Vedas and Shastras, the holy Indian scriptures. By utilizing the sound vibrations of specific Sanskrit mantras, these performances can help alleviate many problems of our modern times.
Komilla Sutton
Komilla Sutton is the Founder of the British Association of Vedic Astrology. She is on the Faculty of American College of Vedic Astrology and was on the Council of Astrological Association of Great Britain. She is one of the pioneers of Vedic Astrology in the West. She was awarded Jyotish Vachaspati from the Indian council of Astrology (ICAS) in recognition for her work in Jyotish. Her life work is to make this ancient knowledge more accessible and build bridges between the East and West. She has leading trips to India since 1999 and from 2013 she is sponsoring annual Vedic Astrology Conferences with the aim to promote new generation of Jyotish Masters and encourage their interaction with seasoned Masters of Jyotish knowledge.
Author: Nakshatra: Stars beyond the Zodiac, Personal Panchanga, The Essentials of Vedic Astrology, Lunar Nodes- Crisis and Redemption, Vedic Love Signs and Vedic Astrology.
Website: www.Komilla.com Facebook: www.facebook.com/KomillaSuttonVedicAstrology
Andrew Foss, PhD
Andrew has a PhD in Computing Science and is also an Oxford physics graduate with publications in Nature and other leading scientific journals. He is the author of the acclaimed book and ebook series Yoga of the Planets. He enjoys a deep love of music, art and poetry and has more than 30 years experience studying and teaching the Vedic wisdom around the world.
He is the Founding President of the BAVA, Editor of the BAVA Journal Gochara and is a certified Jyotish Pandit and Jaimini Scholar, the highest professional certifications in Vedic Astrology involving about a decade of intensive study. He has developed the unique, easy and powerful software Shri Jyoti Star that has become the first choice amongst Vedic Astrologers around the world.
Gordon Brennan
Gordon is a professional astrologer and dealer in Vedic astrology books. He teaches the BAVA courses and is tutor for SJC Study Group. Gordon is a BAVA committee member. See www.vedicbookservices.com
Rajan Pitamber
Rajan is a biochemist and businessman and long-time student of VA, specialising in Prashna/Horary astrology.
Keiko Ito
After studying western Astrology from a young age, Tokyo-based Keiko started learning Vedic Astrology in 2003 with her teacher, Komilla Sutton. Traveling regularly to India with Komilla to deepen her Vedic knowledge, Keiko has been part of the faculty at the Fresh Talents of Vedic Astrology in India, the BAVA Conference in London, the Annual Vedic Astrology Conference at Sivananda Yoga Farm in California and the Sedona Vedic Astrology Conference in Sedona, Arizona, USA. She regularly holds Jyotish-themed workshops at Sivananda Yoga Tokyo Center, is a full-time translator in four languages and a part-time Vedic astrologer with clients in Japan and worldwide.
Bulbul Barrett
Bulbul was introduced to vedic astrology at an early age whilst growing up in India, and those early experiences sowed the seed for her later interest in learning and applying the subject herself. She has now been practising astrology for the last 12 years with the British Association of Vedic Astrology, where she has lectures at their annual conference and has also been featured in Daily Candy, an online guide to London.
Vijaya Subramanian
Vijaya had a successful 17 year career as investment professional. She is a practising Vedic astrologer and has obtained the certificate of Jyotisha Pandita, after studying the Brihat Parasara Hora Sastra with her Guru Pandit Sanjay Rath. She is currently enrolled with him to study the Jaimini Sutras and Mantra Sastra. She is studying Vedanta under the guidance of Swami Parmarthananda, a disciple of Swami Dayananda of Arsha Vidya, and is also pursuing Sanskrit studies in SOAS University, London. www.vijayajyoti.com
Kanwel Thapar
Kanwel Thapar has been an ardent student of Astrology for more than 30 years. His study started with Western Astrology under the Faculty of Astrological Studies, London. Greek and Roman mythology was his strong interest which gelled well with these studies. Later, he changed focus to study Vedic Astrology by joining BAVA, London in its very early years. He has regularly attended the conferences, workshops and webinars delivered by BAVA.
His first Jyotish Guru is Komilla Sutton who tutored him on advanced Jyotish courses. He is expanding his Jyotish learning by studying Pandit Sanjay Rath's teachings under Steve Hubball (Jaimini Guru) and Visti Larsen (Parashara Guru). He has strong interests in Western and Vedic Esoteric traditions which are the foundation of his spiritual leanings.


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It's also important to do a variety of tests so your doctor can get the full picture of your health. One or two markers don't always make for an accurate diagnosis. Oftentimes, as you work to adjust one biomarker you may unknowingly affect other biomarkers. So comprehensive testing, with monitoring and retesting, is very important as we talk about working to adjust men's (or women's) sexual hormones.
Men's levels of testosterone, a hormone known to affect men's mating behaviour, changes depending on whether they are exposed to an ovulating or nonovulating woman's body odour. Men who are exposed to scents of ovulating women maintained a stable testosterone level that was higher than the testosterone level of men exposed to nonovulation cues. Testosterone levels and sexual arousal in men are heavily aware of hormone cycles in females.[46] This may be linked to the ovulatory shift hypothesis,[47] where males are adapted to respond to the ovulation cycles of females by sensing when they are most fertile and whereby females look for preferred male mates when they are the most fertile; both actions may be driven by hormones.
Christopher Walker is a co-founder of UMZU and creator of the Thermo Diet. He is the first person to get a Duke Neuroscience degree in 3 years. After naturally solving his own health complications with a brain tumor as a teenager, he has devoted his life to creating all-natural products and education to help men, women, children and pets to improve their own health naturally using science-backed research.
The effects of testosterone in humans and other vertebrates occur by way of multiple mechanisms: by activation of the androgen receptor (directly or as DHT), and by conversion to estradiol and activation of certain estrogen receptors.[109][110] Androgens such as testosterone have also been found to bind to and activate membrane androgen receptors.[111][112][113]
Some boys even develop enlarged testicles and penis, armpit or pubic hair, as well as facial hair as early as age nine! Early puberty is not something to be taken lightly because it can significantly influence physical and psychological health, including an increased risk of hormone-related cancers. Precocious sexual development may also lead to emotional and behavioral issues, such as:
Autopsy studies have found histological prostate cancer to be very common, with one series showing a prevalence of greater than fifty percent in men over age sixty (Holund 1980). The majority of histological cancers go undetected so that the clinical incidence of the disease is much lower, but it is still the most prevalent non-skin cancer in men (Jemal et al 2003). Prostate cancer is also unusual in comparison to other adult cancers in that the majority of those with the disease will die of other causes. Treatment of prostate cancer with androgen deprivation is known to be successful and is widely practiced, indicating an important role for testosterone in modifying the behavior of prostate cancer. In view of this, testosterone treatment is absolutely contraindicated in any case of known or suspected prostate cancer. The question of whether testosterone treatment could cause new cases of prostate cancer, or more likely cause progression of undiagnosed histological prostate cancer that would otherwise have remained occult, is an important consideration when treating ageing males with testosterone.
Many studies demonstrate an improvement in mood of hypogonadal men treated with testosterone (Wang et al 1996; Azad et al 2003). The relationship between testosterone status and mood, particularly depression, remains unresolved. Using Beck's Depression Inventory, Barrett-Connor and colleagues found that the depression score worsened as men aged, exactly at a time when testosterone levels are decreasing (Barrett-Connor et al 1999). Pope and colleagues found that testosterone treatment in men with refractory depression lowered the Hamilton Depression rating scale and the Clinical Global Impression severity rating (Pope et al 2003). The Beck Depression Inventory remained unchanged in Pope's study.
"Eat often if you want to keep your testosterone high. People who go on starvation diets are destroying their testosterone levels. Its one of the worst things you can do." – It is proved scientifically that fasting increases testosterone and HGH levels, and when you eat, insulin levels go up, testosterone goes down! so eating often will keep insulin levels up and T….
14. Volek JS, Volk BM, Gómez AL, Kunces LJ, Kupchak BR, Freidenreich DJ, Aristizabal JC, Saenz C, Dunn-Lewis C, Ballard KD, Quann EE, Kawiecki DL, Flanagan SD, Comstock BA, Fragala MS, Earp JE, Fernandez ML, Bruno RS, Ptolemy AS, Kellogg MD, Maresh CM, Kraemer WJ. Whey protein supplementation during resistance training augments lean body mass. J Am Coll Nutr. 2013;32(2):122-35. PMID: 24015719
The largest amounts of testosterone (>95%) are produced by the testes in men,[2] while the adrenal glands account for most of the remainder. Testosterone is also synthesized in far smaller total quantities in women by the adrenal glands, thecal cells of the ovaries, and, during pregnancy, by the placenta.[126] In the testes, testosterone is produced by the Leydig cells.[127] The male generative glands also contain Sertoli cells, which require testosterone for spermatogenesis. Like most hormones, testosterone is supplied to target tissues in the blood where much of it is transported bound to a specific plasma protein, sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG).
Supplement nutrients when levels are low. Low levels of zinc and vitamin D may contribute to low testosterone levels in teenage boys, so increasing these nutrients through diet or dietary supplements can also help boost your testosterone. If your zinc and/or vitamin D levels are already normal, though, use caution before further increasing those levels with supplements.
This over-the-counter supplement is intended to increase your body's level of testosterone to its highest. The manufacturer also advertises the positive effect that the drug can have on your sex life and achieving muscle growth. As a supplement, you are instructed to take four capsules each night before bed. On training days, recommended dosage is two capsules before you workout. Ingredients found in the product include tribulis terristris, long jack, maca root and epimedium.
Partake in short-term high-intensity exercise. Casual walking is great for weight loss, but high-intensity exercise (such as playing soccer, swimming or lifting weights) can directly stimulate testosterone production. However, the key is how long you spend doing the exercise as well as your intensity levels. Short bouts of high-intensity exercise (weightlifting in particular) has a proven positive effect on increasing testosterone levels and preventing its depletion in teenage and older males.[2] Thus, keep your workouts relatively short (no more than 30 minutes) and try to go full out in as safe a manner as possible. Working out for longer periods (an hour or more) at less intense levels can sometimes reduce testosterone levels in men / boys.
Why niacinamide could positively impact 5-a reduced androgens? It's complex, but simply put, its a crucial part of this compound called NADPH (Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate). And NADPH is a co-factor in many anabolic/androgenic reactions of the body, including both testosterone and dihydrotestosterone production (NADPH is needed for the production of 5-ar enzyme).
If your levels are indeed low, there are a number of synthetic and bioidentical testosterone products on the market, as well as DHEA, which is the most abundant androgen precursor prohormone in the human body, meaning that it is the largest raw material your body uses to produce other vital hormones, including testosterone in men and estrogen in women.
Some of them can benefit dieters or competitive athletes. These individuals often experience significant decreases in their testosterone levels as a result of the restrictive or stressful exercise or diet regimen. It is worth mentioning that many of them can actually benefit healthy and hyper-active individuals (for example, professional weight lifters), but we can't know that for sure because there aren't enough studies to back up this claim.
Findings that improvements in serum glucose, serum insulin, insulin resistance or glycemic control, in men treated with testosterone are accompanied by reduced measures of central obesity, are in line with other studies showing a specific effect of testosterone in reducing central or visceral obesity (Rebuffe-Scrive et al 1991; Marin, Holmang et al 1992). Furthermore, studies that have shown neutral effects of testosterone on glucose metabolism have not measured (Corrales et al 2004), or shown neutral effects (Lee et al 2005) (Tripathy et al 1998; Bhasin et al 2005) on central obesity. Given the known association of visceral obesity with insulin resistance, it is possible that testosterone treatment of hypogonadal men acts to improve insulin resistance and diabetes through an effect in reducing central obesity. This effect can be explained by the action of testosterone in inhibiting lipoprotein lipase and thereby reducing triglyceride uptake into adipocytes (Sorva et al 1988), an action which seems to occur preferentially in visceral fat (Marin et al 1995; Marin et al 1996). Visceral fat is thought to be more responsive to hormonal changes due to a greater concentration of androgen receptors and increased vascularity compared with subcutaneous fat (Bjorntorp 1996). Further explanation of the links between hypogonadism and obesity is offered by the hypogonadal-obesity-adipocytokine cycle hypothesis (see Figure 1). In this model, increases in body fat lead to increases in aromatase levels, in addition to insulin resistance, adverse lipid profiles and increased leptin levels. Increased action of aromatase in metabolizing testosterone to estrogen, reduces testosterone levels which induces further accumulation of visceral fat. Higher leptin levels and possibly other factors, act at the pituitary to suppress gonadotrophin release and exacerbate hypogonadism (Cohen 1999; Kapoor et al 2005). Leptin has also been shown to reduce testosterone secretion from rodent testes in vitro (Tena-Sempere et al 1999). A full review of the relationship between testosterone, insulin resistance and diabetes can be found elsewhere (Kapoor et al 2005; Jones 2007).
"This study establishes testosterone levels at which various physiological functions start to become impaired, which may help provide a rationale for determining which men should be treated with testosterone supplements," Finkelstein says. "But the biggest surprise was that some of the symptoms routinely attributed to testosterone deficiency are actually partially or almost exclusively caused by the decline in estrogens that is an inseparable result of lower testosterone levels."
Both men and women with Alzheimer's Disease were found to have an increased concentration of SHBG and decreased free androgen index when compared with controls (Paoletti et al 2004). In a prospective study of 574 men whose baseline age span was 32–87 years and who were followed for a mean of 19.1 years (range, 4–37), the risk of developing Alzheimers' Disease decreased 26 percent for each 10 unit increase in free testosterone index. The authors concluded that testosterone may be important for the prevention and treatment of AD (Moffat et al 2004).
Remember that each person is unique, and each body responds differently to treatment. TT may help erectile function, low sex drive, bone marrow density, anemia, lean body mass, and/or symptoms of depression. However, there is no strong evidence that TT will help memory recall, measures of diabetes, energy, tiredness, lipid profiles, or quality of life.
Write down a list of the people you need to forgive and then do so. You can do that just yourself, between you and God, or you can do that in person — but it really is important. You can also turn to the Bible and other personal growth books, or seek out the help of a counselor or a good church. Really take care of those emotional issues, specifically resentment, unforgiveness, anger and frustration, and you'll see that's going to really help you cleanse you and detoxify spiritually. It's going to also help naturally raise your testosterone levels.
Once your elevate testosterone levels, you will also sharpen your focus, enhance sports performance, and enjoy enormous competitive spirit. You will also soon notice that the lack of motivation is no longer your problem. Being highly motivated and aggressive due to the action of testosterone boosters, you will experience better muscle gain. Whether you are a novice or a professional sportsman, you will quickly reach your sports goals.
Natural remedies for treating erectile dysfunction Erectile dysfunction has many causes, can affect any male, and is often distressing? Some people advocate several different natural remedies, mostly herbs and other plants. Here, we look at their merits and side effects, plus lifestyle changes, and alternative therapies that may bring relief for erectile dysfunction. Read now


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Programs & Projects ›
Young Leaders of the Americas Initiative ›
Professional Host Placements ›
What are the specific responsibilities of Michiana host organizations that wish to participate in the YLAI Program?
Attend an orientation session in late August or early September on the Notre Dame campus.
Provide a fellowship opportunity, four days a week for four weeks. Specific workday hours may be flexible on a case-by-case basis (for instance, after-school organizations that open in the afternoons).
Include your YLAI Fellow in a variety of activities to give them a window into how the organization operates.
Provide a workspace for the YLAI Fellow.
Allow 1-2 hours during each workday for the YLAI Fellow to work on their own project.
Actively mentor the YLAI Fellow concerning their project throughout the four weeks.
Allow the YLAI Fellow to feel like a valued member of your organization's team.
What are the specific responsibilities of the NDIGD team?
Match YLAI Fellows with appropriate host organizations.
Arrange reliable and timely transportation to and from the location of each host organization.
Arrange lodging and logistics for the YLAI Fellows.
Daily check-ins with each YLAI Fellow.
Weekly check-ins with each host organization.
Programming in the evenings and for each Friday.
All reporting and communication with the U.S. Department of State and Meridian International.
Who are the YLAI Fellows?
The YLAI Fellows are emerging business or social entrepreneurs who have a demonstrated track record of at least two years of recent or current (and preferably successful) experience with either start-up businesses or social ventures.
What does it mean to be a YLAI host organization?
A host organization's emphasis should be on the YLAI Fellow as an individual, their career, and supporting their individual growth. You will serve as a facilitator—teacher, role model, sounding board, and friend—focused on what can reasonably be accomplished during the time the YLAI Fellow will spend at their host organization or company.
The ideal host organization should:
Be a micro-, small- or medium-enterprise, nonprofit, civic organization, or social venture in the Michiana region.
Have an interest in mentoring a young professional.
Be willing to make the YLAI Fellow a temporary, but valued member of their team.
Have an interest or experience in Latin America or the Caribbean.
What do YLAI Fellows expect to gain from the program?
The YLAI Professional Fellows Program helps entrepreneurs further develop their business plans by providing skills-building workshops and opportunities to learn from U.S. counterparts. YLAI Fellows will also develop stronger ties with participants from Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as with their U.S. hosts and partners.
While the YLAI Fellows will have opportunities for networking with potential partners and/or investors, they will be advised that the main objective of the program is to help them gain the skills necessary to further develop their business. Therefore, they should not come to the U.S. expecting to secure funding during the program.
What should my organization expect to gain from the program?
The prestigious YLAI program, funded by the U.S. Department of State, offers host organizations the opportunity to grow their networks throughout the Americas by connecting in a personal and professional manner with their local YLAI cohort and in particular with their YLAI Fellow. Your organization will benefit from the unique perspective and entrepreneurial skills of an outstanding young leader from Latin America or the Caribbean.
The 250 YLAI Fellows who will take part in this program in the fall will be the top applicants of a rigorous application and interview process that takes into account their levels of experience and the quality of their business plans. Selected host organizations will have the opportunity to take part in a reverse exchange, during which they will have the opportunity to travel to their YLAI Fellow's home country for continued collaboration, cultural immersion, and professional programming.
Will I be compensated for my involvement as a host organization?
YLAI host organizations will not be compensated financially for their involvement in the program.
How would my YLAI Fellow spend their time in my office?
Our goal is to make this a two-way exchange that creates opportunities for both parties to learn from each other. Possible activities that YLAI Fellows might take part in include: regular staff meetings; communications or public relations meetings; discussions on fundraising, development, or proposals; discussions on specific projects or programs; technical meetings; organizational events; public events and networking opportunities; job shadowing; one-on-one meetings with relevant staff members; working as part of a team on a project or event; client meetings; partner meetings.
YLAI Fellows will dedicate some of their time to developing a strategic action plan (SAP) that might focus on expanding their customer/donor/member base, scaling their business, building a new initiative, and the like. YLAI host organizations can offer constructive feedback, resources, relevant research, local contacts, and the like. that might help strengthen their YLAI Fellow's SAP.
What sort of ongoing responsibilities will I, the primary contact at a host organization, have during the program?
We recommend that you set aside time for brief daily check-ins, make sure your YLAI Fellow has a clear understanding of their daily schedule, and check-in weekly with a local YLAI program staff member at Notre Dame. These local staff members and the full-time YLAI team in Washington, D.C., will be there to support you throughout the program.
Will YLAI Fellows have insurance?
The U.S. Department of State will provide accident and medical coverage for the duration of the program.
Is there any financial responsibility associated with becoming a YLAI host organization?
No. YLAI Fellows will be provided with local lodging in their fellowship city and a stipend for meals, incidentals, and transportation to and from the host organization location. If the YLAI Fellow is accompanying the host to an event or meeting as part of the program, the host is welcome to provide transportation.
What is the age range of selected YLAI Fellows?
Fellows are between 21-35 years old.
What countries are YLAI Fellows from?
Numerous countries across Latin America and the Caribbean, including: Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Aruba, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Curacao, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, St. Maarten, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay, and Venezuela.
In what areas do the YLAI Fellows specialize in?
We anticipate their specialization in a wide variety of sectors including healthcare, technology, civic leadership, and more. Our goal is to connect each YLAI Fellow with an appropriate organization for their respective sector of interest, so that it is a mutually beneficial experience.
How prepared are the YLAI Fellows to visit and work in the United States?
We anticipate that the YLAI Fellows will range in their international traveling and business experience, but the YLAI team will adequately prepare the YLAI Fellows about what to expect during this experience. The YLAI team has also designed an on-boarding training and orientation for the YLAI Fellows to attend once they arrive in the United States prior to traveling to Notre Dame and Michiana. The chosen YLAI Fellows will have proficiency in written and oral English that qualifies them to have working-level knowledge of English.
Mandela Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders


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Home » How to Run Over the Competition in 2016
Editor's AngleTrends & Industry Issues
How to Run Over the Competition in 2016
Savvy systems integrators will tell you which competitors to be watchful of and what you can do to ensure profitability in SDM's 2016 Industry Forecast Study report.
Laura Stepanek
KEYWORDS security
Aren't you getting tired of seeing a do-it-yourself security or home control display in almost every retail store you go into? Or a new mass-marketed, low-cost security system advertised on TV practically every day? The level of competition in the security market is perhaps the highest it has ever been — and not just in residential. In the non-residential sector, systems integrators are being squeezed by entities such as managed network providers, who are bundling security with other business services to offer savings to clients.
At the same time, it truly has been enlightening to see how each of these new competitors is approaching the market with their own unique definition and concept of security. I sometimes ask, "Why didn't our industry think of that first?"
Some of these new offerings are giving rise to how the traditional security industry is changing. Great example: a self-installed security system that the customer buys online, controls through a smartphone (no keypad whatsoever), but is professionally monitored and has dealers benefiting from the RMR. This is a new business from industry veterans called DragonFly Security. (See page 46 and online at www.SDMmag.com/dragonfly.)
This is a great time to be operating in the security marketplace because of the opportunities it provides. But it's also a difficult time for some integrators who have not been able to revamp parts of their business that aren't profitable or are losing money. They may find it helpful to read about the experiences of other dealers and integrators.
In this month's cover story, "Is the Security Space too Congested?" beginning on page 58, we present commentary from a small panel of integrators who are facing today's new breed of competitors head on, together with the results of SDM's 2016 Industry Forecast Study. We hope you will find our coverage valuable for concluding how your business performed compared with industry averages, and for stirring ideas on how you can be a stronger competitor this year. For example, the cloud.
"I think that's the next step and it's going to change everything across the board, in ways we can't even imagine. I don't see it as a threat and I'm not sure if it's an opportunity either. It's an unknown at this point, but it's certainly a real factor," believes Dean Belisle of ACT NOW! ALARM, featured on this month's cover.
From all of us at SDM, we wish you a peaceful and healthful new year — and a prosperous one for your business.
Recent Articles by Laura Stepanek
On the Cusp of the Future
Monitoring Best Practices
Messages from 14th ACCC: Openness & Partnerships
Strive to Be Easier
As Editor of SDM, Laura Stepanek is responsible for the overall editorial direction of the magazine, its supplements, e-newsletters and website. She works with the SDM editorial staff to develop content that helps security dealers and systems integrators operate successful businesses. Laura represents SDM at trade shows and conferences, often presenting the results of exclusive research studies such as the SDM Industry Forecast. She writes and edits a variety of articles, and manages the annual SDM 100 and Top Systems Integrators reports. Laura joined SDM in 1984. She holds a bachelor's degree in English from Barat College of DePaul University. Contact Laura with article ideas.
Prepare for New Competition in the Alarm Market
2016 SDM 100: Home Run
SDM 2016 Industry Forecast: Is the Security Space Too Congested?
The Rise of Smart Cities: How to Tackle the Market
Security Central