Long after I had arranged to attend a performance of the St.John Passion in a concert in Basel on 2018-03-29, I received a proposal / offer to review a second performance of the same St.John Passion in the Église Saint-François in Lausanne, just two days after the one in Basel. The invitation came a mere four days prior to the performance on 2018-03-31. However, I had never been in that church (see also my "Concert Venues" page for details), but had heard about concert performances and the excellent organ. So, I was interested in visiting that place at some point anyway. The concert was at a suitable time (5 p.m., such that I was able to get back home the same day). I could hardly resist the offer!
Along with the Gothic cathedral, the Église Saint-François in Lausanne remains the only pre-reformation church building in Lausanne. It goes back to a Franciscan monastery that was founded in 1258. The original monastery and the building (with the exception of the choir) burned down in 1368. The church was then reconstructed and became a reformed church in the 16th century. The choir still exists in its original form, the interior otherwise has been thoroughly renovated / reconstructed in 2011. Saint-François serves for regular services, while at the same time it is a popular venue for concerts and organ recitals.
The main organ goes back to an instrument with 22 stops + pedal and 2 keyboards by Samson Scherrer from 1777. In 1867, E.F. Walcker (Ludwigsburg, Germany) expanded it to 3 keyboards + pedal and 36 stops. 1880, 13 additional stops were added to the third keyboard. 1936, Th. Kuhn (Männedorf) expanded the instrument to 56 stops. In 1990, the church was closed for renovations, and in 1995, the organ was re-built in its current form, again by Th. Kuhn (Männedorf). The instrument now features 5 keyboards + pedal, 75 stops, and mechanical traction.
The main organ was used in this concert, too, but in a minor role.
For the orchestra, the performance could be called "truly historically informed". Period instruments or replicas were used throughout (gut strings, baroque bows, period wind instruments). See below for details.
In addition, the orchestra featured one single instrument per voice. There were 2 violins, viola, baroque cello, viola da gamba, violone, theorbo, chest organ + harpsichord (same player), 2 traversos, 2 oboe / oboe da caccia, baroque bassoon—13 instrumentalists altogether.
There was no conductor: the orchestra was led from the first desk, by the concertmaster.
5 singers (SATTB) covered all vocal parts—recitative, Jesus and all other roles, choirs, chorales, turbae: there was no real "choir".
All vocal parts were performed entirely by heart!
There were just two notable restrictions with this setting: in No.32, "Ach Herr, lass dein lieb Engelein", where the bass sang the solo part, and in the choir, his role was substituted by a bassoon. And the bass soloist was performing both Jesus, as well as Pilatus, which was somewhat unusual at first.
As stipulated by the score, there was a sermon between part 1 and part 2. In addition, the concert started and ended with a chorale prelude by Bach, on the main organ. Prior to the chorale prelude at the end, the singers also performed a renaissance / early baroque motet.
Chorales which exist with Bach's melody in the reformed church song book were first performed by the "choir". This was then followed by 1 or 2 strophes in French, performed by the entire community (audience, orchestra, soloists, grand organ).
There was no intermission, but an excellent sermon (in French) by the local pastor instead.
The last point not only served as "hook" for people who were less familiar with the German text of Bach's Passion. However, at the same time, it involved the audience, made it participate in the performance, and hence raised the participation level from a purely passive listening role.
Meret Lüthi, concertmaster / violin 1. As far as I could see, this was a modern violin (long fingerboard), but with gut strings, and played with a baroque bow.
With the obvious exception of cello, viola da gamba, chest organ / harpsichord, and theorbo, all musicians performed standing. Meret Lüthi led the ensemble with clear body gestures / language, with determination. However, she was not actually conducting, e.g., by waving the bow, etc.
The big organ (on the rear balcony) was played by Elie Jolliet (*1994). Since 2013, Elie Jolliet is a pupil of the main organist at Saint-François, Benjamin Righetti (*1982, see also Wikipedia).
Initially, Solomon's Knot ran under the name "Solomon Choir and Orchestra". It still consists of both singers and instrumentalists. I take from the Web site that they currently have about 10 singers and at least 16 instrumentalists. Since 2015, they are also cooperating with Les Passions de l'Âme, with concerts in Bern, Lausanne, and Regensburg (Germany).
The founder of the collective, Jonathan Sells, still leads the ensemble, in cooperation with James Halliday. When he is not working with the collective, Jonathan is an opera singer, based in Bern. He is the only artist in this performance whom I have witnessed before, in a concert in Geneva, on 2015-12-27.
One of the key features in performances with Solomon's Knot is that the singers all perform entirely by heart. This (as explained on their Web site) requires the members to memorize not only their own part, but also that of the other singers, and possibly outlines of what the accompaniment does. One key advantage of this is, that it not only frees one's mind for interaction with the other musicians, but at the same time, it also gets the singers in much closer contact with the audience (no constant reading in the sheet music / score).
As this performance was a mere two days (even a little less) than two days after the previous one, I can't really avoid putting the two performances in relation. Be it only to point out fundamental differences in the two approaches. However, basically, the two performances are hardly comparable at all. I'm returning to this point in my final remarks at the bottom of this posting.
Formally, the concert was a church service (culte-concert), starting and ending with organ playing. Between these pre- and postludes on the big organ, Bach's St.John Passion, BWV 245 included a sermon after part I. Finally, prior to the organ postlude, the singers from Solomon's Knot performed a 16th century motet. The church was more than full—additional chairs were brought in, just prior to the beginning.
As introduction / introit, Elie Jolliet performed the Chorale Prelude "Erbarm' dich mein, o Herre Gott", BWV 721, by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 – 1750), on the grand organ (see above). This was of course not an organ presentation, but merely a quiet chorale (in the descant), with softly stepping accompaniment, all in soft flue stops, calm, totally unexcited, reflective—the right kind of prelude for a passion oratorio. And of course, the underlying chorale was selected appropriately: "Have mercy with me, my Lord": five minutes to detach one's thoughts and mind from the noise and turmoil of daily life, and for getting ready for the oratorio.
The St.John Passion started after a short introduction and a prayer by the pastor. There was no intermission. After Part I, the pastor of the church, Jean-François Ramelet, delivered a sermon, as in a regular church service. It was an excellent Easter sermon (just about 11 minutes), as much as I could tell. This follows the composer's intent: for Part II, the score notes "Nach der Predigt" (after the sermon).
As in my previous posting, I'm not going to discuss this composition by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 – 1750), other than by giving these links. And again I'm referring to my earlier posting, originally from 2013-06-24, in which I did an extensive comparison of 7 recordings of this work. And also here, I'm not discussing the concert in chronological order, but rather by artist / "performing component", though roughly in the order of their first appearance.
Guided by Meret Lüthi's active leadership through gestures with her body while playing. It was pure joy to see this orchestra in action: the active participation, the constant attention, interaction and passionate cooperation, the care for detail, and of course the rich, but soft sound of the gut strings, the natural articulation with baroque bows.
Expectedly, the tempo was all natural, adjusted to the flow of the language (there are no purely instrumental pieces in the oratorio). If any pace sounded unusual, then it was probably the very beginning, which was much slower in traditional, romantic performances with big orchestras and choirs. Thereafter, the tempo was inconspicuous throughout. If it ever felt different from "the norm", then it occasionally was a tad slower, more careful—almost certainly in order to allow for proper, careful articulation. On the other hand, there were certainly also occasions when Meret Lüthi actively made sure the pace didn't fall behind.
As all instruments were either period or excellent replicas, balance within the ensemble was a non-issue. Those used to conventional orchestra sound may initially have found that the bass / continuo sound dominated over the high strings—but it was a matter of a few moments until the ear had adjusted to this "historic sound balance". Even though there was one single instrument per voice, the violins were definitely present and perfectly audible. Of course, in the first chorus, they are merely secondary accompaniment, with their rolling semiquaver figures. However, throughout the evening, there wasn't a single instance where I felt that an instrument was inappropriately standing out from the ensemble sound.
For all I can tell, the basso continuo was excellent—natural and inconspicuous: Jesus and the evangelist were typically supported by the chest organ, baroque cello, violone, and theorbo, providing a warm, full foundation, which was further supported and "enlarged" by the church acoustics. If I remember correctly, the harpsichord was mainly or exclusively used to support choral segments. I can't remember a single instance where I felt that the continuo was "not enough" (too thin) or "too much" (e.g., in volume, or in ornamentation): obviously, experts in baroque accompaniment in action!
In No.19, the bass arioso "Betrachte meine Seel" and the subsequent tenor aria "Erwäge" (No.20), the two violins performed with mute (con sordino). Especially in the arioso, this creates a particularly intimate, warm and touching atmosphere. The mutes are a legitimate alternative (specified by Bach) in lieu of two viole d'amore.
With No.30, the also aria "Es ist vollbracht!", features a prominent solo on the viola da gamba, combined here with theorbo, organ and violone as basso continuo. The sound of the viol projected very well, its characteristic tone highlighted the special situation, immediately prior to Jesus' passing.
Finally, in No.35, the soprano aria "Zerfließe, mein Herze", the accompaniment combines a traverso and an oboe da caccia. This was one of the rare opportunities to see this rare instrument with its metal (brass?) bell "in action". The mix of the two wind instruments provided the proper, peculiar atmosphere in this aria—and at the same time, it was not intrusive at all, allowing for the Zoë Brookshaw's beautiful soprano (see below) to shine!
All wind instruments were of course proper baroque models—and all excellently played.
With its small setting of five professional singers (SATTB, see above) one cannot discuss homogeneity within individual voices: the fact that there were two tenors singing was entirely inconspicuous. Naturally, one heard each voice individually, and as they are professional singers, at any time, they had excellent control in dynamics, highlighting individual climaxes in polyphonic textures. Articulation, phrasing, coloraturas / ornaments, dynamics left nothing to wish for, and the five voices were harmoniously fitting together. In short: pure delight!
Nobody ever tried "beating the others" in terms of presence or volume. If a voice was standing out, it was because that singer put the focus on a key part of a phrase or melody. Because there were just five artists, highlighting tiny motifs could occur in rapid succession and instantaneously—which was key to the vivacity of the performance. And of course, transparency in such a setting is simply a given, never an issue!
Unless one has witnessed the effect (particularly from close-up) it is hard to believe what a huge difference it makes if singers in an oratorio perform by heart! It was key to keeping constant mutual contact, as well as in singing into the audience, maybe even (unconsciously, I presume) making eye contact with individuals in the audience. In other words it greatly intensified the contact, the interplay between singers, as well as between singers and audience.
Of equal importance for the outcome was of course, that every single voice (unless both tenors sang in unison) was a single, professional singer, which (together with the singing by heart) allowed for much more intensity and expression, richness and life—simply incomparable to big choirs, let alone lay choirs.
Diction and pronunciation were truly excellent, throughout, both in the choir, as well as with the solo performances. There were very few instances where one could guess that the singers are not native German-speaking. Only in rare moments it was obvious—to me, as Swiss-German, most likely much less so for the (French-speaking) audience.
For those turbae representing few individuals (soldiers, high priests), the small vocal ensemble was of course the ideal choice. On the other hand, I saw no problem at all with four or five professional singers representing / imitating a crowd of Jews: the intensity of the singing (by heart) and the professional voices more than made up for the lack in mass / number.
One little "logical hiccup" with having one bass singer only was that in some of the turbae, Sells was singing (as one of the Jews) "to himself" (as Jesus). A minor issue, really.
Needless to say that the performance in the virtuosic turbae (especially No.27b, "Lasset uns den nicht zerteilen"), was stunning, vivid, perfect in the coloraturas, enthralling, gripping, yet full of life, theatrical. This was not a virtuosic showpiece, not a glossy, polished piece of machined perfection, and not pushing for ultimate speed. Human singers in dramatic action!
I particularly liked the way in which the professional singers highlighted the grinding dissonances in turbae such as No.21d, "Kreuzige!", or the turbae within No.23. In the latter, the sonority was excellent. I enjoyed the careful shaping of the (often dissonant) legato notes in a context of cynical, mocking staccato singing.
The idea of starting No.12b, "Bist du nicht seiner Jünger einer?", slowly, followed by a strong accelerando (Bach writes a simple Allegro) is interesting, but may be seen as a little exotic.
The extensive sequence of recitatives and turbae in Part II was far more dramatic, gripping, developed a real "dramatic pull" in this setting. There was none of the constant switching between choir and soloist(s) in conventional performances. The latter is potentially disruptive and slows down the action.
Some of the chorales in Bach's passion represent community singing. In that respect, the performance by Solomon's Knot may be seen as inappropriate. However, that "mis-representation" was more than compensated by the fact that these singers raised the expression, the presentation of the content / text, the intensity of these chorales to an entirely different level: no big choir can possibly achieve that (and again, the singing by heart was instrumental in this). And, as expected, the language flow, the expression was intense and all natural with these singers: phrasing, breaking into verses, the duration of fermatas and rests, etc. all were non-issues.
I particularly liked the intimacy, the warmth in chorales such as No.26, "In meines Herzens Grunde".
On the other hand, four of the chorales (No.5, "Dein Will gescheh, Herr Gott, zugleich", No.14, "Petrus, der nicht denkt zurück", No.17, "Ach, großer König", and No.26, "In meines Herzens Grunde") were followed by additional verses in French, sung and performed by all instrumentalists, singers, plus the big organ, plus all of the audience (standing). This way, the aspect of community singing and integration was realized—even more efficiently, and to bigger effect than if a big choir sings these chorales. Plus, it must have helped in the understanding of the language and the action (especially in the rear of the nave), considering that the bulk of the audience was French-speaking.
Note that not only all of the choirs and the arias were sung by heart, but also all the text for the evangelist. For that reason, it is understandable that the two tenors shared the task of singing the evangelist. Both were actually really excellent at this task. They cleverly shared the task by splitting it such that each of the two sung the parts that suited his voice, his temperament & character the most. True, ideally, this should be one singer and one voice—but in reality, the splitting played a very minor role in the overall outcome.
I should state that the part of the evangelist isn't just intense and enormously long. It is also very demanding on the voice, such as the vocal range. I noted that both tenors occasionally touched on the limits of their vocal range. In terms of volume, the two were not the biggest voices on the set, but entirely sufficient for their roles. Both tenors projected well, showed a very nice timbre and plenty of "ping" in their voice.
More than in any other role, the language plays a key role for the evangelist. As mentioned above, diction, pronunciation, and understandability were excellent. True, neither of the two can offer the perfect language, or the in-depth understanding of the text, the detail in conveying the content of the text, the natural flow of the biblical German language of a singer such as Christoph Prégardien. There are subtleties in the pronunciation of consonant endings that only a professional, trained, native high-German speaking singer or actor can produce. But also here, the directness of the singing by heart essentially compensated for slight imperfections, such as the occasional lack in glottalization.
Compared to evangelists such as Christoph Prégardien who at the core are conveying the text message (close to Sprechgesang, in a way, often faster, possibly more dramatic), these two evangelists were more determined to present a musical, careful interpretation of Bach's recitatives (one example is No.27a, "Die Kriegsknechte aber".
If there was any minor "sticky" issue, then it probably was Jonathan Sells singing two opposing roles: Jesus, as well as Pilatus (both are for bass / baritone). As an opera singer, Jonathan Sells certainly has the ability, the flexibility and agility to switch between these roles. From a listening experience, this wasn't really a serious disadvantage. But I don't think anyone would disagree with the claim that two basses would have been more effective / the better representation. It would have helped the listener (especially non-German speaking people) in following / "living" the action.
I did definitely like Jonathan Sell's open, clear timbre, the volume and projection of his voice, especially for the part of Jesus. He did try differentiating between Jesus and Pilatus. However, overall, the "two voices" were slightly too similar. A second bass would have offered the benefit of a voice with different characteristics. To me (just my personal taste / opinion), Jesus is more of a bass role, while Pilatus can well be a typical baritone voice. There were a few instances where a little more volume in the bottom range (i.e., a voice with more bass than baritone characteristics) would have been helpful.
Zoë Brookshaw sang two arias: No.9, "Ich folge dir gleichfalls", and No.35, "Zerfließe, mein Herze". Her voice was—more than just stunning: both my wife and I were instantly captured and touched by the effortless beauty and intensity of her singing, her projection and timbre, her natural expression and vibrato. We can't stop thinking about this voice: close to a miracle!
In No.9, the two traversos in unison sounded like a single instrument. One had to watch to realize that there were two instruments playing.
The special instrumentation in No.35 (see above) gave her voice the appropriate, central role. It highlighted the beauty of her timbre, the intensity and clarity of her singing. And her voice control (e.g., in the messa di voce) is simply excellent!
The alto has two arias, No.7, "Von den Stricken" , and No.30, "Es ist vollbracht!" (see also above). Kate Symonds-Joy did deliver a very good performance (especially considering the state of her pregnancy!). In No.30, the performance of the coloraturas in the fast middle part, "Der Held aus Juda siegt mit Macht", was very good, expressive and dramatic. However, one of the few quibbles I have with the performance in this concert is that for my taste, the vibrato in both these arias, especially in slower, long notes, tended to be on the heavy side, the singing (and her facial mimics) a little too dramatic, both in the context of a passion oratorio, as well as in relation to the other singers.
The tenor role(s) include(s) arias, too: No.13, "Ach, mein Sinn", and No.20, "Erwäge", which were also shared between the two tenors. With all the load from the evangelist's part, plus the arias on top, it was no more than natural to observe rare signs of vocal strain / exhaustion with both the two tenors—however, this was absolutely negligible in the overall outcome. In general, their performance (again, all by heart!) was still astounding, and they proved to have plenty of breath for long phrases (e.g., in No.20: very lyrical and musical, and with excellent diction).
There are two bass arias with choir: No.24, "Eilt, eilt", and No.32, the aria "Mein teurer Heiland". For the former, the choir is just SAT (no bass voice), so this was not a problem at all. Actually, in this No.24, the "Wohin, wohin?" interjections are a nightmare for lay choirs, as they appear "at random", and the intonation is "out of the blue", yet absolutely crucial. Hearing this here was an absolute delight: clear, pure, and expectedly not the slightest insecurity. The tempo in this aria was fairly challenging, not just for the interjections, but also for the Jonathan Sells' long coloratura lines, where his sonority occasionally seemed slightly weak.
No.32, "Mein teurer Heiland", is trickier, as the score asks for bass solo with SATB choir accompaniment. This is another instance where a second bass voice would have been helpful. This was elegantly solved, however: just for this aria, the choir (SAT) stood in the rear of the choir, behind the orchestra, and the bassoon discreetly played the bass voice for the choir. The result was absolutely adequate. I certainly did no miss anything, and it highlighted the central, contemplative role of Jonathan Sells' solo part, with its beautiful, touching cantilena.
There is also the equally touching No.19, the arioso "Betrachte meine Seel" (see above), which Sells performed with very careful phrasing and agogics (I particularly liked his ritenuti).
The passion oratorio ends with a big choral piece (No.39, "Ruht wohl, ruht wohl, ihr heiligen Gebeine") and a chorale (No.40, "Ach herz, lass dein lieb Engelein"). I particularly liked and enjoyed the intimate, humble and comforting character of No.39: this was ever so far from the pompous endpoint that some may remember from traditional, romantic interpretations!
Finally, the closing chorale with its simple continuo accompaniment once more highlighted the vocal art of the small choral ensemble. Only here (not in No.39!), for a last time, Solomon's Knot allowed their voices to glow, to bloom and flourish up in a gently growing, final gesture, the plea of the closing prayer-chorale. It was not a grandiose, "big" ending, but an immensely touching, intense ending. Thank you so much for all that music!
In the long pause / silence after Jesus' passing (after No.31, the recitative "Und neigete das Haupt"), Jonathan Sells blew out the candle that had been standing in the center of the semi-circle formed by the singers. After the last chorale and the end of the oratorio, the five singers of Solomon's Knot closed in. They formed a narrow circle around the now extinct candle. In this reflective moment, they inserted the Motet "Ecce quomodo moritur justus" by the Slovenian late-renaissance composer Jacobus Gallus Carniolus (1550 – 1591). Gallus is also known as Jacob (or Jacobus) Handl (or Händl).
This motet ("Behold how the just man dies") is a beautiful, calm, introverted piece. It was performed with the utmost level of vocal / singing art and culture, in perfect dynamic control and internal balance. At the same time, this was a very sensual, touching, contemplative experience for everybody! One could tell this from the long, intense silence that followed alone.
At the end of the culte-concert, a short, closing benediction and a common prayer by Jean-François Ramelet followed. Then, Elie Jolliet duplicated the prayer with the Chorale Prelude "Vater unser im Himmelreich", BWV 636, again by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 – 1750), on the grand organ (see above). This short piece from Bach's Orgelbüchlein (organ booklet) was a fitting closure to this impressive concert & church service: the common, Christian prayer.
Only now, after this contemplative, almost meditative ending, the very well-deserved applause set in.
Quite obviously, I can't hide my fascination for the approach taken in this performance of Bach's St.John Passion. It was a concert that overall felt infinitely more gripping, more touching, more "talking directly to my heart" than the one from 2018-03-29. In comparison my judgement is very much in favor of this performance. I can see good reasons for performing this passion oratorio with a small team such as this one (maybe ideally with 1 – 2 additional singers).
However, I don't imply that this is the only valid performance approach. I think that a small chamber choir, and also a slightly bigger orchestra are certainly able to produce equally valid, similarly impressive results. Especially if the size of the choir and the number of active musicians is varied through the performance, e.g., smaller orchestra for arias / ariosi, fewer singers in the choir for some of the turbae. Independent of the performance setup, my high rating speaks of the quality of the musicians, not primarily for the superiority of the selected approach.
However, this performance was definitely more historically informed (or correct, if you want) than the previous one. In this respect, I do prefer the approach chosen in this concert.
And: sure, the time of big / huge lay choirs singing Bach's passion oratorios (except perhaps for the opening and closing choruses) is over. Even more so this holds true for performances involving big symphony orchestras: I actually didn't need this performance as a proof. But the concert definitely confirmed that for me.
I should also state that a comparison is a priori unfair, because on 2018-03-29 my wife and I were sitting on the rear balcony, at a far greater distance and with limited view, hence less susceptible to the effects of close interaction. Here, I was sitting in privileged seats in the center of the venue, in row 3, at a few meters from artists singing by heart—and directly into one's heart. This would highlight any weaknesses in the performance. Here, however, with such excellent artists pretty much throughout, it predominantly worked in favor of the already strong aspects of the performance.
On the other hand, a direct comparison is a little unfair even for excellent soloists in the Basel performance, such as Christoph Prégardien and Regula Mühlemann: their performance can't be isolated from the general conditions (and the drawbacks) of the (only "partially historical") approach / conditions chosen in Basel two days ago. To say it more directly: compared to a "choir of soloists", a lay choir defines a different general scope, a setting that can impossibly match the conditions in this concert.
At the same time, even the excellent performance in Lausanne had its limitations. All the more, the (almost) highest rating for this concert speaks for the quality of the instrumental and vocal teams in this concert! And, after all, what ultimately counts in such a performance, is the overall result, the experience for the listener—not perfection as in a studio CD production.
Finally: no, after this concert I did not downgrade the rating of the one in Basel on 2018-03-29. However, this concert confirmed my findings about the previous one. That said: my ratings and reviews reflect my personal, subjective concert experience(s), for whatever that's worth.


Jennifer Lopez's ex-boyfriend P-Diddy, and her current squeeze Alex Rodriguez, both seem to be pretty enamoured by her slim figure, and eagle-eyed fans have picked up on their thirsty comments.
It all began when Lopez decided to start doing the 10-Day Challenge; a new health trend in which participants are encouraged to ditch high-carb and high-sugar foods, such as potatoes, pasta, rice, sugar, caffeine, and milk, for a whole 10 days in a bid to shed a few pounds.
Yesterday, on the ninth day of her self-imposed diet plan, J-Lo took to Instagram to post a picture of herself wearing a sports bra, leggings, and beanie hat, with her abs prominently on display. She captioned the post: "Day 9 and feelin'... like I can't wait for Day 10. ? Who's still with us?"
Although she tagged Rodriguez in the post, the Instagram page 'Comments By Celebrities' noticed that P-Diddy had commented: "OMG" along with the heart-eye emoji. Seems as though he still appreciates Jennifer's good looks.
This isn't the first time P-Diddy has made his admiration of J-Lo public. In an interview with Access Hollywood after the release of her music video Booty, he stated that he thought that Jennifer's derrière is: "A work of art. It's something that will go down in history. No disrespect, Kanye and Kim, but that thing right there is something special."
The singer doesn't seem to mind, however, and has made it clear that the two are still just friends.
In a recent interview with Vanity Fair, she opened up about how her divorce from her Marc Anthony gave her an epiphany, stating: "I realized that the only person who could guide me out of it was myself, and I had work to do and I had to make myself happy and figure myself out. That was a big turning point in my life.
"You get a new perspective and gratitude and you grow into somebody who realizes that your mistakes are not what define you. What defines you is what you do after your mistakes and how you learn what is meant to be learned from those moments."
She added, "Everybody has the same feelings where you feel lost at some point in your life and think, 'What am I doing? Is there more? Should I dream bigger? Can I start now? Is it too late?' ... Because it really does make you feel like the only person stopping you from anything in your life is you. And you really have that power to make your life whatever you want it to be."
Wow; couldn't have put it better myself J-Lo. That really is some sound advice; just what we all need in the midst of diet season, as we all hit the salad bar and the treadmill!


Many people come to Labrador to experience to harsh northern climate and the majestic scenery. A german couple have taken their love for nature and adventure to a different level. All winter Harald Paul and his wife Silvia have been living on their boat anchored off the coast of Nain. Kate Kyle reached Harold Paul to hear about their experiences this winter.


text:
Non-canon articles, Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Buffy the Vampire Slayer (film)
This article is about the film. For other uses, see Buffy.
The subject of this article is non-canonical.
The events of the original 1992 film are superceded by The Origin, and are not part of the "real" Buffyverse.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer film poster.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer is a film with the first manifestation of the story that would become the Buffy the Vampire Slayer television series. It was written by Joss Whedon and directed by Fran Rubel Kuzui. It was released in July 31, 1992.
Blonde, bouncy Buffy is your typical high school cheerleader — her goal is to "marry Christian Slater and die" and nothing gets in her way when it's time to shop. But all that changes when a strange man informs her she's been chosen by fate to kill vampires. With the help of a romantic rebel, Buffy is soon spending school nights protecting L.A. from Lothos, the Vampire King, his sidekick, Lefty, and their determined gang of bloodsuckers. It's everything you'd expect from a teen queen in the Valley.
High school senior Buffy Summers is a cheerleader at Hemery High School in Los Angeles. She is a carefree popular girl whose main concerns are shopping and spending time with her rich, snooty friends and her boyfriend, Jeffrey. While at school one day, she is approached by a man who calls himself Merrick. He informs her that she is the Slayer, the Chosen One, destined to kill vampires, and he is a Watcher, whose duty it is to guide and train her. She initially rebukes his claims, but is convinced that he is right when he is able to describe a recurring dream of hers in detail. In addition, Buffy is exhibiting uncanny abilities not known to her, including heightened agility, senses, and endurance, yet she repeatedly tries Merrick's patience with her frivolous nature, indifference to slaying, and sharp-tongued remarks.
After several successful outings, Buffy is drawn into conflict with Lothos, a local vampire king, and his acolyte, Amilyn. Two young men, Oliver Pike and best friend Benny Jacks, who resented Buffy and her friends due to differing social circles, are out drinking when they are attacked by Amilyn. Benny is turned, but Pike is saved by Merrick. As a vampire, Benny visits Pike and tries to get him to join him. Later, when Pike and his boss are discussing Benny, Pike tells him to run if he sees him. Not only this, but a studious girl from Buffy's class, Cassandra, is abducted one night by Amilyn and sacrificed to Lothos. When her body is found, the news spreads through LA and Hemery High, but her murder is met with indifference from Buffy's clique.
When Pike realizes there is something wrong with Benny and that he is no longer safe, he decides to leave town. His plan is thwarted, however, when he encounters Amilyn and his tribe of vampires. Amilyn hitches a ride on the hood of Pike's van, which crashes into a tree just before Amilyn loses an arm. Buffy and Merrick arrive to rescue him, and Amilyn flees the fight to talk to Lothos. After this encounter, Buffy and Pike start a friendship, which eventually becomes romantic, and Pike becomes Buffy's partner in fighting the undead.
During a basketball game, Buffy finds out that one of the players, and a friend of Jeffrey's, is a vampire. After a quick chase to a parade float storage yard, Buffy finally confronts Lothos, shortly after she and Pike take down his gang. Lothos puts Buffy in a hypnotic trance, which is broken due to Merrick's intervention. Lothos turns on Merrick and stab him with the stake he attempted to use on him. Lothos leaves, saying that Buffy is not ready. As Merrick dies, he tells Buffy to do things her own way rather than live by the rules of others and he says: "remember about the music." Because of her new life, responsibilities, and heartbreak, Buffy becomes emotionally shocked and starts dropping her Slayer duties. When she arrives at school, she attempts to explain everything to her friends, but they refuse to understand her as they are more concerned with their upcoming school dance, and Buffy falls out with them as she realizes she is outgrowing their immature, selfish behavior.
At the senior dance, Buffy tries to patch things up with her friends but they turn against her, and she is dismayed to find Jeffrey has dumped her for one of her friends. However, she meets up with Pike and, as they start to dance and kiss, Lothos leads the remainder of his minions to the school and attacks the students and the attending faculty. Buffy confronts the vampires outside, while Pike fights the vampiric Benny. After overpowering the vampires, she confronts Lothos inside the school and kills Amilyn. Lothos hypnotizes Buffy again and, when the dance music stops, she remembers Merrick's words, and is ready to defend herself. Lothos ignites her cross, but she uses hairspray to create a makeshift flame-thrower and burns him before escaping back into the gym. Buffy sees everybody recover from the attack, but Lothos emerges again getting into a fight with Buffy, who then stakes him.
As all of the survivors leave, Buffy and Pike decide to finish their dance. The two then leave the dance on a motorcycle, and a news crew interviews the students and the principal about the attack.
The comic miniseries "The Origin" is considered the canon story that replaces the events of this movie, adapted from Joss Whedon's original script.
Buffy's age and history are dissimilar, as she is a senior in high school in the film and the series starts with her as a sophomore.
Pike, despite being a major character in the film, never appears in the TV series, nor is he even mentioned. He does however return in the expanded universe in non-canon publications as well as the canon series The Origin which acts as a faithful adaptation of Joss Whedon's original script.
Besides Buffy herself, characters from the film who do go on to appear in the TV series include Merrick, who appears in a flashback in "Becoming, Part One," and Buffy's Mom (Candy Clark) and Dad (James Paradise), who both remain nameless in the film. Buffy's surname is also never referred to in the film.
In this movie, Buffy defines her life goals as "graduate, go to Europe, marry Christian Slater, and die." Through the Buffy the Vampire Slayer series, she achieves all items except the marriage (respectively in "Graduation Day, Part Two", The Long Way Home, Part One, and "Prophecy Girl"/"The Gift").
Robert Berman has the distinction of being her first ever slay.
The element of Buffy burning down the gym existed in Whedon's original script, but was not incorporated into the final production. The event is first referenced in debut episode "Welcome to the Hellmouth".
There are numerous differences in the mythology of the movie:
vampires cannot transform their faces, can fly or at least levitate, and do not crumble into dust when killed;
Buffy's ability to detect vampires gives her cramps and each Slayer has a distinctive birthmark;
Merrick referes to be hundreds of years old, having lived many lives training many slayers, whereas in the series watchers are mortal.
Kristy Swanson as Buffy Summers, Barmaid Slayer, and Dark Ages Slayer
Donald Sutherland as Merrick Jamison-Smythe
Paul Reubens as Amilyn
Rutger Hauer as Lothos
Luke Perry as Oliver Pike
Candy Clark as Buffy's Mom
James Paradise as Buffy's Dad
Michelle Abrams as Jennifer Walkens
Hilary Swank as Kimberly Hannah
Paris Vaughan as Nicole Bobbittson
David Arquette as Benny Jacks
Randall Batinkoff as Jeffrey Kramer
Andrew Lowery as Andy
Sasha Jenson as Grueller
Stephen Root as Gary Murray
Natasha Gregson Wagner as Cassandra
Marco DeCarlo as The Coach
Liz Smith as Reporter
Paul M. Lane as Robert Berman
Bob Swanson as Referee
Thomas Jane as Zeph
David Sherrill as Knight
Toby Holguin as Vampire Fan
Eurlyne Epper as Graveyard Woman
Andre Warren as Newscaster
Erika Dittner as Cheerleader
J.T. Cole as Biker
Michael Kopelow as Student
Ricky Dean Logan as Bloody Student
Bobby Aldridge as Vampire
Amanda Anka as Vampire
Chino Binamo as Vampire
Al Goto as Vampire
Terry Jackson as Vampire
Mike Johnson as Vampire
Sarah Lee Jones as Vampire
Kim Robert Koscki as Vampire
Clint Lilley as Vampire
Jimmy N. Roberts as Vampire
David Rowden as Vampire
Kenny Sacha as Vampire
Ben Scott as Vampire
Kurtis Epper as Vampire
Sharon Schaffer as Vampire
Lincoln Simonds as Vampire
Ben Affleck as Basketball Player #10
Alexis Arquette as Vampire DJ
Bryan Goeres as Basketball Player
Ricki Lake as Charlotte
Paul Pesco as Vampire
Ben Schneider as Teacher Pouring Punch at Dance
Seth Green as Vampire
The Buffy the Vampire Slayer (film) article has a Photo Gallery.
Original script
See Buffy the Vampire Slayer (film)/Original Script
Buffy the Vampire Slayer trailer
According to writer and creator Joss Whedon, "the idea for the film came from seeing too many blondes walking into alleyways and being killed. I wanted, just once, for her to fight back when the monster attacked, and kick his ass. It was a simple thing for me to write because I knew exactly how I wanted things to work. I have special powers and I though it would be great to have vampires as the villains. She wouldn't be able to fit into normal society because she had these powers and this job that kept her from being what she wanted to be."[1]
Director Fran Rubel Kuzui had said that Buffy "isn't a vampire movie, but a pop culture comedy about what people think of vampires."[1]
Whedon has said about his dissatisfaction with the final result of the film: "The director ruined it. What I started with was a horror action comedy. It had fright, it had camera movement, it had acting - all kinds of interesting things that weren't in the final film apart of the jokes — and there were a lot more of them [in my script] and all of my favorite ones got cut — it was supposed to have a little more edge to it. It was supposed to be a visceral entertainment rather than a glorified sitcom where everyone pretty much stands in front of the camera, says the joke, and exits. I wasn't happy about anything. I had one advantage from it: the direction was so bland that the jokes kind of stood out, because they were the only things to latch on to. In a way, that kind of worked for me because it got people to notice it. But that was a big disappointment to me. It was crushing. I had written this scary film about an empowered woman, and they turned it into a broad comedy. It was terrible and a great lesson for me. I knew in the future that I would find a way to do things in a different way."[1]
The film debuted at #5 at the North American box office. With an estimated budget of $7,000,000, it had a domestic total gross of $16,624,456.[2]
It was publicized under the following taglines:
"Pert. Wholesome. Way Lethal."
"Sometimes it takes more than just good looks to kill."
"She knows a sucker when she sees one."
"Homework. Cheerleading practice. Killing vampires. No one said high school would be easy."
C+C Music Factory featuring Deborah Cooper and Q-Unique — "Keep it Comin' (Dance Till You Can't Dance No More)"
War Babies — "In The Wind"
Dream Warriors — "Man Smart (Woman Smarter)"
Mary's Danish — "I Fought the Law"
Divinyls — "Ain't Gonna Eat Out My Heart Anymore"
Kristy Swanson — "Feelings"
The Cult — "Zap City"
Matthew Sweet — "Silent City"
Eon — "Inner Mind"
Toad the Wet Sprocket — "Little Heaven"
Ozzy Osbourne — "Party with the Animals"
Rob Halford — "Light Comes Out of Black"
Susanna Hoffs — "We Close Our Eyes"
Robert Schumann — "Piano Quintet Es-dur op. 44"
International tiles
Arabic: بافي قاتلة مصاصي الدماء
Bulgarian: Бъфи, убийцата на вампири
Czech: Buffy, zabíječka upírů
Danish: Buffy — vampyrernes skræk
Finnish: Buffy — vampyyrintappaja
French (Canada): Bichette la terreur
French (France): Buffy, tueuse de vampires
German: Buffy, der Vampirkiller
Greek: Μπάφι, η βαμπιροφόνισσα
Hungarian: Buffy, a vámpírok réme
Italian: Buffy — L'ammazzavampiri
Japanese: バッフィ/ザ・バンパイア・キラー
Korean: 뱀파이어 해결사
Polish: Buffy — postrach wampirów
Portuguese (Brazil): Buffy — A Caça-Vampiros
Portuguese (Portugal): Buffy, Caçadora de Vampiros
Romanian: Buffy, vanatoarea de vampiri
Russian: Баффи — истребительница вампиров
Serbian: Bafi, ubica vampira
Spanish (Mexico): Buffy, la caza vampiros
Spanish (Spain): Buffy, la cazavampiros
Swedish: Buffy — Vampyrdödaren
Turkish: Vampir avcisi Buffy
The movie soundtrack was released in the album Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack.
The book "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" is a novelization of the movie, based on of Whedon's original screenplay.
Seth Green appeared as a vampire in a deleted scene which nonetheless featured on the original video cover. Along with Chi Muoi Lo, he is one of only two actors to appear in both the film and the television series.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer (film) at the Internet Movie Database
Buffy the Vampire Slayer (film) at Wikipedia
↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Candace Havens, "Joss Whedon: The Genius Behind Buffy". BenBella Books, May 01, 2003.
↑ "Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1992)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved February 10, 2018.
Retrieved from "https://buffy.fandom.com/wiki/Buffy_the_Vampire_Slayer_(film)?oldid=187112"
Non-canon articles

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Q: Reduce AES-CTR malleability impact by shuffling plain text I need to cipher and decipher text with randomly access. For this I decided to use AES in CTR mode which is a good compromise between CBC and GCM.
But CTR mode is malleable. It is not a big problem because texts that I will cipher have not predefine patterns and I don't need authentication, I just want to avoid the ability to read the plain text for an attacker.
However, I want to reduce the ability to an attacker to really use the malleability property of CTR.
Here my idea to do it:
public static void main() {
    Key key = …;
    IVParameterSpec iv = …;
    int rSeed = …;
    byte[] plainText = …;

    byte[] shuffled = shuffle(plainText, rSeed);
    byte[] encrypted = encryptAES_CTR(shuffled, key, iv);

    …

    byte[] decrypted = decryptAES_CTR(encrypted, key, iv);
    byte[] unShuffled = unShuffle(decrypted, rSeed);

    // Here unShuffled content must be equal to plainText content.
}

Suppose that methods shuffle(…) and unShuffle(…) are complementary and one reverse the other.
The shuffle step is here not to cipher but shuffle the order of bytes of the plain text, in that way it reduces the impact of modifications done on the ciphered text by an attacker because if an attacker changes a part of the ciphered text, the modifications will be spread during the unShuffle phase and will change the content but the chance that the new content can be exploitable is reduced.
However, it is just an idea and I write this post just to know if this idea is really useful or if it is useless and just superficial step which does not reduce the impact of modifications that can be done by an attacker on the ciphered text.
I know that there is the GCM which provides authentication and therefore, is not malleable. But I don't really need it and GCM cannot be accessed randomly especially if I want modify and re cipher just a part of the plain text.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Ґарі Джеймс Полсен (17 травня 1939, Міннеаполіс, штат Міннесота — 13 жовтня 2021, Тулероза, штат Нью-Мексико, США) — американський письменник, найбільш відомий підлітковими історіями про дику природу. Автор понад 200 книг, написав більше ніж 200 статей для журналів і оповідань, автор кількох підліткових п'єс. 1997 року отримав премію Маргарет Едвардс від Американської бібліотечної асоціації за життєвий внесок у написання для підлітків.

Дитинство та юність
Ґарі Полсен народився 17 травня 1939 року в Міннеаполісі, штат Міннесота, США, у родині Оскара Полсена і Юніс Полсен (Моен). Батько Ґарі був офіцером, тож згодом після народження сина пішов, щоб приєднатися до штабу генерала Паттона. Наступного разу свого батька хлопець бачив у віці 7 років. Разом з матір'ю жив у Тіф-Рівер-Фоллз, штат Міннесота. Коли хлопчику було 4 роки, мати забрала його до Чикаго. Перед закінченням Другої світової війни вона відправила його жити на ферму до родичів.

Кілька автобіографічних творів автора присвячені ранньому дитинству, наприклад у книзі «Східне сонце, зимовий місяць: автобіографічна Одіссея» описано фрагменти з життя в Чикаго, травматичні події з дитинства та навіть романи своєї матері. Коли Ґарі було 7, батько попросив його і матір приєднатися до нього у Філіппінах, де саме перебував чоловік, тож частина цих подорожей також відобразилася на сторінках книги автора. Крім цього, можемо прочитати детальні описи життя хлопчика за часів Другої світової війни та постійних подорожей. Д. Кемпбелл про цю книгу пише так: «Ви серед людей, які не вміють читати приємне, якщо речення відразу сковують? Тримайтесь, хлопці».

Коли йому виповнилося 5 років, мати Полсена посадила його в потяг, одного, без нічого, крім 5-доларової купюри та валізи, і відправила жити до тітки та дядька на їхню ферму в Північній Міннесоті. Там він навчився ловити і готувати рибу на багатті, а також використовувати дим, щоб відганяти комарів вночі — навички, які герої його пізніших романів використовували, щоб вижити.

У мемуарах Gone To The Woods, які вийшли на початку 2021 року, Полсен писав про важке дитинство. Його батько воював у Другій світовій війні, мати зловживала алкоголем. Вона водила малого Ґарі до барів і змушувала співати в солдатському вбранні. У віці 11-12 років почав тікати з дому до лісу, саме тому мотив виживання у дикій природі пронизує майже всі твори автора.

Життя Ґарі змінилося, коли йому було 14. Одного зимового вечора хлопець забіг погрітися до місцевої бібліотеки, де йому запропонували оформити особисту карту та порекомендували книги для прочитання. Отримавши першу книжку з бібліотеки, він пішов у підвал й читав її без зупинки. Потім він прочитав ще кілька книг у підвалі свого будинку.

Щоденні сварки батьків, а іноді й серйозні конфлікти, надто засмучували Ґарі і в 14 років він втік працювати на ферму цукрових буряків.

Згодом він повернувся додому й навчався в середній школі у Тіф-Рівер-Фоллс. Не затримувався в одному навчальному закладі більше 5 місяців, тому, щоб закінчити школу вчасно, змушений був самотужки опановувати програму 9 та 10 класу. 1957 року закінчив школу із середньою оцінкою D.

Ґарі Полсен вів авантюрне життя протягом своєї молодості, потім пішов в армію і через 3 роки, у травні 1962, був звільнений. Випробував себе в різних роботах: на фермах, у будівельній компанії, на ранчо, працював водієм вантажівки, проходив курси електричної інженерії, був моряком і двічі змагався в Iditarods. За одним зі свідчень, він допомагав писати діалоги для фільмів і телебачення в Голлівуді, перш ніж 1966 року переїхав до хижини в Міннесоті і почав писати книги.

Кар'єра
Після надання послуг в аерокосмічній компанії він зрозумів, що хоче стати письменником, і залишив службу. Почав працювати редактором-коректором у видавництві. У цей час і починає писати. Потім він переїхав до Міннесоти і до кінця літа завершив свій перший роман. У 1967 році дебютна книга «Деякі птахи не літають» з'явилася в книжкових кіосках. Протягом семи місяців він написав і опублікував свою другу книгу «Містер Такет». Його три романи «Сокира» (1987), «Зимова кімната» (1989) та «Собача пісня» (1985) дуже відомі серед молодого покоління по всьому світу, а також отримали почесну книжкову медаль Ньюбері.

Пізніше, коли він приплив на Фіджі, працював трапером, їздив від Ель-Пасо до Фербенкса, Аляска, і тричі їздив на Iditarod, фінішувавши 41-м як новачок у 1983 році. Забіг на 1000 миль зайняв у нього 17 з половиною днів. Ця подія надихнула його на написання мемуарів «Зимові танці» (1994), які були адаптовані у фільмі Дісней «Снігові пси» (2002).

Хоча Полсен був найбільш відомий завдяки книгам, дія яких розгортається на далекій півночі, він також писав романи, такі як «Найтджон» (1993) про поневолену афроамериканку, яка порушує правила, навчившись читати, «Містер Такет» (1969), перший із п'ятитомної вестерн-серії про хлопчика, захопленого корінними американцями на Орегонській стежці, та «Автомобіль» (1993), де йдеться про 14-річного хлопця, який подружився з парою ветеранів В'єтнаму після того, як його покинули батьки.Я розповідаю історії, — ділився Полсен у New York Times в 2006 році. — Я одягаю криваві шкури на спину, танцюю навколо багаття й розповідаю, яким було полювання. Це не ерудовано; це не інтелектуально. Я плаваю на човнах, бігаю на собаках, катаюся на конях, граю в професійний покер і розповідаю історії про те, що я пережив. І я все ще романтик, я все ще хочу, щоб Бембі вибрався з вогню.

Особисте життя
Працюючи в аерокосмічній компанії, Ґарі Полсен одружився і в нього народилося двоє синів: Ленс та Лінн. Але шлюб закінчився розлученням. Чоловікові на той час було 26. Про другу дружину не відомо нічого. У 1971 році він втретє одружився на Рут Райт, художниці, яка проілюструвала кілька його книг. Мав сина від третього шлюбу — Джима. Останні роки Ґарі Полсен та його дружина Рут Райт Полсен жили у Нью-Мексико.

Смерть
Видання Random House Children's Books оголосило, що Полсен «раптово» помер у середу, але не надав більше подробиць. Літературний агент Дженніфер Фланнері розповіла Associated Press, що він помер від зупинки серця у своєму будинку в Нью-Мексико, де він жив зі своєю третьою дружиною Рут Райт Полсен.

У Ґарі Полсена залишилися дружина і син, а також один останній роман. «Northwind», історична пригода про битву молодої людини за те, щоб вижити, незважаючи на всі шанси, була опублікована в січні 2022 року.

Бібліографія

Найвідоміші цикли та книги Ґарі Полсена

Сага Браяна

 «Сокира» (1987)
 «Річка» («Сокира: повернення») (1991)
 «Зима Браяна» («Сокира: зима») (1996)
 «Повернення Браяна» («Сокира: поклик») (1999)
 «Полювання Браяна» (2003)

Сага містера Такета

 «Містер Такет» (1969)
 «Поклич мене, Френсіс Такет» (1995)
 «Поїздка Такета» (1997)
 «Золото Такета» (1999)
 «Дім Такета» (2000)

Інші романи

 «Деякі птахи не літають» (1968)
 «Собача пісня» (1985)
 «Зимова кімната» (1989)
 «Автомобіль» (1994)

Писав також документальну літературу.

Примітки

Посилання

Письменники-мандрівники
Письменники США XX століття
Письменники США XXI століття

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


2. Which major sporting event takes place each Memorial Day weekend?
3. The United States' most recent declarations of war were against which countries?
4. What city hosts the oldest Memorial Day parade?
If you have any questions about your financial plans, please give us a call. We want to make sure you have all the answers. Have a safe and happy Memorial Day!
3. B – Bulgaria, Hungary, and Romania were the last three countries the United States formally declared war against during World War II. Operations since 1942 have been officially classified as military combat authorized by Congress.


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Walt Disney Animation Studios Announces the Return of "Frozen" Favorites Anna and Elsa in 2015's New Animated Short #FROZEN FEVER
September 6, 2014 Janice Brady Leave a Comment
BURBANK, Calif. (Sept. 2, 2014) From Walt Disney Animation Studios comes the new animated short "Frozen Fever," welcoming back to the big screen Anna, Elsa, Kristoff and, of course, the one-and-only Olaf.
Directed by Jennifer Lee and Chris Buck, and produced by Peter Del Vecho, with an all-new original song by Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez, "Frozen Fever" marks the first project reuniting the Oscar®-winning original team from Disney's "Frozen."
The announcement was first made within the ABC Television Network special "The Story of Frozen: Making an Animated Classic," which aired September 2. The special also featured the world television debut of a scene from the new action comedy adventure from Walt Disney Animation Studios, "Big Hero 6," as well as a sneak peek at the upcoming season of the ABC series "Once Upon A Time."
In "Frozen Fever," it's Anna's birthday and Elsa and Kristoff are determined to give her the best celebration ever, but Elsa's icy powers may put more than just the party at risk.
The short debuts Spring 2015.
Pixar and Walt Disney Animation Studios - D23 EXPO 2017 Recap
#Moana Clips and Soundtrack ~ Who Knew "The Rock" Could Sing!!
#Moana ~ Printable Coloring and Activity Sheets
#Moana ~ It's Maui Time! Latest Clip
Have You Seen the Newest #Moana Trailer?
Free Holiday Printables from ZOOTOPIA!
Walt Disney Animation Studios "MOANA" Finds Her Voice ~ #Moana
Pixar in a Box! It's Free! And...Really, Really Cool! Learn While Creating
blog, Disney Music/Films, Movies/Entertainment Walt Disney Animation Studios


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The FIFA World Ranking is a ranking system for men's national teams in association football, Africa is currently led by Tunisia and Senegal.
The football governing body, Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), on the 20th of September published her latest ranking of National Teams in 2018. In the African continent, Tunisia topped the latest 2018 list of Best National Football Teams in Africa. Second on the list is Senegal, closely followed by Congo DR and the Morocco. The blackstars of Ghana and Nigerian Super Eagles were ranked 7th and 5th respectively on the list of best national football teams in Africa.
Cameroun, Mali, Burkina faso and Egypt, all graced the top ten best football teams in Africa.
The African teams on the list below, are ranked based on their game results with the most successful teams being ranked highest.
They have qualified for five FIFA World Cups, the first one in 1978 , but are yet to make it out of the first round. Nevertheless, they created history in 1978 in Argentina by becoming the first African side to win a World Cup match, beating Mexico 3–1. They also held defending champions West Germany to a goalless draw before bowing out. They have since qualified for three tournaments in succession, in 1998, 2002 , 2006 , as well as the 2018 finals.
The team have been regular competitors in the Africa Cup of Nations, where their best performance was runner-up to Cameroon in the 2002 edition in Mali. In the same year, Senegal took part at the FIFA World Cup for the first time and entered the history books when they reached the quarter-finals, having defeated reigning champions France in the opening game.
The team made their second World Cup appearance 16 years later in 2018, but were eliminated in the group stage based on fair play points.
FIFA Rankings. As Zaire they were the first Sub-Saharan African team to qualify for the FIFA World Cup and twice won the Africa Cup of Nations .
Winners of the African Nations Cup in 1976 , they were the first African team to win a group at the World Cup, which they did in 1986, finishing ahead of Portugal , Poland , and England. They were also the first African team to make it to the second round, barely losing to eventual runners-up West Germany 1–0 in 1986.
The Nigeria national football team, are three-time Africa Cup of Nations winners, with their last title in 2013 , after defeating Burkina Faso in the final.
In April 1994, the Super Eagles was ranked 5th in the FIFA rankings, the highest FIFA ranking position ever achieved by an African football team.
Throughout history, the team has qualified for six of the last seven FIFA World Cups (as of 2018), missing only the 2006 World Cup hosted in Germany, and have reached the round of 16 three times.
The indomitable lions of cameroun has qualified seven times for the FIFA World Cup, more than any other African team (in 1982, 1990, 1994, 1998, 2002, 2010 and 2014), they were the only African team to appear at both the 1990 and 1994 tournaments. However, the team has only made it once out of the group stage. They were the first African team to reach the quarter-final of the World Cup, in 1990, losing to England in extra time. They have also won five Africa Cup of Nations titles.
The black stars of Ghana have won the Africa Cup of Nations four times(in 1963, 1965, 1978, and 1982), and has been runner-up 5 times (in 1968, 1970, 1992, 2010, and 2015).
After going through 2005 unbeaten, the Ghana national football team won the FIFA Best Mover of the Year Award and reached the second round of the 2006 FIFA World Cup. At the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, they became only the third African team to reach the World Cup quarter-finals, and in 2014 they competed in their third consecutive World Cup.
Nicknamed 'Les Etalons', (the Stallions) Burkina Faso highest finish in the Africa Cup of Nations tournament, was in 2013 edition, where they reached the final but lost to the super eagles of Nigeria.
Theyve never qualified for the world cup tournament but still managed to make this list.
The Mali national football team, nicknamed Les Aigles (The Eagles), is the national team of Mali and is controlled by the Fédération Malienne de Football. Although they have never qualified for the World Cup finals. they still managed to squeeze themselves into the top best teams in Africa.
The Egypt national football team. known popularly as The Pharaohs, is the most successful national team in Africa, having won the Africa Cup of Nations a record seven times.


The U.S. economy is booming and while commercial banks are still restrained by regulations, nonbank lenders are in high gear. Hugh Larratt-Smith takes an in-depth look at the current economic situation as 2019 looms ahead and says it may be time for lenders to slow down.
Arden was one of America's largest homes when E.H. Harriman completed his 100,000 square foot mansion in Tuxedo Park at the turn of the last century. Forty miles north of New York City, Arden had nearly 100 rooms on 40,000 acres of land. Harriman had purchased the property from the Parrott brothers, who supplied the Union Army with cannons and the well-known Parrott Rifle during the Civil War.
Never one to enjoy school, Harriman left at 14 to pursue a career on Wall Street, fortuitously just as the Civil War was unleashing a new speculative fervor in America's financial institutions. He proved to be so adept at combing through financial statements of railroads and picking winners from losers in the turbo-charged stock market, at the age of 21, he owned a seat on the New York Stock Exchange. Harriman's early railroad investments led to a profitable association with Stuyvesant Fish, a Wall Street railroad stock speculator (Fish and Harriman became estranged some years later when Fish's wife, Mamie, snubbed Harriman's wife, Mary, at a tea party at Crossroad, their Colonial Revival home in Newport, RI, where Mrs. Fish's Harvest Festival Ball in August signaled the end of the Newport social season).
The Harriman myth revolved around his seemingly magical ability to transform rusting, decrepit railroads into modern moneymakers. His most ambitious project was rescuing the failing Union Pacific railroad system in 1897. A key part of his recovery plan was changing the management culture at the railroad by decentralizing the organization. Adroitly using his Wall Street relationships, he restructured its heavy debt and rebalanced the capital structure. He personally examined every mile of the huge railway system, meticulously noting where critical capital expenditures were needed on every railway crossing, dispatch station and signal light. One reason for Harriman's success as a railroad manager was his innovative directive to streamline operations and standardize the company's fleet of railroad cars.
He recognized that America's railroad system was rapidly becoming over-built, due to the abundant liquidity provided to the railroad industry by Wall Street and London financiers. Success would depend on attention to detail and prudent financial plans. Ultimately, Harriman succeeded not so much because he was an original thinker, but because he implemented his financial strategy on a grand scale, which other railroaders shied away from. As a financier who witnessed the boom and bust of America's economy after the Civil War, he knew when to open the money spigot — and when to close the valve.
Fast forward 100 years. Once more, the markets are turbo-charged and flush with liquidity. Equity markets are near record highs. Property prices in key global cities are at record multiples of inhabitants' earnings. Private equity groups have never had it so good, raising record amounts of liquidity at the fastest pace in a decade. The recent uptick in highly leveraged mega deals comes as global M&A for the first nine months of 2018 eclipsed the high-water mark of 2007.
In 1885, Harriman acquired "Arden", the 7,863-acre Parrott family estate in the Ramapo Highlands near Tuxedo, New York, for $52,500. Over the next several years he purchased almost 40 different nearby parcels of land, adding 20,000 acres, and connected all of them with 40 miles of bridle paths. Harriman built a 100,000 sq. ft. home, on the property which was begun in 1905. Harriman lived in it with his wife Mary Williamson Averell for only seven months before his death in 1909.
Ultra-loose monetary policy and quantitative easing have repaired bank balance sheets. Since the financial crisis, many bank ABL and leveraged finance groups moved into high gear. But tightened bank oversight has shifted risk, notably to the shadow banking sector. This trend should accelerate in 2019.
Asset managers, hedge funds and insurance companies, hungry for yield, now carry the kinds of risk that used to be the preserve of banks.
New credit funds, BDCs and asset-based lending companies are announced almost weekly. PE funds are setting up their own credit arms, partly to reduce costs on their own transactions and partly to do third-party deals. KKR, Bain and Carlyle — to name a few — have massive amounts of capital to deploy. This feeds the competitive environment.
But such a large volume of funds brings its own pressures. Many new credit funds only get paid when they deploy funds, so the challenges to book deals are intense. Some non-bank lenders are responding to this pressure by overlooking the elastic and creative mathematics behind many investment bankers' EBITDA calculations. This, in turn, has led to a string of deals with some nose-bleed valuations and debt levels that were seen just before the financial crisis.
Three of the four biggest U.S. private equity firms now manage more money in credit funds than in their private equity arms, a marked turnaround from a decade ago, when private credit funds accounted for about 20% of assets. All told, private credit funds have amassed $160 billion in dry powder, twice what they had a decade ago and enough to support up to $400 billion in business lending once leverage is added.
As an example of the shift from bank lenders to non-bank lenders, HSS Hire in the UK recently closed on a new term loan facility of £220 million ($290.17 million) provided by HPS Investment Partners and a revolving credit facility of £25 million ($32.97 million) provided by HSBC and Natwest. Historically, HSS had mostly used bank borrowings to finance its operations. HSS had a pre-tax loss of £85.2 million ($112.4 million) in 2017 and a £17.4 million ($23 million) loss in 2016. In the past decade, HPS has emerged as a major force in asset-based lending.
The explosive growth of credit funds is reflected in rising leverage ratios, sometimes north of seven times EBITDA. A blockbuster deal with a Blackstone-led investor group to finance its 55% stake in Refinitiv, the Thomson Reuters data business, underscores market competitiveness. Leverage in the deal may exceed eight times EBITDA after EBITDA adjustments. High leverage isn't the only ground-breaking aspect of this deal. According to Covenant Review, under the proposed terms of its bonds, the company can pay dividends to its owners even if it drastically underperforms — even to the point of financial distress. This deal is the fourth-largest since the financial crisis, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence.
Edward Henry Harriman bought the bankrupt Union Pacific railroad in 1897, and in 1901, he assumed control of the Central Pacific and Southern Pacific railways as well. The rebuilding of the three railways tracks followed, with improvements to hundreds of miles of track and signals to reduce grades, curvature and distance.
The street views Refinitiv's deal as a test for how much leverage companies with poor credit ratings can issue in the current market and how aggressively they can set the covenants in the face of aggressive assumptions about operating synergies. Robust or real-time covenants were attached to fewer than 30% of the leveraged loans written in the U.S. last year, according to the IMF. McKinsey estimates more than 6% of U.S. corporate bonds have been issued by companies which need to spend two-thirds of EBITDA.
Today, almost two-thirds of leveraged loan issuers are rated B2 or lower by Moody's — less than half of the 2006 rate. Some of these transactions, many of which are heavily weighted in the borrower's favor, will come back to haunt the credit funds. And banks are lending to BDCs and credit funds, which increases the leverage in the system. As an example of the liquidity offered to the marketplace by asset managers, Waterfall Asset Management recently launched its Specialty Commercial Finance Group to provide high-yield senior secured debt to specialty commercial finance companies.
PE players are increasingly looking at acquisitions of public companies as the buyout deal competition intensifies. According to Bain, the number of public-to-private deals doubled from 2016 to 2017. Looking ahead, 2019 will see a surge in mega-deals of $5 billion or more, according to The Financial Times. However, some of these deals will be challengingly expensive as PE funds compete against strategic buyers who are flush with liquidity from the tax change. With sky-high valuations, some PE players will need to find a diamond in the rough or break the company into pieces to justify the price.
Many of the ABL and cashflow deals will be done to support secondary deals where the company is sold by one PE player to another. The industry has done a record 576 secondary deals in 2018, according to Preqin. That compares with 394 similar transactions in the peak of the deal boom in 2007.
Pitchbook's chart (see below) shows the increase in deal size (and valuations) from Q1/13 to Q2/18.
The issue with secondary deals is with dividend recaps, leverage, operating synergies and aggressive organic growth assumptions, which often end up disappointing. As an example, Simmons Bedding, which was bought and sold by private equity owners seven times over two decades, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2009.
The prominence of non-bank lenders is also coloring the bankruptcy process.
The street was caught by surprise recently by the decision of Toys "R" Us' lenders to cancel the company's brand name and intellectual property auction in bankruptcy court and instead revive the brand. The lenders plan to open a new company, including retail stores, under the Toys "R" Us and Babies "R" Us brand names using existing global licenses. Control of the fulcrum securities has pitted the lender group, including Solus Alternative Asset Management and other hedge funds, against Toys "R" Us' foreign-subsidiary bondholders. Another knife fight may be brewing in the courts. This underscores the activist lenders who play today in the leveraged lending marketplace.
A similar scenario is playing out in The Gibson Guitar bankruptcy in Delaware. The legendary company made instruments for Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix and The Who, but with a changing demographic and the huge growth in computer-based electronic music and video games, Gibson increasingly has found itself out of tune with the marketplace.
Echoing Jimi Hendrix setting fire to his guitar and The Who smashing their guitars at the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967, Chapter 11 has created some serious damage to Gibson's plan to reinvent itself by selling self-tuning guitars. Like a battle of the bands, the Delaware courtroom is a loud, pitched battle between Blackstone and KKR, two of the biggest secured lenders in the capital structure. Many asset-based lenders will be interested in the Gibson brand's value in the Chapter 11 exit plan given the Toys "R" Us plan of reorganization. Gibson may be the first of many PE deals to pay a visit to The First State in 2019 and 2020.
This intense competitive marketplace is reflected in the sluggish growth in commercial and industrial loans for the big U.S. regional banks. According to The Wall Street Journal, weak loan growth for these banks has been one of the mysteries of the economic recovery in the past two years. Through Q2/18, loan growth topped out at just over 5%, well below the double-digit increases seen a few years ago. Some regional banks are facing intense competition from community banks. The jaws of some workout bankers at regional banks are dropping as community banks rush to take them out of deals that barely have a pulse.
As a result of this liquidity, the boundaries of adjusted EBITDA are being pushed farther. Lenders are taking more liberal views of this with sponsors on deals with weaker core EBITDA. Some borrowers are straining to meet the EBITDA targets now. What happens when the economy weakens? One important macro risk credit committees are evaluating is the impact of the brewing trade war.
David Fiegel, president of Blackbird Asset Services in Buffalo, says, "The impact of current U.S. trade posturing is making a lot of our clients nervous. We have clients that have had orders grind to a halt as various players in their respective supply chain(s) await the next moves on the international chess board. The stakes can be huge, and it seems that everyone's crystal ball is cloudy." Fiegel notes current policy uncertainty can place some tariff/trade-sensitive borrowers at a higher risk of default. "Until the crystal ball clears, it's a little like the Wild West in some markets," he says. The trade issue has weighed particularly hard on share prices of industrials and materials companies, which account for the more than 20% of the 80 stocks in the S&P 500 that have tumbled at least 20% from their 52-week highs, the common definition of a bear market.
What Inning Are We In?
Industry veterans will all agree that deals done in the 12- to 18-month period before a recession are often the most difficult to collect. Many seasoned ABL players are proceeding cautiously when it comes to deal structure. While they have been rare in recent years, the supersized buyouts inevitably stir bad memories of the years immediately preceding the financial crisis, when there was a flurry of covenant-lite deals quickly followed by Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
The Union Pacific Overland Limited passenger train is pictured here leaving 16th Street Station in Oakland, CA, circa 1906.
As a result of the competition posed by nonbank lenders, recoveries in the $1.4 trillion market for non-investment grade loans will be lower because companies have fewer covenant restrictions on excessive dividends and stripping corporate assets. Indeed, one mid-Atlantic banker commented that banks have no business doing dividend recap loans for sponsor companies at this stage of the credit cycle. Moody's Investor Service is predicting that the typical recovery on leveraged loans will be 61% of face value in the next recession, compared with the 77% historical average. Recoveries on second lien loans is predicted to be 14% from about 43% in the previous recession. This means unsecured creditors will also face worse recoveries, with Moody's predicting 32% recoveries in the next default cycle compared with the historical average of 40%.
In an April 2018 report warning about lower recoveries on both junk bonds and loans, Guggenheim Partners told clients that, unlike the last recession, which was triggered by unsustainable levels of household debt, the next recession will be traced back to the corporate debt market. And Moody's says the next default cycle will include a wider swath of industries because the market has exploded from $800 billion in 2008 to $1.4 trillion in 2018. In the event of a liquidity contraction in the economy, the sheer size of this leverage in the economy will amplify the lowering of the tides.
What's a Prudent Lender to Do in 2019?
Most recessions are short and shallow, 12 months on average. Economist Martin Feldstein, advisor to President Reagan and a member of the Wall Street Journal's board of contributors, sees the next recession differently. He thinks the Fed will not have the headroom to cut rates, since the fed-funds rate is expected to rise to only 3% over the next two years. There also won't be much room for major fiscal intervention. The $1 trillion annual deficit in the coming years won't allow recession-fighting spending, since federal debt is predicted to rise from 75% of GDP to nearly 100% by the decade's end. Consequently, he thinks the next recession may last two to three years.
All this to say that some sectors of the economy, which are highly leveraged and vulnerable to an extended trade war, now are flashing yellow, and many lenders are taking heed. As the U.S. enters its 10th year of economic expansion, some ABL players are testing their brakes…just to make sure. While some credit funds and PE players will continue to widen the guardrails on the road ahead, prudent lenders are taking stock of the situation. No one wants to go over the edge of the cliff with the accelerator to the floor, leaving no tire skid marks.
At the turn of the 20th century, Harriman was as well-known as J.P. Morgan, John D. Rockefeller, Andrew Carnegie and other captains of American industry during its most prosperous, gilded age. Banking, railroads, the stock market, oil and steel were the major paths to great wealth from the end of the Civil War until the Great Depression. Morgan stood for banking, Rockefeller for oil, Carnegie for iron and steel and Harriman for railroads. One skill that all of these industry giants possessed was a clear idea of the path ahead, with its risks and opportunities. Harriman's legacy continued through the 20th century with his son, Averell, who became Secretary of Commerce under President Truman and later, Governor of New York State.


Please note that due to the nature of this item, it is not recommended for infants and small children.
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Open out by friction-hinges and top-guides.
Height adjustable sash +/- 3mm.
Operation, locking and releasing by bottom-positioned handle. Limiting of opening by endstop in the guides or by opening-limiter.
by bottom-positioned chain- or locking drive. Limiting of opening by chain drive.


This years Gingerbread Boutique is designed by the hotels talented culinary team and lead by Executive Chef Matthew Morrison and Executive Pastry Chef Frederick Barasse.
Tysons Corner, VA (November 30, 2011) – The Ritz-Carlton, Tysons Corner has unveiled a life size Gingerbread Wonderland Boutique. Designed by the hotels talented culinary team and lead by Executive Chef Matthew Morrison and Executive Pastry Chef Frederick Barasse, the new store will be open through December 24th, from 10:00a.m. to 6:00p.m., daily.
The Gingerbread Boutique will be for all to come and enjoy, from hotel and local guests, to those coming to enjoy the holiday Princess Teas, Nutcracker Teas, or shoppers passing through from the Tysons Galleria; all are welcome to take pleasure in this magical shopping experience.
The life size Gingerbread Boutique will have a variety of delights, special gift ideas and exciting culinary creations to browse while shopping. Guests will be able to walk through the life size gingerbread constructed boutique which will be hosted by one of the Ladies or Gentlemen from the hotel. This personalized service, well known to Ritz-Carlton Guests, will allow shoppers and guests to purchase exclusive wines labels picked by Sommelier Vincent Feraud, relaxing spa gift ideas from The Day Spa, pastry delights from The Pastry Shop, as well as Ritz-Carlton Gift Cards; all the while marveling at the Gingerbread Wonderland adorned in gooey gum drops, vibrant candies, with fluffy white and colorful frostings.
Visiting the Gingerbread Wonderland Boutique allows visitors a fresh way to purchase personalized gifts for loved ones, a special opportunity to gaze at the magnificent culinary creation and a new holiday experience that lets us stay with you!
The Gingerbread Wonderland Boutique is only one of the many ways the hotel is celebrating the holiday season. Learn more about their events on their Information Page.


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Fox Marketing Chief Joe Earley Named COO
Fox Broadcasting Co. continues to realign its top management team following the recent promotion of Peter Rice to Chairman and CEO of Fox Networks Group. After Fox entertainment president Kevin Reilly last week was elevated to Chairman of Entertainment for Fox Broadcasting Co., the network's President of Marketing & Communications Joe Earley is now being promoted to Chief Operating Officer for FBC. In the new position, Earley will be involved in scripted programming, casting, scheduling, research, audience strategy, digital, and business affairs, in addition to continuing oversight of marketing and communications. He will continue to report to Reilly, along with Mike Darnell, President of Alternative Entertainment. "Joe is not only an inspired and creative marketing strategist, but he should own the patent on the concept of 'team builder,'" said Reilly.
As President of Marketing & Communications, Earley orchestrated the campaigns behind the successful launches of Glee, New Girl and The X factor. Additionally, Earley created and introduced the network's "So Fox" branding campaign. Earley joined Fox in 1994 as a Senior Publicist. Before that, he spent several years in Media Relations at HBO.
Joe Earley


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Determine Your Demands. A temporary fence ought to have the capability to help keep welcome attendees inside the event location, while stopping uninvited individuals from joining the gathering. You must rent temporary fencing that serves this objective, not a fence that may be easy to get over, through, or around. Select the type of temporary fence which will adequately keep a crowd in place.
Does it Comply with Local Rules? Every state has their particular legislation pertaining to fencing whether permanent or temporary. Be sure that you get a service from a firm who knows the fencing rules having to do with the area where you are going to put up the temporary fence. A Bonaire based company, for instance, will be the best choice if that is the place where you plan to make use of your temporary fence. Dependant upon the location, particular kinds of rental fences like a construction fence, might carry stricter guidelines that need to be obeyed. This tends to prevent added expenditure like having to pay a fine and could save you time from facing the authorities.
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Q: Swift - Using a segue removes Top Navigation Bar I'm using the performSegue function built into XCode to transfer between two views. I originally go from the view with the navigation bar to one without a navigation bar and it works perfectly. When I go back to the view with the Navigation Bar, the Bar just disappears and everything just moves up to fit the screen.

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Australia watching US case against Google
Daniel McCulloch
Australia's competition watchdog is closely watching a United States case against internet search and advertising giant Google.
The US government has filed a lawsuit against Google, accusing the company of illegally using its market power to fend off rivals.
The Justice Department has warned nothing is off the table, including breaking up the online behemoth.
Australian Competition and Consumer Commission chairman Rod Sims said the case was extremely significant.
"It's probably one of the major antitrust cases of the last 10 or 20 years dealing with issues that fundamentally underpin who wields market power in search," Mr Sims told ABC radio on Wednesday.
The ACCC recently released a major report that found Google was paying Apple nearly $10 billion a year to ensure it was the default search engine for their devices.
Mr Sims said his agency worked closely with the US Department of Justice while compiling its report.
"It's absolutely fascinating this action has now been taken," he said.
Kent Walker, Google's senior vice president of global affairs, said the "deeply flawed" lawsuit would do nothing to protect consumers.
"People use Google because they choose to, not because they're forced to, or because they can't find alternatives," he said.
"This lawsuit would do nothing to help consumers. To the contrary, it would artificially prop up lower-quality search alternatives, raise phone prices, and make it harder for people to get the search services they want to use."
The competition watchdog is separately working on a mandatory code to make Google and Facebook pay Australian media companies for their journalism.
Facebook has threatened to stop sharing Australian news as a result and Google has indicated it could withdraw some search functions.
"It's up to them how they want to behave and make those statements," Mr Sims said.
He said the draft code would change following consultations with the digital giants and media companies.
"We'll do our best to take everybody's views into account and accommodate those where we can because we're not trying to go around poking people in the eye," he said.
"Ultimately of course it's a decision for government, but the decision will be made, and then Google and Facebook will have to make their decisions."
Categories: Business, Technology


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Hodge's Coaches (Sandhurst) Ltd has added the first of a batch of six new 12.8m Scania OmniExpress coaches to its fleet. The vehicles are based on the Scania K360 EB4x2 Euro5 chassis and have ZF automatic transmissions. They are each fitted with 57-seats, a Bosch entertainment package, climate control system, powered parallel side lockers and a powered continental door.
Hodge's new coaches are being supplied by Scania (Great Britain) Ltd.


A new Airbus A380 airliner for Lufthansa is ready to leave the paintshop hangar at the Airbus facility in Finkenwerder near Hamburg, Germany, February 5, 2010.
Airbus said on Feb. 14 that it was scrapping production of the A380 superjumbo, the world's largest airliner.
The decision came after Emirates, the largest A380 customer, decided to reduce its orders of the superjumbo and instead order a total of 70 of the smaller A350 and A330neo models.
Airbus also reported fourth-quarter adjusted operating profit of 3.1 billion euros ($3.5 billion), up 56 percent from a year earlier and higher than analysts' expectations of 2.92 billion euros.
Airbus shares rose 5.3 percent to 109.97 euros by 0802 GMT on Feb. 14, approaching the record high of 111.16 euros hit on July 26, 2018.


Approved News 6 - Sources: "We All Die Alone"
OREGON CITY, OR - Confirming long-running suspicions, inside sources this week revealed that, contrary to the doctrine of several major religions, we all die alone.
"There is no light in the void," said a hollow-eyed woman in a tattered red suit, gazing blankly out into the overcast ocean. "There is no hope there."
Nihilist philosophers worldwide have expressed satisfaction with the revelation. "Love is an illusion," explained Dr. Albrecht Bergstaller, professor of philosophy at MIT, as thunder rolled and a terrible rain began to pound on the roof. "Companionship is a lie. Did you think you were special?" Dr. Bergstaller then shook his head, and laughed harshly. "No. You are not."
Sources further stated that in the end, terror and loss will claim us all. "Everything will be taken from you," sneered a reverberating voice from the shadows. "Forsake your worldly blessings, for they will bring you naught but pain."
Experts confirmed that happiness exists only so it may be taken away from you in the worst possible way. "It's very likely that everything you thought you had made of your life will soon implode utterly, leaving you with even less than you began with," said Dr. Henrietta Kowalski, renowned worldwide as the woman who finally slew notorious philanthropist Charles J. Bloodhorn and brought an end to his reign of terror. "Did you think the world was a kind place? Did you think any of it mattered?"
"Blame yourself," she added. "None of this would have happened if it hadn't been for your failure."
While many have met the news with despair, depression, and complete nervous breakdowns, some have found relief in it. "It's a comfort to know that my wretched grandson and his spawn won't be tormenting me in my final moments," said Portland, OR grandmother Sandra Barzetti. "I don't want the last thing I experience as a conscious entity to be him and his wife shouting at each other about whether they'll invite the Howards to the funeral, y'know."
Samekh Samadrael is Approved News 6's death correspondent. Found wandering the Ash Wastes of the Forsaken Lands in a time beyond time and seemingly immortal, Samadrael has witnessed the rise and fall of countless empires, the shifting continents in their endless dance, and the birth and death of the very galaxies themselves. They graduated in 1893 from the [REDACTED] School of Journalism and live in Washington, D.C., awaiting something they have refused to explain.


Hello Stampin Friends! Sorry this is late!!!! I TOTALLY forgot it was Tuesday LOL! Oh well. Here is my card for Try Stampin On Tuesday's Sketch this week. I hope you stop over and see what the Design Team has to offer this week there are a bunch!
Adorable! I love the red glimmer paper around the main image. Very pretty.