These days most portable electronics like cell phones, MP3 players, and tablet computers can be charged via USB port, which is why a USB car charger is a necessary accessory for most of us. This Bracketron Dual USB Charger is better than the vast majority of chargers out there because it can charge two devices at once and has ample power to quickly replenish the batteries of larger devices like tablets.
Bracketron sent GeekAlerts one of these dual USB chargers, allowing us to see first hand how compact and solidly constructed it is. Most similar devices, even ones that only have one USB port, tend to be bulkier and flimsier. Also, many chargers out there have much less power available, typically offering only 1 amp or frequently even less current. In fact, a lot of other dual USB chargers similar to this one don't have enough power to efficiently recharge two devices at a time.
Although I have had an Apple iPhone car charger for a long time, this Bracketron Dual USB Charger really comes in handy. For one, it has the 2.1 amp port to quickly recharge my iPad, and I still have the 1 amp port available to recharge my iPhone at the same time. Also, it is common to have multiple people wanting to recharge their iPhone, iPod, Blackberry, or other smartphone in the car at the same time, and this makes it easy to handle 2 devices at a time.
The Dual USB Charger includes both high and low-current USB outputs, perfect for quickly and safely charging your tablet and handheld mobile device simultaneously while you're on the road. The pocket-sized device is compatible with iPad, iPhone/iPod, MP3 players, satellite radios, GPS units, smartphones and more. The Dual USB Charger fits into any 12v port and has a low-profile, snag-free design that complements your dashboard's sleek look. It also features a handy LED light that indicates when power is being supplied to your devices.
This Dual USB Charger is available for $24.95 at Bracketron.com. It is also available for only $11.10 (56% off the list price) at Amazon.com.
Awesome Dual Charger. I Like It.


text:
Review by Sepehr Ariannezhad
Atlas Shrugged: Part III 2014
Sepehr Ariannezhad's review published on Letterboxd:
Watched the whole trilogy. There's a sex scene in this one, which makes virtually every porn movie plot seem 100% legit.
Apart from that, this is the worst film in the history of mankind. Maybe even the worst piece of attempted art. This makes The Room look like Citizen Kane. This is not just bad, it's painful. It's insulting. It makes you want to write a book on how outrageously horrible it is, and then reminds you how far it is beneath you to even bother writing about it, making you feel like shit on the horns of this dillema.
Maybe I'll write something on it in the future. Don't know really. Watch at your own risk.
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Sepehr's films

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Our evil teddy bear costume includes a striped shirt, plush mitts and a mask.
Evil teddy is available in your choice of blue or brown.
Our evil teddy bear costume comes in adult size Standard.
The weapon and pants are not included with this evil teddy bear costume.


- You have intricate understand concerning the formation of contracts and codes of law. You are able to write them easily and have them contains as many or as little cunning loopholes as you wish. You are also able to scour those written by other people. Of course all of these documents will have only have power if you have means of backing them up. + You have intricate understanding of the formation of contracts and codes of law. You are able to write them easily and have them contain as many or as little cunning loopholes as you wish. You are also able to scour those written by other people. Of course all of these documents will have only have power if you have means of backing them up.


Let Me Down Easy examines the body and the body politic through a rodeo rider, a prize fighter, an altruistic doctor, legendary cyclist Lance Armstrong, supermodel Lauren Hutton, and former Texas Governor Ann Richards. Together, their voices tell a story about the vulnerability of the human body, the resilience of the spirit, and the price of care. "Run — do not walk," says NBC's Today show — to see the latest work from this unparalleled performer as she makes her first Bay Area appearance in 15 years.
The GTU has been invited by Berkeley Repertory Theatre<http://cts.vresp.com/c/?GraduateTheologicalU/fd420d1ae5/2e664141cc/cc1ae98be8> to lead panel discussions following the August 24 and 31 performances of Let Me Down Easy, a one-woman show written, conceived and performed by Obie Award-winner Anna Deveare Smith.
More information about the August 24<http://cts.vresp.com/c/?GraduateTheologicalU/fd420d1ae5/2e664141cc/6ed92586eb/utm_content=communications%40gtu.edu&utm_source=VerticalResponse&utm_medium=Email&utm_term=August%2024&utm_campaign=Join%20us%20at%20Berkeley%20Rep%20for%20Let%20Me%20Down%20Easy%20-%20special%20discount> and August 31<http://cts.vresp.com/c/?GraduateTheologicalU/fd420d1ae5/2e664141cc/95bb10b0f6/utm_content=communications%40gtu.edu&utm_source=VerticalResponse&utm_medium=Email&utm_term=August%2031&utm_campaign=Join%20us%20at%20Berkeley%20Rep%20for%20Let%20Me%20Down%20Easy%20-%20special%20discount> panel discussions.
Save 20% (50% if you're under 30) on regular tickets for the 8:00 pm shows on August 19 and 20. Use promo code GTU when ordering or click here<http://cts.vresp.com/c/?GraduateTheologicalU/fd420d1ae5/2e664141cc/229cf0f9c8/promo=GTU>. Persons who attend other nights of the performance are welcome to come to the August 24 and 31 discussions.


text:
Skip Whitcomb Classes
• Whitcomb, Skip | View My Website
Skip Whitcomb is an accomplished outdoor painter and printmaker. He studied at the Art Center College of Design. He paints on location and works out of his studio in Ft. Collins CO.
He has won numerous awards, such as the Col. Red Smith Memorial Award from the National Museum of Wildlife Art in Jackson, WY and the "Artist's Choice Award" at the Buffalo Bill Historical Center and Museum in Cody, WY, each two times, and "Artist's Choice Award" at Coors Western Art Exhibit in Denver, CO.
He has an extensive exhibition record including: National Academy, NY; American Watercolor Society, NY; Gilcrease Museum, OK; and Prix de West Invitational, OK. Listed in Who's Who in American Art, Whitcomb's work has been featured several times in Southwest Art, American Artist, Plein Air Magazine, The Pastel Journal, and Western Art and Architecture, among others. His work may be viewed in galleries in New Mexico and Wyoming, and on his website: skipwhitcomb.com.
whitcombstudio@gmail.com


text:
ROGER'S WEB SITE | EUROPE | SUMMER 2018
This Summer we will be really excited to welcome Barb's sister Anita and hubby John to England. In all the years we lived there together (1974-1981. We were there singly long before) and all the summers we have visited since, none of her siblings have ever visited us there. Barb's parents came twice and Rick, her nephew has been twice, but this is a stellar occasion for all of us.
We are renting lodges in Mercia Marina for the duration, near our boat Basil the King. Plans include London for almost a week, Liverpool for 3 days and St. Ives, Cornwall for a week. In June we plan to cat-sit for my bro Michael and sis-in-law Ange in my Ancestral Village of Woodchurch, Kent. Gotta get our cat fix! Planned visitors to Mercia will include our nearly-drowned friend Liza (see July 7th 2016) who is bravely coming back, and my boyhood friend and uncle (he's actually younger than I am) Richard and his new bride, Viv. We hope to see my high school mate Peter when we visit the West Country (he and his wife live in Devon). At the end of August we will join Mick and Ange and her family for a week's cruise around Slartibartfast's masterpiece, the Norwegian Fjords, before flying home.
As usual, I am hoping to do some boating, Barb not so much. Basil boat has been badly beaten up by a bad winter. His deck board sags (left), another boater crashed into him and who knows what else I will find when we get there. Fingers crossed. Stay tuned for regular updates starting in June.
Who would have thought, all those years ago when British Airways started the Phoenix to London direct flight using old DC10's, that one day they would fill two huge 747's daily? That's about 2,400 people flying back and forth between Phoenix and Europe. Now this year they have new competition in the shape of a daily Condor Airlines flight to Frankfurt. Condor Airlines is a German subsidiary of Thomas Cook.
Earlier BA 747 flight departing, passes
Condor Airlines Airbus on the ramp.
Minutes later a second BA 747 (ours) lands at
Phoenix Sky Harbor Aiport.
Preparing to Depart on BA Flight 288
We had a somewhat bumpy but otherwise
uneventful flight to London. BA have
improved their cabins, particularly the
TV, but they need to catch up with the
Asian airlines. The food was terrible. I
had gnocchi that was so overcooked it had
caramelized and the sauce was dried to a
red crust. Barb had an inedible 'filet'.
Managed to get some sleep, though, and next
morning we were rewarded by great views of
the patchwork quilt that is England (right).
We stayed one night in London and the next day (Sunday) I rented a car and we drove haltingly up to Derby. Haltingly because of a weird Citroen gearbox and, if I'm honest, my lack of practice with stick shifts. It was a gorgeous sunny day with fluffy clouds and England looks stunning in all its summer greenery. Now we are ensconced in Laurel Lodge at Mercia Marina. No rain yet, but it will come in the fullness of time. Basil seems to be in fine form so far. The solar panels kept the batteries topped up all winter and are now running the fridge as well. I dewinterized the engine today and it started up with nary a puff of smoke. Amazing. I have yet to tackle my b�te noire - the plumbing system - which has been through several hard winter frosts. We shall see.
Dinner at Nadee on Monday night was sublime. If there is any French justice in the world, that place should have a Michelin star.
Few things are more depressing than a mid-week visit to a Midlands Tesco supermarket. Full of old grannies wielding shopping carts like battering rams, shelves of old produce dated tomorrow and high prices. But you gotta do what you gotta do and we did it yesterday. We were feeling right grumpy by the time we got to the checkout and I got an earful from Barb about not packing correctly, much to the amusement of the cashier. I must say, for all their faults, the Middle Earth people are unfailingly friendly and cheerful in spite of the dour post-industrial conditions in which they live. In the evening we went out to dinner with Gandalf, aka our friend Robert, the Wizard of Mercia. He, and a surfeit of wine, cheered us up enormously.
Laurel Lodge (spot the Resident)
Basil in Dock. New Piazza Building behind.
Basil Looks Pretty Smart in Spite of a Hard Winter
The Marina Gets Lusher Every Year
I can only imagine what the guy (yes, it must be
a guy) who drives this eccentricity looks like.
With Robert in the Boot Inn, Repton
I must say that it's great being here. Probably partly because I'm at home but also because Britain seems like a much kinder gentler place than America right now. There's a thread of common decency running through society here that has disappeared in the US. Sure, Britain has its problems but, watching a Brexit debate in Parliament last night, I was struck how little party infighting there is. There was vociferous disagreement (one MP was thrown out of the House) but all seemed to put the country's interest over partisan squabbling. The world of Trump and his nasty, petty politics seems far away.
Had a bit of an altercation with an animal abuser yesterday while out on my bikeshare bike. He let his little dog loose to swim in the lake in front of a swan. Predictably, the swan attacked the dog. The man began hurling rocks at the swan.
Man: "F****** swans, I hate them."
Me: "Well, it's his territory."
Man: "You wouldn't say that if you had seen what I saw. A swan breaking a dog's neck. There's far too many of them."
Me: "It could be said there's far too many dogs."
Man: "Yeah, and it could be said there's far too many f****** people, too."
The dog narrowly escaped, but it was close. He will probably think twice about swimming with swans in future.
The Swan in Happier Mood
Earlier in the day we said goodbye to Barbara's old friend Liza, who came by train to see us and stayed one night. We toured the marina on foot with her and she was able to thank Mike for saving her life when she fell in the water when she last visited in July 2016. We ate in the Boardwalk which has gone downhill a little but still cooks acceptable nosh.
Barb and Liza in the Boardwalk
Chrissy (who runs the Marina store with husband
Graham) has opened a new Gift Barge.
Nadee, Holder of a Carter Star of Excellence
Nearing the end of a ten day visit to Michael and Angela's house in Kent. After two days, they flew off to Slovenia and left us in charge of their two most excellent cats, Tigger and Patch. (Tigger is named after the tiger in "Winnie the Pooh"). The weather has been absolutely gorgeous, so we have been on excursions to Hythe and Folkestone on the coast. My brother Nigel, his wife Sandra and my sister Angela, nephew Jon, his wife Katie and their daughter Esme have all been over to see us in Woodchurch. Here are some photos:
Patch, in Formal Attire
The Street Where I (used to) Live
The Village is Blooming
Henden House, Reputedly the Oldest in
Cricket Match on Woodchurch Village Green
Michael, Sandra and Nigel
Preparing the Feast
A Feast at Angela & Mick's House
Angela and Barbara
My Brothers, Michael (left) and Nigel
Esme (21 months) in Movie Star Mode
Esme Eating Lunch in the Six Bells Pub.
Pigarina and Pigletta Prepare
to Leave for Slovenia >>
Barbara at The Leas, Folkestone
Barb's New NHS Hearing Aid
Sign on the Leas
(except sign above)
The Ship Inn, Folkestone Harbour
Inside the Ship Inn
Expert Kiteboarder in Action
Typical Tabloid Fare in the Daily Mirror
Cultural Note: The British Government, concerned about childhood obesity, is considering legislation banning advertising of junk food and drink on TV before 9 p.m. Prescription drug ads are already banned here and there is a tax on sugary drinks. None of this is acceptable in the USA because it would be a breach of the Constitutional right of free speech.
At the end of our time in Kent we went to visit my bro Nigel and his wife Sandra in Canterbury. My sis Angela drove over from Walmer with her grandson Thomas and we had tea in Nigel's garden on yet another sunny afternoon. The weather has been superb - continuous blue skies and temps up to 30C (88F) every day. In the evening we celebrated nephew Josh's 25th birthday at Dems, a local Bistro which served excellent French-ish cuisine.
Next day we visited Rye, a medieval port on the River Rother. The sea has receded since the town was built but small boats can still access the harbour via the Rother estuary. Rye is one of the Cinque Ports - five ancient ports which were active after the Norman conquest of southern England. It is a quaint old town with tiny shops on cobbled streets and is built atop a hill with sweeping views of the coastline and the Romney Marsh. We wished we could take Anita and John there later when they visit but, alas, there is nowhere quite like it in the Midlands.
Nigel and Thomas
Nigel, Amber, Roger, Barbara, Josh and Sandra
in Dems, Canterbury
Rye Town Crier
Old Town Gate
Old Houses in Rye (above and left)
Mick and Ange returned from Ljubljana, pleased to find their cats and house mostly intact, and we all went together to watch the finals of the Eastbourne Lawn Tennis Championship. This is a precursor to Wimbledon and lots of players warm up there for the Big One, as it were. It used to be a ladies-only (WTA) tournament but now it is also a men's gig on the ATP world tour.
Grandstand Mural at Eastbourne
A Full House Awaits the Ladies Final
Caroline Wozniacki beat a young but promising
Aryna Sabalenka.
Caroline Wozniacki Serves
The Men's Champion Trophy went to Mischa
Zverev who beat Luk� Lacko in straight sets
It was incredibly hot in the stands just sitting and watching. God knows how the players coped with the heat, but they did. Afterwards we walked along the seafront and on the pier to cool off. We were very impressed with Eastbourne. It is beautifully decked out with flower filled formal gardens and people of all ages having a good time. It still has that certain air of faded Edwardian gentility shared by so many English seaside towns, but has been nicely spruced up and is livelier than most but by no means overcrowded. Of course, any town looks stunning under a blue sky, drenched in sunshine and fringed by an aquamarine sea.
On Eastbourne Pier
On the way home we ate at the Bull in Rolvenden, a classic country pub with a friendly laid-back atmosphere and good food. Next day we said sad goodbyes to Tigger, Patch, Ange and Mick and drove back up to the Midlands in heavy traffic.
Tigger Prefers Water On Tap
"What Do You Mean, They're Not Coming Back
Until August?" (Photo & caption by Ange)
After the long drive round London on the M25 orbital, tunneling under the Thames and up Britain's busiest freeway, the M1, I had a brainwave as I entered the big green security gates at Mercia Marina. I suggested to Robert (the Manager) that there should be a big, colourful sign on the gate: "You are Entering a Different Way of Life. Please Slow Down." He thinks it's a good idea and says he'll do it.
We had one day off at Mercia before Nigel and Sandra arrived by train to stay two nights. Next day we actually WENT BOATING for a WHOLE DAY! Basil Boat purred up the cut in fine fettle to below Weston where we picnicked on the towpath under the shade of a giant oak, or some other tree.
Sandra, Barb and Nigel Shop at the Marina
Sandra and Nigel in the Boardwalk Restaurant
We Met Up with Old Friends Cathy and Mick
on their boat "The Crafty Foxes"
Out on the Canal At Last!
Picnic on the Bank of the Trent & Mersey
At Dusk, We Moored at Nadee for Dinner
Sunset at Mercia Marina
The weather continues in sublime summer mode as we prepare to leave tomorrow for six days in Cornwall on the far southwest tip of England. We'll be back on July 14th.
July 16th Cornwall
We got back from St. Ives, Cornwall after a magnificent six nights by the sea in the sunny Southwest. The drive down was only 312 miles, nothing much by American standards, but it felt very arduous. 5.5 hours to get there and 6.5 hours to get back because of heavy traffic. Our rented Citroen C3 Aircross is a very quirky car, the clutch and brake pedals and the gears are all very close together. Once I stomped on the clutch instead of the brake (do not try this on your car) and several times tried to pull away in third gear. In addition it is extremely underpowered and has weird design errors. The suspension is horrible, strange for a company once renowned for smooth riding cars. The doors lock when you approach with the key and you can't leave the windows open a crack in hot weather because the alarm sounds after a few minutes even if you lock the car. Doubtless some of this is due to my rusty stick shift and driving on-the-left skills, but I cannot recommend this car. On the plus side it is very comfortable as a touring car on freeways.
As soon as we arrived at the Pedn Olva hotel, the driving stress evaporated as we surveyed the vista of Porthminster Beach laid before us from our verandah. I'll shut up now and mostly let the pictures do the talking:
The Pedn Olva Hotel
We have stayed here before and love it.
The View from our Balcony
Another view of Porthminster Beach
England was Gripped by World Cup Fever.
The beach graffiti reads: "ENGLAND, IT'S
COMING HOME!". Sadly, they lost to
Croatia in the semi-final but they did well and
were fun to watch.
Porthminster Beach Cafe - Whole Lemon Sole
The Ancient Sloop Inn, St. Ives Harbour
More popular now than in the 16th Century
A Flower Among Flowers
Low Tide at Dusk, St. Ives Harbour
One day we visited the Tate Gallery in St. Ives. The Tate has been recently extended and is built on the site of an old gas works, overlooking St. Ives' other main beach. The area has long been a magnet for artists not only for the stunning landscapes, lit by the best light in the land, but also for a rich history of smuggling, pirates and other crusty old seafaring characters. In addition to collected local works by Barbara Hepworth, Henry Moore and others, we saw a special exhibition of Patrick Heron's paintings:
Sydney Garden Painting : December 1989 : II
Christmas Eve, 1951
10 - 11th July 1992
Ceruleum Sea : June 1961
On the second day we clambered aboard the Citroen and motored 50 miles along the A30 and some impossibly narrow Cornish lanes to the tiny seaport of Port Isaac. Here we joined a bunch of idiots who have seen the village 300 times before on TV but are addicted, like us, to the comedy drama 'Doc Martin'. This series about the curmudgeonly doc, who would certainly have targeted us all with his acid sarcasm, was filmed here. In the series it is named 'Port Wenn'. The locals attempt to live a quiet life of fishing and ruminating but are outnumbered by the hated hordes, many of whom are American. Barb asked one of the locals if they had finished filming the latest episodes and he muttered "I don't know, and I don't care", in more fulsome language.
Port Isaac Harbour. The Doc's Office is Top Left
Barb Did Not Have an Appointment
The Golden Lion, Where We Ate a Good Lunch
- (in convivial company!)
Memo to Jack: We saw no giggles of girls shouting "tosser" or "Bodmin" at us, though we richly deserved it. We did have to drive past Bodmin to get to Port Isaac.
Another day we took the train from St. Ives to Penzance. The little train rumbles along the coast and along an estuary to St. Erth where we changed to a mainline train from London for the short but scenic ride to Penzance. For the princely sum of �3.05 ($4.05) Seniors round trip, this is surely one of the best value train rides in the country, if not the world. It will be a subject of my documentary "Great Value Rail Journeys", available after my death when it is finally edited. From Penzance we walked along the promenade to Newlyn.
Newlyn Harbour
Great Western Railway Train at Penzance
View of St. Michael's Mount from Newlyn
Lobster Pot In Newlyn Harbour
(except Newlyn Harbour, top)
Wherever We Went We Made Friends
A short hike from St. Ives took us to Carbis Bay, along the coast a bit. Here is the longest beach I have ever seen outside of Australia, miles of golden sand almost uninhabited by humans (or flies) even in this glorious weather. We had coffee in the swanky Carbis Bay Hotel (�7 for two Americanos). I rode the train back because my arthritic ankle was really acting up, but Barb hiked back.
Carbis Bay
Black Cat Luck Along the Way
Flowers Grace the Trail
Is THIS the Best Value Train Ticket? (0.65p)
Cottage Flowers and Cats, St. Ives
And so ended a memorable stay in St. Ives, Cornwall. We resolved to come back next year and stay in the Pedn Olva hotel for a third time. The room we had this year was tiny, though we managed fine and it had a great balcony, but they showed us a better room for next year. The food and wine was fine and very good value, not something you can usually say about holiday hotels. We ate steamed mussels, grilled hake, fish & chips, haloumi burger and desserts with clotted cream including a delicious gluten-free chocolate brownie. Yummie!
People who come to St. Ives are an interesting mix of working-class (blue collar) people and artistic types. The little train disgorges families who come for the day and leave in the evening, but quite a few stay on in the hotels.
No Comment. Will NOT enlarge.
First Night Back - Barb Slept Well
Now we are back at Mercia Marina, preparing for a 3-day trip to Liverpool, home of The Beatles and the late Ken Dodd, among others.
Two Cats and Two People Live Here
Tiller Pin on Precious Time
Back on My Bikeshare Bike
Donald Trump appeared briefly here, played golf, met the Queen and insulted the Prime Minister before flying off to Helsinki to cozy up to Vladimir Putin. He was carefully insulated from the hundreds of thousands of protesters who joined the largest weekday protests in the history of politics. Something to add to his "biggest, most wonderful" bag of accomplishments.
Meanwhile the British Government is in disarray over the impossible task of leaving the European Union without bankrupting the country. Theresa May must rue the day she ran for Prime Minister, a thankless job if ever there was one.
July 22nd
We returned from Liverpool yesterday after 2 nights in the Premier Inn, Albert Dock.
The River Mersey
Narrowboats in Outer Albert Dock, Dwarfed
by the City Buildings
View of Inner Albert Dock from our Window
Inner Albert Dock by Night
Old Dutch Trader, the De Wadden, in a Dry
Dock prviously used to Repair Slave Traders
The whole dock area, which was a hub of Transatlantic shipping in the 18th, 19th and early 20th Centuries and then fell into dreadful dereliction, has been immaculately restored. The old warehouses now house hotels like ours, shops, cafes and museums. The docks are linked together and connected to the River Mersey via huge sea locks and to the inland waterways system via the Leeds and Liverpool canal. So, if you have the time, you can take a boat like ours from London or Birmingham and cruise to Liverpool and mingle with seagoing craft in Albert Dock. This is one of the finest urban renewal projects I have ever seen. The old gritty grandeur of the docks and huge warehouses is retained but perfectly adapted to modern uses.
Ship's Rats and Predator on the Dock
Another tourist magnet is the most famous rock band of all time, The Beatles. There are Beatles crawling everywhere: Beatles statues, Beatles exhibitions, 'The Beatles Story' and the rebuilt Cavern Club, to name a few. We did our fair share of visiting these adulatory sites. We spent two hours at The Beatles Story (never thought I'd see my contemporaries in a museum), gawped at their statues and withstood the din in the Cavern Club for a few minutes. Loud music is everywhere - we were unable to find a quiet restaurant. One highlight was a special exhibition of John and Yoko's love story and work in the Liverpool Museum, entitled 'Double Fantasy'. Together, they tried to make our world a better place while doing what they loved. They left a lasting legacy and legions of fans worldwide. I was horrified when John was shot and this exhibition brought tears to our eyes all over again. What a terrible loss it was for all of us
Beatles Photos:
Statues in the dock area (above)
Poster for the Double Fantasy exhibit (right)
"Bed Peace" tableau (above)
and detail of the guitar that John played
at Bed Peace and decorated (below)
Peace Wall (Public Graffiti)
Naive but Powerful Lyrics to Imagine
We also visited the Slavery Museum, the first and only one in Europe. Liverpool played a big part in this sordid piece of human history. Many of the slave ships were built, owned and crewed by Liverpudlians. Slaves were transported in the ships' horrific holds, shackled together and rocking in their own vomit and excrement. Many did not survive the transit from Africa to the Caribbean and the American colonies. If too many survived, the ship's Captain would sometimes throw slaves overboard to claim the insurance.
The Maritime Museum was a little disappointing. Liverpool has a rich history of seafaring, not all of it sordid. The stately ocean liners departed from here to New York and now about 70% of trade with North America passes through Liverpool's new container ports. There was little of this in the museum, though, just two exhibits dealing with the Titanic and the sinking of the Lusitania in WWI.
The Mersey ferry has been plying the Mersey estuary for 150 years. It still is an important service but is also a tourist attraction. We sailed over to the Wirral peninsula and disembarked to look at the remains of an old German U-Boat which was sunk in 1945 by a Halifax bomber using depth charges.
Inside the Slavery Museum
Liverpool Cityscape from the Mersey Ferry
We could have used a couple more days in Liverpool. We were somewhat exhausted by the end of our visit. The drive back to Mercia was only 88 miles but took over 2 hours because of dense traffic and road-works on the M6.
I would love to come back here by boat and moor awhile in the docks, but sadly that will probably never happen. It's a two week cruise from Mercia one way and lots of big locks on the way.
The Liver Building
We spent a week on and around the marina after returning from Liverpool. The weather continues brutally hot, over 30C every day. One day the high was 36C (97F) which felt worse than being in Arizona as we have no aircon in the lodge or the boat. The news is full of the excessive heat all over Europe, Japan, China and North America. We had dinner with our friends Carol & Keith (right) in the Boardwalk one night and next day visited them and their dog Lucky on their boat.
Barb and I went out on the boat for two days, traveling the Trent and Mersey up to Barton Marina and back. It was pleasant enough in the mornings just tootling along with Basil's windows and doors all open wide, but it was really too hot to work locks or do anything at all after 2 p.m. Yesterday the weather broke and right now it is grey and pouring watery stuff. We are hoping for a happy medium when Anita and John come next week. We are going to London on Monday (30th) and they arrive there on Wednesday.
Lucky With His Teeth In
Cattle Sheltering from the Heat
Cruising on an Aqueduct Over the River Dove
Almost Home - Moored in Willington
A hectic couple of weeks prevented this diarist from scribbling. We went to London by train from East Midlands Parkway because there are no trains from Derby to London while the station is being reconfigured. I got horribly lost on the way and we found ourselves on the M1 heading south and could not turn back for miles. Then I repeated the error going north. Result: missed train. We caught another 45 minutes later and luckily the conductor accepted our tickets for the wrong train. We hauled all our bags on the Tube to Waterloo and walked to the Premier Inn, County Hall in the searing heat as the 'heat wave' continues to blast the British Isles. One day the high was 36C (97F) in a city largely bereft of air conditioning. Fortunately, in spite of a notice to the contrary on our bedroom wall, the Premier Inn is now so equipped. Next night we went to see 'Tina- the Musical' at the Adelphi. Adrienne Warren, who plays Tina Turner did a great job and the music is great, of course, but the acting was a little stilted and, well, nobody can compare to the real Tina.
We duly met Anita and John (Barb's sis and brother-in-law) at Heathrow for their first ever visit to the UK and shepherded them back via the TFL Connector train to Paddington and a taxi to the hotel. Once again, I will clam up and let the pictures talk:
Thames Panorama from the Tate Modern
With Anita and John at Heathrow Rail Station
Outside the County Hall Theatre where
we later saw Agatha Christie's
Witness for the Prosecution
Premier Inn, County Hall (left) and the
London Eye at Night
Parliament is shrouded in scaffolding due to
major renovations. Only Big Ben's face is visible
(except panorama, top)
The Thames by Night
(Rebuilt on the South Bank by Sam Wanamaker)
St. Paul's Cathedral from the Tate Modern
The Shard - Tallest Building in the EU
Seafood Stall in Borough Market
A Highlight was Anita's Birthday at Da Mario
Restaurant in Covent Garden with most of my
family in attendance. Small Italian place with
My arthritic ankles were acting up so I took a boat to Greenwich and explored the Cutty Sark (an old Tea Clipper) and the Royal Naval College while Barb, Anita and John went to Portobello Road Market and also saw where Barb used to live in the early 1970's.
After an illustrious career transporting tea from
India and wool from Australia (when it set the
sailing ship record of 70 days from Sydney)
the Cutty Sark is now high and dry as a
museum in Greenwich.
Captain Carter at the Helm (he wishes).
Fine Collection of Figureheads at the Cutty Sark
We also visited my old BBC mate Colin.
Here he is with Barb outside the Adelaide
Pub in Teddington where we lunched
On August 4th we traveled by train with Anita and John back to Mercia Marina to show them the REAL England (or at least one version of it). London is a giant seething cosmopolitan mix of cultures from all over the world and no more representative of Britain than New York is of the USA. The Midlands is proudly blue-collar working class and predominantly Anglo but with many immigrants from Pakistan, India and the Caribbean. Anita and John were impressed with the peace and quiet of the marina. While they were here we went boating for a day and visited Chatsworth House, the stately home of the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire. What the Duke of Devonshire is doing in Derbyshire I was unable to adequately explain. We also went to Matlock Bath, a pretty little town in a gorge of the River Derwent.
Aboard Basil
John did most of the steering and was very
good at it - a natural narrowboater.
Anita Tries the Helm
Barbara at Chatsworth.
We hung out in the Capability Brown Garden
while Anita and John toured the 270-room
house and grounds
Pastoral Perfection - the Derwent runs
through the grounds at Chatsworth
The Derwent Again at Matlock Bath
While they were here we ate out every night. None of us were very impressed with the Boardwalk, it has really gone downhill. A & J finally had fish and chips at the Dragon in Willington and were so impressed we had to go back and repeat the experience. The Dragon has been the butt of my sarcasm in the past. They once served me a pulled pork sandwich which consisted of a smear of pork on a huge bun. I sent them a photo of a real one upon my return to the States. I have to revise my opinion now, though, the food there is excellent. We also ate twice at Nadee and it did not disappoint.
It was really sad to see Anita and John leave. I was so terrified of making another navigational error on the way to East Midlands station that I dumped them there 45 minutes early. They managed to return to Bellingham without too much aggro except for weather delays of about 1.5 hours at Heathrow.
Could this be a Texas Longhorn?
(Seen by the canal in a field full of assorted cows)
Now we are lonely and stranded in our lodge, decompressing before our cruise to the Norwegian Fjords at the end of August. The heat wave is definitely over and the weather has reverted to British summer - cloudy and gray with intermittent rain but quite warm.
We did manage one short last cruise before winterizing Basil and packing up to leave the Midlands. This may well be our last canal cruise together as Barb doesn't like the Midlands and doesn't care for boating much anymore. My arthritic ankles, particularly the left one, have deteriorated markedly and we may have to sell the boat next year if I can't get some relief from the docs over the winter and if I cannot get cruising help. To that end, I am getting a valuation done tomorrow *. Very depressing, but all good things must come to an end.
In spite of the clouds hanging over us, real and emotional, we had a pleasant 4-night cruise to Alrewas and back. It is one of the most attractive villages on the canal system and sparkled in the dappled sunshine. We stayed two nights and ate both nights at the Crown Inn because The George, our usual haven, is closed for restoration. I have high hopes for the Crown but it is a work in progress. The new managers, Claire and Andrew, are really trying hard and the food is imaginative and excellent but the service needs improvement. The staff are too busy laughing behind the bar or striding through the restaurant avoiding eye contact with the customers. Menus sit on tables alongside empty glasses for too long before anyone notices. Andrew is a former cruise line chef and produces dishes which are a cut above the usual pub fare, though those staples are listed too. We both had trio of pork the first night, excellent. Next night, I had Mediterranean flatbread which was loaded with grilled veggies and really good, while Barb had a steak. Her steak was grossly overdone even after a long friendly discussion with Andrew about how she liked it (pink, no blood). We were presented with dessert menus and ignored by the vacuous young staff for ten minutes before we managed to flag one of them down. Another ten minutes produced no dessert so we deserted, paid up and left.
Moored Alone below Branston Lock in
Sight of the Needwood Forest
Dusk at Branston
Awaiting Release from Tatenhill Lock
The Trent Flows Across the Canal at Alrewas
Alrewas Lock
Old Working Narrowboat Crewed by Self-
Described Nutcases
Alrewas Lock Bypass Weir
Moorhen and (Day Old?) Chick
Crowded 48-Hour Moorings at Alrewas
Barbara's Tormentor Waits to Woo-Hoo
Her Tonight
* FOOTNOTE:
Ian from the New and Used Boat Company came to value Basil and basically shot himself in the foot by persuading me not to sell. I told him the reasons - my arthritis and Barb's increasing dislike of boating - and he said "I would get a new one". For an instant I thought he meant a new smaller boat, easier to operate single-handed. Then I realized he meant wife. He said he has been boating for 50 years and would "never give it up". He was 10 when he started with his Dad. He has a prenuptial agreement with his wife that he will never have to sell his boat.
He also told me the story of a customer who came to sell recently. Ian asked "Why do you want to sell? I just sold you this boat 4 years ago." The man said he never liked to traverse the same stretch of waterway twice. We agreed that we both like to revisit places we love: Tixall Wide, Alrewas, Trent Lock and many others. A man after my own heart. Food for thought. He enthused about Basil's layout and condition and valued him at mid �70,000s.
On the left is our new visitor, Delilah. She sought us out last year when we were in Oak, again this year in Laurel and now she has found us here in Bay Tree. She comes in at least twice a day for a cuddle, struts around the house and finds different places to curl up. She is completely unafraid of anything it seems, sure of her superior position in the world. I went to see her 'owner', Tracey, who lives on a wide-beam barge fairly close. She says Delilah is a former Lithuanian beauty queen. She had two litters for a breeder. The second litter 'did not turn out well', so she was spayed and adopted by Tracey and her husband. She is a "Highland Straight" because her ears are not folded like a Highland Fold. One parent had folded ears, the other straight. We are honoured to serve.
Mon, Aug 27th
On Wednesday we are off on a Norwegian Fjords Cruise with my brother Mike, his wife Angela and four of her family. We have been busy packing up and winterizing Basil.
Heard this morning that Arizona Senator John McCain died. The BBC aired a far from fawning tribute, pointing out his numerous policy shifts on subjects from campaign finance reform to immigration. But he was an implacable foe of Donald Trump and basically a decent human being. There should be an interesting election in Arizona.
This will be my last regurgitation from England. There won't be time to write from the North Sea, so I will post some pictures after we get back to the USA on Sept 9th.
There's a Nip in the Air as we Prepare to
This is the Ridiculous New Canal and River
Trust Logo. Looks like any other amorphous
corporate generic logo. The previous one,
featuring a swan under a bridge, at least bore
some relevance to the waterways. This was
designed by some company that knows
nothing about waterways.
Back now in the searing heat of Phoenix (41C when we landed, same as when we left). Here is an account of our Norweigan Fjords Cruise:
We were intending to unwind in Woodchurch for a day before we shipped out, but a cataclysmic event occurred. As we were approaching the Thames Crossing at Dartford on the M25 (London Orbital Freeway) at about 2 p.m. we suddenly ground to a halt and became a speck in a huge traffic jam. After a couple of hours we discovered, via local radio, that two trucks had collided and were blocking the entire motorway. Almost simultaneously another accident in the anticlockwise direction caused a diesel spill which closed the road in that direction. We were stuck for hours before help arrived to clear the freeway and then we had to drive east because all roads into London were blocked. I found a pub/restaurant where we had dinner and I was able to book online the last room in a nearby Premier Inn. It was 3 miles from the pub to the hotel and it took over an hour to drive there including some hair-raising and illegal driving on the wrong side of the road. Every road within a ten-mile radius of Dartford was locked solid. The crossing was closed for 16 hours and 200 motorists had to sleep in an Ikea warehouse overnight. We were lucky to actually have a comfy bed in a hotel at about 9:30 p.m.
Next day we got away early and everything was moving again, so we easily made the cruise departure from Dover in the afternoon. There were eight of us in the family group (see near end of page) and we left our car in Wye and boarded a bus to get to the docks.
The cruise ship, Fred Olsen Lines' Boudicca, was much nicer than we expected. Several people we know had rubbished Fred Olsen. One said "If you've been on Oceania and rated it five stars, Fred Olsen is minus one star". Boudicca is an older ship but beautifully designed and well maintained. It actually looks like a ship and not a floating apartment block. The cabins are larger than the equivalent Oceania cabin (260 sq ft vs 175). The staff were unfailing friendly and professional, the food was fine, sometimes excellent, and a good time was had by all. F.O. does charge for things that are inclusive on most cruise lines, but then the initial cost was much cheaper and the drinks are reasonably priced. Most of the passengers were British with a smattering of other nationalities. Barb was the only American! One of our party of eight, Eleanor, suffers from cerebral palsy and is in a wheelchair. The staff were great with her. There were 660 of us (880 is the max) and 372 crew aboard as we set sail from a steely grey and dismal Dover. However, the weather soon cleared and we saw no more rain until we approached Dover again a week later. The Fjords were mostly basking in sunshine or speckled with fluffy clouds.
After a day crossing the North Sea we explored
some fjords on the way to Eidfjord (above, right
and below)
Next day (Sept 1st) we moored at Eidfjord..
..and walked up a salmon river
..to a pretty lake.
Toadstool encountered at Eidfjord
Early Cruise Passengers
(Actually "The Goblin Tastes the Brew"
by Nils Bergslien in the Eidfjord Art Museum)
This diary is uncensored except that Barb has to
approve any photo of her before I publish it. She
did not like this one but I like it, because it tells
a story. The story may be in your (fevered?)
imagination, but it's a story nonetheless.
This is the posed and sanitized version that she
prefers. I am hoping to hold my own on this.
As you can see, I did.
Riding the Bus from Flam
A Waterfall at Every Hairpin Bend
We cruised overnight to Flam where we moored on the dock close to the town centre. We boarded a bus for a ride up to the town of Voss, high in the mountains. The trip was exhilarating - through tunnels, up mountain roads, over bridges and with breathtaking views in every direction. Our guide told a joke about a Flam bus driver and a Priest who both died and reached the pearly gates together. St. Peter said to the driver "You may enter the Kingdom of Heaven immediately, but the Priest must wait awhile." The Priest protested "But I have always served God. I have encouraged people to go to church and to pray and I have given long sermons in praise of God!" St. Peter replied "Yes, but many people slept through your services and did not pray, but when the driver drove people round the mountains near Flam, everybody stayed awake and prayed fervently to God."
Rest Stop at Tvinde Waterfall
The bus ride ended at Voss (above), where we boarded a train to Myrdal. There we changed to the famous Flamsbana Railway, a candidate for the world's most scenic train ride. The track descends 867 metres over 20 km to Flam. An incredible feat of engineering involving massive tunnels, bridges and grades of over 1:18.
The Flamsbana Wends its Way from Myrdal
to Flam
* Photos by Michael Carter
The Train Stops at Kjosfossen Falls
At Kjosfossen Falls (left) the train ground to a halt and we dismounted to view the falls. Suddenly, the air is rent by eerie, thunderous music and a sprite appears from behind the rocks, dancing to the music. This is the Huldra, a mythical woman who is beautiful (except for a cow's tail), and who lures men into the forest and pleads them to marry her.
If they do, she loses her tail, becomes ugly, and gains the strength of ten men. The hokey Huldra (in red, just visible in the photo), we later learned, was played by a man in drag!
Pigarina and Pigletta Enjoyed the Ride
Early Flamsbana Locomotive in the Museum
Adjacent to Flam Station
We could have used more time in Flam, there is so much to see and do there, but we cruised on through more beautiful fjords to Bergen, arriving next morning, Sept 3rd. Bergen is a big, busy city with an attractive port rivaling Sydney or San Francisco.
Colourful Bergen Architecture (above and right)
(except panorama above)
We rode the modern funicular (left) to the top
of Mount Fl�yen where there are spectacular
views of the city, restaurants, trails and goats.
View of Bergen from Mount Fl�yen
Two Old Goats (and Barbara)
Good Thing Pigs Can Fly
(Photo by Angela Carter)
The Bramleys, Finns and Carters at The Grill
aboard Boudicca (bathed in infrared light).
From left: Eleanor (Jackie and Peter's daughter)
Peter Bramley, Me, Barb, Jack Finn (Angela &
Jackie's Dad), Angela & Michael (my Bro) and
Jackie Bramley.
Our fellow family cruisers presented us with
this professional photo of us in fancy dress.
After one more day crossing a calm North Sea, we docked in Dover on a damp and dreary morning, finding it much as we had left it. Sadly, our cruise had come to an end, as all good things must.
A real sadness is that Eleanor had contracted a throat infection during the last few days aboard and was running a fever. The day after she got home she had to be rushed to A&E (ER) with pneumonia and a collapsed lung. She is in hospital fighting for her life as I write. We are all hoping for the best and I will add a postscript when I know more.
White Cliffs Welcome
After the cruise we visited Richard (my friend and 'Uncle' who by a quirk is actually younger than I) and his new wife Viv at home in Goudhurst, then spent a day with Michael, visiting my sister in Deal. After that, a final day in London before flying home to Phoenix on Sept 9th. Our summer was over.
Cristo Art in Hyde Park, London
made from 7,500 oil barrels
With my Sister Angela in Deal
Barb in Ye Grapes, Mayfair
Fly Bye (the Summer Did) (Photo by Barb)
BACK to Summers Menu


Texas' Sales Tax Holiday is upon us. Here is a guide to help you determine what items will qualify for tax exemption and which ones will not.
Back to school supplies and clothing are commonly known as tax-exempt items during Texas' Sales Tax Holiday, which is held from Aug. 10 through Aug. 12.
But what is exactly fits under tax exemption and what doesn't?
The Texas Comptroller's Office released its guide to which items qualify for tax exemption and which items do not.
First and foremost, the item must be priced under $100 to qualify for the tax-free holiday. The $100 quota is a "per item" price, too. From there, the list becomes item-specific.
According to the website, most clothing and footwear is tax-exempt. The exemption applies to each eligible item sold for less than $100, and there is no limit to the number of qualifying items you can buy, the website says. So for example, you could buy a $50 shirt, a $30 pair of jeans, and a $60 pair of tennis shoes and each item qualifies for tax exemption even though the total is $150.
Examples of items not included for tax-free weekend are: specially-designed athletic activity or protective-use clothing or footwear -- such as golf cleats or football pads -- jewelry, handbags, purses, briefcases, luggage, umbrellas, wallets, watches and other accessories.
For a full list of tax-free qualifying clothing and footwear, click here.
Most student backpacks sold for under $100 dollars will be tax-exempt. The exemption includes backpacks with wheels and messenger bags. You can buy up to 10 backpacks tax-free at one time without giving an exemption certificate to the seller, according to the Texas Comptroller's website.
Only specific school supplies sold for less than $100 qualify for the exemption, and an exemption certificate is not required, the website says. Binders, notebooks, pens, pencils, paper, and erasers are among the popular tax-free school supplies. For a full list of tax-free school supplies, click here.
1. Buying school supplies with a business account: If you plan on buying school supplies with a business account, you must complete Form 01-339, Texas Sales and Use Tax Exemption Certificate, first and present that to the seller.
2. Paying for "specially ordered" or "back ordered" tax-free items: you must pay for the qualifying item during the tax-free weekend for it to be tax exempt. For example, if you want to buy an $80 shirt that qualifies for tax-free weekend, but it needs to be special-ordered and will not be able for pickup until after tax-free weekend is over, the shirt must be paid for during the holiday or else the shirt will be taxable.
For more information about the tax-free weekend, visit the Texas Comptroller's website here.


Check out YouTube videos on how to make animations more realistic. Enjoy!!!
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Have you found your Pooh?
I am talking about Pooh Bear of course, and the simple wisdom we can learn from him.
I was listening to one of my favourite books yesterday, the Tao of Pooh by Benjamin Hoff.
And it reminded me of how many people are still searching for their "inner Pooh Bear".
Sadly, many never find it.
The human psyche is so beautifully described in A.A.Milne's stories of Pooh.
The "What if…." part of us that worries about what has not yet happened and is nervous and on edge.
Then, there's Eeyore the donkey.
The depressed part of the human mind.
The character who wants an explanation for everything.
The person who thinks a lot.
Can always search for answers and a reason.
When sometimes there just isn't one.
The bouncy tiger who can do and be and achieve anything.
"Can tiggers climb trees?" asked Piglet.
"Of course we can!" replied Tigger.
Tigger bounces up a tree.
Only to find he can't get down and is stuck.
And now to the voice of wisdom.
How can Pooh be described?
The part of us which knows that the only true quality to be found in life is in the moment of now.
"What day is it?" asked Piglet.
"It's my favourite day," replied Pooh.
"Why is it your favourite day?" snapped Owl.
"Because it's today," said Pooh.
Bad memories of the past.
They do not serve you in any way.
The "what if…?" questions you can't answer.
Attempting to control things in an unpredictable world.
Guaranteed to bring unnecessary anxiety and stress.
The smell of the flower.
The laughter with a friend.
The warmth off a hug.
The taste off your favourite tea.
The sunset across the ocean.
Herein lies the quality of life.
Something a small bear called Winnie the Pooh knows all about.
I'm off to find my inner Pooh Bear and be less of a Piglet, Owl, Eeyore or Tigger.


text:
Top UK Stocks to Watch: Ocado shares rise as earnings treble
Joshua Warner July 6, 2021 8:54 AM
Ocado earnings more than treble, Sainsbury's raises its guidance as sales jump, Purplebricks beats expectations as it looks to scale up, Assura says development activity has reached record levels, and Bridgepoint confirms its IPO plans while Lords Group outlines plans to list on AIM.
Top News: Ocado says pandemic has changed grocery landscape 'for good'
Ocado said earnings more than trebled during its recently-ended financial year as it continues to benefit from the shift to online grocery shopping, but said increased investment could hold back earnings from growing in the new year.
Revenue rose 21.4% in the 26 weeks to May 30 to £1.3 billion, driven by growth from both its grocery and Solutions business that helps other firms with their ecommerce offerings. Ebitda more than trebled to £61.0 million.
Despite the significant improvement, revenue was way below what was expected by analysts and earnings were lower than the £65.7 million forecast. Ocado as a whole remained in the red at the bottom-line with a pretax loss of £23.6 million, but that was an improvement from the £40.6 million loss booked the year before.
Its online grocery arm, which works with Marks & Spencer, delivered 19.8% revenue growth in the period and saw earnings jump by over 58%, driven by the fact Ocado is delivering industry-leading margins. It ended the period with 777,000 active customers, up from 639,000 the year before.
'As we head towards a post Covid-19 future, it is increasingly clear that the landscape for grocery worldwide has changed, for good. Over the last eighteen months, we have shown that the Ocado model works even in the most challenging and fluid of environments. That ours is a proven model in online grocery has been again demonstrated by the strong performance of Ocado Retail, the historic core of the Ocado business, which has led the market in customer experience, increasing sales by 20% in the period, thanks to a significant increase in customer numbers, while continuing to show sustainable and industry-leading profitable growth,' said chief executive Tim Steiner.
Its UK Solutions business reported 13% revenue growth and a 6.4% increase in earnings, with the Bristol CFC now scaling faster than any site built before. Its International Solutions arm remained in the red but revenue leapt to £26.1 million from only £1.6 million the year before as centres for the likes of Groupe Casino in France and Sobeys in Canada start to take-off.
Separately, the company announced Ocado Solutions has struck a partnership with Auchan Retail to help develop the online business of its Alcampo brand. Auchan is one of the world's largest grocers that is active in 13 countries and owns the Alcampo brand in Spain that has 310 stores and books around EUR4.5 billion in revenue each year. An acceleration in online shopping has encouraged Alcampo to build its online offering, with the partnership to see Ocado build a CFC in Madrid from 2024. More centres are to be announced in the future. Ocado's software will also be deployed to help run the new digital operations.
Although business is going well, Ocado warned that it expected its Solutions arm to contribute £30 million less in Ebitda over the next year than previously thought. This is mainly because the cost of integrating Kindred Systems has increased and due to higher levels of investment in the UK and internationally. Still, it said the strong performance from its grocery arm means it is leaving its expectations for the new year unchanged.
Where next for the Ocado share price?
The Ocado share price reached an all-time high in late January at 2886p. The price has been trending lower since.
The price found a floor at 1820p in early June and has been attempting a recovery since. The price has moved back over its 50 day ma which now offers support.
Buyers are now targeting 2080p; the 100 sma and the descending trendline dating back to late February. A move above this level would negate the current downtrend and could see buyers gain traction towards 2250p the April high.
Failure to break above 2080p could see the price retrace to the 50 sma at 1970p and support at 1820p. A break below here could see 1705p come into play, a level last seen in April 2020.
Sainsbury's raises guidance after outperforming in first quarter
Sainsbury's said sales of groceries, general merchandise and clothing were all better than expected during the first quarter, prompting it to raise its guidance for the full-year.
Total like-for-like and reported sales were up 1.6% excluding fuel in the 16 weeks to June 26. Notably, sales were still running 10.3% higher than two years prior, before the pandemic hit, demonstrating that whilst sales are still running markedly ahead of pre-pandemic levels that growth is slowing as supermarkets start to come up against tough comparatives from last year when demand exploded.
Grocery sales rose 0.8% year-on-year and clothing sales jumped 57.6% as people refreshed their wardrobes as lockdown eases. General merchandise sales were down 1.4% as a decline at Argos offset an impressive rise in merchandise sales inside Sainsbury's supermarkets.
'Sales of grocery, general merchandise and clothing were all higher than our expectations throughout the quarter. Grocery sales benefited from higher in-home consumption due to continued COVID-19 restrictions. In addition, we continued to outperform competitors and grow market share, reflecting improved value, more innovation and better customer service as we make strong progress in putting food back at the heart of Sainsbury's. General merchandise sales were lower than last year's elevated levels but ahead of our expectations, despite global supply challenges which are likely to continue for the remainder of the year,' said the supermarket.
Sainsbury's said it now expects to deliver annual underlying pretax profit of at least £660 million, up from its previous goal of just £620 million. That would compare to the £356 million delivered in the last financial year and the £586 million booked the prior year before the pandemic hit.
Sainsbury's said its performance has encouraged it to accelerate investment into the business to improve value for customers. This includes a new £50 million investment to help lower prices on targeted products and everyday essentials.
Sainsbury's shares were trading just 0.1% higher this morning at 278.7p, but they still trade at their highest level since February 2019. That has also been partly driven by the bidding war that looks set to erupt for rival Morrisons, which now has at least three potential suitors. This has prompted theories that Sainsbury's and other supermarkets could become takeover targets as private equity firms look to tap-into the UK grocery market.
Purplebricks beats expectations as it unveils '2.0' strategy
Purplebricks reported significantly higher earnings than expected during its recently-ended financial year as the company embarks on what it calls 'Purplebricks 2.0' that aims to scale-up the business and evolve it into a more mature organisation.
The online estate agency said revenue rose 13% in the year to the end of April to £90.9 million from £80.5 million the year before. Adjusted Ebitda more than quadrupled to £12.0 million from £2.9 million and it escaped the red at the bottom-line by turning to an £6.8 million profit from operations compared to a £5.7 million loss the year before.
The results were significantly better than expected, with analysts having forecast revenue of £88.0 million and adjusted Ebitda of just £2.6 million.
'The group has started the new financial year in a strong position, with a very clear understanding of its operational barriers to success, and with multiple strategic levers in place to drive its growth. The group's new pricing structures, including a Money Back Guarantee and a simplified two-tier proposition, are launching in July 2021,' said the company.
'The market for sales is buoyant at the moment, with fall through rates at their lowest in a long time, but with the very healthy demand currently outstripping new supply volumes. We expect supply and demand to return to more of a balance post Summer,' it added.
The company said Ebitda in the new financial year will be broadly flat but said its strategy should accelerate growth in revenue over the coming years. Purplebricks said it had around 4.6% market share based on the number of properties sold during the year, a slight dip from the 5.1% reported the year before. However, Purplebricks said it continues to pursue a 10% slice of the market over the medium-term.
'Once these initiatives have been successfully rolled out, the group will accelerate its marketing strategy to grow instructions and share. As a result of these strategic changes, the board expects Purplebricks to be able to deliver annual revenue growth in excess of 20% in the medium-term, with confidence in the group's ability to deliver against its growth strategy,' Purplebricks explained.
Purplebricks shares were down 2.5% in early trade this morning at 83.50p.
Assura grows portfolio as development activity hits record levels
Assura, which invests and develops in primary care properties, said it continued to grow its portfolio during the first quarter of its financial year and that development activity has reached record levels.
The company said it ended the first quarter to the end of June with a portfolio of 610 properties that combined have an annualised rent roll of £123.5 million. It added 12 new properties in the period after developing one and buying 11 more for a total cost of £53.0 million. Meanwhile, it sold off 11 properties for a total of £15 million, which it said was above book value.
Assura also said that current development activity, with 17 sites currently under construction at a total cost of around £99 million, currently sits at record levels. That is up from £72 million at the end of March.
It said its acquisition and development pipelines have both grown over the last three months. It now has an acquisition pipeline worth around £58 million and said these should be purchased within the next three to six months. That is up from a £46 million pipeline at the end of March. Meanwhile, it has 19 schemes worth £121 million within its development pipeline where it expects to begin work within the next 12 months compared to only £111 million three months earlier.
Assura said it has also strengthened its financial position following the issue of its £300 million sustainability bond in June, which allowed it to end June with net debt of £954 million.
Assura shares were trading 0.5% higher in early trade this morning at 75.3p.
IPO News: Bridgepoint aims for Main Market as Lords Group eyes AIM listing
In IPO news this morning, Bridgepoint confirmed it plans to list on the main market of the London Stock Exchange and said it will issue new shares to raise £300 million. It will float at least 25% of the business and said it expects to qualify for the FTSE UK indices.
The company, which invests in private equity and credit, first unveiled its IPO plans on June 29. The company claims to be the 'leading middle market private markets firm in the world'. The middle market refers to mid-sized companies, many of which tend to still be in private hands.
Bridgepoint said its assets under management has grown quickly over the years and driven a significant improvement in results. Operating income rose to £191.8 million in 2020 from £144.8 million in 2018 while underlying Ebitda increased to £66.1 million from £43.3 million. It said 'further profitable growth has been achieved' during the initial months of 2021.
Meanwhile, Lords Group, which distributes building materials across the UK, has said it plans to list on AIM by issuing 54.7 million new and existing shares at 95.0 pence each. It has completed a placing to raise £30 million for the company and £22 million for existing shareholders, but both are conditional on shares being floated on AIM.
Lords Group shares will begin trading on AIM on July 20 and it will start life as a publicly-traded business with a market cap of around £150 million. Around 34.5% of the business will be floated upon listing.
Lords Group's core business is supplying building materials, DIY goods and plumbing and heating products to a network of merchants and online businesses in the UK from its 24 distribution sites. It currently generates annual revenue of around £288 million but aims to grow this to £500 million by 2024.
'The company is seeking admission in order to raise new equity to provide flexibility to accelerate its growth organically and through acquisitions, as well as to enable the selling shareholders to sell a proportion of their current shareholding. The group will seek to continue its growth through a variety of organic and inorganic strategies, including geographic reach, product expansion, the active expansion of e-commerce platforms and the continued investment in its logistical capability,' said the company.
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IT Service Automation enables Canada to Ensure Safe Blood Supply – Kifinti Solutions Inc.
IT service automation was key to delivering quality IT services more efficiently. "We needed a system that delivered information about operations quickly to the right people to allow them to make informed decisions and communicate with the people who need to execute the work," he says.
The IT team set out to find an enterprise-class service management platform. Beyond robust support for ITIL® principles, IT wanted a solution with strong workflow and self-service capabilities to increase efficiency. As a point of qualification, the chosen solution needed to be able to automate a critical intake process for SAP: streamlining the coordination of the initial request, validating the roles, coordinating the training, and creating the account access. "It was a complex process, and that was our high-water mark," says Aiston.
After a formal RFP, Canadian Blood Services chose Ivanti Service Manager and deployed it in the cloud. "We want to be experts in using an IT service management system, but running the system is best handled by the industry experts that designed it," says Aiston.
Canadian Blood Services has taken a measured rollout of its IT service management system, beginning with Incident Management, Service Request, Self Service, Service Catalog, Problem Management, and then building on that foundation with Change Management, Release Management, Survey, and Service Level Management.
The results are impressive. Ralph Michaelis, CIO of Canadian Blood Services, says, "Ivanti and our IT Service Management program at Canadian Blood Services has had a significant impact on IT operations. Our service management implementation is providing us the visibility, data, and agility we need to transform the business of IT." As an example, with ITIL processes supported by the Service Manager platform, Canadian Blood Services reduced its outage rate by 70%. Its change success rate improved from around 75% to 95%.
"Service Manager's strength is its well-thought-out, ITIL based configuration," says Aiston. Each IT team has its own specialty, but increasingly IT services rely on integrated technologies. "Service Manager provides the ability to reintegrate service support even though it may span different teams, each providing a different component of a particular service," he says.
IT created or improved dozens of processes with Service Manager. The server request process is one example. It's a highly-controlled process that requires coordination between multiple teams and multiple validation checks. In the past, the routing of requests to create a server virtual machine took two weeks to complete. Now, with an automated service request workflow, request handling is completed in about two hours. "Multiply that type of improvement by dozens of processes, and you can understand how much improvement we've undergone," says Aiston.
Empowering employees to use self service has cut service desk call volumes in half, and moved a third of intake to the web. The shift was organic. "The ease with which our business took to the web as a means of request submission is a testament to Service Manager," says Aiston.
Ivanti Service Manager improved visibility into operational metrics, so IT can better align its resources with the organization's priorities. In the past, IT directors requested reporting from a separate business-intelligence platform.
IT continues to drive service quality. IT is advancing the change management process by creating a data model that enhances the architectural information in the CMDB to provide visibility from individual components all the way through to the business service.
"There's going to be a transformation in IT when people understand that this information is available to them as part of the change process," he says. That information will free up IT experts who provide insight into potential issues during changes today. "We'll back off our reliance on people and rely on technical information and the histories of our infrastructure items to know which ones are serving us well and which ones aren't," says Aiston.
Another current focus is service level management, which allows IT to set expectations for service requests. "It ties us to the business more tightly, and we can see whether we are meeting those targets," he says.
Aiston and his team lead the ITIL transformation at Canadian Blood Services, and also have relied on Kifinti for expert guidance. Aiston and his team did the heavy lifting of design and deployment. "We wanted to build up our own strength and understanding of Service Manager and handle the day-to-day work ourselves, and then bring in Kifinti for the more complex work," says Aiston.
Aiston has learned that when it comes to ITIL, you need just the right amount. "There's a tendency to skim the surface with ITIL, which isn't very effective – or people go to the other extreme and go whole-hog," says Aiston. "When ITIL implementations get in trouble, it's often because they lost track of ITIL's operational value and they do things strictly for what looks like good ITIL reasons.
"When that happens, people lose interest in the process," he continues. "The returns diminish when you overburden a process with information. People stop being able to make the right decisions at the right time.


text:
Q: Decoding Base64 to pdf Turkish Character Problem I am decoding base64 to pdf but Turkish characters(ğ,ş,İ...) doesn't appear when I open pdf.
it should appear like this:

but it looks like this now:
.
code snippet is
val pathPdf =
    File(
        "${
            Environment.getExternalStoragePublicDirectory(
                Environment.DIRECTORY_DOWNLOADS
            )
        }/POLSAN${id}.pdf"
    )
val pdfAsBytes: ByteArray =
    Base64.decode("base64string", Base64.DEFAULT)
val fos = FileOutputStream(pathPdf, false)
fos.write(pdfAsBytes)
fos.flush()
fos.close()

A: I think you have to use UTF8 to be able to see special characters.
String(pdfAsBytes, StandardCharSets.UTF_8)

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


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text:
Q: Outlook 2010 Error I'm running Outlook 2010 SP1 on Windows 7 x64 SP1, and I'm getting an error message saying

"Your Microsoft Exchange administrator has blocked the version of Outlook that you are using. Contact your administrator for assistance."

I'm still able to log into my account using Outlook Web Access (OWA), so I know that my account is working just fine. Outlook 2010 with Service Pack 1 is the standard for Windows 7 client systems at this organization, and other people are able to access their e-mail just fine. When my account was initially configured, I was able to use Outlook for a couple of days, and then it suddenly stopped working, providing only the above error message.
Do you have any ideas on what I should look into to resolve this problem? Is there any information I can obtain on the client side that will help the Exchange folks investigate the issue further? Is there any verbose logging I can enable, or diagnostic logging in Outlook?
Cheers

A: Statement: I'm still able to log into my account using Outlook Web Access (OWA), so I know that my account is working just fine.
Retort: Of course it is, because the message you're getting doesn't say anything about your account being unavailable or disabled/locked out. The message very clearly states that the version of Outlook that you're using has been blocked.
Q: Do you have any ideas on what I should look into to resolve this problem?
A: Yes. Speak to your Exchange administrator and tell him/her the message you're getting regarding your Outlook client.
Q: Is there any information I can obtain on the client side that will help the Exchange folks investigate the issue further? Is there any verbose logging I can enable, or diagnostic logging in Outlook?
A: How could it not already be blatantly, painfully obvious what the problem is? What could additional logging/information tell you that you don't already know? Stop over thinking and over troubleshooting this. Every problem doesn't have to have a complex, mysterious cause. KIS applies to troubleshooting as much as it does to anything else. If your Exchange admins need any additional information beyond what the message states in order to "investigate the issue further" then they're probably not the right folks for that job.
I appreciate the fact that you want to give your admins as much information as possible, and I'm not picking on you, but too many times I see people going off on wild goose hunts while trying to resolve a problem when basic, logical, deductive reasoning is all that's needed to find a resolution. In your case, the message is very clear as to what the problem is. Give that info to your admins and let them address it.

A: The error message is pretty self explanatory. Exchange allows you to set a minimum client version to connect to the server with. It may be the admin set the client version incorrectly (as you are running fairly recent version of Outlook). This minimum can be set on a per-CAS basis or per mailbox on Exchange 2010
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd335207.aspx

A: This link should supply you with the troubleshooting steps you need: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/924625


text:
Edin Dzeko Will Reject MLS Move & Take Pay Cut In Order To Secure Contract Extension At Inter, Italian Media Claim
Inter striker Edin Dzeko is determined to remain at the club beyond the end of the season and is ready to turn down a move to Major League Soccer or the United Arab Emirates.
According to La Gazzetta dello Sport, the Bosnia and Herzegovina international is happy at Inter and wants to see out his career in Serie A and at the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza, but is approaching the end of the contract he signed upon joining from Roma in 2021.
Whilst Dzeko has garnered interest from the USA and the UAE, his intention is to remain at Inter and he is believed to be willing to take a pay cut in order to facilitate a new contract.
The 36-year-old currently earns €5.5 million per season and the Nerazzurri are not looking to offer him terms close to that figure, but are willing to retain him on a reduced salary.
Dzeko has made 70 appearances for Inter in all competitions, scoring 26 goals.
By Suhayl Al-Sammari
@suhayl92
Inter Milan Could Sell Milan Skriniar To PSG For €15M If Atalanta Loan Merih Demiral As Replacement, Italian Broadcaster Reports
Lille's Djalo, Udinese's Becao & Spurs' Tanganga Among Inter Milan's Targets To Replace Skriniar, Italian Media Report
Inter Milan Defender Milan Skriniar Informed Teammates Of Plan To Join PSG Last Week Before Club Did So, Italian Media Report