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The Birthstone Bulletin: March's Magnificent Aquamarine
Jewelry Education March birthstone aquamarine march birthstone jewelry
With its striking shades of blues and greens, the March birthstone aquamarine is an elegant gem... and it's aptly named too. Getting its name from Latin words that mean water and sea, it looks very much like beautiful water!
While aquamarine is suggested as a jewel to give on the16th and 19th wedding anniversaries, I frankly think it makes a perfect gift anytime!
The gem itself is a member of the beryl family and ranges in color from a very pale blue to a deep blue-green. The deep blue aqua color is often the most desired, but it looks good in a variety of shades. On the Mohs scale of hardness, it's a 7.5-8. (The Mohs scale is a scale of hardness used in classifying minerals.)
Aquamarine gemstones can be found in Brazil, Kenya, Nigeria, Madagascar, Zambia, Tanzania, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Russia.
Aquamarine Folklore and More
Aquamarine, like the other birthstones I've covered so far, has its own folklore and supposed "special" powers. It is believed to provide protection for sailors and some use aquamarine gems as worry stones. A worry stone is a stone that when rubbed is thought to diminish one's worries and add a sense of cool and calm to a person. I'm sure we could all use a worry stone every now and then?!
According to other traditions, aquamarine has the power to:
Increase youthfulness
Increase intellect
Increase foresight
Increase courage
Increase joy
Reduce the effect of poisons
Wow! Sounds good to me! Here are a few of my favorites of these blue beauties...
Sterling Silver Bezel Set Aquamarine Necklace with Diamond Accent--$175
Lafonn Simulated Aquamarine and Simulated Diamond Halo Birthstone Ring--$149
10k White Gold Diamond and Aquamarine Birthstone Ring--$249
10k White Gold Diamond and Emerald Cut Aquamarine Birthstone Ring--$249
Lafonn Simulated Aquamarine and Simulated Diamond Halo Birthstone Earrings--$149
Stay tuned for more birthstone news next month!
We're honored that Mullen Bros. Jewelers ranks #1 in overall customer ratings among all jewelry stores in Southeastern Massachusetts and we will continue to take care of our neighbors and friends, one jewel at a time.


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reuters.com Go back Open original
End of era beckons as Merkel says will not stand again as chancellor
BERLIN (Reuters) - German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Monday she would not seek re-election as party chairwoman and that her fourth term as chancellor would be her last, heralding the end of a 13-year era in which she has dominated European politics.
Merkel, 64, has been chairwoman of her conservative Christian Democrats (CDU) since 2000 and chancellor since 2005. Her decision to step down as chairwoman comes after her party suffered its second regional election setback in as many weeks.
Merkel made the announcement a day after Sunday's vote in the state of Hesse, at which the CDU came first but suffered a slump in support from the last election there in 2013.
"I have the firm feeling that today the time has come to open a new chapter," Merkel, looking serious but calm, told reporters in Berlin after a meeting of the CDU's leadership.
Drawing the consequences of the CDU's weak result in Hesse and dissatisfaction with her coalition, she said: "Firstly, at the next CDU party congress in December in Hamburg, I will not put myself forward again as candidate for the CDU chair."
"Secondly, this fourth term is my last as German chancellor. At the federal election in 2021, I will not stand," she added.
The move sets in motion the process for the CDU to settle on and groom Merkel's successor. It caused the euro to fall briefly and German government bond yields rose.
Stepping down as CDU chairwoman further undermines Merkel's authority, as she had previously said the party chair and chancellery should be held by the same person.
Her authority has already been dented this year by the two regional election setbacks and a close ally losing his role as leader of her conservatives' parliamentary group.
Merkel has loomed large on the European stage since 2005, helping guide the EU through the euro zone crisis and opening Germany's doors to migrants fleeing war in the Middle East in 2015 - a move that still divides the bloc and Germany.
"We are witnessing a continuation of the pattern in place ever since Merkel's mistakes in the 2015 migration crisis: the gradual but steady erosion of her political power," said Carsten Nickel, managing director at Teneo, a consultancy.
"Rather than outright instability in Germany and Europe, it simply means a continuation of the current leadership vacuum."
German Chancellor Angela Merkel speaks to participants of the national integration prize at the Chancellery in Berlin, Germany, October 29, 2018. REUTERS/Hannibal Hanschke
Monday's news came as a surprise to CDU party officials, who had expected Merkel to seek re-election as chairwoman at a party congress in Hamburg in early December.
The shock move started the race in the CDU to succeed Merkel. It also raises questions about whether she can stage manage a smooth exit.
Merkel is under pressure from her Social Democrat coalition partners to deliver more policy results and the center-left party could yet pull out of the government at a mid-term review next year.
Germany's other leading CDU chancellors - Konrad Adenauer and Helmut Kohl - both had messy ends to their time in office.
SUCCESSION RACE
Merkel standing down from the party chair will allow a new CDU chairman or chairwoman to build a profile before the next national election.
Merkel said CDU party Secretary General Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer and Health Minister Jens Spahn - a leading critic of the chancellor - had announced they would seek the party chair. Party sources said Friedrich Merz, a former parliamentary leader of Merkel's conservative alliance, would also run.
Merkel's weakness at home may limit her capacity to lead in the European Union at a time when the bloc is dealing with Brexit, a budget crisis in Italy and the prospect of populist parties making gains at European parliament elections next May.
When Merkel came into office in 2005, George W. Bush was U.S. president, Jacques Chirac was in the Elysee Palace in Paris and Tony Blair was British prime minister.
In Sunday's vote in Hesse, the CDU came out top but lost 11 percentage points in support from the last election in 2013.
"With these latest results, it has simply become untenable that Merkel continues to lead the CDU," said Mujtaba Rahman, managing director at Eurasia Group, a consultancy.
Additional reporting by Joseph Nasr; Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


A classic novel of Elizabethan England from the author of the Poldark series.
Robert Barnard's classic murder mystery.
Christopher Robin's story in his own words.
A wonderful collection of stories from one of Britain's best-loved naturalists.
The original stories featuring A. J. Cronin's much-loved Scottish country doctor.
Classic animal adventures from one of Britain's best loved authors and pioneering naturalists.
By the award-winning author of The Secret Countess.
Who could have known birdwatching was such a dangerous sport? In this Pan Heritage Classics edition, George Palmer-Jones attempts to unravel the murder of a young, innocent birder.
In this Pan Heritage Classics edition, Inspector Stephen Ramsey delves into the murder of Otterbridge's beloved Dorothea.


This document has been developed to assist users to apply the quality management system requirements of ISO 9001:2015 Quality management systems – Requirements.
This document provides guidance, with a clause by clause correlation to Clauses 4 to 10 of ISO 9001:2015, however it does not provide guidance on ISO 9001:2015, Annexes A and B . Where there is direct correlation between list items (i.e. bullet points) in a clause in ISO 9001:2015 and the guidance, this is indicated within the clause of this document.
This document gives examples of what an organization can do, but it does not add new requirements to ISO 9001. The examples in this document are not definitive and only represent possibilities, not all of which are necessarily suitable for every organization.
ISO 9001 contains requirements that can be objectively audited or evaluated. This document includes examples, descriptions and options that aid both in the implementation of a quality management system and in strengthening its relation to the overall management system of an organization. While the guidelines in this document are consistent with the ISO 9001 quality management system model, they are not intended to provide interpretations of the requirements of ISO 9001 or be used for audit or evaluation purposes.
As the requirements of ISO 9001 are generic, this document can be used by organizations of all types, sizes, levels of maturity and in all sectors and geographic locations. However, the way an organization applies the guidance can vary based on factors such as the size or the complexity of the organization, the management model it adopts, the range of the organization's activities and the nature of the risks and opportunities it encounters.
Risk is the level of uncertainty inherent in a quality management system. There are risks in all systems, processes and functions. Risk-based thinking ensures these risks are determined, considered and controlled throughout the design and use of the quality management system.
Risk-based thinking has been implicit in previous editions of ISO 9001 in such requirements as determining the type and extent of control for external providers based on the effect of the product that is going to be provided, or taking corrective action based on the potential effect of an identified nonconformity.
In addition, in previous editions of ISO 9001, a clause on preventive action was included. By using risk-based thinking the consideration of risk is integral. It becomes proactive rather than reactive in preventing or reducing undesired effects through early identification and action. Preventive action is built-in when a management system is risk-based.
Not all the processes of a quality management system represent the same level of risk in terms of the organization's ability to meet its quality objectives. Some need more careful and formal planning and control than others.
There is no requirement in ISO 9001 to use formal risk management in determining and addressing risks and opportunities. An organization can choose the methods that suit its needs. IEC 31010 provides a list of risk assessment tools and techniques that can be considered, depending on the organization's context.
In some cases, an organization might have a formal risk management process in place that is required by customers or statutory and regulatory requirements. In such circumstances, the organization can adapt its formal risk management process to meet the intent of the requirements in ISO 9001 concerning risks and opportunities.


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Date A Live II
March 1, 202247/100147915 min
With its lack of a story to offer the viewer, this season and attempt were terrible. When it comes to continuing a series after season one, Date A Live II tests the viewer's limits. Only a person who is brand new to anime will not see the red flags placed all over the script and screens of the viewers, but lord have mercy on them as they do not know yet. Adaptations should not be made this way, and hopefully, we learned our lesson.
Date A Live II is a 2014 Sci-fi Romantic Comedy anime series from a Japanese animation studio founded by members of the AIC, the now-defunct Production IMS. While the title alone marks that this series is a continuation of the anime franchise Date A Live, the previous studio is not a continuation. Can a new studio bring a better level to this franchise? Though one may assume that since the studio is no longer around, they did a terrible job creating anime, which could be a fair point, but who knows why they went out of business. The real question can this studio add anything new and exciting to an already established anime series and give it something that not only the fans will enjoy but also remember?
Three decades ago, more than a hundred million people fell victim to an unprecedented disaster that came to be known as a "spatial quake." Since then, humanity has built countermeasures to mitigate the damage from future catastrophes, such as instantaneous evacuation methods and immediate rebuilding of any architectural damage that may have happened. Of course, the government has created multiple outlets to ensure the damage is contained as much as possible. By doing so, they have found out that the cause of these Spatial Quakes is caused by beings known as "Spirits."
Spirits are otherworldly entities with immense power, capable of creating vast rifts of destruction whenever they appear. One way of dealing with them is through brute force, killing them… or making them fall in love and sealing their powers. Having sealed three Spirits, Shidou Itsuka continues his mission with Ratatoskr to locate more spirits and date them to ensure the world's safety from further destruction. However, this time around, their problems will not be limited to just Spirits as a more imposing threat seems to have taken notice of their activities.
As with any continuation of a franchise, the story tends to take a hit compared to its predecessor. The story is an adaptation of volumes five through seven, so there is little room for creative freedom when it comes to Date A Live II. One of the more substantial parts of the story is that it is a direct continuation of the first season, which is quite good when fans who just finished the first season will be eager to continue. Finding a starting point may be difficult for some writers because they have a certain level of expectation fans may expect that was not there within the first installment.
However, after looking back at the first season's review, there are unfortunately barely any other positives that are to be said about the story. While some viewers may enjoy that nothing has changed within the story and characters from the previous season, the series took a year to come out with another season instead of just having a more extended season is a bit of a letdown. The pacing within Date A Live II is a mixed bag ranging from being decent one-fifth of the time to nonexistent the rest of the time. The formula has stayed the same, so it leaves a significant question: Why the change of pace? Don't expect much of the story if anyone can follow along with the plot if there is one?
When it comes to the art style of this series, Date A Live II is rather quite enjoyable. The art style is done exceptionally well, just like the first season. The tones are decent, and the characters' designs are fun, but the show does not add any extra pizzazz, just more normalness. However, the first season's art style performance was unexpected and rather exciting. This is nothing new. The art style is still beautiful to look at, but it lost the newness that comes with having the first season.
Though the animation production in the opening is better than expected, the animation is better than the first season. The song appropriately titled "Trust in you" is done again by sweet ARMS, which is lovely. However, the best is the ending animation; the flow and overall appearance are just better. While the production value did improve during this season, it still is nothing to write home about. There is a slight difference in appearance compared to the previous season, but nothing major that would turn longtime fans away. As mentioned before, the best part is the ending sequence, so take that information as you will.
Shido Itsuka is the main protagonist of the story. He is best described as an average young man who initially had no interest in the opposite gender until being forced to be by his little sister. He possesses a strange power that allows him to steal the powers of a Spirit in his body with a kiss. Shido is a very kindhearted person who can sympathize with others and works exceptionally well with his new role. He is somewhat possessive and has a solid readiness to forgive others, but in the end, he will help anyone he sees having problems.
Tohka Yatogami is one of the leading female characters and was the first Spirit saved by Shido. She first appeared on Earth on the 10th of April when she came under attack by the AST. Before being saved, Tohka had a cold and emotionless demeanor. She was very wary of humans due to her being consistently attacked by the AST. Now she can develop and express her feelings and experiences of her life on Earth. Since she is new to everything, including her emotions, she has a very cheerful and child-like personality that quickly makes her come off as naïve, emotional, energetic, and even gullible. However, she can seem to be a bit nagging due to her not understanding basic human emotions.
Kotori Itsuka is another one of the main female characters. She is Shido's sister and secretly works as the commander of the Fraxinus airship. She is best described as a master of manipulation as she has three different personalities she uses depending on what the situation is needing depending on her ribbons. When she is wearing white ribbons or not wearing any, she shows that she is a delicate sister who is very dependent on people. When she is wearing black ribbons, she is a stronger person whose charismatic and "sometimes" dominating. Regardless of their personality, she still understands how small and weak she is compared to her peers and acts more masculine whenever she gets scared.
Origami Tobiichi is another one of the leading female characters of the season. She is Shido's classmate, famous for her performance in schoolwork, athletics, and beauty. She is also a Wizard of the AST whose determined to avenger her parents by killing any Spirit she sees. Origami is the type of person that rarely openly talks with other people unless needed, with only a few exceptions. She is not a shy person, but more of an unsocial type of girl who is very blunt and forward. She can also be a bit reckless and aggressive if she has a goal or purpose to fulfill: she is also willing to put other people's lives in danger to achieve them.
While the above characters and ones not mentioned have all been in the series during the first season, the newest additions to the Date A Live franchise is a little interesting. Yamai Kaguya and Yuzuru Yamai are identical twins and spirits, and they have orange hair with long strands on each side of their heads. Despite being twins, their personalities are contraries. However, they still have some things in common, like displaying a playful attitude and a mutual love for competition.
When it comes to continuations within any series, the viewer should know everything about an anime without spoiling the good parts regardless of the genre or season number. However, this season was rather dull and not as stunning as one would hope to see when it comes to Date A Live II. If viewers enjoyed the last season, they might like this one, but they wouldn't miss anything important if they didn't watch it. One of the most significant negatives that this series must be known for was that the writing was unjust, but for whatever reason, they had characters in the series that did absolutely nothing.
Date A Live II is an author's worst nightmare of taking the love and passion of their work and creating a cold hardshell with moving parts. The story is nothing to write home about, the artwork is decent, but the viewer has most definitely seen better. But the experience is what kills it for not only the viewer but the season in general, and please skip this season unless you enjoy torturing yourself.
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Action Teams gearing up for 2015-16 school year
By Jackie Bartolomeo
Chris Capuano and Giancarlo Staton join Action Team Captains during the taping of the 2015 PSA in Queens, NY.
It's almost Action Team time. The beginning of the school year is when existing Action Team Captains – those high school students who plan and organize Action Team events in their school and community – are busy planning how they'll make a difference during the year. It's also when students are forming new Action Teams at high schools across the country, and, in the process – whether they know it or not – of building a legacy that they'll remember for the rest of their lives.
When it launched more than a decade ago, high school students and Major Leaguers in only a handful of locations were pioneers blazing a trail in their efforts to train and inspire the next generation of volunteers.
Today, the Action Team program, founded as part of the partnership between the Players Trust and Volunteers of America in 2003, has grown to a nationwide youth volunteer program that includes students from more than 100 high schools in 34 states – and counting! There are even Action Teams in Alaska, Hawaii and Puerto Rico.
The Action Team Captains work alongside Major League players through training sessions, monthly teleconferences and selected Action Team initiatives throughout the year. Together, they learn from experts and each other how to choose community projects that will have an impact and how to inspire their peers to get involved.
"The more that I got involved in the Action Team the more I got interested in volunteering and it just took off," said Ryker Wakeley, an Action Team Captain from Seattle who received a $2,000 scholarship from the Players Trust this spring.
The Glacier Park High School student was one of 20 Action Team Captains who received a scholarship in 2015 in recognition of their outstanding community service efforts and dedication to the Action Team program.
If you have a group of students who are interested, starting a new Action Team in your high school is easy. You need at least one teacher or adult school staff member (or parent) to serve as the Action Team Coordinator, who will be responsible for managing the program and communication with the Players Trust and Volunteers of America. Be sure to let your adult coordinator know that the time requirements are minimal – the Action Team Captains take the lead.
With input from the coordinators, the Captains are responsible for planning and organizing Action Team-related volunteer activities during the school year in which they encourage involvement from others, including their peers.
Schedule permitting, Action Team Captains participate in monthly Action Team conference calls that feature Major League baseball players and a featured Action Team of the month, as well as Captains and coordinators from across the United States.
The monthly calls are hosted by veteran broadcaster George Grande. Major Leaguers David Robertson, Todd Frazier, Wesley Wright, Steven Souza, Max Scherzer, and Chris Capuano were the players who joined the calls during the 2014-15 school year.
The Players Trust and Volunteers of America ask that Action Teams share their service activities 30 to 60 days in advance (you never know when a big-league player might be able to attend!) and to share pictures and videos of their events so that we can post them on ActionTeam.org as a way to help inspire others to volunteer.
Action Team Captains are also provided access to our members-only Resource Center, where they'll find informative videos as well as some step-by-step volunteer activities for those Teams looking for new ideas. Each Action Team Captain receives a free T-shirts and Teams receive posters to help promote their activities. Oh, and don't forget, Action Team Captains are eligible for college scholarships from the Players Trust.
Please consider joining our team, and begin planning your high school legacy today.
For further information, visit www.ActionTeam.org/legacy, e-mail actionteam@mlbpa.org or call 1-800-714-0755.


Nanopore sequencing was recently made available to users in the form of the Oxford Nanopore MinION. Released to users through an early access programme, the MinION is made unique by its tiny form factor and ability to generate very long sequences from single DNA molecules. The platform is undergoing rapid evolution with three distinct nanopore types and five updates to library preparation chemistry in the last 18 months. To keep pace with the rapid evolution of this sequencing platform, and to provide a space where new analysis methods can be openly discussed, we present a new F1000Research channel devoted to updates to and analysis of nanopore sequence data.


There's lots of lingo in digital advertising. Here we shed light on the terms so you can understand what the industry is talking about.
Ad Tag – A piece of code that sends a request for an ad to an ad server. The code is responsible for calling in the correctly sized creative and placing the ad in a specific ad zone on a web page.
Ad Exchange – Exchanges are the marketplaces that publishers, advertisers and ad networks do business on. This is where data is processed and traded in order to set prices and serve an ad.
Creative – The actual advertisement that users see.
Ad Stack – This is the order that ad networks are called to fill an ad request. The network at the top of the stack will have the first chance to fill and if they don't get a high enough bid then the request will be passed to the next network in the stack.
Price Floor – This is the minimum CPM a Publisher is willing to accept for an ad on their site. A price floor stops low bids from the top of the stack taking priority over higher bids from lower in the stack.
Demand Side Platform – A company that provides advertisers with a marketplace to purchase ad inventory.
Passback Tags -When an ad partner decides or is forced to not serve an ad impression, a passback tag is called that sends another ad request to another ad network.
Real-Time Bidding – RTB is what makes selling individual impressions on your site possible. Ad networks present your site and audience to advertisers and they make bids based on how valuable that impression is to them. This happens for each ad unit and takes mere milliseconds for advertisers to calculate the worth and place a bid.
Backfill – This is any inventory that has not been pre-sold. It can also be inventory that has been filled after an ad network passed on it.
CPA – Cost-per-acquisition campaigns pay out whenever a visitor on your site interacts with an advertisement in a way that benefits the advertiser. These actions consist of registering via email, answering a question, or making a purchase after visiting the site through the advertisement. Essentially if a visitor does something that is valuable to the advertiser, you get paid.
CPC – Cost-per-click means you get paid when someone clicks an advertisement. The individual payouts for this are not as large as CPA but since all a visitor has to do is click, the Publisher gets paid much more frequently.
eCPM – This ad performance metric means the effective Cost-per-mille across your site.The formula is: (Total Earnings/Total number of Impressions) * 1000 = effective Cost per Mille.
RPM – Revenue-per-mille is a metric used almost exclusively in Google Adsense. It is a measurement of your revenue per thousand impressions.
Fill Rate – This is the percentage of ad requests that were filled by each network. The formula is: (Filled Impressions/Requested Impressions) * 100 = percentage of your requests that are filled by sovrn.
Programmatic Advertising – Programmatic is an automated way of buying and selling ad inventory. Ad inventory is put on the market (called an exchange) and made available to advertisers for purchase.
Ad Units – Ad units are the advertisements shown on a website. They are typically located around the perimeter of the page in order to be less obtrusive and are sized according to industry standards. Ad units are the advertising inventory publishers sell to advertisers.
Native Ads – Ads that look like they are a part of the website and do not take away from the user experience.
Ad impression – An impression is when an individual ad is served to a single user. If a page contains 3 ad units, there is the potential for 3 ad impressions every time a user visits the page.
Bounce Rate – The percentage of users who visit a page and then shortly leave without going to another part of the site.
Page View – A page view is registered whenever a website loads for a user.
Unique user – The first time a visitor goes on a website in a set period of time.
Visitor – Visitors are counted whenever someone visits a site regardless if they have been on before.
Bidder – a bidder is simply a partner that is equipped to receive requests and send bids via a header bidding implementation. This could be a supply-side platform (SSP), ad network, retargeted, etc. There are now over twenty different ad tech companies that have their own "bidder." It is best practice to work with at least 6-8 different bidders in a healthy header auction in order to increase competition for inventory.
Header bidding mediation – Mediation is the main job of the wrapper or container code. The wrapper code asynchronously calls all bidders, collects their bids and determines a winning bid before the ad server ever gets involved (thus the terms "pre-bidding" or "advance bidding", early terms used for header bidding).
Header bidding adaptor – Partner-specific code that allows them to communicate with the wrapper to receive requests and return bids to the auction.
Timeout – Header auctions must be completed within a very small window so they do not negatively impact page latency. Most wrappers, most notably Prebid.js, have timeout settings that allow a publisher to determine how long the auction should wait for each partner to return a bid before closing the auction.
Ad server – The winning bids from header bidding auctions are sent along to the publisher's ad server to select the appropriate line item and return the winning creative to the correct zone on the page. For most publishers using DFP, the winning bid must also compete against AdX dynamic allocation at that time.
Key values – When bids are received, the wrapper code adds the price and creative identifier to the ad server's call as a set of query string parameters. This process is called key value targeting.
Header bidding line items – Line items are setup to target specific bid prices, allowing the bidders' programmatic demand to compete with other line items based on price. The winning bid is then matched to the corresponding line item in order to select the correct creative to return to the page.
Ad creative – The actual ad asset (an image file) that is returned to the page which extracts and displays the ad from the bids returned via the header code.
Viewability – An online advertising metric focused on tracking ad impressions that are viewable by the user.
Viewable impressions – Viewable impressions take into account two variables: pixel area and duration. As defined by the Media Rating Council, a desktop display ad is considered viewable if 50% of its pixels are in view for a minimum of one second and 50% at a minimum of two seconds for desktop video. Both factors are dependent on the user's behavior on that particular web page and are not an indicator of ad performance.
ATF/BTF – "Above The Fold" and "Below The Fold" refer to the placement of ad zones on a website. ATF means that the ad space is in the top half of the website and the user won't have to scroll to view it. Below the fold means the ad is located near the bottom of the page. The value of ATF ad spaces is higher since it is almost guaranteed that a visitor will see it.
InView – Ads that only load when greater than 51% in view.
Viewable Engaged Time (//Signal) – A user engagement metric that enables publishers to sell inventory on their website based on user engagement rather than impressions alone.


On Sept 20, with hurricane Isobel safely clear, we cast off in lovely crisp autumn sunshine headed for our winter south. First stop was Dutch Island harbor at the bottom of Narragansett Bay in Rhode Island. There was no need to leave so late in the day, but we were simply eager for a sail. We had already had a two week delay getting started because of the hurricane which passed well south of us. All summer long we had only made four very short sails (two last week) so we left a lot of people disappointed not to have been invited for a spin in the new boat. Sorry, but we were working on the boat or else visiting with folks we have not seen much in the past 12 years and we did not even see all of those we wanted to. We will return in the spring and hope to do more local sailing then and see more of our oldest friends.
The nights have been full of the sounds of jumping fish all summer long, but in Dutch Harbor, they must have been huge because the noise was terrific. These are big, easy to catch blue fish which are good eating and most folks have favourite recipes to share. Yum.
Next day we had a good sail along the Rhode Island coast but switched over to motor when we entered Fisher's Island Sound because of all the Sunday fishing boats in the entrance. They were zooming around with fishing frenzy and we watched several big blues being landed easily so it seemed fair to let that activity take precedence over our sailing.
Next day was perfect catamaran weather. Light wind off Long Island increased during the day and we had all sail up making a pleasant 6 to 8 knots over the ground in spite of contrary currents. We're delighted with the sail set using our new boom. It makes life so much easier. We stopped in Port Jefferson which is well protected and familiar from years ago.
While yesterday was all sun and pleasure, today it is blowing a hoolie (55 knots of wind) and cold rain comes in sheets. It is Tuesday the 24th and we were given an old Sunday paper last night so we have that, books, and little jobs to fill the time. A rest stop is welcome. When the wind reduces, we can put the awning back up and collect some rain water. Meanwhile, I can bake an apple cake on top of the stove in my Dutch oven and put on good music to cheer us. Local flooding makes us happy to be in a boat.
There will be plenty of time to scrub the bottom in better weather tomorrow and move down to Port Washington for shopping and petrol in a few days because there is some reason for closure of the East River in front of the UN. When that reopens, we will time the tides carefully and get "flushed" through Hell Gate passing right through The City and into the world's busiest harbor. I prefer early week day mornings through New York if I can manage it, but certainly not sunny Sundays when it is packed with pleasure boats as well as all the loads of commercial tugs, barges, cruise ships, freighters, etc. It is definitely a "heads up" kind of place! You have your ducks in order there and navigation carefully prepared in advance because vessels go up the Hudson, out to the ocean, and into Long Island Sound and there are fast ferries every time you turn around. When we get to the anchorage at Sandy Hook we will be ready for a rest, hot cocoa, simple supper, and a good night's rest!
But New York City is not only a place to worry about, it is also a place to see famous bridges, astounding buildings, have feelings of hope for the UN and sorrow about the Twin Towers. And a place to see an entire culture of stressed out people living among towering buildings and streets all in perpetual shade. To us, it seems a brutal place to live, but I have friends who love it there and focus on the museums, art, theatre, etc. To each his own. We'll stay aboard all the way safely through. I must say that nothing is as pretty as New York in twilight The lights are so pretty.
When the wind is right for it, we will head for Cape May at the mouth of the Delaware River. This will be an overnight sail just off the New Jersey coast and we have a favourite place to anchor once we arrive. Again, we will wait for wind to sail up the river and go through the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal into the Chesapeake Bay. We will spend most of October there enjoying sheltered and shallow anchorages all over the place. Catamaran paradise! Please remember not to use our Yahoo address now that we are cruising again. Our access to a computer is limited and frustrating but this little pocketmail gizmo can take letters similar to one and a half pages of olde fashioned typing.
All you Northerners, get in some warm sox, find those mittens, and get out the snow shovels. We're outa here!


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Welcome to this week's episode of Geeks Corner! What started out as seeming like a slow week has definitely ended up picking up speed as we got closer to taping time. If you didn't know, we film Geeks Corner live on Tuesday nights at 9:30 pst. All that being said, feel free to join us at http://dapsmagic.com/geekscornerlive and also join the conversation on twitter with the hashtag #geekscorner.
House of Blues Leaving Downtown Disneyland to go to Garden Walk.
What happened with the Fantastic Four?
We hope you enjoy this week's episode of Geeks Corner! Please take a moment to leave us a comment and let us know what you liked!


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MAYOR'S OFFICIAL RESIDENCE COMMISSION
1. Report
2. Appendices
a. Maps and aerial photographs [not available on-line]
b. Legislation
c. Members of the Commission
d. Witness list
e. Letter from Casey Foundation
The District of Columbia is experiencing a cultural, economic and political renaissance. The population of Washington, D.C. is becoming more diverse. Private sector investment is growing in District neighborhoods, and public confidence in local government is increasing. This renaissance is occurring while District residents and stakeholders are coming together, working together, and succeeding together to obtain the promises of the new millennium. This renaissance period offers a golden opportunity to establish a permanent mayoral residency in the District of Columbia, "America's Crown Jewel."
The act establishing the Mayor's Official Residence Commission states:
The District of Columbia is the nation's capital and international showcase;
The Mayor of the District of Columbia serves as the highest elected official at both the state and local levels;
Each of the 50 states in the United States provides an official residence for its top executive government official, the governor, for the purpose of serving as an official state residence; a suitable official location for entertaining and honoring state, national, and international guests, as well as its own distinguished citizens; and an official location that houses and displays cherished memorabilia of the state's cultural and social history;
An official residence is also provided for the Mayors of major cities in the United States, including Detroit, New York and Los Angeles;
The mayors of cities that serve as the capitals of other nations are also provided with an official residence, including London, England and Paris, France;
The Mayor of the District of Columbia should have a residence suitable to entertain and honor citizens, businesses, local and federal officials, and the many official guests and distinguished persons who visit the District each year from other cities, states and nations;
After 25 years of limited home rule, it is time to establish an official residence of the Mayor of the District of Columbia.
Many different suggestions have been made regarding the location of the Mayor's Official Residence. It is the belief of the Commission that the best way to evaluate the various ideas is to establish a framework that objectively articulates options in terms of . size, cost and programmatic considerations. Having done so, each specific idea and proposal can be evaluated on the basis of the established framework and criteria.
The Mayor's Official residence could reasonably range in size from 2,500 square feet to over 16,000 square feet depending on resources and programmatic preferences and choices. For purposes of framing a discussion, the establishment of a mayoral residence within the District of Columbia would be based on the following site selection options.
The first option is a standard or basic economy mayoral residency that accommodates only the housing needs of the Mayor and his or her family.
The second option is a larger version of the first option that provides high quality housing, additional living areas and bedrooms, limited guest space but no space for any public activity.
The third option is the largest version in which there would be high quality housing that accommodates the needs of a contemporary Mayor and his or her family, contains separate guest quarters, a public entertaining and reception area, as well as a exhibition space that can accommodate school age tours. There would be ample space for the Mayor and the District of Columbia to receive leaders from cities and nations from around the world.
The establishment of the Mayor's residence would greatly enhance the reputation of Washington, D.C. and support our citizens' vision of the District of Columbia as "The World's Capital City". The District of Columbia and its official residence seeks to be America's crown jewel, and in doing so fulfills the highest aspirations, values, and ideals of American society for democracy, diversity, education, culture, neighborhoods, economic opportunity, and governance. The Mayoral residence is not to be the home of any one Mayor, but the home of all future Mayors.
PROGRAMMATIC CONSIDERATIONS
The benefits of establishing the mayoral residency in the District of Columbia are many and could take one of several different forms.
The residence could be owned and operated by the District of Columbia government. All costs of acquisition and renovation as well as ongoing maintenance would be the responsibility of the District government. The District of Columbia government contains an Office of Property Management that is responsible the ownership and maintenance of several thousand pieces of property. There is no current funding for this purpose nor is there adequate-staff in the Office of Property Management to undertake a significant additional task. All operations including procurement and personnel activities would be governed by those that currently govern the District government.
The residence could be owned and operated by a separate not for profit foundation. This foundation would be dedicated to the sole purpose of owning and operating a residence for the mayor of the District of Columbia. It would be able to raise funds necessary to accomplish the task with the amount of capital and operating funds to be determined by the choices regarding size, scale and role of the residence. Gracie Mansion, the residence of the Mayor of New York is owned and operated by this type of foundation (The Conservancy). The significant advantage of this approach is the enhanced ability to raise funds and resources from outside the government.
Regardless of the vehicle chosen to implement the establishment of a Mayor's residence one or more of the following activities, at a minimum, will need to be undertaken. These activities will have varying costs.
Acquisition of an existing private property
Acquisition and renovation of an existing private property
Identification and renovation of an existing District owned property.
Receipt of a gift or services.
The costs for the proposed initiative to establish a mayoral residence will vary significantly depending on the specific site as well as the scale and quality of the accommodations. Prior to selecting a specific site and for purposes of this proposal, the options can be characterized in three alternatives. The actual site and project, when undertaken, will likely incorporate some combination of the variables outlined below.
Option A
This option includes the acquisition of a modest residence that would be approximately 2,500 - 3,500 sq. ft. and would include an adequate number of bedrooms and living area to accommodate an average family. There would be no provision for public space or entertaining other than the normal living and dining areas customary with this type of property. The Mayor and his/her family would live in this house much like any private citizen. The capital and operating costs necessary to create this residence would be the least of the alternatives.
This option includes the acquisition and renovation, if necessary, of a significant single family structure that would be large enough to accommodate private entertaining and meeting area, but would not include any public space.
The residence would be 8,000 - 10,000 sq. ft. and would include six to eight bedrooms and be adequate to comfortably accommodate the Mayor and family as well as room for guests. Though there would be no public space, the home would be elegant and of sufficient size to entertain formally and to officially represent the government of the District of Columbia.
This option includes the acquisition and renovation, if necessary, of a significant structure that would be large enough to comfortably accommodate the Mayor and family, including room for private meetings and formal entertaining, as well as having separate space available for guest quarters. In addition this option would include the creation of significant public space that would accommodate areas of display that would be dedicated to the history of the District of Columbia and the display of fine art that is indigenous to our remarkable and distinct city.
It is envisioned in this option that the mayoral residence would become the center of social, political and artistic activity in the nation's capital and the foundation would be funded adequately to further this vision. The structure would be approximately 15,000 sq. ft. or larger, would include both private residence quarters for the Mayor and family as well as the public space necessary to meet the articulated vision.
All wards and neighborhoods in the District represent the District. The site of the Mayor's residence should be chosen with regard to the impact on the on the neighborhood and the level of accessibility. It is the unanimous feeling of the members of the Commission that the site chosen for the Mayor's residence be a site that has dignity and is befitting the Office of the Mayor of the District of Columbia.
Based on a preliminary analysis, the cost of undertaking the establishment of an official Mayor's Residence that is comparable to other official state residences is in the range of $40 million to $50 million. This is based on the capital costs of construction and rehabilitation and the capitalized costs of operating over a 50 year period. In brief, any of the three options described above will require a capital campaign or expenditure of District funds that would allow for an acquisition cost that would range from $150 - $250 per square foot and an annual operation cost of approximately of $35- $50 per sq. ft. A cost index increase projected at 4% per year for the foreseeable future is anticipated. The following is a breakdown of the projected costs of the three options outlined above.
OPTIONS A B C
BUILDING SIZE 2,500-3,500 Sq. Ft. 8,000-10,000 Sq. Ft. 14,000 - 16,000 Sq. Ft.
ACQUISITION $0 - $500,000 $0 - $2,000,000 $0 - $15,000,000
RENOVATION INCLUDES SECURITY $375,000 - $875,000 $1,200,000 - $2,500,000 $ 2,100,000 - $ 4,000,000
PARKING $5,000 - $10,000 $10,000 - $20,000 $50,000 - $75,000
OPERATING $87,500 - $175,000 Includes: landscaping, maintenance, insurance. $280,000 - $500,000 Includes: landscaping, housekeeping, maintenance, utilities, furnishings, insurance. $490,000 - $800,000 Includes: landscaping, housekeeping, maintenance, utilities, furnishings, insurance, security, staffing, entertaining
Given the fiscal constraints, demands and pressures on the budget of the District government and the need to fund important programs such as affordable housing, workforce development, literacy, education, etc., funding for this initiative would best come from outside sources.
Based on the program for the house size and its intended function there would be some level of off street parking that would be warranted. The minimum amount of parking would be for five to ten cars, which would be adequate to accommodate the Executive Protection Unit and the personal vehicles of the Mayor's family. The cost for construction of surface level parking if required is projected at $1,000 per space and would be as follows:
0-5 spaces, $5000
5-10 spaces, $5,000 to $10,000
10-20 spaces, $10,000 to $20,000
If it were ever a requirement to go up or down via a structured garage, the cost increase would be substantial. In the event of a gift in kind, there would be no cost to the district.
Any Mayoral residence should have certain security considerations at a level that is appropriate to the structure and site. The Mayor's security detail has been consulted and they have advised that the following issues be considered:
Accessibility - The location should be chosen with consideration given to the accessibility issues regarding ingress, egress and traffic. Street width along with street parking issues should be of interest.
Dual entrances - The optimal residence would allow for a driveway sufficiently long enough to accommodate a gatehouse located at the working entrance gate. The entry way should be of sufficient size to accommodate a space approximately 40 feet long from the inside of the gate to a second security barrier. A separate and ceremonial main gate should be automated from the "working gatehouse" and used for entrances of visiting dignitaries and guests
Security room or building - The residence should provide room for the Executive Protection Unit (EPU) to remain on location when necessary without impeding the Mayor's personal privacy. This is best accomplished by a separate "out building" that can double as a base for security personnel assigned to the residence as required. A room within the home is minimally acceptable so long as it provides separate access from the outside of the home.
Perimeter fencing - The chosen location should include, or be capable of accommodating a seven foot decorative security fence.
Parking - Staff parking should consist of as many as five city owned security related vehicles and three personal vehicles belonging to those assigned to residence security.
Backup Independent Power Generator - The residence should be equipped with a generator capable of running critical security function as well as basic living requirements.
Security Landscaping - The residence should be specifically landscaped with security and privacy issues in mind.
In summary there are a number of considerations that have to be factored into a decision. Legal structure, program, scope, location, cost, parking and security are all issues that must be weighed when considering any alternative for the official Mayor's residence.
SPECIFIC PROPOSALS
921 Pennsylvania Ave.
The District currently owns a building at the above location, which is also known as the Old Naval Hospital building. It is large, four story stately masonry building built in the middle of the 19'h century.
The building is approximately 14,000 square feet and of a size sufficient to accommodate Option C above. It would be necessary to convert the floor plan for use as residential.
Though there would be no acquisition cost, the costs of renovation would be between $2.1 million and $4 million. Due to the age and condition of the building it is reasonable to anticipate costs to be on the upper end of the aforementioned range;
The operating costs would be between $490,000 and $800,000;
Both the capital costs of repair as well as the ongoing operating costs would have to be raised or paid for by the District government;
A minimum amount of parking is available on site, approximately 5-10 spaces;
Security would be reasonably accommodated in terms of space within the building, a guard house, security fencing, etc. but the site is exposed and very close to Pennsylvania Ave.
The use of this site as the Mayor's residence would have a positive impact in many respects on the adjacent neighborhood, but the ongoing use would have negative traffic impact on the area.
Casey Foundation Proposal
The Eugene B. Casey Foundation proposes to establish the Casey Mansion Foundation to acquire a seventeen acre site on Foxhall Rd., build a significant structure and endow the Foundation sufficient to pay all operating costs in perpetuity.
The proposed building will be "a beautiful, large, well planned house with official entertainment areas, comfortable private family quarters, and guest rooms." The proposed site is seventeen acres.
All costs of acquisition, construction and operating will be paid for through the Casey Mansion Foundation.
Parking in excess of seventy-five cars will be available.
The proposed site and building are large enough to accommodate all reasonable security concerns.
The use of this site as a Mayor's residence would have very limited impact on the adjacent neighborhood.
A number of additional sites have been looked at by various members of the Commission. These sites include, but are not limited to:
2801 16th St., Residence of the ambassador of Spain
2700 16th St., Chancellery of Italy
4845 Colorado Ave., Henry Wardman House
Several vacant sites on Massachusetts Ave. located at 4th, 5th, 6th, and 9th St.
The warden's house at St. Elizabeth's Hospital
Open land located on the east and west banks of the Anacostia River
Pursuant to the enabling legislation, the Mayor's Official Residence Commission held a public hearing at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April 17. The public hearing was held in the Council chambers located at One Judiciary Square NW, Washington, DC. The hearing was an opportunity for the Commission to hear from the members of the public on the issue of an official residence for the Mayor of the District of Columbia. Copies of the preliminary report from the Commission, the enabling legislation and the letter proposal from the Casey Foundation were available at the hearing.
There were approximately 20 individuals who presented testimony. The majority of the individuals supported the proposal from the Casey Foundation. One individual believed that there should not be an official residence for the Mayor, one believed that it should be at 921 Pennsylvania Ave., and one suggested the Commission look at a different site on Pennsylvania Ave. that is currently being considered for development by a private developer. Additional comment has been received by the Commission through e-mail, as well as through phone calls.
It is the belief of the Commission that the Casey Foundation proposal offers the best opportunity to realize a residence that achieves the maximum programmatic goals at the least expense to the citizens of the District.
Based on the analysis presented above and the majority of the testimony received from the public, it is the recommendation of the Mayor's Official Residence Commission that the Mayor and the Council, on behalf of the citizens of the District of Columbia, accept the proposal from the Casey Foundation to designate the site located at 1801 Foxhall Rd. NW as the Official Residence of the Mayor of the District of Columbia.
APPENDIX A: MAPS AND AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHS [not available on-line]
APPENDIX B: LEGISLATION
APPENDIX C: MEMBERS OF THE COMMISSION
[Full list of members of the commission]
GOVERNMENT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
ADMINISTRATIVE ISSUANCE SYSTEM
Mayor's Order 2001-129
SUBJECT: Appointments - Mayor's Official Residence Commission
ORIGINATING AGENCY: Office of the Mayor
By virtue of the authority vested in me as Mayor of the District of Columbia by section 422(2) of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, as amended, 87 Stat. 790, Pub. L. No. 93-198, D.C. Code § 1242(2)(1999 Repl.), and in accordance with section 4 of the Mayor's Official Residence Commission Establishment Act of 2000, effective October 21, 2000 (D.C. Law 13179), it is hereby ORDERED that:
1. GWENDOLYN HEMPHILL, BRENDA RICHARDSON and FRANK WILDS are appointed as public citizen members of the Mayor's Official Resident Commission (hereinafter referred to as "Commission') for terms of 180 days from the date a majority of the first members are sworn-in.
2. The following persons are appointed as ex officio members of the Commission representing District agencies and shall serve at the pleasure of the Mayor:
TIMOTHY F. DIMOND, Chief Property Management Officer or his designee; and
ANDREW ALTMAN, representing the Office of Planning or his designee.
3. EFFECTIVE DATE: This Order shall become effective immediately.
ANTHONY A. WILLIAMS, MAYOR
ATTEST: BEVERLY D. RIVERS, SECRETARY OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
WASHINGTON. D.C. 20001
Linda W. Cropp, Chairman
The Honorable Walter E. Washington
408-410 T Street, N.W.
Dear Mayor Washington:
I am very pleased to appoint you as chairperson of the Mayor's Official Residence Commission, pursuant to section 5(a) of D.C. Law 13-179, the "Mayor's Official Residence Commission Establishment Act of 2004:" Enclosed for your information is a copy of D.C. Law 13-179, which became law on October 21, 2000, upon the expiration of the Congressional review period.
The other appointees of the Council Chairman are:
The Honorable H.R. Crawford
3195 Westover Drive, S.E.
202-583-7777 (h)
Ms. Alice Norris
506 10th Street, S.E.
Mr. Max Berry
2716 Chesapeake Street, N
Thank you for your leadership on this matter and your willingness to serve on the Mayor's Official Residence Commission. The Mayor's Office of Boards and Commissions will be contacting you in the near future to inform you of the Mayor's appointments and to help organize the first meeting of this important commission.
Linda W. Cropp
cc: Mayor Anthony A. Williams
Members of the Council
APPENDIX D: WITNESS LIST
THE HONORABLE WALTER E. WASHINGTON, CHAIR
ANNOUNCES A PUBLIC HEARING ON
D.C. LAW 13-179
Mayors' Official Residence Commission Establishment Act of 2000"
One Judiciary Square
441 4th Street, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 2001
WITNESS LIST
Kathryn A. Pearson-West, DC Resident
Penny Pagono - President of the Palisades Citizens Association
Erman Clay - DC Resident
Kenan Jarboe - DC Resident
Kathy Henderson - At-Large DC State Democratic Committee Member
Pete Ross and Bob Andrews - President and Vice President of the Foxhall Community Citizens Association.
Len Levine - Commissioner Single Member District 2 of ANC 2E
Gary Imhoff - DC Watch
Rhoda Burwell- DC Resident
Rodney Newman - ANC 7A07
James D. Gaston III- DC Resident
Carol Shapiro - DC Resident
Dr. Idiong Calistuf - DC Resident
Ms Rooney - DC Resident
Ellie Becker - DC Resident
Sam Bost - DC Resident
Ernest Thomas - DC Resident
Dr. Joel Ademisoye - DC Resident
Mr. Poer - DC Resident
APPENDIX E: LETTER FROM THE CASEY FOUNDATION
Send mail with questions or comments to webmaster@dcwatch.com
Web site copyright ©DCWatch (ISSN 1546-4296)


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LONDON: Indian liquor baron Vijay Mallya, who owes Rs 9,000 crores to various banks in the country, has been living at a $15 million mansion in England's Hertfordshire county, the Sunday Times reported.
An arrest warrant for Mallya, 60, nicknamed "the King of Good Times", was issued by an Indian court last week after he flew to Britain.
Mallya is one step closer to being deported from Britain after his passport was revoked by external affairs ministry on Sunday.


This entry was posted on Thursday, December 27th, 2012 at 11:00 am	and is filed under Case Management. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.


text:
Santa Fe archbishop weighs in on papal discussion of Father James Martin
Pope Francis meets with bishops of the USCCB's Region XIII at the Vatican, Feb. 10, 2020. Credit: Vatican Media.
JD Flynn
VATICAN CITY -- Archbishop John Wester of Santa Fe has offered his recollections of a meeting between Pope Francis and the American Southwest, especially as regards a discussion during the meeting of Father James Martin, SJ.
CNA reported Feb. 20 that Martin was discussed during a Feb. 10 meeting between the pope and bishops of the USCCB's Region XIII, who were with the pope as part of their ad limina visit.
Martin, an American Jesuit, is well known for his writing and speaking on LGBT issues and the Church. His work has been a subject of controversy; it is criticized by some bishops and praised by others.
Wester confirmed that Martin and his Sept. 30 visit to the pope had been discussed in the meeting, in a Feb. 21 commentary published by the National Catholic Reporter.
The Santa Fe archbishop, who was appointed to his post in 2015, is one of seven U.S. bishops to have endorsed "Building a Bridge," Martin's 2017 book on the Church and homosexuality.
"This courageous work is necessary reading for all who wish to build up the Christian community and to give witness to the Gospel message of inclusion," Wester wrote of Martin's book.
In his Feb. 21 commentary, the archbishop indicated that a broader discussion of Martin had taken place than was previously reported. Wester said bishops raised to the pope questions about a recent speech Martin delivered to the presidents of Catholic universities, "and his work in general with the LGBT community."
The pope's visit with Martin "was only mentioned in passing and was not the main point of the questions" bishops raised to the pope about Martin, Wester wrote.
The archbishop did not indicate what he saw as the "main point" of the bishops' questions, nor did he indicate the response of Pope Francis to questions raised about the issues he mentioned.
While it would be "difficult for anyone to remember with precision anything that was said" in such a lengthy meeting, Wester said that he did not recall "the pope saying or implying that he was unhappy with Father Martin or his ministry."
Regarding the pope's visit with Martin, one bishop told CNA Feb. 20 that Pope Francis "made his displeasure clear" about the way the meeting was interpreted, and framed by some journalists.
Wester's commentary confirmed that report. The archbishop added that from his viewpoint, "it was not Father Martin the Pope was talking about, but the way others tried to use that encounter, one way or the other."
The Archbishop of Santa Fe did take issue with a bishop who told CNA that "the Holy Father's disposition was very clear, he was most displeased about the whole subject of Fr. Martin and how their encounter had been used. He was very expressive, both his words and his face -- his anger was very clear, he felt he'd been used."
Speaking of that bishop's description, Wester said "the language subtlety, yet incorrectly, leads the reader to believe that Father Martin was the issue while in fact, it was how others used their meeting that was in play." Wester said he did not think the pope had been "angry, upset or annoyed."
In his commentary, Wester disagreed with reports from other bishops that the pope said Martin had received some correction about the way the Sept. 30 visit was framed.
"Not at all true from my vantage point," Wester said.
Wester conceded that there was some discussion of raising issues with Martin's superiors, though he was not specific about what was said.
"I vaguely remember some mention of people in leadership trying to clarify any misunderstandings about his ministry," the archbishop wrote. Wester said he thought that reference had to do with an article Martin had written in America Magazine, and not with the pope's meeting with Martin, although he did not indicate what factors led him to that conclusion.
Martin himself, after Wester's commentary was published, tweeted that he has "never heard anything negative from Jesuit superiors, nor was I ever given a 'talking to.'"
The archbishop said he could not recall other aspects of reports about the meeting.
"I believe that I have an obligation to offer my perspective on those matters contained in the CNA article about Father James Martin, SJ, since my understanding of the facts differs from what was reported anonymously," Wester concluded.
The bishops who spoke with CNA reported that Martin's work in regards to the LGBT community was also discussed with the heads of numerous Vatican congregations, and that some officials expressed concern about aspects of the priest's work. Wester did not comment on those reports.


Spring is just around the corner, meaning we're leaving behind the cold Winter snow for Spring showers. Aside from all the warm weather and Spring sports starting up, students start to think about Buffalo High School's annual formal dance: Prom. Prom can consists of many factors that can change every year. This year, we thought we would look more into what students think about last years annual Prom dance, and what they think the school should change about it.
One hundred student responded to a Hoofprint survey on Prom. Of those, 77 percent were female and 23 percent of the responders were male.
The first series of questions were based off of what they prefer in their attire and who they are going to the dance with. Typically, women buy their dresses and men rent their tuxes. But surprisingly, we found that 85 percent of the respondents actually bought their prom outfit compared to renting it. In relation to the students attire, the results highlighted that matching colors are important to their attire.
Getting to Prom as friends or as a couple?
Usually, most students travel to the dance in one of two ways: They take a party bus or they drive themselves. The students decision was probably based off of who they are going to the dance with. Are they going with their boyfriend or girlfriend? Or are they just going in a group of friends? It turns out that the answer was, both.
A lot of people seem to be going with their significant other and a group friends. Senior Eathan Soeffker enjoys going to prom with his classmates.
After last years dance, there has been a lot of talk about the music selection that was played during the dance. Comments like ,"They need to play more recent songs" or "Stop playing music from a wedding reception" were left on the survey. Overall, the students never really loved the music played but, about half of them thought it was "OK." The other half hated it. On the survey, an overwhelming amount of students commented that the students should be the ones picking out the music at prom.
Prom is also not cheap. Forty percent of people said they were spending anywhere from $150 to $250. The second highest voted option was spending $350+ for prom. The money that's being spent is covering things like attire, food, transportation, and any other things that you might pay for on your all-day adventure. Is all that money really worth it? It's up to interpretation, as almost half of the students said maybe,on the survey and another quarter of students said no.
Senior, Joe Triden, talked about how he wishes he saved his money last year.
All of the things discussed above are things that students must take into consideration before the big day comes. This could take weeks or months of preparation. For some, it's well worth it, and for the others, they regret deciding to go in the first place.
yoooo whattup? My name is Kyler, and I like to do things.


Regardless of whether you're moving a one-room workplace or even a significant corporation, the correct moving company tends to make each of the variation from the world. When you use a professional mover, you reduce liability hazards. No additional worrying about doable injury to the workforce, accidental loss of information, damage to valuable devices, or violating privateness polices.
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A corporate moving company ought to keep the right licenses and be registered with all the appropriate parties. Your mover should really be registered with all the U.S. Department of Transportation, have a very present business license, in addition to be bonded and insured. To further more discover their heritage, test to view in case the mover is registered while using the Much better Business Bureau and it has good feedback and testimonials online.
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You might rely on the brand name, but how about the particular men and women who demonstrate approximately transfer your office environment? A corporate moving company is barely nearly as good since the men and women that represent it. You want a company that performs considerable history checks on its employees--especially legal track record checks. Their staff need to be well-trained in office environment moves and also privateness regulations. Prevent moving companies that use momentary workers. By definition, these staff are not well-known through the moving company, and they can open up the doorway to most likely expensive liabilities.
Knowledge issues when you shift your business. After all, furthermore to moving your highly-priced computer machines and business home furnishings, it's important to get worried in regards to the security of the data likewise. A professional corporate moving company will use a safe chain-of-custody procedure to be certain that there's no chance of the info breach. Quite possibly the most capable place of work movers normally use office gondolas to maneuver and safeguard your records. Downtime is another crucial thought. Veteran movers work additional immediately and competently to lessen enough time your workers are left idle.
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text:
Pąkowo – osada w Polsce położona w województwie zachodniopomorskim, w powiecie gryfińskim, w gminie Widuchowa. Osada wchodzi w skład sołectwa Żelechowo.

31 grudnia 2008 r. osada miała 8 mieszkańców.

W latach 1975–1998 miejscowość administracyjnie należała do województwa szczecińskiego.

Przypisy

Widuchowa (gmina)

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
Q: How to put a subscript in a caption of a Word document using officer in R I am trying to add a subscript to a caption generated in officer.
I am creating the caption like this:
library(officer)

doc <- read_docx('empty_file.docx')

autonum <- run_autonum(seq_id = 'fig', pre_label = 'Figure ')
caption <- block_caption(label='My caption includes SO2.', style = "caption", autonum = autonum)
doc <- body_add_caption(doc, caption)

print(doc, target = 'output.docx'))

However, now I'd like to put the '2' in 'SO2' in subscript. I know how to generate subscripts:
fp_text_prop <- fp_text(color='orange')
prop_mod <- update(fp_text_prop, vertical.align = 'subscript')
paragraph <- fpar(ftext('SO', prop = fp_text_prop), ftext('2', prop = prop_mod)))

But I can't use the resulting fpar inside a caption, as body_add_caption expects the output from block_caption and block_caption expects a normal string as argument for the label=.
How can I put an fpar, or alternatively, a subscript inside a caption?

A: I have found a solution that is a bit involved but seems to work.
library(officer)

doc <- read_docx('empty_file.docx')

autonum <- run_autonum(seq_id = 'fig', pre_label = 'Figure ')

fp_text_prop <- fp_text(color='orange')
prop_mod <- update(fp_text_prop, vertical.align = 'subscript')

caption <- fpar(autonum, ftext('SO', prop = fp_text_prop), ftext('2', prop = prop_mod)))

doc <- body_add_fpar(x=doc, value=caption, style = 'caption')

print(doc, target = 'output.docx'))

There are a couple of caveats: fp_text_prop should match the normal style of the captions and style = 'caption' should be changed to pick the correct style for captions in your document.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Admittedly, I had forgotten about Perry Robinson prior to listening to William Parker's Bob's Pink Cadillac session. Certainly, Robinson wasn't silent pre-Parker Clarinet Trio. The clarinetist has been on record with Lou Grassi as a member of his PoBand since the late Nineties and Gunter Hampel during the early Eighties, but it was Bob's Pink Cadillac that helped me fully appreciate his recordings for ESP and Savoy ( The Call, Funk Dumpling ). As interesting as Perry Robinson's music is, his life is even more so. So it should be no great surprise that Robinson has a book chronicling his journey. Life and music, Robinson touched on both, as always, unedited and in his own words.
Fred Jung Let's start from the beginning.
Perry Robinson: My father was the composer, Earl Robinson, Fred. My father was a famous American composer. He wrote 'House I Live In,' the song that Frank Sinatra made famous. They made a movie of that and he wrote the music to that. He came from Seattle. He was a composer that graduated from the University of Washington and came to New York in the Thirties and joined up with Woody Guthrie, that whole group, the whole socialist, working group at the time.
So I grew up with my father as a musician. I had all kinds of music in my house, from folk music, classical, and jazz. I was just born with it. I started on piano when I was about seven or eight for a couple of years. I had problems reading on the piano. I started clarinet at about nine or ten and that was it. I started listening to Benny Goodman and all the music that my dad had and of course, I knew Pete Seeger, Woody Guthrie, Leadbelly, all these people were childhood remembrances. They all used to come to the house. My father also wrote, did you see the Woodstock movie? He wrote 'Joe Hill.' He is a famous American composer. He died in '91. He did a lot of stuff through the years, 'Ballad for Americans,' Paul Robeson.
That is how I got into music. My grandfather brought me a clarinet when I was about nine. I had problems reading on the piano and there was a bunch of stuff that happened. Then I switched to clarinet at that time because my grandfather brought me and my cousin, who was Alan Arkin, the actor. He is my first cousin. I studied acting with him. I was born in New York, September 17, 1938. When I was four or five, my dad got, because of all the famous songs he wrote in those days, he got asked to go to Hollywood and so we moved out to Hollywood when I was four or five. I lived there until I was twelve and my dad was writing for films there.
Then the blacklist came, McCarthy and he was part of that whole thing. My dad was a Communist in the Thirties with Pete Seeger and all those guys. I grew up this way with him being blacklisted. I was young and didn't fully understand it. Then we moved back to New York because he wouldn't comply with all the stuff. They wanted him to give names. It was a very heavy time. This was in the late Forties, early Fifties. We came back to New York and moved to Brooklyn and my dad gave up his writing.
Anyway, Alan Arkin is on my mother's side, my Jewish mother's side, Russian Jewish. He is my mother's sister's son. His brother, Bob Arkin is a jazz bassist living in New York, a wonderful player. So I studied acting with Alan when I was young in Los Angeles. I started studying right away as soon as we got back and then I went to the Music and Art high school, which was very important A lot of great musicians went there like Pete La Roca, Eddie Gomez, Shorty Rogers way before, a lot of great musicians came from there. So that was a great influence for me. That is where I met my first friend. Do you know a pianist named Jon Mayer?
FJ: He lives in Los Angeles.
PR: He is my dear friend from high school. He is one of my closest friends from high school. We've been in contact. We had a reunion. I went to the Lennox School of Jazz in 1956. I met Jon in high school. We were the closest of friends. We played together all the time. We had a group.
FJ: What was your approach to playing an instrument largely defined with swing?
PR: What happened was that I played clarinet classically for many years. Then in high school, I also had an infatuation with the sax. My dad knew Charlie Mingus when he was in L.A. and my dad took me to jam sessions. The first time I saw Buddy Collette, I was about ten or eleven. I had been playing clarinet a couple of years and then I saw Buddy Collette at this jam session with Charlie Mingus and he was on alto and I just liked the look of the saxophone. So I actually went to the sax for a while and played a bit with it and kind of gave it up. Then when I went to the School of Music and Art, I started playing sax in the band just for gigs. Still, the clarinet was my main thing, but I saw that on sax, I was getting more work.


text:
Response to the All Party Parliamentary Group for Working at Height inquiry
About Balfour Beatty
The UK's largest construction contractor, Balfour Beatty, was founded in 1909 and is listed on the London Stock Exchange. With 15,000 employees and over 40 offices in the UK, Balfour Beatty finances, develops, builds and maintains the increasingly complex infrastructure that underpins the UK's daily life. With a legacy of projects across transportation, power and utility systems, social and commercial buildings: from Crossrail and Heathrow T2b to the M25 and M4/M5; and Sellafield; to the Olympics Aquatic Centre, we are proud to be a British company delivering iconic structures, bold engineering feats, behind-the-scenes innovation and joined-up thinking, financing and partnerships.
At Balfour Beatty, we take very seriously our duty of care and our responsibility to keep our workforce and members of the public safe. The health and safety of our employees and everyone else affected by our activities is fundamental to the success of our business. Nothing that we do is so important that it cannot be done safely. Our approach to managing health and safety is set out in our Health and Safety Policy1.
Specifically in relation to working at height, we are very aware of the risks involved and that it is a major cause of both fatalities and major injuries in the construction industry. Where possible, we avoid any working at height. We are increasing the use of new technology, for example using drones to assist with inspections. However, avoiding working at height or using technology is not always possible or practical in construction. We therefore aim to manage the risks associated with working at height, making sure the work is properly assessed and planned using a hierarchy of controls, adequately supervised and carried out by competent people using the right type of equipment.
Responses to the APPG's questions
In your opinion, what are the primary reasons for falls, or falling objects, which cause serious injuries or fatalities when working at height?
Balfour Beatty works hard to create a safe workplace for all our employees. We aim to ingrain a health and safety culture across our workforce. We believe that the step change in industry performance will only come when safe work at height becomes ingrained within each individual's behavioural responses.
Unfortunately, in spite of our controls and constant reiteration of the importance of safety, there are occasions when those who carry out a particular task on a regular basis become complacent. This can result in them treating essential precautionary measures and procedures as onerous or time-consuming, not following health and safety requirements and taking unnecessary risks. It only takes one mistake to turn what may be considered to be a routine task into an accident or fatality: in our experience it is this "it won't happen to me" attitude which most often results in injury or worse. We do not tolerate this attitude and take quick and decisive action to tackle it wherever we discover it.
In order to prevent this complacency in our staff, we have implemented a behavioural safety training programme called Making Safety Personal, which dovetails into our golden rules which are 4 key rules which govern all our works. We also actively implement lessons learned from observations and incidents through Safety Health Environment Leadership Team (SHELT) meetings and Fatal Risk Groups as well as encouraging innovation and design solutions.
Do you have any comments about the existing regulations for work at height, as set out in the Work at Height Regulations, 2005?
Balfour Beatty believes the current regulations are open to interpretation in some places, and that as such, an Approved Code of Practice (ACOP) would be useful. This could then be the central tool for development of training/competency standards for site operatives. We believe that this would be useful across the industry, as a number of the issues centre around imbedding the learning and control measures into the underlying behaviours of operatives. In essence work at height should be treated in a similar manor to confined spaces, with the inclusion of training on skill cards.
In our view, there is also a level of ambiguity within the existing regulations which could helpfully be removed, for example in relation to falls below ground level for instance, into an excavation. Whilst falls into and opening into a floor or a hole in the ground are covered current HSE guidance focuses on above ground examples.
Are there specific measures you believe are necessary to prevent falls, or falling objects, from height which are not currently required by law?
Tool tethering prevents tools and other objects from falling while work at height is undertaken by providing an anchorage point. It is essential for avoiding the hazard to human life and other damage posed by dropped equipment. While it is used across Balfour Beatty's sites and widely used across the industry, it could be better referenced in guidance.
Catch nets or safety netting are also now extensively used. Fitted directly below the working platform, they catch a falling person, debris or equipment and create a controlled soft landing close to the fall, minimising the impact on the faller or object, and of course on those below. In some circumstances these should, we believe, be mandatory.
Within the industry good practice is often considered as adopting a mandatory fall arrest davit system for use when entering an excavation of more than 2 metres (with anything under 2 metres reviewed on a case-by-case basis). Davits can be used for raising and lowering the worker to an area below the unit and are particularly useful in confined spaces. They can be either portable or permanently fixed and are commonly used by Emergency Response Units for rescue in confined spaces. These should also be considered for use more widely across the industry.
What more can industry do to avoid falls from height, and share good practice?
Balfour Beatty believes more can be done to eliminate work at height at the design stage. There is a requirement for contractors to feedback to designers regarding lessons learned through construction to help eliminate repeated issues but more collaboration is needed at the design stage. More visible challenge of designers by the Regulator via the Construction Design and Management Regulations (2015) (CDM) with publicised case studies would also be helpful
Balfour Beatty also uses a Working At Height Permit-to-Work, which ensures better controls during the planning and delivery stages of projects. A permit-to-work system is a formal written system used to control certain types of work that are potentially hazardous. It puts in place a formal process whereby all of the hazards connected with the work to be undertaken are considered in advance, and the necessary precautions are worked out, agreed and put in place. This approach, we believe, significantly reduces the potential for accidents and should be considered for use more widely.
There could also usefully be better sharing of lessons learned around the industry and between different industries to ensure best practice is being adopted, although it is difficult to recommend the best forum for this to have maximum effect, however the input from the Regulator though open forums would be useful.
What role should end users/customers have in ensuring safe work at height?
As above, we believe that eliminating as much of the risk as possible during the design phase, by fully implementing CDM would be a significant step – customers have a key role in this. Time pressures can result in there being insufficient time during the design and planning phase to design out work at height. Customers and end users should work with the designers and contractors to ensure sufficient time is available for the designing out of full life cycle work at height.
It would also benefit the industry if clients and contractors, where requested, to undertake due diligence around work at height.
Would you support enhanced reporting of falls from height as a way of better understanding the causes and helping to reduce falls from height?
Yes. For example, Balfour Beatty believes that arrested falls from height should be reported. However, it will be important if enhanced reporting is brought in, that the information and learning is shared widely with the industry and the emphasis is in lesson learning not enforcement action.
Do you believe the current definition of competence for working at height is appropriate?
No, it is too vague for industry as a whole; it would be useful to have an industry training standard in a similar vein to confined spaces to give better guidance to the industry and the individuals.
Can you propose any innovative suggestions, particularly using digital technology, which could have a positive effect on reducing falls / falling objects from height?
Balfour Beatty believes that there is huge potential for technology to make construction safer, especially in relation to working at height, from the ability to track and monitor those undertaking dangerous activity using wear-ables, to increasing the use of virtual and augmented reality to identify and resolve potential issues before they become real. While there are many exciting new technologies reaching maturity, there are three good examples of some of the technology Balfour Beatty is already deploying to reduce falls from height:
Balfour Beatty uses its six Civil Aviation Authority licensed drone pilots to undertake inspection and maintenance work at height using drones, thus removing the risk of falls from height. For example, Balfour Beatty Living Places, in partnership with West Sussex County Council, is trialling the use of drones to inspect bridges across the county. Using drones in this way allows us to safely assess the work required while dramatically reducing any potential hazards faced by our workforce who would traditionally carry out work such as bridge inspections at height. It also reduces disruption to the public and road users by removing the need for the traffic management or road closures which would usually be put in place during bridge inspections.
Balfour Beatty has been using VR simulation for Health and Safety Training. The fully immersive simulation means that we can prevent on-site accidents through better training. Featuring different real world scenarios the virtual experience gives workers the opportunity to experience live and potentially dangerous site environments, understand the space of the build, work out where heavy equipment should be placed and game plan how complex elements of the scheme can be best undertaken, from the safety of an office or training room and without the need for lengthy manuals, training sessions or specialist personnel.
Offsite and modularisation
While many companies are beginning to consider offsite and modularisation on a case-by-case basis for new schemes, Balfour Beatty has made it a core part of our strategy. We have committed to reducing onsite activity by 25% by 2025. Supporting the Government's 2025 strategy for lower cost, lower emissions and faster delivery, we aim to remove those activities we can from sites in order make construction safer and to free up our workforce's time to focus on delivery. Increasing the use of offsite gives us the scope to create complex structures safely and efficiently offsite, assembling them quickly onsite. Modularisation typically provides up to 40% reduction in on-site labour.
However, achieving the efficiencies offsite manufacturing offers requires standardised designs and components. This has so far been missing in most schemes across the UK. Balfour Beatty is working with customers to support them in thinking about these benefits from the concept phase.
Taking this two-pronged approach will enable us to tackle head on the safety, skills and productivity challenges the construction industry is facing, while delivering high-quality schemes for our customers as safely and efficiently as possible.
Veena Hudson
Head of Public Affairs | Balfour Beatty
+44 (0)20 7963 4235 | +44 (0)7790 340693 | veena.hudson@balfourbeatty.com
1. https://www.balfourbeatty.com/media/317037/health_and_safety_policy_january_2018.pdf