text:
Why a silent, 10-minute song is climbing the iTunes charts

If you’ve ever plugged your phone into your car stereo, only to have the same song start playing every single time, I have some good news for you. Yesterday, a true internet hero named Samir Rezhami released a song on iTunes that’s just 10 minutes of silence — and he named it “A a a a a Very Good Song.” Since the iPhone starts playing music alphabetically when you plug it in to many car stereos, that usually means there’s one song that you hear whether you want to or not. Many songs starting with the letter A have probably been ruined thanks to this quirk — but if you download Rezhami’s creation, you’ll instead have plenty of time to queue up the songs you want to hear.

hey I released a blank song that will play 1st so that *one* song won’t play every time u plug ur phone into ur car https://t.co/FL83YUOOcz

— #1 samir (@samir) August 9, 2017

In less than a day, it’s become clear that Rezhami’s trick is resonating with a lotof people — his tweet announcing the track has over 12,000 likes. More amazingly, his “song” is climbing rapidly up the iTunes charts. Right now it sits at #67, ahead of tunes by artists like Kendrick Lamar, Kesha, Selena Gomez, The Chainsmokers and a number of other popular, well-established acts. (It’s worth noting that Rezhami’s silent song is hardly the first to gain notoriety, though I don’t think that John Cage’s composition ever made a run up the iTunes charts.)

— ellie✨ (@j_elliebean) August 9, 2017

The question now is whether or not Apple will remove the track from the iTunes Store. On the one hand, it’s clearly a joke, but on the other Apple benefits from every sale. Of course, Rezhami is also laughing his way to the bank, but you can’t blame a man for having a good idea. Many will surely point out that this hack could be done by manually making your own blank song and adding it to your phone, but the convenience of spending 99 cents on this to make the problem go away is a tradeoff that seems worth it.

If you’re an Apple Music user, we have even better news for you — you can just add the song to your library there as part of your subscription. But it might be more fun to pay the buck and see if the world can get a blank track of silence to the top of the iTunes charts.

This article by Nathan Ingraham originally appeared on Engadget, your source for this connected life.


Content-Type: application/http; msgtype=response

WARC-Identified-Payload-Type: text/html

WARC-Truncated: length

WARC-Type: response

text:
Q: How are you sourcing the products included in the POPSUGAR Must Have box?

We are working directly with brands that we believe represent the POPSUGAR brand and the fun, authentic, and positive tone it stands for. Each month, the POPSUGAR Must Have box will contain the “must-have” picks that Lisa Sugar and her editorial team have expertly curated. Have a look at some of the fun products included in past Must Have boxes.

If you would like to submit your product to be considered for a box, then please email us at musthave@popsugar.com.

Have more questions? Submit a request

Powered by Zendesk

warcinfo:
robots: classic
hostname: ip-10-228-65-216.ec2.internal
software: Nutch 1.6 (CC)
isPartOf: CC-MAIN-2018-09
operator: Common Crawl Admin
description: Wide crawl of the web for February 2018
publisher: Common Crawl
format: WARC File Format 1.0
conformsTo: http://bibnum.bnf.fr/WARC/WARC_ISO_28500_version1_latestdraft.pdf


text:
Switch - To ODBC / Local SQL

This option allows you to switch SQL-RD from a local Access database to an ODBC compliant database or a local SQL installation.

Click 'To LOCAL' and select the Data Source Name to connect SQL-RD to a local database.

Click 'To ODBC' and select the appropriate Data Source Name to connect  SQL-RD to it's database located in your SQL Server.

This option does NOT migrate your system.  It simply switches SQL-RD to look at a different database.  To migrate from one system database type to a new database type, please refer to the Migrate to Local SQL Server or the Migrate to SQL Server/ODBC article.


text:
Category Archives: Carn Marth

Can Marth – Walk, Talk and Sketch

A glorious sunny day today with a treat to look forward to – a walk on Carn Marth, talking and sketching! Have a look at the gallery and click on any photo for more detail and the caption.
We were given various small tasks to get us going, (I am a complete novice but have long wanted to sketch) one of which was to collect a colour swatch of what we could find. You will see from the photos that the Carn is a little bleak at this time of year but we all found lots of beautiful colour. Both the North and South Coasts can be seen from this high point and, in the morning it was very clear. We had the most delicious lunch of hot Pumpkin Soup, ciabatta, salad and hummus followed by Lemon Drizzle cake and then more walking, talking and sketching.
Many of us then continued to the Village Hall where we made flowers out of old plastic bottles ready for an event next weekend…..
Many thanks to those who made this brilliant day possible.

Here is one of my sketches along with the wall that I was looking at.

Wall at the top quarry

My sketch

Tags: ,

Desserts, Flowers and Another Party

I promised you pictures of the desserts I made for our party yesterday – Chocolate Torte, Lime and Ginger Cheesecake, Blackberry and Peach Roulade and a Big Bowl of Berries in my Granny’s soup tureen. There weren’t any leftovers!

Peach and Blackberry Roulade

Gold Dusted Lime and Ginger Cheesecake

50 Golden Years Chocolate Torte

The house is full of Golden Flowers!

We have been to a party this evening in Carn Marth where the company was delightful, the fire raging and we saw a Buzzard as we were leaving.

Pete’s fire

Long zoom on a Buzzard

Tags: , ,

Courgette Flowers, Old Family Recipe and Oxygen, the Song

1   The courgettes are really taking off. I’m so looking forward to being able to harvest some.

Courgette flowers

Courgette flowers

2   Our eldest daughter is with us for a week as she walks some of the coastal path with a friend. She asked if I had any Picnic Pie in the freezer – a staple of walks and picnics for our family for as long as I can remember. This afternoon, I dug out my Granny’s Recipe book, a note book given to her in 1903 and found the recipe for Picnic Pie from 1946 and made one ready for tomorrow’s walk.

Original recipe from 1946

Original recipe from 1946

Picnic Pie

Picnic Pie

3   While we were in London, Claire’s three choirs performed in Carn Marth Quarry near Redruth. Here, you can hear one of the songs, music by Claire Ingleheart and lyrics by Natalie McGrath, written for the play, Oxygen, about the Suffragist March from Lands End to London..   It was filmed by Tina Wheeler, with apologies for the noisy crowd, unruly children, dogs hitting tripod, and the wind.    The tour of the play is coming to an end and it has had brilliant reviews.
Rather belatedly,  I want to thank El Guapo for his delightful post when I asked him for help to put the word out about the play for me.

Tags: , , ,

Carn Marth Gig, A Murmuration of Bees and Hairy Dieters’ Delicious Dish

1    The gig at Carn Marth was beautiful!  It was a lovely relaxed affair with the barbecue burning, children playing, scarecrows were being made for the competition and all while we were singing our hearts out, all 100 of us, all taught by Claire, and, after an horrendous forecast of torrential rain, the sun shone on us! Brilliant!   I only have a picture of the three choirs enjoying our warm-up.

Inglehearts, Suitcases and Riversiders warming up prior to Carn Marth Gig

2    When I came home, I sat in the arbour at the back of the garden, knitting and listening to nothing but the murmuration of the bees and was reminded of this lovely piece by Tennyson, especially the last line.

“…………….  and sweet is every sound,

Sweeter thy voice, but every sound is sweet;

Myriads of rivulets hurrying thro’ the lawn,

The moan of doves in immemorial elms,

And murmuring of innumerable bees.”

3   For supper tonight I made a delicious dish from the Hairy Bikers turned Dieters – Spanish Style Chicken Bake.  I’ll post the recipe if anyone is interested. It was warm enough for us to eat outside tonight too.  Lovely.

Spanish Style Chicken Bake a la Hairy Dieters with a couple of variations

P.S.    For your information and delectation,  ‘murmuration’ is the collective word for a flock of starlings as well as the sound of murmurings.  Just thought you might like to know!

Tags: , , , , , , , ,

Singing, Flowers and Skyping to Barcelona

1   I can’t tell you how much I love singing! At Suitcases this morning we sang through our gig list for the event on Sunday when all three of Claire’s choirs, about a hundred of us,  will sing together in the amphitheatre at Carn Marth.

Kurt Vonnegut – Sing in the shower!

2    Before the rain started this afternoon, I managed to get this beautiful picture of a Daisy against the Crocosmia.

Daisy with Crocosmia

3    Daniel and Ami Skyped together from Barcelona! For those of you who haven’t followed their story, Daniel, our son,  and Ami were married in Senegal in April, see  Daniel and Ami’s Wedding and they are only now, more than four months later, able to live together as it has taken this long time to get Ami’s Visa.

It was so beautiful to see them together, smiling so much, laughing and delighting in the fact that they had just gone supermarket shopping together for a meal together in their own place!  The very word ‘together’ is beautiful!

Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

Small Copper, Tin and Copper Mine and The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel

1   Mr S spotted a beautiful little butterfly on the trellis early this morning.  It’s a Small Copper.

Small Copper butterfly

2   We loved doing the first of our walks from Sue Jackson’s  book “Discover Cornwall”  this morning! So good to have the author on the end of the phone when we got ‘lost’ – entirely our fault! The view from the top is amazing, all the way across Cornwall from one coast to the other!    Photos from the walk follow –

Baronet’s Engine House

Granite marker

Carn Marth Amphitheatre, built in the old small quarry

Large quarry at Carn Marth

Glorious heather and gorse

Looking over to the North coast

3   Friends lent us the dvd of ‘The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel” and we’ve thoroughly enjoyed it this evening – a delightful mix of laughter and tears.

Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

%d bloggers like this:


text:
Tag Archives: fit sugar tv

Getting Back on the Wagon

The last year or so was a little hectic, to say the least. And a few pounds have found their way back to my waistline. Things have slowed back down and become far less stressful, so it’s time to get back on the wagon!

Last night I went through my “Exercise & Health” board on Pinterest and wrote down about 50 different exercise routines on 3×5″ cards. Each day, I plan on picking a random card and doing whatever routine is on it. Sometimes it’s as simple as “walk 1 mile” or as complex as a full 90 minute routine. I even threw in a few “rest day”s!

So, this morning, I used the following video: Fit Sugar TV’s Sculpt Your Core in Just 10 Minutes with Core Fusion! on Hulu.com. Then I had a small glass of orange juice and some shrimp and grits. Lunch was a grilled cheese sandwich on cranberry walnut bread and another 20 minutes of walking and squats. I had a handful of nuts and a square of dark chocolate for a snack. Then a simple dinner of toast, chicken breast, swiss cheese, and carrots.

Tomorrow is a new day. One baby step at a time. Who says you have to wait until New Year’s Day to make a change?! Who’s with me?


text:
Saturday, December 30, 2017

2017 Shipyard report

With the end of 2017 upon us, it's time to take a look back at what was built this year.  This report only applies to the sailing ships, as I don't keep detailed records about my other projects.  My sailing ships, however, I keep in a spreadsheet.  I've done this since 2014, and consistently since 2015.  No, it's not a mental disorder.  This is how I can tell where I am  regarding the Trafalgar Project, and what I need to buy next.  (That's MY story anyway, and I'm sticking with it.)

At the beginning of the year, there were 94 ships in the collection, and they broke down as follows:

  • 21 x British
  • 21 x French
  •   9 x Spanish
  •   4 x Russian
  •   4 x US
  •   2 x Dutch
  • 18 x minor warships (brigs, schooners, gunboats, etc.), and
  • 15 x merchantmen
As 2017 ends, there are now 101 ships in the fleet, and they are:
  • 24 x British
  • 21 x French
  • 12 x Spanish
  •   4 x Russian
  •   4 x US
  •   2 x Dutch
  • 19 x minor warships, and
  • 15 x merchantmen
At this point, I can see the end of the Trafalgar Project.  I need to assemble 10 more British ships, 8 French and 4 more Spanish ships, for a total of 22.  It sounds like a lot, but that includes every frigate and unrated vessel present at the battle.  If I focus on just ships of the line, then that cuts it down to 9 British, 5 French and 4 Spanish ships, for a total of 18 ships.   Hmmmm, maybe the end isn't as close as I first thought....

"But wait!" I hear you saying.  "Couldn't you use those other country's ships you have to make up some of the numbers?"  My response to that is, "Eh, not really."  The whole idea behind the Trafalgar Project was to refight the battle with the correct models of the ships involved.  The other nation's warships I have won't really do much to fill in for the ships I need.  It's a good idea, but one that has already been looked at and passed over.

But this post is about the past, not what's coming up in the future.  So, let's take a last look at what joined the fleet in 2017

A Spanish Montañés  class 74 with her teeth bared. Built between 10/02/16 and 2/23/17,
so before the blog was started.
A small galley, built for a possible Barbary Pirates campaign.  Also built before the
blog was started.
Another Montañés class 74, but in a bit more of
a hurry than the other one. Built in March of 2017.

A generic Spanish 74, but painted after Pocock's painting of San Nicolas at
Cape Saint Vincent in 1797. Built between March and May, 2017.
HMS Agamemnon, Nelson's favorite ship.  Built between May and July of 2017.

HMS Britannia, one of the three 100 gun ships at Trafalgar.  Built between July and August, 2017.

Finally, the British 36 gun frigate that starred in the "What Is My Time Worth" series of blog posts. Built (slowly)
between August and December 2017.

Thursday, December 28, 2017

What Is My Time Worth Part 7: Final Analysis and Thoughts

So, it's taken a while to go from this:

The actual hull number is NB16. I didn't think to take a picture of the original packages.

to this:

Now, with the project finished, it's time to take a look at the numbers.  How long did it take?  What would it cost me to buy one pre-assembled?  And, finally, what is my time worth?

So, How Long Did It Take?

In looking at the build time for this project, we can break it down into four parts: Hull, Masts, Standing Rigging and Running Rigging.  So, let's look at the parts of the project in that order.

The Hull:

To get the hull put together, cleaned up and make sure the masts would fit into the holes in the hull took 50 minutes.  I decided that the guns were a little too high above the water on this model, so I decided to grind the waterline down to the proper height.  To measure that and get it ground down took about 12 minutes.  This isn't normally a step I would take, but in this case I decided to do so as I thought it was too far out of line.  These times were minor compared to painting the hull of course, which took just a touch over 3 hours, or 185 minutes.  The total time in getting the hull ready was a total of 247 minutes, or 4.12 hours

The Masts (Including the bowsprit):

It only took 22 minutes to clean and assemble the masts.  Once again, painting was the main amount of time here, which took 152 minutes or 2.53 hours.  Because I made sure the masts would fit into the hull before assembly started, it took only 6 minutes to install all the masts including the bowsprit.  When all the times for the masts were totaled up, it took exactly 180 minutes, or 3 hours.

Standing Rigging:

Including drilling all the holes for the rigging, it took 106 minutes to install the stays between the masts.  It took 48 minutes to paint and install the photo-etch ratlines. To do the backstays for all three masts took 88 minutes, and it took 29 minutes just to put the rigging around the outside of the bowsprit.  When added together, the entire set of standing rigging took 261 minutes, or 4.35 hours.

Running Rigging:

Surprisingly enough, this turned out to be the quickest part of the whole project, which I did not expect.  To do all the running rigging took 106 minutes, or 1.76 hours.

Totals and Grand Total:

  1. Hull:                                    247 minutes/4.12 hours
  2. Masts:                                 180 minutes/3.00 hours
  3. Standing Rigging:              261 minutes/4.35 hours
  4. Running Rigging:              106 minutes/1.76 hours
          GRAND TOTAL:            794 minutes/13.23 hours

What Would It Cost To Buy One Prebuilt?

For purposes of this comparison, I'm using the prices found at the Model J Ship website (  The basic cost from the website of a ship like I just built would be 60 Euros.  Julian (the website owner) charges 15.00 Euros for a base, but he hand-sculpts his and I don't do that any more so I don't think the comparison there is fair.  He also offers an accessories kit for 25 Euros that includes anchors, towed boats and flags, but I didn't build my ship with any of these.  Consequently, the best comparison from the website is the basic model.  Using the exchange rate website, 60 Euros equals $71.39 US.  So, $71.39 is the amount I will use to determine the answer for the next section.

What Is My Time Worth?

So, now we've come to the big reveal and it's just a question of simple math.  Take the cost of $71.39 and divide it by 13.23 hours.  That gives us a total of:

$5.39 per hour

Hmmmmm.  Well, it's a little more than what I expected, since I originally expected it to be about $3 something an hour.  When I started this series in August of 2017, the same frigate from Model J Ship would have cost 73 Euros, or $85.96 US although that includes a base.  If I had included a base in the price above, it would have still been 73 Euros, but $86.86 US due to the different exchange rates over time.

What Does It All Mean?

My first thought here is that it means no one is getting rich in the model shipyard business!  For other meanings, I have to go back to some of the comments on the very first post in this series.  One comment said that he suspected the final analysis would show that while commercial prices seemed high, they might turn out to be a pretty good deal on a per-hour basis.  I would have to agree with this.  Also, I said in response to another comment that the last entry in this series would probably have a disclaimer about how we build these for love, not money.  That seems true too, so let me repeat it in a larger font:

For a closing thought (OK, thoughts), I think that Age of Sail gamers are different from other wargamers.  First of all, we realize that we are a niche within a niche within a niche [war-gaming > Naval war-gaming > Age of Sail naval war-gaming].  Secondly, we all seem to have read Horatio Hornblower or Jack Aubrey novels at some point in our lives, and identify with them somehow.  Something about the gentility of the period appeals to us; you don't seem to find the "win at all costs" mentality among serious Age of Sail gamers.

I game in other periods, of course.  Rare is the wargamer that doesn't dabble in several periods of history.  I can tell you though, that my WWII Soviet infantry doesn't evoke the same feelings for me that my sailing ships do.  If I lost all my other miniatures but kept my sailing ships, I would keep playing.  If I lost my sailing ships, I would probably be out of the hobby altogether, as it would be too hard to start over.

In a way, my miniature sailing ships are a lot like real ships: They're labor-intensive, they cost a lot of time and money, and you can never get back what you put into them.  Another way they are just like real ships is this:  Once they get into your soul, you can't just walk away from them.

Wednesday, December 27, 2017

What Is My Time Worth, Part 6: Running Rigging

I had planned to have this post in place before Christmas, but there were two things I didn't plan on.  They are:

  1. General holiday season craziness, and
  2. A bout with the flu.
I should have known that the holiday season would mess up my schedule; after all, it's not my first Yuletide season.  I am, however, going to plead ignorance about the flu as I really didn't expect to get sick.  I certainly didn't expect it to turn a week of my time into a blur of sleep, coughing and fatigue.  That's enough about my issues though, as I suspect you're here to read about sailing ships and not sickness.

In this post, I'm going to deal with running rigging.  That's the rigging that, in real life, operates the yardarms and other parts of the sail set.  These lines were not coated with tar, because they had to move through blocks in order to operate properly.  This is whey they are called "running rigging."  On my models, they are done with a light tan thread so as to differentiate them from the standing rigging.  Unlike the standing rigging, when doing running rigging we start at the bow of the ship and work our way towards the stern.    Another difference is that, unlike standing rigging, the number of steps in doing running rigging will vary based on which sails your ship has set.  So, while the Langton rigging guide shows 16 basic steps for running rigging (plus more if the model has its staysails set between the masts), some of those 16 basic steps will be ignored as we go.

So, from this...

to this in only 16 steps or less.
One other picture that should have been included in the previous post, but wasn't.  The picture below is a homemade tool I use to get glue onto knots in tight spaces.  In practice, I use it almost everywhere, given that the nozzle on a container of glue is way too big to get into small spaces.

It's just a pin vise with a straight pin that has a large head chucked into the larger of the two openings.  It is so useful that I'm tempted to buy a new vise, and convert this one into a permanent tool for gluing knots.

Before starting, I should point out that the running rigging on this model is considerably simpler than the standing rigging.  As the Langton guide points out:

we are only showing the lifts, braces and sheets of the running rigging.
Lifts were the lines from the mast down to the yard arms. Braces were
taken from the yardarms to the next mast in order to be able to trim the
sails to the wind.  Sheets were used to haul on the lower part of the sail.

The first step is to run a line from the foremast stay to each side of the spritsail yard below the bowsprit.  In Harland's book Seamanship in the Age of Sail this line is called a spritsail brace.  I refer to it as "another line to keep the spritsail yard in place if the glue breaks," but then I'm not as precise as Harland.
So that's the first step....
Step 2 involves the sheets for the jibsails, which are those triangular sails out over the bowsprit.  According to the guide, you should use a separate line for each of the jibsails, but I find this to be too fiddly given the small area you're working in.  What I do is to drill a hole in the rearmost jibsail, tie the line there, run it back to the hole where the shrouds are, take a turn and then glue the end of the thread under the second jibsail.

The highlighted lines run inside the line from step 1, and behind the ratlines.
The next photo covers steps 3,4 and 5, and will have us installing the braces and lifts for all of the foremast.  Here, we start from the lowest line and work our way towards the top of the mast.  Step 3 is highlighted in blue, step 4 in green and step 5 in red.  As you can see, each thread provides both the brace from the main mast to the foremast, and the lift for the yard.

Despite what the picture looks like, the lines do not foul each other.
With this sail set, we skip steps 6 and 7.  That's because there is no royal sail at the top of the mast for step 6, and with the foresail brailed up there is no need for a line to the bottom edge of the foresail.

There are different versions of step 8, depending on whether or not the mainsail is lowered or furled. Either way, step 8 is the most time-consuming step of all for running rigging.  I've tried to color-code the picture below in such a way as to let you see the different sub-assemblies of step 8.  Keep in mind that, even though I've used different colors, this is all one long piece of thread.  You start by tying the thread onto the main yardarm, and then taking it back to hole A (dark blue).  You go through hole A, wrap around the bottom boom of the spanker sail, go up the sail and under the ratlines, go over the crossjack boom and then do the same thing on the other side of the sail (teal blue).  Then, go through hole A on the port side and back up to the top boom of the spanker sail.  Take a turn around the top boom, then take the line up through the gap in the standing rigging and back down to the upper boom of the spanker where you take another turn (light blue).  From there, go back down to and through hole A on the starboard side (light blue).  From hole A, go back up to the top of the spanker boom, take a turn and go down and through hole A on the port side (pastel purple).  From hole A on the port side, to up to the port mainyard and wrap the thread around it (dark blue again, on the port side).  From there, take the line over the topgallant yardarm, back down to the yardarm on the starboard side, tie off and glue it (dark green).  Trim off any excess once you're done.

Sorry, but I don't think I can make it any simpler than this.

Step 9 is ignored because the main sail is furled, so the next picture shows us steps 10, 11 and 13.  We ignore step 12 for the same reason as step 6: i.e., there is no royal sail on the mainmast.  For the sake of consistency, I've colored the steps in this photo the same way I did the photo for 3 through 5.  This set of steps is a little different, because here we start in the middle, move to the top,and then drop back to the bottom for step 13.  When you look at the model in person, though, this makes sense, because you do the interior lines first and then go back to the crojack line which is outside of the other two.

Light blue first, then green, then red.
The green line in the above photo should be back against the mast like all the other braces, so that's a mistake on my part.  I suspect I didn't let the glue on the knot dry enough before I started running the lines.

Now, we're in the homestretch as there are only 3 steps left.  We can ignore step 16 though, as there are no royal sails on the mizzenmast.  In these last two steps however, are the major differences between British warships and every other nation's vessels.  British warships (and warships only) ran the running rigging for their mizzen sails back to the top of the spanker boom.  Every other nationality ran these lines forward to the main mast.

British mizzen rigging.

Everyone else's mizzen rigging, including British merchants.
With the mizzen rigging finished, the ship is now complete.  Total time for the running rigging was 106 minutes, or 1.76 hours.

There are still some little things, like finishing the ship's base. However, as  I make my own bases and buy the material in bulk, there is no way to directly compare them to buying and painting a resin one.  Because of that, I won't be including the time or cost of the base in the project.  I had also wanted to make this the final post, but given how long it already is I think I'll save the final analysis for one more post.

Monday, December 11, 2017

I Guess This Civil War Thing Is Gonna Happen....

No, this is NOT a post on the current state of U.S. Politics.  Instead, it's about another naval project that is slowly starting to pick up steam (yes, pun intended).

Back in March, I did a post entitled, "Getting My Hands Dirty?" that talked about the 1/1200 scale ironclads I had bought from Thoroughbred Miniatures.  Since then, I've bought quite a few ships from Pithead Miniatures in England and just made another order from Thoroughbred a few days ago.  Instead of taking a scattershot approach like I did with the sailing ships, I've decided to concentrate on the Mississippi River campaign.  The main reason for this is that I have the Anaconda campaign rules by Ray Garbee that focus on the Mississippi River.  That, combined with the fact that our gaming group thought that an ACW river campaign would be fun made my decision in that regard pretty easy.

There have been a couple of changes from the March post.  Now, rivers are going to be dark blue.  As I also haven't really found a river mat I like (or that looks like the Mississippi River), using my blue mats will save some money.  Also, my idea for clear bases won't work because there's no way to apply magnets to the base for storage without them being visible.

The Anaconda rules themselves are available from Wargame Vault, and give the players/gamemaster plenty of room for tinkering.  As they say on the cover (see below), they are a campaign rules set.  That means you will have to provide your own ships and rules for resolving combat.

When it comes to providing your own ships, there are several options out there for 1/1200 scale.  Thoroughbred Miniatures has a small but growing line in 1/1200 that is every bit as nice as their 1/600 products.  Navwar and Red Eagle (formerly Skytrex) have ACW lines, but tend to focus mostly on ironclads.  Stone Mountain here in the US has the old Houston's Ships line, but they are probably closer to 1/1000 than 1/1200.  It seems that if you want the full panoply of oddball vessels turned into warships, then you need to take a look at Pithead Miniatures.  They do a number of different ships organized by area, so if you want something like the Confederate ships that defended Island No. 10, then Phil at Pithead can set you up.  The ships are cast in resin with metal parts and some of them can be quite small, so I would suggest basing them.  I think the Pithead masters are all carved by hand, so if you like miniatures with all perfectly straight lines, then you may not like them.  To me, though, the Pithead models wonderfully depict the sort of ramshackle, make-do character of both sides' navies during the Civil War.  In fact, every time I look at them compared to my sailing ships, I keep thinking, "what grubby little vessels!"  Don't just take my word for it though; here's a picture of the different types of ships side by side.

Another thing about the ACW naval miniatures is that they don't require much, if any rigging.  That, combined with the generally simple paint jobs means you can pick up quite a few and (hopefully) finish them quickly.  Otherwise, you wind up with a traffic jam in the shipyard that looks like this:

There are a couple of others I haven't put together yet.
I'm thinking that as I start getting these painted, I might start a separate page on the blog with just the ACW stuff.  I will also add some info about the ship combat rules I want to use in another post.

Wednesday, November 29, 2017

What Is My Time Worth, Part 5: Standing Rigging

So with the masts in place, it's time to start doing the rigging.  This is the area where most gamers start saying things like, "Oh, I can't do that."  Truth be told, looking at a finished model without seeing how it was done can be a little intimidating.  There are, however, several guides available to the modeler that will walk them through the process.  Some of them are online, and a good one is at my buddy Vol's blog: .  Look for "Rory's rigging guide", as it is in several entries, and some can be purchased.  Personally, I use Rod Langton's guide, which is pictured below:

They now cost $22 from Waterloo Miniatures here in the US,
but to me it's been worth every penny.

I will try to follow the rigging instructions step by step, as they are outlined in the manual.  That is probably the quickest way to see how we go from this:

Nice enough, but naked.

to this:
Now, she is starting to look like a sailing ship.

The first step is drilling the holes that will let us run the rigging.  Normally I would do this before the hull was painted, but decided to wait on this ship so that all the steps would be in a logical order.  If  you do this, you will have to touch up paint on the hull and possibly the deck when the drill bit goes through and scratches your work.  The picture below is from the rigging guide, and shows where the holes need to be:

Holes A, B and C are each .5 millimeters with hole D being .7 millimeters, but I drill A with a .7 millimeter drill bit as well.  That's because there will also be running rigging going through that hole.  You'll also see a handwritten note about an extra hole near the bow.  That's so the bowsprit can be rigged.  It's mentioned in the book, but not shown on the reference sheet.  There is also a .7 millimeter hole at E, which I should have mentioned in Part 4 but apparently didn't.  To give you an idea of how small these drill bits are, here's a picture of them:

.5mm on left, .7mm center.  The big one on the right is 1/16 of an inch.
I get my small bits from Micromark.

  1. Here, we drill the holes at A, B, C and the one I have written in.
  2. Next comes the .7mm hole at D.  The manual also says to drill the hole at E here, but I do that before the masts are installed.To drill the nine holes in the hull took me about 23 minutes, including touching up the paint where needed.  Next comes the stays, or the lines that run between the masts.
  3. This runs from the bowsprit, around the left side of the foremast, over the main yardarm and through the hole drilled there earlier.  In the photos below, it's highlighted in orange and took 23 minutes to complete.
  4. This line runs from the foremast, over the main yardarm and through the hole where it's tied to the larger string.  It's highlighted in bright green.
  5. The gammoning of the bowsprit comes next, and it's done in purple.  This helps hold the bowsprit in place on the real ship, and does the same thing here by keeping it from bending up.  It's hard to see in the photo, but it's done in a figure 8 shape that also runs lines out to the spritsail yard.
  6. After all that, the next line is pretty simple.  It runs from the mainmast over the crojack yard and secures the mizzenmast.  You'll see it in bright yellow.  Steps 4-6 took 44 minutes total.
  7. Finally (for these threads) is what the manual calls "a long length of thread and it finishes off the lower stays.   It runs all over the ship, and you'll see it highlighted in pale blue.  It took 27 minutes to install.  The total for standing rigging to this point: 106 minutes, or 1.76 hours.
Highlighted lines are explained above.
Next up are the ratlines, and this is where I do things a bit differently from the Langton manual.  When it was written, When my copy was written, there were no photo-etched brass ratlines, with a mesh being used instead.  The manual recommends those mesh ones be put in after all the standing rigging is in place.  I find that's too hard to do with the brass ones, so I install them before I install the backstays.  They come in unpainted brass (as seen below), and I simply spray paint them black and then seal them with a spray of dullcoat.  After that's done, I cut them from the sprue, touch them up with a black Sharpie, and install them.  It's never an exact fit; you have to cut some off of the top to ensure that the bottom sits on the channels like they're supposed to.  It took 28 minutes to install the six lower ratlines, and 17 minutes to install the six upper ones.  It takes less than 5 minutes to paint and seal them, so I called it 3 to make this step an even 48 minutes.

I'm pretty sure this picture is larger than life-size.
After this is done, it's now time to do the backstays and remaining stays.  The manual says to start from the mizzenmast and work your way forward.  This makes senses, because it gives you more free space to work in.  You take another "long length of thread," and run it up and down the mast three times to give you the backstays.  After you tie that off to the mast, you use the remainder to make the other stays running towards the bowsprit.  I've tried to use different colors to show how the lines go up and down, but may not have been too successful.  Anyway, the times for each mast are:

      8.   Mizzenmast: 35 minutes
      9.   Mainmast:    28 minutes
      10. Foremast:     25 minutes

Lines from earlier steps have been erased (although not very well).

And that gives us a total of 88 minutes for the backstays.  Now, we're almost done with the standing rigging, with all that's left to do being rig the bowsprit.  Rather than take another picture of the ship and having to erase more lines, I'm going to be lazy and use a view from the manual.

   11.  This is one line, tied in the center at X, then run in numerical order (number 2 are the holes we drilled back in step one) and tied off under the bowsprit at 3.  Time for finishing this line was 19 minutes.

Total time for doing all of the standing rigging was 261 minutes, which works out to 4.35 hours.  When combined with the other times I've recorded so far, this gives us a total of 11 hours and 28 minutes, which we can round to 11 1/2 hours.  In the next "What Is My Time Worth" post, I will do the running rigging and bring this project to an end.

Tuesday, November 28, 2017

Refitting and Repairs

One of the things AOS gamers have to realize is that, if we take our ships out and let people play with them, they are going to get damaged.  I should emphasize at the beginning that this is not something they are doing on purpose.  (OK, that one guy joked about it one time, but it was probably a joke even if I didn't take it that way. Besides, that is a story for another time.)  Instead, it's just the nature of the beast: our 1/1200 scale models are more fragile than regular miniature soldiers.

It used to bother me more than it does now.  What changed my attitude, you might ask? The simple answer is: research.  We like to think of sailing ships as machines that could go around the world, only stopping to resupply the crew and that is partially true.  What else is true is that the real-life ships required maintenance on a pretty regular basis beyond what the crew could provide.  Without getting into too much detail, repairs could range from a "refit," which meant only working on the rigging, to a "great repair" which could go so far as taking a ship apart and lengthening it as was done with the 98-gun Prince.  Even without these, a ship could expect to visit a dockyard about once every two years just to replace copper plates along the bottom.  So, with that in mind we probably shouldn't complain about a little repair work now and again.

The two candidates for a refit after Millenniumcon were Cassard and Northumberland; not coincidentally I suspect, those two also saw the most use over the weekend.  The repair on Cassard was the simplest, with a single line on the bowsprit broken.  I didn't take any pictures of the repair because, to be honest, there wasn't any need.  Cut away the broken line, glue another one in its place and that's that.  If you've built any model sailing ships, you could do this repair.

Northumberland had a bit bigger problem, although in the same neighborhood.  Somehow, the last 3-4 millimeters of the bowsprit managed to get broken off, even though it was still glued to the rigging.

How did this happen, you ask? I have no idea, so I'm blaming the
little lead Captain for following too close.
At first I thought I could take the easy way and just glue everything back together.    Of course, I should have known better and that didn't work.  So, out came the little drill bits, and I bored the usual hole in the end of the bowsprit.  After that, I fitted a straight pin into the hole to make sure it would fit.

Have you thought about leaving it like this, you ask?
Yes, yes I have.
Then, I measured the pin and cut it to roughly the right length with some snips.  After gluing it in place, I cut it a bit closer to the correct length and cut away some of the rigging that would need to be replaced.  That happened because I couldn't hold the old rigging in place and fit the pin, and the rigging wouldn't stretch enough to go over the new piece.  Also, the old rigging would not be as taut as I like.

Not looking too great here, but...

Slap a little paint on it, and it's not too bad.
After that, it's just a case of re-running the lines I had to cut away, and she's finished.

Ready to rejoin the fleet!
If there's a moral to this post, I guess that it's don't be afraid to let your toys out into the wild.  If you had the patience to build them, you can definitely repair them.  To revamp/slaughter an old adage:

"Your miniature ships in storage are safe,
 but that's not what your miniature ships are for."

Sunday, November 19, 2017

A Brief Interlude 3: A New(ish) Portrait of Nelson

According to, a portrait of Lord Nelson has recently been rediscovered.  What's significant is that this 1799 portrait by an Italian artist shows Nelson's wound from the Nile, instead of ignoring it.  Apparently this painting had the 19th Century equivalent of airbrushing done to the wound at one point, but during restoration that paint was removed.  While you can't tell that his arm has been amputated, the picture is a far cry from the usual Nelson portraits.  The article is here:

EDIT:  Originally, there was not a direct way to show the photo on here, so I provided some links.  Well, as of 12/4 the picture is apparently available online.  So, here it is:

This picture is of a man who is tired, and hurt.  It's certainly an antidote to the usual view we have of him.

Friday, November 17, 2017

Post Captain at Millenniumcon in Austin

On November 10 and 11, I took the ships and Post Captain rules to MillenniumCon in Austin.  While there, I ran two games using the rules, one with only a single ship per side, and a scenario with 10 ships and 8 players in total.  Although I took more photos of the second game, both games were quite interesting albeit for different reasons.

In the first game, I simply pitted a British 74 Large (HMS Northumberland) against a French 74 (Cassard, of the Cassard/Temeraire class).  The two players very quickly understood the rules, and both played their ships as one might expect.  The French player had the wind gauge, and at first stayed outside the 400-yard range so he could move first.  He would duck inside 400 yards to fire during one impulse of the turn, and then move out again in the next impulse.  He kept firing high and getting rigging hits, but the British player was lucky, and kept repairing them.  The British player fired low, and kept chewing away at the Cassard’s guns and hull.  He did get a critical that destroyed the pumps, but the French player wasn’t yet concerned about that damage.   Finally though, the Frenchman managed to get a critical that broke the Northumberland’s fore topyard and that gave Cassard a slight speed advantage.  Now, the Cassard started closing the range to utilize her advantage.  As she approached the Englishman at an angle, it was clear that she was going to use her speed advantage to pull ahead.  Then, once she had the initiative she would turn and deliver a bow rake on Northumberland.   Instead, the British player got a critical hit with his starboard boardside and shot away Cassard’s wheel.  With the Frenchman forced to go straight, Northumberland could turn and deliver a devastating (6 hits, 12 damage rolls) stern rake at about 50 yards with the previously unengaged larboard broadside.  When the smoke cleared, Cassard had the following damage, including what was inflicted in previous turns:
  1. Captain dead,
  2. 4 Crew hits and 3 Marine hits,
  3. 5 Rigging hits,
  4. Mizzen topgallant mast fallen,
  5. Main topgallant mast sprung,
  6. 7 Gun box hits (out of 26 total),
  7. 5 Hull hits,
  8.  Pumps out,
  9. Wheel smashed and
  10. One boat smashed.
At this point, the French player agreed to strike his colors.  By contrast, Northumberland had taken only:
  1. 2 crew hits and 1 Marine hit,
  2. 1 Gun box hit,
  3.  2 boats smashed and
  4.  Fore topsail yard broken
There were also 3 Rigging hits, but they were repaired during the battle.  Both players said that they enjoyed the game.  More importantly, I overheard the losing player describing the game to his friends afterwards and he was both enthusiastic about it and very complimentary.

On Saturday, I ran a scenario entitled “Imperial Issues” that dealt with a ‘what-if’ scenario off the island of Tortola in 1806.  In the scenario, a French squadron of 6 ships attacks a British squadron of 4 ships, attempting to drive them away so that the French can attack the Jamaica Convoy that is set to arrive soon, albeit after the game itself.  While the French squadron has more ships, they are hobbled by the fact that they have been at sea for 6 months and are low on supplies to repair their ships.  So, if any of them lose a mast (defined here as at least a topmast) they must withdraw.  Also, the captain of one of the ships is Jerome Bonaparte and if he is captured or killed the French cannot win.   Unfortunately for the French Admiral, Jerome has a different set of victory conditions and does not have to obey any orders from his superior.  For the British, Antigua is only a couple of days away so they are not worried about ship damage.  However, this squadron is also the convoy escort and there are no other ships available.  Consequently, if any of their ships are heavily damaged or disabled, they must withdraw and thereby lose the scenario.

The picture below shows the beginning of the scenario.  The wind is from the South (left side of the photo), so the French have the wind gauge and the British are pointing.

The North edge of the map are rocky areas off the island, and anyone exiting that edge will run aground.  The other edges are sea room.

The French ships came on in a mad rush, and as soon as the leading ship was within 400 yards, turned to bring her guns to bear.

The shooting started right after this picture was taken, and for some reason both sides decided to shoot high throughout the game.  There wasn’t much damage being done at the longer ranges though, and so the French fleet closed in again while the British continued in their line ahead.

The French didn’t have everything their own way though, as the British fired broadsides right into the teeth of their oncoming enemies.

This didn’t stop the French from getting so close that Veteran sideswiped and fouled Northumberland, locking both ships together and breaking Northumberland’s bowsprit.  Because everyone kept firing high, now the rigging damage was starting to pile up.

Since the French attacked without first forming a line, this left all their captains free to pick their targets as they saw fit.  One of the French ships had even hoisted more sail and was working his way to the far side of the British squadron to double it.  Seeing that the British rear was in danger of being overwhelmed, the two leading British ships (Canada and Elephant) decided to tack and come back down to assist their comrades.  Unfortunately, Canada went into irons while Elephant was successful and started to come back towards the battle.

Canada drifted onto the other tack and started back toward the battle, but by then time was almost up.  We decided to play through the blue phase of the turn we were in, and then roll for rigging checks and everything else.  After that, I would determine the winner.  Now this is where things got interesting!
Northumberland was the most heavily damaged British ship, as she had NO rigging boxes left.  That sent the mizzen topgallant mast over the side.  She also had a broken bowsprit, and almost every yard was shattered thanks to a combination of critical hits and the sideswipe with Veteran.  She was, however, still capable of fighting as she had only 2 gun and 2 hull hits along with some other insignificant damage.  Agamemnon lost her upper top and topgallant sails, 2 hull and 6 rigging boxes but still had all her guns.  Elephant lost 3 light and one medium gun boxes and 4 rigging boxes but was otherwise intact.  Canada lost her fore topgallant sail, 4 rigging and 1 medium gun boxes, but were otherwise undamaged.

While the above sounds pretty bad for the British, the French were truly not much better off.  While Eole was completely undamaged and Foudroyant had lost her mizzen topgallant, the other ships were pretty beat up.  Cassard had a sprung mizzen topmast and was missing 8 rigging boxes, Veteran had only 5 rigging boxes damaged, but also had a sprung foremast along with some other damage.  Impetueux also had 5 rigging boxes damaged, along with a heavy gun.  Patriote, however, was in serious trouble.  She had 8 rigging boxes missing and that sprung her mizzen topgallant.  Unfortunately for her, the wheel had been smashed and she was heading towards the edge of the board that would cause her to run aground on the rocks if the wheel was not repaired.  So, while I called the scenario a draw at that point, had it gone on for another turn or two, Patriote would have hit the rocks (unless she repaired her wheel, of course, which I don’t think she would have had time to do).  That would have required the French to withdraw, and thereby give the victory to the British.

As an aside, how eager were the French captains to engage their British counterpoints?  Well, this eager:
Patriote fires on both the British flagship Northumberland (right side),
AND her comrade Veteran


text:
LOOK: CELINE DION Adds Second Show In Manila!

Karen Jane Ng

Posted at February 12, 2018

Celine Dion's first ever live show in Manila on July 19 is already sold out! But because of the power of your love for the diva, a second date has been added!

Ovation Productions announced that Celine will take the stage one more time belting her iconic hits on July 20. What a time to be alive!

Celine Dion Live 2018 Tour Manila will happen on July 19 and 20 at the Mall of Asia Arena.

Are you coming to see Celine on her second Manila show? Send us a comment!

How do you feel about this?

Happy 0%
Sad 0%
Laugh 0%
Shock 100%
Angry 0%

Vote for your favorite music video here!

You must be logged-in to vote.


text:
Sorry, we couldn't find any photos within 8 blocks of 600-699 E. Campbell Rd. in the last 60 days.

About photos

Thousands of neighbors connect and get their news via EveryBlock, including:

Nicky Mellows Vickie Townsend Jhalender Gautam Tonda Valladares Ronald Dayley L Shawn Rollins NOBLE Nashville Edward B. Arnold Marciana Poland Sharon Lyn Smith

You're 60 seconds from creating an account and joining them…

Enter your email address

600-699 E. Campbell Rd.


text:
Sign In

Floral Design (Beginners)
  Quantity in Basket: None
Code: FDB
Price: $200.00
Student's full name:
Students will learn the fundamentals of floral design through lecture and hands-on training. The course will cover identification, preparation and care of fresh-cut flowers and greens. The course is designed to teach students interested in floral design as a career or for fun (the student is required to purchase supplies for each class). The student will be prepared for entry level employment. Each evening a different project will be presented; the student takes home his or her project from each class. COST OF SUPPLIES $200.

Tuesdays 10 Sessions
7:00pm - 9:30pm Career Center
1/23/18 - 3/27/18


text:
Researchers at HRL Laboratories have developed a 3D printing technology designed to overcome the limitations of working with traditional ceramic processing. The process includes a resin formulation that once printed can be fired and converted into a ceramic that is harder, stronger and more compatible with ultra-high temperatures.

Traditional ceramics are more difficult to work with than polymers or metals because they cannot be cast or machined as easily. They tend to be more porous which also limits the kinds of shapes you can make and the strength of the finished parts.

The process developed by the HRL team can create a ceramic material that is said to be ten times stronger than similar materials and can withstand temperatures in excess of 1700°C. The 3D printed ceramics are expected to also be more resistant to abrasion and corrosion.

Potential applications could include large components in jet engines to intricate parts in micro-electromechanical systems and electronic device packaging.

The following video explains the process in more detail.

Source: HRL Laboratories

View gallery - 7 images


text:
All About Jazz

Home » News » Advocacy

The Sonny Rollins Bridge Project seeks to rename NYC’s Williamsburg Bridge to commemorate Rollins’ musical sabbatical there from 1959-1961

Sign in to view read count
In the summer of 1959, saxophonist Sonny Rollins disappeared from the jazz scene. He was 28 years old and at the height of his career. He would not record or perform publicly for almost three years, a virtual eternity for a jazz musician. Instead, Rollins took it to the bridge: he would practice, typically alone, up to 16 hours a day on the pedestrian walkway of New York’s Williamsburg Bridge, not far from his home on the Lower East Side. Rollins has said of the experience: “Playing against the sky really does improve your volume, and your wind capacity. I could have just stayed up there forever.”

During his sabbatical, Rollins also began practicing yoga, exercising, stopped smoking, and worked on improving himself. Rollins’ decision to step out of the scene was a radical act in jazz’s a pivotal year for jazz. The only way you could hear Rollins was if you walked up on the Bridge.

When Sonny Rollins finally returned to playing in November of 1961, he was a changed man. He was a more confident, refined player but also a radical humanist. Rollins then went on to create music for another half century, playing many of the world’s great concert halls and recording over 50 albums. He has recorded with many of jazz’s greatest legends, including Thelonious Monk, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, and Max Roach. In addition, he has performed with the Rolling Stones and Leonard Cohen. Mr. Rollins is currently 87 years old and considered the greatest improviser to have ever lived.

To commemorate Rollins’ sabbatical on the Bridge and to honor this living legend, we are proposing to rename the Williamsburg Bridge SONNY ROLLINS BRIDGE (learn more). Legislation to rename the bridge has been introduced to the New York City Council and is forthcoming from the State of New York.

Council Member Stephen Levin, the sponsor of the renaming bill in the New York City Council, says: “I first listened to Sonny Rollins at the age of the 13. His music and his story has stayed with me to this day. Looking around New York City you’ll see plenty of monuments to politicians. You won’t see many monuments to cultural pioneers that embody the spirit of the city. The story of Sonny Rollins and the Williamsburg Bridge is a distinctly New York cultural story. It is a tale of transformation and transcendence. When Sonny started his sabbatical on the bridge he left behind unwelcome parts of his life. He gave up vices, turning instead to exercise, yoga, and honing his craft. In some ways this city serves the same purpose as the bridge did for Sonny. People come from all over, leaving everything behind to become something more.”

Sonny Rollins Bridge from Sonny Rollins Bridge Project on Vimeo.

This story appears courtesy of Terri Hinte.
Copyright © 2018. All rights reserved.

Visit Website

For interview requests or more information contact .

Sponsored announcements from the industry.


text:
Part Q compliant and SBD accredited

September 21, 2016

Part Q compliant and SBD accredited

VELFAC composite windows and doors guarantee the safety performance required to meet new Part Q regulations, and the exacting standards of UK Police flagship initiative Secured by Design (SBD) – and all without any change to the distinctive ultra-thin frame design.

This means the VELFAC system can be used in SBD developments – regarded by potential purchasers as a guarantee of additional safety and security both in and outside the home.

Read more about Part Q

Recent articles

Popular articles


text:
Prediction: Liverpool vs Everton – Soccer News

Verdict: Liverpool Win and Over 2.5 Goals

Best Odds: 13/20

Bookmakers: William Hill

Liverpool welcome their eternal rivals Everton to Anfield for what promises to be an electric Merseyside derby on Sunday. Jurgen Klopp’s side have been devastating going forward, and are capable of blowing teams apart. The Toffees meanwhile have experienced a resurgence under new manager Sam Allardyce, who looks set to save them from relegation. Interestingly both sides heading into this game looking for their third consecutive win, which should add an extra spark to a fixture that has often been a fiery affair.

Fresh from a 7-0 destruction of Spartak Moscow in the Champions League in midweek, Jurgen Klopp’s side will be feeling supremely confident heading into this Merseyside Derby. The Reds have been prolific in front of goal, scoring 33 times in 15 league games this season. Summer signing Mohamed Salah has been a revelation, and leads the league with his 12-goal haul so far. Even more impressive is the fact that when the foursome of Philippe Coutinho, Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino and Salah are on the pitch, one of them scores on average every 23 minutes. Liverpool are one of the most exciting attacking sides to watch, but it is in defence where the issues arise.

Klopp’s back line has leaked 19 goals this season, giving them the joint worst defensive record in the top seven. It is perhaps this inadequacy that is holding them back from pushing for the league title, especially given that they have registered costly 1-1 draws with Newcastle and Burnley. It seems that the failure to acquire Southampton centre half Virgil van Dijk in the summer has proved costly, and will provide the only chink in the Reds’ armour that Everton may be able to exploit.

Team News

Sporadic starting left back Alberto Moreno picked up an ankle injury in midweek, and is thus a doubt for this game. James Milner could start in his place.

Nathaniel Clyne, Joel Matip and Marko Grujic all remain out with long-term injuries.

The Toffees had a truly awful start to the season, winning just once in their first nine games of the season in the Premier League. Having spent over £100m in the summer, Everton were tipped by many as potential top four dark horses, but their awful form resulted in the sacking of manager Ronald Koeman. There was a distinct lack of pace amongst their ranks, and a huge amount of pressure was being placed on the shoulders of youngster Dominic Calvert-Lewin to inject some penetrative threat into their attacks. As a result the Merseyside club found themselves in the relegation zone, which seemed to spark some sort of response at least.

Everton have now won their last two games in a row, keeping two clean sheets in the process and scoring six times. New manager Sam Allardyce has had an instant impact, and their defensive performances should continue trending in the right direction. The issue remains however that his side struggle to consistently score goals, and even with Wayne Rooney hitting some form and Gylfi Sigurdsson getting on the score sheet in the last game, Allardyce may need to bring in a striker in January. The Toffees may well be able to open up Liverpool’s incredibly mediocre defence, which will at least give them a chance on Sunday.

Team News

The Toffees have left back issues of their own as Leighton Baines is unlikely to have recovered from a calf strain in time for this clash.

Allardyce has arrived to discover somewhat of an injury crisis, with Ross Barkley, Seamus Coleman, Yannick Bolasie and James McCarthy all ruled out.

Key Factors to Consider

  • Liverpool are unbeaten in all seven of their league games at Anfield this season.
  • The Reds have scored 33 goals in 15 Premier League games during this campaign.
  • Everton have conceded 28 times, giving them the third worst defensive record in the league.
  • The Toffees are without a league win away from Goodison Park this season.
  • Mohamed Salah leads the league with 12 goals scored in this campaign.

There is little doubt that Sam Allardyce will turn Everton into a defensively solid team at some point, but that process takes time. A clash with Liverpool this early in Big Sam’s tenure unfortunately could end in a drubbing, simply given the plethora of remarkable talent starting up front for the Reds. The safest bet here looks like a home win, with a high scoring game if you’re feeling a little bit bolder.

Verdict: Liverpool Win and Over 2.5 Goals

Best Odds: 13/20

Bookmakers: William Hill

Source link

قالب وردپرس

We hope you enjoyed reading the above post. How about helping us share the information to your fans and friends on social media? Meanwhile, you can rely on us daily for the latest and relevant free forex trading signals, free forex trading market news, free forex trading technical levels, weekly Pool draws, latest news from Nigeria and the world, educational articles and quality academic information, insurance news and scientific knowledge.

Do you need a classical ORGANIST or an excellent music teacher? CALL Fabian on 08033983034 or email him at

Follow us on twitter @newsbeatportal

learn how to make profit from your losing bets on nairabet, bet9ja, merrybet, surebet. 07030635051
Engage #SantexTech today to build & install inverters, training on inverters & other electronic designs, projects/kits. Call 08039574535

Click to join Talk Nigeria Today, a group where hot, controversial, and breathtaking issues are brainstormed upon.

Konga Verified Blogger

Leave a Reply


text:
Saturday, January 15, 2011

NMEDA would help

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of NMEDA. All opinions are 100% mine.

I've been very busy today I went to the library for a computer course. Yes, our library do this things for us free! And when I saw it on our local newspaper I grabbed the opportunity to be part of this program, and why not right?

It's like when you are bound in your house 24/7. And with this Wintery weather it does makes everybody feel cabin fever you freak out for sure! And  this is what happened to my step-daughter right now. She had MS and she don't go anywhere may it be Winter or Summer. Every time we visit her we could feel that she is depressed and don't like anybody see her, to that point. It's kind of sad because before she got an auto accident she was fine, lively active woman. After the accident so many things happened to the point that she couldn't walk nor drive a car. And to live here in America every body should know how to drive a car or else you can't get to where you like to.

The other day my step-sons wife called my hubby to check the NMEDA site. So we did checked immediately and to my surprised it will help my step-daughter a lot!! NMEDA has a dealership who can help the disabled people drive again! How cool is that. Their website tells you to check if your area is close to any NMEDA dealership. By the way to make this straight NMEDA is a non--profit organization whose aim  and purpose is to educate, promote safe driving  and equipment for disabled people.  NMEDA has dealers  and Quality Assurance Program (QAP) dealers.

* The Quality Assurance Program (QAP) is the only nationally recognized accreditation program for the Adaptive Mobility Equipment Industry. It is based on the principle that in order to satisfy customers consistently, companies must have a systematic and documented approach to quality.

To top it all after visiting and reading the website. We came to a conclusion that this is what my step daughter needs for now.  She already suffered a lot of significant change in her lifestyle for few years now is the right time for her to be back and get her independence on the road!

Visit Sponsor's Site

No comments:


text:
Earthquake Disaster Kit

Earthquake Disaster Kit

All items are packed securely in our 5 Gallon Bucket with Toilet Seat Lid

This kit contains the following:

Food and Water: The food and water in this kit will comfortably provide you with adequate nutrition for 24-hours without access to additional supplies. These products have a 5 year shelf life.
6- 4oz. Water Pouches
1 - 400 Calorie Food Bar Cherry Flavor
10 Water Purification Tablet's - each tablet purifies 1 liter of water
24 oz. Water Purification Bottle

Light and Communications: In the event of a power outage caused by disaster you’ll have independent access to your own means of lighting and communication with the outside world.
4 Function Dynamo Radio Flashlight
12 Hour Emergency Glow Stick
5-in-1 Survival Whistle
Box of Waterproof Matches
36"" x 24"" Bright Orange Help Flag

Shelter and Warmth: These supplies will provide protection from outside weather forces. They will protect you from wind, sun, rain, and many other conditions you may encounter.
2- Emergency Survival Sleeping Bag's
2- Emergency Poncho's with Hood

Tools: These items are designed to be useful in disaster situations. They will be a valuable resource when you find yourself faced with navigation, transport, personal protection, or shelter troubles.
16 Function Knife
Leather Palm Work Gloves
2 N95 Respirator Dust Mask's - NIOSH approved
50 Feet of Paracord
Safety Goggles
Red Hard Had
5' x 7' Tarp
Quake Hold Putty
10 yards of Duct Tape
3 Function Hatchet (hatchet, pry bar, hammer)
Pack of nails
All of our kit items are securely packed in a resealable, waterproof storage bags

Hygiene and Sanitation: When in a disaster situation it is useful to have access to hygiene products. Staying clean can protect against infection, disease, and depression.
24 Piece Deluxe Hygiene Kit
Tooth Brush
Tooth Paste
9 Wet Nap's
Shampoo/ Conditioner
Dental Floss Pick
Hand/ Body Lotion
Deodorant Gel
Twin Blade Razor
5'' Black Comb
4 Maxi pads/ Bandage's
Shave Cream

First Aid: These first aid items can assist with minor injuries and protect against serious health concerns in disaster circumstances.
107 - Piece First Aid Kit

Additional: These items are useful for stress relief and activity in strenuous or challenging circumstances.
Deck of Playing Cards for Entertainment
Infectious Waste Bag

Write a review

Note: HTML is not translated!
    Bad           Good

  • Brand: Guardian
  • Product Code: SKQK
  • Availability: In Stock
  • $119.99

Tags: Basic, Survival, Kit, Basic Survival Kit, Earthquake, Disaster, Kit, Earthquake Disaster Kit Guardian


text:
Moy Rock, near Inverness

Dunc climbing at Moy Rock

Ian had a superb day on Clach Glas with two clients and is heading for Liathach tomorrow.  Watch out for phtotos and blog later.

This evening myself and Dunc has a bit of spare time, so we visited Moy Rock, near Inverness.  Quite an exciting venue with easy access and fabulous views out over the River Connon.  The nearby area is also well provided with mountain biking.

For more information please visit the nineonesix-guiding website and follow the links for Mountain Biking or Rock Climbing.

Jim Sutherland

Leave a Reply

Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: Logo

You are commenting using your account. Log Out / Change )

Twitter picture

You are commenting using your Twitter account. Log Out / Change )

Facebook photo

You are commenting using your Facebook account. Log Out / Change )

Google+ photo

You are commenting using your Google+ account. Log Out / Change )

Connecting to %s


text:
Sounds Heard: Sarah Kirkland Snider—Penelope

Sounds Heard: Sarah Kirkland Snider—Penelope

This Is What You’re Like by Sarah Kirkland Snider

Directly from New Amsterdam

Sarah Kirkland Snider: Penelope
New Amsterdam (023)

Shara Worden, vocals
Signal, conducted by Brad Lubman

Lately our pages have been rife with conversations about musical genre; composition versus songwriting, contemporary music versus musical theater, and much more. It seems reasonable that Penelope, a brand new song cycle by composer and New Amsterdam Records co-founder Sarah Kirkland Snider (with lyrics by playwright Ellen McLaughlin), may spark even more conversation through it’s genre-blending style. It’s compelling enough to throw categorizations to the wind and revel in its unique dialect.

Based upon Homer’s Odyssey, Penelope flips the saga to the woman’s point of view and moves it to the present day. The protagonist, sung by Shara Worden of My Brightest Diamond, attempts to restore her war-torn husband’s damaged memory by reading to him from Homer’s epic story. Worden’s pop-inflected vocal style, blended with the lush orchestral sound of the ensemble Signal, along with electric guitars, drums and deftly interwoven electronics by Michael Hammond, travels through a tapestry of settings and moods ranging from emotive and heart-wrenching to haunting and ethereal.

It comes as no surprise that Penelope was originally conceived as a theater piece by Snider and McLaughlin—the work is structured around several meaty songs linked by shorter interludes that serve as transitions and/or asides, guiding the listener through a narrative progression of events. The music itself is imaginative and thoughtfully constructed. There is something for everyone in this music—lovers of pop and rock music will enjoy the numerous catchy tunes, and perhaps be reminded here and there of the music of Wilco or Sarah McLachlan, while the classical and contemporary music crowds will be drawn to the strong string writing and orchestration (containing traces of Pärt and Sibelius) and the precise, expressive performances by Signal.

The CD is beautifully designed and packaged—well worth purchasing in hard copy for the liner notes alone—and the sound quality is excellent, with punch that does not sacrifice dynamic range. Those willing to leave assumptions about musical categories at the door will enjoy being wrapped up in the experience that this modern twist on an ancient saga has to offer.

NewMusicBox provides a space for those engaged with new music to communicate their experiences and ideas in their own words. Articles and commentary posted here reflect the viewpoints of their individual authors; their appearance on NewMusicBox does not imply endorsement by New Music USA.


text:
47.5" Round Oil Cloth Tablecloth GREEN TROPICAL SPLASH with ROYAL BLUE TRIM

Product Description
  • Oil Cloth ~ Round Tablecloth ~ 47.5 inches
  • WITHOUT Center Umbrella Hole
  • Matching Bias Tape Trim
  • May also use as a "splatter mat" with crafts or meals
  • Stain resistant ~ Never fades ~ This will last!
  • Withstands weather ~ Rain or Shine!
  • Easy to clean ~ Simply wipe down with warm, soapy water & rinse
  • Oil Cloth may become wrinkled while packed away ~ Place in the sun to warm up the vinyl & easily remove the wrinkles
  • Reusable for years to come
  • Made in USA! ~ Handmade by our fantastic team of oilcloth seamstresses!
  • Do NOT place Oil Cloth in washing machine
  • Optional Umbrella Hole ~ Available by Custom or Special Orders
  • Custom Orders available for no additional costs!

**Picture is taken on 36" x 36" table and shows a 6" drop all the way around from the top of the table to the bottom of the bias tape.

If you table is larger or smaller than 36" across... Please contact us so that we can custom sew one to match your size!

All our Oil Cloth products are custom designs by the Head~Mama, at Not Your Mama's Kitchen and hand-sewn locally here in Texas!  Oil Cloth is highly popular in our store due to the beautiful, bright colors & the durable, long-lasting material.

We have a variety of unique designed Oil Cloth items from Aprons, Bibs to Tablecloths and more!  Oil Cloth Aprons are perfect for cooking, BBQ, parties, crafts, art & even washing pets!  Brighten up your chores with a splash of color while protecting your clothes!

Oil Cloth Bibs are a favorite item with our customers who are caretakers of kids, those with special needs, and the elderly.  Not only do the bibs protect their clothes from food but the fun colors brighten their day!

Oil Cloth tablecloths are great for outdoors because they can handle all the weather!  Or, bring the fun indoors and jazz up dinner with a bright tablecloth to pull the family together for a great home-cooked meal or quick take-out!  Plus, use the tablecloths for double-duty as a splatter mat under a kids craft table or highchair to protect your floor!  Makes for a Quick-Clean-Up on the table AND under it!

If that's not enough...we also have cosmetic bags, lunch totes and even pet mats for Fido's food and water!

Contact Not Your Mama's Kitchen for any Special Custom Orders ~ We are happy to help!

~ Oil Cloth Care Instructions ~

Oil Cloth never fades! Simply wipe clean when splattered or spilled on!

Do NOT place in washing machine ~ Do NOT dry-clean & NEVER iron Oil Cloth.

To remove wrinkles, lay the oil cloth in the sun & the wrinkles disappear with the warmth of the sunlight.

The original Oil Cloth was a laminated fabric used widely as a tablecloth in the 1950's & 1960's. The new Oil Cloth is manufactured in Mexico with beautifully, bright colors & is a printed vinyl & poly/cotton woven backing, plus it's waterproof!  The new Oil Cloth is still cleaned in the same way as the original...with a cloth & warm, soapy water.  Small items may be rinsed in the kitchen sink & for the really large items, simply hang them over the clothesline & spray off with the hose! It's really that easy! For best results, store Oil Cloth rolled up & not folded.

Oil Cloth is a sturdy, waterproof & stain resistant.  Colorful Oil Cloth is a great way to brighten up a kitchen, dining room, playroom or patio on a budget!  Please see our other listings to jazz up your decorating time or find useful ideas!

$ 24.95

     Focusing on Quality Products & Customer Care!

Greetings!  Our passion here at Not Your Mama's Kitchen is to always provide Quality Products along with excellent Customer Care.  Simply put, "Good Old Fashioned Customer Service!"  If you don't find what you're looking for, feel free to send us an email ~ We specialize in Customer Orders!


text:
Oilcloth Adult Bib Pocket, FORKS Pattern ORANGE Trim 25" x 15"

Product Description
  • Adult bib with velcro neck ~ made of high quality Oil Cloth
  • 25" long from tip to tip 15" across
  • 6-inch deep pocket
  • Excellent for special needs, nursing homes, etc.
  • Stain resistant ~Never fades
  • Easy to clean, simply wipe down with warm, soapy water and rinse
  • Oil Cloth may become wrinkled while packed away, simply place in the sun to warm up the vinyl and remove the wrinkles
  • Reusable for years to come
  • Made in USA!
  • Do NOT place Oil Cloth in washing machine

~ Oil Cloth Care Instructions ~

Oil Cloth never fades! Simply wipe clean when spilled on!

Do NOT place in washing machine ~ Do NOT dry-clean ~ NEVERiron Oil Cloth.

To remove wrinkles, lay the oil cloth in the sun & the wrinkles disappear with the warmth of the sunlight.

The original Oil Cloth was a laminated fabric used widely as a tablecloth in the 1950's & 1960's. The new Oil Cloth is manufactured in Mexico with beautifully, bright colors & is a printed vinyl & poly/cotton woven backing, plus it's waterproof!  The new Oil Cloth is still cleaned in the same way as the original...with a cloth & warm, soapy water.  Small items may be rinsed in the kitchen sink & for the really large items, simply hang them over the clothesline & spray off with the hose! It's really that easy! For best results, store Oil Cloth rolled up & not folded.

Oil Cloth is a sturdy, waterproof & stain resistant.  Colorful Oil Cloth is a great way to brighten up a kitchen, dining room, playroom or patio on a budget!  Please see our other listings to jazz up your decorating time or find useful ideas!

Made right here in the USA by our fantastic team of oil cloth seamstresses!  We have several patterns available to choose from.  Please contact us for special orders.
$ 12.99

     Focusing on Quality Products & Customer Care!

Greetings!  Our passion here at Not Your Mama's Kitchen is to always provide Quality Products along with excellent Customer Care.  Simply put, "Good Old Fashioned Customer Service!"  If you don't find what you're looking for, feel free to send us an email ~ We specialize in Customer Orders!


text:
Allston’s Green District: Sustainable City Living

Living in a city can be great way to incorporate environmentally friendly activities into your daily life and reduce your carbon footprint. Most cities have great public transportation options and walkable neighborhoods, a plethora of farmer’s markets year-round, and streamlined recycling pick up programs. But while renting an apartment in an antique Boston brownstone may […]

Amazon Rainforest Census

In an effort to create and support more effective conservation policies, Brazil recently announced its plan to conduct a large scale census of the Amazon Rainforest, called the National Forest Inventory. Scientists and policy makers need accurate data about the rainforest ecosystem in order to assess its health and address its specific needs. As the […]

Tapping into the power of the Sun

Global energy systems, like petroleum, coal, and other traditional energy sources are pushing global temperatures ever higher with projections of rising temperatures reaching 3 degrees Celsius by 2050 and 6 degrees Celsius by 2100 (an increase of 2 degrees Celsius is widely considered the dangerous global tipping point). These projected temperature changes, if accurate, will […]

True Eco-Tourism: A Book Review

Visit Sunny Chernobyl by Andrew Blackwell is a travel memoir like we’ve never seen before. Instead of traveling to and writing about pristine environments and utopian vacation spots, Blackwell seeks out the most polluted, ravaged, and damaged parts of our planet in an effort to understand the true relationship between humans and nature, and perhaps […]

Warmest Year on Record

The results are in, and while 2012 was a monumental year for climate change science, it was also officially the warmest year on record.  The National Climatic Data Center of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) recently released its annual State of the Climate report, and numbers are shocking.  The report is quite extensive, […]

2012: A Year in Review

2012 was a remarkable year for climate change science. Extreme weather events worldwide inspired researchers and politicians to take action and bring climate change conversations to the forefront with renewed fervor. Here is a recap of some of the year’s most important incidents and developments in climate change science and global warming: Drought: The United […]

Christmas Trees and Climate Change

Douglass Fir, Fraser Fir, Blue Spruce, Scotch Pine – no matter what type of tree we choose to adorn with lights and ornaments this year, the Christmas tree is truly a special yuletide tradition. But before these beautiful coniferous tree species are harvested for the holidays, they comprise the world’s vast northern boreal forests. Coniferous […]


text:
Mini Guide to Montserrat, Spain

Hi all!

Life got busy (and how!! I’ll get into that as some point) and now we’re nearing the end of year. So, procrastination be damned, I present you with this “bonus” guide. It was a semi-impromptu day trip to Montserrat. While we did prior research, it was still confusing navigating the train schedule. I’ll do my best to help you out. Here are some helpful links: 1 // 2

HOW DID YOU GET HERE? I think it depends on what time of day you head out, but I suggest heading out early from Barcelona. We left kind of late at 11am; it was pouring that morning. Guides say that it takes about 1.5 hrs to get there by train, but I think it took us a slightly over 2 hours.

Tickets were roughly €11 for a single ride. Follow the R5 line at the Espanya station.

Here is a little video I made explaining the train schedule.

IS THIS OFF-BARCELONA EXCURSION WORTH A DAY TRIP? Yes! The monastery and the surrounding area are beautiful and a refreshing change from the hustle and bustle of Barcelona.

WHAT DID YOU EAT? The monastery has a restaurant, but we didn’t eat there. When we arrived, there was a farmer’s market where the “mountain folk” set up shop and were selling their homemade cheeses, pastries, and candies. WARNING: TMI! I tried some local mountain cheese and it was delicious! However, in less than 10 minutes, my stomach cried foul of foreign microbes and I KNEW I WAS GOING TO HAVE EXPLOSIVE SHITS. Thankfully, there is a large public restroom in the the plaza of the monastery and I took care of business. Just sayin’.

Anyway, picture time…

(P.S. The amazing panorama shots were taken by the husbeau.)

FINAL NOTES ON THE HONEYMOON SERIES: I miss Spain often and I hope to be back someday. I can’t thank Yobo enough for being my travel companion and for spoiling me with amazing eats, sights, and sounds. It was really an amazing trip! Traveling on a budget and in a slightly offbeat way affords a mindset that is illuminating: the world is vast and beautiful. We are all different. We are all the same. Be sure to go back in time with me and check out the other trip links. I hope you’ve enjoyed all the anecdotes and pictures. I really appreciate all the comments and likes, so thank you all very much too!

Honeymoon links → Primer, Tarifa, Morocco (Chefchaouen), Granada, Valencia, Barcelona, and Madrid.


WARC-Identified-Payload-Type: application/xhtml+xml

text:
Online event funds raised to date
Featured Sponsors

Thanks for donating! Please note that contributions will be attributed to AIDS Walk New York 2018 beginning on Saturday, June 17, 2017.

Please make sure to select the walker or team you wish your donation be counted towards.

1. Choose your recipient

Donate to a member
Donate to a team

2. Donation Amount

$ Or:

3. Donation settings

Use my billing name

4. Payment Info


text:
Field Trip Friday: United Nations Headquarters

Last week the OHNY staff (all three of us!) stepped outside the boundaries of the U.S. and entered into international territory to visit the United Nations Headquarters located in Turtle Bay. If you walk inside the boundaries of the U. N. (between 1st Ave and the East River from 42nd Street up to 48th Street) you are, in fact, walking in an area governed not by the United States, but by the U.N., which has its own police and fire department and its own postal service. As you enter the U.N. Visitors Center, you pass an impressive line of flags, 193 in all, representing all of the member countries. They are laid out in alphabetical order starting with Afghanistan and finishing with Zimbabwe. Carl Fredrik Reuterswärd’s anti-gun sculpture titled Non-Violence sits outside as a symbol of international peace.

Outside the U.N.

Non-violence sculpture, donated to the U.N. by Luxemburg

The NY Headquarters, built in 1952, consist of four buildings: the Secretariat building, the General Assembly building, the Conference building and the Dag Hammarskjold Library, which was added in 1961. Rather than holding a competition for the buildings, the United Nations Board of Design was created, an international committee of architects that included Le Corbusier, Oscar Niemeyer and Wallace K. Harrison, among others.

U.N. General Assembly building atrium

U.N. General Assembly building atrium

The tour of the building started in the impressive Security Council, with its iconic circular wood table, a gift of Norway. The primary purpose of the Security Council is to promote peace and to discuss and defuse international conflicts. The Presidency of the Security Council rotates each month; each member country getting a turn.

U.N. Security Council

The other main highlight of the tour was the General Assembly, the main conference hall where all 193 member States of the U.N. meet to discuss international issues. It features a large golden wall that sits just behind the podium and upper booth areas that are reserved for the official translators (as seen in the movie The Translator with Nicole Kidman and Sean Penn).

U.N. General Assembly

Along the tour, there are also a number of exhibits that represent the three main goals of the U.N. – peacekeeping and security, upholding and maintaining human rights, and social and economical development. Other exhibits serve as reminders of the international catastrophes that have taken place in the past due to war and conflict. You can see a status of St. Agnes that was found face-down in the ruins after the atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki, Japan. Also on view is the official document of the U.N. rejecting the denial of the holocaust.

St. Agnes statue

The tour is a great way to get an intimate view of how the U.N. functions and how it conducts international business on a daily basis. It also provides a sense of hope and solidarity, knowing that right here in New York, the U.N. is working to build a more peaceful and prosperous world.

The U.N. buildings are currently undergoing their first renovation since they were built. It is an extensive renovation that started 2009 and is scheduled to finish in 2013. Only the infrastructure of the buildings are being updated; the buildings, for the most part, will remain unaltered in honor of the international style and symbolic nature of the U.N. Headquarters. Access to the visitors center is free and open to the public daily from 9:00am – 5:30pm. Public tours will continue through the renovation and are now being conducted from the General Assembly building. For more information about tours prices and times click here.

The U.N. will also be conducting architectural tours during the 9th Annual OHNY Weekend taking place on October 15 &16. Stay tuned to find out more details soon!

0 Responses to “Field Trip Friday: United Nations Headquarters”

  1. Leave a Comment

Leave a Reply

Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in:

WordPress.com Logo

You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. Log Out / Change )

Twitter picture

You are commenting using your Twitter account. Log Out / Change )

Facebook photo

You are commenting using your Facebook account. Log Out / Change )

Google+ photo

You are commenting using your Google+ account. Log Out / Change )

Connecting to %s

%d bloggers like this:


text:
Since I was a little girl, it has been my dream to become a massage therapist, so I had searched the web looking for places in Oki where I could learn.  I found ALA Relaxation and gave them a call.  The owner’s name is Kaz and he has a place right by the seawall in the Sunabe area.

I have now taken both levels of massage with Kaz and am about to graduate and get my certificate from ITM Chaing Mai, Thailand, where Kaz learned Thai massage and received his teacher certification.  Anyone wanting to learn how to massage I highly recommend this course.  It’s one-on-one and very professional.  I have three children, so was worried whether I’d be able to figure out a schedule that would work for me.  But they are all so nice and understanding that I’ve been able to make my own schedule.

Massage1 Massage2

Massage3 Massage4

Kaz offers two levels here, each is 30 hours and you can take your time and do it over a month if need be.  Level 1 is learning how to do Thai massage from front position, meaning the client is lying on their back face up.  Level II is learning how to do Thai massage with the client on their side, belly and sitting up.  Level I class was about $1,200, which might seem pricey but it’s one-on-one and has definitely been worth it.  Level II is $300-400 more than Level I, but if you take the two together he gives a discount and it ends up being the same price as Level I.  I was able to take the class any time during the day or evening that he was open for regular business.  I believe his hours are from 1100 – 2000.  I took classes from 1230 until 1430, three days a week, since I have kids to pick up from school and run around.

In December, I am going to Thailand to the school where Kaz earned his certifications to continue my education. (Their certifications are valid in the US.)  There are many different levels to take in Chaing Mai, but you only need the first two to begin massaging, so that is all Kaz teaches here.  I feel that I know more than enough from the classes here to work as a massage therapist, but I just want to learn more!

I have also received massages from ALA and they were wonderful.  It is reasonably priced and I felt a ton better afterwards.  Thai massage is a lot of stretching and acupressure, for those that aren’t familiar with it.  Kaz also has Hot Stone Massage and Oil Massage and Hot Herbal Compress Massage on the list.  I haven’t tried those but I definitely want to.  ALA Original Massage is something Kaz designed with some Thai and some Shiatsu he learned while in NY.  I loved it and felt like jello!  The price for this and the Original Northern Thai massage is: 50 min. for 4,000 Yen,  70 min. for 6,000 Yen, and  120 min. for 9,000 Yen.  Hot Stone Massage is:  90 min. for 10,000 Yen and 120 min. for 13,000 Yen.

*All students get a nice discount on these prices when taking classes with him*

ALA Relaxation

Phone: 81 98-936-7369

Address: Japan, 〒904-0113 Okinawa Prefecture, Nakagami District, Chatan-chō, Miyagi, 北谷町宮城2-111

GPS Coordinates: 26.3270474, 127.7467302

Directions:  From Gate 1 Kadena, turn left out of the gate, then get in the far right hand lane to go toward the seawall.  When you get to the last stop light before the seawall make a right, go a little bit down and it’s on the right.  It has a green awning and banners up of massage.  It’s right next door to tall whitish/manila apartments.  Catty-corner from a cafe.

  1. I’m sorry if this is a dumb question… So I I would be able to get everything done here with ALA and don’t need to go to Thailand to get certified correct? Your going for more experience not to confirm your cert, is that correct? I would love to get trained and certified here, but I don’t think I’ll be able to get loose to head to Thailand that easy. I appreciate your story on this and it was very helpful and informative. Thank you!!!

  2. How much is it to take this course? I am very interested and would love to get this instruction. More specifically, my wife would love for me to get this instruction.

  3. Yes, before I started I checked ITM website in Chaing Mai and it is valid for the U.S and a couple of other countries as well. You can email me at [email protected] and share phone numbers and maybe even meet up so I can introduce you to the owner. Really recommend it!!! I have no regrets and am enjoying every minute I massage!

  4. Do you have any more info about how the certifications transfer to the U.S? Getting into massage therapy is something I’m really interested in (and this program sounds amazing!!), but I’m a little confused about how these courses would get you certified/licensed to practice in the states? I’d love to talk to you more about this!

  5. Yes, they are fantastic! I know another massage from ALA and a banana chocolate ice coffee from Coffee Casa after it are in order real soon!

  6. I’ve heard from great sources that the massages there are fantastic – how great that they teach too! Awesome post, thank you. And FYI people – this place is diagonally across from Coffee Casa.

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here


text:
Review: Gloom (Amiga 1200/4000) (1995)

Gloom AGA

Review of Gloom for the Amiga 1200/4000

Today we’re going to have a look at a Doom-clone for the Amiga 1200/4000. The game is called Gloom and it was released in the year of 1995.

Xtreme Racing
Xtreme Racing - Another game from Guildhall Leisure

The game was published by Guildhall Leisure Services Ltd. After the bankruptcy of Commodore in 1994, Guildhall was one of the most active and prominent publishers of Amiga software. Apart from Gloom, we can find games like Xtreme Racing (fun 3D racer) and Legends in their portfolio.

The team that made Gloom called themselves Black Magic Software. Their programmer, Mark Sibly, became famous for creating quality games. Examples are Overkill and Guardian. He was also the mind behind the Blitz Basic programming language on the Amiga.

Creating a decent and smooth 3D-engine with texture mapping on an Amiga 1200 was (and still is) a big accomplishment back in the middle of the 1990’s. By creating Gloom, Mark Sibly and Black Magic Software became pioneers in this new field of Amiga gaming. The Amiga software market before 1995 was totally dominated by 2D games. Gloom was one of the first titles to break this barrier.

Getting ready for action!

You can actually run Gloom on a standard Amiga 1200 or 4000 without any add-ons. Being AGA, it won’t work on an Amiga 500, 600 or 3000 . You must have an Amiga 1200 or 4000 to run the game. Another option is of course to run the game through an emulator like WinUAE.

The game can be installed on a hard drive, which is convenient.

There’s also a CD32 version available.

The Story

The storyline of Gloom is simple. You find yourself teleported to a building that is infested with dangerous enemies. Your character is a soldier armed to the teeth with a deadly plasma-rifle. Your mission is to survive the onslaught of enemy soldiers, transparent ghosts and skinheads. As you progress through the levels, your escape draws nearer.. Can you save yourself from this nightmare? That is what Gloom is about.

Apart from the usual single-player campaign, Gloom does also support a two-player split-screen mode. By selecting this option, you can play the game with a friend. You can also challenge him or her to a death match like in other first person shooters. This can be a bit of fun, but not for long, as you can follow the movements of your opponent by watching his or her part of the screen. This removes a lot of the excitement. If you’ve got two Amiga machines, you can avoid this by linking the computers together with a serial cable. That Gloom supports this option is a plus.

Gloom - Blowing the up!
Gloom - It's about blowing up your enemies!

Remember Moonstone? In that game you could turn blood and gore on and off. This was a perfect solution for both the faint hearted and blood-thirsty. Did you know that you can do the same in Gloom as it has a violence mode? Here you can choose between meaty and messy. I believe these options speak for themselves..

Playing the Game

The 3D-engine is fast. Even if you run the game on a standard Amiga 1200, you’ll be able to play the game without any serious issues. If you feel that the game is too slow on your vanilla machine, you’ve got the possibility to turn down the resolution. I’ve been playing the game on a computer with 68030 CPU and it worked flawlessly.

The first thing you’ll notice when playing Gloom is that it is fun. It is fast paced, it is filled with enemies and it never gets boring. There’s always someone or something to shoot at. The enemies are aggressive, so watch out!

Beware of the dangerious enemies!
Watch out for aggressive enemies!

In Gloom you can’t see the gun you are using, which is uncommon in the first person shooter genre (think of Doom, Alien Breed 3D, Quake and so on..). This was a bit disappointing, but it’s more of a cosmetic thing. You’ll quickly forget this when playing the game. Also, there’s not a huge arsenal of handguns and rocket launchers to choose from. You’ve got a plasma-rifle and that is it. Fortunately your rifle can be upgraded by picking up bonuses, so you’re not stuck with the standard one all the way.

There are many different levels. Over 20 (I’ve not managed to complete all of them yet, but that is a goal I have for the next months.) to be exact. These differ in environment and difficulty. You’ll notice that the textures are nicely drawn. Each level contains a secret room with bonuses. Very handy when you feel that luck is running out. I also found a mini-game inside Gloom. It is a fun version of the classic Defender from the arcades. Great stuff. There should be other mini-games available after what I’ve heard. Can you find them all?

Gloom is a great first person shooter for your Amiga 1200 or 4000. The 3D-engine works like a charm and proves that the Amiga was, and still is, capable of more than many could have imagined. The game is like a shoot’em up in 3D with plenty of action. Your trigger-finger will certainly get a lot of exercise when playing Gloom. The graphics look nice and the sound effects are cool as well. The game features a single-player campaign and two-player modes which adds to its lastability.

Gloom - Playing the game
Body parts

If you like first person shooters and want to play such game on your Amiga, Gloom should be your first stop. Highly recommended!

You can download the game by visiting Planet Emulation via the link below:

    • Two people can play Gloom at the same computer in split-screen mode. You can also play over a modem (!) if you want. Final option is to link two Amiga computers together with a null-modem cable. Cool stuff. 🙂

  1. There are quite a few Amiga games supporting serial linking. Alien Breed 3D (and 3D II), Blitz Bombers, Dogfight, Doom and many, many more. 🙂 I’ll probably do an article on this sometime in the future.

  2. I remember so this is available also on A500+.. It’s a cool game and a big demonstration of Amiga’s 3D power ; )

  3. I had this one original,one of the last amiga games I bought. Fast and fun,but graphics were horrible, serious lack of detail and resolution.

Leave a Reply