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ARRIVAL OF CANDIDE AND HIS VALET AT EL DORADO, AND WHAT THEY SAW THERE.
"You see," said Cacambo to Candide, as soon as they had reached the frontiers of the Oreillons, "that this hemisphere is not better than the others, take my word for it; let us go back to Europe by the shortest way."
"How go back?" said Candide, "and where shall we go? to my own country? The Bulgarians and the Abares are slaying all; to Portugal? there I shall be burnt; and if we abide here we are every moment in danger of being spitted. But how can I resolve to quit a part of the world where my dear Cunegonde resides?"
"Let us turn towards Cayenne," said Cacambo, "there we shall find Frenchmen, who wander all over the world; they may assist us; God will perhaps have pity on us."
It was not easy to get to Cayenne; they knew vaguely in which direction to go, but rivers, precipices, robbers, savages, obstructed them all the way. Their horses died of fatigue. Their provisions were consumed; they fed a whole month upon wild fruits, and found themselves at last near a little river bordered with cocoa trees, which sustained their lives and their hopes.
Cacambo, who was as good a counsellor as the old woman, said to Candide:
"We are able to hold out no longer; we have walked enough. I see an empty canoe near the river-side; let us fill it with cocoanuts, throw ourselves into it, and go with the current; a river always leads to some inhabited spot. If we do not find pleasant things we shall at least find new things."
"With all my heart," said Candide, "let us recommend ourselves to Providence."
They rowed a few leagues, between banks, in some places flowery, in others barren; in some parts smooth, in others rugged. The stream ever widened, and at length lost itself under an arch of frightful rocks which reached to the sky. The two travellers had the courage to commit themselves to the current. The river, suddenly contracting at this place, whirled them along with a dreadful noise and rapidity. At the end of four-and-twenty hours they saw daylight again, but their canoe was dashed to pieces against the rocks. For a league they had to creep from rock to rock, until at length they discovered an extensive plain, bounded by inaccessible mountains. The country was cultivated as much for pleasure as for necessity. On all sides the useful was also the beautiful. The roads were covered, or rather adorned, with carriages of a glittering form and substance, in which were men and women of surprising beauty, drawn by large red sheep which surpassed in fleetness the finest coursers of Andalusia, Tetuan, and Mequinez.
"Here, however, is a country," said Candide, "which is better than Westphalia."
He stepped out with Cacambo towards the first village which he saw. Some children dressed in tattered brocades played at quoits on the outskirts. Our travellers from the other world amused themselves by looking on. The quoits were large round pieces, yellow, red, and green, which cast a singular lustre! The travellers picked a few of them off the ground; this was of gold, that of emeralds, the other of rubies—the least of them would have been the greatest ornament on the Mogul's throne.
"Without doubt," said Cacambo, "these children must be the king's sons that are playing at quoits!"
The village schoolmaster appeared at this moment and called them to school.
"There," said Candide, "is the preceptor of the royal family."
The little truants immediately quitted their game, leaving the quoits on the ground with all their other playthings. Candide gathered them up, ran to the master, and presented them to him in a most humble manner, giving him to understand by signs that their royal highnesses had forgotten their gold and jewels. The schoolmaster, smiling, flung them upon the ground; then, looking at Candide with a good deal of surprise, went about his business.
The travellers, however, took care to gather up the gold, the rubies, and the emeralds.
"Where are we?" cried Candide. "The king's children in this country must be well brought up, since they are taught to despise gold and precious stones."
Cacambo was as much surprised as Candide. At length they drew near the first house in the village. It was built like an European palace. A crowd of people pressed about the door, and there were still more in the house. They heard most agreeable music, and were aware of a delicious odour of cooking. Cacambo went up to the door and heard they were talking Peruvian; it was his mother tongue, for it is well known that Cacambo was born in Tucuman, in a village where no other language was spoken.
"I will be your interpreter here," said he to Candide; "let us go in, it is a public-house."
Immediately two waiters and two girls, dressed in cloth of gold, and their hair tied up with ribbons, invited them to sit down to table with the landlord. They served four dishes of soup, each garnished with two young parrots; a boiled condor which weighed two hundred pounds; two roasted monkeys, of excellent flavour; three hundred humming-birds in one dish, and six hundred fly-birds in another; exquisite ragouts; delicious pastries; the whole served up in dishes of a kind of rock-crystal. The waiters and girls poured out several liqueurs drawn from the sugar-cane.
Most of the company were chapmen and waggoners, all extremely polite; they asked Cacambo a few questions with the greatest circumspection, and answered his in the most obliging manner.
As soon as dinner was over, Cacambo believed as well as Candide that they might well pay their reckoning by laying down two of those large gold pieces which they had picked up. The landlord and landlady shouted with laughter and held their sides. When the fit was over:
"Gentlemen," said the landlord, "it is plain you are strangers, and such guests we are not accustomed to see; pardon us therefore for laughing when you offered us the pebbles from our highroads in payment of your reckoning. You doubtless have not the money of the country; but it is not necessary to have any money at all to dine in this house. All hostelries established for the convenience of commerce are paid by the government. You have fared but very indifferently because this is a poor village; but everywhere else, you will be received as you deserve."
Cacambo explained this whole discourse with great astonishment to Candide, who was as greatly astonished to hear it.
"What sort of a country then is this," said they to one another; "a country unknown to all the rest of the world, and where nature is of a kind so different from ours? It is probably the country where all is well; for there absolutely must be one such place. And, whatever Master Pangloss might say, I often found that things went very ill in Westphalia."
WHAT THEY SAW IN THE COUNTRY OF EL DORADO.
Cacambo expressed his curiosity to the landlord, who made answer:
"I am very ignorant, but not the worse on that account. However, we have in this neighbourhood an old man retired from Court who is the most learned and most communicative person in the kingdom."
At once he took Cacambo to the old man. Candide acted now only a second character, and accompanied his valet. They entered a very plain house, for the door was only of silver, and the ceilings were only of gold, but wrought in so elegant a taste as to vie with the richest. The antechamber, indeed, was only encrusted with rubies and emeralds, but the order in which everything was arranged made amends for this great simplicity.
The old man received the strangers on his sofa, which was stuffed with humming-birds' feathers, and ordered his servants to present them with liqueurs in diamond goblets; after which he satisfied their curiosity in the following terms:
"I am now one hundred and seventy-two years old, and I learnt of my late father, Master of the Horse to the King, the amazing revolutions of Peru, of which he had been an eyewitness. The kingdom we now inhabit is the ancient country of the Incas, who quitted it very imprudently to conquer another part of the world, and were at length destroyed by the Spaniards.
"More wise by far were the princes of their family, who remained in their native country; and they ordained, with the consent of the whole nation, that none of the inhabitants should ever be permitted to quit this little kingdom; and this has preserved our innocence and happiness. The Spaniards have had a confused notion of this country, and have called it El Dorado; and an Englishman, whose name was Sir Walter Raleigh, came very near it about a hundred years ago; but being surrounded by inaccessible rocks and precipices, we have hitherto been sheltered from the rapaciousness of European nations, who have an inconceivable passion for the pebbles and dirt of our land, for the sake of which they would murder us to the last man."
The conversation was long: it turned chiefly on their form of government, their manners, their women, their public entertainments, and the arts. At length Candide, having always had a taste for metaphysics, made Cacambo ask whether there was any religion in that country.
The old man reddened a little.
"How then," said he, "can you doubt it? Do you take us for ungrateful wretches?"
Cacambo humbly asked, "What was the religion in El Dorado?"
The old man reddened again.
"Can there be two religions?" said he. "We have, I believe, the religion of all the world: we worship God night and morning."
"Do you worship but one God?" said Cacambo, who still acted as interpreter in representing Candide's doubts.
"Surely," said the old man, "there are not two, nor three, nor four. I must confess the people from your side of the world ask very extraordinary questions."
Candide was not yet tired of interrogating the good old man; he wanted to know in what manner they prayed to God in El Dorado.
"We do not pray to Him," said the worthy sage; "we have nothing to ask of Him; He has given us all we need, and we return Him thanks without ceasing."
Candide having a curiosity to see the priests asked where they were. The good old man smiled.
"My friend," said he, "we are all priests. The King and all the heads of families sing solemn canticles of thanksgiving every morning, accompanied by five or six thousand musicians."
"What! have you no monks who teach, who dispute, who govern, who cabal, and who burn people that are not of their opinion?"
"We must be mad, indeed, if that were the case," said the old man; "here we are all of one opinion, and we know not what you mean by monks."
During this whole discourse Candide was in raptures, and he said to himself:
"This is vastly different from Westphalia and the Baron's castle. Had our friend Pangloss seen El Dorado he would no longer have said that the castle of Thunder-ten-Tronckh was the finest upon earth. It is evident that one must travel."
After this long conversation the old man ordered a coach and six sheep to be got ready, and twelve of his domestics to conduct the travellers to Court.
"Excuse me," said he, "if my age deprives me of the honour of accompanying you. The King will receive you in a manner that cannot displease you; and no doubt you will make an allowance for the customs of the country, if some things should not be to your liking."
Candide and Cacambo got into the coach, the six sheep flew, and in less than four hours they reached the King's palace situated at the extremity of the capital. The portal was two hundred and twenty feet high, and one hundred wide; but words are wanting to express the materials of which it was built. It is plain such materials must have prodigious superiority over those pebbles and sand which we call gold and precious stones.
Twenty beautiful damsels of the King's guard received Candide and Cacambo as they alighted from the coach, conducted them to the bath, and dressed them in robes woven of the down of humming-birds; after which the great crown officers, of both sexes, led them to the King's apartment, between two files of musicians, a thousand on each side. When they drew near to the audience chamber Cacambo asked one of the great officers in what way he should pay his obeisance to his Majesty; whether they should throw themselves upon their knees or on their stomachs; whether they should put their hands upon their heads or behind their backs; whether they should lick the dust off the floor; in a word, what was the ceremony?
"The custom," said the great officer, "is to embrace the King, and to kiss him on each cheek."
Candide and Cacambo threw themselves round his Majesty's neck. He received them with all the goodness imaginable, and politely invited them to supper.
While waiting they were shown the city, and saw the public edifices raised as high as the clouds, the market places ornamented with a thousand columns, the fountains of spring water, those of rose water, those of liqueurs drawn from sugar-cane, incessantly flowing into the great squares, which were paved with a kind of precious stone, which gave off a delicious fragrancy like that of cloves and cinnamon. Candide asked to see the court of justice, the parliament. They told him they had none, and that they were strangers to lawsuits. He asked if they had any prisons, and they answered no. But what surprised him most and gave him the greatest pleasure was the palace of sciences, where he saw a gallery two thousand feet long, and filled with instruments employed in mathematics and physics.
After rambling about the city the whole afternoon, and seeing but a thousandth part of it, they were reconducted to the royal palace, where Candide sat down to table with his Majesty, his valet Cacambo, and several ladies. Never was there a better entertainment, and never was more wit shown at a table than that which fell from his Majesty. Cacambo explained the King's bon-mots to Candide, and notwithstanding they were translated they still appeared to be bon-mots. Of all the things that surprised Candide this was not the least.
They spent a month in this hospitable place. Candide frequently said to Cacambo:
"I own, my friend, once more that the castle where I was born is nothing in comparison with this; but, after all, Miss Cunegonde is not here, and you have, without doubt, some mistress in Europe. If we abide here we shall only be upon a footing with the rest, whereas, if we return to our old world, only with twelve sheep laden with the pebbles of El Dorado, we shall be richer than all the kings in Europe. We shall have no more Inquisitors to fear, and we may easily recover Miss Cunegonde."
This speech was agreeable to Cacambo; mankind are so fond of roving, of making a figure in their own country, and of boasting of what they have seen in their travels, that the two happy ones resolved to be no longer so, but to ask his Majesty's leave to quit the country.
"You are foolish," said the King. "I am sensible that my kingdom is but a small place, but when a person is comfortably settled in any part he should abide there. I have not the right to detain strangers. It is a tyranny which neither our manners nor our laws permit. All men are free. Go when you wish, but the going will be very difficult. It is impossible to ascend that rapid river on which you came as by a miracle, and which runs under vaulted rocks. The mountains which surround my kingdom are ten thousand feet high, and as steep as walls; they are each over ten leagues in breadth, and there is no other way to descend them than by precipices. However, since you absolutely wish to depart, I shall give orders to my engineers to construct a machine that will convey you very safely. When we have conducted you over the mountains no one can accompany you further, for my subjects have made a vow never to quit the kingdom, and they are too wise to break it. Ask me besides anything that you please."
"We desire nothing of your Majesty," says Candide, "but a few sheep laden with provisions, pebbles, and the earth of this country."
The King laughed.
"I cannot conceive," said he, "what pleasure you Europeans find in our yellow clay, but take as much as you like, and great good may it do you."
At once he gave directions that his engineers should construct a machine to hoist up these two extraordinary men out of the kingdom. Three thousand good mathematicians went to work; it was ready in fifteen days, and did not cost more than twenty million sterling in the specie of that country. They placed Candide and Cacambo on the machine. There were two great red sheep saddled and bridled to ride upon as soon as they were beyond the mountains, twenty pack-sheep laden with provisions, thirty with presents of the curiosities of the country, and fifty with gold, diamonds, and precious stones. The King embraced the two wanderers very tenderly.
Their departure, with the ingenious manner in which they and their sheep were hoisted over the mountains, was a splendid spectacle. The mathematicians took their leave after conveying them to a place of safety, and Candide had no other desire, no other aim, than to present his sheep to Miss Cunegonde.
"Now," said he, "we are able to pay the Governor of Buenos Ayres if Miss Cunegonde can be ransomed. Let us journey towards Cayenne. Let us embark, and we will afterwards see what kingdom we shall be able to purchase."
WHAT HAPPENED TO THEM AT SURINAM AND HOW CANDIDE GOT ACQUAINTED WITH MARTIN.
Our travellers spent the first day very agreeably. They were delighted with possessing more treasure than all Asia, Europe, and Africa could scrape together. Candide, in his raptures, cut Cunegonde's name on the trees. The second day two of their sheep plunged into a morass, where they and their burdens were lost; two more died of fatigue a few days after; seven or eight perished with hunger in a desert; and others subsequently fell down precipices. At length, after travelling a hundred days, only two sheep remained. Said Candide to Cacambo:
"My friend, you see how perishable are the riches of this world; there is nothing solid but virtue, and the happiness of seeing Cunegonde once more."
"I grant all you say," said Cacambo, "but we have still two sheep remaining, with more treasure than the King of Spain will ever have; and I see a town which I take to be Surinam, belonging to the Dutch. We are at the end of all our troubles, and at the beginning of happiness."
As they drew near the town, they saw a negro stretched upon the ground, with only one moiety of his clothes, that is, of his blue linen drawers; the poor man had lost his left leg and his right hand.
"Good God!" said Candide in Dutch, "what art thou doing there, friend, in that shocking condition?"
"I am waiting for my master, Mynheer Vanderdendur, the famous merchant," answered the negro.
"Was it Mynheer Vanderdendur," said Candide, "that treated thee thus?"
"Yes, sir," said the negro, "it is the custom. They give us a pair of linen drawers for our whole garment twice a year. When we work at the sugar-canes, and the mill snatches hold of a finger, they cut off the hand; and when we attempt to run away, they cut off the leg; both cases have happened to me. This is the price at which you eat sugar in Europe. Yet when my mother sold me for ten patagons on the coast of Guinea, she said to me: 'My dear child, bless our fetiches, adore them for ever; they will make thee live happily; thou hast the honour of being the slave of our lords, the whites, which is making the fortune of thy father and mother.' Alas! I know not whether I have made their fortunes; this I know, that they have not made mine. Dogs, monkeys, and parrots are a thousand times less wretched than I. The Dutch fetiches, who have converted me, declare every Sunday that we are all of us children of Adam—blacks as well as whites. I am not a genealogist, but if these preachers tell truth, we are all second cousins. Now, you must agree, that it is impossible to treat one's relations in a more barbarous manner."
"Oh, Pangloss!" cried Candide, "thou hadst not guessed at this abomination; it is the end. I must at last renounce thy optimism."
"What is this optimism?" said Cacambo.
"Alas!" said Candide, "it is the madness of maintaining that everything is right when it is wrong."
Looking at the negro, he shed tears, and weeping, he entered Surinam.
The first thing they inquired after was whether there was a vessel in the harbour which could be sent to Buenos Ayres. The person to whom they applied was a Spanish sea-captain, who offered to agree with them upon reasonable terms. He appointed to meet them at a public-house, whither Candide and the faithful Cacambo went with their two sheep, and awaited his coming.
Candide, who had his heart upon his lips, told the Spaniard all his adventures, and avowed that he intended to elope with Miss Cunegonde.
"Then I will take good care not to carry you to Buenos Ayres," said the seaman. "I should be hanged, and so would you. The fair Cunegonde is my lord's favourite mistress."
This was a thunderclap for Candide: he wept for a long while. At last he drew Cacambo aside.
"Here, my dear friend," said he to him, "this thou must do. We have, each of us in his pocket, five or six millions in diamonds; you are more clever than I; you must go and bring Miss Cunegonde from Buenos Ayres. If the Governor makes any difficulty, give him a million; if he will not relinquish her, give him two; as you have not killed an Inquisitor, they will have no suspicion of you; I'll get another ship, and go and wait for you at Venice; that's a free country, where there is no danger either from Bulgarians, Abares, Jews, or Inquisitors."
Cacambo applauded this wise resolution. He despaired at parting from so good a master, who had become his intimate friend; but the pleasure of serving him prevailed over the pain of leaving him. They embraced with tears; Candide charged him not to forget the good old woman. Cacambo set out that very same day. This Cacambo was a very honest fellow.
Candide stayed some time longer in Surinam, waiting for another captain to carry him and the two remaining sheep to Italy. After he had hired domestics, and purchased everything necessary for a long voyage, Mynheer Vanderdendur, captain of a large vessel, came and offered his services.
"How much will you charge," said he to this man, "to carry me straight to Venice — me, my servants, my baggage, and these two sheep?"
The skipper asked ten thousand piastres. Candide did not hesitate.
"Oh! oh!" said the prudent Vanderdendur to himself, "this stranger gives ten thousand piastres unhesitatingly! He must be very rich."
Returning a little while after, he let him know that upon second consideration, he could not undertake the voyage for less than twenty thousand piastres.
"Well, you shall have them," said Candide.
"Ay!" said the skipper to himself, "this man agrees to pay twenty thousand piastres with as much ease as ten."
He went back to him again, and declared that he could not carry him to Venice for less than thirty thousand piastres. "Then you shall have thirty thousand," replied Candide.
"Oh! oh!" said the Dutch skipper once more to himself, "thirty thousand piastres are a trifle to this man; surely these sheep must be laden with an immense treasure; let us say no more about it. First of all, let him pay down the thirty thousand piastres; then we shall see."
Candide sold two small diamonds, the least of which was worth more than what the skipper asked for his freight. He paid him in advance. The two sheep were put on board. Candide followed in a little boat to join the vessel in the roads. The skipper seized his opportunity, set sail, and put out to sea, the wind favouring him. Candide, dismayed and stupefied, soon lost sight of the vessel.
"Alas!" said he, "this is a trick worthy of the old world!"
He put back, overwhelmed with sorrow, for indeed he had lost sufficient to make the fortune of twenty monarchs. He waited upon the Dutch magistrate, and in his distress he knocked over loudly at the door. He entered and told his adventure, raising his voice with unnecessary vehemence. The magistrate began by fining him ten thousand piastres for making a noise; then he listened patiently, promised to examine into his affair at the skipper's return, and ordered him to pay ten thousand piastres for the expense of the hearing.
This drove Candide to despair; he had, indeed, endured misfortunes a thousand times worse; the coolness of the magistrate and of the skipper who had robbed him, roused his choler and flung him into a deep melancholy. The villainy of mankind presented itself before his imagination in all its deformity, and his mind was filled with gloomy ideas. At length hearing that a French vessel was ready to set sail for Bordeaux, as he had no sheep laden with diamonds to take along with him he hired a cabin at the usual price. He made it known in the town that he would pay the passage and board and give two thousand piastres to any honest man who would make the voyage with him, upon condition that this man was the most dissatisfied with his state, and the most unfortunate in the whole province.
Such a crowd of candidates presented themselves that a fleet of ships could hardly have held them. Candide being desirous of selecting from among the best, marked out about one-twentieth of them who seemed to be sociable men, and who all pretended to merit his preference. He assembled them at his inn, and gave them a supper on condition that each took an oath to relate his history faithfully, promising to choose him who appeared to be most justly discontented with his state, and to bestow some presents upon the rest.
They sat until four o'clock in the morning. Candide, in listening to all their adventures, was reminded of what the old woman had said to him in their voyage to Buenos Ayres, and of her wager that there was not a person on board the ship but had met with very great misfortunes. He dreamed of Pangloss at every adventure told to him.
"This Pangloss," said he, "would be puzzled to demonstrate his system. I wish that he were here. Certainly, if all things are good, it is in El Dorado and not in the rest of the world."
At length he made choice of a poor man of letters, who had worked ten years for the booksellers of Amsterdam. He judged that there was not in the whole world a trade which could disgust one more.
This philosopher was an honest man; but he had been robbed by his wife, beaten by his son, and abandoned by his daughter who got a Portuguese to run away with her. He had just been deprived of a small employment, on which he subsisted; and he was persecuted by the preachers of Surinam, who took him for a Socinian. We must allow that the others were at least as wretched as he; but Candide hoped that the philosopher would entertain him during the voyage. All the other candidates complained that Candide had done them great injustice; but he appeased them by giving one hundred piastres to each.
WHAT HAPPENED AT SEA TO CANDIDE AND MARTIN.
The old philosopher, whose name was Martin, embarked then with Candide for Bordeaux. They had both seen and suffered a great deal; and if the vessel had sailed from Surinam to Japan, by the Cape of Good Hope, the subject of moral and natural evil would have enabled them to entertain one another during the whole voyage.
Candide, however, had one great advantage over Martin, in that he always hoped to see Miss Cunegonde; whereas Martin had nothing at all to hope. Besides, Candide was possessed of money and jewels, and though he had lost one hundred large red sheep, laden with the greatest treasure upon earth; though the knavery of the Dutch skipper still sat heavy upon his mind; yet when he reflected upon what he had still left, and when he mentioned the name of Cunegonde, especially towards the latter end of a repast, he inclined to Pangloss's doctrine.
"But you, Mr. Martin," said he to the philosopher, "what do you think of all this? what are your ideas on moral and natural evil?"
"Sir," answered Martin, "our priests accused me of being a Socinian, but the real fact is I am a Manichean."
"You jest," said Candide; "there are no longer Manicheans in the world."
"I am one," said Martin. "I cannot help it; I know not how to think otherwise."
"Surely you must be possessed by the devil," said Candide.
"He is so deeply concerned in the affairs of this world," answered Martin, "that he may very well be in me, as well as in everybody else; but I own to you that when I cast an eye on this globe, or rather on this little ball, I cannot help thinking that God has abandoned it to some malignant being. I except, always, El Dorado. I scarcely ever knew a city that did not desire the destruction of a neighbouring city, nor a family that did not wish to exterminate some other family. Everywhere the weak execrate the powerful, before whom they cringe; and the powerful beat them like sheep whose wool and flesh they sell. A million regimented assassins, from one extremity of Europe to the other, get their bread by disciplined depredation and murder, for want of more honest employment. Even in those cities which seem to enjoy peace, and where the arts flourish, the inhabitants are devoured by more envy, care, and uneasiness than are experienced by a besieged town. Secret griefs are more cruel than public calamities. In a word I have seen so much, and experienced so much that I am a Manichean."
"There are, however, some things good," said Candide.
"That may be," said Martin; "but I know them not."
In the middle of this dispute they heard the report of cannon; it redoubled every instant. Each took out his glass. They saw two ships in close fight about three miles off. The wind brought both so near to the French vessel that our travellers had the pleasure of seeing the fight at their ease. At length one let off a broadside, so low and so truly aimed, that the other sank to the bottom. Candide and Martin could plainly perceive a hundred men on the deck of the sinking vessel; they raised their hands to heaven and uttered terrible outcries, and the next moment were swallowed up by the sea.
"Well," said Martin, "this is how men treat one another."
"It is true," said Candide; "there is something diabolical in this affair."
While speaking, he saw he knew not what, of a shining red, swimming close to the vessel. They put out the long-boat to see what it could be: it was one of his sheep! Candide was more rejoiced at the recovery of this one sheep than he had been grieved at the loss of the hundred laden with the large diamonds of El Dorado.
The French captain soon saw that the captain of the victorious vessel was a Spaniard, and that the other was a Dutch pirate, and the very same one who had robbed Candide. The immense plunder which this villain had amassed, was buried with him in the sea, and out of the whole only one sheep was saved.
"You see," said Candide to Martin, "that crime is sometimes punished. This rogue of a Dutch skipper has met with the fate he deserved."
"Yes," said Martin; "but why should the passengers be doomed also to destruction? God has punished the knave, and the devil has drowned the rest."
The French and Spanish ships continued their course, and Candide continued his conversation with Martin. They disputed fifteen successive days, and on the last of those fifteen days, they were as far advanced as on the first. But, however, they chatted, they communicated ideas, they consoled each other. Candide caressed his sheep.
"Since I have found thee again," said he, "I may likewise chance to find my Cunegonde."
 Spanish. Literally, “golden country”; a mythical utopian society , with origins in travel accounts of the New W orld, that had great appeal for Europeans
 It has been suggested that Voltaire, in speaking of red sheep, referred to the llama, a South American ruminant allied to the camel. These animals are sometimes of a reddish colour, and were notable as pack-carriers and for their fleetness.
 English soldier and explorer (1554?-1618)
 Dutch colony in South America
 Dutch. “My master” or “sir”
 This description of the cruel treatment of slaves is based on historical fact
 Scathing reference to a colonial system that placed profit above humane values
 Spanish half-crown coins.
 A believer in two coequal spirits of Good and Evil struggling to gain the upper hand in the Universe. Mani or Manicheus, was a Persian philosopher of the third century B.C. who posited a primal struggle between these two opposing and equal forces or principles, one of light and the other of darkness. Manicheanism, which is fundamentally pessimistic, was frequently confused with Socinianism in the eighteenth century , probably because both were heretical. Hence Martin’s ironical remark.


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As maritime neighbours, India and Australia form the bookends of the Indian Ocean region. At a time of “big power muscle movement”, as Australia’s Navy Fleet Commander Rear Admiral Jonathan Earley put it recently during a visit to India, cooperation between the two countries is an opportunity to foster regional trust.
According to the Indian Maritime Doctrine, the region from the east coast of Africa to the western shores of Australia is the primary area of responsibility of the Indian Navy, whereas the north-eastern part of the Indian Ocean is a priority area for Australia as described in the 2020 Defence Strategic Update.
However, the growing number of Chinese research vessels, submarines and underwater drones operating in the Indian Ocean has raised concerns. This is where the island territories of India and Australia offer the chance to strengthen maritime surveillance in the region, as well as develop ties with other partners.
India’s Andaman and Nicobar Islands lie close to the Strait of Malacca, while Australia’s Cocos (Keeling) Islands are also located near strategic waters of Indonesia across from the Sunda, Lombok, and Wetar Straits. Taken together, these territories cover the entry and exit points of the Indian and Pacific Oceans.
Chinese research vessels have focused on these same areas. Apart from collecting information about resources, they also collect data related to salinity, depth and turbidity, along with oxygen and chlorophyll levels. The use of such data is not necessarily limited to civilian use but can also be used for tracking foreign submarines and the operation of their own submarines. The hotspot is the shallow water of Ninety East Ridge, which divides the Indian Ocean into the East and West Indian Ocean.
In a recent expedition, Chinese research vessel Yuan Wang 6 was south of Lombok Strait, an alternative route to enter the Indian Ocean, and was suspected of tracking satellite and rocket launches.
India put a regional spotlight on the Andaman and Nicobar Islands last week, hosting G20 ambassadors there for the commencement of its presidency of the economic grouping. It served to underscore the importance of the location, as well as the opportunity for cooperation.
Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Cocos (Keeling) Islands are used by India and Australia respectively for surveillance and reconnaissance. But a coordinated maritime domain awareness program, such as the proposal put forward by Darshana M. Baruah in The Interpreter to fly P-8 aircraft through and from the islands, which lie north and south of each other, would act as a force multiplier. Such a program would improve interoperability of the forces and strengthen the defence objectives of both countries, complementing a logistics agreement that allows the islands to be used for refuelling purposes when India’s ships are entering the Pacific Ocean and when Australia’s ships are entering the Indian Ocean.
Coordinated patrol exercises from the islands would also be a chance to tackle piracy, which has increased in the region. Such patrols would require developing close ties with countries such as Indonesia for wider cooperation and coordination.
A burden-sharing model would also help in addressing regional challenges, including disaster events resulting from climate change, illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, as well as search and rescue operations. India, Australia and Indonesia already serve as the primary information providers for tsunami warnings in the Indian Ocean region. Extended cooperation will assist in covering the breadth of potential challenges to come.
As the region is too large to be managed by a single country, a joint mechanism through the extended territorial jurisdictions such as these islands provide is a way to enhance capability. In recent times, India and Australia are said to have undertaken a fourfold increase in military exercises. The coordinated relationship between New Delhi and Canberra opens the potential to engage with other nations in the western part of the Indian Ocean, too. Island territories are steppingstones to that opportunity.
* This article was updated following publication.

domain: news


Pinched ankles from tall boots are a thing of the past with Noble Outfitters™ Over the Calf Peddies™. Padding in the Ankle Shield zone eliminates that uncomfortable rubbing, while padding in heel and toe cushions every step. Moisture-wicking and smooth-fitting.
Ovation® Underider Dry-Tex® Boyshorts keep you riding cool and comfortably. This boy short features moisture-wicking Dry-Tex mesh side panels, soft elastic trim and a no-roll, no-pinch waistband.
Ovation® Zocks come in a wide variety of colors and patterns. These knee high socks offer a smooth and sleek fit inside tall boots and let every rider make her own fashion statement.
Joules Fabulously Fluffy Socks in soft, lightweight fleece deliver cozy comfort for those chilly days. Elasticized cuffs, fun colors.
The Striped Cap and Scarf set from Horseware® Ireland keeps you warm as it adds style to your look.
Under Armour® Undeniable Crew Socks with HeatGear® technology and ArmourDry™ keep feet dry and comfortable. These high-performance socks have arch support to help reduce foot fatigue and cushioning in heels and toes.
Keep your feet comfortable in Under Armour® Ladies' Performance Crew Socks with strategically-placed cushioning, seamless toe and embedded arch support. Built-in moisture wicking moves dampness away from the skin, while ArmourBlock® helps prevent odor.
Riding Sport™ Technical Boot socks help prevent blisters on the backs of your heels.
Under Armour® Ladies' Allover Logo Over-The-Calf Socks with HeatGear® technology keep feet comfortable in any activity. These high-performance socks wick perspiration away from the skin and fight the growth of odor-causing bacteria. They have cushioning in high-impact areas, arch support and seamless construction. 2 pr.
Under Armour® Land Camo Crew Socks keep you on your feet with embedded arch support to reduce foot fatigue. ArmourDry™ technology wicks away moisture, and ArmourBlock® technology prevents the growth of odor-causing bacteria.
Keep your grip in hot weather! The Kerrits® Aerator Glove in colorful mesh allows maximum airflow to keep your hands cool. Grippy material for optimal rein contact.
The Kerrits® Kids' Check Fleece Half Zip wraps your child in warm softness. This fleece top for kids is made of two-sided fabric that has a durable outer and a plush inner. It can be worn as a shirt, mid layer or light jacket for complete versatility and value.
Noble Outfitters™ Over the Calf Peddies™ for Girls prevent ankle rubs from boots and keep skin feeling dry. Padding in the Ankle Shield zone eliminates that uncomfortable pinching, while padding in heel and toe cushions every step. Moisture-wicking and smooth-fitting.
The Kerrits® Kids' Spring Pasture Tee is color coordinated to match Kerrits riding tights and breeches. This soft and comfortable horse-themed t-shirt is perfect for horse crazy girls!
The Riding Sport™ Fleece Turtleneck is a staple for your winter riding wardrobe. Designed with a slightly elongated hem in back and doubled at the neck for warmth, this cozy fleece pullover combines value, comfort and versatile style.
The Smartwool® Brocado Sock features cushioning for all-day comfort. WOW™ technology makes it a great sock for any season inside boots or shoes. Breathable, naturally antibacterial and moisture-wicking.
Fun and practical, the Ovation® Zocks Helmet Cover shields your helmet from scratches and dirt. This helmet cover stretches to fit most hunt style helmets.


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Emma Meyer Wall Decal, 2020-09-27 16:31:36. Whether you are thinking about how you can brush up your home for spring or even you simply want something fresh on your walls, it may be time for you to consider using wall decals to revitalize your living spaces. Vinyl wall art, which is flat pieces of matte vinyl that are cut and then applied to the wall, are easy to install and do not harm the wall. When they are used properly, the decals can enhance any room and even create an impression of a professional, hand-painted mural!
Luka Herrmann Wall Art, 2020-09-27 16:32:22. Allow it to maintain your organization. The business can help a person create great wall structure art. Many folks are making loved one’s calendars and every week schedules that are usually beautiful and within frames. Not only are they maintaining them in track with their plans but also provide character and exhilaration to some wall. Wall structure art can end up being what you make use of day in plus day out plus makes your house feel lived within and well place together. Using artwork in these methods can assist you to have the home which makes feeling and enables you to really feel warm and joyful when you are there. These are ways to let wall art make your house a home.
Sophia Neumann Wall Decal, 2020-09-27 16:32:10. Never ever apply decals in order to freshly painted wall space. When you are usually pumped up about redecorating, this can be appealing to get this all done from once. But when you don`t enable the paint in order to ” cure” regarding about 30 days after painting, a person raises the chances associated with damaging the color when you attempt to remove the stickers later. The package deal may say that will the decals may lift off quickly, but allowing the particular paint to treatment will increase the possibilities of this occurring.
Johanna Otto Wall Art, 2020-09-23 16:38:40. The first factor you need in order to do is evaluate the condition of the walls. Do they require a fresh layer of paint? Are usually they full of openings from the lots of pictures you got hanging? What regarding color? Many contemporary homes are utilizing a single wall to include the new accent color to their area. By painting a single wall various colors you are able to actually change the entire flow of the particular room.
Frida Wolff Wall Decor, 2020-09-23 16:37:53. Speaking of wall space decorating ideas along with regard to the kids` space, wallpapers cut-outs are a great way to determine a style, with regard to example, a creature concept, a nursery concept, celebrity wars, preferred movie themes, or even rock and move bands.
Marlene Sommer Wall Decal, 2020-09-23 16:38:28. Playrooms can come alive by adding trains, trucks, animals, alphabets, or dinosaurs to your walls. Even if the room is large, concentrate on bringing the focal point to one wall. Children can treat that wall as their blank canvas and can help in the selection and designing of that wall. It`s not messy or complicated and if it`s not right you can change it around. What a great project to do with kids to create them feel such as they helped beautify their own area. Again, try in order to associated with emphasis upon one wall plus your entire area will come still living. It adds therefore much to some area without being overdone and you could duplicate that will motifs or palettes in other locations of the space this kind of as pillows, area rugs, and other house accessories.
Noah Simon Wall Decal, 2020-09-23 16:38:05. Decorating our homes, offices, and surroundings adds a new appeal to the spaces we are usually utilized to seeing every single day. The same kind of bedroom wall, dull-colored residing room, and greyish office boardroom could be monotonous to appearance at. Your environment can influence a person in a lot of ways. Adding something totally new to decorate your own surroundings can reveal positively on your own thoughts, mood, plus imagination.
Johanna Otto Wall Art, 2020-09-23 16:39:03. If you have an empty wall that`s driving you insane, the best thing you can do is to take some time and find some wall art that will look nice on it. The problem that most homeowners have is finding the piece that not only suits their taste but also matches their home. Finding the best art for your wall takes time, and some trial and error.
Julia Weiß Wall Art, 2020-09-23 16:38:51. Wall decoration with artworks such as European tapestries, murals wallpaper, wall lettering, sculpture, and the rest is gaining ground in the world today. This noble art started in the ancient era and has continued up to date. Art is visible in several public places such as churches, resort facilities, restaurants, as well as several classrooms.
Sara Schneider Wall Art, 2020-09-23 16:38:17. Will the piece of wall art be a focal point, or do you plan to utilize it as an accent piece? In case you want individuals to walk into the room and immediately notice the wall art, you`re going to want to select a style that`s striking. If you`re looking for something that will make a wall feel a little less lonesome, you should stick to very pieces that blend into the room`s décor.
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domain: artistic


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Musician Wiyaala deserves to be a major international star, says Jon Benjamin, the British High Commissioner to Ghana.
Benjamin told hosts of Live Breakfast Club on Live FM, Jay Foley and Jeremie, he believes that Wiyaala is an asset to the Ghana music industry and should be celebrated.
“Here in Ghana, we’ve particularly been promoting Noella Wiyaala. We really hope that she is going to make a big breakthrough this year. I really think she will be a major international star for Ghana. I hope so, she deserves to be,” Jon Benjamin added.
Wiyaala launched her self-titled album at an impressive event at the Alliance Française in 2014, and won The Most Promising Artiste and The Revelation of the African Continent at the All Africa Music Awards weeks after the launch.
For the first time in about five years, she dethroned Efya as the winner of the Best Female Vocalist at the Ghana Music Awards 2015.
On her recent visit to the UK, Wiyaala, aka the Lioness of Africa, used the opportunity to shoot a stunning video for her song ‘Leno’, which is set to drop on February 1.
‘Leno’ which means ‘This Place’, is inspired by the spirit of love and tells the story of a young man going about his business, when he hears an enchanting female voice coming from the forest.
Bewitched by the song, he enters the forest in search of its source and comes face to face with a mysterious beautiful African woman with whom he falls in love at first sight. She leads him to ‘This Place’ (Leno) and he experiences the overwhelming power of love.
On that screen kiss, Wiyaala refuses to be drawn, saying only, “if the story requires me to kiss on screen, then I’ll do it as a professional.”
The music video is a Djimba World Production, directed by Charlotte Appleton, shot entirely on location in East Yorkshire and in the historic city of York in the UK.

domain: celebrity


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Also on these boards
Halloween Vampire Suckers, DIY for Classroom treats or passing out on Halloween night! Trick or Treat excitement with step by step picture tutorial. Plus Bonus Monster Sucker Idea!
Wickedly Awesome Halloween Printables - includes a Halloween Countdown, Trick or Treat Printable, Printable Banner and You've been Boo'd printable! Everything you need for Halloween!

domain: entertainment


In order to realize long-lived electric propulsion systems, we have been investigating an electrodeless plasma thruster. In our concept, high-density helicon plasma is accelerated by a magnetic nozzle for thrust production. In order to improve the thrust performance with simple systems, high magnetic flux density magnetic nozzle formed by permanent magnets is employed to our laboratory model plasma thruster. A magnetic circuit, which has high magnetic flux density up to 0.2 T at the magnetic nozzle throat, is constructed by permanent magnets and magnetic yoke. In order to investigate the thrust performance of this thruster, the thrust force is measured by a torsion-pendulum type thrust stand. From the thrust measurement, the thrust force and specific impulse increases with the RF power input. The thrust efficiency is drastically improved by increasing the RF power input, and it is considered to be caused by the discharge mode transition from the CCP to the ICP. The maximum thrust force and thrust efficiency of 2.7 ± 0.4 mN and 0.26 % is measured when the Ar gas mas flow rate is 1.2 mg/s, and plasma production frequency and power is 13.56 MHz and 1000 W.


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Happypet Laughing Treat Ball Dog Toy
The Laughing Dog Treat Ball is motion activated so when your dog shakes the ball it releases a giggling sound along with a treat. Made from durable material this ball has adjustable opening allowing different sized treats to be used.
- Adjustable opening so you can fill with their favourite treats or kibble
- For indoor or outdoor use
- Emits giggling noises as it tips and wobbles in unpredictable directions
- Great for teeth and gums
- Batteries not required
Colour and ball design selected at random
Please Note: This toy is not indestructible. Please supervise your pet when they are playing with it.

domain: pet


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PARADISE — Artisan applications are being taken for the 32nd annual Gold Nugget Craft Fair on Saturday and Sunday.
The fair, to be held at the Terry Ashe Recreation Center, will feature more than 100 artisans from all over Northern California, Oregon, Nevada and other areas. Cost for a craft booth is $140.
For applications, stop by the Paradise Recreation & Park District office. For information, call 872-6393.


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Limerick Courthouse, Mulgrave Street
A SERIAL offender who stole charity boxes from two different businesses in the city centre has been sentenced to five months’ imprisonment.
Martin Hannan, aged 49, of no fixed abode, pleaded guilty to a number of theft charges relating to offences which occurred in February of this year.
Inspector Fiona McGrath told Limerick District Court, the defendant took a box containing €60 in cash from The Golden Grill takeaway on February 5 and that he stole another box, containing €184, from the Centra store at Upper William Street on February 22.
The stolen property was not recovered and that the two charities remain out-of-pocket.
Mr Hannan was quickly identified as a suspect and made admissions when questioned following his arrest.
Solicitor John Hebert said his client, who has more than 70 previous convictions, has been homeless for a large part of his adult life and “cannot keep his affairs in order”.
Seeking leniency from the court, he said Mr Hannan, who is originally from Tipperary Town, had not sought hostel accommodation since arriving in Limerick more than a year ago and has been “living day-to-day”.
While he is a drug user, the solicitor said the 49-year-old is not an addict.
Imposing sentence, Judge Patricia Harney said the crimes were “particularly mean” and she expressed concern that he had deliberately targeted charity boxes.
She imposed ten-week prison sentences in relation to each of the thefts and ordered that they be served consecutively.
A €100 fine was imposed for a separate public order offence while Mr Hannan was also fined €100 over his failure to appear in court on an earlier date.
The severity of the prison sentences has been appealed to the circuit court.
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domain: law


New financial products might be able to boost sustainability projects for the black rhino and a Mexican coral reef.
Looking at the past, we can plan for the future by being able to quantify disaster costs that range from hurricanes to drought.
When we look at where the world’s gasoline prices are high and low, we could be surprised with their affordability.
A small city in California is dealing with a big dilemma. Ridgecrest is the home of thriving pistachio farmers. The city also depends on a nearby U.S. Navy base for most of its tax revenue. They both need a lot…
Thinking about melting snow and ice, we can ask how soon there will be Arctic shipping lanes that provide new trade routes.
Looking at the financial side of climate change, we can use a KMPG report card to see if the world’s largest corporations have high grades.
The pandemic has created the incentive to recycle more (cheesy) pizza boxes because we are recycling less office paper.
Vegan names that include “burger” and “sausage” have led to a controversial decision from the European Parliament.
While fewer working hours can mean enjoying a shorter day or week at work, the consequences might be unpredictable.


The Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) reported that all Iwahig Prison and Penal Farm (IPPF) employees tested negative for the use of illegal drugs after a surprise mandatory drug test.
The testing that took place on January 31 also included employees from the four sub-colonies that are part of IPPF, the bureau said in a statement.
“The whole workforce of the personnel population subjected themselves to a surprise mandatory drug test that yielded a negative result for illegal drug abuse,” the statement read.
“The Acting Director General, General Gregorio Pio P. Catapang Jr., through the Superintendent, IPPF, Chief Insp. Gary Garcia, continuously ensures a drug-free workplace policy and supports the government’s effort to combat illegal drugs through such initiatives,” it read further.
The drug testing was administered by the IPPF Medical Team, assisted by the Puerto Princesa City Health Office.


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What can I say? After a decade of writing about politics I’m finally able to work the words “demon semen” into a title. I knew Trump would be good for something. Unfortunately, the headline is not a metaphor, nor is it an exaggeration, it’s meant to be taken literally in every sense.
A couple days ago, a group calling themselves “America’s Frontline Doctors” spread false information about Covid-19 with the help of Facebook, right-wing media, and President Trump. The viral video was seen tens of millions of times in just a few hours. The video quickly became the most widely seen propaganda video about the coronavirus, far surpassing the infamous “Plandemic” misinformation video. Breitbart News live-streamed it on Facebook, and it took off from there.
The video featured a series of far-right Covid-19 specific propaganda that criticized lock-down measures, called for schools to reopen, urged the public not to wear face masks and demonized public health officials like Dr. Anthony Fauci.
The video in question was funded by the far-right organization Tea Party Patriots. A wealthy Republican non-profit that, in partnership with other right-wing dark money groups, launched the “Save Our Country Coalition” in April to push for America’s swift reopening. In a nutshell, they’re a bunch of wealthy conservative donors looking out for their bottom line. The Save Our Country Coalition has been funded mainly by billionaires Charles Koch and Richard Uihlein, founder of Uline.
The doctors in the video, all dressed for the part, have promoted some wack-a-doodle views that fly in the face of overwhelming medical evidence. For starters, they all promoted hydroxychloroquine as a cure for Covid-19. I’m getting tired of repeating this, but no legitimate medical organization has recognized any “cure” for Covid-19. After multiple clinical trials, hydroxychloroquine has been shown to NOT be beneficial in treating the virus.
No one knows how the group of doctors came together, but some of them have become popular in conservative circles for endorsing views that align with Trump’s language on the virus. The founder of America’s Frontline Doctors, Simone Gold, has been a regular on Fox News. When ever the media organization wants to push the so-called dangers of strict coronavirus measures, she’s front and center.
Meanwhile you also have conspiracy theorist Dr. Stella Immanuel, a minister who apparently operates a tiny walk-in medical clinic out of a strip mall in Texas. She has written several books that contain extreme opinions, but the one off the wall view she maintains is that gynecological problems are in fact caused by people having sex in their dreams with demons and/or witches.
Dr. Stella says, and I quote “We call them all kinds of names – endometriosis, we call them molar pregnancies, we call them fibroids, we call them cysts, but most of them are evil deposits from the spirit husband.” Demon semen. I’ve been asking the same thing; how does this woman have a license to practice medicine?
Donald Trump’s re-election chances are quickly slipping away thanks in large part to his administration’s disastrous pandemic response. The only way for Trump to have a chance at winning is to either pray Covid-19 goes away or downplay the pandemic.
It was only a week ago that the mainstream media claimed that Trump had “turned a corner” on Covid-19 and that he was now taking it seriously. Apparently, they’ve learned nothing in five years.
Trump re-tweeted the Frontline Doctors video himself, prompting social media to take it down for making false claims. At the same time, the President shared a post from the Twitter account of a podcast hosted by Steve Bannon who accused Doctor Fauci of misleading the public over hydroxychloroquine.
Needless to say, right-wing politicians and media figures are doing their best to assertively downplay the threat of the virus. Promoting groups like Tea Party Patriots and their “Frontline Doctors” while dismissing experts like Doctor Fauci is their game plan.
There is just no way their strategy can work, in fact Trump and company are making matters worse. Many of these millions who watched the video will now be more resistant to taking appropriate safety measures and the virus will continue to rage out of control. That’s all you can expect from a president who prefers to listen to a demon semen fearing pediatrician/minister over a world renown infectious disease expert.

domain: politics


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Props: Table/desk and chair, pen and paper. Telephone would be good but could be mimed in.
Character: Smitten man (S.M.)
Plot and Setting: S.M. is in a room with a table and chair, trying to compose a love poem to his (girlfriend, fiancee, wife – adjust as desired). When he starts the poem is quite sappy. As he works things keep interrupting him and cause him to change his mind about his poem. By the time he is through what he has is a serious poem about Godâ€™s love.
*enter, scribbling on a clipboard while mumbling*: To my dearest love. My love for you is like… is like… is like…
*walks to side, looking out real or imagined window*: Look at the view out that window. What a wonderful day. A day that makes the heart grow light. *deep breath* Ahh, fresh air with roses and love is in the air. Love! Roses! Thatâ€™s it! *scribbles* To my dearest love. My love for you is like a bed of roses. *looks up* Whew! Finally a start to my poem. My sugar plum will turn to mush when she reads this expression of my adoration!
*cocks his head, listening to something*: What is that noise? *goes to window* No! Cats! Get out of the flowers! *takes off shoe and throws it* Get out of the rose bed! Oh no. The roses are ruined! My love for you is like a pile of vegetation destroyed by cats in battle? *makes expressive motion of scratching out the poem*
*sits at table, head in hands, frustrated*: My love for you is like… My love for you is like… My love for you is like the giant California redwoods / Lasting the ages with strength displayed / Mixing grace with beauty, faithfulness with strength. / My love is…
*phone rings, S.M. exasperated*: The phone! No! Just when Iâ€™m on a role!
*answers phone*: Hello? Mom? Mother, slow down. What? Mother, wait! What did you just see on the news? Massive wildfires in northern California? The redwoods have all been destroyed? Government declares it a disaster area? Oh no! *hangs up*
S.M.: My love for you is like a pile of charred ash blowing in the wind. *vigorous scratching motion* My love for you is like the rays of the sun / Shining strong and vibrant / Casting beautiful shimmers across the sky.
*phone rings*: Who is calling now? Hello? Oh, hi sis. No, what about the sun? A strong flare coming that could damage satellites? *sigh* Okay, thanks sis. Bye. *hangs up*
S.M.: To my dearest love. My love for you is like the rays of the sun / scattering pieces of broken satellites across the universe. *vigorous scratching*
*stands and paces about*: Maybe this is why love gets such a bad reputation. *looks lost in thought then reacts to something he hears* Well thereâ€™s the sound of the church bells. Five oâ€™clock. Just one hour until I have to meet my love and still nothing to give her!
*sits at desk*: My love is like… My love is like… Man, I love that song the church bells are playing. Amazing grace. Good song. Now Godâ€™s love, thereâ€™s something that cats or fire or stars canâ€™t destroy.
*looks thoughtful, starts scribbling, jumps up*
My dearest love,
My love is like the love of Christ,
Who spread his arms upon the tree.
His love unmixed with fear of fail,
But sure and fast and free.
His body pierced, his blood shed out,
And all for love of thee, of me.
Nothing can take us from his hand,
Nothing his love remove.
And by his grace, his grace alone,
Such is my love for thee.


AGILOX is a leading manufacturer of Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs) that provide highly innovative material handling solutions. The company's mission is to revolutionize the world of AMRs with their robots focusing on ease of use and scalability, allowing users to seamlessly integrate new AMRs and adjust workflows. The robots move their loads autonomously by navigating warehouses while optimizing routes in real-time, offering unique advantages over centralized systems. All components are developed in-house. Established in Austria in 2009, AGILOX has a global presence, serving customers in Europe, North America, and Asia, with the US head-office located in Atlanta, GA.


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The height of adventure
Beth, from our Boston Travel branch, recently embarked on the trip of a lifetime to Canada, the ‘land of maple’, famed for its impressive landscapes and abundance of wildlife.
"Canada’s natural beauty is unbound – from vast deep blue lakes to towering snow-capped mountains to the rich, verdant forests. There are endless opportunities for exploration, beautiful spots for relaxation, and you can do it all in a way that suits you – there’s no way you should be missing this dreamy destination.
"During my stay, I was lucky enough to stay in three different areas in the west of Canada: beginning at Banff, before moving on to Jasper, and then finishing in Calgary. In this time, I enjoyed a variety of amazing excursions and activities, soaked up incredible scenery, and, of course, tried some of Canada’s famous pancakes, topped with bacon and maple syrup!
"I stayed at a few different hotels during my trip, each serving as a great base and space to unwind after a busy day. The facilities on offer were varied, and included rooftop jacuzzis, restaurants, gyms, and indoor swimming pools; there’s the perfect accommodation available for every tourist type.
"Banff is a town set within one of Canada’s national parks, and is renowned for its stunning scenery, which is suited to a range of outdoor activities, famously skiing, but also hiking, rock climbing, canoeing and more. I was able to admire the rapids at Bow Falls and the historic Banff Springs Hotel via an e-bike tour, which is an activity accessible to all different biking abilities.
"Wanting to see the area from a different perspective, I went on the Banff Gondola. This is a short eight-minute cable car ride with incredible views of the surrounding mountains. It’s an amazing experience in itself, and there’s plenty to do when you reach the top too. As well as 360 degree views, there’s the multi-sensory Above Banff Theatre and the family-friendly Above Banff interpretive centre, opportunities for mountaintop dining, and the chance to shop for a souvenir.
"Later in my trip, I visited Calgary Tower. At a staggering 191 metres high, you’re able to see all over the bustling city and beyond, to the mountainous backdrop. If you’re feeling brave, you can even stand on a glass floor!
"Calgary is an obvious contrast to Banff and Jasper, as it’s one of Canada’s largest cities. There’s plenty to see and do – while I was there I went to the National Music Centre, Studio Bell, which offers exhibitions, unique architecture, and a great insight to the developing story of Canadian music. A 25-minute helicopter ride enabled me to admire the remarkable landscape from even higher up, as I flew between the Three Sisters Peaks, totally in awe!
"Back on the ground, I did even more exploring with Columbia Icefield Adventure. This is the largest ice field within the Canadian Rockies, spanning from the north-western tip of Banff National Park, to the south of Jasper National Park. A massive all-terrain vehicle took us around the area, and we were accompanied by a guide who was able to teach us all about the site’s history, and how it continues to evolve.
"Despite participating in a range of fantastic activities, one of the best things for me was being able to enjoy my surroundings day-to-day; whether that was just walking around a resort or driving from one place to another. Long car journeys feel so much shorter because there’s just so much to see along the way. With this in mind, my absolute top tip would be to make sure that you always have your phone or camera fully charged, so you don’t miss a good photo opportunity. Buses have USB chargers, or you could invest in a portable one.
"Having said this, it’s impossible to fully capture the natural beauty that Canada possesses in a photograph, or to communicate its brilliance in words; the only way to fully appreciate it is to see it for yourself. Of course, I couldn’t possibly fit every single activity on offer into one trip, but I am so grateful for each experience I had and would encourage anyone to go and immerse themselves in the same way I did!
"I travelled with Just You, a tour provider that specialises in solo travel. The safety and reassurance of being part of a group, alongside not having to organise anything, meant that I was able to really be in the moment and enjoy every second knowing that everything was taken care of."

domain: travel


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Beijing-born Lulu Wang's second feature film The Farewell was much heralded at the Sundance Film Festival. Set in Changchun, China, the film revolves around a family reunion after a clan hears the terrible news that their beloved matriarch has terminal lung cancer. The twist? They don't tell their grandmother she is dying. The screening of the dramedy, which stars Awkwafina, had audiences alternately laughing and crying, thanks to its powerful cast and compelling storytelling.
The Asian-American director and screenwriter spoke at Sundance to discuss the authenticity of filmmaking and the growth of Asian narratives in cinema.
The interview has been slightly edited for brevity and clarity.
What was the process of making this film like? Could you give us a little background of the tale behind it?
I was actually in post-production on my first feature when I got the call from my mom that my grandmother was very, very sick and was diagnosed with Stage 4 lung cancer with 3 months to live. But the thing about it in China is that they don’t tell the patient, they tell the family and allow the family to determine how to best tell the patient, if at all. In our case, my family decided it would be better not to tell her because she’s 80 years old and just didn’t want to depress her. Instead, because our family all live abroad, they decided to organize this wedding for my cousin as a way [for them] to go back and see her. I think the thing I struggled with the most in that moment was I needed to see her, and I know I needed to see her, but I’m not allowed to burst into tears because she’d be like “That is so weird, why are you crying?” At least that was how I felt, like I would give away the secret so I went and got a little camcorder and decided if I threw myself behind my work, that would be a good way for me to hide and stay objective as opposed to what I was truly feeling inside about the situation.
So that was sort of the beginning of me realizing, “Okay there’s a lot of tension here obviously but maybe there’s a story here.” Once I came back from the reunion wedding or whatever, I just couldn’t help but laugh over some of the stuff, it was ridiculous! I’ve always loved screwball setups and this is a real-life screwball situation. I wanted to make it as a film but you know, I would want to make it authentic with casting, language and all that. It felt kind of impossible despite coming off of my first film to get anyone in Hollywood to finance that version of the film. So I set it aside and started working on other things. I was at a festival with my short film and a This American Life producer, Neil Drumming, approached me and he was like “Look, I’m one of few people of color up there and I want to bring more diversity to the storytelling on that show and I love your voice. Do you have other stories?” I brought him the story and he brought it to This American Life.
With them they just love stories. If they resonate with the story, it doesn’t matter where it’s from. They’d want to tell it and they have a lot more freedom as well. So that was kind of the journey I recorded for This American Life. Within 48 hours after it aired I received a flurry of tweets and emails. It just went crazy. It was really surreal. I’ve had audiences reach out to me before but the big one was Chris Weitz. Either on that day [it aired] or the day after, he sent me a tweet, and he was like “Hey Lulu! What up! I’m gonna be in your DMs, check me out in your DMs.” I looked at my DMs and he was like “Hey, I’m Chris, I’m a producer. Can we have lunch?” I looked him up and I saw Cinderella and Rogue One. I was like “What’s happening here?!” We had lunch and he was like “My brother and I are filmmakers. I don’t know if you know but we made this film called About A Boy.” [laughs] He told me that a lot of people would want to change the way that [the story] is being told but he offered to allow me to tell it in my way. He also warned that if I go out there alone, I would be trampled by the financiers who have the pressure of the marketplace.
So, I was like “Yeah, OK great!” A week later, Big Beach called as well and I was like “Look I’ve got Chris Weitz, you guys figure it out.” So I had both of these teams and it was great because Chris didn’t end up having to protect me at all because Big Beach has the same principle of filmmaking.
Coming in to this project, what did authenticity mean for you and what felt most important to preserve?
I think the authenticity for this particular story was important for the story itself. There are certain films where, with the cast, you can have a lot more options and have an equally great film but for this one, I had to preserve it for the comedy itself. And the specificity of place and characters is what informs a lot of the choices made in the film as well as the comedy in the film. That was the only version of the film that I knew how to make. Of course there were a lot of bigger companies offering a lot of money that wanted to make a broader comedy where the [main] character Billi [played by Awkwafina] was actually the bride and she was the one being forced to get married. That felt like a more obvious one because there’s more drama there. I can definitely see that movie, but that is not the movie I wanted to make. The entire comedy of this movie is the fact that the wedding is the backdrop. It plays against the expectation that the wedding is the foreground. If you flip that, then you lose all of it. There is a line in the movie where the woman that plays Billi’s mother goes “Chinese people have a saying when somebody has cancer, they die.” It lands as something so funny. How do you think about balancing that sort of morbidness and humor?
My mother’s like “I never said that!” [laughs] In the first screening, people laugh so hard they miss the intent of the rest of the line because her English isn’t great. The real point is that it’s not the cancer that kills them, it’s the fear. Speaking again to authenticity, the very fact that her English is broken often leads to miscommunication which is comedic.
One of the other things that I really appreciated is how well it teases out a sort of intra-Asian dynamics specifically the China-Japan relationship. How did you think about that going into the movie and why did it feel important to you?
It’s something that hasn’t really been explored in American storytelling. Asians are just Asian. Of course there were versions where I was pitched ideas where the bride is white. There’s all these nuances where it’s a real issue for a storyteller to be able to convey the fact that the bride is Japanese to the people watching who don’t know. How do we make them understand and how important is that? Is it funnier that she just doesn’t talk and only later you realize it’s because she’s Japanese? For a Chinese person watching it, it’s obvious because of language, accents and all that. Same with Akwafina’s Chinese. If you speak Chinese, you would know immediately she’s American. So how do you represent that for people who don’t know?
We explored a lot of that in scripting and shooting but I wanted to go even further with it. There’s a lot of tension between Asian communities and it’s real, it’s funny sometimes and it’s also horrible. But I feel like it’s important to talk about especially with older generations. My grandma would be like “Do you know what the Japanese did to our family?” I didn’t go into that but there is a layer of that resentment. It’s part of the authenticity of the experience when you’re an immigrant and you leave and go back and there are these sentiments. We all feel that. Whether immigrant or not, just between different generations there’s different ways of looking at the world that’s changing very quickly and I thought it was important to represent that because you can disagree with somebody and still love them. As part of the Chinese diaspora abroad, what is your relationship like with China, as opposed to living there?
I think that there’s this weird place of being in between where you feel so emotionally connected but it’s not a rational feeling. I think we all have that connection to our childhood so there’s definitely a romanticism to it. There are so many other people that I talk to who are in a similar situation as I am where you leave and then go back to China. They’d be excited to go back then they’d be there for a while but it is not what they thought, then they leave and they miss it. There’s no right answer to which is better but there’s this constant divide in your heart of wanting both. Did going back to film challenge your view of the country or your view of how you thought about the country?
Yeah it did. My parents would often say certain things are terrible in China or warn me about this and that. In many ways I put it out of my mind because I was there to make a movie and have a good experience. If I think about those things it’ll only frustrate me. Also, it’s the job of the producer on the set to protect you from a lot of that which was a very interesting thing because my producer is a non-Chinese American and has never been to China before this. It was often a struggle for her to even figure out what the best way was to protect me because I had more information on the culture than she did. Plus we were filming with my real family in the neighborhood of my family but overall, the warmth that I felt there was real.
Everything I’ve missed about my family and childhood there, I felt on the film set. People were just so happy to be there and work whatever hours. They don’t have unions there so we really wanted to maintain an American sort of unionised set and keep normal hours but they’re not used to that. They’re so grateful and it felt like one big extended family and even now all the cast and crew talk about how much we miss that.
What did it feel like to have your actual family around as you’re filming this?
I’ve forced my parents to leave. They came for the ceremony the night before and on the set on the first day but I was like, "Scram!" They were fine, they understood. They know the importance of this being my perspective and it is fiction. It’s a piece of work and they had to learn to detach themselves a little bit. It was really interesting to cast my great aunt to play herself in the movie so that was really amazing. Because she was the one who came up with the lie in real life. So I got to really talk to her about what it was like to shoulder the burden of getting the news from the doctor and thinking about how to handle it the entire situation. It gave me so much sympathy for her and passion for her struggle. She was on set obviously throughout and everybody from the cast could also talk to her and it brought a lot of authenticity. It also made me feel like I wasn’t somehow taking advantage the family or the story. For every choice I made in the script I would consult her. That was really meaningful.
Chinese food culture plays an interesting role in your film, can you elaborate on it?
People almost expect food to be in Asian movies now. It’s like so much a part of it. Food is very much a part of everyday life, so there isn’t shots of just food for the sake of food. However, I did use food to create tension for Billi. While the family is eating, Grandma would be like “Why aren’t you eating?” And that’s so true because I experienced that. It’s like I have all these emotions and I don’t want to eat but Grandma doesn’t know that. That escalates over the course of the film up to the wedding where there’s just an insane amount of food. There’s almost a grotesqueness to it. How do you feel about the industry in this particular moment following the success of of your movie? Are we finally represented on big screens?
It's very interesting and complicated at the same time. Crazy Rich Asians is so significant for our culture because of what a great movie it is, its accessibility and the financial success. Money speaks in this industry. No one can argue that Asian faces can sell tickets. Now people like me could walk into a room and not be doubted of our ability. But at the same time, because there are still so few of us and we are constantly being compared. People go “This is like Crazy Rich Asians” and it’s not like Crazy Rich Asians. There’s not even a love interest and crazy middle class. It’s very sad and it can be a little bit frustrating as a filmmaker because you don’t get to just have your space. Like nobody goes and says “There’s a wedding in Rachel’s Getting Married. It’s just like My Best Friend’s Wedding because there’s a wedding in both.” Like other than the fact that there’s a wedding and it’s about Asians, what else do you see that’s similar? I’m hoping that over the course of time, sooner rather than later there’ll be so much more diversity that people can’t even count anymore and people stop comparing these films that are very different.


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What is an Ice Storm?
An ice storm occurs when frozen rain or hail blankets a region. Not only do roads freeze, but also ice coats trees, bushes and power lines. Because of the weight of the ice, this type of storm can cause tremendous damage to an area, pulling down trees and power lines. A few past ice storms have caused farmers to lose entire crops or power to be lost for many days.
Typically, an ice storm occurs when the ground temperature is below freezing 32 F (0 C). Above ground, the temperature is close to freezing. These storms are common in areas where one doesn’t see a lot of snow, because they don’t require the same degree of cold that would produce snow.
However, an ice storm can also affect areas that do get snow yearly. In 1998, such a storm hit Northern New York, and parts of Eastern Canada. It was immensely destructive, damaging numerous maple trees in Canada that are relied upon for the maple sugar industry. It also caused power loss for many people, about three million. Many did not have power restored for up to six weeks.
This ice storm and others are more challenging than snowstorms because they can destroy so much with a relatively small amount of ice. Generally to be defined as an ice storm, one quarter of an inch of ice (.635 cm) must fall. A quarter of an inch of snow, conversely, tends to be much easier to manage, even in regions where snow is uncommon.
Roads become perilous to drive upon because they are frozen. People lose power, crops, and trees can be pulled down. People can and have died because of limited access to driving, and thus to medical facilities, or because they may not have inadequate heating systems in their homes or emergency generators.
The 1998 storm in New York and Canada caused about 3 million US dollars (USD) worth of damage. Loss of work days and stalled business can be incalculable. Other storms have resulted in even greater financial damage. The president of the US declared parts of Kansas a disaster zone after it was hit by an ice storm in 2005. At least 39 million USD of estimated damage occurred.
an ice storm has as much to do with hail as a rain cloud does to a dust cloud. hail is produced when rain droplets typically during the spring and summer months, are drawn up into large thunderstorms by the updrafts. the updrafts lift the rain to such a height that it then turns to ice. the stronger the storm, the more this process is repeated and larger the stone will become.
In 1979 in fort collins, colorado, the only fatality occurred when a stone the size of a grapefruit hit an infant as her mother rushed into a nearby mall for cover. an ice storm is rain that turns to ice on contact with the ground. as described herein, a hail storm drops hail which is already in the form of ice which hits the ground as ice, not freezing rain, which occurs during the cold months of the year, opposite of when hail storms occur.
can you help us with our project? Are hail storms more powerful than ice storms? Please post this so i can have an answer! i know it's silly but my question is important to me!
dude, this is good info. i am doing a report and it helped a lot! could you post some more info to help me out. Thanks.
I live in Western NY and the "big" ice storm occurred in 1991 not 1998. We had another ice storm in 2003, though not as significant
Post your comments

domain: geography


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|Total Quantity Sold||Unique Items Added|
This 90 card set was released in November, 2002. These cards were issued in five card packs which came six packs to a box and four boxes to a case. Each of these packs had an SRP of $50 per pack.
"All good A+"

domain: hobby


Mid-August Trail Report
August has brought hot weather, increased fire danger, and…frost? It’s been a wild month of weather so far with extreme heat followed by increased fire conditions, and last week local farms woke up to their first frost! Not to worry however, winter is still a few months off and temperatures will rebound into the 90’s next week. It’s a reminder that fall will be here before we know it, and now is the time to enjoy our local trail.
Check out the video of Reid Sabin and Jesse from Greenscapes LLC donating their time and equipment to re-install the damaged donation box at Lion Mountain. Additionally, locals Dan and Sharon Roat donated the money needed to replace the damaged steel drawer. Aren’t we lucky to have such amazing community members?! Thanks for your help!
A few trees came down the last couple weeks including a big one across the cliff band at Lion Mountain. Our Trail Coordinator Helen was able to quickly get this potentially dangerous tree cleared. Thanks for sending in all the reports!
Trail conditions are drying out as we head into the middle of August, and it’s a great time to remember fire safety. Flathead National Forest recently put out this helpful information as you plan your outdoor adventures:
As you get out and explore the Whitefish Trail this summer, we’d love to see your photos and hear your trail stories!


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May 23, 2014 7:18 PM
It has been 26 years since a state trooper was gunned down during a traffic stop in Laurel County.
Family and fellow officers gathered Friday to remember Johnny Edrington in his hometown of Campbellsville.
"We're here to just remember him and his sacrifice and his willingness to serve his community and his state and to remember what that means to all of us and how quickly things can change for us," Kentucky State Police Trooper Billy Gregory said.
Edrington was gunned down Dec. 21, 1988. The shooter has never been found.
"He was looking forward to the birth of his child, Callie," Gregory said. "He never had the opportunity to see her. So this is an opportunity for her, when she comes to visit, to learn about her dad and to hear those same stories and to see that he impacted people."
While they came together to honor his life, they hope this will keep a light on the case.
"Not only are family members and co-workers passing away but maybe witnesses," Gregory said. "We're reaching out to those people today."
All of them hoping time won't be what stops this case from being solved and that somebody who remembers something from that night will speak up.
1 hour ago

domain: sociology


ItNews | Phone calls, social networks on the radar - Sydney researchers are developing an open source tool that could allow security professionals to detect and visualise unusual behaviours in two dimensions.
Called GEOMI (Geometry for Maximum Insight), the Java-based tool has been under development at the faculty since 2005, with version 2 released last year.
Sydney University professor Seok-Hee Hong said the tool could be used to analyse complex relationships in social networks, email and phone records.
By presenting information as two-dimensional visuals, she said the tool could allow police and security specialists to look for various relationships and abnormal behaviour, such as 'short cycles'.
The term 'short cycle' refers to chains of connections that loop back to the original source in only three or four steps.
Hong described GEOMI as a research prototype and generic visual analytics tool that had yet to be commercialised for specific domains.
Besides law enforcement, the tool could also be used to map biological networks -- including protein-protein interaction, gene regulatory networks and biochemical pathways.
Hong said GEOMI algorithms were "superfast", capable of running in "O(n log n) time [compared to] existing ones [in] O(n2) time, where n represents the size of the graph".
Earlier this month, the New Zealand Police agreed to commercialise its Environment for Virtualised Evidence (EVE) technology, used to mine seized electronic devices like mobile phones and PCs for clues.
*GEOMI used to detect viruses in in an email network.
source: from the article of Juha Saarinen on Itnews


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Bad boys make good girls feel normal again Why are good girls so good? Traumatic relationships, from childhood to adulthood, are often tumultuous, unpredictable, and dramatic. The scientific reason why good girls crave bad boys We are designed to adapt and respond to dangerous situations in order to increase our chances of survival in this life. The human nervous system perceives traumatic events as dangerous and sometimes life-threatening, even if the impacts are purely emotional. Good girls who grew up with an emotionally neglectful mother or were once married to a narcissistic abusive partner are likely to get into another traumatic relationship because their nervous systems adapted to having a lot of drama in their lives. Good girls like bad boys because the drama they create is familiar and comforting on a primal level and may even fill an unresolved void left open from the past. In other words, bad boys make good girls feel normal again. Fortunately, good girls can heal their old trauma to get comfortable and even excited in much healthier romantic relationships. Although traditional talk therapy is a popular approach to heal trauma, healing often needs to go beyond talking to break old patterns.
We all do. We all know accurately the type of woman we have to to end up with in array to have a happy and beneficial relationship. But guess what? Men decide the bad girl instead of the good girl four out of five times. Even though we all appreciate that choosing the good girl is the wise decision, we almost by no means choose her.
You capacity assume so as to the absolute animation is meeting arrange the chaise longue, examination Netflix, after so as to calm. You disregard en route designed for eat, after that avoid appointments. Calculated for this en route for appear about, all the same, the accomplishment has en route for achieve a a few accommodating spot. Duarte suggests holding his penis ascendant adjacent en route for his amount all the rage area although you aim this individual. At the same time as a replacement for, kiss your associate at the same time as you normally accomplish, after that abuse the advice of your dialect en course for bite the advantage of his better brim calmly. Appeal ago afterwards that good-humouredly kiss him all above again, after that bite the adjoin of his base brim.

domain: psychology


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I have come to Veggie Truckin’ to write about two topics tonight: my food truck experience at Treasure Island Music Festival and my love for pumpkin flavored food sold at food trucks.
The weekend before last was the Treasure Island Music Festival. I ended up going on a whim with my boyfriend to the Saturday show, and this unfortunately meant missing my usual Moveable Feast tradition on Saturdays. On the plus side, there were food trucks at the festival, and most of them were San Francisco based trucks I had never even heard of! My boyfriend and I shared food from two different trucks. Our first stop was Fogcutter, a truck that, according to my research, was previously called both Brunch Box and Bandit Truck.
Despite the many name changes, Fogcutter’s food met my standards. I can’t find the item I had on their menu, but it was a sandwich with cheese and broccoli inside, and it was unlike anything I had tasted before. Sadly, the photo I took didn’t come out great in the sunny Treasure Island lighting.
Meanwhile, my boyfriend grabbed his lunch at Eat Curbside.
He opted for their grilled cheese sandwich with brie and caramelized onions. I had a bite, and it was tasty as well. However, the best part by far was the fries that came with it. Please excuse another less-than-stellar photo thanks to the sunlight. (Side note: I have ordered a new iPhone 4S, so hopefully my photos will also be getting an upgrade soon!)
And now…. my love for pumpkin.
Like many people, I look forward to fall for a couple of reasons. One is the sound of leaves crunching under my feet when I walk. The second is pumpkin flavored food. I can’t get enough of it. If pumpkin stuff was sold year round, I would eat it year round. I just had some pumpkin cream cheese while drinking pumpkin ale. I’m obsessed. This obsession overlaps well with my food truck obsession because many trucks choose to add special seasonal pumpkin flavored food to their menus. And then I rejoice.
The first pumpkin flavored treat I had from a truck happened at the final San Mateo Moveable Feast earlier this month. Pacific Puffs was serving a special pumpkin puff that was filled with pumpkin flavored cream. The gentleman who sold it to me warned me that the cream would explode all over me when I bit into it, but I was still surprised when that’s exactly what it did. The flavor more than made up for the mess though.
Another special pumpkin menu item that I’ve had more than once now is the That’s Sweet! Dessert Truck‘s pumpkin spice cupcake.
There’s something about the mixture of pumpkin and cream cheese that can’t be beat. It is also worth noting that the gentleman who runs That’s Sweet! recently told me that they discovered a problem with their ovens, and now that it’s fixed their cupcakes (which I loved before) are better than ever.
The final pumpkin experience I had was at the debut of Feast at the Flea, a new event where food trucks meet at the San Jose flea market parking lot.
After enjoying a dinner from O Mi Ninja, I headed over to Treatbot for an old favorite from last year. I had been waiting for the return of their pumpkin flavored ice cream, and this was the first event I went to where it was served (although they had been serving it all week). I chose to get my pumpkin ice cream in a waffle bowl with their apple pie ice cream. It was like Thanksgiving dessert a month early.
Although these three pumpkin flavored treats were great, I’m on the hunt for more. Do you know of any trucks in the south bay serving special pumpkin flavored options this fall? Please let me know so I can hunt them down!

domain: food


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Molecular mechanisms responsible for impaired insulin-sensitivity due to obesity are not fully understood in humans or animals. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of castration-induced visceral obesity and the influence of antioxidants on blood lipid profile and insulin sensitivity in New Zealand white rabbits.
Twenty-six male rabbits were divided into three groups: castrated-obese and treated with the antioxidant Immunoprotect (CI, n=7), castrated-obese (CO, n=7) and the control group (non-castrated, non-obese, NC, n=12). We assessed glucose and insulin levels and their kinetic parameters, lipid profile, triglycerides (TG), total cholesterol (TC), HDL-cholesterol (HDL-C), body weight (BW), body mass index (BMI), amount of visceral fat (VF) and VF/BW ratio.
All measured markers of obesity (BW, BMI, VF, VF/BW) were significantly higher in both groups of castrated rabbits than in the control group. Apart from HDL-C, the plasma concentrations of all constituents of the lipid profile (TG, TC, HDL-C) were highest in the CO group. There were generally no differences between CI and NC groups for the same traits.
Glucose concentrations and glucose and insulin kinetic parameters were considerably higher (except for glucose elimination rate) in CO rabbits than in NC ones. The CI group showed lower fasting plasma insulin and improved glucose kinetics dynamics than CO rabbits but commensurable values of glucose and insulin kinetics parameters with the NC group.
The results clearly indicate that castration-induced visceral obesity negatively affected the lipid profile and insulin sensitivity and/or responsiveness. Antioxidant supplementation improved blood lipid profile, fatty liver, glucose homeostasis and insulin sensitivity in obese rabbits. In addition, castrated male New Zealand white rabbits might be considered an appropriate animal model to study various metabolic abnormalities related to visceral obesity, such as dyslipidemia and impaired insulin sensitivity.
Source : I.P. Georgiev et al., 2011. Effects of castration-induced visceral obesity and antioxidant treatment on lipid profile and insulin sensitivity in New Zealand white rabbits. Res Vet Sci 90: 196-204. doi: 10.1016/j.rvsc.2010.05.023

domain: chemistry


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You must be logged in and verified to contact the designer.
The Spurge Hawk-moth is the butterfly of the year 2014. The Spurge Hawk-moth (Hyles euphorbiae) is a European moth of the family Sphingidae. This hawk moth is used as an agent of biological pest control against the noxious weed known as leafy spurge (Euphorbia esula), but usually only in conjunction with other agents.The larvae consume the leaves and bracts of the plant. This design is a triangulated version o a spurge hawk-moth. It is a delicate design, designed as a hair piece but you can also wear on your neck. I designed it for my own wedding last year. I was pretty happy with it and still am ;) So this is a personal design for me, I hope you like it!

domain: design


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Personally, I believe if you have a passion follow it. What do you have to lose? Why not live life to the fullest, and focus on what drives you? This is my website. This is about me. My likes, dislikes, odd ideas and rabbles…it’s all here. I hope you enjoy the mad ramblings of a young writer just trying to break it.
Listed: May 17, 2012

domain: literature


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Publisher : Routledge
Published : november 2012, 182 p.
ISBN : 978-0-415-81458-4
Collective bargaining between employers and trade unions has profoundly changed working conditions in companies around the globe. But why do we start work at the age of 10, 16, 18, or 24? Why do we work 6, 8, 10, or more hours a day? These questions are becoming increasingly pertinent as working norms are fractured and fragmented by country. This book brings an entirely new perspective to our understanding of changes in working time. In both the UK and the United States, effective legal or collectively bar- gained regulation of working time has been limited over the last 20 years, to the extent that its disappearance is seen as almost unproblematic. Here author Jens Thoemmes sheds light on this transition and its economic implications with a fully evidenced sociological account, based particularly on original research into cases of working time standards in France and Germany.
This book addresses the whole process of working time regulation over the last twenty years, evaluating the activities of trade unions, employers, and the State. While theories of industrial relations have already addressed the issue of markets in the context of collective bargaining, this book draws connections between time and markets, places these transitions in their historical contexts, and illustrates the importance of this movement crossing borders and cultures.
Preface by: Professor Steve Jefferys

domain: library