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Tag: Nellie Bly
The Woman They Could Not Silence
Published on November 9, 2021 by Kate Braithwaite1 Comment
1860: As the clash between the states rolls slowly to a boil, Elizabeth Packard, housewife and mother of six, is facing her own battle. The enemy sits across the table and sleeps in the next room. Her husband of twenty-one years is plotting against her because he feels increasingly threatened—by Elizabeth's intellect, independence, and unwillingness to stifle her own thoughts. So he makes a plan to put his wife back in her place. One summer morning, he has her committed to an insane asylum.
The horrific conditions inside the Illinois State Hospital in Jacksonville, Illinois, are overseen by Dr. Andrew McFarland, a man who will prove to be even more dangerous to Elizabeth than her traitorous husband. But most disturbing is that Elizabeth is not the only sane woman confined to the institution. There are many rational women on her ward who tell the same story: they've been committed not because they need medical treatment, but to keep them in line—conveniently labeled "crazy" so their voices are ignored.
No one is willing to fight for their freedom and, disenfranchised both by gender and the stigma of their supposed madness, they cannot possibly fight for themselves. But Elizabeth is about to discover that the merit of losing everything is that you then have nothing to lose…
There are plenty of comparisons to be made between Elizabeth Packard and Nellie Bly. Both brave. Both resolute. Both grounded in self-belief. Both seeking change and better circumstances for women. Both building relationships with the doctors responsible for their care. But there are also key differences.
Nellie Bly entered the Blackwell's Island Asylum of her own free will. She did so at great personal risk, yes, but with some confidence that her incarceration would be of a reasonably short duration. She also had a goal in mind – the promise of a job at the New York World newspaper. Elizabeth Packard didn't have a choice. The wrongful imprisonment and mistreatment of women was important to both, but while Nellie moved on to other issues and causes, Elizabeth Packard's whole live became devoted to women's legal rights.
In some ways, Elizabeth Packard is who I imagined Nellie Bly was before I learned her whole story. Although Nellie gets a lot of credit for changing the way asylums were viewed and funded, for me her achievements are in the field of work for women, and succeeding in a man's world. Elizabeth Packard not only survived her incarceration, she fought to change the system that put her there.
The Woman They Could Not Silence is a fabulous read. Definitely my top non-fiction book of the year. If you enjoyed The Girl Puzzle, you should definitely read this book!
Categories Books read, Nellie Bly, Non-fiction•Tags Book recommendations, book reviews, Elizabeth Packard, insane asylums, Kate Moore, Nellie Bly, Women in history, women's history
Monday Bookishness – a new Nellie Bly novel!
Published on October 26, 2020 October 25, 2020 by Kate BraithwaiteLeave a comment
It's a pleasure to share news of another author who has brought the amazing Nellie Bly to life in historical fiction. Tonya Mitchell's A Feigned Madness was released earlier this month and I couldn't wait to compare notes with her and see what what made of the incomparable Ms Bly. Here's our Q&A:
When did you first hear of Nellie Bly and when did you know you wanted to write a novel about her?
Waaaay back in 2014, I stumbled on Nellie's asylum story online. It was a blog I think, and it caught my attention right away because the title was about 'badass historical women.' Nellie was one of the women featured. The piece had only a paragraph or two describing the harrowing ordeal at the asylum she underwent for the New York World, but I was immediately intrigued. Who was this remarkable woman? Why hadn't I ever heard of her?I then read her own account of what she experienced, Ten Days in a Mad-House. It was great reading, but as it was a reproduction of her newspaper story, it didn't reveal anything about her background. How did she get to do this story? What kind of woman would take such a risk? Who really was Nellie Bly? I then looked for the fictionalized novel about her stay at Blackwell's. To my astonishment, it didn't exist (again, this was back in 2014). I decided to write the story myself. I've always been a fan of dark, twisty, Gothic literature, and so it seemed the right story just fell into my lap. I spent many months reading up on everything I could get my hands on about her, and took two trips, one to Pittsburgh and another to New York City, to visit her old stomping grounds. I wasn't disappointed with what I found. Nellie Bly is one of the most fascinating women I've ever read about, and it was a thrill to bring her to life, once again, in A Feigned Madness.
Describe her character in 10 words.…
What's your favorite scene in A Feigned Madness?
There's a chapter where her first installment of the asylum exposé has hit the streets to great effect. It's the story everyone on Newspaper Row is talking about. Her second and last installment is due to run in just days—and it's the meaty one where the story picks up when she lands by ferry on the island and goes into the asylum. So she's in this very happy place waiting for the rest of her story to drop, but then a fellow reporter arrives and tells her Something Very Bad has happened and she heads for the World office at once. There's a lot of drama, a lot of tension, and she's wondering if her dreams will be dashed. I can't really say anything more, except once you're there, you'll know exactly what I'm talking about.
Tell me something you learned about Nellie Bly that didn't make it into the novel.
There is so much to tell about this woman and what she accomplished in her lifetime. Her asylum exposé was really just the tip of the iceberg. Nellie was just getting started! What I kept out are the many things she would go on to do that are out of the frame of the story because they happened later.
Nellie Bly 1890
If you could meet Nellie Bly and ask her 3 questions, what would they be?
What about your life do you regret the most?
2. What really happened between you and __________ (he'll be revealed in the novel, I promise!)
3. Did I do you justice?
What are you writing next?
I'm just beginning the research on a story that also takes place in the 19th century, this time in England. It's got a lot of dark, Gothic elements including England's body snatchers, the so-called Resurrection Men who dug up recently buried corpses and sold them to anatomy schools (I told you I liked dark and twisty!)
Tonya has a great quiz all about Nellie Bly on her website. You can find it here. Full disclosure – I did not get 20/20…. much to my chagrin!! LOL. Please do check it out, and more importantly, take a look at A Feigned Madness which you can find on Amazon in States here, in the UK here and in Canada here. Oh, and signed copies can be ordered here.
Categories Uncategorized•Tags author Q&A, Nellie Bly, New Book
When Nellie Bly met Susan B. Anthony
Published on August 28, 2020 by Kate Braithwaite1 Comment
Susan B. Anthony has been in the news lately. This year is the centenary of women (well, white women) getting the vote in America and then there has been a little bit of extra controversy about a presidential pardon. In 1872, Susan B. Anthony set out to cast a ballot in a presidential election. Firm in her belief that the Fourteenth Amendment gave her – as a US Citizen – the right to vote, she entered a barbershop in Rochester, New York, and persuaded the men working there as registrars, to register her and three of her sisters and allow them to vote in the election.
All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the state wherein they reside. No state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.
Fourteenth Amendment, Section 1.
As a citizen, she declared, she had the privilege of voting, and she cast her vote for the Republican incumbent, President Ulysses S. Grant. (He won.) But Susan B. Anthony's action, as she probably expected, did not go unnoticed. She ended up being arrested some days after the election and was charged with knowingly, wrongfully, and unlawfully voting. She was tried, found guilty and fined $100 – a fine, it should be noted, that she never paid. Her actions brought national attention to the question of equality.
Twenty four years later, Susan B. Anthony was interviewed by the journalist Nellie Bly. In early February, 1896, Anthony was just days away from her seventy-sixth birthday and Bly was thirty-one. Anthony had spent her life devoted to women's rights. Here's Bly's first impression:
She sat in a low rocking-chair, an image of repose and restfulness. Her well-shaped head, with its silken snowy hair combed smoothly over her ears, rested against the back of the chair. Her shawl had half-fallen from her shoulders and her soft black silk gown lay in gentle folds about her. Her slender hands lay folded idly in her lap, and her feet, crossed, just peeped from beneath the edge of her skirt. If she had been posed for a picture, it could not have been done more artistically or perfectly.
Nellie Bly, The World, February 2nd, 1896
In typical Nellie Bly style, the interview is wide-ranging and moves seamlessly from the serious to the personal and back again. Read it and you will learn how Anthony came by her middle name (Brownell), what she liked to eat for breakfast (fruit, grain and coffee), and how many times she had fallen in love. You'll discover a sharp intellect – she begins by asking her interviewer her own question about current events in Cuba – and a keen memory, as she describes with great good humor her years as a teacher. She lays out how she came to see that voting rights was the battle that had to be won before all others. In her own words:
I had barked up the temperance tree, and I had barked up the teachers' tree and I couldn't do anything. I had learned where our only hope rested.
Susan B. Anthony, The World, February 2nd, 1896
Susan B. Anthony looks very serious in this portrait, but Bly brings her to smiling life in her seven column interview. Anthony comes across as approachable, humorous, and intelligent, but also very human, rooted in her family, relentlessly committed to her cause, and full of optimism for the future. From her views on flowers, bicycles and bloomers, to her committed temperance (she never tasted alcohol in her life), Susan B. Anthony fully comes to life in this interview. As such, it is also a tribute to Nellie Bly's skills as a journalist, her readiness to ask questions big and small, and her ability to bring her subject's voice and character to her readers' attention. In Nellie's own words, "Miss Anthony enjoys a good joke and can tell one. She never fails to see the funny side of things though it be at her own expense."
Anyone curious to quickly know Susan B. Anthony, beyond the standard biographical record, could do a lot worse than read this whole interview. It's available on line as a pdf here, and photographed for slightly easier reading here. But as internet resources come and go, and as has been my habit during my research for The Girl Puzzle, I've also transcribed the whole thing and you can read it here. I hope you will!
Categories 19th century, Nellie Bly, Nellie Bly interviews, The Girl Puzzle•Tags Nellie Bly, New York World, suffrage, Susan B. Anthony, Women in history, Women journalists, Women's suffrage
Monday bookishness – Book pairing
Published on July 6, 2020 July 6, 2020 by Kate Braithwaite1 Comment
As a reader and writer of historical fiction, I always love the real history behind the stories and often read 'around' the novels I've enjoyed. No surprise then, that this post from Bookbub was right up my street:
If you click on the photo, you can read the article and see 9 well-known historical novels paired with a non-fiction counterpart. You'll see The Paris Wife on there, a book I really enjoyed a few years ago. It's paired with Ernest Hemingway's A Moveable Feast. I did read that after finishing The Paris Wife, as well as The Sun Also Rises and as I'd never read Hemingway before, I'm happy to say I got an extra benefit from picking up Paula McLain's novel.
Of course this got me thinking about my own book pairings. I have a shelf of research books for each novel so choosing just one is not easy, but if I had to do it, here's how I'd pair each of my 3 books to date:
Find out more about Charlatan here, and The Affair of the Poisons here.
And about The Road to Newgate here and The Strange Death of Edmund Godfrey here.
And finally take a look at The Girl Puzzle here and Nellie Bly, Daredevil, Reporter, Feminist here.
I'm SO tempted now to post a photo of the main non-fiction source for my current work in progress…. but I'm holding that back, at least for now 😉
Categories Books read, Charlatan, Historical fiction, Monday Bookishness, Nellie Bly, Research, The Girl Puzzle, The Road to Newgate•Tags Bookbub, Edmund Berry Godfrey, Hemmingway, historical background, Madame de Montespan, Nellie Bly, Paula McLain, reading list, Titus Oates
Escaping with a good book (for free!)
Published on April 11, 2020 April 11, 2020 by Kate Braithwaite1 Comment
I'll be honest… I've always read as a form of escapism. It's the quickest and easiest way to get out of the day-to-day and forget any worries – major or minor – that I might have.
So I was thrilled that my publisher Darkstroke/Crooked Cat wanted to make lots of our titles free to download over the Easter weekend.
The Girl Puzzle and The Road to Newgate are therefore FREE to download this weekend. Please grab them for free and know that when you read them, Amazon will pay me royalties (double win!). If you already have them, tell your friends! The more the merrier!
And if historical fiction is not your thing, please do look at all the other books that are FREE this weekend. I'm tweeting as many as I can at HERE.
I've loaded a few on the kindle myself for the long, quiet weeks ahead.
Happy reading xxx
Categories Comfort reading, Crooked Cat Books, Historical fiction, Selling books, The Girl Puzzle, The Road to Newgate•Tags easter, free books, Nellie Bly, Popish Plot., quarantine
5 feisty Nellie Bly quotes for #mondaymotivation
Published on May 20, 2019 May 20, 2019 by Kate BraithwaiteLeave a comment
Nellie Bly had a lot to say for herself over the years, priding herself on her frankness. Here's some fine examples…
Aged 21:
"The Mexicans surveyed myself and my chaperone in amazement. But I defied their gaze and showed them that a free American girl can accommodate herself to circumstances without the aid of a man."
Pittsburg Dispatch, June 20th, 1886
First article:
Take some girls that have the ability, procure for them situations, start them on their way, and by doing so accomplish more than by years of talking."
The Girl Puzzle, Pittsburg Dispatch, January 25th 1885
Re-visiting her madhouse story:
"Energy applied rightly and directed will accomplish anything."
Among the Mad, Godey's Lady's Book, 1889
Often motivational:
And one of my favorites:
"That women should work is necessary. That they should be treated with equality for their labor is just and right. There should be no difference in the recompense for work, whether done by a man or a woman, so long as it is done equally well."
New York Evening Journal, September 12th, 1921
Portrait of Nellie Bly Sitting in Chair — Image by © Bettmann/CORBIS
Nelly Bly. As consistent in her support for women's rights and equality for women in her 50's as she was in her 20's. Who wouldn't want to read a novel about her?
"a well-researched and engrossing tale that focuses on female empowerment," – Kirkus Reviews
"Grounded in historical research, brought to life by a novelist's imagination, here is Nellie Bly in all her fascinating complexity: outspoken, courageous, kind, clever, sometimes headstrong, other times self-doubting. "Grounded in historical research, brought to life by a novelist's imagination, here is Nellie Bly in all her fascinating complexity: outspoken, courageous, kind, clever, sometimes headstrong, other times self-doubting. In The Girl Puzzle Kate Braithwaite has created a character who is not easily forgotten." – Matthew Goodman, bestselling author of Eighty Days: Nellie Bly and Elizabeth Bisland's History-Making Race Around the World
"Everything a historical novel should be – illuminating, intriguing and intelligent. Kate Braithwaite has woven a fascinating and atmospheric story from what is known about the pioneering feminist journalist Nellie Bly (née Elizabeth Cochrane). Braithwaite skillfully blends Bly's early and later career to give a new insight into a remarkable and complex woman." – Olga Wojtas, author of Miss Blaine's Prefect and the Golden Samovar
Categories 19th century, 20th Century, Nellie Bly, The Girl Puzzle•Tags feminism, motivational quotes, Nellie Bly, quotes, Women in history
If walls had words… a brief history of the Blackwell's Island Lunatic Asylum
Published on May 14, 2019 May 14, 2019 by Kate Braithwaite2 Comments
Alexander Jackson Davis via Wikicommons
Blackwell's Island Lunatic Asylum – a pivotal location in The Girl Puzzle – was designed in 1834 by famous American architect Alexander Jackson Davis. His plan was for a U-shaped building near the tip of Blackwell's (now Roosevelt) Island looking across toward Manhattan, roughly level with Seventy-Ninth and Eightieth Street, but only a portion of the building was ever erected, with two wings stretching out at right angles from a central octagonal tower.
There was already a prison on the island, opened in 1832, and the addition of the asylum was part of a policy decision to locate institutions on 'quiet islands', including Blackwell's, Ward, Hart, Randalls and Long Island. With more construction on Blackwell's Island – including a Penitentiary Hospital, a Charity Hospital, an almshouse, a Smallpox Hospital and more – by 1872 there were eleven institutions operating on the Island. It's not hard to imagine that these islands were a convenient place to confine undesirable elements of society, notwithstanding the grand and costly architecture.
From the New York Public Library
This 1853 illustration appears tranquil at first glance. The scene is pastoral with a dog frolicking and a couple sitting under a tree. The asylum looks like a museum more than anything else. But what about that building on the left of the picture? What is that?? Is that the Lodge? Or the Retreat? – gentle, caring names for buildings that were anything but those things. As Stacy Horn writes in "Damnation Island – poor, sick, mad and criminal in 19th Century New York", things at the lunatic asylum "went south almost immediately." On the day that it opened, June 10th 1839, 116 men and 81 women were transferred there from Bellevue. That's 197 patients from day 1. The place was only supposed to house 200. Additional structures were added. Horn describes the Lodge, built in 1848, and the Retreat:
"The Retreat was built to house chronic cases, those who were suicidal and generally too "noisy" and unhinged for the main Asylum, but not as violent as the people sent to the Lodge."
By 1868, 190 women were housed in the Lodge (and there would still have been male inmates too). The building's capacity was 66. (2)
Nellie Bly's Ten Days in the Madhouse
When a new asylum for the insane was built on Ward Island in 1872, Blackwell's Asylum became an all-female establishment. Nellie Bly carried out her undercover work there in September and October of 1887 and brave though she was, Nellie was not fool enough to get herself sent to either the Lodge or the Retreat. Here's one of her descriptions:
"The insane asylum on Blackwell's Island is a human rat-trap. It is easy to get in, but once there it is impossible to get out. I had intended to have myself committed to the violent wards, the Lodge and Retreat, but when I got the testimony of two sane women and could give it, I decided not to risk my health – and hair – so I did not get violent."
Nellie's expose, detailing cold baths, dreadful food and the violent conduct of some staff had immediate effects. Doctors and nurses in the asylum read her articles and improvements were made, even before a Grand Jury was summoned to visit the Island and inspect the premises.
Entertainments in the Blackwell's Island Lunatic Asylum
Photo by Jacob Riis, likely of the women at Blackwell's Island Lunatic Asylum
In her 1887 expose, Nellie Bly described hours of tedium with women confined to hard benches with little to occupy them. Mild patients, according to her report, could work in a scrub-brush factory, a mat factory, and the laundry. Patients were expected to do housework, including keeping the wards and nurses bedrooms tidy. An important component of the daily routine was a walk in the asylum grounds but this was wholly weather dependent and strictly monitored by staff. Unruly patients walked roped together to keep them under control.
Other entertainments included dancing and a carousel. Nellie Bly reports that staffed danced with patients and both Halls she was placed in during her stay had a piano. This excellent post by Ephemeral New York, describes an annual Lunatic's Ball reported by Harper's Weekly:
Harper's Weekly, Dec 2, 1865
The one entertainment that Nellie Bly reports she heard much about, although never experienced due to poor weather, was a carousel. The following image is of the Central Park Carousel, built in 1871, so perhaps the Blackwell's Island one looked something like this:
1871 carousel, from carouselhistory.com
It's hard to imagine a group of grown women in their ill-fitting striped asylum dresses, shawls and battered hats riding round and round, but that's what they did.
Closing Blackwell's Island Lunatic Asylum
Following Nellie Bly's expose, changes were made in the asylum. Improvements were made to food and bathing arrangements as funding increases were approved. But in 1894, the Blackwell's Island Lunatic Asylum was closed and its patients dispersed into other facilities, particularly the on Ward Island where space became available after the opening of immigration facilities on Ellis Island.
The building, after significant renovation, became the Metropolitan Hospital, specializing in the treatment of tuberculosis. The hospital operated until 1955 but afterwards the building fell into disrepair. Today, only the original Octagon remains, but it has been restored. The building is an apartment complex and can be toured. More information here. If only the walls had words… imagine what stories they could tell.
Roosevelt Island today – The Octagon
I visited the Octagon in October 2018, and although the inside was closed so I didn't get to see the spiral staircase, just being on Roosevelt Island and seeing the building in person was wonderful. There are scenes in The Girl Puzzle that definitely benefited from that research trip. Here's my then & now photos of the asylum:
My photo, October 1918
Jacob Riis, 1880s (approx)
Sources & further reading:
"Images of America – Roosevelt Island", Judith Berdy and the Roosevelt Island Historical Society.
"Damnation Island – poor, sick, mad and criminal in 19th Century New York", Stacy Horn
www.asylumprojects.org
The Girl Puzzle – a story of Nellie Bly
Her published story is well known. But did she tell the whole truth about her ten days in the madhouse?
"…a well-researched and engrossing tale that focuses on female empowerment" Kirkus Reviews
"Here is Nellie Bly in all her fascinating complexity: outspoken, courageous, kind, clever, sometimes headstrong, other times self-doubting" Matthew Goodman.
"Everything a historical novel should be – illuminating, intriguing and intelligent." Olga Wojtas
Categories 19th century, 20th Century, Historical fiction, Nellie Bly, Non-fiction, Research, The Girl Puzzle•Tags asylum history, Blackwell's Island, Nellie Bly, New York asylums, Roosevelt Island, The Girl Puzzle
Another 5 lesser known facts about the amazing Nellie Bly
Published on April 30, 2019 by Kate BraithwaiteLeave a comment
It's Nellie Bly's birthday this weekend and in her honor, not only is The Girl Puzzle – a story of Nellie Bly being unleashed on the reading world, but I'm also gathering all my Nellie Bly knowledge and sharing it on my blog. In March I wrote my first 5 lesser known facts about Nellie post but I could have easily kept going. Here are 5 more facts about the amazing Miss Bly that I'm excited to share…
1. Nellie Bly was hoping for a female president of the United States as long ago as 1913
March 4th 1913 was inauguration day for a new president – Woodrow Wilson. Nellie Bly, in D.C. for the Women's Suffrage Parade the day before (she rode in horseback in the parade AND reported on the event for the New York Journal) slipped up onto the inauguration platform just minutes before the new president was sworn in. In her newspaper report the following day she described her thoughts. "Will you and I," she wondered, "ever see a woman stand there and take the oath of office?"
2. She organized a day trip/picnic to Coney Island Luna Park for 750 New York orphans on June 1st, 1920.
Coney Island's Luna Park in the 1920s. Photo: Archive Holdings Inc.
"Bly said the day was perfect." That's biographer Brooke Kroeger's account of Bly's characteristically confident self-appraisal of this feat of organization and planning. A feat it certainly was – involving the donated transport services of The Twentieth Century Brown and White Taxicab Association and the Manhattan Tourist Company to transport 750 children, and presumably some supervising staff, from Manhattan to Coney Island. Food was supplied by The Nedick Company and Mayor Hylan waved the 750 orphans off on their day trip from City Hall.
3. She was an early fan of motoring and even got caught speeding
Here's clipping from The Brooklyn Daily Eagle on October 5th 1909. The report details how Nellie and her chauffeur Albert were pulled over for speeding on their way to a stock-holders' meeting. Although arrested for traveling at 40 miles an hour, it later seemed that the arresting officer had 'bungled' the job, and the car was in reality only going at 21 miles an hour. This change in the story may well have had something to do with the status of Albert's passenger. In the article, Nellie is described as "a business woman clear through… she can give spade and clubs to many men of financial astuteness and beat them at their game." It is also noted that "she is extremely comely and was the center of considerable attention in court today."
4. Nellie Bly admired her fellow feminists most – when they were well-dressed
In January 1896, Bly reported on the National Women's Suffrage Convention and did not pull her punches when describing how poorly she felt the women were dressed. As well as the quote above, she wrote: "I never could see any reason for a woman to neglect her appearance merely because she is intellectually inclined. It certainly does not show any strength of mind. I take it rather as a weakness."
Still, she was happier some twenty-four years later when reporting on the Republican Convention in Chicago of 1920. She greatly enthused at the involvement of women in politics, but was as keen as ever to stress the importance of keeping up appearances. Of the women she saw there she wrote: "They are the cleverest and brainiest of their kind. That is why they have not neglected their appearance. For while they have fought and won the battle for equal rights with men, they did not forget that man is a creature of his eyes."
5. Her love life remains something of a mystery
Nellie Bly's private life is much less easy to follow than her professional one. She did marry, but her choice was surprising to some, and she was also romantically linked to several other men, including one of the doctors she encountered during her daring stay in the Blackwell's Island Lunatic Asylum in 1887. Here are a few of the key men in her life:
From left to right – Arthur Brisbane, James Stetson Metcalf, Dr Frank Ingram and Robert Seaman.
To learn more about Nellie Bly, check out the Nellie Bly Resource list on my blog and/or grab a copy of my novel, The Girl Puzzle – a story of Nellie Bly (Crooked Cat, 2019)
Categories 19th century, 20th Century, Historical fiction, Nellie Bly, The Girl Puzzle•Tags 5 facts about Nellie Bly, Coney Island, Nellie Bly, suffrage, The Girl Puzzle, Washington D.C., Woodrow Wilson
One month to go…
Published on April 5, 2019 April 5, 2019 by Kate Braithwaite2 Comments
So The Girl Puzzle is due to be foisted upon an unsuspecting world one month from today. It's a date chosen carefully – May 5th was Nellie Bly's birthday, 155 years ago.
If Nellie were in my shoes, she'd be a lot more upbeat. She was a go-getter – as I'm sure the book will show – although her life, like everyone else's, wasn't all success and accolades. Even as she achieved her ambition and got a much coveted job at Joseph Pulitzer's New York World newspaper, she faced stiff competition to keep her column in the Sunday edition. And although she changed the face of women's journalism by feigning madness and reporting from inside the Blackwell's Island Insane Asylum, her stunt reporting wasn't always serious or hard-hitting. Only a few months after her breakthrough articles about the madhouse took the newspaper industry by storm, Nellie was making her own dance costume and taking ballet lessons. On December 18th, 1887, The World published Learning Ballet Dancing – Nellie Bly in Short Gauze Skirts Kicks at the Mark. Here's my favourite section from that article:
Dressed at last in a ballet costume I looked at myself and marvelled at the change. There is everything in dress after all. I had entered a quiet, staid-looking spinster, and presto! I now looked like a sixteen-year-old girl and quite flippant and pert. I did not feel as I looked, however. All at once I grew painfully modest. It is not so bad to wear a bathing suit when everybody else around has one on, but when everybody is in full dress one would feel awfully short in a bathing costume. That was my position. I felt as if I had forgotten and gone to a full-dress reception in a bathing suit.
For an instant I was inclined to put on my street dress, and pleading sudden indisposition, take my leave, but I looked so healthy and there was no powder-puff around, so I was afraid the statement would not bear out. Several times I got up and started and my heart failed. I went back and sat down. I pulled at my skirts, but they would not lengthen. I began to fear the Professor would soon think I had fainted or committed suicide. "It's a go," I said mentally, and I opened the door and closed it rather quickly behind me, lest I should grow faint-hearted and go back in."
The illustrations demonstrate that Nellie did get out of the changing room and take her best shot at learning to ballet dance. Of course she did! "I never in my life turned back from a course I had started upon," she wrote in Among the Mad, in 1889. She went on: "I always say energy rightly applied and directed will accomplish anything."
I guess where I'm going with this, is that with 30 days to go until The Girl Puzzle is out, I think I need to channel some of my own character's confidence and determination.
I need to re-write that opening sentence to this post and not think that the story is being 'foisted' on the world, but that its ready to be shared. And if the world is unsuspecting, then it's on me to get the word out about the book, to believe in it, and in Nellie Bly, and do the right thing by her and by The Girl Puzzle.
It's available to pre-order now, on Amazon. You could have Nellie Bly arrive in all her glory on your kindle on May 5th. She's just a click or two away… The Girl Puzzle is "a go".
Categories 19th century, 20th Century, Historical fiction, Nellie Bly, The Girl Puzzle•Tags ballet dancing, Joseph Pulitzer, marketing, Nellie Bly, New York, writing
5 lesser known facts about Nellie Bly for #InternationalWomensDay
Published on March 8, 2019 March 8, 2019 by Kate Braithwaite1 Comment
I'm on a mission to let the world know that there was so much more to Nellie Bly than her asylum expose and her round the world adventure – amazing as those things were!
So in honour of International Women's Day, here are 5 facts/stories about the wonderful Nellie that you may not know already. If you knew them all, or knew none of them, I'd love to hear from you.
1. She famously interviewed Susan B. Anthony
In February 1896, as the women's suffrage movement blossomed in America, Nellie Bly interviewed Susan B. Anthony, eliciting some of the most personal answers to questions ever given by Anthony, then in her seventies. Here's an exchange from Nellie's report in The World:
"Were you ever in love?"
"In love?" she laughed merrily. "Bless you, Nellie, I've been in love a thousand times!"
"Really?" I gasped, taken aback by this startling confession.
"Yes, really!…. When I was young, if a girl married poor she became a housekeeper and a drudge. If she married wealth, she became a pet and a doll. Just think, had I married at 20, I would have been either a drudge or a doll for 55 years. Think of it!"
2. She was the first woman to witness an execution in 21 years
Sing Sing 1915
In January 1920, Nellie Bly reported on the execution by electrocution of Gordon Fawcett Hamby at Sing Sing prison.
Hamby, who had confessed to killing two bank officials during a robbery in Brooklyn, communicated with Nellie Bly in the run up to his death, and even sent her his Ouija board as, "a slight remembrance (all I have at this time) for your infinite kindness and friendship".
Nellie was vehemently anti-capital punishment, writing, "I shall never cease to work to abolish this premeditated killing."
3. She fundraised for Austrian widows and orphans during WWI
The Wehrmann in Eisen
During World War I, Nellie Bly travelled to Austria to report for the New York Journal, but she became very engaged in supporting the Austrian cause and in particular widows and orphans. Throwing herself into war relief efforts in Vienna, she asked her readers back home in America to send quarters to her fund. Contributors would be rewarded by having their name inscribed in a gold book and a nail driven into a wooden statue in their honour. The Wehrmann in Eisen, (Iron Man for Austria) was one of many popular fundraising symbols in Austria made in this way, and in May 1916, Bly reported to her readers in the Journal that she had personally hammered one nail into the Wehrmann statue, for every person who had sent her a donation.
4. She always faced stiff competition from other aspiring women journalists
Elizabeth Bisland
Famous as she undoubtedly was in her hey-day, Nellie Bly always had competition to deal with. Although one of the first female journalists, she wasn't the first by any means. Even at The Pittsburg Dispatch, where her career began, there was already a well respected female journalist, Elizabeth Wilkinson Wade, who wrote under the pseudonym Bessie Brambles. At The World in 1887, no sooner had Bly had her hard-won success with her asylum expose, than another female journalist, Fannie Merrill, was vying for a slot in the Sunday edition with a similar style of reports to Nellie's. Merrill's article, Skilful Cigarette Girls came out on November 20th 1887, only a month after Nellie's reports from the asylum. When she set of around the world in 1889, Nellie Bly had no idea that another woman journalist was running against her. Elizabeth Bisland set off heading west on a train from New York on the same day that Nellie sailed east from the city on a steamship and the two women circumnavigated the globe in the opposite direction. And at one point in the 1890's, Nellie even faced competition from a conglomerate of female journalists, all publishing under the shared pseudonym, Meg Merillies.
5. She ran an informal adoption agency from a New York Hotel
The Sun, Dec 19th, 1919
When she returned to New York journalism after World War I, Nellie Bly wrote an opinion column in The Journal and publicly offered to help find homes for orphaned children.
In December 1919, a baby was found at Grand Central Station with a note that read – "To Somebody – for the love of Mike, take this kid… give him to Nellie Bly… he is seven months old and as healthy as they make them."
The baby was taken to Bellevue Hospital where Nellie Bly rushed to visit him. But this was a story with several twists and turns. The baby, dubbed Love o' Mike by the newspapers, was first claimed by the wrong family, the Wenzes, whose son had been kidnapped a few months earlier. When that story was publicized by Nellie Bly, the real mother came forward to reclaim her son, saying she'd hoped Nellie Bly would find him a better home than his family could offer, but that the Wentzes were barely any better off than she was.
For more about Love o' Mike and Nellie Bly's story, take a look at The Girl Puzzle, available to pre-order now from Crooked Cat books. (publication May 5th, 2019)
Down to her last dime and offered the chance of a job of a lifetime at The New York World, twenty-three-year old Elizabeth Cochrane agrees to get herself admitted to Blackwell's Island Lunatic Asylum and report on conditions from the inside. But what happened to her poor friend, Tilly Mayard? Was there more to her high praise of Dr Frank Ingram than everyone knew?
Thirty years later, Elizabeth, known as Nellie Bly, is no longer a celebrated trailblazer and the toast of Newspaper Row. Instead, she lives in a suite in the Hotel McAlpin, writes a column for The New York Journal and runs an informal adoption agency for the city's orphans.
Beatrice Alexander is her secretary, fascinated by Miss Bly and her causes and crusades. Asked to type up a manuscript revisiting her employer's experiences in the asylum in 1887, Beatrice believes she's been given the key to understanding one of the most innovative and daring figures of the age.
Categories 19th century, 20th Century, Historical fiction, Nellie Bly, The Girl Puzzle•Tags Elizabeth Bisland, Gordon Fawcett Hamby, International Women's Day, Love o' Mike, Nellie Bly, Sing Sing Prison, Susan B. Anthony, The Sun


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Pelosi chastises Ocasio-Cortez in nasty closed door scolding
Just as the democratic party begins to look forward to coming together over a single candidate for 2020, the civil war within Congress continues to rage.
If you came here looking for news about the democratic party righting the ship and beginning to gel once again, I have bad news for you.
There is still an enormous chasm between the two polar ends of the democratic party, three years after Donald Trump's election sent a cleaver into the hearts of their base. On the right are Nancy Pelosi and the rest of the "old guard", trying to grasp the pure power of this most recent progressive pendulum swing. Over on the left, however, are the superstars. The loud and the brash. The young. They're gunning for Nancy and crew in the belief that the only solution to one radical shift is another. For them, politics aren't so much a playground seesaw as they are a two-man saw on a logging camp.
Over the last few weeks, this incisive and divisive drivel has come to a head, as Nancy Pelosi and newcomer Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez had more than a few choice words for each other.
Then, as if almost whispered, word started getting around: Nancy had verbally eviscerated AOC behind closed doors.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) issued a stern warning to Democrats in a closed-door caucus meeting Wednesday, rebuking members for airing the party's dirty laundry on Twitter.
This was the first major caucus meeting following the bitter battle between Pelosi and freshman Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) over the Republican's migrant crisis funding bill, which Pelosi ultimately accepted.
"So, again, you got a complaint? You come and talk to me about it," Pelosi told her Democrat colleagues, according to Politico. "But do not tweet about our members and expect us to think that that is just ok."
In this article:Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, democrats, Featured, Nancy Pelosi
POTUS lands major legal victory, heads to Twitter for victory lap
House democrats unleash torrent of anti-Trump subpoenas as 'resistance' grows bolder

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Back to The Tall Blog
Investigative journalists should also remember the public needs them more than ever. Even if many people don't realize it yet.
On the campaign trail, candidate Trump was notoriously hostile to the media, even while courting the cameras at every turn.
Reporters covering his rallies were herded into a pen while the candidate mocked them and some of his followers heaped scorn on them, including reviving a Nazi term to denigrate the media.
Reporters who wrote stories Trump didn't like were denied media credentials by his campaign. Some journalists perceived as unfriendly received a barrage of hateful messages from Trump's supporters on social media. The candidate himself singled out numerous journalists for criticism, even mocking a disabled New York Times reporter.
Trump also promised to "open up" libel laws so that journalists could be sued over negative stories. (Never mind that there is no federal libel law.)
To accomplish this goal, Trump would have to convince the Supreme Court to overturn a landmark 1964 Times v. Sullivan ruling that established the country's definition of libel.
Or he could seek to amend the First Amendment. Good luck with that!
On second thought, Republicans only need to flip a few more state legislatures to have a shot. It's doubtful such nightmare scenarios would emerge, as the importance of a truly free press to our Democracy isn't a partisan issue.
Even the very nature of truth — what is and what is not a fact — was under assault during the campaign.
Both candidates made statements found by respected fact-checking organizations to be untrue. But Trump outweighed Clinton on that score by a longshot.
Just 15 percent of Trump's statements were rated as mostly true or true by Politifact while 51 percent of Clinton's statements fell in that category. (Snopes is a good source to check before you Tweet or forward something you're unsure of.)
Donald Trump appears at a rally in Tulsa in January. DYLAN GOFORTH/The Frontier
Many of Trump's supporters say they don't trust the media. Perhaps as a result, some gravitate toward hyper-partisan sites that peddle faux news on Facebook. The candidate himself passed along several fake news stories, shrugging it off when this was pointed out to him.
Both Facebook and Google announced Monday they are banning fake news sites from using their advertising services. Facebook in particular is facing criticism that a torrent of completely made up news stories (some written by teens in Macedonia) may have impacted the election.
The tendency to seek out news skewed toward one side is certainly not reserved for those on the right. An increasing number of people on both sides of the divided country's political spectrum are retreating to curated social media streams filled with opinion masquerading as news and laced with falsehoods.
Trump says he wants to unite the country but early signs belie that statement.
The founder of a website that gleefully spews hateful and sometimes inaccurate stories, Steve Bannon, will be one of Trump's closest White House advisors.
Until he stepped aside to help run Trump's campaign, Bannon was the chairman of Breitbart News, which Bannon himself described as the "platform for the alt-right."
This is the kinder, gentler name for a brand of fringe conservatism that promotes white nationalism, misogyny, racism, anti-Semitism and homophobia.
His hiring was condemned by Jewish and Muslim leaders as well as the Southern Poverty Law Center.
A Republican campaign consultant for Gov. John Kasich and Sen. John McCain said of Bannon: "The racist, fascist extreme right is represented footsteps from the Oval Office. Be very vigilant, America."
Here are just a few of Breitbart's headlines under Bannon's leadership:
"Hoist It High and Proud: The Confederate Flag Proclaims a Glorious Heritage." (Written two weeks after nine black churchgoers were shot to death in Charleston, S.C. by a man who posed with a Confederate flag in a photo.)
"Birth control makes women unattractive and crazy"
"Bill Kristol: Republican spoiler, renegade Jew"
"The Solution to Online 'Harassment' Is Simple: Women Should Log Off" and "There's No Hiring Bias Against Women In Tech, They Just Suck At Interviews."
Meanwhile, Bannon's hiring was praised as "excellent" by white nationalist leaders, including former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke.
Trump's divisive and racist campaign rhetoric with Bannon at the helm has emboldened people across the nation to act since his election.
The Southern Poverty Law Center compiled information on 200 acts since Trump's election of "hateful harassment and intimidation" of minorities, Muslims, women, homosexuals and others. Disturbingly, the most common location for these incidents of harassment was K-12 schools.
The Frontier reported on some of these incidents in Oklahoma in a story Monday.
Increased support for media
The political climate and increasing number of racist attacks have rightfully alarmed people across the country. Media outlets must continue to vigorously report on this trend, including questioning whether law enforcement agencies will act.
One bright spot has emerged: renewed support for news organizations.
Media outlets including ProPublica, The Atlantic, Mother Jones, The Guardian, The New York Times and The Washington Post have all reported increases in donations or subscriptions since Trump's election.
Local journalists need public support now even more, as they lack the deep pockets of Jeff Bezos and the Sulzberger family. Locally, The Frontier and Oklahoma Watch specialize in the kind of in-depth reporting that's needed right now.
The Oklahoman has some excellent journalists, including Jaclyn Cosgrove, who just produced a searing investigation on the state's shoddy record on mental illness treatment. The Tulsa World's journalists — including Andrea Eger, Curtis Killman and Ginnie Graham — consistently produce thought-provoking stories that make a difference in people's lives.
Whether they work on a local or national scale, journalists are gearing up for a difficult climate, as set by the tone of the president-elect.
Less than a week after his election, Trump engaged in a silly Twitter spat with the Times, complaining about the newspaper's allegedly inaccurate coverage "of the Trump phenomena."
@realDonaldTrump @nytimes fact: surge in new subscriptions, print & digital, with trends, stops & starts, 4 X better than normal.
— NYTCo Communications (@NYTimesComm) November 13, 2016
It seems unpresidential for the president-elect to be engaging in a public dispute like this with a media outlet. Doesn't he have a lot to do right now? Shouldn't he develop thicker skin considering he's going to be the president?
The Times and Post produced stellar investigative work during the campaign, not just about Trump. Stories in both publications also focused on Hillary Clinton's use of a private email server, the content of her campaign's leaked emails and on the Clinton foundation controversy.
Still, the perception remains in the minds of many who voted for Trump that mainstream media outlets are biased against them and against the president-elect. There's actually some evidence that may be true, though it's not as clear-cut as Trump's supporters would have you believe.
A group of data geeks who call themselves The Data Face studied nearly 20,000 news stories from eight organizations written during the campaign (through July 2016) using a variety of mathematical tools to analyze the content.
What the study found wasn't entirely surprising: Trump received far more coverage than Clinton, even during her peak month of coverage. Curiously, the outlets labeled in the study as left-leaning — including The New York Times and The Washington Post — wrote more stories about Trump than did the right-leaning outlets.
In fact, the early intense focus on Trump undoubtedly helped propel him to office.
The study even measured whether and to what degree each outlet favored one candidate over the other by analyzing factors including positive vs. negative language. Again, the results are not that surprising: Outlets leaning toward Trump included Fox News and The Wall Street Journal while the Times and Post leaned toward Clinton.
Perhaps these findings are an argument for the need to consume news from a variety of sources, rather than living in a news echo chamber.
I acknowledge falling into this pattern myself sometimes, as I subscribe to both the Post and Times and am an NPR junkie. All three feature conservative columnists and commentators but I also seek out thoughtful, informed conservative viewpoints from a variety of sources. I also subscribe to the Tulsa World, which isn't exactly a bastion of liberalism these days.
Regardless of where news organizations fall in the political spectrum, this election has pushed many to reevaluate how they cover politics, interwoven with issues including the economy, the criminal justice system and immigration policy.
This is a healthy and important process.
Media outlets on the coasts shouldn't expect to parachute reporters into a community, cover a few rallies where the most extreme views are on display and make a judgment about people in that whole community.
It's unfortunate that some of the best and most nuanced reporting I've seen about why Trump voters were angry in the first place has been written after the election. One of the reasons people in "flyover" country supported Trump is they believe Washington insiders, a club of which Clinton is decidedly a member, don't listen to them.
Meanwhile, Trump campaigned as an outsider and has surrounded himself mostly with insiders including Reince Preibus and Newt Gingrich.
News organizations must figure out how to improve their coverage in future elections. But they also must fight to uncover the truth in a Trump administration likely to be the most opaque in modern times. (Maybe his pal Putin gave him some tips in their recent phone call?)
Investigative journalists should also remember the public needs them more than ever. Even if many people don't realize it yet. And organizations that produce quality investigative journalism also need the public's support more than ever.
Posted in Blogs
Hyperlocal Blog: Pedaling past Lincoln and Jefferson with Tulsa's bike-share program on my mind
For a new reporter, Jay Cronley was a curmudgeonly godsend
My struggle with 'white silence'


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Q: Android Studio Code Completion with Kotlin/Firebase - Misbehaving badly UPDATE: This bug appears always when I'm writing a lambda inside a method of a class, and I refer to a variable of that class. It does not appear when I refer to variables inside the method.
I'm going through a simple guide to Kotlin development with Firebase. But somehow Android Studio has now had its code completion somewhat broken by this.
I have a class called FirestoreUtil in which I have private val currentUserDocRef, I cannot get code completion to work properly even when writing within that class.
This problems applies to all classes I write in this project.
I'd start typing 'currentUs' etc... see it suggest the variable and its type. I select it, but instead of just writing
currentUserDocRef
it instead pumps out
com.leonhardprintz.firemessage.utils.FirestoreUtil.currentUserDocRef
It does this consistently, when trying to get completetion for variables I've written myself. External libraries load just fine.
Has anyone encountered this before?
Here are the contents of my gradle files
buildscript {
    ext.kotlin_version = '1.2.41'
    ext.anko_version = '0.10.5'
    repositories {
        google()
        jcenter()
    }
    dependencies {
        classpath 'com.android.tools.build:gradle:3.1.2'
        classpath "org.jetbrains.kotlin:kotlin-gradle- plugin:$kotlin_version"
        classpath 'com.google.gms:google-services:4.0.0'

        // NOTE: Do not place your application dependencies here; they belong
       // in the individual module build.gradle files
    }
}

allprojects {
    repositories {
        google()
        jcenter()
    }
}

task clean(type: Delete) {
    delete rootProject.buildDir
}

and
apply plugin: 'com.android.application'

apply plugin: 'kotlin-android'

apply plugin: 'kotlin-android-extensions'

android {
    compileSdkVersion 27
    defaultConfig {
        applicationId "com.leonhardprintz.firemessage"
        minSdkVersion 21
        targetSdkVersion 27
        versionCode 1
        versionName "1.0"
        testInstrumentationRunner "android.support.test.runner.AndroidJUnitRunner"
    }
    buildTypes {
        release {
            minifyEnabled false
            proguardFiles getDefaultProguardFile('proguard-android.txt'), 'proguard-rules.pro'
        }
    }
}

dependencies {
    implementation fileTree(dir: 'libs', include: ['*.jar'])
    //kotlin
    implementation "org.jetbrains.kotlin:kotlin-stdlib-jdk7:$kotlin_version"
    //support
    implementation 'com.android.support:appcompat-v7:27.1.1'
    implementation 'com.android.support:design:27.1.1'
    implementation 'com.android.support.constraint:constraint-layout:1.1.1'
    implementation 'com.android.support:support-vector-drawable:27.1.1'
    //firebase
    implementation 'com.google.firebase:firebase-core:16.0.0'
    implementation 'com.google.firebase:firebase-firestore:17.0.1'
    implementation 'com.google.firebase:firebase-auth:16.0.1'
    implementation 'com.google.firebase:firebase-storage:16.0.1'
    //firebase-ui
    implementation 'com.firebaseui:firebase-ui-auth:4.0.1'
    implementation 'com.firebaseui:firebase-ui-storage:4.0.1'
    //glide
    implementation 'com.github.bumptech.glide:glide:4.7.1'
    implementation 'com.android.support:support-v4:27.1.1'
    kapt 'com.github.bumptech.glide:compiler:4.7.1'
    //groupie
    implementation 'com.xwray:groupie:2.0.3'
    implementation 'com.xwray:groupie-kotlin-android-extensions:2.0.3'
    //anko
    implementation "org.jetbrains.anko:anko:$anko_version"
    implementation "org.jetbrains.anko:anko-design:$anko_version"
    implementation "org.jetbrains.anko:anko-coroutines:$anko_version"
    //test
    testImplementation 'junit:junit:4.12'
    androidTestImplementation 'com.android.support.test:runner:1.0.2'
    androidTestImplementation 'com.android.support.test.espresso:espresso-core:3.0.2'

    apply plugin: 'kotlin-kapt'

    kotlin {
        experimental {
            coroutines "enable"
        }
    }

    androidExtensions {
        experimental = true
    }
}

apply plugin: 'com.google.gms.google-services'

A: I experience the same thing. And it's a bug in Android Studio Kotlin plugin. It won't affect your code, just remove the unnecessary words.
It is annoying indeed, and even now it happen some times. So let's just wait until somebody fix that.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


This mirror would work in a room, hallway, or just about anywhere. It is 1/12 scale, which is the most common scale for dollhouses and dollhouse miniatures. It means that if an object is 12 inches in real life, it is sized down to a one inch as a miniature.


text:
Major Corporate Executive Fired After Being Busted by Citizen Pedophile Sting
By Jack Davis December 7, 2021 at 9:29am
A top executive at Sony Corp. has been fired after he was featured in a video posted by a vigilante group, which claims to hunt sexual predators.
The group People v. Preds, which operates a YouTube channel and runs amateur sting operations on people it believes are pedophiles, recently featured a man identified as George Cacioppo, a senior vice president of engineering at Sony.
The group was investigating the activities of an online poster who was using the dating app Grindr to arrange for sex with online vigilantes posing as a 15-year-old boy, according to the Post Millennial.
Based on a Google Drive link posted by the group, the person targeted by the group asked who he thought was a 15-year-old multiple questions about sex and sent explicit photos of himself to the teen.
An arrangement was made to meet at 4:30 a.m., according to Newsweek.
In a YouTube video that shows what happened when the vigilantes went to the address, Cacioppo is shown standing outside of a home.
WARNING: The following video contains explicit images and language that some viewers may find disturbing.
He was asked multiple times if his name is Jeff, the name of the user soliciting sex from the teenage boy.
Do you approve of this type of vigilante justice?
Yes: 89% (1194 Votes)
No: 11% (146 Votes)
The person making the video says that Cacioppo can either talk to him or to police.
After multiple questions were yelled at him, Cacioppo, who was wearing a PS5 T-shirt, closed the door.
At that point, the person making the video can be heard yelling, "Excuse me, everybody, this guy invited a 15-year-old boy to have sex with him tonight."
Here is video of the bust that occurred during the evening of December 3rd, 2021. pic.twitter.com/61S8oud8zd
— Tipster (@BanishedJourno) December 4, 2021
Sony issued a statement in response to the video and the allegations about its employee.
"We are aware of the situation and the employee in question has been terminated from employment," the statement said, according to CNET.
People v. Preds said information about the case was sent to the San Diego County District Attorney's Office.
San Diego police said its Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force is investigating the incident.
Newsweek quoted a member of People v. Preds as saying, "The police department doesn't work with 'Cyber groups' like us. That's when the internet takes over."
Cacioppo did not respond to various websites that sought comment from him about the incident.
California, child abuse, children, crime, San Diego, US news


Make a fashion statement with this vintage 18k white and yellow gold bracelet, offering a feminine silhouette. For that every day sparkle combine together with the matching necklace and earrings.
Diamond Quantity and weight : Round-1.75cts.-40pcs.


Even though Fat Rooster is at the northern fringe of the Green Living distribution territory, the tale of Kyle and Jennifer is typical of the folks who are brave enough to choose "the other path."
You've heard the old joke about the Vermont farmer who wins the lottery: "What are you going to do with the money?" he is asked.
"I dunno," he says as he strokes his grizzled chin. "Guess I'll keep farming �til it's all gone."
Fractured and re-set to fit what is going on in farming in Vermont these days, the joke might go: "What does a young, articulate (not to mention good-looking), hard-working, highly-employable, energetic couple with two Masters degrees, and a passion for farming do for a living?"
Kyle Jones and Jennifer Megyesi, the farmers at Fat Rooster Farm in Royalton, are not grizzled. Frazzled? Yes, occasionally. Only seven years into their chosen trade, they are simultaneously stretched thin and almost famous. Their lives have been chronicled in Harvest: A Year in the Life of an Organic Farm (The Lyons Press, 2004), a handsome, coffee table book that romanticizes their chosen hardscrabble life by virtue of its good writing and beautiful photography. Too bad they don't have time to read it.
Life could be a whole lot easier. After getting his Masters in Wildlife Conservation from the University of Massachusetts in 1995, Kyle continued working full-time for the National Park Service in forestry management and resource planning. Jennifer, with a Masters of her own (Wildlife Biology), is equally employable. Her passion, however, is farming. To make it happen, she works part-time at a local veterinarian clinic that gives her the flexibility to meet the endless demands of farming, mothering, and animal husbandry.
Kyle, meanwhile turns out handcrafted bowls and pens from hardwood in his modest workshop. With the Christmas season passed, however, there is not a lot of present demand. And then there is also the school bus. He calls it his "personal response to 9/11," because he wanted another way to engage with the community. He earns $25 for spending half a day hurtling down Vermont's back roads with 72 screaming, unsupervised kids. (As an additional benefit he was recently notified that traffic fines will be doubled for persons who have a bus driver's license.) Oh well, with bus driving, as with farming, it's not about the money.
Kyle and Jennifer have chosen a life on the financial edge over the security of a company-contributed 401-k. In addition to their aforementioned professional titles you could add giant pumpkin grower, ecologist, intern supervisor, C.S.A. (Community Supported Agriculture) manager, pig breeder, and farmers' market vendor.
It's what you do to make a livin' in Vermont.
The prevailing stories in the news are about the demise of the family farm, but there is a counterbalancing trend as represented by Kyle and Jennifer. While it is true that the independent, family-run dairy farm is an imperiled species, small, diversified farms are booming. According to NOFA, a non-profit association of farmers, gardeners, and consumers working to promote an economically viable and ecologically sound food system, Vermont has the highest number of organic farms per capita in the nation and has the highest percentage of its cultivated acreage in organic crops. Founded in Putney, Vermont in 1971, NOFA is one of the oldest organic farming associations in the US and has seen its membership swell to over 1000!
The difference between family farms, the endangered species, and family farms, the growth phenomenon can be reduced to one word, "diversification." Farming operations dependent on a single revenue source find themselves on a slippery slope to compete with larger and more efficient operations producing commodities that generate smaller and smaller margins. Add in the political factors of subsidies and price controls, and the farmer's fate is no longer in his or her own hands.
The enterprising start-ups make up with diversity what they sacrifice in efficiency. A quick scan of NOFA's nifty website reveals small-scale agricultural enterprises that demonstrate an infinity of revenue stream combinations: viticulture (wine making), bed and breakfasts, sleigh rides, pick your own berries, farmstead cheese. In other words, within the world of small scale, organic farming, the owners of Fat Rooster are the rule, rather than the exception. Some even combine their farming with politics. Chair of the state agriculture committee, state rep David Zuckerman, is a poster child for working boutique farms. When the legislative session ends, he hops on his tractor to tend to his strawberries and corn.
But diversity does come with a toll, a thought that crosses Kyle Jones's mind whenever a spitball hits him on the back of the head. He has learned the hard way that there can be too much of a good thing. Initially, the plan had been to work the farm with a pair of draft horses, but that proved too time-consuming. Likewise, pig breeding has gone by the boards. They are figuring out how to make Fat Rooster work, one success and one mistake at a time.
Like many of Vermont's newest farmers, Kyle and Jennifer had a world of options and opportunities, and the one they select is hardscrabble life on a small farm in Vermont. Because they, and others, have the courage to choose a close relationship with the land over personal financial welfare, Vermont is a healthier, more colorful, and tastier place for the rest of us. Next time you are in the general store, buy a lottery ticket for your favorite local farmer.
Stephen Morris is the publisher of Green Living and the founder of The Public Press (www.thepublicpress.com). This article appeared originally in Livin': The Vermont Way, and is used by permission.
8,856 neighbors have viewed this article.


Mountjoy has secured a contract with leading student housing provider - Student Cribs - to refurbish 32 houses in central Portsmouth to provide high-quality student accommodation ready for the new term in September.
Works in each building will bring the properties up to the Student Cribs standard – and will include upgrades to the kitchens and bathrooms, gas and electrical safety checks, provision of new furniture and equipment as well as extensive re-decorations. With our established team and local supply chain Mountjoy were able to mobilise rapidly. Work is already underway and due to finish by the end of August.
Student Cribs provide student housing and student letting services in major cities and towns across the UK including Nottingham, Exeter, Manchester, Leeds, Durham, Loughborough, Liverpool, Bristol and London, Cardiff and Portsmouth.
Mountjoy has significant experience in the student accommodation sector – providing maintenance and refurbishment services for a number of universities across the South of England.


Hillary Chybinski: trouble in blog land. . .
trouble in blog land. . .
. . .so i did a post last night, and it bombed.
not sure what happened. john helped me load firefox onto my powerbook, so now i have more capability with blogger. . .but still no post from last night. . .go figure. . .


NOTES: Neotropical Institute Cut # 6. Bulk reel: 132 Call notes before birds started their first singing in AM. There is a possibility that some of the calls in focus may be of Thryothorus genibarbis, but I think not.


Vibration Dampeners | If You Could Hit Like This, Would You Use One?
Check out this video of Djokovic rockin' his classic circle vibration dampener. If you could hit like this, would you start using one?
Looking for more information about vibration dampeners? Check out our in-depth look at vibration dampeners.
If You Could Hit Like This, Wouldn't You Start Using a Vibration Dampener?


With its cabin-like design and plenty of room to stand and move, the Coleman® WeatherMaster® 10-Person Tent feels more like a house than a tent. This ten-person, two-room tent offers ample space for sleeping or sheltered relaxation. Get in and out easier with two doors—a hinged front door and a zippered back door. Its Variflo™ adjustable ventilation system allows you to customize your cooling comfort. If it rains, reverse-angled windows let in the light and air, but not the water– even when they're open. The built-in WeatherTec™ System's patented welded floors and inverted protected seams help ensure you stay dry. Spend more time enjoying the scenery with color-coded poles and continuous pole sleeves that allow you to set the tent up easier. Inside, the 17 ft. x 9 ft. floor is large enough to fit ten people or three queen size airbeds. When the fun is done, it folds up to fit inside a carry bag for convenient transport.
WeatherMaster® 10-Person Tent is rated 4.5 out of 5 by 2.
Rated 4 out of 5 by Bald Eagle from Great Bang for the Buck I recently used this in cold and rainy conditions. During the day it was 35 degrees F and rainy (two days straight). At night the temperature dropped into the 20s. The tent had no leaking problem. I previously seam sealed it. The condensation did create small drops in the corners however. I would not hesitate using this tent again.


text:
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See below for the latest information on what's happening across the Mornington Peninsula. There is always a lot going on across the Mornington Peninsula. You can also stay up to date via our social media channels, or subscribe to our eNewsletter.
For more information on regional tourism news, please contact Angela Cleland, Director Operations and Industry Relations on 0431 407 333 or angela.cleland@mprtb.com.
The Mornington Peninsula shines at the Australian Tourism Awards
St Andrews Beach Brewery has won the prestigious Gold award for New Tourism Business at the 2018 Qantas Australian Tourism Awards' night-of-nights in Launceston.
The awards, which have been in existence for more than 30 years, showcase the best in outstanding customer service, innovation and ongoing business excellence from throughout Australia. Winners across 26 categories are selected from more than 200 finalists by a rigorous judging process and the awards are presented in front of 800 industry peers and officials from across the nation.
Among the winners was the Mornington Peninsula's own St Andrews Beach Brewery who had earlier won gold at the Victorian Tourism awards to qualify. "It's safe to say we were completely blown away to have won the category for New Tourism Business at the Australian Tourism Awards last night," says co-owner Andrew Purchase. He may be a little in shock but is rightfully proud of the achievement. "We would like to thank everyone who has visited the brewery over the past 12 months and our incredible staff for all of their hard work."
St Andrews Beach Brewery is situated on a 92-acre property; formerly known as 'Markdel' which was owned by the Freedman Brothers, one of Australia's most successful horse training families. The stables produced over 100 Group One winning horses, including multiple Melbourne Cup, Caufield Cup, Cox Plate Golden Slipper winning horses, and has been transformed into an architecturally designed brewery with a 180 seater beer pavilion, kitchen and event space. It also proudly boasts a veggie patch and exceptionally large orchard of 8000 apple and pear trees planted on what was once a 1,200m grassed race track. This is a unique and sustainable enterprise, so you couldn't ask for a better place to grow hops, fruit trees and let the chickens roam free.
"To even get into the finalists is a huge achievement. There is a lot of competition across all categories so to win you really have to be the best of the best," says Tracey Cooper, Chair of Mornington Peninsula Regional Tourism. " Tourism is a key success factor for our region and one we should be rightfully proud of. We are very proud of the St Andrews Beach Brewery team and all they have achieved. It reflects innovative thinking, creativity, vision, and a lot of hard work. We can't wait to see where this takes them."
The motivation for the team from St Andrews Beach Brewery is simple; they love making great beer at their Mornington Peninsula home, but understandably with their venue being once a world-class horse training facility, they are not your average brewery. They are proud to be Australia's first paddock to pot brewery. While they brew on-site using the finest aroma hops and heirloom variety malt to ensure each beer is full of flavour and character, and spend their days crafting and pouring great brews right from the stable doors, it is the whole experience package that makes them worthy national award winners.
You can find St Andrews Beach Brewery at
160 Sandy Road, Fingal Victoria 3939
Find out more HERE>>>
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Brigantes Walking & Cycling Holidays and Baggage Courier Service has been used and appreciated by hundreds of walkers and cyclists for many years, throughout the north of England – the ancient homeland of the Brigantes, the British tribes who occupied the north of England in Roman times.
We continue to pride ourselves on being known for our reliability, which is due to our team of locally based drivers having a thorough knowledge of the area in which they operate. We would be pleased to undertake your accommodation arrangements, and in addition, our baggage courier service provides the daily transportation of your baggage along your route from door-to-door, so that you will only need to carry a small bag containing your daily requisites. We can return you by minibus to an agreed railway/bus terminal, or to our free car park, in Kirkby Malham.
All the routes we arrange can be done at a pace to suit your needs in terms of time or walking or cycling ability, and you can be assured that your accommodation has been especially selected by us to ensure the highest quality within the price-range.


As far a exercise, I am taking advantage of the PREP program at the local health club ACAC. I get 60 days to workout for $60 pre surgery. This is great for me because I have let myself get out of shape and let my blood cortisol levels get a little high. These get high from lack of vigorous exercise (and in my case too much coffee).
For this program, the set you up with a series of strength exercises on machines, a series of flexibility stretches and some cardiovascular exercise. So I have been basically stationary bicycling for 10 minutes and doing two sets of strength exercises.
I follow this up with what I call stretching explorations. Exploring the range of motions of my joints in various creative ways. I think it was Ed Maupin who said you can always tell a Rolfer in gym because they are in the corner doing all the weird stuff. Any way, do a session of this creative stretching. Then I go into the pool and tread water for another ten minutes. I find that this gives me a variety of ways to move and stretch while getting some cardio in.


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Q: Iterating through an object to find a match for two ID variables I have experience only really with JS arrays, not objects, so I'm trying to learn how to navigate them. I would appreciate any answers with good explanation that show the process of completing the following task:
I have a month (expressed as an integer, 1-11), and a collection of data for various IDs, (expressed as an integer too, e.g 474)
The data looks like this (a subset of some longer data):
var myData = {
  1: {474: true, 459: true},
  4: {474: true, 578: true, 987: true, 459: true, 917: true, 296: true},
  5: {474: true, 578: true, 1036: true, 391: true, 987: true, 459: true, 917: true, 296: true}
};

I need to
a) Locate the first key in my index based on my month value. E.g var month = 4;
b) Locate whether true or false for my ID value in that sub-object e.g var ID = 917
Some examples of what I need to check:
if month == 1 and ID == 459 return true
if month == 1 and ID == 917 return false (917 not present in data for  month 1
if month == 4 and ID == 987 return true
if month == 5 and ID == 917 return true
if month == 5 and ID == 100 return false (100 not present in data for month 5)
I have safeguarded that all months 1-11 are present in the data, so I don't need to have an extra check to see if the month value exists in the object. It just needs to locate the first key using month and then search in that sub-object for the ID and if it finds it return true.

A: You can just do
!!myData[month][ID]

so that it will turn undefined into false, and true will stay true

A: You could use a check and cast the result to boolean.

function check(month, id) {
    return !!(myData[month] && myData[month][id]);
}

var myData = { 1: { 474: true, 459: true }, 4: { 474: true, 578: true, 987: true, 459: true, 917: true, 296: true }, 5: { 474: true, 578: true, 1036: true, 391: true, 987: true, 459: true, 917: true, 296: true } };

console.log(check(1, 459)); // true
console.log(check(1, 917)); // false (917 not present in data for month 1
console.log(check(4, 987)); // true
console.log(check(5, 917)); // true
console.log(check(5, 100)); // false (100 not present in data for month 5)
console.log(check(0, 100)); // false (no data present for month 0)

A: As you might already knew the { } syntax defines an object in Javascript.
Objects are always structured by key/value pair where the key has to be an unique value, while the value can be anything. E.g. another object, numbers.
To access an object's value by key you typically will do myData.5 this would return you the nested object {474: true, 578: true, 1036: true, 391: true, 987: true, 459: true, 917: true, 296: true}
But you only use the dot notation if you can preemptive what you want ahead, for instance the key 1 from the object. In certain scenario where you are not sure what keys you will be accessing. E.g. after some data processing and the algorithm could be accessing value from key 3 and sometimes from key 1 then for such cases, you do myData["5"]. Where "5" string value would normally be a variable. This is so that you can dynamically access the key based on the variable's value.
So for your case; if you are wanting to just check whether a key exists for a particular month then just do;
myData[month][ID] if this check returns true then we know that the month has that key. False otherwise.

var myData = {
    1: {474: true, 459: true},
    4: {474: true, 578: true, 987: true, 459: true, 917: true, 296: true},
    5: {474: true, 578: true, 1036: true, 391: true, 987: true, 459: true, 917: true, 296: true}
};

if (myData[1][474]) {
    console.log("key 474 exists in month 1.");
}
if (myData[1][974]) {
    console.log("key 974 exists in month 1.");
}
else {
    console.log("Key 974 doesn't exists for month 1.");
}

A: Input Data:
var myData = {
  1: {474: true, 459: true},
  4: {474: true, 578: true, 987: true, 459: true, 917: true, 296: true},
  5: {474: true, 578: true, 1036: true, 391: true, 987: true, 459: true, 917: true, 296: true}
};

a) Locate the first key in my index based on my month value. E.g var
  month = 4;

*

*You would simply do this, myData["4"],
this will return {474: true, 578: true, 987: true, 459: true, 917: true, 296: true}

*Lets take this in a variable, like this var subObject =  myData["4"];

b) Locate whether true or false for my ID value in that sub-object e.g
  var ID = 917

*

*You can do the same thing again, subObject["917"],
this will return true.

*If subObject does not have the ID, then it will return undefined.

*So possible values returned could be true, false or undefined.

*Lets take this in a variable as well, var value = subObject["917"].
To always get boolean value, we can use double negation, like this !!value. This will make undefined, null, false and empty string to be returned as false while true stays true
In short, as Dave suggested, we can get rid of the variables and write it in one line as !!myData[month][ID].
However, please note that if myData[month] is undefined, then myData[month][ID] will throw an error so its always wise to check it in a if-condition. Check this question for more info Checking if a key exists in a JavaScript object?
if(("4" in myData) && ("917" in myData["4"])){
   return myData["4"]["917"];
}


Time for another weekly update! Reading has taken a back burner for the past couple of weeks due to trying to get ready for school to start. Hopefully when school starts I will be able to review the different books that I will be having my students read. Most of them will be classics, but there may be a few "modern classics" thrown in there, too. Of course, I'll still be working on my Jane Austen challenge throughout the rest of the year, as well.
Sorry for the short post, but I'm going to try to get some reading done before bed! Have a great week, everyone!


Do you really think Bernanke is about to take away the punch bowl sending the economy into cold turkey withdrawal spasms? Looking at the action in the oil pits you would think Esther George is calling the shots on the Fed board. Maybe oil got hit on that higher than expected inventory report but those have become commonplace since the fracking boom made the US an oil producer again. Quant is unmoved by all the noise as the SPDR S&P Oil & Gas Exploration & Production Fund (XOP) is in 1st place today, familiar territory as it has ranked in the top 5 since January 7th. Its broader sister, the SPDR Energy Select Sector Fund (XLE), confirms Quant's pro energy message with its 4th place rank, also familiar territory as it has been in the top 10 for most of the past month.
Notwithstanding the last two days, each fund is still outperforming the S&P500 year to date. The lower risk XLE has held up a little better in the selloff but Quant favors XOP despite its higher 4.61 Red Diamond Risk Rating. That's the highest in today's top 10 which still averages below 4, as do today's top 25 and 100 funds. A look at each constituent list gives a feel for that risk where XLE holds more recognizable names than XOP. You won't be filling your tank from Delek US Holdings which is XOP's top holding with a 1.88% weight but they probably sell to ExxonMobil which tops XLE's list at 17.26% of AUM. Both funds get decent Fundamental Scores where XOP's 80.4 beats XLE's 75.1. The two share similar mid 80s Global Theme Scores but XOP's 72 constituents gives it a better diversification score than XLE with 44 which leads to a slightly higher Quality Score. Although both are outperforming the market, their mid 60s technical scores are good but nothing special. It's their sentiment scores that account for their high ranks. Both have high volatility and put/call scores and their short interest scores are each in their 99th percentile where they have been throughout the rally. So if the market has further to fall these two have some embedded buying pressure as those shorts will need to be covered.
If the market does have further to fall, the historically high correlation between today's asset classes and sectors says risk off will hurt these funds. A weakening economy is also correlated in most of our minds with lower oil prices. However, those of us who sold cold drinks on the gas lines of the 70s know the Phillips curve has a poor empirical record. Yes we can have a weak economy and high inflation and until Esther George becomes a household name don't expect the Fed to turn off the firehouse. All that liquidity needs to go somewhere and Quant thinks the oil pits will continue to absorb it. Thank you for absorbing all that ETFGsm has to offer, we'll have even more for you next week. Have a nice weekend.


Here you'll find a list of hotfixes that address various issues related to the recently released World of Warcraft Patch 6.1.2. Hotfixes are updates made on our end without requiring a new client-side patch. Some of the hotfixes below take effect the moment they were implemented, while others may require the realm to be restarted to go into effect. Please keep in mind that some issues cannot be addressed without a client-side patch update. This list will be updated as additional hotfixes are applied.
The latest batch of hotfixes are listed below. Previous hotfixes have been compiled by category to provide a quick summary of all hotfixes that have been applied since the start of World of Warcraft Patch 6.1.2.
Tags may be added to some hotfixes to denote a special condition.
[Requires a realm restart] means the hotfix will not take effect until after a scheduled rolling restart or maintenance.
[Hotfix in testing] means the hotfix is in early stages of testing and may not be implemented just yet. However, the change is important and is posted to provide as much advanced notice as possible.
Rukhmar now moves faster and can also move while channeling Solar Breath.
Fixed an issue that could cause Hogger in Elwynn Forest to bug out if General Hammond Clay in Stormwind was slain.
Thunderdrome: Grudge Match! Fixed an issue where the quest would fail if Megs Dreadshredder deals damage to Steelspark LX-506.
Fixed a number of issues that could cause the Operator Thogar encounter to not start correctly.
[Requires a realm restart.] Slag Bombs' explosion now damages players in a 6 yard radius (down from 10 yards) on Normal and Heroic difficulties.
Incendiary Shot's damage has been reduced by 25% on Normal, Heroic, and Mythic difficulties.
Blackhand's Shattering Smash now deals 25% less damage during Stage Two on Normal, Heroic, and Mythic difficulties.
Fixed an issue where players were receiving more Conquest and Honor than intended for winning a Strands of the Ancients match via Random Battleground.
Fixed an issue that could cause the Isle of Conquest Workshop to not work correctly.
Hand of Freedom is no longer usable while stunned.
Glyph of Denounce is now removed completely by dispel effects (dispel effects used to only remove one stack at a time).
Blood-Soaked Invitations should now convert into the correct Horde equivalent for Alliance characters performing a faction transfer.
Blackhand's Demolition ability now deals 20% less damage and his Massive Demolition ability now deals 5% less damage on Normal, Heroic, and Mythic difficulties.
Teluur should no longer incorrectly despawn while in combat with the player after being summoned.
An Inside Job: Fixed an issue where Garona may sometimes fail to eliminate a target.
Reverse Piracy: Fixed an issue where the map marker for Stolen Sha'tari Vault was not updated correctly after defeating The Iron Maidens.
Striking Back: Repaired Bomber should now correctly fly over Ironforge Airfield and allow players to complete the quest.
Run Out the Guns: Rageroar Rowboats should now continue to spawn.
Solar Magnifier should now allow players to loot it and no longer immediately despawn after being defeated.
The health and damage scaling of aspects of several encounters on Normal and Heroic difficulties have been adjusted to make them less punishing for smaller raid groups, to account for reduced availability of external cooldowns and the larger relative portion of the group that must deal with certain mechanics. Overall, these changes should make the encounters easier for groups with closer to 10 raiders, while having little noticeable effect for groups with closer to 30 players.
Furnace Engineers should now throw a bomb at players roughly every 6 seconds. Throw Bomb is now instant-cast, but the range is now 40 yards (down from 50 yards). These changes are intended to diminish the relative benefit of having two or more priests, compared to one or none: Mind Control allows for more controlled targeting of the Bombs, but does not speed up the phase as a whole.
Reduced the health of Heat Regulators.
Additional Bellows Operators should no longer incorrectly spawn after the fight has transitioned into Phase 2.
Fixed an issue where Heart of the Mountain's Tempered debuff could incorrectly persist on a player pet.
The Iron Maidens should no longer incorrectly trigger a Dreadnaught phase if they reach 100 Energy and 20% health at around the same time.
Blackhand's Marked for Death ability should no longer target players that just got knocked away with Shattering Smash if there are other available targets.
Fixed an issue that was causing Blackhand's Slag Bombs to incorrectly explode instantly and the Slagged debuff to incorrectly persist on a character.
Blackhand's health has been reduced by 5% on Mythic difficulty.
Blackhand's Massive Shattering Smash ability now deals 25% less damage on Mythic difficulty.
Iron Soldiers' health has been reduced by 15% on Mythic difficulty.
Galakras: Fixed an issue where players could not advance to Phase 2 because Anti-Air turrets were not spawning correctly.
Durumu the Forgotten: Fixed an issue where the cones of light may incorrectly spawn high above ground during the Light Spectrum phase.
Warmaster Blackhorn: Fixed an issue that could cause the encounter to not drop loot if Goriona was damaged too quickly during the transition to Stage Two.
Conquest catch-up cap received a change to how it's calculated that should result in a roughly 50% increase to the catch-up portion of the cap.
Further information on this change could be found in the forum thread titled: Changes to Conquest Catch-Up Cap.
In response to player feedback, we have increased the power of Heirloom for levels 91-100. This change is intended to help Heirlooms be more competitive relative to Draenor dungeon gear.
Fruit Basket should no longer incorrectly have a chance to trigger trinket effects.
Checkered Flag's mount speed bonus no longer works while inside of an instance such as dungeons, raids, Arenas, or Battlegrounds.
Explorer's Notebook or Garrison Scout Report used by players that already have an Exploration mission available should now be informed that they're not eligible for additional missions of that type and no longer incorrectly consume the item.
Primal Gladiator's Medallion of Adaptation should now convert into the correct faction version for characters that had undergone a Paid Faction Change.
Players can no longer delete WoW Token letters in the mailbox with gold attached.
Fixed an issue where whispers were not working correctly from the Mobile Armory chat client.
Home Alone can now be completed using alternate versions of a Hearthstone such as The Innkeeper's Daughter or Garrison Hearthstone.
Patrol Mission Specialist: Fixed an issue where characters were not receiving credit for completing the achievement.
Fixed an issue that could cause Mistweaver Monks that had undergone a Paid Character Boost to deal less damage than intended while in the process of unlocking skills and abilities.
Fixed an issue that could cause looping flight paths used for quests to not work correctly.
Shadowmeld should now correctly drop the character from combat if another party member is in combat while in an Arena, Battleground, Rated Battleground, or outdoor PvP zone.
Tier-17 4-piece set bonus for Feral Druids should now correctly have a chance to trigger from Multistrikes.
Fellhunter's Spell Lock ability and the version of Spell Lock obtained through Grimoire of Sacrifice should now correctly share a cooldown with each other.


Business Value… ROI… TCO… Aren't you getting a little burned out by hearing these acronyms again and again. Well, listen up! For the last year, Winshuttle's usability marketing team has been digging deeply into how our customers are optimizing SAP business processes through extensive client interviews, surveys, data analysis and reporting. And we have now an extensive process that projects actual usage metrics based on empirical data – and we fondly call this process the "Winshuttle Usability Business Value Assessment" (UBVA).
Very simply – the UBVA is a database of actual Winshuttle usage, metrics and associated savings for every single SAP transaction that they execute. Essentially it tracks the manual processing time of a traditional SAP GUI TCode (think "VA02") and maintains a record of every single Winshuttle transaction (think "VA02 on steroids"). So over these last 12 months, we have collected 15 million – and growing – "SAP Records Processed" worth of data and now use this information to provide a projection of what potential clients could realize based on their own SAP transaction utilization (which we obtain via the ST03N report).
So going forward I will be sharing with you over time via this blog, various findings from our UBVA work.