Our children depend on us to teach them about important issues such as celebrating diversity, showing kindness, cultivating compassion and building empathy. As a mother and a writer, I believe that reading books together with your little ones is a simple, fun and effective way to instill these values.
Here are our favorite picks for children's books with strong messages about compassion, diversity and empathy.
Amos McGee works at the zoo, and every day he makes time to visit his special animal friends. He spends time with elephant, tortoise, penguin, owl and rhinoceros and treats them with empathy and kindness. One day when Amos is sick and can't go to the zoo, his friends decide to take the bus to go and visit him so they can show him the same kindness and concern.
Stillwater, the lovely and thoughtful Panda Bear from Zen Shorts, returns with more inspiring tales for children and adults. Stillwater convinces his friends Addy, Michael and Karl, as well as his nephew Koo, to help a grumpy old neighbor who needs a hand. What results is a surprise to everyone (except Stillwater of course) and a wonderful lesson about kindness and compassion.
Tim really wants a skateboard for his birthday and since his family cannot afford to buy one for him, he decides to earn money for himself. He notices that his old neighbor, who is now homeless, collects cans and he decides to do the same. However, after his encounters with The Can Man, Tim changes his mind about what he is going to do with the money he earns.
Although this Newbery Honor book was written over 70 years ago, it is still relevant today. The story is about Wanda Petronski, a young girl who is teased by her classmates because she wears the same tattered dress to school every day. No one believes her when she says she has one hundred dresses at home. When Wanda is taken out of the school, her classmates are ashamed but it is too late try to right their wrongs. One of Wanda's classmates decides that she is never going to stand by and say nothing again.
This simple children's book addresses issues such as diversity and tolerance through simple pictures and words. Little Blue and Little Yellow are two little dots of color who just want to be friends. Their friendship is represented by the color green, but their parents do not approve… until they themselves also blend to become green. The sweet ending and the importance of friendship and diversity shine through in this story.
Lily and Salma are best friends. They go to school together, play together and eat lunch together. PB & J for Lily and a hummus and pita sandwich for Salma. But when each tells the other that her lunch looks yucky, their friendship comes to an end. The argument causes a divide at the school, which culminates in an epic food fight. The girls decide it is time to make some changes so they share their lunch and then they organize a food fair which leads to an important lesson in tolerance and multiculturalism.


If like me you're into recycling, have you ever wondered how you could use you're used brewed coffee grounds? Well, I have five great ideas for you to work them into you're beauty routine. Most of us coffee drinkers maybe unaware of the anti oxidant and other beneficial compounds contained in our morning tipple!! The grinds are just to good to waste! Here are a few recipes you can try, but first I would opt for trying just the coffee grounds on wet skin so you can see just how lovely your skin will feel afterwards!
Simply apply a healthy amount onto the cellulite affected areas. Rub in as gently or vigorously as you desire. Use circular motion, for about 5 mins. This works wonders because the caffeine dilates blood vessels and increases blood flow which can leads to firmer looking skin.
Apply the paste all over your body using circular movements. Rinse thoroughly. You can store unused scrub in a glass jar in the fridge for the next time. Alternatively, you can mix your usual shower gel with the used coffee grounds and apply in the same way. This Scrub really works well especially if you suffer from small bumps at the back of your arms.
Apply the mixture over face and neck and relax for 15mins. Rinse using light circular strokes as the coffee grounds gently sloughs away dead skin cells. This really does brighten dull complexions. Store excess in a glass jar in the Fridge. For a diary free face mask simply combine the coffee grounds with an egg white. This mask really tightens open pores. Dispose of excess.
Soften, smooth and shine your hair……yes, your hair! Before you shampoo your hair, rub a tablespoon onto wet hair. It sounds bizarre and feels even stranger…..but hang in there with the process. Once you've worked it through into your hair, rinse thoroughly. Believe it or not, the grounds completely removes product build up and general dust and pollution. Shampoo and condition as usual.
This cup of coffee you can't drink first! Brew coffee, let it chill, then pour the coffee into a spray bottle. Spray coffee into your roots and cover with a plastic cap, relax for 15 or so mins. Then rinse.
Alternatively, mix coffee grounds with your usual conditioner and apply onto the roots of your hair working the coffee/conditioner onto your scalp. Again, allow the conditioner to sit for 15 mins. Rinse thoroughly. The caffeine in the coffee grinds stimulate the blood flow to the scalp aiding hair growth.
NB. With all this use of coffee grinds it might be advisable to cover your plug hole with a sink strainer.We at Those London Chicks wouldn't want you to block your drains…… even if you will be looking smooth, fresh and glowing with fabulously shiny hair!!


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https://www.wiltonbulletin.com/past_obituaries/article/Obituary-Janet-Marie-Musho-73-13987834.php
Obituary: Janet Marie Musho, 73
Published 3:06 pm EDT, Tuesday, April 5, 2016
Janet Marie Musho was born in Yonkers, N.Y. on Sept. 30, 1943. She passed peacefully to her eternal home on April 2, 2016.
A devoted wife, mother and grandmother, family was always Janet's greatest joy. Her life was filled with service to others through teaching and later with her work at the American Red Cross in Westport, Conn.
Janet had an unwavering faith in God and was a faithful servant. Over the years, she had been involved with the church and served in many capacities including most recently as a CCD teacher.
Janet was predeceased by her loving husband of 47 years, Edward Musho. She is survived by her four children, Pam Musho; Edward Musho and his wife Stephanie; Greg Musho and his wife Stacy; Renee Tulimieri and her husband, Philip. She is also survived by eight grandchildren, Ryan Musho, Ilianna Musho, Simone Tulimieri, Tyler Musho, Jane Musho, Charlize Tulimieri, Rory Musho and Troy Tulimieri. Janet is also survived by her brother, William Hayduk and his wife Barbara; brother-in-law, Theodore Musho; sister-in-law Veronica Bertha and several nieces and nephews. Janet had a kind heart and was a friend to many.
The family will receive friends on Thursday, April 7, from 8:45 to 10 a.m. at Magner Funeral Home, 12 Mott Avenue in Norwalk. A funeral service celebrating her life will be held immediately following at 10:30 at St. Matthew's Church, 216 Scribner Avenue in Norwalk. A graveside service will then follow at St. John's Cemetery in Norwalk.
For information or to sign an online guestbook, please go to .

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Nice room. Helpful staff and great area.
The room was a good size and the air con was very quiet. Staff were very friendly. The balcony had an air con unit on it which took up almost the entire balcony. There was building work on the ground floor so noise in the mornings and lots of bags of what I think was plaster at the entrance making it very dusty as well.
Clean, well-priced hotel. Would recommend.
Small rooms but a great price! Entire hotel was extremely clean (inside the rooms and common areas). Well positioned to Gran Via.


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Inheritance tax: dying at the wrong time
Family Law | 27 Jul 2016 0
Related Help and Advice
When it comes to inheritance tax, some people are simply dying at the wrong time.
How much inheritance tax will I be charged?
Currently, Inheritance Tax (IHT) is payable on death at the rate of 40 per cent of the aggregate value of an individual's chargeable estate over and above the available IHT 'nil rate band'. This is the allowance each individual gets before IHT is paid on their estate.
The IHT nil rate band allowance for this year 2016/2017 is £325,000. So any property or money someone inherits worth less than that will pass free of any tax bill.
However, more estates have been forced to pay significant IHT bills following the death of a loved one. This has been caused partly by of the sharp rise in house prices in recent years.
This is one of the reasons why the government proposed new measures in last year's Budget to help people who have an estate (including a main residence) worth more than £325,000.
The measure announced is to be called the Residence Nil Rate Band (RNRB), which is an additional allowance for IHT. Its purpose is to assist only those who have a qualifying residential interest (usually this will be a house) which passes to a lineal descendant (such as children and grandchildren) when the owner dies.
Starting in 2017, this allowance will be gradually raised over a number of years. The increase is scheduled to proceed as follows:
£100,000 in 2017/18
Can inheritance tax allowance be transferred between spouses?
The new allowance will also be transferable between spouses. This means one partner can inherit their husband/wife's RNRB (if available). So after 2020, a surviving spouse could pass £350,000 (two RNRBs) and £650,000 (two nil rate bands) on to children provided all allowances are available and the Will is structured correctly. This takes us to the magic £1 million tax-free that the government wanted to headline.
However, this new measure will only apply to deaths that occur from April 2017 so you would need to survive until 2020 in order to get the full relief for your loved ones. Similarly, for deaths between the announcement last year and the start of the new measures in 2017, this tax break is not available for their families.
In fact, newly published research done on behalf of the Daily Telegraph suggests that as many as 28,000 families will have to pay up to £80,000 because their loved ones will die before the start of the new measures.
Alan Miller is the director of financial firm SVM Private, which caters to wealthy people. He told the newspaper the new allowance "penalises some people for dying before others". As people cannot choose when they die, he said, "the rules should be applied retrospectively from when they were announced". IHT is "just a 'jealousy' tax", he claimed.
If you are concerned about how much IHT you may be faced with, I recommend seeking legal advice to find out if these new measures will affect you. After all, it is important that your Will is structured to maximise the reliefs available.
Author: Jane Gray
Jane is a solicitor in Stowe Family Law's Hale office in Cheshire. She has over 15 years of experience in wills, tax trusts and probate law and is a fully qualified member of the Society of Trusts and Estate practitioners (STEP).
enquiry@stowefamilylaw.co.uk
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the national interest Nov. 17, 2017
I Opposed Bill Clinton's Impeachment and I Don't Regret It
By Jonathan Chait@jonathanchait
Bill Clinton. Photo: Joe Marquette/AFP/Getty Images
As liberal America has been engaged in a long-overdue outpouring of recrimination and rethinking about the impunity enjoyed by powerful men who sexually harass their subordinates, Bill Clinton's misdeeds have naturally returned to the fore. "At the time I, like most Americans, was glad to see Clinton prevail and regarded the whole sordid matter as primarily the fault of congressional Republicans' excessive scandal-mongering," confesses Matthew Yglesias. "I think we got it wrong." Asa Hutchinson, a Republican former member of the House and a fervent proponent of impeachment, appears in the New York Times to take a victory lap. "Some of the same people who dismissed the women who came forward" then, "it seems like they're evaluating these issues differently now than they did during that time."
It is definitely true that Democrats underplayed the extent of Clinton's crimes, especially ignoring Juanita Broaddrick's credible accusation of rape and the disturbingly coercive overtones of his encounter with Paula Jones. But the Clinton scandal was not about Broaddrick or Jones, nor even about the propriety of his affair with an intern. It was about the propriety of impeaching the president for concealing an affair. The events of the last two decades have not made that case look any better.
While a handful of high-profile and unconvincing contemporaneous defenses of Clinton's behavior have received some retrospective attention, it's an enormous mistake to conclude that Democrats on the whole were defending the president's behavior. On the contrary, they condemned it forcefully and repeatedly. "As deeply disappointed as I am with the process, it pales in comparison to the disappointment I feel toward this president," Senate Democratic leader Tom Daschle said during the impeachment debate. "Maybe it is because I had such high expectations. Maybe it is because he holds so many dreams and aspirations that I hold about our country. Maybe it is because he is my friend. I have never been, nor ever expect to be, so bitterly disappointed again." It is difficult to find an example of Democratic rhetoric that did not express this theme.
The Democrats' position at the time was that Congress should pass a resolution formally censuring Clinton — a rare, historic expression of condemnation. The Republican position maintained that such an act was unconstitutional. ("Censure violates the rules of the House. It's unconstitutional. It's a terrible precedent," insisted Majority Whip Tom DeLay.) Democrats focused their dismay on the Republican refusal to allow such a vote. "In this debate, we are being denied a vote as an alternative to impeachment for censure and condemnation of our president for the wrongful acts that we believe have been performed," complained House Minority Leader Richard Gephardt.
If the two parties agreed that Clinton's behavior with Monica Lewinsky was very, very bad, what was the dispute about, anyway? It centered on the legal process. Special Counsel Kenneth Starr was appointed in 1994 to investigate Whitewater, a land deal that predated the Clinton presidency. Having failed to produce any evidence of criminality, Starr expanded his investigation and set a trap in which he could ask Clinton under oath if he had conducted an extramarital affair. When Clinton denied it, as adulterers tend to do, Starr nailed him for perjury.
At that point, Republicans concluded that it was not only proper but utterly essential to impeach and remove Clinton from office. It is impossible to capture the fervency with which the conservative movement made the case that the rule of law itself hung in the balance, and that allowing Clinton to remain in office after he had concealed his affair from Starr would render the Republic a lawless autarchy. It is also impossible to recall the extent to which they lionized Starr, who during the late 1990s was the epitome of virtue and honor in the right-wing mind. (Starr went on to become president of Baylor University, where he was eventually forced to resign for his complicity in a culture of systematic sexual abuse. His reputation on the right has undergone no critical reassessment.)
Suppose Donald Trump had an affair with an intern, initiated by the latter, as Clinton's was. And further suppose, in the course of investigating the Russia scandal, Robert Mueller maneuvered Trump into denying it. Would that be grounds for impeaching him? No, it wouldn't even make a list of Trump's 100 most-impeachable offenses.
There are certainly some Democrats who lionized Clinton as a human being, and a somewhat larger number who do so today. I was not among them. The revelation that he put the liberal agenda at risk by having sex with an intern was widely greeted with disgust, as was the insight into his grossness as a man. One of my friends at the time quipped, "I'm against impeachment, but in favor of suicide."* The public gave Clinton high job-approval ratings and low personal favorable ratings, reflecting a broad ability to distinguish between his policies and his character. In 2000, the Democratic nominee, Al Gore, steered clear of Clinton and chose as his running mate Joe Lieberman, the Democrat most known for forcefully denouncing the president's morality.
I wish we liberals had done more to take seriously the episodes of alleged rape and sexual assault that were not the basis for a national impeachment trauma. For better or worse, though, those episodes were not at issue. It's hard to change the subject when Congress is conducting proceedings to impeach and remove the president. At issue was the procedural extremism of a Republican Party that was transforming before our eyes into the uncompromising fanatic faction whose character is fully manifest in the party of Donald Trump and Roy Moore. I don't think we got that wrong at all.
*Update: This passage wasn't clear. It was an ironic reference to Clinton committing suicide, and in earnest, meant that he should resign out of humiliation.


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An Interview with Eugene Friesen: Cellist, Improviser, Composer, and Educator
I had the enormous privilege of sitting down with Eugene Friesen for a little interview on a Monday evening, or rather a Monday afternoon where he was in Vermont, and evening for me in Berlin. It is a marvelous thing for two people to meet on two sides of the Atlantic Ocean, at two different times of day, in two different homes: and despite all of that, still share the same moment together. Pre-Pandemic I might have planned to meet with him somewhere in the Northeast USA while visiting there, and maybe the interview would not even have taken place if we couldn't coordinate a mutual meeting time and place. Though we both agreed that having moments with other people in-person is still preferable to digital meetings, this magic of technology really makes me feel like the world isn't quite so big anymore.
I've known of Eugene Friesen as long as I can remember. He and my father, Claudio Jaffé, both studied at Yale University around the same time and have kept in touch since then. As I looked through some of Eugene's discography recently, I distinctly recognized "Canyon" that he played on with the Paul Winter Consort. My dad would put it on every so often when I was still quite young, and I remember him explaining to me that Eugene Friesen was pioneering in the direction he took with his cello: learning new styles of music and improvisation. Little did I know then that the direction I would eventually take would be much more similar to Eugene Friesen's than my father's or mother's career, who have both remained fairly traditionally classical in their musical performances.
On Eugene's website, the short preview states that he is an "other / not classifiable artist from Boston". I found this quite fitting, as throughout our interview he always spoke in broader terms than just "cellist" or "musician" when he spoke about music. If you'd like to watch the video, just click on it here:
Interview with Eugene Friesen (Video)
For those of you who prefer to read, here is the full interview in transcript form.
Natasha: And, here we go! Good, so: first question is, what is your name? Or your artist name, but in this case I know they are one and the same.
Eugene: Yes, I go by Eugene Friesen.
N: Wonderful. And where are you currently based?
E: I am living out in Western Vermont, and it's very near the New York border, beautiful, beautiful 500 acre farm here that belongs to a friend of mine, so yeah, its very bucolic, very very lovely.
N: Wonderful. And where do you come from?
E: Well, I was raised up in California. (Nice!) My parents were Russian Mennonite immigrants, were both born in Russia and came to Canada as children, and then eventually immigrated to the US where I was born.
N: Very very nice. So we'll move on to the cello questions. What's your earliest cello memory? Either first time you played, first time you saw it, any… what's your first cello memory?
E: Well it wasn't that positive actually. I scored well on these kind of hearing tests in elementary school, you know, like I guess I was, what, 6 or 7 years old. And, so, my dad said, "You should choose an instrument, you could play an instrument. They're encouraging you to. What do you want to play?" And I kinda made the, like, trombone, you know, I went like this (mimics trombone playing). Because I'd seen them before, they're really shiny, and they're cool, you move your arm back and forth. And my dad just turned pale and said, "Here uh, just ask for a "cello" when you go there." And so I did that and they gave me this... thing. (N laughs). And I took it and blew on every possible hole that it has, but...
N: Really?
E: Anyway that was a long time ago. And since then I've grown to appreciate the cello.
N: Yeah, yeah. You're so… I mean we have had a couple of people that I might be interviewing and that I did interview, David Floer is working as a professional cellist, but a few people might not be. You are a professional cellist, but how do you, how would you consider yourself to be primarily making your living? In terms of cello?
E: Well, I've been in it for a long time, you know, and I've been very blessed to support myself and my family as a musician since I was 18 years old. So, I've been, you know teaching has always been an important part of my life, but then I've also done a lot of touring, road work, I played with an ensemble led by a saxophone player Paul Winter, and Paul Winter is a jazz musician with a real love for symphonic instruments. So he developed these ensembles that kind of had the mentality of jazz, but with oboe and English horn, cello, you know, sometimes he's had harp and flute in his ensembles. And we've really taken music from many many different world traditions and blended them into this kind of synthesis. So that's the Paul Winter Consort and I played with Paul for most of my career playing out. But I have other groups, and the last 20 years I've also been faculty of the Berklee College of Music in Boston, which I really really love. That, in addition to being very active in recording, recording on people's projects. I guess where I kind of planted my flag, Natasha, is in the realm of improvisational cello, because you're working with singers and songwriters, and lot of different contexts. Very often we're creating music where there's no written cello part, and those are my favorite, you know, things to do, because it calls forth what I can comfortably do on the cello and a lot of my interests in world music tend to come out when I do that. So, its a very rich life: teaching, performing, touring, recording.
N: Very nice, mix of everything basically, pretty much. I took the improvisation course with you last summer that you offered, thanks to the pandemic, online. That was, that was also really a nice experience. Are you planning to do courses like that again?
E: Yeah, yeah – we're developing some more courses, yes. (Sweet) I'm so glad you took that course. I was really honored because I'm a fan of your music too, Natasha, the stuff that you've done as a soloist and a composer, yeah very cool. I think its so great how many of us classically trained players are really rediscovering creativity and improvisation in a really elemental way. It's been gone from our tradition for 200 years and so (Yeah) its a pretty exciting time.
N: No it is, it is really wonderful. And that is one of the things that I was really focusing on also with these blogs and this interview format is exactly this kind of corner of music, where we have these cellist-composers, which I think could almost be just blended with cellist improvisers who are creating new music now, today, or new arrangements of music we might already know. So that's kind of slipped us into my next question you know, what kind of music do you feel like that you compose and arrange? You have a lot of sheet music available on your website, there's also CDs: how would you characterize that music?
E: Well sometimes I describe my stuff as just the product of, you know, years and years of wasted practice time (both laugh) because, you know, sometimes I'll sit down to practice one thing, and I get fascinated with one small element and just jamming on that and turning it into something completely different. So a lot of the music that I've birthed, has been really just the product of my curiosity and my affection for some sounds, some rhythmic feels, some chord progression you know that I've stumbled on over the years. But I think the most important thing, and we've kind of touched on it already, is really encouraging people's improvisational voice. I think that this, especially with the state of the planet right now, I think it's incredibly important.
N: Yeah that we're all creating, yeah?
E: Yeah and giving voice to, you know, musical messages that are really relevant at this time. (Yeah) That we're not just reawakening, you know, messages that were meant for a century or four earlier, as beautiful as that is, and as important as it is, especially for our training. (Absolutely) But to really give birth to what Jung called the "language of the present", you know, that kind of collective conscious idea. That there is a kind of a source of guidance, there's a source of information and storytelling below the conscious level. And we can access, you know with a certain kind of stillness and kind of musical preparation. So its exciting to see so many players value that and to really bring their own voices out in the music.
N: I know, that's beautiful, that's beautiful. Its going to give me stuff to think about for days now. That's… yeah. What's your, if you had to choose one, what would be one of your favorite arrangements or compositions that you've done up to date?
E: Well, something that happened to me earlier in my career, what's actually been really really formative to a lot of thinking, and continues to be relevant, and that is an experience I had in 1986. So, it was my first recording as a kind of a solo artist, and the producer, Paul Winter who I mentioned earlier, my band leader, was producing this record for us, set me up in a beautiful cathedral in New York, St. John the Divine (yeah), where we often play. And, you know its the middle of the night because its open to the public during the day, and I was there with the pianist Paul Halley, and we'd brought a bunch of sketches and things like that. But at one point Paul said, "You know, why don't you guys just try doing some noodling, just to loosen up a little bit?" In other words, improvising. And we did this; it sounded so amazing in the cathedral. And after about an hour, Paul came back on the headphones and said, "I think the record is done!" (Wow) And in fact, it did turn out to be a release of pieces that were all complete, free improvs that, you know, we didn't talk about any aspect of it. (Wow) And the very first piece on that record, which is called New Friend, is a piece called "First Ride". It was the first of our duos that really took flight. It just sounds like, you know like, like the untethered soul.
N: Yeah, no, I've heard that, super energetic!
E: You heard that? I think about that all the time. And just, what was going on there that it made us able to receive that amazing gift? I've thought about that my whole life.
N: Yeah, I love the title, it really really kind of shows that kind of.. you were let loose, you were allowed to just (Right, exactly) unbridled joy, and flying… yeah, no it's really nice. It's beautiful. Both of you, just doing all the things you can. But its a really joyful piece, that was one of the things that I really enjoyed about it. You'd mentioned it in the course as well, so I went back and listened to it and I was like, ah, really nice, really nice feeling.
First Ride (original)
E: That was a long time ago, you know, and since then I've integrated a lot of other musical styles, I have a lot more vocabulary in terms of improvising over chord changes and things like that, but still, the spirit of that, the spontaneity of it and the freedom of it is still kind of, you know, unmatched in my repertoire.
N: Fantastic. Then, opening up to other repertoire, do you have a favorite piece specifically for cello or cello ensemble?
E: You know, I mean yes, and you're Brazilian, Natasha, in your blood and so I'm sure you played the Villa-Lobos, the Bachianas Brasileiras (Yes) you know and I've been going to this cello festival in Brazil, probably been, I don't know 5 to 10 times, and we play that every year with a group of like 40 cellists. And that just remains to be the pinnacle of cello ensemble experience. (yeah) Its also informed my writing and I've done some arrangements for cello quartet. One is a piece by Dave Brubeck called Tritonis (OK) and he wrote for guitar and flute (Oh nice) and it moves around a lot, so it's very difficult for cello quartet. But its been played a number of times. And then I also have a quartet that I spent, I had a lot of fun writing called The Soul of the White Ant, which has some extended techniques that I love inside of it. Its about 17 minutes long.
N: Very cool. Very cool. These extended techniques, I mean, that's I feel a direction that a lot of cellists are moving in to this lately, and that we're trying to kind of expand our horizons. I have a lot of colleagues who also like me were classically trained and even began their careers as classical musicians and who, in the last few years, I've noticed have been experimenting, oh well we can try a little improvisation, we can try some chopping, we can try some pizzicato techniques. And I feel that's, its a really wonderful thing to have composers now creating music and notating it, especially for cellists who are trying to make this shift in a new direction (right!) and yeah, thank you for that! Its always great to have these ways to learn these pieces.
E: I always say to my students, "you are what you eat". Depending on what you like to listen to, you know, when you start making your own music that tends to really inform what you want to do. You know in my case I love listening to a lot of, like, field recordings from different parts of Africa, and even like children singing together in a kind of a rhythmic, you know, setting, and instruments like the mbira, the thumb piano and the kora, the African harp. These are things that have sounds and kind of rhythmic information in it that really makes me want to create something so I can share in that beauty somehow.
N: Yeah. Yeah and you've, you've then essentially chosen to remain focused on the cello, right? I mean you, it remains your basic instrument. Do you feel like you can manage to get the spirit of these other sounds and other cultures through the instrument? Do you feel like…?
E: Yeah, I mean actually during the pandemic I've spent so many hours with my looper (Yeah) building up layers of things and experimenting with how different rhythms work together and stuff with the looper. It's really really fun. But the other, the other kind of instrument that I've really come to appreciate is the string orchestra, because I have a, I direct an ensemble at Berklee Boston called the Berklee World Strings which is kind of a hand-picked group of string players from all over the world, many of whom are fantastic improvisers who are doing Celtic or Middle-eastern, Jazz of course, Gypsy jazz, Brazilian. A lot of people from all over the world. And we develop repertoire that really represents, you know, people's comfort zones as improvising soloists the best we can. And so every semester I write at least one original piece for that group and also arrange some folk music for that group too. (wow) So that, I feel like that's one of my instruments, is the string orchestra.
N: Is the string orchestra! That's really cool. That was making me think like, then you were talking about earlier what you, "you are what you eat" in terms of also the music that you listen to, so I guess these young people are also being exposed to music of different cultures through your work and through that sort of work.
E: And through each other's experience!
N: Yeah that's true, yeah absolutely. We all have our own corner of the world we come from.
E: Yeah, my student Kely Pinheiro, you know she's from Rio and she just is, just a natural expression of Brazilian music. It's what she's heard since she was an infant (yeah). And so, to be able to sit side by side with Kely and play this repertoire gives you an in to that style, that feel, that you can't (yeah) get in a book or listening to record.
N: Yeah yeah, you need to be hanging out with someone (That's it!) and just enjoying the moment. What would be something that you feel like you really loved listening to, that you wish someone else would also "eat" essentially? (laugh) What would be another piece that you feel like a lot of people or a lot of cellists especially might want to listen to? And add to their musical repertoire?
E: You know, I don't think I would point to anything specific, but just I think the bigger point is to be curious about this amazing world that we have access to right now, like never before (yeah, that's true). Like never before. And I think simply, one's curiosity will lead you to a sound, that'll ignite something in your imagination, you know, that opens your heart in a different way. And I think once we open our heart to those kind of sounds, we can't help but open our heart to the people who make those sounds too. You know it's so curious to me, and so interesting to me, when I hear something, you know, to be curious: how do, what do, how do these people get married? What do they do at their weddings? What do they do at their funerals, how do they celebrate birthdays? You know all of these holidays that they have? What do they eat? And I think all of those questions just make it more obvious how connected we all are.
N: Yeah, yeah, I agree. I guess we find a lot of similar answers. I mean I've had the, sort of the privilege of coming from a multicultural background with my mother from Quebec and my father from Brazil and then I grew up in the United States and we were all there together. And now I've moved to Germany and I guess the one thing that really has resonated with me all through these, these different years is just how much culture is, is um.. you can learn through language and then through music. Then you get to know kind of the spirit of another group of people and the sorts of things that they find interesting and beautiful and wonderful, and then you realize that a lot of things you enjoy and you find also interesting and beautiful and wonderful, even though you had no idea they existed before.
E: Right, that's right, you're a true citizen of the world.
N: Yeah, well, its still all very, from a fairly narrow group of cultures, I mean you've had experiences with Middle-eastern and Asian cultures that I've not really had the chance to touch on yet. And also you were saying about different African countries and the music that you've been listening to. (Well that's right!). The field recordings.
E: Because really our whole mindset I think has been completely blown out, maybe a better word is illuminated, by the kind of mindset of jazz. (Yeah) And its really true that jazz is such a kind of an African, Afrological stream of music you know, like rhythmically. And formalized too. The different kind of forms that are really much more conducive to improvising than a lot of the kind of through-composed forms from Western music. (Yeah) But the thing that Jazz has really taught us, is how rich our music can be if we really pick from a lot of different streams. (Yeah) Its kind of what we're talking about. And jazz has developed the techniques to really understand what the different streams are and how to quickly integrate them and to make your own sound using them. So I think we just owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to, you know Black musicians, Jazz musicians and its just changing everything.
N: Yeah, that's lovely. Yeah so we just go out and learn, learn from each other. Just learn whatever we each have to say.
E: I think that's how the world has always been, but now we find, we have the kind of enhanced, kind of permission somehow to do that.
N: Yeah, that's true. We've all learned to inter-connect even more. Well then I'm going to slowly, slowly wrap this up and I wanted to, one of the things that I wanted to focus on is also the music that you have. Is there... you have a sheet music page on your website. Do you have a couple of suggestions of highlights from that sheet music page? I really like the Cello Man theme, that...
E: Yeah yeah yeah, the CelloMan Blues. Yeah there's a lot there, there's, I've kind of invented/developed, better word, this kind of pizzicato techniques where I use a lot of left hand pizzicato and hammer-ons, stuff like that, in order to get very very active in various rhythmic feels. So, that stuff is there. A couple of, the piece I mentioned earlier The Soul of the White Ant is there in an arrangement for cello quartet as well as string orchestra. And another one of my favorite pieces called Maracaibo, which is a piece that was originally for the trio that I play with, Trio Globo with Howard Levy and Glen Velez (yeah), that's there in an arrangement for, I think for cello quintet as well as string orchestra. And string quartet.
N: Very cool. Then where else should we look for you? I've already mentioned your website a few times, but there might be some other channels. Where can we find you and more about you?
E: Well Spotify seems to be the easiest thing these days, you know, its so easy just to type a word in and just get a whole album or whatever you know. Eventually, I'm hoping we'll figure this out so that artists really get, get compensated for you know, their music and for those kind of performances. But it is a very very convenient way to get to know a lot of different music by different artists, so that's one option too.
N: Alright, super. Anything else that you wanted to share with us before we wrap this up?
E: Not at all. Its good to see you again Natasha!
N: Wonderful to see you too! Well, I'm glad that you're doing well and thanks for being here with me today!
E: My pleasure, thanks for your curiosity!
N: Hope everybody enjoyed this.
With that, our interview was over, but Eugene gave me a lot to think about. I'll leave you with a fantastic improvised performance of his:
Dances of Rasputin (American Variations on a Bartok Theme)
It is transcribed and available on his website for us all to learn.
Find more about Eugene Friesen here: https://eugenefriesenmusic.com/
in Interviews
Jolie McGauley Anchorage Alaska
Oct 15 2021 6:21 PM
Listening to this beautiful and creative music is moving and inspirational . I started playing the cello at 60 and I'm 64 now. Still playing, however improvisation is a stretch. Thank you for sharing - the cello is a true adventure. Cello has a voice that expresses what living in Alaska is like. It is big, wild, and the in your face and at the same time it is so astonishingly close. Even with mountains that scratch the back of the sky and the northern Lights that dance in the dark winter - so big - yet cello music expresses a large concept and makes it close.
Prelude Down the Bach 5:20
Prelude Down the Bach
Natasha Jaffe
Please choose a price: € EUR (€1.99 or more)
Please pay at least €1.99
In the Mist of Reality 4:21
In the Mist of Reality
When the Sun Comes 3:22
When the Sun Comes
For All the Horses 5:26
For All the Horses
Lovely Love Suite 4:02
Lovely Love Suite
Four Seasons in the Life of a Squirrel 4:36
Four Seasons in the Life of a Squirrel
Stars & Galaxies 4:38
Stars & Galaxies
Cello Water Music 1:52
Cello Water Music
Camel Song 3:57
Camel Song


text:
KFC apologises after customer taken to hospital with suspected poisoning from sanitised ice cubes
EXCLUSIVE: An ambulance had to be called after the man had drunk a Pepsi Max and noticed it smelt and tasted of chlorine
Matt StrudwickContent editor
The KFC in Gatwick was the UK's first 24 hour franchise (Image: KFC)
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KFC has apologised after a customer at its Gatwick restaurant had to be taken to hospital with suspected poisoning from sanitised ice cubes.
BerkshireLive understands a man was drinking a Pepsi Max from the fast-food chain's restaurant near the airport's South Terminal when he noticed it tasted and smelt like chlorine.
Paramedics were called to the KFC on Wednesday (October 28) at around 6.50pm and the customer was taken to East Surrey Hospital for treatment, with the restaurant being forced to close.
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KFC has confirmed to BerkshireLive that sanitiser was accidentally disposed of into the ice tray and affected a "small number of customers during a 90 minute window".
The fast-food chain reviewed its CCTV and it is aware of all those affected and those that have been in touch "are all well". The ice was not served to any customers who ordered through delivery or drive-through.
A KFC spokesperson said: "We're really sorry – this was a genuine mistake. We sanitise our restaurants regularly and have strict hygiene measures, but some sanitiser was accidentally disposed of in the ice tray.
"It was an accident and we've apologised to the guests affected. The safety of our guests remains top priority – an Environmental Health Officer has since visited our restaurant and is happy with the procedures we have in place."
A South East Coast Ambulance Service spokesperson said: " We got a call to Gatwick at 6.50pm on Wednesday to reports of a person suffering a reaction to something they drank. They were taken to East Surrey Hospital for further treatment."
The restaurant reopened on Thursday (October 29).
IYA Alert County


Toronto's PFL stopped in at the Casbah in Hamilton Thursday. Oh, the carnage!
The Pillow Fight League only gets better. I missed #36 at the Mod Club and decided to make the trek to Hamilton to catch Fight #37.
This was the first match ever to be hosted in Hamilton and the PFL didn't dissapoint. The Casbah turned out to be a perfect venue. Judging by screams and enthusiasm from the crowd some new fans were converted.
Don't worry Hamilton has hijacked the PFL. The next Toronto match promises to be an exciting new chapter. (One that involves SATURDAY NIGHTS instead of weeknights!).
PFL 39 – NEW DAY RISING!
Posted in Entertainment, Music | Comments Off on Gearing Up for GZA!!!
CityTV once a jewel on Queen Street West has been hit with yet another blow. Now a plaything for larger media corporations CityTV is now owned by Rogers Media.
"Today's changes, although difficult, are necessary to align our operations with the economic and regulatory realities of our industry," says Leslie Sole, CEO, Rogers Media Television. Today's press release adds fuel to the fire that the consolidation of media outlets has not only reduced real "choice" but has resulted in fewer jobs. (Some would argue consolidation has meant less quality too!) It seems the bulk of job losses are related to markets outside of Toronto. It is likely that some CityTV Toronto on-air personalities, writers, producers, editors and camera people are affected by this announcement.
Love it or hate it CityTV's new home is Yonge and Dundas Square. Hoping that this "rationalization" doesn't further erode what was once one of Toronto's best stations. My condolences to those that have lost their jobs in these uncertain times.


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Léo Laporte-Blairsy (1865-1923) was a French sculptor.

References

1865 births
1923 deaths
Sculptors from Toulouse
French male sculptors

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


Founder and Carnival director, Embaixadores da Alegria', Brazil. For services to raising awareness of disability rights and to the community in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Giles Elliot Enticknap. Head, UK Office, Nouakchott, Mauritania. For services to furthering British kk in Mauritania. Brian Edward Flanagan. Police Adviser, European Lgb allegra k Police Mission, Afghanistan. For services to international police development in Iraq and Afghanistan. Miss Catherine Louise Fraser.
May our dear elder friend and scholar be allegr for her wonderful work and her sparkling personality. Catherine Foley. It is with deep sadness that I heard of Anca's passing. She has been an inspiration to many of us and will be sorely missed. I lГthair DГ, go bhfГadfadh sГ damhsa.
Intenso nella vita privata (qualche moglie e cinque figli), abile nellвorditura imprenditorial-finanziaria (i denari gli escono dalle orecchie) e che, con i primi capelli grigi, tenta lвavventura politica.
AdГЁle Exarchopoulos sparkled from head to toe in a custom Louis Vuitton gown, an embellished silver Roger Vivier clutch and Bourcheron jewels. Image GETTY IMAGES. Zhu Zhu looked flawless in this monochromatic stunner by Stella McCartney and Queelin jewels. Image GETTY IMAGES. Tabitha Simmons always wows on the red carpet, this year8217;s gilded look came completely off the Dolce amp; Gabbana Alta Moda Spring 2015 runway- headdress and all. Image INDIGITALIMAGES.


In just a few short hours, the Henry Center will host a high-level theological conversation on the meaning of the phrase "All Israel" (Romans 11:26). To view the live webcast, please visit http://tiuproductions.com/livestream/ or click here to be taken to the link.
The following is a short summary of what this event will cover. We hope to see you there–whether online or in-person.
On February 3, 2010 from 7pm-9:30 in ATO Chapel at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, the Henry Center, in conjunction with Chosen People Ministries, will host a conversation entitled "'All Israel' and the Church: A Conversation on Scripture, Eschatology, and Evangelism". Conversational partners will include Dr. Mitch Glaser of CPM, Dr. Douglas Moo of Wheaton College, Dr. Willem VanGemeren of Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, Dr. John Feinberg of TEDS, and the moderator, Dr. Richard Averbeck of TEDS. All are welcome and invited to this free event.
In Romans 11 Paul makes the case that God has not cast off his people Israel, despite their rejection as a nation of Jesus, their Messiah. His final argument that God isn't finished with Israel is that "all Israel will be saved" (Rom 1l:25-27). What did Paul mean and how will this come to pass? Who constitutes "Israel," the biological seed of Abraham or his spiritual seed? Is the salvation in view spiritual, national, socio-economical, or all of these? Has this promise been fulfilled during the NT era by individual Jews and Gentiles turning to Christ and hence "filling up" the "all Israel?" Or is the promise to be fulfilled in the end-times at the return of Christ? If the latter, will only those biologically Jewish be saved, or will there also be a massive turning to Christ among the Gentiles? Whatever the answers to such questions, what are the implications for how Christians should understand the modern state of Israel? And, of most practical importance, how should one's understanding of Rom 11:25-27 impact one's attitudes toward and efforts in evangelizing Jews?


Two Dogs found at a local dumpster Need Help ASAP!!
*From S: I was trying to get the grass cut today and three different cars stopped in my yard about animals. It is getting to the point I am afraid to come out of the house anymore! They do not have anyone else to turn to and I am BEYOND full and cannot do more than post out now for help and care for and try to find homes and rescues for the ones I already have. I get 2 or three out and 7 and 8 come in! It really is a hell hole here for the poor helpless animals.
I am posting out these two dogs in hope of a good rescue and in hopes they can get out of Rural South Ga. (Hell Hole USA)!
The lady had both dogs in the front of her truck and had just picked them up at the dumpster. They were beyond thirsty and I went inside and got them some water, grabbed my camera and some Frontline Plus as they had lots of ticks on them.
She said to me that if I could not take them that her husband was going to kill her. Well I hope he doesn't because I had absolutely no room anywhere for them. I told her I would help all I could with trying to find them a good place to go who could find them homes if she could keep them for a few days.
She said she has a rescued pit bull at home and was not sure how he would do with them. She was going to go and buy some chains to keep them on for the time being until hopefully they can find a rescue able to take them. She said she hated to do that but it was the only thing she could do because like me, she too had nowhere to put them.
Both dogs appear to be very young by their teeth and the White and Brown dog I think is her sibling although he looks to be maybe 8 months old. She doesn't look much more than a year old and this was probably the last sibling to her first litter of puppies. I am not sure of the breed but they are both very pretty dogs and the younger one has an almost solid white body but his little head is brown/Brindle. The Mama dog smiles at you when you speak to her.
Is there anyone out there who is not full to the gills, who can help these two precious dogs. The woman will have no alternative but to take them to the pound in Augusta (kill shelter) if we cannot find reputable rescue for them. Mama dog is very skinny and you can see her ribs even through her long coat.
Please pass this on to your contacts and hopefully someone will see them and be able to help. Thank You for sharing and for any help with finding these two precious dogs a rescue or home!
Please contact me if you can help. My contact info is below in my signature line.


text:
Infectious Diseases– In the Department of Medicine
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Stanford Medical Sites
Research Assistant, Pediatrics - Neonatology
Ivana Maric
Research Scientist, Pediatrics - Neonatology
Bio Ivana Maric received her B.S. degree from the University of Novi Sad, Serbia. She received her M.S and Ph.D. from Rutgers University in 2000 and 2006, respectively. 2006 to 2010 she was a postdoctoral scholar at Stanford University. From 2010 to 2013 she was with Aviat Networks, Santa Clara, CA. From 2013 to 2017 she was at Ericsson Research, Santa Clara, CA. During Spring 2016 she was an adjunct faculty at Santa Clara University. Since 2017, she is a Research Scientist at the Prematurity Research Center at Stanford University, School of Medicine.
Her research focuses on applying machine learning to improving maternal and perinatal health. Previously, her research has focused on information theory, a mathematical discipline tightly related to statistics and machine learning. She co-edited and co-authored a book, a monograph, two book chapters and 14 journal and 41 papers conference papers on the topic. She served as an Associate Editor for the IEEE Communications Letters from 2009 to 2012, for the Trans. on Emerging Telecommunications Technologies from 2016 to 2018. She is a co-recipient of the 2013 IEEE Communications Society Best Tutorial Paper Award.
Katherine Rachel McCallie
Clinical Associate Professor, Pediatrics - Neonatal and Developmental Medicine
Current Research and Scholarly Interests Nutrition & growth in premature infants
Quality improvement in the NICU
Leveraging electronic health record (Epic) for improvement in NICU outcomes
Emily McCormick
Adm Svcs Admstr 1, Pediatrics - Neonatology
Ned McNamara
Stephanie Miller
Clinical Assistant Professor, Pediatrics - Neonatal and Developmental Medicine
Sonya Misra
Required Clinical Associate Professor (Affiliated) [Scvmc], Pediatrics - Neonatology
Christine Morton
Research Sociologist, Pediatrics - Neonatology
Current Role at Stanford Research Sociologist and Program Manager at California Maternal Quality Care Collaborative (CMQCC)
Jane A. Morton
Emeritus Adjunct Clinical Professor, Pediatrics - Neonatal and Developmental Medicine
Alexandra Muddle
Administrative Associate, Pediatrics - Neonatology
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home press sharjah-art-foundations-2020-focal-point-publishing-grant-open-call-now-acc
Sharjah Art Foundation's 2020 FOCAL POINT Publishing Grant Open Call Now Accepting Applications
2020 edition FOCAL POINT Publishing Grant
Second edition of the grant will provide one or more research projects with up to USD 30,000 in support
Deadline: Saturday, 10 October 2020
Sharjah Art Foundation announces an open call for the second edition of the FOCAL POINT Publishing Grant, furthering the Foundation's mission to advance scholarly research and publish content that generates a more expansive understanding of the history of art in the region and its relationship with the wider world. The 2020 edition of the grant will support one or more art historical research projects that focus on global modernism in relation to artists, practices and/or theoretical content produced in the MEASA (Middle East, Africa and South Asia) region during the post-war period.
For the 2020 grant cycle, the Foundation invites proposals for publications in two categories exploring global modernism in the MEASA region: long-form essays of unpublished and original research or new readings of historical content, and reproductions of critical historical texts or small publications that have been out of print for at least 10 years, either published between the 1940s to the 1960s or engage with content from the period. Texts in both Arabic and English are accepted, and individual scholars, research teams, publishing houses and public institutions are eligible to apply. In addition to providing funding, Sharjah Art Foundation will publish the text from its publishing platform and provide design and printing support.
Since its establishment in 2009, Sharjah Art Foundation has published a variety of books on modern and contemporary art, including artist books, catalogues and scholarly volumes. The Foundation supports the research-based efforts of visiting artists, curators and scholars year-round and publishes catalogues for biennials and curated exhibitions, which are made available to local, regional and international audiences interested in contemporary art and publishing.
The inaugural edition of the FOCAL POINT Publishing Grant in 2019 was awarded to Ma3azef, an online magazine dedicated to the critique and analysis of contemporary music, to support the launch of a series of print publications in collaboration with Beirut-based design studio SHFRA.
The 2020 FOCAL POINT publishing grant recipients will have the opportunity to present their work at future editions of FOCAL POINT Art Book Fair, the Foundation's annual fair dedicated to presenting varied printed matter across the UAE, the MEASA region and the world.
The application deadline for the 2020 grant cycle is Saturday, 10 October 2020. Interested applicants should complete the application form here.
For more information and for the terms and conditions, visit sharjahart.org
About Sharjah Art Foundation
Sharjah Art Foundation is an advocate, catalyst and producer of contemporary art within the Emirate of Sharjah and the surrounding region, in dialogue with the international arts community. Under the leadership of founder Hoor Al Qasimi, a curator and artist, the foundation advances an experimental and wide-ranging programmatic model that supports the production and presentation of contemporary art, preserves and celebrates the distinct culture of the region and encourages a shared understanding of the transformational role of art. The foundation's core initiatives include the long-running Sharjah Biennial, featuring contemporary artists from around the world; the annual March Meeting, a convening of international arts professionals and artists; grants and residencies for artists, curators and cultural producers; ambitious and experimental commissions; and a range of travelling exhibitions and scholarly publications.
Established in 2009 to expand programmes beyond the Sharjah Biennial, which launched in 1993, the foundation is a critical resource for artists and cultural organisations in the Gulf and a conduit for local, regional and international developments in contemporary art. The foundation's deep commitment to developing and sustaining the cultural life and heritage of Sharjah is reflected through year-round exhibitions, performances, screenings and educational programmes in the city of Sharjah and across the Emirate, often hosted in historic buildings that have been repurposed as cultural and community centres. A growing collection reflects the foundation's support of contemporary artists in the realisation of new work and its recognition of the contributions made by pioneering modern artists from the region and around the world. Sharjah Art Foundation is a legally independent public body established by Emiri Decree and supported by government funding, grants from national and international non-profits and cultural organisations, corporate sponsors and individual patrons. All exhibitions and events are free and open to the public.
About Sharjah
Sharjah is the third-largest of the seven United Arab Emirates, and the only one bridging the Arabian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman. Reflecting the deep commitment to the arts, architectural preservation and cultural education embraced by its ruler, Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Sharjah is home to more than 20 museums and has long been known as the cultural hub of the United Arab Emirates. In 1998, it was named UNESCO's 'Arab Capital of Culture' and was designated the UNESCO 'World Book Capital' for the year 2019.
Sharjah Art Foundation:
Alyazeyah Al Reyaysa, alyazeyah@sharjahart.org, +971(0)65444113


Join the County of San Mateo - join a progressive county.
Contribute to innovative programs and services, and make a real difference in the community. Knowing that employees are our greatest asset, the County of San Mateo conducts an annual employee engagement survey. In 2014, 78% of employees ranked their experience working for the County as "very good/good" and 85% stated that they would recommend the County as a great place to work.
Are you passionate about sustainability and environmental issues, leading a team of enthusiastic professionals, and especially being part of the changing ways in which local governments can develop and implement programs to address these issues and serve the San Mateo County community?
Do you have a knack for identifying and working with the right people in organizations to effect change?
The County of San Mateo's Office of Sustainability is seeking qualified candidates for the position of Senior Sustainability Specialist. We want "sustainability champions" to lead initiatives and support department staff in empowering our departments, employees and our community members to take meaningful actions on sustainability.
The San Mateo County Office of Sustainability (OOS) has four working groups: Waste Reduction, Energy and Water, Livable Communities, and Climate Change. Each working group will have a Senior Sustainability Specialist to support all the staff, programs and projects of each of these work groups. To learn more about each of the OOS workgroups, please click here.
Note: At this time, we will be hiring for one permanent Senior Sustainability Specialist position for the Office of Sustainability Energy and Water working group. This recruitment may also be used to fill future vacancies, so those interested in the Senior Sustainability Specialist position in one or any of the other working group(s) are encouraged to apply in this recruitment.
For the Climate Action and Adaptation Senior Resource Conservation Specialist, knowledge of principles of climate adaptation, including sea level rise, fire, heat island and other risks, and climate action planning, including emission inventories, forecasting and emission targets, measure development and stakeholder engagement for adaptation risk and climate planning initiatives.
For the Livable Communities Senior Resource Conservation Specialist, knowledge of active and alternative transportation, affordable housing, commute alternatives, and community engagement.
Note: A typical way to qualify is three years of program coordination experience in the field of sustainability and/or resource conservation.
Compensation: This position with the County of San Mateo pays a range of $7,524-$9,407/Month. A competitive benefits package is associated with this position. For complete information regarding benefits please click here.
To learn more about the position and to apply online, visit our website.
Final Filing Date: January 22, 2019.


text:
16 days in United States Itinerary
Created using Inspirock United States trip planner
Start: Lewisberry
Roanoke — Asheville Regional Airport
190 miles / 3h 30min Search flights
Asheville Regional Airport — Arden
15min Rent a car
Folkston — Jacksonville International Airport
1h Rent a car
Jacksonville International Airport — Orlando International Airport
Orlando International Airport — Sebastian
1h 45min Rent a car
Florida City — Miami International Airport
Miami International Airport — Key West
102 miles / 1h Search flights
3h 30min
Key Largo — Miami International Airport
Miami International Airport — Fort Lauderdale Hollywood International Airport
Fort Lauderdale Hollywood International Airport — Port Saint Lucie
bus: 4h
Savannah — Fayetteville Municipal
Fayetteville Municipal — Fayetteville
5 miles / 15min › Rent a car
Fayetteville — Fayetteville Municipal
Fayetteville Municipal — Richmond
End: Lewisberry
Read about United States
Destinations in United States
Things to do in United States
Hoo-Ville
Situated at the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, Charlottesville is perhaps best known as the home of three of the United States' founding fathers, including Thomas Jefferson.
Start off your visit on the 29th (Sat): take in nature's colorful creations at Monticello.
To find where to stay, ratings, maps, and more tourist information, refer to the Charlottesville trip itinerary builder website .
Lewisberry to Charlottesville is an approximately 4-hour car ride. When traveling from Lewisberry in February, plan for a bit warmer days and about the same nights in Charlottesville: temperatures range from 50°F by day to 30°F at night. Cap off your sightseeing on the 29th (Sat) early enough to go by car to Roanoke.
Things to do in Charlottesville
Parks Historic Sites
Find places to stay Feb 29 — Mar 1:
1:30pm, Sat Feb 29
Roanoke is an independent city in the U.S. For more things to do, ratings, maps, and tourist information, refer to the Roanoke trip builder app .
You can drive from Charlottesville to Roanoke in 2.5 hours. Other options are to take a bus; or take a train. In February, plan for daily highs up to 50°F, and evening lows to 30°F. Wrap up your sightseeing by early afternoon on the 1st (Sun) to allow enough time to travel to Arden.
Things to do in Roanoke
Parks Museums
Mill Mountain Star and Park
9:00am, Sun Mar 1
Virginia Museum of Transportation
1:00pm, Sun Mar 1
Arden is an unincorporated community located in southern Buncombe County, North Carolina, in the United States. For maps, where to stay, photos, and more tourist information, refer to the Arden road trip planning website .
You can drive from Roanoke to Arden in 4 hours. Alternatively, you can do a combination of flight and car. In March, plan for daily highs up to 58°F, and evening lows to 36°F. On the 2nd (Mon), you're off toColumbia.
Things to do in Arden
Outdoors Parks Breweries & Distilleries
Find places to stay Mar 1 — 2:
Capital of Southern Hospitality
A compact capital with stately southern history, Columbia serves as a symbol of the south.
On the 2nd (Mon), admire nature's wide array of creatures at Riverbanks Zoo and Botanical Garden.
For traveler tips, more things to do, ratings, and more tourist information, read our Columbia road trip site .
Getting from Arden to Columbia by car takes about 2.5 hours. Plan for somewhat warmer temperatures traveling from Arden in March, with highs in Columbia at 67°F and lows at 44°F. Wrap up your sightseeing on the 2nd (Mon) to allow time to drive to Charleston.
Parks Zoos & Aquariums
Riverbanks Zoo and Botanical Garden
12:00pm, Mon Mar 2
Many visitors describe their Charleston holiday as a warm embrace by an old, dear friend--who lived about 200 years ago.
You've now added Charleston Visitor Center to your itinerary.
To find other places to visit, photos, and more tourist information, you can read our Charleston trip app .
Traveling by car from Columbia to Charleston takes 2 hours. Alternatively, you can take a bus. In March, plan for daily highs up to 66°F, and evening lows to 47°F. Wrap up your sightseeing on the 3rd (Tue) early enough to travel to Folkston.
Magnolia Plantation & Gardens
1:00pm, Tue Mar 3
Fort Sumter National Monument
6:00am, Tue Mar 3
Charleston Visitor Center
Folkston is a city in and the county seat of Charlton County, Georgia, United States. Start off your visit on the 4th (Wed): identify plant and animal life at Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge.
For photos, more things to do, reviews, and other tourist information, read our Folkston day trip website .
Drive from Charleston to Folkston in 4 hours. Traveling from Charleston in March, you will find days in Folkston are somewhat warmer (73°F), and nights are about the same (49°F). Wrap up your sightseeing on the 5th (Thu) early enough to travel to Sebastian.
Things to do in Folkston
Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge
9:00am, Wed Mar 4
Sebastian is a city in Indian River County, Florida, United States, with a small portion in Brevard County. For more things to do, reviews, where to stay, and tourist information, read Sebastian trip planning site .
You can drive from Folkston to Sebastian in 4 hours. Alternatively, you can do a combination of car and flight. In March, Sebastian is somewhat warmer than Folkston - with highs of 79°F and lows of 57°F. On the 8th (Sun), you'll have the morning to explore before heading off to Miami.
Things to do in Sebastian
Outdoors Tours Parks
Florida's mecca of fun in the sun, the lively tropical metropolis of Miami is one of the world's top vacation spots.
You've now added Monkey Jungle to your itinerary. Kick off your visit on the 8th (Sun): get to know the resident critters at Monkey Jungle.
To find traveler tips, other places to visit, where to stay, and other tourist information, read Miami trip planning site .
Traveling by car from Sebastian to Miami takes 2.5 hours. Traveling from Sebastian in March, expect somewhat warmer with lows of 65°F in Miami. Cap off your sightseeing on the 8th (Sun) early enough to go by car to Florida City.
Things to do in Miami
Monkey Jungle
Florida City is a city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States and is the southernmost municipality in the South Florida metropolitan area. To see ratings, photos, reviews, and tourist information, refer to the Florida City trip itinerary site .
Traveling by car from Miami to Florida City takes an hour. In March in Florida City, expect temperatures between 79°F during the day and 63°F at night. On the 9th (Mon), you're off toKey West.
Things to do in Florida City
Parks Outdoors Wildlife
Your day-by-day itinerary now includes Key West Lighthouse and Keeper's Quarters Museum as well as Key West Shipwreck Treasure Museum. Start off your visit on the 9th (Mon): take in panoramic vistas at Key West Shipwreck Treasure Museum, see the interesting displays at The Ernest Hemingway Home and Museum, and then visit a coastal fixture at Key West Lighthouse and Keeper's Quarters Museum.
For more things to do, where to stay, traveler tips, and more tourist information, read our Key West day trip tool .
Explore your travel options from Florida City to Key West with the Route module. Traveling from Florida City in March, you can expect nighttime temperatures to be a bit warmer in Key West, with lows of 69°F. Wrap up your sightseeing on the 9th (Mon) early enough to drive to Key Largo.
Museums Historic Sites
Find places to stay Mar 9 — 10:
2:00pm, Mon Mar 9
Key West Lighthouse and Keeper's Quarters Museum
Key West Shipwreck Treasure Museum
Diving Capital of the World
The northernmost island of the Florida Keys, Key Largo provides stunning scenery, a number of watersports opportunities, and plenty of areas to relax on vacation.
For other places to visit, maps, reviews, and tourist information, read Key Largo tour planner.
Getting from Key West to Key Largo by car takes about 2.5 hours. Other options: take a bus. Expect little chillier evenings in Key Largo when traveling from Key West in March, with lows around 63°F. You'll set off for Port Saint Lucie on the 10th (Tue).
Things to do in Key Largo
Port St. For maps, photos, more things to do, and more tourist information, go to the Port Saint Lucie day trip site .
The Route module can help you plan travel from Key Largo to Port Saint Lucie. In March, daytime highs in Port Saint Lucie are 78°F, while nighttime lows are 61°F. You'll set off for Titusville on the 10th (Tue).
Things to do in Port Saint Lucie
Outdoors Parks Tours
Find places to stay Mar 10 — 11:
The Gateway to Nature and Space
America's "Space City," Titusville sits on the Indian River, just west of Kennedy Space Center, the origin point of every NASA human space flight since 1968.
Get ready for a full day of sightseeing on the next day: see the sky in a new way at NASA Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex.
For more things to do, traveler tips, reviews, and tourist information, read Titusville route planner.
You can drive from Port Saint Lucie to Titusville in 2 hours. Traveling from Port Saint Lucie in March, Titusville is slightly colder at night with lows of 56°F. Finish up your sightseeing early on the 12th (Thu) so you can go by car to Savannah.
Things to do in Titusville
Childrens Museums Museums
NASA Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex
9:00am, Wed Mar 11
The Hostess City of the South
Georgia's oldest city, Savannah displays its colonial history proudly on every corner.
Kick off your visit on the 12th (Thu): wander the streets of Savannah Historic District.
To find maps, more things to do, and tourist information, go to the Savannah online tour itinerary planner .
You can drive from Titusville to Savannah in 5 hours. Other options are to take a train; or fly. Prepare for slightly colder weather when traveling from Titusville in March: high temperatures in Savannah hover around 69°F and lows are around 48°F. Wrap up your sightseeing by early afternoon on the 13th (Fri) to allow enough time to take a bus to Fayetteville.
Things to do in Savannah
Historic Sites Neighborhoods Shopping
Savannah Historic District
Cathedral of St. John the Baptist
9:00am, Fri Mar 13
Bonaventure Cemetery
Fayetteville is a city in Cumberland County, North Carolina, United States. Start off your visit on the 13th (Fri): steep yourself in history at 1897 Poe House.
For photos, where to stay, traveler tips, and tourist information, you can read our Fayetteville road trip planning website .
Traveling by bus from Savannah to Fayetteville takes 4 hours. Alternatively, you can drive; or do a combination of flight and taxi. In March, Fayetteville is little chillier than Savannah - with highs of 64°F and lows of 41°F. Cap off your sightseeing on the 14th (Sat) early enough to go by car to Richmond.
Things to do in Fayetteville
The River City
The capital city of Virginia, Richmond has diverse architecture, a large collection of monuments, and world-class museums that reveal the city's important role in American history.
On the 14th (Sat), experience rural life at Maymont.
To see traveler tips, reviews, other places to visit, and tourist information, use the Richmond trip itinerary planning tool .
Getting from Fayetteville to Richmond by car takes about 3.5 hours. Other options: take a bus; or do a combination of taxi and flight. Traveling from Fayetteville in March, expect Richmond to be a bit cooler, temps between 58°F and 36°F. Finish up your sightseeing early on the 15th (Sun) so you can travel back home.
Things to do in Richmond
17 days in United States BY A USER FROM INDIA September, culture, outdoors, relaxing, romantic, beaches, historic sites, museums, shopping, wildlife, popular & hidden gems PREFERENCES: September, culture, outdoors, relaxing, romantic, beaches, historic sites, museums, shopping, wildlife ATTRACTION STYLE: Popular & hidden gems PACE: Medium 28 days in United States BY A USER FROM SWITZERLAND July, culture, outdoors, relaxing, beaches, historic sites, museums, shopping, wildlife, popular & hidden gems PREFERENCES: July, culture, outdoors, relaxing, beaches, historic sites, museums, shopping, wildlife ATTRACTION STYLE: Popular & hidden gems PACE: Medium 32 days in United States & Victoria BY A USER FROM SAUDI ARABIA July, culture, outdoors, relaxing, romantic, beaches, shopping, wildlife, popular sights PREFERENCES: July, culture, outdoors, relaxing, romantic, beaches, shopping, wildlife ATTRACTION STYLE: Popular sights PACE: Medium 15 days in United States BY A USER FROM UNITED STATES August, culture, outdoors, relaxing, beaches, historic sites, shopping, wildlife, popular sights PREFERENCES: August, culture, outdoors, relaxing, beaches, historic sites, shopping, wildlife ATTRACTION STYLE: Popular sights PACE: Medium 8 days in Charlottesville, Richmond & Virginia Beach BY A USER FROM CANADA June, culture, outdoors, relaxing, romantic, beaches, historic sites, shopping, wildlife, popular & hidden gems PREFERENCES: June, culture, outdoors, relaxing, romantic, beaches, historic sites, shopping, wildlife ATTRACTION STYLE: Popular & hidden gems PACE: Medium 7 days in United States BY A USER FROM UNITED STATES July, kids, culture, beaches, historic sites, museums, wildlife, popular & hidden gems PREFERENCES: July, kids, culture, beaches, historic sites, museums, wildlife ATTRACTION STYLE: Popular & hidden gems PACE: Medium 15 days in United States BY A USER FROM UNITED STATES September, relaxing, historic sites, museums, wildlife, popular sights PREFERENCES: September, relaxing, historic sites, museums, wildlife ATTRACTION STYLE: Popular sights PACE: Medium 3 days in Roanoke BY A USER FROM UNITED STATES August, outdoors, relaxing, beaches, historic sites, shopping, wildlife, popular sights PREFERENCES: August, outdoors, relaxing, beaches, historic sites, shopping, wildlife ATTRACTION STYLE: Popular sights PACE: Medium 7 days in Charlottesville BY A USER FROM UNITED STATES June, culture, relaxing, romantic, historic sites, museums, shopping, popular sights PREFERENCES: June, culture, relaxing, romantic, historic sites, museums, shopping ATTRACTION STYLE: Popular sights PACE: Medium 4 days in Roanoke & Asheville BY A USER FROM UNITED STATES August, culture, outdoors, historic sites, museums, wildlife, popular & hidden gems PREFERENCES: August, culture, outdoors, historic sites, museums, wildlife ATTRACTION STYLE: Popular & hidden gems PACE: Medium 2 days in Roanoke BY A USER FROM UNITED STATES July, culture, historic sites, museums, shopping, wildlife, popular sights PREFERENCES: July, culture, historic sites, museums, shopping, wildlife ATTRACTION STYLE: Popular sights PACE: Medium 5 days in Roanoke BY A USER FROM UNITED STATES November, outdoors, relaxing, wildlife, hidden gems PREFERENCES: November, outdoors, relaxing, wildlife ATTRACTION STYLE: Hidden gems PACE: Medium
Roanoke trip planner
Best things to do in Charlottesville
Florida City trip planner
Best things to do in Port Saint Lucie


text:
The Rats (1974) is a horror novel  by British writer James Herbert. This was Herbert's first novel and included graphic depictions of death and mutilation. A film adaptation was made in 1982, called Deadly Eyes. A 1985 adventure game for the Commodore 64 and ZX Spectrum based on the book was published by Hodder & Stoughton Ltd and produced by GXT (Five Ways Software). The Rats was followed by three sequels, Lair (1979), Domain (1984) and The City (1993) (the last one was a graphic novel). All three books were sold as a trilogy and were very well received by the public and horror fans.

Background
Herbert became inspired to write The Rats in early 1972, while watching Tod Browning's Dracula; specifically, after seeing the scene in which Renfield describes his recurring nightmare about hordes of rats. Linking the film to childhood memories he had of rats in London's East End.
Herbert stated in later interviews that he wrote the book primarily as a pastime: "It seemed like a good idea at the time, I was as naive as that." The manuscript was typed by Herbert's wife Eileen, who sent it off after nine months to nine different publishers.

Plot
The novel opens by introducing the reader to an alcoholic vagrant, resting in an abandoned and forgotten lock-keeper's house by a canal. As he is ruminating over the injustices inflicted upon him in his life, he is suddenly set upon by a pack of black rats the size of small dogs, and is devoured alive.

Harris, a young East London art teacher, notices that one of his students has a bloodied bandage around his hand. When he enquires as to what caused the damage, the student answers that he was attacked by a rat.
Meanwhile, a baby girl and her dog are killed by the giant rats, now aided by packs of smaller black rats. The girl's mother rescues her daughter's mutilated body, but not before sustaining bites as well.
Harris takes the student to the hospital and sees the grieving mother with her dead child. According to the doctor, the number of seemingly unprovoked rat attacks has strangely increased.

The next rat attack occurs at the remains of a bombsite, where a group of squabbling vagrants are slaughtered.
Harris is visited at work by the Minister of Health, Mr. Foskins, who reveals that the bitten student, and all the other surviving victims of rat attacks, died of a mysterious disease 24 hours after being bitten. Foskins asks Harris to keep the existence of the disease a secret and lead an exterminator named Ferris to the area where the student had been bitten. Accompanied by Ferris, Harris goes to the canal described by the student and sights a group of giant rats. Harris attempts to contact the police, while Ferris follows the rats, who then attack and kill him.

The rat attacks become increasingly more daring, as more and more public places are attacked. A tube station is assaulted, leaving few survivors. Next, Harris' own school is attacked, resulting in the death of the headmaster. With the existence of the rats' disease now becoming public knowledge, a meeting is held, in which a young researcher by the name of Stephen Howard comes up with the idea of using a virus to infect the rats. The virus is injected into several puppies, which are left in areas of the attacks. This results in the deaths of thousands of rats, which crawl to the surface to die. A few weeks later however, the rats adapt to the virus, at the same time losing the toxicity of their bites. The rats brutally attack a cinema and overrun the London Zoo. Based on the fact that rats communicate with each other using ultrasound, a plan is formulated to use ultrasonic machines to lure the rats into poison gas chambers.

Foskins is dismissed as Health Minister and reveals to Harris that he has been investigating possible clues as to the rats' origins and comes to the conclusion that they were illegally smuggled into the country by a zoologist named William Bartlett Schiller from an island near New Guinea which had been near some nuclear tests. At his home by an East London canal, Schiller had bred these mutant rats with common black rats, producing a new and deadly strain. They later killed him and escaped.

Pursuing the disgraced health minister past waves of entranced rats, Harris finds the abandoned house and enters it. He goes into the cellar and finds Foskins' corpse being devoured by rats of unusually great size. He kills them after a bloody battle and discovers the rats' alpha hidden in the shadows; a white, hairless and obese rat with two heads. Harris kills the creature with an axe in a fit of rage and leaves.

The epilogue indicates that one female rat survived the purge by being trapped in the basement of a grocery shop. There, it gives birth to a new litter, including a new white two-headed rat.

Critical reception
The first paperback edition sold out after three weeks. The Rats received harsh criticism upon its publication. It was deemed to be far too graphic in its portrayals of death and mutilation, and the social commentary regarding the neglect of London's suburbs was said to be too extreme. For some reviewers, the novel was not literature, and not a good example of good writing. However, many consider the novel to be social commentary influenced by Herbert's harsh upbringing in immediate post-war London. Ramsey Campbell lauded the novel, saying "The Rats announces at once that he (Herbert) won't be confined by the conventions of English macabre fiction." Campbell praised the use of the theme of "Original Sin" in The Rats, saying "that the book can discuss its underlying themes so directly without becoming pretentious...is one of Herbert's strengths." Campbell also defended Herbert's use of violence and indigence as both integral to The Rats' plot, and a break from the clichés of the horror fiction of that time period.

The underlying theme of the novel is the lack of care by the government toward the underclass and a lack of reaction to a tragedy until it is already too late. Fellow author Peter James stated "I think Jim reinvented the horror genre and brought it into the modern world. He set a benchmark with his writing that many writers subsequently have tried, without success, to emulate."

References

1974 British novels
1974 science fiction novels
1974 debut novels
British horror novels
British novels adapted into films
Books about mice and rats
Novels set in London
Novels by James Herbert
New English Library books


Over 16 great activity areas!
Archery, Arts and Crafts, Canoeing, Drama, Environment, Initiative Tasks, Kayaking, Outdoor Living Skills, Rock Climbing, Low Ropes Course, High Ropes Course, Sailing, Swimming, Windsurfing, and Guitar!
During their session, campers choose skill classes that they find interesting or challenging. They spend time learning skills in groups of campers with similar interests. At the end of the session, campers receive a written report from their instructors showing their progress and the new skills they developed.
Campers in each cabin group work cooperatively with their counsellors to design a program of activities for the group during the session. Every day, campers participate in these different activities with their cabin group. Programs can be: cookout lunches, morning sail, kayaking games, initiative challenges to so much more!
Outtrips are an important part of YMCA John Island Camp. During each youth camp session, every camper will have an outtrip adventure. The Outtripping program at John Island follows a progression based on campers ages to help introduce the youngest camps to outtripping or to hone senior campes skills befrore moving on to Leadership Programs.
Campers will participate in a trip preparation session to learn what they need to pack and how to set up their tents before heading out on trip. If the group will be canoeing, they will take an additional mandatory canoe session prior to heading out. While on trip, campers will learn care for the natural environment and up to date methods of wilderness travel and camping.
Each camper becomes a part of a close-knit cabin group of campers of similar gender, age, and school grade. The number of campers in each cabin ranges from 6 to 10 depending on the age of the campers. Two counsellors live in the cabin throughout the session and provide 24 hour supervision. As a group, campers and staff plan the cabin actvitities for the camp session, eat together at meals, and embark on their cabin outtrip adventure.
We recognize that each age group has its own special needs. Skill sessions and cabin activities are tailored to the needs of each age group.
Camp is more than just a collection of activities-it is a special community of people. At camp we celebrate and enjoy the diversity of our camp community with all-camp games, campfires, mealtime programs, theme days, performance nights, and reflection times. Our staff works hard to make campers be a part of a special group...a group that cares about them.


text:
by Luke Auburn
Alumna uses film to teach diversity
Elizabeth Lamark
Tina Cannaday Chapman DaCosta '04 MS, '14 MFA shot her most recent film, Dear Eleanor, at the National Warplane Museum in Geneseo, N.Y. The film chronicles her mother and father's blossoming but distant romance while her father served as a plane mechanic in Dayton, Ohio, and later in Tuskegee, Ala., during World War II.
Tina Cannaday Chapman DaCosta '04 MS (product development), '14 MFA (film and animation) is using her parents' life stories to teach important lessons about diversity, equity, and inclusion. In fall 2022, the director of RIT's Diversity Theater program released Dear Eleanor, her second short film based on her parents' lives.
DaCosta wrote, directed, and produced Dear Eleanor, which chronicles her mother and father's blossoming but distant romance while her father served as a plane mechanic in Dayton, Ohio, and later in Tuskegee, Ala., during World War II. The short film follows the award-winning Brick by Brick, and both short films are based on a feature-length film screenplay DaCosta wrote for her MFA thesis.
DaCosta's career at RIT began in 2002, when she left her job as an engineer at IBM to join the faculty at the Golisano College of Computing and Information Sciences and help start the information technology program. She said that while the change put her on a more rewarding path, her father's untimely death ultimately inspired her to make the leap to pursue her true dream.
"I was in my office in 2006 preparing to teach my cybersecurity lab when my sister called with the news of our father's leukemia diagnosis," said DaCosta. "He was hospitalized in Cleveland, and I couldn't race home to be at his side. I found myself really reflecting on all these stories that he told me and started writing them down. I faxed a copy to the hospital, hoping someone would read them to him and make him smile until I arrived. He passed six weeks later."
This was a pivotal time for DaCosta career-wise. She decided to give up her tenure track position and take on a path of storytelling and performing arts.
DaCosta has served as founder and director of Diversity Theater since 2015, where she uses sketches and theatrical presentations, Playback Theatre workshops, and her films to explore diversity and inclusion themes. Brick by Brick and Dear Eleanor are now integrated into the curriculum for RIT 365, the university's experiential learning course for first-year students.
Even the production of DaCosta's short films has been a teaching opportunity. She taught a special topics course in film preproduction for Brick by Brick—both short films were produced primarily with crew help from RIT students and alumni, and Dear Eleanor was developed in full partnership with MAGIC Spell Studios.
DaCosta said she ultimately hopes to produce a feature-length version of her screenplay. But she said turning her parents' love story into a positive force for change in the world has already been a dream come true.
"I find that love conquers all, breaks down barriers, disproves myths and stereotypes, and brings people together," said DaCosta. "So I devote everything I do toward community building. It means the world to me to share the stories of ordinary people who had magnanimous impacts."
games, film, and digital media
racial inclusiveness