text:
Bahamas: Prepare for unimaginable information: Actual death toll expected to be in thousands, 70,000 people need food and shelter, 6,600 people still missing
Photo Nymag.com
A Dutch Marine friend of mine, stationed in Willemstad, Curacao sent me a clip from the local newspaper last night, the Knipselkrant Curacao, regarding the desperate state of the Bahamas, just days after the cat 5 Hurrican Dorian destroyed the islands.
Finally, aid to the Bahamas is starting to get going. On Saturday 84 extra marines flew from the Netherlands and France to the area. Meanwhile, a British ship RFA Mounts Bay is also active and there is also help from its own naval ships. However, it is a race against time, 70,000 people need food and shelter and thousands are missing. For the time being, the death toll is 43, but it is expected that many more people died because 6,600 people were reported missing. Link
The official death toll now stands at 45, however, the actual death toll is expected to be in thousands according to the local newspaper, the Bahamas Press.
NASSAU| Observers on the ground are now telling Bahamas Press that over 3,000 residents on Grand Bahama and ABACO could be confirmed dead in the aftermath of Hurricane Dorian. The numbers are "staggering" just as the Minister of Health Dr. Duane Sands suggested last week. The government though continues to confirm the number to be a mere 45 confirmed victims in one of the deadliest disasters on record in the Bahamas. That number is far much higher.The public needs to prepare for unimaginable information about the death toll and the human suffering," Sands told local radio. Reports from survivors also point to a much higher death toll. "I've seen dead bodies. I've seen bodies of people crushed by debris, hanging out [of] windows. It's not good," Brian Symonette, who lived on Abaco, told Time magazine. "I've seen seven dead bodies under a [shipping] container.…" Kristoff Strachan, a resident of Grand Bahama, told MSNBC, "We're hearing stories of buses being filled with bodies and body bags. It's a lot." Full story
Desperation mounts in the Bahamas as shelters turn evacuees away Meanwhile, government officials said they were helping all evacuees and considering building temporary housing, perhaps tent or container cities. "We are dealing with a disaster," said Carl Smith, spokesman for the Bahamas' National Emergency Management Agency. "It takes time to move through the chaos. We are responding to their needs." The government has estimated that up to 10,000 people from the Abacos alone will need food, water and temporary housing.


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Yorkshire Family Witness Chainsaw Death
A South Yorkshire man bled to death in front of his wife and teenage daughter after he accidentally cut his throat with a chainsaw.
Police confirmed an inquest had been opened and adjourned into the death of 62-year-old Peter Conway, who died on December 23 in Brierley.
He is believed to have stumbled in his back garden while testing the saw he was going to lend to a friend. His wife, Joanne Eland, and daughter, Trudy, looked on in horror as he slipped on to the blade.
A South Yorkshire Police spokeswoman said the incident is not being treated as suspicious.
Mr Conway's wife and daughter ran to help him but he could not survive his terrible injuries, which included a severed artery in his throat.
His wife told reporters: "Trudy's coping better than me, she's been a rock. I don't think it has really hit her.
"I don't know why his friend wanted the chainsaw but if anyone wanted something from Peter he had to do it straight away.''
Mr Conway also had two grown-up children from a previous relationship.
Just two weeks before the accident the emphysema and bronchitis sufferer had left hospital. When he was in good health he had climbed Ben Nevis.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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text:
Q: In React Navgiation 3, how to push a screen from a different stack and pop back to the calling screen I am using react-navigation 3. I have the following routers:
const StackA = createStackNavigator(
 {
   MainA: MainA,
   AddA: AddA,
 },
 {
   initialRouteName: 'MainA'
 }
);

const StackB = createStackNavigator(
 {
   MainB: MainB,
   DetailsB: DetailsB,
 },
 {
   initialRouteName: 'MainB'
 }
);

const TabNav = createBottomTabNavigator(
  {
     A: StackA,
     B: StackB
  }
)

I am in screen DetailsB and I want to push a AddA screen.  According to docs, I can navigate to StackA and push the AddA screen using the NavigationActions and StackActions like so:
        const navigateAction = NavigationActions.navigate({
        routeName: 'StackA',
        params: {},
        action: StackActions.push({
            routeName: 'AddA',
            params: {
                someParam: someData,
            }
        })
    });
    this.props.navigation.dispatch(navigateAction);

The AddAscreen has a Cancel button and I want to pop the screen and go back to the DetailsB screen.  If I use a StackActions.pop() in AddA, it pops back to the MainA screen instead.
Any guidance on how to implement this?

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Archéologie du Judaïsme
by Eliott Maintigneux
The presence of Jewish people, although it was considered a minority, is very old in France and Europe : it dates back to the first centuries of our era. Jewish people were integrated in cities and villages, participating to the common life of mainly christian populations. Merchants, bankers, doctors, horse-dealers, but also prominent intellectuals, the Jewish people of the Middle Ages actively participated in the society of which they were an important component. But between the 13th and 15th century, Jewish people are being expelled out of most European countries.
Yet, the European history, and particularly the French history, reduces or ignores this Jewish presence. Today, thanks to archeology, especially preventive archeology, we find traces of the forgotten Jewish communities, in France but also in Germany, Spain, Italy or elsewhere. During the past two decades, multiples discoveries have permitted the enrichment of the cartography of the Jewish presence in Europe. Every archeological dig permits to give life back to this history that was, until then, only accessible through texts. Archeologists, but also epigraphists, anthropologists and historians, are studying the floor's archives in order to revive those communities whose existence has largely been ignored until now.
We want to meet them, in order to describe a new history of the Jewish presence in Europe.
Length 52 min
Release 2019
© 2022 éléazar productions


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Q: Increase size of the system partition On my Windows 10 PC, I have a 465.76 GB disk of which (in that very order) 390.18 GB are System (C:), 450 MB are Recovery, and 75.14 GB are unused.
I now want to increase the size of C: but from diskmgmt.msc, I cannot do anything with the Recovery partition, and it blocks my way.
Do I have a possibility to increase the size of the system partition, using only Windows tools?

A: This cannot be done while the system is running.
To achieve what you want to do you must boot from Recovery/Installation media such as a Windows 10 USB or DVD and use it to modify the partition table while your install is offline.
NB: As always, back up before doing anything potentially destructive like this.


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We are blessed to have our meal everyday. But there are thousands of people suffer to find their everyday meal to survive. Why we do not value the blessing that we have? Food wasting is common in many houses. Here we can start to spread the word to not to waste food. At least few among us will start to think about it. This is a challenge. But as a community who love cooking & looking for new recipe ideas, we can start spreading ideas for minimizing food wastage.
With that in my mind, I thought of collecting ideas & recipes from you all & to organize a Blog event. As usual a Blog event will end up with a recipe round up. However I am planning to do the round up & also collect all entries to an e-book which can be distributed freely. Even via email to our friends & also via my newsletter which I am planning to start in near future. The aspect is to spread the word 'Not to waste food' among people starting from our family.
I hope you all will participate with this.
This is how the event is going on.
Think how we can reduce food wasting in our kitchen.
It can be a new recipe to use leftover cooked food/leftover uncooked ingredients or it can be menu planning. Simple food storing tips will help to reduce waste too. There may have shocking stories/experience that you have faced & converted you to not to waste food. Send me those as entries to the event. Email it to me even it is a few words food tip.
Send the entries to slfoodcorner@gmail.com with following details.
Send as many as recipes & tips.
Wherever possible, use the event badge in your Blog posts with a link to this post. If you do not have a blog, simply share this post in your facebook page or personal account. This is just to spread the word of this theme. But not mandatory.
Closing date is October 31st.Hope I will receive enough entries from you.
Again, this is a challenge!!
Love your food-Don't waste it!!
Hey great idea.Count me in.
great idea !!! Will send my entries …….
wow!! I am so happy with these replies!!! waiting to see all your entries….
That is a very thoughtful event… I will send mine for sure..
Nice theme! Thanks for the invite. Will try to participate.
wonderful idea and really loved the theme and concept, a great initiative Amy, thanx for stopping by my space and will surely send my recipe soon..
Amy,,,I have a lot of recipe from leftover on my blog,so ,,,yup i will choose some of them this week to participate,and thanks for the invite.
Thanks dear all,I am waiting for your entries….
This is indeed a lovely event.. not just creating something interesting with left over but in also creating awareness of how not to waste food and appreciate how blessed we all are..:) Loved it.
Thanks for visiting my blog and for your kind words, otherwise I would have missed your blog..
Will surely send in some entries..
Hey! sent in my entry.


Palo Habera and Team Team are making a big tour of the Czech Republic. The team on the last line saw sales outlets in 2016, excellent fans and critics. The band is very pleased to be in touch with their faithful listeners and is carefully preparing for the concerts. Fans who have visited their show in the past know exactly what to expect from a TEAM concert.


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The South African Small Business Awards recognises the tireless journey, hard work, outstanding achievements and vision of Small Business and Entrepreneurial Success. It is a celebration of the most outstanding businesses and the exceptional business people behind these successful and growing businesses!
Entry into the South African Small Business Awards is the ultimate recognition for every business owner and entrepreneur. It is the springboard to enhanced business success.
The South African Small Business Awards is a springboard to enhanced business success. Find out a little more about the awards and see a summary of just how it works.
Who are the 2018 Champions?
The Top 20 and National Winners were announced at the NSBC Gala Breakfast to be hosted at The Barnyard, Silverstar Casino, Jo'burg on Thursday, 08 November 2018.
Local community radio station, HOT 91.9 FM bagged three awards at this prestigious event.
The National Small Business Chamber (NSBC) is dedicated to the success of Small Business South Africa, and will help you to grow, learn, network, connect, be inspired and have fun! Register as a member today and take advantage of all the incredible offers and opportunities.


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LEGO Marvel Avengers
PLAYSTATION 3. Avengers Assemble! The best-selling LEGO Marvel videogame franchise returns with a brand new action-packed, Super Hero adventure. LEGO Marvel's Avengers features characters and storylines from the critical...
PLAYSTATION 3. As Commander Shepard, rise to become the galaxy's most elite soldier and lead an all-out war to stop an ancient and ruthless enemy: the Reapers. With over 75 hours of content and more than 300 awards, one ...
Call of duty, Black ops. 3
Call of Duty: Black Ops III deploys its players into a future where bio-technology has enabled a new breed of Black Ops soldier. Players are now always on and always connected to the intelligence grid and their fellow op...
Naruto shippuden. Ultimate ninja. Storm. 3
PLAYSTATION 3. The critically acclaimed NARUTO SHIPPUDEN: Ultimate Ninja STORM series is back in 2013 on PS3, celebrating the return of highly awaited boss battles and welcoming brand new features to revamp the game expe...
The amazing Spider-Man. 2
PLAYSTATION 3. What started out as the search for a killer very quickly becomes something so much more. In a unique story set alongside the events of the second film, Spider-Man discovers he's not the only one tracking d...
PLAYSTATION 3. Following the epic storylines of Jurassic Park, The Lost World: Jurassic Park and Jurassic Park III, as well as the highly anticipated Jurassic World, LEGO Jurassic World is the first videogame where playe...
Cars 3 driven to win.
Start your engines and gear up for an all-new action-packed adventure in Cars 3: Driven to Win inspired by Disney Pixar's film, Cars 3. Join Lightning McQueen and Cruz Ramirez as they prepare for a rematch against rival ...
LEGO Harry Potter. Years 1-4
PLAYSTATION 3. LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4 brings the action, adventure and fun of the first 4 stories in the Harry Potter catalog to the video game screen in the way only the LEGO franchise can. Featuring all your favo...
Crysis. 3
PLAYSTATION 3. Crysis 3 is a First-Person Shooter (FPS) set within a frightening future New York City. The game is a sequel to the 2011 release, Crysis 2, continuing an unfolding adventure revolving around the symbiotic...
PLAYSTATION 3. LEGO Marvel Super Heroes features an original story crossing all the Marvel families. Players take control of Iron Man, Spider-Man, The Hulk, Captain America, Wolverine and many more Marvel characters as t...
LEGO Star wars. The force awakens
PLAYSTATION 3. The Force is strong with this one The No. 1 LEGO videogame franchise triumphantly returns with a fun-filled, humorous journey based on the blockbuster Star Wars film. Play as Rey, Finn, Poe, BB-8, Kylo Ren...
LEGO Batman. 3, Beyond Gotham
The best-selling LEGO Batman videogame franchise returns in an out-of-this-world, action-packed adventure! In LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham, the Caped Crusader joins forces with the super heroes of the DC Comics universe ...
Call of duty. Modern warfare. 2
PLAYSTATION 3. Modern Warfare 2 is a first-person tactical shooter and the sixth entry in the popular Call of Duty series. True to its name and following the lead of its predecessor, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, it plac...
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Mutants in Manhattan
PLAYSTATION 3. Battle alongside your brothers through the sewers, subways and streets of NYC to take down shredder and Krang's evil organization, foot by foot. Unleash custom combat.
Lego Batman. The videogame
Take control of the Dynamic Duo, Batman and Robin, as you build, drive, swing, and fight your way through Gotham City capturing escaped villains and putting them back in Arkham Asylum where they belong. Battle against le...
PLAYSTATION 3. Red Dead Redemption is a Western epic, set at the turn of the 20th century when the lawless and chaotic badlands began to give way to the expanding reach of government and the spread of the Industrial Age....
The Smurfs. 2
PLAYSTATION 3. The highly anticipated family comedy The Smurfs 2 is now a video game! The evil wizard Gargamel has created the Naughties, who kidnap Smurfette from Smurfs Village and imprison her in Paris. It's now up to...
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Uncharted. 3, Drake's deception
PLAYSTATION 3. A search for the fabled "Atlantis of the Sands" propels fortune hunter Nathan Drake on a daring trek into the heart of the Arabian Desert, a journey that pits him and his mentor Victor Sullivan against the...
Grand theft auto. 5
PLAYSTATION 3. Los Santos: a sprawling sun-soaked metropolis full of self-help gurus, starlets and fading celebrities, once the envy of the Western world, now struggling to stay afloat in an era of economic uncertainty a...


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<DTF 2016: Every Brilliant Thing
Netflix Trailer: The White Helmets>
megon October 13, 2016 /0 comments
Netflix announced that principal photography commenced this week on Duncan Jones's thriller Mute in Berlin, Germany. Starring Alexander Skarsgård, Paul Rudd and Justin Theroux, the film will join Netflix's growing 2017 Original Film slate. Mute also marks the second stage of Jones's cinematic universe, taking place in the same world as Moon (starring Sam Rockwell and Kevin Spacey).
The much-anticipated project comes from a story Jones created twelve years ago. The film follows Leo (Skarsgård), a mute man searching for a missing person in the year 2052 in Berlin while dueling with two rogue villains played by Rudd and Theroux. Jones co-wrote the script with Michael Robert Johnson (Sherlock Holmes). Charles J.D. Schlissel serves as executive producer along with co-producers Henning Molfenter, Charlie Woebcken, Christoph Fisser of Studio Babelsberg.
"Mute is an encapsulation of everything I am fascinated by; noir, science fiction, and unique people in trouble because of who and what they are. I'm delighted to be able to return to Berlin for the shoot, a place I lived for a period of time growing up, and I'm excited to be working with Netflix on a film that is so close to my heart," said Duncan Jones.
"Duncan Jones is such a dynamic directing force, and the team he has assembled in-front-of and behind-the-camera will continue to reinvigorate the science fiction genre. It will be exciting to share this film with Netflix audiences around the world next year," said Ted Sarandos, Netflix chief content officer.
Producer Stuart Fenegan added: "Duncan handed me a version of Mute at our very first meeting together 13 years ago and I have wanted to bring it to life ever since. We just had to make Moon, Source Code and Warcraft in between, and in that time Netflix has become the place for original films. The perfect home for Mute."
Film Review: The Greatest Showman
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Set Skulls/Minky Kiwi - free cotton sack!
A children's blanket and a pillow Set: a pillow + a blanket. It is cheaper when you buy a set!Feels nice and very soft to the touchReversible: made of 100% certified child safe cotton designed by Michael Miller + original Minky fleeceHighest quality: stays durable even after multiple washes A free cotton sack!
Set Skulls/Minky Fuchsia - free cotton sack!


I can't help but think that despite the tremendous advances made by medicine, we somehow failed to find a cure for some seemingly mundane diseases. While a way of preventing or treating the common cold is yet to be found, I'm more annoyed about the fact that there is no definitive way of dealing with acne or varicose veins.
The pharmacies are full of medicine, but I've had my fair share of failed experiments to know that they do nothing more than manage the symptoms. The alternative to drugs is a do-it-yourself product that is more efficient at reducing the swelling and what's most important, dealing with the pain.
Although I did start getting some small spider veins on my legs in my early 20s, I did not have any issues with varicose veins until my post pregnancy. Oh my, were they painful! But the pain subsided after applying this homemade lotion to relieve the annoying symptoms naturally, and for the most part, the vein itself faded and less visible now.
If you have been suffering from varicose veins for a long time, know exactly how expensive the treatment is, so I'm counting on you to give this homemade remedy a go. It looks, feels and acts as a lotion, so don't worry about brewing anything complicated or risky because anyone can achieve the best results with minimal effort.
Witch hazel can shrink the size of your veins. You can find this from your local pharmacy or you can order it online like Amazon.
Apple cider vinegar is also commonly used to decrease the size of varicose veins. Many health food stores and even regular grocery stores sell this vinegar.
Aloe Vera naturally reduces swelling and soothes the area to which it is applied. You can use either aloe vera juice or aloe vera gel for this recipe; gel will help the cream stay thicker.
Cocoa or Shea Butter can thicken the cream and make it easier to apply. If you can't find plain cocoa or shea butter, look for an alcohol-free lotion that is made from one of these ingredients.
To make sure that all of the ingredients blend properly, use a blender or stand mixer. If you do not have a mixer, you can use a whisk and a mixing bowl.
① Grab 3 tbsp of witch hazel and stir 3 tbsp of apple cider. Mix thoroughly. (Just adjust or increase this amount if you are making a larger batch of lotion).
② After mixing the first 2 ingredients, you can add the Aloe Vera. Add 1/2 cup if you are using the gel OR 1/4 cup if you are using Aloe Vera juice to keep lotion from being runny.
③ Then, you can add 1/2 a cup of the melted shea butter or cocoa to make the mixture in thick consistency. To melt the shea butter, you can use a double-boiler or you fill some water in a pot and boil it.
④ Turn the blender on, and mix all of the ingredients together for about 30 seconds. The lotion should be completely smooth and easy to spread. If it looks runny, add a little more melted cocoa or shea butter and mix the cream again.
Make sure to put the mixture in the fridge for about 20 minutes to settle. To keep the mixture last a little longer, try storing this in the refrigerator. If you notice the ingredients start to separate, simply shake the container to mix them again.
Apply this homemade lotion on the affected areas once or twice a day to reduce the swelling of your varicose veins. The lotion will soothe the area almost immediately. Expect the swelling to decrease after a week of regular use.
Thanks for sharing all these treatments for varicose veins. It helped me a lot!!!
How to Stop Snoring in a Moment?
I tried the recipe and followed it. I had both Shea and cocoa butter lotion. I also used aloe Vera gel and my "lotion"came out really runny. I added tons more lotion but it didn't change much. Am I missing something?


text:
Posts Tagged 'Lata Mangeshkar'
Posted in BOLLYWOOD, Dancing in Indian Cinema, Hindi, Indian Cinema, playback singers, Video of the Day, tagged "Awaargi" (1990), Anand Bakshi, Anil Kapoor, Anu Malik, Anupam Kher, Bollywood chandeliers, emo Govinda, flamenco dancing in Bollywood, Govinda, Meenakshi Shishandri, Johnnie Walker, Johnnie Walker bottles foreshadow TROUBLE!, Lata Mangeshkar, love triangles in Bollywood, Mohammed Aziz, prostitutes with hearts of gold, tight slap to the face, tight slap to the face AND Johnnie Walker bottle in same scene! on October 14, 2010| 16 Comments »
Awaargi (1990) is a little tale about a prostitute with a heart of gold who is rescued from the brothel while she's still chaste, by a goonda who also possesses a heart of gold under his rough exterior. This picture rolled at the film's start and aren't we all grateful to Hema for something? Allow a moment to reflect…
The lead Meena (Meenakshi Shishandri) never actually becomes a full-fledged prostitute, but I like to write prostitute with a heart of gold, so let's just leave it like that, instead of the more clumsy nearly became a prostitute with a heart of gold. That sounds too awkward, doesn't it? Here's a nice little collection of screen captures of Meenakshi/Meena as a nautch girl before the lovable scoundrel Azaad, played by a well-mulletted Anil Kapoor, saves her from that fate.
I just loved Meenakshi and can't believe I hadn't seen her in more films. I now would love to see her entire filmography and was able to find a mutual love for her at Nicki's Hmong Chick Who Loves Indian Cinema's blog and also at Bollywooddeewana. Meena's innocent past included singing at the mandir and studying music under the guidance of her music teacher father. After a near miss at a prostitution career, Meena is catapulted toward super stardom and is half of the singing and dancing duo. How does that happen you may wonder? Well as it so happens, pop star Dhiren (Govinda!) sees Meena performing in a hotel lounge singing gig that Azaad secured for her and is immediately enthralled by her. Govinda is very luscious in this film. How would YOU like to be the focus of Govinda's gaze here?
Doesn't that make your heart skip a beat? He invites her to become his song and dance partner and to go on tour with him. She's so nervous! But look how he helps encourage her to go! I didn't realize that Bollywood invented flamenco dancing until I saw this film and the song Ae Mere Saathiya featuring playback singers Lata Mangeshkar and Mohammed Aziz, with music by Anu Malik, and lyrics by Anand Bakshi. This is proof:
This wonderful flamenco inspired number includes an impressive backdrop of chandeliers that Apni East India would covet. It's so hard to capture the fluid and graceful Govinda in the dance, but despite the blurred focus, these are still something to behold. Govinda and chandelier:
Meena stays with Azaad, and he begins to fall in love with her and dream of a life away from the one he's lived as a goonda.
Ever since Azaad has lost his drive for the goonda lifestyle, his don, played by Anupam Kher, notices this change and tries to encourage Azaad to not lose his focus on crime.
And if this isn't enough trouble for Azaad, now Meena realizes that she's falling in love with Dhiren, and the Bollywood love triangle begins!Meena is aware that Azaad is the one who saved her from the fate of being a nautch girl/prostitute, so she is indebted to him and thus rejects Dhiren's love to fulfill her perceived obligation to Azaad. Eventually she lets Azaad know her feelings are conflicted.
Azaad finds out about the feelings Meena and Dhiren have for each other and to stop their love from blooming rushes ahead with a marriage proposal. Dhiren falls into a sea of despair, thinking he's lost his chance with Meena. Normally I see Govinda as a jolly good time guy, dancing and prancing about, but behold the deliciously rare emo-Govinda!
At a party to announce his engagement to Meena, Azaad becomes drunk and decides to deal with his jealousy over Dhiren and Meena's love by telling everyone that he bought Meena from a brothel. Now that somehow did not help smooth things over.
Dhiren is at the party, and witnesses Azaad humiliate Meena and can't understand how she could agreed to marry Azaad.
So *spoiler alert* Dhiren goes to comfort Meena after her public humiliation and ends up (as we say in the USA) going all the way with her during the time that Azaad is sleeping off his drunkness. When Azaad wakes up, his friends tell him about what an idiot he was at the party and he goes to look for Meena to apologize. Remember, Azaad is a goonda, savvy to the ways of the world, so when he sees a clue like this…
Now you are most likely not a goonda, and perhaps a bit more naive than Azaad, so I'll help you out with a clue. Look beyond that bottle of Johnnie Walker on the table, and take a closer look at what Azaad sees…
That's right! Lipstick on the glass, a glass that is emptied of its Johnnie Walker red liable whiskey! Which can only mean *spoiler alert* that Meena and Dhiren went all the way! Meena tells a Azaad something like, yeah I slept with Dhiren, and! Then of course the fight begins over her love and a love triangle Bollywood brawl begins.
How does it end? I'll let you guess! The entire movie has been uploaded to YouTube with English subtitles HERE so if you need to know who ends up with who, give it a watch. Have you already seen this film? If so, tell me what you remember. Now before I leave, I have to share with you that Awaargi had so many instances of Johnnie Walker bottles, that felt obliged to make a visual record of it. Some bottles are red label, others are black label, but they all show up in scenes here that warn of trouble brewing. Let this be a lesson to you: When you see a Johnnie Walker bottle in a Bollywood film, trouble is not far behind.
Now just LOOK and how lucky this shot is! It includes BOTH the Johnny Walker bottle and a threat of the tight slap in the same shot! These of course are two of the things I track in all Bollywood films, so for this reason, I say Awaargi is a classic, because I really don't take a Bollywood film seriously until I see a tight slap, or at least the threat of one, and a bottle of Johnnie Walker.
Mera Gaon Mera Desh (1971) or Sholay Lite
Posted in BOLLYWOOD, Dancing in Indian Cinema, Hindi, Indian Cinema, playback singers, Related to India, Video of the Day, tagged "Maar Diya Jaaye", 7 days of 70's, Anand Bakshi, Asha Parekh, dacoits, Dharmendra, enmity, Hai Sharmaon, Jayant, Lata Mangeshkar, Laxmi, Laxmi Chhaya, Laxmikant-Pyarelal, limb amputation in Bollywood, Love Bollywood with Raj & Pablo, Mera Gaon Mera Desh (1971), Mohammad Rafi, orphans, Raj and Pablo, Sholay (1975), Sholay Lite, tight slap to the face, Vinod Khanna on February 23, 2010| 38 Comments »
As part of Beth Loves Bollywood's international mandate, 7 days of 70's, a week-long festival of any and all things 70's from Bollywood, I offer to you my readers, Mera Gaon Mera Desh (1970) somehing I like to call Sholay Lite!
This film is a delightful mix of some of the 70's most delicious masala staples: orphans, dacoits, bandits, dancers, damsels in distress, amputated limbs, music by Laxmikant-Pyarelal, Anand Bakshi as lyricist, playback singing by Lata Mangeshkar and Mohammad Rafi, and starring Dharmendra, Asha Parekh, Vinod Khanna, Laxmi Chhaya, and Jayant.
Now let me take you on a visual walk through Mera Gaon Mera Desh. We start with Ajit (Dharmendra) as a pick pocket, caught and put on the stand, explaining his fate to the judge and jury…
Ajit gets a chance after serving a light sentance to start over in a small village to where he's been summoned by a one armed Hawaldaar-Major Jaswant Singh (Jayant). Ajit carries a coin that he flips to help him make major life decisions, and it flipped to the side that made him agree to go to the little town. But why? Why would the one armed man want orphan?
Maybe to help him with some farm work. That seems to be the reason. Then Ajit hangs out partying with the villagers, and Jayant's character doesn't like this and dekh what happens:
Such ugliness! Such mean words! That's the limit! So he tells Ajit to leave, but then has to change his mind:
Enter bad guy, dacoit, and bandit extrodinaire, Thakur gone bad, Jabbar Singh! I'm telling you Vinod Khanna was delicious in this part. Look at the sideburns and the scoul on his face. Hot!
So as it turns out, the one armed guy sought Ajit for the village (gaon) not for farming alone, but instead to take the lead in fighting off the band of dacoits who have long been terrorizing the villagers. Luckily Ajit finds a double agent in Munnibai (Laxmi Chhaya) who was sent by Jabbar to find out about Ajit, but ends up falling for him instead.
Munni does her spy duty, finds out what's going on in Jabbar Singh's dacoit camp and reports back to Ajit.
Ajit informs the authorities, Munni's mom get's upset at her indiscretion because like all villagers she rears the wrath Jabbar Singh and his bandits.
In the song, Hai Sharmaon, Laxmi Chhaya's character alerts Ajit to what disguises the bandits are wearing to the fair so that he can catch them.
After some of his men are captured by police at the full moon fair, Jabbar Singh suspects a traitor among his flock and conducts a threatenging interrogation fitting a bandit.
Thing get a wee bit misogynistic.
Meanwhile, back in town, Asha Parekh's character, Anju, freaks out when Hawaldaar-Major Jaswant Singh (one armed guy) is killed by the bandits. I love it when Asha breaks down. She of course needs a tight slap to the face in order to get a hold of herself. To make matters worse, now poor munni is thought by Ajit to be responsible for the bandits' attack on the gaon village. So she's once again subject to some man handling, and once again, things get just a tad mysoginistic.
Oh no he didn't! Ajit can verbally abuse her, choke her, shake her, and shove her down into the river two times, but what sets her over the edge is that he doesn't understand that she did not betray him, and that she loves him! He pushed her over the edge in so many ways, and now look at the face of a woman scorned! DEKH! LOOK AT IT!
Jabbar Singh cointinues with his dacoitery and kidnaps Anju to lure Ajit into his evil den, where he proceeds to tie them up for torture. Any chance I get to screen cap a scene with the word enmity in it I do, so here:
NOW here is the scene and song that compelled me to see this film in the first place: Maar Diya Jaaye Ya Chhod Diya Jaaye, Bol Tere Saath Kya Sulook Kiya Jaaye. Raj and Pablo, the charming and lovely radio hosts of BBC Asian Network's Love Bollywood, posted this video from the film on their Facebook page. It starts off with Dharmendra tied to a pole getting slapped in the face, and that was only the beginning of this outlandish number, featuring him, Laxmi Chayya and Asha Parekh.
Spoiler moral message ending alert! In the end the lesson is learned: The village must take responsibility to self govern and not rely so heavily on the government, meaning it's a joint effort, but this effort must first begins at the grassroots level. As it's said it takes a village to raise a child, and in this movie, it takes a village to eliminate a dacoit. So now that title makes more sense: Mera Gaon Mera Desh = My Village My Country.
EXTRA CREDIT: Here's why Mera Gaon Mera Desh can be called Sholay Lite
Since Asha freaks out so beautifully, I shall end on this note:
Check out all the other groovy 70's week posts HERE and HERE.
Posted in BOLLYWOOD, Dancing in Indian Cinema, Hindi, Indian Cinema, playback singers, Video of the Day, tagged Aaina (1977), Brahmins, Dharmendra, Jaane Kya Ho Jaye, Jayasudha, Laaga Chunari Mein Daag: Journey of a Woman (2007), Lalita Pawar, Lata Mangeshkar, Mohammed Rafi, Mumtaz, Neetu Singh, Nirupa Roy, Rajesh Khanna, Rani Mukerji, Rani Mukherjee, tight slap to the face on November 29, 2009| 18 Comments »
I had originally tried to order Aaina (1977) from Netflix, but got the 1993 version of Aaina instead, which I reviewed HERE. I eventually did get the 1977 version of Aaina that stars Mumtaz and Rajesh Khanna. I would not be tricked by Bollywood's duplicate titles and miss out on my original plan to see the 1977 version!
Shalini (Mumtaz) is a poor yet happy brahmin girl who spends her time laughing and smiling, despite her family's poverty. Ashok (Rajesh Khanna) and Shalini like each other but are from different castes. They tease each other and have a lot of fun, but ultimately they come to understand that society's norms will keep them apart.
When Ashok notes that Shalini's only sari is worn to the point of having holes, he buys her a new one. Shalini's mother (Nirupa Roy) lets her daughter know that she can not accept this sort of gift from a man because it would be shameful for the entire family. I love how this lesson of family honor is filmed with the characters on either side of the worn sari:
Things continue to worsen for the family when the dad's evil sister, Janki (Lalita Pawar) comes with her daughter to live with the already financially stressed family. Janki doesn't do a thing to help out, in fact she just spends time going to frivolous Bollywood movies and gossiping. When Janki finds one of her starving nephews begging for food she fails to understand that her taking money to go to the movies has caused the problem since that money would otherwise go for food for the children. Then Shalini finds her mother one night mixing poison in with the food so the she can poison the family out of their misery.
The next obstacle is that one of Shalini's brothers wants to go to medical school, so in an attempt to get a recommendation to insure his entry to the program, Shalini travels to the big city. She stays with some friends of the family in the a home with a large central split staircase, so often seen in Bollywood films, hai na?
Shalini's connection to try and get the recommendation for her brother's entry to medical school is a fraud, and the situation ends with her being raped, as represented by a mirror aaina being broken. She then hears of another person who can help her get the medical school recommendation, who invites her home to meet his wife.
But the wife is not there, only her picture is on the wall, and this powerful man has the same nefarious interests in Shalini as the man who first violated her.
So this is how Shalini, a young Brahmin girl, eventually turns to prostitution to support her family. One night she's enjoying the company of a client, and he discovers that she's Brahmin like him. Note the symbolism of the mirror aaina on the wall saying hey, why don't you look at yourself first yaar, before you point any fingers.
Shalini points out the ridiculousness of his hypocrisy and returns his tight slap to her face with one to his face. Ironically, later in the movie when Shalini returns home to pay for and attend both her sister and brother's weddings, who turns out to be the groom for her sister? Not to spoil things, but it's this creep here!
I learned from Suhan, a commenter on my 1992 Aaina post, that Laaga Chunari Mein Daag (2007) pulled from the 1977 Aaina.
This one comes out smelling of mothballs, like a wedding dress stored for decades in an attic trunk. Not surprising, since the plot is vintage 1977 from Aaina, and the 1995 Marathi film Doghi. (Hindustan Times).
If you've seen LCMD, perhaps like me you remember once Rani Mukerji became a high class call girl, she lived in a super deluxe apartment in Mumbai. This was the only shot of that apartment I could find, but you get a general idea of its sleek, modern look.
Like Rani Mukerji's character in Laaga Chunari Mein Daag, Shalini also gets a fantastic place to live thanks to her profession. I'm not saying it's a good trade off, but it sure is a cool place. One of my favorite parts of the film was when Shalini got a visitor, she would push a buzzer on the table and a curtain would automatically pull open, revealing the client behind the door. Check it out:
Sometimes it was a shock just who would stop by, like in this case, her friend Ashok from back home who told everyone he died in the war. After knowing he could never be with Shalini, Ashok faked his own death, but eventually years later fate brought him right to her door!
Is that double lucky kismat at work or what? Not only does he get a prostitute, but she's also the woman he loves! What are the odds of THAT happening!? Alas, Shalini is shocked and ashamed. Don't you love that torpedo/bullet bra she must be wearing under her shirt?
Despite her circumstances, Ashok understands and more importantly accepts her as she is, and wonders what could have been between the two of them and life hadn't taken them on different paths.
Shalini returns home to give her family money and pay for her siblings weddings. A cute part of the movie was the film within the film where the village watched stars Dharmendra and Neetu Singh film a song sequence to Jaane Kya Ho Jaye with playback singers Mohammed Rafi and Lata Mangeshkar. This is scene cuts back and forth being picturized on filmi film stars and the "real" young couple in the film, Shalini's sister and that scoundrel she's engaged to, Shalini's former client:
Shalini sacrifices herself to fund her family and is disgusted to return home only to find her mother pregnant again! There are already about 8 kids in the family. Of course her mother has no idea just what Shalini has done to earn money.
Seems word has gotten out around town about Shalini's new job and her little sister points out how her music teacher (paid for by Shalini) was staring at her. Shalini flirts with idea of suicide to answer the question of her eternal suffering, but when she's about to jump, she hears the sounds of her siblings calling to her.
So how do you think it all ends? If you'd like to know more, please go to see the plot summary by rAjOo.
I'd love to hear your impressions of Aaina too.
Dharmatma (1975) Feroz Khan does The Godfather, Bollywood style
Posted in BOLLYWOOD, Dancing in Indian Cinema, Hindi, Indian Cinema, playback singers, Video of the Day, tagged Dara Singh, Farida Jalal, Feroz Khan, Gopal Bedi, Helen, Hema Malini, Iftekhar, Kalyanji Anandji, Lata Mangeshkar, orphans, playback singers, Premnath, Rakhi, Raksha Bandhan, Ranjeet, Rekha, Sudhir, The Godfather, tight slap to the face, villains wear pinky rings on October 14, 2009| 16 Comments »
When Feroz Khan died earlier this year, I thought I'd better see a few more of his films in order to pay tribute to his career. One of the most mentioned films of Khan's career seemed to be Dharmatma (1975), so I watched it.
Feroz Khan, who has died aged 69, was an Indian actor and producer who became one of Bollywood's biggest stars; with his swagger and tough-guy styling he was compared to American leading men like Clint Eastwood or Steve McQueen. He based one typically all-action picture, Dharmatma (1975), on Francis Ford Coppola's Oscar-winning film, The Godfather, and starred in another as a suave racing driver who wins the world championship. Later he appeared in a series of cowboy films that aped the Spaghetti westerns of Sergio Leone – they became known as Curry Westerns. (source)
First off, let me get this spectacular image out of the way:
Hema Malini's character declaring her orphan-hood.
Don't you think that reel for reel Bollywood may have the highest occurrence of orphans than any other film industry in the world? Now back to the movie Dharmatma (1975), which is essentially supposed to be a Hindustani-ized version of The Godfather. One thing The Godfather doesn't have is Helen.
Here's a brief synopsis of the film I copied from IMDB:
Wealthy, powerful and influential Seth Dharamdas leads a financially secure life in a palatial mansion. He is known to come to the aid of all people who are beyond any hope of assistance, and this leads to him being known as "Dharmatma". But Seth Dharamdas does have a number of skeletons in his closet, and a parallel life as a gangster. The only person Dharamdas hates and fears is none other than his very own son, Ranbir, who has sworn that he will never compromise with his father's dark career, and threatens to expose him. Dharamdas has never conceded surrender or defeat at the hands of any mortal, and will never even consider to do so – even if this means the death of Ranbir. (by rAjOo)
Rekha plays a smaller part in this film and is in love with the rugged, morally upstanding Ranbir (Feroz Khan).
Alas, Ranbir has sets his sights on Reshma (Hema Malini) a girl living over the border in Afghanistan, since it's never quite Bollywood until there's a love triangle. I enjoyed the lavish tent like home where Hema's character lived. It looked like a high class yurt, but I thought yurts were in Mongolia, not Afghanistan, right? Even in this opulently decorated tent, she's stifled
Her adoptive father isn't going for her relationship with a man of another culture, but she does what she can to change his heart and mind.
For a taste of that nomadic life, enjoy Meri Galiyon Se, featuring playback singer Lata Mangeshkar with the music of Kalyanji Anandji, and picturized on Hema Malini in some nomadic camp in Afghanistan, or maybe it's in movie studio, you be the judge. Both Danny Denzongpa and Khan's character are smitten with Hema's Reshma. Who will win her love?
Besides digging the hip 70's vibe of this flick, I was delighted to find it had one of my favorites, Farida Jalal, who played Mona, the sister to Feroz Khan's Ranbir. Unfortunately, she's married to a dacoit, Kundan (Imtiaz Khan) but it takes her sometime to figure this out. Kundan's gangster side kicks are played by Ranjeet and Sudhir, who wear matching outfits throughout the film. Their shirts are always open, and often made of sheer fabrics. They are very, very bad men, but more on them later.
Wait a minute, even the good guy wears an open, chest hair bearing shirt a lot of the time:
Eventually Mona lets her creepy gangster husband know that she doesn't like the lowly company he's keeping which causes some marital strife.
Doesn't she know this is Bollywood and a woman cannot talk to a man in such a way without suffering a tight slap to the face? Even I saw that one coming.
Mona's husband may be a hopeless pig, but her brother is reliable and caring. Everything is fine on Raksha Bandhan and she ties a rakhi on brother Ranbir. Look how sweet!
Yet moments later she changes her warm feelings when she realizes that …
Can't you almost feel that tight slap to the face, or at least hear it? When I saw this in the opening credits I was very pleased:
I'm a big Ranjeet fan. It's most likely psychologically problematic that I find his bad boy characters irresistibly attractive, but I'll work that out on my own time. Normally I love Ranjeet, but his character was so extra creepy in Dharmatma, that I found him only mildly hot, not ultra hot. Hats off to his acting distracting me from his beauty. Was is due to being paired with a creepy sidekick played by Sudhir that was too much? Who knows, but together in their sheer, unbuttoned, and always matching shirts, they were repulsive. I looked forward to seeing each new outfit.
Their characters were abusive and drunk most of the time. Take a nice look at them here. I believe there can never be enough photos of Ranjeet out there for the world to see, no matter what.
Ranjeet wears a pinky ring here, which is a tell tale sign of villain-hood:
Now allow Feroz Khan's memory to live on and please read his words of wisdom.
Posted in BOLLYWOOD, Dancing in Indian Cinema, Hindi, Indian Cinema, playback singers, Video of the Day, tagged Aaina Hai Mera Chehr, Amrita Singh, Asha Bhosle, Filmfare Best Supporting Actress Award, Jackie Shroff, Juhi Chawla, Lata Mangeshkar, playback singers, Saeed Jaffrey, tight slap to the face on September 20, 2009| 29 Comments »
Did you ever get a movie with the same title, expecting another? I once thought I was ordering Kalyug (1981), but instead got Kalyug (2005). Such was the case for me with Aaina. I think I intended to get the 1977 Aaina:
Aaina is a 1977 Indian Bollywood film starring Rajesh Khanna , Mumtaz in the lead roles and A. K. Hangal, Nirupa Roy, Lalita Pawar, Kamal Hassan and Madan Puri in support roles. The music is given by Naushad. The film is directed by famous director K. Balachander. He had filmed the same story before: the Tamil film Arangetram(1973) with Kamal Hassan. It's about a Brahmin girl becoming a sex worker to support her mother and siblings. (source)
That sounds pretty great, but instead I got the 1993 version of Aaina. For a full synopsis of the film go HERE, but I can tell you it's basically a story of two sisters, one evil (Amrita Singh), one sweet (Juhi Chawla). The sisters fight over a fancy businessman, or as they frequently say in Bollywood, a rich industrialist, played by Jackie Shroff. It turns out that Reema (Juhi) has long been a fan of Ravi Saxena (Jackie) who is not only a fancy business man, but has also published some things she's read. She runs into him in a book store. Can you find the pictures of Madonna and Michael Jackson in this photo?
Alas, Ravi falls for the evil self absorbed sister, Roma, instead of the sister who has long pined for him. The evil head case sister, Roma (Amrita Singh), eventually looses Ravi's love since she's more focused on being a top fashion model and ignores the realationship. Ravi marries the nice sister instead, but then Roma decides she wants him back and tries to manipulate him with various crazy antics, like pretending to kill herself. Pagli!
Singh does a great job acting like a psycho and won the Filmfare Best Supporting Actress Award for her efforts. Eventually her many manipulations pay off and she wins back Ravi, but Reema is on to her sister's evil plotting and finally grows a spine and confronts her.
The sisters have a dance off at a lavish party over Ravi! There's even a tight slap to the face! The song Aaina Hai Mera Chehra with real life sisters and playback singers, Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosle picturized on Amrita Singh and Juhi Chawla, pretending to sing, and pretending to be sisters. If you don't want to spend time watching the entire film, this item number sort of summarizes it: behen vs. behen for the pyar of a man.
And real life sisters out there, please don't fight over a man! Have you seen either of the Aaina films? Which one did you like more?
Ditto! Mere Mehboob! R.I.P. my Bollywood lovin' billi.
Posted in BOLLYWOOD, Indian Cinema, playback singers, Video of the Day, tagged A. R. Rahman, Amar Akbar Anthony, Asha Bhosle, billi, BOLLYWOOD, cats, dacoit, Ditto, euthanasia, Genelia D'Souza, Imran Khan, Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na, Kabhi Kabhi Aditi Zindagi, Lata Mangeshkar, love, Mere Mehboob, orphans, pets, playback singers, Rashid Ali, The Mahabharata on September 4, 2008| 17 Comments »
I put my beloved cat, Ditto, to sleep today. She was approximately 16.4 years old and lived a great life! In fact she probably lead a life more comfortable than most people in the world are able live. I have never been present when a pet has been put to sleep until today, and was amazed that is was just as sweet as it was sad. Why do I write about Ditto here on a Bollywood blog? Well of course I have to write about her zindagi, I mean life, because I loved her and she watched most of the Bollywood movies I've seen with me! OK, I admit she slept peacefully through most of the films, unless there was a song, fight scene, or animal sound that piqued her interest and perked up her ears. I think she especially liked Lata and Asha's voices. I will be looking for this little cat to perhaps be reincarnated into the next Indian Film Industry star! She'd be like that pretty actress who won a pagent, starts out as an item girl in films, but it turns out she can really act! Or maybe she'll be a playback singer, hai na?
Now Ditto's life was like a lot of Bollywood films. She started out as an orphan that my brother found abandoned, crying out on a cold and rainy night. I think it must have been a lot like the baby left in the park in Amar Akbar Anthony. My bhai brought her home temporarily. Cat lovers, you all know what temporarily means. But there was a problem since my brother already had a cat, Bud, and she was a dacoit! Bud had made my brother her keeper when she found him walking around the block at night, while he would secretly smoke cigarettes. Dacoit Bud and my brother had clandestine meetings that turned into a permanent living arrangement. This is typical of the tricky ways cats work; they scout you out and make you think you found them. Yet bandit Bud had a heart of gold, and though she spent time smoking, drinking Johnnie Walker, gambling, murdering birds, and pretending to have no regard for the new orphan Ditto, she secretly did love the new kitten. Bud proved her love of Ditto by protecting her from a menacing dog. The kitten copied much of what Bud did, and earned her name: Ditto. Fast forward 16 years, Bud has been gone for years, and Ditto has now joined her in cat heaven. Ditto was fond of the beautiful things in life, like napping in the sun, sight seeing out the window, and sleeping to Bollywood movies. She especially loved salmon, pastries, shiny colorful beads, and all plants, particularly flowers. I didn't have the luck of discovering the joy of having a pet cat until I was an adult. I had a great bulldog as a kid, but no cat. So many wasted years of my youth were lived cat-free! This gorgeous, sweet cat improved my quality of life about 80% to 90%, and since I've had a nice life so far, that's saying a lot! Her sweet spirit and memory shall live on forever. Ditto's movie watching career (in this lifetime) ended on a high note with Mere Mehboob (translation:My Beloved, how fitting!) and 4 of the 5.5 hours of Peter Brook's The Mahabharata. On a side note, don't you think when you take apart the name Barack Obama it sounds a lot like Mahabharata all mixed up? Ba-Rak-O-Ba-Ma. Ma-Ha-Bha-Ra-Ta.
Last night when I knew I'd be putting Ditto to sleep today, I was checking the blog stats page, which shows what search terms bring people to your blog and the highlighted stood out to me:
I must have at one time used the words, "night is always darkest before the dawn" in this blog and someone was led here that way. I am always on the look out for mystical coincidences, and took this to be a lovely one that revealed a message I needed to read last night. How sweet! Isn't life grand?
At times artistic expression can convey the deepest of feelings and send a healing message. The wonderful film Jaane Tu … Ya Jaane Na (2008) has just such a message in a song that fits my situation today: Kabhi Kabhi Aditi Zindigi. In this tune Genelia D'Souza's character Aditi has a cat that has just died and her friend, played by Imran Khan, tries to cheer her up. The beautiful music is by the illustrious A. R. Rahman, with playback singer Rashid Ali, picturized on D'Souza, Khan, and a kitten!
One of my favorite bloggers, TheBollywoodFan, recently tranlated the lyrics to all the songs from JTYJN. You can read his full translation of Kabhi Kabhi Aditi Zindigi here. I've copied some of his translation to the song here to show you how it was just what I needed today and has a message that we all need:
Occasionally, Aditi, in life like this, it feels like someone belongs to us. Occasionally, Aditi, when he/she separates, it feels like it was a dream. In such a case how can on keep one's tears from flowing? And how can someone think that everything's gonna be OK?…Listen a little, the uncontrolled wind starts telling you, that Aditi, those who separate meet again, Aditi, whether or not you know the flowers blossom again.
Bollywood coming through for me in a tough spot! So I will continue to watch movies, missing my sweet little Ditto and being thankful for the great times we had. Maybe a new cat will find me when the time is right. There has been a cat hanging around the house a lot lately, looking like he or she would like to come in. I wonder if that billi would like Bollywood?
What do Ganesha, Sanjay Patel, The Minnesota State Fair, crop seeds, Shree 420, and Bollywood have in common?
Posted in BOLLYWOOD, Indian Cinema, playback singers, Video of the Day, tagged Colleen Sheehy, crop art, David Steinlicht, Dr. K Chaudhry, GheeHappy, Lata Mangeshkar, Lillian Colton, MN State Fair, Mukesh, Nargis, playback singers, purdah, Queen of Seed, Raj Kapoor, RNC, Sanjay Patel, Shankar Jaikishan, Shree 420, The Little Book of Hindu Deities on August 22, 2008| 30 Comments »
I put myself on full throttle ultra purdah for a few days in preparation for my creation of crop art for the Minnesota State Fair. Crop art is the design of crop seeds in artistic arrangements, and if you're crop arting for the MN State Fair, the artists are to use only seeds of plants and crops that grow in the state. It's how city folks like me learn about farm crops from the country. I've entered before and there is a time commitment involved in gluing seeds down, and you have to make a sacrifice, and you can guess what I had to sacrifice: Bollywood! But my qurbani, I mean sacrifice, yielded this:
I recreated the image using these seeds: barley, canola seeds, corn, flax, golden flax, millet, oats, safflower, sunflower seeds, and wild rice. You can see my Sanjay Patel inspired Ganesha recreation in person in the Ag-Hort building at the MN State Fair through labor day. I would like to think that some people will do a little puja in front of my Ganesha of seeds.
I found Sanjay Patel's excellent Ghee Happy website back in early 2007 while looking around for Hindu god images. When I saw Patel's super cute deities I immediately thought: crop art! If you don't already have it, I recommend his book The Little Book of Hindu Deities to you. It's not only adorable, but also a clever, fun, and informative read. How could I choose from the dozens of ultra cute deities to recreate in seeds? I decided since the RNC is coming to Minnesota during the time of the fair, that it would be nice for a very different kind of elephant to welcome that RNC elephant. Maybe Ganesha's divine energy could help out the Republicans.
I did contact animator extraordinaire, Shree Sanjay Patel, via email to tell him about my crop art and to let him know that I may be infringing on his copyrighted material. It seems that the copyright doesn't cover seeds, so I should be safe from a lawsuit. Mr. Patel graciously responded to my email and was so very kind. Thank you Shree Patel!
When my Ganesha was completed and delivered to the state fair, I got back on the happy Bollywood train. The first movie waiting for me was the 1955 classic Shree 420. The Shankar-Jaikishan soundtrack is awesome, but I was particularly taken by one song for obvious reasons: Eechak Dana Beechak Dana, picturized on Nargis and Raj Kapoor, with playback singers Lata Mangeshkar and Mukesh. The Bollywood universe knew I was heavily dedicating myself to seed work during my purdah and rewarded me with this gem of a tune. Just look at the seed related lyrics!
I know what Nargis is talking about, one little seed, two seeds, seed on seed!
Thanks to Sharikazoid for the video with the English subtitles.
If you'd like to hear it again, Dr. Chadhury did a remix of the song.
I'm certainly not the first to recreate Sanjay Patel's images. Check out this impressive stuffed Kali inspired by Patel's image. For further reading of the art of seeds, consult David Steinlicht's excellent CroptArt.com site as well as Colleen Sheehy's book, Seed Queen: the Story of Crop Art and the Amazing Lillian Colton.


this keyword in Java is a special keyword which can be used to represent current object or instance of any class in Java. "this" keyword can also call constructor of same class in Java and used to call overloaded constructor. In this Java tutorial we will see how to use this keyword in Java and different examples of this in Java. this sometime also associate with super keyword which is used to denote instance of super class in Java and can be used to call overloaded constructor in Java.
this keyword represent current instance of class.
this keyword can be used to call overloaded constructor in java. if used than it must be first statement in constructor this() will call no argument constructor and this(parameter) will call one argument constructor with appropriate parameter.
If member variable and local variable name conflict than this can be used to refer member variable.
this is a final variable in Java and you can not assign value to this.
you can call methods of class by using this keyword.
this can be used to return object. this is a valid return value.
this can be used to refer static members in Java as well but its discouraged and as per best practices this should be used on non static reference.
"this" keyword can not be used in static context i.e. inside static methods or static initializer block.
The this keyword can be used to refer current class instance variable.
If there is ambiguity between the instance variable and parameter, this keyword resolves the problem of ambiguity.
In the above example, parameter (formal arguments) and instance variables are same that is why we are using this keyword to distinguish between local variable and instance variable.
this() can be used to invoked current class constructor.
Where to use this() constructor call?
The this keyword can be used to invoke current class method (implicitly).
You may invoke the method of the current class by using the this keyword. If you don't use the this keyword, compiler automatically adds this keyword while invoking the method.
this.m();//no need because compiler does it for you.
this keyword can be passed as an argument in the method.
The this keyword can be passed as argument in the constructor call.
The this keyword can be used to return current class instance.


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Q: email in truecrypt Is there some way to drag my Mac email program and files into my truecrypt partition
so that I open it after opening truecrypt?

A: You could create symbolic links to the items that you want to secure, but never having done that I don't know if there are any unforeseen consequences of doing so.

A: Store Mail folders and prefs on a secure disk image
http://hints.macworld.com/article.php?story=20030415132128751


On April 27th, more than 85,000 Comcast and NBCUniversal volunteers across the country and around the world participated in the 12th annual Comcast Cares Day, our company's celebration of giving.
We reached two impressive milestones this year as more than half a million volunteers have now contributed three million-plus hours of service since the first Comcast Cares Day in 2001. Watch the video above to see how we made change happen for homeless youth at a transitional housing facility in Seattle founded by a Native American nonprofit organization.


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TNH_LOGO_Primary_K_Burgundy_RGB (formerly IRIN News)
25 years of journalism from the heart of crises
What's happened to IRIN
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Environment and Disasters
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Iraqi refugees selling some of their food rations
(Julian Weinberg/IRIN)
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Iraqi refugees in Syria are using some of their food rations to pay rent, vary their diet and cover other expenses, according to the World Food Programme (WFP).
Almost all refugees interviewed by IRIN at two food distribution points in the Damascus suburb of Duma said they were selling some of the rations they get from WFP and the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR).
"I sell the food so that I can pay the rent and buy medicine," said Anmark, a refugee from Iraq. "I sell rice worth SYP 2,000 [US$44] for just SYP 500."
Zaida, who fled Baghdad after her family was threatened because her husband worked at a European embassy, said rent was the priority for most refugees. "We need a roof over our heads more than food… "I get SYP 5,500 [$120] in assistance from the UNHCR every month and food from the WFP."
WFP has been handing out food rations since January 2008 after a UN study found that over half the refugees skipped a meal to enable their children to eat two meals a day. It supplies basic food items such as rice, pulses and oil - enough to meet 50 percent of the daily calorie intake - and this is supplemented by UNHCR aid and other donations.
Most of the refugees fled Iraq in or before 2006 and in many cases their resources are running out. Selling food can raise vital money for other expenses.
Food sold to buy food
"I sell some food so I can buy meat, vegetables, milk and cheese as well as tinned food," said Lana, a young woman who fled Baghdad in 2006. Some mothers said the only way they could provide a varied diet to their children was by selling some of the rations.
Another refugee, Hamid, a former hotel worker in Baghdad who registered with the UNHCR in June 2007, said he sold all his rations to buy street food. "I have no wife and do not know how to cook. I buy sandwiches and snacks with the money."
Refugees can register with the UNHCR to qualify for financial aid, but WFP only distributes food. Both agencies say they know some of the food is being sold to fund other expenses.
"It is a fact that some Iraqi refugees are selling their rations, as happens around the world," said a *WFP public information officer in Syria. "It is an exchange rather than selling for profit. We understand you cannot eat rice every day of the year."
WFP defends policy
"It is our policy not to give money as it can be abused - spent on cigarettes, a cell phone or gambling. The study we did found food and rent were the biggest costs. We cannot do much about accommodation - we can't buy up a neighbourhood - but we can give food."
The WFP spokesperson said refugees also needed more awareness of the free services provided by other UN agencies, such as medical care. Food is just one of the ways the UN helps the Iraqi refugees.
Without such assistance UN agencies fear some refugees might be forced into taking dangerous jobs, commercial sex work, or sending their children to work rather than school.
The UNHCR and WFP say the handouts currently reach 177,000 of the 1.2 million refugees the Syrian government says have fled to Syria and been granted visas since the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003. They aim to reach over 360,000.
sb/ar/cb
(*The name of the WFP spokesperson was removed for security reasons. A new version of this story was published on 12 November, 2020.)
This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions
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Microcomatula is een geslacht van haarsterren uit de familie Antedonidae.

Soort
 Microcomatula mortenseni A.H. Clark, 1931

Haarsterren

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


Dumb Bunnies books volume 2.
It's December 24th, and the Dumb Bunnies are celebrating the holidays in their own ridiculous way.
ils:.b11230332|Book|Books||English|Blue Sky Press,|c1995.|1 v. (unpaged) : col. ill. ; 22 x 26 cm.


Her programs are entertaining but not strictly for entertainment. They are fun, too, but not strictly for fun.
Nancy's passion is to encourage you to make smiling, laughing, and positive choices priorities each day for a healthier and happier life.
Nancy presents her popular programs for board retreats, senior living communities, ladies groups, libraries, church groups, etc. For further details or to schedule a program, please contact her NOW!


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Home TV Series Andi Mack: Season 3, Episode 20 "We Were Here" – Recap,...
Andi Mack: Season 3, Episode 20 "We Were Here" [Series Finale] – Recap, Review (with Spoilers)
Amari Allah
61.71%	(2)
Andi Mack ends either with moments you've wanted for a long time or hints that, in the future, perhaps some dreams set aside could finally happen.
Director(s) Paul Hoen
Writer(s) Terri Minsky
Air Date 7/26/2019
Images and text in this post may contain affiliate links which, if a purchase is made, we'll earn money or products from the company. Affiliate links and external links have an upward facing, superscript, arrow.
Setting Things Up: TJ, Kira, Bex, Celia, Bowie
With Celia saying she is going out of town, Bex decides to throw a party. Not necessarily a reception, but just a general, sort of big, celebration! One which begins with Bex and Bowie having their first dance and sets up a few major moments. The first being TJ and Kira breaking up.
Knocking Them Down: TJ, Cyrus, Buffy, Marty, Andi, Jonah
From there, everything begins to fall in place. Buffy is finally ready to admit she has feelings for Marty and makes sure he knows this isn't her joking or anything like that. Leading to not only Marty returning her feelings but a KISS!
It doesn't end there, so don't think that's the high! We also get TJ revealing what his name means, Thelonious Jagger, after Thelonious Monk and Mick Jagger, and that he has feelings for Cyrus too! Mind you, they don't kiss, but they do intertwine fingers. Something is better than nothing right?
Leaving Andi and Jonah. Unlike the others, they are left on an ellipsis. One which pushes the idea maybe, when older, they both might be ready for a relationship. Possibly with each other, if not in general. As for now, Jonah has the bracelet which is a symbol of him being Andi's first love, and together they share a whole bunch of learning moments which will craft their future with others, or each other.
It's Never Goodbye, But More So See You Later: Cyrus, Buffy, Andi, Jonah, Bex, Bowie
But what is a slew of happy moments without something heartbreaking? Well, for the show, the cast, it is Andi getting accepted to SAVA and that meaning for the first time, since 2nd grade, the good hair crew won't go to the same school. Which is a little bit devastating, especially for Cyrus, but they all reassure one another this isn't the end. They'll be together when Cyrus opens a film at Sundance, Buffy is coaching a professional basketball league, Andi has an art gallery opening, and Jonah is rocking out on stage.
Strangely, where Bex and Bowie will be isn't mentioned, but you can't have it all. However, when it comes to the members of the Good Hair Crew, they will always have each other.
Other Noteworthy Facts & Moments
Andi Shack has been stripped bare to represent the next stage of Andi's development.
Question(s) Left Unanswered
Was it too much to hope, expect maybe, if they are going to sing Lady GaGa's "Born This Way" they would have kept the "No matter gay, straight or bi, lesbian, transgender life?" Rather than sing this odd Kidz Bop version?
Did Buffy imply Kira was TJ's beard?
I can't be the only one who, for a hot second, thought Walter might be in the dino suit, right?
How Buffy and Cyrus Got Their Love Interest
For Buffy, Marty from the party has been a long-simmering romance. One which was made to be the opposite of Andi's crush on Jonah in that it was taken slow, serious, and rather than being about physical attraction, or something shallow, it was due to chemistry. Marty and Buffy had good banter, were both into sports and competition, and yet Buffy knew she wasn't ready for a relationship, so they got put on ice.
Yet, a season and a half later, she is ready, as was he, and the stars aligned. The same goes for Cyrus. Originally, TJ was perhaps aggressive and an ass since he saw things in Cyrus that he rejected in himself. But, in seeing that Cyrus wasn't pretending to be happy, had friends who loved him, and accepted his flaws, TJ came to love his shortcomings and even see what he thought he should hide he could live out loud. Leading to him holding the hand of the person who helped him see there was a different way to live and was by his side throughout it all.
Not Erasing The Journey Andi and Jonah Had
Let me say this, if Andi and Jonah got together, I would have rolled my eyes and been mad. Jonah clearly has no desire, or concept, of how to be in a relationship. Andi, I'd submit, is not emotionally ready to be in a relationship. Between how involved she was with Bex and Bowie's relationship, how her own anxiety flared up when it comes to Jonah, and probably the expectations Bex and Bowie have made as a precedent, Jonah has to do more than sing a song, still have a bracelet or little gestures like that. Making the idea maybe down the line, sometime in high school, them getting together more acceptable. Better yet, believable.
Giving Some Idea Of The Characters Future
Who knows, with revivals and continuations years later, maybe we may see the cast of Andi Mack play out junior and senior year, maybe freshmen year of college? It's hard to say for we don't know where any of the actors may end up and while Terri Minsky has written for older characters, as seen in The Carrie Diaries, Finding Carter, and Sex and The City, who knows if she may wish to revisit this group? But, the possibilities which aren't canon aside, at least for the core four we got some idea where life may go. Granted, it would have been nice if Bex, Amber, Bowie, and a few others were included, but you can't have it all.
The Walk Down Memory Lane
While not a big thing, it is nice, especially if you've been watching since the beginning, to see these major moments repeated once more. That is alongside being reminded how young and adorable these kids were before they became teenagers, young adults, even. Making it so, if you're a bit out of the demographic Andi Mack is for, it is like watching your younger siblings grow up and you seeing it stage by stage. Causing an emotional response you might have been expecting, yet still weren't fully prepped for.
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Andi Mack
Andi Mack: Season 3
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I started Wherever I Look back in 2011 and from movies, TV, the occasional book, play, and Broadway show, have been trying to bridge the gap between a critic and an avid lover of various forms of media.
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text:
Vermont launches electric school bus pilot with Volkswagen settlement funds
Written By Jonathan Mingle November 15, 2019
christian r / Wikimedia Commons
A two-year program will test whether electric buses can handle Vermont's rural roads while saving schools money.
Electric school buses are coming to the Green Mountain State.
In early October, the application process closed for a two-year pilot program to demonstrate the feasibility of electric buses on Vermont's rural roads.
The program aims to demonstrate the viability of the technology as a reliable and cost-effective option for school districts and transit agencies.
It's funded by Vermont's $18.7 million share of the Volkswagen Settlement Mitigation Trust, a $2.7 billion national fund set up as part of the resolution of the carmaker's diesel emissions violations of the Clean Air Act.
"The pilot will help us determine where we can successfully deploy electric buses in Vermont," said Emily Boedecker, commissioner of Vermont's Department of Environmental Conservation, which is overseeing the program. The agency will select two school districts and one transit group from the pool of applicants to be "project partners" and will help finance the purchase of two new buses for each partner.
Fuel savings and reduced maintenance costs can make an e-bus cheaper, over the full life of the vehicle, than a conventional diesel. But the biggest hurdle to wider adoption of electric buses is the upfront price. A new electric bus can cost as much as $325,000, compared to $100,000 for a conventional diesel model.
"There needs to be outside sources of revenue to support school districts to purchase the technology, whether that's Volkswagen settlement funds or utility programs," said Jennifer Wallace-Brodeur, director of transportation efficiency at the Vermont Energy Investment Corporation (VEIC), the consulting group selected by the Department of Environmental Conservation to administer the program.
"Schools are challenged with their budgets," she said. "It's hard to make the case to purchase an electric bus when teachers aren't getting paid enough. But as people become more aware of the technology, community members are saying, 'We want you to invest in this technology.'"
Proving the case for making that steep investment in e-buses — both for individual schools and more broadly at the statewide level — is a core goal of the pilot.
VEIC has consulted on the design and evaluation of electric bus pilots in other states and was part of a team recently selected by the Department of Energy to advance an electric bus project in the mid-Atlantic region. VEIC managed a pilot program from 2015 to 2018 in three school districts in Massachusetts. One of the key lessons: while the technology significantly reduced emissions of greenhouse gases and health-damaging pollutants, managing the charging and maintenance of the buses posed tough logistical challenges for schools.
"There needs to be some support to help school districts adopt the technology," Wallace-Brodeur said. "They are not fleet managers. That's not their mission."
That's where VEIC comes in. It will provide technical assistance to school facilities managers, bus drivers and maintenance staff to set up the charging infrastructure and troubleshoot as needed.
The organization also plans to document savings in fuel and maintenance costs and track reductions in emissions of particulate matter, nitrogen oxides, greenhouse gases and other air pollutants compared to diesel buses.
Applicants went through a two-step process, with the first round screening interested transit agencies and school districts to make sure they were eligible to participate. School districts and transit agencies must give up and scrap a diesel bus engine made in 2009 or earlier — a requirement of the national Volkswagen settlement.
There's also a cost-sharing requirement that they contribute the equivalent cost of a replacement diesel. The VW settlement funds will cover the incremental costs of the electric bus, charging infrastructure and installation costs. For rural school districts grappling with tightening budgets, scrapping a working diesel bus represents a significant commitment.
"We're asking school districts to give up a bus to get this electric bus," Boedecker said. "That's a pretty big ask and I'm delighted with the applications that are coming in."
Applications were also screened for other considerations, such as feasibility of installing charging infrastructure, parking and proximity to power.
"It's a pilot so there will be issues that come up," Boedecker said. "But if you have parents, students, teachers, bus drivers who are excited, when a problem arises they will lean in and figure it out."
School buses constitute the largest public fleet of vehicles in the country. About 95% of those 480,000 buses are diesel-powered. Advocacy groups like Moms Clean Air Force and the U.S. Public Interest Research Group argue that swapping out diesel buses for new electric models could improve children's health, citing the many health risks of exposure to diesel exhaust, which is classified as a carcinogen by the World Health Organization.
In 2018, the Department of Environmental Conservation solicited public input on how to spend Vermont's $18.7 million share of the Volkswagen fund. Comments submitted during that period and the two-stage application process revealed wide interest in the cost savings and potential educational benefits for students.
"We had some really good qualified school districts, just under 10 that came in with applications," Boedecker said. "They represent a really nice mix of different environments within Vermont."
The department hopes to announce recipients of the $1.9 million in funding by the end of this year. Whether electric buses could be quietly ferrying students on Vermont's roads by the start of school in 2020 depends on manufacturers' production and delivery timetables — which depend in turn on wider demand for electric buses.
Vermont's effort comes as more and more states and even some major electric utilities are financing electric school bus programs. Several other states, including Michigan, Ohio, Minnesota and New York, have also set aside settlement funds expressly for electric school bus programs. The California Energy Commission recently set aside $70 million to fund the replacement of over 200 diesel school buses with electric models in 26 different California counties.
That investment in California is helping manufacturers build their base of revenue and customers and will be essential to growing the wider market and driving costs down, according to Wallace-Brodeur. "BlueBird and all the major school bus manufacturers are now getting into the game and getting active pushing the technology," she said.
Even if the Vermont pilot is successful and helps schools figure out how to manage the technical transition to e-buses, it won't solve the fundamental barrier to electrifying school transit: financing. Volkswagen funds will run out, and schools alone can't foot the bill. But there may be new, creative solutions to that problem on the horizon.
Just last month, Dominion Energy announced it would fund the deployment of 1,000 electric school buses in Virginia by 2025. In White Plains, New York, Consolidated Edison has partnered with a local school district to finance five electric buses. The utility will benefit from using the buses' batteries to store power from the grid, and draw it down when demand is high.
This "vehicle-to-grid" V2G partnership model could demonstrate a new way to subsidize the purchase of electric school buses at a wider scale.
School buses sit idle in the summer. That's when solar generation is highest, and peak afternoon demand for electricity is highest, too. By parking their school buses all through the summer, soaking up excess solar production, and providing valuable storage to help the grid manage those peaks, school districts could be paid by utilities to subsidize the cost of the buses. If all of the school buses in the U.S. were replaced with electric models, they could store an amount of electricity equivalent to the daily use of 850,00 households.
In the meantime, the potential benefits of e-buses have led more school and community leaders and policymakers to seek out VEIC's expertise on the subject.
"We are definitely getting more calls from people looking for basic information and wanting to pick our brains," Wallace-Brodeur said. "Electric buses have definitely captured the imagination of a lot of people in Vermont. People are excited about getting kids on these buses, and exposing students to new technologies and learning opportunities."
About Jonathan Mingle
Jonathan Mingle is a freelance journalist focused on science, climate, energy and the environment. He is a former Middlebury Fellow in Environmental Journalism, and the author of "Fire and Ice: Soot, Solidarity, and Survival on the Roof of the World," a nonfiction narrative book about the health and climate impacts of black carbon pollution. He lives in Vermont.
More by Jonathan
How fossil fuels won round one of North Carolina's Volkswagen settlement payout
Legislative politics, industry influence, and financial pressures from an aging bus fleet helped shape spending.
Southern Illinois school district awaiting electric buses: 'We're really ready'
The Triad school district, just outside the St. Louis suburbs, hopes to replace half of its diesel fleet over 15 years.
Virginia advocates plan to jumpstart electric school bus debate next year
Legislative proposals to put more electric school buses on the road failed this session but will likely be revived for 2021.
More on transportation
Subscribe to transportation


Handling the business strategies according to the modern requirement and desire is not an easy task. There are a lot more things you have to manage perfectly to capture the business from the market. Before talking about the market situation first of all you have to take a brief view of your business internally to manage it accurately without much hassle. There are a lot more things in your business which you actually need to check well because when these things will perform better, your business will surely get a boost in the market and you may easily perform efficiently without much hassle.
It is very much important to look after different sections of the business efficiently and also remove all types of errors from it which may block you from the success. The best and authentic solution is to utilize Microsoft Dynamics CRM service Dubai for business stability.
Moreover, you can also get a lot more benefits which you may never have in your business carrier. Right now, across the world, Microsoft Dynamics CRM has preferred by almost every organization for their business activities respectively. No doubt, it is the only best solution which will provide a positive boost to your business and you will able to get success in your targeted goals.
As we all know very well that in this world market competition is very much high and you have to perform according to the standard respectively. Making a business strong in the market is the basic requirement of every businessman but maintaining the standard of business according to it will require the best CRM support which may help you out to get deal with all types of circumstances. Here we will discuss some positive factors and benefits of using Microsoft Dynamics CRM for the business and how it will provide you the best chances to deal with modern strategies as well.
No doubt, Microsoft Dynamics CRM is the best and durable solution for every type of business across the world. It is a common factor that if you are running your business in Dubai, then you surely have to prepare your business to get in the list where it can face tough challenges by all means.
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One of the best thing in the use of Microsoft Dynamics CRM is to utilize efficiently on the current system respectively. It was actually very much difficult in the past days when this CRM option was not available. People use to upgrade their machines to work efficiently without much hassle. It can be easily run on the system without upgrading it.
Security fencing around the data and information is very much important in these days. Every business prefers to have a security solution in which they can keep secure their data and information files from any type of malware hit. Through cloud computing storage it will definitely secure the whole stored data and information and it will also provide the best features to locate the data from registered devices which will authorize by the IT team and they only have access towards the sensitive data and information from anywhere in the world respectively.
It is really very important factor to improve the working efficiency of the faculty members of the business. The best way is to provide them all the best and secure solution to deal with the Microsoft Dynamics CRM ERP solution. In most of the countries, it has become a common thing to utilize the CRM solution to deal with new innovations of the world as well as it will definitely provide a business the best success rate and its employees will also make their best effort to get achieve their goals.
After discussing all these points finally, we have the strong points which can express the whole benefits of using Microsoft Dynamics CRM services for the business and how it will provide the best and possible facilities to the users by all means.


text:
Against All Odds, This Marin County Fashion Boutique Became a Lockdown Success
By Emily Holt
"I don't intend for the Marin store to be open tomorrow or maybe even the whole week. Likely the same for Post Street," I wrote to my team in Slack on March 15, 2020. How quaint! How naïve! By the time of my next entry, June 18, said Post Street location of my San Francisco store Hero Shop showed zero signs of reopening ever, most members of that Slack channel soon would be laid off permanently, the world was wearing face masks 24/7, and it had been three months since I bothered to put in my contact lenses or color my hair. Which is to say I looked how I felt: rung out.
When San Francisco's first shelter in place was announced last spring, a three-week mandated closure was incomprehensible. Yet here we are, a year later, that three weeks having extended into three months and our business almost entirely changed.
Pre-pandemic, Hero Shop was brick-and-mortar-focused, centered around the in-store experience at our two locations in San Francisco and Marin, about 20 minutes north of the city. We loved playing great music, styling clients in exciting new clothes, and throwing parties every chance we got. Now, down to just one store, we rely almost entirely on text, Instagram DMs, and email to communicate with clients (thankfully we took that time in person to build strong relationships) and the in-store experience is inverted to in-home. Each evening, like Santa Claus, I deliver online orders and approval boxes to doorsteps all across San Francisco and Marin (the driving extending my workday by about two hours).
Vikram Valluri/BFA.com
But it's working. 2020 was Hero Shop's highest-selling year yet. Our clients scaled back their big-box store purchases in favor of shopping with us, and fervently encouraged their friends to take advantage of our home delivery service. We, at first frantically and now more methodically, threw everything online and increased our newsletter cadence. Our e-commerce sales grew 997%. (In-store was down only 40%.) We made the WFH wardrobe our priority: cozy sweaters, stretchy jeans, and good jewelry to jazz up the Zoom look—all critical inventory that, thanks to loans and grants, we were able to pay for. We also got to bring in exciting, covetable collections that previously were off limits to us, because their other points of distribution had gone under.
That's where the survivor's guilt kicks in. I hated closing our store in the Tenderloin, a neighborhood with vibrant history, but the health and safety conditions grew untenable. (Retailers in nearby Hayes Valley, a trendy area where Warby Parker and Away have stores, recently have been held up at gunpoint.) And the reality is that suburbs are thriving. Marin County, an affluent community 20 minutes across the Golden Gate Bridge where our second, and now our only, store is located, is undeniably the spot for a specialty luxury shop. Especially now that our city clients are moving there or passing through more often as they retreat to their second homes in Stinson Beach or Napa.
These days we're seeing more clients in store and some are even shopping for glamorous summer vacations. What we have to sell them for these trips varies, since the clothes arriving now were bought via Zoom, and if you think online shopping for yourself is tricky, try doing it for a store.
In many ways, we're entering the next 12 months better off than we did the last. Everyone is saying that sales this spring and summer will be gangbusters because of pent-up energy and dollars. But I don't intend to take my foot off the gas. If the pandemic has taught me anything, it's to not take anything for granted. If you told me that next year I'll be selling Cossack hats on TikTok, I'd be like yeah, anything's possible.
TopicsLife in Lockdown


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