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WHY DO WE RECOMMEND BIOTECHUSA FIBER MIX?
DISCOVER THE BENEFITS OF FIBERS WITH BIOTECHUSA FIBER MIX!
BioTech USA Fiber Mix contains well-known fiber-sources, such as psyllium husk or glucomannan, also known as konjac extract. Psyllium is a great water-soluble dietary fiber often used to thickening, because it absorbs water effectively and swells up to several times its own weight.
As part of a low-calorie diet, glucomannan contributes to weight-loss* and the maintenance of normal cholesterol level**.
USE AS YOU WISH
Ingredients containing glucomannan or psyllium are widely use in low-calorie diets, for example to thicken soups, but they are often mixed into a yoghurt or porridge, too. Fiber Mix contains both and we added three more dietary fibers to it, such as inulin, citrus fiber and fructooligosaccharides. Cherry on top, Fiber Mix contains only 10 calories per serving!
You can consume it on its own, mix it with water, add it to your favorite smoothie, use it as a basic ingredient in a fit cake or thicken a soup with it! If you mix it with a probiotic yoghurt, you can give your body prebiotics (water-soluble dietary fibers) and probiotics (thanks to yoghurt cultures) at the same time.
*Beneficial effect is obtained with 3 g of glucomannan per day as part of a low-calorie diet. It should be taken in 1 g doses 3 times a day with 1 or 2 glasses of water, before your meals. As part of a low-calorie diet, glucomannan contributes to weight loss.
**Beneficial effect is obtained with 4 g of glucomannan per day.
BioTech USA Fiber Mix is recommended:
Like all BioTech USA products Fiber Mix consists of only safe and carefully selected ingredients.
Recommended storage: Store tightly closed, in a dry, cool place.

domain: food


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I received an email today to tell me that Idina Menzel will be performing for one night only at the Royal Abert Hall. October 6th will be the day that Idina brings her acclaimed Symphony concert to London for just one night, and it’s all courtesy of Speckulation Entertainment! Idina Menzel is best known as the original Elphaba in Broadway’s Wicked, the Original Maureen in Rent as most recently, as Vocal Adrenaline Coach Shelby Corcoran in Glee.
As part of the concert, Idina will sing a diverse repertoire of musical theatre and pop classics for her many British fans. This concert will sell out fast so you should book soon if you want to see one of showbiz’s leading ladies do her thing for one night only.
Tickets are available by calling 08454015045 or online at The Royal Albert Hall Site. Ticket Prices are £25 to £70 with premium seats available at £75.

domain: entertainment


quote: The Russians have been using drone swarms against the Ukrainians to good effect (blowing up ammo dumps). Here's one being used against a Russian base on the coast of Syria.
Those who claim the Russians are not knowledgeable of modern technology need read this and also recall the Iranians "Landing" one of our high end drones.
quote: Six small-size air targets were intercepted and taken under control by the Russian EW units. Three of them were landed on the controlled area outside the base, and another three UAVs exploded as they touched the ground.
Launching the drones from 30+ miles out is quite an operation.
quote: It was the first time when terrorists applied a massed drone aircraft attack launched at a range of more than 50 km using modern GPS guidance system.
Drones could be very useful for both offense and defense (surveillance) uses. There are a lot of 'off the shelf' components for many parts of the drone package. Food for thought.
Posts: 609 | From: KC metro | Registered: Jun 2009


The Acting Secretary of State to the Embassy in France 1
804. Confirming Merchant’s telephone conversation with Dillon we have informed British here of Dowling’s telephonic report to Merchant to effect that Adenauer’s reaction to Protocols was more violently negative than anticipated2 and recommending postponement démarche to Mendes-France. British informed us they are telephoning and cabling London at once as follows:
- At our request interview scheduled with Mendes-France this afternoon be postponed until we all have an opportunity know results (a) Conant’s and (b) Hover Millar’s interviews with Adenauer.
- That we are instructing Amb. Dillon not to accompany Jebb to interview with Mendes-France this evening even if British insist upon going through with it.
We emphasized to British our feeling that purpose Protocol operation was to assist Adenauer and that his views as expressed to Conant indicated that far from being helpful it might prove harmful to him. British underlined to us their fear that if there were not a joint démarche, element of US–UK solidarity which is so necessary in coming weeks would be lacking. They appreciated however grave risk Protocols leaking to press once they are in French hands.


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Xbox Live Gold offers the most advanced multiplayer gaming network, free games, exclusive member discounts and premier entertainment all delivered onto your Xbox 360. Enjoy unparalleled online ma
tches with Titanfall and Halo; join a massive community and battle online through free to play games such as World of Tanks and Warface; and build your gaming library with two free games every month.
Microsoft is also giving away an epic Gold Rush suitcase full of gaming goodies worth INR 3 Lacs approx! The prize includes a 100g Gold Bar, a Titanfall Collector’s Edition for Xbox 360, an Xbox 360 Special Edition Chrome series controller (Gold), and an Xbox Live 12-month Gold subscription card.
In addition, eight lucky Xbox Live Gold members will also be picked at random to win an Xbox Live 12-Month Gold Subscription Card.
For more information about Xbox LIVE Gold Rush, please visit:https://www.kotakey.com/
Find More Deal On Wtfast Key.


The Rag Company Dry Me A River Waffle Weave Towel White
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Product DescriptionRemove standing water and dry your paintwork to a streak-free finish with the Dry Me A River Waffle Weave Towel! This towel is specially designed to help remove standing water from the paint using only one towel. The secret is in the ultra-absorbent waffle weave pattern and 70% Polyester / 30% Polyamide blend. With only a few wipes standing water will be sucked up into the pockets of the towel, absorbing up to 10 times its weight in moisture. The edge of the towel is also a delicate 70/30 microfiber makeup, which not only helps suck up water, but also keeps the towel that much more durable overall. Choose the size that works best for you and you have yourself the perfect towel for any drying situation. As with all microfiber towels, we recommend washing with cold water, microfiber specific shampoo and air drying for best results. Don't let water stand a chance on your paint, grab yourself a Dry Me A River Waffle Weave Towel!
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NBA fans were disappointed when the league first announced that jerseys will come with advertisements. However, it has turned out to be a lucrative endeavor, as the NBA’s jersey patch program has earned the league more than $150 million.
The Golden State Warriors have one of the biggest revenues from jersey advertisements. The deal between the team and Rakuten is worth $20 million. Additionally, the Celtics have a deal with General Electric worth more than $7 million. These amounts are considered a lot.
The money is considered basketball-related income and is split among players through the collective bargaining agreement.
$150 million may not seem like a lot when considering the league takes in $7 billion a year, but the small revenue could add hundreds of thousands of dollars to team salary caps which could be the difference-maker in acquiring players.
The jersey patch was highly unpopular with fans, who suggested that jerseys had their sacred nature and should not be tampered with. Nevertheless, the league went forward with the program because any profit is good for the league.
The payout may seem too easy for the league. The minimal amount of work that goes into jersey patches is far too little compared to the payout of $150 million. Therefore, the league will continue with the program.
For now, the NBA jersey patch program seems to be working without much overhead.

domain: news


Huddersfield Giants will have to make do without Jack Cogger for the next three games – as well as Chris Hill for two and Tui Lolohea for one.
Following last week’s loss to Warrington Wolves, those three men were all cited, charged and banned, but Giants head coach Ian Watson and the club decided to appeal the two-match ban handed to Cogger.
The reasoning was: so that he could be free for Huddersfield’s semi-final against Hull KR in a fortnight’s time.
However, that appeal was deemed to be ‘frivolous’ by the Operational Rules Tribunal and a two-match ban was upgraded to three.
“Chris Hill and Tui’s, the way they are at the moment it’s difficult to challenge them,” Watson said.
“We took a chance with Jack Cogger because he wanted to challenge it and to be hopefully available for the semi-final.
“Players work all their career to be able to play in those games, but by the letter of the law he has had to deal with the consequence of his actions on the day.
Watson doesn’t believe that Cogger’s was a ‘frivolous’ appeal at all.
“We didn’t think it was a frivolous challenge – it took them 40 minutes to decide on the outcome.
“If you’re taking 40 minutes to decide whether a case is positive or negative I can’t see why it can be frivolous to be fair.
“The case that Jack (Cogger) put forward was really good to be fair in the way that he spoke about the incident and the understanding of the situation and what the outcome should have been.
“He was totally against the fact that he led with the knees.”
Watson also believes the so-called ‘frivolous’ challenge will not deter clubs from appealing bans they believe are wrong.
“It depends, if the situation is a 50/50 I don’t think it will deter teams.
“You will always challenge it if you think it’s wrong – we were worried about this one and spoke to Jack about it.
“But, we were very precise and then for it to take 40 minutes to decide I don’t see how it can be interpreted as frivolous.”
Huddersfield will take on Wakefield Trinity tomorrow night hoping to stem a three-game losing run.


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122 S Beverly Dr Beverly Hills, CA 90212 (310) 550-0292
The Honor Bar serves up some great food. It's always packed here. They don't take reservations and seat you as a first come, first swerved basis. Your wait can be over an hour long, but it's totally worth it. They have a limited menu and they execute it perfectly. Everything that you can order is bursting with flavor. Their Honor burger is a popular choice here. Their second popular choice is the crispy chicken sandwich. All their ingredients work perfectly together for a great experience.
9865 S Santa Monica Blvd Beverly Hills, CA 90212 (702) 786-2179
Vampire Lounge & Tasting Room uses the blood of the vine, which is wine. It's a wine bar. It's dark with a dark vibe, but people aren't dressed as vampires. There's chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. It's also not as loud and crazy as a normal bar would be. They offer a great selection of award winning wine. They do wine tastings here by the glass or by the bottle. A great way to find some wine that you enjoy. There is a limited menu here that is created to go with the wine that they are currently offering.
453 N Canon Dr Beverly Hills, CA 90210 (310) 550-5707
Nic's is an interesting place to go. They mix up plain, American dishes and put a twist on them. Like Filet Mignon with Blueberries or oysters and walnuts. Their Martini list is so good that they have won awards off of it. What's also really cool here, both literally and figuratively, is that they have a Vodbox which is a 28 degree walk in freezer that is filled with unique vodkas from all over. It's an experience where you can taste the different vodkas and see which one's your favorite.
9500 Wilshire Blvd Beverly Hills, CA 90212 (310) 275-5200
Sidebar is a great place to stop after work to de-stress or to hit up on the weekend to relax and party. Sidebar is next to the restaurant CUT. Both of which are owned by Wolfgang Puck. They have selections of beer, wine and cocktails and an appetizer menu. They don't have a full menu but they do allow you to order off of the CUT menu so you can get a full meal at Sidebar if you want. Prices are a little high here but the taste of both the drinks and the food are totally worth it.


No mention is made of higher spring rates in the press material for the WRX STI. So you’ll have to take our word for it that this is a much more stiffly suspended machine than the last STI – and a much, much stiffer one than the slightly soft, roll-affected STI hatch that came before.
On the face of it, Subaru has over-compensated massively in response to criticisms of that car (and perhaps the STI saloon that followed it) by ramping up chassis rates to almost anti-social levels. It has introduced both grip and enhanced directional responses into the car’s handling, but at disproportionate expense.
The STI’s ride is very poor. In fact, it will be intolerable to all but the most committed. Mercifully, it isn’t too noisy or crashy as much as it is unnecessarily unyielding. It’s twice as firm as it needs to be at an estimate, and more so than a lot of 600bhp supercars we could mention.
Suspension travel feels uncharacteristically short for a fast 4x4, so the car’s dampers are rarely given the chance to soak up shocks in one cycle of movement. Every bump in the road seems to cause two or three more bodily disturbances than it should; every one is exacerbated by the chassis rather than absorbed.
The firmer load paths through the front suspension also cause a bit of torque steer, bump steer and general unwanted interference through the steering wheel, all of which makes guiding the car quite trying at times.
Grip levels are high, though, and the steering itself is very direct and responsive – but it’s an unsatisfying helm, mostly because the weighting is inconsistent and there’s a nasty elasticity to the feel, while little sense for what the front contact patches are doing is actually conveyed.
Assistance levels are necessarily high, however, due to the lateral forces that must be overcome, the reduced diameter of the wheel you’ve got to overcome them with and the extra directness of the steering gear.
Sheer lateral grip puts the STI within two-tenths of the VW Golf R around our dry handling circuit. The Subaru clings on to the track very hard indeed, turns in much more cleanly and keenly than any STI has before and keeps its body upright at all times. There’s still quite a bit of dive and pitch to contend with — a pay-off for those stiff anti-roll bars — but not so much as to corrupt braking stability.
The disappointment is that, in the dry, there’s not quite enough neutrality to the car’s cornering attitude. Once you’ve grown used to the entry speed you can carry, you inevitably look to pick the throttle up as early as you can mid-corner and steer the car on the rear axle as you exit. But no dice.


A category of new technology worth following are systems that stem from the download-and-play model of video-on-demand. Some years ago in a Boardwatch column I describe this as the primary competition to streaming video. My take was then, and still is, that streaming may be good for live broadcasts where immediacy is necessary, but is clearly inferior in every other way. More importantly download-and-play allows the user to replay the content without adding an additional network burden, Since then the idea has cropped up again in the form of a methodology employed by media centers. Now known as netTV or IPTV it is still download-and-play. Suddenly the idea has merged with video-on-demand (VOD) and even the somewhat forgotten video dial tone. The idea has even become stand-alone in the form of appliances. These are TiVO-like boxes with a hard disk to store the downloaded content. These are usually attached directly to a TV. A variation on this is the media-center PC that networks the content to the TV via a home network. The following is a current list of vendors involved in this emerging market. There are clearly too many early players for many of them to actually survive.
copyright (c) 2005 by John C. Dvorak and ipTVDaily
Akimbo Systems -- IPTV client-side STB/appliance with content delivery based on a subscription model.
Amino -- Set top boxes
BitBand -- IP Video server appliances.
Broadband Network Systems (BNS).
Broadbus -- VOD video servers
Broadstream -- IPTV middleware aimed at telcos.
C-Cor -- HFC to IP transition technology, VOD technology
Coaxsys -- Maker of the TV-Net IPTV adapter for home networks.
EagleBroadband -- Infrastructure, turnkey ipTV
Entone -- Maker of IPTV gateways for telcos.
Envivio -- Mprg4/AVC encoders/decoders, middleware
Globecast -- ipTV content delivery
GooMe -- Ambitious attempt to use IPTV to create (yet again) interactive TV.
Harmonic -- Multiplexers, encoders, middleware, you-name-it
Irdeto Access -- Essentially a DRM company now involved in IPTV
InfoEQ -- an IPTV Set-top-box similar to Akimbo
i3 -- Finnish IPTV STB that also serves as a gateway router.
Kasenna -- Another VOD, PPV company now calling itself "The IPTV Company"
Kreatel -- Open software platform and IPTV STB with OTA (over-the-air) features. Advanced.
Latens -- Video encryption for use with IPTV
Microsoft -- Various initiatives making up Microsoft-TV with emphasis on IPTV.
MInerva Networks -- Encoding hardware for delivering IPTV over DSL.
Motorola -- Set Top boxes, DVR's, encoders, chipsets
Myrio -- Middleware for IPTV boxes.
Orca Interactive -- Middleware for IPTV boxes.
Occam Networks -- High-end telco gear for IPTV services delivered by phonecos.
Pace -- Set-top boxes, misc. gear, attractive packager
Paradyne -- Media gateways for telcos, various DSL gear
Scientific-Atlantic -- Set top boxes, encoders
SeaChange -- Digital video servers for VOD systems.
Skystream Networks -- Maker of head-end encoders, receivers and other IPTV boxes.
Tandberg -- Encoders, compression specialists
Telsey -- Italian company specializing in IPTV STB's and media converters.
Thomson -- French maker of IPTV box to be used throughout France.
TriplePlay TV -- Telco informational site.
TUT Systems -- Telco gear for video trunking and other IPTV services.
2Wire -- IPTV set-top box optimized for DSL.
Tuxia -- German software company making middleware for STB, too focused on streaming.
TCOM/Dtvro -- Korean-based maker of IPTV set top combo boxes.
WideVine -- Security and DRM company interested in IPTV.
Verimatrix -- Encryption and DRM company focused on IPTV
Veveo -- An IPTV start up with $14 million -- vague.
Do you have additons or corrections to this list? e-Mail me here.
Companies Specializing in Digital Rights Management
Billing System Specialists
Publications specifically targeting IPTV
ipTV-Daily -- Daily News summaries, developer of these links
IPTV News -- General Interest News sites (reg. required)
IPTVNews.Net -- iptv blog
Informitv News -- Consulting company reports
TVOver.net -- News summary blog


text:
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Oliver Cromwell - Timeline
Transcript of Oliver Cromwell - Timeline
November 3rd - Charles calls upon Parliament again for money, but it backfires as they declare "ship-tax" illegal, along with many other unpopular measures. An uprising in Ireland leads to Parliament and the King agreeing they need an army however, they do not trust each other to lead it.
The Grand Remonstrance, a list which states all the criticisms Parliament has about the king's actions over the years, is handed to the king. 1641 1641-42 Parliament suggests that they should appoint the commanders of the army, the King disagrees and tries to arrest 5 members of Parliament. He fails and became so unpopular in the process, he flees and London to set up court in York. 1642 Both Parliament and the King are finding ways to build an army legally, they succeed and the English Civil war starts on August 22nd. Oliver Cromwell leads Parliament to a victory at Marston Moor but it fails to crush the King's armies. Cromwell pushes Parliament for better commanders and better trained troops. 1644 1645 The New Model Army is created by parliament. It is a professional, trained, military unit. Commander-in-chief is General Fairfax. Oliver Cromwell is Lieutenant-General and is in charge of the cavalry. At the Battle of Naseby, the New Model Army inflicts a great defeat on the king's army. 1646 June 24th - At Oxford, the New Model Army beseige the Royalists who surrender ending the first Civil war. 1647 1648 1649 The Scots hand King Charles to the Parliamentarians, who imprison him in Holmby House in Northamptonshire where he plots the restoration of his power.
November, Charles flees to Isle of Wight and forms a pact with the Scots to begin the second civil war. The king rejects the many suggestions the Parliament give for peace. As a result Oliver Cromwell leads the New Model Army and crushes the Royalists in Wales and then the Scots. The war finally ends on August 28th. The Parliament have now lost all trust in the King and try him for treason, his is found guilty on the 27th and is beheaded on the 30th January. The Scots and Irish declare they intend to help Charles II to become king. Cromwell leads the New Model Army to Scotland after they declare Charles I's son is now King Charles II. Cromwell completely defeats the Scottish army in Dunbar. 1651 1653 1658 The Scots lead by Charles II slip out south while Cromwell is still in Scotland, and destroys them once more at the Battle of Worcester, the final battle in the civil war. Charles flees to Holland. Angered that Parliament are stopping reforms, Cromwell forcibly dissolves it.
December 16th - Cromwell reluctantly becomes Lord Protector. September 3rd - Oliver Cromwell dies at Whitehall, London. Probably because of malaria of blood-poisoning and following an infection. King Charles II is restored to the throne. Oliver Cromwell
The man who made
Parliament what it is today Why was Oliver Cromwell a good leader?
Cromwell lead with good tactics, strategies and motivation. He had an amazing knack for making his troops believe in themselves, he made them feel as if God was on their side so they created a very good fighting force. Interesting facts about Oliver Cromwell:
Oliver as a child had to look after his seven sisters and mother as his father died.
Cromwell worked as a farmer for many years and when elected for Parliament, he was the poorest man in the House of Commons.
He was a very outspoken MP and was keen for change.
He had nine children, seven of which lived into adulthood.
Oliver suffered from depression.
He disapproved of Christmas.
Although Oliver Cromwell signature was 3rd on King Charles death warrant, he admired the king and made sure everyone respected his grave. He supported his execution because he thought it would be best for his country. August - Cromwell leads an army to Ireland. At Drogheda and Wexford, Cromwell's troops slaughter the Royalist garrisons as well as civilians. What happened to Cromwell's head?
As revenge for killing his father, King Charles II dug up Cromwell and others responsible for Charles I death. The King ordered for them to be hung for a day and then put their heads on 20ft tall sticks and placed them in front of Westminster Hall as a deterrent. In 1685 a storm broke out resulting in the loss of Cromwell's head. It was found and went through a series of museums before being buried in Sidney Sussex College at Cambridge University. Hero or Villain?
Oliver Cromwell was thought by most Protestants to be a hero, Great Britain at this time was run by the Church of England. Protestants and Puritans feared that Britain will change as King Charles wife was a Catholic.
Oliver, however, was seen as a villain in Catholics eyes as they were treated well by Charles and were scared what would happen to them if they were lead by Puritans.
This debate is still ongoing today and everyone has different views.
In my opinion, I believe that Cromwell was a hero because he acted on what he thought was right, not always for himself but for others. I also think he made the right decisions for the people.

domain: history


Davis DMV Office to Undergo Renovations: Temporary Closure and Alternative Locations Announced
The California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) has announced that its Davis office, located at 505 Pole Line Road, will temporarily close its doors for a series of renovations starting from 5 p.m., Friday, February 9, with a scheduled reopening at 8 a.m., Tuesday, May 28. The renovation efforts are set to include significant upgrades such as the installation of a new HVAC system, roof, flooring, restrooms, and other essential improvements to enhance customer service and operational efficiency.
During the closure period, the DMV encourages customers to utilize its digital services for a wide array of transactions that do not necessitate an in-person visit. The DMV's online platform offers services including eligible driver’s license and vehicle registration renewals, among others. Customers are also advised to use the Service Advisor tool on the DMV website to explore their options for completing various DMV tasks.
For those requiring in-person services, the DMV has provided information on alternative locations within the area. Customers can visit the following nearby offices:
- Woodland: 825 East St., Suite 306, approximately 12 miles away.
- Vacaville: 621 Orange Drive, around 18 miles distant.
- Sacramento Broadway: 4700 Broadway, about 20 miles from the Davis office.
- Sacramento South: 7775 La Mancha Way, situated 23 miles away.
In addition to these alternatives, the DMV is promoting its paperless options for vehicle registration and driver’s license renewal notices. To opt-in for these paperless notices, customers are required to sign in or create a secure online account at dmv.ca.gov and select the paperless option.
The temporary closure of the Davis DMV office underscores the department's commitment to maintaining and upgrading its facilities to better serve the public. By incorporating modern technologies and improving the physical infrastructure, the DMV aims to provide a more efficient and comfortable experience for all customers.


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Tropical storm Earl dropped heavy rain (2.3 inches)which, with the wind, caused my weather station to shut down. Restarted it this morning (beautiful, sunny and DRY) with no problem. I need to see if I can fix the software to prevent a recurrence of the problem. With the great weather and a just arrived new crankset (smaller granny gear) back on my mountain bike. The new gearing made a big difference in my climbing endurance but need much more TOB (time on bike) to really get back in shape.
Spring came early and real on the Cape – first time since we’ve been here (12 years). Here’s a video of my backyard trail which I’ve just been clearing of debris and much poison ivy. Also adding a small but major challenge to my little trail – going to try it tomorrow. We’ll see how it goes.
A landmark day! Second day of sunshine, and second day of bike riding, getting in shape for a fall mountain bike trip to Whittier in British Columbia with my son. This has been an awful June – gray, wet and cold. Rainfall 3 inches, only 10 dry days, only 9 truly sunny days. Finally finished rebuilding my rotting shed and now back to repairing my weather station and working on my photography. No matter how much time I have, it’s never enough.
Well, our New England winter has been a tough one weatherwise for my weather station here in Brewster. One of our coldest and snowy winter starts kept my anemometer and wind vane frozen. A brief thaw helped to free up the anemometer but the vane stayed locked at WSW. That is until a few days ago when I did a visual check and discovered the vane was gone! Soon I was amazed to find it intact in one of the rain gutters. Apparently the bearing remained sufficiently frozen so that the wind pushing against the vane unscrewed the nut that had held it attached. So I guess I will be reporting a WSW wind until spring when I’ll be able to get to the roof to take down the AAG wind unit for repair.

domain: geography


text:
A feast in words. Spanish and Hispano...
Project: A feast in words. Spanish and Hispano-American narrative prose from a culinary-intertextual perspective
01-JAN-06 – 31-DEC-09
- Three major research items: -are culinary references gender determined items? (Base: a diachronic corpus of women and male writers) -The 'identitarian' function of food (case study: PortoRican and "nuyorican" writers. -The use of culinary metaphors to define fundamental concepts within de Latin-American culture. Two traditional clusters: culinary terms by describing the mix culture and the image of Latin-America as the territory of the cannibal.


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Prawn crackers, also known as prawn chips and shrimp puffs are deep fried crackers made from starch and prawn that serve as flavouring. They are a popular snack in parts of Southeast and East Asia. Contains 8.75% prawn contents.
INGREDIENTS AND ALLERGENS DECLARATION
Tapioca Starch (75%), Shrimp (Crustaceans) (9%), Garlic (6.5%), Sugar (4.5%), Salt (2%), Pepper (2%), MSG E621 (1%).
For allergens, including Cereals containing Gluten, see ingredients in bold.
Pack Size: 6x2kg
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Help is desperately needed in Hawaii as devastating, fast-moving wildfires have burned across the Big Island and Maui. Strong winds associated with Hurricane Dora have fanned the flames, knocking out local communication and destroying homes and historic buildings, including the beloved Lahaina waterfront and adjacent residential communities. We can show our aloha by supporting those whose homes and livelihoods have been most affected. The nonprofit organizations below are working directly with residents, families, and businesses impacted by the tragedy.
Hawaii Community Foundation
The Maui Strong Fund was created to provide community resilience with resources for disaster preparedness, response, and recovery. The fund is currently being used to support communities affected by the wildfires on Maui.
Maui Relief Fund
A Honolulu-based nonprofit organization, Aloha United Way, has created the Maui Relief Fund. All donations will go directly toward efforts supporting victims of the fires.
Salvation Army’s Hawaiian and Pacific Island Division
The Salvation Army‘s Hawaiian and Pacific Island Division is accepting donations to provide meals for thousands displaced in Maui emergency shelters.
Maui Food Bank
The Maui Food Bank is currently providing meals to displaced residents. For every one dollar donated, the Maui Food bank can provide four meals to the hungry.
Maui Mutual Aid Fund
A local effort, the Maui Mutual Aid Fund is run by volunteers and is accepting donations that will directly support Maui families, elderly families, people with disabilities, and those with limited or no insurance.
OCCF will continue to work with our partners to identify reputable organizations that are providing support. We will update this page with any new information.
If you are an OCCF donor and wish to give through your advised fund, please contact your philanthropic advisor or email@example.com for more information.

domain: sociology


250 WEST VIDEO: SEE CAMERON McADOO DO IT IN THE DAYTONA 250 WEST CLASS
At the first round of the 250 West Championship in Orlando, two bad incidents occurred. First, Star Yamaha’s Jeremy Martin decided not to jump the double out of the first turn after the start, that set off a chain reaction that resulted in Stilez Robertson landing on top of Jeremy Martin. Second, Cameron McAdoo, through no fault of his own, clipped an Alpinestars medic who walked out to a hot track without looking (thinking that all the riders had seen the red restart flag from the Robertson/Martin crash). The collision with the medic forced McAddo, who was chasing eventual Orlando winner Justin Cooper, to run over the already downed Alex Martin (from a separate crash). After the race, McAdoo apologized profusely and claimed responsibility, but the blame was on the AMA who failed to show the red flag to the leaders of the race, waving it only at the finish line, which Cooper and McAdoo had already passed. It was an unfortunate set of circumstances in a year with lots of unfortunate AMA snafus.
Orlando was not a good day for either Robertson or McAdoo, but Daytona was. Robertson,a first year Pro, led the majority of the race, until Cameron McAdoo got past him for the win. At the race’s end both riders score big firsts in their respective careers. McAdoo won his first-ever AMA 250 Supercross and Stilez Robertson got his first-ever AMA 250 Supercross podium. Thankfully, both can put the incidents in Orlando in their rear view mirrors.


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Received date: February 06, 2015; Accepted date: February 25, 2015; Published date: March 05, 2015
Citation: Tie J, Zhao Yiming Z, Jiangtao L, Yingdi L (2015) Treatment of Afferent Loop Obstruction by Percutaneous Trans-Hepatic Biliary and Intestinal Drainage. J Palliat Care Med 5:213. doi: 10.4172/2165-7386.1000213
Copyright: © 2015 Tie J, et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Visit for more related articles at Journal of Palliative Care & Medicine
We presented a rare case of chronic afferent loop obstruction after radical resection of gastric carcinoma. A 44- year-old man was admitted because of “upper abdominal distension and abdominal pain for 3 months, skin and sclera jaundice for 2 weeks”. Abdominal CT revealed dilatation of the intrahepatic bile duct and common bile duct, a large, abdominal cystic lesion, as well as left adrenal gland metastasis. MRCP revealed that the cystic lesion was an expansion of loops. Thus, the diagnosis of afferent loop (A-loop) obstruction was made. Subsequently, the patient underwent percutaneous transhepatic cholangial drainage (PTCD). The patient’s abdominal pain was significantly reduced, and the jaundice subsided. We should consider the possibility of the occurrence of the left adrenal metastasis and abdominal lymph node metastasis led to a chronic obstruction of A-loop. The chronic obstruction gradually developed into a complete blockage, further causing biliary obstruction and resulting in the occurrence of severe jaundice and abdominal pain. Here we not only reported a case of chronic afferent loop obstruction following radical resection of gastric carcinoma, but also analyzed the characteristic features of CT imaging and treatment. This case report is a good reference to similar gastrointestinal malignancy.
Percutaneous trans hepatic cholangial drainage; Afferent loop obstruction
A 44-year-old man presented with 1-month progressive jaundice, as well as 3-month upper abdominal distension and abdominal pain. He had undergone an “extended radical resection for gastric carcinoma (total gastrectomy, Roux-en-Y anastomosis, distal pancreatectomy, and splenectomy and cholecystectomy)" due to gastric cancer three years ago. Physical examination revealed poor vitality, severe jaundice of the skin and sclera, a soft and movable mass in the upper abdomen. Laboratory examinations showed red blood cell (RBC) 3.0 × 109/L, hemoglobin (HB) 76 g/L, total bilirubin (TBIL) 187.7 µmol/L, albumin (ALB) 26.8 g/L, direct bilirubin (DBIL) 161.5 µmol/L, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) 99 IU/L. The results of tumor markers were as follows: carbohydrate antigen 19-9 (CA199) 80.82 ng/ml, carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) 5.8 ng/ml. Abdominal CT revealed dilatation of the intrahepatic bile duct and common bile duct, a large, abdominal cystic lesion (Figure 1A), as well as left adrenal gland metastasis (Figure 1B).
The patient was diagnosed at first with malignant obstructive jaundice. However, what is the reason for biliary obstruction? To investigate the site and cause of bile duct obstruction, we performed Magnetic Resonance Cholangiopancreatography (MRCP) examination. MRCP revealed that the cystic lesion was an expansion of small bowel loops (Figure 1C). Thus, the diagnosis of afferent loop (A-loop) obstruction was made. Subsequently, the patient underwent percutaneous transhepatic cholangial drainage (PTCD). The duodenal-jejunal anastomotic stricture (Figure 2A) was observed. Taken together, an accurate diagnosis for this case requires familiarity not only with upper abdominal cross-sectional anatomy but also with operative variations in gastrojejunostomy construction.
Figure 2: PTCD drainage treatment for the afferent loop obstruction; A. During the PTCD treatment, the duodenal-jejunal anastomotic stricture was observed, and the contrast agent could not pass through; B. The tip of the drainage tube was placed in the upper segment of the efferent loop through the bile duct, duodenal papilla, and afferent loop-jejunal anastomosis; C. Enhanced CT showed the significantly reduced dilatation of the bowel segment.
To alleviate the pressure of the intestinal tract and bile duct, and prevent cholangitis and bowel necrosis, ultrasound-guided percutaneous transhepatic biliary drainage was performed under local anesthesia. After pierced into the right intrahepatic bile duct, the guide wire was then advanced into the proximal aspect of the obstruction, and followed by a 5 French cabra catheter. The guide wire was adjusted to pass through the narrow section, and an internal-external 8.5-F drainage catheter (Dawson-Mueller drainage catheter; Cook) was inserted. The drainage tube tip was placed in the upper segment of the efferent loop through the bile duct and the A-loop-jejunal anastomosis (Figure 2B). There were no procedural complications. He was treated with Transmentil and Glutathione (GSH) after PTCD. Because of deterioration of the general condition, he was also treated with parenteral nutrition (aminoacid solution, vitamins, glucose, electrolytes, lipids) for a total caloric contribution of 1,500 kcal/daily. The abdominal pain was significantly reduced the same day after operation. The jaundice rapidly disappeared, and clinical conditions quickly improved. After five postoperative days, the follow-up CT scan showed that the dilatation of the bile duct and duodenal A-loop was significantly reduced compared to that before operation (Figure 2C). A-loop obstruction did not recur during three months of follow-up.
The patient presented with 3-month of upper abdominal distension and abdominal pain, as well as 1-month of progressive jaundice. Abdominal CT revealed left adrenal gland metastasis (Figure 1B). PTCD showed the duodenal-jejunal anastomotic stricture (Figure 2A), both CT and PTCD reveal an intestine jejuno-jejunostomy lesion. Therefore, we deducted that the stricture and intestine lesion is secondary to the adrenal metastasis.
It might be a partial obstruction in the early stage of metastasis, when upper abdominal distension and abdominal pain was the main symptoms. With the growing oppression of the left adrenal gland lump, and obstruction of intestine metastatic lesion, the chronic obstruction gradually developed into a complete blockage, causing intestine conducts bile, pancreatic juices, as well as intestinal secretions gathering, dilatation of the afferent loop, which resulted in the occurrence of severe jaundice and abdominal pain.
Afferent loop obstruction often occurs after a subtotal gastrectomy with Billroth II anastomosis, especially in patients with the duodenal jejunal curve inclining extremely to the left side . The anastomosis can cause distortion in the afferent section. In such cases, the mesentery of the efferent section located in front of the afferent section can stretch tightly to form a rope belt and compress the afferent section. This type of obstruction is a closed loop obstruction, which can easily lead to strangulation, bowel necrosis, and perforation. It often requires emergency surgery once diagnosed.
To prevent these complications, in recent years, side-to-side anastomosis (Braun anastomosis), that is, Roux-en-Y anastomosis, was performed between the afferent and efferent jejuna in Billroth II subtotal gastrectomy. Roux-en-Y anastomosis avoids anastomosis at the crossing site of the afferent and efferent loops and reduces such complications as afferent loop obstruction, so A-loop obstruction is very rarely following Roux-en-Y reconstruction . In the radical resection of gastric carcinoma in this patient, Roux-en-Y anastomosis of radical gastrectomy was performed. However, due to the occurrence of the left adrenal metastasis, the invasion and compression of the growing metastatic lesion onto the opening of the afferent loop led to a chronic obstruction. It might be a partial obstruction in the early stage of metastasis, when upper abdominal distension and abdominal pain was the main symptoms. With the growing oppression of the left adrenal gland lump, and obstruction of intestine metastatic lesion, the chronic obstruction gradually developed into a complete blockage, causing intestine conducts bile, pancreatic juices, as well as intestinal secretions gathering, dilatation of the afferent loop, which resulted in the occurrence of severe jaundice and abdominal pain.
If timely treatment is not provided, further development may lead to necrosis and perforation in the bowel segment of the afferent loop, as well as other fatal complications, such as liver failure. The treatments for malignant A-loop obstruction include surgery, endoscopic treatment and PTCD . However, such patients, especially after radical resection of gastric carcinoma (as in this case), are usually in poor physical condition, with severe anemia, severe jaundice, hypoproteinemia, malnutrition, and physical exhaustion, so surgical treatment is risky. In the present case, we chose PTCD because the patient was too sick to undergo surgery and the peroral approach  could not be used because of the patient’s altered upper gastrointestinal tract anatomy. Therefore, PTCD [5,6] can be considered a safe and effective treatment for patients with malignant A-loop obstruction.
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EMPOWERING WOMEN THROUGH FAIR TRADE
The Peace Exchange believes that on some level we are all connected. Our ethos is to empower those without a voice, through art and design. Artisan Fair Trade centers are created around the globe, giving a platform to the poorest of poor. We empower and educate through sustainable jobs creating positive change.
PANZI PJ PANTS
Unisex Pants and PJ's for men and women. They come in shorts, capris and long pj's. A portion of proceeds go towards supporting Dr. Mukwege and his work at the Panzi Hospital.


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If you want to take a break from coffee, for just a moment or for good, enjoy a delicious, robust cup of Teeccino anytime of the day. It’s yummy after dinner and kids can drink it too. Who would think that a simple blend of roasted and ground herbs, grains, fruits & nuts could taste like coffee? Think Mediterranean carob, chicory and dandelion roots blended with dark roasted Mayan ramón seeds - pure ingredients that taste deliciously like coffee when they’re transformed into Teeccino. Just like there’s no milk in soy milk and no tea in herbal tea, there’s no coffee in herbal coffee. Enjoy Teeccino’s regular, nut, chocolate or spicy flavors to find the cup that is perfect for you!
Tea drinkers often profess to dislike coffee, but when they taste Teeccino, they are amazed by its rich, smooth flavor and full body that is more filling than a cup of tea. Tee-bags make it quick and easy to steep a cup of Teeccino for a delicious after-meal dessert beverage with under 20 calories. Tee-bags are so convenient and portable, you can take them wherever you go in their protective outer envelope. With 6 grams of Teeccino in every Tee-bag, each bag has over three times more product than normal tea bags. That’s how Teeccino Tee-bags deliver the same fresh brewed, robust flavor of our filter grind with the ease of steeping instead of brewing. When out and about, Teeccino fans are never caught without a Tee-bag. Enjoy a cup of Teeccino even if a restaurant or café doesn’t serve it yet by just requesting hot water!
Teeccino is the creation of Caroline MacDougall, designer of over ninety herbal beverages for top tea brands. Being caffeine sensitive, she has to confess that she loves the taste of coffee but it makes her way too speedy if she drinks it. A dream inspired her to create Teeccino – literally! Today, our company is a family-run business including Caroline’s husband, Jerry and son, Galen, along with a passionate and enthusiastic team who love sharing Teeccino with people all over the world. Caroline’s dedication to preserving rainforests, the lungs of our planet, guides our company’s dedication to sustainable, ecological and health-focused values. Visit our website to learn more about the unique ingredients in Teeccino that protect the rainforest while supporting impoverished families living in rural villages in developing countries. By drinking Teeccino, you join our mission to promote optimal health for both yourself and our planet.
I love the flavor and take it with me on business trips. I haven't weaned myself from coffee yet, but am still trying.Published 4 days ago by Amazon Customer
Taste pretty good . Light roast coffee drinkers will enjoy with creamPublished 9 days ago by Amazon Customer
This has a wonderful coffee-like flavor. I love coffee - hot or iced. I'm very particular about high quality coffee that is well roasted and properly prepared. Read morePublished 16 days ago by Always Curious
It tastes like coffee. I have not been able to drink coffee for four years. I have tried a lot of alternatives and always been disappointed. Read morePublished 20 days ago by Tania Hughes
This.stuff.is.so.YUM!!!!!! If you want to break a coffee habit or just decrease your caffeine intake, you can't go wrong here. So yum, my 6 VERY PICKY kids love it too.Published 23 days ago by CJrMom
After a long, mostly unsuccessful search for a gluten free coffee substitute that truly satisfies the taste buds, I found Teeccino Herbal Coffee Alternative. Read morePublished 1 month ago by Linda R. Hendrex


Broad Street Brief: Tuesday Budget Hearings Feature Discussion of Teen Programs, Police Recruitment to Prepare for Summer
April 13, 2023
April 13, 2023
In light of Philadelphia’s ongoing gun violence crisis and the recent high-profile disorderly gathering of hundreds of local teenagers in Center City during their spring break, much of City Council’s Tuesday budget hearing with the Managing Director’s Office and Philadelphia Police Department focused on the city’s extracurricular offerings to teenagers, as well as how the police can best prepare for the upcoming summer season, which typically results in higher rates of crime and disorderly conduct. The police department has requested an additional $55.7 million over last year’s budget in order to address ongoing staffing issues.
Philadelphia City Council holds several public hearings throughout the legislative calendar. You can watch the hearings here.
The full schedule of FY24 budget hearings and a link to watch them can be found here.
While mayoral candidates have participated in countless forums in recent weeks, Tuesday evening’s televised debate — the first of the campaign cycle — was a change of pace, with candidates sparring with each other about the Sixers arena plan, education reform, public safety, and the efficiency and equitability of the dispatch of city services, among other topics. The debate was also one of the first high-profile campaign events that did not feature former District 7 City Councilmember Maria Quiñones Sánchez, who suspended her mayoral campaign over the weekend due to the “obnoxious” amount of money being spent in the race.
The Philadelphia Inquirer has published the fourth and fifth installments in its ongoing series of candidate profiles leading up to the May primary. The most recent installments focus on former Councilmember At-Large Derek Green and how his unique combination of personal and professional experiences has informed his campaign platform and former City Controller Rebecca Rhynhart and her pragmatic approach to the office.
With 28 candidates on the ballot vying for just five at-large seats on City Council, it can be difficult for any one campaign to distinguish itself from its competitors. In fact, several of these candidates can be sorted into factions that, while not necessarily indicative of actual political alliances, can be helpful in terms of describing their similar characteristics. These include the progressive, primarily grassroots-funded candidates; the pro-development, business community-backed candidates; and the incumbents who generally garner support from both bases.
A recent study published by the Brookings Institution finds that Center City is “remarkably safe,” and that incidents of crime have actually been on the decline in recent years. The trend is consistent with those in other major cities as well.
Last month, SEPTA announced that it was canceling the planned extension of the Norristown High Speed Line to King of Prussia. Given that the transit authority planned to spend approximately $340 million of its budget on the project, it has since needed to allocate these funds toward other priorities, such as modernizing its existing trolley system and continuing its “bus revolution” project.
Last week, the Philadelphia School District shut down Frankford High and Mitchell Elementary Schools due to the discovery of damaged asbestos. While the former is scheduled to reopen for in-person instruction today, the latter will be closed for the remainder of the academic year.
Earlier this week, Temple University announced that JoAnne A. Epps, a former Temple law school dean and provost and longtime faculty member, will serve as interim president of the university in the wake of Jason Wingard’s recent resignation.
Cozen O’Connor Public Strategies, an affiliate of the international law firm Cozen O’Connor, is a bipartisan government relations practice representing clients before the federal government and in cities and states throughout the country. With offices in Washington D.C., Richmond, Albany, New York City, Philadelphia, Harrisburg, Chicago, and Santa Monica, the firm’s public strategies professionals offer a full complement of government affairs services, including legislative and executive branch advocacy, policy analysis, assistance with government procurement and funding programs, and crisis management. Its client base spans multiple industries, including healthcare, transportation, hospitality, education, construction, energy, real estate, entertainment, financial services, and insurance.
Established in 1970, Cozen O’Connor has over 775 attorneys who help clients manage risk and make better business decisions. The firm counsels clients on their most sophisticated legal matters in all areas of the law, including litigation, corporate, and regulatory law. Representing a broad array of leading global corporations and middle-market companies, Cozen O’Connor serves its clients’ needs through 31 offices across two continents.
November 28, 2023
November 28, 2023
November 27, 2023


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Complete set of 1987 Topps Baseball Cards issued for the season. 792 baseball cards in the factory set. Highlights include the rookie cards of stars like Bo Jackson, Barry Larkin, Will Clark, John Kruk, Jamie Moyer, Ruben Sierra as well as Rafael Palmiero and Barry Bonds. Mark McGwire’s first card as a member of the A’s is in this set as well.

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15th December 2018
For the sixth year in a row, Austrian technology body, FutureZone, have conducted a full drive test of the country’s top network operators. This involved Metricell’s AutoMobile technology being used across 14,000km of road and rail to record over one million measurement points. The conclusion of the project saw operator A1 emerge on top with the best upload and download speeds. Thanks to our long-time partner, Jurgen Dalmus, who worked with a number of people at the Big blue to make the project a success. Read the full report from FutureZone here.
1st April 2022
This month EE have renewed with Metricell for another year. This renewal covers Support and Hosting for NEST as well as renewing their NetLogger Managed Service
9th February 2022
Metricell are pleased to have been selected for the Digital Connectivity Infrastructure Accelerator (DCIA) project, a government initiative which allowed local authorities to bid for funding to develop and implement digital asset management solutions.


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Patricia Schlesinger will be joining to line up of speakers for Radiodays Europe in Lisbon 2020.
Patricia has worked in broadcasting all over the world. Starting as a trainee at Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR) and as a reporter, editor and host for the ARD show “Panorama”. She then headed the ARD Southeast Asia studio in Singapore and served as a US correspondent in Washington. Upon her return she took over as director for the cultural and documentary programming division at NDR television. Since 2016 she has been working as Director General at Rundfunk Berlin-Brandenburg broadcasting. Productions overseen by Patricia Schlesinger have won numerous awards – among them the German Film Award, Grimme and Television Awards, one Emmy and one Oscar.
We are pleased to have Patricia Schlesinger at Radiodays Europe, and to hear the insights she can bring from all her adventures in broadcasting around the world. Register today to see Patricia and so many other talented speakers.

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COVID 19 UPDATE: We are pleased to announce that all 15 PMT Stores across the UK are Covid Secure and are now open. MORE INFO.
Boss Pedals are an industry standard for guitarists serious about their sound. Whether you're after a guitar pedal to add overdrive, reverb, delays or distortion - Boss Pedals will have you covered.
Boss have been making effects pedals for quite some time. Over 3 decades ago, Boss designed some of the first distortions and delays that let guitarists expand their sonic palette way beyond mundane amp spring reverbs.
Developing their modern MDP technology, specialist pickups, famous red loopers and huge multi-effects setups, Boss remains one of the most reliable choices for performing musicians and studio experimentation. Speak to any seasoned guitarist who's played on the big stage, and you can almost guarantee they've used a Boss Pedal in their rig.
The Compact series of Boss Pedals have been established as the 'go-to' stompbox for any level of guitar or bass player.
Classic Boss Pedals like the DS-1 Distortion, SD-1 Super Overdrive and DD-7 Delay Pedal are widely used around the world. Boss Compact pedals come with a real sense of indestructibility - not surprisingly since they are built to be pressed with your foot night after night!
As well as helping to usher in the 'golden age' of fuzz, distortion and overdrive in Rock and Roll music, Boss have also complemented the series with a handy range of compact utility pedals. For example, the iconic Guitar Tuner Pedal - the TU-3. Don't forget the classic CS-3 Compression pedal and GE-7 Equalizer, each helping you perfect your tone in a handy foot pedal format.
Furthermore, Boss also produce a wide range of versatile Footswitch and Volume Pedals, comprising of the FS and FV Series. These are perfect for triggering amp settings or offering more control over your tone. All hands-free, of course!
The Boss Loop Station pedals have cemented themselves as an 'industry standard' loop pedal series. Famously used by the likes of Ed Sheeran during his early years, the RC3, RC-30 and RC300 are a popular choice for almost any level of guitarist. Boss Loop Stations are particularly popular with solo performers and songwriters that want to lay down multiple layers and instruments without a backup band.
In a versatile desktop or floor pedal setup, the Boss RC-505 has been embraced by street performers and beatboxers around the world for its intuitive interface and ease of use. It's never been easier (or more fun!) to create layered loops and crazy sequences from multiple sound sources.
In the modern age of convenient all-in-one effects processors, more and more Guitar Effects companies are joining Boss in the digital domain. However, none come with quite the same legacy and prestige as Boss. The GT-1 and GT-1000 each combine decades of classic stompbox pedal design with the latest and greatest digital processing technology.
Check out our First Impressions video with Dagan at PMTVUK for an in-depth look at the Boss GT-1000!
Since their launch in 2015, the Boss Katana range of amps have been a huge success at PMT Stores around the UK. By far one of our best sellers - for good reason!
Consisting of 50w, 100w, Artist and 2x12 Versions, the Katana Series offers the classic sound of a Boss Stompbox in a compact amp. Designed to capture the sound of traditional Boss Effects in-the-box, the Katana amps offer a simplified solution for home practice without needing to hook up an entire pedalboard.
The Boss Katana 100W amps also feature a handy 1w power output mode, so you can squeeze gorgeous tube-like tone with an authentic vintage vibe.
Furthermore, Boss also sell a Mini Katana Amp perfect for travelling with or when home studio space is tight.
More recently, Boss have introduced some convenient, high-performance Wireless Guitar Solutions in the form of the WL Series. Via a simple plug-in jack transmitter on your guitar, you can wirelessly beam your guitar's true tone to your amp without messy cable runs. For frequent stage performers that care about tonal integrity, Boss Wireless systems are a breath of fresh air.
Moreover, the Boss Katana Air is a wireless, go-anywhere guitar practice amp capable of gorgeous tone modelling and built-in effects. A must-have for any studio hoppers or street performers!
We also stock a wide range of Boss Accessories like Cables, Power Supplies and Pedal Cases. Get the most out of your new Boss Pedals with some reliable accessories to hook it all up!
The Boss 9V Pedal Power Supply is a must-have for anyone who owns a Boss Guitar Pedal.
The Boss BCB30 and BCB60 Pedal Boards are some of the most trusted, road-ready pedalboard cases available today. With enough space to house several of your stompbox effects, these pedalboards are perfect for touring musicians or studio setups that require frequent relocation.
As an authorised Boss dealer - you're sure you get a helpful buying experience here at PMT. Call into your nearest store and speak to one of our friendly experts to find the perfect pedal for you. Alternatively, more information is available on all of the pedals we stock in more depth below.

domain: hobby


The City of Atlanta has launched its ATL READ Automated Meter Reading (AMR) project, in which 150,000 radio-based AMR-enabled water meters will be installed throughout its drinking water system over the next three years.
The $35 million project, which was officially launched Tuesday in the Hunter Hills community, will involve the retrofit and/or replacement of the City’s residential and commercial water meters. Aged, non-functioning meters will be replaced with new meters fitted with the AMR device, while existing meters that are still functioning properly will have an AMR device installed. Once replaced, meters also will be covered with a locked lid to prevent tampering and meter damage.
The City began the AMR pilot project in northwest and west Atlanta neighborhoods in December. On going installation will take place system-wide on a meter route/billing cycle basis.
“The Automated Meter Reading project is another in a long line of initiatives the Department is undertaking to ensure that our bills are accurate and reflect exact customer usage,” said Rob Hunter, Commissioner of the City’s Department of Watershed Management. “It will help us reduce our operating expenses and identify potential leaks and other distribution system problems, as well as meter malfunctions, vandalism and tampering.”
No additional charges will be levied to residents for the AMR installation. However, residents with older meters have been advised that as the older meters tend to run slower and thus to under-register usage, they may notice a higher bill after the installation.
The AMR project is a part of the City’s $3.9 billion Clean Water Atlanta infrastructure improvement program to overhaul the City’s water and wastewater systems and create an efficient and cost-effective utility.


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Perkins + Will never cease to amaze us and recently revealed images of its concept design for a Cultural district, to be located along the Dubai Creek. The project aims to bring a new breeze along the creek and create a live-work-play destination.
According to Perkins + Will, the design process of the Cultural Village began with understanding the surrounding context and determining the connectivity to the existing surroundings.
The site is thought to be located on the Perimeter of Dubai Creek, the Cultural Village is surrounded by a beautiful waterscape, with three of the sides of the island within reach of the urban residential and hospitality fabric. ‘Art Jameel’ museum located on the north end of the site, creates an anchor point for the creek’s edge.
The 20,000m2 project will also consist of an auditorium, galleries, exhibitions spaces, library, media park, workshop spaces, art labs, restaurants, cafes, retail outlets and underground parking facilities.
In working with the conditions of the site, Perkins + will created a large open space out of the dense whole, and designed the buildings to arise in a dramatic gesture that appears to peel back the land.
The main objective of the design was inspired by defining a new identity and focal point for Dubai’s vibrant culture. The building forms seem to emerge with drama, as if they’re peeling back from the land itself, and referencing the carving of the creek and the blending of cultures
The roof of the building is topped with cascading steps that double as vegetations and seating. This makes the roof an extension of the public space where events, open-air exhibitions, workshop areas, pop-up markets, and playgrounds can all take place. The linearity of the plan also makes the spaces easily distinguishable by themselves from other programmes.
The Cultural Village is environmentally and economically sustainable as it utilises passive design strategies throughout the design. As a result, the roof form acts as a rain water collection system, as well as grey water collection. Lastly, a water ecology regeneration area was created along the creek’s edge to constantly clean the flow of water within the creek, maintaining it for many more generations to enjoy.


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Build strong legs with the most effective, compact leg press anywhere. The comfortable, adjustable back pad cradles you in place and provides the ultimate back support. The machine also incorporates a built in mechanical stop mechanism that allows the user to start and stop at their desired height. The extra large footplate allows for multiple positioning. The sled rides on Nylon bearing driven wheels for a smooth and quiet operation. A removable calf block is also provided to perform calf raises for a complete leg workout.
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Ships via one of our various freight carriers on a wooden pallet. This delivery is considered a curbside delivery only and will be delivered to a location at your address that is acceptable for a tractor trailer at the drivers discretion. Customers are required to be home at the time of delivery to sign the delivery receipt and help offload the individual packages from the tail end of the truck. On most deliveries, customers will receive a 24-hour notification before the delivery is made.


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This past Tuesday, Peru’s new president Ollanta Humala enacted a law which will require that energy companies and mining companies seeking to start new projects will first have to consult the local and indigenous communities on those lands.
The law was passed unanimously by Congress, without any abstentions. The U.N.’s special rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples, James Anaya, has praised the law, saying: “I hope that this is indicative of a strong commitment by the Peruvian State to respond to the demands of indigenous peoples to be consulted about measures that directly affect them, and in particular about extractive industry projects in and around their territories.”
The law comes at a time when Latinamerica Press reports that three-quarters of Peru’s Amazonian Basin has been concessioned off to extractive industries, and when last year it’s coverage by oil and gas concessions was reported at around 41%.
AIDESEP, Peru’s largest Amazonian Indigenous Federation, has expressed support for the law and views it as an important step forward in the recognition of indigenous rights. It is, however, concerned with the implementation of the law, pointing out that the Ministry in charge of implementing the law (El Ministerio de Interculturalidad) lacks the resources to confront such a large issue.
According to Amazon Watch Executive Director Atossa Soltani, “Indigenous peoples’ right of free, prior, and informed consent has been reaffirmed in recent years through the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and legal judgments of the Inter-American Court on Human Rights. (…) Consultation, when truly carried out in good faith, is an important element for promoting that right.”
Speaking about AIDESEP, Soltani added: “Peru’s indigenous movement deserves tremendous credit for their persistent advocacy,” “They provided constructive input into the bill’s draft text last year and then lobbied vociferously after President Garcia offered eight line-item vetoes.”
The law, however, does not give communities the right to “veto” a project. Latinamerica Press reports that: ” Even though the norm does not make the indigenous vote binding, or give the communities a right to a veto, it does establish that the communities and the government must “reach an agreement or consent” in legislative or administrative issues that affect the communities directly, “through an inter-cultural dialogue that guarantees their inclusion in the state’s decision-making processes and the adoption of measures that respect their collective rights.”
While the idea of giving indigenous communities the right to say “yes” or “yes” to a project seems somewhat questionable, this is certainly a step in the right direction, and one that will hopefully be implemented appropriately and transparently.


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We get so caught up in goals. Social media has turned into a platform for people to show other people how hard they are working, with constant updates on where they’re at with their goals/ambitions. And essentially, all of the things they have as a result of that.
Which, by the way, I am all for people encouraging others and you’d be lying if you said it didn’t feel good to hear “good job” from someone. Oh, and for the record, I love social media. I think it has done wonders for our generation, it has opened doors for so many people and given people access to communities and support systems they probably would have never found otherwise.
BUT if someone was a lazy POS for a day, or even a week, I’m going to say 9 times out of 10, they’re not going to post that for you to see. My point here is, that everyone needs a break. Working towards your goals is so important, but sometimes the constant “go” of our generation can be so exhausting.
So here are some tips for when you need to take a break from work or studying or your side hustle or all of thee above:
1. Take time for yourself (obviously what this entire post is about). The health & wellness trend is huge right now and there are so many ways to make yourself feel good in the comfort of your own home. Some of my favorite things I use to relax are:
- Essential oil diffusers, here is an affordable one and here is one from Nords
- WINE 🙂 (Dark Horse Cabernet is $8 and it’s the best so you’re welcome)
- Face masks/sheet masks (Summer Fridays Jet Lag Mask/Overtime Mask, any of the Sephora sheet masks)
- Hair treatments
- Body scrubs or Dry Brushing (This Dove body scrub is the best smelling thing, ever I think)
- Candles – Homegoods & Marshalls have the largest candles for cheap
- Journaling – Just writing down what you’re thinking and feeling. This particularly helps if you don’t necessarily feel like talking to someone.
- Reading – You can preview books on the iBooks app, if you don’t really know what to read, so you don’t buy something and figure out you hate it 🙂
- Cleaning (only me? it relaxes me ok)
2. Actually enjoy your time off. If you’re constantly thinking about what you think you should be doing or beating yourself up for relaxing, you’re probably just making things worse (stay with me here). With all things in life, you have to have balance. I’m not saying you should procrastinate and ignore all of your responsibilities, but you also shouldn’t burn yourself out. You know what I’m saying? It’s okay to Netflix for 6 hours straight, you deserve it.
3. P O S I T I V E vibes people. It really is so important. If you understand tip #2, but you are still beating yourself up, I’m telling you, a negative attitude is such wasted energy. I’m not saying just “snap out of it” because 1. that’s not realistic and 2. rude. But just try to appreciate and recognize all of the things in life that make you happy and why they make you happy (refer to journaling, above). Sometimes, there are flat out shitty situations in life. It truly is how you think about it and how you handle it that determines your life and you as a person.
4. Stop Comparing. You already know the quote “comparison is the thief of joy.” So I’m going to tell you again, comparison is the thief of joy. Like I was saying above, social media is in our face basically at all times and although you may be tempted to feel down because you see this kid starting his own business or the new Gucci bag so and so just bought, go back to tip 1, 2 & 3.
5. This is just more of a fact: You can simultaneously kill it in work/school/life but also have a breakdown every once in a while and allow yourself to not be okay. Cry it out if you need to, vent to a friend, let it all out – now pick yourself back up and start again.
6. Your environment. This may be the most important tip of them all. You could be the hardest working person in the world and if you are surrounding yourself with people who are constantly tearing you down, it’s going to take a toll on you. SO, cut out the negatives. Surround yourself with people who believe in you, who want to see you succeed, people you can laugh with and people who you can share the $8 Dark Horse cab with, okay?
I hope you find balance between chasing your dreams and Netflix & Chill.
One thought on “Why You Should Take a Break.”
That’s my girl stay positive !!

domain: psychology


2012 Yamaha Super Tenere Standard on 2040-motos
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2012 Yamaha SUPER TENERE, AWESOME ADVENTURE MODEL! - IN STOCK!
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Moto blogThu, 28 Feb 2013
The government of India has laid out its budget for 2013-2014, increasing the import duty for large motorcycles. The news will impact several major manufacturers hoping to gain a stake in the world’s second largest motorcycle market. India has become the hotspot for manufacturers but one of the biggest obstacles they face is the duty India levies on luxury goods.Thu, 01 May 2014
Arai Helmet has thrown its proverbial hat in the ring by signing up to sponsor the next two events of the new GEICO Motorcycle Superbike Shootout Presented by Yamaha. In addition, Arai has been named the official helmet of the series. The Arai Pacific Nationals will be hosted by the AFM next weekend, May 3-4, at Sonoma Raceway in Sonoma, California.Tue, 11 Jun 2013
A couple of weeks ago, Yamaha Europe released a video called “Dark Side of Japan” teasing a new street bike it claimed would “change the sport motorcycle world.” Today, the company revealed its new model, introducing a new naked sportbike powered by a “Crossplane” three-cylinder engine called the MT-09. (EDIT: and we can now reveal that the North American version will be known as the Yamaha FZ-09.) The 2014 Yamaha MT-09 is powered by a new 847cc three-cylinder engine first teased at Intermot last year. According to Yamaha, the MT-09′s engine produces 113.4 hp at 10,000 rpm and 64.5 ft-lb.
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The Manhasset varsity baseball team dominated Sewanhaka, 8-3, in the opening game of their three-game set Monday afternoon. Manhasset got their bats going early by driving in six runs in the first two innings.
The team followed up with a combination of great pitching from junior Jamie Weiss and team defense to nail down the commanding victory.
With the win, Manhasset improves to 2-4-1 in the season. Head coach Brian Corbo was pleased with the team’s performance, stressing that it was important to set the tone early against a struggling Sewanhaka team after coming off some tough games to bigger competition.
“It was a good win” said Corbo. “We’ve been on a little down streak. We won our first game then lost three in a row and battled in the last two games. So it was good to get a win.”
Manhasset got the scoring going in the bottom of the first with a double and a single by seniors Matt Catalfo and Joe Santella to take an early 2-0 lead. They batted fourth and fifth respectively in the lineup.
In the top of the second, after Weiss allowed the leadoff batter on base, Sewanhaka would scratch out a run on a ground ball to cut the lead 2-1. Weiss would settle down after giving up the run.
Manhasset added to their lead in the bottom half of the inning as they rallied to put up four runs, giving them a 6-1 lead.
Two innings later, Manhasset continued to put the ball in play with runners in scoring position as they would tack on two more runs and make it an 8-1 game. Corbo described this approach as “high school baseball.”
“When you put the ball in play, guys are going to make errors and mistakes” said Corbo. “It’s not about hitting a home run or a long line drive. Just put it in play”
Sewanhaka would get two runs back in the top of the sixth inning and cut the deficit to 8-3, capping off the scoring.
Although their situational hitting was pretty good against Sewanhaka, Corbo states that the only issue the team needs to work on is locking down with runners on base and driving the ball more instead of popping up.
“When you are facing a pitcher who doesn’t throw too hard, a lot of guys jump at the ball and pop up a lot instead of staying back and driving in” said Corbo.
Catalfo and Santella provided the offense for Manhasset. Catalfo went 1-4 on the day with a double and two runs batted in. Santella went 1-3 with four RBIs.
On the mound, Weiss tossed a complete game, striking out five, allowing five hits and only one earned run. He threw a lot of strikes, didn’t allow a walk and kept the opposition off the base paths. In this outing, he stuck to his game plan, which was keeping the ball down, getting ahead of the count and attacking hitters.
“It was nice for me to throw the ball down low as opposed to my last outing against Bellmore where I let the ball up too much” said Weiss. “The coaches did a great job helping me out, especially during practice. I think that was the key to my success today.”
In addition to a great pitching performance, Weiss stated that they played an overall good team game and had plenty of help from the defense.
“My teammates were behind me today” said Weiss. “All they did was pick me up even when I had a rough inning or gave up a hit. They would back me up in the field and those plays really helped me out.”


I have a Virgin Mobile Kyocera Marbl phone, for reasons discussed there. It’s sufficiently nonstandard that the “fits most phones” headsets and chargers don’t. In particular, I have yet to see a charger with the proper adapter dingus for this phone.
Fortunately, the charger is rated at 5 V @ 350 mA… that’s easy enough.
Cut the charger’s cable in the middle, more or less, and install Anderson Powerpole connectors. The standard color code for 5 V is white / black; don’t use red / black for fear you’ll eventually plug it into a 12 V source and toast the phone.
The charger wires are most likely a far smaller gauge than the 15 A (!) connector pins prefer, so strip the conductors twice as long, double the ’em over and perhaps add a short length of multistrand hookup wire to fill out the barrel before you crimp it.
Check the polarity before you poke the pins in the housings: you want the +5 V pin in the white housing!
I aligned the housings to match the ARES / RACES standard, as described there, as that’s what I’ve done with all my other Powerpole connectors. If your phone expects some weird-ass voltage, maybe you want to make certain it can’t possibly mate with anything that’ll kill it stone cold dead. Oh, and in that case pick a suitably different color. Blue seems to be the standard for 9 V, at least in the ham radio arena, for whatever that’s worth.
Add heatshrink tubing for strain relief (it might slip over the finished pins if you forget), wrap cold-vulcanizing rubber tape around the whole connector for more strain relief, and you’re done. It’ll make your charger cable resemble an anaconda eating a pig, but that’s OK with me.
Now the phone can commune with a bench power supply, a bulk 5 V supply, or nearly anything that you’ve hacked into using Powerpoles. It’s your job to make sure the voltage matches up!
Now, if you haven’t already, make a USB-to-Powerpole adapter. Alas, even though the phone uses 5 V, it draws too much current to charge directly from a standard USB port. However, I have a Black & Decker Pocket Power battery pack with a regulated USB outlet that can allegedly supply 250 mA and seems to handle the phone just fine.
So: cut a spare USB cable, verify that the red conductor is 5 V and the black is common (hell hath no fury like that of an unjustified assumption and we’re dealing with bottom-dollar suppliers here), crimp, align housings, add strain relief, and try it out.
This should work for any phone with a dumb, bulk-power charger. If you cut the cable and find three conductors, solder that devil back together again; there’s no telling what’s passing along that third rail!


Quick tech specs
- 65 Watt
- for ThinkPad Edge E431; E440; E531; E540; ThinkPad L440; L540; S431; S440; S531; S540
Know your gear
This is a Lenovo compatible 65W 20V at 3.25A laptop power adapter specifically designed for Lenovo notebooks. The power adapters are 100% tested and compatible with the intended systems.


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34 of my freshest DnB presets taken from my personal library that I use every day for making tunes!
For £4.20 you can own a piece of my mind!
TCDNB.COM for Details
you have to own Steve Duda's awesome synth to use these presets.
this pack was made on the first version for compatibility.


text:
Custom design your single extra large kennel today! We recommend this size for large breed dogs! We can expand them a bit to accommodate the Great Danes and Sheep dogs of the world too! #Kennelandcrate #Customdesign #Dogkennel #Dog #Largebreeddogs #Customkennel
Our extra large poultry pen provides a high quality area for your poultry to be safely secured in. Walk In Cage Run for Chicken Cat Rabbit Ducks. 1 x Walk In Cage Run. Also ideal for a fruit Cage to stop your hard earned harvest being taken away.

domain: pet


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We support a missionary in Africa by the name of Delbert Groves.
Blessing Bags – Items are donated and put into bags for the homeless.
Backpack Buddies Ministry – Backpack Buddies is a program run throughout the country by individual churches and groups. This ministry sends local elementary school kids home with backpacks full of food on Friday afternoons to keep them from going hungry over the long weekend. With donations from our congregation, Mayo UMC is able to help many local elementary children in need throughout the school year. In addition, during the summer we take donations for Back to School Supplies for local students in need. If you would like to help with donations or would like to get involved please email our office at Mayoumc@verizon.net
Angel Tree – Christmas gifts for local children are donated and given to area schools to be sent home to the children in the free lunch program.


The eligibility period for the 2023 Grammys ended when September turned to October, and now every song and album that artists want voters to consider has been submitted. While plenty of superstars are planning on competing for the biggest prize in the music industry, a handful of the top earners in the business have decided not only to skip the ceremony, but to not submit their latest works at all.
That means that none of these artists will be nominated for, and certainly not win, any trophies this time around, at least not for work they led the charge on. It’s still possible that they may be up for honors thanks to collaborations with other stars (at least some of them), but chances are, none of these three acts will hear their names called out when the nominees are revealed in mid-November.
It’s not unheard of for an artist to pass on the Grammys, but for a trio of the most popular artists on the planet right now, who all have albums and songs that surely would rack up some nominations, to decline the opportunity is a sign that the awards may be losing some of their grip on the industry.
Here’s a look at some of the artists who didn’t submit to the Grammys this year and what they may have been nominated for.
Drake surprised the world (yet again) by dropping an unannounced album in June titled Honestly, Nevermind. The set debuted at No. 1 and produced a Hot 100 leader in “Jimmy Cooks” as well as two other top 10s. While it didn’t hold on as long as some of his past projects, it still surely would have been considered for Grammy love…if Drake had submitted it.
What we’ll never know is what field Drake would have placed his work in, as it straddles rap and electronic. He is known more for his hip-hop music, but Billboard placed the CD and many of the songs on its dance/electronic lists, so it’s unclear what categories he would have competed in.
A prolific musician, Drake could still earn nominations as a featured artist on albums and songs led by Future, DJ Khaled, Gunna, and Jack Harlow.
Last year, Drake earned a pair of Grammy nominations in the rap categories, but he later asked the Recording Academy to rescind them, as he apparently wasn’t interested in the recognition.
After his gargantuan album After Hours and its historic single “Blinding Lights” were completely passed over by the Recording Academy a few years back, The Weeknd has been very vocal about his dislike for the organization. When he was snubbed, he vowed never to submit his work again, and while he hasn’t, he actually won another trophy last year alongside Kanye West.
The Weeknd’s most recent album Dawn FM is eligible for Album of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Album, and songs from the set, such as “Sacrifice” and “Out of Time” might have been nominated, but he didn’t submit them. It’s possible he’ll still be in the running with collabs with the likes of FKA Twigs and even the late, great Aaliyah, but chances are he simply won’t be mentioned at all.
Silk Sonic (Bruno Mars & Anderson .Paak)
Last ceremony, Silk Sonic cleaned up in what band member Anderson .Paak called a “clean sweep” during one of their acceptance speeches. With just one single eligible–the massive “Leave the Door Open”–the duo claimed Record and Song of the Year, Best R&B Performance, and Best R&B Song in early 2022.
The band’s first full-length, An Evening with Silk Sonic, was assumed to be a contender for Album of the Year, but it won’t compete…and neither will anything else from the pair. Mars shared a statement with Rolling Stone in which he announced that Silk Sonic wouldn’t submit anything, which opens up the R&B categories quite a bit. He didn’t give a real reason why he and .Paak came to this decision, but it may have been to avoid blowback for winning too much, as he has already taken home the top categories more than once.


It seems with another new year, everyone is ready to start again. But is that such a good thing? Here are 8 pros and cons of new beginnings.
Well, ladies and gentlemen, we’ve made it into the most reflective portion of the adult calendar. The advent of another new year. 2017 approaches.
Most of the feedback I’ve heard on 2016 has been that it was a pretty terrible for people. It’s certainly been marred with a lot of unfortunate passings, including the recent passing of Carrie Fisher. The Republicans won the Election, Pokemon Go came and went, and Harambe was and still is a thing.
A new year always bring the sense that everything is going to be a completely clean slate. A chance to start again. A season of new beginnings. In fact, every single year I can remember, people have always talked about next year being their year and going to heaven in 2007 and doing great in 2008 and we’ll be fine 2009 and do it again 2010 and skip a few and we gonna fix theens in 2016… Fresh resolutions, new experiences, and most importantly it seems, a year that wasn’t like last year.
But I think about new beginnings and I wonder if our attitude towards them is actually healthy or productive. Is it actually a good thing that 2017 is approaching and all most people seem to be wishing for is a completely new chance to start again? So I’ve done some further thinking on the topic, and I submit to you my 8 pros and cons of new beginnings.
Pro #1: Clean slates are exciting
I think we love the idea of new beginnings and proclaiming great things over the start of our year and being inspired and all the rest of it because everyone loves a second chance. Especially as people get older (and I really mean every year over the age of 17), the number of times a person says “boy if I could do that again I would…” dramatically increases. Each statement becomes increasingly sadder as the number of missed or failed opportunities starts to increase.
Hence the idea of a clean slate, hey, that’s pretty great. Sometimes something has so catastrophically failed that the correct solution is to completely destroy it and try again. Clean slates can be exactly what you need.
Con #1: You don’t actually finish anything
The first problem would be that if every single year we’re going for new beginnings, it probably means we’re leaving a lot of unfinished business behind us. A lot of people set out and say that this next new year is going to be a year where you’re going to make new friends and move to new places and settle in new opportunities.
But, what happened to your old ones?
Did you stick around long enough to actually see the reward of staying in the same place or heading in the same direction for long enough?
The other night I was out looking at Christmas lights with some friends and a comment was made about someone’s salary. I just thought, well, of course they’re doing well because they’ve stayed in the same direction for a large number of years. They’ve become an expert. They’ve negotiated the challenges. They’ve stuck around. Their opinion can be trusted.
I wonder how many of us are keen to jump ship before the ship has fully left the harbour? A person who continually starts things they never finish, or that they finish poorly or fail to resolve well, is essentially nothing more than a destroyer.
Pro #2: Openness to change means you don’t stay stagnant
It can be dangerous when people become set in their ways. I think it’s possible for any of us to become set in a wrong way. Think of the peril who thinks that the only way to make friends is if the other person does all the work. They develop a spirit of entitlement, that everyone should bow to their needs or desires. If that spirit never changes, that person is really not the type of person who’s going to have lots of friends.
So I think remaining humble, open, and teachable… they’re all really great traits. They keep you from getting blindsided by any person’s biggest enemy – their own pride.
Con #2: Your changes may make you worse
One of my poet friends wrote a great poem just last night entitled Dark Moments Change You. Definitely worth giving a read. It’s a realistic reflection on the fact that not all change is good. We always talk about coming through the fire and not smelling like smoke. But in life, not all of us are so lucky. Sometimes we end up getting severely burnt in the fire. We incur physical or emotional injuries. We take the wrong lesson from a situation in our life.
It’s possible that we want a new beginning for the wrong reason. Because we’re running from something. Because we’re not fixing something. Because we’re set on a dark path where we aren’t seeking out the light.
Don’t just change for change’s sake. Change because your life needs you to.
Pro #3: A new beginning may just be a new perspective
One of my friends when I mentioned I was going to write about this said that new beginnings don’t necessarily mean a new thing, but it could just mean a new perspective. Sometimes that’s all that’s needed to cause you to see and interact with things in the right light. Maybe you’ve only seen the negative in it, have you considered the positive? Conversely, maybe all you’ve seen is a naively optimistic viewpoint – perhaps what progress in your life requires is some balance.
I think it’s very true that our perspective is something we always need to be reevaluating. For as a man or a woman thinks in their heart, so they are.
Perhaps what you’re thinking isn’t enough.
Con #3: Didn’t you say it’d be different last year?
“This year, I’ll finally…”
“I won’t make the same mistakes as last year”
“I’ll make sure I finally set things right with…”
Wait, didn’t you say this last year?
And another year has gone passed and you’re saying it again? Or still?
Procrastination. The destroyer of lives. Not just your own, either. Pastor Joel A’Bell once said very well that we live in a land of opportunity, but not unlimited opportunity. There are literal windows of opportunity for certain moments in life to occur. You may not be able to compete in an athletic event if you wait too long and your body misses its prime competitive window. You may not get the job if you keep putting off developing your skillset or taking that promotion that has opened for a limited time only. You may not make those key relationship connections if you’re sharp or cutting with the relationships immediately in front of you.
Maybe instead of, “This year I’ll finally…”, maybe it’s time to say, “You know what? I’m going to work out what’s stopping me first”.
Pro #4: It’s a chance to bring yourself somewhere new
They say that sometimes all you need is a change of scenery. Sometimes they’re right. I think there are moments of realization in life when you realize that your opportunities in this company are too small. Or that your friendships aren’t actually growing you. Or that you’re becoming a big fish in a very small pond.
And sometimes that discomfort leads to a good change. When, for the right reasons, you’ve decided it’s time to pursue your calling at a higher level. You’ve decided to take the next step up the staircase, instead of just staying on this one. There’s a destination in mind, and you have to keep climbing.
People often say that life isn’t about the destination, but the journey. I understand that, but I think to neglect your destination is perilous. No one ever says that when they get on a plane at the airport, when they ask someone to pick them up and drop them off somewhere, or when they need something moved from one place to another. So, why do we ignore the destination of our lives when we know there are things we are called to?
That wasn’t to discourage you by the way, it was to challenge you. Don’t get so discouraged you give up. Just be realistic that the next step is important because it brings you closer to the destination.
Change is necessary, as long as we make the right changes for the right reasons.
Con #4: …But it’s the same you
Which leads to the final con. You may find the perfect man or the perfect woman who is absolutely sublime marriage material. Car career charisma the whole deal. And you may be thinking man, in 2017, I’ll finally meet the right one.
Here’s the problem though.
They may be new, but it’s the same you.
You bring the same you into every relationship you’ll ever have. And if the last ones didn’t work because of something that was actually wrong with you, you could ruin your perfect man or woman for good. Sobering, but true.
That’s just one example of course. You could move to a new country with the same old attitudes, and still feel trapped, ineffective, disconnected. You could start a new job with the same undermining spirit. You could move to a new church and still hate every single opportunity to serve. You could move to a new house, but still treat it with malcontent. You could have every single new beginning you’ve ever dreamed of in this new year.
But it’s the same you wherever you go. And perhaps there’ll be no true change until it happens to the person in the mirror.
Or as someone else once put it, you can’t pour new wine into old wineskins. The old wineskins will leak it all out. And here you are, desiring, nay, demanding new wine with your entitled frustrated spirit, and yet there’s a hole in your bucket that you plan on spending another year dancing around.
Don’t ruin your opportunity. Trying to outrun yourself is a race you’ll never win.
So, it’s a new year. It’s a new chance. Or perhaps, it’s the same chance, but refocused. It’s the same vision, but with more deliberate action. Or perhaps it is a change, but for the right reasons. Decisions that bring you closer to and not further away from the place you’re supposed to be.
Happy new year to you and yours. Looking forward to what 2017 does bring, and looking forward to hearing how you handled every new opportunity with humility and wisdom, and made it count.