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Strong residential activity pushes US construction spending
Spending on construction projects has continued to climb in the US as the COVID-driven housing boom continues into 2021.
A report from the US Commerce Department released Monday showed strong demand and ultra-low mortgage rates pushed US construction spending up by 0.9% to an annual rate of $1.459 trillion in November. The increase followed a 1.6% gain in October, up to a revised rate of $1.447 trillion.
Economists polled by Reuters forecast construction spending to climb by 1% compared to the 1.3% rise reported for October.
"Strong residential activity has driven construction past pre-pandemic levels, but non-residential outlays remain nearly 6% below their early 2020 pace," Nancy Vanden Houten, lead US economist at Oxford Economics, told RTTNews. "We expect this divergence in construction spending to narrow a bit as we move through 2020 as some recovery in non-residential outlays is expected to take hold, particularly in private spending."
Spending on residential construction jumped 2.7% to a rate of $658.1 billion, with single-family construction up by 5.1%. This was more than enough to offset the 0.8% decline in spending on non-residential construction projects like gas and oil well drilling, which were down to a rate of $453.8 billion, according to the report.
Spending on public construction spending also dropped in November, edging down by 0.2%.
"Public outlays will likely continue to be constrained by tight state and local budgets despite a better than expected performance for revenues during the pandemic," said Vanden Houten.
Homebuyers facing worst affordability squeeze in 12 years
Record-low mortgage rates were supposed to make it easier for homebuyers. Instead, they've helped push affordability to a 12-year low.
Buyers in the fourth quarter needed to spend almost 30% of the average wage to afford a typical house, the biggest share for any three-month period since 2008, according to preliminary figures from Attom Data Solutions. Low borrowing costs, now below 3% for a 30-year loan, have spurred a buying frenzy, driving up prices across the country as shoppers compete for a shrinking supply of listings.
During the pandemic, prices have increased faster than earnings, leaping by double digits in 79% of the 499 counties included in the report. More than half of those counties are now less affordable than their historic averages, Attom said in a report Thursday.
Mortgage rates ended 2020 near the lowest on record, with the average for a 30-year loan at 2.67%, Freddie Mac said Thursday.
"The future remains wholly uncertain and affordability could swing back into positive territory," said Todd Teta, chief product officer at Attom. "But, for now, things are going in the wrong direction for buyers."
Pending US home sales hit by another decline
A gauge of US pending home sales fell for the third consecutive month in November, suggesting higher prices and limited inventory are slowing momentum in the housing market despite record-low borrowing costs.
The National Association of Realtors' index of contract signings to purchase previously owned homes declined 2.6% from the prior month to 125.7, according to data released Tuesday. The median estimate in a Bloomberg survey of economists called for no change in November. Compared with a year earlier, pending sales were up 16% on an unadjusted basis.
The drop in the index from the prior month shows more tempered activity in the housing market as prices continue to climb amid lean inventory. Still, the pending sales gauge remains well above pre-pandemic levels, indicating still-elevated demand as buyers seek more space.
"The latest monthly decline is largely due to the shortage of inventory and fast-rising home prices," Lawrence Yun, NAR's chief economist, said in a statement. "The market is incredibly swift this winter with the listed homes going under contract on average at less than a month due to a backlog of buyers wanting to take advantage of record-low mortgage rates."
A separate report last week showed existing home sales, calculated when a contract is closed, fell in November for the first time in six months, underscoring the challenges for housing market growth as surging prices threaten affordability.
Pending home sales declined in all four major US regions. The gauge of contract signings in the West dropped 4.7% to a four-month low. In the Midwest, pending sales declined 3.1%, while in the South they fell 1.1%.
A quarter of US hotels at risk of foreclosure
A recent report compiled by Trepp and sent to Congress by the hotel industry found that almost one in four U.S. hotels are at risk of foreclosure.
Citing the most recent data available, Trepp reported that the percentage of loans that are 30 or more days delinquent was 23.4 percent as of July. That's the highest percentage on record, and an incredible 1,746 percent increase from July 2019, when only 1.34 percent of hotel loans were more than 30 days past due. Naturally, the high level of delinquency has left a gaping hole in the CMBS market, where $20.6 billion in hotel CMBS loans were 30 or more days delinquent as of July. In December of 2019, that figure was only $1.15 billion.
"The highest volume of delinquent hotel loans during the Great Financial Crisis was $13.5 billion," reads the report. "The current percentage of loans that are delinquent now exceeds the highest level during the GFC by 53%."
Trepp also disclosed that the highest volume of loans in special servicing during the GFC didn't come until approximately two years after the crisis began. If a similar pattern plays out during COVID-19, hotel owners could be in for a long, nauseating ride.
The delinquent loan balances as of July are simply ridiculous:
$1.48 billion in the New York-Newark-Jersey City metro area (53 loans)
$976 million in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin (28 loans)
$664 million in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugarland (40 loans)
$523 million in Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim (23 loans)
The remaining areas in Trepp's top ten ("top" might be a bit of a stretch) all have delinquent loan balances of at least $169 million, with most sitting at well over $250 million.
"With record low travel demand, thousands of hotels can't afford to pay their commercial mortgages and are facing foreclosure with the harsh reality of having to close their doors permanently," Chip Rogers, CEO of the American Hotel & Lodging Association, said in an August 18 release.
The AHLA release goes on to say that "[t]ens of thousands of hotel employees will lose their jobs and small business industries that depend on these hotels to drive local tourism and economic activity will likely face a similar fate."
In a letter sent to Congress on August 18, over 4,000 members of the hotel industry urged legislators to enact the HOPE Act, a bipartisan bill that would provide assistance to small businesses in the commercial real estate sector. The bill, which supporters say would require no additional funding, would provide commercial property owners with additional, temporary liquidity in exchange for a preferred equity interest in their properties.
"Hoteliers are responsible for millions of jobs in communities across the nation, but unless Congress acts, there may not be businesses left for those workers to return to at the end of this pandemic," said Cecil Staton, president and CEO of the Asian American Hotel Owners Association.
Little can be done to speed the hotel sector's recovery, especially with the country's ongoing COVID-19 disaster spilling into its seventh month and the White House quietly changing the CDC's coronavirus testing standards in a way that will reduce the number of tests being administered. Guests have told the industry what hotel operators can do to make them feel safe once they've entered their properties, but until people are once again travelling, en masse and with confidence, the nation's hotels are bound to remain quiet and dark.
The situation is likely to get worse before it gets better. The percentage of loans on servicer watchlists was 35.3 percent as of July, roughly 2.5 times what it was a year before.
Wells Fargo restricts jumbo loan program
Wells Fargo has announced that it will drastically constrict its jumbo mortgage program amid the market turmoil caused by the COVID-19 outbreak.
Wells Fargo will only refinance jumbo mortgages for customers who have at least $250,000 in liquid assets with the bank, according to a Wall Street Journal report. With the new policy, customers who have jumbo mortgages with Wells Fargo won't be able to refinance unless they have money with the bank. Wells Fargo hasn't changed policies for purchase loans, according to the Wall Street Journal.
"These difficult business decisions reflect efforts to prioritize how we serve customers and maintain prudent balance-sheet discipline," a bank spokesperson said.
Wells Fargo also said last week that it would stop purchasing jumbo loans made by third-party mortgage bankers.
Wells Fargo was the largest lender for jumbo loans last year, posting $70 billion in volume, the Journal reported.
While conventional, GSE-backed loans are still widely available, loans without government backing – including jumbo loans – have become harder to get as investors lose their appetite due to the recent market fluctuations, according to the Journal. Several non-QM lenders, including Angel Oak Mortgage Services and Citadel Servicing Corp., have temporarily halted originations.
The future of office space post-COVID-19
The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the commercial real estate space remains unknown, but investors and business owners are trying to understand and prepare for the changes that may take place.
This rings particularly true for the office space sector. While many offices sit empty as stay-at-home orders remain in place across the globe, companies are being forced to consider what the workplace will look like when the pandemic is over. In a time of uncertainty, less organizations are going to feel comfortable signing a 3- or 5-year lease for office-space, much less a 10-year traditional lease.
"Flexibility is really going to be an important factor once we start emerging from this uncertainty, whether it's two days from now or two weeks from now, it's going to be at the top of everyone's mind," said Jonathan Wasserstrum, chief executive officer and co-founder of SquareFoot, a commercial real estate tech company.
Once people begin making their way back to their offices, Wasserstrum says flexible space will continue to be extremely valuable because the problems that it solves will still exist, if not grow. Smaller companies with a staff under 10 still won't want to sign long term leases, furnish an office space, or have to set up necessities like a printer, he added.
"We anticipate a significant uptick in organizations looking for private, flexible workspace as opposed to dense coworking offices," said Bryan Murphy, chief executive officer of Breather, a private, flexible workspace provider. While working from home may become more recognized as a more viable option for companies post-pandemic, he adds that there is no suitable replacement for in-person communication. Because of this, coworking and other flexible office spaces will have to adapt. This includes more stringent and frequent sanitation and cleaning regimes, as well as limiting the number of people allowed in one space.
As far as the evolution of the office space sector, Murphy adds that many companies may continue to work from home, even fractionally, and may no longer need such a large HQ footprint. Instead, companies can look to flexible space where they only pay for the space they need, when and where they need it.
Wasserstrum shared a similar sentiment: "More companies are learning that they can adapt to remote workplaces. We are going to see an increase in satellite offices and more people in flexible space, as we move further away from traditional long-term leases." With many companies having to layoff large portions of their workforce, he said many companies are going to be left with empty, unused space. PivotDesk, owned by SquareFoot, is a flexible office space marketplace that connects companies with excess office space to others who are looking for something specific, whether it's a single desk in a shared office, or a portion of a coworking space. Breather specializes in private, flexible spaces where companies can take advantage of shorter lease terms but still have a space to call their own.
Interest in flexible office space has grown exponentially in the past decade, and many industry experts expected the boom to continue. Commercial real estate firm JLL had previously stated that the sector could account for 30% of the office markets in the US by 2030. Wasserstrum said as a result of the pandemic, he expects this trend toward flexible space to accelerate.
Murphy agrees: "At the beginning of the outbreak, before any stay at home orders were issued, we had increased interest in our office spaces as people wanted to be in their own space with their teams as opposed to coworking offices."
In an effort to adapt to current conditions with social distancing, SquareFoot is offering virtual tours, so companies looking to move into flexible space can still see an online listing that they are interested in. Similarly, Murphy says Breather is seeing continued interest in their product as companies prepare for their return to offices.
Bank of America provides mortgage relief amid COVID-19 pandemic
Bank of America has announced that it is allowing customers to defer mortgage payments during the financial crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
The move, the bank said, is part of a series of measures aimed at easing the financial burden on its customers.
Clients can also request to defer payments on deposit accounts, credit cards, and small business and auto loans. Customers who wish to request loan payment deferments can call the bank's client services number to discuss their hardships.
"Our clients rely on us every day and for every aspect of their financial lives," Dean Athanasia, president of Consumer and Small Business at Bank of America, said in a statement. "We're going to continue to provide convenient access to the important services they count on, and the additional assistance and support they need during this difficult period."
The bank also said it has temporarily halted foreclosure sales, evictions, and repossessions.
How will the coronavirus impact the US housing market?
As each new day brings another wave of anxiety related to the spread of the coronavirus, also known as COVID-19, many financial experts have expressed concern that US economy might stall or even backslide into a recession. However, several leading housing market experts believe their sector can withstand whatever tumult is created as a result of this health crisis.
"While the risk has significantly increased that the coronavirus outbreak will disrupt economic activity, our research indicates that housing will be one of the economy's brightest spots in 2020," said David Berson, senior vice president and chief economist at Nationwide. "Strong, underlying housing demand factors, including above-trend household growth, solid job gains and declining mortgage rates, are driving what is looking to be a strong annual performance."
At the moment, Berson, added, the US housing market was in a strong place. Nationwide's latest Health of Housing Markets report found nearly 60% of the largest 400 metropolitan statistical areas achieved a positive housing market ranking in the first quarter of this year. Of the 233 markets with a positive ranking, 214 are classified as plus-one and a further 19 as plus-two (the report places a maximum value at plus-four). Across the country, only 29 metro areas fell into the negative category, all of which are performing at minus-one (minimum value of minus-four), while 138 metros were in the neutral category.
If the coronavirus were to have an impact on housing, Berson added, the risks could be linked to government-insured and jumbo loans.
"FHA and VA loans now comprise more than 23 percent of the nearly 40 million mortgages in the US, the highest share since 2001," Berson said. "While delinquency rates for these government-insured and jumbo loans are low today, deteriorating economic conditions could put these loans at rising risk."
Also weighing in on the coronavirus was Daryl Fairweather, chief economist with the Seattle-headquartered brokerage Redfin. Fairweather observed that 2020's housing market got off to a fine start, with January's home prices and sales both up 7% year-over-year while low mortgage rates made homebuying more affordable for many buyers. She added that the US housing market still favored sellers, although the coronavirus could bring lower demand from foreign buyers.
Fairweather also cautioned homebuyers to consider their individual financial situation rather than the news headlines.
"If you want to buy a home and feel confident in your financial position, don't hold out for lower home prices," she said. "Even in the event of a recession, I expect home prices to remain fairly stable. If you feel that this year is the right time for you to buy, I think there is an advantage to moving quickly. Mortgage rates may not stay this low for long, and there is a good chance competition and prices will heat up this summer, which is the typical time home prices peak each year."
But a different view was offered by Lawrence Yun, chief economist at the National Association of Realtors, who noted his organization's latest flash survey found "11% of Realtors indicated a reduction in buyer traffic and 7% are reporting lower seller traffic when asked directly about the coronavirus impact on the market."
Yun stated that while "lower interest rates can help overcome the economic and health anxieties" in this coronavirus-obsessed moment, he nonetheless predicted home sales will "be chopped by around 10%" compared to what could have been if the coronavirus outbreak never occurred.
World's CFOs have a dire message for real estate investors
Property investors are about to discover just how much the global fallout from the coronavirus pandemic has spread from deserted and cast-off buildings to their bottom lines.
Hundreds of corporate executives tracked in earnings calls around the world in the past five months addressed the urgency to cut real-estate costs, according to an AI model trained by Bloomberg to scour transcripts. Tactics include cutting office space, accelerating branch closures, renegotiating rents on warehouses and even shutting data centers.
In 4,767 global earnings calls between July 21 and Dec. 8, about one in eight machine-generated transcripts revealed that firms were rethinking their real estate needs, with many on track to save millions of dollars in the process.
While the pandemic has squeezed landlords and clobbered securities linked to commercial real estate, the damage to cash flows stands as the long-tail risk for investors. In an estimated $10 trillion global pool of properties held for investment purposes, the industry's main sources of capital -- pension funds and insurance firms -- count on the steady income to pay for their own long-term commitments.
"That's the key rationale for buying real estate. Most landlords are in effect pension and insurance funds and ultimately that's who is going to be paying for it," said Adrian Benedict, head of real-estate solutions at Fidelity International in London. "If the whole central tenet of security of income is undermined through this crisis, you are storing up a world of trouble."
Investors are already hurting: a global index of real estate shares has shed more than 10% this year as a gauge of all types of stocks surged about 13%. On the debt side, delinquencies on US commercial mortgages climbed to almost 6% in November, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. Risk premiums for BBB-rated commercial mortgage-backed securities have almost doubled since the start of the year, according to Bloomberg Barclays index data.
As the global recession deepens and companies brace for the new normal that follows, business will require less space than pre-COVID. An October survey by the UK's Institute of Directors found that 74% of companies planned to make more use of working from home once the pandemic subsides, with more than half intending to reduce the amount of workspace they use.
While the coronavirus vaccine has thrilled investors worldwide and sent real estate stocks rebounding, celebrations may turn out to be premature. The kind of changes that officials have been discussing have often been of a permanent and structural nature, with the forecast savings being largely welcomed by company shareholders and analysts.
"We will implement a hybrid working model for many of our colleagues and reduce our real estate footprint by approximately 12%."
- John Kritzmacher, Chief Financial Officer, John Wiley & Sons Inc.
Earnings call date: Dec. 8
Company description: New Jersey-based education information services provider
Real estate footprint: 38 locations globally
Estimated savings: $7-$8 million annually from 2022
Even firms that mainly rent space in cheaper locations are targeting cuts.
"We want to save 35% of our square meters at the headquarters," Jan Juchelka, Chief Executive Officer of Komercni Banka As, a Prague-based lender, said on an August call, discussing the company's new "smart office, flexible workplace" plan that combines home-working and hot-desking to make radical cuts.
The pandemic has also served to accelerate the demise of branch banking. Lenders including Tupelo, Mississippi-based Renasant Corp., Amerant Bancorp Inc. in Florida, Zurich-based Cembra Money Bank AG and North Carolina's Truist Financial Corp. were among those discussing more cuts and closures during the period.
"We plan to close 104 branches in December and January and are looking at ways to bring forward more branch closures in 2021," Truist Financial's CFO Daryl Bible said on an Oct. 15 call.
Our real estate strategy will "match the footprint to the new expected normal, which, in many cases, reduces our footprint by 50%."
- Mark Harris, CFO of Heidrick & Struggles International Inc.
Earnings call date: Oct. 26
Company description: Chicago-based global executive search firm
Real estate footprint: More than 50 locations globally, typically prime city center office buildings
Estimated savings: Initial $6 million a year, with an additional $5-8 million as strategy progresses
It's not just offices being ditched and downsized. S&P Global Inc., the financial-information provider, was also planning to consolidate its data centers, CFO Ewout Steenbergen said in a late July earnings call. He said that COVID-19 would "change how and where we work."
Despite emerging as a big winner from the pandemic thanks to the explosion in online shopping spurring demand for storage, pockets of the industrial-property market have also been hit. Major customers including airlines have suffered from the collapse in global travel.
"We have a team dedicated to pursuing additional cost-reduction initiatives for cash preservation," Air Canada Deputy CEO and CFO Michael Rousseau said in a July call. "In addition to labor and fleet rightsizing, areas of focus are maintenance, real estate, IT and other fixed-cost areas."
"You negotiate and get some relief for times like this. If the situation continues, we'll perhaps have to extend and ask for greater relief."
- Ashish Dikshit, managing director of Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail
Earnings call date: Nov. 6
Company description: Mumbai-based fashion retailer
Real estate footprint: Over 3,000 stores across more than 750 cities
Estimated savings: Rent for six months through September dropped about $18 million from a year earlier
The breadth of the pull-backs is striking. Domtar Corp., which operates paper mills in the US, is exploring site closures, while Waste Connections Inc., which operates recycling centers, expects to reduce rents. Even companies in health care, like Tennessee-based retirement home operator Brookdale Senior Living Inc., are securing cuts from landlords.
"The rent reductions that we received are significant and permanent and they total more than $500 million," Brookdale CEO Lucinda Baier said on a call in August.
Many companies' cost cutting plans are still at an early stage, and will take some time to filter through to investors' bottom lines. As workers prepare for some kind of return to buildings next year, long-term questions about real estate needs may even grow more urgent as concerns about health, safety and human interaction become more entrenched.
"We are going to move into a new world where people have the right balance of working from home and working in the office," John Rogers, CFO at advertising group WPP Plc, said on an Aug. 27 earnings call. "That will mean that we need less office space going forward."
US foreclosure activity eases as FHFA extends moratoriums
Foreclosure activity is set to slow down through the holiday as the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced an extension of its foreclosure and eviction ban through the end of January 2021.
ATTOM's latest report revealed that US foreclosure filings fell 14% month over month and 80% year over year in November to a total of 10,042 US properties with foreclosure filings (including default notices, scheduled auctions or bank repossessions). Nationwide, one in every 13,581 housing units had a foreclosure filing.
"It's not unusual to see foreclosure activity slow down beginning in November and through the holiday season," said Rick Sharga, executive vice president at RealtyTrac, an ATTOM Data Solutions company. "Both foreclosure starts and repossessions were down about 80% on a year-over-year basis, but it might be worth noting that a few cities that may be vulnerable to the pandemic-driven flight from urban areas to the suburbs – like New York City, Chicago, and Miami – were among the markets with the highest levels of foreclosure actions."
Florida remained on top of the list of states with the highest foreclosure rates (one in every 7,109 housing units with a foreclosure filing). Illinois (one in every 7,285 housing units); Oklahoma (one in every 8,128 housing units); New Mexico (one in every 9,236 housing units); and Delaware (one in every 9,310 housing units) followed.
Foreclosure starts and repossessions were also down nationwide. Lenders started the foreclosure process on 5,256 properties in November, down 13% from October and down 79% from a year ago.
Metros countering the downward trend in foreclosure starts included New York, NY (454 foreclosure starts); St. Louis, Mo. (208 foreclosure starts); Chicago, Ill. (207 foreclosure starts); Miami, Fla. (151 foreclosure starts); and Los Angeles, Calif. (147 foreclosure starts).
Bank repossessions, on the other hand, saw a 22% month-over-month decline and were down 86% from November 2019. In total, lenders foreclosed (REO) 2,010 properties last month.
Among the metros, those with the greatest number of REOs filed in November, included Chicago, IL (114 REOs filed); Phoenix, AZ (93 REOs filed); Atlanta, GA (88 REOs filed); Birmingham, AL (60 REOs filed); and Miami, FL (58 REOs filed).


A modern, authentic Italian restaurant & bar in the heart of the revitalised, historic Chapel Street area of Salford.
We identified a need for a completely new approach to Italian dining, in a modern way! With Vero Moderno, we want to deliver fresh, real food.
Two pizzas and a bottle of Prosecco for £30!
Every Tuesday from 6pm we now offer any two pizzas and a bottle of Prosecco for £30!
With a chef special pizza each week to keep it fun!


In Brides and Bribes, a strategy game played over six rounds, each player takes the role of a powerful family of Genoa. Carefully employing your family members, each of whom has a unique ability, is the key to your success. Each round, you plan send your family members to the Genoese boroughs to hire new employees, get new workers, and convince the local lord that your family is worth a marriage with his beautiful daughter. If you want to succeed, you have to send the right person in the right place. Hire the most skilled people, intermarry with the most powerful families, poison your enemies, and increase your commercial empire! https://youtu.be/kVGVLzRWDmw ..


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Meet Chef Raphael Duntoye
Chef Raphael Duntoye is the Chef Patron of La Petite Maison, a popular upscale French Mediterranean restaurant with outlets in London, Dubai, Miami, Hong Kong, Abu Dhabi and Istanbul. Renowned for his lightness of touch and reverence for the best fresh produce, Chef Raphael began his culinary journey in 1995 when he left a career in engineering to follow a life-long passion for food and cooking.
Chef Raphael joined the Butlers Wharf Chef School in 1995 and following his graduation, spent the next five years earning his culinary stripes under the mentorship of Pierre Koffman, one of UK's most celebrated Chefs of all time. He later served as Executive Sous Chef at Sketch in Mayfair and as a Senior Sous Chef at the Japanese restaurant Zuma in Knightsbridge, London.
In 2007, Chef Raphael opened the first La Petit Maison in Mayfair, London and has since then expanded the award-winning restaurant to 5 other major metropolitan cities across the world.
About GTCO Food and Drink
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Spectacular little Lindau, on the Bavarian Riviera, lies on the eastern side of Lake Constance and is an inspiring location for your German summer course. The crossroads of the three largest German-speaking countries, Germany, Austria and Switzerland, Lake Constance is the only area of Europe with no clearly defined state borders. Lindau, despite its proximity to Austria is a very typically German town, with a beautiful Altstadt which dates back to the medieval period.
On a clear day this pretty little town offers views of the Alps and it is this proximity to both mountains and lake that makes it a great location for those who love sports and the great outdoors! This programme, with its extensive range of activities, will help you to discover all that this plucky little town, and the dramatic landscape surrounding it, have to offer.
Our German school in Lindau is in the heart of the old town, on the island of Lindau, with magnificent views of Lake Constance and the Alps. The excellent facilities include modern classrooms, a library and a café with a lovely terrace.
This programme has been designed for teenagers who are learning German at school (and have done so for at least 1 year) who wish to improve their overall level of the language during their summer holidays. Taking a course in Germany allows for total immersion in the language, which will not only improve the general level but will also boost your speaking and listening skills. Your lessons will be in German from the very beginning and your group will consist of other students of a similar level to yourself. These groups will be formed after all students take a level test on arrival.
You will receive expert tuition from teachers who are all native German speakers and who are fully qualified in teaching German as a foreign language. Another important point is that teachers will be experienced in teaching teenagers and will make sure that you find your lessons engaging.
Your accommodation will be arranged from the Sunday before your course starts until the Saturday after your course finishes. Carefully selected host families will welcome you into their home and will provide you with three meals per day. You will share your room with another student of a similar age, but different native language. You will be encouraged to use German as your common language and your hosts will only speak to you in German. They will be kind, patient and encouraging and will have experience in hosting foreign students of your age. Your accommodation will be close to the school, within a maximum of 20 minutes.
Your host family could be a 'traditional' family, consisting of parents and children, or they may be an older couple or even a single lady, as it is often these hosts that have the space and time to accommodate students. The accommodation (and family) will have been assessed by the school before they started to work with them to make sure that it is suitable for students. Our colleagues then continue to visit host families, and ask students to complete feedback on their accommodation, to make sure that the standard is maintained.
Activities are offered every afternoon during the week, which will help you to make friends and continue practicing your German. Examples of typical activities arranged include sports such as soccer and volleyball, swimming in Lake Constance, paddleboat trips around the island and bike tours. The school also regularly arranges evening activities, such as parties, guided tours of Lindau, karaoke, games nights, barbecues and mini-golf.
During the week you will have one half day activity/excursion, such as shopping in Ravensburg, visits to wildlife parks, high-rope courses and water-skiing. At the weekend you will have one full-day excursion, possibly to Munich, Neuschwanstein Castle, aquaparks or hikes in the mountains.
Full supervision is provided during lessons, activities and excursions and in the accommodation. You will have to make your own way to the school each day, although you will normally travel with your roommate, as you will have the same schedule and, anyway, the journey should be fairly short and easy. You will be permitted some free, unsupervised time, although you must respect the curfew which is 22.00. Host families will inform the school if you break curfew.
If you arrive into Lindau Train Station, your hosts will be pleased to collect you free of charge. We can also arrange airport transfers for students, but this service is not included in the course price due to the number of different airports in the area. Airport transfers can be arranged from Friedrichshafen, Zurich, Stuttgart or Munich Airports.


Make sure to read Part 1 if you haven't done so. A Billion Dollar Company Can't Get It Right so I had to explain how they had incorrectly deployed the wrong system. Banks do not care if you give them an incorrect address for a credit card assuming that it's done in good faith. Therefore, a credit card address verification is simply a matching exercise not an exercise in correctness or completeness.
If you provide an incorrect or incomplete address to a bank and you supply the exact same incomplete or incorrect address when you buy something with a credit card, then the addresses will match and you get your stuff.
The funny thing is our address works because we receive all of our mail there. No one knows their address better than themselves.
Now I'm furious because it's two hours and 15 minutes later with no results. They simply apologized and said they couldn't figure out how to take my money. It should've taken 30 seconds or less in the beginning so two hours and 15 minutes is 270 times longer than it should've taken.
Hang in there because I haven't gotten to the best part yet, the real insult to injury.
The next day I was still reeling from my extreme loss of energy from the previous day's credit card chaos. I was quickly reviewing bank transactions and I was shocked to find eight pending charges for $52.95 resulting from the supposed eight failed attempts to charge our card.
So just to be clear our credit card was incorrectly denied 8 times, we got 8 pending transactions and no access to the tax software we were attempting to purchase.
The value of cloud based Intuit Tax Online is obviously better then Desktop based ProSeries Tax because the software fee is $0 for the former and $350 for the latter. In addition the per tax return fee of the former is 1/3 to 50% less than the latter.
Since Intuit couldn't figure how to take our money, we're back spending $350 on Proseries that we otherwise wouldn't have had to pay. Here's the insult to injury; the 8 pending charges that never happened in the first place highjacked $423.60 of our resources for 4 days which could have been used for the $350 fee.
Wait there's more. We still had to go back, waste time and manage the pending charges some of which are still unresolved at the time of this writing. So the 270 times longer described above is actually getting longer all the time.
Fortunately, The one thing we got out of this was a great Credit Card Chaos story. I ask myself "How can bitcoin solve that?" Well the answer is simple. If the billion dollar company accepted bitcoin, I would have sent my bitcoin, had access to the software within minutes with 100% certainty, no waste of time and most importantly no headaches like the massive ones I got from this extreme Credit Card Chaos story.
I love you bitcoin. Dell and Dish accept bitcoin so why can't you?


Each New Year sees me making a list of resolutions that I end up forgetting about after a week. Usually things like "I'll make my bed as soon as I get up", "I'll get to the bottom of the laundry basket", and (the old favourite) "I'll stop eating crisps and biscuits and stick to healthy, nutritious meals". It's usually a half-hearted attempt, I am a lazy lump when it comes to housework and love nothing more than sitting on the couch with a packet (or two) of crisps.
Over the last few months however, I've become more interested in eating healthier. If you Google "MS and diet" a lot of results pop up linking what we eat to symptom management and progression. It can be overwhelming to see all the different websites, and knowing where to start, but I spent some time going through it.
To be honest, the large amount of information was off-putting to me. So much so that I nearly avoided it altogether. It seemed that not only would I have to cut down on the junk I was eating, I'd have to learn a lot about fats and oils and supplements. It was easier for me to carry on eating as I was than try to get to grips with such an overhaul of my diet. I know a lot of people with MS have seen results from following a more restricted diet, and I can't discredit their experiences, but it just wasn't for me.
I took some time away from it and had a little think about what I wanted to achieve. I had to look at my overall health and wellbeing, not just my MS. Am I not always saying, "I am more than MS"? By that same reckoning, shouldn't my diet also be about more than MS?
I figured that I needed to eat better to live better. Lose a bit of weight, look after my entire body. Just because I have MS doesn't exclude me from developing other illnesses. After a bit of pondering, I decided I'd improve my diet for me and not for my MS and, if my symptoms became more manageable as a result, it would be a bonus.
So from November I followed a simple eating plan. I made an effort to cut back on processed foods and started making more from scratch. Nothing fancy now - I can rustle up a stir-fry or bolognaise or soup, but you won't be getting a three-course homemade meal if you call for your dinner. I won't pretend that I stuck to the diet every day, but I was determined to do my best.
I also did a detox for a week and cleared my system. I got into a routine of sticking to three meals a day, and not picking in between. In the run up to Christmas I felt good, had lost a bit of weight and liked what I was eating. I relaxed over my time off work and overindulged a bit (a LOT). I thoroughly enjoyed myself but by the new year I was ready to get back to my diet.
Eating well makes me feel well and when I feel well I am able to get through the harder MS days. I have many plans for 2015, some for myself and some with friends and family. I intend to be as healthy and fit as I can be so I can experience everything I have planned to do. If that means fewer crisps on the sofa and more strolls with the dog, I think I can live with that. I don't think I'll ever get all the laundry done, though!
I can't claim to have this diet thing cracked, I am sure I am doing certain things "wrong", but I know I am looking after myself better than I was before. Thanks for reading, I look forward to your comments.
Great read. I tried a few MS diets and only succeeded in losing weight. Your're right, do it for you not the MS.
Thanks, this is really interesting, Niamh. It's a really personal decision, and so important not to feel you're depriving yourself of anything. MS dominates our decisions enough as it is.
I follow what I'd describe as OMS (from Overcoming MS by George Jelinek) Lite. I basically obey the rules, but allow myself to eat some vegan chocolate, the odd chip and the occasional waffle (I'm currently living in Belgium, so these are compulsory), along with my mum's mince pies and Christmas pudding (also compulsory). I'm gradually following the OMS approach more and more, mainly because I feel so healthy on it, but it's been at my own pace.
My neurologist advised me to eat healthily, but didn't advocate any particular diet, take Vitamin D and exercise as much as possible, as a complement to any decision to take medication. I think diet definitely plays a role, but MS is so unique for everyone that we all have to find our own way. Your way sounds pretty good!
Great read Niamh. You have a great approach. When can I call for dinner?
significant in terms of health/well-being is the total ban on all refined sugar (still eat a lot of fruit) and i began studying Trad. Chinese Medicine which provides a rethink on health matters and using acupuncture for ailments is a wow factor and has wonderful outcomes.
Stay Well and you are a great tonic for applying focus not fads well done.


Angelcots | Keep It Up, David!
Like all good apricots, they're easy to cut and the pit is easy to remove.
I ate two at one time, and then, a day later, when they had softened a little more, I ate the other two.
Guess what they tasted like? Apricots! Maybe I had built them up too much in my head… but I couldn't tell the difference between these and other apricots. Maybe I shouldn't assume that fruit that's rarer than a butter-churning bear and that's solely grown in one location would be the tastiest thing I've ever put in my mouth. Or maybe these angelcots weren't good examples of the majesty of their species. Or maybe it's just a bad year for angelcots.
For the record, tasting like apricots is not a bad thing. I like apricots. They're fantastic. If you see angelcots, you should give 'em a try. Hell, I might even buy them again if I see them. I'm just not going to expect much of a difference between them and any other apricot.
This entry was posted on Tuesday, June 26th, 2012 at 10:34 pm and is filed under Uncategorized.	You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
Sometimes fruit is fruit! But who knows, they could be amazing in the right conditions. Organic, from a real farm somewhere.
I came across your blog when I googled Angelcots. Just had some from Trader Joe's and they were soooo juicy that they squirted when I cut them open. Try another batch from TJs if you can.
I'll take another look next time I'm at TJs. Thanks for stopping by!


The first Football League side to visit Ashford Town in some fourteen years were also the first professional club to suffer defeat at the hands of the Tangerines, as Jamie Lawrence's squad marked the first match at the newly-christened Robert Parker Stadium with an emphatic victory over Bradford City.
The early stages saw both sides try to play neat passing football on a pitch that had clearly been affected by the hot, dry summer and was not ideal for either team. Although the visitors – paying their third match in four days as part of a mini-tour of Southern England – looked dangerous, it was the home side who took the lead in the thirteenth minute when Russell Canderton drilled home a half-cleared corner.
Bradford striker Fola Onibuje should have levelled the scores in the 25th minute, but failed to connect with an inviting cross from Omar Daley. Both sides looked enterprising, but there were no further goals in the first half.
With neither side making changes at the break, the second goal came in the opening moments of the second period. Bradford goalkeeper Lloyd Saxton attempted to take the ball around Town manager Jamie Lawrence, only for the former Bantam to dispossess the nervy stopper and score.
The professional side made nine substitutions just before the hour mark, with the replacements immediately stretching Ashford. However, the Tangerines were resolute in their defending and made a series of changes of their own, bringing in a couple of new faces at a time rather than making a raft of changes in one hit. It was an approach that worked well for the Southern League side, who survived some strong pressure thanks in part to some inspired goalkeeping from Lee Pearce (pictured) and then added a third goal when Scott Todd, on trial as he seeks a return to the club, scored a superb individual goal.
Pearce made a number of brave stops before making way for young stopper Dane Buss, who made some spectacular stops of his own as City attempted to claim a consolation goal. However, Ashford retained their composure to secure a deserved victory. While the result was quite something – and will live long in the memory of all Ashford fans – far more important for Jamie Lawrence is the fitness gained by the twenty players who featured on the night.


About "SHSAT Math Sample Test with Answers"
Let n be an integer from 9 to 38. For how many values of n will n/5 be a prime?
Mary is m years old now. Joe is 3 years younger than Mary. Express Joe's age 10 years from now in terms of m.
Hence the angle at 10 : 00 is 60 degree.
Find the smallest positive integer that is a multiple of both 21 and 77.
7 is not a multiple of both 21 and 77.
The number 231 is divisible by 21 and 77.
Hence 231 is the least number which is divisible by both 21 and 77.
We must find the one one month interval, where the graph rises most quickly.
This is between March and April.
Express the sum of 1.2 x 102 and 1.2 x 103 in scientific notation.
Today is Saturday. What day of the week will it be 65 days from today?
According to days arithmetic 0 stands for "Sunday"
63rd day is Saturday, 64th day is Sunday and 65th day is Monday.
After having gone through the stuff given above, we hope that the students would have understood, "SHSAT Math Sample Test with Answers".
Apart from the stuff given in this section "SHSAT Math Sample Test with Answers", if you need any other stuff in math, please use our google custom search here.


text:
package com.evolveum.midpoint.task.quartzimpl;

import ch.qos.logback.classic.Level;
import com.evolveum.midpoint.prism.PrismObject;
import com.evolveum.midpoint.prism.PrismProperty;
import com.evolveum.midpoint.repo.api.RepositoryService;
import com.evolveum.midpoint.repo.api.perf.PerformanceMonitor;
import com.evolveum.midpoint.schema.constants.SchemaConstants;
import com.evolveum.midpoint.schema.result.OperationResult;
import com.evolveum.midpoint.task.api.*;
import com.evolveum.midpoint.task.quartzimpl.statistics.Statistics;
import com.evolveum.midpoint.task.quartzimpl.statistics.WorkBucketStatisticsCollector;
import com.evolveum.midpoint.util.exception.ObjectAlreadyExistsException;
import com.evolveum.midpoint.util.exception.ObjectNotFoundException;
import com.evolveum.midpoint.util.exception.SchemaException;
import com.evolveum.midpoint.util.logging.LoggingUtils;
import com.evolveum.midpoint.util.logging.Trace;
import com.evolveum.midpoint.util.logging.TraceManager;
import com.evolveum.midpoint.util.statistics.OperationExecutionLogger;
import com.evolveum.midpoint.xml.ns._public.common.common_3.*;
import org.jetbrains.annotations.NotNull;

import java.util.*;
import java.util.concurrent.ConcurrentHashMap;
import java.util.concurrent.Future;
import java.util.concurrent.atomic.AtomicInteger;
import java.util.stream.Collectors;

import static java.util.Collections.emptyList;
import static java.util.Collections.singleton;
import static org.apache.commons.lang3.ObjectUtils.defaultIfNull;

/**
 *
 */
public class RunningTaskQuartzImpl extends TaskQuartzImpl implements RunningTask {

    private static final Trace LOGGER = TraceManager.getTrace(RunningTaskQuartzImpl.class);

    private static final long DEFAULT_OPERATION_STATS_UPDATE_INTERVAL = 3000L;

    private long operationStatsUpdateInterval = DEFAULT_OPERATION_STATS_UPDATE_INTERVAL;
    private Long lastOperationStatsUpdateTimestamp;

    /**
     * Lightweight asynchronous subtasks.
     * Each task here is a LAT, i.e. transient and with assigned lightweight handler.
     * Access to this structure should be synchronized because of deleteLightweightAsynchronousSubtasks method.
     * (This means we could replace ConcurrentHashMap with plain HashMap but let's keep that just for certainty.)
     */
    private final Map<String, RunningTaskQuartzImpl> lightweightAsynchronousSubtasks = new ConcurrentHashMap<>();
    private RunningTaskQuartzImpl parentForLightweightAsynchronousTask;            // EXPERIMENTAL

    /**
     * Is the task handler allowed to run, or should it stop as soon as possible?
     */
    private volatile boolean canRun = true;

    /**
     * The code that should be run for asynchronous transient tasks.
     * (As opposed to asynchronous persistent tasks, where the handler is specified
     * via Handler URI in task prism object.)
     */
    private LightweightTaskHandler lightweightTaskHandler;

    /**
     * Future representing executing (or submitted-to-execution) lightweight task handler.
     */
    private Future lightweightHandlerFuture;

    /**
     * An indication whether lightweight handler is currently executing or not.
     * Used for waiting upon its completion (because java.util.concurrent facilities are not able
     * to show this for cancelled/interrupted tasks).
     */
    private volatile boolean lightweightHandlerExecuting;

    /**
     * Thread in which this task's lightweight handler is executing.
     */
    private volatile Thread executingThread;

    /**
     * How many objects were seen by this task. This is to determine whether interval-based profiling is to be started.
     */
    private AtomicInteger objectsSeen = new AtomicInteger(0);

    private Level originalProfilingLevel;

    RunningTaskQuartzImpl(@NotNull TaskManagerQuartzImpl taskManager, PrismObject<TaskType> taskPrism, RepositoryService repositoryService) {
        super(taskManager, taskPrism, repositoryService);
    }

    @Override
    public RunningTaskQuartzImpl getParentForLightweightAsynchronousTask() {
        return parentForLightweightAsynchronousTask;
    }

    /**
     * Signal the task to shut down.
     * It may not stop immediately, but it should stop eventually.
     * <p>
     * BEWARE, this method has to be invoked on the same Task instance that is executing.
     * If called e.g. on a Task just retrieved from the repository, it will have no effect whatsoever.
     */

    public void unsetCanRun() {
        // beware: Do not touch task prism here, because this method can be called asynchronously
        canRun = false;
    }

    @Override
    public boolean canRun() {
        return canRun;
    }

    @Override
    public RunningTask createSubtask(LightweightTaskHandler handler) {
        RunningTaskQuartzImpl sub = taskManager.createRunningTask(createSubtask());
        sub.setLightweightTaskHandler(handler);
        assert sub.getTaskIdentifier() != null;
        synchronized (lightweightAsynchronousSubtasks) {
            lightweightAsynchronousSubtasks.put(sub.getTaskIdentifier(), sub);
        }
        sub.parentForLightweightAsynchronousTask = this;
        return sub;
    }

    public void setLightweightTaskHandler(LightweightTaskHandler lightweightTaskHandler) {
        this.lightweightTaskHandler = lightweightTaskHandler;
    }

    @Override
    public LightweightTaskHandler getLightweightTaskHandler() {
        return lightweightTaskHandler;
    }

    @Override
    public boolean isLightweightAsynchronousTask() {
        return lightweightTaskHandler != null;
    }

    void setLightweightHandlerFuture(Future lightweightHandlerFuture) {
        this.lightweightHandlerFuture = lightweightHandlerFuture;
    }

    public Future getLightweightHandlerFuture() {
        return lightweightHandlerFuture;
    }

    @Override
    public Collection<? extends RunningTaskQuartzImpl> getLightweightAsynchronousSubtasks() {
        synchronized (lightweightAsynchronousSubtasks) {
            return Collections.unmodifiableList(new ArrayList<>(lightweightAsynchronousSubtasks.values()));
        }
    }

    @Override
    public Collection<? extends RunningTaskQuartzImpl> getRunningLightweightAsynchronousSubtasks() {
        // beware: Do not touch task prism here, because this method can be called asynchronously
        List<RunningTaskQuartzImpl> retval = new ArrayList<>();
        for (RunningTaskQuartzImpl subtask : getLightweightAsynchronousSubtasks()) {
            if (subtask.getExecutionStatus() == TaskExecutionStatus.RUNNABLE && subtask.lightweightHandlerStartRequested()) {
                retval.add(subtask);
            }
        }
        return Collections.unmodifiableList(retval);
    }

    @Override
    public void deleteLightweightAsynchronousSubtasks() {
        synchronized (lightweightAsynchronousSubtasks) {
            List<? extends RunningTask> livingSubtasks = lightweightAsynchronousSubtasks.values().stream()
                    .filter(t -> t.getExecutionStatus() == TaskExecutionStatus.RUNNABLE || t.getExecutionStatus() == TaskExecutionStatus.WAITING)
                    .collect(Collectors.toList());
            if (!livingSubtasks.isEmpty()) {
                LOGGER.error("Task {} has {} runnable or waiting lightweight subtasks: {}", this, livingSubtasks.size(), livingSubtasks);
                throw new IllegalStateException("There are runnable or waiting subtasks in the parent task");
            }
            lightweightAsynchronousSubtasks.clear();
        }
    }

    @Override
    public boolean lightweightHandlerStartRequested() {
        return lightweightHandlerFuture != null;
    }

    // just a shortcut
    @Override
    public void startLightweightHandler() {
        taskManager.startLightweightTask(this);
    }

    public void setLightweightHandlerExecuting(boolean lightweightHandlerExecuting) {
        this.lightweightHandlerExecuting = lightweightHandlerExecuting;
    }

    public boolean isLightweightHandlerExecuting() {
        return lightweightHandlerExecuting;
    }

    public Thread getExecutingThread() {
        return executingThread;
    }

    public void setExecutingThread(Thread executingThread) {
        this.executingThread = executingThread;
    }

    // Operational data

    @Override
    public void storeOperationStatsDeferred() {
        refreshLowLevelStatistics();
        setOperationStats(getAggregatedLiveOperationStats());
    }

    @Override
    public void refreshLowLevelStatistics() {
        Thread taskThread = getExecutingThread();
        if (taskThread != null) {
            if (Thread.currentThread().getId() == taskThread.getId()) {
                statistics.refreshLowLevelStatistics(getRepositoryService(), taskManager);
            }
        } else {
            LOGGER.warn("Task thread is null for {}; current thread = {}", this, Thread.currentThread());
        }
    }

    @Override
    public void storeOperationStats() {
        try {
            storeOperationStatsDeferred();
            addPendingModification(createPropertyDeltaIfPersistent(TaskType.F_PROGRESS, getProgress()));
            addPendingModification(createPropertyDeltaIfPersistent(TaskType.F_EXPECTED_TOTAL, getExpectedTotal()));
            flushPendingModifications(new OperationResult(DOT_INTERFACE + ".storeOperationStats"));    // TODO fixme
            lastOperationStatsUpdateTimestamp = System.currentTimeMillis();
        } catch (SchemaException | ObjectNotFoundException | ObjectAlreadyExistsException | RuntimeException e) {
            LoggingUtils.logUnexpectedException(LOGGER, "Couldn't store statistical information into task {}", e, this);
        }
    }

    @Override
    public void storeOperationStatsIfNeeded() {
        if (lastOperationStatsUpdateTimestamp == null ||
                System.currentTimeMillis() - lastOperationStatsUpdateTimestamp > operationStatsUpdateInterval) {
            storeOperationStats();
        } else {
            refreshLowLevelStatistics();
        }
    }

    @Override
    public Long getLastOperationStatsUpdateTimestamp() {
        return lastOperationStatsUpdateTimestamp;
    }

    @Override
    public void setOperationStatsUpdateInterval(long interval) {
        this.operationStatsUpdateInterval = interval;
    }

    @Override
    public long getOperationStatsUpdateInterval() {
        return operationStatsUpdateInterval;
    }

    @Override
    public void incrementProgressAndStoreStatsIfNeeded() {
        setProgress(getProgress() + 1);
        storeOperationStatsIfNeeded();
    }

    @Override
    public boolean isAsynchronous() {
        return getPersistenceStatus() == TaskPersistenceStatus.PERSISTENT
                || isLightweightAsynchronousTask();     // note: if it has lightweight task handler, it must be transient
    }

    /**
     * Beware: this can be called from any thread: the task thread itself, one of the workers, or from an external (unrelated)
     * thread. This is important because some of the statistics retrieved are thread-local ones.
     *
     * So we should NOT fetch thread-local statistics into task structures here!
     */
    @Override
    public OperationStatsType getAggregatedLiveOperationStats() {
        Collection<? extends RunningTaskQuartzImpl> subtasks = getLightweightAsynchronousSubtasks();
        List<Statistics> subCollections = subtasks.stream()
                .map(RunningTaskQuartzImpl::getStatistics)
                .collect(Collectors.toList());
        return statistics.getAggregatedLiveOperationStats(subCollections);
    }

    @Override
    public void startCollectingOperationStats(@NotNull StatisticsCollectionStrategy strategy, boolean initialExecution) {
        PerformanceMonitor performanceMonitor = repositoryService.getPerformanceMonitor();
        if (initialExecution && strategy.isStartFromZero()) {
            statistics.startCollectingOperationStatsFromZero(strategy.isMaintainIterationStatistics(),
                    strategy.isMaintainSynchronizationStatistics(), strategy.isMaintainActionsExecutedStatistics(),
                    performanceMonitor);
            setProgress(0L);
            storeOperationStats();
        } else {
            OperationStatsType stored = getStoredOperationStats();
            statistics.startCollectingOperationStatsFromStoredValues(stored, strategy.isMaintainIterationStatistics(),
                    strategy.isMaintainSynchronizationStatistics(), strategy.isMaintainActionsExecutedStatistics(),
                    initialExecution, performanceMonitor);
        }
    }

    void startCollectingLowLevelStatistics() {
        statistics.startCollectingLowLevelStatistics(repositoryService.getPerformanceMonitor());
    }

    Statistics getStatistics() {
        return statistics;
    }

    public WorkBucketStatisticsCollector getWorkBucketStatisticsCollector() {
        return statistics;
    }

    // TODO consider what to do with this

    @Override
    public int getAndIncrementObjectsSeen() {
        return objectsSeen.getAndIncrement();
    }

    @Override
    public void startDynamicProfilingIfNeeded(RunningTask coordinatorTask, int objectsSeen) {
        Integer interval = coordinatorTask.getExtensionPropertyRealValue(SchemaConstants.MODEL_EXTENSION_PROFILING_INTERVAL);
        if (interval != null && interval != 0 && objectsSeen%interval == 0) {
            LOGGER.info("Starting dynamic profiling for object number {} (interval is {})", objectsSeen, interval);
            originalProfilingLevel = OperationExecutionLogger.getLocalOperationInvocationLevelOverride();
            OperationExecutionLogger.setLocalOperationInvocationLevelOverride(Level.TRACE);
        }
    }

    @Override
    public void stopDynamicProfiling() {
        OperationExecutionLogger.setLocalOperationInvocationLevelOverride(originalProfilingLevel);
    }

    @Override
    public boolean requestTracingIfNeeded(RunningTask coordinatorTask, int objectsSeen, TracingRootType defaultTracingRoot) {
        ProcessTracingConfigurationType config = coordinatorTask.getExtensionPropertyRealValue(SchemaConstants.MODEL_EXTENSION_TRACING);
        int interval;
        if (config != null) {
            interval = defaultIfNull(config.getInterval(), 1);
        } else {
            // the old way
            interval = defaultIfNull(
                    coordinatorTask.getExtensionPropertyRealValue(SchemaConstants.MODEL_EXTENSION_TRACING_INTERVAL), 0);
        }

        if (interval != 0 && objectsSeen % interval == 0) {
            TracingProfileType tracingProfileConfigured;
            Collection<TracingRootType> pointsConfigured;
            if (config != null) {
                tracingProfileConfigured = config.getTracingProfile();
                pointsConfigured = config.getTracingPoint();
            } else {
                // the old way
                tracingProfileConfigured = coordinatorTask
                        .getExtensionContainerRealValueOrClone(SchemaConstants.MODEL_EXTENSION_TRACING_PROFILE);
                PrismProperty<TracingRootType> tracingRootProperty = coordinatorTask
                        .getExtensionPropertyOrClone(SchemaConstants.MODEL_EXTENSION_TRACING_ROOT);
                pointsConfigured = tracingRootProperty != null ? tracingRootProperty.getRealValues() : emptyList();
            }

            LOGGER.info("Starting tracing for object number {} (interval is {})", this.objectsSeen, interval);

            TracingProfileType tracingProfile =
                    tracingProfileConfigured != null ? tracingProfileConfigured : taskManager.getTracer().getDefaultProfile();
            Collection<TracingRootType> points = pointsConfigured.isEmpty() ? singleton(defaultTracingRoot) : pointsConfigured;

            points.forEach(this::addTracingRequest);
            setTracingProfile(tracingProfile);
            return true;
        } else {
            return false;
        }
    }

    @Override
    public void stopTracing() {
        removeTracingRequests();
        setTracingProfile(null);
    }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


Crawford-Butz & Associates Insurance Agency provides insurance to scrap metal industry businesses in Saint Louis, Columbia, Saint Charles, Arnold, Town and Country, Kirkwood, and surrounding areas.
Security guard insurance from Crawford-Butz & Associates Insurance Agency can cover everything from different job sites to different situations and operations. We work hard to provide the security guard industry with a wide variety of coverage options.
Contact a representative at Crawford-Butz & Associates Insurance Agency today to go over these options and many more!


Why we need to reveal the truth behind the myths and stereotypes surrounding bipolar disorder.
World Bipolar Day (30th March) is a day designed to raise awareness and help us all learn more about a condition that affects around one in every 100 adults. As with many mental health conditions, sadly, bipolar disorder can often be misunderstood.
It's time to put these misconceptions to bed and educate ourselves on what it means to have bipolar disorder.
Doesn't having bipolar mean you have a split personality?
Doesn't mania make you happy and more productive?
Bipolar is rare, isn't it?
While bipolar disorder is less common than depression, the World Health Organisation says it's the 6th leading cause of disability in the world. Many celebrities have revealed they have bipolar, including Stephen Fry, Demi Lovato, Russell Brand, Catherine Zeta-Jones and the late, great Carrie Fisher.
It's all about mood swings though, right?
Bipolar disorder affects everyone differently. Unlike a typical mood swing, the condition causes people to feel these changes much more deeply. Instead of happy to sad, they can go from euphoric to deeply depressed.
OK, what can we do to help reduce stigma?
One of most powerful things we can do to reduce stigma, stereotypes and misconceptions about bipolar disorder is to educate ourselves and speak to those living with the condition. Instead of believing what a film or TV depiction tells us, let's speak to the people behind the illness. Bipolar doesn't define a person, it's a condition that forms part of a person's experience of the world.
Find out how it can affect people, and if someone tells you they have the condition and they need your support, read our guide to supporting someone with bipolar disorder.
Let's lift the veil of mystery once and for all and keep the conversation going.


text:
Reveal Solutions Announces Improved Transportation Management Software
Reveal Solutions uses transportation management software to reduce costs and improve performance and productivity. Both management and software solutions use technology to make a difference.
Overland Park, United States - December 4, 2019 /PressCable/ —
Overland Park, Kansas (December, 2019)— Reveal Solutions is proud to announce the success of its transportation management software. It can reduce overall costs while improving all facets of performance and productivity. Both management and software solutions are utilized and use technology to make the difference. Customers who find the most benefit to these services and implementation of technology are those who associate with the Americans with Disabilities Act. There are also benefits seen by demand response transportation groups and medical transportation services that are not for emergencies. These often go by the acronym NEMT. Reveal Solutions has extensive experience in the field because it was created by the people who work in it. New, creative solutions are always being discovered and added because the company joins operations experience and powerful software.
There are core values that dictate Reveal Solutions and their efforts. The first is a desire to reduce client costs. Reveal is able to save clients 20% by increasing the productivity of drivers and reducing overall labor costs. Reveal also makes services reliable, which reduces the chances of customers abandoning the service if it doesn't meet expectations. GPS tracking and Google Maps help customers make live decisions to better adapt to current traffic conditions. The final value is customer service and support. Reveal is always looking to keep customers and riders satisfied. They offer the ability to resolve issues at any hour and also provide advanced planning and maximized use of vehicle space.
Reveal solutions has been in business since 2008. They provide services to clients in all 50 states of the United States. CEO Scott Schoessel and COO Mike Wade lead the company with integrity, honesty, and respect. The two bring 57 combined years of service to the table. Each has spent this time in the transportation industry. The company mission is to offer clients a return on their investment.
Reveal Solutions
10551 Barkley Suite 300,
http://deliveryofthought.com/2019/06/04/step-by-step-efficient-ideas-when-looking-at-transit-scheduling-software/
http://docplanet.org/step-by-step-efficient-suggestions-when-looking-at-transit-scheduling-software/
https://ecommercecenter.org/major-requirements-in-finding-transportation-management-software-discussed/
Name: Michele Lucas
Organization: Reveal Solutions Transportation Management
Address: 10551 Barkley Suite 300, Overland Park, Kansas 66212, United States
Website: http://reveal-solutions.net/
Source: PressCable
Release ID: 88937319
Globes carpet kicks off with big sleeves and shades of pink
NEW YORK — Cynthia Erivo and Greta Gerwig rocked sparkling chokers as the Golden Globes red carpet kicked off Sunday, with Erivo in a hand-beaded custom Thom Browne gown and Gerwig in black and cream. Both went off-shoulder for the big night in Beverly Hills, California. Erivo, the "Harriet" star and fashion standout, said her dress includes designs of her favorite flower, the peony, at the hem and in her lining. The short-sleeve gown, Erivo told E!, took 800 hours. A huge blue stone dropped from her short necklace. Shades of pink had an early trend moment on Kirsten Dunst...
Judge: No slander in Alec Baldwin's comments on parking spat
NEW YORK — Alec Baldwin didn't slander a man in interviews about a parking dispute that turned physical, a judge has ruled as dueling lawsuits between the actor and the other driver continue. Baldwin's remarks — including claims that Wojciech Cieszkowski's driving was "really fast," "really aggressive" and made the actor think his wife and son were about to be run over — were "hyperbole" and "rhetorical illustrations," Manhattan judge David B. Cohen wrote Thursday. "They are words of frustration with someone's driving," not accusations that amount to slander, Cohen wrote. He tossed out Cieszkowski's slander claim, but his assault...
Innovative fashion designers lead the way on sustainability
LONDON — Innovative fashion designers are turning to such things as horseradish and nettles to make sustainable clothing and accessories to the delight of a growing number of buyers. While more consumers are paying closer attention to how the production of goods impacts the environment, old habits die hard. A buy-and-toss mentality persists despite a boost from celebrities helping to drive the upcycle and vintage movements. Actress Maggie Q, who created an activewear line from recycled fabrics, is among activists who see plenty of room for improvement. She says she feels "sick about fast fashion.'' "You hear people say, 'Well,...
Streep, Miranda and Stone are named as Met Gala co-0chairs
NEW YORK — Next year's Met Gala may be the closest we'll ever come to getting a Miranda Priestly moment at the starry event. Meryl Streep has been named as a co-chair of the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute. The Oscar-winner played Priestly, a thinly veiled fictional version of Vogue editor Anna Wintour, in the movie "The Devil Wears Prada." Wintour clearly has no hard feelings because she selected Streep as a co-chair along with Lin-Manuel Miranda and fellow Oscar-winner Emma Stone. Designer Nicolas Ghesquiere rounds out the group. The gala's theme is "About Time: Fashion and Duration," which...
NEW YORK — ABC News faced questions Tuesday about its reluctance to air a sensitive story of alleged sexual misconduct after a leaked video emerged of reporter Amy Robach complaining about how her bosses handled an interview with a Jeffrey Epstein accuser. The conservative web site Project Veritas released video of Robach venting that "every day I get more and more pissed" that her 2015 interview with Virginia Giuffre never made the air. Robach made her remarks late in August while sitting in a Times Square studio with a microphone but not on the air. ABC said Tuesday that the...


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Dieting with Down's
Darren Devine
Blog, 05 June 2017
Mary Hunt set up her own firm encouraging people with learning disabilities to live healthier lifestyles after watching son Barry Ward, who has Down's syndrome, struggle to walk on holiday when his weight ballooned.
By the end of 2013 Barry Ward was finding it a challenge to walk more than 30 yards and was twice admitted to hospital with suspected heart attacks after Christmas.
Though medics told Ward's mother, Mary Hunt, that heart problems were common in people with Down's, she refused to accept his declining health as inevitable.
Instead Hunt, a nurse who runs home care company Beyea Care, convinced him to try diet classes.
Hunt says the classes have transformed her son's confidence and enabled him to shed much of the weight threatening his health.
So successful has the regime been that together Hunt and Ward have set up their own community interest company. The firm, Barry's Journey, introduces others with learning disabilities to the benefits of diet and exercise.
Hunt, 58, from Ipswich, said: "Somebody did say to me that Barry, being Down's syndrome, would never understand the rationale of healthy eating and dieting.
"But he has done. He knows what foods are not good, because he has been doing it so long and, of course, I think we've changed some of his habits."
Menus on the Barry's Journey diet are "syn free", meaning people can eat as much as they like of their favourite food provided it's cooked in a healthy way.
With help from support workers they are encouraged to cook using equipment like fat-reducing grills, slow cookers and air fryers, which use less oil than deep fryers.
Hunt added: "We find out what their favourite food is and, if it's a burger and chips, we then teach them how to cook that syn-free."
For beef this means using meat that is 5% fat or lower and prepared with a 1-cal spray cooking oil, or in a slow cooker with tinned tomatoes for seasoning.
The diet also encourages people to learn to make their own sauces, like mayonnaise and ketchup, to reduce the sugar content.
The odd treat is allowed, provided it's not excessive. And alongside the diet is an individually tailored exercise programme with one-to-one support at DW Fitness.
"If we go into a residential home we will help the support worker and the client to identify what foods they will snack on and then we'll probably give them 0 to five points, because you're allowed up to 15 points per day. It's basically to make a diet enjoyable," added Hunt.
Health problems like heart defects and an underactive thyroid gland are more common in people with Down's, who have a life expectancy of between 50 and 60.
An underactive thyroid means the body is slower to use up energy and leaves people with Down's more vulnerable to weight gain.
Ward had a slight heart murmur and infantile hepatitis, an inflamed liver, when he was a baby. He later overcame these health problems.
Before persuading Ward to tackle his weight Hunt admits her son always "loved his food". And his appetite for junk food like burgers, chips, sausages and McDonald's meant he was getting "bigger and bigger and bigger".
At his heaviest Ward, who is 4ft 10ins tall, was 14 stone. Before a recent trip to Center Parcs, when he came off the diet to relax, he weighed 11 stone 3lbs.
Hunt insists the diet and exercise regime is not something she has forced on her son and Ward himself says he's fully on board.
He said he has been "going to the gym a lot" to "lift weights".
Asked what the food was like on the diet Ward, 31, said: "Good. I like it." Ward said he feels "much better" since starting the diet.
He lives in supported accommodation where staff members help him grow and pick fresh herbs from a greenhouse to include in the diet.
Hunt says the company is now taking off — they are working in learning disabilities residential homes in Bury St Edmunds and Norwich.
She added: "Word is getting about and there does seem to be a huge need for it. If they're interested we go and do an overhead presentation of how Barry's Journey will work."
To find out more visit www.barrysjourney.co.uk


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Would Solar Roadways Work? A Government Engineer Discusses the Controversial Technology
The DOT engineer who helped test a solar roadway prototype shares his thoughts on its viability.
by Stephen Lacey
Photo Credit: Solar Roadways; Graphic Design by Sam Cornett
Ever since Scott and Julie Brusaw went public with their idea for building solar-powered LED roadways, they've faced a constant barrage of skepticism and even outright hostility.
The reaction was expected given how technically difficult it would be to execute their vision of electrifying roads and highways with reinforced solar panels. Some questioned whether the application for solar is even necessary.
But one organization -- the most important agency governing America's roads -- was willing to give them a shot at proving the concept.
In 2009, after a couple years of tinkering in their driveway, the Brusaws secured a $100,000 grant from the Department of Transportation for their company, Solar Roadways. The grant was supposed to be used for gathering information from engineering experts in a variety of fields and developing a concept paper based on the findings.
"I didn't need that much money to have a bunch of professors write a paper. So I asked [the DOT] if we could simply build a prototype," said Scott Brusaw.
In February 2010, the Brusaws built their first panels, a 12-foot by 12-foot array without solar cells, to test whether the underlying electronics would work.
That year, Solar Roadways won a $50,000 community award through GE's Ecomagination challenge, giving it another pool of money to keep experimenting.
Then, in 2011, the DOT followed up its initial support with a $750,000 grant to assist Solar Roadways in developing a second "parking lot" demonstration array with solar cells, LED lights, and a heating system built in.
An up-close image of the prototype solar roadway panels with heating elements and LEDs built in. Photo credit: Solar Roadways.
The DOT's role wasn't just to hand out money. The department also helped test the arrays to figure out if they were actually safe, functional and able to withstand punishing road conditions.
Eric Weaver, a research engineer at the Federal Highway Administration's research and technology arm, took the lead on the testing. When asked what he thought of the plan to blanket America's roads with solar panels and LED lights after years of evaluating the concept, Weaver was blunt: "I'd say it's not very realistic to cover the entire highway system with these panels."
But Weaver was also quick to qualify his statement. "If you don't reach for something, you'll never get there. Just the effort of doing something new creates byproducts," he said.
Earlier this year, Scott Brusaw, himself an electrical engineer, decided he needed more financial resources beyond government grants in order to hire full-time materials experts and civil engineers to prove the concept. So Solar Roadways started an Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign and created a hyped-up video to woo potential donors.
"We can't say that it would be safe for roadway vehicular traffic." Eric Weaver, Department of Transportation
The campaign was wildly successful, bringing in $2.2 million for Solar Roadways. The reaction to the fundraise ranged from incredulity to loathing. Some were convinced it was an outright scam.
In an interview with Greentech Media, the DOT has opened up about the Solar Roadways testing process for the first time. Although the company made radical claims about the technology's potential in its Indiegogo video, Solar Roadways is not a "scam." The Brusaws continue to work on the technology with engineers from universities, and the product has gone through real-world testing with actual early-stage products to show for it.
But as DOT's Eric Weaver explained, it is very, very far from being proven as envisioned.
The biggest unknown is safety. Driving or walking on a textured glass surface is completely different than asphalt, which is designed specifically to increase traction. Weaver said that the DOT needs to go through more rounds of testing before it can weigh in.
"We can't say that it would be safe for roadway vehicular traffic," said Weaver. "Further field-traffic evaluation is needed to determine safety and durability performance."
Solar Roadways says it has tested its wet textured glass surface at a university lab and has shown that it can stop a vehicle going 80 miles per hour within the required distance. However, getting approval from a university lab is much different from getting it from federal highway authorities.
Durability is also not fully proven, said Weaver. The DOT uses a weight deflectometer to test impact loads up to 16,000 pounds. But the department was not able to get its equipment up to Solar Roadways' testing headquarters (i.e., Scott and Julie's home) in northern Idaho. So they instead used a 3-D modeling analysis.
"We have no idea how it would hold up to wear under foot or car traffic," said Weaver.
Scott Brusaw drives a tractor over the prototype parking lot. This does not qualify as an official DOT test. Photo credit: Solar Roadways
Brusaw said he plans on taking up a new round of testing with universities or the DOT in order to get better simulations. Solar Roadways has an option to continue its relationship with the federal government for a third phase, or it could use some of the Indiegogo money to find additional methods of testing.
The third limitation, said Weaver, was materials and equipment availability. Finding large circuits to put under the glass was very difficult since every company has worked to make circuits smaller, not bigger.
"They spent a lot of time trying to get the circuitry embedded in the glass. But issues with the prototype could be overcome with larger-scale automated production," said Weaver.
Brusaw admitted to supply challenges, but said many of them had been overcome.
"It wasn't necessarily a scarcity of materials; it was suppliers promising things they couldn't deliver," he said.
In one instance, it took two extra months to get plastics for the internal support structure because the supplier didn't have access to a dye color that it had suggested to Solar Roadways in the first place. In another, the winning bidder for the circuits only told the Brusaws afterward that its equipment couldn't support such large boards.
The circuits themselves are now broken down into four sections for easier manufacturing and then assembled onsite. "Anyone can do those four sections," said Brusaw. He said that LED lights have been the easiest thing to supply thus far.
There's one other very important technical detail that hasn't been officially verified: the performance of the solar cells themselves.
Brusaw has been comparing the embedded solar cells flat on the ground to conventional rooftop panels angled toward the sun. What he found surprised him: "We were within 5 percent of theoretical values."
Those results, monitored using Enphase microinverters, have not been independently verified. All the testing has been done onsite at the Brusaws' home, so it's hard to say exactly how the solar component of the road will perform over time.
"I need some more people under my roof. I want to put them in a room and figure out how to make it work." Scott Brusaw, Solar Roadways
So with years of testing now done, is it possible to say whether Solar Roadways' long-term vision of paving highways and roads with solar actually makes sense?
Weaver said the DOT isn't even close to saying if it could be used for high-impact environments. But he did not dismiss the concept entirely.
"I believe the application can be used for smaller scale purposes -- potentially, pedestrian walkways and sidewalks that get lower load and have fewer safety considerations," he said. "For roads, there are so many unknowns."
Even if the DOT fully backed the technical possibility of swapping out pavement for solar panels and LEDs, the business case is still undeveloped.
"We haven't done the cost analysis just yet," admitted Brusaw, directly contradicting the claim in the company's promotional video that the panels "pay for themselves" by producing their own electricity.
He did say that Solar Roadways would not permit, install or service the paneling. The company would simply be a manufacturer and let service providers or governments figure out how to finance and build projects. Forget the current technical limitations; navigating the complicated network of private, state and federal rules for transportation planning would also be a major headache.
Brusaw has a couple short-term applications he's working on to get beyond the prototype phase.
The first is a project in downtown Sandpoint, Idaho, near where the inventors reside. The goal is to develop five pilot projects on non-critical applications such as downtown sidewalks, a train station and part of an airport tarmac. All the year-round data about performance will be streamed to the public for monitoring. The second application could be on tribal lands, which have their own rules governing roads. Brusaw envisions installing a parking-lot scale project at a casino, or outfitting a small residential road on a reservation.
At this point, the only solar "roadway" is a 12-foot by 36-foot grouping of panels in a barn in Idaho that is being driven over by tractors on a regular basis. It is not anywhere close to being suitable for real driving applications -- not now, and perhaps not ever.
Brusaw said the next step will be to hire more engineers full time with the new crowdsourced funds, supplanting the part-time graduate students that have been helping him and Julie. "I need some more people under my roof. I want to put them in a room and figure out how to make it work."
But Eric Weaver, who witnessed firsthand the limitations of the technology over years of testing, can't bring himself to side with the hardcore skeptics. He's open to the possibility that something will come of it.
"In terms of the long-term vision, I don't consider it to be realistic. But I enjoy the vision and appreciate it, and will try to support them to see what other benefits may present themselves," said Weaver.
In the meantime, a lot of eager armchair investors who donated to the company will have a long time to wait before knowing if anything will ever come of their investment.
Stephen Lacey
Stephen Lacey is a contributing editor with Greentech Media. He is also the founder and executive producer of Post Script Media. Lacey produces and hosts The Energy Gang and Interchange podcasts, two of the most popular podcasts on energy and cleantech.


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Chris Froome reacts to Brian Cookson's comments about riding Tour Down Under
Chris Froome says he is puzzled that UCI president Brian Cookson thinks he would start his season as early as the Tour Down Under Chris Froome at the presentation of the 2016 Tour de France (Watson) Chris Froome wonders why people think he would start his season with the Tour Down Under , having not raced there for six years.
The Team Sky leader lands in Adelaide on Monday, the day after the Australian race finishes, causing UCI president Brian Cookson to wonder why Froome didn't ride the race .
Froome will start his season at the Sun Herald Tour in February after a block of training with Sky coach Tim Kerrison in Australia.
Since racing the Tour Down Under in 2010, Froome has not started his season in January, preferring instead to wait until early February before pinning on a race number.
"It's an odd decision by Team Sky I have to say," Cookson said of Froome's absence from the race, despite coming to Australia.
"It's not a helpful decision but one understands why these teams sometimes make these decisions. Performance criteria will always overrule other criteria in certain teams and certain cases. It's a long season and riders need to prepare in […]
Simon Gerrans wins Tour Down Under as Ewan takes Orica-GreenEdge's fourth victory of race
Giant-Alpecin's Tour Down Under riders react to team's horrific crash in Spain


Dan used to make hand-drawn maps and name the smaller, as-yet-unnamed roads.
In the years before GPS and Waze, motorists got where they wanted to go by consulting road maps. There were special maps you could get for free in gas stations that folded up small enough to fit into a glove compartment, and many people collected them.
At a certain point, I decide to make one of these fold-up maps for the Hamptons. I'd give them out for free but sell ads along the border to pay for it and make it profitable. As for the map, I thought I'd draw one with all the roads myself. I gathered up all different maps showing the roads on the East End and took an entire day to draw my map. Where maps differed about road names and attachments, I'd drive out to see which was correct and draw it that way.
One thing I noticed on the other maps, though, was that many were dirt roads indicated by dotted lines. Most didn't even have names. So, considering this an opportunity, I named them. All together I named about 20 roads. I called one Lois Lane. I called another Jeep's Folly. One particular road that curved this way and that through the woods I named Lost Cow's Journey. What fun I had, naming the roads!
I updated the map every year for more than two decades, and hundreds of thousands of them went into car glove compartments everywhere. And wouldn't you know it, some of the roads I named actually took on those names. One particular road in Noyac I'd named Werewolf Path, and it now had an official road sign reading Werewolf Path. So I wrote about it in the paper, and when I described how it got named that, the authorities in Noyac met and voted to change it. You can't do that. The new name is so boring, I won't even mention it.
Around 2000, when GPS became popular on car dashboards, I ceased printing my map. It's now a collector's item.


An amnesiac Kara awakens after her lifepod crashes to Earth in the midst of a meteor shower. Though the specifics of how vary over subsequent retellings, Power Girl is later stranded on another Earth when a cosmic crisis affects her home of Earth-Two, and later carves out a separate identity for herself from her dimensional counterpart Supergirl once they are forced to coexist. The film is a spinoff from the Superman film series, to which it is connected by Marc McClure 's character, Jimmy Olsen. Although she left the planet at the same time that Superman did, her ship took much longer to reach Earth-Two. However, finding no assurance that Ariella survived the restoration of post- Crisis history, a dejected Linda relinquishes the role of Supergirl, sends a farewell note to Superman, and leaves for points unknown. DC had many worlds and there was little some difficulty keeping track of which continuities did what.