text:
J O Hambro Capital Management Selects FactSet's Multi-Asset Class Risk Analytics Platform
LONDON, UK., Feb. 22, 2018 -- FactSet, a global provider of integrated financial information, analytical applications, and industry-leading services, today announced that active asset manager J O Hambro Capital Management (JOHCM) selected FactSet as its investment risk management and reporting solution.
Driven by the convergence of risk and performance, increasing regulation, and more sophisticated investment strategies, FactSet has been expanding its multi-asset class solutions for more than 20 years. With the recent launch of FactSet's linear risk model and the integration of the fat tail approach acquired through the recent acquisition of BISAM, it now has one of the strongest multi-asset class analytics, performance, and risk management offerings in the industry.
"JOHCM chose FactSet's multi-asset class risk package because it provides a comprehensive, flexible, and competitively-priced way to monitor factor sensitivity in portfolios and avoids unnecessary complexity," said Sandy Black, Investment Director, J O Hambro Capital Management.
Following implementation by FactSet's Professional Services Group, JOHCM will have access to FactSet's award-winning solutions for risk management and reporting, as well as its industry-leading client service.
"FactSet is focused on providing clients with flexibility and choice around their risk modeling assumptions and functionality," said Rob Robie, Senior Vice President, Global Head of Analytics Solutions, FactSet. "We are delighted that JOHCM has selected FactSet, validating our leadership as one of the premier multi-asset class risk and analytics solutions in the marketplace."
Learn more about FactSet's risk analytics solutions: https://www.factset.com/analytics/quant .
About J O Hambro Capital Management
J O Hambro Capital Management Limited (JOHCM) is a UK-headquartered active asset management company with investment offices in London, Boston, New York and Singapore and a dedicated mutual fund sales team based in Berwyn, Pa. It has $42.1 billion assets under management (as at December 31, 2017) and manages assets across U.K., U.S., European, Asian, Japanese, global/international and emerging markets equities strategies and a Global Income Builder strategy. (AUM includes assets managed by JOHCM and its wholly owned affiliates JOHCM (USA) Inc. and JOHCM (Singapore) Pte. Limited). Learn more at www.johcm.com .
FactSet (NYSE:FDS | NASDAQ:FDS) delivers superior analytics, service, content, and technology to help more than 88,000 users see and seize opportunity sooner. We are committed to giving investment professionals the edge to outperform, with fresh perspectives, informed insights, and the industry-leading support of our dedicated specialists. We're proud to have been recognized with multiple awards for our analytical and data-driven solutions and repeatedly ranked as one of Fortune's 100 Best Companies to Work For and a Best Workplace in the United Kingdom and France. Subscribe to our thought leadership blog to get fresh insight delivered daily at insight.factset.com. Learn more at www.factset.com and follow on Twitter: www.twitter.com/factset.


In 1839, the first Opium War broke out, and the Chinese ordered all foreign traders to surrender their opium. The British responded by sending warships to China. Two years later, the Chinese were defeated by the British which demanded heavy reparations, including the cession of Hong Kong to Great Britain The Second Opium War erupted in 1856, and the British again demanded indemnities from China, forcing the emperor to legalize opium. By the turn of the century and after 150 years of failed attempts to rid the country of opium, the Chinese finally convinced the British to dismantle the India-China opium trade.
In the 1850s, British merchants began importing Indian opium to Burma and selling it through a government-controlled monopoly. In 1886, the British acquired Burma's northeast region, Shan state. Production and smuggling of opium along the lower region of Burma thrived despite British efforts to maintain a strict monopoly on the opium trade.
THE OSS: FORERUNNER TO THE CIA. The "multinational" business of drug trafficking can be traced back to the 1940s, even before the CIA was created following World War II. Before the creation of the CIA in 1947, Allen Dulles assembled the Flying Tigers, an inner clique within the Office of Strategic Services (OSS). Dulles had close ties with Eastern billionaire families, and he was able to run clandestine operations out of the White House.
The OSS-mafia alliance emerged soon after the agency was formed. The OSS was first headed by Earl Brennan who helped plan the Allied invasion of Sicily and Italy in World War II. During the war, He had close ties with the head of the Vatican's Vessel Operation, Monsignor Giovanni Batista Montini who was also an aid to Pope Pius XII. Montini suggested that Brennan recruit Italian exiles such as Masons business leaders, and mafia members to corroborate with the Allies in their invasion. In 1963, Montini become Pope Paul VI.
In the late 1940s, Hellwell was named the Burmese consulate in Miami and was able to secure a monopoly on opium in Burma. From there, opium was processed in Shanghai, and then it was exported to the United States on Sea Supply boats. In return, Hellwell shipped guns back to China.
The OSS used the mob to distribute heroin in big cities throughout the United States.
Another OSS connection was the German Gestapo. Dozens of leading Gestapo figures and SS spies were used. Their spy networks and personal war records could be used to survey and control the Soviet Union. After these Nazis arrived in Georgetown, they were used by the newly created CIA in a drug running role. They were educated at Fort Benning and then used extensively in Latin America by local militaries. They were partially funded by the revenue generated from Burmese heroin exported to China for refining, and then exported to ghettos in the United States. After Mao solidified his power in 1949 revolution, drug trafficking in China began to diminish, partially because the death penalty was carried out against convicted dealers.
THE CIA'S DRUG CONNECTION. After World War II, the OSS created a situation which helped revive the Sicilian-American mafia and the Corsican underworld. The alliance with the mafia was maintained by the CIA in order to check the growing strength of the Italian Communist Party. For example, the Corsicans in Marseilles smuggled raw opium from Turkey and refined it into high grade heroin for export to the United States. Marseilles relied on a handful of expert chemists who were able to produce high grade number four heroin. After the transformation of the OSS into the CIA, Marseille's Corsicans fell under the protection of the French intelligence service which allowed heroin trafficking to operate for another 20 years. By 1965, Marseilles syndicates were able to double their production and operated between 20 and 25 laboratories which produced 50 to 150 kilograms of heroin each month. It was estimated that 4.8 tons of pure heroin was exported to the United States in 1965 alone.
The CIA armed and funded the Corsican syndicates to break up longshoremen's strikes in 1947 and 1950. Harry Bridges had been known for his leadership in general strikes in San Francisco in 1934, and he moved on to New York City where he worked to unionize dock workers. The CIA paid the mafia to assault and harass union leaders and workers. Some were even murdered. The CIA also used psychological warfare against the unions. Anti-union pamphlets, radio broadcasts, and posters discouraged workers from continuing the strike.
Meanwhile in Europe, the CIA continued to work with drug traffickers in its war to thwart the election of communists in democratic elections. By the late 1940s, Marseilles had become the postwar heroin capital of the Western world. And Italy's mafia still maintained its strength as the most powerful component in Europe.
However, the CIA's list included a hand-full of names of drug dealers in Southeast Asia, and none of them were the principal players. Additionally, the White House decided to concentrate in Turkey where less than 5 percent of the world's opium supply was grown.
KHUN SA AND THE GOLDEN TRIANGLE. During the heated cold war in Southeast Asia in the 1950s, large scale decisions were made by the CIA in its Langley, Virginia headquarters. The agency's operants were given a large scale of autonomy in the field. The agency did not ask questions as long as those on the payroll produced results. One of the major objectives of these factions was to gain control of opium trade in their regions. A large amount of duplicity, which included tortures and murders, occurred among various groups: CIA headquarters, its operants in the field, and drug lords.
"The Thai government launched an opium suppression campaign which compelled most of the planters to switch to heroin". What exactly doe this line from the article mean??? How does a "planter" switch from growing opium to heroin when all heroin is just a super refined version of opium?? No opium= No heroin.
The author probably meant to say that (just like recently in Afghanistan), that they swapped from just producing Opium that was refined elsewhere, to actually making Heroin within the country, and exporting the final product rather than the base product.


Keshav Laxminarasimhan is an 8th grader who wants to be an Olympic swimmer when he grows up. He is currently 13 years old and he wants to go to the Junior Olympics before 16 years of age. Today his hobbies are karate as he is a 3rd degree black belt,Guitar and drums.He wants to go to Stanford for college and get a doctorate degree. He loves Sharks he has even swam with sharks before. Overall a great person on Canyon Echoes!


text:
CultureTheatre
Bottom at Soho Theatre
Bottom at Soho Theatre | Theatre review
Will Almond
Willy Hudson's one-man, one-hour, one-bottom, one-Beyoncé and one-Ukulele show is a coming-of-age story centred specifically around an element of LGBTQ+ politics that is often asked about but rarely discussed. Whether it's on a date, an app or a night out, the question of "top or bottom?" is bound to surface pretty quickly.
Bottom takes this matter as its guiding theme, using it to explore other issues which often face young queer people in London, such as casual zero-hours employment, flatmates and the search for love in a city of 10 million (eight to nine million of whom are on Tinder).
Hudson's stand-in mannikin (or the lower half of it at least) watches over the entire performance, keeping vigil as a constant reminder of his bottom and its primacy in his quest for love. Periodically, this symbol is shocked back into the audience's consciousness with electric vibrancy thanks to the show's excellent sound and light design. The production is about life, love and sexual politics in the digital age, and the technical team are absolutely crucial to that.
At its heart though, Bottom still relies on storytelling and performance to constantly engage its audience, whether directly – "What's your favourite Beyoncé song?"/ "Help me get dressed please!" – or indirectly with a subject matter that continually challenges preconceptions and easy ideas. This is an intimate exploration of sexuality and politics. There are moments which shock (largely centred around a tub of Nutella or other generic chocolate and nut spread). Yet there is also a tenderness and a vulnerability which let the audience in. Yes, there is politics, and LGBTQ+ history, but this is much more memoir than manifesto.
Occasionally the narrative could and structure could be tighter, but this is a brave and bold piece of theatre that's funny, thought-provoking and surprising.
Bottom is at Soho Theatre from 18th December until 5th January 2019. For further information or to book visit the theatre's website here.
Related Itemsreview
More in Theatre
Michael Higgs
Mae Trumata
David Suchet: Poirot and More, a Retrospective at Harold Pinter Theatre
Into the Night at Original Theatre Online
Ella Satin
The Tiger Lillies' Christmas Carol: A Victorian Gutter at the Southbank Centre
Jessica Wall
Nutcracker! at Sadler's Wells
Sophia Moss
Hawksmoor and Creation Theatre at Home: A Christmas Carol – dinner and a show from the sofa
2:22 A Ghost Story at Gielgud Theatre
Ezelle Alblas
Trouble in Mind at the National Theatre
Mersa Auda
18th December 2018 - 5th January 2019
Links & directions
Pisqu in Fitzrovia: A taste of Peru
Bumblebee | Movie review

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
American Academy of Nursing to induct two TWU faculty members
August 10, 2021 — DENTON — Two TWU College of Nursing leaders, Donna Scott Tilley, PhD, of the Denton campus and Wyona Freysteinson, PhD, of the TWU Institute of Health Sciences - Houston Center, have been tapped for induction into the American Academy of Nursing 2021 Class of Fellows.
Tilley and Freysteinson will be inducted at the academy's annual Health Policy Conference, which will be held Oct. 7-9, 2021 in Washington, D.C. Induction into the academy is viewed as a significant milestone in the nursing profession. The academy recognizes fellows for their contributions to the nursing field and their impact on advancing public health.
Tilley's work has focused on gender-based violence, sexual assault prevention and response, and the health of mothers and children.
"I hope that my work will contribute to a world in which violence against women and girls is the rare exception rather than the norm," Tilley said. "It is my hope that my work will contribute to a better understanding about the nature, magnitude, and impact of violence against women and children — with the ultimate goal of helping us all understand what works and doesn't work to reduce all types of violence and to mitigate the effects of violence."
Freysteinson's work has centered on the embodied experience of mirror-viewing with a current emphasis on mirror discomfort and mirror trauma that occurs after body disfigurement.
"Recognition for my work by the American Academy of Nursing provides credibility to the Neurocognitive Theory of Mirror-Viewing. Moreover, I hope that this work will generate global research on mirror-viewing for many populations and inspire a global enthusiasm for nursing officers to take stock of the mirrors in their hospitals so that nurses can support patients in viewing and caring for their newly disfigured bodies after surgery or trauma," Freysteinson said. "I am honored and humbled."
The academy is an honorific society that recognizes nursing's most accomplished leaders in policy, research, practice, administration, and academia. Fellows come from nearly 40 countries and hold a wide variety of roles influencing health care. Induction into the Fellowship represents more than recognition of one's accomplishments within the nursing profession. Fellows contribute their collective expertise to the Academy, engaging with health leaders nationally and globally to improve health and achieve health equity by impacting policy through nursing leadership, innovation, and science.
Other TWU College of Nursing faculty members who have been inducted into the academy include Dean Rosalie Mainous, PhD; Linda Roussel, PhD, of Dallas; and Sandra Cesario, PhD, Joan Edwards, PhD, and Judith McFarlane, DrPH, of Houston.
About the American Academy of Nursing
The American Academy of Nursing serves the public by advancing health policy and practice through the generation, synthesis, and dissemination of nursing knowledge. Currently, the academy has more than 2,800 members.
Joshua Flanagan
jflanagan1@twu.edu
Contact TWU Nursing
ASB 216
5500 Southwestern Medical Avenue
nursing@twu.edu
nursingadvising@twu.edu
Schedule an undergraduate advising appointment


text:
CW Orders Additional Episodes for Freshman Series 'Charmed,' 'Legacies' and 'All American'
"Charmed" reboot gets net's biggest vote of confidence
Tim Baysinger | November 8, 2018 @ 12:45 PM
The CW has ordered additional episodes for all three of its freshman series, "Charmed," "Legacies" and "All American."
"Legacies" and "All American" each received an additional three episodes, bringing the total run to 16 apiece. The CW handed out nine new episodes to its reboot of "Charmed," giving that series a full season run of 22 episodes.
"All American" lost its showrunner a week before its premiere when April Blair stepped down and was replaced by co-executive producer Nkechi Okoro Carroll. Blair wrote the pilot for the series.
Also Read: 'The 4400' Reboot in the Works at The CW
"Charmed" is written and executive produced by Jessica O'Toole and Amy Rardin, along with executive producer and creator Jennie Urman. Brad Silberling directed the pilot and is grabbing an executive producing credit with Ben Silverman and Carter Covington. It stars Madeleine Mantock, Melonie Diaz and Sarah Jeffery.
"Legacies" continues the tradition of "The Vampire Diaries" and "The Originals," telling the story of the next generation of supernatural beings at The Salvatore School for the Young and Gifted. Julie Plec and Brett Matthews write and executive producer, along with Leslie Morgenstein and Gina Girolamo.
The CW still has five series set to premiere during the midseason 2019, including new series "Roswell, New Mexico," and "In the Dark" and the returns of "Jane the Virgin," "iZombie" and "The 100."
'Charmed' 20th Anniversary: Every Big Bad Ranked, From the Avatars to Zankou (Photos)
The Halliwell sisters at the center of "Charmed" kicked some serious butt in their time, knocking out more villains than are even listed in the Book of Shadows. And in honor of the series' 20th anniversary on Oct. 7, TheWrap gives its unofficial ranking of the truly horrid Prue (Shannen Doherty), Phoebe (Alyssa Milano), Piper (Holly Marie Combs) and Paige (Rose McGowan) went up against. Yes, we know these aren't all the demons, warlocks and horrible creatures that go bump in the night that terrorized the Power of Three over the course of "Charmed"s eight-season run -- but they are by far the baddest.
Also Read: Fall TV Premieres: Here's When All Your Favorite Shows Will Return (Photos)
CBS Studios/Paramount
13. Hannah Webster and Rex Buckland
Looking back, these losers were super lame, but given the fact they were the top villains during Season 1 -- when the girls will still getting used to their powers -- that's fair. But my God were they cheesy and sleazy and certainly not a threat the Season 8 Power of Three would have cared about for one second.
12. The Triad
At first, the Triad seemed pretty "meh." They were introduced in Season 3, tasking Cole/Belthazor (Julian McMahon) with getting close to the Charmed Ones in order to kill them. And then Cole actually killed them all when he decided he loved Phoebe (Alyssa Milano). They were resurrected in the final season to help Christy and Billie Jenkins aka the Ultimate Power, try and defeat the Power of Three. It didn't work, but they get an A for effort!
11. Wyatt Halliwell
Evil Wyatt only existed in an alternate future where Gideon made him evil. So once he was neutralized as a real threat after they solved the Gideon problem, everything was fine. However, seeing Leo (Brian Krause) and Piper's (Holly Marie Combs) baby boy grow up to be a ruthless totalitarian warlock was pretty jarring -- even in a different world.
Also Read: Fall TV: Here Are the Premiere Dates for All 22 New Broadcast Series (Photos)
10. Zankou
OK, so Zankou was a pain in the ass sure, and the girls had a tough time figuring out exactly how to get rid of him. But in the end they were able to use the Nexus to knock him out for good. The sisters felt like this was a good stopping place for them as witches and used the big scene his death made to fake their own deaths. It didn't stick though, and they were back in the game come Season 8.
9. Barbas
We have to hand it to Barbas, who managed to come back over and over throughout the series, as the girls defeated the Demon of Fear what seems like 100 times. He was funny, smart and had them on the ropes more than once. What can we say? He was fun.
Also Read: New 'Charmed' Star Says Holly Marie Combs Can 'Feel However She Wants' About Reboot
8. Belthazor
We don't know how many times "Charmed" has said it, but Belthazor and Cole are for sure not the same person. One is the human half, one is the demon half. And (as pictured) the demonic side is totally pissed that Cole loves Phoebe and is happy to try and strangle her to death on more than one occasion Cole may have been pretty bad at times, but Belthazor spent a season and change trying to kill the Power of Three -- and Cole's one true love.
He tried to kill baby Wyatt. A baby. Look, the dude had his reasons: Wyatt was possibly going to grow up to be the most evil, evil there ever was. However, we learned that Future Wyatt actually only turned bad because Gideon spent so long trying to figure out how to kill him as an infant. So, thanks for that, Gideon.
Also Read: 19 TV Reboots That Should Have Been Booted (Photos)
6. The Avatars
Agent Kyle Brody (Kerr Smith) spent the better part of Season 7 trying to prove these guys were bad, bad, bad news and responsible for the deaths of his parents. Once he found out that wasn't true, he was still not here for them remaking the world into Utopia -- a place without good and evil. He wasn't able to convince the Charmed Ones that this would get rid of free will in time, and they did help the Avatars go through with their plan -- but they regretted it later and turned the clock back. It's hard to say if they were truly "bad" in the end, but they definitely rank toward the top in terms of a "big" threat.
5. The Seer
This upper level demon was responsible for not only orchestrating the series of events that led to Cole becoming the Source, but also those that allowed for him and Phoebe to conceive a demonic heir and for Phoebe to lose that child and be forced to vanquish her husband. If that's not pure evil, we don't know what is.
Also Read: Here's the Complete Fall 2018 TV Schedule for All 5 Broadcast Networks
4. Cole
Poor, poor Cole. Well, poor Cole, depending on what side of the fanbase you are on. Cole was a huge threat when he was possessed by the Source, which, to be fair, wasn't his fault. But when he returned from the demonic wasteland with a ton of powers and began committing evil acts in an attempt to get Phoebe back that wasn't great. But we will ship Cole and Phoebe almost as hard as we ship Piper and Leo, so it's really hard to be that mad at Cole. Plus, just look at him.
3. The Ultimate Power (Christy & Billie Jenkins)
So Christy (Marnette Patterson) and Billie (Kaley Cuoco) were set up to be the truly worst of the worst, the biggest of the bad, the most evil thing the Power of Three ever had to deal with ever and the ones they would go up against in the final battle. Except that battle really lasted like a few minutes, and though Paige (Rose McGowan) and Phoebe died, Piper was able to turn back time and save them come the very next episode, the series finale. There were much bigger threats throughout the eight-season run, but "Charmed" treated Christy and Billie like the evil Charmed Ones so we have to too.
2. Shax
He killed Prue (Shannen Doherty) on the Source's orders. Like, he KILLED. PRUE. So, yeah, he hits high on the list here.
1. The Source of All Evil
He's the Source... of... All.... Evil... Of course this guy -- in all the many iterations he took on throughout the series -- is No. 1.
Also Read: The CW Boss on Starting Up Sundays Again: We Wanted 'Shows That Empowered Women'
In honor of the Charmed Ones' big birthday, TheWrap ranks the worst demons, warlocks and evil creatures they ever faced
Ratings: The CW's 'All American' Gets Benched in Debut
By Tony Maglio | October 11, 2018 @ 8:29 AM
The CW Renews 'Burden of Truth' and 'The Outpost' for Season 2 Runs in Summer 2019
By Ashley Boucher | October 9, 2018 @ 11:15 AM
The CW Developing 'LA Complex' Reboot With Original Creator Martin Gero
By Tim Baysinger | October 3, 2018 @ 1:47 PM


text:
import React from "react"
import { graphql } from "gatsby"
import Event from "./event"

const Events = ({ events }) => {
  const endOfDay = date => new Date(date).setHours(23, 59, 59, 999)

  const upcoming = events.nodes.filter(
    event => endOfDay(event.data.date) >= Date.now()
  )

  const past = events.nodes
    .filter(event => endOfDay(event.data.date) < Date.now())
    .reverse()

  return events.nodes.length > 0 ? (
    <>

Upcoming Events

        {upcoming.map(event => (

            <Event event={event.data} />

        ))}

Past Events

        {past.map(event => (

            <Event event={event.data} />

        ))}

    </>
  ) : (

No events are scheduled right now.

  )
}

export default Events

export const query = graphql`
  fragment CommunityEvents on AirtableConnection {
    nodes {
      id
      data {
        date
        ...EventFragment
      }
    }
  }
`

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


After an intense summer of development, LYF Shoes has completed its program as one of the select Cherokee Challenge recipients. With a Finale that included introductions and discussion by Tom Darden, William McDonough, and JT Vaughn, the stage was set for LYF Shoes to fully present the new frontier of sustainability in footwear.
JT Vaughn lauded LYF's efforts in this article on WRAL Techwire.


text:
Home Economy HCP: Morocco to Record 4.6% GDP Growth in 2021
HCP: Morocco to Record 4.6% GDP Growth in 2021
The country recorded a 7% recession in 2020—the first recession in over two decades.
Yahia Hatim
Morocco's High Commission for Planning (HCP) predicted that the country's gross domestic product (GDP) will record a 4.6% growth in 2021 after the 7% recession it witnessed in 2020.
According to the institution's latest report on Morocco's macroeconomic indicators, the country will quickly exit the COVID-induced recession period and the national economy will partially recover.
The HCP also predicted Morocco's unemployment rate to decline from 12.8% in 2020 to 11.1% in 2021.
The institution forecast that the average cereal production in Morocco will reach 75 million quintals during the 2020-2021 agricultural season.
According to the HCP, the country's agriculture and fisheries would push the primary sector's growth up 11% in 2021. In 2020, the sector recorded a 7.1% decline.
Read also: Morocco Celebrates Successful Start to Agricultural Export Campaign
The secondary sector would also overcome its 6.3% decline in 2020 and improve by 4.1% in 2021, the HCP predicted.
The Commission expects processing industries, such as food, textile, and clothing, to benefit from an increasing European demand this year.
The mining sector is also set to benefit from growing global demand. The added value from exporting phosphates and its derivatives, for instance, is set to record a 3.2% growth between 2020 and 2021.
The construction sector will be another major beneficiary of Morocco's economic recovery. The HCP forecast that public infrastructure investments will drive the sector's growth from -9.8% in 2020 to 5.1% in 2021.
Meanwhile, mechanical, metallurgical, and electrical industries will record more modest recoveries due to the persistent underperformance of the automotive and aeronautical sectors at the global level, the HCP wrote.
Finally, Morocco's tertiary sector is set to witness a growth of 3.4% in 2021. In 2020, it recorded a decline of 6.8%.
The HCP expects the growth to result from an increased domestic demand on services, such as transportation, especially after Morocco's national vaccination campaign against COVID-19.
According to HCP, the only sector that will likely remain in the red in 2021 is tourism.
Read also: Morocco's Tourism Office Begins National Tour to Develop Recovery Plan
HCP: Pandemic Hurt Morocco's Aeronautics, Automotive Sectors in 2020
Morocco Forecasts 0.5% Economic Growth in First Quarter of 2021
IMF Predicts Morocco's GDP to Increase by 4.5% in 2021
COVID-19 Crisis: Morocco's Economy Shows Mixed Recovery Indicators
HCP Predicts 8.7% Decline in Morocco's GDP in 3rd Quarter of 2020
Morocco's Highway Traffic Declined by One-Third by End of June


text:
"Never As Consistently Anti-Intervention As Advertised": Vetting Bernie: He Never Voted For Intervention In Iraq — Except Twice
The only topic that preoccupies Bernie Sanders more than income inequality is his vote against authorization of war in Iraq, which he mentions at every debate and whenever anyone questions his foreign policy credentials. Fair enough: Sanders turned out to be right on that vote and Hillary Clinton has admitted that she was wrong to trust George W. Bush.
But the socialist Vermont senator is under fresh scrutiny today on the (further) left, where his support for intervention in Bosnia and Afghanistan has raised sharp questions. In Counter-Punch, the online magazine founded by the late Alexander Cockburn, his longtime collaborator Jeffrey St. Clair complains that even on Iraq, Sanders is a "hypocrite" who was never as consistently anti-intervention as advertised:
In 1998 Sanders voted in favor of the Iraq Liberation Act of 1998, which said: "It should be the policy of the United States to support efforts to remove the regime headed by Saddam Hussein from power in Iraq and to promote the emergence of a democratic government to replace that regime."
Later that same year, Sanders also backed a resolution that stated: "Congress reaffirms that it should be the policy of the United States to support efforts to remove the regime headed by Saddam Hussein from power in Iraq and to promote the emergence of a democratic government to replace that regime."
According to St. Clair, Sanders has dismissed those votes as "almost unanimous," but that implies an absurdly elastic definition of the term. Looking up the actual vote, St. Clair found that 38 members of varying ideology and party affiliation voted no. To him, this means Sanders should be held responsible for the bombing campaign that followed, as well as the deaths of 500,000 Iraqi children who allegedly perished as a result of US sanctions (which seems to absolve the late dictator of any culpability for the sanctions regime, but never mind).
Certainly it is fair to ask Sanders — who strives to distance himself from his rival on foreign and security policy – why he cast those fateful votes to support Bill Clinton's Iraq policy in 1998.
By: Joe Conason, Editor in Chief, Editor's Blog, The National Memo, February 17, 2016
February 18, 2016 Posted by raemd95 | Bernie Sanders, Foreign Policy, Iraq War	| Afghanistan, Bill Clinton, Bosnia, Democratic Primary Debates, Iraq Liberation Acti of 1998, Jeffrety St. Clair, National Security, Regime Change, Saddam Hussein | 9 Comments
"The Right Questions On Syria": Are The Risks Greater If We Launch Missles Or If We Continue To Sit On Our Hands?
Critics of American military action in Syria are right to point out all the risks and uncertainties of missile strikes, and they have American public opinion on their side.
But for those of you who oppose cruise missile strikes, what alternative do you favor?
It's all very well to urge the United Nations and Arab League to do more, but that means that Syrians will continue to be killed at a rate of 5,000 every month. Involving the International Criminal Court sounds wonderful but would make it more difficult to hammer out a peace deal in which President Bashar al-Assad steps down. So what do you propose other than that we wag our fingers as a government uses chemical weapons on its own people?
So far, we've tried peaceful acquiescence, and it hasn't worked very well. The longer the war drags on in Syria, the more Al Qaeda elements gain strength, the more Lebanon and Jordan are destabilized, and the more people die. It's admirable to insist on purely peaceful interventions, but let's acknowledge that the likely upshot is that we sit by as perhaps another 60,000 Syrians are killed over the next year.A decade ago, I was aghast that so many liberals were backing the Iraq war. Today, I'm dismayed that so many liberals, disillusioned by Iraq, seem willing to let an average of 165 Syrians be killed daily rather than contemplate missile strikes that just might, at the margins, make a modest difference.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which tracks the number of dead in the civil war, is exasperated at Western doves who think they are taking a moral stance.
"Where have these people been the past two years," the organization asks on its Web site. "What is emerging in the United States and United Kingdom now is a movement that is anti-war in form but pro-war in essence."
In other words, how is being "pro-peace" in this case much different in effect from being "pro-Assad" and resigning oneself to the continued slaughter of civilians?
To me, the central question isn't, "What are the risks of cruise missile strikes on Syria?" I grant that those risks are considerable, from errant missiles to Hezbollah retaliation. It's this: "Are the risks greater if we launch missiles, or if we continue to sit on our hands?"
Let's be humble enough to acknowledge that we can't be sure of the answer and that Syria will be bloody whatever we do. We Americans are often so self-absorbed as to think that what happens in Syria depends on us; in fact, it overwhelmingly depends on Syrians.
Yet on balance, while I applaud the general reluctance to reach for the military toolbox, it seems to me that, in this case, the humanitarian and strategic risks of inaction are greater. We're on a trajectory that leads to accelerating casualties, increasing regional instability, growing strength of Al Qaeda forces, and more chemical weapons usage.
Will a few days of cruise missile strikes make a difference? I received a mass e-mail from a women's group I admire, V-Day, calling on people to oppose military intervention because "such an action would simply bring about more violence and suffering. … Experience shows us that military interventions harm innocent women, men and children."
Really? Sure, sometimes they do, as in Iraq. But in both Bosnia and Kosovo, military intervention saved lives. The same was true in Mali and Sierra Leone. The truth is that there's no glib or simple lesson from the past. We need to struggle, case by case, for an approach that fits each situation.
In Syria, it seems to me that cruise missile strikes might make a modest difference, by deterring further deployment of chemical weapons. Sarin nerve gas is of such limited usefulness to the Syrian army that it has taken two years to use it in a major way, and it's plausible that we can deter Syria's generals from employing it again if the price is high.
The Syrian government has also lately had the upper hand in fighting, and airstrikes might make it more willing to negotiate toward a peace deal to end the war. I wouldn't bet on it, but, in Bosnia, airstrikes helped lead to the Dayton peace accord.
Missile strikes on Assad's military airports might also degrade his ability to slaughter civilians. With fewer fighter aircraft, he may be less able to drop a napalmlike substance on a school, as his forces apparently did in Aleppo last month.
A brave BBC television crew filmed the burn victims, with clothes burned and skin peeling off their bodies, and interviewed an outraged witness who asked those opposed to military action: "You are calling for peace. What kind of peace are you calling for? Don't you see this?"
By: Nicholas D. Kristof, Op-Ed Columnist, The New York Times, September 4, 2013
September 7, 2013 Posted by raemd95 | Syria	| Al Qaeda, Arab League, Bashar al-Assad, Bosnia, Chemical Weapons, Iraq War, Middle East, United Nations, United States | Leave a comment
Congress And The War Powers Resolutions: Libya Airstrikes Constitutionally Legit
Under the Constitution, only Congress has the power to "declare war." The president, however, has ample authority to use military force without a "declaration of war" where the anticipated U.S. engagement in hostilities is limited in its expected nature, scope and duration. Presidential administrations of both political parties have recognized a long tradition that supports this use of force. And Congress has acknowledged its legitimacy as well.
The authority for the president to act without specific congressional authorization is set out in two opinions of the Office of Legal Counsel. The first, issued in 1994, defends the plan to send 20,000 troops into Haiti and the second, issued in 1995, provides the legal authority for the use of air power in Bosnia. (I should note that I was head of OLC at the time these opinions were issued).
As these opinions note, the structure of the War Powers Resolution enacted by Congress necessarily presupposes the existence of unilateral presidential authority to deploy armed forces "into hostilities or into situations where imminent involvement in hostilities is clearly indicated by the circumstances." The resolution requires that, in the absence of a declaration of war, the president must report to Congress within 48 hours of introducing armed forces into such circumstances and must terminate the use of U.S. armed forces within 60 days unless Congress permits otherwise. This structure makes sense only if the president may introduce troops into hostilities or potential hostilities without prior authorization by the Congress: the resolution regulates such action by the president and seeks to set limits to it.
President Obama has fully complied with the reporting requirements set out by Congress in the War Powers Resolution. To be sure, the resolution declares that it should not be construed to grant any new authority to the president. But it obviously assumes that the president already had such authority, and sets out reporting (and subsequent withdrawal) requirements when he exercises that power.
It has been 15 years since these OLC opinions were issued and widely discussed. In that time, Congress has continued to provide for military forces to be deployed throughout the world without placing any restrictions that would preclude their use in circumstances such as those presented by Haiti, Bosnia and Libya. Under well-established precedents endorsed by both the executive and congressional branches of the national government, there is no doubt of the legitimacy of the president's use of force in Libya.
By: Walter Dellinger, Visiting Professor of Law, Harvard University; Former Assistant Attorney General and Head, Office of Legal Council. Article published in The Arena, Politico, March 22, 2011
March 22, 2011 Posted by raemd95 | Congress, Constitution, Foreign Policy, Libya, Middle East, Military Intervention, National Security, No Fly Zones, Politics, President Obama, Qaddafi, War	| Bosnia, Haiti, Military Force, Office Of Legal Council, Rep Dennis Kucinich, Sen Susan Collins, War Powers Resolutions | Leave a comment
In Libya, Obama Did The Right Thing
Over the past few days, President Obama has surprised us. For weeks, he seemed committed to avoiding military action against Libya—even though Libyans were imploring America and the West to come to their aid. But at the very last minute, when Muammar Qaddafi seemed to be only days and perhaps hours away from retaking the remainder of his country by force, Obama decided to act. It was a decision we wish he would have arrived at weeks ago. But it was the right decision. And Obama deserves credit for having made it.
To understand why Obama's decision was not only correct but really the only decent one that was available to him, it is necessary to contemplate what would be taking place in Libya right now if we had not intervened. Late last week, Qaddafi announced that his forces, having reestablished control over most of the country, were closing in on the rebel stronghold of Benghazi, and issued his now infamous warning to those who refused to give up. "We are coming tonight," he said. "We will find you in your closets. We will have no mercy and no pity." Had we not intervened to cripple his forces, it seems likely that, by now, Qaddafi would be in Benghazi and, undoubtedly, carrying out bloody reprisals against his opponents. The rebellion, moreover, would effectively be over, and any hopes of freedom that the Libyan people had been entertaining would be dead, at least in the near term.
Skeptics of the intervention (including TNR contributing editor Michael Walzer, whose thoughtful analysis can be found here) have argued that one of the mission's flaws is that its goals are woefully unclear. Are we trying to topple Qaddafi? Are we merely trying to create a safe-haven for rebels in the east? These are fair questions, but it seems to us that the most immediate goals of the mission were quite clear: first, to prevent a slaughter in Benghazi, a slaughter that Qaddafi himself had promised was only hours away; and second, to tip the balance of power in the rebellion away from Qaddafi, so that his forces were unable to retake any more of the country, thus extinguishing the resistance for good. On these terms, the intervention has already been a success.
As for what comes next: It is difficult to say whether Western airpower can tip the balance of power toward the rebels so dramatically that they will be able to topple Qaddafi. We certainly hope so. But even if it does not, an intervention that at least allows the rebels to maintain a free zone in Libya will certainly be a better outcome than the alternative—a Libya reunited under Qaddafi's iron control.
In making this argument we are mindful of the lessons of Iraq. We supported that war, which has exacted an enormous human cost on Iraqis and Americans alike, and we long ago came to the conclusion that our support was a grave mistake. But we are also mindful of recent instances where Western power has been necessary to head off mass killing and to help oppressed people achieve their liberation. In some of these instances—Bosnia, Kosovo—we acted, and the outcomes have been generally positive. In other instances—Rwanda, Darfur—we did not act, and the results were hundreds of thousands of dead. The point is that Iraq alone cannot be used as a basis for determining the morality or predicting the efficacy of any given intervention.
Many skeptics have also pointed to the events unfolding in Bahrain, where a Sunni minority government allied with the United States has (with the help of another U.S. ally, Saudi Arabia) violently suppressed an uprising by the Shia majority. Isn't Obama a hypocrite, many liberals have asked, for intervening to stop an autocrat in Libya but not in Bahrain? It is a legitimate point. Bahrain is said to be a difficult case for American policymakers because a revolution by the Shia majority would be a major victory for Iran. And it is true that anything which advances the interests of a brutal Iranian government in the Middle East must be seen as a setback to the cause of liberal democracy.
At the same time, the events of the last few months show that aligning oneself with autocrats is never a wise course. We spent decades paralyzed with fear about what the fall of Mubarak would mean for our strategic interests. And yet, looking back, would we not have been better off cutting Mubarak loose a generation ago, and siding forthrightly with the Egyptian people? By helping to postpone the arrival of democracy, we did not fortify our long-term strategic position one bit.
We must now think about Bahrain (and Saudi Arabia and our other repressive clients in the region) in the same terms. If our backing allows the Al Khalifa family to remain in power for a few more years, and in the process causes the Bahraini people to conclude that the United States is fundamentally hypocritical, we will in fact be helping Iran. The message of the Obama administration to the Al Khalifas and to Saudi Arabia's rulers must now be unequivocal: You cannot rule forever, and you must begin the process of opening up your societies and paving the way for liberal democracy.
Should we have intervened diplomatically to stop the repression in Bahrain? Absolutely. But for those offering our failure in Bahrain as a reason not to intervene in Libya, here is a simple question: Would our failure in Bahrain have been in any way ameliorated by allowing Qaddafi to move into Benghazi late last week? We think the answer is a clear no.
Of course, no one knows what will happen from here forward. But this much we do know: Four days ago, a cruel dictator appeared to be on the verge of initiating a bloodbath in one of the last free zones of his country. Today, the free zone he was threatening to attack remains free. And his ability to wage war against a justified rebellion seems to have been at least somewhat compromised. Without Western intervention—that is, without Obama's decision to finally do the right thing—there is little doubt that the situation would have been worse.
By: The Editors, The New Republic, March 20, 2011.
March 21, 2011 Posted by raemd95 | Democracy, Dictators, Foreign Policy, Libya, Middle East, Military Intervention, Muslims, No Fly Zones, Politics, President Obama, Qaddafi	| Al Khalifas, Bahrain, Benghazi, Bosnia, Darfur, Iraq, Kosovo, Mubarak, Rebels, Rwanda, Saudia Arabia, Shia, Sunni | Leave a comment


Godaddy is one of the leading Internet Domain Registrar & Web Hosting Websites, which will help you enhance your business by registering through online portal service. It has more than 57 million domains under the management of Godaddy, where It operates 14 facilities across the world . It provides the services not only for website creation, but also provides hosting, domain management services, e-mail related services. You can know the information on how much data can your account stores and shares and edit files from anywhere. The Search Engine Visibility service helps your venture in reaching out to as many people as possible. Godaddy helps you to register different domain names in all top level domains such as .org, .net, .com, .co.in, .co.uk, etc. It gives the special deals and discounts across various range of domain registrations and webhosting. It offers you the top services by considering your prerequisites using the modern technology, to achieve your business objectives at a very reasonable price. At saveplus.in you will find the updated and most Genuine collection of Godaddy Deals, Promo codes, Coupon codes, Discounts and special offers.
Get the most popular domain name for an economical price by applying this coupon code at the checkout.
Make use of this promo code and get the best hosting plan for a reasonable price from here.
Protect your site and your visitors with Website Security. Just load up your cart and get a wonderful discount when you use the promo code at checkout.
If your site is built on WordPress, you want a hosting plan that's designed to make it sing. Then get it for an affordable price by using this voucher code.
Get your required domain extensions from this site at a massive discounted price. Avail this super deal now.
Take advantage of this deal. Make your website you want for free from GoDaddy and improve your business.
Boost your business with a matching email address. Get it now for a splendid discounted price by using this deal.
Enjoy this amazing deal to get a wonderful discount when you purchase from GoDaddy.
Use this wonderful deal and get a fantastic discounted price from this online dealer. Purchase now.
Utilize this amazing opportunity. Get a great discount on your web hosting from GoDaddy and improve your business.
Create and track emails that integrate with your website y using this deal for a discounted price.


Regulations pertaining to construction of schools relate to hearing augmentation, and additional policies talk about hearing access, inclusion and accessibility. It is very easy for educators to get lost in this sea of things we need to do, and things we should do. So where does this leave architects, IT designers and inclusion experts in making good decisions about creating best outcomes for teachers and children?
There is certainly a knowledge vacuum regarding hearing augmentation, and we argue that a wider view needs to be taken so tech can kill more than one bird with one stone. A NSW Catholic Diocese has just done that with Hear and Learn to advise on this issue for new buildings and refurbs. They not only want compliant outcomes, but tech that helps with getting bang for buck from their infrastructure spend.


text:
It's Not a Road Trip Until Someone Pees by the Highway
We decided to escape the madness and the boxes and the elevated stress levels at home, so I loaded up the girls and we drove down to my parents yesterday. Possibly this had something to do with the fact that I nearly started crying because all of the wine glasses were packed. (Items I use on a daily basis: wine glasses and fuzzy blankets.)
The girls are really pretty good travelers--I didn't even bring the ipad and they just paged through books and napped a little bit. At one point they were making up and singing songs together, which was the cutest thing ever. I listened to a couple of podcasts but realized that most of the podcasts I like are not appropriate for kids (too much cursing!) and then my phone lost internet connection out in the boonies, so we listened to really random CDs that were in my car--Leonard Cohen and Peter, Paul, and Mary.
There were a few frustrating moments--we were about two hours into the four hour trip when Zuzu started getting very curious about whether we were there yet: "Is this Grammy's city?" she asked at every little farm town we drove through. Coco will do this thing where she whines, "mooooooommmmmy" and then when I say, "What, honey?" she mumbles softly in the backseat, which is infuriating because she can be as LOUD as she wants to be, but she decides to operate on this level of a just-barely-audible whine, apparently just to make me crazy. We were five miles outside my hometown when she started making that noise and I had to say, "What? What? WHAT?" and then, in a fake cheerful tone, "Okay, when you're ready to talk so that I can hear you, I will be listening."
And then finally she yelled that she had to go potty "SO BAD."
I asked her if she could wait a few more minutes and she repeated that she had to go SO BAD and sounded kind of panicky, so I asked if she needed to go in the grass and she said yes. And so I pulled over and put my flashers on and she peed on the side of the highway.
Then we loaded back up and got to my parents' house ten minutes later.
The plan is to chillax here for a few days, then head back to St. Louis for a birthday party, a hair appointment, a visit to the primary classroom at Coco's school, and all the rest of the packing and organizing. There are some details about our closing/moving that are making me really nervous--mostly that our buyers want to close as early as possible so they can move in, but our sellers aren't going to be out until 3. I think this means that our buyers need to understand that we won't be out until 3, but I'm not sure that has been clearly communicated, because our realtor said something about us being out by 1:30. (Um... then what do we do?). Also our realtor seems to think that the sellers will be out earlier than 3, which I think is absolutely crazy (if they have until 3, they are going to take until 3, is what I think). So that is stressing me out. Surely this will work out, right? I don't know how people do this. Move houses, I mean, and close on the same day. Ugh.
Meanwhile, I'm spending a lot of time on Pinterest daydreaming about furniture and paint colors and I keep realizing I can't remember what the house really looks like. Weird!
Labels: family, house, potty-training
The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood. I have no desire to watch the show, and it's actually taken me weeks to work up the emotional fortitude to tackle the novel. It's fantastic and terrifying. Between that and Season 4 of West Wing, I'm just beside myself when it comes to politics and possibilities. What seemed like complete fiction to West Wing writers in 2001 (President Bartlet is running for reelection against an anti-intellectual, anti-immigrant opponent) is REAL LIFE NOW... how far are we from Atwood's dystopia? (I mean, have you read this? Terrifying.) (Note to self: work on plans for living off grid.)
I've done quite a bit of reading this summer. I'm just over halfway to my goal of 52 novels this year, which is great since we're about halfway through the year! I need to step it up, though, because my reading game slows when school starts. I just finished reading The Leavenworth Case by Anna Katharine Green. It's one of the earliest American detective novels, and I'm teaching it in a Victorian Crime & Detective Fiction class this fall. At least, I think I am. I'm still building the syllabus and working out the reading schedule for that class (my others are all set!) so I need to finish this book and then claim a few hours to myself to sit and figure out the course schedule.
I also recently finished reading Secrets of Happy Families which was a little bit hokey (hold Weekly Family Meetings, craft a Family Mission Statement... good ideas in theory, I suppose) but what I got from it is that you mostly should make explicit the kinds of things that you want your kids to implicitly absorb about your family values. Kind of like the yard sign we put up, I guess--that's a way of making our family values explicit, not just to our neighbors, but also to our kids. The family coach we worked with last year talked about using the phrase "In our family, we don't ____" when we explained why Zuzu wasn't allowed to bite/hit/choose your inappropriate and antisocial behavior, I'm sure my sweet snowflake of a rainbow baby has exhibited it. And I think it's the same kind of philosophy. You make your kids feel like they are an inherent and necessary part of a core group that holds a certain set of values, and then you make it fun, safe, and comfortable to belong to that group.
One other thing that this book didn't cover but that I was thinking about recently are the cliches "Happy wife, happy life" and "If Mama ain't happy, ain't nobody happy." There's truly something to be said about the way one parent (not just mom) can set the tone for the entire family, and how much power we have to shape kids' perceptions of experiences, just by saying things like, "This is the BEST VACATION EVER!" or "I have a feeling today will be a really great day!" Kids aren't just sponges--they are also mirrors.
WATCHING.
West Wing season 4. I love it so much.
David and I tried to watch the very controversial Thirteen Reasons Why and we gave up. I found it absolutely too disturbing and frustrating. It also made me think of some of the dark thoughts I was having on the 4th of July. It's no secret that I've been pretty disturbed and frustrated by the politics of this country, and I wondered if the Great Democratic Experiment of our constitution is playing itself out and demonstrating that people really are just self-interested and selfish A-holes so democracy is kind of crumbling and our best bet is a benevolent monarch who keeps us in line in an ethical way because when you leave people feeling like we live in a competitive environment where it's every man for himself (like, say, high school), we will inevitably end up using and abusing people we perceive as weaker than ourselves.
WOW this little blog meme sure has been a cheerful way to start the day! You're welcome!
Anyway, we are NOW watching The Keepers, which is a fascinating documentary about who killed Sister Cathy, a nun living in Baltimore in the 1960s. What looks like an unsolved mystery may actually be part of a huge cover up. We're not very far into it yet, but Gemma and Abby are already my heroes. They are like real life Miss Marples or Jessica Thatchers, just a couple of retired ladies doing their sleuthing at the library and on facebook and in coffee shops. I want to be just like them when I retire!
Just started following Celeste Barber on Instagram. Definitely search for her... her posts are completely amazing. Even inspiring. Lol.
To the Moana soundtrack mostly. Also always and forever Hamilton.
Sweaty, stinky clothes from walk/jogging to the park today. I need a shower, but we're going to the pool later, so I think I'm just going to stink for a few hours.
I'm shopping for a new couch, but I'm not committed to anything just yet. Leather couches are expensive, man. I'm selling off furniture on Craigslist--my couch and another chair I hadn't even planned to sell went on Saturday. I have another chair/ottoman set that I'm selling although I'm having second thoughts because it's the comfiest chair in the entire world. It's just that the upholstery doesn't really go with anything else, and then I wonder if I should have it reupholstered, but that seems a little daunting and pricy, so I'm not sure...
What projects we want to do at the Forest House, and where we want to start with painting.
How much more my kids are playing with their toys now that 80% are packed up in boxes. It's true what they say--they play more with less. Also moving toys around the house totally influences how they play. The art table that was ignored in the basement is getting a lot of attention now that it's in the living room. I need to keep this in mind as we're setting things up at the Forest House... Less is more!
Why we're bothering to move from our awesome neighborhood with such a fantastic park within walking distance. I'm trying to keep in mind that summer feels all blissful, but once school starts, I know I'll be more grateful for the shorter and simpler commute and drop off situation. Still, the nostalgia is hitting me hardcore already. And I don't know where the new grocery store or library is, either. Do they even HAVE those things where we're moving? (Kidding... kind of.) It's sort of like when you have a great hair day the day that you've decided to go in and get it all chopped off. You're going to go ahead with it, but you're having serious second thoughts and you'll probably cry about it for three days until you get used to the new hair. (Tell me that's not just me.)
Conflicted. Sad about leaving the old house. Ready to get settled in the new house. Sentimental about leaving the neighborhood. Excited to move to our secluded location. Aggravated by not being able to find things that David has packed. Looking forward to unpacking and organizing the new house. Wanting summer to last forever. Ready for school to start. Mostly packed except for clothes. Completely overwhelmed by everything we have left to do.
David and I generally don't have many major conflicts, but we always have one big fight in August when the transition to the new semester and all the stress that comes with it hits us hard and we inevitably work out the stress by yelling at each other. Over the weekend, that fight visited us early because I was SO PISSED that he went ahead and packed all the couch pillows and throw blankets. I use those every night when I curl up to watch TV or read. The girls use them almost everyday to build blanket forts. In my mind, they are the kind of thing you pack up the LAST DAY and you toss them in a garbage bag. But David had neatly stacked them in actual moving boxes and he was pretty mad when I unpacked them. We exchanged some choice words and then I stomped upstairs and watched The Keepers by myself. I mean, we have to live here two more weeks! I'm not doing it without my favorite fuzzy blanket and also some pillows. Fortunately, we were both feeling more reasonable the next day (and also my pillows and blankets are still out of the boxes, so...).
Labels: books, house, life, marriage, parenting
Cousins and Our Future "Dentister"
Remember when I thought this would be a relaxing summer and I would just read and write and take my kids to the pool?
Haha. I had no idea.
It feels like we have been going 100 miles an hour the past couple of weeks. After a low-key Fourth of July (about which I actually had all kinds of complicated feelings because I'm not totally convinced the democratic experiment of 1776 is actually working out all that well, given the enormous numbers of people who feel and are disenfranchised in this country), we had cousins come visit from California and set about showing a 9-year-old and 12-year-old just how much fun stuff there is to do in St. Louis in five days.
playing in the backyard clubhouse
If you're considering a visit to St. Louis, I'll tell you we managed to go to the zoo, a Cardinals game, the City Museum, the Botanical Gardens, Ices Plain & Fancy, Ted Drewes, Schlafly, and paddle boat riding at Forest Park Boathouse, and all were great fun. The kids said the City Museum was their favorite. Plus I had to attend a funeral for a colleague (sad and unexpected) and David had to work one day, so I would say that we did a pretty good job of squeezing in a lot of fun stuff, but we are all kind of wiped out from it. Paddle boating when it was 104 degrees out wasn't exactly the most ideal plan, either. (Poor Kailer, David's 12-year-old nephew, was mortified when I started complaining about boob sweat).
Zuzu and Coco absolutely LOVED having their cousins here. I can't even describe how smitten they are with those two. And it was awesome because they were totally entertained but the cousins are old enough that there was none of the typical playdate bickering. Basically, I want to have a nanny who is 9 years old and just helps me out from 9am-4pm every day. We loved having them here.
at the Botanical Gardens
It was also excellent to have three adults and two big kids to help us tackle the City Museum with Zuzu and Coco. The last time I'd been to the City Museum was more than ten years ago. We'd been waiting to take the kids because I didn't think Coco was big enough for some of the stuff (also I didn't realize they had a toddler area) and Zuzu's fearlessness makes me nervous. Both girls had a great time, and Coco was determined to keep up with the big kids! The outdoor climbing structures still gave me the willies occasionally, and even Zuzu was a little more cautious than I've seen her before when we were up really high.
At one point, we were climbing around in the indoor treehouse and I saw Zuzu go down a slide and come out a level below me. I had my eye on her, and I saw her foot slip through the metal bars she was walking on. I knew she'd banged her knee hard and I saw her start to cry, but I couldn't figure out how to get down to her--where do I enter the climber? What slide did she go down? So I was kind of freaking out. I was trying to yell down to her that I was coming, but she couldn't hear me. Then I saw a gray-haired lady come over and start talking to her (I'm sure asking her where her negligent parents were). I sent David up a level to find the slide and I started climbing down to her, but then when I got down to where she was, she was gone! Just as I started to freak out, my phone rang. I had written my cell phone number on Zuzu's wrist band, just in case. It was an unknown local number, so I answered it and, sure enough, it was the nice older lady. "Do you have a little girl with pigtails in a blue shirt?" I said yes and that I was trying to get to her and she said, "We're in the tree house" and I said, "I'm in the tree house! Where are you?" and then I realized she was right behind me. Anyway, Zuzu was fine and it was actually a nice transition to heading home.
The same day the cousins left, we had friends come to town to join us at a Jason Isbell concert, which was kind of our anniversary date and was fantastic.
13 years of weddedness.
We left our kids and our friends' daughter with a babysitter and it made me feel like a Real Adult somehow, except Coco cried when we left because she's mama's girl and then I was really sad but then I had a gin & tonic with dinner and I remembered that sometimes I like to do adult things without my children. Also the show was so, so great. I loved The Mountain Goats too, who opened for him, although at first I was like "I should have brought ear plugs because I am so old." And we talked about how we love going to concerts where we get to sit down. Basically we are the uncoolest ever. No shame.
Yesterday we went out to the House in the Forest to scope out a few things and measure a few things, and remind myself that this is real and we're really moving. I also boxed up a bunch of books and all the pictures I had hanging up the stairs and now our house looks empty and ugly and also dirty with the shadow of the frames left on the walls and it's kind of depressing. Also all our house guests were gone yesterday afternoon and Zuzu and I were both feeling the post-fun glum. I coped by treating myself to a La Croix and a magazine. Zuzu coped by being a complete and total brat. It wasn't our worst day of the summer, but it certainly wasn't our best afternoon. I truly sympathized with her--she's overtired, out of routine, used to have constant entertainment, missing her cousins and friend--but mercy she can be a handful.
Speaking of depressing things, the air conditioner went out on my car and the car place was like "NBD, prolly needs freon, run you about $50" and then the car place was like "Just kidding, you actually need a whole new system thingy and it will cost $1350. Or we can do just one part of it and that will cost you $850."
Given that my car is 10 years old, we were actually like, "Should we just go ahead and get a new car?" but then we were like, "Oh, wait, we're buying a new house, so NO." And my car (knock on wood) has been pretty trouble-free for most of its life, plus it has nearly 150,000 miles on it. Anyway, that was still not a fun phone call to get.
Also Zuzu had to have a cavity filled today. I never had a cavity as a kid (in spite of very lazy dental hygiene in elementary school) so I was shocked by this. Also it is not cheap. I was a little worried she would be dentist-traumatized, but she loved it. We go to a pediatric dentist practice and they used laughing gas and let her choose a Barbie movie and gave her a balloon and then another one for Coco, and fussed over what a great patient she was, and she told me she wants to be a "dentister" when she grows up. So I guess that was successful. But I sure can think of more fun ways to spend a thousand dollars than on dental work and car repair (plane tickets and gin and tonics come to mind... also a new couch).
Anyway, that's the latest around here. More packing to do today. Zuzu just informed me they are playing, "Dinosaur Times" and Coco is a baby dinosaur. I'm going to try to take advantage of the relative dinosaur harmony and see if if can get the rest of the stuff on my living room shelves boxed up. (You guys. I have so many books.)
Posted by Brooke at 12:31 PM 4 comments: Links to this post
Labels: Coco, family, favorite things, friends, parenting, vacation, Zuzu
So it looks like we're doing this.
We moved into our current house a little over four years ago. I said at the time that I didn't know if we'd be here forever, but I knew we could be. The neighborhood is lovely. The house is charming. The yard is small, but we're two blocks from a beautiful park. We moved just about five minutes from our first house, and only because we outgrew the two-bed, one-bath bungalow. We live in the city and we feel close to everything (even if there are a zillion slow stop lights between us and Forest Park). There was no reason to go anywhere.
But now we're moving.
I mentioned a while back that David got a new job at a school district nearer to us, which cut his commute in half. But you know the "give a mouse a cookie" thing? He started looking at neighborhoods that would cut his commute down to the 10-15 minute range. And after the hours and miles that he's logged in the past seven years, I couldn't really blame him.
(You might remember that my commute is also substantial--I drove over to Illinois, so it takes me 35-40 minutes to get to work. Even though I would say I don't particularly like to drive, for some reason I can't explain, this commute has never bothered me! I think it's because I rarely sit in traffic--I drive several miles, but I'm always driving rather than sitting. In fact, I've missed my commute this summer because it's the only time of the day that I can listen to podcasts or music or audio books without interruption. I do a lot of thinking and planning in the car, and I have genuinely missed having that half hour to myself in the morning and evening! But I'm not complaining about summer break--I also think the fact that I drive to work nine months rather than twelve makes the commute feel less burdensome.)
Anyway, we started talking about it with some seriousness when talking about where Zuzu will go to elementary school, and David made the case for the convenience of them all being in the same school district. As much I resisted the idea of moving, I couldn't deny that the simplification of everyone having similar schedules and David being super close to his work sounded pretty good for all of us. Plus, we'd be closer to the preschool where the girls go now, which means that my commute time would also be reduced since I have to drive slightly out of my way right now to drop them off.
Long story short, after much discussion and thought and some arguing and what I am pretty sure was a middle of the night panic attack, we decided to list our house.
(A big part of my reluctance had to do with the terrible time we had last time we decided to move--the sale of our house last time seemed to be great as we got an offer the day of our open house, but it fell through three days before closing and we'd already committed to buying our new house, which meant things were financially tight. But now our old house was back on the market, empty and unstaged, we had to keep up the yard work and utilities all summer, not to mention paying a second mortgage, and after six months of that madness, we ended up breaking up with our realtor and working with someone else who agreed with me we should stage the house, then got it sold within two weeks, which was just before Christmas, and a week AFTER I found out I was surprise pregnant with Coco, the same week as Eliza's birthday... It was a stressful time. I'm not kidding when I say that just seeing real estate signs on the lawn of any house as I drove or walked by would make my stomach churn.)
This time, our house sold in a week, which was great. The area we want to move to had houses selling really fast, so we put in a contingency offer because there was ZERO chance that I was going to pay two mortgages again. It was accepted, so now we close on both properties at the end of this month. I hesitated to write about it for a long time because I felt like I would jinx it, but everything seems to be in place this time.
The thing is, I don't actually handle transition or uncertainty very well at all. I mean, I felt ridiculous having a panic attack about moving neighborhoods in the same metro area, but I was still awake at two in the morning feeling like I couldn't breathe. I knew I was overreacting--this was not a crisis! We're not in a refugee situation! We're doing this on purpose and for good reasons!--but I couldn't control my anxiety about it. Now that things are set and the dates are finalized and the papers are signed, I'm feeling better about looking forward and thinking about paint colors and a new couch. I do love the idea of decorating a new place, especially a house that's so different from this one in terms of layout and design.
I'm still really conflicted about leaving our current house and our lovely neighborhood, especially the neighbors we've gotten to know, who really love our girls. I also just thought that we'd be in the city forever, and as a non-native St. Louisan, I kind of came to identify myself as a City Resident (rather than County), so that is another shift that I'm getting used to. I am looking forward to a house that has a more user-friendly kitchen and more outdoor space, and I do love the way the new house is surrounded by trees. It feels very peaceful and secluded even though it's just a long curving driveway (and a big hill!) that separates us from a cul-de-sac neighborhood.
I hope it will be a good change for our family, and the "right" choice for us, but it has felt very fraught. Sometimes it feels like every decision we make has so much at stake, especially when it comes to where our kids will go to school. I do like the idea of paying taxes in and being part of the school district where David works, and I do like the idea of my kids going to public schools, so I'm glad that we are able to move in that direction. I will absolutely miss being in the city, but I've been google mapping all of our favorite hangouts and discovering that while we have to drive a few more miles to get there, it won't take much longer in terms of minutes--it's just highway miles instead of city streets. My friends promise to come visit me, and this house does have space for a fire pit and a living room for game nights, so I hope that people will be willing to drive out to see us.
I'm not saying that this new house is our "forever home" because I'm starting to roll my eyes at that idea as much as the idea of a soul mate. Life is big, and there are lots of houses and neighborhoods to love. I do hope that we are happily settled for the next several years. Well wishes and pep talks appreciated!
Labels: house, life
I'm back on Facebook.
It took me more than six years after losing Eliza to feel like I could re-enter that space.
I think because I saw it as a place to put forward the best version of yourself, and that version of myself no longer existed.
I think I also was afraid that it would hold nothing but disappointment and resentment for me.
I knew people who got upset because they posted updates or photos of the children they lost and got no responses, but then other, light-hearted posts would get all kinds of likes and comments. I also know how hard it was for a lot of my friends to see facebook pregnancy announcements or new baby posts. I just didn't want to put myself out there for any of that.
But then I joined We Stories, which primarily communicates through Facebook, and I knew that some of my babyloss mom friends were in a private facebook group that I would like to join, and while I created a profile never intending to post anything, I got a lot of friend requests for extended family (like old people--no one young and cool uses facebook because they are all Snapchatting, which I do not do because I am over 30). And I realized that a lot of these people aren't on instagram and would probably like to see photos of my kiddos, and there are all kinds of privacy settings so you can control who views photos and just show them to certain groups, so I could post pictures of the girls for my family without inundating my work colleagues with my children's adorableness.
And although I know the politics are something people complain about in regard to Facebook, that's actually part of what I like about it. I am pretty insulated on there, and it's very tempting to hide people who disagree with my political views, but I have found it to be a good source of information and articles on all kinds of issues (including non-political ones). Sometimes it does raise my heart rate, but mostly because I'm reading news stories through it, and news stories about our country's current president tend to infuriate me. I love using facebook to stay informed about local politics, about social justice efforts, and to get reminders of what I can do to try and make a difference about things that are important to me.
I've been careful about it--I check in almost every day, but not more than once or twice. I don't engage in political arguments. I don't post things that are deeply personal. I guess I'm back at the point where I can skate on the surface--I don't feel like my guts are a raw, gaping wound. I'm not "fixed" or "better" or no longer grieving, but I am in a place where I can love and miss Eliza as much as ever, but I also have the energy and headspace to care about other things--big things like social justice (and how white people--even those of us who are well-meaning--keep effing things up), and little things like, "oh, yeah, how is my officemate from graduate school doing?".
Honestly, the hardest thing for me is when people share their timeline posts from five years ago, and I'm so glad I didn't try to get back on Facebook earlier, or in 2016 when "five years ago" would have been right after Eliza died.
I also care a lot less now about how other people perceive me than I did back then, which is pretty vital. I am not free from the comparison game, but I spend much less time comparing other people's lives to mine than I used to (actually, it's kind of embarrassing and sad to think about how worked up I was about this and how I measured up to others or how I thought others would see me... ugh. Giving zero effs about that nonsense is one of the few gifts that emerged from grief--that and my tribe of babyloss friends).
Anyway, if you quit facebook for whatever reason and you're unsure about going back--I say wait. You're not missing much. There's no rush. You'll know when you feel ready, or when you want to be involved in something more than you want to stay off of facebook. I can't say that it has improved my life significantly, but at the same time, I do appreciate that it's reconnected me with friends and extended family members with whom I'd fallen out of touch, and that it's an easy way for me to get involved and stay informed about specific issues and organizations I care about.
So, yes, I'd love to be your facebook friend.
Posted by Brooke at 8:00 AM 8 comments: Links to this post
Zuzu is Five
You guys. My rainbow baby turned five.
(Which I'm a little sad about ONLY because she's been telling everyone for months that she's "four and three quarters" and I'm kind of bummed that now it's just "five," although give her a week and she'll declare herself "five and a half.")
Five years ago, we were still calling Baby Duck #2 "The Deuce." And I detailed every moment of her birth here (you're welcome). And yes, I was still missing her sister.
And somehow, that beautiful baby is all grown up into this beautiful little stinker--our master negotiator who is teaching her little sister every trick she knows. She makes me crazy almost as often as she melts my heart. She never stops asking questions. She is willing to strike up a conversation with any adult we meet, but when she's around kids she doesn't know, she'll hide behind me and whisper that she's "a little shy."
She still says "lellow" for yellow and "aminal" for animal and "firty" for thirty. She has quite an imagination and no sense of appropriate voice volume. She was down in the basement, absorbed in playing with little characters when I carried her birthday decorations (a couple banners and a wreath on the door) and some Fourth of July decorations upstairs and put them up, and she was so delighted when she saw them. She clapped her hands and said, "Mommy! How did you DO this? You buh-prised me!"
She's a big fan of buh-prises.
Little Sister is always a half step behind her, mimicking everything she does. Coco is no pushover, so they go head to head pretty often. Overall, though, they truly love each other and their sister relationship is one of the best gifts I can imagine (for them, and for me). My greatest fear is losing one of them--not just because it would shatter me, but because I know what an enormous and devastating loss that would be for the other one (a loss that I recognize, even if they don't experience it as such, when I imagine every day what it would be like to have three little girls lined up for photos). What I want more than anything in this world is for them to grow up and stay best friends.
These girls have brought so much light to our lives, and they are so, so loved. I try to talk to them a lot about being grateful and being aware of how lucky we are, so I was slightly bummed when she opened all her birthday gifts, was very excited about them, and then turned to David and me and said, "Why didn't you get me more presents?"
(I realize she was referring to her enjoyment of the whole process--ripping open packages, being the center of attention, discovering something hidden--but still, it was not exactly what I hoped would come out of her mouth after being showered with gifts.)
Funny kid that she is, she didn't want a birthday cake. She wanted blueberry muffins. She kind of changed her mind at the last minute and said she wanted a cupcake with pink frosting (she's a sucker for pretty decorations even if she doesn't like sweets) so David bought a cupcake for her and one for Coco and then Coco ate both of them. Zuzu ate more blueberry muffins.
We celebrated her birthday early while we were at the beach (made blueberry muffins there) and then we celebrated again with a "family party" on the 29th with just the four of us at home having pasta (her request) after going to the pool (We also had blueberry muffins) and opening gifts.
Zuzu really wanted a party with her friends at our house, and she kept requesting that, but I knew that I wouldn't have the time or energy to pull that off right after getting home from out of town. I also think an elaborate birthday party with friends is something we'll move to doing every other year (evens), and then we'll have a "family party" or event (like going to a show or an amusement park) on the odd years.
This year she got an event, and she chose the Magic House, which is also known as My Waking Nightmare--too many people in close proximity, other people's children crying and screaming, "Mommy!", not being able to keep track of my own kids, and never being able to get them to cooperate for a picture (I mean, WHAT IS THE POINT of my sacrifice in dragging myself to the Magic House if you won't even let me DOCUMENT IT???). But that's what she wanted, and the bright spot in the day (for me) was that we were able to meet up with one of her friends from school.
This little friend is a boy who just turned 3 in March, so he's quite a bit younger than Zuzu (closer to Coco's age, really), and Zuzu has just taken him under her wing in the sweetest way. She loves to look out for him and take care of him, and she knows the things that he's interested in (trains and trucks) and told me that she was going to show him the trains and trucks at the Magic House and do what he wanted to do while they were there.
I'll be honest, I have moments when I wonder if I'm raising a sociopath, but her friendship with and concern for this little guy really makes visible the kindness in her little heart. I love it so much (and his mom was so sweet about expressing her appreciation for Caroline, it truly made my day).
But of course that didn't stop her from whining about having a birthday party at her house. (Eyeroll.)
We compromised with a "birthday play date." This came to me in a flash of inspiration. I e-mailed a bunch of parents whose kids go to Zuzu's school (and a few of my friends whose kids she likes to play with) and invited them to meet up with us at Tower Grove Park on a Saturday morning to play in the fountain and on the playground. I emphasized in the e-mail that while we are celebrating Zuzu turning 5, this is a play date and NOT a party--no gifts! No organized games! No pressure! No stress! No prep!
She got to see her friends and play, and the only thing I had to do was throw a bunch of juice boxes in a little cooler and pick up 48 donut holes on our way there. Best parenting decision ever, and the kids had a blast! It was just about getting them all in the same place at the same time and giving them space to run around and scream.
And now that birthday is in the books--literally, the fifth birthday is the final entry in her baby book! My rainbow baby is growing up. And, as Zuzu would say, she makes me so happy that I have water in my eyes.
Labels: birthdays, friends, hope, parenting, parties, Zuzu
It's Not a Road Trip Until Someone Pees by the Hig...


Bumper package including the full digital audio files, mastered by Rupert Clervaux, an A3 recycled poster featuring selected 16mm film stills from Mary Stark, designed by Tom Rose, and a foam-encased talk tape designed by Susie Whaites.
"'OST' [SLP017], the staggering solo debut from British musician Caroline Haines, AKA Chaines, gathers studio realisations of three commissions completed since 2013's 'SPLIT', with Tom Rose. Though written for specific occasions, the pieces are united by a sense of uneasy melodrama, and hallucinogenic flow.


text:
Q: How about using gerund when saying the first-? In 1993, she became the first African-American woman to receive the Nobel prize in literature.
If recieving is used instead of to receive,  how does it sound?

A: In comments under the question, it became clear that the question wasn't so much to do with gerunds as it was to do with the -ing form of the verb. (In this case, it's a present participle rather than a gerund.)
So, the question really is, are both of the following okay:

✔ In 1993, she became the first African-American woman to receive the Nobel prize in literature.
  ❔ In 1993, she became the first African-American woman receiving the Nobel prize in literature.

These are all grammatical:

In 1993, she received the Nobel prize.
  In 1993, she was receiving the Nobel prize.
  In 1993, she became famous, receiving the Nobel prize.

If we change the meaning and construction of the sentence, we could write something like this (which does use a gerund):

In 1993, she became a receiving clerk at the Nobel prize office.

We could even say this—although it would be strange:

In 1993, she became a woman receiving the Nobel prize.

It sounds strange because the natural interpretation based on the syntax, which makes little sense, is that she spent all of 1993 being a woman in the process of receiving the prize.
In theory, and stretching credulity even more, we could say that she became famous for being the woman who spent the whole year receiving the prize:

In 1993, she became the woman receiving the Nobel prize.

By extension, and with that entirely unlikely interpretation, the original sentence seems grammatical:

In 1993, she became the first African-American woman receiving the Nobel prize in literature.
→ In 1993, she became the first [of many] African-American women [to spend that year] receiving the Nobel prize in literature.

However, it's unidiomatic and confusing, it makes use of elided phrasing that wouldn't normally be assumed to be omitted, and it definitely sounds strange, because it doesn't seem to describe anything that could happen in reality. Unless using it in some kind of contrived situation (such as this answer), I would keep to receive in your sentence and not think about using receiving.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Wedding Planner, event organiser, Wedding Day Coordinator and problem solver.
This is Veronica Amati and we can help you organise the entire event or just some aspects, according to your needs.
An accurate organisation - from the selection of the venue to the coordination of suppliers.
The right catering for your taste.
Unconventional shootings and a videos, as well as traditional ones, according to your taste.
Support on the spot, with hostesses and a coordinator.
With our precious details we will make your event memorable for you and your guests.
There is plenty of possibilities for you. Let's talk together and find the best solution according to your wishes and budget.
Our personal approach ensures the weddings we plan are meaningful and truly reflect you as individuals, as couples.
We assist our clients in creating memorable, magical celebrations that exceed expectations.


Growth is among the most important things that are vital for small and medium-sized enterprises. In this case, they will need to be focused on things that will make the business go forward. It will have times when you have little time for the management of your business. The best way to aid in that will be by the use of the best business management solutions. Various companies will offer business management solutions. When you need the best business management solutions, you will require to consider various aspects. You will thus need to evaluate for the information that is provided below when you need the best business management solutions at www.baass.com/.
For the best business management solutions, it will be important to consider the different areas of your business in which you will find it helpful. It is necessary to think of the business solutions that you can use on the different parts of the business and these will be such as in finance, sales, operations and service. You will hence need to find more info that will relate to the business management solutions and how it will be applicable in your business.
When you require the best business management solutions to use in your business, you will need to evaluate for the ease of use. When you have a check for the simplicity of using the business management solutions, you will have the business running as nothing will be halted when you cannot use the business management solutions. You will be required to consider the application that the personnel will find easy to use. It will thus need you to consider the user interface of the business management solutions and ensure that it will be friendly. Be sure to find out more here!
Change is being witnessed every day in technology and innovation. You should hence consider the latest business management solutions for your business. It will be advisable to consider those companies that will offer updated business management solutions. The best way to have the best business management solutions will be by comparing the various features that are available and by that, you will get to have the one that is the best for you. Get into some more facts about business, visit https://www.britannica.com/topic/logistics-business.
You will be needed to consider the cash that you will be needed for the business management solutions. It will be necessary to ensure that you will pay the business management solutions for the services they offer. It is essential to consider the price that will be manageable, and in this case, it will ensure improved productivity in the business as well as accelerated growth of the business.


Is an MLS Team in St. Louis' Future?
The departure of the St. Louis Rams has left a vacancy in professional sports here. The MLS would like to expand by bringing a team to St. Louis, but need an owner to jumpstart the operation.


Read our blog for latest news!
See what's happening with Chapter Z2!
Click here for archived Newsletters! Newsletters are no longer being published starting Jan 2018. For current news and messages please see the "Z2 News & Views" section on this website.
We are the Chicagoland Wings, one of several Illinois Chapters of the Gold Wing Road Riders Association The world's largest single-marque social organization for owners and riders of Honda Gold Wing and Valkyrie motorcycles. We are dedicated to our motto, Friends for Fun, Safety and Knowledge. All bikes are welcome! Enjoy your ride with good friends, interesting and safe rides both short and long, training to help you become a better rider and opportunities to share your experience.
GWRRA members enjoy the freedom of belonging to a not-for-profit, non-religious, and non-political organization.
To see more benefits of membership or to join GWRRA, go to www.gwrra.org.
To enroll you can go here.
Once you are a member of GWRRA you are free to attend any Chapter that you wish. There are no separate dues or obligations once you are registered with the national organization. We would invite you to associate with our Chapter if you are in the Chicagoland area. Being a regular member of a Chapter offers the best in sharing of information on bikes, rides and safety. It helps you to form new friendships that can last many years. If you have any questions on membership and want to talk to someone local, just contact one of the staff listed on our Staff page under About Us on this website.
We meet on the second Sunday of every month. Please come and join us!
Breakfast is at 8:00AM followed by our 9:00AM meeting.
A post-meeting ride, weather permitting.
Please check the calendar for any changes.


From noon to 12:45 p.m. Sept. 22 in CU1, Services to Students with Disabilities Assistant Director Sarah French spoke to a group of students about helpful test-taking skills and strategies.
Although most students fear tests, French said, they do not realize they already have the materials needed to succeed in them.
"All things you do in class prepare you for a test," she said.
French said students should study, but if a mishap occurs, most students who regularly attend class retain information they may not even be aware of.
Essay tests are usually the most dreaded by students, French said. She said the anxiety can be solved in many different ways.
"Eating a lot of complex carbohydrates increases brain activity if done an hour or an hour and a half before a test," she said.
Tyler Huffman, OCCC student, said he gained a lot of useful information out of the Brown Bag.
He said he plans to attend future meetings in hopes of learning new material, and other ideas more intimately.
French said even if a student does horribly on an exam, they must not dwell on their shortcoming, and instead focus on studying harder for the next test.
Gambling addiction will be the topic of the next Brown Bag series, which will be held from 12:30 to 1:15 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 28, in CU1.
For more information about Brown Bag luncheons, contact Student Life 405-682-7523.


I love how a painting takes shape over time. I always begin not knowing how it's going to look. I just find a pretty color and get started. Then one color is layered over another, and eventually I step back and have a painting.
It's just like following the voice of your Spirit. You don't know what the finished picture will look like. You just have to go with the flow and follow your intuition. And then one day you look back and say, "Wow. That decision I made that seemed so crazy and scary at the time actually worked out!" Making art without a lot of planning is a great way to practice trusting your intuition. It always works out in the end.


Apex® Foot Health Industries is an industry leader, manufacturing world-class comfort and therapeutic shoes for more than 50 years.
Numerous special features include added depth, rocker soles and Anti-Shox Orthotics.
Aetrex® Performance Footwear combines the latest developments in pedorthics with state-of-the-art shoe design. More and more people across the globe are experiencing the comfort and performance of Aetrex, wearing styles including hikers, cross trainers, runners and walkers.
The new footwear styles were created by a team led by renowned footwear designer Ruk Peterson. The new shoes all combine the latest 21st century styles with innovative comfort and performance features that allow the footwear to meet your individual needs. All Aetrex shoes are made from the finest materials available and offer a combination of stability, control and cushioning not seen in any other line. In addition, every shoe incorporates Aetrex's unique PRS™ Insole, allowing you to easily customize the fit and comfort.
Lynco® Orthotics Recommended by doctors and pedorthists worldwide, Lynco is recognized as the #1 orthotic system on the market today. Millions of pairs have been sold to consumers seeking the quality and support of custom-made orthotics at an over-the-counter price. Lyncos are designed for Dress, Casual, Athletic, Golf and Therapeutic footwear.
All Lynco orthotics are tri-density with a molded Pedic™ core to support the arch and provide maximum comfort. Lyncos are available with metatarsal support, offering additional protection at the ball-of-the-foot. In addition, medial posting is available to gently realign the rear foot and control over pronation.
More people today recognize that combining the right orthotics with their footwear is the easiest and most effective way to provide immediate comfort and improve footwear performance. Now, with iStep digital foot scanning technology, it is easier to determine your ideal Lynco style. iStep quickly identifies your foot type and pressure points and then immediately recommends the most appropriate Lynco orthotic for your individual needs.
Spenco insoles are designed with the most advanced materials to provide maximum comfort and performance, creating a perfect balance between shock absorption and energy return. Whether your looking for technical performance, lasting comfort or doctor recommended arch supports, Spenco insoles provide the highest standard in insole products.


text:
__БЕЗКН__

-{Nostoc}- (Носток) је род модрозелених бактерија (алги). Припада реду -{Nostocales}- (ностокалес). Врсте овога рода су прокариотски организми који се налазе на трихалном ступњу организације. Ћелије у кончастим телима међусобно комуницирају преко плазмодезми. Образују колоније које могу бити различите величине (неке се виде само помоћу микроскопа, док неке достижу величину и до 30 -{cm}- у пречнику). Колоније су углавном лоптасте, мада могу имати и другачији изглед. Споља имају густ галаретни омотач (слузав), а у унутрашњости је омотач ређи и ту се налазе испреплетани конци алги. Кончасто тело је неразгранато. Образују хетероцисте и трајне споре (акинете). Хетероцисте су појединачне, и могу бити унутар кончастог тела (између вегетативних ћелија) или на крају кончастог тела. Акинети су елипсастог облика и мало већи од вегетативних ћелија. Код рода -{Nostoc}- акинети се обично налазе на половини пута између две хетероцисте.

Врсте овога рода су широко распрострањене и налазе се у води и на влажном земљишту, мада чешће на земљишту.

Размножавају се хормогонијама. Оне могу да настану кидањем кончастог тела, дезинтеграцијом хетероцисти, или из акинета из кога ниче нова хормогонија

Овај род је откривен у 19. веку. Врсте овога рода могу да вежу атмосферски азот (азотофиксатори) тако да учествују у побољшању квалитета земљишта. Због обогаћивања земљишта азотом могу имати примене у пољопривреди. Код врсте која живи ван воде, -{Nostoc commune}-, 1988. године пронађен је дотад непознат апсорбциони пигмент -{UV-A/B}-. Овај пигмент омогућава не само преживљавање сушног периода већ и опстанак у пределима са високим нивоом УВ зрачења.

Употреба
Неке врсте из овога рода се користе и у људској исхрани, пошто садрже протеине и витамин Ц. Узгајају се и користе за исхрану углавном у Азији. Врсте -{Nostoc flagelliforme}- и -{N. commune}- се користе у Кини, Јапану и на острву Јава. У средњој Азији се чешће користи врста -{N. ellipsosporum}-.

Врсте
У овом роду налази се 71 врста (према сајту -{data.gbif.org}-).

Види још
 Модрозелене бактерије
-{Nostocales}-

Извори

Спољашње везе

-{Nostoc}- на сајту -{silicasecchidisk.conncoll.edu}-
-{Nostoc}- на -{www.cyanodb.cz}-
-{Nostoc}- на -{microbewiki.kenyon.edu}-

Модрозелене бактерије

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia