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South Valley Middle School  Logo
Daily Announcements Vision, Mission, and Beliefs Administrators
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Ms. Lindsey

Courses taught at South Valley Middle School:

  • 7th ELA
  • 8th ELA

E-Mail: llindsey@liberty.k12.mo.us

Phone: 816-736-7180 Ext 2227

Online Resources:


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07/07/17 11:30am

There’s now nothing left of the 1952 2-bedroom house or its 3 accompanying oak trees that until late last month stood at 4027 Portsmouth St. in Weslayan Plaza, a tiny neighborhood just west of Greenway Plaza and just north of the Southwest Fwy.

Here’s a quick photo recap of recent activity on the site:

Now You See It
06/26/17 3:00pm

And here we see before, right before, and during photos of today’s demolition of the 2-bedroom home at 4027 Portsmouth St., on the second block north of the Southwest Fwy. and just west of Weslayan St., in the appropriately named subdivision Weslayan Plaza just west of Greenway Plaza. Though the sign posted on the property appears to depict multiple townhouses new construction from Noël Home Luxury Living — better known as a home decor service of the Noel Furniture showroom across I-59 and a mile to the east at 2727 Southwest Fwy. — the buyer’s name on the permit for a new single-family home at this property is CitiView Homes.

Photos: Rex Solomon

Weslayan Plaza Demo
09/26/16 11:00am

WEST U SHELTER-IN-PLACE ORDER JUST LIFTED FOLLOWING THIS MORNING’S ‘SOUTHWEST HOUSTON’ SHOOTING Weslayan Plaza, Weslayan at Bissonnet St., Montclair, Houston, 77005The city has just cancelled stay-put orders for the folks in a zone straddling the borders of West University and the Montclair and College Court Place neighborhoods, as the crime scene investigation of this morning’s rush-hour shooting spree at the Weslayan Plaza strip center wraps up. The shelter-in-place request was active while the bomb squad was checking out the now-deceased suspect’s Porsche near his residence in The Oaks condominiums at Weslayan and Law St. Folks ranging from KPRC to the FBI reported the shooting as taking place in “Southwest Houston”; the shopping center is technically in the southwest quadrant of the city, though a good deal closer to Downtown than the area that usually gets that descriptor. [Houston OEM, KHOU; previously on Swamplot] Photo of Weslayan Plaza: Regency Centers

03/28/13 12:05pm

This white box, covering up the emergency exit of a vacated belly-dancing studio, will be the new entrance of Houston’s first indoor rowing facility, says founder Greg Scheinman. In West University Place, ROW Studios is building out the former Sirrom Dance behind the Randall’s in Weslayan Plaza and resurfacing the parking lot facing Academy St.

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Katie (steal_her) wrote in swear_imnotemo,

  • Mood:
  • Music:

The Hair..

!Name: Katie
!Age: 14
!Location: England
!Top ten bands and top ten movies:
1) Aerosmith
2) Led Zeppelin
2) Less Than Jake
4) The Clash/The Specials
5) Voodoo Glow Skulls/Pink Floyd

1) Dirty Dancing
2) The Wall
3) The Shawshank Redemption
4) Zoolander
5) Pretty Woman

!Post one picture of yourself being as emo as possible, and one picture of yourself being as non-emo as possible:

1)Do you consider yourself emo? why the fuck? Urm, not at all. Although i guess i dress 'steroytypically' emo sometimes
2)Whats the most obscure band you've ever referenced? A lot of people havn't heard of the voodoo glow skulls
3)What's your favorite article of clothing you own? Probably just a plain aqua shurt i have.. yeah boring i know :)
4) TRIVIA: What instrument does Bryce Avary of the Rocket Summer play? Pass
5) Do you own a scarf/peacoat? I own both, and yes i only wear them when it's cold.
6) Have you ever caught yourself crying at a show? Less Than Jake were almost good enough to make me cry but not in the 'oh god, this music is so emotional' kinda way
7) Do you eat mac and cheese? If so, how often? I don't like mac and cheese, i love eat the chicken nuggets
8) Do you own a messengetr bag? If so, how many? I own one
9) Do you shop at Hot Topic? If it exsisted in england..i'm sure i wouldn't.

1) New dashboard or old Dashboard? Old
2) New Brand New or old Brand New? New
3) New Saves the Day or old Saves the Day? I havn't heard them
4) New Something Corporate Or old SoCo? old
5) Shows or Concerts? [how many wuold you say you attend weekly/monthly?] I go to a local one about evey week, at least one a month
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Sunday, May 29, 2016

Lee's Sandwiches - San Jose

This location on Santa Clara St in San Jose was supposedly the original location of Lee's Sandwiches before they branched out. It's been a few years since we were last there and the inside has been remodeled. It looked chic and modern. Wood tables and nice digital menu display. A huge mural near the corner with history of the company.

We ordered a #9 banh mi sardine and a banh mi bowl with white rice, lemongrass tofu and Vietnamese dressing. We didn't see this banh mi bowl before so decided to give it a try. It's a custom order bowl similar to Chipotle. Pick your carb (jasmine white rice, brown rice, etc), pick your protein (pork, chicken, etc) add a sauce or for $1.5 add an extra. The base price was $7.95. This wasn't very economy compared to the huge banh mi that only cost $4.95.

Saturday, May 28, 2016

Na Rak O Resort - Chiang Rai, Thailand

We were going to stay at the same hotel we did ten years ago Wangcome which was located close to the night bazaar. But as it turned out the rate for that hotel was around USD 60. For a night or two would probably be fine. But since we were going to be there for 4 nights, I tried to find a cheaper accommodation.

Na Rak O Resort though sounds expensive but it's not exactly a "resort". It's more like a modest hotel with a homely feel to it. Our room was downstairs with a small common area for snacks and tea. Upstairs got more rooms with a tiny pantry area serves as breakfast place where guests can prepare their own breakfast in the morning.

Revisited again : Cheon Joo Young-Yang Dolsot

This was the third time we visited this restaurant. At this time we have decided that the strength of this restaurant was in their not very typical Korean restaurant menu. Come here for the stews or jeongol (casseroles) because you won't be able to find it else where.

I was going to order the beef and octopus casserole (bul nak ji jeongol) but didn't see it on the menu anymore. So we went with seafood casserole instead (hae mul jeongol).

Wednesday, May 18, 2016

Get Wet At Songkran Celebration in Thailand

I guess that's how we looked like getting splashed from bystanders
We arranged our trip to Thailand to coincide with the Thai new year celebration Songkran. What I didn’t know was Songkran was such a huge celebration there for the local and of course for the visitors like us.

We were in Chiang Mai on the first day of new year.  The biggest mall there (Maya) had set up this huge stage along with huge screen and was testing their sound systems getting ready for the celebration. At the same time, the hotel at the catty corner already started the celebration with loud music blaring and a crowd of hundreds of people dancing and getting sprayed with water coming out of a hose every so often.

Sunday, May 15, 2016

Masala Toast

Was doing research on Indian food when I stumbled across this recipe from Tarla Dalal on Youtube. I was intrigued and decided that I need to make it myself to find out what it tasted like. The recipe below was a simplified version. The original version can be found here.

Garlic green chutney

Yield : 4 toast

Ingredients :
1 1/2 cups roughly chopped coriander
1/4 cup dried shredded coconut
1 tbsp roughly chopped garlic
2 tbsp roughly chopped green chillies
salt to taste
a few drops of lemon juice
1/4 cup water

Using a food processor, blend all the above ingredients until it resembles a paste similar to the consistency of yogurt. Set it aside.

Saturday, May 14, 2016

Dee Dee's - Santa Clara

A mixture of rice and different dishes with puri on the side
Last weekend we were contemplating on what food to eat. And while checking out Indian buffet we came across Dee Dee's. I was surprised to see how close the restaurant to our house. And then a light bulb suddenly turned on. We passed by this restaurant before and there were lots of people waiting outside. Intrigued by the good reviews we decided that we need to check it out.

By the time we got there it was passed 1 pm. I thought the line shouldn't be too long. Wrong. There were at least 20 people waiting outside. The restaurant was kind of tiny. Probably fit like 30 people.

We waited like about 40 minutes before we got our table. The buffet selection were not bad. I couldn't name any of those dishes though because I was unfamiliar with them. I recognized those puffy crunchy hollow cracker thingy which later on I found out were called mini poori or puri.

Tuesday, May 10, 2016

Thai Breakfast - Thailand

khao soy - northern style curry based noodle soup
When we were in Thailand our hotels both in Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai didn't offer breakfast. So every morning we went out to look for food. So what kind of breakfast do we normally come across ?

Noodle soup
There are quite a few types of noodle soup. When we were in Chiang Mai I got the tom yum noodle soup with the wide rice noodle. The soup was clear pork (?) broth with fish ball, minced pork  and fried wonton skin and chopped celery leaves as topping.
tom yum noodle soup

When we were in Chiang Rai, hubby had khao soy which was typical to northern Thailand. Khao soy is curry based noodle soup with topping like crispy noodle. The curry broth wasn't very rich but more on the lighter side.
fish ball soup with rice noodle

Also in Chiang Rai, I had the fish ball soup with some clear broth served with rice noodle. In a quite a few places, they actually offer different types of noodle. So choose wisely. I normally like it with the thin rice stick. Though the fresh wide noodle was also nice.

Stir fry noodle
Pad thai was probably the most popular Thai noodle dish known to Americans. But it's just one of so many other stir fry noodle in Thailand. I did try pad thai once just to see how the real one supposed to taste like. It's different from the American version. It wasn't as sweet and color was more lighter instead of hint of reddish.
pad thai - lacked of chives ?

Hubby normally like the rad na which was served with the fresh wide noodle topped of with sauce.

rat na with abundant sauce

Friday, May 6, 2016

Orenchi Ramen - Santa Clara

Okonomiyaki fries
One of a few things that I sort of craved after we came back from our two weeks trip was ramen. So this past weekend we finally were able to get our hands on the famous Orenchi ramen in Santa Clara. I said famous because I couldn't wait for the long line on my first visit.

This time we got there like around 11:20 and there were quite a lot of people already. Mind you, they were not open yet until 11:30 but they allowed patrons to come and put names on wait list. And there were at least 40 people in front of us on the wait list. But don't worry, once the restaurant was open, the line moved pretty fast. We were seated like around 12:15 and got our food around 12:30. So allow at least one hour for wait. Don't go there too hungry because you'll be miserable.


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Monday, January 28, 2008

Random Thought - 1/16/2005

Random Thought of the Moment

You know how in a serious place, say a class lecture or a business meeting, when a cell phone goes off, they always tend to have these stupid elaborate ring tones, as if I haven't heard Pachebel Canon for the googleth time thank you very much.

Not only that, but when they shut them off, and in turn, get other people to shut their respective cell phones off, the cell phone turning off has a requisite high pitched scale going downwards, creating even more noise than before.

Now is it cell phone manufactuer's faults for putting in the feature that creates noise when you turn off a cell phone? When you turn it off, do you really need an extra noise to let you know it's being turned off?

Or is the fault with those users who can simply turn it off by taking out the battery and putting it back in?

I guess it's a good thing my cell phone shuts off randomly so that this rarely occurs. Plus I have no friends.

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Wednesday, 7 September 2011

Hi all

Well just 24 hours to the swim...and just 8 hours of work to get through! Now we just need the weather to improve and especially the wind and sea conditions. Come on (not so) Great British weather! I'm packed and raring to go, although couldn't find my wetsuit, so am going to have to do it in just me shorts. So stay away jelly fish...I don't want no one having to pee on me!

I have to say the best incentive to complete this swim is to have a full-on music festival waiting for you at the end and a whole weekend of decadence and debauchery! Anyway really looking forward to meeting everyone...have any new people joined us? I know a handful of people dropped out.

Anyway hopefully see everyone tomorrow morning bright and early, for a nice refreshing dip!

Bon voyage

Matt x

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text:
Thursday, 15 March 2012

Love this

It can be applied to almost anything in life, for me at the moment its my saving journey.

1 comment:

  1. Love it! Unfortunately I have to confess housework isn't all that important to me, being happy and having fun is :-)

Thanking you very muchly for your comment :)


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It is better to remove porn from My Mac

For Mac users, hidden potential difficulties are suddenly under Apple, white fear, there are some tips to remove porn films from my Mac especially if done while at work, a little gruesome. Why do you surf porn websites at work? Yes, You need a break from the stress, you should take, but you're just plain stupid not to cover your tracks?

There are ways to remove porn from My Mac, especially if you are using this list. Some companies will finally see the light at the end of the tunnel and move from a personal computer to Apple. Not only is that Mac users are not going to keep You cool, and develop carpal tunnel syndrome to learn that a new way to use your computer.

Such technical support can be transmitted from another porn addict, got caught, got caught with porn sites behind scary and humbling, if the AHA! The opening will take place in the Office.

You can deleting porn from My Mac. Since you do not appear to protect some time in yourself and quickly plunge into the pool this vibrating pleasure, here it is almost too late tips to protect yourself are caught.

Using a Web browser such as Mozilla Firefox, Safari, and Opera. This Browser includes security features such as three private browsing mode, which is appropriately called porn Mode. You have the option to remove history and pop-up blocking. There are going to say that if you go into why Safari can manage. Suitable for Mac users, this should be an excellent forests.

Why history is an obvious way to remove porn from My Mac? Once is not a good thing to add is a 201 file. Another is that download movies porn book in the workplace can lead to slower Internet connection speed slow Jet of a tortoise crawling with real arthritis. Not only increases the operating costs of your company with all unproductive hours that you give them, you improve. Network risk getting some deadly virus that penetrates the Mac now

You can delete your Web History day fun make the installation of some programs, such as Eraser, CCleaner or proof Stealther, Eliminator. Powerful tools that will ensure that your Mac free porn all the time.

In addition to the squeaky clean Web history, as well as to consider preserving your privacy settings without guilt. This will make all the confidential files securely, with no spyware, viruses and other malware dangerous cold. One of the sure ways to get a list of your favorite sites from the red light district of Eagle eye still continue to download Privorites.

If you still want to read porn stories, but in the end, you need to delete porn from My Mac, you can use a proxy site called work friendly. Google. It was and still is doing erotic desire them, without a call to Your network administrator

Fire Science Online Degree Education - Climb the Career Ladder

The days of the "good old boys" fire department is fast becoming history. With the advent of more scientific knowledge of fire behavior, college education has become the way to secure a firefighter job and a way to progress up the career ladder. A degree in fire science will give you an edge when it comes time for job interviewing and testing. Advancement into officer positions will be easier with a degree in fire science.

An online degree program allows you to do your course work around your shift schedule. If you are interrupted while doing online work, it is still available 24/7. (sort of like a firefighter). As long as you have a computer, you can do your assignments. Some programs allow you to complete a bachelor's degree in 24 months with an accelerated program.

Classes focus on life safety, fire suppression, fire investigation, administration, fire protection, fire prevention, and safety programs. Eastern Kentucky University has an online degree program.

The US Department of Labor Statistics projects that the need for firefighters will grow faster than average through 2014. Most firefighter positions have great benefits, including holidays, medical, tuition reimbursement, and retirement plans.

The median salary in 2004 was $15 to $43 an hour. The average salary for a battalion chief was $58,000, for an assistant chief $57,000 to $63,000, and for a fire chief $68,000.

The fire service is an exciting career with good wages and benefits. Obtaining a degree in fire science will help you achieve you goal of getting a firefighter position or in moving up the career ladder.

older post


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Wednesday, January 29, 2014

‘Oxford Reading Tree Day’ : Kahfi’s Fun at the Beach

it’s literary week at the boys’ school – first there was the ‘character day parade’, and the day after, kahfi’s batch had their ‘oxford reading tree day’ where the kids enact their favorite scene from the oxford reading tree books.

kahfi my beach boy!

kahfi was given written instructions to come to school wearing a floral shirt, shorts, sunglasses, a hat and slippers. and the girls come in their summer dresses. super cute!

* * *

there was a mock beach outside in the school yard, complete with a tent, picnic mat, huge umbrellas and few large tyres in the ground, with beach sand put in the hole. what a fantastic idea for the kids to have ‘fun at the beach’ without leaving the school!

this is the shell station I presumed. there were a lot of shells here that kids can dig up and the teacher asked the kids to count them, add or subtract using the shells. kids have fun AND learn too.

there’s even a tent put up!

I appreciate the school’s effort to make learning more interesting and fun with these activities. the mock beach idea is great! the kids can explore many stations that has been set up, and they get to enjoy beach activities like collecting seashells, play pretend with the picnic basket full of fruits and veggies; in a safe environment, along with their friends and teachers.

at kahfi’s age, kids need a lot of simulations to learn better, and be more interested in learning – not just for the sake of learning, but experiencing new things; or same things in new ways. an outdoor activity in school like this will certainly boost their interest. well done, school.

I look forward for more fun activities like this!

SARAA said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Anonymous said...

Truth to be told, I am really having a hard time here in Pasir Salak. But everytime I read your blogs, I cheer up, even if just a little. They make my day, somehow. Especially the ones about the boys! :D

P.S., this is Sofia.

Syigim said...

>> hi sofia, appreciate your comments! keep reading & leaving comments ok! it's a way to get updated on your dubai nephews :) hang in there!

check out these postings too!

Related Posts with Thumbnails


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vista 64 bit

Doesn't seem to work with my vista 64 bit, trying to pull my contacts from outlook.

vista 64 bit

We tested Synqit on 64bit Windows Xp, Vista and Windows 7 and it works fine for many customers on these platforms.

Could you please describe your problem more specifically?
You can contact me on Skype. Skype user: synqit.

Regards, Andrej


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113 researchers document Syria's civilization

Syrian and foreign archeologists have contributed to highlight Syria's deep-rooted history depending on results of research methods and excavation techniques developed by international archaeological missions, which have discovered hundreds of archaeological sites in the country.

"A history of Syria in one hundred sites' is the title of a book written by 113 Syrian and foreign researchers to document Syria's civilization. It is based on archaeological scientific journey to the newly-discovered archaeological sites and covers a chronological scope extends to two million years of civilization.

 The four-chapter book– available both in printed and e-version-  contains description of archaeological sites excavated by archeologists in Syria, according to Tishreen newspaper.

The paper quoted the Syrian researcher Dr. Youssef Kanjou, who edited the book, as saying that knowledge of Syrian history will offer not only an increased understanding of the country but also act as a deterrent to the destruction of Syrian cultural heritage and facilitate protection of archaeological sites.

"Knowledge of Syrian history will make Syrians proud of their history and will provoke the sense of unity," he added.

In short, The archaeological sites in Syria summarize Syrian civilizations and consolidate the idea that Syria is world peoples' second homeland.


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perl-date-calc: Perl module Date-Calc1

Package available in: [trunk] [8.0] [7.0] [6.0]

Gregorian calendar date calculations for Perl.

... part of T2, get it here

Author: Steffen Beyer <sb [at] engelschall [dot] com>
Maintainer: Rene Rebe <rene [at] t2-project [dot] org>

License: Artistic GPL
Status: Stable
Version: 6.4

Download: Date-Calc-6.4.tar.gz

T2 source: perl-date-calc.cache
T2 source: perl-date-calc.desc

Build time (on reference hardware): 0% (relative to binutils)2

Installed size (on reference hardware): 0.81 MB, 29 files

Dependencies (build time detected): 00-dirtree bash bzip2 coreutils diffutils findutils gcc glibc grep make perl perl-bit-vector perl-carp-clan sed sysfiles tar

Installed files (on reference hardware): [show]

1) This page was automatically generated from the T2 package source. Corrections, such as dead links, URL changes or typos need to be performed directly on that source.

2) Compatible with Linux From Scratch's "Standard Build Unit" (SBU).


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Friday, December 14, 2012

"And the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." A gospel response to a horrid moment.

What is a "gospel" response to the tragedy  that tore through the small community of Newtown, CT today? Gospel, meaning Good News, what "Good News" could their possibly be? All I hear, all you hear is bad news, horror, evil, pain, suffering and tragedy...not good news. But this evening, as I sit in my home office, heart hurting for the parents who lost children the same age as Amanda and I's baby Rowan, I have to believe there is gospel. Many people this evening especially the families of the murdered children are asking why, why God, why innocent children, why does this always happen to the innocent? This is a fair and just question and God is not afraid of the "Why?" Why didn't God stop him, why does God allow all this to happen, why do evil people prosper? This is a question the Psalmist asked 1000's of years ago and a question that has been asked for as long as there has been time.

First of all I'd like to say that God is not responsible, that this is not God's will, this is not God's judgement on our nation. If you hear a minister say this or imply this, call bull shit, because that is precisely what it is. We make our own choices, we are all given free will and chose whether or not to be bearers of heaven or hell everyday. This all goes back to the lesson the bible teaches us through the story of Adam and Eve. God gives us boundaries and then gives us the freedom to live with in those boundaries or cross them. Each choice, whether to live with in them, or to violate them comes with consequences and the consequences are heaven or hell. Please don't mistake what I am saying as some religious cleche about choosing to spend eternity in heaven or in hell, because thats not what this is about. This is about real life choices that we all make everyday either bring us and those around us hell or bring them heaven or in Jesus words. "the kingdom of God."

I prefer the term "reign of God." A life or away of living that demonstrates and incarnates the will of a loving and benevolent God. This evening we ask, "where is this benevolent God?", we'll get to that in a bit, but first we need to understand how people can be so evil and why innocence suffer. Again, it goes back to Adam and Eve and a choice...heaven or hell. Adam and Eve were given heaven and they shared that heaven together. They worked together and lived for God and for each other. They were given the limitation of only being forbidden from one fruit and they both knew the limitation and perhaps lived with the limitation for years, decades, centuries maybe. How? They bore the burden of that limitation together. One day they chose to no longer live for God and each other, they chose to to live for themselves and to ignore the needs of each other. Yes the snake temped them, maybe this was the first time, maybe it was the 1millionth time, but this time they took the bate and while Adam looked on Eve crossed the boundary, and right afterward Adam crossed it willingly himself. Adam knew what Eve was doing would hurt her, he know it would have dire consequences, yet he stood their and let her destroy herself and as if that was not enough Eve knowing what she had done was evil, invited Adam to join her and he did so with out reservation!!! They stopped living for God and most significantly, they stopped living for each other. They became drunk with self desire and hubris and they not only ruined there individual lives, but each others lives and every life around them. They effectively turned the heaven around them into a living hell.

We do this everyday. Everyday we chose, not just for ourselves, but for everyone around us, heaven or hell. Why does evil happen, why do the innocent suffer, because of this truth. People, not God, not Satan, people chose to live out heaven or hell and an unfortunate consequence of those choices is that the other people around us are often effected by either our heaven or our hell. We can blame society, we can call for stronger gun laws, which I am in favor of, we can do all these things, but until we realize just how connected we are, and just how much our choices effect each other, this will never change. So what's the good news I promised earlier? It's this. Jesus said to Peter, who upon a profession of faith, a profession that stated that Jesus was the answer, or better...the way, that it was upon this "way"that God would build God's kingdom and, are you ready for this, for this is the good news, the gates of hell will not prevail!! There you have it. The good news is that no matter how evil, no matter how tragic, no matter how much hell an individual or group perpetrates or perpetuates, it can never over come love. When evil strikes, when the unthinkable like 20, 4 and 5 year olds, are gunned down in cold blood, God is there and heaven is one word, action or event away.

This weekend and in the weeks to follow we will discuss, argue and morn over this event, but I hope more than anything we can learn from it. Learn that our actions, that our choices have consequence, not just for us, but for other as well. The "way" that Jesus speaks of, is a life lived loving God and most importantly and most prevalent, loving each other. If we loved as Jesus taught us, if we bore each others burdens and carried each others limitation, we would never taste hell. Let us push back the gates of hell with love, charity, kindness and grace and trust that no matter how the evil may prosper, it will never prevail against love.

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Bathing Suit Season

Things are finally starting to warm up here in the beautiful Austin, Texas. This time of year is full of blooming flowers, bright colors, and preparing ourselves for the trenches of the coming summer. It’s time to start busting those swimsuits back out, and get ready for all the events and activities happening around town. Tabu has always been known to have a great selection of swimwear, let us fill you in on what we’ve got to turn you into the golden goddess of the affair.

L*Space Swimwear is a trendy, modern line with fashion-forward designs and prints. There are a variety of silhouettes, and styles to enhance your natural features. Made with high quality materials, L*Space has created an A list celebrity following, and has received coverage from several national magazines. The bold colors and patterns are trend-setting and classy.

(Check out a few of the L*Space styles we have below)

Tabu also has swimwear from Jelly too! Jelly’s line includes various styles in fun bright colors. Their cute 2 piece neon bikini sets are sure to look great against a tan!

P.S. For all of those thrifty ladies who want to find something stylish to wear, we have a limited selection of clearance swimwear. You can score on some great deals, with up to 50% off the original price. Remember you can also check in on Facebook, or show the coupon from our website, to receive 15% on your purchase. Come on Tabu today, and let us help you find the right suit to beat the heat..


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Monday, August 31, 2009

Sewing Pattern Paintings

. .
There are 89 art destinations in my Google Reader and another 34 that I visit weekly or monthly. Researching an artist that captures my attention leads to yet more artists and Web sites. You might say that on a daily basis I see a whole lot of art. There's a general flow to all of this with it's high and low points. But sometimes I'll come across something that spins me around.
John Westmark uses acrylic and paper sewing patterns on canvas to show us once again that painting never was dead. He takes this simple and innovative concept seriously and does it well.

This image is from Art Opportunity Monthly.

You can visit his Website and the Galleries that represent him to see more of his work.

The image below, is from the J Costello Gallery. They have 17 images.

A.S. Gallery has 8 images - 2 of which are different.

And you can check out the 5 images at Chicago Art Source to see if you missed any.

You'll really enjoy visiting ArtQuiver. They give you a 3-D experience that allows you to see the actual size of the works in a virtual gallery setting.

And lastly, check out this one, totally different work at Gallery Bienvenu..

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The grass is always greener on the other side.

This popular phrase is applicable to so many things. Life in general always looks better when you’re looking at it from a different angle. What you have never seems good enough. If only you could get across the fence to the fields that seem to flow with milk and honey! Life would be so grand there, wouldn’t it?

What happens when finally you get to that greener pasture and you find it infested with ticks?

Or you find moles have dug themselves through the entire lawn making it impossible to take a single step without sinking?

Perhaps it’s that grass that you can buy in rolls to make it look like you have healthy grass, but instead it dies within a few months because the soil beneath is bad.

Even worse… it’s plastic, fake grass. It’s simply for decoration, not real enjoyment.

Rather than always looking for the greener pastures, maybe it would be better to see how you can tend your own lawn and make it grow.

Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. – Philippians 4:11 (KJV)

PS: This is not a reflection on how I feel about my current job. I just want to insure that’s know before anyone makes a stink. My job is awesome.


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February 19, 2015

What's Coming in the Round Earth Series

Queensland, 1880s (via State Library of Queensland)

So you got a taste of Earth's Imagined Corners and you're thinking, hey, I don't want to let these people go! So here's what's coming next for Sara and James Youngblood.

The Round Earth Series

Book 1 – Earth’s Imagined Corners

In 1885 Iowa, Sara Moore is a dutiful daughter, but when her father tries to force her to marry his younger partner, she must choose between the partner—a man who treats her like property—and James Youngblood—a kind man she hardly knows who has a troubled past. When she confronts her father, he beats her and turns her out of the house, breaking all ties, so she decides to elope with James to Kansas City with hardly a penny to their names. In the tradition of Willa Cather’s O Pioneers! and Zora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God, Earth’s Imagined Corners is a novel that comprehends the great kindnesses and violences we do to each other.

Book 2 – Numberless Infinities
Coming in January 2016

In 1890 Kansas City, Sara and James Youngblood have built a life for themselves, but then James’s yearning for the West gets the better of him. He accepts a contract to supply ties for the burgeoning railroad, and off they go across Nebraska and the Dakotas. Life on the road is hard, and Sara cooks for the crew, but then she discovers she’s pregnant—she lost a baby before and almost died. The crooked railroad boss refuses to pay, and James’s crew revolts, and so they are stranded on Indian lands with the rising tide of the Ghost Dance religion. Numberless Infinities may remind you of Jane Kirkpatrick’s All Together in One Place and Thomas Berger’s Little Big Man.

Book 3 – This Lowly Ground
Coming in January 2017

In 1894, Sara and James Youngblood are exhausted by life on the wagon road, and so when their son Jake has his hand taken off in a gun accident, they decide to homestead in northern Wyoming. James teams with a local rancher to build an irrigation system, and soon a town grows up—one that all agree should be called Youngblood. Years pass. A straggling band of Mormons pushing handcarts from Salt Lake City show up in the middle of a snow storm, and the town pulls together to help them settle. Soon, though, conflicts erupt in the running of the town, and when the town’s livelihood, a brick and tile factory, mysteriously burns down, Sara and James’s son Jake is blamed. This Lowly Ground is in the tradition of Willa Cather and Carson McCullers.

Tomorrow, I'll talk a little about what's next for me.

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RoomSnap photo courtesy of Karen F.

* Interior photos represent select unit(s). Individual unit layout and/or decor may vary.

Welcome to one of the most popular destinations on the East Coast – Ocean City, MD! Home to famous Boardwalk Fries, Candy Kitchen, and much more, Ocean City is a fantastic family destination the whole family will love. Stroll the bustling boardwalk, relax in the sand at Seacrets Restaurant, or try some mini golf. This destination is beloved by many, come have some fun!

Your unit at Atlantis includes a full kitchen with dishwasher, microwave, coffee maker, Internet access, washer, dryer, iron, ceiling fan, heating, air conditioning and screened balcony. Atlantis is located on the beach and has an outdoor swimming pool (usually opens Memorial Day weekend and closes Labor Day weekend).

*A $35 registration fee (cash only) will be collected by security. There is one parking space provided, you must display the guest parking permit. Additional parking is available at the 100th street city parking lot, serviced 24 hours per day with daily and weekly rates.

Resort Amenities

  • Elevator
  • Onsite-Outdoor Pool
  • Onsite-Beach

Unit Amenities

* Not all rooms have these amenities

  • AC
  • Balcony*
  • Blender*
  • Cable or Satellite*
  • Ceiling Fan*
  • Coffee Maker
  • Dishwasher
  • DVD*
  • Floor 11-19
  • Full Kitchen
  • Internet In-Room*
  • Iron And Board
  • Microwave
  • No Linens Provided*
  • No Phone*
  • Screen Porch/Balcony*
  • Sleeper Sofa*
  • Washer / Dryer


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Belarusian Pres gives his govt time to improve living standards

November 11, 2011, 1:00 UTC+3

“Keep your money in your hand and act, as the time requires,” Lukashenko said

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MINSK, November 11 (Itar-Tass) — President Alexander Lukashenko of Belarus has given time until May 2012 to his government for a quality improvement of people’s living standards.

“By May 1, 2012 the people‘s opinion about the government and the general moods should change radically,” he said Thursday as he addressed a meeting on the problems of state property management. “This is our time limit and please tell all your subordinates about it.”

He also addressed Prime Minister Mikhail Myasnikovich telling him “it’s no use hoping for any monies from above, including in the industrial sector.”

“Everything must twirl there,” Lukashenko said. “For the time being, I’m putting up with it till January 1 and then you’ll have a reserve of time till May 1 – well, maybe May 9, the VE-Day.”

“The population should acquire a different look at the government policies,” he said. “We’re doing everything for the benefit of the rank-and-file, not for the benefit of market economy tricks of some kind.”

“Keep your money in your hand and act, as the time requires,” Lukashenko said. “And instead of this you keep pinning hopes on the market.

“In the meantime, Europe and the U.S. wouldn’t have such huge problems today if the market were so highly efficient in reality,” he said.

“The government’s market-oriented position has brought about a situation where the price of gasoline has trebled,” Lukashenko said. “It’s like looking at the U.S. dollar’s exchange rate as if nothing else really matters.”

“No one really takes the trouble of thinking how we managed going on for fifteen years,” he said delivering sharp criticism at the government for what he finds to be an excessive fascination with the precepts of market economy.

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Court sets deadline for reading case materials in suspected munity mastermind's case

August 31, 2012, 0:52 UTC+3

For his part, Kvachkov's lawyer Alexei Pershin asked "for a reasonable timeframe" to study the case

1 pages in this article

MOSCOW, August 31 (Itar-Tass) — Moscow's Basmanny court on Thursday set the deadline for reading case materials for the lawyers of Vladimir Kvachkov, accused of masterminding a munity. The deadline is set for September 21.

Earlier, investigator Konstantin Golodyzhko told the court that the defendant had heard 27 hours worth of audio files and that the rate of his familiarizing himself with the case materials was satisfactory. Yet, the lawyers, in the period from December 16, 2011, "only studied an insignificant portion of the documents and are deliberately delaying the proceedings, as the period of investigation has been extended to October 21, 2012."

"At present, the lawyers say they wish to see all the case materials, i.e. listen to 54 hours of audio records. What prevented them from listening to them before?" the investigator said.

The prosecutor, too, stated that the defense was stalling and asked for deadline in reading the case materials.

For his part, Kvachkov's lawyer Alexei Pershin asked "for a reasonable timeframe" to study the case, because it contains 50 hours worth of audio files alone, and not all of them have transcripts. Kvachkov's other lawyer Dmitry Nikitsky said "placing case reading restrictions on the lawyers violates Kvachkov's right to defense." Kvachkov's illness record lists concussion, while at present, he suffers from migraine, which slows down his rate of reading, according to Nikitsky.

Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) said retired Colonel of Main Intelligence Department Kvachkov was a suspect under two articles of the Criminal Code: Article 279 and Article 30, Part 1 (attempted organization of armed mutiny) and Article 205, Part 1 (recruiting or involving persons in terrorism).

Kvachkov said he had been arrested on the testimony of a regional leader of the Narodnoye Opolcheniye (Militia) organization he leads.

The chief of Narodnoye Opolcheniye's Togliatti office was apprehended in the summer of 2010.

After ten days in custody he testified against Kvachkov.

"According to the testimony, there was a person in Togliatti, who sent two groups of people, armed with crossbows, to a forest to begin an armed uprising," Kvachkov said.

He said he was confident that the detainees' statements were distorted, in order to cast Narodnoye Opolcheniye and another organization - Minin and Pozharsky's Militia - as terrorist groups. "There are no facts in the case," the retired Colonel said.

Earlier, a court in Yekaterinburg convicted other defendants in this case.

Kvachkov was the key suspect in the case over the assassination attempt on the life of chief of RAO UES electric utility Chubais on March 17, 2005.

A jury found all the defendants in the assassination attempt case not guilty, in a marathon eight-hour session overnight to August 21, 2010. Kvachkov later won a 450,000-rouble damages suit.

Kvachkov had to undergo a psychiatric expert examination twice. The first was carried out within the framework of the Chubais attack case.

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Opposition activist Razvozzhayev to be convoyed to Moscow

March 05, 2013, 12:31 UTC+3

The precise date of the beginning of the procedure is confidential

1 pages in this article

IRKUTSK, March 5 (Itar-Tass) - The Federal Penitentiary Service department for the Irkutsk region /GUFSIN/ confirmed that the remand ward in Irkutsk where Opposition activist Leonid Razvozzhayev, an aide to a State Duma deputy is kept, has received the Investigative Committee's resolution to convoy him to Moscow.

On Monday, the lawyers of Razvozzhayev who is accused of planning riots, said the convoying documents had been received back on February 26. "The resolution is indeed on hand," the GUFSIN confirmed on Tuesday, "Razvozzhayev will be sent to Moscow with the next convoy."

"The precise date of the beginning of the procedure is confidential. Irkutsk sends convoys westward twice a month. Razvozzhayev might be convoyed by the end of the march," a GUFSIN official told Tass.

Sergei Udaltsov, Leonid Razvozzhayev and Konstantin Lebedev are suspects in the case over preparations to stage mass disturbances. Criminal proceedings were instituted over the facts shown in the Anatomy of Protest-2 film, which featured a scene where they were discussing the possibility to stage riots in Moscow and Russian regions.

The meeting, captured by a spycam, took place in Minsk, and involved chairman of the Georgian parliament's committee for defense and security Givi Targamadze, Georgia's consul in Moldova Mikhail Iashvili, their three aides, as well as Udaltsov, Lebedev and Razvozzhayev.

The case over robbery in Angarsk in 1997 against Razvozzhayev was dropped due to the statute of limitation. The third criminal case against him was opened over illegal border crossing and false allegations that he had been tortured.

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Russia’s St Petersburg, China’s Guangzhou sign cooperation protocol

January 13, 2014, 5:35 UTC+3 ST. PETERSBURG
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ST. PETERSBURG, January 12, 22:27 /ITAR-TASS/. Russia’s second largest city of St. Petersburg and China’s Guangzhou have signed a protocol on friendly exchanges and cooperation, the press service of the St. Petersburg governor reported on Sunday.

The two mayors, Georgy Poltavchenko of St. Petersburg and Chen Jianhua of Guangzhou, met on Sunday to discuss possibilities and prospects for the participation of Chinese companies in the implementation of such major infrastructure projects in St. Petersburg as the construction of a congress and exhibition centre, an entertainment park, an industrial park of the light industry and a technology park of innovation systems in the area of urban economy.

The industrial park of the light industry will be formed in St. Petersburg’s Nevsky district, for which ends the city authorities have allocated a land plot to the Union of Manufacturers of Sewn Products. It is planned to organize the production of sewn products and accessories. However the projected production volume and dates when the production would start have not yet been determined - documents related to this park are only being drafted.

Guangzhou is known as a biggest light industry centre, manufacturing silk, cotton and synthetic fibre products. The city is a venue of the Canton Fair, the world third biggest fair in terms of the volume of deals. The St. Petersburg authorities believe this experience will be useful for the implementation of the Chinese congress and exhibition investment project and others.

Previously, when St. Petersburg’s investment committee chairwoman Irina Bryuk visited Guangzhou, she discussed these projects. Apart from that, they were considered at a meeting between the city governor and Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev in October 2013. Poltavchenko then asked the prime minister to instruct the Russian Direct Investment Fund to get involved in these projects.

“China has gained the leader position in terms of economic cooperation,” Medvedev said back then. “Investment cooperation to a certain extent is more important than trade and economic cooperation. And I have issued relevant instructions to our direct investment fund.”

Among other promising cooperation areas the St. Petersburg governor singled out efforts to establish contacts between big companies in China and St. Petersburg. He also stressed the necessity to develop relations in the areas of education and culture.

At his meeting with Chen Jianhua, Poltavchenko suggested a special working group be set up from among St. Petersburg and Guangzhou government officials who would address issue of promoting closer cooperation and oversee the implementation of agreements.

Currently, St. Petersburg has partner relation with another Chinese city, Shanghai. Twin city relations between St. Petersburg and Shanghai were established as far back as 1959. Twin city relations with China’s Chengdu were established in 1998, and with Qingdao - in 2007.

In the first quarter of 2013, China was St. Petersburg’s biggest trade partner, accounting for 15.4 percent of its overall trade turnover.

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Oil prices drop to two-year minimum

September 15, 2014, 19:10 UTC+3 MOSCOW

Brent crude October contracts are trading at $96.57 per barrel on London’s ICE Futures Europe for the first time since July 2012

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MOSCOW, September 15. /ITAR-TASS/. Oil prices dropped to two-year minimum levels on Monday, with Brent crude October contracts trading at $96.57 per barrel on London’s ICE Futures Europe for the first time since July 2012.

Investors said the next critical level would be $80 per barrel. But prices will not stay there long as this would make shale oil production in the United States unprofitable.

With the oversupply of oil, dwindling demand in China worries traders more than political crises. Royal Bank of Scotland on Monday lowered its annual forecast for economic growth in China, the world’s biggest oil importer, from 7.6% to 7.2% due to poor industrial performance indicators.

In August, industrial production in China increased by 6.9%, the lowest growth rate since December 2008, making the country the main challenge for the energy markets, Dominic Schneider, chief strategist for commodities markets at the UBS Singapore Office, said.

Mark Mobius, Executive Chairman of Templeton Emerging Markets Group, said the price of Brent crude could drop to $80 per barrel but only for a short period and could range from $80 to $120. He thinks that prices will stay above $89 per barrel.

He said demand for oil was growing in the majority of developing countries, including China and India. But oil companies have to invest more in geological prospecting and development of new deposits. Many believe that the hydraulic fracturing technology will usher in an area of cheap shale oil, but costs suggest otherwise, Mobius said.

OPEC countries’ reaction to declining oil prices has so far boiled down to Saudi Arabia’s decision in August to reduce oil supplies to the market by 400,000 barrels a day to 9.6 million barrels.

Saudi Minister for Petroleum and Mineral Resources Ali al-Naimi said there was no reason to worry as prices tended to go up and down all the time. He expects oil prices to go back up to $100 per barrel within several months.

Ole Hansen, senior commodity strategist at Saxo Bank, said that with the Chinese and European economies slowing down, $100 per barrel of Brent blend was the price that would support the growth without doing any harm to suppliers.

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Russian premier urges to convert political stability into economic development

September 30, 2016, 14:08 UTC+3

Medvedev called the anti-Russian sanctions a vivid example of politicizing the world economy

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Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev

Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev

© Artyom Geodakyan/TASS Host Photo Agency

SOCHI, September 30. /TASS/. The Russian authorities should be able to convert political stability in the country into efficient economic development with the focus on improving living standards in the coming years - even amid the sanctions, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said on Friday.

The Russian premier made this statement at a plenary session of the International Investment Forum in Sochi.

Medvedev called the anti-Russian sanctions as the vivid example of politicizing the world economy.

"But even in these conditions, the ability to convert political stability inside the country into the effective development of the national economy is the authorities’ direct duty," Medvedev said.

"And by assuming the powers [following the results of the elections to the State Duma where the United Russia party led by Prime Minister Medvedev gained a constitutional majority], we have assumed the obligations to do everything in the current political cycle for achieving economic growth and, importantly, for improving the life of people. And the economic agenda of the next five years will be focused precisely on this," the Russian premier stated.

System of state government

 Medvedev considers it necessary to completely change the state government system in the country.

"For us it is absolutely important not only to achieve all the benchmarks in education, healthcare, road building, improving urban environment - that is, in all the areas of people’s lives, although it is a key task, but we also need to bring a complete change to the state management system," the prime minister said.

"The low efficiency of state management system is one of the key factors that have been hindering the country’s development," the cabinet head said, adding that many promising initiatives and ideas that could have helped in moving Russia forward, simply fell apart after running into administrative barriers while the adopted laws were not effective enough.

"That is why now we are trying to move from an "instructions-based" mode of management to one based on results, that is a project-based approach," Medvedev stressed noting that it should serve as a capability test to ensure a better quality of state management.

The prime minister also said that the project approach was based on efficiency, as each ruble from the budget invested in specific projects was supposed to improve the quality of the services, goods and infrastructure while each regulatory act should bring concrete results. "The strategy for creating a brand new atmosphere nationwide will be backed by the authorities on all levels. It is not only money that matters. We must ensure the clear implementation of all the decisions in every Russian region," Medvedev stressed.

"In a country as big as ours, where one region differs much from another and the administrative system is multi-layered, the state management system needs to be far more efficient," the prime minister concluded. "In this regard, there is always room for improvement in professional responsibility.".

Carte blanche for country’s development

Medvedev, who chairs the United Russia party, believes the results of the September 18 elections to the 7th State Duma are a carte blanche for the authorities to go ahead with the challenging efforts on the country’s development.

"The result that we received is not only an indicator of political stability, although this is very important. This is not only the victory of the United Russia but also great possibilities. But in the first place this is huge responsibility before the people who trusted us and supported us," Medvedev said.

"In fact, as they say this is a carte blanche from millions of citizens of Russia to continue the great and difficult work on the country’s development," Medvedev said, adding that he expects the government officials, the heads of regions and MPs to share this opinion.

The State Duma elections were held on September 18 on a mixed basis: 225 members of the lower house were elected by party lists, while the other 225 members were elected in single-seat constituencies. The ruling United Russia party garnered 343 seats, which means it will have the constitutional majority (that constitutes at least 300 seats). The Communist party got 42 seats, the Liberal Democratic party obtained 39 seats and A Just Russia party got 23 seats.

The Rodina (or "Motherland") party and the Grazhdanskaya Platforma (or "Civil Platform") party that failed to overcome five-percent vote threshold will get one seat each: Alexei Zhuravlyov and Rifat Shaykhutdinov who won the elections in one-seat constituencies, are going to represent these respective parties in the lower house. In addition, self-nominated candidate Vladislav Reznik also made it into the State Duma, he has already joined the United Russia faction.

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Search for Malaysian Boeing in Indian Ocean not limited in time — Australian PM

March 31, 2014, 10:29 UTC+3 SYDNEY

If this mystery is solvable, we will solve it, Australia's Prime Minister Tony Abbott says

1 pages in this article

SYDNEY, March 31. /ITAR-TASS/. The search in the Indian Ocean for the missing Malaysian Boeing 777-200 passenger plane is not limited in time, however, it is not excluded that at some point the efforts would be scaled back, Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott said on Monday at Perth where planes that are involved in the international search operation are based.

“This is an extraordinarily difficult exercise .... we are searching a vast area of ocean, and we are working on quite limited information,” Abbott said, adding that the efforts must be continued for the sake of the grieving families of 239 people that were on board the airliner. “If this mystery is solvable, we will solve it,” he said.

Abbott said he was not putting a time limit on the search. “We owe it to everyone to do whatever we reasonably can, and we can keep searching for quite some time to come ... and, as I said, the intensity of our search and the magnitude of operations is increasing, not decreasing.”

The operation continues in the area located at about 1,800 kilometers from Australia’s west coast. Today it involves 10 planes - of Australia, China, Malaysia, New Zealand, the United States, South Korea and Japan. There are also 10 vessels, including seven Chinese, in the area. In recent days, seamen have found debris that had earlier been spotted from the air, but they had nothing to do with the missing airliner.

The plane of Malaysia Airlines was performing a flight MH370 from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing on March 7. It carried 227 passengers and 12 crewmembers. Radio communication with the plane was disrupted in two hours after its takeoff from the Malaysian capital.

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Saturday, January 23, 2010

I Have Been Circling for Thousands of Years

I live my life in widening circles
that reach out across the world.
I may not complete this last one
but I give myself to it.

I circle around God,
around the primordial tower.
I’ve been circling for thousands of years
And I still don’t know:
am I a falcon, a storm, or a great song?

Rilke – 1909

This is the piece I did for the YarnTheory show at the PS122 gallery, and it'll be on display along with some new work at the confluence of artistry and math exhibit at the Pittsburgh Knit & Crochet Show this February.

1 comment:

knithound brooklyn said...

I love that particular poem! Good luck with the classes and congrats on the exhibit.


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Feb 19, 2007

Life cycle of a Lagosian

Monday - Friday
Wake up at 5 am. Prepare for & leave for work at 6 am. Work from 8 am - 8 pm (+/- 2 hours). Get home at 10 pm. Sleep at 12 am.

Wake up at 10/11 am. Visit Mechanic, Drycleaner/Laundry, Electrician, Store, Estate Agent, Market etc. Get back home and sleep again till evening.

Sleep, sleep, sleep!

Lagos today is divided geographically into different regions, most prominent of which are the Island (Consisting of V.I., Ikoyi, Obalende, C.M.S./Marina), Island Extension (Lekki, VGC, Ajah & Beyond) and Mainland (every other place). Unfortunately, provisions for proper flow of traffic between these three regions have become grossly inadequate and insufficient, largely due to the ever increasing population of people & vehicles and other contingencies which have become common during rush-hours. All these result in one thing - Traffic Jams commonly called "Go-Slow" or "Hold-up". In a bid to avoid these hold-ups, since Go-Slow is no longer a tenable excuse for lateness to their offices, Lagos workers have resorted to leaving their houses very early. Thus they have unconsciously prepared the time table above without realizing it, and for some workers, this time table begins as early as 5:30 am.

Let's take the example of a newcomer to the Lagos corporate world, someone fresh from school & NYSC. He successfully (and fortunately) gets a job with Big Firm in Big Building on Victoria Island. As is usual, he stays on the mainland, say Ojodu/Berger. In order to get to his place of work on time, he has to follow this time table strictly day after day, week after week, month after month and year after year. In some years, marriage comes in. This is followed closely by children. He becomes a family man thus, responsibilities increase, and so do expenses. At work, he gets a promotion and/or a salary review, or he changes jobs (not as easy as it sounds) all in a bid to earn more income. He buys a car or two, moves into a bigger house or starts building his own house, his children grow and need to be sent to school - he does not want them to suffer like he did and so sends them to the best schools he can afford or barely afford. After 5-10 years of working in Lagos, many things have changed about him. His outlook has changed, his income & possessions have changed and invariable, his age has also changed. However, one thing refuses to change. The time table! Yes, he remains bound to it ... following it daily, weekly, monthly. In fact, it probably gets worse. Some weekends find him in the office, and he often has to go on some official trips meaning he won't sleep at home on some nights. Time becomes an asset not to be joked with and he tries to outsource every activity that could take out of that time e.g. Car Wash, Laundry, Household activities, etc. And time keeps ticking, and he keeps working, and the time table remains, followed strictly to the letter.

I've been a loyal follower of this time table for some time now, and so have many of my friends. You can see us on the roads every working day of the week in a never ending flow of traffic all going towards one direction. I can almost imagine some deity firing a gun while yelling "On your marks ... Get Set ... GO!" in the wee hours of the morning, signifying the start of a race. I also imagine all the athletes taking off from various starting lines into the race against time.
For the next 5 hours, the tracks are busy accommodating the "racers" The major track is the 3rd Mainland Bridge, side tracks are Herbert Macaulay Road Yaba, Dolphin Estate Ikoyi, Falomo Bridge, Ozumba Mbadiwe, Broad Street Marina, etc. God help you if you're caught in those tracks at the wrong time. Between 5pm and 10pm (in the evenings), the tracks are reversed and the racers face the opposite direction. Day in, day out, this race goes on. I looked into my crystal ball ... and I do not see a change in the next couple of years. People will always work in places much farther than their places of residence. And since they will always have to work, they have no choice than to keep to the time table.

I've had lots of meditations, and I'll share some with you. A question you should ask yourself is this, "Do YOU have to work?" If you lose your job right now, how long can you survive? Or let me put it this way, if your salary is stopped, will you continue working? Agreed, there are some people who are working because they love their job and they would gladly do it for free. However, at least 95% of Lagos workers work because they get a paycheck at the end of the month. This seems to be a steady source of income and so they spend each day working in earnest waiting for "Month End" when questions like "Them don pay?" & "Money don enter?" would be answered in the affirmative.

Now think about this, what if you could get different paychecks from other places or avenues? What if you had Multiple streams of income flowing your way daily, weekly, monthly and yearly? What if your extra income could match and even surpass your salary? What if your sources of income are guaranteed and secure? I'm sure you would say goodbye to days of waking early and rushing into the traffic to get to work, without giving it a second thought. Well, I have good news. There are ways out. You can get multiple streams of income. You can become independent of your salary ... in other words, you can be financially free.

In the next few weeks, I'll be posting a series of articles on "Managing your finances". Now I don't claim to be a financial expert, neither am I financially free (yet), but I do have enough knowledge to give you some tips and point you in some right directions. Right now, I'll give you 2 requirements with which you need to get started. They are foundations which will keep you going for a long time.
  1. Have a good reason why you want to be financially free. Ask yourself this - If you don't ever have to work again, what would you do with all that spare time? Think about your hobbies and all the things you want to achieve but cannot because of time. It's very important because without a good reason, chances are you'll never be financially free.
    "'Why' is what separates us from them, you from me. 'Why' is the only real social power, without it you are powerless" - Merovingian in the movie The Matrix Reloaded.
  2. Have lots of determination. The road is never straight. As you begin, you'll have to take some risks and more often than not, you'll record some loss. But don't see it as a loss, see it as a price of learning. No knowledge is ever wasted. At a point, you might even be worse off than your current position ... but don't give up. Stick with your plan and keep educating yourself. It'll pay off some day. Sooner than later.
    "I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work." - Thomas Edison (Inventor of the Light bulb)
Reflect on these two points and watch out for the articles. Wishing you luck in your quest for financial freedom.

Yours in the race,

[ Click here to read more ... ]

Feb 6, 2007

Area Boys - Menace or Blessing?

If you stay in Nigeria, then you are probably quite familiar with the subject of this article. Commonly known as street urchins in other parts of the world, "Area Boys" have become a part of our environment & society. With no specific job description or role, their activities range from extorting money from commercial bus drivers, creating car parks in public places (e.g. Yaba, Marina, Silverbird Cinemas, etc), harassment and extortion of money from motorists & pedestrians (politely or otherwise), campaign agents for politicians (who themselves are just decorated versions of the area boys), sole proprietorship of the black markets used to sell fuel during scarcities and just about any other odd job you might think of.

Many a Nigerian has had a bad experience with Area Boys, and for some it's been one experience too many. They've been made to part with money and precious items, while thanking God that their lives remained intact. In addition, area boys sometimes double as thieves and armed robbers during the night. Sometimes they carry out "Okada" robbery, dispossessing innocent pedestrians of their bags, phones & belongings and zooming of on their bikes before the victim has a chance to put himself together. Needless to say, they are disliked by the vast majority of Nigerians.

Last Saturday, I had an experience with the area boys, and this has changed my views and made me to think more favorably about them. I was trying to avoid the traffic of Lagos mainland, and being a person who is always looking for new ways to do things, I took a new and unexplored route home. After driving through some unfamiliar roads, receiving inconsistent directions from "Okada" riders & pedestrians, I finally got to the last junction that was to lead me to the highway ... and freedom. There was a slab-covered gutter (drain) running across the road, which I was turning into. Unfortunately, two of the slabs had disappeared (how or why, I do not know) and still more unfortunately, due to the rough driving & impatience of drivers around the junction, I did not see the "slabless" holes. Before I could say "Jack Robinson", I had driven right into one of the holes and my front left tyre was completely immersed. Immediately I heard the bump, I sensed the severity of the situation and knew that the car wasn't going to move from that spot unless by some miracle. My brain was about to go into overdrive when Lo and behold, before I could even start thinking of a solution, a group of 4-6 area boys approached my car from all directions appearing as it were from thin air. They shouted to one another in Yoruba and I've tried to capture the summary of their discussions here.

"Bros, e ma worry, ko si problem" (Brother, don't worry, there's no problem)
"Oya, E gbe!" (Come on, lift!)
"Bros, e fi si reverse" (Brother, engage your reverse gear)
"1, 2, 3, E gbe!!!" (1, 2, 3, heave!)

In 12 seconds, my car was out of the hole! One of them then proceeded to stop other motorists and direct me until I was out of the traffic and safely facing the right way. This he did with such expertise to be envied by traffic wardens. After this he appeared at my window (for the usual) and just said "Oya". Without thinking, I pulled out a N200 note from my wallet and handed it to him. I would gladly have given him more. The magnitude of the service that had been provided could not be quantified.

I spent the next few minutes wondering what would have happened if the area boys had not come to my aid. I probably would have be stuck for hours, maybe would have had to leave my car in the hole and gone to look for a towing truck, or called a friend to come help me out (assuming he had the time and means to help), got arrested by LASTMA for causing obstruction of traffic, the possibilities were endless. The non changing fact was that I would have been there for far longer than I (and my wallet) could tolerate. So the question comes to my mind - Are area boys a menace or a blessing to the society? Come to think about it, they do lots of useful stuff. They create parking spaces in busy market areas where you can be sure your car will be safe. They sometimes fill up potholes in the middle of roads to aid free movement of traffic ... and during fuel scarcity they make fuel available to those with more money than time. Personally I think area boys have their uses within the society. Looking at this with an open mind, the whole scenario boils down to an irony. If the government had repaired the roads, I would not have been stuck in a pothole and therefore wouldn't have needed the help of the area boys. On the other hand, if the government had reformed the economy, more of the area boys would have got respectable jobs and not needed to be a menace on the streets. The area boys make a living through the negligence displayed by the leaders of the country. (They create parking spaces because the government has not provided parking facilities, they fill up potholes which the government has refused to fill, they harass and extort money from people in hold-ups caused mostly by absence of traffic lights or wardens, bad roads, etc which are all results of negligence of duty on the part of the government officials, they hawk petrol in the black market because of fuel scarcity also caused by the government) the same government that makes the economy unfavorable such that area boys cannot find decent jobs ... hmm, I think I’m getting confused by my analysis here.

In conclusion, I throw the question at you. Area boys - are they a menace or a blessing? For me, they were a blessing on that fateful day. You be the judge!

[ Click here to read more ... ]


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Sunday, September 7, 2008

Going Back to Work After 3 Months Off (with a new baby)

After three months off, going back to work has been difficult. Being sleep deprived and trying to stay on top of things as a school teacher and dance instructor is a lot more difficult to do as a mom. I'm really worried about producing enough food for the baby. The surplus of stored milk I had created over the summer is going to be gone withing a few weeks. He's averaging 16 oz during the day while I'm gone. I'm worried I will have to supplement with formula, something I have been trying to avoid. Why pay for formula when I can make his food myself for free. I am pumping at work,but I need 45 minutes to set up, pump 3oz, clean up and sterilize. For those who work in a school, you know getting 45 minutes is impossible unless you have a prep period. Fortunately, I have a prep period as a middle school teacher, but it's 1st period, which means I pump in the morning right after feeding the baby at home and I'm using my prep time so I am limited what I can actually get accomplished in the classroom. Having a late morning prep would work best. My next problem is timing. My principal is very understanding and has given me second lunch to spread out when I pump, but lunch is only 30 minutes. I have to eat and visit the bathroom during this time as well. Thus, I'm not getting to pump for the 45 minutes I need ro the 30 minutes I have been given. When I teach dance in the evening, I am staying at school to pump some more, since there is not enough time to drive home and feed in between jobs. I am pumping, but I'm not getting a full meal out of my pumping, it's too rushed and I'm getting stressed. I am starting to rearrange my bathroom breaks at work so I don't have to go during the times I pump. Also, I'm going to invest in a microwave for the room so I won't have to leave the room to heat up food and sterilize my pumping gear. For those of you who don't teach in the classroom and may be saying, "ask for more time," you can't, not without affecting what happens in the classroom. Second, the law says you need to be given a space to pump every 2-3 hours, not how much time you get to pump. Some of you may be saying, "are you using dual pumps?" or "maybe you need a better pump." I have an expensive pump that is dual and electronically operated, but it's uncomfortable to pump too fast. I am doing the best I can with what I have, but I am frustrated at the situation and wish that I didn't have to work at this time.

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Asylum Informercial (Mission Accomplished)

August 30, 2012 –

I documented my Insanity Asylum Journey better than any otherprogram. 30-Days of intense training in the Asylum! I was already in shape from P90X, Insanity, and my hair-brained crazy Hybrids I had developed. So. my mission for this program was simple!

Get real / tangible sports performance improvement and…. get in the infomercial!

Well, I finished in May 2011, so I have had to wait over a year to see I would be able to check the later one off my list.

For this, blog, I am humbled to say I have 23 seconds of fame in the new Informercial. :) There is no doubt that this was the physical culmination of  my Life Balance Journey I started back in December 2009. But  my goal was Sports Performance. And Asylum sure delivered.

I have a little intro and my parts of the informercial cut out before the entire 30 minute informercial is aired. So if you want, just watch the first couple minutes. :)

If you want to see all my workout reviews, nutrition / supplement plan, custom workout sheets, and my Final Asylum Results video, check it all out HERE.

And on a final note. This program will always have a special place for me because it is where I first met the teamRIPPED Asylum Crazies (that was our Facebook Group). Many of them are in the informercial as well. And so many of these people have become my dear friends…truly. This is the program that brought us together to surprise Coach Wayne at the Warrior Dash. And it  then lead to the formation of our CREW. You guys and gals are awesome!

And  thank YOU  for continuing to inspire me.

 I appreciate all your comments. The dialogue is why I write. So please leave a message below!

Make Me Your FREE Coach.Just click the “Free Coach” logo

*Note – If you have a “dud” coach and would like to change coaches, the process to do so is very simple. Simply email and tell them that you would like “Coach Mike Roberts (Coach ID #64523) at” as your coach. Please CC me as well so I can ensure to follow-up.

6 Responses to “Asylum Informercial (Mission Accomplished)”

  1. Rafael says:

    Way to go! Amazing & inspiring!

  2. Brian says:

    Cool that you got in the infomercial and congrats on the dunk! One question? What’s up with the pink workout room? Maybe the color doesnt translate ob video…

Leave a Reply to Coach Mike


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Tuesday, June 30, 2015

Sample Test: Seacret, Dead Sea Minerals On My Face!

So, a friend of my husband sent us a sample pack of products that he sells. The company is called Seacret, and it's a body/facial regimen that prides itself on Dead Sea Minerals, and all natural extracts. I have NORMAL/DRY SKIN, meaning my T-Zone has graduated from puberty, and my cheeks tend to be patchy and uneven.
This is my unpaid, honest opinion of the morning facial regimen.

 I started off with the mineral-rich peeling gel, the facial cleansing milk, and the refining toner. These sample packets have the bare minimum, and while using them, I remembered the old adage 'A little goes a long way', and it really does in this case!
 Also pictured is my toothpaste.

This is my loverly face after vacation. I did a little binge eating (because Portuguese food is amaaaaaazing!), and drank a glass of wine every night. My skin didn't like that one bit! How dare I stray from the norm! You can see the redness on my cheeks, and that wonderful breakout on my bottom lip and chin.
Skin feels: A little rough. I have dry patches on my cheeks, and acne bumps. T-Zone is not greasy, or dry. Blackheads and pores are apparent on nose and chin.

 <- This is what happens when you
use the gel, and your face is wet!

This is what happens when you
 use the gel, and your face
is dry! ->

Skin feels: TIGHT TIGHT TIGHT! Oh my god, it's like I've used some oil-absorbing facial wash. It also feels a little sticky, despite rinsing thoroughly, and wiping my face with a soft cloth. I don't think I did the peel correctly.

This is a little different from your average facial cleanser. First of all, you use a clean cotton ball to massage it into your skin.

Secondly, it feels like I'm rubbing wet velvet into my skin. The instructions say nothing about rinsing this product, so I tried to let it dry. I really, really tried. Nope. My face felt FUNKY! So I rinsed as much as I could. This is the ick from my face. See that gray and brown? That's what was 'cleaned'.

Skin feels: Ridiculously soft, even though I'm afraid to touch it with my bare fingers. A little gooey, too, with the product being left on.

Now we come to the toner. The cotton ball on the left shows what was left over.

Skin feels: Not quite as gooey as before, but I can almost feel the product just sitting on my face. Flare-ups and redness ensues. Damn you, sensitive skin!

Up next, we have the eye gel. I threw this in at the last minute, as well as the moisturizer, because I wanted a full product experience.
This tiny dab actually did pretty well. It smoothed over my skin like butter, and didn't sting or make my eyes water like other eye gels tend to do.
The picture of my eyes are a good comparison for a before and after. Even five minutes later, my eyes felt less puffy. The bags seemed to improve, too.

Now, this little packet was impressive. I used the WHOLE thing, because necks need love, too.

Two swoops of face cream with a pleasant scent was a good place to start. I gave myself a good facial massage, since the instructions were to massage gently until product had absorbed. If I was going to do something right, it would be this.

The silky texture was a bonus, and made it easier to just keep massaging. Afterwards, I felt like I should have a tub of this for my entire body.

Skin feels: Holy crap. Facial sins of my past were forgiven once this product had been absorbed. While it felt a little heavy for summertime, it was still quite luxurious. I'd say my skin felt hydrated, but overly so on my T-Zone, to the point of feeling heavy.
Even that little flare-up of redness seemed to disappear once it was over.

All in all, I was pleased with the process. The instructions say that the whole thing is to be done morning and night, and the other sample packets seem to focus more on diminishing wrinkles and not adult acne. Would I buy this product? Probably. I think I'd keep it as my winter routine, since the frigid Wisconsin temperatures wreak havoc on my skin. I'd definitely keep the eye gel year round, though.  Seacret Spa has a high price tag, but the product -works-, and that's why I suggest it as a Mother's Day splurge, or Tax Refund splurge.

Currently, it is 11 p.m., and my it still feels like there's too much moisturizer on my forehead. However, when hubby leaned over to kiss me around lunchtime, he was surprised. "Your face feels like a snuggly blanket. What'd you do?" He still rubs my cheek with the back of his hand, and says, "Yup, still soft."

;) Love ya, Mamas. Have fun!


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Home > Archive by tag 'DevOps automation'

Posts Tagged ‘ DevOps automation ’

Enterprise cloud firm Nutanix acquires Sequoia-backed automation startup Calm.io

Wednesday, August 31, 2016 | More »

Dheeraj Pandey, Chairman & CEO, Nutanix
Silicon Valley-headquartered enterprise cloud computing company Nutanix Inc. has acquired development and operations (DevOps) automation startup Calm.io for an undisclosed sum. Nutanix has also signed a definitive agreement to acquire PernixData Inc., a scale-out data acceleration and analytics firm...