text:
Big Beautiful Wides

I'll admit, when I first finished Jessica Jones I had no intention of revisiting the show (which I had previously done for the first season of Daredevil). I greatly enjoyed watching Jessica Jones, but I must have had my eyes closed the entire time because the cinematography did not stand out to me at all.

Boy, was I mistaken.

I found a StudioDaily article on Twitter exploring director of photography Manuel Billeter's approach to shooting the series; instantly I was intrigued, doing a complete one-eighty on a potential revisitation. What stood out to me the most was his choice in lenses, using old Panavision PVintage prime lenses from the 1970s. According to the StudioDaily article, Billeter also opted to use only wide angle lenses. This reminded me of Emmanuel Lubezki's approach to shooting The Revenant, which utilized focal lengths between 12mm and 21mm. With all the fancy new glass that's around these days, I always find it interesting when a cinematographer decides to use older lenses. Often times this lends itself to a unique look. Jessica Jones is no exception.

I pull a ton of stills from each episode, but only a few of them ever make it to Twitter. Sometimes it's contingent on my mood, or just some shots I particularly enjoyed. Other times it's because I notice a theme or trend — this is one of those times. Side by side it is easy to notice how similarly each shot is framed. Billeter knows what he's doing here.

By framing Jessica in the doorway, the audience feels like they are privy to something special, perhaps something they should not be seeing. A blatantly obvious example of this is the shot of Jessica on the phone in her bathroom (left); Billeter explicitly violates the character's privacy with his camera placement. This carries some interesting parallels with Jessica's work as a private eye, since she's accustomed to violating people's privacy to make a living. Shots like these push the boundaries and effectively engage the viewer.

Luke Cage's bar is one of my favorite set pieces in this show, rivaled only by Trish Walker's apartment. Imagine my disappointment when it explodes in episode eleven... anyway, I'm getting ahead of myself. All of the glassware and dark wood in Luke's bar act as beautiful foreground elements in so many of the shots. It feels incredibly organic. I can only imagine how fun it must have been to frame up some of those. The wide and medium-wide shots, paired with hyper-close foreground elements, quickly became one of my favorite aspects of Billeter's style.

The refusal to reveal Kilgrave's face in the third shot (bottom right) serves an obvious function of preserving the mystery of the villain. It's ominous and I think it was the appropriate choice. The dirty windowpane through which we see his face serves to keep us on the outside, following the trend of the audience looking in on things that perhaps they should not see.

Billeter often uses large amounts of negative space in Jessica Jones. It directs the viewer's eye to a very specific part of the frame, limiting the scope of visual information. The shot of Jessica on the stairs (left) is a great example of this. Half of the shot is nothing but darkness. It feels ominous, almost claustrophobic in a way, as something is blocking a huge portion of the shot. It's an interesting way to approach a wide shot, something that normally reveals a location, by instead purposefully obscuring it. The shot of Trish follows a similar trend, with two blank walls filling two-thirds of the frame. It isolates the audience and forces them to be alone with her character.

The shot through the security mirror (bottom right) struck me as something very clever. Yet again it is a frame within the frame, placing the viewer a step further away from the characters. It reminds us that we are but mere observers of this universe, trying to catch whatever glimpses we can of the story. Extremely creative and a great use of what could have been a boring location.

I do not know how else to say it: I absolutely love this sequence of shots in Trish Walker's apartment. LOVE. It is an awesome set piece and the camera does nothing but justice to that. The symmetry of the wide shot (left), once again looking through a doorway, is beautiful. It makes sense for the character, too. Trish is balanced person, unlike Jessica's binge drinking insomniac ways, and this shot reflects that. The other shots play so well together, I could not pick which one was my favorite (so obviously I had to include all three). The hard profile (bottom right) is particularly striking, while also so similar to the closer doorway shot (top right). Everything about this sequence, from the lighting to the composition, is gorgeous to a fault.

Cell phones have a strong thread running through the entire season, and it's important to note that Trish is on the phone in this scene. Phone conversations carry the risk of being dull, with limited character interaction. Jessica Jones, embracing our twenty-first century culture, certainly has a lot of phone calls. However, these tend to be some of the more visually interesting shots of the show. Billeter goes above and beyond to showcase the beauty hidden within the mundane.

The first two shots from this episode (left and top right) fall neatly into Billeter's already established visual style. The former utilizes hyper-close foreground elements to make a phone call a little more interesting. The latter has foreground obscuration as well, coupled with a partially open doorway to make the viewer really feel like they are spying on the characters.

The third shot (bottom right) is equally characteristic, but it catches my attention more than the first two. I don't know if I've ever seen a conversation framed from the inside of a car before, and if I have then it was nothing special enough for me to remember. The presence of the windshield between the lens and the characters adds an extra level of mystery to this shot. Once again, Billeter has found a unique way to capture a scene by shooting ordinary things in unusual ways.

I think close to forty percent of the stills that I tweeted from Jessica Jones were of phone calls. I usually associate shallow depth of field with telephoto lenses and DSLR videography, so it's refreshing to see it harnessed here with a wide lens (left). Regarding the second shot (right), it feels rather dark and threatening despite having such a bright color palette. Something is awry and the audience knows it — the bus driver is in danger. As I continue to point out, the foreground elements make the viewer feel more intrusive; in this particular shot, it's almost as if we are seeing from Luke's point of view in the back of the bus. He's going to attack the bus driver, the rest of us are stuck along for the ride.

This is the only one to make it to Twitter (top right), but time and time again there were many shots of Jessica and Trish sitting next to each other in near silence. It's a great moment and feels intimate, despite being framed on the wider side. The close up on Trish (left) is once more an effective use of negative space. I won't get into it too much because I don't want to risk becoming too repetitive, but I will say that Billeter has his visual consistency nailed down. There aren't a whole ton of silhouettes in Jessica Jones, so the wide shot of Malcolm (bottom right) stood out to me right away. In my opinion, it's no easy feat to pull off a truly beautiful wide shot, so when you do see one it's impossible to miss.

I'm curious as to how close phone conversations are to outnumbering face-to-face interactions in this show. Billeter pulls out all the stops in these two episodes, using foreground elements (episode eight, left), windows (episode nine, top right), extreme wides (episode nine, left), and some immaculate composition to keep this abundance of phone calls interesting. The shot of Trish on the sidewalk (episode nine, bottom right) is stunning, with her red jacket standing out in the sea of blue. She is a headstrong character and this shot gives her a lot of power.

There are a noticeable amount of instances where cell phones die and/or need to be charged over the course of the season. Somebody wants the audience to remember that cell phones exist and to carefully consider the role that they play in the story, for better or for worse.

Nothing new here. Billeter knows what he wants and he definitely knows how to capture it.

In a series filled with big beautiful wide shots, this episode had a couple close ups that screamed to me for attention. They were not disruptive, but it did feel different to me. I'm not entirely sure why. This episode was directed by ASC cinematographer Uta Briesewitz. I have a theory that she may have brought her own style to the table and influenced Billeter towards these close ups, but I have nothing to found that on besides a hunch. Either way the close ups are still very good, such as the shot of the pill (top right).

The trippy effect that the mirror produces in the flash back shot of Jessica (left) is an awesome use of objects in that space. Another interesting instance is the fire hydrant in the foreground (bottom right), lurking in the dark as Luke's bar burns. This shot is so different from the close up of the pill, more in line with what we are used to seeing from Billeter throughout the course of the show.

Three different ways of filming three different conversations. Do you see some of the differences?

In the first shot (left), Jessica and Luke are boxed together close. The two of them have a special bond (not to mention undeniable chemistry) and this shot is framed in such a way as to push them towards each other. On the other hand, we have the shot of Trish talking to her mother (top right). Trish hates her mother and tries to keep her out of her life. It shows — the kitchen faucet sits smack in the middle between them, serving as a visual barrier. They are literally separated by the anatomy of the shot. In the last one (bottom right), Malcolm and Robyn feel very small as they mourn Ruben's death. They are the peripheral characters of this story, caught in the crossfire between those with superpowers and their conflicts. The little people are unimportant and insignificant to the likes of Kilgrave.

These shots are almost opposites, but they resonate with me for the same reason: distance.

Kilgrave is far away in the wide shot (left), looking down from the balcony. He is a dangerous character and Jessica wants him out of her life once and for all. Luke, on the other hand (right), is safe and we are much closer to him as a result. No longer under the influence of Kilgrave, the audience knows that he's one of the good guys and can be trusted. This shot is yet again a great use of negative space — so much of the frame is just darkness since his torso is obscuring the light.

Thanks for coming along with me as I explored Jessica Jones. I don't have as grand of a theory or statement to make as I did with Daredevil's first season, but I certainly enjoyed taking a closer look at Manuel Billeter's work. If you have different observations or thoughts, please don't hesitate to share them with me on Twitter or via email! I look forward to hearing what you have to say.

Silhouettes and Symmetry

I've been fairly busy lately and perpetually putting off my second look at the cinematography in Marvel's Daredevil. This past week I've been up in Nome, Alaska covering the Iditarod, but I wanted to write something up before Daredevil's second season was released on Netflix tonight... So I'm currently typing this on my phone during my flight back home. We'll see how that goes.

I focused a lot on the colors in Daredevil in my first post, which I still find very intriguing. However, this time around I wanted to examine broader aspects and techniques used by the very talented Matthew J. Lloyd. Let's get started.

Symmetry and pairs both have a clear presence in this episode. In some cases they are literal opposites, such as the shot of cards representing Daredevil and Fisk (bottom right). However it also can be indicative of allies, as it's used in the shot of Karen and Ben in the car (bottom left). This surfaces again in the shots I pulled from episode ten. I also love the usage of silhouettes in this episode. Matt Murdock's apartment is possibly my favorite set piece in the whole show and they use its lighting brilliantly (top right). The positioning of Matt and Stick is also interesting — Matt sitting lower in the frame while Stick is positioned higher, representative of their roles as learner and master, respectively. The yellow/olive light (Matt's power color) is subdued by the blues in this shot, further illustrating that Matt is not in charge. This lighting contrasts with the all blue (Fisk's power color) silhouette shot in the parking garage (top left), one of Fisk's regular haunts. This comes just after Daredevil has been overpowered by Owlsley and his taser, and the color blue lends itself to this.

In the top right we have a continuation of the theme of pairs with this somewhat-symmetrical shot of Fisk and Vanessa. Matthew J. Lloyd has a knack for wide shots, pulling through time and time again throughout this series. This shot naturally showcases the cooler color palette, as Fisk is in charge of the situation. The shot that really strikes me from this episode, however, is the shot of Karen through the window (bottom right). I'm becoming obsessed with shots like this, where the character is framed by a window or a doorway. Both Daredevil's and Jessica Jones' DPs do these shots quite frequently (I'm currently rewatching JJ for its cinematography and these shots jump out at me quite often). Daredevil and Jessica Jones utilize a lot of sets that encourage this sort of shot, with windows separating two different rooms indoors. It makes us feel like we're privy to something special as we look into the characters' private lives. There's also a great use of horizontal lines with the blinds, bringing in a film noir vibe that Jessica Jones would later capitalize on oh-so-well.

I don't have much to say about the shot of Leland Owlsley that I pulled from this episode. I do really like the lighting, but the color palette strays from my "yellow versus blue" theory (which is fine, I never claimed to be totally right on that).

This episode hits on a few points that I brought up previously. Once again, great use of silhouettes and shadows, as well as symmetry, in Matt's apartment (bottom right). Matt/Daredevil's power color is present, highlighting the edge of his face here. The shot of the trio at the Nelson and Murdock office (left) is another fascinating usage of a frame within a frame. I remember learning about this technique in film history class way back when, as it was used in Citizen Kane. It did not resonate with me then — funny how some things come back to you after they've had some time to process. Many of the shots in the bar (top right) were visually stunning and I remember having a hard time picking which one to tweet. This is a dark time for Matt, Karen, and Foggy as Mrs. Cardenas had just passed, once again aptly illustrated with the strong presence of the color blue here.

The contrast of these two similar yet different shots is spectacular. A very simplistic yet beautiful usage of wide shots by Matthew J. Lloyd, especially in the shot to the left. I love the vibrant color palette as two major villains, Fisk and Madame Gao, sit together (left). Conversely, the flashback shot of Matt and Foggy (right) is so dark and shadowy, even though it's recalling a happier time in their friendship. Both shots effectively carry on the trends of symmetry and pairs, with two vastly different results. I did not pick any other shots from this episode because these two worked together so perfectly.

Not much to say about these two shots. The color palettes are pretty self-explanatory, especially the shot in Matt's apartment (left). Evil has the upper hand, and the colors (or lack thereof) reflect that scenario. The blue and red lighting in the second shot (right) is wonderful. I believe this shot takes place in a bar — many of the bars in Hell's Kitchen seem to feature red light. I'm not sure why, but it works for me.

The power relationships of the colors get really blurred in this episode. The shots of Ben (bottom right) and Karen (top right) feature intense yellow/olive lighting, but neither of them are in charge. Karen just had a nightmare about Fisk, and Ben has discovered Fisk intruding in his own home. Fisk is temporarily gaining power in this part of the season, so it makes sense to have him infiltrate the safety of our protagonists. The menace of Fisk (left) is spooky. The way that he blends into the shadows really gives him a sense of power, especially coupled with the slightly lower angle on him.

These two shots were fun to tweet, because director and producer Steven DeKnight responded to me! He said that the two shots happened to be filmed on the same day. I found this incredibly interesting, since they're both consistent in tone and technique. The criss-crossing lines on the windshield (right) and of the fence (left) and somewhat similar to framing within the frame, especially the shot on the left. Both of these shots feature characters moving and shaking behind the scenes, making things happen to interrupt Fisk's plans. The inclusion of both the fence and the windshield, as mentioned in a previous episode, make this seem much more private to the audience. We are catching a secret glimpse into what the characters are doing.

All in all, this was a fun and educational exercise to undertake. I cannot wait to see what trends manifest in Daredevil's second season. Currently I am rewatching Jessica Jones for a similar purpose and tweeting out stills from that, so feel free to follow me on Twitter if that's something that interests you. I've also begun adding all of my stills from each episode to the reference library that I share with my creative partner Devin Cutter. It's a very useful tool for categorizing and sorting through reference stills, and it's exciting to see it grow. Check out his blog post on that here.

Until next time.

EDIT: Thank you to Marc Weilage for pointing out that I should also credit Tony D'Amore and Kevin Krout for their work as colorists on Daredevil, for without them this bold look would not have been possible.

“Neon Olive” is an Awkward Color to Describe

“Yellow is visually powerful. It’s a good choice for a character who is both daring and exuberant. It’s a color that, once seen, tends to stay in your consciousness.”

–Patti Bellantoni, If It’s Purple, Someone’s Gonna Die: The Power of Color in Visual Storytelling

Ever since I first watched Marvel’s Daredevil, I have been both baffled and intrigued by the show’s lighting and use of color. I would tell friends, “It’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen,” strangely attracted to the harsh neon tones and tinges throughout the series. Of course, this was around six months ago, amidst my immediate binging of the series (like any responsible Marvel-loving Netflix user would) upon its release. More recently I have decided to rewatch Daredevil with special attention to its cinematography, tweeting around four stills that stand out to me each episode. I am currently five episodes in — while the lighting and composition are obviously important, the color patterns are truly fascinating to me.

With that, I’ll jump right in.

Episode one starts to lay some groundwork with the color choices. Neon yellow and neon olive, as demonstrated by the still from the boxing gym (bottom right), permeate Daredevil‘s visuals. As I watched, it became more and more apparent that YELLOW gives Matt Murdock and the Daredevil persona POWER. When in this color’s presence, Daredevil and company are secure and in charge of the given situation. This is exemplified in the boxing gym scene as Murdock demonstrates his power and prowess, as well as his ability to harness his rage and use it as a weapon.

However, the cold blues and whites in, say, the accident scene (top left) tell a different story. Blue is everything that is wrong with Hell’s Kitchen. When faced with this visually sterile and chilling palette, the heroes are out of their element. Blue and white lend themselves to the wicked, the criminals, and (wait for it…) The Kingpin.

In episode two, the neon olive/yellow hits you full force. The two stills that I selected of Daredevil (top and bottom right) exemplify this perfectly. In the close-up (top right), the neon light illumiates the edge of his face and neck. Again, as he interrogates a captive Russian gangster, Daredevil is in control. The tables have turned from just earlier, when he was bleeding out in a stranger’s dumpster. Now Daredevil is back in charge. The second image (bottom right), builds upon this concept. As Daredevil stands at the end of a hallway before single-handedly defeating an entire squad of Russian gangsters, the color completely engulfs him.

I have not quite figured out the color red yet — but notice Karen’s face in the bar scene (top left). As Karen confesses her fear of the city to Foggy, cool tones rest on her face. For now, it has taken hold of her.

I have to admit, episode three threw me for a loop. Breaking away from previous trends, a majority of this section was virtually devoid of color. It was mostly white and desaturated, with hints of cooler tones here and there. In addition, a lot of the shots isolated the heroes by framing them in window frames and boxes, sometimes separating multiple characters within one shot. It was not until the episode’s conclusion that I had my realization. One of the first shots of the Kingpin, or Wilson Fiske, (not shown above) places him in the middle of a completely white painting, referred to as “Rabbit in a Snowstorm.” When asked how the painting makes him feel, Fiske replies, “It makes me feel alone.” This was my eureka moment! The entire episode, absent of color and filled with isolating cinematography, was building up towards the introduction of Daredevil’s main villain. As the episode goes on, this feeling creeps up on you, before finally slapping your face the episode’s final scene.

The stills I selected for episode four continue to build upon previously established trends. Yellow and neon olive color schemes follow the protagonists. In Murdock’s apartment (bottom left), the windows are glaring with oversaturated color. This makes sense — the apartment is his safe haven and his home. Similar, albeit more muted, colors make their way into Claire’s apartment (top left) for related reasons.

Episode five — villainy is clearly afoot. Three of the four selected frames feature desaturated and cool color schemes. The Russian gangster’s office (top left) is the most blatant example of the malintent that blue represents. Fiske’s dinner (bottom left) is much more subtle, however, with absence of color indoors as he watches the city burn.

The top right frame, Murdock inside the police station, is possibly the most interesting. While there are some good officers at the station, many of them are corrupt and on Fiske’s payroll. Similarly, while there may be a faint yellow background in this shot, cool blue tones flood the foreground and Murdock’s face. He is in the lion’s den. An interesting note is the purple poster over his shoulder, featuring a clever caption. As Patti Bellantoni writes in her book If It’s Purple, Someone’s Gonna Die: The Power of Color in Visual Storytelling… well, you get the picture. Two of Fiske’s men are about to commit murder in the next room.

In the final selected shot (bottom right), Daredevil is back in business and has the upper hand as he questions one of Fiske’s officers. Neon olive abounds!

Episode six is as far as I have gotten as of now, and it did not disappoint. At the beginning of the episode (the top left frame), Daredevil is in control as usual, having saved his target from execution by a group of corrupt police officers. However, things quickly spiral out of control. Before long, he finds himself cornered in an abandoned building, without much hope of escape. The tables have turned and Fiske takes the upper hand. The top right and bottom right stills, appropriately chilling and blue, demonstrate this shift in power perfectly. For the entirely of Murdock’s struggle, cool tones overwhelm the frame. It is not until the episode’s end (bottom left), when Daredevil makes a lucky escape, that the neon olive pseudo-warmth returns.

I will no doubt continue to explore these color themes as I progress deeper into the series. It has been both fascinating and exciting to see my theories and realizations materialize on screen — I’m definitely learning a lot about color as a storytelling tool through this exercise. I can tell you one thing: Daredevil may be blind, but the people making the show most definitely are not.

EDIT: Thank you to Marc Weilage for pointing out that I should also credit Tony D'Amore and Kevin Krout for their work as colorists on Daredevil, for without them this bold look would not have been possible.

The Uncertain Art

All those young photographers who are at work in the world, determined upon the capture of actuality, do not know that they are agents of Death.

–Roland Barthes, Camera Lucida

 I recently came upon the website and proceeded to snoop around the different camera bags with curiosity and jealousy. One of the featured photographers – amongst his assortment of lenses, camera bodies, and accessories – had a small paperback text, Camera Lucida. While not in any position to splurge on a new camera or piece of glass, I figured that I could swing a new [used] paperback book. I enjoyed reading it for the most part, and since have found myself reflecting upon its respective reflections. The following are some rough notes and thoughts from my time spent with the text.

           Camera Lucida is a brief collection of reflections on photography written by Roland Barthes. Barthes, a French philosopher of sorts in the 20th century, took it upon himself to explore elements of photography. By no means a photographer himself, Barthes instead approaches the topic as both subject and observer. He dances around, touching on some interesting points without explicitly committing to many single ideas.

Perhaps Barthes’ most well known theory of photography revolves around two elements, the “studium” and the “punctum.” The studium, according to Barthes, consists of the face-value contents or meaning of the photograph. This is the base, the foundation. The second piece, or punctum, “will break (or punctuate) the studium” and “rises from the scene, shoots out of it like an arrow, and pierces [him]” (26). While not always an element of surprise, Barthes posits that the punctum enhances the studium and can act as a foil for the original subject matter: “the punctum has, more or less potentially, a power of expansion” (45). However, the punctum cannot be contrived. Barthes observes that if potential punctums fail to jump out at him, it is likely “because the photographer has put them there intentionally” (47). Barthes believes that for maximum effectiveness, a photograph’s punctum must be naturally present within the frame. While offering an opportunity for so much more insight into the photograph, the punctum’s presence can be boiled down to a single sentiment: “it says only that the photographer was there, or else, still more simply, that he could notnot photograph the partial object at the same time as the total object” (47). Barthes insists that a powerful photograph maintains an air of naturalism, yet simultaneously seizes the viewer with the unexpected.

Barthes suggests that an element of surprise or shock within a photograph is not always indicative of a punctum. However, he proceeds to break down five different categories of “surprises” (arguably interchangeable with “punctums”) featured in photography. He regards the skill necessary to capture such surprises, stating, “the photographer, like an acrobat, must defy the laws of probability or even possibility” (33-34). To Barthes, luck is not merely a possible benefactor for good photographers – it is a necessary one. Barthes’ “gamut of surprises,” starts off with “that of the ‘rare’” (32), covering extraordinary or unique subjects and situations, which would otherwise remain unseen by the rest of the world. He writes that “the second surprise is one habitual to painting” (32), which is a cryptic introduction. In a matter of words, Barthes believes that the photographer captures a normally fleeting moment, “apprehended at the point in its course where the normal eye cannot arrest it” (32). “The third surprise is that of prowess,” (33) Barthes continues, a photograph achieved through rehearsed skill and practice in capturing otherwise elusive imagery. Barthes proceeds into the realm of experimental – his “fourth surprise is the one which the photographer looks for from the contortions of technique: superimpressions, anamorphoses, deliberate exploitation of certain defects” (33). Lastly, he concludes with the equally important “trouvaille or lucky find” (33) – fairly self-explanatory. Again, Barthes does not imply that each and every surprise is effectively a punctum. However, there is, at the very least, a definite degree of overlap.

Death is a prominent topic in Barthes’ reflections on photography. From the perspective of a subject, he states, “Ultimately, what I am seeking in the photograph taken of me […] is Death” (15). Later, he reminds the reader that a prominent force in his reflections is the photograph “in relation to what we romantically call love and death” (73). Barthes persists with this notion, writing, “All those young photographers who are at work in the world, determined upon the capture of actuality, do not know that they are agents of Death” (92). He is relentless in the matter, hitting upon it again and again: “Photography is a kind of primitive theater, a kind of Tableau Vivant, a figuration of the motionless and made-up face beneath which we see the dead” (32). It appears that Barthes believes death to be inescapable, walking hand in hand with both photographer and photographed. Barthes even insists that photographs themselves die: “The only way I can transform the Photograph is into refuse: either the drawer or the wastebasket. […] Attacked by light, by humidity, it fades, weakens, vanishes; there is nothing left to do but throw it away” (93). However, Barthes’ fascination with death in regards to photography is premature. With the rapid progression of technology, we can preserve photographs indefinitely, producing limitless copies of both analog and digital photographs alike. In regards to this, I prefer a different sentiment of Barthes, in which he states, “The Photograph does not necessarily say what is no longer, but only and for certain what has been” (85) – a less morbid angle, to say the least.

While Camera Lucida features some interesting musings on the subject of photography, and at their core that is all that they really are – musings, thoughts, theories, reflections. Barthes does not claim to possess some sort of higher understanding of the subject. He self-admittedly presents his thoughts as a layman, a non-photographer immersed in the world of visual imagery. Despite this, he poses some interesting and notable sentiments. As a photographer of sorts, I do not think that one should take this text as the be-all and end-all on the matter. However, it is worth the read and highlighted some things that I had not previously considered in my work.

We photograph things in order to drive them out of our minds.

-Franz Kafka

If he wrote it, he could get rid of it. He had gotten rid of many things by writing them.

–Ernest Hemingway


Content-Type: application/http; msgtype=response

WARC-Identified-Payload-Type: text/html

WARC-Type: response

text:
GPC Master Grower Results Are In

The Master Grower results for 2015 were announced yesterday  and it was really great to see 8 of the 32 qualifiers were AVGVG Club Members. Congratulations to all the growers who strive each year to grow a variety of fruits and vegetables and compete at the various weigh offs. Special Congratulations to Fred Ansems for taking third place and to Todd Kline and Gerard Ansems for making the top ten.

AVGVG Results

3rd Ansems, Fred

8th Kline, Todd

10th Ansems, Gerard

13th Ansems, Shirley

14th Ansems, Frank

19th Ferguson, Paul

25th Andrew Ansems

31th MacQuarrie, Kim

GPC Master Grower Rules

  • Master Grower: Awarded to the grower who has the best all-around showing in combined categories (Pumpkin, Squash, Long Gourd, Field Pumpkin, Watermelon, and Tomato). A minimum of 5 out of the 6 categories will be required, and will be based on the following points system: The first place specimen in each category will each receive an amount of points equal to the total number of entries among qualifying growers of the category with the largest number of entries. Each subsequent placing will be awarded one less point than the entry ahead of it. A grower’s total number of points will be the deciding factor of the award.

Complete Results may be found at the following Link : Master Grower Results

This entry was posted in Uncategorized. Bookmark the permalink.

Leave a Reply

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

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

Google photo

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

Twitter picture

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

Facebook photo

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

Connecting to %s

warcinfo:
isPartOf: CC-MAIN-2019-18
publisher: Common Crawl
description: Wide crawl of the web for April 2019
operator: Common Crawl Admin (info@commoncrawl.org)
hostname: ip-10-169-175-90.ec2.internal
software: Apache Nutch 1.15 (modified, https://github.com/commoncrawl/nutch/)
robots: checked via crawler-commons 1.1-SNAPSHOT (https://github.com/crawler-commons/crawler-commons)
format: WARC File Format 1.1
conformsTo: http://iipc.github.io/warc-specifications/specifications/warc-format/warc-1.1/


text:
. https://www.airspacemag.com/history-of-flight/fly-girls-180970903/
blog article
In the 1930s, air racing was a wildly popular spectacle. While men were encouraged to race, women who wanted to fly the daring cross-country routes often experienced discrimination. Former Boston Globe reporter Keith O’Brien has written Fly Girls, a new book that profiles five female pilots willing to risk their lives to advance the sport: Florence Klingensmith, Ruth Elder, Amelia Earhart, Ruth Nichols, and Louise Thaden. O’Brien spoke with Air & Space senior associate editor Diane Tedeschi in November. DIANE TEDESCHI READ MORE


text:
Stop coming in your own way

Life’s at work on you continuously.
Life’s like an artisan-sculptor-miner who’s chipping away, digging, at times even polishing, to get you to the gold__to get you to the real you. Every event, opportunity or ordeal is Life’s way to purify you so that the real you emerges: cleansed and resplendent. So submit yourself to Life. And yes, one more thing: just make sure you don’t come in your own way!
We view Life’s myriad challenges as part of a grand conspiracy to suppress or annihilate us. Relax: this ain’t any conspiracy! On the other hand, Life has a grand design for each of us. It is Life’s responsibility to ensure we know ourselves and see ourselves as who we truly are. Though all of us are born pure, over several years of conditioning, we have acquired a different hue. We can’t even recognize ourselves. Our insecurities, our anxieties, our greed, have made us cold, bitter and lusterless. Our simple nature has been overshadowed by a complex craving to be noticed and understood, our intrinsic selflessness has been held hostage by me-first-ism, our fears suppress our faith and jealousy prevents us from letting others win.
We must recognize and accept the truth that we are not in control here. No, not in this lifetime. We are like passengers on a plane: we have to fasten our seat belts, sit back and either enjoy or endure the ride. At times it will be calm, sometimes fun; at some other times there could be turbulence and the journey could be scary. To enjoy or endure a plane ride is a personal choice. But instead of trying to take charge, don’t we always simply let the pilot to do her job and land us safely? Do the same with Life too. Stop coming in your own way. Stop resisting every move of Life. Simply surrender and go with the flow!


text:
On the futility of hating

When Nina Davuluri won the Miss America pageant on Sunday, the celebrations were marred, shockingly, by some hate tweets, and as some view it, racist comments. Obviously, those comments led to more hatred against the haters on social media. And, surely, this morning’s newspapers in India led with Davuluri’s crowning on Page 1, playing up, alongside with the young lady’s triumph, the misplaced hatred for and racist comments against her.
That brings us to a simple yet important question: why do we hate someone or something? To be sure, each of us is strongly opinionated. Some of us express ourselves rabidly – of late on social media – while others keep their views to themselves. But, without doubt, we have experienced hatred for someone, whom we cannot get along with (often not even stand the sight of) at some time or the other. The question is why?

The fundamental reason why we hate is because we are not aware of the oneness of all creation. It is when we see each person as different from ourselves do we even have the urge or temperament to compare, and therefore, to dislike, or in some cases, hate. Separateness comes from the ego. When the ego is driving you not to look at the core of your creation, but at the fringes – when you look at nationality, community, family background, social or economic standing, color and such. Instead look at the core of all creation – especially among us humans – you will find that there is no separation, no difference. All of us are alive because of the same Life source powering us. We may have different stories, different upbringings, different education, different approaches to Life and even speak different languages – but we are all one! An evolved person will not let the ego drive her or his Life. Such a person will look beyond the differences, and go to the core and celebrate it. Then Davuluri’s win is your own win. As much as the loss of lives in the Washington D.C naval base shoot-out is your own loss.

The more we see creation as separate, the more we will be consumed by such wasteful emotions like hatred. At least one intelligent response when you see a chain of hatred being triggered is not to participate, not to respond. Just let it go. One opinion less out there means one moment less in the public lifetime of that form of hatefulness. By choosing to stay away from joining the chain of hatred in a situation does not mean ignoring it or “brushing things under the carpet”. When you feel hatred towards someone or something, focus all your attention on it. Don’t respond to it. But deeply meditate on it. You will then see the futility of your anger, the stupidity of your opinion, the frivolity of your venom, your hatred and through your ‘seeing’, you will see the object of your hate and you as one! It may sound incredible. But try meditating on someone you hate and you will come to this realization soon – perhaps after a few attempts owing to the “extent” of your hatred and your own evolution with the practice of meditation!
The truth is, as the Buddha taught, either you – the real you – exists or hatred does. If hatred is, then you are not. And if you are, then there can be no hatred. The real you, the real me, get suppressed when we are not aware, when we are in the clutches of ego. The moment awareness takes over, the ego cannot survive. And when there is no ego, there’s no hatred, there’s no separateness. Only oneness thrives!


text:
Extension help: Awasu Google Search

How do I install a extension?

Extensions are released as ZIP files, so there is no installer to run, all you need to do is unpack the file.

After you've download the file, right-click on it in Explorer and choose "Extract all".

Then choose where you want to unpack the files.

Each extension should be unpacked into its own separated folder.

The recommended location is in a sub-folder under the ChannelPlugins or ChannelHooks folder in the Awasu installation folder e.g. C:\Program Files\Awasu\ChannelPlugins\.

The extension won't run

If you are getting a "Can't run the script" error, you probably don't have the VS 2008 runtime installed.

Download and run the installer from this page, then try again.

Extensions require at least Awasu 3.1 and Windows 7 or later.

How do I create a channel in Awasu?

In Awasu, choose "New channel..." from the File menu, to start the Channel Wizard.

Then choose "Generated by a channel plugin", and browse to where you unpacked the ZIP file.

Plugin documentation

To get detailed help on using the plugin, click on the "Info" button.

Plugin licensing

If you purchased the plugin, you will have received a license file, which should be saved in the same directory as the plugin itself.


text:
Peter Farrelly, one half of the Farrelly brothers, is best known the duo’s comedies: There’s Something About MaryDumb and DumberMe Myself & Irene, and so on. But Farrelly’s next film is quite the tangent from those titles, dipping into dramatic territory for the first time to tell a true story about race and class in 1960s America. Like I said, quite the tangent.

Green Book stars Viggo Mortensen as a Bronx bouncer who’s hired to drive Mahershala Ali’s world-class jazz pianist on a concert tour across the country in 1962. Based on the real-life jazz musician Don Shirley, the title refers to the guide books made for black travelers to find non-discriminating hotels, businesses, and gas stations when driving through segregated areas.

The first trailer finds the two confronted with racism and having conversations about the stereotypes placed on black folks, like assumptions around eating fried chicken. Is this another black-man-helps-the-white-man-become-woke story where the two become best buds along the way? That seems to be the case, but hopefully Farrelly’s film gets into something more nuanced. At the very least, we’ll get to see Ali – that's Academy Award Winner Mahershala Ali – sporting a very fine yellow plaid jacket.

The film also stars Linda Cardellini, Sebastian Maniscalco, Dimiter D. Marinov, and P.J. Byrne. Green Book makes its world premiere at the Toronto Film Festival next month before hitting theaters November 21.


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

text:
Michael Karlis
As a sophomore majoring in CLEG and Journalism, I was drawn to journalism because of the fact that you can make a difference with the stroke of a pen. My areas of interest are local and national politics/economics. I began writing my senior year of high school as editor of the Hopkinton High School Press. After graduation, I decided to pursue my passion and enroll in American University where I am now entering his second year as a member of the AWOL family.

Fun fact? I’m an avid surfer

Michael Karlis, Web Director

Mar 04, 2019
“College is a Debt Sentence”: AU students protest the Board of Trustees (Story/Media)
Feb 26, 2019
Student activists hold town hall on tuition increase, AUSG president says tuition increase inevitable (Story)
Feb 13, 2019
Powell fails to address student concerns about Meal Plan Proposal at RHA Town Hall (Story)
Feb 05, 2019
Outrage Against Meal Plan Proposal: Changes to campus meal plans (Story)
Oct 11, 2018
At AU, the “Parkland Students” Talk Gun Laws and Voting (Story)
Apr 26, 2018
Protesters remember the 103rd anniversary of the Armenian Genocide (Story)
Apr 01, 2018
AUSG Presidential Candidate Jarryd Delaney (Story)
Jan 02, 2018
Fake It ‘Til You Make It (Story)
Oct 05, 2017
Lessons Learned at Boston’s Hempfest (Story/Media)
Oct 01, 2017
Enough is Enough: AUSG & Antiracist Research & Policy Center Hold Rally (Story)


text:
Amazon DynamoDB is a quick and flexible NoSQL (Non-Relational Database) service for applications that require consistent, millisecond latency.

It is scalable and fully managed by AWS, so you no longer have to worry about the administration side of maintaining and expanding database capacities.

It can hold exceptionally large amount of data that can be searched very quickly, and supports both document and key-value store models, and offers built-in security, backup/restore, and in-memory caching.  It run s on an SSD-backed indexed datastore, and instead of “provisioning” storage, you simply pay for what you use.

There are no charges for data transferred between DynamoDB and other services within the same region.  Data transferred cross-regions are charged on both sides of the transfer.

It also offers Encryption at Rest, so your sensitive data is secure, and you no longer have to worry about the operational and logistical complexity of protecting the data yourself.  It also provides on-demand backup capability for your archival and retention regulation compliance needs.

Global Tables

Global Tables fully automates replication of tables across Regions.  This enables you to have a fully managed, multi-region and multi-master database with quick local read and write performance.

It replicates the tables automatically across your choice of AWS regions, and you are charged based on resources associated with each replica table.

DynamoDB is free to try up to 25GB/month of indexed data storage, 200 million requests/month, and 2.5 million stream requests/month from DynamoDB Streams.

You can also deploy Global Tables in up to 2 AWS Regions for free.

You can learn more about their pricing model HERE.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.


text:
5 days that nobody told me about before I became a parent

parenting baby

“Nobody told me there’d be days like these,” sang John Lennon.

As a new parent, there are all kinds of days. And all sorts of nights, but that’s another story …

Once I’d moved on from the foggy days of early motherhood, I identified the kinds of days that came around with surprising regularity. Giving these days a name helped me cope with them.

Here are five days that nobody had told me about:

1. Backwards before forwards days

These are the days where nothing goes to plan and every moment brings another setback.

My ultimate backwards before forwards day was my hubby’s first day back at work after the birth of our second child. As he left, I was feeding our little one, while our daughter played at my feet. From the outside, the scene probably seemed peaceful and idyllic. Moments after the car pulled out of the driveway, my baby did a massive milk-vomit, drenching himself, his sister and me.

We all needed a bath and a hair-wash – a big deal seeing this was well before 9am in the middle of winter, with me still moving gingerly after a caesarean. I was close to ringing my hubby and asking him to come home. Instead, I took a deep breath, realised that it was going to be a backwards before forwards day, and started running the bath.

Read more about parenting:

2. Cry together days

When the nights were hard, the kids were needy, and the support was low, crying was sometimes the only thing to do. Once I had two children, I spent an inordinate amount of energy trying to make sure my kids didn’t cry.

The first time I failed – both my kids were howling in harmony –  it was surprisingly liberating. The worst had happened, and I had survived. “I can’t go any lower than this,” I thought, but of course, I could, and it wasn’t long before I joined in. Cry together days were born.

3. Deetz days

You will have to find your own name for this kind of day, as this one is named after one of my daughter’s nicknames (Sweetsums-Deetzums, if you must know!).

Deetz days became my name for days when I shelved all ambition other than being with my daughter. Forget washing, making phone calls, grocery shopping, or sorting out the pile of hand-me-down clothes. Just her and me.

Sometimes I declared a Deetz day as a way of recovering after a backwards before forwards day. It is always hard to put aside the dross of everyday life but having a name for helped encourage me, every now and again, to do just that.

4. Groundhog days

This one is named after the movie, in which Bill Murray stars as a man who gets stuck in a cycle of repeating one day of his life over and over again.

Even if you haven’t seen the movie, you’ll instantly recognise this day. Endless cycles of feeding, settling, changing and cleaning, It’s not just days that are repetitive – you can have groundhog hour or even groundhog five minutes.

Occasionally, elements of a groundhog day were fun. I remember weeks where, every day at 3:20pm, I would wake my daughter from her afternoon nap by turning on the TV loud. I would then giggle to myself as she ran down the corridor calling: ‘Bananas! Pyjamas!’, desperate not to miss her favourite show.

At other times, groundhog days are soul-destroying, especially when circumstances like bad weather, illness or sheer fatigue make breaking the cycle impossible. On these days, having a name for the experience helped – even if just a little.

Little girl asleep in bed

 5. The I’ve got this day

Every now and again, I would have an I’ve got this day. Sometimes I felt like I had achieved some small level of success – maybe nailing how to distract my toddler from an approaching tantrum, or finding that I could breastfeed one child while playing a game with another.

I remember one of these days when I felt so on top of things. I ran into a work colleague while shopping, and I found myself feeling guilty afterwards for having such a nice time while on maternity leave.

Murphy’s Law, challenges and the continually changing nature of babies and kids mean the I’ve got this day will come around less often than you’d like. If you get one, quietly give yourself a high five and enjoy it!

When asked about the meaning of the John Lennon song Nobody told me, Yoko Ono said it’s to do with: “Starting to learn that life is always gonna be a mystery.”

John Lennon’s second son, Sean, was a baby when this song was written, so maybe it’s not surprising that the final line reads like it was written for new mothers everywhere: “Strange days indeed … most peculiar mama.”

What other types of days have you had with your baby or toddler?

Subscribe to Babyology

Our email newsletters keep you up to date with what’s happening on Babyology.

We also have special newsletter-only offers and competitions that are exclusive to Babyology subscribers.

Sign up below:

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Send this to a friend


text:
Depression And Back Pain

Sample Ad Only

Back pain includes depression, which emerges from fractures. Fractures include pathologic, complete/incomplete, avulsion, comminuted, depressed, compression, and oblique, greenstick, simple, compound, spiral, and transverse. The conditions noted in hip fractures include intracapsular, Intertrochanteric, and extracapsular.

Each problem rests within the blood vessels, yet it starts with fractures. Blood vessels make up the arteries, capillary, and veins. As you can see chest pain can lead to back pain, since the blood vessels travel. Overexerting the bones can cause fractures, which lead to depression and related symptoms.

In fact, damage here may derive from osteomyelitis, Cushing’s syndrome, bone tumors, aging, malnutrition, immobility, multiple myeloma, osteoporosis, trauma impacts, and so on. Fractures can lead to serious back pain. When fractures break the bones, it affects the bone covering known as penosteum. The covering is transparent and has a rich outlay of neurons. Fractures often are caused by trauma impacts, such as car accidents, falls from horses, etc.

The signs:

If neurological conditions are, involved the patient will feel toe numbness. The legs and feet may feel weak. Abolish reflexes are reduced if the fracture is at the lower region of the back. Muscle spasms and muscle reflexes often occur at the higher area of the back. If you have such fracture, bed rest is recommended to reduce the pain. If acute back conditions exist, experts will need to assess the problem. Broken back is an acute condition, which you should avoid rolling, or logrolling.

Fractures include the stable and unstable breaks. If the fracture is unstable, it can severely damage the spine. In such case, the doctor will surgically correct the problem or recommend that the patient wear a cast. The damage can tear the nerves. If you feel you have broken your back, you are wise to avoid atypical movement, since it will progress the problem when pressure is applied to the area.

If the fracture is spontaneous, the doctor can help minimize the pain by prescribing a brace. You will need to avoid applying weight to the area where the fracture rests. Bad falls can break the coccyx, which can sit in coccygodynia. Below the triangular bones at the lower back and near the baseline of the spinal column, the hips are joined with bones that set on either side and form parts that connect to the pelvis. (Sacrum) This area joins with five merging bones, which are fused with the sacrum and is commonly known as the coccyx.

Fractures emerging from the coccyx may include bruising of the periosteum, which is treated by steroid injections. Periosteum is a membrane, which the connective’ tissues meticulously empower each bone within the skeletal structure, excluding the articular exteriors.

Fractures can also invent bursitis. When one of the bursa is disrupted it will inflame, swell, and cause pain. The problem emerges from friction. Friction is often increased when bursitis starts, since instead of separating particular tissues, the fluids emerging from bursa stand in the way. Bursitis includes obturator internis, trochanteric, and ischial. Bursa conditions such as the named rest near the buttocks, lower back, and hip.

To avoid bursitis you may want to avoid sitting, standing, or lying in one position at all times. Instead, shift your resting states. Doctors will often inject a mixture of anesthetic lidocaine and steroids to correct bursitis.

In addition to fractures and bursitis, back pain can start from gynecological conditions. The condition is related to reproductive organs and disease. Females are the prime targets who experience pain from this condition. The condition causes pain, swelling, and inflammation. The condition will affect the spinal cord.

Sample Ad Only

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *


text:
Show Posts

This section allows you to view all posts made by this member. Note that you can only see posts made in areas you currently have access to.

Topics - mandy

Pages: [1]
Website "Chat" Help / Re: up up and away with your money
« on: January 20, 2009, 10:46:09 PM »
I possibly should have come in earlier on this thread but for this to be sorted out both parties need to speak with each other & a public forum is probably not the best place to air grievances like this.
I have been in touch with Gary at Up Up & away to make him aware of the post to see if he wanted to reply but  with Pam, Natalie & Roger saying positive things about his company he's happy with me just locking this thread.
More than happy for future posts about problems with wholesalers, suppliers etc but perhaps please remember there is a libel law and what is said on a public forum can be used in a court of law.

Balloon Chit Chat / 6 inch linkoloons
« on: January 11, 2009, 11:54:07 AM »
Ive managed to find a supplier of 6inch linkoloons. He only has white at the moment but advertises on his site that colours are currently available.
I think if enough of us were to "enquire" about colours, we could create a demand which may spur this supplier and speed him up.
Heres the site, you have to enter linkoloons in the search function and click on the white linkoloon.

Linkoloons are very useful in many sculptures and decor projects. ... rtRecord=1

How Did You Start Twisting/Entertaining / Mandy's Story
« on: December 22, 2008, 01:47:25 PM »
Im hoping this will get me into the club zone  :)

About 3 years ago i was going to get married so i surfed the net for white balloons. I was going to order 1000 but the trader didnt get back to me.
While i was surfing i stumbled across balloon decor and loved it.
Me and the old man went to a one day course and then i started to invest in equipment, it was expensive and i ended up selling at a loss.

I did a bit more surfing and discovered balloon sculpture, this time i was well and truly hooked. Such a versatile art where the skys the limit, literally, and it dont cost too much to set up.

Like the very hungry caterpillar, i just cant get enough of new concepts/designs especially the weaves.
Did you know that balloon art is popular in at least 58 countries?

Balloon Chit Chat / Allergy free balloons
« on: November 08, 2008, 12:34:37 PM »
Having just found out that its the proteins in latex which adhere to the powder inside and is dispersed when the balloon is used, i did a bit of surfing.
Latex allergies are on the increase which is a worry to all of us.
However, there is an alternative latex which is already being used to manufacture baby bottle teats, medical catheters etc
Its stretchy enough to be used for entertainer balloons altho they wont be available for one to two years from now.
Made from the Guayule (pronounced why you lee ), a desert plant, which is perennial so theres no replanting and the wood from these 3ft plants can be used, similar to maple.

This means entertaining in hospitals, supermarkets etc...
I cant wait  :D

« on: October 13, 2008, 11:09:51 AM »
Have a great day
tony, what is it? 21 what again? :lol:

Picture Gallery / children in need fundraising
« on: October 11, 2008, 06:31:08 PM »
Well its that time of the year again and on 14th November im hoping to fundraise (as part of pr and marketing) I will be making one balloon bears with a scrap of white balloon with spots for the eyepatch. Just the addition of the eyepatch made all the difference, he was instantly recognisable.
Last year it was the local diy superstore, i was there for 4hours and raised 60 squid. I made a bob the builder for the manager.
I also had a number of people wanted me to make other stuff but i only took yellow and white with me (daft aint i )

Still looking for a venue for this year.

Anyone else got any plans?

please please does anyone have any blue 350 or 360s. I only need enough to make a blue teddy. This is for a baby funeral THIS FRIDAY and its wednesday already.
I really thought i had this colour and size but today when i looked, HORROR not one to be seen.
I live in norfolk so if anyone knows anyone here who might have some, i will pick them up and pay/swap
I need to deliver this tomoro night arrgghh im panicking help me please, i will stay online all day if anyone wants to contact me
mandy x :cry:  :oops:  :cry:

Website "Chat" Help / chalk markers
« on: August 17, 2008, 02:53:32 PM »
has anyone tried these? are they any good? ... 2e500d44e2

Picture Gallery / alternative balloon art
« on: July 30, 2008, 10:07:25 PM »
check out this amazing balloon sculptor Jason Hackenwerth, you have to scroll down 2/3 of the page.

heres his site

Welcome / EBAY
« on: July 16, 2008, 11:25:11 AM »
Im almost too embarrassed to put this on here, but i dont want anyone to make the same stupid mistake.
I put my decorating stuff on ebay. It was worth over £200 and id been storing it, hoping it would make me money some day.
The whole lot went for less than £4..............I felt very sick, i couldnt back out. All my precious stuff, i would rather have given them to charity. All that money i spent on it thinking it was an investment for the future.
right whingeing over and now for the advice, you probably already know about it and im just very naive. PUT A RESERVE ON
thankyou for listening :oops:
take care

Im not sure where to post this but here goes. I have some balloon decorating supplies for sale. I bought them awhile ago but got into twisting and lost interest.
I have various items for sale. all never used

connect a dot system....
rounds 9 white,14 silver and 13 black
connectors 23 white, 13silver, 10 gold, 19black

balloon pro net

foam wire 11 yards (minus 4inches shrinkage in storage)neon, 1 reel of each colour.

3ft foil balloons, shapes
moon gold 3
palm leaf green 9
palm leaf silver 9

small foils
moon gold 5
moon silver 5
leaf green 20
star silver 20

I also have lots and lots of curling ribbon on reels in different sizes and widths up to 1200 metres on the largest reels, but its a bit heavy to post so you would have to come to brighton to pick them up.

Also some hi flote with dispenser, never used

thats about it for now, im still sorting my stuff out.
I havent worked any prices out but im open to offers

Balloon Chit Chat / ori liveny waterworld
« on: May 28, 2008, 10:53:49 AM »
checkout these great videos, showing you how to make a whole waterworld scene

Balloon Chit Chat / sore fingers
« on: March 25, 2008, 09:07:19 PM »
Hi, i did a fundraising event at a local department store and we couldnt make the models fast enough, they sold like hot cakes.
However after 4hours twisting my fingers got very sore. I wonder how i would manage if i had 4hours work most days. Does anyone have any tips about prevention or treatment please.

Welcome / Hi from Brighton
« on: March 25, 2008, 10:22:33 AM »
Hi there, i live in brighton. I have been bitten by the twisting bug for almost 3 years now.

Pages: [1]


text:
ballparks logoticket triangle logo
  Las Vegas
  Concert Tickets
  U2 Tickets
  Theater & Musical Tickets
  Wicked Tickets
  Other Event Tickets
  Alternate Concert Tickets
  Sports Tickets
  NCAA Basketball Tickets
  NCAA Football Tickets
  College Sports Tickets
  NHL Tickets
  NFL Tickets
  NBA Tickets
  MLB Tickets

Anything Goes Tickets

Anything Goes Tickets
2019 - 2020 Schedule of Events
Anything Goes - A Tribute To Lady Gaga & Tony Bennett Las VegasMay 13, 2019
Monday, 6 PM
Grand View Lounge at South Point Hotel And Casino
Las Vegas, NV
Buy Now through its affiliation with, an online ticket agency offering concert tickets, has been selling tickets to all events in thousands of venues world wide since 2005. To find out more information about a concert, theater, or sporting event please visit one of the links above for more information.

With this partnership we are able to offer you tickets to tens of thousands of events with several million tickets in inventory. We are not affiliated with any venue or arena, and all the tickets listed through Ticket Triangle are tickets listed in a national database by hundreds brokers all over the country. These tickets are being sold on what is called the secondary market. This means the tickets have already been purchased and have been sold to these brokers for subsequent resale at a marked up price at market value. All tickets sold through Ticket Triangle are 100% guaranteed to be authentic.

To order concert tickets online please click a link above. We sell tickets to all types of concerts and other events.

We offer premium tickets to your favorite concert as well as other events throughout the world. We can put you into the seat of your choice.

We have available some of the the hardest to find concert tickets along with seats for other world tour concerts or events. Whether you are looking front row tickets, box seats, backstage passes, a suite, or club seats, we have the largest selection anywhere. Our inventory of our Anything Goes tickets are fairly cheap, a good bargain, and usually some of the lowest prices available. Much of the inventory we offer are for sold out events and often for a significant disount cmpared to many competitors.

News about Anything Goes
A custom dress made out of Yak hair? Anything goes at KMAC Cout - (Apr 12, 2019 1:08AM)
Anything Goes in New York Times Coverage of Isr - (Apr 9, 2019 3:43AM)
Marian Catholic High School Presents ?Anything Go - (Apr 8, 2019 3:27AM)
In New York Times Israel Coverage, Anything G - (Apr 7, 2019 9:51PM)
Anything Goes in Sutton musi - (Apr 7, 2019 11:21AM)
Is It ?Anything Goes?? ? The US Expansive View of Trademarks Supports a Wide Variety of ?Nontraditional Trademark - (Apr 5, 2019 2:59AM)
Anything goes? No, not rea - (Apr 4, 2019 2:55PM)
In Israeli Election Ads, to Stir up the Base, Anything G - (Apr 4, 2019 1:08AM)


text:
ballparks logoticket triangle logo
  Watkins Glen
  Concert Tickets
  U2 Tickets
  Theater & Musical Tickets
  Wicked Tickets
  Other Event Tickets
  Alternate Concert Tickets
  Sports Tickets
  NCAA Basketball Tickets
  NCAA Football Tickets
  College Sports Tickets
  NHL Tickets
  NFL Tickets
  NBA Tickets
  MLB Tickets

IAMDDB Tickets

IAMDDB Tickets
2019 - 2020 Schedule of Events
Woodstock 50th Anniversary Festival: Jay-Z, The Killers & Dead & Company - 3 Day Pass Watkins GlenAugust 16, 2019
Friday, 3 AM
Watkins Glen International Speedway
Watkins Glen, NY
Buy Now through its affiliation with, an online ticket agency offering concert tickets, has been selling tickets to all events in thousands of venues world wide since 2005. To find out more information about a concert, theater, or sporting event please visit one of the links above for more information.

With this partnership we are able to offer you tickets to tens of thousands of events with several million tickets in inventory. We are not affiliated with any venue or arena, and all the tickets listed through Ticket Triangle are tickets listed in a national database by hundreds brokers all over the country. These tickets are being sold on what is called the secondary market. This means the tickets have already been purchased and have been sold to these brokers for subsequent resale at a marked up price at market value. All tickets sold through Ticket Triangle are 100% guaranteed to be authentic.

To order concert tickets online please click a link above. We sell tickets to all types of concerts and other events.

We offer premium tickets to your favorite concert as well as other events throughout the world. We can put you into the seat of your choice.

We have available some of the the hardest to find concert tickets along with seats for other world tour concerts or events. Whether you are looking front row tickets, box seats, backstage passes, a suite, or club seats, we have the largest selection anywhere. Our inventory of our IAMDDB tickets are fairly cheap, a good bargain, and usually some of the lowest prices available. Much of the inventory we offer are for sold out events and often for a significant disount cmpared to many competitors.

News about IAMDDB
Redbrick?s Festival Guide 2 - (Apr 11, 2019 9:06PM)
IAMDDB enchants the Roundhouse - (Apr 8, 2019 1:55AM)
Interview: IAM - (Apr 4, 2019 11:00PM)
IAMDDB at The Marble Fact - (Mar 26, 2019 4:15AM)
IAMDDB at 1015 Fol - (Mar 6, 2019 1:09AM)
Review: On Swervvvvv.5, the fifth instalment of her mixtape series, IAMDDB shows maturity and calmness over her signature Urban Jazz so - (Mar 3, 2019 8:52PM)
Stormzy, IAMDDB, Gucci Mane And George Clinton Were The Clear Highlights Of Secret Solstice 2 - (Jul 9, 2018 10:19AM)
IAMDDB slays four UK cities in Flightmode Live ? in pictu - (Apr 19, 2018 12:00PM)


text:
Need Some Holiday Spirit? Let A Lot of Tubas Help

Share the News

tubaxmascatch of the day fish (2)The holiday season is a time to let everyone shine. In the case of bands and orchestras, that means it’s time to let those who don’t normally don’t get the solos step out. Like tubas.On Saturday, the nationally-organized event known as TubaChristmas makes its Baltimore appearance at the Inner Harbor Amphitheater. The concert is set for 3:30 p.m. The big group of tubas will be joined by the Heart of Maryland Chorus, and admission is free.

TubaChristmas has been getting the big bells together since a 1974 concert in New York to play Christmas carols. Since tuba players don’t discriminate, sousaphones, baritones and euphoniums are also welcome. In Baltimore, there have been years of 200 tubas getting together. Let’s hope there are just as many this year. If they cross paths with the nearby Ugly Sweater Run, you’ll know we’ve hit the silly season.

Stephen Babcock

Stephen Babcock is the editor of Baltimore and an editor-at-large of Baltimore Fishbowl.

Share the News


text:
The Pleasure of Your Co. Gift Guide: Triumph Over Holiday Giving

Share the News

Innovative and imaginative gifts from The Pleasure of Your Company will bring smiles to the faces of your friends and loved ones. Forget about the same-old same old, TPOYC stocks Baltimore-themed gifts, joke books for kids, coffee table books for dog lovers, monogrammed presents of every stripe and more!  If you are looking for something to show personality, humor, and fun, look first to The Pleasure of Your Company.  Start by seeing what’s in store, below!

Metal Monogram
Love this personalized wreath. Metal monogram is perfect to hang in the middle of a simple wreath of greenery for a dramatic door display. Monogram is black, but you can easily transform it with a can of spray paint. Several sizes of monograms are available – the 12” circle shown here is $50.00.

Grandma Platter

Great news – Museware has ramped up their production and we can take orders for Christmas through December 10th this year for all of their personalized platters.

Museware pottery is hand created in a historic mill in Manchester, NH that the artisans describe as “hot in the summer, cold in the winter, and when the wind blows, antique dust falls into our hair.” This 12” square platter for a favorite Grandma has the names of all her favorite little ones inscribed in the background. The names are repeated as space allows. Natural color with gray lettering as shown. $145.00555974_10151787135640735_1469535733_n

Vintage Sweet Indulgence Dish

8” x 15” white ceramic Sweet Indulgence platter is a great size for serving desserts. It comes with a vintage-look serving utensil with the words “Sweet Indulgence” stamped into it. $35.75

Sir Elton John’s Holiday Classic Candle
A blend of evergreen and balsam fir needles combined with rich woods and a sparkling citrus accord. A portion of the proceeds from the sales of Sir Elton John’s Holiday will benefit the Elton John AIDS Foundation. Eight oz., burn time 50 hours.

Nora Fleming
This is a favorite with our customers for the holidays this year – they are flying out!
Nora Fleming’s platters and mini-inserts make it easy to have the perfect serving dish for every holiday and occasion without tying up storage space and spending a fortune. Glazed white platters, serving dishes, and cake displays are available in several sizes. Then, about 50 mini-inserts are available – from Adirondack chairs and baseball gloves and American flags for summer celebrations, to footballs and pumpkins and turkeys for the fall, and Santas, Christmas wreathes and snowmen for the holidays, and of course, we’ve got a great crab for Maryland! Serving pieces range from $43.00-$65.00and mini-inserts are $12.50 each.

Baltimore Plate with Baltimore Napkins
Hometown Baltimore charm! 7” square ceramic serving plate has sketches of Baltimore landmarks around the edge, paired with a package of our best-selling napkins: “The best thing about living in Baltimore is that if I don’t know what I’m doing, someone else always does.” Exclusively at The Pleasure of Your Company. Shown with red napkins – other colors are available. $35.25

Beatriz Ball
Beatriz Ball serving dishes look like beautiful, burnished silver but are handmade from polished aluminum – which retains its finish and never needs repolishing. The new pieces we brought in this fall are stunning – they work in both traditional and contemporary settings and turn any table into a showcase that looks straight out of a magazine. Prices range from $50.00 to $150.00 and fit any gift budget.

Bla Bla Dolls
We love our irresistibly cute menagerie of Bla Bla dolls. The founders of Bla Bla Kids stumbled across a village of knitters on a trip to Peru and turned their find into a line of soft, cuddly knitted animals. I’m finding that the look of these dolls goes really well with the décor that new parents are using for their baby’s nursery. 18” dolls, $59.00

Bling Wipes
Great stocking stuffers and gifts for a bunch of girlfriends!
Bling Wipe jewelry towelettes clean off oil, makeup, lotion and other dulling residue and put the sparkle back in your bling. Each box contains 10 individually packaged towelettes. $12.95

38 extraordinary, amazing and heartwarming tales of love, loyalty and life with dogs. This would be the perfect gift for someone hard to buy for. Written by Rebecca Ascher-Waish, a founding director of the Déjà vu Foundation, an organization devoted to raising funds for the care of rescue dogs. $14.95

Dog Shaming
Dog Shaming is a laugh-out-loud collection of photos of dogs confessing their biggest sins. Anyone who has unconditionally loved a dog in spite of their transgressions will love this book. Check out their website$15.00

Gullah Gourmet
Our customers who spend time in the South recognize the Gullah Gourmet brand of award-winning, low country gourmet foods, and tell us how good it is. The adorable packaging makes it a wonderful gift to give (think teacher’s gifts, girlfriend’s gifts, gifts to the book club and so on) and the recipes are all easy to prepare and make up hearty servings. We have Gullah Gumbo, Fried Green T’matas, Peach Cobbler, Fried Oysta Batter, Lobsta Bisque, She Crab Soup and others. Starting at $7.95/bag.

Hill House Design Stationery
Our own designs of correspondence cards and lined envelopes are a store favorite. We use A6 size cards and fabulous papers from Rifle, Smock and Sugar Paper to make the linings. 25 cards, printed, with lined envelopes, $55.75. Other quantities and printed return address available.
An entertaining gift book for kids (ages 7 and up):
Jokelopedia is full of 1700 jokes, riddles and puns – sufficiently dumb and silly enough to be fun, but they also build vocabulary and the puns make you think about the different meanings of words. $11.95

Kate Libby 2014 Wall Calendar
It’s back! A favorite with our customers – we have a list of people to call every year when the new Kate Libby wall calendar arrives. The 11 x 14 poster calendar can be framed and displayed one month at a time or do what we do in the store – frame all 12 months and fill a whole wall with Kate Libby’s cheerful art images. $30.00 Black frame available separately $10.00
155750_10151787095665735_748128266_nKate Spade “Eat Cake for Breakfast” Journal
Gathering notes for your autobiography? Eat Cake for Breakfast invites you to journal the happy occasions and light-hearted moments of your life. 300 lined pages in a hot pink, cloth hard cover book, with 6 coordinating ribbon bookmarks. 5.5” x 8.5” $26.00
1465322_10151787098625735_1596235599_nKate Spade 12-Month Desktop Agenda
This 12-month Kate Spade spiral agenda features gorgeous watercolor graphics along with a multitude of must-have organizational pages. Each month is shown on facing pages and then each day has a page broken into hourly appointment times. Diary also includes 15 pages for notes, address pages, 2 pages for favorite restaurant notes, and 2 pages to keep track of birthdays. $38.00  (We also have the refill pages for other sizes of Kate Spade diaries)
These have to be seen in person to appreciate the intricate combination of technology and art in the 3D details of these laser cut framed city maps. A perfect gift for the hard-to-buy-for man who has everything. A creative wedding gift to capture memories of a proposal and courtship. A great welcome or going away gift for someone starting out in a new city. Law firms with offices in Baltimore, DC and New York? The maps would make perfect reception area art.
And, at $165.00 each, you can group several 18 x 24” maps of meaningful cities on a wall for an inexpensive but very impressive display. We carry Baltimore, DC, New York, London and Paris in the store, but can special order many other cities for you. $165.00
Metal Monogrammed Crab
We love this new line! Order the cut metal monogram. It comes with magnets for mounting the monogram on to a variety of backings. We are showing it with the crab (a must-have for Marylanders!) – apple, pumpkin, rabbit, baby girl dress, baby boy romper, reindeer, anchor, and other designs are also available to change your monogram for every season and occasion. The metal monogram comes in black, but you can easily spray paint it a different color for every season. Monogram: $50.00. Backers: $50.00.
Safari BookThis photicular book is like having video in a book. The first page describes how the lenticular photography technology works to bring film-like, fluid motion to photographs. African animals walk and gallop across the pages, gorillas munch a leaf, and elephants flap their ears. Great photos along with lots of facts and stories about African animals. $24.95
Scribble Linens Runner
Chalk cloth table runners and squares with reversible fabric back. You can write the names of wines, cheeses, or what’s in the side dishes on the cloth with the supplied chalk. Or use it for placecards – we’d like the look of tracing the outline of the dinner plate, cutlery and glasses in chalk and then writing the guest’s name in the “plate.” $45.00 and $75.00
Dog Pillowcases
If you own a dog, you get it. The new puppy arrives – you set out to crate train, to have boundaries and make the rules and be ALPHA. Chairs, sofas, and the bed are OFF LIMITS. And then somehow in too short a time, you head towards your sofa and the dog opens one eye and stretches out further to let you know that, except for one small corner, it belongs to him. Or her. And the bed. You wake up scrunched on the very edge of the bed with no blankets. Just try to take the bed back – she who weighs 40 lbs. turns into a 200 lb. sack of cement and DOES NOT MOVE.
So for all our fellow dog lovers, we now have pillowcases that rub it in. Gift a pair to a new dog owner and listen to them say “no way.” Yeah, right. $35.00/set 2 pillowcases

Chris Frederick

Account Manager at Baltimore Fishbowl
Chris is the Account Manager for Baltimore Fishbowl.With 30+ years of experience in media, a background in journalism and a career in advertising and marketing, Chris has spent the past 5+ years dedicated to Baltimore Fishbowl, helping local businesses reach Baltimore Fishbowl viewers, with a little writing sprinkled in here and there.
Chris Frederick

Share the News


text:
Exposure to loud noise: Loud noise exposure is a very common cause of tinnitus today, and it often damages hearing as well. Unfortunately, many people are unconcerned about the harmful effects of excessively loud noise from firearms, high intensity music, or other sources. Twenty-six million American adults have suffered noise-induced hearing loss, according to the NIDCD.
Traumatic brain injury, caused by concussive shock, can damage the brain’s auditory processing areas and generate tinnitus symptoms. TBI is one of the major catalysts for tinnitus in military and veteran populations. Nearly 60% of all tinnitus cases diagnosed by the U.S. Veterans Administration are attributable to mild-to-severe traumatic brain injuries.
The cause of tinnitus may be difficult to determine. Your doctor will ask if you have been exposed to loud noise at work or home and will ask about medications you take, including all herbs and supplements. He or she may look in your ears to see if you have wax blockage or if the eardrum appears abnormal. If your hearing is affected, then your doctor may have you undergo a hearing test called an audiogram to measure your hearing ability in each ear.

We occasionally recommend neuropsychological testing using a simple screening questionnaire -- depression, anxiety, and OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder) are common in persons with tinnitus. This is not surprising considering how disturbing tinnitus may be to ones life (Holmes and Padgham, 2009). Persons with OCD tend to "obsess" about tinnitus. Treatment of these psychological conditions may be extremely helpful.
FACT: Some companies will try to point you to a miraculous tinnitus cure where a few pills will stop all signs of tinnitus. While much research has been done around the effects of medication and vitamin supplements on tinnitus, there is currently no proven tinnitus cure.  Only tinnitus management devices and sound therapy have been proven to decrease the effects of tinnitus.
Biofeedback and stress management. Tinnitus is stressful, and stress can worsen tinnitus. Biofeedback is a relaxation technique that helps control stress by changing bodily responses. Electrodes attached to the skin feed information about physiological processes such as pulse, skin temperature, and muscle tension into a computer, which displays the output on a monitor. Patients learn how to alter these processes and reduce the body's stress response by changing their thoughts and feelings. Mindfulness-based stress reduction techniques may also help.

Ear canal obstructions, infections, injuries or surgeries. This can include ossicle dislocation within the ear that affects hearing or recurring ear infections (like swimmer’s ear) either in the outside or inside of the ear canal (otitis media or otitis externa). Other ear disorders tied to tinnitus include otosclerosis (causes changes to the bones inside the ears), tympanic membrane perforation or labrynthitis (chronic infections or viruses that attack tissue in the ears).

Spontaneous otoacoustic emissions (SOAEs), which are faint high-frequency tones that are produced in the inner ear and can be measured in the ear canal with a sensitive microphone, may also cause tinnitus.[6] About 8% of those with SOAEs and tinnitus have SOAE-linked tinnitus,[need quotation to verify] while the percentage of all cases of tinnitus caused by SOAEs is estimated at about 4%.[6]
Glenn Schweitzer is an entrepreneur, blogger, and the author of Rewiring Tinnitus and Mind over Meniere’s. He is passionate about helping others who suffer from tinnitus and vestibular disorders and volunteers as an Ambassador Board Member for the Vestibular Disorders Association (VEDA). Through his blogs, he continues raise awareness for tinnitus, Meniere’s disease, and other vestibular disorders, spreading his message of hope to those in need.
In Canada, the level of funding or engagement towards tackling the problem of tinnitus is comparably minimal. But with recent headlines about the effects of tinnitus on those in police forces2 and frustration among veterans, this may change. Because of the progress made in tinnitus treatment and management research – including work done right here in Canada – the time is right to offer tinnitus sufferers effective options and the support they need. While many with tinnitus are not yet aware that there are ways to reduce or manage the constant ringing, hissing or buzzing in their ears, as more health care professionals make effective options available, word will spread. In time, tinnitus and its impact on quality of life can be reduced.
Most people should have a formal hearing test done by either the doctor or a hearing specialist (audiologist). People with tinnitus in only one ear and hearing loss should have gadolinium-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). People with tinnitus in only one ear and normal hearing should have an MRI if tinnitus lasts more than 6 months. People with pulsatile tinnitus often require magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) and sometimes angiography.
Addressing Any TMJ Disorders. A small percentage of people will experience tinnitus if they are having problems with their temporomandibular joint. This joint is located in front of the ears, on each side of the head, where the lower jawbone meets the skull. In these rare cases, a dental treatment or bite realignment may relieve you of the ringing you hear in your ears.
Acoustic neural stimulation is a relatively new technique for people whose tinnitus is very loud or won’t go away. It uses a palm-sized device and headphones to deliver a broadband acoustic signal embedded in music. The treatment helps stimulate change in the neural circuits in the brain, which eventually desensitizes you to the tinnitus. The device has been shown to be effective in reducing or eliminating tinnitus in a significant number of study volunteers.
According to the American Tinnitus Association, this complex audiological and neurological condition is experienced by nearly 50 million Americans. (2) Older adults, men, people who smoke or use drugs, and those with a history of ear infections or cardiovascular disease have the highest risk for developing tinnitus. Most experts believe that it’s not a disorder itself, but rather one symptom of another underlying disorder that affects auditory sensations and nerves near the ears. However, there are tinnitus treatment options out there to treat those symptoms.
White Noise Machines. These devices do a great job of simulating the sound of everything from ocean waves, to rain, to a thunder storm, to a crackling fire to an oscillating fan to just plain old static. The result is that your brain focuses on the sounds around you instead of the ringing in your head. You can even download apps on your iPhone that do the same thing so that you can always have a noise machine with you wherever you go. The constant background noise can not only bring back nostalgic feelings of joy, if you used to site around a crackling fire on holidays with your family, but also allow you to forget about your tinnitus.
Tinnitus matching is helpful to identify the frequency and intensity of the tinnitus. This is a simple procedure in which the audiologist adjusts a sound until a patient indicates that it is the same as their tinnitus.  Most patients match their tinnitus to the region of their hearing loss (Konig et al, 2006; Mahboubi et al, 2012). Unfortunately, the "gap detection test", does not work to confirm tinnitus in humabs (Boyen et al, 2015).
Oticon Tinnitus SoundSupport works by adding sound to the buzzing, hissing, or roaring you already hear. This may seem peculiar, but in fact, the relief sounds (which are dynamic and soothing) can mix with and distract you from those bothersome noises, giving you control over your condition. The flexible program includes a variety of relief sounds that can ease the effects of tinnitus. Your audiologist can personalize the sounds to your needs and preferences, and they can be used alongside Tinnitus Retraining Therapy for instruction and support.
Other therapies. Other treatments that have been studied for tinnitus include transcutaneous electrical stimulation of parts of the inner ear by way of electrodes placed on the skin or acupuncture needles, and stimulation of the brain using a powerful magnetic field (a technique called repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation, or rTMS). Transcutaneous electrical stimulation has been shown to be no more effective than a placebo. In two small trials, rTMS compared with a sham procedure helped improve the perception of tinnitus in a few patients.
It is important to note that existing hearing loss is sometimes not directly observable by the patient, who may not perceive any lost frequencies. But this this does not mean that hearing damage has not been done. A trained audiologist or other hearing health professional can perform sensitive audiometric tests to precisely measure the true extent of hearing loss.
Some persons with severe TMJ (temporomandibular joint) arthritis have severe tinnitus. Generally these persons say that there is a "screeching" sound. This is another somatic tinnitus. TMJ is extremely common -- about 25% of the population. The exact prevalence of TMJ associated tinnitus is not established, but presumably it is rather high too. Having TMJ increases the odds that you have tinnitus too, by about a factor of 1.6-3.22 (Park and Moon, 2014; Lee et al, 2016). This is the a large risk factor for tinnitus, similar to the risk from hearing loss (see table above).
An assessment of hyperacusis, a frequent accompaniment of tinnitus,[56] may also be made.[57] The measured parameter is Loudness Discomfort Level (LDL) in dB, the subjective level of acute discomfort at specified frequencies over the frequency range of hearing. This defines a dynamic range between the hearing threshold at that frequency and the loudnes discomfort level. A compressed dynamic range over a particular frequency range is associated with subjectve hyperacusis. Normal hearing threshold is generally defined as 0–20 decibels (dB). Normal loudness discomfort levels are 85–90+ dB, with some authorities citing 100 dB. A dynamic range of 55 dB or less is indicative of hyperacusis.[58][59]
Most people who suffer from tinnitus also experience hearing loss to some degree. As they often accompany one another, the two conditions may be correlated. In fact, some researchers believe that subjective tinnitus can only occur if the auditory system has been previously damaged (source). The loss of certain sound frequencies due to hearing loss may change how the brain processes sound, causing it to adapt and fill in the gaps with tinnitus. The underlying hearing loss typically results from exposure to loud noises or advanced age:

Muscle spasms: Tinnitus that is described as clicking may be due to abnormalities that cause the muscle in the roof of the mouth (palate) to go into spasm. This causes the Eustachian tube, which helps equalize pressure in the ears, to repeatedly open and close. Multiple sclerosis and other neurologic diseases that are associated with muscle spasms may also be a cause of tinnitus, as they may lead to spasms of certain muscles in the middle ear that can cause the repetitive clicking.

Tinnitus is a symptom, not a disease. Most cases are due to damage to the microscopic endings of the sensory nerve in the inner ear, commonly from exposure to loud noise (as from amplified music or gunfire). Other causes include allergy, high or low blood pressure, a tumor, diabetes, thyroid dysfunction, and head or neck injury. In addition, some drugs, including aspirin and other anti-inflammatories, antibiotics, sedatives, and antidepressants can also cause tinnitus. If so, changing drugs or lowering the dosage usually helps.
It is important to note that existing hearing loss is sometimes not directly observable by the patient, who may not perceive any lost frequencies. But this this does not mean that hearing damage has not been done. A trained audiologist or other hearing health professional can perform sensitive audiometric tests to precisely measure the true extent of hearing loss.
We conducted a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial investigating the effects of the customized music-based sound therapy for reducing tinnitus. Participants (N = 50) who suffered from tinnitus were randomly allocated (with 1:1 ratio) to the treatment and placebo groups with assessments at baseline, 3, 6, and 12 months. The primary outcome was the differences in mean scores of the THI compared at four time intervals. Independent and paired samples t-tests were conducted to compare THI scores between and within groups, respectively.
Michael Chrostowski, PhD is the founder of Sound Options Tinnitus Treatments Inc. His dedication to improving the lives of tinnitus sufferers drives his vision of providing effective, affordable and accessible treatments for the many tinnitus sufferers he has met throughout his research career. With over 8 years of research in the field of tinnitus and collaborations with leaders in the field, Dr. Chrostowski was able to make use of cutting-edge research to develop software that can customize an effective and personal treatment for tinnitus. Dr. Chrostowski received a BASc in electrical and computer engineering at the University of Toronto and a PhD in neuroscience at McMaster University.
According to ATA, The American Tinnitus Association, 45 million Americans are struggling with tinnitus. In Germany the “Deutsche Tinnitus-Liga” estimates that 19 million Germans have experienced tinnitus, and that 2,7 million Germans have persistent tinnitus, of which 1 million have very severe tinnitus. The British Tinnitus Association estimates that 10% of the UK population suffers from tinnitus.  Read more about the prevalence of tinnitus.

While there is currently no cure for tinnitus, treatment options like Tinnitus Control at least provide patients with the ability to successfully manage the ringing they hear by suppressing the cause of it. This is achieved through their proprietary blend of the following active ingredients: arnica, chininum sulphuricum, ferrum metallicum, kali phosphoricum, natrum sulphuricum, pulsatilla, silicea, thiosinaminum, garlic and gingko biloba.
Tinnitus is when people think they hear something in their ears but there is actually no sound. People with tinnitus actually do "hear" noises that range from a whistle to a crackling noise to a roar. It can happen only occasionally, can occur for a period of days then take a break before recurring again, or it can be constant. The sound can vary in pitch from quiet to unbearably loud, or it can stay the same.
Cochlear Implants. These implants are a treatment option for patients that have a severe hearing loss along with tinnitus. Cochlear implants are designed to bypass any damaged parts of the inner ear and send the electrical signals sound makes directly to the auditory nerve. By bringing in outside noise, these implants can effectively mask your tinnitus, as well as stimulate your neural circuits to change.
Standard masking devices help to mask the sound of tinnitus while you are using them, but they have no long-lasting effects. Modern medical-grade devices use customized sounds tailored specifically to your tinnitus. Unlike regular sound machines, these devices are only worn intermittently. You may experience benefits long after the device is turned off, and over time, you may experience long-term improvement in the perceived loudness of your tinnitus.
The results were calculated using a measure called “effect size”, which is a way of quantifying the size of the difference between the two groups. For the difference in quality of life scores between groups, the effect size was calculated to be 0.24. This can be interpreted as a “small” effect. In other words, treatment including CBT gave a small improvement in quality of life compared with usual care.
Everything you need to know about acoustic neuroma Acoustic neuroma is a benign tumor affecting nerves between the inner ear and the brain. It can lead to hearing loss, tinnitus, and loss of balance. This MNT Knowledge Center article explores the treatments, symptoms, and causes of acoustic neuroma, as well as how the condition may become more severe and complicate. Read now

The noise heard by people with tinnitus may be a buzzing, ringing, roaring, whistling, or hissing sound and is often associated with hearing loss. Some people hear more complex sounds that may be different at different times. These sounds are more noticeable in a quiet environment and when people are not concentrating on something else. Thus, tinnitus tends to be most disturbing to people when they are trying to sleep. However, the experience of tinnitus is highly individual. Some people are very disturbed by their symptoms, whereas others find them quite bearable.
Inspection of the eardrum may sometimes demonstrate subtle movements due to contraction of the tensor tympani (Cohen and Perez, 2003). Tensor tympani myoclonus causes a thumping. Another muscle, the stapedius, can also make higher pitched sounds. See this page for more. Opening or closing of the eustachian tube causes a clicking.    The best way to hear "objective tinnitus" from the middle ear is simply to have an examiner with normal hearing put their ear up next to the patient.  Stethoscopes favor low frequency sounds and may not be very helpful.
Medication. Some medications are known to be ototoxic while others list tinnitus as a side effect without causing permanent damage to the ear structures. New medications come out so often that it is difficult to maintain an up to date listing; another option, if you are experiencing tinnitus and are curious if it could be your medication, is to talk to your pharmacist or look up your specific prescriptions online through a website such as www.drugs.com. You should never stop a medication without consulting with your physician, even if you think it may be contributing to your tinnitus.
Vascular issues. Some people have blood vessels near their ears that are capable of causing tinnitus. I have found that if the blood pressure is elevated, this increased pressure can cause that dreaded ringing in your ears or even a whooshing sound. Because pregnant women often have elevated blood pressure, they are easily susceptible to tinnitus. Tinnitus caused by pregnancy should go away with an over the counter tinnitus treatment and once the baby is born. An overactive thyroid has also been shown to causes vascular issues that bring on tinnitus.
The degree of loudness or annoyance caused by tinnitus varies greatly from one individual to another. Loudness and annoyance do not always covary. An individual with loud tinnitus may not be troubled, while an individual with soft tinnitus may be debilitated. Most individuals with subjective tinnitus have hearing loss that shows up in a standard clinical audiogram. Tinnitus can sometimes worsen or sometimes improve over time.
Tinnitus can arise anywhere along the auditory pathway, from the outer ear through the middle and inner ear to the brain's auditory cortex, where it's thought to be encoded (in a sense, imprinted). One of the most common causes of tinnitus is damage to the hair cells in the cochlea (see "Auditory pathways and tinnitus"). These cells help transform sound waves into nerve signals. If the auditory pathways or circuits in the brain don't receive the signals they're expecting from the cochlea, the brain in effect "turns up the gain" on those pathways in an effort to detect the signal — in much the same way that you turn up the volume on a car radio when you're trying to find a station's signal. The resulting electrical noise takes the form of tinnitus — a sound that is high-pitched if hearing loss is in the high-frequency range and low-pitched if it's in the low-frequency range. This kind of tinnitus resembles phantom limb pain in an amputee — the brain is producing abnormal nerve signals to compensate for missing input.