Celebrate "Fabulous 40" with a Cuban-themed Cocktail Party!
Unique Party Ideas from The Party Suite at Bellenza | Celebrate "Fabulous 40" with a Cuban-themed Cocktail Party!
Planning festivities for your 40th birthday bash? Why not concoct something extra exciting, like a cocktail party inspired by sunny and sultry Cuba! The table decorations will be popping with vibrant colors, while the menu will promise savory and spicy flavors served with the most popular Havana cocktails. Take a look at our fun and festive styling ideas that you can definitely pull off for this theme. Plus, grab some recipe links for appetizers and drinks to serve. Then, get ready to party a la Cubana!
Instant impact! That's what you should aim for with your table settings, using bright, bold colors. See how an aqua tablecloth just makes all the other elements stand out—from the pretty pink flower pots serving as place card holders and lovely party favors, to the zesty fruit-infused cocktails awaiting guests, to the table napkins rolled to mimic the famed Cuban cigars!
Bring in a mix of textures and patterns to your table settings, too. Use woven place mats and trays, glazed earthenware dishes and plates with hand-painted multi-colored designs available from Amazon. Add pops of color with fresh or paper flowers, and leafy cuttings from your garden! And of course, frosty cocktails are always a welcome addition to the "decor"!
A cocktail party means a casual serve-yourself approach. So set up a truly appealing display of appetizers (suggested recipes below), finger foods, snacks, and beverages that's just as colorful as the tables.
Provide more hand-painted plates, cheery-hued napkins, and pitchers (via Amazon) that you can present with tropical fruit juices for those who prefer non-alcoholic drinks. Display fresh fruits in shapely wooden containers, too!
After such a fun affair, guests will surely appreciate party favors—Cuban-inspired, too, of course! Something savory, like classic empanadas (flaky mini pies with a ground beef filling); or something sweet, like bite-size guava pastries. Whatever edibles you choose, package them in sturdy woven boxes (above) and matching organza wraps (below)—all in hot, hot pink!
And we do have our own post on recommended Cuban appetizer-and-cocktail pairings. Check it out for more delicious ideas!
Now, you're all ready to mark your milestone birthday Cuban style. Happy 40th!


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Peter Drucker's conviction was that these are the only two business functions that produce results - all the rest are costs. I've been sailing these two oceans for my entire professional experience.
At my first startup I've fought Tinder and dating giants and lost. Currently growing a successful B2B startup. There's nothing closer to my professional heart than fighting the odds of startup success.
Moving fast and breaking things has been a motto I've brought to my SME experience from the startup world. In today's fast-paced market conditions it's the only way to double-digit yearly growth.
Technology is what will save us from soul-crushing robotic work and empower the human race forward. My eyes always glisten like a puppy's when I deal with technology that improves our lives.
Ideas and experiences as a full-stack marketer and startup practician.


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One-stroke penalty after two bad times at same event as Tour beefs up slow-play rules
By Andrew Griffin on 14th January 2020
European Tour chief referee John Paramor (left) and Andy McFee who led the trials of the new pace of play timing system at the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth, in September
EUROPEAN Tour players who record two bad times in a tournament – instead of in the same round – will now face an immediate one-stroke penalty, tournament chiefs announced today.
The European Tour's new tougher regulations aimed at tackling slow play come into effect at this week's Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship.
The beefed-up four-point plan – announced back in August – will see the worst offenders on slow play targeted by referees and hit by penalty which will affect them immediately – not with a fine implemented after the event.
The immediate one-shot penalty will be handed out for two "bad times" in a tournament – rather than for two "bad times" within a round in a key revision of the rules originally announced five months ago.
It means additional powers for referees to target slower players starting at this week's Rolex Series event at Abu Dhabi Golf Club.
But players on the clock will get a "time out" which will allow them to notify the referee they wish to take an extra 40 seconds because of the difficulty – or special circumstances – for a particular shot.
If they are the first player to play in a group that is officially "on the clock" they will get an extra 10 seconds to play their shot, and could still request the extra 40 seconds by using the time out.
But any player wanting to use the extra time must clearly signal their intention to a referee before the initial 40-second allowance runs out.
And they can only apply the time extension to one shot in any one round of golf, the European Tour said this week.
A reduction in the time allowance for "in-position players" to play shots also comes into force this week – alongside increased fines for players who are regularly placed "on the clock" throughout the season.
The fines start at €3,500 for their first bad timing offence after their first official warning in any one season – and they rise incrementally for each subsequent offence, the European Tour has warned.
Further fines exist, depending on the number of times in total each season a player is "put on the clock."
European Tour players have also been required to undertake an education programme since the four-point plan was announced last year.
European Tour chief referee John Paramor said: "The tougher measures which come into effect in Abu Dhabi empower our referees to more effectively target slower players.
"Changing the regulation for an immediate one-shot penalty to now be triggered by two bad times in a tournament – instead of a round – will force slower players to consistently ensure they play within timing regulations.
"This is part of our wider, robust policy to tackle slow play but our fundamental advice to all players remains consistent – they should be ready to play when it is their turn."
The European Tour's four-point plan, announced back in August, continues to put the European Tour at the forefront of pace of play management in the professional game.
It was introduced following a mandate from the European Tour Tournament Committee to take firmer action against slower players.
Edoardo Molinari caused a storm on social media by shaming the players dubbed the slowest on Tour by releasing a list of fines for slow play, which started a wider debate.
The new four-point plan focuses on key areas:–
•Regulation
•Education
•Innovation and
•Field sizes.
A new 'pace of play' timing system utilising the latest technology was tested at the BMW PGA Championship, at Wentworth, in September, with a further trial taking place in Abu Dhabi this week.
The intention is to roll the system out across a number of events in 2020, providing referees with the precise times for every group through every hole to make sure that no gaps are missed.
On-tee displays linked to the system will also provide the players instantaneous information on their position in relation to the group in front to try to avoid the chances of a one-stroke penalty being dished out.
Field sizes at fully sanctioned events will be reduced from 156 to a minimum of 144 – so long as all entered players in Category 18 (the final 116-132 on the 2019 Race to Dubai) and above make it into the tournament.
The last point will create space for referees to push groups over the Thursday and Friday rounds, while larger starting intervals will be built into play on Saturday and Sunday to create a better flow between groups.
KEY CHANGES TO PACE OF PLAY POLICY
An immediate one-stroke penalty will now be applied on the second "bad time" in a tournament. It was originally announced in August as being applicable to a second "bad time" in a round.
Players who exceed time limits (see below) while being monitored will now incur a bad time and it will count towards the one-stroke penalty.
A player can call a "time extension" for any stroke ONCE in a round. This will add 40 seconds to the allowance for the stroke in question. If players wish to use this, they must make this clear to the timing referee BEFORE they exceed the allowance they have for the stroke in front of them. Referees advise a verbal call or clear signal which they will acknowledge.
Referees have also been mandated by the Tournament Committee to focus on the players who are regularly taking too much time, even if they are 'in-position'. The "in position" time limits have been reduced (see below). A breach of those limits will incur a "monitoring penalty" but they will NOT count towards the one-stroke penalty in a tournament, recognising the significance of being in position. A single monitoring penalty or single bad time in a season will not result in any sanction, but each one after that will incur ever-increasing fines starting at €3,500.
The fines for the number of times players have been timed during the season have also been increased
OVERVIEW OF TIMING ALLOWANCES
Out of position
When players are out of position their time allowance is 50 seconds* for the first to play, 40 seconds* for second or third to play. A one-shot penalty will be applied after two bad times in the tournament.
In Position
The time allowed to play a shot when being monitored in position (previously double the out-of-position times above), will be reduced by 15 per cent, from 100 and 80 seconds down to 85 and 70 seconds respectively for first and second/third to play. Referees have been told to be proactive in targeting regular slow players for in-position timing.
*The existing principle of allowing an extra 10 per cent on the 40 and 50 second limits will be maintained by referees, recognising human differences can occur in starting timing. A player will be assessed a "bad time" if he has a third time after the 10 per cent allowance.
European Tour referees sit R&A rules exam
Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, BMW PGA, chief referee, European Tour, John Paramor, Keith Pelley, one-stroke penalty, Slow play, Wentworth
It's Back to the Future as Kristianstads hosts first LET Swedish event in five years
After missing Presidents Cup with knee injury, Koepka's keen to play in Abu Dhabi

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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'Far from out of the woods' over COVID: NHS health leader warns of 'compromised' NHS care
The quality of care being given by the NHS is being compromised, one health leader has warned, cautioning that the country is "far from out of the woods".The health service has faced intense pressure due to high rates of COVID and the threat of Omicron, which has led to both hospital admissions and staff absences…
The quality of care being given by the NHS is being compromised, one health leader has warned, cautioning that the country is "far from out of the woods".
The health service has faced intense pressure due to high rates of COVID and the threat of Omicron, which has led to both hospital admissions and staff absences increasing.
Matthew Taylor, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, warned against "wishful thinking" about how soon it will be until the threat of the new variant subsides.
0: 45
Babies in hospital with COVID
Mr Taylor said while the national data "offers some hope" the UK should "be under no illusions that this pressure has evaporated, including in London".
How many COVID patients does your local hospital have?
The UK has recorded 335 coronavirus-related deaths and a further 109,133 cases in the latest 24-hour period, according to government data.
"One leader of an NHS trust in the north told me that they felt they were at least a week away from their peak, while more than one in 10 of their staff were absent," he said.
"On top of that, they have medically fit patients stuck in hospital beds because the pandemic has decimated capacity in social care.
"We may be at the end of the beginning of this wave, but we are far from out of the woods.
"NHS leaders are doing everything they can to keep their services running, but they are being put in a worrying situation where the quality of care their teams are able to provide is at times being compromised."
He said the country needs honesty "about how quickly the NHS can bounce back" one the Omicron variant does subside.
Follow the Daily podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Spreaker.
He added: "Decisions about what living with COVID-19 will mean must be driven by realism and not by wishful thinking and impatience about how soon the threat and legacy of this strain will disappear."
His warning comes as the health secretary announced the isolation period in England for those who test positive for the COVID will be cut from seven days to five.
Previous Renewed calls for PM to resign after reports No 10 staff partied on eve of Philip's funeral
Next Boris Johnson Covid announcement: Public 'WON'T accept PM's claims' over party scandal as Tory MPs call for him to QUIT
A poll like no other: is Australia ready for its first federal pandemic election?
Covid: 52,000 unvaccinated NHS staff in England at risk of losing jobs
School backs down after refusing to let pupils attend without proof of negative Covid test


Gold Blend #17 opens with a rich stone fruit element backed by typical WF citrus, straw and earthy funk. Delicious palate bursting with spice and vibrant citrus zest. A classic creamy mouthfeel with firm funk and acidity provide beautiful textures and savoury length.
Gold is a blended, barrel aged Australian Wild Ale. Blend #17 is a blend of four barrels. 1719 (5 month old Gold), 1731 (14 month old Gold), 1734 (6 month old Gold) and 1742 (4 month old Gold).
The base beer is brewed entirely with New South Wales cereals: Single Origin (S.O.) Moree, NSW grown Gairdner ale malt and North Star, NSW grown Spitfire S.O. raw wheat thanks to Provenance Malt. It is made with filtered Sydney water and Motueka (NZ) and Saaz (CZ) hops. Finally, it was fermented with our house culture: brewers yeast, foraged wild yeast and naturally occurring souring bacteria native to New South Wales. It was bottled on July 12 2018 and naturally conditioned through refermentation for 21 weeks. At bottling it was 5.0% ABV, 25 IBU and 0.5°P (FG= 1.002 SG).
Like all our beers, Gold Blend #17 is best enjoyed when decanted off a settled natural yeast sediment at cellar temperatures (10-12°C).


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Did you hear, feel, see them? B-1s thunder over…
Did you hear, feel, see them? B-1s thunder over Rose Parade, instead of B-2
Two B1 Lancers fly above Colorado Blvd. as they pass behind a building during the 134th Rose Parade in Pasadena on Monday, January 2, 2023. (Photo by Dean Musgrove, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
By Ryan Carter | rcarter@scng.com | Daily News
PUBLISHED: January 2, 2023 at 9:06 a.m. | UPDATED: January 3, 2023 at 5:25 a.m.
With the sound of thunder, two B-1B Lancer bombers flew low and loud over the Rose Parade Tuesday morning, prompting awe from many parade-goers, as the giant aircrafts marked the beginning of the 134th procession down Colorado Boulevard.
Rockwell B-1 Lancer flyover at the Rose Parade! Happy New Year! pic.twitter.com/xNTkYxXTsB
— Chris Guzman 🏆 (@christopherguz) January 2, 2023
The flyover is not a new moment for the annual parade, but in recent years, it's been performed by the B-2 stealth bomber — the wing-shaped giant.
The change stems from "a safety pause," officials said, that will allow base personnel to inspect the fleet after a Dec. 10 incident in which a B-2 Spirit was damaged on the runway at Whiteman AFB after successfully completing an emergency landing.
Related: B-2 Stealth Bomber is grounded for Rose Parade
The B-1s are from Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota.
The standdown of the B-2s is significant in that there are fewer than 20 stealth bombers in the entire fleet and the aircraft provides, along with the B-52 Stratofortress, the air leg of the nation's nuclear triad. The B-2 has been regularly deployed to the Indo-Pacific and more recently to Europe as a show of force. During the standdown the entire fleet will be inspected, 509th Bomb Wing spokeswoman Air Force Master Sgt. Beth Del Vecchio said.
B-2 Stealth Bomber is grounded for Rose Parade; Here's Plan B (1)
A Q&A with Rose Parade Grand Marshal Gabby Giffords
Rose Parade is rolling, with a rare Jan. 2 march down Colorado Boulevard
Authorities report thinner overnight Rose Parade crowd on Colorado Blvd., but fewer public safety problems
Ryan Carter | Reporter
Ryan Carter is an editor for the Southern California News Group, who also writes stories for the group. Ryan started his career writing obituaries at the Glendale News-Press, before working as assistant city editor for Times Community News (Division of the L.A. Times) and city editor for the Glendale News-Press, San Bernardino Sun and L.A. Daily News. Ryan earned a BA degree in Political Science from UCLA and in 2022 earned his Master's of Legal Studies at UCLA.
rcarter@scng.com
Follow Ryan Carter @ryinIE


Here at A Sanctuary for Healing We Take Pride in Providing the Best Bowen Therapy Service to the Eugene OR Area. Our Specialties Include Reiki Therapy, Reiki Classes, Laura Magpali, Best Bowen Therapy, Best Reiki Classes, Best Bowen Therapist, Best Bowen Therapy. Some Other Services We Provide Are Bowen Work, Bowenwork and Bowenwork Eugene. Please Give Us a Call Today for Your Estimate.


Their debut EP, All In Life, is "a shimmering mix of modern folk, mindful pop, and Americana charm," according to Paste Magazine. The EP was named one of "5 Standout EP's" of 2017 by the Austin American-Statesman, and you can hear their original song, "Lion Eyes" in Spike Lee's four-time Golden Globe, and six-time Academy Award nominated feature film, 'BlacKkKlansman'.
Beth // James' second EP, Falling, released in February and is available anywhere music is sold or streamed.


The HRMPO Policy Board is comprised of high level staff and elected officials from the member jurisdictions as well as transportation agency representatives. It is the function of the Policy Board to act as a policy body coordinating transportation planning and related implementation activities within the metropolitan area. They meet regularly to discuss issues and make informed decisions about future transportation projects, initiatives and improvements, providing leadership for the comprehensive, cooperative, and continuing transportation planning process. Currently, the Policy Board has twelve voting members and five non-voting members who are elected or appointed to represent the City of Harrisonburg, Rockingham County, the Towns of Bridgewater, Dayton, and Mt Crawford, State and Federal Transportation agencies, and James Madison University.
The Policy Board is responsible for making all of the official decisions of the MPO, including adoption of the Unified Planning Work Program (UPWP) and the Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) and other plans and programs as necessary. The Policy Board meets on the third Thursday of the month as needed.
The HRMPO Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) is comprised of city, county, town, and agency staff with expertise in planning, engineering and related fields. The primary responsibility of the TAC is to conduct technical reviews and analysis regarding all work activity of the UPWP, LRTP, TIP and any related issues and programs as specified by HRMPO's Policy Board, and to advise the Policy Board on technical issues concerning transportation.


Ive not seen a bug, until today. But it seems like the released version has a few, so il keep posting em.
What i discovered here, is all new to me. The numbers shown, seem to be a value scale number gone wrong.


Intelligent Energy expects revenue for the year to the end of September to be over £90m (FY 14/15 £78m).
Adjusted EBITDA is expected to be c£(35)m (FY 14/15 £(46)m), reflecting the group's larger costs base prior to the recent restructuring.
Cash balance at 30 September is expected to be over £20m.
The company says the business restructuring programme announced on 4 April has now been broadly completed.
Intelligent Energy has warned that it faced an uncertain outlook dud to the slower than expected development of the market.
Pre-tax losses at Intelligent Energy fell to £13.3m in the six months to the end of March - down from £45.9m a year ago.
Intelligent Energy's revenues rose to £91.8m in the year to the end of September - up from £78.2m last time.
Intelligent Energy posts after-tax losses of GBP67.3m for the six months to the end of March compared with GBP21.4m a year ago.


Marjorie Backman is an assistant editor at Entrepreneur.com.
These entrepreneurs know the best way to enjoy a homecooked meal: making it themselves.
Entrepreneur's enterprising community of contributors share their favorite ways to work efficiently.
Not only do they run businesses and write. They can cook up a storm. Sample some delightful dishes from our columnists.


What personal information does White Space Dallas collect from the people that visit whitespacedallas.com?
How does whitespacedallas.com use your information?
whitespacedallas.com does not use an SSL certificate. whitespacedallas.com only provides articles and information.
whitespacedallas.com does not sell, trade, or otherwise transfer to outside parties your personally identifiable information.
whitespacedallas.com does not specifically market to children under 13.
whitespacedallas.com also agree to the Individual Redress Principle, which requires that individuals have a right to pursue legally enforceable rights against data collectors and processors who fail to adhere to the law.


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Sierra Leone News
Sierra Leone Telegraph: Established 2009 – Serving the Diaspora – Rebranding Sierra Leone
[ January 21, 2020 ] Head of African Development Bank – Adesina speaks at the UK-Africa Investment Summit	Economy & Business
[ January 21, 2020 ] My government will diversify Sierra Leone's economy – says president Bio at London Summit	Economy & Business
[ January 20, 2020 ] African tech firms invited to join UK-led growth project	Economy & Business
[ January 20, 2020 ] British Prime Minister hosts first ever UK-Africa Investment Summit in London	Economy & Business
[ January 20, 2020 ] Her Royal Highness The Countess of Wessex visiting Sierra Leone	Politics
[ January 20, 2020 ] Female paramount chief in Sierra Leone subjected to horrific gender based attack	Politics
[ January 20, 2020 ] Rüdiger donates $100,000 to Sierra Leone at UK-Africa Investment Summit in London – will he invest?	Economy & Business
[ January 20, 2020 ] Ghana leads the way at the UK-Africa Investment Summit 2020 in London	Economy & Business
HomeIn FocusSenseless killing of a fourteen year old boy on the streets of Freetown by teenagers
Senseless killing of a fourteen year old boy on the streets of Freetown by teenagers
January 15, 2017 Abdul Rashid Thomas In Focus 2
Sierra Leone Telegraph: 15 January 2017
Police in Freetown are investigating the alleged beating to death of a teenage school boy in the village of Gloucester in the capital Freetown, on the 10th of January, 2017.
According to reports, three teenage school boys believed to be known to the deceased are suspected of the brutal murder of the school boy in cold blood.
The beating is said to have taken place over an alleged stolen item, valued at less than five dollars ($5).
Two of the suspected teenage murderers, Daniel aged 14 years and Senesie aged 16 years, have been arrested and are in police custody. The third school boy named Abdulai, also aged 16 years, is now on the run.
Unofficial report says that the boy was forcibly taken to a woodland area near Leicester, where he was tied and beaten, and his lifeless body was then dumped in his Gloucester neighborhood.
Social workers at the Ministry of Social Welfare, Gender & Children's Affairs (MSWGCA) under the leadership of Minister Dr. Sylvia Blyden (Photo), have visited the murdered teenager's family.
Sources close to the Minister say that although the two boys now detained by Police are alleged to have killed an innocent child, the Ministry is working with the Police to ensure that their rights and welfare are being respected.
There are serious concerns in the country that this killing comes after recent attempts by a few teenagers to forcefully take over the ministry's conference room by alleged violent means.
Juvenile delinquency and youth criminality has now become a major problem for the authorities in Freetown. And so too is the spate of unsolved murders in Sierra Leone rising.
Law and order is declining very sharply in Freetown, especially among juveniles; and many are now accusing certain people in high places for the increasing use of young people in scoring political scores.
In a press statement issued on the 6th of January 2017, Minister Blyden warned against those that are molly cuddling young people that are turning to violence.
She said: "The Ministry wishes to use this opportunity to urge civil society organizations to be issuing Press Releases in a manner that will ensure children know what is acceptable in a civilized society and what is frowned upon.
"For example, the incident of November 16th 2016 which saw school children in uniforms run riot through streets of Freetown, after their school sports, violently smashing properties and robbing citizens, should have seen Civil Society actors come out with strongly-worded press releases that will make the culprits, though children, know their actions are heavily frowned upon.
"We all owe a duty to regularly let our children know what is right and what is wrong. Our children are the Future and the Future should hold responsible citizens."
The politicisation and criminalisation of young people, cannot be morally right nor can it be good for the peace and stability of the country. Young criminals of today can only become rebels of tomorrow.
Maada Bio calls for dialogue with opposition SLPP Alliance
Crisis in The Gambia – ECOWAS must take note – You break it, you own it
Godwin Koroma says:
The problem of Youths in Sierra Leone is deeper and complex. It is not a matter for civil society organisations alone.
It is sad that the none of the post war governments seem to understand the danger of neglecting the wellbeing of youths in the country.
If they did, they would have given the the Ministry of Social Welfare a transformation into a Ministry of 'PEOPLE WELFARE' where the wellbeing of children, young people and the elderly are given top priority.
At present, this ESSENTIAL Ministry is the most UNDER RESOURCED. The Sierra Leone youths of today are both a danger to themselves and to everybody in the society.
Analysis which some of us have done, revealed that in order to avert a potential youth explosion countrywide we need to increase the CURRENT BUDGET of the welfare ministry 10 fold otherwise this NATION is doomed!
Yeah, you can call me the prophet of doom. There is however a window of hope especially when the APC and SLPP will start their real Governance COURSES in OPPOSITION IN 2018.
We have the natural capability of not only taming our youths but moulding them into people of GOOD CHARACTER and INTEGRITY.
David Jaiah says:
The individual should face the law.
WITH CORRUPTION EVERYONE PAYS
Ebola featured President Bai Koroma Sierra Leone Sierra Leone News
The Sierra Leone Telegraph Reserves Copyright


As spring rolls around once more, it is time to start thinking about what to serve at Easter. With all the bright, fresh, crisp colors of the new season we have so much to choose from. Luckily, to help even more, the Blogger C.L.U.E. theme this month is Easter so we'll get you everything you need to please ol' Peter Cottontail.
This month I was paired with Wendy from A Day in the Life on the Farm and I had a lovely time looking through her blog. There was so much to choose from, of course. I was on the hunt though for something light, crisp and fresh– so as soon as I saw the Asparagus Tips with Cucumber Vinaigrette– I knew I'd found my post!
Not only is this salad crisp and perfect for spring, it is also super quick to put together. I paired the Asparagus Tips with Cucumber Vinaigrette with a broiled salmon – and it was delightful. It would be great as a side on your Easter spread or for a spring picnic in the park.
When prepping asparagus- I like to snap it off at the ends to where it wants to naturally break. It might not provide clean lines, but it does prevent any bitter bites.
In a medium bowl, mix the cucumber, peppers and following ingredients. Mix well.
After steaming asparagus and dipping in ice bath, place the asparagus on platter.
Pour over asparagus the vinaigrette over the asparagus. Serve chilled or at room temperature.
After steaming your asparagus for 2 minutes or so, toss it in an ice bath to stop the cooking process.
The recipe Wendy shared called for red pepper but I went for yellow for a more mild flavor and an extra pop of spring color. My only other swaps were simple, add some champagne vinegar and skip the herbs.
Check out the other Blogger C.L.U.E. posts for some Easter inspiration.
What a lovely, elegant asparagus recipe. You're right—it's perfect for Easter, but I"m happy to eat it all through asparagus season!
Lovely salad, Anna! Asparagus and spring and celebration are synonymous!
What a lovely Spring recipe!
That vinaigrette sounds amazing. Love Wendy's blog. Can't wait for asparagus season!
I'm so glad you enjoyed the salad. It is a perfect Spring and early Summer salad especially if you are lucky enough to get some freshly picked asparagus.
What a perfect choice for this month's theme! Looks divine!
This looks just lovely! How perfect for spring!
What a wonderful refreshing idea. We love asparagus around here. Can't wait to try this delicious sounding recipe.
A perfect dish for an Easter luncheon! It looks so summery and elegant! Great pick!
What a wonderful salad! The vinaigrette looks amazing!
I was hoping that someone would do something with asparagus. I adore them and am always looking for new ways to serve them. The vinaigrette looks amazing.
I can't wait to try this, the dressing sounds amazing!
Beautiful! my fave way to eat asparagus!
What a beautiful way to present asparagus. It's one of my favorite vegetables but I am definitely in a rut with how I prepare it.
What a gorgeous asparagus salad! Perfect for Spring.
Gorgeous colors and flavors, Anna! This is a perfect spring time or Easter side dish.
I tend to roast asparagus with a touch of olive oil and salt, quick and easy. But your recipe has me dreaming about spring salads, wonderful inspiration!


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Why creating sucks
You ever heard of Rollo May? He was better known in the 20th century, when he was alive and also working as a psychotherapist. He wrote quite a few books at the intersection of modern psychology -- clinical psych dealing with actual people and problems, not goof-off lab experiments --
Charismatic hermit gives tips on social skills
I've gotten too friendly over the last few years. Don't mistake me, my quiet underground bunker in New Zealand is still my place of power. But somewhere along the way, I picked up a way of being charismatic entirely by accident. I don't even notice I do it. I'm sure
The most un-selfish skill set
There's one skill that I value above all others: The power to detach myself from my beliefs. How many souls can you think of in your own life who dig into their beliefs like a dragon hoarding treasure? Most of them, if your honest. That includes you and me, too.
Giant sandworm wrecks nerd religion
I finished reading Frank Herbert's God Emperor of Dune the other night. If you aren't familiar with the Dune books, this is the fourth in the series. Very different from the tight trilogy of the earlier series. This book gets out-there. It's more of a Big Ideas book. Lots of
Seinfeld's tips on writing
The other week I picked up a copy of Jerry Seinfeld's book called Is This Anything? I'm thinking it's a biography. It's not a biography. I crack it open and what do I find but hundreds of pages of written jokes, going all the way back to the 1970s. That's
Putting the product on a pedestal
Get past your "oneitis" for that perfect article, story, book, or course.
Character creation lessons from a medieval religious thinker
You don't understand much about people if you haven't spent any time wondering about people.
The little-known untapped power of casual criticism
A hard-won lesson from academia
Addicted to writer-porn
It's a billion-dollar distraction cult full of bitter people
How to control your head space
Marauding marketers make a mess of a serious pulp fiction artist by selling lots of books
The old myth of the struggling romantic artist who can't compete with the carnival-barkers just won't die... we won't let it
Sep 8, 2021 8 min read
How to think about ideas?
That's far too ambitious a title for what you're about to read
Are you blind to the systems around you?
Don't think you're exempt from systems thinking just cause you're a writer or artist or creative
Creative writers don't look backwards
Writing to the market's demands can work, for awhile. But you won't build a career unless you do this...
Are you playing these finite games without realizing it?
The hidden dynamics of your life and business in James Carse's book on games
Why worldbuilders need to grow up
Sub-created worlds are vital to speculative stories, but nerds ruin storytelling with obsessive worldbuilding
When they caught the worldbuilder disease
How nerdish obsessions ruined storytelling
Are you protecting yourself from mental contagion?
Who you hang around with can make or break your goals
Why a "ticking clock" is the best productivity tool you'll ever use
How these simple techniques used by all the top writers can help you create more works, faster
How fast do you create a story?
The gatekeepers aren't looking out for the writers.
Rogue Planet Books © 2023


text:
New Release Review | The Doctor's Date by Heidi Cullinan
The Doctor's Date by Heidi Cullinan
Copper Point Medical #2
Dreamspinner Press | June 18, 2019
The hospital's least eligible bachelor and its aloof administrator hate each other… so why are they pretending to date?
Dr. Owen Gagnon and HR director Erin Andreas are infamous for their hospital hallway shouting matches. So imagine the town's surprise when Erin bids an obscene amount of money to win Owen in the hospital bachelor auction—and Owen ups the ante by insisting Erin move in with him.
Copper Point may not know what's going on, but neither do Erin and Owen. Erin intends his gesture to let Owen know he's interested. Owen, on the other hand, suspects ulterior motives—that Erin wants a fake relationship as a refuge from his overbearing father.
With Erin suddenly heading a messy internal investigation, Owen wants to step up and be the hero Erin's never had. Too bad Erin would rather spend his energy trying to rescue Owen from the shadows of a past he doesn't talk about.
This relationship may be fake, but the feelings aren't. Still, what Erin and Owen have won't last unless they put their respective demons to rest. To do that, they'll have to do more than work together—they'll have to trust they can heal each other's hearts.
When I read The Doctor's Secret, I found myself more interested in Erin and Owen than I was in the current couple. Maybe it's because I love a good enemies to lovers story, because they always light up the pages.
Erin and Owen had fire.
There's something about a sexy fight that really gets me going, and Erin and Owen really knew how to sexy fight. Especially because, for Owen, he knew he was sexy fighting. He loved it. He starts a fight with Erin specifically because it's hot. It made me laugh every time.
I also really loved Owen's protective streak. I love Owen in general, but every time he gets all growly bear over his friends I love him just a little more. When he got all growly bear in protection of Erin, I died. It was so adorable.
I also liked how small and delicate, but with a bite to him. He reminded me of those little fairy's flying around the labyrinth in Labyrinth. The only time he was cowed was when his father was around.
That's where the story went downhill.
There was a lot of plot in The Doctor's Date, and a lot of it was good. Erin and his father was the only thread in the story that I'm not sure I liked how it ended. It was a little too perfect, personally. I don't like when everything is all wrapped up in a bow. I feel like Owen should have been enough.
I already have the last story in the book in the trilogy, and while I'm not quite as interested in Nick and Jared, I'm still looking forward to reading it. I always look forward to Heidi Cullinan.
4 Stars, Contemporary, Favorites, Heidi Cullinan, LGBTQIA, RomanceBook Blog, Book Review, Books, fiction, Medical Romance, MM Romance, novels, reading
anovelglimpse
For some reason, I thought this was a memoir by the cover! LOL. I didn't notice the word date! I love a good fake relationship book. This one sounds entertaining. Great review!
Thanks so much! It was really good, especially because the characters were so compatible for being so different!
← 2019 Best of the Best, Part 1 | January-June
New Release Review | The Friend Zone by Abby Jimenez →


text:
Accident Types
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SUV Accident
Texting Accident
Van Accident
Defective Vehicle Parts
All Defective Parts
Door Latch Failure
Park to Reverse
Roof Crush
Seat Belt Failure
Tire Blowout
Willis Law Firm
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Where did the accident occur?
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Describe facts and injuries in detail:
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Pay Nothing Unless We Win Your Case
Attorney David P. Willis is a nationally recognized Trial Lawyer with more than 37 years of fighting for his clients' rights. Mr. Willis is a former Briefing Attorney for the Supreme Court of Texas and he is Board Certified in Personal Injury Trial Law since 1988.
"Through his many years of dedication and service to his clients, David Willis has been successful in forcing many billion dollar corporations to make major safety changes to their products and the ways they conduct business."
Texting While Driving Accident Lawsuit
Cell phone use while driving and texting while driving accident statistics are shocking the public. In fact, texting while driving, emailing, browsing the web via cellphone causes the driver to have accidents at a rate 6x's higher than the accident rate of drunk drivers! At any given point during the day, some 660,000 drivers are using their cell phones in some way while operating a motor vehicle.
Texting while driving accidents pose a major safety threat to society. Pedestrians and drivers alike are at serious risk of injury and death due to increasing distraction-affected crashes. In 2013, over 3000 deaths were caused by distraction-affected crashes many of which were the result of texting while driving accidents. An additional 424,000 people were also injured as a result of these distraction-affected crashes and accidents.
Smart phones have enabled individuals to remain connected to email, social media, texts and calls almost 24/7. Unfortunately laws are lagging behind in helping put a stop to texting while driving accidents. Recent data suggests that 1 out of every 4 accidents occurring are the result of texting while driving. Even more concerning are the statistics showing that texting while driving is 6 times more likely to result in an accident, whether rear end collision, running a red light, running a stop sign or rollover crash compared to drunk driving. Distraction.gov studies have shown a person texting while driving is 23 times more likely to be involved in an accident than a person paying attention as usual.
When a driver takes his eyes off the road and texts while driving, the average time spent taking their eyes off the road is 4 to 5 seconds. When traveling at a rate of 55 mph, the distance traveled is enough to cover the entire length of a football field. Texting while driving accidents and deaths inevitably occur when someone chooses to behave in a reckless manner endangering the lives of other drivers, bike riders, and pedestrians sharing the roads. Distracted driving is an epidemic across the country resulting in 3129 deaths in 2014 alone.
Common Forms of Distracted Driving from Smart Phone use:
Talking without hands-free option
Adjusting music, watching videos
Browsing social media and internet
Using the navigation system and maps
While the above are common forms of distracted driving, texting while driving accidents are particularly concerning because they require excessive visual, manual and cognitive attention from the driver. Smart phone use is now widespread across the country with over 80% of cell phones falling into the smart phone category. According to NHTSA, in 2013, the percentage of drivers texting while driving visibly was around 1.7%. One year later, the same study reported this number to have increased 2.2%.
Distracted Driving kills and seriously injures. The friends and family of the thousands of people killed each year as a result of texting while driving accidents will tell you how serious of a problem it is. Unfortunately many drivers know the risks and see the statistics and still behave in a reckless manner. Those drivers choosing the text and drive think they can somehow defy the odds. Even drivers using a hands-free device to talk on the phone while driving may miss visual and audio cues that can be critical in avoiding serious accidents.
Texting While Driving Accident Attorney
If you or your loved ones have suffered a severe and debilitating injury or death caused by an accident due to texting while driving or distracted driving, the Willis Law Firm is here to help you get the compensation you may be entitled to. The need for legal representation is needed to help secure the evidence, investigate the accident, interview witnesses, gather the police reports, cell phone records and other critical evidence needed to win the lawsuit for the clients.
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Cornered has been accepted into the Capital City Black Film Festival!
Cornered has made it to its first festival! Right now all episodes are offline (temporarily) per festival rules, but if you want to see how the story ends, for now you'll have to attend this awesome festival right here in Austin Texas, from August 13-15th!
I'm really proud of the people who helped me bring my ideas to life, and I can't thank them enough for their hard work in what was a grueling Texas summer! Cornered has been submitted to more festivals, and I'll let you know where you can see it next, and also when the series will return online! You can find out more information on the festival website here. Everyone is welcome, and I hope to see some of you there!
Previous Daniel Wu rocks it in AMC's Into The Badlands!
Next Z Team comes roaring back with the webseries Drained World!


The official transfer of the old Watauga High School property to Appalachian State University from Watauga County took place Friday, Sept. 29. The property is located at 400 High School Drive in Boone.
Last April, the university agreed to pay $15.5 million over 20 years for the property and, in exchange, agreed to turn over ownership of its Business Affairs Annex building, located at 1039 State Farm Road in Boone, to the county.
The university is exploring options for development of the new acquisition, including student residence halls, a daycare facility and student recreation fields. Additionally, the property's current parking configuration accommodates 500 spaces, which could offer a short-term alleviation for limited parking available on the university's main campus.
The State Farm exchange provides contiguous recreation area for the county and the ability to build a new swimming complex that would serve Watauga High School's swim team, Kennedy said.
The old Watauga High School property's appraised value was $16,794,000 as of Feb. 25, 2016. The Business Affairs Annex property on State Farm Road is approximately 3.5 acres, and its appraised value was $2,819,000 as of Jan. 12, 2016.


text:
Robo Army () è un videogioco picchiaduro a scorrimento sviluppato e pubblicato dalla SNK Corporation e rilasciato per il sistema arcade Neo Geo MVS, per console Neo Geo AES nel 1991 e per Neo Geo CD nel 1995.

Modalità di gioco
In Robo Army non è possibile scegliere il proprio personaggio: il primo giocatore controlla Maxima, il secondo giocatore controlla Rocky.

Entrambi i cyborg devono attraversare sei livelli prima di raggiungere il boss di fine livello. Durante questi livelli, affronteranno gli scagnozzi del Professore, così come un boss a metà livello e un boss di fine livello in ogni stage.

I due eroi possono combattere con pugni e calci, ma possono anche difendersi raccogliendo armi improvvisate (rottami d'auto, barili, braccia di robot distrutti). Ognuno ha una barra d'energia che gli consente di lanciare potenti attacchi secondo l'energia ottenuta.

Maxima e Rocky possono anche trasformarsi per un breve momento in un invulnerabile veicolo corazzato.

Collegamenti esterni

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


The main category of the Entrepreneur of the Year Award 2018, an initiative that in Portugal is organized by E&Y/ Expresso, was attributed to António Rios de Amorim, Chairman and CEO of Corticeira Amorim, at a ceremony held yesterday in the Convent of Beato, Lisbon, attended by some of Portugal's leading personalities. Originally created by Ernst & Young in the United States in 1986, and now holding its 7th edition in Portugal, the award distinguishes outstanding figures from the business sector, on the basis of criteria such as creativity, business vision and career achievements.
Upon being named "Entrepreneur of the Year", António Amorim congratulated the other nominees - João Mirada, Luís Miguel Sousa, Luís Moura e Silva, Mário Ferreira, Nuno Sebastião and Rui Miguel Nabeiro/Manuel Rui Nabeiro - revealing that "It was a pleasure and an honour to share this nomination with so many distinguished people, who are outstanding entrepreneurs and have achieved so much for Portugal."
He dedicated the award to Corticeira Amorim's 4000 employees, across more than 35 countries who work "every day, with commitment, dedication, effort and passion, to help export a classic product Portuguese product - cork - to over 100 countries around the world. That's one of the biggest reasons for my pride. "
António Amorim also stated that he would like to share the distinction with Américo Amorim, who "is no longer with us today, but who will be up there looking down on us, undoubtedly extremely proud that the company is receiving this award".
Corticeira Amorim's Chairman will represent Portugal in the international final, held in Monte Carlo in June, alongside over 50 winners from around the globe.


text:
Q: How to render the Dictionary values in the table in MVC I have a Dictionary containing some values into it.
I want to render this values using table
But I already have one table that is coming from other Model.This model containing the Dictionary
I want to populate the Dictionary values into the table.
public class UnPaidChargesByStockRequestVM {
        public int? SalvageId { get; set; }
        public string Culture_Code { get; set; }
        public List<UnPaidChargesByStockResponseVM> GetResuestModel;

    }
public class UnPaidChargesByStockResponseVM {
        public int? buyer_id { get; set; }
        public int? stockNo { get; set; }
        public Dictionary<string, decimal?> SalvageBuyerFees { get; set; }
  }

This SalvageBuyerFees having some values into it.I want to display it on view.
My View
 @model BuyerPaymentMockUI.Web.Models.UnPaidChargesByStockRequestVM

                buyer_id
                stockNo

            @foreach (var item in Model.GetResuestModel) {

                    @item.buyer_id
                    @item.stockNo

                }

Now i want to display the SalvageBuyerFees values as well

A: The simplest way is to use a nested foreach loop:
@model BuyerPaymentMockUI.Web.Models.UnPaidChargesByStockRequestVM

            buyer_id
            stockNo
            SalvageBuyerFees key
            SalvageBuyerFees value

        @foreach (var item in Model.GetResuestModel) {
            foreach (var sbf in item.SalvageBuyerFees {

                    @item.buyer_id
                    @item.stockNo
                    @sbf.Key
                    @sbf.Value

            }
        }

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Q: Create a perfect circle having two lines of text Using html/css, I want to create a perfect circle with two lines of centered text like in the image below.  What is the cleanest/most elegant way that will work in modern browsers? Do I have to declare a width and height or can I just use padding/border-radius?
Here is the JSFiddle.
HTML

92

    Overall

CSS
.score {
   font-family: Arial;
   text-align: center;
   background: #DCAA38;
   border-radius: 50%;
   padding: 15px;
   font-size: 30px;
   color: #fff;
   margin-bottom: 0;
}

.text {
   position: relative;
   margin-top: -20px !important;
   font-weight: 100;
   font-size: 12px;
}

A: please see here:   fiddle you need to create square first
.container {
    max-width: 500px;
}
.score {
    font-family: Arial;
    text-align: center;
    background: #DCAA38;
    border-radius: 100px;
    padding: 15px;
    font-size: 30px;
    height:100px;
    width:100px;
    color: #fff;
    margin-bottom: 0;
}
.text {
    position: relative;
    margin-top: -20px !important;
    font-weight: 100;
    font-size: 12px;
}

A: Hey like the Kai Qing said change your class like this
.score {
    font-family: Arial;
    text-align: center;
    background: #DCAA38;
    border-radius: 50%;
    padding: 15px;
    font-size: 30px;
    color: #fff;
    margin-bottom: 0;
    height:70px;
    width:70px
}

I have added equal height and width attributes.
For responsiveness you can use em values instead of pixels

A: You are missing the dimensions:
.score {
    width:75px;
    height:75px;
    ...
}

A: I made this It's two different methods one uses tables and the other uses transform.
Personally i like the second one best because i don't have to use so many divs.
.perfect-circle2 {
        font-family: Arial;
        font-weight: 100;
        background: #222;
        display: inline-block;
        text-align: center;
        width: 20%;
        position: relative;
        border-radius: 50%;
        vertical-align: middle;
    padding-bottom: 20%;
    height: 0;

    }
    .content2 {
        position: relative;
        top: 50%;
        -webkit-transform: translateY(-50%);
        -ms-transform: translateY(-50%);
        transform: translateY(-50%);
    }
    .number, .text {
        display: block;
        color: #FFF;
    }
    .number {
        font-size: 200%
    }
    .text {
        font-size: 100%;
    }

To create these examples i used code from:
Vertical align
Propotional resizing


text:
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Will Iran Retaliate Against U.S. Sanctions?
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Omer Carmi was a 2017 military fellow at The Washington Institute.
Articles & Testimony
IRGC hardliners have pushed for an aggressive response to U.S. measures, but they will have to convince the Supreme Leader that escalation does not pose too great a risk.
Yesterday President Donald Trump signed into law the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act, which includes actions against Iran's ballistic missile program and the Islamic Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) and its affiliated entities. Coming at a time of political ferment in Iran, the new U.S. legislation provides an opportunity for hardliners and moderates to demonstrate their political bona fides as they calibrate their response. In recent weeks, senior IRGC commanders have threatened that a new round of U.S. sanctions would trigger a harsh response against American interests in the region. Thus, the key question before U.S. national security officials is whether an Iranian group will feel forced to respond to the sanctions by attacking U.S. forces directly or indirectly, further escalating tensions between the two countries.
This is not the first time that the United States has sanctioned Iran, of course. In 2011-12 the United States and the European Union increased pressure on Iran by imposing new sanctions on oil exports. Iran responded with naval drills, missile tests, and threats to close the Strait of Hormuz. Mohammad Reza Rahimi, then-Iranian Vice President, declared that if sanctions were imposed, "even one drop of oil cannot flow from the strait of Hormuz."
The U.S. and allied governments replied by warning Iran against a closure and demonstrated their seriousness by deploying more forces to the Gulf. General Martin Dempsey, then-Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, assured Tehran that if it tried to close the Strait, the U.S. military would "take action to reopen it." Tehran backed off, but Iranian officials warned that they might respond to additional sanctions by increasing nuclear enrichment to 90 percent for ship and submarine fuel. Separately, as U.S. officials later revealed, Iran began a campaign of cyber attacks against U.S. banks and companies.
U.S. and Iranian officials have come to loggerheads repeatedly since the signing of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPoA, also known as the "Iran deal") in 2015. Iranian officials blamed the U.S. administration for the slow recovery of the Iranian economy, and Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei directed President Hassan Rouhani to consider "any new sanction under any excuse" as a breach of the JCPoA.
Tensions rose after the U.S. Supreme Court confiscated almost $2 billion in Iranian assets in May 2016, and again when Congress extended the Iran Sanctions Act (ISA) last November, steps fully compliant with the JCPoA. But Khamenei proclaimed the renewal of ISA as a violation of the deal, and warned that Iran "will surely react to it." Nevertheless, once again Tehran backed away from direct action, preferring instead to file complaints with the UN Security Council and act through JCPoA mechanisms.
In March 2017, Tehran responded in kind to U.S. designations against entities related to Iran's missile program by sanctioning 15 U.S. firms. It was a symbolic move with the sole intention of saving face. In other words, Tehran has demonstrated that it still has a strong incentive to abide by the JCPoA, despite alleged U.S. "violations" of it.
A Different Reaction This Time?
President Hassan Rouhani, perceived by the West as a moderate, has already announced that the Majlis, the Iranian parliament, will pass a new law this week increasing funding for the missile program, IRGC, and the Qods Force. Declaring that it will take "any other step" necessary, the Rouhani government will likely support a new series of missile launches and drills, as well as other symbolic actions, such as sanctioning U.S. companies. Tehran already announced that it will submit a complaint to the JCPoA's Joint Committee, which oversees the implementation of the deal.
Nevertheless, the Rouhani camp has maintained that Iran should not react hastily to U.S. aggression or fall into its "trap," giving Washington an excuse to exit the JCPoA. Iranian responses so far have indicated that Tehran will refrain from shaking the JCPoA at this point, fearing that it would only help Trump's attempts to isolate Iran from the world. Instead, Tehran will probably play the role of the aggrieved party to convince European governments that the only way to save the deal is to push European businesses and banks to engage more deeply with the Islamic Republic.
The hardliners have been much more aggressive in their messaging. The IRGC has been involved in a domestic struggle with Rouhani since the May elections, and in recent weeks senior IRGC commanders have threatened that a new round of U.S. sanctions would trigger a harsh response against American interests in the region. IRGC head Ali Jafari and Iranian Armed Forces Chief of Staff Mohammad Bagheri both warned that new sanctions would put U.S. bases and forces within a "radius of 1,000 km from Iran" at risk. The two generals reiterated that Iran will not negotiate over its missile development program.
Can the IRGC climb down from these threats? Yes. But it is entirely possible that domestic political considerations or a perceived strategic need to demonstrate stronger deterrence with respect to the United States might compel the IRGC to push for broader retaliation, which could include taking direct action against American forces in the region. And Tehran has a variety of tools at its disposal to retaliate against the United States.
First, Iran could increase its harassment of U.S. naval forces in the Gulf, and even try to seize U.S. Navy boats as it did last year. In late July, Iranian ships came close to U.S. Navy vessels twice, forcing them to fire warning shots at the Iranians. The Pentagon revealed that there were 35 incidents of unsafe or unprofessional behavior by Iranian vessels in 2016, most in the first half of the year.
Second, Iran could detain more foreign citizens on charges of "espionage" as bargaining chips with the United States. This tactic has been used increasingly against American citizens over the last year, culminating in the imprisonment of American student Xiyue Wang just last month.
Third, Iran could use proxies in the region to hit U.S. forces and bases with mortars or IEDs. Such an attack would enable Tehran to make good on its threats while preserving deniability and avoiding escalation with the United States. Some proxies may balk at doing Iran's bidding, but, given the wide range of groups supported by the Islamic Republic, it is likely that Tehran could find a radicalized splinter cell to do the job.
One of the most potent of these proxies is the Houthi rebels, who now control much of Yemen. Iran could ask the Houthis to shoot at U.S. naval forces in the Red Sea -- as the Houthis did last year -- or to target a U.S. base with an Iran-supplied missile. Such attacks would send a strong message throughout the region, even if the missiles missed their marks or were intercepted.
In any case, the IRGC will not act without the approval of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, who controls Iran's national security portfolio. Khamenei has not responded yet to the new law, but he has repeatedly insisted -- without foundation -- that new congressional restrictions would violate the JCPoA. While he is known for his calculated and cautious approach to decision-making, Khamenei might be persuaded to support stronger retaliation if the IRGC can demonstrate that the risks of escalation are not high.
Iran has shown repeatedly that it is unlikely to take precipitous, direct action in response to U.S. sanctions. Tehran is likely to be even more risk-averse than usual when confronting the still-young Trump Administration, which it probably perceives, for good reason, to be more aggressive and unpredictable than its predecessor. Washington policymakers can further ensure that domestic and strategic considerations do not impel Tehran to act rashly by declaring clearly that the U.S. government will not tolerate aggression by the Iranian Republic or its proxies in the Gulf or elsewhere.
Omer Carmi, a 2017 visiting military fellow at The Washington Institute, is a major in the Israel Defense Forces.
American Interest
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text:
China's Cheap Electric Vehicles Could Disrupt Global Markets
China's legion of electric vehicle…
The Cannabis Industry's Dirty Energy Secret
The business of growing cannabis…
Big oil has been living…
Brazil's New Foreign Minister Suspected Of Dubious Dealings With Chevron
By Irina Slav - May 17, 2016, 3:52 PM CDT
Brazil's new government is less than a week old, and already there are seeds of a scandal after a strong media backlash against the fact that the cabinet is all-white, all-male. Now a leaked cable from 2010, published on the WikiLeaks website, has put foreign minister Jose Serra in the spotlight.
The 2010 cable contains a quote from the then-presidential candidate Serra regarding the legislative framework of the development of Brazil's pre-salt oil deposits, which goes as follows: "Let those guys [Worker's Party] do what they want. There will be no bid rounds, and then we will show everyone that the old model worked...And we will change it back." Related: Does Tesla Care About Its Stock Price?
Now, pro-Left Brazilian media have interpreted this as suggesting that Serra was defending Chevron's interests instead of those of his country. However, it is also plausible to interpret Serra's words as expression of his political beliefs.
Serra is currently a member of a government that has a clear right-wing agenda. With Michel Temer from the rightist Democratic Movement Party at the helm, chances are that a drive towards less state control over key industries and greater focus on attracting foreign investments will take place, and those among international oil companies that can afford to partake in it will do so. This is all the more likely following the recent amendment to a controversial framework for production-sharing agreements in oil and gas.
In its original form – the form that pushed away Chevron and its peers – the framework stipulated that Petrobras will be the sole operator of any pre-salt exploration and production project, and will hold a minimum of 30 percent in any E&P consortium in this area. However, this version has proved harmful not just for foreign oil companies, but for Petrobras itself. Related: Saudi Arabia Loses Top Credit Rating from Moody's
After its involvement in the giant graft scandal that surfaced as part of a wide-scale investigation called operation "Carwash", Petrobras has been struggling to get back on its feet, and the drop in oil prices hasn't helped it. To date, it sports the largest debt pile among oil companies of over $135 billion. Brazil's state-owned oil giant is simply in no position to invest in every single pre-salt project and become its operator. It cannot fulfill the stipulations of the original framework.
So, the framework was amended to remove the obligation for sole operatorship of any development in the pre-salt, leaving Petrobras with the right of first refusal to be operator of such developments. In other words, any oil company, Chevron included, will be able to become the operator of a pre-salt E&P project.
It's worth noting that the amendment—if it is passed by the parliament and the President approves it, which he will most likely do if he stays in power long enough—was approved by the Senate in late April, before Dilma Rousseff's impeachment and before Jose Serra became foreign minister. Related: Why Jim Chanos is Shorting the Oil Majors
Whether Serra, in his role as foreign minister, would lobby for foreign corporate interests remains an open question and not a very major one. The new cabinet's record as a whole is far from spotless, which suggests that its every move will be watched closely by local observers and the public. What's more, there is still a possibility that Rousseff will return to the helm because after all, the case against her for abusing central bank reserves to fund social programs that opened a huge hole in the state budget may not hold in court.
If it does, the new government has two years to steer the country away from overwhelming state control of key industries. Whether it would succeed is a different matter that also depends on big oil's willingness to take part in pre-salt development. If oil prices continue to recover, they will most likely be more than willing to invest in order to improve their reserve-replacement rates. On the other hand, things are dynamic in Brazil. In two years, the leftists could be back in office, ready to make big oil suffer. It's a tough decision for Chevron and its peers.
Oil Price Spike Is Not As Far Away As Many Think
Can Big Oil Survive At Today's Prices?
China's Oil Industry Is Faltering, Production Falls 5%
Can Supply Outages Drive Oil To $50?
European Natural Gas Prices Collapse


South Africa's second-largest chicken producer, ASTRAL Foods, has cut its forecast for the 2007 maize crop by 16% due to dry weather conditions.
According to CEO Nicolaas Wentzel, the company expects production of 8 million tonnes. However, this is down from the 9,5-million tonnes that was expected two weeks prior.
"If we do not get rain in the next week, we expect the crop to fall to 8 million tonnes," he said.
In 2006, South Africa, the biggest maize producer in Africa, reaped a harvest of 6,62 million tonnes, the lowest in a decade. This resulted in prices to surge.
--> Yellow maize for July delivery rose R7 (€0.75), or 0,4%, to R1590 (€ 171.35) a tonne on the South African Futures Exchange. The maize, used mainly as animal feed, has increased 68% in the past 12 months.
--> White maize for March delivery advanced R60, or 3,7%, to close at R1681 (€ 181.16) a tonne, surging 74% in the past year.
Wentzel says that Astral plans to take delivery of imported maize shipments at the end of March and April.
SA imported 741,808 tonnes in the first nine months of the marketing year, according to the South African Grain Information Service.


text:
est un roman de Jean-Christophe Rufin paru le  aux éditions Gallimard.

Résumé
Cette fiction romanesque se déroule essentiellement dans la Bosnie durant la Guerre de Bosnie-Herzégovine, lors de la partition de la Yougoslavie entre 1992 et 1996, plus précisément en hiver 1995. Mais c'est « seulement un exemple de chaos », évitant l'anecdotique, et tout « exotisme africain ou asiatique : C'est l'Europe qui se déchire ».

Un petit convoi humanitaire d'une ONG de Lyon se rend à la centrale thermique de Kakanj, où sont réfugiées cinq cents victimes de guerre, protégées par les troupes onusiennes, contre tout nouveau risque de massacre. Les deux camions transportent médicaments, nourriture et vêtements, avec toutes les autorisations de l'ONU.

Les cinq personnages sont les conducteurs des deux camions, deux jeunes humanitaires, plutôt candides, Lionel (chef de convoi), Maud (seule femme, en première mission), un homme mûr assez ambigu, Vauthier, et deux jeunes anciens militaires, Marc (engagé) et Alex (appelé), qui ont tous deux servi peu avant à Kakanj comme Casques bleus. Pour les cinq personnages, quasiment reclus dans les cabines des camions, les conditions de voyage sont spartiates, éprouvantes physiquement et psychologiquement. Dès le premier check-point, chacun doit adopter le profil bas alors que les tensions s'exaspèrent. Chacun découvre l'autre, et chacun se découvre à l'autre, et à soi-même, pour le meilleur et pour le pire.

Dans une brève postface l'auteur présente ses positions de 2015 sur l'humanitaire européen (ou occidental), sur l'Europe : « Il y a dans ce passé déjà lointain un peu de notre présent et, je le crains, beaucoup de notre futur ».

Éditions
Édition imprimée originale

Édition en gros caractères

Livre audio

Roman français paru en 2015
Roman de Jean-Christophe Rufin
Guerre de Bosnie-Herzégovine
Aide humanitaire


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Salutation Mrs. Ms. Miss. Mr.
Title Dr. Prof. Prof. Dr. Prof. Dr. Dr.


text:
News Feb 11, 2016 at 5:25 pm
State Legislators Who Want to Protect Young Girls Are Looking at the Wrong Demographic
Sydney Brownstone
The Conservative ideal of "protecting" women and children has always been about making sure they're victimized by the proper people (their fathers, husbands, and clergy) and can not do a thing about it.
dwightmoodyforgetsthings on February 11, 2016 at 6:27 PM Report this
Dear Senator Hewitt,
Please show me the evidence of all the rapists pretending to be trans to sneak into little girl's bathrooms on which you base your "legitimate" concern. If you can't produce such evidence, then kindly shut the fuck up, you bigoted asshole.
Sane people anywhere.
Reverse Polarity on February 11, 2016 at 7:08 PM Report this
Why does the GOP's argument against opening public restrooms to transgenders sound suspiciously similar to their argument against opening our borders to Middle Eastern refugees: "If we allow that, some terrible, awful, no-good people will take advantage of it to sneak in and do horrible things"? And why do I always imagine their simultaneous inner monologue being: "well, that's what I'D do!"
COMTE on February 11, 2016 at 8:55 PM Report this
Perverts can think of little else.
Sandiai on February 11, 2016 at 10:35 PM Report this
Rapists tend to be older, white, cisgender males. Legislators tend to be older, white, cisgender males. Therefore....
Clayton on February 12, 2016 at 6:13 AM Report this
Can't be too careful. Best to make them all register with the authorities and wear some kind of identifying badge at all times. That way we'll know just who we need to protect our children from.
this guy I know in Spokane on February 12, 2016 at 6:55 AM Report this
If you look at the statistics and adjust for percentage of population, whites are actually underrepresented for sexual assault. If you need to point to any one factor, it is being male more so than anything in regards to race, or sexuality, over 98% of people charged with sexual assault are male. The race breakdown is not terribly supportive of your point above, and to my knowledge, good stats are not really kept for sexuality of perpetrator.
@5: You may be surprised at how many sexual assaults cases involve people in the 16-25 range. There is much more of it going on in high schools and colleges than you may think.
https://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/cr…
Theodore Gorath on February 12, 2016 at 6:56 AM Report this
Geez, Sydney.
Still at it. 😊
That Rule has serious flaw and will be re-written, though it may be rewritten in court.
And you're missing the point, no one saying that the danger is from transgender people. Clearly obviously the danger is from hetero sexual cis man. If you simply read with active listening, you'd be hearing what the Republicans are saying, which normally is idiocy but in this case is actually quite sensible as a basis for conversation anyway.
But don't worry it's going to go to court at some time and the court will modify it.
caution&daring on February 12, 2016 at 9:33 AM Report this
This is baffling to me. Was there ever an issue with rapists dressing as women in order to assault women in restrooms? No? Then why is it suddenly worthy of legislation?
How about from now on if your real goal is oppression of those you find distasteful, just say so. We are not fooled.
alejo699 on February 12, 2016 at 9:41 AM Report this
@9 Excellent point. If cross-dressing in order to rape women in their restrooms was a successful strategy, we would have been hearing about it on the news for decades.
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Day 03: Lhasa sightseeing in Sera & Depung, Monasteries, Norbulingka and Nunnery.
Day 06: Departure from Nepal as per your time.
Day 01: Arrive in Kathmandu. We will meet you at the airport and transfer to the hotel. Evening free time. 7am: diner with tradition Nepalese kitchen.
Day 02: Prepare for Tibet travel. Arrange Tibet visa and sightseeing Kathmandu valley.
Fly to Lhasa crossing over the highest Himalayan ranges of the world. Transfer and check-in to your hotel. Full rest for acclimatization.
Early morning drive to airport for departure flight to Kathmandu or to your onward destination.
Pick up drop in Nepal airport.
Kathmandu valley sightseeing. Tour Guide, entry fee.
There Night Hotel in Kathmandu as your choice, Normal or any star level.
Round trip flight. Kathmandu /Lhasa/ Kathmandu.
Twin sharing basis Hotel accommodation during the Tibet tour, including breakfast.
All the temple, monastery entrance fee.
All the tour transport by jeep, landcruser.
Diner and Lunch in Kathmandu.
Lunch and dine during Tibet tour.
All the personal expenses, bar bills, emergency evacuations/Rescue, if required.


text:
Q: Prove a certain homomorphism in the category of rings is an epimorphism I've been reading the Queen Mary Note of Maurice Auslander 's paper Representation dimension of artin algebras. However I met some difficulties that are not so relevant to the topic. The following is such one.
On page six he describes the image of a morphism between two commutative rings in the category of rings with identities.
Let R and T be commutative rings and $f:R\rightarrow T$ a ring homomorphism. Let $f(R)=S$. We have $f_1:T\rightarrow T\otimes_ST$ defined by $f_1(t)=1\otimes t$ and $f_2(t)=t\otimes 1$.
Let $T'=\{t\in T| f_1(t)=f_2(t)\}$. Clearly $T'$ contains S, so that $f$ maps $R$ into $T'$. Prove that the inclusion map $S\rightarrow T'$ is an epimorphism in the category of rings and the inclusion map $T'\rightarrow T$ is a strong monomorphism.
I tried to use the notion dominion and pushout to prove the epimorphism part but failed.

A: The asserted claim is incorrect: the inclusion map $S\to T'$ need not be an epimorphism.
Note that there are categories of algebras (even varieties) where some subalgebras are properly contained in their dominion, but where epimorphisms are nonetheless surjective, so this claim would not provable from with a categorical approach: it isn't true even in varities of algebras.
But it is also not true in the case of commutative rings with $1$. I recently constructed a counterexample, not realizing the question has been asked here before.
Explicitly, let $T=\mathbb{Z}[x,y,z]$, and let $S=\mathbb{Z}[xy,y,yz]$. Then $T'=\mathbb{Z}+yT$. Indeed, if $x^ay^bz^c$ is any monomial divisible  by $y$ ($b\gt 0$) which lies in $T'$, then so does $x^{a+1}y^bz^c$: if $f,g\colon T\to \mathfrak{T}$ are homomorphisms with $f|_S=f|_S$, then
$$\begin{align*}
f(x^{a+1}y^bz^c) &= f(x(x^ay^bz^c))\\
&=f(x)f(x^ay^bz^c)\\
&= f(x)g(x^ay^bz^c)\\
&= f(x)g(y)g(x^ay^{b-1}z^c)\\
&= f(x)f(y)g(x^ay^{b-1}z^c)\\
&= f(xy)g(x^ay^{b-1}z^c)\\
&= g(xy)g(x^ay^{b-1}z^c)\\
&= g(x^{a+1}y^bz^c).
\end{align*}$$
A symmetric argument shows that if $x^ay^bz^c\in T'$ with $b\gt 0$, then $x^ay^bz^{c+1}\in T'$. Thus, every monomial divisible by $y$ lies in $T'$. Conversely, if $p(x,y,z)\notin \mathbb{Z}+yT$. then the maps $T\to T$ that maps $x\mapsto x$, $z\mapsto z$ and $y\mapsto 0$, and the one that maps $x,y,z\mapsto 0$ agree on $S$, but disagree on $p(x,y,z)$.
To show that the inclusion $S\to T'$ is not an epimorphism it suffices to show that there exist a commutative ring with $1$, $\mathfrak{T}$, and two morphism $T'\to \mathfrak{T}$ that agree on $S$ but not on all of $T'$. For example,
$$ \mathfrak{T} = \mathbb{Z}[\epsilon]/(\epsilon^2),$$
the ring of dual numbers. Let $f,g\colon T'\to \mathfrak{T}$
be the morphisms defined by sending $xy$, $y$, and $yz$ to $\epsilon$; $f$ sends $xyz$ to $\epsilon$ and $g$ sends it to $0$. And both $f$ and $g$ send every other monomial to $0$. It is not hard to verify these maps are multiplicative, but since they disagree on $xyz$, the inclusion $S\to T'$ is not an epimorphism.


text:
import uuid

from office365.graph_client import GraphClient
from office365.onedrive.termstore.group import Group
from office365.onedrive.termstore.set import Set
from office365.onedrive.termstore.store import Store
from office365.onedrive.termstore.term import Term
from tests import test_root_site_url
from tests.graph_case import GraphTestCase, acquire_token_by_client_credentials

class TestTermStore(GraphTestCase):
    target_store = None  # type: Store
    target_group = None  # type: Group
    target_set = None  # type: Set
    target_term = None  # type: Term

    @classmethod
    def setUpClass(cls):
        super(TestTermStore, cls).setUpClass()
        client = GraphClient(acquire_token_by_client_credentials)
        cls.target_store = client.sites.get_by_url(test_root_site_url).term_store

    @classmethod
    def tearDownClass(cls):
        pass

    def test1_get_groups(self):
        groups = self.target_store.groups.top(1).get().execute_query()
        self.assertLessEqual(len(groups), 1)
        for group in groups:
            self.assertIsNotNone(group.resource_path)

    def test2_create_group(self):
        group_name = "Group_" + uuid.uuid4().hex
        new_group = self.target_store.groups.add(group_name).execute_query()
        self.assertIsNotNone(new_group.resource_path)
        self.__class__.target_group = new_group

    def test3_create_set(self):
        set_name = "Set_" + uuid.uuid4().hex
        new_set = self.target_group.sets.add(set_name).execute_query()
        self.assertIsNotNone(new_set.resource_path)
        self.__class__.target_set = new_set

    def test4_list_sets(self):
        sets = self.target_group.sets.get().execute_query()
        self.assertIsNotNone(sets.resource_path)
        self.assertGreaterEqual(1, len(sets))

    def test5_create_term(self):
        label_name = "Term_" + uuid.uuid4().hex
        new_term = self.target_set.children.add(label_name).execute_query()
        self.assertIsNotNone(new_term.resource_path)
        self.__class__.target_term = new_term

    def test6_list_terms(self):
        terms = self.target_set.terms.get().execute_query()
        self.assertIsNotNone(terms.resource_path)
        self.assertGreaterEqual(1, len(terms))

    def test7_delete_term(self):
        self.target_term.delete_object().execute_query()

    def test8_delete_set(self):
        self.target_set.delete_object().execute_query()

    def test9_delete_group(self):
        self.target_group.delete_object().execute_query()

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
15 Fantasy Books For The Curious Reader
Posted on February 26, 2021 February 25, 2021 by Katie Bachelder
Most of my regulars on the blog are presumably avid fantasy readers like myself, but my romance reading challenge has made me wonder what books I might recommend for those who aren't. After all, fantasy can certainly be an intimidating genre to step into. It's incredibly difficult to find standalone novels, or to find books that will suit your non-fantasy interests.
Fortunately, I have dabbled in various types of fantasy, so I have a few different recommendations for you. The list below was made with my own reading challenges in mind–usually, comprised of five books, one of which is a classic and one of which there is an adaptation–and I've thrown together a couple of different categories to give a variety of fantasy options.
Beyond that, I can only say that I'm unwilling to recommend books I haven't read, so this is by no means a comprehensive list of the best of fantasy. I should also mention that there are some books on this list that were not to my own personal taste, but were written well enough that I can at least, in good conscience, suggest them.
To Begin: The Classics
The Hobbit: J. R. R. Tolkien is one of the best-known fantasy authors. While his Lord of the Rings series is likely the best-known of his works, The Hobbit is a standalone novel set in the same world that will allow a new reader to test the waters before jumping into the more daunting Lord of the Rings trilogy. The book follows Bilbo Baggins as he's roped into a quest to help some dwarves reclaim their home from an ancient dragon. It's full of adventure, with several smaller side-quests in their journey to the mountain, and even better, it had been written as a children's book, so it's a relatively easy read.
To Consider: Length
Tess of the Road: As I said before, finding really good stand-alone fantasy novels is next to impossible (although, for those who love the genre, being given only a single book in which to fall in love with and enjoy a world can be a major tragedy) but Rachel Hartman wrote a good one here. Like The Hobbit, Tess of the Road is set in an already-existing world (RE: Seraphina), but can be read on its own. Tess is a character who tries to ignore her trauma until one day she leaves her toxic family behind and begins to walk. Her journey takes her across the land, through two countries, where she accidentally changes the lives of nearly everyone she comes across, and overall just learns the importance of "walking on." It does deal with depression, suicidal thoughts, and the aftermath of sexual assault, but in a way that is respectful and vastly better handled than most fantasy novels.
Eye of the World: In opposition to the stand-alones, we have an epic fifteen-book series, if you count the prequel. Wheel of Time is also getting a TV adaptation before long. Eye of the World is a good introduction both to the series and to the genre as a whole, as it uses some tried and true fantasy tropes without making them boring. With a nifty magic system and an expansive world, but without Tolkien's habit of spending pages and pages on description alone, Wheel of Time is a good traditional fantasy series to start with. Eye of the World follows a small cast of characters as protagonist Rand, along with his friends, flee their homes under the guidance of their Gandalf-figure, Moiraine. Their goal is to find safety in Tar Valon, but it's a long journey. Enemies and danger can crop up anywhere, and it's going to take a lot of effort just to stay alive.
To Consider: Genre
A Court of Thorns and Roses: For readers who enjoy books full of romance, Sarah J. Maas's A Court of Thorns and Roses is probably as good a segue into the fantasy genre as there is. Both A Court of Thorns and Roses and Throne of Glass include heavy romance elements, but the former is, in my humble opinion, better written. It's also shorter as a series. The book is about a human, Feyre, who gets drawn into the land of the Fae and, through her connection to love-interest Tamlin, also draws the ire of Fae Queen Amarantha. It's a Beauty and the Beast retelling, though the target audience is definitely New Adult at the very least. I wasn't a major fan of the series, but I can at least see its appeal.
Raven Boys: If realistic fiction is more your style, then something from the urban fantasy department is probably going to be up your alley. Maggie Stiefvater's Raven Boys has a magic system to it, but it's subtle, creepy. At times, especially later in the series, it can also feel like horror. The series follows Blue Sargent and her newfound group of friends as they investigate the possibility of a dead Welsh King who can grant a wish to whoever finds him. The book includes pyschics and a really weird forest and a twist ending that is going to break your heart. It's also pretty short, and fast-paced to boot.
Cinder: For a more dystopian flare, we go to Marissa Meyer's Cinder, the first of the Lunar Chronicles series. Toeing the line between science fiction and fantasy, Cinder is a Cinderella retelling about the titular cyborg who finds herself pinned between love and duty. There's a deadly plague sweeping the nation, and a ruthless Lunar queen who is willing to give them the antidote for a steep price. Knowing it's a Cinderella retelling makes the romance elements less cringey, and, better yet, family play a big part.
An Adaptation!
Stardust: A quirky, standalone novel by Neil Gaiman himself, Stardust is the perfect book to read for a book/movie comparison. It's been a minute since I've seen or read either, but the movie is certainly as intriguing as the book. It is also one of the only books on my list that has a single movie, one that's also enjoyable to watch and read. Stardust follows the protagonist, Tristan, who extracts a promise from his crush that if he brings back a star, she'll marry him. Tristan crosses into the more magical realm, but finds the star in human form, and as they journey back to his realm (and get into plenty of antics along the way), can't help but fall in love with the star-girl. It's a cute read.
I would also mention that Good Omens is another Neil Gaiman book with a really good adaptation, but it's not strictly fantasy, and the adaptation is a series instead of a movie, so make of that what you will.
To Consider: Age Range
I have two quick side-notes before we get into this. First is my general dislike of labeling "young adult" as a genre. Age range and genres are two very different categories, which is why this is in a different section than the genre heading. Secondly, there's a decent amount of middle grade fantasy, but I really didn't get into fantasy until I was old enough to read YA, so I apologize for the lack of suggestions in the MG department.
Tale of Despereaux: This is a cute, short book about a mouse and a rat and about just how damaging expectations can be. It's also very much about forgiveness, not because you are supposed to, but because it is really the only way to save oneself. Despereaux is a brave mouse who loves to read and who falls head over heels for the princess. Roscuro is a dungeon rat who loves the light but who realizes how much the world is going to hate him just for being a rat, and the terrible things he does out of spite. Kate DiCamillo writes it almost like a fairy tale, or a bedtime story, and it's really just such a wholesome book. There's no magic, and the setting doesn't require too much memorization on the reader's part, which makes it an easy book to add to your list.
Graceling: Kristin Cashore's debut, Graceling follows Katsa and her new friend Po as they try to unravel the mystery of a kidnapping. The magic system isn't terribly complex, and it's your standard medieval-type setting, but the book focuses on the internal conflict of the protagonist, and doesn't shy away from topics like periods and birth control (which, trust me, is a rare find in fantasy novels). The Graceling Realm series includes three standalone novels and now a fourth book that could be the first of a duology, each of which are primarily centered around female characters learning to accept themselves.
A Darker Shade of Magic: Of the handful of V. E. Schwab books I've read, her Shades of Magic series is my favorite. It features four separate Londons, each with different levels of magic. Kell, the protagonist, is from Red London, which is full of magic, and is one of only two men who can walk between the worlds. But his London gets roped into the plots of White London, a version that is growing sickly and corrupt, and it will take all of Kell's wit–and the help of his newfound friend, Lila Bard–to save anyone. It's intense, fast-paced, and intriguing, and has a sort of multiverse that isn't common in the fantasy genre.
Eragon: Essentially an homage to the fantasy genre, written by a 15-years-old Christopher Paolini, Eragon is the first of a four-book series that likewise takes place in another world. It follows the titular Eragon as he discovers magic and dragons, and becomes a target because of it. There's an evil king, an oddball witch, elves and dwarves and other fantastical creatures, and a pretty straightforward magic system based off of language. If you want to read a book that could encapsulate what it means to be a fantasy book, Eragon is probably a good one to add to your list.
The Magicians: If you don't mind a anti-hero, one who can grate on the nerves at times, Lev Grossman's The Magicians is a good book. Basically Harry Potter, but much darker (and written by an author who, as far as I am aware, hasn't dug himself irreparably into a political hole), the book follows Quentin Coldwater and a few of his friends as they discover a magic college called Brakebills, and with it, a terribly monster from another world. When I say it's dark, I mean it gets really dark (especially in the TV adaptation, which I am admittedly more familiar with), with ruthless deaths, awful deities, and dangerous magic.
Rage of Dragons: Although the book seems thick, it is a fast-paced read. Rage of Dragons is an epic fantasy book written by Evan Winters and follows a plot that is a staple in the genre: one of revenge. When Tau witnesses the death of a loved one, he's determined to make the ones responsible pay, but in this world, you're either a noble, or you're canon-fodder, and Tau is no noble. He dedicates his life to becoming the best swordsman, ignoring all else. But although his skills become impressive, it's never far from the reader's mind just how tragic the whole thing is.
To Consider: Magic
Night Circus: One of the best things about fantasy is its setting. Magic is a staple, so of course most of the above books have some form of magic system in them, but I wanted to highlight two final books specifically for their magic. And the first, of course, is Erin Morgenstern's Night Circus. Similar in vibe to Raven Boys, but a lot less creepy, Night Circus involves two star-crossed lovers, both of them magicians caught in a sort of battle-to-the-death that takes place in a circus. Yet it never feels like a dark narrative. The writing style infuses the awe and wonder one feels when watching a real-life magician perform their tricks, their secrets unknown to all but the magician themselves.
A Song of Wraiths & Ruin: To finish this list, we have Roseanne Brown's A Song of Wraiths and Ruin, in which circumstances put the two protagonists on the same path, where one must kill the other. Although its pitched almost as a romance, Brown focuses more on just how big it is to take someone's life, even a stranger's, even on behalf of a loved one. The setting feels reminiscent of real-world history, of West-African folklore, and Brown will throw you into her world headfirst and let you figure out the details.
Posted in For Fun :)Tagged books, epic fantasy, Fantasy, maggie stiefvater, magic systems, Neil Gaiman, reading, reading challenge, Robert Jordan, Sarah J. Maas, Tolkien, urban fantasy, young adult
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2 thoughts on "15 Fantasy Books For The Curious Reader"
msbookworld says:
you picked a great selection of books! definitely something for everyone here
Katie Bachelder says:
Thank you so much! That means a lot, especially since I was relying only on books I've read 😂


The first Byzantine style church to be constructed in the United Kingdom for over 100 years.
Approximately 32.0m long by 23.0m wide on plan with a maximum height at the top of the main dome of 17.5m above existing ground level, founded on a reinforced concrete piled raft foundation substructure.
The superstructure of the Church has been designed using cast in-situ reinforced concrete as the preferred construction material for the load bearing elements. Concrete is ideal for this type of structure as it can be readily moulded to form all the required intricate arch barrel and dome shapes synonymous with a Byzantine styled building, with the benefit of the added strength of the internal reinforcing bars. Both the barrel arch and domes were constructed using a sprayed concrete technique that eliminated the need to use any shutters, thus reducing labour costs and considerably speeding up construction time.
The exterior of the building was clad with 215mm thick facing brickwork and stonework in order to replicate the traditional look of a Byzantine Church. The brickwork and stonework had to be carefully detailed in order to produce the intricate arches, recesses and reveals.
A once in a lifetime opportunity to be involved with this project that will be a testament to the Greek Orthodox Community of Harrow and will be cherished for many years to come.


text:
Packed To The Rafters Star Hugh Sheridan Celebrates Pride Month By Announcing They Are Non-Binary
By Anthony Cuda
Hugh Sheridan, best known for their role in Packed To The Rafters and many other Aussies classics, is Australian TV royalty.
In an Instagram post published over the weekend, Hugh revealed that they did an interview with gay lifestyle publication 'DNA Magazine' and, during the interview, announced they were non-binary.
A post shared by Hugh Sheridan (@hugh_sheridan)
"I AM still a human (non-binary/bi/me/Hughman) but I'm in a monogamous relationship with another human, who I love. I don't accept a label cause it limits me… if you want it; take it."
Whilst Hugh is yet to announce which pronouns they prefer, within this article, to respect any potential changes, we are referring to them in the gender-neutral they/them terms.
hugh sheridan
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Blink 182's Mark Hoppus Reveals He's Been Fighting Cancer


text:
Pocomoke holds off Decatur at home
Pocomoke boys soccer went up 2-0 early, but the Seahawks made a comeback
Pocomoke holds off Decatur at home Pocomoke boys soccer went up 2-0 early, but the Seahawks made a comeback Check out this story on delmarvanow.com: http://www.delmarvanow.com/story/sports/high-school/2014/09/10/pocomoke-upends-decatur/15424855/
Special to the Delmarva Media Group Published 9:45 p.m. ET Sept. 10, 2014
Stephen Decatur's Alton Walker, center, heads a ball in the first half of the Bayside soccer championship against Easton in 2013. Walker scored a penalty kick in the 2-1 loss to Pocomoke on Wednesday.(Photo: Daily Times file photo)Buy Photo
Bayside South boys soccer started the season with a thriller in Pocomoke, as head coach Alan Byrd and the Warriors took an early two-goal lead and held it in its season-opening 2-1 victory over Stephen Decatur High School on Wednesday.
With an aggressive attack right from the first touch, Pocomoke found itself up 1-0 in the opening two minutes of play. Sophomore defenseman Noah Schoolfield, with the ball at midfield, caught the backline of Decatur a little to high and sent a ball over the top to meet the foot of freshman attacker Amonty Allen.
Pushing the ball ahead in fast movement, Allen had a one-on-one opportunity against Seahawks' goalkeeper Sean Colgan. Drawing Colgan out, the freshman played a lined shot past the diving keeper into the bottom right corner of the net.
Allen wasn't finished quite yet. With 23:39 remaining in the first half, the attacker found the ball at his feet again, but this time with the defense in front of him. Not slowing him down, Allen weaved his way through three defenders and played a quick shot under the keeper to give the Warriors a 2-0 lead to take into the half.
"They looked to play our man one-on-one," Byrd said about the two first-half scores. "We got two really good balls to him and he did the rest."
Seeing most of the attempts in the first 40 minutes, Pocomoke saw the Decatur offense start to put on an offensive front in the second half. Taking several shots, the Seahawks would finally get on the board with eight minutes remaining.
A foul inside the 18-yard box by senior back Glenn Ross would give Decatur a penalty kick opportunity. Lining up to take the shot was sophomore Alton Walker, who got Pocomoke goalkeeper Cole Porter to dive right as he placed the shot into the left side of the net.
Pulling the deficit to just one with less than eight minutes left, the Seahawks were unable to find a way to draw the score even, giving Pocomoke the 2-1 victory.
"Decatur was pushing in and was starting to do some good stuff in the middle," Byrd said. "We were fortunate to come out with the win.
"The way the schedule is set up this year, we can't even talk about this one. We have to get ready for the next one."
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