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Wednesday, January 5, 2011

It Doesn't Get Any Better Than This!

     I don't think I've felt this good since I found out from a group of third graders that I rock the world. This week I have had three amazing days in classrooms. The first two were in 7th grade math. On Monday, I got the impression that some of the students couldn't do the math because they didn't believe they could, so Tuesday morning I wrote one of my favorite sayings on the board. If you think you can't, you're right! I told them that the first step in accomplishing anything is to believe you can do it; if you don't believe in yourself, you will fail. I told them I believed I could become a distance runner at age 40, and I did. I believed I could take my first college class at age 50 and become a teacher, and I did. I believed I could run a half-marathon at age 55, and I did. I urged them to look at things that challenged them and say, "I think I can!" I don't know the exact words I heard from one girl in the back because I was so overwhelmed by the meaning. She said something to the effect that starting today she was going to have a whole new attitude about life and she was adopting my saying as her motto. Wow! I have had a lot of positive responses to my Can Do spiel but never one that touched me so profoundly.
     Today I got a call to teach in a 3rd grade class where I have subbed before. Before school started, I walked out of the classroom and down the hall. I said hello to a boy I passed, and he responded, "Hello, Mrs. Downing." He continued down the hall, and I thought I heard my name again, so I turned around. He was excitedly telling his classmates, "We get to have Mrs. Downing today!" I knew right then it would be a very good day. It was.
     I don't have my own classroom yet, so until I do I am going to continue enjoying every day I have the opportunity to positively impact the lives of children. Teachers can change the world, one student at a time.

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Cayce Exterminating Company Opens New Columbia Location

The pest control company stands ready to protect Columbia residents and business owners from bed bugs, termites, wildlife, and more, reports

Cayce, SC - January 23, 2019 /MarketersMedia/ —

Cayce Exterminating Company is pleased to announce the official opening of their brand-new Columbia location. For over 50 years, the company has been serving residents and business owners in throughout the Midlands of South Carolina with honesty, integrity, and professionalism. The Cayce Exterminating team stands ready to help homeowners in the area fight every type of pest, from armies of tiny mosquitoes to dangerous rats and raccoons.

“We could not be more excited about opening this new location,” said David Day of Cayce Exterminating Company, Inc. “Since this company’s inception, it has been our goal to give each of customers with prompt, professional, and high-quality service, and we are thrilled that this new location will enable us to do so on an even greater scale. Home and business owners deserve nothing less than the best pest control in Columbia SC, and we strive to ensure the service we provide reflects that sincere belief.”

As an insured and licensed exterminator in Columbia SC, Cayce Exterminating Company offers a comprehensive suite of pest control services, including termite protection, nuisance wildlife control, and bed bug extermination. As a full-service company, the Cayce team is also able to provide home repair and remodeling services which help homeowners correct structural issues, repair damage caused by pests, and protect and enhance their home’s value.

Mr. Day went on to say, “When companies and homeowners in the Midlands discover a pest problem, their first reaction may be to panic. However, their second move should be calling our team for help. There’s not one extermination problem we haven’t been able to overcome. We’ve seen a lot in five decades, and we’re more than sure we can help any resident or business owner finally get rid of their bug or wildlife problem so they can finally get back to a frustration-free life.”

Visit to learn more about Cayce Exterminating Company and find out how an experienced exterminator from their team can help you eliminate your pest problem once and for all.

About Cayce Exterminating Company, Inc.:

Cayce Exterminating Company was founded in 1963 by David H. Day Sr. on the values of honesty, integrity and superior service. Today, Cayce Exterminating has grown into a full service, residential and commercial pest management and home repair business located in the Midlands of South Carolina. Their team continuously strives to maintain a legacy of satisfied clients by providing prompt, professional and quality customer service. Their motto, “Your Pest. OUR Problem.”, enforces their commitment to these values. As a second-generation company, family-owned and operated by David H. Day Jr., Cayce Exterminating is continuously expanding their services to meet the changing needs of their valued customers.

Contact Info:
Name: David Day
Email: Send Email
Organization: Cayce Exterminating Company, Inc.
Address: 2229 Taylor Road, Cayce, SC 29033
Phone: 803-796-2847

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Source: MarketersMedia

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The SEVERITY Procedure

WEIGHT Statement

  • WEIGHT variable-name;

The WEIGHT statement specifies the name of a variable whose values represent the weight of each observation. PROC SEVERITY associates a weight of w to each observation, where w is the value of the WEIGHT variable for the observation. If the weight value is missing or less than or equal to 0, then the observation is ignored and a warning is written to the SAS log. When you do not specify the WEIGHT statement, each observation is assigned a weight of 1. If you specify more than one WEIGHT statement, then the last statement is used.

The weights are normalized so that they add up to the actual sample size. In particular, the weight of each observation is multiplied by $\frac{N}{\sum _{i=1}^{N}w_ i}$, where N is the sample size.


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Tag Archives: dependancy

Can My Parents or My Spouses Parents Benefit From Surinder Singh?

As explained on Who Can Benefit From Surinder Singh The Surinder Singh Route is open to dependant parents of either the EU National or their spouse.  This fact is outlined clearly within  an official response from The Home Office on 29th November 2013 which you can find here: Surinder Singh Route for Parents.

The Home Office responded to the user’s Freedom of Information request with a generic response and treated the request as a general enquiry (as the user had not specifically requested the release of information, but instead requested clarification of Home Office policy).

For ease the actual response from The Home Office is below:

Dear Mr Syal,

Thank you for your email of 8 November to the Home Office Freedom of Information team seeking clarification of whether dependent parents can qualify for residence documentation under the Surinder Singh route.  Your email has been passed to this team to respond to, as we are responsible for policy guidance on European Economic Area (EEA) nationals and their family members.  I understand the Freedom of Information team has advised you that your query is being dealt with as a general policy enquiry, since you are seeking clarification of the policy rather than requesting the release of documents or recorded information held by the Home Office.

I can confirm that the Surinder Singh route applies to direct family members, as defined by regulation 7(1)(a)-(c) of the Immigration (European Economic Area) Regulations 2006 (‘the EEA Regulations’), provided they meet the requirements set down in regulation 9 of the EEA Regulations.

Direct family members for these purposes are:

  • the spouse or civil partner of the British citizen, provided they lived with the British citizen in the EEA state in which the British citizen was exercising free movement rights;
  • direct descendants (children, grandchildren) of the British citizen, or of the British citizen’s spouse or civil partner, provided they are aged under 21 or dependent on the British citizen or the British citizen’s spouse/civil partner; and
  • dependent direct relatives in the ascending line (i.e. parents and grandparents) of the British citizen, or of the British citizen’s spouse or civil partner.

Therefore, a financially dependent parent of a British citizen can qualify under Surinder Singh/regulation 9, provided the British citizen was engaged in genuine and effective employment or self-employment in another EEA state before returning to the UK.

You can view the provisions of the EEA Regulations referred to above via the following link: http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2006/1003/contents/made

I hope this has clarified the position.

Kind regards,

European Operational Policy Team

Operational Policy & Rules Unit

Immigration & Border Policy Directorate

Home Office


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  • This website provides links to Federal and non-profit organization resources. It includes content from and links to the resources of several excellent government health websites, including healthfinder.gov, cdc.gov, hhs.gov, nih.gov, womenshealth.gov and global health.gov as well as to mayoclinic.com. We thank them for the important information they provide to the public. However, we do not assume any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness or usefulness of any information on any of the sites linked to or from this website.
  • References to any governmental or non-governmental entity, product, service, or source of information that may be contained in this website or in any site linked to or from this site are for informational purposes only and should not be considered to be an endorsement, either direct or implied, by any person or entity connected to the design, development or maintenance of this website.
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Liar! (Part 1)

Ever heard this phrase: “Liar, Liar! Pants on fire!”
It’s a phrase that children like to scream at each other
whenever they think the other is lying.
It’s really a stupid thing to say—because if your pants actually
caught on fire when you lied, more politicians would be dead.

(Ha! I couldn’t resist.)
I did some research, because I wanted to know where this phrase came from. One story tells of a boy who stole his dad’s cigar and ran out to the shed to smoke it. He heard his dad approaching, and he quickly shoved the cigar into the pocket of his pants. When Dad asked if he’d been smoking, he denied it—even though his pants were beginning to burn. Thus, “Liar, Liar, pants on fire!”
But the phrase actually originated from a poem written in 1810 by William Blake titled “The Liar.” The Bible actually has quite a bit to say about liars. But lets just look at what the apostle John has to say about them.
You know he wrote the Gospel of John, 1 John, 2 John, 3 John and the also the very last book of the Bible—Revelation. In John’s short five-chapter book of 1 John, he describes six types of liars. Let’s look at one of them right now:
#1: People who say they’re Christians but actually walk in darkness.
“If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth” (1 John 1:6 NIV).
Ephesians 5:6-16 explains the contrast between worldly darkness and Christian light. This passage reminds us that we once were in darkness, but when we committed our lives to Christ, we began living in the light.
But it takes EFFORT to remain walking in the light, doesn’t it?
It takes discipline.
This is why it’s essential to read the Bible consistently
and to pray throughout the day.
Even if you only read the Bible one minute a day, DO IT.
By keeping ourselves in the Word and praying,
God helps us avoid walking in the darkness.
He helps keep us in His light.
So if we say we’re Christians but walk in darkness, we’re lying.
Meet me back here next week, and we’ll continue this thought.

Meanwhile, please pray for me. I’m in Peru right now on my annual international missions trip. I’d love for you to join me next summer when we go to Guatemala. It’s usually the first two weeks of July. Please start praying about it now.

2 replies
  1. Fawn Scott
    Fawn Scott says:

    Hi Susie thank you so much for the history lesson on Luar liar pants on Fire this puts things in perspective . Our sins always find us out! Sometimes painfully.blessings to you dear friend prayers.❤

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Wool For Toddler Boy Clothing

Hallowe’en, all Hallow’s Eve is a evening of fantasy and independence fiendish foes; a evening of horrible tales of ghoulish ghosts and superstitious stories. Be alert and appear out for Jack with his Lantern looking for refuge or bringing chaos and curses; dance by the Technicolor explosions of hearth functions and Catherine wheels and appreciate the cathartic scares and tales.

The subsequent answer we will appear at is utilizing vapor rub, or any vapor rub that is available. This item is accessible in most houses and can help to offer with this situation. However, you need to swash the area and dry it thoroughly. By drying completely this will ensure that locations are not sealed off and that the rub can be applied to all the impacted areas. Merely use it to the nail and wrap it in a sock for the night. This is a extremely effective treatment but is not one hundred%25 effective.

Soul Travelers 3: We actually discover it Much less expensive to travel the world than to live at home. We live big on 25K complete costs for a family members of 3 and by no means lived that cheaply (or any exactly where near that) at home. 1 could do it for a lot less.

Knitting Patterns for Infants: Babies really feel much cooler than teenagers and grownups, so they require more treatment in winters. Baby clothes are no longer previous fashioned and out dated as they are nice and warm presents to babies. For numerous years it has been former to knit garments and accessories as a present for a new baby. There are so numerous patterns accessible for babies but most helpful designs can be baby sweaters, infant cardigans and jackets, infant hats, little baby shawls and blankets. A infant hat is most useful as it’s the great thing to save chilled from cold.

Who ought to worry about maintaining their feet heat in the winter months? Initial of all, everyone. However, individuals who are diabetic or are vulnerable to pneumonia require to be exceptionally aware of the care of their feet and their well being. Cotton socks, for occasion, are fantastic in the summer time because they allow your feet to stay awesome. In the wet and moist weather you want much more protection. Good old style Uldsokker assist to maintain your ft warm and dry to protect them and help maintain your immunities working powerful to keep you healthy. When your immunities are strong your body is much more most likely to fight off the daily cold and flu in contrast to other people with a weak immunity system.

Layering is always a good choice during the winter season months, particularly if you are heading from outdoors to within. Wearing a large heat sweater is fantastic till you are somewhere and get as well scorching. Then it’s miserable. And can make some people sick! But layering a long sleeve shirt or turtleneck with a medium thick sweater will make all the difference in the world.

Try changing your shoes; leather produced shoes and shoes produced with canvas are the best kinds of shoes to wear when it arrives to air flow. Any rubber artificial footwear will cause your ft to sweat. Attempt to wear open toe footwear as frequently as you can. Any shoe that assists your feet breathe will subdue sweaty feet. If you have more than one pair of shoes try alternating between footwear, by waiting around a day in between to wear shoes you are allowing them to dry out.

This type of sock has certainly confirmed to have a great deal of benefits particularly when it arrives to winter season sports. Merino wool socks will provide the ease and comfort and protection that we require when it comes to our preferred outdoor actions in the snow. What to put on particularly your apparels for your lower extremities is a personal choice. That is why to come up with the right choice, try it for yourself and see what it can do for you.

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Fazana’s story

“I would advise anyone who gets the chance to train with SwiftACI to go for it”

At 16 Fazana had completed school and was looking towards the future. Fazana had always had two main passions and had come to a crossroads between going into Childcare and joining the Army. Fazana decided she wanted to pursue a career with the Army and began training for the Army College, after a short time Fazana felt as though this may not be the career path for her, and whilst volunteering as a sports coach for young children discovered that she would definitely be more suited to a role working with children.

Fazana landed a place with the SwiftACI Academy after being approached by one of their Intake Consultant’s at her local Connexion’s. “My first day was nerve-racking, sat in a room full of girl’s that you don’t know can be pretty daunting, but the Academy Manager Elaine soon helped us all get to know each other better.”

Now working towards her Level 2 Qualification Fazana has found her stride and has settled well into the Nursery where she is employed as an Apprentice. “I love the fact that I can help these children learn new skills, it’s really rewarding.” Fazana is a key member of her team, and one of her favourite aspects of her role is creating and planning, fun and challenging new activities for all the children to get involved with. Her quick thinking and dedicated attitude has already seen her receiving praise from her room leader and the management team.

Fazana is looking forward to completing her Level 2, and already knows that she wants to stick with SwiftACI to complete her Level 3 Qualification, and has aspirations of one day owning her own Nursery. “Training with SwiftACI has given me the confidence to go into my Apprenticeship, as the work we do is interesting and explained in a way that makes it understandable and realistic; having a coach who has worked in the industry definitely helps.”


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Society of Wedding and Portrait Photographers - SWPP and BPPAFast and intuitive, PortraitPro intelligently enhances every aspect of a portrait for beautiful results

Thursday 18th April 2019  GMT

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The Societies of Photographers Convention and Trade Show at The Novotel London West, Hammersmith ...
You have 278 days until The Societies of Photographers Convention starting on Wednesday 22nd January 2020

Photo Quote: Light is my inspiration, my paint and brush. It is as vital as the model herself. Profoundly significant, it caresses the essential superlative curves and lines. Light I acknowledge as the energy upon which all life on this planet depends. - Ruth Bernhard


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Photographer in Sheffield SWPP

Photographer Sheffield South Yorkshire, Baker

South YorkshireSWPP Member

Thursday 18th April 2019

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South Yorkshire

Antony Graham Baker
FocussingOnPhotography Ltd
18 Truswell Road
South Yorkshire
S10 1WH Map link for FocussingOnPhotography Ltd

tel:- +44 7967 921781
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Hello and welcome. I'm Antony Baker of FocussingOnPhotography Ltd. My first foray into photography was back in the pre-digital days of film and darkrooms. Whilst there was something magical about seeing a print appear in front of your eyes, a combination of lack of space, various chemicals and infra red lamps doesn't really compare with sitting in front of a computer with Photoshop and a cup of coffee. I like technological progress!

I had the opportunity to set up my business in 2014 and I'm loving every minute (ok, maybe not the paperwork so much!) but I've always enjoyed helping people and providing a great service. To create something special and see the look on their faces is wonderful. I'm really lucky to do this for a living.

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Gamble housewives of melbourne

Okay, so this season you are a shit stirrer.
Lover the hair and the dress.
Um, Gina, you are AT a television appearance.Gina just loves stirring the pot.Janet and Gamble and Janet and Gina.Please explain to me how I missed Jackie with a traffic cone on her head last week?God the tattoo on her back is tacky. .I kind of love Gamble.Im already over.Come for the tea.Eventually the bitching starts between Janet and Gamble.You're a special snowflake just like everyone else).But if you have an idea of your own, just send us your brief and we will custom create it for you!Gina is quick to jump on Team Gamble.I used to just wear Ray Bans (still my fav) But I dont think even Ray Ban makes their own lenses anymore.I just have such a hard time doing.
But Gina is holding Janets fire to the flame over the Gamble situation.

Janet really wants to move past the whole debacle with Gamble.Next Week: Chyka will have a party for everyone and their mates.She says she heard that Janet was a heroin addict who sold her sex for heroin. .I thought it was strictly and American symbol of ridiculous self-loathing.Shes so not worth.Hasnt Janet been sleeping with the crypt keeper for decades to get her money?She is credited south 41 bingo fort myers as Janets friend but she clearly hates Janet, possibly more than the rest.But none of that is important.Gina, its time for Gina to get some new headshots for her well for something.Chyka tells Lydia that Janet says that Gamble used to be a call girl.Seriously, all designer glasses have the same shitty lenses now.
Fashion Show, gamble arrives at whatever this is pissed.

None of the ladies actually know how to play golf except Janet and she wont be on the pro circuit anytime soon.
Note Chyka is front and center.
Im just trying to be helpful.


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Get Your Caffeine Jolt With A Better Brew

TIP! For the most part, the greater amount of money you spend in coffee, the better the taste. Always buy the best quality beans and brewing equipment you can afford.

How do you make a great cup of coffee? Well, everyone has different tastes, so it’s good to know all of your options before you settle down to make your next cup. Continue reading to find out more about what goes into making that great-tasting cup of coffee.

TIP! There are coffee makers that are great for brewing only single cups of coffee. These machines brew just one cup of coffee at a time.

Coffee prices and quality are positively correlated. You truly get what you pay for when it comes to coffee, so invest in great tools and beans and you’ll always end up with the best cup of joe. If you decide to take the least expensive road to your coffee, your wallet might be happy but your taste buds will not.

TIP! When consumed properly, coffee is healthy. Coffee isn’t bad, it’s all the extras people add in.

There are many wonderful single cup coffee makers on the market that are great for when there is only one coffee drinker in the house. This maker lets you brew one cup, and you can select from all types of different flavors. You can choose from a variety of makers with many different features.

TIP! Those of you who work from home can turn to coffee to get rid of cabin fever. The majority of cafes offer free WiFi, which means you can work outside your home once in a while with your laptop and a fresh cup of your favorite hot beverage at hand.

An airtight container is the best place to keep coffee. If your coffee is not properly stored then it will lose its taste. Bulk coffee bags are also a bad choice, as they lose flavor fast after they are opened. These bags should only be used if you plan to brew and drink all the coffee immediately.

TIP! Before you make a whole pot, do a test run with your new coffee machine. This means brewing water in it like you would a pot of coffee.

Those of you who brew coffee themselves should stir the coffee after it has finished brewing. Stirring the coffee helps distribute the flavor and aroma throughout the entire pot. You’ll notice a difference when it comes time to serve, and you’re treated to a more fragrant and flavorful cup.

TIP! If you keep your coffee in a refrigerator, be sure that no air can get into the container. If air is allowed to enter the container, then the surrounding odors will permeate the coffee, changing its taste.

Do not warm up coffee that has already been brewed. Many old stories suggest that reheating releases chemicals, but that isn’t true. Throw away coffee that has been sitting around for a while as it will have changed in flavor, and not in a good way. Coffees like these taste really bitter and odd, compared to regular.

TIP! Use fresh and clean water when making coffee. The water that you use must be of high quality, as this makes up the majority of your coffee.

Do you like the coffee that is produced by your dripping machine? Better brews can be achieved by allowing your machine to get hot by running a water-only cycle. After this is finished, you can then repeat as you normally would, adding coffee. This is the way you should clean out your coffee maker.

TIP! Buy a standard coffee grinder. When you grind your own beans, you get coffee full of fresh taste and natural aroma from the oils still intact.

For those who work at home, coffee can help you get out of the house. Lots of coffee shops offer Wi-Fi for customer use, which allows you to bring your work along with you as you grab a beverage and get a change of scenery. A lot of restaurants also offer WiFi.

TIP! Use a French press for the best tasting coffee. A French press turns out better brews by squeezing more oil out of the beans and into your cup.

Experiment with your new coffee machine to determine what works and what doesn’t. Do this as though you really were making coffee, only skip adding the grounds. This will also remove any dust or lint that may have accumulated inside the machine while it was in the box.

TIP! Never keep coffee stored in a container that sits near a stove. One of the easiest ways to ruin coffee is to let it get too hot.

Coffee is essential to how the drink will taste. Make you sure check out the options at local stores. You may discover beans that have been roasted recently. If you cannot find this in your town, you can always use the Internet. It will likely still be less expensive than going to a coffee shop.

TIP! Do you add any artificial sweeteners to your coffee? Artificial sweeteners are known to make coffee taste more bland than it should. Drink black coffee or use raw sugar for the best flavor.

After reading this article, you can choose how you want to make your coffee from now on. You may try some new things. Do you enjoy coffee but, want to expand your knowledge and tastes? Keep these tips in mind before making future brews.

We are a team of experts giving our services Click on listed here for a lot more information.


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My Successful Queries

An open book sitting on a white surface, its multicolored pages forming a graceful arcWriting a query is a daunting task. When I was facing down the prospect of writing my very first one, it seemed impossible. How can I condense an 80k-word novel into one paragraph, in a way that’s engaging and meaningful? How can I convey the amount of heart and soul I put into my story in a trite marketing pitch? And how can I possibly make my query stand out amongst the dozens (or even hundreds) that an agent can get in a single day?

A lot of writers say that it’s more difficult to write a query than write the novel. I’m squarely in that camp. Knowing which elements to include, and which will just confuse things, can be seriously headache-inducing. It’s a completely different skill than writing a book. But it’s an  important skill, because querying is how most authors find agents and publishers. If you can’t write a good query, it doesn’t matter how amazing your book is: agents will never know, because they’ll never read it.

Like any other skill, query-writing can be learned. There are lots of how-to articles out there. I always recommend the amazing Query Shark, which is a great way to learn the elements of a query, and get an idea of what works, and what doesn’t. You get to see how they’re pieced together, and see a reaction of a top agent to each element.

I thought I would also (gulp) use some of my own queries as examples, to dissect the elements.

So, here we go! This first one is for TRUE STORY, a YA contemp that I’m currently trying to find a home for. This query has gotten me quite a few full manuscript requests. My comments are in brackets.

Dear Ms. Mumblemumble [ALWAYS use their name. Never use the generic “Dear Agent” or “To Whom it May Concern”]:

I’m querying you because you indicated on Twitter that you’re seeking YA own voices books [Agents love to hear why you’re querying them specifically. They want you to be particularly interested in working with them, as well]. I am seeking representation for TRUE STORY, a YA contemporary romance, with elements of magical realism [genre], complete at 73,000 words [word count]. It’s an own voices book that deals with mental health issues [if you don’t know what an own voices book is, ask me. If your book is own voices, it’s a huge selling point, but if it’s not, don’t worry].

17-year-old Mike Charley is a girl, named after her grandfather by a bipolar mother who thought Mike was his reincarnation. Now Mike is in the foster system, and constantly in trouble: for running away from sketchy foster parents, for skipping school. The only safe place for her is in the fantasy worlds she writes about [This is an intro to my main character, and hints toward one of her goals: to overcome the things holding her back from happiness (stigma, hurtful past, bullying)].

Then she meets Vaughn, and is drawn against her will to the handsome, talented artist. There’s a connection between them that sets her spine tingling [intro to the secondary character. If it’s a romance, this is always the love interest. Also introduces another goal: get together with the guy she likes 😊].

When a car accident puts Mike in the hospital and Vaughn in a coma, Mike begins to have visions. Their fates are intertwined, and Vaughn’s life is now in Mike’s hands: she has ten days to complete the book she’s writing, or he’ll never wake up [This introduces the main conflict, and the stakes: “…or he’ll never wake up”].

This belief lands her in an institution, but Mike knows she’s not crazy [more conflict]. Trapped and helpless, not allowed to write, the day fast approaching when Vaughn’s father pulls him off life support, Mike has to find a way to finish her book…or a way to join her boyfriend in death [stakes: do it or die].

[The “meat” of my query is 176 words. That’s a good word count.]

I am an active writer, musician, and freelance editor. I have had five books published by Limitless Publishing: the romantic suspense Love or Money and four books in my magical realism Other Place series. I have two short horror stories set to come out in the 13: Déjà vu and 13: Night Terrors anthologies—an internationally bestselling series of anthologies. I am a neurodivergent person, and a neurodiverse rights activist who speaks at forums and events [My bio is long. It shouldn’t be longer than this, in most fiction queries, but most of this is relevant/interesting stuff. You want to let the agent/editor know that you’ll be a good person to work with, and you have attributes that are marketable—that you’re interesting as a person, and not just a great writer].

Thank you for your consideration.

Elizabeth Roderick

[phone number]

[Always contain contact info].

This query certainly won’t be to everyone’s taste, but it is working for me, because it briefly introduces my characters, conflict, and stakes, with just enough specifics to help set it apart from other books without giving too much away.

Here is my query for THE OTHER PLACE, which got me multiple full requests, and an offer:

I am seeking representation for THE OTHER PLACE, a YA Contemporary novel with elements of magical realism. It is complete at 74,000 words, and is a stand-alone novel with series potential.
Justin just wants to draw and be left in peace, but when his mother takes up with a man who thinks his schizophrenia can be cured with prayer, he has to find a new home or risk involuntary commitment in a Christian mental institution.
He runs off to San Francisco, where he’s discovered by a gallery owner. His bizarre and beautiful drawings create a stir in the art world; people rave about his genius and flock to see his work. Meanwhile, Justin is homeless, couch surfing and battling his mental illness.
He reconnects with a girl named Liria, who has been appearing in his visions since they met back in his hometown. Liria, it turns out, has been sharing those visions. Compelled by their deep connection, she leaves her jealous girlfriend in order to be with him, supporting them both on her meagre income.
They discover that the gallery owner has been hiding something, and Justin realizes that being a genius can have a downside. Surrounded by people who want to exploit his talent, he must fight not only for his career and his freedom, but perhaps for his life.
I am a board member of the San Luis Obispo NightWriters association, assistant editor and columnist for their newsletter. I have recently had a short story published by Akashic Books.
Pursuant to your guidelines, I’m pasting the first 25 pages of The Other Place below.
Thank you for your consideration.

I hope that seeing these is of some help to you in your own querying endeavors. After all, if I can write a successful query, so can you!

Do I Need an Editor?

An open book sitting on a white surface, its multicolored pages forming a graceful arc

At some point in a writer’s life, we’ll likely wonder whether we should hire a professional editor for our manuscript. I’m an author, as well as a freelance editor, so I wanted to chime in with my opinions and advice on this subject.

Most articles fall squarely in one or another category: YES you ALWAYS need an editor, or NO, they’re a WASTE OF MONEY. In this piece, I’ll discuss both the pros and cons, as well as how to choose an editor if you decide to get one.

If your goal is self-publishing, you probably want to hire at least one editor. Successful indy authors often hire two: a developmental editor, and a proofreader. You will feel more confident about your manuscript if you go through an editing process before publishing, and readers will thank you with their dollars and positive reviews if you do.

I personally would never publish a book without having it go through an editing process, even though I’m an editor myself. We truly can’t see our own work with objective enough eyes to be sure it’s our best effort. Hiring an editor isn’t cheating, or selling out your voice. It’s just part of the process of publishing, and of creating good art.

However, if your goal is getting traditionally published, you may be on the fence about whether you should get an editor before querying. After all, if you get an agent, they will often give developmental critique, and a publisher will always put your manuscript through an editing process before publication. So, why should you bother paying for one yourself?

Hopefully this article will help you decide whether it’s right for you.

If you’ve spent any time being a writer, you’ll know the value of getting other eyes on your work. No matter how skilled or talented we are, it’s difficult to be detached enough to see our own errors, weak spots, and inconsistencies.

Critiquers and beta readers are invaluable in the revision process, and help us to spot our story’s weaknesses and strengths. However, even if these folks aren’t our family and friends, they might have difficulty being fully up-front with us about our work. If we’re also helping them with their own manuscripts, they don’t want to risk angering us. And besides, who wants to be mean?

Editors, however, are professionals. We get paid to be honest about your book. That shouldn’t mean we’re rude or cruel, but we have no qualms about telling you exactly what we think; after all, it’s our job. You expect it from us. And, we have a vested interest in seeing you published, because that will be another notch in our headboard, so to speak: a point of pride, and a means of getting further clients.

Whenever one of my clients gets a request or an offer, I feel almost as if I’d gotten one myself. I put some of my heart and soul into their book, and my clients always (so far) put me in the acknowledgments when I’ve worked with them. If my name is on something, I have a huge investment in making sure it’s the best it can be.

As much as I enjoy being a CP or beta, it just isn’t the same.

Editors also have more experience than critiquers or beta readers. Our experience can come in a lot of different forms; some of us worked for publishers before hanging out our freelance shingles. Others have degrees in English or Literature. Some, like me, just got our starts with a lot of practical experience such as writing books, short stories, queries, and pitches; judging contests; and being involved in a million critique partnerships.

This experience matters a lot. Writing and editing aren’t innate talents, like some seem to think; they’re skills that we hone through practice, and an editor will bring this skill to bear, helping you craft your novel into something you can be even more proud of.

Be sure you choose the right editor for your manuscript, however. If you get one who isn’t right for your book, it will be a waste of your money.

Being “right” for your book doesn’t always mean someone who is expensive, or even someone with decades of experience. It means they believe in your manuscript and share your vision for it. They need to have a good handle on your personal voice and style, and be willing to work with you instead of against you.

They also need to be good at what they do, however. The only true way to know this is to do your homework before hiring them.

Always research potential editors, ask for references, and have them do a free sample edit (usually first couple pages of your manuscript) to make sure they are not only qualified, but a good fit for you. Make sure they seem enthusiastic about your book, and that their sample edits make sense and seem right (give them time to sink in before deciding this, because often the best editors will strike a nerve, and sometimes it’s difficult to keep from getting defensive when that happens). Email a few of their references and make sure they were happy with the editor’s work. Triple bonus if those clients got requests, agents and publishing contracts after working with them.

Make sure you’re really comfortable with someone before you give them money and hand over your word-baby. A good editor will give you the space and the information you need in order to make the decision, and won’t hound you.

There is a lot of bad press out there about sensitivity readers lately. I am myself a sensitivity reader. I’ve worked with many clients, including some of the Big Five publishers, on books containing neurodivergent/mentally ill characters, and characters with addiction issues. I love sensitivity reading, and I’m willing to die on this hill to defend the process.

If your manuscript has a character who is marginalized, and especially if you don’t share that marginalization, please consider hiring a sensitivity reader. We aren’t here to censor your book, but to make it better. We want your book to succeed. A good SR won’t be defensive and actively looking for problems. We will fact-check, and bring more soul, more feeling, and more humanity to your marginalized characters by virtue of our lived experience. Being a marginalized person is complicated, and it’s not something outsiders can easily understand. We can help you to understand, and your book (and your life) will be richer for it.

Most writers would love to have an FBI agent read over their manuscript with an FBI agent main character, correct? They’d delight in having someone to help them on the small details, and let them know how it feels to be in certain situations. It would help the narrative to really come alive. So why is there pushback over hiring sensitivity readers?

The answer, unfortunately, is often bigotry. People are defensive and frightened about confronting their prejudices and misunderstandings which might come through in their writing. That’s normal, and it’s okay, because you can’t grow without confronting these things. Don’t be scared. A good sensitivity reader won’t spend their time berating you. They’ll be relieved you reached out, and will genuinely want to hold an open (if sometimes difficult) conversation about your characters.

Again, be sure to connect with a SR before hiring them, to make sure they’re a good fit for your book, and that they communicate in a way that works for you. Always be respectful of the amount of emotional labor it takes to be a SR, but don’t be afraid to ask questions. As long as you’re truly listening to us, we’ll be happy to answer.

There can be cons to hiring an editor, believe it or not.

If you put effort into finding good critique partners or beta readers, and put a lot of time and thought into revising your own book, you can get an agent and/or publisher without getting your manuscript professionally edited.

The most obvious argument against hiring an editor is the expense. I haven’t yet engaged an editor prior to sending a book out to agents or publishers. It’s not that I don’t believe in it, I’m just very poor. If you have a few hundred bucks you’ll never miss, you don’t have much to lose by getting professional eyes on your manuscript, but few of us have that luxury.

Another con is that an editor is only one person, and their opinions, while hopefully informed, are opinions and are therefore subjective and personal. Even if their critiques and suggestions make sense to you, that doesn’t automatically translate into revisions that will land you a contract more easily. I have gotten suggestions from professionals (both editors and agents) which resonated with me, only to have a different agent tell me they didn’t agree with that advice, or give me the exact opposite suggestion. So who should I listen to?

There is no right or wrong way to write. This is a subjective business. Being careful in choosing an editor—finding one who is both skilled and shares your vision—can mitigate the amount of “bad” advice you get, but even if you find the perfect editor for your book, not all of their suggestions will resonate, and you can never consider their opinions to be foolproof.

Developmental editors aren’t there to “fix” your manuscript; they are artists, like you, and can only be a partner in crafting your story, not a doctor who cures it of any ills.

Those are the only cons I can think of, but you definitely should take them into consideration.

Hiring an editor is a personal decision. If you’ve already been querying and have had little to no success; if you’re getting conflicting advice from betas and CPs; or if you really want to have full confidence that your manuscript is ready for querying, an editor might be the answer.

Please let me know what pros and cons I failed to touch on. I always love to hear from you.

Elizabeth Roderick is an author and freelance editor/writer. You can find her on Amazon.

#SonOfAPitch #TeamDiscord Entry 11: Mixey

Title: Mixey
Category and Genre: YA contemporary
Word Count: 99,000

Mixey is the story of 16-year-old BAYARD ANNISTON, son of the most famous black lesbian sex-toy-shop-owning political activist in semi-upstate New York. His new year is turned upside-down following his mom KENDRA’s regular holiday protest of their town’s all-white crèche. Kendra’s arch-nemesis LABIANCA has hatched a plot to make this year’s arrest a felony, and New York State’s new Three Strikes law has Bayard’s mom — a career arrestee —looking at life in prison.

Bayard’s life takes an even more surreal turn when LaBianca’s daughter Mercury, the audacious, feminist star of the girls’ ice hockey team, declares big hots for Bayard. If the lovebirds can’t reconcile their mothers before Kendra’s trial, third may be a base too far.

Mixey is a funny, feminist, sex-positive romp through two modern families’ stories of loyalty, revenge, secrets and the triumphs and pitfalls of first intimate relationships. It has a laugh-to-cry ratio of 163:2.

First 250 Words:

As was to be expected, Mom got arrested on Christmas Eve. But any resemblance to a normal holiday for the Anniston family ends there.

I was home supervising the turkey in the oven.  Mom was more than an hour late.

At 7, the turkey timer dinged, and I got a text from Mom:

  >>Bayard, can you meet me at the station w $50?

  >>Long story. ATM card’s inside Eyes on the Prize,

  >>vol 1. Thanks, buddy!

Normally Reggie, Mom’s old friend and most frequent arresting officer, drives Mom home in the squad car on his way back to New Paltz after a brief arraignment in Poughkeepsie. Something definitely wasn’t going according to plan.

I glanced out the window at thick, swirling new snow. My hands were still practically stuck in shovel-grabbing pose from the two feet I cleared out last week. I sighed, because it feels so good, and grabbed the ATM card from the book.

With all my winter gear on, I looked like a cross between Iron Man and Ernest Shackleton.  I heard the magic beans sound from my pocket. Probably Mom again. Dutiful Son de-gloved and checked his phone. The text was from Auntie Cheryl:

  >>Favorite nephew. The roads are a frozen mess.

  >>Grandpa and I are going to hit a hotel hopefully not literally.

  >>Not sure we’ll be able to get through tomorrow.

  >>The struggle’s real, Padawan

I stepped out into the life-size snow dome of our town. Family holiday traditions can be so much work.

AIEEEEEE! It’s finally here! The new round of Son of a Pitch!

I’ve got some great entries on #TeamDiscord this round. I’m so happy to have y’all here! Get ready to kick some butt!

For ease of access, I’ll post links to the entries below, so they can always be accessed from this post.

Entry 1: Accounting for it All

Entry 2: Biting Secrets

Entry 3: Hunting Legends

Entry 4: Fearless

Entry 5: Infinity Line

Entry 6: Let the Canyons Weep

Entry 7: Gracey

Entry 8: Nightmare Beauty

Entry 9: Death of a Bachelor

Entry 10: Power Surge

Entry 11: Mixey

Can’t wait to see the successes on #TeamDiscord!

#SonOfAPitch #TeamDiscord Entry 10: Power Surge

Title: Power Surge

By: Isa Isa Chan

Category and Genre: YA Urban Fantasy

Word Count: 78,000

Erin is a cutter. Most days, therapy, meds, and the threat of hospitalization curb the urge to slice her skin with sharp objects, but when she gets stressed, she can’t stop her fingernails from piercing her flesh.

Having to finish senior year without Adderall is stressful. José flirting like he wants to be more than friends makes her skin buzz. A stalker adds anxiety to the mix. She’s on the verge of a breakdown when she realizes her stalker isn’t human. She thinks the demon is a hallucination, but it attacks her friends on the beach, and José promises her it’s real.

Demons are just the tip of the iceberg. José is a hunter in-training, and Erin’s Grandpa is like his Obi-Wan Kenobi. Erin was supposed be a hunter too, but Grandpa feared her ADHD would get her killed. Now, the hunters have become the hunted, and Grandpa needs all the help he can get – including Erin’s. A normal girl would be terrified, but fighting for her life calms the buzzing that makes Erin crave sharp objects. Perhaps, hunting demons will help her kick her cutting habit once and for all.

First 250 Words:

The cold March air made my lungs burn and my legs itch as I ran, determined to not let my cousin beat me again. This was supposed to be a warm up for our weekly sparring match, but I was sprinting just to keep Mel’s short, muscular form in sight. I glanced over my shoulder. I saw a man behind me.  His pale nose peeked out from under the black hoodie that obscured the rest of his face. I hadn’t thought it unusual to see another runner follow us around two turns, but this one had followed me around five.

I sucked icy air into my lungs as I crossed a bridge. Water rushed under it, blanketing brown muck with blue, breathing color and life into the field of dead marsh grass. The road ahead of me was lined with trees and a few scattered beach houses that were still boarded up for the winter.

I glanced at my phone. It was dead. Mel was too far ahead to hear me yell, and there was no one else around. I wasn’t exactly defenseless, but I was tired and hadn’t been in a real fight in almost two years. Still, a small part of me hoped the man would catch up and would want to hurt me.

I imagined myself ducking as he reached out to grab my red ponytail. I would jam my elbow up into his stomach and crush his face with my knee.

#SonOfAPitch #TeamDiscord Entry 9: Death of a Bachelor

Title: Death of a Bachelor

Category and Genre: Adult, Gay Romance

By: Emooy13

Word count: 81,000

When snooty professor Cathal Kinnery meets blue-collar chef Damon Eglamore at a gay bar, they hate each other immediately. So it’s not hard to imagine Cathal’s horror when Damon marries his best friend. When Damon’s wife dies, however, things only get worse for Cathal: not only is he losing his best friend, but her final wish is that he stay with Damon and make sure the other man makes it through his mourning.

Cathal has no intention of getting truly involved in Damon’s life–after all, they can’t speak two words to each other without getting into a shouting match. After a few weeks of living alongside Damon, though, he finds that Damon’s problems run much deeper than grief. Damon doesn’t know who he is without his wife, and as Cathal helps Damon figure it out, he slowly comes to find he wants to be part of a family again. But can the two of them actually get over their own fears enough to admit that they can help each other?

It’s going to take a cross-dressing Shakespeare production, a baking competition complete with concussions and a five foot tall T-rex cake, and Damon’s own son coming out to make the two men stop yelling long enough to find out.

First 250 Words:

The man sitting at the end of the bar was older than Damon, maybe twenty-four. He had a thin, fox-like face and long, dark hair that he twirled around a finger as he wrote on a napkin. A martini sat untouched in front of him, and his eyes were lost in thought. Definitely gay, but he wasn’t… intimidating. Unlike every other man who wasn’t on the dance floor or making out with someone else.

Damon sat down next to him and gestured to the bartender for a beer. He was already a little drunk, but if he wanted to relax, he’d have to get a lot drunk. The other patron continued writing what looked like a math problem. He finished his equation, considered it, and then scribbled the whole thing out, his brow furrowed. Scowling, he drank the martini at one go. Only then did he glance in Damon’s direction. “Fuck off,” he said, biting the olive from the swizzle stick. “I’m not looking for company tonight. I came here to get drunk.”

Damon colored, but he kept the embarrassment from his voice. “Why’d you think I came here for anything different?”

 “There’s plenty of room, but you sat by me.” He looked at Damon, taking him all in, and his eyes narrowed further. The scowl fit his face too well, and Damon didn’t appreciate his scrutiny. “And guys like you don’t come here for the conversation.”

#SonOfAPitch #TeamDiscord Entry 8: Nightmare Beauty

Title: Nightmare Beauty

Category and Genre: YA Paranormal Romance

Word Count 82,000By: Soulzero777

Rachel Summers has never understood why she was cursed. That is, until a mysterious elderly woman visits her with strange warnings. While catching up on sleep at Dr. Jefferson’s Mind Management Laboratory, Rachel unexpectedly meets Aaron Winters, a boy who is under the same curse as she is. As their relationship grows and takes an unforeseen turn, so do the nightmares-dark creatures who frighten their targets to gather fear for their leader-as they grow more deadly and powerful.

Breaking The Nightmare Curse would be a dream come true for Rachel and Aaron, if they weren’t busy figuring out their mutual attraction for one another or saving each other from the nightmares as they appear in the daytime and in public. Add The Nightmare Witch’s obsession and determination with Rachel to control her body and imprison her in her own mind. Now, Rachel and Aaron must learn from the elderly woman’s tragic past to save not only themselves, but also every child in the world.

First 250 Words:

Rachel Summers giggled as she skipped in a field of blooming flowers. There were flowers of every single color. She made sure she said “hello,” to each flower. She smiled as she sniffed their warm and light fragrance. The sun was shining high in the sky. There wasn’t a single cloud in the sky and there was a very light breeze.

Her mommy and daddy were with her too. Rachel and her mommy were both wearing dresses with a floral design on them. Rachel’s was a light blue. Her mommy’s was a light purple. And her daddy was wearing a long-sleeved light blue white buttoned T-shirt and khakis. Rachel and her parents giggled and smiled when the petals and leaves tickled their bare feet.

The flowers went on for miles and Rachel was in complete contentment with her parents.

Rachel smiled as she hugged her mommy. Her daddy happily wrapped his arms around his two favorite girls.

“I’m five years old,” she said, holding five of her fingers.

“That’s right, honey,” her mommy beamed

The three of them played in the flowers. Their laughter filled the air. Then, they played “Ring Around the Rosie” and a flower color guessing game. Then Rachel’s parents disappeared. And the joined family laughter disappeared as well.

“Mommy?! Daddy?!” Rachel called. But, only silence and the cold rush of the wind returned. She looked around in every direction and began to cry.

#SonOfAPitch #TeamDiscord Entry 7: Gracey

Title: Gracey

Genre: Adult – Upmarket

Word Count: 98,000

For many at LaGuardia Arts, the daily commute from the outer boroughs to the “Fame” school on Manhattan’s Upper West Side represents the first step toward their dream of being a professional dancer.

In Gracey’s case, the trip starts in Howard Beach, Queens, a neighborhood notorious for its connection to organized crime. In fact, Gracey’s father has tenuous connections to this world, and is a crack addict who has spent half his life in prison. Her mother is so desperate to become a movie star that she neglects, and even places Gracey in danger to reach her goal of stardom.

As Gracey spends more time with her social climbing friends in Manhattan, she pulls further away from Howard Beach. But there’s one person she can’t forget: Michael, her childhood best friend, whose home life was even more chaotic than her own. Even mingling with the elite, Gracey can’t shake off the memory of how she and Michael tried to save one another, and how they lost touch. It isn’t until Gracey’s father and Michael return that she’s forced to choose between her new life and accepting her true self.

  First 250 Words:

I was conceived in the basement apartment of my grandparents’ two-family home in Howard Beach, Queens. Where all the Italians live and eat New Park Pizza. Where the women curse you out from across the parking lot while their men pump iron at Gold’s Gym. Where one wrong move will have your name running through mouths, or featured in the Chronicle: “Man Gone Missing.”

My father had only been out of prison for a few days when my mother seized the opportunity to lose her virginity. They’d been high school sweethearts. He promised he wouldn’t make the same mistakes and go back to drugs. I’d always wondered why someone who prayed ten times a day, and sang in the church choir, would sleep with a convict, but they do say love is blind.

Mom told her grandmother to guard the basement door, and that her boyfriend, John, was coming over. Great-granny Rosaria, who would now be 106 years old, may she rest in peace, remains to this day the most open-minded member of our family. She was supportive of “the gays,” cross-cultural dating, and sex before marriage.

Only a few days after my parents’ romantic, or not so romantic, night together, my father was sleeping on a wooden bench in the local precinct, soon to be delivered back to a prison in the mountains of upstate New York. He’d broken parole, again, leaving my mother at home, with stunned parents, and a soon to be crying infant.

#SonOfAPitch #TeamDiscord Entry 6: Let the Canyons Weep

Title: Let the Canyons Weep

Category and Genre: Adult Historical Fiction #OwnVoices

Word Count: 100,000

In the 1880s Arizona Territory, Irish immigrant Adam Donovan has inherited the gift of empathy from his Celtic forebears. From an early age, Adam has been the one his large family turns to in times of emotional crisis. His deep understanding of their needs and his ability to dissect and resolve their problems have made him their hero―their rock. His belief in the power of his gift is unchallenged until he meets and falls in love with Jesse Travers.

Deeply traumatized by abuse, Jesse needs more than the empathy that Adam has always relied upon; he solicits the help of his parents and siblings to show Jesse that real love doesn’t hurt, and real family means security. But even as she begins to trust them, and to accept Adam’s love for her, Jesse is stricken with recurrent nightmares and hallucinations about her abuser. Adam’s failure to overcome her fears pulls him into a quagmire of self-recrimination. His faith in his gift is destroyed, yet he must find a way to help Jesse before she succumbs to madness.

First 250 Words:

The trail split the canyon walls, walls that loomed tall and close and only gradually fell away, clearing the gloom from midday. The rider lifted his hat and drew a sleeve across his brow.

It was much too hot for April, and much too quiet. No breeze stirred the aspen leaves. No birds trilled, no squirrels scampered. Even the brook ran silently. His horse’s hooves, muffled by dust, sent up gray ghosts that hung in the air for an instant, then drifted back to earth. If he didn’t know better, he’d have assumed this ranch was abandoned.

The walls continued to recede until they were close to a mile apart, and the ribbon of trail wound between meadows of grass newly sprouted and already sere. Willows hid the brook from view here, and the aspens and sycamores grew more thickly. But where were the cattle, the horses? Corrals or pens? It was the most desolate place he’d ever seen.

Round the edge of a cottonwood grove, a ramshackle cabin came into view. And there in the shadow of its sagging porch, the rider glimpsed the barrel of a rifle pointed straight at his chest. Pulling the appaloosa up, he lifted his hands to show they were empty of anything but the reins.

A girl stepped out, an old Whitworth rifle gripped tightly in her hands. He said nothing, made no move toward the dark gun that hung low on his left hip.

“Donovan.” It was more accusation than query.

#SonOfAPitch #TeamDiscord Entry 5: Infinity Line

Category and Genre: Adult Upmarket

Word Count: 76,000

In 2072, in a once vibrant metropolis on the eastern coast of what used to be America, biochemist Dr. Lorelei Worthington hunts men.

No lab confines this researcher; Lorelei collects her male specimens in the wild. She doses men with her exquisite molecular cocktail and changes them physically, emotionally, even intellectually. But when she doses Number 93, who turns out to be one of the governor’s men, it all comes crashing down. Lorelei finds herself trapped between a hopelessly violent world and her benefactor’s incessant drive toward a future that’s female. Exclusively female.

Unknown to Lorelei is a deviously ingenious plan for a new world after the collapse of society, a future where women use science to take complete control. For generations, baby boys are taken from their mothers, and selected women may raise only daughters. For every boy allowed to live, three baby girls are born. Men and women live apart, neither concerned nor interested in each other until forced together. In exchange for peace, the idea called family is forgotten—until a small girl named Aida gets into Boys’ School and meets a boy named Alex.

Aida, alive only to be studied for a complex social experiment, grows up with a unique perspective: she is the only girl in the world who lives with her father and knows boys. Alex, alive only because his grandmother refused to give up her son at birth, is an Infinity Man born on a Life Ticket that guarantees 80 years but provides no more rights than every other dosed and confined male. After a lifetime of secretly loving Alex and a political career fighting for men’s rights, Aida tries to save Alex from his scheduled death. But when society forgot the idea of family, love may have been lost too. And the World Council’s laws may be too entrenched for one woman to change.
First 250 Words:

In the din of the smoky bar the glassy-eyed barman, professionally cool, sauntered over. He plunked down an almost clean glass and poured in a sloppy dollop. Lorelei waived a fifty at him, but snatched it away when he reached for it. Her one insistent finger held him at attention while she threw back the golden rye. Then she gave the sweating man an encouraging nod at her glass. While he poured, his face grumpy and closed off, she winked at him and stuffed the fifty into the pocket of his wrinkled shirt. He watched her lick a splash of ethanol off her thin wrist like a lazy cat.

With her tongue circling the rim of shot number two, she scanned the crowd around the bar. Young and old, they ignored the soundless vid streams showing football on one screen, America’s czar on the next. Muscular men, slinky women, all greased and sleek. Ready to rub. She was craving salty chips, and likely licking her lips, when she noticed the curious eyes of the dark-haired guy across the room. She gave the rim of her glass an extra tongue lashing.

Fact: Tongue exposure works better than cleavage.

Too bad she couldn’t publish this statistical certainty in her research papers. Or report how the endless supply of eager men certainly simplified her experiments. She sighed and grinned back at the boy, ten years her junior, though not likely one of her biochemistry students.

Yeah, that would be awkward.

Author of gritty fiction|Freelance Editor


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“The time has come to settle all debts” the caption declares in a new, 25 second long promo for Daredevil season 2 released to coincide with Chinese New Year. The clip concludes with John Bernthal’s Punisher giving us an ominous omen to what we may well (or most definitely will) come to see from him!

Check out the clip below:

Here’s the full synopsis for Daredevil season 2:

Just when Matt thinks he is bringing order back to the city, new forces are rising in Hell’s Kitchen. Now the Man Without Fear must take on a new adversary in Frank Castle and face an old flame – Elektra Natchios. Bigger problems emerge when Frank Castle, a man looking for vengeance, is reborn as The Punisher, a man who takes justice into his own hands in Matt’s neighborhood. Meanwhile, Matt must balance his duty to his community as a lawyer and his dangerous life as the Devil of Hell’s Kitchen, facing a life-altering choice that forces him to truly understand what it means to be a hero.

Daredevil Season 2 will be released on Netflix in a full season drop on March 18th 2016.

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Choosing to choose: How we make choices

Wear the blue jeans or the black? Eat now or regret later? Speak up or shut up? Every waking moment, we’re making choices. Each choice is a fork in our road, where our decision will take us left or right. The power of choice is something that can make or break an individual. Choices can give control over ourselves and our surroundings, but at the same time, the fear of making a choice can push us into a dead-end of our own making.

The thought of the ‘right’ choice is what haunts most of us, especially in the big decisions – academics, career, life partners, relationships. When it comes to choices and making decisions, there are a few illogical traps that all of us fall into:

  • “The past-perfect fallacy”: When Bill Gates insisted on copyrights for operating systems while others were all about hardware, he didn’t know that it would be the runaway success it became. We look at someone’s success and assume that when they made that choice they somehow already knew it would work out. They didn’t. Similarly, we won’t know whether our decision was ‘right’ until later.
  • “All choices are equally possible”: A man chooses a partner, but also carries all his ex-partners around in his head, comparing what he gets/ does now with all the hypothetical results of the choices he did not make. The outcome? Misery for him and his partner, as half his mind is always bound up in evaluating this with that, present with past.
  • “Choose today, change tomorrow”: The flip-floppers of the world pick blue then backtrack and choose green… but then perhaps blue was their colour after all. They tire themselves out thinking of all the possibilities, and exasperate everyone around them with their inability to stick to one decision.
  • “It might have been”: She chose family over career, and now she thinks longingly of all the achievements she could have had and all the glory she would have got instead of being elbow-deep in dirty clothes and toys. Conveniently, the office politics, the backstabbing colleagues and the bloodsucking boss are now forgotten or painted in a glow of ‘that was my life’.
  • “I had no choice”: Even when there is no other way, even when there are people pressurizing you, even when the choice was a default one, there was a choice. Not choosing is a choice that you make. Allowing someone to choose for you is a choice that you make too. When we give our power to someone, that is our choice being exercised right there.

Why are these patterns illogical? Because all that they achieve are doubts about the decision taken and continuous looking over one’s shoulder. The problem is, a lot of the times, we choose without completely trusting our own choice. Then we blame our stumbling on not having chosen the ‘right’ path, rather than on the fact that we’re walking one direction while looking in another. Each of these traps makes us evaluate the present decision not in terms of what is, but what has been or should be.

Think for a moment, what exactly makes a choice right? It should succeed, cause no further problems, no delay, no heartache, should be practical, easy to do, not need to be thought of again, not result in a mess, not cause someone pain? If you’ll notice, all these conditions of being right rest not in the present, but the future. A question we don’t often ask ourselves is: how could we know the future when we are in the present?!

What is important to remember here is that one’s choice has limited applicability in terms of how that changes either the environment or the self. Thus, a woman with a bad boss may choose to quit and join somewhere else, but making that choice does not guarantee that the new boss will be better. A man may choose to exercise, but that choice alone is not going to ensure that he stays fit.

Each choice, whether good or bad, will lead to another choice and another, because that is the way life is. There is no one right choice, just as there is no one way to come to a decision. Whether it’s head over heart or vice versa, making choices that one can be at peace with lies in being able to respect the choice that you make today as the best you can do in the present. That makes it a lot easier to trust yourself in the next round of choices. And there will always be another round of choices, no matter how ‘right’ your decision was.

If you are struggling with making choices in your life, or if it is one particular choice you are unsure about, consider meeting a counsellor and talk it over!

Talk It Over

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About Gayatri Swaminathan

Gayatri Swaminathan is a clinical psychologist with 7 years of practical experience in the field. She has worked as a trauma counsellor, a qualitative market researcher, lecturer and private practioner. She has an M. Phil in Clinical Psychology and M.A. in Applied Psychology from Delhi University and B.A. (Psychology, Sociology, English Literature) from Bangalore University. She is trained primarily in the cognitive-behavioural approach, but also incorporates other schools of therapy and techniques as and when needed. She works with individual adults, couples, children and adolescents and their families.


text: Taney County Prosecuting Attorney, Jeffrey M. Merrell, announced today that MICHAEL SHARPE, DOB: 4/29/1964, of Branson, Missouri, was sentenced Thursday by Taney County Circuit Judge Mark Orr, to seventeen (17) years in prison for the class A felony of domestic assault in the first degree and seventeen (17) years for the felony of armed criminal action. MICHAEL SHARPE had entered a guilty plea just prior to the time his jury trial was set to begin, on Monday morning November 29, 2010. Those sentences will run concurrently with one another, and any other sentences.


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Yes! It is true that iPhone is much more than a phone because it is keep doing such thing that is showing the world their talented side. At first, Apple wasn’t a mobile manufacturing company but they were working in the IT industry for a very long time. They had experience in building an operating system, system software and other such IT related stuff but then Steve Jobs decided to do something new by using all of the knowledge in such a way that can do wonders in people’s life.

It was a difficult task but Apple managed to do it and they produced first iPhone back in April 2007. It was the time when Apple decided to announce that it will be followed by updated versions as well.

Apples used all of their hardware important features that they were making for a very long time and built something that amazed the people all around the world.

As Apple was expert in building flawless hardware that is why they kept a close eye on the internal structure of the iPhone and as a result, fast processing highly capable of doing normal tasks in an enormous speed was the fruit.

The second most amazing thing is the storage capacity of iPhone. It was 5 times than a regular phone and eventually became near to infinity for a regular user. It was the main attraction for the users as in regular phones there was small limited storage that really made them crazy. But with the launch of iPhone, this problem was solved in no time. Now there is no need to delete your important stuff from your phone just because of memory.

People were quite excited with the launch of such sophisticated phone. Many brands faced a massive setback with this launch but for the Apple it was the real time to enjoy the victory.

Steve Jobs really nailed it with his skills, talent and belief of doing something new.

Next thing that makes it different from other is its battery. With the strong battery and a long running time, it was a sparkling coin in dark alley because other phones consume battery really fast but apple stores provide you with the replacement in case of any problem in the battery as well.

Another key feature in iPhone is their responsive touch system. iPhone is basically known for its touch system in common language. People believe that the smoothness of the touch system in iPhone can’t be compared with any other brand. And if you take a closer look then you’ll feel the same.

But we can’t still claim it to be perfect because sometimes android launches something incredible and other time iPhone come up with something extraordinary in it. But in this competition, the benefit is only for the consumer because they are getting much better things and experiencing new levels of comfort and ease and expecting more to come.


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175 Years of Manufacturing

Bira (British Independent Retailers Association) recognise Taylors Eye Witness’s 175 years of manufacturing.

At the recent Bira Annual Conference Bira Direct’s MD Paul Woolley presented Taylors Eye Witness’s joint MD Alastair Fisher with a scroll recognising Taylors Eye Witness’s Quartoseptcentennial.

This entry was posted in Taylors Eye Witness News. Bookmark the permalink.

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The Council of European Municipalities and Regions (CEMR) is the oldest and broadest European association of local and regional government. We are the only organisation that brings together the national associations of local and regional authorities from 41 European countries and represents, through them, all levels of territories – local, intermediate and regional.

Since its creation in 1951, CEMR promotes the construction of a united, peaceful and democratic Europe founded on local self-government, respect for the principle of subsidiarity and the participation of citizens. Our work is organised around two main pillars:

  1. Influencing European policy and legislation in all areas having an impact on municipalities and regions;
  2. Providing a forum for debate between local and regional authorities via their national representative associations.

CEMR is also the European section of the world organisation United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG), through which we represent European local and regional government on the international stage.


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Highly accurate and realiable feeding under the harshest of conditions.  The model TWM weighfeeder features self-tensioning and self aligning weighbelt with both inner and outer belt scrapers.  The weighbridge is fully floating and is restrained against the movement of the conveyor belt by a system of parallel stainless steel leaf springs with require no routine maintenance or adjustment.  The unit features a stainless steel load cell with overload protection mounted under the weigher, protected from falling debris material build up.  The drive is selected such that the AC motor requires no forced fan cooling even when used in a control range of 1:20 (or 5% max. turndown).  The design allows the simple addition of calibration weights, both manually applied to the weigher and stored in convenient weight receptors.

The weighfeeder can be configured with a range of material infeed hoppers, from the standard extraction hopper, with tapered sides to reduce motor power requirements and increase belt life, to settling hoppers for use with either flow gates of star (rotary vane) feeders for feeding fine materials prone to flushing, or the vibrating hoppers to ensure even flow of sticky and wet materials.  Weighfeeders can be configured for continuous feeding applications, batching or loading applications.

DATASHEETS (Adobe pdf format)

TCD0005GB - Weighfeeders Model TWM


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[TCRA] Fwd: AES Super Fest

Paul J Brooten - KB9TYC paul at kb9tyc.com
Tue Mar 21 04:26:01 CST 2006

---------------------------- Original Message ----------------------------
Subject: AES Super Fest
From:    "Al & Joan Campos" <alcampos at ameritech.net>
Date:    Mon, March 20, 2006 11:36 pm
To:      paul at kb9tyc.com

HI folks,
  This is AL Campos/KB9PVC reminding everyone that AES in Milwaukee is
going to hold their annual AES Super Fest on March 31st and April 1st at
their store on Good Hope Rd. in Milwaukee. Lots of Mfg Reps and sales of
all kinds plus a drawing every half hour with lots of donated items by
the Mfgs. I will be there doing my Badge Engraving thing too. If you can
make it you will have a good time, it's free no purchase needed. Lots of
questions answered by all the reps that will be there. 73,
  Al Campos/KB9PVC
  Milwaukee/Jump River, WI

AL & Joan Campos
QSLUSA Engraving

More information about the members mailing list


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• General Membership Meetings
    Our union meetings are held every third Thursday of the month at the union hall, 6000 Erdman Ave. Baltimore, MD 21205. Start time is 5 p.m. Please be present and on time. (And bring a coworker.)

    Today in Labor History
    Apr. 16, 1947:
    Five hundred workers in Texas City, Texas die in a series of huge oil refinery and chemical plant explosions and fires.
    ~ Union Communications Services

      Teamster News Headlines
    Workers At First Student (Bay Path) Dudley/Charlton, Massachusetts Join Teamsters Local 170
    Workers at Durham School Services in Everett, Wash. Join Teamsters Local 38
    XPO Workers in Erie, Pennsylvania Seek Teamster Representation
    Truck Drivers Who Haul for Rio Tinto Attend Company's AGM
    Teamsters Ratify New Contract at Rhode Island Hospital
    American Red Cross Workers Join Teamsters in Indiana
    Nurses at Medical Center in Lewiston, Idaho Vote to Join Teamsters Local 690
    Listen to the YRCW Members Teleforum From April 10
    Possible School Bus Strike in Québec’s Eastern Townships
    Kansas is Short on School Bus Drivers. One Company and the Teamsters Have an Idea.
  • Unions Promise to Probe Acosta, New Trump Labor Sec’ty Nominee
    Updated On: Feb 17, 2017

    By Mark Gruenberg
    PAI Staff Writer

    WASHINGTON (PAI) — Leaders of the AFL-CIO and the Service Employees promised to rigorously probe the record of Alexander Acosta, dean of a Florida law school and chairman of a South Florida bank, who is GOP President Donald Trump’s new nominee for Secretary of Labor.

    Acosta is also a former Republican named National Labor Relations Board member. Trump announced his nod for Acosta, 46, who is also a former U.S. attorney for Miami and law clerk for conservative U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito, before Alito joined that court, on Feb. 16.

    Trump named Acosta barely 24 hours after the president’s first choice, fast food executive Andrew Puzder, withdrew in the face of certain Senate defeat. Workers, unions and their allies exposed his bad record on workers’ rights, the minimum wage, overtime pay, safety and health violations and wage theft at his restaurants and sexism in the firms’ ads.

    Unions celebrated Puzder’s withdrawal with an early-morning rally near the Capitol. Later, they had cautious reactions to Acosta. But ThinkProgress, a progressive blog, raised questions about Acosta’s record in George W. Bush’s Justice Department’s civil rights division.

    For his part, Trump, meeting earlier with the self-named Trump Caucus of lawmakers, called Acosta, “a star, a great person, a great person.”

    “Working people changed the game on this nomination. Unlike Andy Puzder, Alexander Acosta’s nomination deserves serious consideration. In one day, we’ve gone from a fast-food CEO who routinely violates labor law to a public servant with experience enforcing it,” AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka said.

    “We will of course review Mr. Acosta’s record as thoroughly as we did the previous nominee’s. Mr. Acosta will have to answer tough questions and explain how he will enforce and uphold labor laws to benefit working people and not further tilt the balance of power toward corporate CEOs.

    “The Labor Secretary is not just another Cabinet member. His or her actions directly impact our wages, safety, and rights on the job every single day. We will judge this nominee by the commitment he shows to making life better for working people,” Trumka added.

    “Working people are still in this fight for an economy and political system that works for all of our families and where hard work means our families can get ahead,” added Service Employees President Mary Kay Henry. “This is the lens through which we will examine” Acosta’s record.

    “Workers will stay in the streets to demand a Labor Secretary who is a champion for working people and fights to represent their interests in our economy,” Henry promised. The Puzder nomination drew mass protests, including from his own fast food chains’ workers.

    ThinkProgress said the real problem with Acosta, who if confirmed would be the sole Hispanic-American in Trump’s Cabinet, is not with Acosta’s 125 written opinions in a 14-month stint as an NLRB member, but with his Civil Rights Division record.

    ThinkProgress reported Acosta led the division from 2003-2005, at a time when another senior division official, Bradley Schlozman, used his hiring authority to slant the division staff by picking attorneys from lists submitted or analyzed, by right-wing groups.

    Acosta denied he knew what Schlozman was doing, as Schlozman “hired conservative lawyers hostile to the CRD’s mission, purging the agency of people who believed in the work it exists to do,” ThinkProgress said. “Schlozman’s ploy did long-lasting damage to federal work on voting rights violations, police abuse, and other assaults on Americans’ rights.”

     But other DOJ staffers from that era complained directly to Acosta about Schlozman’s activities, according to the Justice Department’s Inspector General. And Acosta told the IG “he became more concerned about Schlozman’s judgment…as a result of discussions Acosta had with retiring Voting Section Chief Joseph Rich about Schlozman’s management. Yet, Acosta took no action to alert those in his chain of command,” the report found.

    Acosta left the division but didn’t report his suspicions until 2007, after several Republican senators raised the roof over the slanted hiring in the division and among U.S. attorneys. ThinkProgress also reported Acosta was involved tangentially in GOP efforts to suppress the minority vote in the 2004 presidential election in Ohio.

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September 9

PREMIERE | Fundação Serralves | Oporto [Portugal]

February 17 - 18

MAAT | Lisbon [Portugal]

2017 | ( )

Throughout its work, the collective Praga has critiqued identity from various and different perspectives, not only in relation to its principal artistic medium – the “theatre” – but also in relation to ideas of person, body, doing or object. “( )” is a durational performance that provides continuity to this activity, now in the framework of the system of visibility of the museum.

The museum space, despite its multiple possibilities, tends towards the structured as a reservoir of ontological confirmation, thereby contributing to convergence towards oneness. In this space – that carries with it contemporary diagnosis that portrays the museum as an institution of capture and formation – that is self-naturalised as a safe-space, and that converges toward oneness, throughout “( )” the performers activate experiences of other spaces, times and modalities, appropriating the colonial insult and spawning new non-figurate sculptures and transverse abstractions that are as real as anything else.

“( )” is a place of desired landscapes, of other body-objects and their relations. It concerns non-normativity as a possibility. A poem of waiting, a position to which all non-preferential forms are relegated, in which a tourist presentation is exploited so as to claim invisibilities, experiences, changes and ephemerality. In “( )”, the poetics of un-being, of unbecoming, and residual hermeneutics engender truths, ontological provinces, and fields of knowledge that have been disqualified due to there unconsolidated approaches.

A performance by Teatro Praga / André e. Teodósio
Cast | Ana Tang, Aurora Pinho, Joana Barrios, Paulo Pascoal
Objects | Teatro Praga / Bruno Bogarim
Head of production | Andreia Carneiro
Production assistant | Alexandra Baião
Photography | Alípio Padilha
Acknowledgements | Pedro Barateiro, Bárbara Falcão Fernandes, Vasco Araújo, José Nunes e Cátia Pinheiro, Pedro Antunes, Salomé Lamas, Joana Gusmão, Jorge Jácome, Mariana Sá Nogueira, Joana Dilão, João Pedro Vale e Nuno Alexandre Ferreira, Pedro Gomes, Pólo Cultural das Gaivotas | Boavista

Length | 5h


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The Tech - Online EditionMIT's oldest and largest
newspaper & the first
newspaper published
on the web
Boston Weather: 47.0°F | Overcast

Clinton Makes Public Reappearance In Worcester; Gets a Warm Reception

By Ceci Connolly
The Washington Post

In his first public appearance since telling Americans he misled them about his 18-month affair with Monica S. Lewinsky, President Clinton attempted to change the subject Thursday to safe schools, terrorism and Hurricane Bonnie.

Everywhere he went in this blue-collar Democratic stronghold, Clinton was greeted enthusiastically by supporters. A smaller, but vocal, contingent of protesters held signs with foreboding messages such as "Liar," "Cheat," "Resign" and "Impeach." One waved a scarlet A.

Despite earlier hints from aides that Clinton might use Thursday's break from the first family's vacation to again address the Lewinsky scandal, he made no mention of the controversy.

The stated purpose of the event was to announce a $30 million scholarship program for aspiring police officers and to release a teacher's guide for detecting troubled youth.

Clinton's political team regarded the day as something of an experiment, a tentative step toward normalcy after weeks in which the Lewinsky investigation has been a near-total preoccupation. It came amid signs that the bleeding of support Clinton has suffered has begun to stabilize.

In recent days, Clinton has phoned what one aide estimated were about 20 members of Congress, mostly Democrats, including Senate Minority Leader Thomas A. Daschle of South Dakota and House Minority Leader Richard A. Gephardt of Missouri, but some Republicans as well. The message, as one senior adviser described it, was one of "apology, explanation, and taking responsibility."

Since Gephardt's Monday comments refusing to rule out the possibility of impeachment, he and Democrats have begun to speak more positively of the president. Daschle, who was reported to be furious at Clinton, urged Democrats to shift their focus from scandal back to policy. "We've got to get back on the agenda, not to change the subject but because that is what the American people want," Daschle said in a telephone interview Wednesday night.

A new poll, meanwhile, found Clinton's approval ratings still holding steady, and that the controversy has done no noticeable damage to Democratic prospects this fall. But Clinton's personal ratings took another beating in the survey by the Pew Research Center, with 62 percent saying they do not like the president, compared with 53 percent in February.

Still unclear is when Clinton plans to go ahead with what aides expect will be a further explanation to the public. The president had discussed making some passing reference to his personal problems and his effort to recover from them at Thursday's event, but he decided late Wednesday night to avoid the subject.


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vCenter Server Appliance (VCSA) 6.5 Backup and Restore – Part -1

By | February 5, 2017

In this Post  we will learn how to backup and restore VMware VCSA 6.5 using native backup and restore feature introduced with the launch of vSphere 6.5, This out of the box file based backup and recovery feature uses vCenter Server Management API to backup files to an external destination. This feature supports HTTP, HTTPS,SCP, FTP and FTPS as supported protocols as destination path to backup files. VCAS 6.5 backup feature also backs up embedded Auto deploy and VUM configurations. Restoring from backup is easy and simple through VCSA deployment UI.

You can automate the backup process using Power cli, please refer Brian Graf’s blog to learn how to automate backup process. First we will learn how to back up VCSA manually and then in second part we will restore VCSA from most recent backup files

Let’s start with the Backup.

To take the backup of your vCenter login to the Appliance Management interface using “https://<FQDN_OR_IP_ADDRESS_OF_THE_VCENTER>:5480” url
Once you login to the Management interface go to the summary tab which is the default on, select the “Backup” button on the right hand upper corner
You will be getting a “Backup Appliance” window and enter your remote server which is keeping these backup files.
Note: You can use below protocols to take the backup of the vCenter
  • FTP
  • FTPS
  • HTTP
  • SCP
Here, I’m using my remote FTP server to take the backup of my vCenter server, you need to provide the protocol, remote server folder, username and password of the remote server. If you need to encrypt your backup files there is an option to encrypt the data.
Server will validate the remote location details and will go to the next step of the backup process
At the next step it will provide you the backup file sizes after retrieving the data, You have the option to select the “common” files or the historical date and the statics of the vCenter separately. You can select one of these or the both to be backed up in the remote location.
Once you click the “Next” button there is a validation process again and will give you the summary of the backup, click “Finish” to complete the backup process
It will start the backup process and will complete in few minutes
If you check the remote FTP location you can see the files as below
That’s how we have backed up the VCSA files to Secure FTP. In Next post we will learn how to restore the VCSA from latest backup.
I hope this has been informative and thank you for reading! Be social and share it on social media, if you feel worth sharing it…!!!

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In business since 1987 with SENIOR LEVEL TECHNICIANS ONLY, servicing Dell printers and Multi-Function Printers (MFP’s) for more than 30% less than the Dell dealers!

We charge a flat rate of $95 to REPAIR Dell monochrome (B&W) printers and monochrome Multi-Function Printers with the exception of those models shown in red for which we charge a flat rate of $105. We charge a flat rate of $125 to REPAIR Dell color printers and Multi-Function color Printers. There is never a “travel charge” to or from your location and there is never an additional charge if we must return a second time with a part that we may not have had on the first visit. We generally carry an impressive spare parts inventory in our service vehicles at all times. Providing that a Dell dealer is not charging more than MSRP on parts, we can only discount marginally on items such as rollers and switches. However, we are generally 20%-30% less than the dealers on such parts as fuser assemblies and intermediate transfer units.

We do not offer “carry-in” service.

We never ask nor expect to be paid until the repairs are fully completed!

For more information on our company, please click onto this HOME link.

Listed below are those Dell printers that our technicians are proficient at servicing. You will not find the model numbers of the “A” series as we do not repair printers that use ink cartridges. You will not find the model numbers of any Dell monochrome units that retail for less than $300 or any Dell color units that retail for less than $450 as it is not practical to service them.

1100 1110
1125 1130 ,N
1133 1135N
1230C 1235CN
1250C 1320 ,C ,CN
1350 ,CNW 1355 ,CN ,CNW ,W
1600 ,N 1700 ,N ,PN
1710 ,N 1720 ,DN
1815 ,N ,DN ,MFP 2130CN
2135CN 2145 ,CN ,MFP
2150, CDN ,CN 2155 ,CDN ,CN
2230D 2330D ,DN
2335DN 2350 ,D ,DN
2355DN 3000CN
3010CN 3100CN
3110CN 3115CN
3130 ,CDN ,CN 3330DN
3333DN 3335DN
5100CN 5110CN
5130CDN 5210N
5230 ,DN ,N 5310N
5330DN 5350DN
5530DN 5535DN
5765DN 7130CDN