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Q: Can someone tell me what this snippet of HLSL code means? float4 color = tex2D(inputSampler, TexCoord);
     //compute distance from center
float distance = color.a>0.3f?length(TexCoord - 0.5f):1.0f;

What is color.a&gt and why is there a ; in the middle of that second line?

A: Response to the original question: "Can someone tell me what this snippet of HLSL code means?
float4 color = tex2D(inputSampler, TexCoord);
  //compute distance from center
float distance = color.a>0.3f?length(TexCoord - 0.5f):1.0f;

what is color.a&gt and why is there a ; in the middle of that second line?"

Its a html escape sequence screwup. > should be > ("greater than" symbol).
So it should be:
float4 color = tex2D(inputSampler, TexCoord);
     //compute distance from center
float distance = color.a > 0.3f?length(TexCoord - 0.5f):1.0f;

Likewise if you encounter < it is probably < ("less than" symbol). Other common ones ones are:

*

*" -> '"'

*& -> '&'

*  -> ' ' (space)

What the pixel shader is actually doing is if the alpha of the sampled texture at this point is greater than 0.3, distance is the length from the sampled texcoord (U,V) location to (0.5, 0.5) i.e. the center of the texture sampled from. If the alpha is 0.3 or less, then distance is set to 1.0f.
The distance value is obviously used later in the shader to apply some pixel effect.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


The Southern India Mills Association (SIMA) has requested Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edapadi Palaniswami to announce removal of a one per cent Agricultural Market Committee Cess on cotton as well as cotton waste in the State Budget for the year 2017-18. The Committee On GST has asked all states to decide the issue of the cess at their own levels because GST is likely to come into effect from next July, SIMA Chairman M Senthilkumar said.
He said that since all the states have already announced sops for the textile industry, it is only the Tamil Nadu based industry which is in an awkward position as far as the competition is concerned. He said that compared to other states, the cost of production of spinners in Tamil Nadu is 15 higher than those in other states, because spinners in Tamil Nadu have to get cotton bales transported from other states to Tamil Nadu, at the rate of 6 per kg.
He recalled that the late Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa had assured that steps would be taken to abolish the cess when former SIMA Chairman S Dinakaran had met her on December 7, 2012, SIMA has requested the Tamil Nadu Government to abolish the cess on cotton and cotton waste for the benefit of the spinners, so that there is a level playing field, Senthilkumar said.


With years of experience within out instructor community, we can cater to any of your needs! We offer many different kayak, paddleboard, and canoe classes from beginner to advanced paddlers!
Call the shop at 530-223-2411 to reserve your spot today!
Start Off on the Right Stroke!


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Events and Competitions
Halls & Museums
Search for "Canadian Expeditionary Force"
Grey Cup
The Grey Cup is a trophy produced by Birks Jewellers that has been part of Canadian sports since 1909, when it was donated by Governor General Earl Grey for the Canadian football championship.
Hamilton Tiger-Cats
The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are a professional team in the Canadian Football League (CFL). The franchise dates back to the formation of the Hamilton Football Club (the Tigers) in November 1869. The Tigers and another Hamilton football team, the Wildcats, amalgamated as the Tiger-Cats for the 1950 season and played in the Inter-provincial Rugby Football Union (IRFU). The IRFU became the Eastern Conference of the CFL in 1960. Since the early 20th century, the Tigers and Tiger-Cats have been associated with a tough, physical brand of football that reflects the blue-collar roots of Hamilton as an industrial city. The team's iconic cheer, "Oskie Wee Wee, Oskie Waa Waa, Holy Mackinaw, Tigers… Eat 'em Raw!" is well known throughout Canada and dates back to the early 20th century. The Tiger-Cats have won the Grey Cup 13 times, including five times as the Tigers.
The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are a football team that plays in the Canadian Football League (CFL). Located in Winnipeg, Manitoba, the Blue Bombers have alternated between the league's West Division and East Division. They are currently part of the West Division. Since its founding in 1930, the team has won 11 Grey Cup championships. In 2019, the team won its first Grey Cup since 1990 when it defeated the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 33–12.
Eric Walters's novel Run (2003) is a fictionalized account of Terry Fox's Marathon of Hope. The book follows troubled youth Winston Macdonald, who is inspired to stop running away from his problems after he befriends Fox in 1980. Run is both the first book for young adults and the first fictionalized book about Terry Fox endorsed by the Fox family. Author royalties from the sales of Run are donated to the Terry Fox Foundation. The novel's audio version received the 2004 Torgi Award for Books in Alternative Formats.
Ice Hockey in Canada
Hockey is Canada's official national winter sport and perhaps its greatest contribution to world sport. Canada is considered the birthplace of ice hockey, and Canadians generally regard the sport as their own.
Edmonton Football Team (EE Football Team)
The Edmonton Football Team or EE Football Team (formerly the Edmonton Eskimos) is a community-owned football team that plays in the West Division of the Canadian Football League	(CFL). In the CFL's modern era (post-Second World War), the team has won the Grey Cup championship 14 times, second only to the 16 championships held by the Toronto Argonauts. This included three victories in a row from 1954 to 1956 and an unprecedented five straight championships from 1978 to 1982. The club also holds a North American professional sports record for reaching the playoffs in 34 consecutive seasons between 1972 and 2005. Notable alumni include former Alberta	premiers Peter Lougheed and Don Getty, former lieutenant-governor of Alberta Norman Kwong and former Edmonton	mayor Bill Smith.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


MMT Heating & Cooling is a dealer of Lumber Jack Brand Wood Pellets produced by Great Lakes Renewable Energy. These pellets are a green way to efficiently utilize burning wood to heat your home, patio heater and more. Take the chore out of chopping wood to heat your Duluth home and choose wood pellets—they're ready to use as is. Simply pour a proper amount into your outdoor wood furnace or patio heater and let the heat begin.
Premium-grade wood pellet fuel is typically produced from softwood or hardwood sawdust containing no tree bark. This results in low ash content ranging from .3 to .7 %, giving you more fuel per pellet with a clean burn, less smoke and a reduced carbon footprint. By opting for wood pellets over chopped wood, you are reducing your smoke/ash emissions, saving yourself time and labor in chopping wood and saving money by choosing the all-around safer option.
Pellets are available in 40-lb. bags or one ton totes as needed.
We can deliver one to four ton quantities to your Duluth home so you've got plenty of wood pellets available for the entire heating season. Contact MMT for more information, our heating contractors can guide you through any questions you may have regarding your heating system and how to best reduce your carbon footprint.


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The 17 UN-goals
The 17 sustainable development goals
GOAL 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure
GOAL 10: Reduced Inequality
GOAL 16: Peace and Justice Strong Institutions
GOAL 17: Partnerships to achieve the Goal
Project LOOK! for a better place
Elly Heuss Gymnasium
Baken Park Lyceum
Bilecik Mesleki Ve Teknik Anadolu Lisesi
Istituto Tecnico Commerciale Economico e Tecnologico "Leonardo Sciascia"
Vester Skerninge Friskole
1st LOOK! November 2019 – Elly-Heuss-Gymnasium Weiden
2nd LOOK! April 2020 – BILECIK MESLEKI VE TEKNIK ANADOLU LISESI
3rd LOOK! October 2020 – Baken Park Lyceum
4th LOOK! January 2021 – Istituto Tecnico Commerciale Economico e Tecnologico "Leonardo Sciascia"
5th LOOK! April 2021 – Vester Skerninge Friskole
LOOK! For a better place
Obtaining a quality education is the foundation to creating sustainable development. In addition to improving quality of life, access to inclusive education can help equip locals with the tools required to develop innovative solutions to the world's greatest problems.
Over 265 million children are currently out of school and 22% of them are of primary school age. Additionally, even the children who are attending schools are lacking basic skills in reading and math. In the past decade, major progress has been made towards increasing access to education at all levels and increasing enrollment rates in schools particularly for women and girls. Basic literacy skills have improved tremendously, yet bolder efforts are needed to make even greater strides for achieving universal education goals. For example, the world has achieved equality in primary education between girls and boys, but few countries have achieved that target at all levels of education.
The reasons for lack of quality education are due to lack of adequately trained teachers, poor conditions of schools and equity issues related to opportunities provided to rural children. For quality education to be provided to the children of impoverished families, investment is needed in educational scholarships, teacher training workshops, school building and improvement of water and electricity access to schools.
Enrolment in primary education in developing countries has reached 91 per cent but 57 million primary age children remain out of school.
More than half of children that have not enrolled in school live in sub-Saharan Africa.
An estimated 50 per cent of out-of-school children of primary school age live in conflict-affected areas.
617 million youth worldwide lack basic mathematics and literacy skills.
4.1 By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys complete free, equitable and quality primary and secondary education leading to relevant and Goal-4 effective learning outcomes
4.2 By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys have access to quality early childhood development, care and preprimary education so that they are ready for primary education
4.3 By 2030, ensure equal access for all women and men to affordable and quality technical, vocational and tertiary education, including university
4.4 By 2030, substantially increase the number of youth and adults who have relevant skills, including technical and vocational skills, for employment, decent jobs and entrepreneurship
4.5 By 2030, eliminate gender disparities in education and ensure equal access to all levels of education and vocational training for the vulnerable, including persons with disabilities, indigenous peoples and children in vulnerable situations
4.6 By 2030, ensure that all youth and a substantial proportion of adults, both men and women, achieve literacy and numeracy
4.7 By 2030, ensure that all learners acquire the knowledge and skills needed to promote sustainable development, including, among others, through education for sustainable development and sustainable lifestyles, human rights, gender equality, promotion of a culture of peace and non-violence, global citizenship and appreciation of cultural diversity and of culture's contribution to sustainable development
4.A Build and upgrade education facilities that are child, disability and gender sensitive and provide safe, nonviolent, inclusive and effective learning environments for all
4.B By 2020, substantially expand globally the number of scholarships available to developing countries, in particular least developed countries, small island developing States and African countries, for enrolment in higher education, including vocational training and information and communications technology, technical, engineering and scientific programmes, in developed countries and other developing countries
4.C By 2030, substantially increase the supply of qualified teachers, including through international cooperation for teacher training in developing countries, especially least developed countries and small island developing states
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I. Admission base on The National High School Graduation Examination: Receiving application documents following admission calendar.
+ The undergraduate program: Following every phase.
+ The College program: high school graduation.
+ Certificate of examination result (copy).
+ 01 envelope with full name, address and contact number of the applicant.
+ Graduated from high school.
+ Total marks of 3 subjects at grade 12 for admission evaluation following every phase.
+ Certificate of priority (if any).
HIU holds an exam for aptitude subjects and also accept the result of equivalent aptitude subjects from other universities.
III. FEES: Admission fees: 30,000 vnd/ profile. Aptitude exam fees: 300,000 / profile.
Applicants may apply directly at the Admission department, by mail or online through the website.


Type: Summitview Elementary School is a "Regular School".
Magnet: Summitview Elementary School IS NOT a Magnet school.
Level: Summitview Elementary School is classified as an "Elementary School".
Status: Summitview Elementary School was operational at the time of the last report and is currently operational.


Laetiporus are some of the most charismatic and recognizable of all polypores. Easily one of the most conspicuous members of its family in our area, the bright orange-yellow shelves masses are eye catching, especially in the late summer when little else is fruiting. Parasitic on a wide range of hardwoods (species outside of our area occur on conifers as well), causing a cubical brown rot that gradually weakens their host.
Easy to recognize to genus, and fairly easy to identify to species with knowledge of host tree identity.
Important identification characters are those used to recognize the genus as a whole: orange-yellow coloration, pored shelving fruitbody on wood, and host tree species identity. The single local species occurs on oak and eucalyptus - any records from other hardwoods are notable, and any specimens found on conifer wood should be photographed and vouchered, as the may represent Laetiporus conifericola.


GlaxoSmithKline turned in enough vaccine sales to lead the industry in 2017, and that was without much contribution from its newly launched shingles vaccine, Shingrix. The company's vaccines business grew sales 6% at constant exchange rates as its larger pharma and consumer healthcare units posted meager growth.
GSK's vaccine growth for the year compared to a 3% increase for pharma and a 2% bump for consumer healthcare. All told, the company's vaccines pulled in £5.16 billion ($7.16 billion) for the year, besting Merck's $6.5 billion, Sanofi's $6.25 billion and Pfizer's $6 billion, all at current exchange rates.
In 2017, sales for GSK's meningitis vaccines grew 27% to £890 million ($1.24 billion). Flu vaccines jumped 12% to £488 million ($677 million), while sales for HPV shot Cervarix leaped 57% to £134 million ($185 million) thanks to a new launch in China, where the drugmaker is competing with Merck's Gardasil. GSK previously withdrew its HPV shot from the U.S. due to a lack of demand, ceding that important market to Merck. But it won Chinese approval for Cervarix back in 2016 and has partnered with e-commerce giant Alibaba for its launch.
Even with those results, much of the focus on the company's fourth-quarter earnings call was on newly approved Shingrix, which recorded £22 million in sales during its first quarter on the market. The FDA approved the shot in October, followed closely by a CDC panel's preferential recommendation over Merck's older Zostavax. Speaking to analysts on the call, GSK's president of global pharmaceuticals Luke Miels said the recommendation gives the company "target universe of over 100 million patients in the U.S. alone."
"We see a three-phase launch: first, counter-detailing Merck because these guys are still out there, then targeting Zostavax patients for re-vax, and then in the third phase driving market expansion," he added.
Analysts have predicted the vaccine will grow to blockbuster status by 2022. It's one of three new important launches for the drugmaker, along with HIV therapy Juluca and respiratory med Trelegy.
GSK's strong vaccine results come after the company inked a massive asset swap with Novartis that moved it away from costly cancer drugs and more into vaccines and consumer healthcare. In its 2017 World Preview report looking ahead to 2022, Evaluate predicted the company would lead Merck, Pfizer and Sanofi in order to top the vaccines industry, generating $8.66 billion in vaccine sales that year.
GSK chief financial officer Simon Dingemans said on the call the drugmaker expects vaccines "to be a mid to high single-digit grower over the period to 2020."


Some people don't have the fundamental intelligence to determine the correct nostril into which to insert a lima bean. This book is not for them. This book is for the few who are silently bearing the burden of a superior intelligence, or think they are anyway.


To help make Android more secure, we encourage and reward researchers who discover vulnerabilities. In 2015, a series of bugs in mediaserver's libstagefright were disclosed to Google. We released updates for these issues with our August and September 2015 security bulletins.
Most of the vulnerabilities found in libstagefright were heap overflows resulting from unsigned integer overflows. A number of integer overflows in libstagefright allowed an attacker to allocate a buffer with less space than necessary for the incoming data, resulting in a buffer overflow in the heap.
The result of an unsigned integer overflow is well defined, but the ensuing behavior could be unexpected or unsafe. In contrast, signed integer overflows are considered undefined behavior in C/C++, which means the result of an overflow is not guaranteed, and the compiler author may choose the resulting behavior—typically what is fastest or simplest. We have added compiler changes that are designed to provide safer defaults for both signed and unsigned integer overflows.
The UndefinedBehaviorSanitizer (UBSan) is part of the LLVM/Clang compiler toolchain that detects undefined or unintended behavior. UBSan can check for multiple types of undefined and unsafe behavior, including signed and unsigned integer overflow. These checks add code to the resulting executable, testing for integer overflow conditions during runtime. For example, figure 1 shows source code for the parseChunk function in the MPEG4Extractor component of libstagefright after the original researcher-supplied patch was applied. The modification, which is contained in the black box below, appears to prevent integer overflows from occurring. Unfortunately, while SIZE_MAX and size are 32-bit values, chunk_size is a 64-bit value, resulting in an incomplete check and the potential for integer overflow. In the line within the red box, the addition of size and chunk_size may result in an integer overflow and creation of buffer smaller than size elements. The subsequent memcpy could then lead to exploitable memory corruption, as size + chunk_size could be less than size, which is highlighted in the blue box. The mechanics of a potential exploit vector for this vulnerability are explained in more detail by Project Zero.
Figure 1. Source code demonstrating a subtle unsigned integer overflow.
Figure 2 compares assembly generated from the code segment above with a second version compiled with integer sanitization enabled. The add operation that results in the integer overflow is contained in the red box.
In the unsanitized version, size (r6) and chunk_size (r7) are added together, potentially resulting in r0 overflowing and being less than size. Then, buffer is allocated with the size specified in r0, and size bytes are copied to it. If r0 is less than r6, this results in memory corruption.
In the sanitized version, size (r7) and chunk_size (r5) are added together with the result stored in r0. Later, r0 is checked against r7, if r0 is less than r7, as indicated by the CC condition code, r3 is set to 1. If r3 is 1, and the carry bit was set, then an integer overflow occurred, and an abort is triggered, preventing memory corruption.
Note that the incomplete check provided in the patch was not included in figure 2. The overflow occurs in the buffer allocation's add operation. This addition triggers an integer sanitization check, which turns this exploitable flaw into a harmless abort.
Figure 2. Comparing unsanitized and sanitized compiler output.
While the integer sanitizers were originally intended as code hygiene tools, they effectively prevent the majority of reported libstagefright vulnerabilities. Turning on the integer overflow checks was just the first step. Preventing the runtime abort by finding and fixing integer overflows, most of which are not exploitable, represented a large effort by Android's media team. Most of the discovered overflows were fixed and those that remain (mostly for performance reasons) were verified and marked as safe to prevent the runtime abort.
In Android N, signed and unsigned integer overflow detection is enabled on the entire media stack, including libstagefright. This makes it harder to exploit integer overflows, and also helps to prevent future additions to Android from introducing new integer overflow bugs.
For Android M and earlier, the mediaserver process in Android was responsible for most media-related tasks. This meant that it required access to all permissions needed by those responsibilities and, although mediaserver ran in its own sandbox, it still had access to a lot of resources and capabilities. This is why the libstagefright bugs from 2015 were significant—mediaserver could access several important resources on an Android device including camera, microphone, graphics, phone, Bluetooth, and internet.
A root cause analysis showed that the libstagefright bugs primarily occurred in code responsible for parsing file formats and media codecs. This is not surprising—parsing complex file formats and codecs while trying to optimize for speed is hard, and the large number of edge cases makes such code susceptible to both accidental and malicious malformed inputs.
components that require sensitive permissions moved into separate sandboxes that only grant access to the specific resources the component needs. For example, only the cameraserver may access the camera, only the audioserver may access Bluetooth, and only the drmserver may access DRM resources.
Figure 3. How mediaserver and its permissions have been divided in Android N.
Comparing the potential impact of the libstagefright bugs on Android N and older versions demonstrates the value of this strategy. Gaining code execution in libstagefright previously granted access to all the permissions and resources available to the monolithic mediaserver process including graphics driver, camera driver, or sockets, which present a rich kernel attack surface.
In Android N, libstagefright runs within the mediacodec sandbox with access to very few permissions. Access to camera, microphone, photos, phone, Bluetooth, and internet as well as dynamic code loading are disallowed by SELinux. Interaction with the kernel is further restricted by seccomp. This means that compromising libstagefright would grant the attacker access to significantly fewer permissions and also mitigates privilege escalation by reducing the attack surface exposed by the kernel.
The media hardening project is an ongoing effort focused on moving functionality into less privileged sandboxes and further reducing the permissions granted to those sandboxes. While the techniques discussed here were applied to the Android media framework, they are suitable across the Android codebase. These hardening techniques—and others—are being actively applied to additional components within Android. As always, we appreciate feedback on our work and welcome suggestions for how we can improve Android. Contact us at security@android.com.


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Disney On Ice brings characters to coliseum
Mickey Mouse and friends from "The Little Mermaid, "Cars," "Toy Story" and "Frozen" come to life Wednesday to Sunday.
Disney On Ice brings characters to coliseum Mickey Mouse and friends from "The Little Mermaid, "Cars," "Toy Story" and "Frozen" come to life Wednesday to Sunday. Check out this story on ElPasoTimes.com: http://www.elpasotimes.com/story/entertainment/events/2016/09/29/disney-ice-brings-characters-coliseum/90643634/
Dave Acosta, El Paso Times Published 5:02 p.m. MT Sept. 29, 2016
"Disney On Ice presents Worlds of Enchantment" will feature popular Disney characters such as Elsa from the movie "Frozen" from Wednesday to Sunday at the El Paso County Coliseum.(Photo: Courtesy)
Get ready for dazzling costumes, world-class ice skaters and characters from four Disney classics.
That's what the action packed ice show, "Disney On Ice presents Worlds of Enchantment," will take to the El Paso County Coliseum for seven performances — including one Spanish performance — from Wednesday through Sunday.
The "Worlds of Enchantment" show includes appearances by Mickey Mouse for a pre-show dance-along, Lightning McQueen and other characters from Disney/Pixar's "Cars." Ariel, "The Little Mermaid," will take fans to her kingdom "Under the Sea," while Buzz, Woody, Jessy and the rest of the "Toy Story" gang escape from Sunnyside Daycare for an adventure.
And Disney's latest favorites, Elsa, Anna and their friends Olaf and Kristoff will skate into the wintery world of Arendelle from Disney's "Frozen."
Ice skater Dora Vikar portrays Elsa in "Worlds of Enchantment." The Hungarian skater has been part of Disney On Ice for 15 years. Vikar said that when she joined Disney On Ice, she thought she would skate and travel the world for a year or two before returning to school. She had "no idea" that she'd still be skating after all these years.
Ice skater Dora Vikar (Photo: Courtesy)
"I came for one year and I really liked it," Vikar said during a phone interview prior to a performance in Oklahoma City. "I postponed my studies for another year and finally I couldn't postpone my studies anymore. Everything was looking up here and I liked it, so I decided to stay and see where it takes me. I never imagined I'd still be doing it at this point. I absolutely love what I do."
Vikar said she was basically "born at the rink." Her mother and grandmother were both figure skating coaches and introduced her to the ice at an early age.
Vikar said she began competing at the age of 6. Vikar, coached by her mom and grandma, competed for Hungary in figure skating at national and international competitions until she was 18. Like many young figure skaters, Vikar hoped to make her country's national team and compete at the Olympics.
Vikar's Olympic dream never materialized and she entered college to study English. While she was attending school, Vikar hung up her ice skates for three years.
"My mom and (aunt) were both in Holiday On Ice, so (joining an ice skating show) was always in the back of my mind," Vikar said. "When I stopped competing, I didn't know if I would ever return to skating, but I liked the idea. I auditioned and had to think about leaving my studies. I decided to take the chance and I fell in love with it. I'm still here."
Vikar said that the demands of being in an ice show versus those of being a competitive figure skater are different but equally challenging.
"When you're competing, you're focusing on jumps, spins, your program and steps — maybe not so much on acting — and (an ice show) is really maybe 50-50 for acting and skating," Vikar said. "The tricks get a little easier than in competition; you don't have to absolutely succeed with five triples, so there's less stress and more fun. It's challenging in a different way; you're skating with different people, obviously, and you learn to perform with other people on the ice. Sometimes you may still have a solo or perform with one other person — or five other people. It's very different, but it's a fun job."
Vikar initially joined Disney On Ice as an ensemble character, skating in the background and as secondary characters in the ice show for a few years. Eventually she was offered her first principal role as the Blue Fairy from "Pinocchio." Vikar said she had several other principal roles before she was called on to stand in for the role of Elsa last year when another skater was injured.
"Disney On Ice presents Worlds of Enchantment" will feature Mickey's dance-along pre-show, with the mouse that started it all, Mickey Mouse. (Photo: Courtesy of Heinz Kluetmeier)
Vikar made her official debut as the permanent skater portraying Elsa in Oklahoma City the night before this interview.
"It was nice; it's a rewarding and very popular role," Vikar said. "You get a great reaction and kids are dressed up as little Annas and Elsas; It's a nice feeling and it's a very nice challenge to be up to par."
One of the best parts about playing Elsa, Vikar says, is the chance to stretch her acting chops.
"I like her versatility; her moments when she gets stronger, her passion," Vikar said. "Then she has to be restrained; the depths of her character — how soft she is at time. Going back and forth and of course just the reactions from the audience. It's great. It's so cute. I try to find as many faces as I can during performances."
Vikar said that after 15 years of being on the road, she definitely has to stretch a bit more before performances than she did when she first joined Disney On Ice. But, she added, she hasn't made plans to retire from her "dream job" just yet.
Being a touring member of Disney On Ice requires a rigorous schedule. The tour stays on the road 10 to 11 months a year, Vikar said. In 15 years, Vikar said, the longest amount of time off she's taken is two months, but usually her visits home last a few weeks and then it's back on the road — sometimes for up to 13 months straight.
"The hardest part, or my least favorite part, is being away from home for the holidays," Vikar said. "We try to make it as nice as possible. It is really like your second family."
Jessie, Woody and Buzz from Disney-Pixar's "Toy Story" will glide into the El Paso County Coliseum with "Disney On Ice presents Worlds of Enchantment." (Photo: Courtesy of Heinz Kluetmeier)
Still, the chance to perform for audiences around the world outweighs the rigors of touring.
"I really like the young atmosphere and the different nationalities we have on tour; the multicultural atmosphere," Vikar said. "I love performing; I love skating and going out there every day and having the challenge of putting my best out there."
Dave Acosta may be reached at 546-6138; dacosta@elpasotimes.com; @AcostaDavidA on Twitter.
Make plans
What: "Disney On Ice presents Worlds of Enchantment"
When: 7:30 p.m. Wednesday and Friday-Sunday; 7:30 p.m. Thursday (Spanish); noon and 3:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday
Where: El Paso County Coliseum, 4100 E. Paisano Drive
Tickets: $22; $28; $50; $80; available at the El Paso County Coliseum Box Office, all Ticketmaster outlets, by phone at 800-745-3000 and online at ticketmaster.com
Information: 533-9899, 534-4229, countycoliseum.com.
Read or Share this story: http://www.elpasotimes.com/story/entertainment/events/2016/09/29/disney-ice-brings-characters-coliseum/90643634/
Harry Connick Jr. sets El Paso show in March
Have visitors? Three things to do this weekend in El Paso area
2020 wedding and quinceañera trends for El Paso
Fun family things to do in El Paso this weekend
Have visitors? Three things to do this weekend


I try to run the Duke?s Bank Application as a web service from JBoss Getting Started Guide 4.0 (v2). When my server and client are on the same JVM, all works fine, but when I tried to run WS client from own JVM, I got this exception.
Of course I replace needed localhost adresses by my.server adress in source files. Can anybody help me, what I have to change else ?
so i get the same problem when trying to access my web service from a remote client using the zsi python package.
so where do i have to configure access privileges to my service?


Advancing business and contending with different business is constantly precarious. So doing anything which is somewhat moving will likewise give an edge over different contenders and brands. Logo for an organization assumes essential part in communicating the general subject. A brand will be stripped without a logo.
Planning a logo must be left to the expert logo designers other than doing it without anyone's help in the event that you are not a designer. A great many people know Photoshop however that doesn't mean everybody can outline something in it. Thinking of a logo without anyone else from various stuff wont assist and its simply better to not have a logo at all as opposed to utilizing a duplicated assemblage.
Logos must be applicable and discuss the brand it speaks to. It isn't at all terrible practice to utilize typography in logos, it is simply one more piece of logo outline and will be really great when done accurately. A logo is a realistic stamp or seal usually utilized by business endeavors, associations and even people to help and advance moment open acknowledgment.
It is a publicizing asset and in addition an image which remains for your organization in each region of interchanges. Here is an accumulation of the best moon logo designs for your motivation. This will rouse you, if you are searching for making an applicable logo with moon as the real part. We trust that you will like this superb gathering.
If you require some inspiration and admiration, look at the thorough gathering of moon logos that are accessible on the web! You can utilize your innovative intuition to be having an effect on everything as much as you'd like. The moon, as an example has adequate extension and space for spontaneous creation and experimentation.


Crowdfunding: the activity or process of raising money from a large number of people, typically through a website, as for a project or small business.
The reason I also posted the definition for Vetting is another advantage of crowdfunding. The properties are analyzed by a group of Real Estate Investment professionals. You are not at the whim of a single agent. You are given an ID into the group website to view your trasactions as they are funded or purchased (transparency). You also can view the properties, purchases and sales of the group as a whole.
Some of the groups have an average return of 11.5% to 14% return on short term Property Investments. I t can go much higher for long term Property Investments.
I am working with a small team presently to Flip properties in Central and SW Florida. Future blogs will talk about the progress of the group. If interested in learning more about what we are doing or to get information about being a member, text "Investment" to (239) 770-6250 or email InvestSWFL@gmail.com.


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Home | Entertainment
Siddharth Roy Kapur On Representing India At The Shanghai Film Festival
"I am looking forward to engaging with industry stakeholders here in furthering the filmmaking ties between us," said Siddharth Roy Kapur
Entertainment | Indo-Asian News Service | Updated: June 17, 2019 22:27 IST
Siddharth Roy Kapur photographed at an event in Mumbai.
Siddharth Roy Kapur was invited as a key panelist
"It is a pleasure to be here," said Siddharth Roy Kapur
"The fest is a significant forum for the global film community," he said
Producer Siddharth Roy Kapur is elated that he got a chance to represent India at the ongoing Shanghai International Film Festival. Siddharth Kapur was invited as a key panelist on the International Producers' Panel at the Shanghai International Film Festival in Shanghai. The panel, held on Sunday, was titled: Meet The Film Producers: Behind The Curtain of Hits and Indies.
"The Shanghai International Film Festival is a significant forum for the global film community to celebrate cinema and exchange ideas, and it is a pleasure to be here. India and China are two of the most vibrant and most diverse film markets," Siddharth Kapur said in a statement.
"I look forward to engaging with industry stakeholders here in furthering the filmmaking ties between us," he added.
Siddharth Roy Kapur, who is also the President of Producer's Guild of India, attended the festival in the capacity of one of the major producers of the Indian film industry. The panel discussion revolved around the challenges of producing globally accessible cinema, the disruption in the media and entertainment landscape and audiences' perception towards upcoming forms of entertainment.
He also discussed Indian cinema receiving great response in China, especially after the success of Aamir Khan's Dangal.
Nach Baliye 9: Shraddha Arya Preps By Making Fitness Her Focus
Anubhav Sinha Reveals Why Taapsee Pannu And Ayushmann Khurrana Are His Favourite Actors


Brian Norris is the owner of Laser Squared, which started in January 2017. He uses a Class IV laser to engrave, etch, and cut materials such as glass, leather, vinyl records, wood, plastic and acrylic.
Laser Squared offers: vinyl record clocks, labyrinths, crystal grids, coasters, pictures; and custom items. Brian has done many custom projects, including some pieces for other local business in the NewBo area.
Vicki Norris is the owner of The Tumbled Stone (formerly Reiki by Vicki), which began business in June 2012. Reiki by Vicki began as a temporary vendor in Dec 2012 and Brian and Vicki are very excited to join NewBo Market as permanent vendors.
The Tumbled Stone offers: tumbled stones, spirit animals, pendulums, crystals, angel cards/oracle cards, Pink Himalayan salt lamps, Singing Bowls, Essential Oils, Longaberger Baskets, and gifts. We will be offering various classes throughout the year.
Brian and Vicki live about ½ hour north of Cedar Rapids. Between them, they have 6 kids, 1 grandson, 2 dogs and 3 miniature horses. They also own a storage business and a 3D printing business.


Is George Galloway planning another by-election spectacular?
Our eye was caught by a series of tweets Galloway made this morning about Liverpool.
Why Liverpool? Well there's likely to be a by-election there next May when Walton MP, Steve Rotheram, becomes, in all likelihood, the first-ever metro mayor for the Liverpool City Region.
This would mean a by election in his Liverpool Walton seat, probably held at the same time as the mayoral vote.
Is Galloway planning to stand? That's the intriguing inference in a series of tweets he made this morning.
"All I ever hear from Merseyside MPs is bleating about themselves and how their angry constituents want rid of them" he wrote on Twitter, asking who will take responsibility for a quarter of Liverpool children growing up in poverty.
"What are the MPs even SAYING about it?" he demanded.
Does it amount to a coded declaration? Or is it sabre-rattling to chivvy the party into readmitting him? Or merely a digital stream of consciousness?
Despite Galloway's raw charisma and previous form in using by-elections successfully, Labour has an enormous nigh-on impregnable 27,777 majority and fringe parties fared poorly in 2015.
Perhaps there are hopes of being back within the Labour fold in time to seek the selection? It certainly seems that George Galloway's picture on Twitter has reverted to one from a time when he was in the Labour party. Coincidence?
This entry was posted on Tuesday, November 8th, 2016 at 10:52 am	and is filed under Inside. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
I hope George does come back. He's a good solid socialist and he would challenge Labour's endemic Tory-liteness in the Liverpool area.
All it is is the big mouthed sweaty sock mouthing off as usual. He has screwed up everything he has been involved in and left a legacy of division and hatred in Tower Hamlets when the voters of Poplar and Canning Town gave him the heave ho the last time he stood there. He is a total waste of space and why you spend time on him is beyond me.
Who ever wins the by-election won't have long to get their feet under the desk as Liverpool Walton is being abolished in 2018 and merged with Liverpool Riverside, as someone who lives their it will be interesting to see how this ends up, will whoever wins by-election challenge louise ellman for the right to be Liverpool Riverside mp.


A striking classical style that's perfect for your ruby or 40th Wedding Anniversary. This white gold three stone ring has a vibrant oval-cut ruby in the centre which is flanked by a sparkling round brilliant-cut diamond on either side. It has 0.75ct of diamond and 1.75ct of Ruby.
If you'd like to see more ruby & diamond rings then why not pop into our jewellers on Winthrop Street, Cork City where we would be delighted to help advise you.


Lots of gamers keep their old consoles after they upgrade to a new model just in case the desire to play some old games hits. Nintendo fans who have a GameCube and controllers around the house will want to break out those GameCube controllers and plunk down some cash on the 8BitDo GBros. wireless adapter on December 7.
That is the same day that Super Smash Bros. Ultimate launches, clearly 8BitDo knows Switch gamers want a better controller for that game. That game will support the Switch Joycons and Pro Controllers right out of the box. Originally the GameCube controllers were wired.
The 8BitDo wireless adapter has a short length of wire that connects to a wireless adapter allowing you to sit across the room. Having that short cord, and the largish adapter hanging off your controller might get annoying. The adapter connects to the Switch via Bluetooth.
The GBros. adapter supports NES Classic, SNES Classic, and Wii Classic controllers as well. The adapter sells for $19.99 and is up for pre-order now reports Polygon.


Yes, it's November again, and with November comes the inevitable push toward the holiday shopping season. Between Christmas, Hanukkah and Kwanzaa, there's a lot of ground to cover here, and retailers are eagerly offering up their best deals and the latest goods to go with it. Target is bringing a little extra mobile payments push to its holiday preparations, offering its new "Skip the Line" feature that should put a little extra Christmas cheer in some shoppers' hearts.
The Skip the Line concept features a host of Target employees packing hand-held scanners that will be able to check out customers using credit or debit card purchases from pretty much anywhere. Even on Black Friday, there will be extra employees on hand to really ramp up the Skip the Line notion and allow for checkout from heavily-trafficked sections like electronics.
That alone is a pretty big step, and it only gets better; Target also recently announced free two-day shipping with no minimum, and stepped up both its same-day Shipt service and its Drive-Up service, which is now available at nearly 1,000 stores. It's poised for a Thanksgiving opening, but not until 5:00 PM, and then a 7:00 AM opening for Black Friday.
All told, Target's plans are bold, audacious and just a little risky. Ramping up the delivery cycles will likely be a help here, as will the Skip the Line plan. Why Target didn't take it just a little farther and let customers do their own mobile checkout via an app is unclear, but it might have had something to do with larger-than-normal crowds and security issues. Moreover, a Thanksgiving opening has been shown to come with some negative perception that the store that uses it is "stealing the holiday" from Thanksgiving, but considering there seem to be more shoppers than complainers, it might be less an issue than expected.
Still, Target's taking the fight to Amazon and its various other competitors this year, and hopefully, this will pay off sufficient. Brick-and-mortar has had a tough time in this market for the last few years, but moves like this could help turn the tide and give brick-and-mortar shopping a reason to stay open.


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www.billnelson.com • View topic - Help needed. CD insert printing from downloads.
Help needed. CD insert printing from downloads.
Post subject: Help needed. CD insert printing from downloads.
All going great except for Six String Super Apparatus. The tray inserts print up far too big, and the booklet pages are way too small, to put in a CD case. Anyone else had this problem?
I noticed that the downloaded files are JPEG for this one whereas all the others were PDF and just needed minor trimming. Have tried to edit the files, copy the pictures and resize them elsewhere but to no avail. Is there a simple solution?
Post subject: Re: Help needed. CD insert printing from downloads.
I was thinking there was a larger image of Hip Pocket Jukebox, but the one I have is also quite small.
Hmmm...I shall investigate this for you tomorrow and see if there is an issue with the artwork format.
The artwork for many of the earlier albums were indeed uploaded as JPEG files rather than the PDF format which has been adopted on the later releases.
However, the JPEG artwork should print at the correct size (as will the PDF files) as long as the computer/printer settings are set to print at 'Actual size' or '100%' or however your computer settings are worded.
Regarding the 'Hip Pocket Jukebox' cover - if my memory serves me correctly (I may well be wrong here...) the CDs that were given out at the live show in Leeds had no artwork cover, just simply a printed (and autographed) CD label.
The cover art was added later for the download version, but was very low resolution.
My web-designer friend John Fisher, is currently looking at providing a higher-resolution image that we can use as the download artwork.
While I haven't used it in a while, years ago I purchased CDRLabel, a shareware program for printing labels.
I used it for plenty of cd's and it worked well.
The website looks old now and I don't know how well it works on newer version of Windows.
May be worth a try though - it wasn't expensive when I bought it. It will automatically size a jpeg to the right printable size. I think there used to be an option to print a number for free before registration.
Many thanks for taking the time to investigate Jon. Will give it a go and report back.
unfortunately i don't know if it works on windows 7&8 ?
Have had a Doh! moment and some fiddling about has got me sorted.
I'm using Windows 10 with all its "we know what you need better than you do" nonsense.
Doh! moment came when I realised the print was in portrait so changed it to landscape, nearly there but still too big.
So I resized as a 5X7 photo and selected fill page. Et volia! Still needs some trimming (more so than the PDFs) but I've made it work. Hurrah!!
Here in the States, I believe that I bought a package from Staples which had the software and cd labels as well as the cd inserts. I would then insert the art into the predetermined template and would be able to "right size" it. All was well and good until my cd burner went kabloowie. Then of course Staples discontinued the products, as there should be a template on MS Word that should suffice. The great part was that the cd labels had an adhesive backing on it, so you just peeled and placed. The finished products looked quite good. They fit the jewel boxes wonderfully, even the double disc ones.
There is also the issue of European sized paper or the US version.


text:
Other expressions for "to be the devil's advocate"?
Is there another way or expression to say:
He is the devil's advocate
I don't quite like this expression, and I don't know if it is a good idea to use it in a religious context.
phrase-requests expressions
Benjamin CrouzierBenjamin Crouzier
One plays devil's advocate. You could say that someone who is saying something for the sake of argument is just playing devil's advocate. – Jeremy Aug 30 '11 at 15:02
Are Satanists offended by this phrase? I've honestly been curious of this. – thomj1332 Jul 15 '17 at 21:25
You could say you are doing something for the sake of argument.
But, really, "devil's advocate" is a familiar phrase that few people take exception to. In fact, it's even used by religious people. For example,
During the canonization process of the Roman Catholic Church, the Promoter of the Faith (Latin: promotor fidei), popularly known as the Devil's advocate (Latin: advocatus diaboli), was a canon lawyer appointed by Church authorities to argue against the canonization of the candidate.
If those religious worthies may use the term, I don't see anything preventing you from doing likewise.
RobustoRobusto
In case this isn't clear, the term "Devil's Advocate" is religious in origin. It was eventually adopted for secular purposes, but it was created for a religious function - namely, the vetting process for sainthood. In fact, it is this religious dimension that gives the term such a rich etymology and meaning - the Advocate is performing due diligence in the service of ultimate good. – The Raven Aug 30 '11 at 14:13
I prefer @Robusto's response, but if you're still uncomfortable with the term, consider "opposition", "opposer", or "contrarian".
oosterwaloosterwal
"Contrarian" is too loaded with negative connotations for this purpose, to my mind. (Though that could just be me) – Andy Hunt Aug 31 '11 at 10:45
@AndyBursh: I agree that "contrarian" tends to be used in an unflattering way almost all the time--"devil's advocate" can be similarly unflattering. However, it's the only noun form I could think of with the same meaning as the preposition and adverb "contra", which simply means "against" or "opposed to." – oosterwal Aug 31 '11 at 11:23
I like "contrarian". I only really know the term from finance, so I'm not familiar with the mentioned negative connotations, but the definition provided at the linked site will fit the requirement quite well in many, though not all, "devil's advocate" cases. – Fletch Jul 2 '14 at 10:33
I would use words like "dissenter," or even "critic." These are functions performed by the "devil's advocate."
Tom AuTom Au
I think "dissenter" and "critic" usually mean that they argue against something because they disagree. In my experience the "devil's advocate" usually argues against something although he agrees, i.e. he argues it to ensure that it can be defended or to check for weaknesses. – Joachim Sauer Aug 30 '11 at 13:14
I would like to propose 2 things to consider: 1. I agree with Joachim Sauer. I always thought that when someone is the "devil's advocate" not necessarily means that he is 100% opposed to whatever is presented to him. 2. As to use it in a religious context, I think it will extremely awkward for a religious leader to use it or to become such. It is best to use an alternative expression: "I will be the final critic" "They have to convince me" Their argument must be very strong" etc. JF
J.FortJ.Fort
To illustrate that you are playing Devil's Advocate, you can also use "for argument's sake" when beginning a contrary view. I am just supplying another way to phrase it if someone is uncomfortable with using the former expression.
AnneAnne
Hi Anne; please note the accepted answer to this question (the first one, right below the question itself) offers "For argument's sake" as an alternative. In other words, this is a good, but duplicate, answer. – Dan Bron Sep 18 '14 at 16:16
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Wedding planning is naturally stressful. You could be the most chill, yoga practicing, namaste-ing bride on the planet, but I guarantee that something will stress you out while planning your wedding day. That "something" might come in the form of your parents, the wedding party, and even your guests; it should never come from you. Here are 10 things brides do to stress themselves out, and what they should be doing instead.
As stressful as the wedding planning process can be, a lot of brides like to relive the stress over and over again. They never check anything off their list, because they can't commit to any of their decisions. I have seen brides not only keep their "wedding gown" dress board on Pinterest live after getting the gown, but some brides keep adding to it.
You have the gown and now it's time to move on. Or maybe it's not the gown, and it's the venue or the floral style. Whatever it is, once it's done, you need to get out a black marker and cross it off the list. Disable any Pinterest board you have with inspiration if you've completed that item on the wedding planning to-do list. Looking at wedding gowns after you've already purchased your wedding gown, will only keep you wondering whether or not you made the right decision.
How do you stop planning stuff that you've already done? Don't commit to anything until your gut tells you to. It's important to leave enough time for each decision you make while wedding planning. If you rush your dress appointment or anything else, it's likely you'll wind up with buyer's remorse. Then you wind up wasting time (that you don't have) questioning your decisions and looking for other options.
You don't need to bring 18 of your besties with you to find your wedding gown or to any other appointments for that matter. We've all seen "Say Yes to the Dress", and you know how that works out, right? Oh, your bridesmaids aren't "like that"?
Look, I have worked with brides that had the best bridesmaids ever. Their squads were helpful, generous, friendly, and did everything a bridesmaid is supposed to do. But, full transparency here, that rarely actually happens.
Even if you do have that group of girls that is supportive AF, they all have their own stuff like schedules and opinions. This means you will run into issues trying to get everyone together on the same date and time. If you have multiple appointments for your gown and their wardrobe (and you will) then you have an even bigger challenge.
Along with juggling the availability of the people you want to attend appointments with you, dealing with their opinions is a whole other ordeal. If you're inviting people with you, that's basically opening the door for their comments about everything. After all, if you didn't care what they had to say, then why did you invite them? At least…that's how they will see it.
It's no different than venting to a friend about some drama you're going through: unless you preface the conversation with, "I just want you to listen and tell me I'm right", you're going to hear what they have to say. Now, personally, I have started many conversations like that, but that's just me. Regardless, telling anyone that is taking time out of their lives to be with you for anything wedding related, that they are just there to smile and agree with you, isn't acceptable.
Wedding Planner Tip: Most bridal salons and bridesmaid dress stores place a limit on the amount of people you can bring with you. Be sure to ask about that when making appointments.
Avoid the drama of dealing with schedules and opinions and attend appointments with 1-3 people closest to you such as your fiance, maid of honor, mom, sister, etc.
It's perfectly OK that you don't know how to plan a wedding or if you go into the process expecting everything to be easy. One of the most common things I hear from my clients when we're planning together is "I never thought about that". You're not supposed to think of those things if you don't plan weddings for a living, so don't be hard on yourself.
That said, even if you don't ask, you will be getting advice from lots of people. Your friend that just got married 5 minutes ago and now knows everything about wedding planning and your aunt that read something in a wedding magazine 20 years ago will have something to say…as will plenty of others. Usually, these people are coming from a good place and have the best of intentions. There's something about weddings that just make people want to get involved and help.
Advice from outsiders can quickly get overwhelming and often times, it's conflicting. Either it's not the same from one person to the next, or it's not the same as what you know or read. Between unsolicited advice and advice you flat out asked for, the "help" you receive can do more harm than good.
If you're doing your own research and reading wedding blogs (like this one) then you're getting another set of opinions to think about. I'm not going to downplay online research, especially since I write a wedding planning blog, but there is a lot of misinformation out there. It's important to consider the source of the information and who their audience is. For instance, this blog is written by a wedding planner (hi there) and all of my advice comes from a place of experience.
You wouldn't rely on WebMd to figure out if you had strep throat or just a cold, and you shouldn't believe everything you read on the internet about wedding planning tips either.
You can help keep unsolicited advice at a minimum by being direct with those giving it. Express that you appreciate the help, but that you and your fiance have everything under control. Make sure you're not constantly asking "what do you think?" if you want others to keep opinions to themselves. Because if you open that door, expect people to walk on through it.
Planning a wedding is a very exciting time in your life; the operative words in that sentence are "your life". The lives of those around you don't just stop because you are getting ready for the best day ever. It's not always easy to keep perspective, especially when dealing with any of the major issues during the planning process. That doesn't mean that you get to ignore them though.
I'm a pretty big believer that most brides who become bridezillas, do so because of outside influences. Actually, I believe that everyone is who they are today because of instances in their lives up to this point. However, a big part of who a person is, has to do with all of their decisions that they are responsible for.
No matter what you are going through as a bride, those people around you are also going through their own stuff. They do not want to only hear from you about wedding stuff. Be honest with yourself: do you ask others how they are doing? When you ask them, is it just to be polite so you can go into your current wedding drama? When was the last time you took a day off from wedding planning to have lunch with a friend and just listened to them?
Let's go to the next level with this one: When is the last time you spent time with your fiance without discussing anything about your wedding? Do you have to think about it? Then it's been too long.
The world was spinning before you got engaged and it will be spinning after you get married. If you're not careful, the relationships you go into your engagement with, will all change if you think that world only revolves around you.
It doesn't matter how thin or fit my brides are, because the majority of them will change their diet, hit the gym more, or even hire a personal trainer before the big day. The need to look our best for the wedding day is understandable, but it's so important to be realistic.
A big part of being realistic, is ordering the wedding gown for the size that you are when they take your measurements. Oh, you don't like that size? You're not really that size in every single dress you've ever worn in your life?
The size of the wedding gown means absolutely nothing and it certainly doesn't mean you're fat. In fact, if you're sensitive about it, tell the bridal salon you don't want to know the numbers.
You will likely be asked for your dress size as well, and this is not a place to lie. Lying includes giving the size that you are determined to get to by the wedding date. Ladies, you have to order the dress in the size you actually are at the appointment. I seriously cannot emphasize this enough.
And no, it doesn't matter if you have 2 months or 2 years until the wedding day and all the time you know you will need to get to your ideal size. A little thing like life and a major thing like wedding planning will get together and destroy those plans.
Still not convinced? Your wedding gown will arrive at the store 2-3 months before your wedding date, when you will be set up for your first fitting. Many gowns cannot be "let out" to fit you if they are too tight once they come in. That means you'll either have to spend a fortune in alternative alterations, select a new dress (off the rack because it's too late to order one now) or commit to that diet and gym plan you meant to implement and combine it will starvation due to limited time.
Don't get to that first fitting crossing your fingers that the zipper actually zips. It is far easier to take a gown in and remove fabric than it is to make it bigger to fit you.
By the way, you're already beautiful. Yes. You.
If you're anything like the brides I work with, you're involved in or attending up to a dozen weddings before your own. That might seem like something out of a Hallmark movie as you and your besties will all be planning at the same time. Unfortunately, it pretty much never works out that way.
Both are bad. This isn't a "lesser of two evils" type of thing either, and it's all about how you manage it.
Let's say you have someone in your circle planning a wedding that is the complete opposite of anything you would ever want. Many brides fall into the trap of criticizing that bride and her wedding details. They do exactly what they hate that others are doing to them. Some brides can't help themselves and after cringing over the details of how the opposite bride is planning, they end up giving advice on how things should be done.
By "should", I mean, how they are doing it.
Then there are the brides planning weddings with similar details to your own. This scenario gets played out more often than the first one as brides subconsciously spend more time with people like them than not. It's very easy for a bride to start wondering if her friend stole wedding planning ideas that she had or was even outright copying her.
Keep your wedding ideas and everything you're planning to yourself. Who are you using for vendors? You haven't decided. What colors are you using? You're still discussing it. Bob and weave through wedding planning questions and switch the subject by asking about their wedding plans.
Then watch how fast they switch the subject about the weather.
And don't think you'll always be asked the question in the first place.
Look, I understand not wanting to come across as a bridezilla but, it's your wedding. There are unreasonable requests and there are just regular requests. The best way to tell if you're being unreasonable? People that wonder if they're being unreasonable aren't unreasonable. It's the same idea about being crazy…the crazy people never think they're crazy and they certainly don't wonder if it's a possibility.
You might know everything you want for your wedding, not have any idea, or fall somewhere in between. One thing you will always know is what you don't like. Never go to contract with a vendor that you don't like but can tolerate. Remember that part about buyer's remorse I mentioned earlier in this blog? Go read it again.
The same idea applies to anything you make decisions on: flowers, wardrobe, etc. There is a serious financial obligation behind every wedding, even the most minimal ones. You do not want to look back on your wedding and wish you had spoken about about something you didn't like. Who wants to look at pictures of a bouquet that didn't love but didn't say anything about?
Wedding Planner Tip: The people working your wedding want to hear from you and will appreciate your feedback. Be direct and polite, and make sure to speak up as soon as there's an issue. If you wait too long, sometimes there isn't enough time to fix the problem.
While it is always important to voice your opinion and make sure you are getting what you want for the wedding day, expecting perfection is a recipe for disaster. At the end of the day, the wedding isn't about the dress or the flowers; it's about two people that found each other in a sea of 7 billion people. I talk about exactly that in my Huffington Post article here, which I recommend you read anytime you lose sight of what a wedding is all about.
There are thousands of details that go into that one day. It's one day, no second chances to get it right, and something always goes wrong. Your ability to accept things for what they are will make all the difference. That isn't to say you are expected to keep calm if a hurricane sweeps through on the wedding day, but you make the choice about how you feel.
Is it worth a total meltdown if your ceremony starts late? What about if guests are complaining to you (oh and they will) about where they are sitting/eating/literally anything else? Why let that affect your day? You found the one person you want to spend the rest of your life with and, bonus, they want to spend the rest of their life with you too.
That's the beginning, middle and end of it really.
Wedding planning requires a lot of these things: emails, phone calls and appointments. Throw in a full time job and life obligations, and it's not always easy to fit in everything. Add to that any travel time you have to do, and reserving an entire day for a bunch of appointments instead of 2 or 3, becomes less realistic.
Wedding Planner Tip: Venues and vendors keep standard business hours but will frequently offer evening hours during the week to accommodate the work schedules of their clients. However, weekends are hard to come by as that's when the weddings take place.
When you are scheduling any of your appointments, it's important to schedule them as far in advance as possible. Requesting an appointment for the same week isn't a good planning strategy. Make sure you have 3 available options, with different dates and times, and call for those appointments at least a week in advance.
If your only availability for some or all of your appointments is just weekends, then you will need to leave an even longer amount of time ahead of setting these up. Weekends can book up to 4 weeks in advance, especially at bridal salons, so prepare dates with that in mind.
It's also important to find out the availability or office hours of everyone you'll need to talk to or meet with. Requesting a meeting with four date options, when three of them are outside office hours, is the same as presenting one option. If it's not clear when a vendor is available, find that out when signing the contract.
Keep in mind that you will have to take some time off from work every once in awhile when planning a wedding. It might not be necessary until the week of the wedding, but it's important to be open to that idea.
There are times when you'll find that the first time in a day you can even think about wedding planning is 11pm. You can send as many emails and leave as many voicemails as you want at that time, but nothing will be answered until the next day…and if the next day is another "can't get to it until 11pm" day, you'll wind up dragging out simple things that could've been handled at a time when everyone needed was available.
Deadlines come up more frequently in wedding planning than you might think. Think about your own job; how annoying is it when you need to drop everything you're doing because someone just got you information you needed in order to finish a task before a deadline of tomorrow? Wouldn't it have been easier if you had that information you needed a few days earlier, instead of at the 11th hour forcing you to inconvenience yourself to get it done?
Problems you can't address until 11pm that night…i.e. past the deadline.
No one wants rain on their wedding day. Brides don't care if it means good luck if it means bad pictures. And you're not going to want to hear this but: The weather will be what it's going to be on your wedding day.
Sorry to break it to you, but this is one detail you have no control of. Can you select a wedding date during a month with less rain than others? Absolutely. Preparation is great.
Tell that to all of the brides in the NYC Metro area that picked a September wedding date this year because "it never rains in September". On average, 21 days are sunny in September, yet over 6 inches of rain fell within the month. September and October have become the two most popular months for weddings in this area, largely due to the beautiful weather we experience then.
Basically, it's not supposed to rain, yet rain it did. A lot.
I have planned with brides that send me the Farmer's Almanac report a full 3 months out from their wedding date. That isn't borderline crazy, it's just crazy. You literally cannot do anything about it. You picked the date you picked, and even with the odds in your favor, sometimes you still pick the wrong football team to win. Thank you so much Chicago.
The point is, you can prepare, but that's all you can do. The weather is out of your hands and you have to work on accepting that fact very early on. Give yourself time to process that the weather will be what it will be, so that once the wedding date gets closer, you're not reading The Farmer's Almanac. Then, the week of the wedding and the day of the wedding, make weather related decisions with your head and the assistance of those working the big day.
Wedding Planner Tip: When hosting any portion of your wedding outside, including photos, always have a back-up plan. Make sure you discuss and understand how a location change will affect the timing and consider creating two timelines just to play it safe. For help doing this, contact us right here.
As much as I wish the wedding planning process was all unicorns and rainbows, a lot of times, my clients have their patience and even their sanity tested. When dealing with so many outside factors, it's important to remember that you can't control others, but you can control how you feel and react. You also can control yourself from self-sabotage by not being your own worst enemy.
What do you think about my list of ways that brides take away their own joy? Are you guilty of any of these or did I leave something out? Share your biggest personal struggle in the comments for other brides to see, and let them know they're not alone.


Israeli forces opened fire at Palestinian farmers, on Sunday morning, in several areas along the eastern borders of the besieged Gaza Strip.
According to local sources, Israeli forces opened fire at Palestinian farmers, while working in their lands, east of Beit Hanoun town, in northern Gaza.
IDF forces fired at Palestinians approaching the #Gaza border fence near Beit Hanoun. Reports of 1 injured.
Sources confirmed that one farmer was injured by Israeli forces and transferred to the Beit Hanoun Hospital to receive necessary medical treatment.
#BREAKING #Gaza media report that the #IDF has opened fire against 'youths' near the border with #Israel at Beit Hanoun. According to them, 1 was wounded.


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Empowering Women In STEM
Through Networking and Outreach
Welcome to New Mexico Network for Women in Science and Engineering
Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) careers are some of the fastest-growing opportunities in today's job market, as well as some of the highest-paying professions, yet women account for only 28 percent of the professionals filling those jobs, with the majority employed in the healthcare industry. According to a 2018 PEW Research Center study (Diversity in the STEM workforce varies widely across jobs), women comprise 75 percent of healthcare practitioners and technicians but only 25 percent of those employed in computer occupations (down from 32 percent in 1990), 14 percent of those in engineering and 17 percent of the life and physical scientists. Minority women representation is even worse, with black women representing only nine percent of the STEM workforce and Hispanic women seven percent. The pay gap also exists in STEM industries, with the median income for women ranging from 74 percent to 87 percent of what men employed in those professions earn.
New Mexico Network for Women in Science and Engineering (NMNWSE) has been working to decrease that gender gap since its founding 43 years ago, through its commitment to supporting and advocating for women in technical professions and by encouraging young girls to pursue STEM education and STEM-related careers. Although change has come at a glacial pace, the number of women employed in STEM-related fields is slowly increasing.
When NMNWSE was founded, few women studied for STEM careers and female STEM faculty were virtually nonexistent. Women seldom received encouragement from their professors and were seldom awarded scholarship money. Many who entered college pursuing a STEM degree dropped out or changed their major. Those who made it into the workforce often found themselves isolated in hostile environments.
One board member recalls being the only woman to get a Ph.D. in Chemistry in a three-year period, with no female professors in the program. She was the lone technical woman when she was hired by the U.S. Air Force, describing those early years working in her field as "some pretty harsh environments." She discovered the fledgling NMNWSE during that time and was soon inspiring young girls to enter technical fields by volunteering to teach laser workshops.
There has been significant progress in removing barriers for women over the past half-century, but women still face challenges their male colleagues do not encounter, despite the fact that the importance of having women in science and engineering fields is finally being recognized. Studies have shown that diverse research teams are more likely to come up with new ideas and perspectives and to outperform homogeneous teams. It has also been proven that scientific research is more accurate when gender is considered.
NMNWSE was founded to help remove barriers to women entering technical fields and to provide a supportive environment for women to succeed, a mission we are committed to now and into the future.
One of the most rewarding aspects of our organization is providing workshops, conferences and awards for young girls to encourage their passion for STEM and STEM careers. This focus on lifting up the next generation of scientists and engineers has been an important part of NMNWSE's mission since shortly after its founding. Young women taking their first steps into their STEM careers have also found support and mentorship from other members.
Donations: You can help NMNWSE's continuing efforts to encourage young girls' interest in STEM and STEM careers through your financial support. Your donations allow us to organize and fund these events and awards. We greatly appreciate your support!
Volunteers: Volunteers are needed to help organize existing conferences and to create conference opportunities. If you are interested in volunteering within your local area, please reach out to NMNWSE State STEM Chair, Cheri Burch, via email at NMNWSE_Board-L@list.unm.edu
New Mexico Network for Women in Science and Engineering is a volunteer, professional organization that strives to connect women across New Mexico who have a passion for their chosen fields in science and engineering – inclusive of all areas within STEM and allied professions. NM Network members strive to make their communities stronger and embrace the development of programs for women that foster growth and empowerment through STEM-related disciplines and educational experiences.
The National Museum of Nuclear Science and History is pleased to announce that we are now accepting applications for our Outstanding STEM Student Award. Recipients of the award are invited to attend […]
"I joined and continue to belong to the Network because I believe in its mission to encourage girls to pursue STEM education and STEM-related careers. The rewards have proven to be much more than reaching thousands of girls. They have been the incredible women that I have met and had the opportunity to learn from and share life's journey, both professionally and personally."
-Jeanne Banks, NMNWSE Treasurer
We want to thank the following sponsors for their continued support to New Mexico's STEM conferences!


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Education • Funders
TI Foundation announces $4.6M grant to Educate Texas to immerse more than 10,000 students in K-12 STEM learning
by FWD501cReporter
Written by FWD501cReporter
The Texas Instruments (TI) Foundation, Educate Texas and the Richardson Independent School District (RISD) announced a partnership to create a science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) feeder pattern within the Lloyd V. Berkner High School attendance zone, which includes 16 schools serving more than 10,000 students from 80 different countries. The TI Foundation will give $4.6 million over the next three years to Educate Texas, the public-private initiative of Communities Foundation of Texas, to work with RISD to implement a "STEM for All" concept. The intent is to reshape the teaching and learning of these subjects across all grade levels to better prepare students from pre-K through 12th grade within the Berkner feeder schools for postsecondary and workforce success.
A similar grant was bestowed upon Lancaster ISD in 2012. Because of the success of the Lancaster ISD STEM district, the TI Foundation and Educate Texas worked together over the past year to assess candidates from other north Texas districts to extend the concept. After a competitive grant proposal process, RISD was selected based on the strong commitment of its superintendent, school board and the Richardson Chamber of Commerce, as well as the opportunity to execute on the concept through a larger school district's feeder pattern comprised of largely under-represented students.
The "STEM for All" mission reflects RISD's commitment to prepare students for careers of tomorrow by embedding STEM concepts and experiences in their learning journey, from pre-kindergarten through high school graduation.
"STEM is not something we do, it's who we are, which is why RISD strives to inspire our students from their very first day of school to explore and cultivate their interests to pursue a career pathway through a STEM culture," said Jeannie Stone, Ed.D., superintendent of RISD.
While the grant has the long-term aim of creating a stronger skilled STEM workforce for North Texas, the near-term goal over the next three years will be focused on helping RISD build and implement the "STEM for All" concept in the classroom. This includes:
Teacher professional development that focuses on project-based STEM training and is supported by dedicated STEM coaches, as well as the opportunity for a master's degree.
Greater student engagement and relevancy through project-based learning as well as extracurricular STEM clubs, competitions, and STEM-based community engagement and outreach.
A rigorous, contextual-based curriculum and instruction that centers on college-and career-readiness that will increase opportunities for accelerated learning options, such as Advanced Placement® (AP) courses and dual-credit coursework.
The grant will also help the district to work with post-secondary education partners in business and industry to ensure relevancy and sustainability of the concept.
ABOUT EDUCATE TEXAS
Launched in 2004 as Texas High School Project, Educate Texas, a public-private initiative of Communities Foundation of Texas, is dedicated to ensuring Texas students have the guidance and resources needed to graduate high school ready for college and career success. We bring together key organizations committed to improving education in Texas, working with school districts, community colleges, technical schools and regional universities to implement programs and practices promoting postsecondary readiness, access and success for all students. Educate Texas' public-private partners include: the Texas Education Agency, Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, Governor's Office, Texas Legislature, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Michael & Susan Dell Foundation, The Meadows Foundation, and Greater Texas Foundation. For more information, please visit: edtx.org.
ABOUT RICHARDSON ISD
Richardson ISD has been a leading school district in Texas since its establishment in 1854. Covering more than 43 square miles, its 54 schools span the cities of Richardson, Dallas and Garland. Traditions of excellence, high parent expectations and exceptional community support have all contributed to the district's consistent academic success. RISD's mission is to serve and prepare each of its more than 39,000 students for their global futures. For more information, please visit risd.org.
ABOUT THE TEXAS INSTRUMENTS FOUNDATION
The Texas Instruments Foundation, founded in 1964, is a non-profit organization solely funded by Texas Instruments providing philanthropic support for educational and charitable purposes primarily in the communities where TI operates. Committed to supporting educational excellence, the foundation works to create measurable, replicable programs and initiatives. The focus is on providing knowledge, skills and programs to improve STEM education and increase the percentage of high school graduates who are math and science capable. More information can be found at ti.com/giving.
North Texas NonProfits receive funding as part of Texas Wildlife and Parks Department's Community Outdoor Outreach Program
Dallas County Promise to receive $3M in funding from JPMorgan Chase
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High Covid Cases Force Fort Worth Museum to Close to Public December 30, 2020
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Inspiring, influential, and moving. these are just a few words to describe the speakers at yesterday's G is for Goddess event which we had the pleasure of attending and photographing. Created and organized by the wonderful Madeleine Shaw & Suzanne Siemens, the social entrepreneurs and business partners who brought us LunaPads & Pads4Girls.
The event was inspired by the one they created earlier this year, G Day for Girls, which hosted girls 10-12 years of age, but this one is geared towards women. From the wisdom and insight of Nikiah Seeds, Lucca Hallex, and Devi Ward to the talents of the amazing singer Suzann Kingston, it was a powerful evening filled with joy, laughter, enlightenment, and inspiration.
WOW, these are gorgeous!!! Thank you so much.
You're most welcome Suzanne :) I really enjoyed the event last night and you ladies did a fabulous job! Lots of great moments!
Wonderful pix!! Thanks so much for sharing!


Silicone lubricants retain their lubrication for longer than water based lubricant so are much better for using in wet areas like the shower.
The king of all lubricants! Silicone lubes retain their lubrication better and longer than water based lubricants and are highly concentrated so a little goes a very long way. Perfect for massage and as they are not water based will even work under water making them ideal for use in the bath, shower or hot tub etc. ID Millennium is a 100% pure grade silicone lubricant. Remember, do not use a silicone lube with any silicone toys!


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Home BUSINESS Old Naira Notes: CSOs Backs CBN, Knocks Senate Call For Extension Of...
Old Naira Notes: CSOs Backs CBN, Knocks Senate Call For Extension Of Deposits Till June 30th, 2023
The Congress of Civil Society Organizations in Nigeria, (CCSON) has Condemned Senate call and demand for the extention of the deposit of the old naira Notes to 30th June, 2023,
In a press statement signed by the National Chairman and Secretary of the Congress of Civil Society Organizations in Nigeria, Comr. Festus Okoineme Ebhohimhen and Shehu Ibrahim respectively released on 1st January, 2023 in a new year message.
Sequel to the call and demand of the Senate to Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN to shift the deadline for the deposit of the old naira Notes to the banks till 30th June, 2023. According to the statement of the congress of civil society organizations in Nigeria the aims and objectivesof the CBN to introduce this policy is curb cash stacks, hoarding and vote buying in the forthcoming of the general elections and general fight against corruption.
If the senate keep having unnecessary interference on the constitutional mandate of the CBN to Cary its functions and roles. This public and people oriented policy of fighting against corruption and cash hoarding will be defeated. "CBN, by law, has a mandate to reissue and redesign currency for the country and for Nigerians every five to eight years.
READ ALSO : Old Naira Notes: Senate Demands Extension Of CBN Deadline To June 30th, 2023
The Congress of Civil Society Organizations in Nigeria commended the CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele and his team, for working tirelessly to make the currency redesign a reality and for printing the new naira notes within a comparatively short time."
CCSON said acknowledging that international best practice requires central banks and national authorities to issue new or redesigned currency notes every five to eight years, the President noted that it was almost 20 years since the last major redesign of the country's local currency was done.
According to the CSOs, these are the reasons CBN redesigned naira notes as released by the Apex Bank
The Central Bank of Nigeria, Governor, Godwin Emefiele said that existing notes would seize to be regarded as legal tender by January 31, 2023.
Here are, however, four reasons the CBN decided to redesign the naira notes:
1. The Naira note was redesigned to address the issue of individuals who have made currency fraud their main source of income. People who have hidden money they have stolen, for instance, would either find a way to change it by taking the money out or would not need it given the change in the value of the Naira.
3. The change in the notes is also said to aid in lowering the rate of inflation.
4. The change in the Naira notes is also intended to control the amount of money in circulation.
Why is this redesign happening?
According to the CBN, there is a lot of hoarding of naira notes by members of the public. This means that people are holding on to money without spending it!
"As at the end of September 2022, available data at the CBN indicate that N2.73 trillion out of the N3.23 trillion currency in circulation, was outside the vaults of commercial banks across the country; and supposedly held by the public."
But there is more! the CBN has other concerns that have necessitated the redesign of these naira notes.
READ ALSO : Re-design Naira: Reactions As CBN Says It Doesn't Know Quantities Of New Notes Printed
The Bank stated that there is a shortage of clean and fit naira notes in circulation. This shortage has also come with a security risk because it has led to a rise in counterfeiting especially the N500 and N1,000 notes.
Finally, the naira notes have not been redesigned for over 20 years. This goes against global best practices that require currency to be redesigned every 5 to 8 years.
Because of this policy, bank charges for cash deposits have been suspended with immediate effect. This means you can deposit as much as you want without any bank charges.
When is the deadline to return naira notes?
You have till the 31st of January 2023 to return existing N200, N500 and N1,000 naira notes.
What does it mean for my business?
Keep an eye out for fraudsters who may want to make bulk purchases using fake currency. Carefully inspect naira notes to ensure that they are genuine.
If you run a business in a rural area that is a distance from a bank, it is wise to make your cash deposit early so you can avoid the stress and crowd that will accompany the deadline.
Communicate this information to your customers so they are aware and take action.
Prioritise using digital channels like USSD, mobile apps and internet banking for your payments instead of keeping a lot of cash in your possession.
Get a POS to accept card payments for your business and enable faster customer service.
From the reasons stated above, Congress of Civil Society Organizations in Nigeria urged the Nigerian senate to allow the Central Bank of Nigeria to operate and carry out its constitutional Mandate without fear or favor to function effectively and efficiently.
The deadline already put in place by CBN is a enough for anyone who wants to deposit the old naira notes in the bank, from the beginning of the announcement of the policy on 26th October to the 31st of January, 2023 is more than ninety days or three months. There is no need for anybody to think that this programme is targeted at anyone. Rather is a better strategy to strengthen the stability of the naira, fight corruption and cash hoarding. The statement reads.
CBN Naira
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Indian flag, Maldives flag
Kerala floods: Maldives stands in solidarity with India
Male` [Maldives], August 20 (ANI): The Government of Maldives on Monday extended help to India by donating USD 50,000 for the ongoing rescue and relief operations in the flood-hit southern state of Kerala.
"At this time of national distress, the Government of Maldives conveys profound sympathies to the Government and the people of India, in particular to those directly affected by the tragedy, as well as commiserations to the members of the bereaved families," read the statement issued by the Government of Maldives.
A many as 357 people lost their lives in India's Kerala state so far. Kerala has been hit by the worst flooding in a century. The deluge has also caused a loss to the tune of Rs 19,512 crore to the southern state. (ANI)


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Q: Reference to Developer Story when Editing User Profiles on all Sites except Stack Overflow When editing your user profile on any site except Stack Overflow, there is still a mention to the developer story in the Private Information section, next to the Full Name text box:

Since Developer Stories have been removed, this message should also. This image was taken from my Arqade profile, and my Super User and Pets profile also still show this message, so it seems to be present on all sites.  Stack Overflow does not have this message.

A: Oops! We had this warning behind a feature flag that was only flipped on Stack Overflow on accident. We've flipped it across the network so it shouldn't be displayed anymore.