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Twenty: Dark Visions
Bright lights , Everywhere.
I had no idea where I was but the bright light was blinding me . I heard nothing but a cheerful laugh.
It was like I was in a tape being replayeall over again.
I heard nothing but shouts and yells but it was reversed . And scratchy noises were prominent.
The bright lights turns into air bubbles and before you know it im under water.
Yet I could still see the bright light. It stung my eyes but I kept watching it.
I tried to swim up but I couldn't . The weight of my clothes were bringing me down.
Then I heard the laughter of the young woman. She sounded so familar. I turned my head and saw a glimpse of her.
She had pale skin with a silky night gown. Her messy ice blonde hair covered her face as her laugh grew louder and louder.
I wanted to get a closer look of her , I wanted to see her better but I couldn't move. I could barely even breathe.
I opened my mouth gasping for air , only swallowing gulps of the water . I choked and coughed now panicking to be let out.
I swam up to the top and tried to reach the surface but something was blocking me, it's a dark figure and it covered the bright light into a smokey fog. It was trying to kill me On purpose.
As for the woman her laughs turned into lunatic screams and cries for help .
What confused me was she was calling help from...
Why would she call him ? Who even is this person I thought to myself.
I saw two pair a tan tattoed arms grabbing her now lifeless looking body out of the water. Was that Zayn ? I swam near them trying to see what was going on but there was a demonic sound going on and I felt a tugging at my arms as it pulled me up quickly towards the shore, as soon as I opened my eyes.
I met Zayn's Golden ones.
I jumped in fear realising he had me on his lap.
"Z-Zayn ?" I breathed out looking at my surroundings.
I was back in the room ?
Was this another dream ?
Zayn just wiped the sweaty hair off of my face and held me close to his warm body. I chattered my teeth automatically.
"Im sorry" He whispered as I kept silent.
Why did he apologise ?
I had so many questions to ask him but I was so cold I wasn't able to put sentences together.
"so...c-cold " I said as my whole body started to shake . Zayn eyes lit up into a bright gold in concern and wrapped his warm arms around my body .
I warmed up instantly. I had no idea why I was cold. The room was warm and my body wasn't wet , I couldn't understand why I was so cold. That dream really had made an impact on my body.
I looked up at him. I haven't really noticed but he was starting to grow alot of stuble and his hair was getting a bit longer. His unraveled tattoos were peaking out as I looked at every single interesting story it had to tell.
YOU ARE READING
His Desire - Zayn Malik FanfictionFanfiction
"W-What do......do you want from me" I whispered not being able to make myself audible. He chuckled again. "Oh Skylar don't you understand ?" He spoke before laughing at my stupidity . "I Want You" COMPLETED


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Cleaning acrylic paint brushes while conserving water in the art studio is a daily practice for me. I created a FREE download inspired by my virtual students based on info from fellow artist over the past several years.
I am no longer helping with face-to-face cleanups, this was a pressing concern for me to create this handout.
Plus, I think my virtual classroom is here to stay. I am loving the weekly connecting with my students around the U.S. (15 states & Puerto Rico) and here in Texas.
For proper brush cleaning..
First, I recommend you establish the habit of wiping your excess paint onto another canvas or rag and then rinse in your paint water. In my virtual lessons students are encouraged to use left over paint. I like to use it for creating a bookmark or for the next art piece. Plus, it is helpful for keeping their dish of water cleaner while painting too.
Second, Try to incorporate a sink set up with this handy strainer old t-shirt and a container collecting the strained water.
Thirdly, I set up a proper waste water station to empty paint and collected sink water into verse down the drain.
Lastly, I pour waste water to a filtration system so it may be disposed of properly down the drain. (Illustrated guide and materials available in download.) The filter allows t-shirts or coffee filters to be refreshed as needed. Discard the make shift filters collecting all the micro bits and sludge you rescued from our water ways into the trash.
In conclusion, I hope you take these small steps to make a big impact on our waters ways for better studio habits.
Here is my complete step-by-step, and how to protect our waterways while painting your next masterpiece:
FREE Illustrated Guide – Acrylic Brush Cleaning & Water Conservation Download
Great for in the studio or classroom as a reminder for proper water disposal.
Be sure to share how do you manage with your left over paint water below in the comments section. I love hearing about your studio habits.
Weekly LIVE and On-Demand Art Lesson available at www.sandramucha.thinkific.com
Painting Brushes: Filberts no. 2, 8, and no. 2 Liner brushFilbert 8-12 is used for larger color fields for the compositons initial shapes. The filbert brush with its sculpted rounded shape is a very efficient brush providing the option of thick or thin lines, as well as an added smaller tapered end for details. It even can replicate the use of a fan brush for blending. Small filbert 2-4 for adding details with a thick or thin line,and the added smaller pointed end for details. Not as much area allowing for blending, but still allows for a variety of mark making. Size 2 liner for smaller details, lines found in nature, architecture, hair, or great line control for signing your signature. I use these three common artist paint brush sizes in that order as well. Large to small works best when creating a painting’s layers or wet into wet techniques. All of these brushes provide dual purposes making it a wise purchase for a daily art making budget. My other brushes (pictured in the multi bin) have accumulated from various works over the years. Plus, it is convenient to have the same sizes at the ready too if editing a variety of colors. Brush and organizing bin brands are available on this blog’s correlating instagram post.
Birds of a feather flock together during my weekly art creations whether I am developing a bird’s eye-view or feathered friends. Students are practicing with a variety of nature scenes, birds, skies, and native plants that support our feathered friends. Each week I...
Snow blindness, blustery flurries and blizzards may bring to mind the color white, but snow really is not just one color. It is a collection of blues. Here is my winter blue palette in action: Golden Acrylic's: Ultramarine Blue, Cerulean Blue, Paynes Gray, Titanium...
I shared with one of my son's classmates today how my paintings simulate the feeling of flying like a bird. Her face light up when she learned this about my work. Earlier in the day, I had the joy of encouraging her to face some of her fears on their class fieldtrip....
When the weather is cooler, my family and I enjoy exploring our local trails here in North Texas. We especially enjoy these picks for scouting or just need an escape from every day in and near our Richardson TX area. Each nature preserve or area offers a scenic river...
“This list includes affiliate links for which I may make a small commission at no extra cost to you should you make a purchase.”

domain: hobby


Seven former directors of the Central Intelligence Agency sent a letter to Pres. Obama on Friday asking him to reverse Attorney General Eric Holder’s decision to re-open a criminal investigation of CIA interrogations that took place following the attacks of September 11: Seven former directors of the Central Intelligence Agency on Friday urged President Obama […]
Enhanced Interrogations Techniques
Gene Poteat, president of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers, offers the following statement on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s claim that the CIA lied to her in their briefings: Those CIA officers chosen to brief the Congress, and especially the intelligence committees, are very senior, experienced officers, who well know the reputation and future of […]
I found this clip over at Johnny Dollar’s place… It’s mainly about Nancy Pelosi but listen to Congressman John Larson’s (D-CT) remarks at the beginning of the clip: Am I crazy or did he just call the CIA liars? H/T: Hot Air.
CIA Director Leon Panetta today released a statement defending his agency from charges that it mislead mmeber of Congress: There is a long tradition in Washington of making political hay out of our business. It predates my service with this great institution, and it will be around long after I’m gone. But the political debates […]
The Washington Post on Saturday reported that a top aide to Nancy Pleosi attended a briefing CIA briefing on Enhanced Interrogations, including waterboarding in 2003: A top aide to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi attended a CIA briefing in early 2003 in which it was made clear that waterboarding and other harsh techniques were being used […]
The Washington Post and ABC News are reporting that Speaker Nancy Pelosi was briefed on Enhanced Interrogations Techniques and their use on on Abu Zubaydah. From the Washington Post: Intelligence officials released documents this evening saying that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) was briefed in September 2002 about the use of harsh interrogation tactics against […]


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The Government has approved measures that will, for the first time, set minimum rates of pay for people working in the childcare and early-learning sectors.
The Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth said that more than 70% of staff working in these areas would see their pay increase as a result.
The measures come into force on 15 September, after Damien English (Minister of State for Business, Employment and Retail, pictured) accepted proposals for Employment Regulation Orders (EROs) for the sector.
“The proposals submitted to me will apply to some 27,000 staff, and are a welcome acknowledgement of the importance of the work carried out by everyone working in the early-learning and childcare sector,” said the minister.
The new hourly minimum rates of pay range from €13 for early-years educators and school-age childcare providers, to €17.25 for some managers in the sector.
The start date coincides with the launch of Core Funding Scheme, a €221 million plan to increase funding in these areas.
Minister for Children Roderic O’Gorman said that low pay and conditions, as well as limited opportunities for progression, had made it difficult to attract and retain staff in the sector.
“I hope that early-years educators and school-age childcare practitioners can now see a real future for themselves in a job that gives so much to children, their families, and to society more broadly,” he added.
Under the ERO process, the Labour Court recommends minimum pay rates after consultations with interested parties in the relevant sector.
Last month, however, a proposed ERO for the security sector was blocked by a High Court injunction.

domain: news


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KIMBALLTON MAN CHARGED WITH SEXUAL ABUSE
(AUDUBON) A Kimballton man has been charged with 3rd Degree Sexual Abuse.
The Audubon County Sheriff’s Office arrested 20-year-old Cory Michael Clark on Monday on an outstanding Audubon County warrant. The charge stems from an ongoing investigation involving the sexual abuse of a minor at a residence in Audubon County.
Clark was transported to the Audubon County Jail and was held. He was later released following an appearance before the magistrate. A preliminary hearing is set for April 4th.


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Last night was my New Catalogue Party – it was such fun! The ladies were fantastic to spend time and stamp with and I’m just so pleased to have these stamping friends in my life!
So, I thought it would be fun to show the make and take projects we made last night. This particular project I think will go into my new catalogue workshop rotation because this just is super cute, fun and uses some great products.
I’d like to mention something here that I found SUPER EXCITING! Did you know that you could purchase the New In Colour Ink Pads and get In Colour cardstock for less than $1? Did you know you could purchase the NEW Core Colour Ink Pads and get cardstock for less than $1? YOU CAN!
Check out page 165 in the new Idea Book and Catalogue. If you purchase the Card Stock and Classic Pad In Colour Kit for $36.95 you’ll get all five In Colour ink pads and a combination package of In Colour cardstock (20 sheets, 4 of each colour) almost for F
REE! You see, just the ink pads alone are $36.25! THANK YOU STAMPIN’ UP!
Like above, if you look at this flyer, you’ll see that you can purchase the Card Stock and Classic Pad New Colour Kit for $42.95. Just the ink pads alone cost $42.25 so you’re essentially getting the cardstock (24 sheets, 4 of each colour) for only $0.70!
Okay, on to the card….the base of this card is Peach Parfait. I wheeled the Retro Remix wheel in Versamark down the left hand side of the card.
For the centre panel, I mounted three of the stamps from Itty Bitty Bits onto my Clear Block H. I used my In Colour markers in Pear Pizzazz, Crushed Concord and Poppy Parade. I then used one of my Bitty Buttons and the Itty Bitty Shapes Punch Pack (punched out a small flower in Pear Pizzazz). I then tied the button with a wee but of Poppy Parade cardstock (using your Tabletop Paper Cutter for this is wonderful!).
I mounted this piece on piece of Pear Pizzazz and then added a strip of Poppy Parade, which I’d punched with the Scallop Trim Punch. I then added a bit of Crushed Concord and some White Taffeta Ribbon.
I used the “thank you” from Because I Care (hostess level 1 set) as my sentiment and then used my paper piercer and mat pack to add a little line of paper piercing.
This is a great card and uses some fantastic new products! If you like what you see, book and workshop and make this for FREE!
Thanks for stopping by (oh, and my countdown to Convention is on! Only 11 more days till I leave!).
Products used on this project – CLICK HERE to buy them NOW!
Cardstock: Poppy Parade (119793), Pear Pizzazz (119795), Crushed Concord (119792), Peach Parfait (119794), Whisper White (100730).
Ink: In Colour Stampin’ Write Markers (119801), Versamark (102283).
Stamps: Itty Bitty Bits (120060), Because I Care (120118, Level 1 hostess), Retro Remix Stampin’ Around wheel (115619).
Accessories: Clear Block H (118490), Clear Block C (118486), White Taffeta Ribbon (109070), Itty Bitty Buttons (118761), Itty Bitty Shapes Punch Bundle (118309), Scallop Trim Punch (118402), paper piercer (116631), mat pack (105826), Tabletop Paper trimmer (106959).

domain: artistic


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Japanese players can now download Tekken 5 onto their PS3s. Weighing in at 830MB, the game costs $16 US and marks the first appearance of a full game on the PS3 download service.
Previously only available in arcades and on the PSP, Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection joins Gran Turismo HD on the list of downloadable content for the PS3. Only available in Japan, a US release date has not yet been announced.
The game includes the standard arcade battles along with a multiplayer mode and a gallery mode where players can unlock artwork and videos.

domain: game


Here we are offer best quality for - Brownells Russia and guarantee cheaper than other online shopping store. Look inside store for get more discount,If you want to see more details Can be ordered at the online store that we recommend
*** Please check more details at the merchant website.
The Redding Deluxe Die Sets include the full length sizing die, standard seating die and the neck sizing die. All dies are made using the finest alloy steels obtainable and machined on Hardinge Super-Precision lathes capable of holding the tightest tolerances in the industry. Guaranteed to produce ammunition that will properly fit any standard (SAAMI) chamber. Heat treated in atmospherically controlled furnaces and hand polished for smooth, flawless functioning, these dies will maintain tolerances and last a lifetime. Inspected and ultrasonically cleaned before packaging, the come in a handy die box with a spare decapping pin, hex wrench and a place for your shellholder (sold separately). Mfg: ReddingCheck price and Read more Detail At Redding
Permits barrel cleaning from the rear without removing the barrel; eliminates accuracy-destroying cleaning rod wear caused by cleaning from the muzzle. Locates the correct spot at the rear of 10/22 receivers for drilling a small hole to allow the cleaning rod to pass through. Mfg: Brownells SPECS: Steel, blued. 4" (10.2cm) long.Check price and Read more Detail At Brownells
Interested in a precision rifle stock that isn't the bulky, fixed-stock options that dominate the market? The B5 Systems Collapsible Precision Stock provides a solid mounting point for accurate shooting, but this precision-rifle stock can still be easily adjusted or downsized for easy storage and transport. Additional features found on the B5 System Collapsible Precision Stock include an ambidextrous quick-detach sling-swivel socket with limited rotation, as well as a number of fixed sling mounts. The stock also features an adjustment lever complete with a lockable feature, as well as an M-LOK attachment point on the underside of the stock that's compatible with Picatinny rai Mfg: B5 SystemsCheck price and Read more Detail At B5 Systems
The Challenge Targets IPSC 66% Rifle Target Armor Post features a built-in quick release mechanism that allows the target plates to be removed in seconds without tools. The upright post is made from 3/8" AR500 steel and will withstand thousands of direct hits from high power rifles. Rated for ammunition with velocities up to 3,000 fps at the target Minimum distance: Handguns = 7 yards and Rifles = 100 yards Heavy duty legs constructed of 1/4" steel with durable black powder coat finish Target base has a 35" diagonal footprint that is elevated in the center to provide excellent stability (11.81"x19.39") Height: 54" t Mfg: Challenge TargetsCheck price and Read more Detail At Challenge Targets
Copyright © 2020 Increase Sale Now RN53. All Rights Reserved


Dallas residents thought that an UFO appeared in the North Texas sky, but it was the Starlink’s satellites
The true source of the lights was satellites created by Elon Musk’s SpaceX Starlink.
Monday night, numerous FOX 4 viewers brought in photographs and videos of a peculiar occurrence in the sky above North Texas.
At 9 p.m., a mystery line of lights was seen by many across the metropolitan area, prompting some to believe they had discovered an extraterrestrial craft.
Maria Flores Ruiz, a FOX 4 viewer, observed a string of lights near Caddo Hills at 9 p.m.
The genuine source of the lights was SpaceX, owned by Elon Musk.
Monday night, the Starlink-55 satellites passed over North Texas, according to the website FindStarlink.com.
The Starlink satellites are intended to assist in bringing high-speed broadband internet to areas of the world where it is not commonly available.
SpaceX launched 54 new Starlink satellites on Sunday evening from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.


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Important Information about the Diagnosis and Treatment of Navicular Infection in Houses
For ages, the house has assisted humans in various domestic chores such as pulling the cart and plowing farms. However, horse owners currently treat their houses with a lot of sensitivity and love. A majority of the horses are kept as pets or for sports. Horses are up on their feet for long periods of time. This is especially true for sport horses which are involved in vigorous training and participate in numerous competitions yearly. It is believed that the strain on the feet of the horse is a possible cause of navicular infection which is common in horses.
When a horse owner notices that their horse is showing signs of discomfort on their feet they should quickly consult a veterinary doctor. This will manifest when the horse keeps lifting up a particular foot for long periods of time. When the vet comes over, they will examine the horse. This exercise is done to ensure that the discomfort is not caused by any other issue such as cracks or bruises caused by thorns, debris, and stones. Thereafter the vet doctor will take x-ray images to take a closer exam on the foot or feet of the horse. From the x-ray images, the doctor is able to diagnose the horse properly. If it is found to have a navicular infection, the doctor will recommend strong pain medication and other treatment for the animal.
There are numerous diverse reasons that are attributed to the inflammation of the navicular bone in horses. One of the causes of this inflammation is the structure of the animal. If the animal has got a huge body and small feet, the body will with time assert pressure on the feet of the animal and affect the navicular bone. This problem is also common in some of the horses that are involved in extraneous sporting activities such as barrel racing. Injury on the navicular bone is serious and can cause lameness in the animal. It should, therefore, be treated at its early stages.
There are also other non-conventional treatments for this condition. It is believed that the inflammation is caused by lots of pressure being asserted on the foot of the horse. The treatment solutions given should, therefore, ease pressure on the feet. For starters, the horse is fitted with suitable shoes that help in making the feet comfortable. The horse can also be given herbs that will help to improve blood circulation and consequently reduce blood pressure and pressure on the foot.
Further, the horse may also be treated with the herb known as the devil’s craws. This is herb is effective in treating bone inflammations. In humans, it is used in the treatment of spinal arthritis. It is said to eliminate pain and inflammation on the spine within four months. Similarly, it is a wonderful herb when it comes to the treatment of the navicular condition in a horse. After taking this herb for some time, the horse can recover and get on with its daily routine.

domain: medical


Martis development continues while plan is developed
While the Martis Valley Community Plan heads towards a summer of potentially heated meetings before the Placer County Planning Commission and Board of Supervisors, several of the developments on the Placer County side of Martis Valley continue to move through the planning process.Those projects are in the portion of the valley that will be under the jurisdiction of the Martis Valley Community Plan, if and when it is approved.Projects in the valley that are currently seeking approval include Eaglewood, Hopkins Ranch and the Martis Creek Estates (see sidebar). Two of the three developments include 18-hole golf courses.The Martis Valley Community Plan is an update of the 1975 Martis Valley General Plan and seeks to guide development and address “new environmental and land issues” in the Placer County portion of the Martis Valley.A preliminary draft was released in January, with a revised draft expected out shortly.The draft proposes a holding capacity of 9,200 dwelling units in the valley, a 22- percent reduction from what was permitted under the 1975 plan. Still, it would allow for approximately 6,800 more units at buildout than what currently exists or has already been approved in the valley.Currently, each of the proposed developments with applications already on file are in the environmental review phase.But some believe that any final decisions on those projects should wait until the Martis Valley Community Plan is finished.”There has been piecemeal approval [of these projects] that should have fallen under the community plan,” said Tom Mooers of Sierra Watch.If a new land use plan under construction, officials can wait to consider any projects proposed within the region until the update plan is implemented, says an expert in the field.”The law allows you to do a ‘study zone.’ Basically, you draw a line [on the map] and say during the term of our planning, developments will not be considered until the new plan is complete and implemented,” said Jeff Loux, director of the University of California, Davis’ Land Use and Natural Resources extension program.Loux did say that California requires a time limit on such actions – approximately two years.It would also require a “super majority” of the local government, in this case the four out of the five Placer County Supervisors would have to approve of the move.”It’s really up to the town or county. But is it typical, I would say it isn’t,” Loux said.”Study zones are politically difficult. Use the M-word [moratorium], and everybody gets all excited.”Placer County Planning Director Fred Yeager was unavailable for comment.The next meeting of the Martis Valley Community Plan’s Citizen’s Advisory Committee is scheduled for June 17 at Town Hall.The 12-member Citizen’s Advisory Committee will make an advisory recommendation to the Placer County Planning Commission on the Martis Valley Community Plan.That recommendation could come at their next meeting.SidebarAll information on Eaglewood, Martis Creek Estates and Hopkins Ranch is from the Placer County Planning Departments’ current projects list.Eaglewood -The Eaglewood project area is approximately 475 acres. Eaglewood is proposed as a master-plan community that includes five mixed residential categories for a total of 470 dwelling units, including 40 employee housing units, an18-hole golf course, recreation center, park and village commercial.Project location: Between Highway 267 and the existing Lahontan project in the Martis Valley area of Placer County. The primary vehicular access into the site will be from Schaffer Mill Road off Highway 267.Applicant/Owner: Robert Hayes & Robert TamiettiStatus: Administrative draft environmental impact report is expected from the project consultant.Hopkins Ranch-Proposed major subdivision, rezoning and conditional use permit for a planned development of 87 single-family lots and the construction of an 18-hole golf course, clubhouse and accessory buildings.Project location: North of the approved Lahontan project, adjacent to Schaefer Mill Road and south of Highway 267 in the Martis Valley area of Placer County.Applicant/Owner: Ron Parr, DMB Highlands Group, LLC,Status: Administrative draft environmental impact report was due from consultant last month.Martis Creek Estates-Proposal to subdivide 122.4 acres into 12 residential lots with a minimum lot size of 10 acres.Project location: just off Highway 267, across from the entrance to the Northstar at Tahoe resort.Applicant/Owner: Terrance E. Lowell & AssociatesStatus: Mitigated Negative Declaration prepared and sent to applicant for review of mitigation measures.
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The Wild & Scenic Film Festival, in collaboration with Nevada County Arts Council, is once again inviting local and regional artists to submit their environmental artwork for possible inclusion at the 20th annual Wild & Scenic Film…


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The number of price cuts in the 92313 zip code market climbed to 12 over the last 30 days, furthering a recent positive trend. Despite drops in list prices, sales also decreased to seven homes sold. All indications show that the trend should continue, meaning more price reductions over the next few weeks. Pricing in the 92313 zip code remains consistent from last week to this week, with the median sales price at $290,000 again.
If you have been waiting for prices to drop, now is your chance to look at these listings in the 92313 zip code:
Get started right now by checking out 92313 homes for sale or reviewing 92313 real estate trends.

domain: finance


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By Lem Satterfield
Gary Shaw, promoter for IBO/WBC interim-light heavyweight champion Chad Dawson, was not impressed with last Saturday's win by IBF champion Tavoris Cloud. In the HBO televised co-feature from St. Louis, Cloud won a twelve round unanimous decision over veteran Glen Johnson. After the decision was announced, Cloud called for a fight with Dawson, but Shaw says the fight won't happen in the near future.
"As far as Tavoris Cloud goes, it proved that (41-year-old) Glen Johnson is getting older by the round. And it proved that Tavoris Cloud is just nothing. Does he really want to fight Chad next? I think that he wouldn't be making a wise decision. But he's not going to get that opportunity to fight Chad next," Shaw said. "By the way, I had Johnson beating Cloud by a round."
This coming Saturday, Dawson takes part in a unification clash with full WBC champion Jean Pascal. Should Dawson get past Pascal, Shaw plans to target a fight with IBF super middleweight champion Lucian Bute, and Team Dawson are willing to give Bute the homefield advantage. The weight is up in the air. Bute might move up, or Dawson might move down, or they might even meet in the middle.
"We don't have to drop to 168 to fight Lucian Bute. Maybe he would move up to fight Chad. That way, that would give him a shot at winning the 175-pound title and at the same time retain his own 168-pound title. But at the same time, Chad's got a really tough fight coming up against Jean Pascal this coming Saturday. So any talks about who he fights next is actually premature. But, I think Chad will win. I expect him to win. And I would like to fight Lucian Bute next," Shaw said.
Lem Satterfield is the boxing editor at AOL FanHouse and the news editor at BoxingScene.com. To read more from Lem Satterfield, go to AOL FanHouse by Clicking Here.


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ALL PUPS HAVE FOUND HOMES… PLEASE SEARCH FOR SPOODLE FUR BABIES ON GOOGLE AND JOIN OUR MAILING LIST THE NEXT LITTER WILL BE AT EASTER. OR CONTACT THROUGH EMAIL, MOBILE OR OUR FACEBOOK PAGE.
We have 2 second generation spoodle puppies. Puppies have been vet checked, microchipped and C5 vaccinated.
Parents are first generation spoodles. Born to a dog loving family they are looking for a forever home. If your hearts desire is beautiful affectionate spoodles contact us! Born 15 October 2021. Ready to go home 10 December 2021 at 8 weeks old.
Will include puppy pack with all puppy requirements so you need nothing more than take them to your warm loving home.
Search for us – spoodle fur babies on google and facebook. We encourage you to visit our website and facebook page to find out more…
- 1 chocolate girl,
- 1 chocolate boy

domain: pet


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Here, a reason to wish for even more Mykki Blanco in the new year: this new song called "Booty Bamboo," produced by Amnesia Scanner (and seems to be pronounced "Booty Bahm-bo"). A tease for the mixtape and LP she has planned for 2014, it's grinding and pretty tough, but still with all the green tea toking and fucking up the rug dance vibes, too. About it -- and also her year, more generally -- she writes:
Will hip hop ever accept me? Who gives a fuck. Will the gay community turn their back on me if I stop dressing in drag? Who gives a fuck. Will I get signed? Who gives a fuck. I did a world tour off the strength of soundcloud singles, a lo-fi mixtape and my first EP. I was out there, I saw the power of music and saw the power of love and now I just want to develop my music and have fun. People who fuck with Mykki Blanco fuck with Mykki Blanco no image or politics needed.
Light a blunt with your friends and listen to my new track Booty Bamboo. I feel free, I hope you do to.
Mykii Blanco will ring in the new year onstage at Gramercy Theatre in New York alongside Ian Isiah, Jungle Pussy, DJ Rashad, La'fem Ladosha, DJ Larry B, T.E.A.M.S, Princess Nokia and Michael Magnan. Tickets are available here.

domain: entertainment


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No matter who does the prescribing, dosing, and administering, make sure you know all there is to know about the medicines you are taking!
How Medicine Can Make You Sick
You think of getting better when you think of medicine; you don't think that medicine can actually make you sick. When your healthcare professional prescribes medication for you, the intent is to cure whatever ailment the medicine is formulated to treat. The problem is medication isn't always the best medicine. In rare cases, medication can cause additional illness or even death. Therefore, it is extremely important to keep the lines of communication open between your doctor, your pharmacist, and yourself to ensure everyone understands how your medication affects you.
Talk to Your Practitioner
It is never a good idea to accept a prescription blindly, even though you trust your healthcare practitioner. If you've been diagnosed with a temporary or permanent illness, you discuss the illness with your doctor; it is equally important to discuss the details of the treatment with your doctor. Yes, your healthcare practitioner has your best interest at heart, but that does not mean that you should just thank him or her for the written script and leave.
For all the good medication does, it can also do some bad. Therefore, it is important to discuss the newly prescribed medication with your doctor in detail before you fill the prescription and begin taking the meds. Ask your doctor specific questions about your new medication, including what the medication is formulated to do; how your body processes, absorbs, and releases the medication; and the details of all potential risks and side effects, including possible interactions with any other medication you currently take.
Once you're done getting the details of your medication from your doctor, get additional details from your pharmacist. It might seem like overkill to ask both medical professionals, but the more detail you get the better. Hopefully, your pharmacist will answer your questions with the same information your doctor did. If he or she does not, that should send a warning to you and you should discuss the differences between information with your pharmacist to try to isolate exactly what the medication does.
Your pharmacist is required by law to give you an information sheet about your medication when he or she fills the prescription. Read the sheet while you are at the pharmacy and use this to open a discussion with your pharmacist about your newly prescribed medication. Make certain you understand everything the sheet says about your prescription, and if you don't, ask!
There are reputable websites that provide detailed information about the prescriptions the FDA authorizes for use in the United States. Although you've already discussed your medication with your doctor and pharmacist, I recommend you do your own research as well. Certain websites tend to be more detailed in the information they provide about medications, and the website isn't in a hurry, so you can take your time learning about your medication – a luxury you might not be afforded at your doctor's office or pharmacy.
Some of the advantages of these websites include the ability for others who have taken the same medication to report any side effects they've experienced, age and gender information, and how these medicines have affected those within the specific age and gender sets. This information enables you to assess your risk more accurately. If a group of people your age and gender had a bad experience with the medication you have been prescribed, yet others younger or older than you haven't, it's safe to assume that you are at higher risk for experiencing side effects from your prescription.
The primary thing you should know about side effects is what they are. What could your medication do to you while it's treating the problem for which it was prescribed? For example, you might have been prescribed an anti-depressant because you suffer from chronic depression. It is important that you know that a common side effect of anti-depressant medication is actually increased depression. This is very dangerous for a depressed person; if the medication increases the depression, the patient might become despondent or suicidal.
You want to know the side effects of all medications you are taking, so get the list of them and take care to ensure that you don't begin experiencing any of them. Some side effects are minor and unavoidable, such as experiencing a dry mouth; other side effects are harmful, such as severe allergic reactions or vomiting and diarrhea. Learn all of the side effects to ensure your medication doesn't make you sick. Also, discuss how any new prescription will interact with any current medication you are taking, including over-the-counter items such as allergy medicine or pain relievers.
In some cases, you might have to roll with punches the side effects present. For example, if a medication is giving you a dryer mouth or making you drowsy, you might need to work around that. Drink more water or make sure you take any medications that cause drowsiness at night before you go to bed. Depending on why you are taking the medication and the severity of any side effects experienced, your doctor might simply advise you to continue the medication and give you tips on how to handle the side effects.
If you experience anything serious, however, you need to contact your medical professional immediately. Examples of serious side effects include an allergic reaction, which might be indicated by sudden uncontrollable itching, skin rashes including hives, a sensation that your throat is closing, and/or a fever; vomiting and/or diarrhea; irritability, aggression, increased anxiousness, or other severe mood swings; extreme depression, listlessness, sleepiness; and many other serious reactions. Never take a side effect lightly. If you believe you are experiencing a side effect from your medication, talk to your doctor immediately!


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If you’re a buyer right now, you’re experiencing firsthand what is possibly the most competitive market we’ve ever seen. Homes are going under contract at incredible speeds and the offers made are very aggressive.
We are constantly hearing about low inventory; Milwaukee/Waukesha County, especially, are always in need of additional inventory. So what exactly is happening? There are some additional factors at play other than lack of inventory.
Let’s break it down:
Record Low Mortgage Rates: Due to the nation’s economic changes, 12 million homeowners were able to take advantage of securing the lowest rates history has ever seen.
Strong Demographics: 33% of homebuyers today are first-time buyers with nothing to sell, meaning they can be nimble in making non-contingent offers.
Delayed Downsizing: Baby boomers are delaying downsizing by moving into assisted living, nursing homes, or in with family due to the pandemic, holding onto those homes that younger families need.
New Build Prices: Lumber prices continue to spike, with futures up 35% on top of the 170% rise we have already witnessed over the last ten months.
Pandemic Housing Policy: The freeze on foreclosures and evictions has put a pause on some potential market movement.
Even with these factors at play, it’s important that buyers don’t give up. Have a strategy and be sure to have realistic expectations.
With interest rates expected to rise to more normalized levels beginning in April, we’ll start to see a more even market in the coming months. If you’re a seller in the meantime, take advantage of this market in your favor—we need houses!
If you know of anyone looking to buy or sell their home, feel free to reach out!


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In this edition of our monthly alert, you’ll find information about the most recent stay of execution granted by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, as well as announcements related to the TCADP 2018 Annual Conference and coverage of a potential U.S. Supreme Court hearing questioning the constitutionality of the death penalty.
The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals (CCA) has stayed the execution of Juan Castillo to review claims of false testimony. This marks the sixth case granted a stay by the CCA this year. Castillo was scheduled to be executed on December 14, 2017, for the 2003 murder and robbery of Tommy Garcia, Jr. in San Antonio. […]
Last night, November 8, 2017, the State of Texas executed Ruben Cardenas after the U.S. Supreme Court rejected several remaining appeals. Cardenas was pronounced dead at 10:26 PM after four hours of delay caused by the Supreme Court’s review. Cardenas’ execution sparked an outcry from international leaders for its violation of the Vienna Convention on Consular […]
The State of Texas is scheduled to put Ruben Cardenas to death today Wednesday, November 8, 2017, for the 1997 murder of Mayra Laguna in Hidalgo County. In accordance with the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, as a Mexican-national, Cardenas had the right to contact the Mexican consulate upon arrest. He was unaware of this […]
In this edition of our monthly newsletter, you’ll find information about scheduled executions, recent Gallup poll data, and the TCADP 2018 Annual Conference. You’ll also find a list of upcoming events in El Paso and San Antonio.
Larry Swearingen’s execution has been halted due to a clerical error. The Montgomery County District Clerk’s office sent the execution order to the Texas Attorney General instead of the Office of Capital and Forensic Writs as required by law. Swearingen was originally scheduled to be executed on November 16, 2017 for the 1998 murder of […]
The State of Texas is scheduled to put Robert Pruett to death tomorrow, Thursday, October 12, 2017, the murder of Corrections Office Daniel Nagel in the McConnell Unit in Beeville, Texas in 1999. Pruett has steadfastly maintained his innocence. No physical evidence connects him with the crime, and recent DNA analysis of the murder weapon revealed […]
In this edition of our monthly newsletter, you’ll find information about scheduled executions and the TCADP 2018 Annual Conference. You’ll also find a list of upcoming events in the Austin area, Houston, and San Antonio.

domain: law


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Crochet Star wars Lightsaber Pencil Case
Crochet Starwars Lightsaber Pencil Case came to mind when I was trying to find something for the boy to keep some of his markers in. My boy is a huge Starwars fan and it’s almost his birthday so this will be perfect for him. He asked for a purple Crochet Starwars Lightsaber Pencil Case, just like Mace Windy. You can make the Crochet Lightsaber Pencil Case in any colours that you choose.
Crochet Star Wars Lightsaber Pencil Case Pattern Notes..
Click HERE for pattern difficulty ratings.
#4 worsted weight yarn. I used yarn from my scraps so it’s a mixture of different worsted weight yarns. The colours I used were Grey, Black, Purple & Red.
- US H8/5.00mm
- 6″ zipper
- Heavy duty button thread to sew in zipper.
7 sc = 2″
- Do not join unless specified.
- Do not turn work unless specified.
- Use a stitch marker in the beginning stitch of each round so you don’t lose your space.
Open the zipper on your hilt, turn your hilt inside out, insert saber into your hilt so that the right sides of both pieces are touching, for Rnd 10 you will be working through the first loop of the hilt (as shown below) and through both stitch loops of the saber.
Carefully flip your work out through the zipper.
Crochet Star Wars Lightsaber Pencil Case Pattern..
Have you made your own Crochet Star Wars Lightsaber Pencil Case? Please share your pictures on my Facebook WALL or hook up your project on Ravelry.


Is Your Air Conditioner Summer Ready?
It’s getting warm out there and your air conditioner is calling your name. But, as we all know, similar to boilers and radiators, running the A/C can cost a lot of money! Fortunately, there are ways to help you keep the utility bills low while keeping yourself cool.
Don’t Leave the A/C on Full Blast
Electricity is what you are paying for here when you use an air conditioner. So, if you force your A/C to go at full blast, whether it’s at intervals or all day long, you’re actually putting pressure on your unit that will shorten both its efficiency and its life span. The strain of being turned off and then back on again at full blast will cost you more money in electricity and maintenance in the long run. You may be surprised – but it is a much efficient way to do it if you leave your A/C on all day at a low setting. temperature.
Now, the age of the appliance does matter. For example, if you own a central A/C system that hasn’t been updated for 20 years, then it’s definitely inefficient when it comes to energy and costs compared to a recently updated one. In this case, you should not turn on your A/C during a heat wave (that’s too late)! Turn it on all day at a low setting would be much more efficient.
Use a Programmable Thermostat
Upgrade your thermostat to a digital (programmable) thermostat will save you time, energy and money during the summer. Independent studies have shown a 10-15% reduction on the average bill when using a smart thermostat (e.g., Nest). A smart thermostat allows you to set to the desired temperature at all times. Some come with their own app on your phone or other devices, so that you can adjust the temperature wherever you are.
Change the Filter
Getting a bit more technical now! This one is about DIY maintenance. Obviously, keeping the unit clean can make a real difference in both costs and your energy usage. The filter is the lungs of your air conditioner, so you don’t want it to build up with dust, dirt, and debris. If it gets too bad, your coils will start to get dirty too, leading to condensation and freeze. So, change your filter regularly. Investing in more eco-friendly products or upgrading your A/C is also a good idea.
Remove Debris, Unclog Your Vents and Clear the Drainage
This one is about the air quality you breathe in as well as the wellbeing of the unit. As the weather gets warmer, your A/C “sweats” more. This excess condensation should collect outside and evaporate – that is, if nothing is clogging the drainage. If the drain is blocked, the water will begin to collect inside your A/C closet. Why is that so bad? Well, once this small container is filled, it will trigger a switch to shut off the unit automatically.
The outdoor condenser unit also needs looking after. Leaves and debris will find their way into that condenser very quickly and once it is blocked, it makes the unit run harder and hotter, causing higher energy usage and even a potential electrical fire hazard.
Therefore, you should do maintenance regularly throughout the year and not just before the summer. Do a thorough job of clearing out leaves and twigs. Use a wet-dry vacuum to suck up any debris on the outside drain as well as the inside drain pipe. Open all your supply vents in each room and clean them properly.
Update Your Windows Slightly
If you keep feeling hot when standing next to a window (or vice versa, feeling cold when standing next to the window in winter), chances are there’s a tiny hole somewhere and you may need to get it fixed. Caulking can seal any holes where cool air in the summer or hot air in the winter can leak out. If you are not sure how to do that yourself, seek help from a professional. Click here to find a FixlersPro in your area.
Another trick to staying cooler is to use film to tint your windows. This will make the room darker, minimizing the heat rise caused by the sun. You can find these films for windows at homeware stores or online shops, and then apply them yourself.
Want to Upgrade Your Air Conditioner?
A new A/C system or unit may seem expensive at first, but when you add together the cost of maintenance, repairs for a constantly failing unit, and the energy usage, it makes more sense to upgrade. Our technicians at Fixlers can install new A/C systems for you, so that you can stay cool this summer while keeping costs low. Contact us today: 888-683-8483 or make a booking by downloading our app via this link: https://www.fixlers.com/


Thursday, 18 August 2011 1:30 p.m.
by RoyalCommission Popular
The Commission has already requested and obtained significant amounts of
information from a wide range of organisations and individuals, using the power
of the Commissions of Inquiry Act 1908.
However to ensure that the Commission has all relevant information on the
CTV, PGC, Forsyth Barr and Hotel Grand Chancellor buildings or any other
building which failed in the 22 February 2011 earthquake causing loss of life,
it would assist the Commission with the inquiry if ...


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Charriere look ravishing in camel? Aptly named “camel-athon,” Camille
proves that “coordination is everything” with her mix and match neutrals.
Create a look that’s wild and tame with leopard prints and creamy shades of
East-German postcard by VEB Progress Filmvertrieb. Collection: Didier Hanson.
French actor and film producer Jacques Charrier (1936) played leading roles in the late 1950’s and 1960’s, but gained the most notoriety when he married Brigitte Bardot. Their brief, tumultuous marriage was punctuated by his personal problems.


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The Pavilion at Mindarie Marina is Perth’s newest waterfront wedding venue with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking turquoise waters. It is a sophisticated and contemporary space offering a world-class head chef and expert team that will help bring your wedding dream to life.
Mindarie Marina provides a spectacular backdrop that will ensure your wedding day is a picture-perfect and unique experience. Designed with neutral colours The Pavilion will work with any colour scheme and theme you want to create for your special day. Whether it’s a ceremony at the exclusive Sky Chapel or a formal banquet for 250, the modern style, exquisite catering and exceptional level of service at The Pavilion make it the perfect choice for your wedding.
You deserve the very best and our team of dedicated wedding professionals will ensure organising your special day is stress free, so that you and your guests can relax and create memories that will last a lifetime.
Our gift to the bridal couple – when you choose Mindarie Marina for your special day, you’ll enjoy a complimentary overnight stay in an oceanside suite at the stylish Mindarie Marina Hotel & Villas.
Hours of Operation

domain: design


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Social Media Companies Must Quickly Take Down Ugly Posts
WITH elections to the two Lok Sabha and three Assembly seats in the state underway the social media monitoring cell of the Goa police has stepped up vigilance on social networking sites to curb any violation of the model code of conduct. The social media platforms like Facebook, WhatsApp, Twitter, Google, Youtube, ShareChat and ByteDance have for long been misused by politicians and their paid and unpaid partisans to defame and run down their rivals by spreading rumours and posting derogatory remarks. Even in normal days such posts mar the scene in the social media. During election times ugly posts increase in number and must be stopped as they could influence voters against a party or candidate. Such posts constitute unfair practice. The Election Commission of India has brought the social media under the ambit of the model code of conduct and advised people not to misuse the platforms. However, misuse continues unabated.
The Internet and Mobile Association of India, representing social media companies, gave an assurance to the ECI they would enforce a voluntary ‘code of ethics’ to restrain fake and objectionable posts. The assurance by the Internet and Mobile Association of India notwithstanding, can all ugly, obnoxious and inciting posts on the social media platforms be filtered? Social media companies do not want to invest in a monitoring regime to curb any and each incendiary and derogatory post. Their main interest lies in increasing the number of users and visitors. It is sheer commercial logic. No wonder, millions of unscrupulous elements are still freely putting up posts that should have been filtered. It is apparent that the voluntary code of ethics the Internet and Mobile Association of India say they are enforcing is merely a cosmetic exercise. It should be clear to the ECI that it is the officials entrusted by them that can force the social media companies to impose stricter controls on the kinds of posts. Else fake news and vulgar, vituperative and abusive posts will continue to crowd the social media platforms.
The social media companies have to appoint more employees to monitor and screen posts. The ECI officials must act without bias and promptly against any post in violation of the model code of conduct. The authorities need to set up a mechanism to receive complaints from common citizens regarding misuse of social media. The identities of those bringing violations to their notice must be protected. The action must be quick in order to keep the electoral process fair. Prompt action and secrecy would drive more and more people to bring violations to the notice of the ECI authorities. Thousands of citizens would act as ECI eyes. This will help, because social media platforms thrive on freedom of expression; so there cannot be blanket ban on use of social media or pre-censorship of posts. Curbing freedom of speech on the social media would be counterproductive. And if only post-censorship can work, involvement of vigilant citizens would be crucial. While allowing full space for free expression of views, no room should be allowed to the elements that misuse the freedom to put up abusive, insulting and poison-filled posts and fake news.
The monitoring of social media should be an integral part of police functioning as it would help in collecting information on fomenting unrest, agitation and spreading rumours. The police could also gather information on whether any candidate or party was resorting to illegal practices like use of money and liquor to influence voters. Perhaps the ECI should have acted earlier. It was known that social media was being used to tarnish the image of politicians and political parties. The ECI waited till the enforcement of the code of conduct to curb the misuse and are now trying to restrain the social media which is a vast job. It is time the central government and the ECI build up pressures on the social media companies to set up a strong and comprehensive system to monitor posts on their sites and to take them down immediately if they do not conform to rules of fair comment and decency. Misuse of social media should not be allowed in normal times. Once that happens there would be no issues, elections or no elections.


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Book Review from the September 1996 issue of the Socialist Standard
The End of Work. The decline of the global labour force and the dawn of the post-market era by Jeremy Rifkin (G.P. Putnam. New York, 1995)
Rifkin argues that: " . . . for the first time, human labour is being systematically eliminated from the production process. Within less than a century,'mass' work in the market sector is likely to be phased out in virtually all the industrial nations of the world".
His book is thought-provoking and discusses an issue that many economists avoid - that we have entered an era when the traditional work patterns have changed. The consequences that technological unemployment brings reverberate in every aspect of society. Rifkin estimates that in the USA, 90 million workers out of a total 124 million could potentially lose their jobs. Capitalism breeds the alienation in the young who turn to crime and the bleak futures faced by older workers, who in their economic insecurity have fears such as house repossession.
The book can be divided in two. indicated by the subtitle, ‘the decline of the global labour force and the dawn of the post-market era'. The first four parts (fourteen chapters) deal with the background and the decline of the global labour force - the strongest sections of the book. Rifkin’s strength is that the book is historically situated. It has its parallels in Volume I of Capital, where Marx analyses the historical tendency of automation to eliminate labour-power (chapter 15 - Machinery and Modern Industry). The book is well-researched, and although Rifkin is not saying much new, it is presented in an engaging manner.
In chapter I, Rifkin argues that workers are unprepared to meet the demands of global capitalism:
"The idea of a society not based on work is utterly alien to any notion we have about how to organise large numbers of people into a social whole, that we are faced with the prospect of having to rethink the very basis of the social contract."
As a liberal, Rifkin does not give up hope of workers benefitting through piecemeal reforms that would increase pay and improve working conditions, but he has grave doubts:
"The new economic realities of the coming century make it far less likely that either the marketplace or public sector will once again be able to rescue the economy from increasing technological unemployment and weakened consumer demand."
Although not the solution that socialists support. Rifkin proposes what he terms the “social economy", which is discussed in the chapters on “the dawn of the post-market era".
Rifkin proposes two courses of action to make the transition to "the post-market era". Firstly, productivity gains to be shared among workers so as to bring about an equitable re-distribution for an equitable share of the fruits of technological progress. Secondly, that the shrinking of mass employment in the formal market economy and cuts in public expenditure bring a need to focus on the third economy - the social economy - which would, argues Rifkin, meet the needs that are not met by the market and public sectors.
His strategies for dealing with technologically displaced labour are nothing new and include reducing the working week, spreading employment amongst a greater number of workers without sacrificing productivity, an index-linked minimum wage and compensatory welfare payments. What Rifkin argues here has become common in political circles especially among the communitarian movement in America and the "stakeholder society" of Blair's New Labour.
Rifkin, like many who call for what Diane Elson terms the “socialisation of the market" places emphasis on unpaid voluntary work to regenerate the community. The only positive aspect of this for
socialists is that volunteering shows that there is no need for the capitalist system of buying and selling. However, the reforms that Rifkin proposes would not in the long term be of much benefit to workers. If a Social Democratic “consensus" government was to begin to implement these reforms it would only cut into profits and future investment, thus meeting resistance from the capitalists.
Rifkin ends the book with a warning. "The end of work could spell a death sentence for civilization as we have come to know it. The end of work could also signal the beginning of a great transformation, a rebirth of the human spirit. The future lies in our hands." Indeed it does, and we don't want our futures to go to waste under capitalism.

domain: politics


At the peak of the Omicron wave earlier this year, the number of COVID infections was probably double what was recorded. In a new study, which examined antibody levels among blood donors, younger age groups had the highest rates of unreported infections.
Published 21 June 2022 at 12:51pm
By Natasha Kaul
Listen to the podcast in Hindi by clicking on the audio icon inside the picture at the top.


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Delicates Ellipse Lash
The Delicates Ellipse Lash™ are extra super soft with a natural sheen that is a shade duller than the original Ellipse Lash. The Delicates are the softest Ellipse lash made and have the feel of a volume style lash but are only .04mm thick. These lashes are elliptical in shape and give the look of a thicker lash without the added weight making them very comfortable for the client. The lashes are made from an extremely soft material which prevents extra stress on the clients natural lashes. The elliptical or flat shape allows these lashes to be easily placed on the natural lash for a smooth application.


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At a the annual conference for the Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality last year, I heard a researcher describe how the pharmaceutical industry “jukes the stats”—that is, crunches numbers creatively in order to persuade the public that their products actually accomplish their stated tasks. This researcher, Dr. Duryea, offered a succinct finding: Antidepressant manufacturers go to great lengths to disguise the fact that people kill themselves during the “wash out” phase of antidepressants. Once participants stopped taking certain antidepressants (and, in clinical trials, before they resumed taking them again), those taking the antidepressants had an increased risk of suicide compared to their pre-drug state. Of course, since these users were not technically ingesting the drug during this “wash out” phase, the pharmaceutical industry convinced the FDA that antidepressants did not increase the risk of suicide—a creative interpretation with a potentially fatal cost to those who blindly take these drugs.2
I bring up this anecdote because it is one of many in a long list of such problems that occur in the U.S. today surrounding the issue of “lifestyle drugs”—drugs one takes not just for a temporary cure to an ailment (in the way Penicillin kills bacterial infections), but rather, as a response to lifelong, forever ailments (e.g., depression, anxiety, high cholesterol, acid reflux, impotence, and so on). As anyone who has watched television commercials in the last decade can imagine, the pharmaceutical industry expends enormous sums of money to encourage consumers to “ask their doctor” about a host of drugs, nearly all of which advertise “lifestyle” remedies. Get erections that last for days! No more burping up acid after eating mountains of salty, fatty, chemical-laden food! Stop feeling anxious despite chronic sleeplessness and slaving away at your vacationless McJob! And, like all advertising ploys—particularly ones where astronomical sums of money are expended—it works. Not only do people in the U.S. tolerate direct-to-consumer advertising (note that, within the Western world, the U.S. is alone in such a practice), but we indeed do consume more and more lifestyle drugs each year, making us the most medicated, and pharmaceutically-profitable, society around.
So how do we explain this phenomenon? What about the U.S. lends itself to this perfect synthesis of self-medication, corporate greed, and pharmaceutical horsepower? I propose that to tackle such a question, we must consider three separate entities: first, the invention of sickness, whereby normal aspects of daily life get branded as illness, like inventing female Viagra because women may not always desire sex; second, our refusal to live with the most basic elements of the human condition, as evidenced by the multi-billion dollar antidepressant industry; and third, our nearly reckless disregard for common sense, as evidenced by a host of lifestyle drugs, particularly Viagra for men. It is not just that those in the U.S. have been duped, or that the pharmaceutical industry wields uncanny powers, or that we largely cannot decipher the difference between self-generated needs and manufactured needs (all true); additionally, at its most basic level, people in the U.S. have embraced a new wave of pharmaceutical personality sculpting,3 a philosophy arguing that pharmaceuticals can compensate for our unfulfilled desires and needs.
Let’s begin with the case of female Viagra. Six years ago, pharmaceutical efforts to repackage the success of Viagra into a female-friendly version began in earnest. First, Pfizer attempted to replicate the powerhouse success of male Viagra with a simple goal: create physiological arousal in women, simulate lubrication and swelling responses, and (voila!) women would achieve orgasm in unprecedented numbers, thereby ending their relatively higher rates of “sexual dysfunction.” Unfortunately, this did not come to pass as expected. The big problem? Women who became aroused physiologically still did not choose to initiate or submit to sex with their (male) partners. Unlike male Viagra—where physiological arousal and desire for sex allegedly worked more in tandem—female Viagra successfully achieved physiological arousal but failed to generate mental arousal or motive for sex. Women with aroused vaginas still said no. This frustrated Pfizer to the point where, during one interview with the New York Times, researchers declared, “Although Viagra can indeed create the outward signs of arousal in many women, this seems to have little effect on a woman’s willingness, or desire, to have sex…Getting a woman to connect arousal and desire…requires exquisite timing on a man’s part and a fair amount of coaxing. ‘What we need to do is find a pill for engendering the perception of intimacy.’”4
Perhaps said in jest, this statement nevertheless perfectly illuminates the first of three problems that contribute to the age of pharmaceutical personality sculpting: illnesses are invented, often for profit, by industries that have a serious investment in making people believe they are sick when they are not. In a for-profit healthcare industry where sickness is money, invented sickness makes even more money. Case in point, a recent psychological study by Jan Shifren and her colleagues found that, though 43.1% of women reported feeling that they had some form of sexual dysfunction, less than half felt troubled by this fact.5 Rather than rely upon women’s self-description, the pharmaceutical industry instead convinces women through conversation and commercials that their inconsistent sexual desire is a defect, and that their bodies are imperfect and in need of drug treatments to “repair” their “dysfunctional” libidos. We live in an age where illness makes profit, and where the invention of “disorders” improves the economic bottom-line of the health care industry. Such profit-driven health care requires the consumer to imagine these invented illnesses as real. Unless people learn to call out and resist such inventions, pharmaceutical personality sculpting will become the mainstay of the industry.
Step two in the process of selling people on lifestyle drugs involves an almost laughably ill-advised premise: convince people that the human condition no longer entails sadness, anxiety, depression, loneliness, social unease, lost erections, ups and downs in libido, and grief. Indeed, the antidepressant industry has swooped in during a time when we have a lot to be unhappy about: unprecedented class warfare (the top 1% of U.S. earners now make more than the bottom 95% combined!), new and insidious forms of sexism (women’s desires usurped by the whims of patriarchy, ongoing failure of the Equal Rights Amendment, increasing reports of eating disorders and body dysmorphia, alarmingly high rates of women faking orgasm, national failure to recognize working mothers’ needs, and so on), rampant and shameless forms of racism (states retaining rights to block interracial marriages, anti-Obama rhetoric latching onto anti-socialist rhetoric throughout the nation, erosion of communities of color, overrepresentation of men of color sent to Iraq, etc.), and, in essence, a whole lot of things to be anxious, depressed, and un-aroused about!
Again, denying the difficulties of human existence seems to be a peculiarly U.S. phenomenon. Along with their ironic taste for high cholesterol foods, plentiful red wine, and good health, the French (yes, the French!) construct tragedy as an unavoidable process of the human existence. It is entirely remarkable that people in the U.S. want to manufacture an existence without such tragedy, yet this is exactly what antidepressant manufacturers count on. They make a bargain, albeit without full consent: Take these drugs and you’ll feel less—both positive and negative. Those on antidepressants report exactly this: they feel less sadness, they can get out of bed in the morning, and they can go to work and walk their dogs and enjoy modest pleasures. However, they no longer feel the same happiness they once felt either. They are dampened down, as the clinical literatures say. The antidepressant industry wants to trick us out of experiencing ourselves as fully human, as fully engaged in the process of being alive. How bad for business if we accepted that, when people die, grief is a horrendous, sometimes long, and certainly painful process, but one that we need to experience in order to process death. What a blow to their bottom line if people in this country started considering what their anxiety at work meant about their job satisfaction? What a downer to the share holders’ stock portfolios if we stopped to consider that feeling bad might propel us to take action in order to feel better? After all, aren’t we at least a little bit suspicious that Prozac and Zoloft and Wellbutrin create obedient, gracious, mellow, toned-down citizens, ready for the work of tolerating gender inequities, pay inequities, class inequities, and race inequities? What if people instead confronted their reasons for being upset, depressed, and anxious?
Which brings us to the third point: The pharmaceutical industry relies upon our most basic denial of common sense, intuitive wisdom, and self-affirmation. Consider the recent discussions about the paradoxes of the modern food industry. As Michael Pollan has pointed out, we have lost touch with common sense about eating because the food industry has systematically done three things. First, the food industry has asserted a singular, authoritative knowledge of what kinds of food make us healthy. Second, it has extracted, via “nutritionism,” the elements of food that yield health without considering the interplay between enzymes and vitamins within a whole piece of food (e.g., Eat Omega-3s!6 Don’t worry if it comes from actual salmon or fish oil tablets! It’s all the same!). Third, the food industry has assaulted our common sense by forcing us to rely upon their definitions of “healthy food” at the expense of what our grandmothers and great-grandmothers already knew to be true (e.g., we eat processed boxes of chemical goo that claim to be “low fat” and “enriched with vitamins” rather than simply eating an apple or a carrot or a head of lettuce in the produce aisle). The same process has occurred with other elements of health, particularly mental health. Rather than considering the ways that our unhappiness, anxiety, and grief stem from elements in our lives that deserve our attention, “experts” feed us insights about how pill-popping and pharmaceutical personality sculpting will come to the rescue.
Case in point: A friend of mine once dated a man who had erectile dysfunction with onset in his early 20s. All physiological tests came out normal, indicating that doctors could find no physiological reason why he had erectile dysfunction. He tried Viagra for four or five years, with decreasingly successful outcomes. He had a more and more difficult time becoming erect, and often could not get an erection even in the most stimulating of circumstances. Viagra eventually stopped working entirely (as it often does). The man sought out psychological therapy to discuss his distress about his seemingly inexplicable erectile dysfunction. Frustrated by his lack of success at relying upon Viagra, he eventually discovered, during the course of a multi-year therapy, that his lifelong incestuous relationship with a family member—one in which he consistently became aroused in situations of potential punishment and shame—had contributed greatly to his current erectile dysfunction. Indeed, all of the signs pointed to his traumatic sexual history as a culprit to his current dysfunction. He had begun to masturbate at work, and could get aroused only right before his boss walked in on him. He had asked his partner to have sex in crowded movie theaters, subway cars, and park benches. He could never become aroused while at home in bed with her. During this course of treatment, he began a slow and difficult recovery, disentangling his associations with shameful early life experiences and replacing them with healthier models of consensual, non-punitive sex. I tell this story because it represents, most basically, a truth that should seem obvious to most people if they consider common sense: erectile dysfunction, like most “illnesses” treated by lifestyle drugs, is rooted in a person’s reality, and without addressing that reality, the drugs simply mask the underlying issues.
Yet, we in the U.S. continue to perfect our skills at denying common sense to the point of rapidly dismissing the real rootedness of our psychological problems in the reality of our existences. We do this with food and we do this with mental health. We eat fewer and fewer apples because food-industry consultants have told us to eat fiber-enhanced apple-flavored fruit-roll-ups. We deal less and less with the complexities of our psychological lives because “scientists” have told us that a pill will solve the problems of our brain chemistry and will repair our wounded histories. We rarely stop to consider why unhappiness pervades our culture because the “experts” have told us that it not only ispossible to medicate this away, but is in fact medically sound to do so! This all comes at a great cost, personally, socially, and culturally. A generation raised on Lean Cuisine and Paxil has learned to condition away the intuition of mind and body. As a consequence, we do not recognize what tastes good any longer because experts have successfully tricked our taste buds into believing we are eating “butter” when we aren’t. We do not recognize that unhappiness can have positive, affirming, enriching results on our lives (as in, motivation toward something else—a new partner, a new job, activism on behalf of oppressed groups, and so on) because we have become susceptible to marketing campaigns selling us on the fundamental lie that life is pleasant. We have already begun selling women on the promise of pharmaceutically terminating menstruation for “convenience” and trimming their labias in order to generate better orgasms, despite known tissue damage and reduced sensation from such surgeries. Just last week, advertisements promoted a new “mint” that will disguise the vagina’s natural smell. We sculpt and trim, tweak and prune. This comes at a considerable cost, as individuals, as a society, and as a potentially toxic contagion within the global community. Until we seriously challenge the impact and reach of the pharmaceutical industry, these assaults on our most basic ways of being human will continue in earnest.• Footnotes
- www.northernsun.com [↩]
- Duryea, E. J. (2008, April). What every sexuality specialist should know about ‘sexual numeracy’: How we present quantitative information is important. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality, Western Region, San Diego, CA. [↩]
- This phrase was first used in Zita, J. (1998). Prozac feminism. Body talk: Philosophical Reflections on sex and gender. New York: Columbia University Press. [↩]
- Harris, G. (2004, February 28). Pfizer gives up testing Viagra on women. The New York Times, C-1. [↩]
- Shifren, J. L., Monz, B. U., Russo, P. A., Segreti, A., & Johannes, C. B. (2008). Sexual problems and distress in United States women: Prevalence and correlates. Obstetrics & Gynecology, 112(5), 970-978. [↩]
- Pollan, M. (2009). In defense of food: An eater’s manifesto. New York: Penguin. [↩]

domain: psychology


Calling all cinema enthusiasts! Western Piedmont Community College will host the upcoming Golden Hour Film Festival set for Saturday, Aug. 12. This spectacular showcase invites film …
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A tray puzzle is durable inlaid pieces in a tray with definitive outlines underneath to help identify where each piece goes. The large pieces make it easy for hands to grasp and allows for those needing more visual cues to see a greater portion of the image per piece. Recommended for ages 3+.
Publisher: Cobble Hill 35-Piece Puzzle Puzzle Dimensions: 14" x 10"


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Ryan Gosling is recognized for exciting audiences all over the world with his on-screen performances, attaining tremendous success in Hollywood. He has a propensity for spectacular viewers with his versatility as an actor in flicks like “The Notebook”, “Blade Runner”, “The Big Short” and “The Believer”. Nevertheless, while Gosling is typically portrayed in reality as likeable and joyful, followers would certainly be stunned to learn of her unfortunate childhood of him while he was maturing in Ontario, Canada.
The troubled family members drama he withstood throughout his childhood implied Ryan Gosling couldn’t wait on the day he could finally leave his hometown permanently. In fact, his life at his home can become so tough for Gosling that he would certainly do practically anything to get away truth. He later found out that a person of the best methods to do it was acting.
” Most of the time I really feel that what drives you to become an actor is the instinct to go away,” Ryan Gosling disclosed in an interview with GQ publication. And also while Gosling is now a lot extra comfy being himself, it definitely wasn’t constantly like that.
What several Ryan Gosling fans don’t recognize is that he was increased in an extremely sincere Mormon house, as well as his religion played a huge role in his life, to the point of managing every little information of his everyday. “We were brought up several spiritual,” Gosling claimed in a 2007 interview with The Guardian newspaper. “My mama confesses: she says we were increased by a spiritual fanatic. It’s different now, however at the time it belonged to everything: what they ate, how they assumed.”
Ryan Gosling admitted to having trouble growing up in such a religious setting since he disliked feeling so limited from having the possibility to be himself. He is not as linked to religion as the rest of his household, he admires the faith of the Mormon people.
Regardless of the newfound regard for his training, maturing in such a rigorous Mormon home did little to maintain Ryan Gosling in check. Actually, Gosling was so curious about opposing his childhood limitations that he acted out in college as well as took out his frustrations on his schoolmates, earning him the label “problem.”.
He doesn’t criticize his home life for his activities. In an interview he stated that he simply felt suffocated by the limiting setting and also wanted to expand up faster.
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domain: celebrity


Host Dave Navarro, judge Oliver Peck, tattoo artist Shane O'Neill and judge Chris Nunez wrap up the debut season of "Inkmasters" in August in Newark, N.J. O'Neill, of Middletown, won the competition.
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Middletown got a nice dose of national television exposure and a little street cred when a Middletown tattoo artist won the new Spike competitive reality show "Ink Master."
Shane O'Neill, who owns Shane O'Neill's Infamous Tattoo, at 26 W. Main St., was crowned the winner during a dramatic made-for-TV reveal Tuesday night. The 40-year-old, who has lived in Middletown for 10 years, won a $100,000 prize, a feature in Inked magazine and plenty of bragging rights.
"Shane, after discussing your work, the judges have decided you've earned the title of Ink Master," said host and Jane's Addiction ...


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The Arctic Reindeer is an exclusive legendary pet that was introduced to Adopt Me! as part of the 2019 Christmas Event on December 14th. It has a pure white body, four legs, two ears with gray insides, and two beige antlers on its head. Its eyes are black and beady, and it also has a brown nose and a gray tail at its back.
On the same surfaces as the Neo Arctic Reindeer, the Mega Neon variation alternates between every colour of the rainbow, making it shine. The Neon variant glows bright white, highlighting its feet, antlers, tail, and nose, which results in the pet glowing completely white except for its eyes and antlers. All these features make this pet special and exclusive.
Trick And Stages
Adopt Me! offers an exciting way to nurture your virtual pet – the Arctic Reindeer. During its growth, the Reindeer will learn interesting tricks that can show off and entertain your friends. Let’s take a look at the tricks it learns along the way. As a newborn, the Arctic Reindeer starts with Sit – a simple trick that is easy to master.
As it grows into Junior status, it can lay down as well. Pre-Teen brings Joy – an excited leap of joy that puts a smile on everyone’s face. When it reaches the Teen stage, you’ll have your own personal jumper in Bounce mode! Post-Teen brings Trick 1, and Full Grown unlocks Trick 2. These tricks are a surprise and a great way to show off the skills of your beloved Arctic Reindeer!
How To Obtain A Arctic Reindeer?
If you are looking to get your hands on an Arctic Reindeer, there is only one way- trading or hatching a Christmas Egg. The Arctic Reindeer was added to Adopt Me! as part of their 2019 special Christmas Event, and it is now no longer available from the game itself. This makes it incredibly difficult to obtain without some help from other players or trying your luck with a Christmas Egg. When hatching a Christmas Egg, the chances of getting an Arctic Reindeer are 1.5%.
The Arctic Reindeer has similarities with the Albino Monkey since both pets share similar colors- white with brown accents- but that’s where the similarities stop; while the Albino Monkey has a neon body, the Arctic Reindeer only has a few areas that glow. If you are looking to add this limited legendary pet to your collection, you will need either luck or patience to get it!


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There’s no easy formula for success under risk-based contracting, but there are some levers accountable care organizations (ACOs) can pull for better performance in value-based care.
Specific payment models differ between Medicare, Medicaid, and Commercial payers, but ACOs need to develop strategies that address the fundamentals of financial performance in a value-based contract.
Successful ACOs execute against five key strategies.
- Strategy #1: Establish a benchmark that accurately reflects your patient population and build an accurate risk adjustment program
- Strategy #2: Encourage utilization of high-quality, lower-cost providers
- Strategy #3: Improve post-acute care coordination and reduce readmissions
- Strategy #4: Reduce admissions and ED utilization for ambulatory-sensitive conditions
- Strategy #5: Help providers identify and close quality gaps at the point of care
Strategy #1: Build an effective, efficient, and accurate risk adjustment program.
Ensure ACO performance is measured against a benchmark that accurately reflects patient population.
A benchmark is set against which the ACO’s financial performance will be measured. This benchmark is risk-adjusted, meaning that it will be set higher or lower depending on the documented health conditions of the population for which the ACO is assuming risk. The benchmark can be thought of as a global budget under which the ACO must operate.
Depending on the risk-based contract, the benchmark is set in one of two ways:
- The benchmark is set using pre-determined prior year(s) risk adjusted total medical spend or total cost of care. The performance year will be compared to this prior year.
- The benchmark is preliminary, based on prior year(s), with a true up during the performance year.
Build an accurate risk adjustment program.
If the ACO more accurately documents the health concerns of its population, its performance will be evaluated against a more appropriate risk-adjusted benchmark. This can give the ACO a better opportunity to perform well and earn shared savings. Risk adjustment when done accurately will reflect high-risk, high-cost patients preventing a disadvantage for organizations that care for these populations.
The aggregate risk score of a patient is used as a proxy for expected patient cost, and therefore drives provider reimbursement in most value-based payment models. Benchmarks are determined using the aggregate risk score of the population cohort over the course of a 12-month period.
Every year the risk profiles of a patient population reset to zero and must be rebuilt through appropriately documented diagnoses included in the claims data sent to health plans or government payors. High-performing ACOs are constantly focused on ensuring providers are accurately and correctly coding patient conditions and use analytics to identify patients who may have undocumented conditions that required clinical review and intervention.
Strategy #2: Identify high-quality, lower-cost preferred providers.
Reduce total medical expense by improving appropriate care utilization.
During the performance year, the ACO assumes financial responsibility for the care of its patients. If the ACO’s total medical expenses are lower than the predetermined benchmark, the ACO will have the opportunity to share in the savings it generated.
ACOs generally try to reduce total medical expense by improving the appropriate care utilization and care coordination — delivering the right care to the right patient at the right time in the right setting.
Encourage utilization of high-quality, lower-cost preferred providers.
Specialty care and services like MRIs can vary substantially in cost from provider to provider. If patients seek out-of-network care, the ACO incurs higher medical expense and the patients may suffer from poor care coordination.
When an ACO can encourage the use of preferred providers, the ACO can better coordinate patient care across settings while ensuring that the services rendered are of high quality at a lower cost. High-performing ACOs may use technology to make it easier for primary care practice staff to refer patients to preferred providers with availability.
Strategy #3: Improve post-acute care coordination and reduce readmissions.
Post-acute care spend can represent a significant cost for an ACO — with high variability in clinical outcomes across facilities. The most successful ACOs start discharge planning when the patient arrives at the hospital, working with hospitalists and families to match the patient’s clinical needs with the right high-quality, appropriate-cost care setting. These ACOs may partner with narrow networks of post-acute providers like skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) and may establish risk-sharing arrangements that reward positive clinical outcomes, reduced readmissions, and reduced average length of stay.
Strategy #4: Reduce admissions and ED utilization for ambulatory-sensitive conditions.
When patients visit the emergency department or are hospitalized for ambulatory-sensitive conditions, the ACO has missed opportunities to deliver care in a more cost-effective and clinically-appropriate outpatient setting. This drives unnecessary total medical expense for the ACO and can subject patients to experiences that can be painful or scary — with unfamiliar providers.
High-performing ACOs are using tools like predictive algorithms to help their physicians identify patients who are at high risk of inpatient admissions or emergency department utilization and who would benefit from intervention by a care manager. Learn more about using predictive analytics to identify impactable patients for care management.
Strategy #5: Help providers identify and close quality gaps at the point of care.
Improve quality performance to increase access to shared savings.
The goal of these advanced payment models is to incentivize high-value care rather than low-cost care, meaning that ACOs are expected to manage utilization appropriately to deliver good clinical outcomes — cost and quality must be considered in tandem.
ACO clinical outcomes are typically evaluated using a set of quality measures. If the ACO meets or exceeds predetermined quality performance thresholds, the ACO may earn a quality-based bonus, qualify to receive a portion of the savings it generated, or increase the amount of shared savings it earns.
Help providers identify and close quality gaps at the point of care.
At every encounter, a care team has an opportunity to identify a patient’s unmet clinical needs, deliver the appropriate care, and accurately document the care that was provided. However, poor data and burdensome workflows can be barriers to closing quality gaps.
High-performing ACOs can aggregate clinical information from multiple data sources into an enterprise clinical data lakehouse platform, analyze the data to identify quality gaps, and feed those insights to providers within their existing clinical workflows at the point of care — without making providers leave the EHR or juggle multiple systems.
Building the Successful Accountable Care Organization
With the challenges of increasing cost and quality pressures surpassed only by the uncertainty in the current market, many ACO leaders share concerns about positioning their organizations for success — or even survival. Our ACO Maturity Model provides a framework for assessing your strengths in the seven areas that are critical for success under risk. To learn more, download our white paper 7 Critical Capabilities: Building the Successful Accountable Care Organization.

domain: health


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Leaves Themed Painting Sponges
Leaf Shaped Sponges for Painting
Great sponges to use to create paintings with lots of different shapes! Great way to open up conversations about shapes, colours, nature and seasons while engaging in a craft activity! Or...just let them dip them in the paint and watch them create a crazy collage of colour and shapes! (if they are anything like our three!)
Easy to clean and reusable again and again
Colours of sponges may vary to picture
Size between 10 - 12 cm.
Pack of 8 sponges