text:
Brexit party tops EU poll – as Labour and Tories punished by voters
The EU election results are in and it's bad news for both of the main parties. Labour and the Tories have lost support while the pro-EU Liberal Democrats and Green Party have made significant gains. However, the big winner is the Brexit Party.
Ahead of the vote, Nigel Farage's new outfit was predicted to win the largest vote share and they have managed to do just that. The Brexit party has come first and the Lib Dems second. The Brexit Party won 28 MEPs with 32% of the vote share. The party had an impressive showing in the Midlands as well as East of England where they have had three MEPs elected – including Farage allies Richard Tice and Michael Heaver. In Scotland, the Brexit party came in second after the SNP. Even in areas where the Brexit Party isn't expected to do particularly well they are defied expectations – amassing more votes than Labour in the heavily Remain area of Cambridge:
Totals for Cambridge in the European elections, 23 May:
Brexit Party. 5064
Change UK 1323
Conservative & Unionist 1499
English Democrats. 83
Green Party 9408
Labour Party. 4551
Liberal Democrats 17328
UKIP 482
CSORDAS Attila 68
Rejected. 124
Total votes. 39,930
— Cambridge City Council (@camcitco) May 26, 2019
The trend is clear – the Brexit party is taking votes from the Tories, Ukip and in some areas Labour. So, what will it mean for the current political landscape? Ukip won 24 seats in the last European elections on 26 per cent of vote. They then went on to only win one seat in the following general election – in which Cameron promised a second referendum if elected. What's different this time, however, is that the driving force behind the Brexit Party's success – the government's failure to deliver Brexit – shows no sign of abating. The surge in support for the Brexit party will shape the debate for the upcoming Tory leadership contest – with candidates under pressure to explain how they plan to respond to the threat of Farage. That pressure will likely only increase the chance of a candidate willing to push for no deal winning the top job.
What the Brexit Party's success means for the Tory leadership contest
Nigel Farage: the Brexit party is no1 in Europe. Next stop: Westminster
Brexit party voters will decide Boris Johnson's fate
Matthew Goodwin
Only a vote for the Brexit Party can save the Tories
What Farage's Brexit ultimatum means for the Tories
Jess Phillips vows to toughen up her approach to the Labour party


text:
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We found 40 resources with the concept the american dream
American Dream: Reality, Promise or Illusion?
10th - 11th
CCSS: Designed
New ReviewDream or nightmare? Class members craft a synthesis essay with textual to determine to what extent the United States has fulfilled the ideas embodied in the America Dream.
Get Free Access See Review
The Great Gatsby: Study Guide
9th - 12th
CCSS: Adaptable
Uncover the exciting world of the Roaring Twenties with The Great Gatsby study guide. Individuals become critics as they write a review of the production. Scholars also read historical information and analyze the differences between the...
The television and interstate highways both came of age in 1950s America. Scholars use film, text, and discussion to explore how these and other cultural icons shaped the literature of the time. Pupils also create a family history...
Postwar Tension and Triumph
Go get the American Dream lifestyle! The 19th lesson in a 22-part series exploring American history shows learners the post-WWII economic boom. Using primary sources, photographs, and cartoons, groups discuss their findings and present...
Political Theory - John Rawls
7 mins 9th - Higher Ed
Pretty much everyone has heard the phrase life is unfair. A theory by John Rawls, a famous political theorist, as to why this occurs in government and society presents itself. Pupils watch his theory through primary resource photographs...
Student Copy of Gatsby and the Jazz Age: American Dream or Nightmare:
F. Scott Fitzgerald's intent in The Great Gatsby, was "to state the American dream as dramatically, as passionately, as possible – and at the same time, to hold it up to moral judgment, to see what lies and terrors lay beneath its garlands and banners and 'good times'." The materials in this collection are designed to encourage readers of The Great Gatsby to explore and demonstrate their understanding of the many layers of F. Scott Fitzgerald's classic American novel.
Teacher-Copy of Gatsby and the Jazz Age: American Dream or Nightmare
F. Scott Fitzgerald's intent in The Great Gatsby was "to state the American dream as dramatically, as passionately, as possible – and at the same time, to hold it up to moral judgment, to see what lies and terrors lay beneath its garlands and banners and 'good times'." The materials in this collection are meant to provide teachers with background information, unit and lesson plans, and suggestions for activities that will encourage readers to explore the many layers of this classic novel, the good times and the terrors.
The Power to Persevere
Joris Debeij's film, Making It in America, takes a look at Alma Velasco, a Salvadoran immigrant who was granted political asylum in the United States. The lesson plan gives a face to immigrants and their struggles to embrace the American...
A Raisin in the Sun, Harlem, and the American Dream
Or does it explode? Study the dream deferred with a collection based on Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin in the Sun. Complete with lessons, activities, and writing prompts, the collection provides ways to expand your unit on the American dream. Additionally, it contains resources focused on Langston Hughes and his poetry, particularly "Harlem."
1 In 1 Collection
Making Lemonade: Responding to Oppression in Empowering Ways
An activity focused on tolerance encourages class members to consider how they might respond when they or someone else is the target of oppression and discrimination. After researching how some key figures responded to the anti-Semitism...
Gatsby and the Jazz Age: American Dream or Nightmare?
F. Scott Fitzgerald's intent in The Great Gatsby, was "to state the American dream as dramatically, as passionately, as possible – and at the same time, to hold it up to moral judgment, to see what lies and terrors lay beneath its garlands and banners and 'good times'." The materials in this collection encourage readers to explore the many layers of this classic novel, the good times and the terrors.
Utopia/Dystopia: The American Dream
America was founded by dreamers, and the American dream still resonates in our country today. Track the American dream from its Puritan beginnings to its optimistic descendants with a instructional activity that focuses on speeches by...
The New Colossus
The Statue of Liberty is one of the United States' most iconic monuments. Learners examine the poem "The New Colossus" by Emma Lazarus, which is engraved on the Statue of Liberty's pedestal. They then respond to a series of text-based...
The Great Gatsby: Themes of the Novel
After a discussion of the major themes of The Great Gatsby, individuals are asked to craft an essay in which they identify what they believe is the most important theme and whether the topic still has meaning for today's readers.
2 In 2 Collections
Like Pale Gold - The Great Gatsby Part I
12 mins 9th - 12th
American dream or American nightmare? The Great Gatsby comes under scrutiny in a Crash Course on F. Scott Fitzgerald's story of the Jazz Age, its glitter and its ash heaps. The narrator's focus in Part I of the two-part series, are...
Was Gatsby Great? The Great Gatsby Part 2
9 mins 9th - 12th
Is Gatsby great? In the second of two videos devoted to F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby, the narrator presents his argument for why Jay Gatsby should indeed be considered great. By backing his stance with evidence from the text,...
American Dream and The Great Gatsby
Is the American Dream alive and well or has it dried up and died? As part of a study of The Great Gatsby, class members search for articles on the state of the American Dream, analyze the arguments presented in those articles, and then...
That's the Spirit
Is, as Walt Whitman contends, America's "almost maniacal appetite for wealth," the heart of the American dream? Class members grapple with this question as they read David Brooks' article "The Commercial Republic," and quotes that...
The Gift of Gatsby
A reading of "Gatsby's Green Light Beckons a New Set of Strivers," a New York Times article by Sara Rimer, triggers a discussion of the American Dream and what it means to strive for something. Following the discussion, class members...
Ain't That America
"Well there's more and more people, what do they know?" Help your class connect their lives with history and literature using this resource, which guides them through the lyrics of John Mellencamp's "Pink Houses." Using the images in the...
Constitution/Impeachment/Reconstruction
Eleventh graders analyze a chart comparing U.S. census data from 1850, 1880, 1900, and 1920. They read a handout summarizing immigration legislation from 1882-1996 and create a graph charting how open / closed U.S. immigration is over time.
Knowledge Rating
3rd - 8th
Evaluate vocabulary by writing definitions of known words and finding out those that are unknown. As an anticipatory set, the class fills out an agree/disagree chart discussing vocabulary. While reading about the American dream, kids...
Who Can Achieve the "American Dream"
Exploring the idea of working to achieve the American Dream, the class reads an excerpt from How the Garcia Girls Lost their Accents by Julia Alvarez. Following, the class analyzes the excerpt and discusses the theme of the reading using...
Review of our Presidents from the Progressive Era to Cold War
Covering the main events of the Cold War, this (mistitled) presentation includes photographs, political cartoons, and amusing graphics to illustrate its points. The information on the slides is helpful for an overview of the Cold War,...
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


The Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) standard was created by the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA). Its aim is to support the distribution and viewing of medical images from CT, MRI and other medical modalities. The DICOM format is an extension of the older NEMA standard.
A DICOM file contains a header and the image data. The header stores information about the patient's name, the type of scan, position and dimension of image and lots of other data. The image data part contains all the image information. DICOM is the common standard for scans in hospitals.
This feature helps users to convert the standard image formats to the DICOM format for medical communications. It is a standard for handling, storing, printing, and transmitting information in medical imaging.
This section covers the requirements mandatory for installing Essential DICOM. It also lists operating systems and browsers compatible with the product.
Syncfusion provides the following documentation segments to provide all the necessary information pertaining to Essential DICOM.
, and then click the Class Reference link found in the upper right section of the page.)Installed DocumentationDashboard -> Documentation -> Installed Documentation.


When we round up all of our girls for an epic night in we already know the drill = guy talk, movies, gossip. We're the most unfiltered versions of ourselves when we're with our besties and we offer ZERO apologies. So now that Fifty Shades of Grey is out to download, it's the perfect opportunity to get the girls over, crack open a bottle and celebrate Jamie Dornan's ab-tastic performance. But first, we'll walk you through all of the down-right personal things we only speak of on a GNI.
A Friday or Saturday in with a few of our closest friends might as well be deemed a religious ceremony. Just one of those epic nights has the power to make us feel totally renewed and reborn.
We use those nights in as an opportunity to figuratively and literally let our hair down. They're where our deepest and most honest conversations happen. #NoFilterNecessary.
We're basically looking for our friends to say, "of course you're hot!" and share theirs in solidarity.
Because we're young, free and only live once. It's OK to dream! #YOLO.
We're sure you're dying to know, but nah. That kind of talk is reserved for the BFFs.
We might keep it cute on social media, but you better believe our girls are getting the REAL story.
We've all done embarrassing things we want to forget. It just so happens that our best girls were there and won't EVER let us...What else are friends for?
Because sharing is caring #justsayin.
Just lending a helping hand, that's all. It's totally fine.
Our Instagram game might be on POINT but the girls know we're still struggling to figure life out. As long as they're there to support us along the way we have no problem telling them when we screw up. AKA all the time.
If we ever have a chance of looking as smoking hot as we want, you better believe we're hitting the gym - HARD! So if one of us has cracked the secret to a rockin' booty you BET we're gonna tell our girls about it.
Hangovers. Bills. Wrinkles. Where did they come from and WHY do they hate us?!
It's petty, we know but we can't help but think we're as good as it gets. Right? RIGHT?
...And we laughed in his face. Silly men.
The Fifty Shades of Grey movie is available to download on iTunes before its DVD release on 22nd June! If you're curious for more – you'll get major added extras including exclusive behind the scenes footage, music videos and a first look at Fifty Shades Darker.
What do you talk about during your night in with the girls? DISH! Tweet us @sofeminineUK.


This $100 million two-story, 273,000 square foot terminal is a state-of-the-art modern architectural design which expresses flight and Wichita's globally-prominent position in the aviation manufacturing industry as the Air Capital of the World.
The curvilinear roof form serves as a large gestural element evoking the dynamic motion of flight. The main level arrivals/departures curb features an overhanging translucent canopy, shielding passengers from the elements while loading and unloading at curbside, and refined landscaping which creates a natural area between the curb and the lobby. A dominant interior feature is the "great wall" above both the ticketing and bag claim lobbies that is washed with natural light from a linear skylight above.
Aviation-themed exhibits which portray the history of aviation in Wichita are an integral element in the terminal's design.


text:
Time to say goodbye to rigid doctrines for Turkey
by Kerem Alkin
Dec 22, 2021 - 12:05 am GMT+3
The Turkish lira and U.S. dollar banknotes are pictured together in a photo taken in Turkey. (Photo by Getty Images)
by Kerem Alkin Dec 22, 2021 12:05 am
Turkey's role in the Balkans: Diplomacy at its best
turkey-balkan-relations
With the coronavirus pandemic, the leading actors of the world economy have learned that the strict rules in the market and trade are not possible from now on.
Since the late 1990s, the Neoliberal orthodox approach, known as "the mainstream" by respected names in the field of economics such as Joseph Stiglitz and Paul Krugman, has been questioned in detail. The very understanding dogmatically accepts the set of relations between production and trade and finance and the functioning mechanism of the markets. It first caused the 1929 Great Depression and then sent the second shock wave through the world economy in the 2008 global financial crisis. This situation has made the Economics lecture more boring for the new generation due to the imposition of the teachings of the neoclassical and neoliberal view as a rigid doctrine.
One of the most important handicaps of the neoliberal orthodox approach is that it is an "advanced economy" approach. For this reason, trying to dictate a neoliberal orthodoxy understanding to leading emerging economies such as Turkey, especially in the complex and multilayered economic-political relationship order of the 21st century, is a subject of heavy criticism in academia.
The global economy and politics between 2020 and 2030 are going through a new "design process." In such a period, under the leadership of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, a new economic road map, which is based on the "green development revolution" and questions and destroys the "rigid doctrine" of the neoliberal orthodox approach, is of vital importance in terms of sustainable growth, production, employment and export strategies of the Turkish economy.
Not only the developing countries but also the developed ones faced major changes in their economic structures in the period from the 19th century to the 21th century. The neoliberal orthodox understanding, however, failed to provide solutions and even deepened the effects of the 1929 and 2008 crises. The primary and secondary effects caused by the cost inflation of the global economy are now discussed. Turkey seeking to create an unorthodox, non-stereotypical, non-rigid new economic road map on its own is a projection of the search that is already being observed in the world economy.
For this reason, it is extremely important to put new and more effective tools in front of the decision makers of the Turkish economy and savers, instead of the rigid monetary and fiscal policy approaches and tools dictated by the orthodox understanding.
The fact that the savings of $1.75 billion (TL 22.55 billion) were destroyed in just one day and the savings were transferred to the Turkish lira confirms that the new economic model and understanding announced by Erdoğan has been widely accepted by the public. Taking Turkey out of the currency-interest vortex, focusing on a sustainable competitive production-investment-employment-export route, and as an important player in the global supply chain, Turkey has a 1.5% share in both global trade and global gross domestic product (GDP). The green development revolution, which is the focus of the new road map, is to cement Turkey's position as a key actor in the global eco-political environment.
turkish economy turkish lira recep tayyip erdoğan global economy
Best trekking routes in Turkey


text:
South Laos - 1 Ferry Tales
Thread starter Jurgen
Laos Motorcycle Touring Forums
Laos Road Trip Reports
www.chopard.org
Excerpt: The province of Champasak, royal and relaxed, is all about waterways, sunsets and hammocks. From Pakse, down to Cambodia, it hosts the stunning ramifications of the Mekong, sculpting "Four Thousand Islands".
South Laos Trip
Part 1 - Ferry tales
See also a trip report about North Laos (in four parts):
https://www.gt-rider.com/thailand-motorcycle-forum/threads/33280-An-Easy-Road-to-Laos-1-Crosing-the-border
https://www.gt-rider.com/thailand-motorcycle-forum/threads/33379-An-Easy-Road-to-Laos-2-The-Road-to-Luang-Prabang
https://www.gt-rider.com/thailand-motorcycle-forum/threads/33573-An-Easy-Road-to-Laos-3-Plain-of-Jars
https://www.gt-rider.com/thailand-motorcycle-forum/threads/33925-An-Easy-Road-to-Laos-4.-Back-to-Nong-Khai
The complete photo story can be found at :
http://picasaweb.google.com/campusadvise/SouthLaos1FerryTales#
Trip maps (see at the end of the post).
Crossing at Chong Mek
For the first time, I started my motorcycle trip by boarding a plane. Actually, the story began a week earlier, when I brought my companion to the Maerim post office. She got a "bubble-wrapping" and my farewell: " I hope to see you in Ubon, in a week's time, and in good shape".
In full biker's attire, I checked in with Thai Airways and walked through security. I had forgotten that "weapons", useful on the road, like a swiss knife, are not welcomed on board. Fortunately, the compassionate girls at the scanner forwarded my tool to destination.
Flying to Ubon Ratchasima, on a journey that friends would drive in one motorcycle leap, seems heretic. But for me, bypassing a two days highway trip, with shower bonuses, was worth a trial. It would also give me more time to amble around South Laos.
My travel fantasy, set me back of 3'100 Bath postage for the lady ("bubble" packing is 100 Bath), and another 5'000 Bath for my airline ticket.
In Ubon, I reserved the "Sri Isan" hotel. I was greeted at the airport by friendly staff who drove me directly to the central post office. My "girl" was waiting there, unharmed. She arrived the same morning, as promised, with one week deadline. The hotel's receptionist, in her "pa sin", jumped on the rear seat and showed me the way. It was all Thai style, friendly and fun.
I had no precise itinerary for the following days, but knew that I would travel to Laos and go South. My schedule was a two weeks trip, including the way back to Chiangmai, this time on my own wheels.
I woke up to a bleak day, with a sad sky crying down on my morning departure. There was no hope in waiting for better times, so I packed my things waterproof and hit the road toward Laos.
Route 217 after Ubon, and particularly after Phibun Mangsahan was not at his best. Two of the four lanes were useless and the last sector was totally under renovation, with muddy trails and treacherous levels between old asphalt and soft dirt. My mood was somber as the clouds and, to escape from the permanent rain, my camera never left her dry hiding.
Chong Mek border crossing is on land, as in Muang Ngeun, were I had crossed into North Laos. These places are relaxed, without bridges or ferry burden.
It was easy to pass Thai immigration. I had prepared 3 copies of my passport, the bike's green book and the border documents, downloaded from GTR site. The data were not totally completed but were all accepted, without addition. In the custom's booth the officer typed the data in the computer and gave me the printout. Thailand was done!
On the Lao side, I began with the police booth, got the arrival card and was asked for a visa. As I did in North Laos, I went to the "visa on arrival" counter and was pleased to learn that Swiss nationals could stay two weeks for free. I rushed to the next room, were a lady typed data in a computer, asking for the motorcycle's passport. I made the usual answer stance that there is only a "green book", and this was confirmed by an "insurance man" sitting next to her. I paid 100 THB and and another 150 THB for two weeks third part coverage. Some stamps, another stop, two hundred meters down the road, for a control and I was all set, happily driving in Laos, at least this is what I thought …
(for interested "border crosser" see my blog post "walking into Laos"
https://www.gt-rider.com/thailand-motorcycle-forum/entries/8-Walking-into-Laos
Gliding straight down, on the right side of the road, I droved to Pakse, through a curtain of mist and rain. Route 16 W is smooth but shared with all sort of cattle and other animals. When I reached the Lao-Nippon Bridge, I parked my bike and went to greet my old friend: the Mekong.
My stop-over was short lived. As I walked to take pictures, a policemen came hunting me on a "Honda", making me understand that I had to go back to my bike. Something was probably against the law, no idea what it was.
Champasak – Wat Phu
The light was not appealing, and I took few pictures of Pakse before driving toward Champasak, happy to discover the South face of route 13. The side road leading to the Mekong ferry pier is at Lak 30. There, big and small boats charter people and vehicles to the west side of the river.
I checked in to "Anouxa Guest House", a friendly and relaxed place, with simple but comfortable rooms, a delightful view to the river and a terrace restaurant. It reminded me, on a smaller scale, to Nong Khai's "Mut Mee", patronized by a mix of travelers, with different backgrounds and plenty of stories to share.
Thirty years ago, Champasak was the seat of royalty. Nowadays the village is just a road, on the rim of the Mekong, with houses and guest houses on both sides. A couple of temples, some colonial buildings, old palaces and all sorts of small shops boarding the street.
I kept one day to visit Wat Phu, a Unesco world heritage temple, and the neighborhoods of Champasak. The morning was gray, with an agreeable temperature for an excursion, but dull light for pictures. Despite a flat and colorless illumination, the venerable stones were posing majestically against the dark backdrop of the cliff.
Morning mist and clouds hanging around the mountain's peak, add mystery and a sense of peace to the site. No comparison with the big brother of Cambodia, but it is not about similarities or differences, but to enjoy the place for itself and for the important piece of history that it embodies.
Women where selling artifacts near the worship places and I discussed the theory of relativity, with one of them. We did not quote Einstein, but had common views about happiness. Then she tied a Baci cord around my wrist and, in her prayer, wished that I be reborn in Laos, as her husband. To bring good fortune, the cotton thread has to remain intact for at least three days … months later I still wear it.
My intention, when writing trip reports, is to illustrate itineraries for bikers and point to interesting places. Description of Wat Phu's historic importance (it is a pre-Angkorian temple) are found in many "Lonely" travel guides.
A trail, toward the South, once linked Wat Phu to Angkor. The first part is a pastoral footpath. It leads to the collapsed shrine of Nang Sida, a girl once scarified to a legendary monster. I walked at the pace of a pilgrim as the intense quietness of the environment was only disturbed by the rhythm of my shoes, brushing the grass. The place feels like it had fallen asleep, many hundred years ago, crumbled and forgotten.
The access to Champasak used to be a ferry boat, from the pier located off route 13, at Lak 30. A new link has been cut, down from Paxse, on the west side of the Mekong. It should now be totally asphalted, but during my visit there was still a large proportion of red dirt. I scouted a part of it and the slippery surface, with traffic in both directions, was not yet real fun. Escaping into the mud, when crossing vehicles, was acrobatic on a road bike. I was told that everything should be sealed in a couple of months, for the temple's annual festival, in February. This will provide a speed link and bring more people to Wat Phu, but less might stay overnight in Champasak.
In Champask the Mekong is broad and belongs totally to Laos. It is an ideal surface for boating, fishing, cruising or racing in traditional dragon boats.
Kong Island
I woke up with the dawn filtering through the curtains, announcing a sunny day. There was no reason to hurry and I took my time for breakfast, before driving to the pier. It was still early and the first travelers cruised on small boats, the large ferry waiting for consistent loads. My motorcycle was not am interesting freight and I had to wait for quite a while.
Eventually, the boatman decided to sail, but quickly turned back, when he spotted a truck loaded with passengers. It was a laid back process, nothing speedy. The alternative is to charter a small pirogue, but they leave from a different boat landing.
Back on the East side, I glided down route 13, to the next interesting intersection. At "Lak Si-Sip-Pet" ( kilometer 48 ) the worn out route 18A leads to an elephant village and to "Kingfisher Ecolodge" (Ban Khiat Ngong). The territory is part of Xe Pian National protected area and travelers have to pay a fee of 30'000 kip to enter it.
Going on a retreat, in the natural surrounding of the lodge, and spending days watching herds of water buffaloes or ambulating elephants must be the utmost way to slow down time. As I had other projects, for the immediate future, and jumped back on my bike.
Route 13 leads to the border, through an area called the "Esmerald Triangle", a parallel with the Northern "Golden Triangle". The boundaries of Laos, Cambodia and Thailand meet in this region and discussions are held for common economic developments.
Champasak province is the main destination of South Laos trips. Despite obvious national similarities, the geologic and human environment here are very different from the North. There are no important mountain ranges but the watering Mekong is omnipresent, sometimes split in branches covering wide areas (as much as twelve kilometers in Si Phan Don).
I noted another difference in the layout of villages. As there is enough space available, small hamlets are build offside and linked to main road 13 through unpaved trails. Traffic, however, is still very low and the itinerary often deserted, with the exception of rambling cattle or scattered drying bamboo and rice.
As I reached the last barrier before crossing into the Khmer kingdom, I hesitated on my itinerary. I was attracted by a loop through Angkor, but ill prepared for this. My information about roads, lodgings and administrative paperwork were all for Laos and I had not yet exploited all the possibilities here. No second thought, I turned back, and headed toward the North.
My next visit was for Khong Papeng, to watch the waterfalls. The stream of the Mekong, cascading down a wall of rocks, performs one of the most spectacular show in Asia. The strength of the flow has the power to wash away the spirits usually hanging around people. This makes Thai nationals flock to the place, a highlight of their Laos trip. The white foam of the rapids, punctuated by dark boulders on a blue backdrop has something magic, even if it is not enough to frighten ghosts.
Only a couple of the "Four Thousand Islands" have touristic activities. The twins, Don Det and Don Khon are beloved backpacker's destinations. Their motorcycling infrastructures, however, seemed limited. I was still curious to asses the crossing possibilities and went to Nakasang, on the shore of the river. There I found small pirogues prepared to charter my bike to the other side. Despite the attraction to relax in this remote heaven, I left the visit open for another trip and went back to route 13, in direction of Vientiane.
The intersection to Hat and to the ferry pier to Don Khong is a couple of kilometers up. It is the south branch of a loop and this "lower" part is totally asphalted whilst the northern part is mostly dirt.
Don Khong, one of the four thousand sand banks and islets, is the largest with a length of eighteen kilometers and eight in width. It is a popular destination for Thai travelers and some hotels can be crowded with groups. I choose "Pon's Guest House", particularly for his Mekong terrace (even a hammock is available). Rooms facing the river are well located, they have air conditioning and TV sets. Unfortunately, not all cubicles have a nice view and access to the balcony. The price, at that moment, was 1000 Kip (400 THB).
Night life in Don Khong is limited. Enjoying the twilight from a balcony and admiring the changing colors of the dimming light, over the flowing the water, makes a rewarding end to a biker's day.
At five thirty, the sun began to poke over the Mekong, illuminating a couple of stratus on a clear sky. I walked to the morning market, nothing huge, just a small authentic place were locals are gathering to trade goods.
After breakfast, on Pon's terrace, I began to circle the island at a appropriate pace, avoiding to frighten villagers and cattle. For once, I just put on a cap, to fully appreciate the scent of fresh cut grass and to enjoy the flaming yellows of the rice fields, contrasting with the azurean sky.
My first stop was in Muang Saen Nua village, on the West shore. From there small boats sail to remote destinations with no other communication links. In the evening it is a great place to watch the sunset.
Further down, Maha Kung, the utmost South point, was my next destination. The last sector is not paved but the road is good till Ban Hang Khong. It offers no particular attraction, just the same boating activities, the slowly flowing Mekong and few people.
Like everywhere in Laos, kids came running toward me when I stopped my motorcycle. For the first time, however, they opened their hands in a beggar gesture. It is a maybe a sign of progress, a legacy of tourism.
On the way back the road passes again Ban Hang Kong and Ban Huay, near to the vehicle ferry pier.
When traveling around Laos, one of my quest is for a shack smaller than his parabolic antenna. I came close to it, but till now, the huts, in all their styles and materials, were still slightly bigger. I often wonder how they get electric power. In such remote places, Thai TV, with his profusion of korean soaps, is the only modern distraction ... now that demography is no longer a national concern.
My next destination was the far North, Ban Houa Kong Lem. It is a view point over the Mekong and toward the island of Don San. Ubiquitous boats are part of the landscape, as they are the only mean to connect secluded neighborhoods.
In front of a temple, near the river, a group of novices where preparing a cruise to a remote destination, in company of a senior monk. I rejoiced to take colorful pictures of the departing party but, as long as I waited, the motor gave no sign of life. I had plenty of time to chat with the reverent father but, after a while, decided to hit the road again.
I had almost spend a day rambling around Don Khong, driving a figure eight loop around the island and just added 63 kilometers to my odometer.
Trip maps:
Reactions: DavidFL
1 Ferry tales
11 Crossing at Chong Mek
12 Champasak – Wat Phu
13 Kong Island
2. Around the Bolevan
21 The waterfalls
22 A Bolevan shortcut
23 Pakse
3. Central Laos
31 Savan and Tha Khek
32 Route 8 and Tong Lo
33 Back to Thailand
Thanks Jurgen
Really enjoyed your report and pics. My wife and I were in Si Pan Don a couple of years ago. Brought back good memories.
johngooding
Ol'Timer
Thank you Jurgen for your beautifully illustrated and scripted report. A most enjoyable and informative read.
David Learmonth
Great photos & report!
A wonderful report...thanks!
I'd never explored the areas pictured in your report, west of the Mekong.
But, thanks to your pictorial and descriptions, the area is now on my 'to-do' list!
Thank You to all friends who had a look to my report and, in particular, to the one who left a comment. As David_fl is touring South Laos these days, we can expect more pictures and great information very soon
ronwebb
Many thanks Jurgen for your time and effort in posting this wonderfully illustrated and informative report. Its given me many ideas.
Very nice pics and write-up. Thank's for sharing !
DavidFL
Chiang Khong
www.thegtrider.com
Fantastic trip & colours in the photos.
I'm back from 3 weeks in the south & it is dry down there already.
The difference in the greenery is incredible, but when I was riding Siphandone / the four thousand islands the Mekong is clear like glass. Unbelievable & that's the advantage you get going in the dry - hot season.
I will be posting my photos & report once I get my 1 month northern Laos trip finished.
yempaul
Nice shots ... love those colours ...
LivinLOS
Great TR, just how I like em, heavy on the photos and some really good quality shots too.
Rhodie
Some very nice pix indeed.
We stayed at Pon's in early Jan - he has a swanky new place around the corner for $35 per night.
I might have missed it but what month were you riding in?
Those leaden skies are very dramatic.
Thank you friends for reading and posting comments. I am touring Isan these days ... Dark and dry but always loveable.
I did this South Laos tour in September and still 2 chapters to write. My fingers are very slow in English, I am about one year late in my posts, but then they are synchro again
This GTR report had the only reference for Nakasang that I could find, but there must be others; & I've been there twice & not mentioned it any of my reports that I can see; so......I read an interesting report on Nakasang, the mainland port for Don Det / the 4000 Islands.
I hope you don;t mind Jurgen.
Demonic possession in Laos - is it real, or a pretext for village chiefs to banish troublemakers and nonconformists?
The animist spirit Phi Pob is believed to cause illness and death, and eat human livers; in a tumbledown Mekong River village, Laotians who've stood up to authority live in forced exile, accused of being possessed by the demon
BY ERIN HALE
May Day in the Four Thousand Islands, a riverine archipelago that dots an especially wide stretch of the Mekong. On a public holiday to celebrate workers across the ever-shrinking communist world, a very different sort of ritual is being held here, at the southernmost tip of the Lao People's Democratic Republic.
Villagers gather in a clearing in the woods on the outskirts of Nakasang, a small market town on the banks of the river, bringing with them flowers, candles and eggs. They leave the offerings at the base of a building in which two spirit mediums are working themselves into a trance while dancing to traditional music.
Through gulps of whiskey and puffs on cigarettes, Xouan and Phouang begin to channel a powerful entity. The two women are about to exorcise an evil spirit from a group of 30 or so villagers waiting on the ground below.
Mostly middle-aged or elderly, those sitting in the dirt have come from across Laos, and some from neighbouring Cambodia, and they all have one thing in common: having been "possessed" by the fearsome Phi Pob, they have been exiled to Nakasang or one of its two satellite villages, Ban Phiengdy and Ban Mai Xivilay.
According to Lao tradition, Phi Pob causes illness and death, has a taste for human liver and can wreak havoc in a community once it takes possession of a human host.
Kheuang Phoueyxana, 65, for example, was blamed for the deaths of three villagers from mysterious "stomach aches" on nearby Khamao Island. The relatives of the deceased concluded Phi Pob must have been responsible and, after the village committee agreed it was in him, Phoueyxana was put on a boat to the mainland the next day.
"We didn't want to stay any longer in the village. If we stayed we would have been killed," says Phoueyxana, although neither he nor his wife, who followed him into banishment, believe he was ever possessed by Phi Pob.
There are three factors why people nowadays are accused of being Phi Pob: one, influence; two, money; and three, status
Phanh Vongkhamchanh
His predicament is not especially unusual in Southeast Asia, where any association with black magic, curses or evil spirits can invite threats or even death, says Ian Baird, an associate professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in the United States and an expert in Lao studies.
"Whether rightly or wrongly, if some person is identified as being one of those vessels for the [Phi Pob] spirit, then they are excommunicated from the village," he says. "Otherwise, it's like having somebody there who's going to eat you and kill your children.
"They really don't have much choice but to leave."
Belief in Phi Pob, Baird says, goes back hundreds of years and is a "fundamental part of Lao spiritual culture and beliefs". Lao animist tradition suggests there are hundreds of other phi (spirits) that can help or harm humans. It's a belief system that has managed to endure despite the arrival of Theravada Buddhism, Catholicism and, finally, communism.
While Phi Pob and other spirits are used to explain misfortune and death, they serve another purpose. Social troublemakers and nonconformists – anyone who is "different" – can be expelled from a community under this mechanism of cultural tradition, according to anthropologists.
Phi Pob is regaining its potency in Laos, where the economic reforms of the 1990s have led to growing inequality and social disruption, and authorities have given up trying to clamp down on animist beliefs. In the absence of major political reform, communities continue to rely on this justice system, according to Baird and others.
These dynamics are played out in Nakasang, an otherwise unremarkable town that is best known to foreign tourists for its bus station and the last ATMs before the backpacker island paradises of Don Det and Don Khone. Headman Phonesavanh Bounnyalad says all of the 1,365 people (247 families) in the village are people who have been accused of being possessed by Phi Pob, or their relatives.
Phanh Vongkhamchanh, 77, who arrived this year, was a village elder in Champasak province when he began to argue with the local leadership about a new decree banning logging. When many of the other village elders continued to cut down trees, he spoke out against them. Soon, he claims, local authorities began a campaign to denounce him as having been possessed by Phi Pob and he was forced to leave.
Having held a position of authority, Vongkhamchanh seems better versed in the Phi Pob tradition than the farmers and fishermen who have also been banished to Nakasang.
"There are three factors why people nowadays are accused of being Phi Pob: one, influence; two, money; and three, status," he says.
Vongkhamchanh was forced to leave behind much of his wealth, in the form of rice fields and livestock, and now lives on the charity of Buddhist monks in Phiengdy, a village in which poorer new arrivals live close together, by the side of the dirt roads that wind between rice paddies and farmland.
Phanh Lounxay, like other monks at the temple in Phiengdy, was himself once accused of being possessed. Monks at his former temple were jealous of his carpentry skills, he claims.
"They couldn't find a way to satisfy their jealousy, so they accused me of being a Phi Pob," the monk says, while chain-smoking alongside Vongkhamchanh beneath a stilted building in the temple complex.
He found that the accused faced discrimination even after leaving their home villages and were unable to find work outside of Nakasang.
"If people from the villages go to a hospital, they won't let them stay. They are afraid of Phi Pob," says the monk. "The doctors treat the people from the villages but don't pay very close attention to them."
Both men are candid about their experiences; others accused of having been possessed by Phi Pob deny knowing why they were singled out. Vongkhamchanh and Lounxay insist they never studied black magic, a way of allowing in Phi Pob, according to tradition.
French anthropologist Bernard Hours lived in Nakasang and studied the Phi Pob phenomenon in 1968, as part of his student fieldwork. The town then was much smaller and poorer, caught between the push and pull of the Lao civil war.
"In the 1960s or 1970s, [the Phi Pob accusation] was already a sanction against villagers who were fighting with some authorities or richer persons [creating] social tensions," says Hours, over Skype from Paris, where he is an honorary director of research at the Paris Diderot University. "The large majority of Phi Pob are people who have something different [about them]. It could be physical appearance, it could be behaviour, it could be fighting with some more powerful person in the village."
A report Hours produced in 1973 detailed the plight of three of the accused: Mèthao Fon, an older woman who had argued with the daughter of a powerful village leader and was blamed when the daughter died; Teng, who came to Nakasang after his son had quarrelled with the son of a leader; and Meun, who was "balanced, gay, and devoid of deviance". Several of those accused of being possessed, he observed, suffered from epilepsy or untreated mental illness.
There are hints in French colonial literature that there were other Phi Pob villages in Laos, and Baird believes the tradition has survived in Nakasang because Buddhism arrived late in this part of the world, allowing animist practices to persist into the 1990s.
Those who come to Nakasang arrive expecting to be "cured" by its spirit mediums.
Once tarred with the Phi Pob brush, the accused can move to Nakasang only with the permission of those in their home village, and they often arrive bearing handwritten notes, such as the one shown to us by the Phiengdy headman stating that a Mrs Chai, a 48-year-old gardener from Champasak province, had spoken in tongues to two people in her home village and entered their bodies four times in 2015.
Signed by the village headmen, the elders' council, the head of village security, a Lao Women's Union representative, village war veterans and four heads of village units, the letter obliquely asks for her to be "cured".
Chai would have been required to pay 500,000 kip (then about HK$460) for a pig sacrifice to the local spirit before being accepted into Nakasang.
In order to receive help, the accused must agree to adhere to a prescribed programme: they have to publicly admit to being possessed, stay in the Nakasang area for at least three years and participate six times in a cleansing ceremony.
"The process that people go through is designed to discipline, and thus make them less likely to act against village authority, or go against the broader community," says Baird, who lived in Nakasang in the 1990s and visited the most recent ceremony, in May. He likens the process to that of a drug treatment centre or reform school.
Afterwards they are, in theory, free to leave, although many – perhaps up to 90 per cent – choose to stay in a community that hasn't rejected them.
If they don't do it they start to be seriously dangerous because [...] that means they are a real Phi Pob, a really bad person
Bernard Hours
Each of the six cleansing rituals broadly follows the structure of the one we witness, which is led by Xouan and Phouang. About 30 of the accused sit in the dirt beneath the slatted floor of Nakasang's ceremonial building – a small, red, wooden pavilion raised on stilts with a metal sloping roof – as the two mediums enter a trance. Having prayed over buckets of water, they tip the contents through holes in the floor onto those below, marking the start of the ceremony.
With surprising speed and agility (Phi Pob trying to escape the mediums, perhaps?) the accused take off at a tear through a shallow pond as other villagers fire rifles and a rusty AK-47 to scare off lingering spirits.
While wading through the pond, they cover themselves with as much mud and cow dung as possible, which, it is believed, will help draw out the evil spirit.
Once satisfactorily dirty, the accused run several hundred metres across rice fields to the Mekong. They enter the water and swim in small groups along the shoreline.
Having dashed back, in the town centre they wash, change and split into two groups, one consisting of those who live in Nakasang and Mai Xivilay, the other Phiengdy residents.
In trying to keep up with the chaotic action, we lose track of the first group and follow the Phiengdy contingent to a small, open-air structure by the side of the Mekong. The ceremony is completed when one of the mediums, still in a trance, ties protective string around a wrist of each of the participants, who then parade publicly around Nakasang.
Hoping to salvage their reputations, most of those accused are willing to go along with the programme lest they face fresh accusations, says Hours, who witnessed four such ceremonies in the late 1960s.
"Even if they don't understand why they are accused, or even if they don't [study] sorcery, etc, if they are excluded from their previous community, they have to follow the ritual of rehabilitation by cleansing themselves," he says. "If they don't do it they start to be seriously dangerous because [...] that means they are a real Phi Pob, a really bad person."
The number of those accused of harbouring Phi Pob and being banished is on the rise, say Bounnyalad and former Phiengdy headman Pho Ket Phommasanh, with up to 10 now arriving in Nakasang every year.
Many arrivals, they say, claim they were targeted over a social conflict, and fall into two groups: nonconformists who argue with the local leadership; and people who cannot be prosecuted under the law even though they have acted against the community, such as cheats and those guilty of domestic abuse.
In northern Thailand, a culturally similar region and home to many ethnic Lao, the comparable Phi Ka has almost disappeared, according to Shigeharu Tanabe, a lecturer at Chiang Mai University's Centre for Ethnic Studies and a professor emeritus at the National Museum of Ethnology in Japan.
"About 30 or 40 years ago in northern Thailand, near my field site, I came across a village [in which] more than a half [of the residents] were accused as Phi Ka," Tanabe says. "These accused people included some native villagers, but more were people who had migrated from other villages, where they had been accused."
They once served a similar purpose to Nakasang, but this and other Thai cleansing villages have been swept away by the "rapid process of capitalist development".
In Laos, by contrast, modernisation has been a driving force behind the resurgence of the Phi Pob phenomenon, according to Baird. Although the absolute poverty rate in Laos has been halved in the past 20 years, according to a 2015 study by the Asian Development Bank, "the rich have benefited even more", which threatens social cohesion.
"The onslaught of capitalism has resulted in more unevenness and inequality, and there's also maybe more corruption, more money floating around, more opportunities," says Baird.
Despite growing economic and religious freedom, Laos remains "the world's most closed political system after North Korea", according to The Economist magazine, with little room for dissent. It is also at the wrong end of most international indices that measure rule of law and human rights; last year it ranked 123 out of 176 countries on Transparency International's corruption perception index, for example.
Village councils remain trusted, however, with headmen and other leaders selected through popular vote and meetings held to express community concerns. This may, in part, explain the ongoing appeal of the Phi Pob tradition.
Nakasang's treatment of the Phi Pob accused continues to be tolerated by district authorities, who are aware of the unique role it plays in preserving social cohesion, according to the headmen. The village continues to provide a clearly defined system of conflict resolution and rehabilitation in the absence of other solutions.
And as many who aren't entirely convinced by religion or superstition do, some involved in the Phi Pob tradition are no doubt hedging their bets.
Buddhism won't kill you, but Phi Pob ... well, who knows?
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Istanbul, 20 May 2014 – The 8th WIEF Roundtable Series was officially held at Ceylan Intercontinental, Istanbul, Turkey today.
The Roundtable, with the theme "Transforming Islamic Finance in Turkey: Promise of Growth" was jointly organised by the WIEF Foundation and MUSIAD (Independent Industrialists and Businessmen's Association).
As long standing partners, the two sides had successfully organised two sessions of Roundtable in 2011, themed "Business Opportunities in Kazakhstan" and "Empowering SMEs in Far Eastern Markets & Impacts of Globalisation of SMEs" also in Istanbul.
Participated by experts in Islamic Finance from the UK, Malaysia and Turkey, the 8th WIEF Roundtable explored the various challenges faced by Turkey in its pursuit to promote a more dynamic Islamic finance industry in the country.
The WIEF Roundtable series is a unique initiative to foster collaboration and networking amongst diverse countries by providing a platform to participants including global leaders, industry think tanks, leading executives and top management and experts in their respective fields to exchange expertise and address specific economic issues of interest to the region.
"The global picture affecting the Muslim world today leaves much to be desired. Developing, expanding and transforming Islamic Finance is merely one of the many challenges that we need to address together. I fully appreciate that one Roundtable alone could only have a marginal impact in the context of the numerous discussions taking place at different levels on the subject. But to the extent that we are able to even initiate the holding of this Roundtable and to assemble together a group of participants passionate enough in promoting the gradual recognition and acceptance of Islamic Finance globally, we should be more than contented that we have at least done our part, however small. said the Honourable Tun Musa Hitam, Chairman, WIEF Foundation & Former Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia.
"Turkey is the world's 17th largest economy with a predominantly Muslim population of 76 million. It is indisputable that Turkey has a lot of potential in Islamic finance services industry. Global attention has been drawn to explore the challenges faced by Turkey in its pursuit to promote a more dynamic Islamic finance industry in the country. I believe that this Roundtable would address the key priority development areas for market players to methodically expand and deepen the Islamic finance sector's ecosystem for a more sustainable industry." said Mr. Nail Olpak, President of MUSIAD.
The WIEF Foundation also organises Roundtables in different countries to exchange expertise and address economic challenges in a more personalised scale.
Since its launch in Bahrain in February 2011, the WIEF Foundation had organised Roundtables in Turkey, Russia, South Africa and Bangladesh.
This year, the foundation aims at organising similar Roundtables in Istanbul, India and South Korea with close discussions with Japan and Shanghai to hold the roundtables in 2015.
MÜSİAD is a non-profit, voluntary based "Businessmen's Association" founded in İstanbul on May 5, 1990, by a group of mindful businessmen who set out with the dream of an integrated Turkey that is economically and politically efficient in its region, and is prestigious at the global scale; a Turkey where rights, law, justice, equality, peace, trust, prosperity, and happiness prevail; and where local and universal values entrenched in history and society are closely observed.
Serves internationally in 148 allied contact points in 56 countries with 4 active representatives.
Bearing the status of a "public benefit society", MÜSİAD is a model education, guidance, and consultancy center not only for the business world but also for all other segments of the society, and that carries out its practices and work on strictly professional grounds.


I took a semester off writing, and so it has been a while.
so today I took on a One Word writing exercise.
Sultry reminds me of the Brazilian coast in mid-December.
Sultry reminds me of family clambering into cars too small to fit all of us and immediately rolling the windows down and trying, in vain, not to touch each other's bodies lest we experience another ounce of warmth.
Sultry reminds me of finally making out palm trees and miles of sand peppered with umbrellas, towels and chairs.
Sultry sounds like crashing waves, seagulls overhead and the "thud" of soccer balls and volleyballs making contact with limbs.
Sultry sounds like the far off humming of jet skis and speedboats.
Sultry sounds like complaints regarding the weather interrupted by laughter and the popping of cans and swishing of ice in drinks.
Sultry feels like sand burning into your soles, heavy air, and clingy swimwear full of sand.
Sultry feels like the stickiness on your hand that accompanies the sound of the ice cream man.
Sultry feels like coming out of the salty water, unprotected and into the glare of the sun.
Sultry smells like surfboards, which were kept in the shed since last summer's end.
Sultry smells of dense ocean breeze that warms instead of cools and wafts subtle hints of seaweed, abandoned shells and other such fishiness mingled with sunblock.
Sultry smells of barbecued cheese, discarded coconut shells, and steaming corn on the cob.
Sultry is the humidity that lodges in your throat with each breath.
Sultry is squinted eyes and diminished apertures.
Sultry is something welcomed after months of frigidness.
Sultry looks like relentless smiles, lopsided sandcastles, and foaming waves.
Sultry looks like exhaustion resulting in the settling in of mothers, fathers, grandparents, cousins, aunts and uncles into a car, sighing in contentment, heads on shoulders and laps, arms intertwined and eyes dropping after a day in the sun.
Sultry looks like driving for hours in traffic while singing campfire songs, cuddling wearied children, and drinking the last of the mango juice while planning "next time".
Next Article Where Courage Calls – Book Review.


The hill was originally inhabited by both the Etruscans and the Romans and in the Middle Ages a fortress was built to defend the copper and silver mines present in the area. The mineral resources were contested by the bishops and the commune of Volterra and in 1300 the fortress became the property of the Petroni family from Siena. From 1386 it was the property of the commune of Florence and subsequently that of the Republic of Florence when Volterra was defeated in 1472 and a garrison of soldiers was established at the fortress. In 1474 the fortress was rebuilt by the architect Giuliano da Sangallo. Since 1980 it has been the property of the commune of Pomarance and in 1985 restoration work and archaelogical investigation were begun by the Superintendence of Pisa and Florence in collaboration with the commune of Pomarance. Electricity was brought to the Rocca in 2001 as part of a lighting project to illuminate the historical monuments in Italy promoted by Enel and the commune of Pomarance.
facade. The blind entwined arches are a Norman architectural feature and the only example in Tuscany.
Back on the provincial road, at the crossroads known as the Apparita take the turning to Pomarance and after a kilometre you will reach San Dalmazio, a medieval village named after a Benedectine convent dedicated to Saint Armazzo and Saint Dalmazio. The narrow streets of this 11th century village lead to two chapels, la Compagnia della Carità; and Saint Donnino where the miraculous nail, said to belong to Saint Donnino which healed wounds, has been conserved since antiquity. On the facade of one of the houses there is an archaic relief known as the "Beast of San Dalmazio"; and close-by, the bell tower and the church of the old convent that still houses splendid works of art and a Della Robbia majolica tabernacle. Continuing the journey in the direction of Volterra past the ancient Bulera village, take a right turn back towards Pomarance.


text:
Sharing the love of reading though the generations: Adventures in reading aloud
Posted by Editor | Aug 3, 2022 | Books, Marilyn Shapiro, Personal Stories | 0
By MARILYN SHAPIRO
I am nestled in my mother's arms in a living room chair. As I listen to Cinderella and The Brave Little Tailor, my two favorites from the Little Golden Books collection, her lap feels different. My four and a half year status as the youngest Cohen is coming to a close. Soon, my mother will be busy with the new baby. Not long after that, I would be reading on my own. At that moment, however, with my two older siblings at school, I am wrapped up in undivided love.
A child enjoys a book. Her interest in reading may have started with being read to when she was younger. Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash.
Books And Love
As a lifetime bookworm, it is no surprise that one of my earliest memories involves my mother reading to me. When my husband Larry, and I became parents, we wanted to create that same type of memories.
We Become Storytellers
My son Adam's first favorite was also from the Little Golden Books collection. Corky, written by Patricia Scarry, is the story of a little black dog whose contentious relationship with his boy's favorite teddy bear is redeemed when he finds the lost lovey. We read and re-read that little book until it was held together with scotch tape, hope, and a prayer. Corduroy, Don Freeman's classic about nocturnal adventures of a shopworn teddy bear's search for his missing button in a locked department store became his second choice before lights out.
When we discovered Go Dog Go, Larry morphed into the master storyteller. As Adam sat transfixed, Larry emoted each line of P. D. Eastman's story about a group of highly mobile dogs that operate every conceivable conveyance in pursuit of work, play, and their final mysterious goal —SPOILER ALERT —a dog party! Larry's rendition of "Do you like my hat?" is etched into my auditory memory. His asides—"That's so silly!" and " Maybe they are going to the tree to pee?" kept Adam and, later his sister Julie entertained for hours. Even today, whenever I see a several canines playing together—a very common site in Colorado—I repeat Eastman's lines to anyone who will listen: "Big dogs and little dogs and white dogs and black dogs…
When both children graduated from picture books, Larry and I moved onto chapter books. When Julie was in first grade, I introduced to her Anne of Green Gables. She so loved L.M. Montgomery's classic story of a Prince Edward Island orphan that she was reading it on her own by the next year. Her original paperback collection now has a place of honor on her daughter's bookshelf.
A Lifelong Love
The chapter books saga continued on six-hour trip from our home in Upstate New York to our Thanksgiving visit to my siblings in Pennsylvania. The miles flew by as we laughed and commiserated over Peter Hatcher's attempts at dealing with his little brother Fudge in Judy Blume's Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing, and Beverly Cleary's Ramona series soon followed. We supplemented our own voices with books-on-tape, leading to Adam's discovery and lifetime love of J. R. R. Tolkien and Phillip Pullman.
The first Harry Potter came out in 2003, years after we had stopped reading to our children. Three years later, Larry, Adam, and Julie travelled cross-country. Julie had J. W. Rowling's latest on cassettes, and the two siblings listened together. It often left Larry driving solo. They finished in time for her to peel off in Colorado and for Larry and Adam to drive—Potter less—to California.
The Grands
Then came grandchildren, and this Gammy was glad to read her granddaughter, often referred to as Mountain Girl by me, the classics that she had read previously to her children. She soon had her own copies of Corky, Corduroy, and Cinderella. Zayde gladly read her Go Dog Go, complete with asides and exaggerated, emotive expositions.
By 2015, a new group of classics had appeared on the scene. I, even more than our Mountain Girl, fell in love with William Stieg's Sylvester and the Magic Pebble. I teared up every time the little donkey, who had accidentally turned himself into a rock, reappears as himself and knows that no desire is more important than a family's love. Since my college Kiddie Lit. course, I had loved the illustrations of Paul Zelinsky and purchased several of his books so I could share the artwork with my granddaughter. After reading, Anna Dewdney's Llama Llama Red Pajama, I stopped some potential tantrums by laughing requesting that she stop her "llama drama."
During the pandemic, we were unable to see Granddaughter Mountain Girl in person for over 14 months. Thank goodness for FaceTime! Ever since she was three years old, Zayde had spent hours telling his granddaughter his creative stories about an entire cast of denizens of the forest, including the Big Bad Wolf, his wife Wendy and their triplets; the mayor of the forest Morty Moose and his wife Marion; and an imported Florida alligator named Allie. She connected with Zayde on social media for up to five hours a week to hear his increasingly outlandish tales. When Larry's voice gave out, I took over with either library or purchased books, culminating in my reading and then re-reading to her the entire Ramona/Beezus collection.
Our San Francisco Kid was born the week the pandemic closed down his city. By the time he was two, he was engaged in playing with, watching, wearing, and reading anything about trucks. Go Dog Go was an early favorite as Eastman's dogs were illustrated in every mode of transportation. Then he discovered Richard Scarry's Cars, Trucks, and Things That Go. During our recent visit, we watched as he pored over the pictures with the fervor of a yeshiva student pouring over his tractates. When I learned that a tiny gold bug was hidden on each page, I became obsessed with finding them. I then passed that obsession onto my grandson. "Goldbug!" he would shout when we located one, and we would slap each other five. A week after we left, Adam reported that his son had mastered finding the goldbug on every page, each discovery accompanied by "Goldbug!" and a high five.
As our second granddaughter was born seven weeks prematurely this past spring, she is obviously a long way away from understanding the power of reading. As she was named after my mother, I will be supplying her with all the books in Russell Hoban's Frances the Badger series. The stories have no trucks, but hopefully her big brother will also like them.
This past week, our Mountain Girl celebrated her seventh birthday. As Uncle Adam and Aunt Sarah watched on FaceTime, she unwrapped their presents— the Lord of the Rings and His Dark Materials trilogies. After everyone signed off, our Colorado family cracked open Tolkien, our San Francisco family searched for Scarry's gold bug, and Gammy and Zayde kvelled that the joys of reading to children aloud—whether it be from Golden Books or Go Dog Go continues.
Marilyn Shapiro, formerly of Clifton Park, is now a resident of Kissimmee, Fla. A second compilation of her articles printed in The Jewish World has been published. Tikkun Olam now joins There Goes My Heart. She recently published Fradel's Story, a compilation of stories by her mother that she edited. Shapiro's blog is theregoesmyheart.me.
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A tribute to the victims, survivors and Righteous Gentiles of the Holocaust


Hyperion Research has posted the speaker agenda for their upcoming HPC User Forum in Stuttgart. Free to attend, the two-day event takes place October 1-2, 2018 (midday to midday) at the High Performance Computing Center Stuttgart (HLRS).
The agenda will focus on HPC developments in Europe, including updates on quantum technologies, the European Processor Initiative and the Fortissimo Project for SMEs, along with perspectives from the Gauss Center for Supercomputing and the directors of Germany's national supercomputing centers. Also featured will be new developments in HPC supported automotive design and AI in the automotive industry and urban environments. We look forward to seeing you in Stuttgart!


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De Universiteit voor Humanistiek (UvH) is een Nederlandse universiteit op levensbeschouwelijke grondslag in Utrecht.

Geschiedenis
In 1962 startte het Humanistisch Verbond een opleiding voor geestelijk raadslieden in de strijdkrachten. Twee jaar later werd het Humanistisch Opleidings Instituut (HOI) opgericht, dat aanvankelijk een tweejarige opleiding, later een vierjarige opleiding verzorgde. Het was een hogere beroepsopleiding die bij afronding een tweedegraads bevoegdheid voor humanistisch vormingsonderwijs (HVO) opleverde. Deze opleiding werd door de ministers van Defensie en Justitie erkend.

In mei 1986 richtte het Humanistisch Verbond een instituut voor wetenschappelijk onderwijs en onderzoek op; voor dit instituut werd al spoedig de naam Universiteit voor Humanistiek vastgelegd. Een opleiding op wetenschappelijk niveau werd noodzakelijk geacht vanuit maatschappelijke ontwikkelingen en de hoge eisen die aan de geestelijk werkers werden gesteld. Ook zou de beoogde universiteit beter in staat zijn om, door middel van wetenschappelijk onderzoek, de theoretische basis voor het geestelijk werk verder te ontwikkelen.

In januari 1989 werd het principebesluit tot aanwijzing van de UvH door de minister van Onderwijs en Wetenschappen aan de Tweede Kamer voorgelegd. In juli 1991 werd de aanwijzing van de UvH een feit.
De universiteit wordt grotendeels bekostigd door het Rijk. De opleiding heeft het karakter van een wetenschappelijke beroepsopleiding, vergelijkbaar met de door theologische universiteiten verzorgde kerkelijke opleidingen.

In de zomer 2009 is de UvH verhuisd van twee locaties op de Drift en de Van Asch van Wijckskade naar een historisch pand aan de Kromme Nieuwegracht in de binnenstad van Utrecht.

In fases vanaf 2012 verhuisde de vakgroep zorgethiek van Tilburg University naar de UvH.

Eredoctoraten
 1999 - Rudi van den Hoofdakker (ook bekend als de dichter Rutger Kopland)
 1999 - Martha Nussbaum, een Amerikaanse classica en filosofe, hoogleraar ethiek en rechtsfilosofie aan de Universiteit van Chicago
 2004 - Seyla Benhabib (Istanbul 1950) is Professor of Political Science and Philosophy aan Yale University
 2004 - Otto D. Duintjer was van 1970 tot 1987 hoogleraar Kennisleer en Metafysica aan de Universiteit van Amsterdam; vanaf 1987 tot aan zijn emeritaat in 1997 had hij de opdracht Filosofie en Spiritualiteit aan dezelfde universiteit.
 2009 - Sarah Blaffer Hrdy, cultureel antropologe
 2009 - Patricia De Martelaere, Vlaams filosoof en schrijfster
 2009 - Frans de Waal, bioloog, gespecialiseerd in de primatologie en de ethologie
 2014 - Amartya Sen, filosoof en econoom aan de Harvard University
 2014 - Joan Tronto, politicologe aan de University van Minnesota, vooral bekend om haar theorie van de zorgethiek
 2014 - Carol Ryff, psychologe aan University of Wisconsin, ontwikkelde een eigen concept van 'well-being'
2018 - George Fitchett, professor en hoofd van de onderzoeksafdeling geestelijke verzorging van Rush University in Chicago
2018 - Philip Kitcher, John Dewey Professor of Philosophy aan de Columbia University in New York
2018 - Hartmut Rosa, professor aan de Friedrich Schiller Universiteit van Jena en directeur van het gerenommeerde Max-Weber-Kolleg van de Universiteit van Erfurt

Bekende alumni en medewerkers
Een aantal bekende personen is alumnus en/of (voormalig) medewerker van de UvH:
 Hans Alma, psychologe
Harry Kunneman, filosoof en socioloog
 Joep Dohmen, filosoof
 Hans Gerding, filosoof en parapsycholoog
 Amanda Kluveld, historica en columniste
 Carlo Leget, theoloog, medisch ethicus en zorgethicus
 Gerty Lensvelt-Mulders, methodoloog
 Evelien Tonkens, sociologe
 Nasr Abu Zayd, islamdeskundige

Externe link
 Officiële website

Humanistische organisatie

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


It's Sparkle Creations Rubber Stamps NOVEMBER RELEASE DAY today! All new stamps are now available to buy from the SCRS store and they are also previewing Mistletoe Lucy stamp today.
This image took a few alterations to get it right!
Initially Lucy started off looking on from an angle, and in a winter coat outfit.
Her angles were a bit off so I drew her for the last time!
Sparkle is giving away one Mistletoe Lucy to one lucky person but you have until midnight EST tonight to enter. Follow this link to the store blog to find out how!
Also check out some wonderful cards created using Mistletoe Lucy by the wonderful designers!


Back then, I'd still been a shy little thing, terrified that some hot biker might actually want to talk to me, let alone take me out. When I caught him watching me at the party, I remembered studying the floor, his shirt collar, even the beer in my plastic cup, because I hadn't known what to do with myself around such raw male glory. Apparently, some things never change, because when I turned to face him, I found myself staring at the floor again.
This was a mistake because his feet were down there. And the battered, black leather boots he wore led to jeans-covered legs. Legs topped by thick, muscular thighs.
Oblivious and mesmerized, my gaze rose to the faded denim around his fly, and it was all over. My eyes started tracing the folds of the Okanogan Fire and Rescue T-shirt covering his still-muscular chest, although the Reapers Motorcycle Club vest he wore was a change. Back then, he'd been hanging around the Nighthawk Raiders MC. That whole club had disappeared for reasons I'd never fully understood, and the Reapers had taken over the town shortly afterward. Apparently, Rome was one of them now.


civic and cultural lives of area residents and the prosperity of local and regional businesses." MCC President Gena Glickman noted that the ICEO and the faculty fellow are an important part of the college's mission. She is pleased to see Hurston pick up the torch.
He completed his residency in 1978 and moved to North Platte, joining the staff of Great Plains Regional Medical Center, now Great Plains Health, as a general surgeon. He retired from his surgery practice in 2006. Bonnie worked as a computer programmer for Mutual of Omaha while Bob was in medical school and again during Bob's surgery residency.
Teacher of the Year during its annual conference in Kansas City. Both the national and regional awards are designed to recognize outstanding contributions to business education by a postsecondary business educator. Chittick has taught business classes at NPCC for 20 years.
has been an active participant in AAWCC programs over the years, presenting on data-savvy decision making and on decisions about leadership transitions, and participating in the organization's CEO Network. Prior to joining Achieving the Dream in 2015, Stout was president of Montgomery County Community College (Pa.
a valued member of our crew at the Civic Center. I am so honored to work beside her and our entire team of hard-working staff that assist from planning to executing all our events year-round." Faucette, who has served nearly 16 years in her current position, said she was thrilled about winning the award.
nation's top four-year universities. This scholarship will cover a significant share of Rashida's educational expenses — including tuition, living expenses, books and required fees so that she can achieve a bachelor's degree. We are all very excited for Rashida!" Anderson-Abdullah has been a DMACC Urban and Ankeny Campus student.
positive experiences as an honors student have influenced the design of the new program. The Honors College will offer students who have outstanding potential an opportunity to enhance their two-year college experience.
what many consider the first mass school shooting that made headlines on a national stage here locally at Frontier Middle School in Moses Lake, Wash., in February 1996. Lane subdued shoote Barry Loukaitisr — but tragically, not before he claimed three victims and scarred a community.
Beverly Fatherree. The two co-authored an English textbook called "For Our Students." The book is sold at a low cost to students at a number of community colleges, and the two of them get no profits from the book. Hammons said in her Cowan Award address that nearly 5,000 Hinds Community College students.
According to Coleman, the TCC Student Union has become more than just a center of social activity and is now also a place where students can receive leadership training and engage with local nonprofits to strengthen the community and build their own skills.
to be a teacher," said Peeks. "I'd had so many rotten teachers in high school." Peeks enrolled late in what was then Kearney State College and studied math and chemistry instead. However, he didn't find enough fulfillment in those areas to make them into a profession.
Wright participated in four days of discussions and workshops centering around seven themes: Leadership & Vision, Data & Technology, Equity, Teaching & Learning, Engagement & Communication, Strategy & Planning, and Policies & Practices.
because the assumption is made that talented people don't require guidance. More often, however, it is because the pathway to advancement is sometimes not clear, and mentorship is often seen as an informal activity not as an objectives-driven partnership.
Forsythe is scheduled to graduate in spring of this year with her associate degree in dental hygiene but getting to this point wasn't easy. In 2014, she found herself out of a job she loved and was faced with a new reality — starting over. Forsythe had some college credit under her belt but never completed her degree.
significant contribution to CASE through her leadership, advocacy and commitment to enhance the engagement with and relevance of CASE to community colleges in our District," said Mark Koenig, chair, CASE District VIII board. "Lisa has been very, very active with our community college activities.
Taylour Marshall examines a rock during a class taught by Carla Long at National Park Community College PCC last spring..
Cleveland State Community College's Bridging Cultures Faculty Learning Community and the International Education Committee recently partnered to bring Kasar Abdulla to campus. Abdulla spoke to faculty, staff, and students about her experiences as a refugee during the First Gulf War and issues surrounding refugees in the state of Tennessee.
Towe said that the species of tree was also chosen because it is known for its healing properties with the heart and the brain. "Shannen kept our brains sharp with knowledge, and she helped to heal a lot of our hearts," said Towe.
that it opened. Sandy enrolled at the college with the intentions of eventually becoming a secretary, a popular profession for women at the time. Gayland planned to pursue a career in engineering or construction. He was influenced by his brother, who had worked in the construction industry, and the fact that he already had a part-time construction job.


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Latvian schoolchildren picket European Parliament
Russian-speaking schoolchildren from Latvia will picket the European Parliament in Strasbourg on Wednesday in protest of Latvia's school reforms which limit teaching in the Russian language in Russian schools.
According to the Latvian government's decision, beginning on September 1, 2004, at least 60% of teaching in the senior classes of the Russian schools must be in Latvian.
The headquarters, which was set up to defend Russian schools in Latvia and oppose the reform, organized the action.
According to the organizers, more than 30 schoolchildren, who were invited to Strasbourg by Latvian European Parliament member Tatyana Zhdanok, will picket. The European Parliament sanctioned the picket.
Apart from the schoolchildren, more than a dozen members of the Latvian Young Workers Organization will also picket.
According to the organizers, the goal of the picket is to inform European parliamentarians about the situation in the Russian schools in Latvia. The participants in the action will spread leaflets that call on the members of the European Parliament to support the movement of the Latvian activists who support Russian schools.
After the picket, the participants will visit the European Parliament and meet with a number of parliamentarians.
Yesterday, a plenary meeting of the European Parliament was held in Strasbourg. For the first time, deputies from ten new members of the European Union, including nine deputies from Latvia, took part in the meeting.


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At long last Norwich has a majestic memorial
Sheriff of Norwich Derek James attends a proud event for Norwich - the opening of the memorial gardens.
Almost 85 years separated these two events in Norwich – when the people gathered to remember the fallen and at the centre of attention were two soldiers.
In 1927, it was Bertie Withers of the Norfolks who unveiled the memorial outside the Guildhall and in 2011 it was David Heir of the Anglians who opened the memorial gardens outside the City Hall.
And while Bertie was with General Sir Ian Hamilton, David was joined by Vic Howe, president of the Royal British Legion in the city.
So much has changed over the decades, but people are still at war with each other and it is important that we have a majestic memorial to remember the fallen.
Over the years I have written so much about the memorial and the gardens, which were a disgrace and an eyesore in the heart of the city.
All the more reason to be especially proud to be able to represent you, as the Sheriff, at the ceremony to open the new-look gardens this week. It was good to meet so many of you.
My thoughts were with all those who lost, and still are, losing their lives in theatres of war around the world and all those veterans who didn't live to the see the memorial and gardens looking so good.
We will always remember them.


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Sails Up In Pittsburgh
4 Keys to NFC Championship Game
Home MLB MLB Featured
by Brad Harvin
in MLB Featured, NL Central, Pittsburgh Pirates
As winter rolls through the Midwest, baseball fans in Pittsburgh anxiously await the end of March and Opening Day. Opening Day is the day where each team has the same record, a clean slate. A chance to start fresh and prepare for a grueling 162 game schedule over seven months. A chance at relevancy, something that has escaped the Pirates in recent years. A chance to challenge for a NL Central Division crown. However with the Chicago Cubs and the Milwaukee Brewers at the head of the class, coupled with revamped lineups in Cincinnati and St. Louis, the 2019 National League Central Division will be the most competitive division in baseball.
Pirates Voyage
The upward potential of the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2019 will be the pitching rotation and bullpen. In late July 2018, the Pirates acquired starting pitcher Chris Archer from the Tampa Bay Rays. As a member of the Rays, Archer was a two-time All-Star and has a couple of innings of postseason experience. Despite Archer's lanky appearance (6' 2" and 195 lbs.) he is a power pitcher averaging 200 strikeouts a season. The Pirates will look to Archer to build off a solid September (2-1 and 2.70 ERA) and lead a starting rotation that boasts fellow right-handers Jameson Taillon and Trevor Williams, who each won 14 games in 2018. Gritty veteran Ian Nova rounds out the projected rotation and he looks to improve upon a disappointing nine-win season. Look for top prospect Mitch Keller, a right-hander, to make his debut for the Steel City as well in 2019. The bullpen has some talented arms as well and has the potential to shut down opposing batters late in games with newly acquired right hander Keone Kela as a set up reliever to hard throwing lefty closer, All-Star Felipe Vazquez.
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Bucs Bats
The concern for the Pirates continues to be run production (4.30 runs per game in 2018) and timely batting. The Bucs have called upon new hitting coach Rick Eckstein to shoulder the task for 2019. The search for power begins with third year switch-hitting first baseman Josh Bell. Bell looks to rebound after a pedestrian 2018 campaign in which he saw his homerun total drop from 26 in 2017 to a mere 12 last year. Outfielder Corey Dickerson (13 HR 55 RBI) made positive strides in 2018 and will be looked to anchor the lineup along with speedy outfielder Starling Marte (20 HR, 81 RBI, 33 SB). The Pirates look to second baseman Adam Frazier to be a catalyst at the top of the lineup as he replaces two time All-Star Josh Harrison. Frazier has shown some flashes with the bat the last couple of seasons and will have the opportunity to contribute immediately for the Bucs. Talented right fielder Gregory Polanco will start the season on the disabled list as he recovers from surgery to repair a torn labrum. If the Pirates pitching staff and lineup can weather the storm for the first couple of months of the season, Polanco could be the spark the team needs to make a playoff run once he returns.
The time is now for players on the Pirates roster like Archer, Taillon, Bell, and Frazier to take the next steps for the Pirates. Manager Clint Hurdle and the Pittsburgh Pirates face the challenge of playing each team within the league's toughest division 19 times, and it will take the emergence of leaders on the mound and at the plate to join the top echelon of the division.
Tags: chris archerfelipe vazquezkeone kelapirates
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