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Sound planning leads mattress entrepreneur to success

February 2011

Len Gaby

“What would you pay for a good night’s sleep?”

This seemingly innocuous question is just one of the carefully crafted subtleties in the strategic plan that rocketed Sleep America into the largest mattress retailer in Arizona.

“We weren’t selling mattresses; we were helping customers improve their quality of life through sleep,” explains Len Gaby ’67, MBA ’71. Beginning with one location in a strip mall in Phoenix, Len and his wife, Debbie, realized their dream of dominating the mattress retail market in the state in less than nine years.

The company flourished with Len and Debbie each bringing unique talents to the table. A realtor and designer, Texas native Debbie is energetic and enthusiastic, making her a natural spokesperson for the company. Len was a seasoned retailer yearning to start his own business. Painstaking national research led them to choose the growing community of Phoenix as the place to put down their retail roots. They visited store after store in the state, observing and absorbing the good, the bad and the ugly of the mattress business.

The Gabys recognized early on that branding would be the key to their success because they wouldn’t be selling a low priced commodity. The dynamic couple vowed to change the way mattresses were sold. They chose the name “Sleep America” because it sounded bigger than a one-store company in Arizona—a crucial element to the budding entrepreneurs who planned to expand and one day sell to a larger national organization. The company logo, created by a professional graphic designer, incorporates a friendly man in the moon on one side and a solid dark blue hue on the other. Len is quick to point out that the man in the moon is smiling and facing out, creating an instant connection with the viewer. The shadowed side of the moon intimates sleep through its restful blue tone.

No stone was left unturned, no avenue unresearched in the Gaby’s quest to create the ultimate mattress shopping experience and environment. With tasteful attention to detail, they incorporated the five senses into their store. Upon entering, customers are greeted by a pristine environment, and lulled by soft playing music; scented candles and fragrant florals delight their noses and soft beds await their touch. Admiral blue, a color symbolizing trust and relaxation, adorns the walls. They even offered branded water bottles to thirsty customers seeking oasis from the arid Arizona climate.

Giving back to the community was an integral part of the Gaby’s philosophy. Over the years, the couple gave mattresses away to homeless shelters and supported numerous charitable fund drives and events. In 2004, Len co-founded Sleep America Charities, which provides resources to local organizations in need. Debbie has been honored with several awards and accolades for her volunteer work and community involvement.

Sleep America had grown to 45 stores nationwide in 2009 when the Gabys sold it to Sleep Country Canada. Debbie stayed on as president and still pitches the company in her Texan drawl to the Arizona television and radio market.

Len has retired from the mattress business, but continues to showcase his business and marketing acumen through consulting work. He also has started an automated vending machine DVD rental business with his son, James, called PressPlay Kiosks, which offers new film releases 28 days sooner than their competitor.

The fragile business climate has prompted Len to unearth some sage advice from a somewhat unlikely source, Charles Darwin. Over a century ago the naturalist declared “It is not the strongest or the smartest of the species that survive. But the one that is most adaptable to change."

“This seems to be a very good lesson for us all,” Len reflects.

Written by Beth Ranney


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This popular product is deadly for health

Этот популярный продукт смертельно опасен для здоровьяSugar destroys the brain and liver.

Once the sugar was considered a delicacy to relish, which were hard to get. If you are lucky enough, you can add it yourself to coffee or tea.

But, says Dr. Robert Lustig, Professor of pediatric endocrinology at the University of California, San Francisco (KUSF), sugar remained “extremely expensive until the mid-18th — early 19th century”.

This high cost may actually have been virtuous, because she did excessive consumption of sugar is almost impossible for most people. This is the problem. According to Dr. Lustig used in excessive amounts sugar acts on the liver as a chronic, dose-dependent toxin (poison).

Why sugar is bad for your liver?
The main problem with sugar, and processed fructose in particular, is that your liver has a very limited ability to metabolize it. Dr. Lustig explains why sugar is so harmful to the liver and how it can lead to diabetes.

According to Dr. Lustig person can safely metabolize only about six teaspoons of added sugar a day.

However, the average person consumes 20 teaspoons of added sugar a day. These excessive amounts of sugar are converted in the process of metabolism in adipose tissue and leads to many metabolic diseases, including, inter alia:

Diabetes of the 2nd type
Cardiovascular disease
Hypertension (high blood pressure)

As stated on the website created by Dr. Robert Lustig and colleagues, who studied more than 8,000 independent studies on sugar and its role in heart disease, 2 diabetes type, liver diseases, etc.:

“Over time, drinking large amounts of sugar can cause strain and disorders of critical organs, including the pancreas and liver. If there is excessive load on the pancreas, which produces insulin to process sugar, it may no longer regulate blood sugar levels appropriately.

Large doses of sugar of fructose can overload the liver, which participates in the processing of fructose. The liver converts fructose to fat, which accumulates in the liver and also secreted into the bloodstream.

This process contributes to the development of key elements of the metabolic syndrome, including high levels of fats or triglycerides in the blood, high cholesterol, high blood pressure and excess fat in the form of “sugar belly”.

Critically high levels of sugar in the blood associated with disorders of the kidneys
Your body can take just one teaspoon of sugar in the blood under any circumstances, and this is the critical level. If the level of sugar in your blood will reach one teaspoon, you risk to fall into a hyperglycemic coma and even die.

Your body is doing a great job to prevent such a development, producing insulin, which maintains blood sugar at a safe level. Any food with a high content of carbohydrates in the form of cereals or sugar usually causes a sharp increase in the level of glucose in the blood.

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Create Your Rate! Time is Money

My belief is that we make our own value.  “Create your own Rate”

We all assert and demand our worth.  My value as a television host, public speaker, and interviewer is largely determined by what I can contribute . . . but the ability to understand how to create my rate is a balancing act that is important to understand.  It can be a tricky see-saw to have a company or organization recognize your talents & then have to negotiate your rate, but (the way I see it) there are two ways of theorizing how to approach payment.

I think of determining your own rate, like this:

Consider any big star who has inherent known celebrity.  For example, Britney Spears.  Lets say a little rink dink used car lot in her hometown wanted to do a local commercial.  Maybe the owner contacts Britney’s manager and begs her, as a small-town favor, to be featured in their little commercial.

There are two different scenarios that I consider:

Lets say Britney Spears’ usual rate for an appearance is $500,000.  In the first situation she might say, “Aww, they’re just a small, little business!”  In this scenario, she graciously she agrees, saying “Ok, even though my usual rate is $500,000 . . . for them I’ll do it for $10,000 as a favor.”  The car company would be thrilled . . . but, knowing that she’s willing to work at a significantly lower rate, they’re likely to say, “well, we’re so small!  Can’t you just do it for $8,000?”  Her acknowledgement that, for the particular segment, she will accept a lower rate of return, gives the small company more bargaining power.  They already know she’s just doing the segment for the spirit of it, and therefore are able to heighten their argument as a bargaining chip to get a better rate for themselves; if she is willing to do something and undercut her value by such a large amount, why not ask her to do it more, saying that they could use the break?  In reducing her rate, she actually will be pressured and valued likely in the future to do the same segment at even lesser a rate.

Michelle Smoller, knowing her worth!

Michelle Smoller, knowing her worth!

The second situation also says that Britney Spears’ usual rate for an appearance is $500,000.  In this example though she says, “But they’re just a small, little business!”  So she says, “Ok, since my usual rate is $500,000 . . . I can’t be affiliated with this project, unless they increase my rate to $750,000.”  Here, she asserts her worth.  She acknowledges her overall value and therefore realizes that, if a group really wants her to be onboard with them, that they ought to rise to her level of expectation and recognize her overall ability to benefit them and their product.

We must know our worth!  It is not easy to assert that we are valuable sometimes.  After all, if people don't know or trust you already, then how can they consider your assertion of value to have authority?  Respect yourself enough to have faith that your word itself is inherently valuable.   If they don’t know the source, how can they trust your appraisal of the value you bring to a situation?  Think about what you have to offer other people!

You have got to understand that your work—no matter what it may be—has a fiscal value.   Command the respect you think your work merits.  Determine your own worth and then assert yourself in order understand to get what you want.  In a situation where you refuse to accept a lower value (knowing you are a valuable asset), companies will have to acknowledge that you have the important skills and the significant talent that they deserve and seek.  In agreeing to rise to your rate, they validate you and understand that what they are getting is worth the price.

Understand that your time is money and create your own rate!


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ESET Reseller Verticle - 200ESET ensures your safety while you search or surf the net, download music, documents and pictures, send emails or instant message by scanning documents, files, Web pages and Web links before you open them. Unlike other security products, ESET’s unique software stops the threat before it reaches your hard drive and becomes a problem.

Computer and internet use is an integral part of our business and personal everyday lives. Every aspect of our lives is accessible electronically, which brings considerable benefit – and, unfortunately, considerable risk.

Our role is to shield you from that risk by providing powerful, easy-to-use protection that works efficiently and invisibly in the background so you can focus on using your computer, not worrying about security.

As the nature of threats continues to evolve – from computer- and web-borne viruses tov1_green complex exploits designed to steal information for financial gain, the nature of protection must also evolve. Using the latest technology developed by world-renowned security experts, ESET provides real-time defenses against real-time threats. With ESET software on your system, you can safely surf the net, create online profiles, shop, bank online, download files, store data, chat, and email, safe in the knowledge that your personal and professional information will not be stolen or misused.

In a nutshell, ESET enables people and businesses to use computers with confidence and without aggravation by protecting them from disruption and loss.


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What Is “Gamocracy” And How Could It Be Better?

March 3rd, 2011 by

One thing I’ve learned as a Community Manager is that gamers love telling game developers how to do their jobs.

Turning the tables constructively on this vocal majority, Swedish indie developer The Bearded Ladies have launched Gamocracy – an experimental game design project that puts creative responsibility in the hands of average gamers across the globe. In collaboration with Sony’s Official PlayStation Community, Gamocracy invites players to submit original ideas for a 2-D action platformer (think Super Mario Bros.) to be developed for PlayStation 3 and PSP by The Bearded Ladies. Check out this quote from their Facebook page:

Anyone can submit ideas [for Gamocracy] via the PlayStation Forum and each week the best ones will be posted to this Facebook page where a public vote will decide which idea is used. If your idea makes it through to the final game, your name will be added to the end credits, ensuring bragging rights and a possible first step on the game development career ladder.

“The People Need a Hero!”

Week 1 of the eight-week initiative, which began February 18, presented participants with their first challenge. Tasked with creating a protagonist for the as-yet-untitled platformer, amateur game designers submitted more than 400 ideas in 10 different languages to the Official PlayStation Forums (EU). After selecting 5 finalists and posting their ideas in a Facebook photo album, The Bearded Ladies called for their community to cast votes in the form of Likes on Facebook. Once all the votes had been counted, PlayStation Community member The_Sparta_Ghost emerged victorious with his protagonist “H7” – the alien-built android with body parts held together by force-fields and who detaches his head to vault into hard-to-reach places (why didn’t I think of that?) Here’s a peek at the community-driven character design:

Room for improvement

While the cooperation between Gamocracy’s creators and Official PlayStation Forums moderation staff is commendable, the logistics of this initiative are not without flaws. Notably absent are clear, consistent CTAs in the PlayStation Forums forwarding successful participants to The Bearded Ladies’ Facebook page. I’ll bet many international contributors didn’t fully understand that if their Week 1 design was selected as a finalist, it would be subject to a community vote on Facebook in the form of ‘Likes’. That would explain the extremely low voter turnout (109) compared with the number of submissions (400+). The solution? Show participants the path from the instructional post, through the submission process, all the way to the voting booth. Once your amateur designers realize they need the ‘Likes’ of everyone they know, visitors will flock to your page in support of their friends. (Note: Regardless of whether a change is made, I suspect the voting spread will be greater in Week 2 than in Week 1, where the closeness of Finalists’ vote counts [28, 11, 15, 24, and 31] demonstrated little awareness of Gamocracy’s unregulated voting system.)

The Bearded Ladies clearly have a submission collection process worked out, so I hope to eventually see published data showing weekly entries, to-date entries, and entries per region/language (my estimate of 400+ Week 1 submissions is based on overall forum post counts.) Measuring these data internally could prove useful in the short term for week-over-week changes in community outreach, and in the long term for post-initiative press highlights.

To hear from the developers themselves on how the Gamocracy experiment is going, check out their first dev diary:

Moving forward

This week’s design challenge, “War of the Worlds,” asks designers to dream up 3 unique settings for H7 to traverse with his unique self-dismemberment abilities. If Gamocracy keeps its momentum, the next 6 weeks will see a massive influx of crowdsourced game concepts from across the globe. My hat goes off to Sony in particular for for giving Gamocracy a chance and for seeing the value in empowering gamers to share their ideas with the world.

Do you have a caged creative beast inside waiting to be unleashed? Are you an XBLA junkie, a PlayStation Mover & shaker, or just a kid at heart with a Wiimote in hand? Try your hand at game design with Gamocracy - it looks like a hell of a lot of fun.

[This article was originally published at WASD in Translation. It appears here with the author’s permission.]

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Monday, June 27, 2005

I dreamed last night...

... that I received a package of marijuana seeds from either my friend Mullins or my brother, Neal, which one I can’t remember. I took the seeds and planted them in small planters and grew them tall.

From the seeds the dream fast forwarded to when they were large and ripe, do marijuana plants get ripe? Well, whatever you call it they were ready for the harvesting. I clipped them and dried them out.

Fast forward again to where everything is dry and the plants are ready for smoking. For whatever reason I decided to do the cutting/smoke preparation in my parent’s kitchen. I don’t really know all the ends and outs of how to prepare a marijuana plant for a joint, but in this dream version I put the stalks on to a cutting board and hacked them into little bits.

Tiny, round seeds popped out of the stalks, and this was what I was looking for. I finished my harvesting and began to clean up. The dream is fuzzy on how many plants I actually cut up, but I had thousands of seeds. I filled one bucket up with seeds for my personal use and began thinking of ways to destroy the remaining ones, which I would not need.

While I was cleaning up, trashing the actual leaves (!) my dad walked through the kitchen. I tensed up sensing he would understand what I was doing and kill me on the spot. But, he was distracted by his own search for some unremembered object; all he did was make a comment on my mess looking like a nice salad. He then left the kitchen for the office, and left me alone.

I disposed of the leaves, and the dream jumped to me being outside. It must have been right outside my parent’s house, but it was a landscape I have never seen before. Which, in reality, isn’t that far from the mark, since I’ve never actually been to the house my parent’s are currently living in. Anyway, I walked to the curb, where several old ladies were sitting on a porch swing. I walked a little ways away from them and began dumping my seeds very close to some flowers. There were literally tons of these seeds, at least three large piles filling the ground.

My plan was to burn the seeds and destroy all evidence of my illegal activity. Why I would do this in public, with many pedestrians walking about is beyond me, but never the less it was so. Making things stranger, I believed I must put a for sale sign on the seeds before I burned them. The price was really cheap, but I still hoped no one would want to purchase them before I could burn all the seeds. In fact I began burning the first pile feeling anxious that someone may walk buy and decide to buy the seeds before they were completely destroyed.

I didn’t think anyone wanting to purchase the seeds would actually know what they were, it was more like a garage sale, and someone might think they were sunflower seeds or something. Illogically I also couldn’t start burning the second pile until the first one was destroyed.

About halfway through the first pile’s burning, a middle age man approached the pile and began asking questions.

He seemed to know exactly what the seeds really were, but vocally, he was concerned with the destruction of the flowers that were buried between the seed piles. He complained that he would like to purchase the flowers before they were burned. I tried to stall him while the seeds burned, but he became more manic.

Somewhere in the conversation he began telling me he knew exactly what the seeds were and that the flowers were the give-away. He said that the flowers were, in fact, the product of the seeds. And as he said this, it became true. No longer were there marijuana plants, but flowers.

It was at this point that I woke up.

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Pastor's Pen

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An All too Common Sin

We all know people who are holding onto the hurt and pain in their lives. Maybe we do that too. If we've been nurturing a wound for a while, we may not even know that we have a bitter spirit. Perhaps we have forgotten that we're to forgive others like Jesus forgave us. ...

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The Columnist

We are always told that all this emphasis on customer care is something that has come into being quite recently, but I have an old friend called Bob who has been in the customer care business for as long as he can remember, which must be forty years or more.
            ‘I don't remember there being anything called Customer Care in those days,’ I said to him once.
            ‘Ah, well, in those days we called it The Complaints Department,’ he said. ‘And a great mistake it was too. It sounded as if you were already admitting that people might have justifiable complaints. You must never do that. The best thing you can do is to make the customer feel guilty in advance.’
            ‘How can you do that? ‘ I asked Bob.
            ‘Easy,’ said Bob. The railways do it when they ask you over and over again not to leave anything on the train. The airports do it when they say that any unattended luggage will be taken away immediately and destroyed. The underground railways do it when they provide those grim little windows called Excess Fare Payments or something, at which people who have travelled without a ticket can pay. The whole effect is to make the customer feel that it is his fault if anything goes wrong. That's what we are after! That's why we love putting up notices saying, “The Management Take No Responsibility For Anything Taken From Your Car While You Are Parked Here, Even Though You Are Paying Through The Nose For It ...’”
            Already, just listening to him, I was feeling guilty....
            ‘I thought you were after making the customer feel happy and wanted?’ I said.
            ‘Oh yes,’ he said. ‘We are. No question about that. We want them to feel so happy and wanted that they never complain. But if they complain, that's a different matter... Incidentally, you know that customer care is mentioned in the Bible? ‘
            ‘Is it?’
            ‘ “A soft answer turneth away wrath”.’  He said. ‘Our sentiments exactly. How many modern professions are mentioned in the Bible, I wonder? Not many, I think.’
            ‘But we customers don't want a soft answer,’ I said. ‘We want an honest answer! We want a hard answer. We want satisfaction. We want a complaint to be rectified.’
            ‘There you go again, using words like “complaint” and “satisfaction”, ‘ said Bob. ‘This all creates the impression that the customer has a grievance which needs to be dealt with. Nothing could be further from the truth.’
            ‘Surely some customers have genuine grievances?’
            ‘If that was our game, " said Bob, not answering the question, ‘ it would be called Grievance Care. But it's not. It's called Customer Care. Our primary aim is not so much to alleviate the grievance as to make the customer feel better. You can see this happening on a small scale when air flights are delayed at a big airport. If the postponement starts getting out of hand, the airline will announce that drinks are on the house and start arranging for free refreshment. It's not making the situation any better - it's just making the customer feel better about the situation.’
            ‘I don't see the average punter swallowing this,’ I said.
            Bob smiled in an annoyingly superior sort of way.
            ‘Not only does the average punter fall for this,’ he said,  ‘but he tends to do the same sort of thing himself.’
            ‘You mean, ordinary people like me go in for customer care?’ I said.  ‘You're kidding! ... ‘
            ‘Telephone answering machines, for instance,’ he said. ‘Nobody needs them, not really, unless business is involved. You don't really need to tell someone that you're out, do you? They know you're out. That's why your phone is not answering.'
            ‘Yes, but it makes people feel better if they can leave a message,’ I said. ‘It makes them feel that you're going to do something about them. It really gives them the feeling that you care...’
            ‘Customer care !’ he said. ‘This is customer care in your own home! Making people feel good. You do it. Everyone does it. You can't blame firms for doing it as well. Except that when you do it at home you think it's good, and you sneeze at it when we do it ... ‘
            ‘No, no,’ I protested, but he was off again.
            ‘When you let a driver come from a side road on to the main road in front of you ... when you answer an RSVP ... when you drop someone a polite thank you letter...’
            ‘This is just normal civility,’ I said.
            ‘And so is customer care,’ he said.
            ‘Nonsense,’ I said. ‘Customer care is hypocrisy. It's being nice to people who are going to cause trouble. You don't lavish customer care on satisfied customers - only on unsatisfied customers. That's not normal civility.’
            ‘When you go on holiday,’ he said, trying another line of attack, ‘do you send postcards to the people back home?’
`           ‘Yes.’
            ‘Who do you send them to first?’
            I thought about it. The truth was that I sent them first to the people who would kick up a fuss or feel hurt if I didn't, but I was damned if I was going to tell him that.
            ‘I send them to my nearest and dearest and best loved friends.
            ‘You're a liar,’ he said. ‘You send them to the people who are going to give you a bad time if you don't. You call it being tactful.  It's also customer care! We all do it. But you don't call it customer care. So you don't admit it. Take Christmas cards, for instance. There are about ten people we really need to send them to. Relations overseas, etc. But we go through this whole performance of sending thousands to all our neighbours, and people in the office and so on. Why?’
            ‘Don't tell me,’  I said. ‘ I know. Customer care.’
            ‘Very good! ‘ said Bob. ‘You're catching on. Well, must be going. But I've enjoyed our little conversation.’
            ‘Have you really? ‘ I said. ‘Or is this just another bit more customer care?’
            ‘It's customer care practice,’ said Bob. ‘Being nice to curmudgeonly blokes like you is bloody good practice. See you! ‘
            I still don't know if he was pulling my leg or not.

Director Publications 1994/5

  Sainsbury's Magazine
  Sainsbury's Magazine
  London Tales

  Family Magazine
  The Sunday Herald
  Cherwell Oxford Students Union Newspaper
  Shelock Holmes
  Loyds Log


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Sterling Fire & Rescue Association

The Sterling Fire and Rescue Association consists of members of the Sterling Fire District as well as individual residents of Milton Township who want to volunteer their services to the department in other ways besides being a firefighter or EMT.  Voting privileges are granted to members of the Sterling Fire District (FF/EMT's) only.

The Association is primarily responsible for organizing fundraisers for the fire district, providing training CE's for fire district members, maintaining the building and grounds, making decisions purchases made with funds raised at fundraisers and assisting with food preparation and beverages for firefighters/EMT's on scene of a working fire.  Working fires typically require firefighters to be on scene for up to 12 hours and it is necessary to have sandwiches and water/Gatorade to help keep their stamina up.

The Association/Fire District members are also the body who reviews membership applications of those wishing to become a member of the Sterling Fire District as an EMT or Firefighter.   Meetings are held on the first Tuesday of each month at the fire station and regular attendance is required in order to maintain an active status with the Association.  Our goal is to work together for the betterment of the fire department, association and our community.  If you are interested in becoming a volunteer with the Sterling Fire and Rescue Association, feel free to contact any member from the member roster or stop by on the first Tuesday of the month at 6:30 and we will be glad to provide you with additional information.  We hope to see you!


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January 14, 2015 Repository 167: Fragrance Wunderkammer | Learning from Master Mandy Aftel Posted In: art practice, education, olfactory art

Detail of Mandy Aftel's studio, part of her historical collection of natural fragrance.

Detail of Mandy Aftel’s studio, part of her historical collection of natural fragrance.

People like us, who believe in physics, know that the distinction between past, present and future is only a stubbornly persistent illusion. – Albert Einstein

As stated in my last post on learning my olfactory alphabet, I’ve been on a quest to learn the art of perfumery so I can design a fragrance on forgetting. Forgetting is indeed an illusion, and most definitely wearing a fragrance that makes you forget is an illusion. Impossible one might say. Though I’m persisting with this journey, and I love the smell of it.

Step three in my journey of scent was at the beautiful studio of Mandy Aftel this past week in Berkeley, California. Her studio is in her home, and there were five other students with me. The experience was nothing less than mind blowing.

To my delight, Mandy reminded me a great deal of my South African art professors, my mentors whom I’ve studied with for years. She has enthusiastically embraced the philosophy of wabi-sabi, where her home and studio equally reflect the idea of history and beauty being married to patinaed form and well-worn character versus machine-made precision and perfection. If you’ve ever experienced homes decorated in this way they have a tremendous spiritual vibe – it’s a perfect learning environment.

The days were dizzy – mixing scents as if the house were burning down, then receiving feedback and suggestions on fine tuning the mixes. Exactly as I learned to paint for the first time in 1993, when my art professors lectured with slides then threw us into the studio with a model and materials. The directions were to do a portrait. A portrait! On the first day of painting!?! I really take to these sink or swim scenarios – the sense of urgency is so high that your doubts and fears of making mistakes jump out the window.

Similarly Mandy has her students make their first mixes by adding notes to an existing accord. In 45 minutes you must take three top, middle and base notes and add two more to each level making a grand total of nine scents. The mixes obviously progressed over the few days – nothing was right though. I couldn’t help dropping in something awkward like beaver balls, tobacco or seaweed-like scents to see what on earth the rest of the scents in the mix would say to it. A perfume reviewer would likely call it a “headache of whale puke”.

For the next several months I will be fussing with the different ideas I started, turning a fireplace smell with ashes into a more alive but dark fragrance. And turning a sheer sweet floral fragrance into something a little more deserving of the exotic flower that sits at its center. I can’t wait.

A side note too, for the curious – we really as a culture are fragrance illiterate. Most of us enjoy the vanilla and Issay Miyake’s of the planet just fine. This is the Dick and Jane of reading. Natural perfumes are the Dostoyevsky of reading. I think there is a nice swing in the market for natural and indie perfumers – keep your eye and nose out! And please don’t be afraid to explore them, we’ve been starved from real fragrance for ages so it will be a learning experience. And there is a TON of really bad fragrance out there (even the indie ones – be wary of the marketing sass – except for the fragrances claiming you will forget a certain year or two developed by Mindmarrow;-)

I am so grateful for teachers such as Mandy – I can’t stress how rare they are in the world today. These are masters opening their door to neophytes, possibly charlatans and most definitely spazs (me), and they do it generously with respect and love. I now have a brand new medium to explore with my art, and it has cracked open my world by many degrees. Thank you Mandy!

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Stop Motion Café App on iPhone 6 Review

Continuing with our Smart Phone Stop Motion series, today we look at Stop Motion Café on the iPhone 6, which is available for FREE from the App store, and works on iPhone and iPad.

Getting straight into it, this is a relatively simple app that lacks a lot of the bells and whistles of some of the other apps we have been looking at for this series… That doesn’t mean it isn’t worth a look though. There are no themed titles, no libraries of music to add, no sound fx and no frame-by-frame editing to add drawing, or change the colours, contrast etc and lastly there are no filters to add to your final video. It also lacks a focus and exposure lock, which would be very handy.

Using this on an iPhone 6 seems to be a little problematic, as it doesn’t seem to be optimised to work on the slightly larger iPhone 6 screen and seems it would be more suited on an iPhone 4 or 5. This only really causes a problem in the image capture section, where it cuts the bottom menu in half, but seeing as the controls in that menu aren’t that important it doesn’t make a huge difference.

The animation features of the app are pretty good, including access to the flash, onion skinning (or ghosting as they seem to refer to it) as well as a frame counter, HD on/off and the ability to switch between iPhone cameras, allowing you to use the front or back camera as you need. It supports and can save multiple projects, which you can go back and do some basic editing on after you have finished shooting.

The editing, as I said, is simple… You have the ability to save out separate frames to the camera roll, as well as duplicate frames or delete them to get rid of any nasty mistakes you may have made. The video can be set at speed of between 1fps – 30fps, and once you are finished you can “Elaborate” your movie, which renders the animation and saves it to your camera roll in 720p HD.

Despite its lack of features, and the slightly childish look to the app, the image quality is better than some of the apps we have been testing and it is very simple to use, making it great for people who are just starting out in Stop Motion. There are better apps out there for the iPhone and iPad, but if you are looking for a quick, easy and simple Stop Motion app, then Stop Motion Café might just be for you.

Check out the test video below to see what we did with Stop Motion Café!


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6x11: Knots Untie

Image for the episode 6x11: Knots Untie

Rick realizes that Alexandria is not as safe as the whole group thought. Decisions must be taken in order to keep everybody safe

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Chain Forwards on the Web

Well, I've been tagged.

Back in 1996, I used to receive (and ignore) email messages with these kinds of instructions all the time, but this is the first time I've ever seen it outside the context of email. In honor of the fact that it's the first time, I'm actually going to attempt to play along somewhat. This time only.

[The Age of Turbulence: Adventures in a New World]I am currently reading Greenspan's book, and happen to have it sitting within eight inches of my keyboard. It's a fascinating read by the way. I'm on page 339 at the moment, but backtracking to page 123 (which just happens to be the first page of chapter six), here are sentences 6-8:

...In the process, the demise of central planning exposed the almost unimaginable extent of the rot that had accumulated over decades.

But the biggest surprise that awaited me was an extraordinary tutorial on the roots of market capitalism. This is the system with which, of course, I am most familiar, but my understanding of its foundations was wholly abstract...

That part was easy. Now the business about sending it on to (err, tagging) five more people, that's another matter. My blog is kind of atypical. Almost all visitors find a specific post (most commonly this one, as it happens) through a search engine, in the same way one would find content on a traditional website. I guess you could say I'm on the fringes of the (do I have to hate myself for using this word?) blogosphere. Naturally, the two people whom I have some reason to believe might occasionally drop by just to see if I've posted anything lately have both already been tagged.

Very well, there's nothing in the instructions that says you can only tag people whom you're confident will read the post and know they were tagged. So, in the spirit of following the letter of the instructions and ignoring the intent, I'm tagging Andy Jentes (a friend who, as far as I know, does not have a web presence at the moment), Dave Gable (another friend, going by the handle randomneuralfirings over at Xanga), Derek Lowe (a biochemist over at, Dan Ritter (a hardware reviewer from down under --, and, umm, Tim Vroom (of fame). Hey, why not?


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Drivers, you’re being tracked; Bluetooth makes road trips easier with traffic control

It’s wireless technology embedded in your new smartphone and in many newer cars. It’s Bluetooth, and traffic engineers in Palm Beach County — and likely soon all of South Florida — are using it to track you.
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The Tarantula Walk

Don't be afraid!

I was commissioned by 3D Artist magazine (issue 66) to produce a masterclass course of 7 pages to explain how to create the pipeline to create a character from modelisation to post-production. So we agreed on a spider, which was challenging. Many legs and fur indeed! But that was a cool exercice 🙂

Client: 3D Artist - Issue 66
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Lady Rams basketball surge past Gloversville in Foothills Council opener

The final score of any game never tells the full story; the details always matter. Tuesday night, the Amsterdam Lady Rams varsity basketball team took care of the details in an efficient fashion and surged past a determined Lady Dragons team 70-57 in their Foothills Council opener at Gloversville High School.

Amsterdam’s accurate passing resulted in 19 assists as a team with both Nina Fedullo and Lucia Liverio dishing out seven apiece. The Lady Rams also connected for nine out of seventeen from three point range and converted eight of eleven free throw attempts. Giuliana Pritchard was the recipient of several of those assists and turned in another strong performance with a double-double, 20 points and 15 rebounds as Amsterdam broke open a tie game in the third quarter and pulled away to win.

“We settled down in the second half and took care of the ball,” Amsterdam coach Eric Duemler said. “Gloversville played more man to man defense than I thought they would. We had to work the ball and take good shots.”

Amsterdam closed out the first half with three assists on its last three possessions. Fedullo found Pritchard close to the rim twice, and Liverio dished to Fedullo on the last one giving the Lady Rams a 40-32 lead at the break. However, Gloversville came out of the locker room with an 8-0 run sparked by six points from Harmony Philo, who led all scorers with 26 points. A basket by Jasmine Gonzalez on an assist by Philo knotted things up at 40-40, but the Lady Rams were ready with an answer.

“Harmony (Philo) was lights out tonight,” Coach Duemler said. “We are a well conditioned team and Gloversville hung right with us. In the second half we played mostly a 3-2 defense making sure to find out where Harmony was.”

Amsterdam answered with Maria Lomanto’s first three point shot of the second half that came on another Fedullo assist and the Lady Rams pulled ahead 43-40. A steal by Fedullo and a put back by Pritchard extended that lead to 45-40 before Philo connected for three again, but Lomanto answered with a drive to the rim on yet another assist by Liverio. Amsterdam senior Grace Catena took a pass from Brady Santiago for a drive to the basket and two more, and Fedullo closed the quarter with a pair of her own putting AHS up 51-44 after three periods of play. The versatile Lady Rams offense was just getting started.

Amsterdam opened the final period with baskets by both Liverio and Fedullo before Gloversville could respond. Kendra Lavery and Alex Benfatti helped the Lady Dragons narrow the margin to 55-48 in front of Elena Fedullo’s first points as a member of the AHS varsity team that boosted the Lady Rams lead to 57-48. Philo wasn’t done though, and just like last seasons’ game at GHS when Philo connected for five long distance shots against AHS, the sophomore sharpshooter drilled one more slicing the advantage to six at 57-51. The Lady Rams however have a pair of sharpshooters of their own from behind the three point stripe, and both Santiago and Lomanto connected on back to back AHS trips down the floor making it a double digit lead, 63-52.

“We had Brady (Santiago) knocking them down in the first half and Maria (Lomanto) in the second half,” Coach Duemler said. “Both are great shooters.”

Lomanto’s last of her three’s gave AHS its largest lead at 66-53. After free throws by Catena and Lomanto built the lead to fourteen, Pritchard put an exclamation point on her strong effort with a put back of a free throw miss as she got position and out-muscled a pair of Gloversville defenders for the ball.

“She’s a tough kid,” Coach Duemler said of Pritchard. “She hurt her foot and I wanted to take her out, but she wouldn’t let me.”

Pritchard did most of her damage in the first half scoring 16 of her team high 20 points, ten in the second quarter including her first three point shot of the season that tied the game at 25-25. Gloversville had taken a slim 25-22 lead on consecutive baskets by Gonzalez, who finished the game with 10 points and six rebounds for the Lady Dragons, but left the game in the second half with a knee injury. Gonzalez had scored Gloversville’s first basket of the second quarter and had six of her total in that period. Philo’s first three of the game tied it briefly at 21-21 before a Pritchard free throw put AHS back in front. A pair of steals by Nina Fedullo and Lomanto stretched 31-25 until a three by Gabby Brown pulled GHS close. Liverio answered with a drive and one to help AHS stay on top by six.

Gloversville started out strong to open the scoring with baskets by Gabby Langley and Philo, and free throws by Kerri Hauser to go in front 7-4. Nina Fedullo and Santiago created a 7-0 run for AHS putting the Lady Rams in front 11-7 and another triple by Santiago later increased that to 14-8. Catena was one of four Lady Rams to connect from beyond the arc and put AHS up 17-12 late in the first quarter. Gloversville had a chance to tie but Gonzalez and Langley only converted on one of two free throw attempts and the Lady Dragons trailed 19-16 after one period. Gloversville was getting to the line often in the first half, but for the game managed only 11 of 25 from the charity stripe. The Lady Rams were more efficient from the line hitting eight of eleven, but making more first shot attempts kept those numbers down. Unlike the first game of the year nearly two weeks ago against Niskayuna where only four players scored, the Lady Rams put seven in the scoring column Tuesday night.

“We had way more than that this game,” Coach Duemler said. “Last time only four kids scored. This was a great game.”

Lomanto netted 16 points and Santiago was next on the scoring chart for AHS with 11 points. Both ended the night with three triples. Nina Fedullo followed with ten points as she continues to clime on the schools’ all time scoring list for girls and boys basketball. Catena finished with six points, Liverio was next with five, and Elena Fedullo had two points for AHS. Nina Fedullo pulled down seven rebounds, her younger sister had two as did Taylor Flint, Catena, and Liverio. Gianna Derosa and Janina Sjoberg both got into the game and although didn’t score, they did help a good defensive effort for AHS.

Philo’s 26 led the Lady Dragons. Gonzalez came through with ten points and six rebounds. Langley had seven points, four rebounds and four steals. Benfatti and Lavery each had four points, while Hauser and Brown rounded out the scoring for Gloversville (2-1) with three points each.

Amsterdam returns to action on Thursday for its Foothills Council home opener against Johnstown. Tip time for the varsity contest is scheduled for 7pm.

About Scott Mulford

Scott Mulford has been covering local sports for over 20 years. He previously wrote for the Amsterdam Star and The Free Press of the Mohawk Valley.

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Children’s emotions also go through emotional turbulence during and after a divorce.When the parent(s) begin to date, this can significantly cause a lot of stress and pain in the family.and wondering how their relationship with you is being influenced by your relationship with the other. ” “What if John’s kids came over every Friday through the summer? ” Each dialogue is both assessment (How are my kids feeling about these possibilities and realities?

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If the other person has children as well, it might be wise to orchestrate early get-togethers with just one set of children. But you also need—and here’s where single parents fall short—a silhouette of the type of family you are hoping to create.


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Amy Clark

It’s the 3 Little Things

Rent the Runway

It’s Fri-yay and a perfect time to share a quick recap before I pack my bags and leave again.

I know, I know!

These past two months have been bonkers and I’m so grateful for every minute of it.

If you recall, I was in Pasadena for the Mom 2.0 Summit last week.  As always, the conference was an absolute glam-fest and full of incredible speakers. Kristen Bell and Brené Brown were both as fantastic, dynamic, and real as I had hoped they would be. I also walked away with a lot of notes about how to manage this corner of the internet better.

Even after fourteen years, I continue to be a work in progress.

For me, it is all about being with my friends and many, that I had not seen in five years or more (!!!),  ended up attending this conference. It was so fun to be reunited again!

Being nominated for an Iris Award for Best Mom Blog was such an honor. Although I did not win, I am proud to have written the content I did and for the community I have worked so hard to cultivate here.

Taye Diggs

I timed my bathroom break, after the show, perfectly too! Taye Diggs, our host for the evening’s event, happened to be in the lobby while I was walking through. It was such an honor to meet him. I am also happy to report that he was just as I had hoped he would be. He’s got those Midwest manners down and graciously took a picture with me.

How awesome is that?

My frocks were courtesy of Rent the Runway and I only had to stuff two of these in the top to make it work. Hahaha! #bodygoals

By the way, I noticed that RTR is running a special for Memorial Day weekend. Rent 1, Get 2 free for your festivities. A common misconception is that they only offer ballgowns. They actually offer lots of cute everyday dresses and apparel too. If you have anything fun happening that weekend (and haven’t used their services before), here is $30 credit too to put towards your purchase.

Where am I headed next?

My Mother’s Day gift is renting a Lake Michigan home with my childhood bestie for the weekend.

We plan to do NOTHING for ANYONE and we are so excited.

I am a newbie to Costco (tell me your tips!!) and noticed these premade meals would be perfect so neither of us has to cook.

Plans include sitting in a hot tub, moving to the couch, drinking wine, maybe switching couches, sleeping in, and not getting dressed. After that? Maybe move to a chair.

Doesn’t that sound like a great Mother’s Day gift?

I think so.

Here are 3 other things making me happy this week…

Genius Caffeine

Genius Caffeine

I shared with you that I found out I have silent reflux and that has meant modifying my diet a bit. I find that coffee, sadly, has been a big contributor to my symptoms. I really need a pick-me-up in the morning though so I started researching supplement options.

For the last month, I have been using something called Genius Caffeine and I can’t tell you how much it has improved my mental clarity, reduced my caffeine jitters, and even helped me to sleep better than I was before.

Genius Caffeine pills offer the equivalent caffeine of a standard cup of coffee (100 mg. per tablet).  Since I was drinking a pot a day, I wondered if I would feel hungover switching to this supplement option.  Lo and behold, I had no troubles at all switching and I feel clearer mentally than I have in a long time.

The difference between this and the coffee is that it is an extended release tablet. Basically, I would have that UP and then DOWN and then UP with coffee. That’s why I kept drinking it. I kept craving the UP.

With these, the tablet releases the caffeine slowly so you never have those highs and lows that come with coffee drinking.  I’m pretty sure I have ADHD, as it runs in my family,  so this has helped me with sustaining focus. I pair it with this supplement to help treat the ADHD symptoms naturally.  (PS- if you have a child with ADHD, please read my series on the diagnosis and treatment process we went through with our son- part one, part two, part three)

I can’t say enough good things if you are trying to ditch the coffee-pot-a-day habit too.

How to Walk Away by Katherine Center

Meeting Katherine Center

The book I chose for last week’s flight was, How to Walk Away by Katherine Centers. I devoured the entire book on my flight and just could not put it down. It’s one of those books that you just want to pass on to a girlfriend after you finish it.

In case you missed my April book reviews, I shared that if you are a Me Before You fan, you wouldn’t want to miss this gorgeous summer read.

In this story, you must imagine that you are terrified of flying and, just as you always suspected, you are in a tragic accident. This is exactly what unfolds from the opening chapters of How to Walk Away, and the reader is taken along the journey as Kit’s life, as she knows it, is forever changed.

Also, imagine that the person you love walks away from the experience unscathed.

The book centers around the difficult recovery, the surprises of those who step up in tragedies, the sadness around those that walk away, and how to find love again.

I was so proud of myself that I got these reviews up while I was at the conference and just had jotted down my thoughts about how much I had enjoyed the book. I also shared with my roomie that I thought she should pick up this book for her next trip.

In a funny twist of fate, she came upstairs and said, “I’m pretty sure that the author is downstairs signing books right now.”

I ran downstairs and there was Katherine Center signing books and chatting with the conference attendees.

Can you believe my luck?

I will be shocked if we don’t see this book come to the movie theaters and I also told Katherine that I feel that she has a sequel in this story because I would love to see how Kit’s life continues to unfold. Hey, if Jojo Moyes can do it, why can’t she?

Best of all, Katherine will be joining us for a Sundays With Writers. Now that makes me SUPER happy.  Stay tuned!

sidedoor podcast

Sidedoor Podcast

Did you know that the Smithsonian has a podcast series? Our Florida road trip included A LOT of podcasts and we talked about which were our favorites on our way home. Almost everyone loved episodes from the Sidedoor Podcast the most. The premise is that more than 154 million treasures fill the Smithsonian’s vaults, but where public view ends, Sidedoor begins. With the help of biologists, artists, historians, archaeologists, zookeepers, and astrophysicists, host Tony Cohn sneaks listeners through Smithsonian’s side door to search for stories that can’t be found anywhere else.

We listened to several episodes and two that I found the most fascinating were Murder is Her Hobby and A Crane with a Crush.

I guarantee once you start this podcast, you are going to have a hard time stopping. It’s FASCINATING.

Oh, and a few quick things that I don’t want to forget to tell you-

EDS Awareness Month

May is Ehlers-Danlos Awareness Month. There are three out of four people in my family that are dealing with this disease and I shared about my initial diagnosis over here. SO MANY people have this and are never treated. Do you have mystery symptoms that you have never gotten an explanation on? Here is my story.

This is what I gave my moms for Mother’s Day.

I’m working on my capsule and snagged a few things off this list.

Wanna know what I plan to put in my earbuds next? This book.

I bought these because they come in a wide width… and they are ten bucks. SOLD!

Looking to expand your reading wish list?  Each week I ask what people are reading and get a couple hundred responses. You can read them too.

Happy Mother’s Day, friends! May you be celebrated in all the ways that your heart desires.

*this post may contain affiliate links- I only recommend what I love though. Check out past editions of It’s the 3 Little Things!

Published May 11, 2018 by:

Amy Clark

Amy Allen Clark is the founder of You can read all about her here.

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Thursday, February 5, 2009

Boy, I have missed a lot

Well, it has been a while since I have blogged. I wanted to take a break from the computer and blogging. So, I did just that.
And everytime that I thought about getting online, something would come up, or I was too tired, or the computer wasn't turned on and I didn't feel like turning it on. I know, excuses, excuses. But really, I didn't want to be on the computer that much.
Actually, I have been on Facebook via my phone. So, I can't say I have taken that much of a break from the computer.
So, I will be blogging again. I have had a request from someone that I didn't even know was reading my blog. Yipee, another reader.
Give me sometime, I have something that is new and exciting too.
It's good to be back!

Elaine said...

Wecome back, Patti! It's about time!!! You've been missed!

Phil Hoover, Chicago said...

Found you over at Jackie John's your blog by the way...


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Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Je parle français comme une vache epagnole

Yes the day has come. I speak french like a spanish cow. Apparently, this term is very funny to french people. It's not nice, but it's not mean either. I'll take it, I own the fact. I take pride because one day, people won't be able to say that about me. :-)


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5 Simple Techniques For the forex signal

Forex brokers enable you to trade the forex pairs you want and come up with a revenue. The have to generate a revenue as well, while. Most forex brokers don’t demand any fees, so that you received’t have any Preliminary expenses, Nevertheless they make their gain through the industry spread.

Spend Tipster - Is actually a money research firm from SEA location has a lot of currency analyst to support the traders. I actually appreciated the best way they supply signals + observe ups with revision of focus on or halt reduction level they propose originally. They're among the have faith in worthy organization in delivering Forex signals And that i am receiving most accuracy with regularity of gain. They always conclusion the month in gain and alterations techniques the perfect time to time as per current market actions.

On June 6, 2013, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and the Securities and Exchange Commission jointly issued an Investor Inform to warn about fraudulent promotional schemes involving binary options and binary choices investing platforms. The two organizations explained that they had obtained various grievances of fraud about binary solutions investing web sites, "such as refusal to credit score client accounts or reimburse cash to shoppers; identity theft; and manipulation of software to crank out shedding trades". Other binary selections operations had been violating specifications to register with regulators.[25]

e., Forex CTA as opposed to a CTA). All those NFA users that might usually be subject matter to least Web cash necessities, FCMs and IBs, are subject matter to increased minimal net capital demands when they offer in Forex. A variety of the international exchange brokers function with the British isles less than Fiscal Expert services Authority polices exactly where overseas Trade investing using margin is a component of the broader in excess of-the-counter derivatives investing sector that includes contracts for variation and economical unfold betting.

1000pip Builder genuinely is probably the best providers on the market and by using a free seven working day trial They may be certainly truly worth a go to.

Much less discussed are classified as the corner situations that make very simple passive DNS procedures tough to correctly utilize. Such as, if a site's forex signals sms identify servers are shared with a hundred,000 other domains (such as many reputable domains!), "guilt by association" primarily based exclusively on name server commonality may become tricky.

Our world is analog. Pcs are digital. Whenever a microcontroller in an Industrial Management Technique (ICS) or embedded system acquires data from your physical globe it uses analog-to-digital converters (ADC) to transform amperage or voltage right into a valuable unit of measurement. Choices on how to regulate physical purposes are taken dependant on the interpretation on the measured information.

But because I tried applying a person in their provider and now i make continuous profits not tens of millions but a gentle aspect profits. And that i desire you exactly the same. Delighted investing and possess a fantastic day

It also supports immediate speculation and evaluation relative to the worth of currencies and also the have trade speculation, based on the differential desire price concerning two currencies.[two]

The Black–Scholes design depends on symmetry of distribution and ignores the skewness with the distribution on the asset. Market makers change for these types of skewness by, as an alternative to utilizing one regular deviation for the fundamental asset σ displaystyle sigma

about USD two billion [70] daily This doesn't compete favorably with any very well designed international Trade industry of Intercontinental repute, but With all the entry of online International Exchange Businesses the market is steadily expanding . All-around 25% of currency transfers/payments in India are created by way of non-bank Foreign Exchange Organizations.

It's strongly suggested you Speak to any prospective signal supplier first just before signing up to be able to ascertain When they are reputable.

Occasionally, forex traders don’t offer you the same unfold on diverse currencies. Usually for large currencies, that just take are traded much more frequently, the distribute will likely be reduce, While for lesser currencies, and currencies with a bigger volatility the distribute is going to be greater.

They don't seem to be likely to be one hundred% exact. And if they are saying They can be cease right there and hunt for Another signals provider service provider. And also will not be turned down by obtaining couple getting rid of signals You should definitely comply with their guidebook line as instructed to become worthwhile in long run

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