A picnic. The thought of packing up our family's favorite foods and then enjoying a meal together at a park or a favorite outside spot is where memories are made. My mom was a great picnic maker. We took very few outings when I was growing up; it was difficult for a dairy farming family to get away. When we did have an outing, my mom always packed a picnic lunch. I thought it would be much more fun to eat at a restaurant, but that wasn't in the budget.
I mentioned picnics and memories. My very vivid picnic memory is of my mom slicing homemade bread, garden picked tomatoes, and peppers that she pulled out of a wicker basket. A man walking past our picnic spot, stopped briefly and said, "You're a lucky family." My mom beamed at the man; I changed my mind about picnics.
When my friends at The McCall Pattern Company suggested that I design a Picnic Tote Collection, #6338, it didn't take me long to put together the needed pieces—there are five in all.
Gone is the wicker basket—it takes up too much room during the picnic off-season—a fabric tote is the main element.
Then there's the lunch-sized tote. It's a great size for a personal noontime picnic. You can slide an ice pack in one of the inside pockets to keep the contents cool. Both the picnic and noontime totes are made with streamlined techniques—I think you'll enjoy the process as much as the finished products.
When that invitation comes for the annual family reunion or neighborhood picnic, the hot dish or casserole carrier is almost as easy to make as my 10-Minute Spinach Lasagna recipe, below. Again, there's room for a hot or cold pack. Plus, notice the Quilted Iron Quick Fabric interior.
The other two picnic components are a hot pad and wine carrier. Not only are these items great to have for your personal use, they also make terrific gifts.
Please share your favorite picnic recollections. The random winner will receive a copy of McCall's 6338—The Picnic Collection.
Here's my 10-Minute Spinach Lasagna recipe. I've carried this yummy treat to many potluck gatherings in a casserole carrier. It takes 10 minutes to compile and 60–70 minutes to bake. Enjoy!
1 large container (16 oz.) cottage cheese.
• Layer five of the uncooked noodles in bottom of a 9″ x 13″ baking pan. It may be necessary to break one noodle in pieces to fit the pan.
• Pour half the spaghetti sauce over noodles.
• Mix the well-drained spinach and the cottage cheese. Spread half the mixture over the sauce. Sprinkle with oregano, salt, and pepper.
• Spread half the mozzarella cheese on top of the cottage cheese mixture.
• Repeat layers: noodles, spaghetti sauce, cottage cheese, and mozzarella cheese.
• Final layer: Sprinkle with parmesan cheese.
• Bake at 350 degrees for 60–70 minutes.
Picnics were always a treat because I grew up in a major city so having a picnic was like going out of town even though we were still local (we just didn't really know it back then)!
Your bags are fresh memories and remind me of parks, green grass, sunshine. So glad that patterns appear to be "beginner friendly" (I just made that up).
I remember picnics – in the backyard with a blanket thrown over the clothes line to create a tent. This was such fun – and a great adventure. These great pieces would be a wonderful beginning to new memories.
One of my favorite memories is one of my mother's, because I loved hearing her tell of it. It involved me but I don't remember it. We where at Lynn, Mass. on the beach and my parents had packed up a wonderful picnic lunch (my father was a master pie maker..everything he cooked was wonderful) . They where busy setting up the beach umbrella, and getting out the blanket before setting out the food. My brothers where out in the water already. I guess they forgot all about me. I was about a year old and just started to walk. Certainally not old enough to help getting the meal out or go swimming. Everyone was having a great time and before long a Navy Jeep came slowly up the beach . One of the men was holding up a "baby" …A cute little girl with a sunbonnet and dress to avoid the sun. I am a redhead …the sun has to be avoided if possible and the reason for the beach umbrella. My parents glanced down the beach a second time, as a mega phone yelled out, "Who belongs to this?" My parents took a another look and thought that little one year old looked pretty familuar. "Is that Barbie?" my mother asked my father in horror? Taking a look all around her. How could they have been so careless? The men claimed I was a mile down the beach. Now the 50′s where a more trusting time, but why didn't anyone stop me? My blushing parents had to fess up to me belonging to them. I guess my father had a story to tell at the bakery the next day. My parents are both gone now…sometimes your memories are all you have . Or your mother's…she use to tell it better…and always made me laugh.
When I was very young, my Dad farmed. At noon my Mom would pack up sandwiches, carrot sticks & cookies/cake. Also two huge containers of cold water and ice tea and we would head to the field. We (parents, myself and three younger brothers) would sit on a blanket on the ground and eat it all. Of course the boys would eventially start playing in the freashly turned dirt. I know now that this was a time for Mom & Dad to visit during the day and Dad to talk with us because we would be in bed by the time he came in at night. Still makes for nice memories now.
My first memory that comes to mind is the quilts we used to picnic on. I loved the different old prints and had my favorite places I loved to sit.
Thank you Nancy for reminding me of the great times whe had with our children at the local state park.
I would pack a cooler, charcoal, etc. and be ready for when my husband came home from work. Then we would go to the local state park, arriving just as they quit charging for admission for the day. We would let the kids swim until the lifeguards quit for the day at about 7:15 or so. Then we would move over to one of the picnic sites. As it got dark we would pack the kids into the car and head for home. Carrying their sleepy little bodies into the house is one of my favorite memories.
I love the set. Would like to make one for my daughter so she and her children can make their own picnic memories. I'd like the lunch tote and casserole totes for me as well!
I love taking a blanket and going to a neighborhood park. I have great memories when my 2nd child was in preschool and a group of us would go on thursdays after school for lunch and playing. So much fun!
When I was young just about every Saturday in the summer, my Dad's family would all go to the lake for a picnic and to swim. It was a wonderful time and my Mother would pack up her wicker picnic basket (which I still have) with all of the usual picnic foods. She was a fantastic cook and I have many wonderful memories of those days. However the picnic that I remember the most was when I was about 15 years old. I was on a vacation with my best friend and her family driving across the United States. Normally we ate our meals in restaurants but on this particular day it was so beautiful outside that we did not want to be indoors. We found a little grocery store and bought a loaf a bread, some cold cuts, a bag of potato chip, some brownies from their bakery and some pop. We drove until we found a picnic table and had our lunch. That was the best picnic and vacation that I have ever been on.
My last picnic was while driving through Europe with my brother and parents in 1978. We would have sandwiches made in the morning made by Mom and Aunt Ruth (their family followed in the car behind us). So after getting off the fiery from Sweden we drove through Denmark, Germany, Switzerland to finally 10 miles into France before having to return back We raced through Denmark after staying in Legoland too long, We made it 5 minutes before the door closed. I was very tired of "continental" and Swedish smorgasbord food after that. Now I'm almost 50 and which I could have taken my kids picnicking in Europe. But now I hope to make 2 of these sets for my boys. Who knows maybe they will enjoy "continental". Glad we have American style!
My favorite is when the kids were teenagers. Taking the boat to the park where there is water for boating. Taking the boat out and everybody with life jackets jumping off the boat into the water, fishing, or taking a raft type deal behind the boat. The kids had so much fun. Those are the days gone by.
This past Saturday, June 2nd we went on a picnic at our local park. I sure could have used a great picnic bag like this one because the handle on my old wicker basket fell apart on the way back to the car (thank goodness it lasted as long as it did!) Thank you for the opportunity to win five great patterns!
On one rainy Saturday morning in our small central Ohio town, my father woke up and announced we were going on a picnic. Mom protested the idea but my dad was adamant – he said we would drive until we found some sunshine. We did find sunshine…in Kentucky! I'll never forget that picnic because it was the first time I'd ever been to another state!
My best memories of picnics were the Fourth of July picnics at Lititz, Penna. Beginning early in the morning the scouts would set up candles along the creek which wound through the park in the town of Lititz. We would find a spot near a tree with a flat spot to rest. Three youngsters under three always made it a lot of fun and it was a safe place for them to wander always under the watchful eye of many people. Different local bands would play all day, jugglers and other local people would perform and at dark, the siren would sound sending all to the back field for the fireworks. When they were over it was time to load the children in the car knowing that they would be asleep before we had gone 10 minutes down the road. I'd like to hope there are places where this can still be done but unfortunately not in Lititz as the park is no longer.
My mother and father-in-law took me with them when they went on a picnic (I think it was Memorial Day) and drive through the wonderful Rocky Mountains while my husband was in school with the Air Force. My parents took me all over the United States when I was a kid but I don't remember ever enjoying a day like the one we spent admiring God's handy work in Colorado, eating my mother-in-law's fried chicken and pork & beans out of the can. We haven't taken the time to do that for many years; we might just have to do that with the grand children and your charming picnic set. Thank you for something new and fun to do.
Our last picnic was a simple lunch at a Lake Superior beach in the UP. My husband and I had our 9 year granddaughter along. It was her first trip to the lake and being a rock hound, she was in glory. Food that day to a backseat to the experience of the waves, sand, and rocks. I hope it is a lifelong memory for her. Looking back I remember those annual church and 4H picnics — great food and greater people.
Our last picnic lunch was a simple one we took last July when we traveled from a northwoods cabin to a Lake Superior beach in the UP. My husband and I had our 9 year old granddaughter along and it was her first Lake Superior experience. Since she is a rock hound, she had a wonderful day and the simple picnic lunch was all we needed as the majestic lake dominated our thoughts.
From my childhood those annual church and 4H picnics remain favorite memories — lots of good food and great people.
My favorite picnic memory is when my husband asked me to marry him while we were picnicking at Big Basin with friends. That was 29 years ago!
I remember several picnics growing up, when my family would join aunts, uncles, cousins & close friends at the ocean or a lake. Each family would bring their favorites – & we'd often siwtched food around! My favorite was tuna fish sandwiches that I'd leave out to get warm from the sun – then put potato chips inside the bread! For some of those years, my Dad worked at a company that made "dry ice" (which we used to keep our foods cool) – & at the end of the day, he'd place the left-over dry ice into the water, & everyone left at the beach would come to watch it bubble & steam as it slowly melted! Nice memories!
My favorite picnics are those with my husband and grandchildren. We always have such a wonderful time and the grandchildren love the picnic and the play time. You chose such lovely fabrics! I love every piece of the collection!
As a child church picnics were my favorite. All the food was put out for everyone to share. I could try out foods that were different from what my mom made. For example, no two potato salads taste alike, you know. And all those desserts! Yum!
Mom had 10 kids and was cripple. One of our neighbors took 6 of us from New Orleans to Biloxi, Miss (about an hour away) one time. We had a Blast and was so in total awe of the red clay dirt. LOL we brought some home to plant some seeds in it. My mom said that our rich black soil was better. As usual mom was right. It was our only one day vacation. LOL memorable never the less wondering how the heck we squeezed into that car? LOL we were all so skinny at the time.
Thinking about making the picnic collection for a door prize at next years family reunion. Thanks Nancy. Next time you are near New Orleans I sure hope I know about it. I heard you were here about a month ago, so says Colette Landry, a friend who had the pleasure of meeting you.
Growing up in a large family of limited means, the only vacation we ever took was tent camping for two weeks at a campground in Wisconsin. EVERY meal was at a picnic table, food was kept cold in a Scotch cooler, and warmed on a Coleman white gas stove, while slapping away various buggy companions. I haven't gone camping since!
My favorite memory of picnics was once when my family joined a few other families at the lake for a day of fun. What we ended up with was a bunch of little kids hiding under the picnic table while a summer storm blew over us. After the storm had passed we continued our picnic as if nothing had happened.
One of our best dates was taking a picnic to the Lake and relaxing on a blanket. SO comfy. We were just starting to know each other (ended up getting married) and it was a special time. The picnic was one not to forget. Thanks for the great ideas! Much lighter than a picnic basket too.
When growing up, we did not have the vehicle to go on picnics. Dad died at an early age, I was the baby of 8. The only one we went on was our church picnic. After marriage, we took the children on a few. Guess who had to do all the work?
My favorite picnic memory is when my children were small. It was my best mother's day ever. We spent the day at a local lake, fishing and eating till dusk. A relaxing and fun day!
We were once stationed in 29 Palms, CA, a small base in the desert with not a lot around. We were young and had no money, and when our son was born we would go for picnics in the Joshua Tree National Monument which was nearby. It was free then; it is now a National Park.
As kids, my 2 sisters and I were so disappointed because it rained all day on our picnic day. Mom saved the day for us and set our picnic up in the attic and made it quite an adventure for us.
My youngest (now 13) has always enjoyed a picnic lunch. When he was little we would go to the park, library or just the backyard. I think what he liked the best was the variety of little bite size foods.
I absolutely love these and would love to make them for my daughters, maybe even put a little machine embroidery on them!


text:
Updated NASCAR XFINITY Series Driver Points Standings After Auto Club Speedway 2015 Drive4Clots.com 300
March 21, 2015 by Evan Schumacher 0 Comments
Here are the updated NASCAR XFINITY Series driver points standings after Saturday's race at the Auto Club Speedway.
From NASCAR Integrated Marketing Communications
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NASCAR XFINITY Series Auto Club Speedway 2015 Drive4Clots.com 300 Results
Updated NASCAR XFINITY Series Owner Points Standings After Auto Club Speedway 2015 Drive4Clots.com 300
What is your opinion?

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Subsidies are Built Into the Existing Bank System
Home >Monetary Theory
Alliance Guest Author
Ralph Musgrave.
The reason private banks are subsidized stems from the basic nature of the existing and flawed monetary system: "fractional reserve banking" as it is sometimes called. For anyone new to this subject, that system will seem strange, but briefly it works as follows:
Most of the money in circulation is created by private banks, and those banks create money when they grant loans. When a bank grants a loan, it gives units (which it calls "pounds", "dollars" etc and which it creates out of thin air) to the borrower, who then spends those units, i.e. passes them on to other people [1]. Those units are actually just a promise by the bank to convert those units to central bank cash, pounds or dollars, when the holder of those units so wishes. This, despite the reality that private banks have nowhere near enough central bank cash to convert ALL the "promises to pay" into cash [2]. In fact your bank does a bit of this"conversion" when you go to an ATM and ask for $100: the bank supplies you with $100 worth of central bank dollars (i.e. physical cash) as long as you have at least $100 worth of "promises to pay" in your account.
But that system has collapsed regular as clockwork ever since banks in their present form first started centuries ago. That is, private banks have repeatedly gone bust. Thus to ensure that this chronic system soldiers on, governments stand behind, i.e. subsidize private banks.
The subsidy comes in different guises, of which three are as follows:
Three forms of subsidy
First, there is taxpayer backed deposit insurance. Being insured by an insurer with an infinitely deep pocket thanks to the insurer's ability to grab limitless amounts of money off taxpayers is, in effect, a subsidy. Doubtless there are ship owners and others who would like to be insured by an insurer with an infinitely deep pocket, but that luxury is not available to them, thus what we have here is preferential treatment for banks and depositors.
Second, banks are only one of several types of lender. For example pension funds and mutual funds lend when they purchase corporate bonds, but there is no government bail out for those funds if they fail. Plus millions of firms lend when they supply goods on credit to customers. Government will not bail those lenders out either. Thus banks enjoy preferential treatment – effectively a subsidy – relative to other lenders.
Third, if a bank fails despite the latter two subsidies, then as a last resort there are multi billion dollar bail outs available for banks in trouble.
The basic problem here is letting private banks issue or "print" their own home made money (those "promises to pay") while also letting them grant loans. The problem is that if a bank makes enough unwise loans, the value of the bank's assets (those loans) then falls below the value of the "promises": the bank is bust. (Incidentally, note that the latter problem does not arise with forms of privately issued money where there is no promise that the money units issued are totally safe: Bitcoin is an example of "unsafe" money.)
There is a better and Just way
But there is an easy solution to that problem, which dozens of economists have advocated for about a hundred years now, which is to outlaw those promises, which at best are flawed if not actually fraudulent. That ipso facto means a big cut in the supply of money, but that's easily made good by creating and spending CENTRAL BANK money straight into the private sector or into the economy generally. Incidentally, the Nobel economist Maurice Allais said the latter creation of "promises to pay" by commercial banks was essentially counterfeiting [3].
The process of "creating and spending central bank money" straight into the economy mentioned just above is not technically difficult: it can be done in the way suggested by Congressman Dennis Kucinich in his NEED Act (HR2990 2012). In a Fortune article [4], Ben Bernanke said he saw nothing much wrong with something along the lines of the Kucinich system. Plus a Kucinich type system was supported by a group of academics in a submission to the UK government's main investigation into the 2007/8 bank crisis [5]. As Bernanke and the latter academics made clear, if the government machine as a whole (i.e. politicians and central bank) creates money and spends it, it would be wise to keep politicians away from the printing press: i.e. there needs to be some sort of committee of economists, maybe at the central bank, which decides the amount of money to be created, while politicians retain control of strictly political decisions, like whether the extra money funds infrastructure, education, tax cuts or whatever.
Debt based and non debt based economic activity
Since privately issued money comes into being when a private bank grants a loan, i.e. causes someone somewhere to become indebted to a bank, the net effect of banning those promises would be less debt-based economic activity and more non-debt-based activity. Given the never ending complaints about excessive private debts, it's hard to see what would be wrong with that.
Another effect would be that instead of everyone having a totally safe bank account available to them in the form of an account at a private bank which is only safe because of government backing, they would have a safe account actually at the central bank. So called, "Central Bank Digital Currency" is an example of that. An alternative (advocated by the UK monetary reform group, Positive Money) would be to have safe accounts run by existing private banks, but insist that every dollar in such accounts is backed by a dollar held by the private bank at the central bank [5].
Having done that, there remains the question as to how to organise bank loans. Well the answer is to fund loans in exactly the same way that the above mentioned pension funds and mutual funds fund loans: anyone who wants to fund loans with a view to getting some interest puts their money into a fund run by a bank. As with pension funds and mutual funds, the person buying in to the fund takes a risk: they may make money or lose money.
And if the effect of that is to make loans more difficult to obtain, i.e. if the effect is a rise in interest rates, that is not a valid objection to the system proposed here (which is sometimes called "full reserve banking"). First, there are well known problems with low interest rates, e.g. asset bubbles. Indeed in the UK the rate of interest paid by mortgagors in the 1990s was about THREE TIMES the rate paid nowadays. The sky did not fall in in the 1990s: indeed economic growth was better than it is now, plus house prices, in real terms, were about half what they are now. (For a list of about sixty economists who support full reserve, see [6].)
Second, it is widely accepted in economics that a subsidy does not make sense unless there is an obvious social justification for it. Thus anyone who wants to defend the existing bank system and the bank subsidies involved needs to explain what the big social benefit of those subsidies is.
And finally, if disposing of bank subsidies is so simple, why, you might ask, has the above solution not been implemented? Well Milton Friedman, who backed full reserve banking, answered that. As he said in the preface of his book "A Program for Monetary Stability", "The vested political interests opposing it are too strong." In the UK, the finance industry spends about £100 million a year on lobbying, i.e. making sure politicians implement policies that suit the finance industry rather than the country at large [7]. That is the existing system under which private banks take excessive risks and keep the profit when that works, while having taxpayers bail them out when it doesn't suits private banks just fine.
Ralph Musgrave is the author of the book The Solution is Full Reserve / 100% Reserve Banking and runs the economics blog "Ralphonomics".
"Money Creation in the Modern Economy" by Michael McLeay, Amar Radia and Ryland Thomas. See first few sentences.
"The Proof That Banks Create Money", published by Positive Money. Word search for "promise" in the latter work.
"Credit Markets and Narrow Banking" by Ronnie Phillips. See opening sentences.
"Here's How Ben Bernanke's Helicopter Money Plan Might Work" by Chris Matthews. Fortune. See para starting "A possible arrangement…."
"Towards a Twenty First Century Banking and Monetary System" by Ben Dyson, Tony Greenham, Josh Ryan-Collins and Richard A. Werner. Re how money is created under this system, see p.10-12. As for accounts at commercial banks which are backed by base money / reserves, see p.7.
"Our Fractional Reserve System is Nonsense" by Ralph Musgrave.
"Revealed: The £93m City Lobby Machine" published by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism.
Give Us a Heart
Tagged:BankingBlogMonetary theory
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Great piece, Ralph! Thanks! It took me a bit longer to read than AFJM's "5 minute" estimate, but every moment longer was well worth it. You make a cogent, clear, compelling case for sovereign just money reform. Now we just have to get more of the public and their elected officials to read it, and other contents on this AFJM website. ~~Lucille
In the struggle toward monetary justice, the central banking system's owners are the real 'rentiers' of national money systems. They rent us our own money. Central bankers' issuance of all
This fall the Alliance For Just Money (AFJM) sent out its first "cold marketing" mailing. A long-time in development, this marketing campaign was inspired by AFJM Board member Mark Pash,
Today, the setting of interest rates is the major way the Federal Reserve has for carrying out its monetary task of regulating the nation's money supply. The setting of interest
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I'm the director of Selection Meubles in Amougies, a 13,000m2 shop dispatching both design and standard furniture throughout Europe.
Selection Meubles is a family business that has been running since 1920, so my brother and I grew up in the world of design.
I take care of the management, purchase, accounting and selling of the company alongside my wonderful team.
My brother and I opening three design spaces over the course of a decade.
A friendly person with a good sense of humour and a unique personality that you can only find in Belgium.
Everyone's always welcome in Belgium – we're a small country with a big heart.
Stromae, for his globally popular music. Kevin De Bruyne, for being an extremely talented soccer player. Magritte, for his world-renowned style of painting, to the point where we have an entire museum dedicated to him in Brussels.
A restaurant specialising in moules frites.
Bruges, because it's the Venice of the North.
A homemade burger with Dallas sauce.
I tasted the Dallas sauce at a barbecue with friends.
Belgians are very conscientious and won't stop until the work is done.


text:
Is the show House based on a real doctor?
08Jul,2020
House, played brilliantly by Hugh Laurie, is not based on a real-life doc. The idea for the show, however, is said to have come from 'The Diagnosis Column' in the New York Times Magazine. From there, creator David Shore wanted to base his title character loosely on Sherlock Holmes.
Who is Doctor House based on?
Before she went to medical school, Dr. Lisa Sanders was an Emmy Award-winning producer at CBS News, where she covered health and medicine. Lisa Sanders' monthly "Diagnosis" column in The New York Times Magazine was an inspiration for the hit Fox TV series House.
Why was Kutner killed off?
Kutner's death Kutner's suicide was scripted due to actor Kal Penn's decision to accept the position of Associate Director of the White House Office of Public Liaison in President Barack Obama's administration.
Why did Lisa Cuddy leave the show?
Startling, sure, but nowhere near the most upsetting thing she'd been through in the last decade — Meat Loaf appeared in season 5, after all. In truth, the abrupt exit of Lisa Edelstein appears to have been caused by that oldest and noblest of plot devices: budget cuts.
Who is the doctor in the TV show House?
Like a modern-day Sherlock Holmes in scrubs, the title character of House can solve just about any medical mystery. That's not altogether unrealistic, says Dr. Lisa Sanders, the show's technical adviser.
How did Dr House help solve a real medical mystery?
A team of German doctors report today in the medical journal Lancet that they used clues remembered from an episode of House to figure out what was wrong with a man who had severe heart failure.
Who was dr.house before he fixed people?
Call him Dr. House if you want, but this is not the House you know. You see, before he fixed people, he fixed houses. The houses belonged to his mother, an Irish-American woman named Rosemarie Martin, who bought a handful of dilapidated houses by the seashore in Long Island, hoping to rent them.
Who was the mother of dr.house?
You see, before he fixed people, he fixed houses. The houses belonged to his mother, an Irish-American woman named Rosemarie Martin, who bought a handful of dilapidated houses by the seashore in Long Island, hoping to rent them. When the boy was only 11, his family lost five of its dearest loved ones in the span of 16 months.
What does ego-syntonic mean?
How many stages is the Earlex 5500?


text: Q: Multiple non-independent tests, how to determine post-test odds Let's say a patient receives two biomarker tests to help with diagnosis of a disease. Each test measures a different mechanism of the disease, but these two mechanisms are not independent, so the tests are not independent. The pre-test probability of disease is known. The positive likelihood ratio and other diagnostic characteristics (e.g. sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, etc) are known for each test. Given that the tests are not independent, how can you determine if performing both tests has added diagnostic value (i.e. performing an additional test increases the post-test odds of having the disease compared to performing only one test). Examples would be helpful.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Ted Baker CROCDIL Embossed leather wallet in Chocolate 139692 would be sure to be a gift to be cherished. Exquisite Ted Baker Sale check it on our online shop.
Ted Baker CROCDIL Embossed leather wallet in Chocolate 139692 would be sure to be a gift to be cherished.Ted's CROCDIL wallet fits the bill for any occasion. With an opulent embossed finish, plenty of interior compartments and his signature branding detailing, this luxe leather accessory will upgrade you look instantly. Exquisite Ted Baker Sale check it on our online shop.


No need to settle for soggy, bland veggies. For your next meal, serve up zucchini sautéed in grated Parmesan cheese and a medley of fresh basil, thyme and tarragon.
Mix flour, Parmesan cheese and pepper in a bowl; add the herbs.
Dip zucchini in cheese and herb mixture.
Reprinted with permission from Everyday Eating: A Cookbook for the Dialysis Patient and Family, Illinois Council on Renal Nutrition, National Kidney Foundation of Illinois, Inc.


The International Game Developers Association (IGDA), which claims to be the largest non-profit membership organization in the world serving all individuals who create games, has attempted to distance itself from a Twitter block tool it recently attempted to publicize, after its actions incorrectly branded thousands of consumers, games developers and journalist, as well as its own staff members and KFC as online harassers.
IGDA included a link to on script called ggautoblocker as part of a recently published resource page to help developers deal with online harassment. IGDA originally described the script as "A Twitter tool to block some of the worst offenders in the recent wave of harassment" but dialed back its endorsement to "A third-party Twitter tool developed to quickly mass block some of the worst offenders in the recent wave of harassment and also accounts that follow those offenders" after some of the over 10 thousand Twitter accounts tagged by the tool objected to the unsubstantiated accusation implied by IGDA's statement.
All reference to the tool was eventually removed from the resource page shortly after the chairman of IGDA Puerto Rico discovered his account was on the block list and announced he would resign his position if the scandal was not rectified.
The ggautoblocker tool has been criticized for its crude algorithm which simply gathers the follower lists of certain "ringleader" accounts as determined by the developer, and adds anyone on at least two of these follower lists to a block list without any attempt to examine whether the accounts had actually engaged in harassment.
As a result, socialite accounts such as @kfc that automatically follow-back any Twitter account that follows them have been implicated and blocked by the tool as being part of the GamerGate movement. Meanwhile, the accounts of consumers, games developers and journalists following the so-called ringleader accounts are also listed for blocking, regardless of the motivations behind following these accounts.
This distinction is especially pertinent to journalists following GamerGate as it is a common part of modern news gathering to follow the social media accounts of companies and industry figures on a particular beat. In the case of GamerGate where there are no official channels of communication, following key Twitter accounts has emerged as one of the primary resources for staying on top of major events, even though there is no intention of ever interacting with these accounts. Because of this, IGDA's comments that all accounts marked by ggautoblocker are behind harassment is analogous to saying the "Channel 5 Eye-in-the-Sky News team" is responsible for high-speed car chases and armed robberies, because they listen in on local police radio channels.
The broad stokes approach to filtering which generates a high number of false positives also impacts those using the block list, in particular companies such as the Raspberry Pi Foundation, since the move effectively self-censors the company from an important news-gathering and PR channel intended to link it to journalists and consumers, while having no impact on reducing harassment. Raspberry Pi was invited to comment on its motives for subscribing to the block list, but no response was received by the time of publication.
However, the most significant impact is being felt in the games development community itself. Several developers have already come forward to express their concerns that being incorrectly branded for actions they have not committed could have long lasting, if not career ending, consequences.
And these fears could have merit. Even before IGDA lent its support to the block list, some developers had floated the idea that the list could be used to perform "background checks" on future job applicants. Also back in October, Ernest W Adams, the founder of IGDA notably tweeted, "If you're an indie developer and you are supporting #GamerGate, watch what you say. Your future business is at stake."
In more positive #GamerGate related news, over 3600 Twitter accounts recently took part in the "Give Voice to the Voiceless" Thunderclap, a crowdsource initiative to promote the latest video from the #NotYourShield Project. The video depicts various minority groups discussing why they support #GamerGate, and why they feel their side of the story is being ignored or marginalized by the gaming press.


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text:
Home > Contents > People > Photographers > Gioacchino Altobelli
Other: Photographic Establishment Altobelli & Co.
Joint: Altobelli & Molins
Dates: 1814 - ?
Born: Italy, Terni
Active: Italy
Early photographer in what is now Italy.
Gioacchino Altobelli was born in Terni in 1814. He moved to Rome and between 1833 and 1841 completed his artistic studies under the guidance of the painter Tommaso Minardi. In 1847 he was enlisted with the degree of sergeant in the General Command of the Civic Guard.
The guide "L'Almanacco Romano 1855" lists him as a "Painter of history and genre" with a studio in Via Margutta 48. In the English volume "Guide to the studios in Rome" he is listed as "Altobelli Gioacchino (of Terni), historical and portrait painter, 48 Via Margutta, 1st floor."
As with other contemporary painters there was a declining demand for paintings as photography became increasing important for the tourist souvenir trade and he, whilst not completely abandoning painting, saw the opportunity. Partnering with his friend the painter, Pompeo Molins of Spanish origin, they opened a studio in the Palazzotto Fausti in Via di Fontanella Borghese.
Pompeo Molins had married the daughter of Ludovico Fausti, pontifical forwarder, and this eased the path of the two partners in obtaining the nomination of "Official Photographers of the Imperial Academy of France and the Works of art for the Roman Railroads."
During this period many portraits by them are known, especially "carte de visites", and many beautiful Roman views survive. The artistic taste of Altobelli is shown by the formal elegance of his composition and use of people such as soldiers and high society gentlemen to animate the views.
The prints of Altobelli & Molins used the wet-collodion process and were mainly in the sizes, 21x26cm and 26x36cm. The red ink studio stamp was often engraved on the cardboard in the lower right. Typical of Altobelli is also a black caption with white writing, usually on the lower edge of the photograph. A similar caption was also used by the photographer Michele Mang.
At the end of 1865 the two painter-photographers divided and Gioacchino Altobelli moved to a studio at Passeggiata di Ripetta n.16 that had been used by the photographer Michele Petagna. A new company was formed "Photographic Establishment Altobelli & Co." which leads us to assume that Atobelli was working in conjunction with other photographers probably including Enrico Verzaschi.
In the beginning of 1866 Altobelli asked for a declaration of ownership (a brevet) to the Department of Commerce in Rome for his invention of the application of color to photographic images (a union of photography with chrome-lithography). The manager of the Pontifical Chrome-Lithography strongly opposed his application as they are already using such an invention from his own Company. Few months later Altobelli asked for another brevet that is granted him this time, "to perform in photograph the views of the monuments with effect of sky". His method, similar if not identical to that of Gustave Le Gray, consisted in taking a first photograph of a monument where the exposure was adjusted to highlight the architectural characteristics sought. Subsequently Altobelli took at another time one or more additional photographs exposed to capture strong sky and cloud contrasts. In the dark room Altobelli captured on photographic paper the double exposure of the two perfectly aligned plates - this resulted in a well illuminated monument contrasted with a strong sky that gave the feeling of "claire de lune". In November 1866 Altobelli obtained the brevet for 6 years. It is probable that he didn't know that in Venice the photographers Carlo Ponti and Carlo Naya were already using the "claire de lune" technique - moreover they tinted them with aniline giving their prints a beautiful blue tone as if the water of the lagoon was illuminated at night by the moon. However the brevet allowed the painter-photographer Gioacchino Altobelli to have great notoriety in Rome and this helped him to increase his work as a portraitist.
It is not certain but the 1864 photographs showing the camps of the pontifical troops at Rocca di Papa may have been taken by Altobelli.
Particularly famous are the photographs that Altobelli took the day after the conquest in Rome by Piedmontese troops as they recorded the decline of Papal power and the birth of the Kingdom of Italy. On September 20th 1870 Piedmontese troops broke the resistance of the Papal army and entered Rome through the Porta Pia. The following day Altobelli with the help of stand-ins and actors playing the role of soldiers reconstructed the scene of the final battle and took two "historical" photographs and asked for a brevet.
Until around 1874 he was the artistic manager of the Establishment Verzaschi. Enrico Verzaschi was a photographer in Rome active from around the mid-1860s until about 1880 but it is not clear if he was in an earlier partnership with Altobelli and they may have been associated since the breakup with Pompeo Molins in 1865.
News about Gioacchino Altobelli continued until December 1878 but the date and place of his death are not known. He remains one of the most elegant and profitable photographers in the Rome of Pope Pious VII.
[Kindly contributed by Marco C. Antonetto, Jan 27, 2008]


Monitor host traffic related to the external network by capturing packets at certain points in the path between a vSphere Standard Switch or vSphere Distributed Switch and a physical adapter.
You can specify a certain capture point in the data path between a virtual switch and a physical adapter, or determine a capture point by traffic direction with regard to the switch and proximity to the packet source or destination. For information about supported capture points, see Capture Points of the pktcap-uw Utility.
(Optional) Find the name of the physical adapter that you want to monitor in the host adapter list.
In the vSphere Web Client, on the Manage tab for the host, click Networking and select Physical adapters.
Each physical adapter is represented as vmnicX. X is the number that ESXi assigned to the physical adapter port.
In the ESXi Shell to the host, run the pktcap-uw command with the --uplink vmnicX argument and with options to monitor packets at a particular point, filter captured packets and save the result to a file.
where the square brackets  enclose the options of the pktcap-uw --uplink vmnicX command and the vertical bars | represent alternative values.
If you run the pktcap-uw --uplink vmnicX command without options, you obtain the content of packets that are incoming to the standard or distributed switch in the console output at the point where they are switched.
Use the --capture option to check packets at another capture point or the --dir option at another traffic direction.
Monitor packets immediately before they enter the physical adapter device.
Monitor packets immediately after they are received in the network stack from the physical adapter.
Monitor packets that leave the virtual switch.
Monitor packets that enter the virtual switch.


A decade after its signing, the Indo-French nuclear deal has yielded little success in the power sector, but the pact has given India a headway in other areas like research, former top officials said.
The Indo-French cooperation on 'peaceful use of nuclear energy' was signed on September 30, 2008, primarily for building the Jaitapur Nuclear Power Plant (JNPP).
The 9,900 MW power plant that envisages to have six nuclear reactors of 1,650 MW each is slated to be the biggest nuclear power park in the country.
However, 10 years after signing the deal, the power project is still at negotiations. The deal was signed even before the Indo-US nuclear cooperation agreement was signed, the officials said.
The multi-billion project had met with a fierce opposition from the locals. In April 2011, one person was killed in police firing as protests against the proposed Jaitapur nuclear power plant turned violent with agitators setting ablaze a police station.
However, of the recent nuclear power sites earmarked for foreign reactors, except the Kudankulam nuclear power project, Jaitapur remains the only location that has seen completion of the land acquisition.
The plant also has necessary approvals from the Ministry of Environment and Forest (MoEF), said Sekhar Basu, the former chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission and Secretary, Department of the Atomic Energy, who superannuated this month.
"However, it has taken a longer time than expected," said R K Sinha, former chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission and Secretary, DAE.
The negotiations first began with French company Areva, but last year French utility company EDF took over its nuclear reactor business after the former faced financial issues.
So, the negotiations were redone, said Anil Kakodkar, former chairman of the AEC and DAE secretary at the time the Indo-French nuclear deal was signed.
After the EDF took over Areva, negotiations again restarted.
Basu said there have been several factors that were hindering the power plant, which includes the "reference plant".
A reference plant is a functional power reactor and the Areva had then cited a power reactor at Flamanville.
"That will only happen by 2020," Basu said.
Since Areva, and now EDF, was bringing in a new technology, the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB), the country nuclear watchdog, asked for a reference plant.
"They have to give a techno-commercial offer that is feasible and tariffs have to be viable," Basu added.
Tariff has been a key concern, Basu and Sinha said as it has to be within the acceptable limits before going ahead with the deal.
According to the DAE's response to Parliament, France supplied 300 metric tonnes of natural uranium ore concentrate from 2008-2010, a much-needed fuel for domestic reactors operating under optimum level till then.
Kakodkar, one of the key negotiators of the India's nuclear deal with the US and French, said the Indo-French deal also had delved into several research aspects.
Because of the deal, India could become a member to be a part of the ITER, an international nuclear fusion research and engineering mega project, due to backing of France, along with the US.
The deal also focussed on development and nuclear energy applications in fields like agronomy, biology, earth sciences.
More important has been France's support at international fora. Kakodkar said when India was negotiating with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) for India-specific safeguards for its nuclear reactors, France, along with the US and Russia helped create a "positive environment".
France has been a staunch supporter to India's bid in all four export control regimes -- the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), the Missiles Technology Control Regime, Australia Group and the Wassenaar Arrangement.


Order replacement parts for your Jr. Kip Bar, Jr. Bar PRO and 5-in-1 Bar.
We often get calls from gym owners whose steel knobs have gone missing. If this is the case with your Frame Bar, you can easily order replacement knobs here.


Trying to figure out which of these bikes or scooters to buy? Compare the Bajaj V15 Vs Honda Activa 125 on CarAndBike to make an informed buying decision as to which bike to buy in 2019. This comparison has been carried out on the basis of prices, engine specifications, mileage, and features of these two-wheelers.
The ex-showroom, New Delhi price of the Honda Activa 125 starts at ₹ 63,745 and goes up to ₹ 68,382 for top-end model. On the other hand, the price of the base version of the Bajaj V15 starts at ₹ 69,621 and goes up to ₹ 74,308 for top-end model.
As for the claimed fuel efficiency, the Honda Activa 125 base engine returns 59 kmpl. The Bajaj V15 base engine returns 70 kmpl.
In the powertrain department, the Honda Activa 125 gets a 124 cc that produces 8 bhp peak power. The Bajaj V15 comes in a 149 cc that produces 11 bhp ,12 bhp peak power.


for the life of me walk in heels properly at all.
Trying to find shoes that fit me too can also be tricky due to having wide feet.
I was excited when I heard of Cheekyshoes and there fab range of bright and vibrant colours.
Sumptuous Cerise, Tomastic Red, Zesty Green, Electric Blue, Luscious Lemon and Sparkling Orange.
would go with my wardrobe a bit more then some of the other colours.
The shoes retail at £19.99 and are sure to brighten up any outfit.


Having sanded the hull, the next step is to attach the outer Stem pieces. I bought a rough cut, smooth two face 1″ by 6″ 8′ oak plank. There will be enough wood in this piece for the stem strips, seat frames and the carrying yoke.
With the price of wood these days (and yesterdays too) I always make up a cutting plan before I start to cut. Helps me to not to have to go back and buy another plank especially because I had already bought the best one.
Cutting plan for the plank. Stem strips, seat frames and carrying yoke.
We need to have enough thickness in the outer stem so we can get a nice curve from the planking to the ½" by ⅛ brass oval stem band.
I rip off four 3/16″ by 8′ strips for the stems. I cut the strips to length, long enough to go from station #6 to the top of the stem piece. I soak the strips overnight. The stem curve is not too great so no steaming required.
Measuring for the outside stem laminations.
The laminations are 1″ wide and approx 3/16″ thick. Paul measures from station #6. We will cut a strip from here to the stem, 1″ wide.
We are using a hack-saw blade to make the cut.
Measuring the 1″ wide strip down the stems.
We mark how wide to make the cut to the stems.
Doing it the easy (easier?) way.
Using a 120 grit belt, Paul sands down to the 1″ line on both ends of the Canoe.
The glueing sequence is: put glue on laminations, put glue on canoe, put laminations on canoe. Hold laminations on canoe with green strap, screw to stem…..
Green strap holds laminations at station #6.
The green strap holds the strips in place. As Paul bends the strips down, I pre-drill holes and them screw them down while the glue sets. Here the strips are screwed down and the excess glue has been wiped up. The screws will be removed and then covered up by two more laminating strips.
We will use the same procedure on the North Stem. Glue up strips. Put glue on Canoe. Hold strips with green strap and then temporary screw the strips to the stem.
North Stem. You can see a little filler to be sanded off.
North Stem with strips temporarily screwed in place with excess glue wiped off. Because we laminated wet strips, We let the strips dry for five days. Paul and I remove the screws.
The Next two strips are done a little differently. Because we do not want the screw holes to show, we glue up the strips, use the green strap to hold them in place and then use another green strap to pull them along the stem. The red tape is to keep the strip from sticking to the strap.
Last two strips go on.
I pull the red tape as much away from the strips as I can for drying.
Last two strips on the North Stem.
We leave the strips drying overnight.
Detail of the North outer stem strips.
The next day, I check up on the strips.
I have discovered a few problems. The South outer stem strips were not tight enough against the stem. There was a gap. When I went to adjust the strap, the two new pieces came off!!! Time to re-glue. This time I was much more careful and did not get any glue on the straps and I used another strap to hold the strips down tighter. No red tape.
The glue does not stick to the straps very well and without the red tape, it should dry faster.
Plant-pot heater helps dry the strips.
I have a couple of plant-pot heaters to keep the damp out of the shop. I put one under each end to help the drying.
North End stem plant-pot heater.
Well, done for today. Next step, shaping the outside stems, final sanding of the hull.
…..Another day, another day to work on the outside stems.
Stem piece ready to shape.
I really like my belt sander. I put on a 50 grit belt. I am going to shape the stem piece using it. note the laminations at the top of the stem. They need to go down to the same level as the canoe bottom.
Another view of the stem laminations.
I use the belt sander to rough out the shape. I continue the canoe strip angles to the stems.
I will use my random orbital sander, with a 100 grit pad to even the stems with the strips. The stem band will be 1/2″ wide, so I shape the stem laminations to have a 1/2″ face.
Matching the bevel of the strips.
After I have matched the angle of the strips to the stem laminations, I sand the stem so it has a 1/2″ face for the brass half-oval.
I finish sanding with a 240 grit sanding disk. I go over the entire canoe with the 240 grit… I really want the canoe to have a smooth curve throughout its shape.
Ready for the Epoxy and cloth.
All the shaping and sanding is done. Tomorrow 'Poxying!!!!


text:
Q: How to choose a random record from table I am trying to choose a random record from the database where the rarity field is Epic.
I have tried using the ORDER BY RAND() LIMIT 1 but I get a syntax error.
I have also tried using the below code:
qryCards.SQL.Add('SELECT * FROM tblCards WHERE Card_Rarity = "Epic"');
qryCards.Open;
Randomize;
iRandom := Random(qryCards.RecordCount);

for i := 1 to iRandom do
begin
    qryCards.Next;
end;

sCard := qryCards.FieldByName('Card_Name').AsString;
AddCards(sCard, iQtyEpic);

I expect the output to be a random record where the Card_Rarity is Epic.
However, I have tried debugging with ShowMessages, and even when iRandom = 2 or 3, it gives the same card, so I can never get the 2nd card.


text:
Breadcrumb LinksHomeTrine University News2018Trine adds 3 to Alumni and Development
Trine adds 3 to Alumni and Development
Three professionals with extensive experience in higher education have joined the Alumni and Development Office at Trine University.
Maureen Bernath will serve the university as director of donor relations and stewardship, Steven Nicolet has assumed the role of director of annual giving, and Anthony (Tony) Maidenberg is the university's new foundation officer.
"Each of these new staff members brings extensive experience in his or her field and a commitment to helping students achieve their life goals through higher education," said Lisa Maxwell-Frieden, J.D., vice president for alumni and development. "I'm proud to add each one to our team as we work to continue building the foundation for the future of Trine University."
"Our fundraising efforts play a key role in continuing to expand and improve the quality educational opportunities offered at Trine," said Earl D. Brooks II, Ph.D., Trine University president. "I look forward to the work these staff members will do to support our ongoing efforts to positively impact students and the community."
Maureen Bernath
Bernath comes to Trine from Stephens College in Columbia, Missouri, where she served as director of internships and career events in the college's Center for Career and Professional Development. She previously had worked for the University of Missouri Business Career Services Office.
Her responsibilities at Trine will include creating a comprehensive donor relations program, recognizing and managing ongoing communications with current and prospective donors, and planning donor events and recognition opportunities.
"I am excited for the opportunity to work with alumni and plan different ways to thank them for their continued generosity," she said. "I am also excited to work for Trine as it continues to grow and do great things!"
Steven Nicolet
Nicolet brings 20 years of annual giving experience at Grand Valley State University, Florida International University, the University of North Carolina and Ferris State University to his position.
"Annual giving programs are an organization's building blocks that form the foundation of an institution's philanthropic support, and my responsibility is to create and sustain the building blocks," Nicolet said. "It is very exciting to join a vibrant, growing, energetic university, and I look forward to working with alumni, faculty, staff, students, parents and friends as we keep Trine moving ahead."
Anthony (Tony) Maidenberg
A graduate of Indiana University and the Georgetown University Law Center, Maidenberg has an extensive background in law, politics and higher education. He served as mayor of Marion, Indiana, his hometown, in the late 1970s and was an Indiana state senator from 1988-92. He most recently served as executive vice president and general counsel for the Independent Colleges of Indiana and director of major gifts for St. Joseph's College.
His duties at Trine will include overseeing the university's relationships with foundations and seeking out new funding opportunities.
"I am excited about being able to add to the extraordinarily positive momentum at Trine," he said. "I am keenly aware of the costs of higher education. Being a member of the development team enables me to directly and indirectly enhance the lives — and cash flow — of students, and that's a world-changing opportunity."
Invest in Excellence continues
Trine University is continuing its Invest in Excellence Capital Campaign, which already has raised more than $96 million toward its goal of $125 million to support the Trine Fund, capital projects and the university endowment. The university will hold its annual Scholarship Gala, which supports student scholarships, on Feb. 10, and will host a Hoops and Hoagies for alumni and a special Select-a-Seat event to honor supporters who have donated toward a seat in the new MTI Center prior to the men's basketball game on Jan. 27.


In contrast to the anti-grants story in the last post there's who puts forward his case in support of the grants scheme. It's good to get the point of view of a player from one of the so called weaker counties. One of the issues people had with the grants was that they'd only benefit the stronger counties but Derek Walsh's story dispels that idea.


New York, NY (March 26, 2015) – Caritas Partners is excited to announce our partnership with Seeds of Africa and our collaboration to raise unprecedented charitable revenue to develop the highest quality education in Ethiopia and across Africa. By adding Seeds of Africa to our list of preferred charities, Caritas Partners can offer our clients a charitable option that gives unique and focused attention to education and community development. Together with our corporate customers, Caritas Partners can create an original stream of revenue on behalf of Seeds of Africa by donating up to 50% of our gross commissions on every transaction we execute. "We are thrilled to partner with Caritas on this ground-breaking program they have," said Seeds of Africa Founder Atti Worku. "Programs like this are essential for non-profits as they help provide organizations like us with funding we wouldn't have access to otherwise." Seeds of Africa's innovative educational model fits naturally with Caritas Partners' cutting-edge model for corporate social responsibility and philanthropy.
Through this partnership with Caritas Partners, Seeds of Africa can offer its corporate sponsors and donors from family offices and hedge funds an alternative way of generating revenue for a global leader in educational development in the daily course of their investment and trading activity. When supporters of Seeds of Africa work with Caritas Partners, they will be capturing additional revenue for Seeds of Africa through the predetermined portion of our gross commissions reserved for charitable donations.
Caritas Partners is a Wall Street brokerage firm that is setting the new standard for corporate social responsibility and philanthropy. A division of broker/dealer Aegis Capital Corp (member FINRA/SIPC), Caritas Partners offers a cutting-edge share repurchase program that gives corporations a way of creating an untapped stream of revenue for their preferred charities. With every repurchase order we execute, Caritas Partners donates up to 50% of our gross commissions to a charity of our client's choice. Our team is composed of industry veterans, all of whom are former members of the New York Stock Exchange, and we take a unique high-touch approach to every order we trade. Our model also offers a trading platform with charitable benefits to hedge funds, pension funds, endowments, and family offices. In each transaction, we turn daily trading for companies into financial gain for charities. Together with our corporate and charitable partners, Caritas Partners is putting stock in charity.
Seeds of Africa is creating a self-sustaining model for education and community development in Ethiopia that can be replicated in other African communities. Seeds of Africa moves beyond the traditional aid model, shifting from mere relief efforts to giving students, families, and communities the skills they need to support themselves and rise above poverty. Seeds of Africa operates two major programs: Seeding Education and Sowing Community. Seeding Education offers high-quality education to students, in addition to school meals, uniforms, school supplies, and medical support. Sowing Community works with families to increase their household incomes and improve their quality of life through health education seminars, adult literacy and entrepreneurship courses, and access to credit. Through its cutting-edge education and development programs, Seeds of Africa educates and nurtures gifted children, young adults, and communities in Ethiopia and abroad.


Many cosmetic procedures are very involved and require a lot of recovery time. However, there are some minimally invasive procedures you can have done at Naravee Aesthetic Clinic that require almost no recovery time and are rather simple to have done. If you are looking for such a procedure, it will help to know what some of them are.
Soft tissue fillers are one type of minimally invasive cosmetic procedure. This type of procedure is generally done for skin that has a sunken look as a result of the natural loss of fat that happens to the skin over time. These fillers are injected into the skin to give it a fuller look. Some of the common areas that fillers are put in include the cheeks, thighs, and even lips. However, they aren't limited to just those areas. The injections can be done on arms, torso, and many other areas of the body. Some of the fillers most commonly used in this type of procedures include Radiesse, Juvederm, Restylane, and Belotero.
Chemical peels are another type of minimally invasive procedure. For chemical peels, a solution is applied to the skin which causes the skin to exfoliate. Eventually, the skin peels off, making way for a fresh batch of new skin underneath. Chemical peels are generally used for skin that has suffered blemishes, such as acne, scars, and liver spots. It is important to talk with the plastic surgeon about how deep you want the chemical peels to go into your skin, as you don't want to go so deep that you damage your skin, but you also want to go deep enough that you are satisfied with the results you get.
Another type of minimally invasive cosmetic procedure is a microdermabrasion. With a microdermabrasion, an instrument is used by a cosmetic surgeon to gently sand your skin. This helps to remove the outermost layer of skin without causing you any damage. It is a type of procedure generally used to help give the skin a more youthful, smooth looking appearance, as it allows a new layer of skin to take the place of the one removed. Microdermabrasion can be used for removing sores on your skin, removing marks left by acne, and other treatments for the surface of your skin.
Please leave your inquiry below.
2018 ⓒ Naravee Aesthetic Clinic. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.


text:
Russia Proton Rocket Crash Blamed on Excessive Engine Vibrations
Russian space officials say this month's launch failure of a Proton rocket was due to excessive vibrations in the engine of the rocket's third stage.
An archived handout picture dated 28 June 2013 and released by the Russian Federal Space Agency Roscosmos shows a Proton-M launch vehicle with three Glonass-M satellites onboard while being mounted on its launch pad at Baikonur cosmodrome, Kazakhstan. A Russian rocket carrier with a Mexican satellite on board has crashed in Siberia, the Interfax news agency reported on 16 May 2015. ROSCOSMOS / HANDOUT / EPA
May 29, 2015, 11:08 PM UTC / Source: Associated Press
MOSCOW -- Russian space officials say this month's launch failure of a Proton rocket was due to excessive vibrations in the engine of the rocket's third stage. Igor Komarov, head of the Roscosmos space agency, told reporters Friday that the vibrations came from a rotor shaft and were due to the material it was made of. He said using a different material to solve the problem would not be excessively costly, but he didn't specify an amount.
Related: Russia's Proton-M Rocket Carrying Mexican Satellite Crashes in Siberia
The May 16 launch failure, which resulted in the loss of a Mexican communications satellite, came a few weeks after a Soyuz booster rocket broke down as it was trying to send an unmanned supply ship to the International Space Station. The cargo ship later fell to Earth, disintegrating in the atmosphere.
Russia's workhorse Proton rocket, known at the time under its UR-500 code, made its first test flights in the mid-1960s. It was originally designed as an intercontinental ballistic missile to carry a nuclear warhead but was never deployed for that purpose.


I import mails into Alfresco with the alfresco imap interface. It works : emails and attachments are imported. Metadatas messageFrom, messageTo, messageCc, messageSubject and messageContent are imported.
But my customer need two particular metadatas : sendDate and receivedDate.
Why Alfresco don't import these metadatas ? Is it a bug ?
It's a feature :roll: On Head you can however configure which fields are mapped.
Ok, but it's a little strange it haven't been developped at the same time as messageFrom, messageTo … extraction.
I try do developp a little patch (mapping with dates).
Thanks for your quickly response :) .
Thanks for your patch in svn marc, but emails aren't imported now (problem with the "Date" header extraction).


text:
Mix Master Mike
MIX MASTER MIKE (BEASTIE BOYS) FIRST IRISH SHOW IN 10 YEARS
BUTTON FACTORY – LATE SHOW – SATURDAY 5 OCTOBER
Mix Master Mike (Beastie Boys) has announced his first Irish show in ten years at the Button Factory on Saturday 5 October 2019. With doors open at 11.30pm, Mix Master Mike's late show will keep you dancing all night long and is not to be missed. Named as "the world's greatest DJ" by USA Today, Mix Master Mike's status as a premier, award-winning DJ and producer has allowed him to maintain his rank as an influential musician and become a household name. Never one to take a break, the past few years have seen him touring sold-out arenas with Metallica, DJing A$AP Rocky's album release party and joining forces with Cypress Hill in 2018.
"Mix Master Mike is the Jimi Hendrix of the Turntables" Kurt Loder (MTV)
Grammy Award winner Mix Master Mike's many accomplishments include a 3 time consecutive win of the DMC World title, a win of the 1992 New Music Seminar DJ Battle (where he became the first West Coast DJ to win the title of World Champion), and being inducted into the Rock 'n Roll Hall of Fame in 2012 with the Beastie Boys. His skillful, hard-hitting scratch work has rightfully earned him the status of a pioneer in the hip-hop and DJ communities.
Over the last few years, Mike has been found opening for the Vancouver Winter Olympics, joining the official Emmy's orchestra with the legendary Michael Bearden (Lady Gaga's/Michael Jackson's music director), creating music that has been featured on major television networks (i.e. producing the theme music for Teen Titans Go on Cartoon Network), performing on Yo Gabba Gabba, producing the theme music for the FIFA World Cup, working on Andra Day's Grammy nominated album, "Cheers to the Fall", and more. In 2016, he was invited to the White House by former President Barack Obama to perform at the Kennedy Center Honors 36th Gala honoring Herbie Hancock.
Another whirlwind year followed for Mix Master Mike, with him touring stadiums with Metallica, trailblazing the VR world, working on music with the Invisibl Skratch Piklz, DJing A$AP Rocky's album release party, and much more. Mike's Virtual Reality project, "Magma Chamber", has been winning awards internationally, including the 2017 VR Fest Award for "Best Animated VR Music Video" and two awards from Vega Digital Awards. "Magma Chamber" is being recognized as one of the best and most innovative videos in the VR world. As a result of all the attention "Magma Chamber" has received, Sir Richard Branson extended an invitation for Mix Master Mike to attend the Extreme Tech Challenge awards at the famous Necker Island. His second VR music video, "Moonbase Invasion" was released to critical acclaim as well, winning honors from Cannes Film Festival, Austin Music Video Festival and Globaltrend Video Awards.


A cobblestone driveway leads to the gated home of Republican candidate for governor David Stemerman, seen in this 2014 file photo.
It wouldn't be a Connecticut election cycle without someone complaining about a wealthy "out-of-touch" millionaire seeking public office.
"Eight bathrooms? How out of touch is Ned Lamont?? Good grief...," tweeted Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton, who rents an apartment in a luxury building in downtown Danbury. Of course luxury in Greenwich and Danbury are measured on different scales, but Boughton's complex includes amenities like an outdoor pool and a fully-equipped gym and yoga studio, which could come in handy since Boughton received doctor's orders to get more exercise.
It's not the first time a candidate's wealth has made headlines — former Republican candidates like Linda McMahon and Tom Foley were often the subject of criticisms about their deep pockets. So in the interest of fairness and curiosity, where do all the other candidates live?
As it turns out, Lamont's longtime Greenwich address isn't even the swankiest on the list of governor candidate residences.
That title goes to Republican David Stemerman, whose 15,000-square-foot Greenwich mansion is worth an estimated $18.5 million and sits square in the middle of a neighborhood — the Golden Triangle — that's consistently been named in the top 10 wealthiest in the nation. For the record, Stemerman's humble abode has 10 full and 2 half bathrooms. That's not including whatever accommodations are in the 500-square-foot guest cottage.
The average home size in America last year was 2,600-square-feet, but Connecticut is known for having slightly smaller, older homes, though the disparity between the state's famed Gold Coast mansions and so-called country homes is vast.
Guy Smith — you know, the other Greenwich businessman running for office as a Democrat — lives in a modest-by-comparison 3,800-square-foot mini-mansion. If he ever feels claustrophobic, he's got a 2,600 square-foot guest house to escape to.
Joe Ganim's address has changed several times over the past two years, but most recently he's claimed a small two-family Bridgeport house he purchased for $275,000 in November 2017.
Westport businessman Steve Obsitnik lists a 3,500-square-foot contemporary near the Saugatuck River as his permanent address, and former Trumbull First Selectman Tim Herbst bought a 1,400-square-foot home on a full acre in his hometown for $210,000 in 2010. Shelton Mayor Mark Lauretti has lived in his 3,800-square-foot colonial since 1999.
That leaves self-funding businessman Bob Stefanowski, who paid almost $3 million for his 5,100-square-foot home on the Post Road in Madison in 2014.
Ken Borsuk contributed to this report.


RCA Communication Systems listens when you speak.
RCA is returning to the forefront of the two-way radio market to solve the problems their competitors caused by using unreliable or poor quality parts, insufficient repair warranties, and low life batteries. RCA is different than other companies: rather than attempt to dictate the market and tell buyers what they should want, RCA first listens to what problems the buying market needs a solution for and designs an innovative product that answers that need. Integrated, cost-effective solutions have been the nexus of RCA's product line across the decades.
A straight-forward, reliable product with consistent quality and value over time.
Powerful, clear sound quality that offers clarity even in loud environments.
Durable housing and accessories that allow connection they you use it most.
The brilliant engineering minds at RCA have gone through painstaking lengths to ensure cost-manageable quality that meets and exceeds industry requirements. RCA products have always been built well; many of their original devices can still be used today and have become much sought-after collectors' pieces! RCA offers quality that lasts. That devotion to product integrity still exists in the devices they manufacture today. RCA understands that communication and connection is vital. These are some of the most reliable products worldwide, which is evidence of the company's consistent use of the finest components combined with the latest technology and detailed quality control. All sales, warranty and technical support is based out of the United States and is never outsourced to any foreign country. Protect your connection. Choose RCA.


Larry the Lizard Pro - Jerseys: Larry the Lizard Pro-Jerseys allow you to add your own sponsors, customize your name, sponsor logos, and design your very own Larry the Lizard Pro-Staff Jersey ADD $ 20.00 also Larger sizes will cost a little more. ($5.00 XXL, $10.00 XXXL, $15.00 XXXXL) Click on the Jersey Image at the Right - "wait seconds for the layout to appear, then start planning your sponsor layout now. Once you have ordered your Jersey, you will need to fill out the Jersey Layout Form, which will be sent to your email address, upon receipt of your order confirmation. All you will need to do then is complete the layout form, with all your sponsors listed in the area you have selected, and return your completed layout design, via email to us. As a side note: There are a million and one logos to choose from, so to expedite your order, it is always best to provide us with your selected logos, as an attachment with your completed layout form. Jersey material is Birdseye - a breathable blend to keep you cool when its hot, and warm when its cold.


Local produce such as soy sauce and olives.
which we recommend with confidence.
at the Viking venue, according to your favorite cooking method.
It is the most luxurious dish unique to the island.
The cook will offer a baked steak in front of you.
・Further! You can attach Sanuki beef ceramic plate grill.
・Further! You can add dancing abalone grill.
Breakfast serves Japanese set menu.
Basically the dinner time will be announced at check-in on the day.
As soon as the early hours become full, it will be a guide at a later time.
Breakfast is available from 7 o'clock to 9 o'clock.
Children under 2 years old can use it free of charge.
and benefits at 10 tourist facilities.
1 Sakate,Fukuda,Kusakabe,We will pick you up from each port.
5 Feast of Olive and Island materials.
6 Hishio Don and Tsukudani freshly cooked are popular!
there is also a rent-a-car and an electric rental cycle.
3 Going around Power Spot.
4 Going around location for filming movie.
This plan is no meals.
Of course, hot springs are all you can enter.
Please heal the tiredness of the trip with a hot spring.
※This is the plan of the room without meals.
Reservations are necessary to take meal in a hotel.
■Breakfast Option/1,620 yen per person.
For dinner, there is also a upgrade course.
there are limited transportation methods.
We will refuse to pick you up from the hotel to a pub.
*This plan will not be eligible for official site reservation benefits Please notice that benefits such as in-hotel use tickets and benefits tickets are not included.
© 2017 Bay ResortHotel SHODOSHIMA.


At WISCO – Walk In Shower Company – we specialise in decorative wall panels for your brand new shower, all of which are bespoke fitted on site to make sure they fit perfectly to your shower to complete your dream bathroom. We are the only company in Warwickshire who fit bespoke wall panels; as we specialise in low maintenance, easy to care for bathroom solutions, shower wall panels are one of our most popular and top selling products. Shower wall panels are so versatile that they will fit perfectly into any style of bathroom, leaving you with a practical space which also looks clean and stylish. A bespoke shower wall panel allows you to design and create your own ideal space. All of our wall panels are coated with an anti-organic, anti-mould protector which will ensure your shower stays looking clean and fresh, keeping cleaning and maintenance to a minimum and fitting in perfectly with every lifestyle.
What is a shower wall panel?
A shower wall panel is the ultimate versatile way to fit a waterproof panelling system, without the issues of installing tiles. Most of our wall panels have a moisture resistant MDF core, with a high- pressure laminate backing that is designed to deliver a smooth, watertight finish. This means that our shower wall panels are stylish, tough, hard wearing, stain resistant and totally hygienic.
Why choose a shower wall panel over tiles?
Shower wall panels are a perfect fit for any bathroom. Our shower wall panels are designed to create a seamless, watertight finish, meaning that the wall panel is easy to wipe clean. A wall panel acts instead of tiles to create a waterproof area within and around your shower. A shower wall panel fulfills all the requirements you need from tiles, but with many extra benefits. Shower wall panels are so versatile that we can make them fit perfectly into any space, looking as if they have (literally) been designed and made especially for you.
A shower panel means that there is no need for grout, as unlike tiles there is no need to work around the edges to create a watertight seal; the shower panel is watertight the whole way around. Not needing grout is good for a number of reasons and means that panels are quick and easy to fit, resulting in you having to pay for less labour. The wall panel also gives your bathroom a modern seamless finish, and also means no more mouldy walls!
On average, wall panels are 25% cheaper than installing tiles as less labour time is required.
What styles of wall panel can I choose from?
At the WISCO – Walk In Shower Company – we have a large range of materials and styles to choose from when you are considering a shower wall panel for your dream bathroom. This includes; glass, acrylic, artisan, traditional, modern and natural. This wide range of styles and materials have different 'pros and cons'; our experienced and knowledgeable team at WISCO will advise you about which shower wall panel will be best for you and your needs.
Our wall panels for showers are provided by Mermaid panels; Mermaid wall panels are Europe's leading wall and shower panel supplier and have been for the last thirty years. This has meant that Mermaid has had time to really perfect their wall panels, making them perfect for your home, with a wide range of designs and styles to suit whatever kind of bathroom you would like.
The Mermaid panels which we stock are fully antibacterial, as they have anti-organic and anti-fungal coatings. This means that (unlike traditional tiling solutions) Mermaid panels will not become mouldy or gather bacteria in the grouting like tiling solutions do; there is no grout used in Mermaid board solutions, resulting in no more grouting problems for you. The antibacterial nature of Mermaid boards means that they are highly practical for busy lifestyles, or ideal for those with disabilities and the elderly. This is because Mermaid boards need little to no maintenance and because of their antibacterial qualities, they basically clean themselves. Mermaid boards also come with a 15 years' watertight guarantee, meaning that Mermaid wall panels will really last you and give you a beautiful, long lasting bathroom solution.
Mermaid wall panels pride themselves in being easy to clean. Even in hard water areas, watermarks on Mermaid boards are minimal and are easily wiped away because of the finish of the Mermaid board.
Mermaid boards offer glass, acrylic and laminate ranges, meaning that whatever kind of board you want for your dream bathroom, Mermaid can offer you a perfect solution. All of Mermaid's boards have a uniquely classical, yet mistakably up to date feel. With Europe's widest range of choice for shower wall panels, Mermaid is an obvious choice when it comes to wall panels, providing you with a huge range of high quality boards to choose from.
Mermaid boards are also a great way of saving some money on the overall price of your bathroom. Purchasing Mermaid boards instead of tiling your whole shower area is on average 25% cheaper, which is a massive saving on the whole bathroom fitting. Mermaid boards are also much easier to fit than tiles. This means that the installation of your bathroom will be quicker than if you decided to go with traditional tiles, meaning less workman costs, and less disruption in your home during installation. Installing a Mermaid panel instead of tiles means that you will be without your shower for much less time, which is great for you!
Mermaid panels are best suited for fitting to the all, however Mermaid is also a great way of covering a small area of the ceiling that is prone to mould or damp (for instance above the shower), to decrease maintenance of your home and to alleviate worry about mouldy ceilings and the damage that damp is known to cause.


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Plan Your Adventure
Admission and Tickets
Private Event Rentals
Venue and Meeting Space
Propose Under the Stars
Adult Celebrations
Adventure Access for Non-Profits
Ticket Donation Requests
Sudekum Planetarium
Show Catalog
Tinker 2.0
TRAINS!
Science Lyceum Homeschool Program
Science of Beer (21+)
Way Late Play Date (21+)
Happy Noon Year
Explore Science
DIY Science
Renew or Upgrade
Discovery Society
Partners in Adventure
Business Circle Supporters
Today: 10:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Choose from a spectacular, fulldome show in state-of-the-art Sudekum Planetarium; hands-on, interactive exhibits; or one of our award-winning programs like daily Science Live! demonstrations, 3D printing workshops, summer camps and more!
800 Fort Negley Blvd., Nashville, TN 37203
We are open Thursdays - Mondays from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., allowing limited guests enter the museum per hour. We strongly encourage buying your tickets in advance.
We will be closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day
World IP Day
05/13/2017, 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM
Location: Adventure Science Center map
CELEBRATE WORLD INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY DAY!
Innovation is a human force that knows no limits. It turns problems into progress. It pushes the boundaries of possibility, creating unprecedented new capabilities. World Intellectual Property Day 2017 celebrates that creative force.
Join the Nashville Bar Association Intellectual Property Committee in an exploration of how some of the world's most extraordinary innovations have improved our lives and how our intellectual property (IP) system supports innovation by attracting investment, rewarding creators, encouraging them to develop their ideas, and ensuring that their new knowledge is freely available so that tomorrow's innovators can build on today's new technology.
Special Activities:
Explore how science plays into the world of IP while learning how to protect your great ideas! With special focuses on patents, trademarks, copyrights and science, you can enjoy hands-on activities that include coloring books, inventor collector cards, circuit and gear kits, and much more!
Special Presentations at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.:
Gain insight into how patents, trademarks and copyrights support innovation in this illuminating 45-minute presentation featuring guests from the United States Patent and Trademark Office and local Intellectual Property Attorneys.
We are excited to offer this event in collaboration with the Intellectual Property (IP) Committee of the Nashville Bar Association, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), the American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA), the World Intellectual Property Office (WIPO) and the Central Tennessee Section of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE).
Want more information about World IP Day?
Visit the official American Intellectual Property Law Association World IP Day website at www.creativityinbloom.com and the World Intellectual Property Organization's World IP Day website at http://www.wipo.int/ip-outreach/en/ipday/.
Back To Full Calendar
Ready for an adventure? Plan your visit
To open every mind to the wonders of science and technology, fostering a better understanding of ourselves and the world around us.
Sign up for our e-newsletter and stay up-to-date on special programs, exhibits and events!
800 Fort Negley Blvd. Nashville, TN 37203
Thursdays – Mondays from 10am to 3pm
Closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays
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This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/969,138 filed on Oct. 1, 2001 and entitled "METHOD AND DEVICE FOR RETRACTOR FOR MICROSURGICAL INTERMUSCULAR LUMBAR ARTHRODESIS", which claimed priority from U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/236,584 filed on Sep. 29, 2000. The entire disclosures of these applications are considered to be part of the disclosure of the present application and are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.
The present invention is directed to a method and device for performing an instrumented lumbar interbody fusion utilizing a minimally invasive approach. As set forth herein below and as reflected in the figures, the present invention is generally directed to the use of a tissue retractor  10 for use in lumbar arthrodesis which comprises an elongated retractor 10 having a handle 12 at one end and a retractor blade 14 at a second end, the retractor blade 14 having a hooked forward projecting prominence 16 to engage a lateral facet or muscle, the retractor blade 14 being angled with respect to the handle 12 and having a depth so as to provide adequate retraction when performing a screw placement operation. The forward projecting prominence 16 has a width approximately equal to a width of the retractor blade 14, and has a semi-circular shaped front edge 17. A separate retractor 20 has a similar handle 12 and has a blade 14 angled with respect thereto at approximately a 90° angle. Such retractor blade 14 having first and second faces 18 and 19, respectively, with the first face 18 being substantially perpendicular to the second face 19 and the first face 18 being angled approximately 90° with respect to the handle 12, whereas the second face 19 has at least two co-planar toothed structures 22 a and 22 b at a position located farthest from the handle end. The toothed structures 22 a and 22 b are situated adjacent two co-planar indentations 24 a and 24 b. The toothed structures 22 a and 22 b, and the indentations 24 a and 24 b are located along a lower portion of a forward projecting lateral edge 26 of the second face 19. The indentations 24 a and 24 b are semi-circular in shape. The retractor of the present invention is used in the method as further set forth below.
A surgical approach between the erector spinae and multifidus approaches the lateral facet and superomedial transverse process directly with no muscular detachment and avoids both the medial and lateral branches of the dorsal primary ramus and associated vessels. Orientation is appropriate for direct placement of pedicle fixation with minimal muscular retraction. Mobilization of a 4 to 5 cm midline incision allows direct bilateral exposure. Medial retraction of the multifidus after detaching its tendinous insertion to the mamillary process is simplified by stabilizing the retractor  20 against the rod. Interbody fusion is accomplished via a transforaminal approach. Microsurgical technique allows for coagulation and sharp division of the inferior foraminal vein (or plexus) and retraction of foraminal fat with preservation of undisturbed perineural and epidural tissue planes to minimize potential for fibrosis. Interbody fusion is performed conventionally with bone and or synthetic devices. Use of an intradiscal spreader and securing the opening with the segmental fixation simplifies preparation of the disk space and improves restoration of lordosis with dorsal compression after grafting.
Once the instrumentation is placed, exposure for the fusion is performed. Dividing the insertion of the multifidus to the mamillary process on the superior articular process of the lower vertebra allows retraction of the multifidus over the facet capsule with no further muscle detachment required. While use of a hand retractor  20 may be adequate to pull the multifidus medial against the spinous process, it is preferable to retract using leverage against the rod or instrumentation. Removal of the inferior articular process and a portion of the superior articular process provides direct access to the foramen. Use of the operating microscope allows for an interbody fusion with exposure and visualization comparable to microdisectomy. Exposure of the superior aspect of the pedicle of the lower level confirms location and allows coagulation and division of the inferior foraminal vein or plexus in a safe location. If the exposure is extended cephalad in this plane, the epidural vessels and fat may be minimally disturbed and retracted preserving the epidural and penineural planes while exposing the disc. There is generally a window 10 to 12 mm in width allowing work in the disc with no retraction of neural elements. Intradiscal fusion may be accomplished conventionally with bone or prosthesis. The use of intradiscal spreaders with temporary fixation from the instrumentation allows for easier work in the disc space and subsequent compression on the graft allows restoration of lordosis. With care it is possible to bridge the foraminal space with graft for posterior facet fusion.
Preferably, and as one of skill in the art will appreciate, an intermuscular plane of exposure provides easy access to the spine, minimizes disruption to the erector spinae and multifidus and avoids damage to the neurovascular supply of posterior musculature. The present invention is particularly useful in performing an instrumented transforaminal interbody and facet fusion performed while detaching only the insertion of the multifidus to the mamillary process at the level of fusion. In a preferred embodiment, the retractor  10 of the present invention hooks on the lateral facet cephalade to the transverse process, retracting the longissimus laterally. In such a manner, the superomedial transverse process and lateral facet is free of muscular attachment allowing palpation of the local anatomy for pedicle screw placement. Preferably, the screw is placed just cephalade to the assessory process avoiding any muscle detachment being required. At the caudal vertebrae, the retractor may be hooked against the multifidus below the transverse process allowing visualization of the extent of fixation desired. Using the present invention, it is possible to perform an instrumented lumbar fusion comparable to that accomplished with a mid-line approach, but with much less invasive paramedian approach, requiring decreased neurovascular and muscle dissection and sparing adjacent segments.
The present method and device is useful in intermuscular foraminal facet retraction. In such embodiment, the retractor  10 is configured to have a depth ranging from between about 2 to about 10 cm and the retractor 10 has a hook or prominence 16 associated therewith so as to engage a lateral facet or muscle so as to maintain the retractor position. The retractor blade 14 is angled and has a sufficient depth to provide adequate retraction for screw placement. The engagement of the facet or deep muscle provides a mechanical advantage such that the retraction operation is made easier and the retractor 10 can be maintained in a desired position. The present invention also finds application in a transforaminal retraction where a lateral retractor engages a rod to maintain a desired position or instrumentation. Alternatively, a medial retraction is accomplished using a medial retractor that engages a rod laterally or that engages the instrumentation. The medial retractor retracts muscle medially and provides a working area medial to the rod in the range of 10 to 20 mm. The medial lateral portion engages the rod, providing mechanical advantage in pulling muscle medially and to maintain the desired position of the retractor 20. In alternative embodiments, instrumentation may be engaged, such as a screw or projection from a screw, to provide similar muscle retraction.
an elongated retractor having a handle at one end and a retractor blade at a second end, said retractor blade having a hooked forward projecting prominence to engage a lateral facet or muscle from a posterior position, said prominence having a width approximately equal to a width of said retractor blade, said retractor blade being angled with respect to said handle and having a depth so as to provide adequate retraction when performing a screw placement operation from a posterior access position.
11. The device as claimed in claim 10, wherein said prominence has a semi-circular shaped front edge.