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Lights, Camera, Hollywood Studios!

So, I’m feeling a lot better… mainly because Wes is now sick, and if I don’t start feeling better, I’m not sure what the girls will do when left to themselves. If that’s not motivation to heal, I don’t know what is. And now, for part two of the WDW recap…

We set out early on the second day for what would be our only day at Hollywood Studios. If you have no kids or older kids, then this park is probably loads of fun. But for those of us who hang with the preschool crowd? There isn’t a whole lot for us. That’s why it wasn’t surprising that the day began with Gram and me sitting with the kiddos while Chris, Kerry, Wes, and Gramps went to ride Rock N Roller Coaster and Tower of Terror. Hey, I couldn’t let my mom be stuck all by herself with four kids, could I? So, I unselfishly told the others to go on and that I would just have to miss out on the thrill rides. (Okay, so the reality is that I would NEVER go on either of those rides, great chicken that I am. Maybe when the girls are teenagers and need a fourth rider… no, not even then.)

Fortunately, the lines for both thrill rides were quick and easy, thanks to the Extra Magic Hours. That extra hour of a nearly-empty park seriously makes it worth staying at one of the Disney resorts because we were done with the long wait rides before the crowds even arrived. Woo-hoo!

From there, we all went to Toy Story Midway Mania. Can I just tell you that I LOVE this ride? Even the line you’re waiting in is fun, with all of the oversized toys and the very funny Mr. Potato Head. (And on that same note, Winnie the Pooh’s ride at the Magic Kingdom has undergone some changes. The waiting line for that ride now has all of these hands-on activities for children, and wow — what a difference it makes for that long wait! Our kids kept busy and entertained the whole time!) I beat Wes by at least 100,000 points on the Toy Story ride, even though he claims his poor showing was because he had to help Ana. Yeah, right.

Backlot Tours was just a few steps from there, and during that ride we learned that Kendall doesn’t like fire, Ana doesn’t appreciate loud noises, and Connor can merrily and obliviously enjoy a granola bar while the world seems to be crumbling down all around us. And Emma is just okay with anything. Except when she’s not, which is what happened right before we went into the Muppet Vision show and she started screeching inexplicably. Not sure what was going on, but she got over it just in time for the start of the show.

At some point in all of this, the kids played on the Honey I Shrunk the Kids playground, we ate at Pizza Planet, and Emma fell off a wall onto her face. Or was it Ana who fell off the wall? See, this is why I didn’t want to wait too long to write this — I’m already forgetting everything!*

*Just confirmed with Emma that it was Emma who fell off the wall. Apparently I can forget because it wasn’t my face that smacked the concrete.

After some speculation on whether or not the kids were brave enough for The Great Movie Ride, where Wes said there was a terrifying alien that falls from the ceiling, we decided that we’d give it a shot. This was one of the few rides that Gram and Gramps had seemed really interested in, but they were still back at Pizza Planet, enjoying a leisurely lunch (and getting a break from us, I think). We went on the ride and covered everyone’s eyes as the alien scene began… and we couldn’t find the alien! We had to look really hard to see him up in the ceiling, prompting Wes to say, after it was all over, “That was a lot more terrifying when I was a kid.” It must have been! (Ana, after the tour guide was forced off the car by a gangster, told me, “He was not very nice to her.” When the tour guide came back and assisted in the incineration of the same gangster, Ana said, “YAY!!! SHE KILLED HIM!” Awesome.)

At some point after the Great Movie Ride and before we met back up with Gram and Gramps, Ana began falling asleep. And an Ana halfway between sleep and wide awake is a very grumpy Ana indeed.

Fun times.

Emma still wanted to meet Handy Manny and watch Voyage of the Little Mermaid, but Ana insisted that all she wanted to do was go back to the hotel and sleep. So, I parked Ana in some shade, waved goodbye to Emma as she went with the rest of the group, and bought myself some ice cream to eat while Ana napped.

Worth the trip to Florida, that ice cream is. Mmmmm…

By the time Emma got back, the Faulks were ready to take Miss Grouchy Pants back for a nap. On our way out of the park, we walked through One Man’s Dream, an attraction that I had never gotten to see but had put on my must-do list for this trip. It was well worth the visit, and a lot of the exhibits made better sense to me, thanks to this book. Per Em’s request, we made just one more stop on our way out of the park to pick up this…

We went back to the hotel… where no one napped. And thus we concluded that in the future, we would just stay in the parks and push through the exhaustion!

Right before dinner, we met up with Gram, Gramps, Kendall, and Connor. Kerry and Chris were going to Epcot for dinner, and we were taking the rest of the crew to the Contemporary Resort for dinner at Chef Mickey’s. We were VERY impressed with the Contemporary. When we’re rich and famous, we’ll stay there. (See? I told you!) Chef Mickey’s, for those who are interested, is the loudest restaurant on WDW property. Or at least it seemed that way to us. The kids were so excited to see Mickey, Minnie, Pluto, Donald, and Goofy, and Ana and Kendall were even brave enough to meet them. (Emma opted not to, and Connor slept through it all.)

At some point during all of this, I noticed that fireworks were going off over the Magic Kingdom (couldn’t hear them with all the noise, but I could see them!), and our table was just in the right spot to see them. So nice!

Up next, Day Three with a couple of mermaids and a fairy! (Or an Amazonian warrior princess. I’ll let you decide when you see the pictures…)

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text:
Jan 15th – Jessie and the ice cave

Jessie sniffed the ground and tried to pull Santa into the ice cave. From the moment Santa had told her she was going on the carnival ride  she had been excited. Jessie loved rides and she was so excited that she she tried to push herself to the front of the line.

“Patience,  Jessie,” said Santa. “We have to wait our turn.”

Jessie looked at the people ahead of her. There was a small group of teenagers climbing into a light blue car.It was on a track that led deep into the man-made ice cave. She whined but tried to wait patiently. When it was finally their turn, Jessie bolted forward pulling Santa into the front car. Jessie stood with her feet on the handle bars, her ears alert and her tail whipping Santa on the back of the head.

Shortly after they climbed in the car began to move. It sped up so fast that Jessie’s ears and tongue  whipped from side to side.

The car banked a curve and Jessie fell onto Santa’s lap. Then the car rose up higher into the sky. At the crescendo of the climb Jessie looked down excitedly. She could see crystals shining below her. The ride was designed to look like thousands of ice crystals glittering in the sun.. Sparkling waves of color glimmered in the air. Jessie thought it was beautiful.

Jessie looked down at the track in front of her. It dropped at a deep angle straight down and Jessie barked excitedly.  Her tail shook her body from side to side as she wagged it furiously.

The car hung in mid-air and then unexpectedly dipped and rolled down the track.  It went faster and faster turning into a straight section and then downwards.

Jessie’s ears whipped in front of her eyes and her stomach lurched. When they reached the bottom of the incline Jessie felt ill. She wavered from to the side and whined at Santa. Jessie pulled forward and tried to jump out of the cart but the dog was securely belted to the back of the car.

“Jessie girl, sit still! You can’t get out of the car until it stops moving.”

Jessie whined  and belched. Her insides were heaving and she wasn’t sure if she could stop herself from vomiting on the floor. She looked at Santa imploringly.

Santa pulled Jessie close to him. “Just a few more curves Jessie.”

The car started climbing again. It climbed further and further up until Jessie’s nose was at the peak of the building. She trembled and closed her eyes.

The car swerved and then dropped straight  down.

Jessie’s stomach took another dive. She held her jaw firmly in place to keep from being sick and kept her eyes closed until the car moved forward and gently rolled to a stop.

”Here girl, let me help you.” Santa lifted Jessie in his strong arms and pulled the dog out of the car. He carried her back to a patch of pavement and gently placed her down.

Jessie wobbled from side to side. Her head was pounding and her stomach lurched at the sight of a child holding cotton candy.

Jessie dropped down to the ground and hid her eyes with her paws.   She sat there for some time with Santa gently stroking her fur.

When Jessie’s stomach settled she looked up at the ice cave in front of her. She had never thought that she would find a ride that she didn’t like  but she definitely didn’t like this one. From now on she was staying away from carnival rides  The only ride she wanted to take from now on was a ride in Santa’s sleigh..

One thought on “Jan 15th – Jessie and the ice cave”

  1. Very great post. I simply stumbled upon your weblog and wished to say that I have
    really loved browsing your blog posts. After all
    I’ll be subscribing on your rss feed and I hope you write once
    more very soon!

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Japan Society Young Professionals Midsummer Matsuri & Karaoke Party

Japan Society Young Professionals 2nd Annual Midsummer Matsuri & Karaoke Party

ジャパン・ソサエティー　ヤング・プロフェッショナル

Thursday, August 1, 2013
7:00—9:30 PM

With Alex York, Singer & Japanese TV Personality, as MC!

at Japan Society
333 East 47th Street, at First Avenue, New York City

Yukata and other summer attire welcome.

Japan Society’s Young Professionals events provide the opportunity for emerging business leaders from the U.S. and Japan (aged 25-45) to meet people with similar interests, experience programming on timely topics, and network with their peers.

Pre-Registration Required
youngpro@japansociety.org or 212-715-1219

More information: click here

ADMISSION – Paid at Door
$10 for Corporate & Individual Members
$15 for Non-members

Admission includes light Japanese food and one drink ticket, cash bar thereafter.

Check the Society’s Corporate Member list to take advantage of the membership discount.

We look forward to seeing you on August 1.


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Posted in Inventory, Shopping trends, Social Media, Sourcing, Thrift Shops

Sourcing in Appleton, Wisconsin

99 cents a pound, 120 pounds of clothing with several hours of sourcing, ends with one question….

Will it all Fit?

We prepacked our luggage this afternoon, arranged the clothing (along with an IKEA office chair) and it appears we still have room for ourselves and a cooler.  I had a back up option of mailing the items home, but thank goodness it fits.

While sourcing in Wisconsin, we shopped in Illinois.  We’re picking up a TV and Futon up this weekend for the new office.  It looks like the moment we sign the lease, the place will be set up and ready for work by Monday.

Amazing to think that just 6 weeks ago, none of this was our immediate future.  God has a plan and I can’t wait to see what’s up next!!!

Where everything is fit for a Queen

Priced for a Pauper

"If someone would have told me 10 years ago that I would be here today...." You hear that said a lot when someone is fulfilling an ambition they've had for years but never thought to act on it. I have been a full time reseller for a year. There have been ups, downs and a huge learning curve for me. Once I got a hang on the selling platforms, I explored other social media and ecommerce options. Currently, #JewelsForThePauper is on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and now BlogSpot. I have had this ambition, I knew I would be able to act on it at the right time. I feel so grateful to be able to do something I enjoy, be my own boss and bring in extra cash for our household. I am not sure where this blog is going to "go," but you have to have a start and today is the day!

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Blown away

A few years back, when I was involved in a rather prestigious luxury project, I used to make multiple visits to Murano in Italy; more specifically to the factories of the finest blown glass experts in the world. Needless to say, the legacy of some of those centuries old brands justified the incredible quality and craftsmanship of the products (one of the brands i was working with had made the first lens for Galileo!). To top it all, the mystique of Venice has always held me in her sway (I am indeed an absolute die-hard admirer of Italy).

But much closer home, in the by-lanes of bustling Delhi, I often experience a similar sense of excitement; when my dear friends, Gautam Seth and Prateek Jain choose to enthrall me (and many more) with their intense ideology and sense of scale in blown glass lighting intsallations. The duo run a brand called Klove but more importantly, between the two, there also runs an incredible amount of refined creativity. It’s not easy to talk about their work, because the visual experience far surpasses my verbal monologue so I suppose I’m just going to have to let my pictures do all the talking.

Keep the magic alive boys… the gullies of Delhi may never surpass the romance of the canals of Venice, but the drama of what you create comes teasingly close to what the Venetians offer…

Viva l’India?

Copyright: JJ Valaya/ All rights reserved. All images are the sole property of JJ Valaya. No part of this post/publication may be reproduced, stored in retrieval systems, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior permission of JJ Valaya. This applies to all acts of use, in particular such as the reproduction of pictures and text, their performance and demonstration, translation, filming, microfilming, broadcasting, storage and processing in electronic media

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I popped into Primark yesterday with my daughter as she loves to spend her pocket money in there, she just gets so many little things to play around with. I think she spent £10 and came away with a choker, a pack of 5 rings, a sports top, a makeup box with drawers and a t-shirt! Its just so good for little girls.

Obviously mummy had a little look too and I found this t-shirt with a net hem for £8. Its a nice stretchy cotton and there are 2 layers of net, I could see this straight away with heels and a leather jacket for a night out.

I have styled it 3 different ways and I love them all, its such a good day to night top.

Here I’ve styled it with my favourite white converse, Zara jeans and an H&M jacket. Perfect for school runs and food shopping, which I seem to do all the time!

The next look I’ve styled it with my strappy pumps, Rag and Bone jeans and a quirky little handbag from Next, this look is perfect for Saturday shopping and lunch out with friends.

The next look below is one of my favourites as the t-shirt just sets off the outfit, the way it hangs below the fitted jacket is so feminine. I’ve paired it with Zara smart trousers, H&M fitted jacket, Christian Louboutin Pigalle’s and my gorgeous Lisa Bea clutch. This is perfect for a night out for cocktails and dinner.

The bonus is its only £8 and you can wear it so many different ways, and the hubby loves it too!

https://www.primark.com/en/homepage  https://www.lisabea.com/  http://www2.hm.com/en_gb/index.html  http://www.zara.com/uk/

Have a lovely evening, Joanna xxx

2 thoughts on “The £8 T-Shirt for day to night

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A Guide to Landscape Gardening Prices in the UK

Landscape gardening is a broad term that covers many different aspects of garden design and construction.

Fencing, patios, garden pond installations, decking and turfing are just a few of the projects that fall under the umbrella term “landscape gardening”.

While it’s impossible to provide a guide price without knowing more details of the size and scope of the project, we can delve into the individual project costs and look at how much landscape gardeners and companies charge on a per day basis.

Explore These Prices

Throughout our site, you’ll find a series of price guides for gardening projects.

We suggest you explore any that are relevant to you:

Fence Panels

lal fence panels in garden

Our researched fence panel price guide is an excellent resource for those thinking about replacing a fence. It’s also one of the most popular pages on our site.

See how much it costs to replace a fence here.

Garden Decking

Timber decking is a popular alternative to patio slabs and there are lots of different colours and styles to choose from.

Explore our decking price guide here.

Turfing and Artificial Grass

Fake grass photo

“Fake” grass has come a long way since it was first developed and now looks much more realistic and acceptable. There are many benefits too, most notably the reduced maintenance.

You can explore our real turf price guide here and over here you’ll find our guide to artificial grass costs.

Garden Ponds

Pond with plants

Are you thinking about adding a garden pond to your garden? We have a price guide for that too.

See our guide to garden pond prices here.

patio cost

If your project involves laying a new patio, be sure to check our research into patio prices.

Explore our guide here.

So How Much Does a Typical Landscape Gardening Project Cost?

There’s no such thing as a typical landscaping garden project as every garden is different but we can look at what gardeners and businesses charge.

Almost every landscape gardening project will involve the following:

  1. Drawings and plans by a designer or even a landscape architect.
  2. The wages of the employees doing the work.
  3. The profit and overheads of the business you choose.
  4. Materials.
  5. Waste disposal inc skip hire or trips to a waste disposal yard.
  6. VAT.

Drawings, Plans and Architectural Services

This is perhaps the biggest variable of any landscape gardening project. A small garden that only needs a basic drawing without the services of a specialist designer is going to be much cheaper than a complex project that involves an architect.

We know from experience that architects in the construction industry charge between 9% and 13% of the entire project cost. We would expect landscape architects to charge a similar fee, perhaps a little higher for small projects.

Cost for a small/medium project: From £250 – £2500.

Employee Wages

The wages of landscape gardeners will depend on where they’re based in the UK and their experience.

Our research into tradesperson’s wages revealed that the average wage for a landscape gardener is between £110 and £180 per day. They rarely work alone and a team comprising two people is the most common arrangement. A trainee or “labourer” will earn anything from minimum wage to £100 per day.

Cost for a team of two: From £180 to £280 per day.

Profits and Overheads

Vans, tools, insurance, websites, advertising, backroom staff, sales staff, sick pay, holiday pay, employers pension and National Insurance contributions etc + the general running costs of a business can run into tens or even hundreds of thousands of pounds each year.

But what would a typical, average-sized landscape company be looking to charge you per day to cover this?

Bit of a guess here as they’re all different: £250 – £350 per day per team of two.

This is not a cost we can estimate without knowing more details of the project.

Waste Disposal

Disposing of waste in the UK is not cheap, especially if you hire a skip.

See the going rate for skip hire here.

This is added to the cost of the project and is collected by the landscape gardener and passed over to the taxman every three months.

Not every business charges VAT and this page explains how to legally avoid VAT.

Cost For a Small Landscape Gardening Project?

For a fairly small landscape gardening project lasting approximately 6 – 7 days, you’ll be looking at around £6000 + materials with VAT on top.

How Does Our Cost Guide Compare to Other Published Price Lists?

JHPS Gardens are based in Staffordshire and cover the surrounding areas. Last year their most expensive landscape gardening project was £70,000, the cheapest was £2000 and the average came in at £15,000. Explore their price guide here (last checked September 2017).

Design For Me is a web-based service that helps you get in touch with designers and architects. They suggest a price of around £100 per square metre for a landscaped garden, excluding design/architect fees. The price drops to £30 per square metre if you only want planting services and no hard landscaping. Explore the Design For Me price guide here.

Garden Design Manchester suggests a price of £10,000 for a typical 100 square metre landscaped garden. They also have additional price examples on their website that you can find here.

Although slightly outdated, this article by landscape architect Richard Sneesby suggests a budget of between £5000 and £10,000 will get you 7 to 8 days of labour and about £1500 worth of materials. Explore his insights here.

AyeGardening is based in Surrey and they also cover the surrounding areas. They have several price guides on their website, all with plenty of photos. This project is based in Sussex and is worth exploring.

It’s very difficult to provide a cost guide for something as general and wide-ranging as landscape gardening.

There are too many variables to take into account and everyone has different tastes and expectations.

Our suggestions are a good place to start but in reality, they aren’t a substitute for a written quote from a specialist based in your area.

If you would like a fixed quote for a landscape gardening project, hit the button below to see how we can help you:

Get a Quote Online


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Suicide Prevention Day: Karma

I already linked to this story when it was published on someone else’s blog, but I thought it would be appropriate to repost today. Enjoy!

Jenna climbed the stairs, flight after flight leading her into the sky. The sun was setting over the city. Below, a million busy people were swarming through the streets, going home from school or work, meeting their friends and collecting their kids.
Pausing for breath, Jenna leaned over the railing, watching. She wondered how many of them would notice if she were to drop dead on that rooftop. She wondered how long it would take for someone to find her, if anyone would even miss her.
They would notice her if she dropped out of the sky though. Not the quiet, plain girl in the corner any more. Just a mess on the pavement. She would make an impact then. Jenna closed her eyes and gripped the rail, lifting her leg to climb onto the edge.

Jenna jumped, hearing a voice behind her. Her foot slipped, losing purchase on the edge, keeping her on the rooftop. Her heart pounded as she turned around.
“Are you okay?” A woman stood near the door.
Jenna scowled at her. “You a cop? Trying to stop me?”
The woman shook her head. “I’m not a cop.”
Jenna turned away. “Then leave me alone.”
“Watch then. Whatever. I don’t care.”
The woman moved closer. “It doesn’t hurt forever.”
“Like you’d know.” Jenna snorted.
“Try me.” The woman stood beside her, looking over the edge. “I know more than you think.”
Jenna shook her head. “I’ll just come back tomorrow. Or wait for you to go home. You can’t stay out here forever.”
“You’re wrong. About everything. You’ve got so much ahead of you. And you can be anything you want to be – a vet, a model, an artist.”
“You don’t know anything about me.”
“I know more than you think, Jenna.”
Jenna looked up. “Have we met?”
“Maybe a long time ago in a future that won’t happen if you jump.”
“Who are you?” Jenna stepped away from the edge, staring at the woman. She looked ordinary, more like a younger version of her own mother than a dangerous stalker.
“Someone who needs you to live. Whatever they say, Jenna, you don’t have to believe them. And you might not see it, but you’re beautiful. You’re clever. And you’re talented. You just need a little more time.” The woman smiled. “If you jump, you’ll miss it all. Your story will be short and sad. No first kiss. No career. You’ll never meet the father of your children and your children will never be born.”
“So they’ll never grow up to change the world. And neither will you. You’re special, Jenna. And there is only one way to prove that.”
Jenna took another step towards the door, both women reaching for it at the same time.

The woman smiled as she descended the stairs remembering the night twenty years earlier, when a woman she had never met decided to save her life.

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A Bonus Country

After spending a lot of time in our lovely (really! biggest Ibis room ever!) hotel room on Sunday and Monday due to the rain and the fact that lots of things were closed on both days, we decided to take advantage of the fact that our train to Paris did not depart until 8 pm and do a little sightseeing. Although there are more art museums in and around Nice, we opted to save what little art-viewing attention we have left for Paris. Instead, we decided to hop on a train to visit the aquarium in Monaco. We had come through Monaco on the way from Florence, but didn’t feel like we could count it in our list, as we didn’t even see it since the train station at Monte Carlo is underground.
As Tuesday was a holiday in most of Europe as well as the US, we got to wait a while for the train (longer than the actual ride). We arrived and followed the signs up the hill to the aquarium.

I guess the professional cyclists who live here don’t mind the hills (and like the tax laws), but I would not want to bike in Monaco. Once at the Musee Oceanographique de Monaco, we noted a line of about a dozen people waiting to buy tickets and no one at the automatic ticket dispensers. Not at all sure that the PIN-less chip card would work, Maureen stayed in line while I tried the machine. Voila! Nearly instant tickets! Note to Americans who plan to travel in Europe before we can get chip-and-PIN cards–get a chip card, they work more often than not (and much more often than the chip-less ones) in machines.

We went in the museum and, noting it was noon, directly to the rooftop café. Good move. It was already buzzing when we sat down, but got much more crowded over the next hour. Many families were apparently spending the holiday at the aquarium. I enjoyed moules et frites (better than in Belgium), while Maureen had entrecôte. Not bad for a museum café.
After we were finally able to pay the bill (most of the waiters were, shall we say not college-student age, and the rush was taking its toll) we began with the views from the rooftop.

We then worked our way down, seeing some of the treasures from the marine expeditions of Prince Albert I and learning (a little) about the pioneering science conducted on those missions.

(Side note: As we were approaching the museum, I noted that it has some animal names on the outside, including polar bear and albatross. I found it unlikely that these creatures would be inside–but there they were, preserved by taxidermy. Actually pretty cool.)

Sadly, not much of the museum part was translated, so we could mostly look at artifacts and only read the 10-20% that was available in English.

2 thoughts on “A Bonus Country

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Retro-Chic Wedding Dresses from Stephanie James Couture

July 8, 2009 | admin

Image by Victor Sizemore, vintage inspired Josephine wedding dress from Stephanie James Couture
(Image above by Victor Sizemore)

At Junebug we’re huge supporters of finding your own personal wedding style, so we absolutely love the retro-chic wedding dresses of Stephanie James Couture! Stephanie began her design business after creating the perfect dress for her own wedding day and receiving amazing responses from other brides and professionals who wanted a Stephanie James Couture dress of their very own. Today, out of her Huntington Beach, California storefront, she makes tea-length wedding dresses, full length wedding dresses, darling little bridal suits and whimsical veils and accessories, but my hands-down favorite design has got to be the Josephine wedding dress (shown above and below). That sewn-on ribbon sash just makes me so happy! Check out the Stephanie James Couture website and blog to see all of her gorgeous designs and to find a stockist in your area.

Vintage inspired Josephine wedding dress from Stephanie James Couture, alternative, tea-length wedding dress

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  1. These are GORGEOUS! I had to pop the little window out of my Google reader to come comment because these dresses literally made me gasp. Amazing!

  2. I heart the neckline of the strapless dress! And, I have to comment on Victor Sizemore’s photography as well…I was fortunate enough to be in a wedding in Orange County that he photographed, and his team really captured the day in both still and candid shots. Another excellent recommendation from Junebug on both counts.

  3. Pretty dress…

  4. Loved the lace wedding dress with pink ribbon.

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Happy (Third) Birthday, Pavel!

Today, we celebrate the third anniversary of my husband’s stem-cell transplant–also known as his new birthday, January 20, 2015. Clearly, this day was a significant milestone in Pavel’s life and in our relationship. I believe, however, that telling the story might also be of benefit to others. Some might find the procedure itself as fascinating as I do–the details of a medical miracle unfolding day by day. Others–those diagnosed with a life-threatening illness and the ones who care for them–might gain strength or hope from learning of one man’s multi-decade battle with cancer. Mostly, though, I would like to share with everyone the dailyness of the experience. A diagnosis of cancer need not shape one’s life. Rather, it can be just another of the many challenges one must meet with grace, face with dignity, and learn from with humility. It can even be a source of inspiration and gratitude. These are the lessons I have learned from two husbands with cancer and from all the courageous men and women who shared the same experience and often turned it into a blessing in the lives of others.

Amazingly, this story starts in the early summer of 1989 in Toronto, Ontario, when the 29-year-old Pavel Derka, an avid runner and cyclist, was preparing to marry the beautiful and exotic Rosaline Tseu. After an evening of drinking with his future mother-in-law–his first taste of alcohol–he felt a swelling in his abdomen and was shortly thereafter diagnosed with a fast-growing and aggressive cancer, diffuse large B-cell lymphoma. Even in Canada, where the wait for medical treatment could be weeks or even months, he was moved to the head of the line and began chemotherapy. The wedding had to be postponed for the treatment, and his hair had fallen out by the time he and Rosi said their vows on November 7.

Despite some lasting side effects, the combination of chemotherapy and radiation was successful, and Pavel remained cancer free for more than two decades. Then, on a trip to visit his mother in Mississippi in the summer of 2010, he felt a growth under his chin, and a biopsy revealed follicular lymphoma, an indolent (slow-growing) cancer with a recommended treatment plan of wait and see. The waiting stage lasted more than three years, but in late 2013, Pavel sensed a change in his disease as tumors grew in his abdomen.

In January 2014, he began a kinder, gentler form of chemotherapy than the CHOP regimen he underwent in 1989. The tumors immediately reduced in size, and the overall treatment went well, with no nausea and not even any hair loss. However, by June, although the follicular lymphoma had been treated successfully, the remaining cancer cells had transformed into the aggressive type of lymphoma he had in 1989.

He began another round of treatments–this time as an inpatient, several days at a time throughout the summer. This was the grueling kind of chemotherapy (RICE), with hair loss and nausea and overall debilitation. In the midst of it all, we got married on September 5, 2014, and he had to return to the hospital for another round of chemotherapy on September 7.

Having undergone this successful treatment of his lymphoma, Pavel was simply waiting to be accepted as a candidate for stem-cell transplant. Once he had his initial appointment at the UNC Bone Marrow Transplant Clinic, the preparations began.

For much of the time before and after the transplant, we were privileged to stay at the Family House sponsored by the State Employees’ Credit Union. This place of compassion and love offers rooms or suites, depending on the length of the stay, for people who must be near the hospital for frequent visits. Volunteers provide lavish meals each evening, and local music groups provide frequent concerts and other entertainment. The times spent there were truly periods of healing among other patients and caregivers grateful for a look or a word of understanding.

The first step for an autologous transplant patient is called mobilization. Two days of high-dose chemotherapy both destroy any remaining lymphoma and lower the blood counts to make room for the rapid proliferation of stem cells needed for the transplant. After receiving the chemotherapy, the patient receives injections of the growth factor Neupogen to increase the production of stem cells. During this period, the immune system has basically been destroyed, so the danger of infection is extremely high. Seven to ten days after the chemotherapy, the counts should be sufficient to begin harvesting the stem calls. When sufficient cells have been collected, they are frozen–a process which not only preserves them, but also kills any cancer cells that might remain.

After the successful harvest, another period of waiting began. We bough a new car, and then we went to the beach for Christmas with our two favorite people, Bianca and Claudius. Although the Outer Banks was practically closed for the holidays, we managed to find some pretty good food.

Day minus 6 was January 14, 2015. Pavel was admitted to the UNC Bone Marrow Transplant Unit and began the countdown to his transplant. The unit is a community unto itself–albeit it a very clean one. All visitors must go sterilize themselves themselves thoroughly–two hand washings while singing “Happy Birthday” and then the mandatory hand sanitizer. I had my own bed in Pavel’s room, and we had all the comforts of home (more, actually). Patients are encouraged to keep active and can even win prizes for completing a marathon around the halls of the unit. People brought homemade knit caps and blankets for the patients, a recreational therapist led some of us in singing, and the nurses always had time to share personal stories. An even higher dose of chemotherapy began on the first day of admission. This treatment is designed to wipe out the bone marrow and enable the body to better accept the stem cells. Of course, the possibility of infection is high, so constant monitoring of vital signs and blood counts is essential.

Day 0 finally arrived: January 20, 2015. A team of professional, efficient, and personable nurses began arriving in the room at 11:00 in the morning. They brought the frozen stem cells in a refrigerated compartment and quickly began checking name and birth date on all each bag. They provided mints to counteract the taste of the preservative DMSO; they also told me to expect that he would smell like garlic or creamed corn for several days. Bringing one bag out of the freezer at a time, they warmed them and then began infusing the life-giving cells through a large syringe inserted into the aphaeresis catheter. Pavel took their pictures with his phone, and we talked and laughed throughout the procedure. It was over by 11:45. And by 3:00, he was recreating his completion of the BMT marathon, complete with finish line and medal.

And so we come to the end of Pavel’s new birthday. Tomorrow I will continue with the days, months, and years post-transplant–times of fatigue and despair followed by hope and joy and the promise of a bright future.

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One Response to Happy (Third) Birthday, Pavel!

  1. Pingback: Days +1 to +1,097–and Counting | Just(e) Words

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Fab stamps!!!

I saw this gorgeous stamp on Leonie’s blog earlier and asked her who made them. She very kindly got back to me straight away and told me they were Catslife Press stamps so I went looking! Unfortunately none of the UK stockists had the ones I wanted so I ordered direct from them but am so glad I did, the unmounteds are SO cheap and if you order all unmounteds the postage is half price so $5 – amazing!!!!! I ordered a few and just love them! I got an email almost straight away with a Paypal invoice, such quick and fab customer service – but then it IS America!!!


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What’s Cooking?

Hashem is Within and All Around
Hashem is Within and All Around

To Support This Site and Artist: https://www.dwolla.com/hub/812-376-9698

First Happy Holidays to All, whatever you are celebrating during this season, blessed be.  What’s cooking?  I have been really meditating a lot, chilling out and thinking about the direction for my life for the next several years.  I want to have a sense of where I have been, and where I am going based on what I have learned and more.  Where is all that taking me as an artist and in general?

I had an epiphany and it was this.  Most of the poetry/songs I write are with the purpose of inspiring, guiding etc.. and the music I love to listen to, the songs, have a message, something I glean and learn from them.  I realized that even when I taught ESL, I always sought to teach more than that, to always go beyond, to teach about life.  It dawned on me that in a sense my vocation, even through the arts is akin to a life and spiritual coach.  I have decided to pursue certification as a life and spiritual coach in 2015, while focusing on writing spiritually oriented songs/poems to inspire and such, as well as continue to grow in my education in that field over the years.  I hope to find a way to bring synergy to the two, combining the coaching with the arts.   Life is not just about living, but also about learning, so I hope to be a vessel of Hashem to bring both to the world. There’s also a realization for me of my spiritual path, which is that I am not religious, really seek to find or create community, fellowship for those of us who are spiritual, can appreciate the various faith traditions, believe in a Creator, force of Creation, God, but seek spirituality and a deep connection with that Creator.  It’s also dawned on me that many faith institutions focus on family, which is fine, but not everyone is married with kids and grand kids, or if they have kids and grand kids, they may not be in the same state.  You also have those who are divorced, widowed and often we don’t really fit in with the activities etc… offered.  I am hoping to organize spiritual activities that those not in the traditional family mode might fit into.   2015 will be a busy year, and the start of a whole new life.

Shalom and Amen

Categories: Arts, Goals, Life, Reflection, SpiritualityTags: , , , ,
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wheel poseUrdhva Dhanurasana – Upward Bow or Wheel Pose (taken in Gili T)

It’s true what they say, that everything comes in three’s. The reason I bring this up is because last week, the wheel was a strong symbol that stood out for me.  It started with this pic that I posted on Instagram:

love wheel

For some reason, when I was typing out the caption, I was compelled to type out #wheel because it was in the picture then opted not to because I didn’t see the relevance at the time.

A day later, I locked my bike up before a show with Hataw at Yonge-Dundas Square among a loaded bike rack.  Having experienced bike theft in the past, I am particularly cautious when locking mine up.  I take the front wheel and seat with me.  To my surprise, when I got back to my bike later that evening, someone had placed a spare tire in my front spoke.  I thought I was being pranked, or set up, or something.  I asked two security guards to stand with me while I released my bike from the rack and reset the actual front wheel in place. They were equally surprised to see that someone had given me a spare wheel.

The very next day, I was about to drive to class when I heard a strange sound.  I turned my car around and brought it back to my driveway.  When I got out to inspect where the sound came from, I saw this:

flat wheel

I had no idea what to do.  Never experienced a flat tire before.  I was more blown away at the significance of the wheel than the fact that I had to figure out how to change a flat tire on my own.  (Thankfully a kind neighbour with power tools stepped in to help after seeing me sitting in my driveway reading the car manual laying out the tools that the car came with)

So there it is – it happened in three.  I decided to google the symbolism behind the wheel and came across a few interesting thoughts.

The wheel is a symbol of unity, movement and the earth’s cycles of renewal.  What does this mean in terms of what I should be open to?  I think it may be growth in a direction that makes me stronger in all that I love.

Looking forward to it!

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Advance Directives

Your Right to Make Decisions About Medical Treatment

You have a legal right to make decisions about you future health care, and to plan now for your medical care if you are not able to speak for yourself in the future. Ideally, you have already thought about such matters at home, and took the opportunity to discuss them with your loved ones. But many patients have not focused on end-of-life decisions until confronted with a serious illness or injury that requires a hospital admission. Recognizing that this may not be the ideal time to consider such important decisions, we still take this opportunity to give information about advance healthcare directives.

The Patient Self-Determination ACT is a federal law that requires every adult at the time of hospital admission to receive written information about an individual’s right to make decisions about future medical care. This includes the right to accept or refuse treatment, and the right to create advance directives.

An Advance Healthcare Directive is an important legal document that describes a patient’s treatment wishes. It is your written statement, a legally enforceable document, stating your wishes for medical care in case of a terrible illness or injury. It also allows you to choose someone to make decisions for you if you are not able to make them or speak for yourself. This person is a surrogate, or substitute decision-maker, someone who knows you well and is familiar with your wishes and preferences. If you do not have an advance healthcare directive and need help to make one, ask the Admitting Clerk or your nurse to call our Social Worker.


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Flu Food and the Blahs

The title of this post sounds like the name of a woefully misguided rock band. Try saying it three times fast. Or not. It was the best I could come up with.

The past few days have been exhausting. My DD20 is home with the flu and she has been sicker than I remember her ever being. The flu is nasty stuff. I took a vacation day yesterday to get some things done, but spent most of the day being Dr. Mom. Cancelled everything on my schedule today, as well.

I feel like I’m “coming down with something,” only it hasn’t quite happened yet. I’m hoping that flu shot I had last fall is busy doing its thing. Whatever that is. I woke up in the wee hours last night feeling feverish and achy, took some Tylenol and went back to sleep. Not feeling feverish anymore, but I ache all through my neck, shoulders and back. And I’m unaccountably tired. Maybe I have Flu-Lite.

We’ve been eating flu food. All the bland, essentially colorless and pretty much tasteless stuff. It’s all DD wants to eat — well, mostly she doesn’t want to eat anything — and it just seems easier for us to eat the same thing. Because I’m tired, that’s why. Eggs, toast, ramen noodles, chicken, apple juice, more eggs, bagels, homemade chicken soup [“With just dumplings, mom, carrots would be gross.”], cantaloupe, tea with honey, mac and cheese, pretzels, and of course more eggs.

I got her to eat a few strawberries yesterday, but I could tell it was just too much color. Maybe tonight we’ll try some mashed potatoes.

If it’s true we are what we eat, it’s no wonder we’re both feeling blah.

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4 responses to “Flu Food and the Blahs

  1. McB

    One of my boss’s kids has been down with the flu for over a week. Maybe it’s the same variety. It’s really hit the kid hard. Hang in there and don’t negect taking care of yourself, Dr. Mom.

  2. jenb

    Please do take care of yourself as well as DD.
    Maybe some Gatorade to keep up the electrolytes.
    Just lots of rest and whatever tastes good at the time.

  3. Merry

    And lots of garlic as well! Not only does it keep you healthy, but it comes in handy if there are any vampires around.

    sending healthy thoughts eastward…

  4. BCB

    Thanks, guys. Mostly I’ve been sleeping. And feeding the pitiful child. And making sure she took her medicine.

    Garlic, huh? Well, it is sort of beige. I think the theory goes that if you eat enough of it, no one will want to get close enough to give you any germs. Though we did have garlic mashed potatoes.

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Manifesto for Oral Literacy

Storytelling and language are simultaneously cultural and cross-cultural. G.K. Chesterton states that “Literature is a luxury, fiction is a necessity.” All cultures tell stories and language is core to humanity, but various cultures tell stories in diverse ways and have unique applications of language. For example, Western culture is one that has traditionally valued written… Continue reading Manifesto for Oral Literacy

Where in the world is Kelly?

As of last week, I am halfway complete with my undergraduate degree in English with a teaching certificate in grades 7-12. This year was transformational for me in many ways. I spent fall semester studying abroad in Rwanda, where I took courses on the 1994 Genocide, African Religions, Economic Development, and Cultural Arts. I taught… Continue reading Where in the world is Kelly?

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in Post-Genocide Rwanda: Part II

Continued from a previous article. Every year on the anniversary of the genocide, the Trauma Clinic in Butare sees a significant increase in patients with symptoms of PTSD. The fact that trauma increases during the anniversary periods of the genocide proves that the post-traumatic stress in Rwanda is not healing with time, but leaving deep… Continue reading Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in Post-Genocide Rwanda: Part II

Post-Traumatic Stess Disorder in Post-Genocide Rwanda: Part I

Three years after the 1994 Genocide in Rwanda, a young girl was admitted to a medical clinic in Kigali. However, she displayed no physical symptoms. She reported feeling nausea, the sensation of insects crawling on her face, a strong smell of feces, increased agitation/fear, and vivid flashbacks of being attacked by men. “For months she… Continue reading Post-Traumatic Stess Disorder in Post-Genocide Rwanda: Part I

“Home,” Scene Three

LISA, MARIE CHANTAL, and EMMANUEL walk onstage. There is a table with three chairs. They sit. WAITER approaches. WAITER: Welcome to Cannabera. What would you like? EMMANUEL: We would all like chipati. WAITER: Would you like drinks? LISA: I’ll have icyayi, please. EMMANUEL: Tonic. MARIE CHANTAL: Fanta. WAITER: What kind of Fanta? MARIE CHANTAL: Citron.… Continue reading “Home,” Scene Three

“Home,” Scene Two

The library is a house with a classroom and a small nook of textbooks and notebooks. The classroom has several desks, a chalkboard, and a map. LISA: Welcome to Intermediate English Class. Good morning. EMMANUEL and MARIE CHANTAL: Good morning! LISA: How are you? EMMANUEL and MARIE CHANTAL: We are fine. And you? LISA: I… Continue reading “Home,” Scene Two


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Harry S Truman Little White House, Key West Florida - Key West Attractions Association
  • 111 Front Street Key West FL 33040
  • Open daily for tours from 9 am until 4:30 pm.
  • 305-294-9911

The Harry S Truman Little White House is one of Florida’s greatest historic treasures. The home was used as the White House of the United States during the Truman administration. Step back in time to experience the house as it was redecorated for President Truman in 1949. Most of the furnishings are original and used by President Truman. It was also used by inventor Thomas Edison, who resided here for six months while perfecting 41 new weapons for the Navy during WWI. President Truman first came to use the site as a vacation retreat that became the functioning Winter White House from 1946 through 1952. Later Presidents Eisenhower, Kennedy, Carter and Clinton found it the perfect vacation get away. In 2001, Secretary of State Colin Powell selected it as the site for international peace talks between the governments of Armenia and Azerbaijan. A fully narrated guided tour of the site informs and entertains as you visit the site. A free printed guide allows visitors to discover the tropical flora that make up the surrounding botanical gardens that form a park-like setting for the Little White House. The Harry S Truman Little White House is the perfect venue for corporate dinners and bridal ceremonies and receptions. The canopy of trees filled with twinkling lights bring about magic moments.

A museum store offers unusual presidential books, gifts and souvenirs.


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Back by popular demand!

What do you get when you take a company of actors, directors and producers and mix in fresh, new 10-minute plays? You get the Short Attention Span Theatre, that’s what!

This evening of shorts typically includes world premieres, lots of laughs and incredible local talent.

click here

Visit webFor more Key West attractions and daily Key West hotel discounts, visit on your smartphone. Click here to download the Key West Finest Places app for your iPhone, or here for your Android phone. You can also join the Key West discussion at conchfish.comsite for show times and tickets.


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The largest wildfire in California’s modern history is finally out, more than 6 months after it started

The Ventura Country Fire Department posted this image of the Thomas Fire pushing its way toward East Ventura late Monday night.

Officials with the Los Padres National Forest announced this week the largest wildfire in California’s modern history is officially out, more than six months after it started.

The Thomas Fire started December 4, 2017, and eventually burned 281,893 acres, a Friday news release from the US Forest Service said.

Officials made the announcement after no hot spots were detected within the fire’s perimeter for more than two months, the release said.

“Work continues however,” it said, “as crews and equipment repair roads, trails and fences damaged by the fire and by suppression actions.”

On December 23, the fire officially became the largest since the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection — also known as Cal Fire — began compiling its list in 1932.

The blaze consumed more than 1,000 structures throughout Southern California before it became 100% contained January 12.

It also led to devastating mudslides in Montecito that killed 17 people and destroyed dozens of homes.

The Thomas Fire claimed the life of 32-year-old Cory Iverson, an engineer with Cal Fire. He left behind a wife, a toddler and an unborn baby.

The fire, fueled by strong Santa Ana winds and dry conditions, devastated portions of Ventura and Santa Barbara counties. It also concluded the costliest year of wildfires in US history, in which fires did more than $10 billion in damage.

About $177 million was spent battling the Thomas Fire alone, according to Cal Fire.


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Telling Travel Stories
Coastal Adventures, Elsewhere in Africa

“A day at sea in Hurghada, Egypt”

2 min read

I must say, I’ve always been fascinated at the thought of swimming with or just seeing dolphins and so when my friend Cherie and I visited the beautiful coastal city of Hurghada in Egypt, and I found out that this was a common activity there, I knew already that the trip was worth it.

Hurghada is a beach resort town along Egypt’s Red Sea coast and they call it a “beach resort town” for a reason – the resorts are beautiful and massive. We stayed at the Desert Rose Resort and just staying at the all-inclusive resort for a couple of days is definitely a treat on its own.

After day one of just lazing around and enjoying the resort’s different activities, I booked a full day-at-sea boat trip for the following day that was to start at about 7am all the way until 4pm that day.

I was up early and I was hungry (both metaphorically and literally) and so it was thoroughly relieving to know that in addition to lunch and snacks, breakfast was served on the boat. I relaxed, settled in and begun to take in the early morning wind, the sun and the beautiful sea views.

The first activity was to spot the dolphins in the sea. Now, our instructor explained something quite interesting (and game changing) to me – he said, “we will all spot a few dolphins (unless your eyes are closed) however, in order to swim with the dolphins YOU MUST BE A REALLY GOOD AND FAST SWIMMER.”

Shoot. I love to swim but I wouldn’t describe myself as a fast swimmer. What happened is when we got to a spot that had a number of dolphins, the instructor would scream “jump!” and it was literally a race to get to the dolphins (who are pretty fast swimmers I discovered).

I wasn’t ready for this – particularly because I couldn’t imagine swimming in a large open space with the crowd racing in front of me. I opted to observe the dolphins and the activity from the boat and then fully indulge in the next activity – snorkeling.

The snorkeling was further on where the water was much warmer and where it wasn’t a race (yay!). Every time I snorkel it’s more beautiful than the last time, and the Red Sea was no exception. So many fish species, not to mention the amazing coral (too bad I don’t have pictures from the world of beauty under the sea).

Finally, I took part in a couple of fun banana boat rides, just before we sailed back to shore. And just like that, the day was done.

In-between all this activity, we enjoyed delicious food, snacks and good conversation on the boat. Definitely a day well spent and a day that I will remember.

Have you been snorkeling or swimming with dolphins before? What was your experience like? Do share your comments in the reply section below. Xx.

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Only A Few Foursomes Left In Orange County's Premier Golf Tournament

The KidWorks Golf Classic is one of Orange County’s premier charity golf tournaments.  Join 144 high level executives in the Commercial Real Estate Industry for an amazing day of golf  at the world renowned Pelican Hill Resort.

Year after year, the KidWorks Classic has been gaining notoriety and providing our sponsors and participants an experience that is second to none.  Take advantage of this great opportunity to entertain clients while supporting educational opportunities and leadership development programs for at-risk youth in central Santa Ana.

Hear Why, Title Sponsor, Michael F. Harrah & Caribou Industries support KidWorks:

Not A Golfer? You can still support KidWorks!

2006 Mater Dei-throwing hats.JPG

Thanks to a $25,000 matching gift, every dollar donated during the KidWorks Golf Classic will be DOUBLED.   Tee us up for success and help us meet our $25,000 match by making a donation NOW!


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The Need To Speak Out In An Age Of Oppression

First, Cindy Sheehan was hauled away by the Capitol Police for wearing a t-shirt that said â€œ2245 Dead. How Many More?â€? (The number of U.S. fatalities in Iraq is now up to 2290, by the way.) Then, one week later, Dwight Scarbroughâ€”a Navy veteran currently employed as a scientist for a federal agency in Boise, Idahoâ€”was called out of his place of work by two armed officers from the Department of Homeland Security and informed that the bumper stickers and placards on his truck were â€œa violation of the code of federal regulationsâ€? and that he would have to â€œremove the signs from the propertyâ€? or be cited. What was on his truck?

On the back, he tapes weekly updates of the number of U.S. soldiers killed and wounded in Iraq. Beneath that, on a large, white (and also taped-on) placard: â€œSupport our returning troops and their families when they need help: Give them this number: GI RIGHTS HOTLINE: 1-800-394-9544.â€? On both doors, in bold capital letters: â€œDEATH IN IRAQ IS NOT A CAREER OPPORTUNITY FOR YOUNG AMERICANS.â€? Taking up nearly half of the back window: â€œVeterans for Peace Chapter 117, Idaho.â€? On the driverâ€™s side wheel well, also in all caps: â€œPERHAPS GOD BLESSES EVERY NATION, NOT JUST THE USA.â€? And interspersed between them all, he places a variety of purchased bumper stickers and magnetic ribbons reading, among other sentiments, â€œSupport our Troops: Bring them Home Now,â€? â€œSupport Diversityâ€? and â€œHonor Vets, Wage Peace.â€?

Dwight Scarbrough, like Cindy Sheehan before him, was understandably outraged at what he rightly perceived was intimidation and harassment for the political views he dared to publicly proclaim. To his credit, he did not simply give in to the DHS goonsâ€”though he did move his truck to a private parking lot for the dayâ€”and he did contact the ACLU and report the incident to the local media. (Boise Weekly provided excellent coverage of the story, which was later picked up by The Progressive.) To have two such incidents in such a short span of time is more than a little disturbing and begs a number of important questions. How often are citizens of this country being intimidated or censured for expressing dissent? What has happened that we donâ€™t know about? To what degree, directly and indirectly, do such incidents serve to chill dissent? How much are we willing to accept and willing to lose before we speak out and say enough is enough? Will we wait too long?

I am reminded of the oft-quoted words of the German protestant leader, Martin Niemoeller:

First they came for the communists, and I did not speak out–
because I was not a communist;
Then they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out–
because I was not a socialist;
Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out–
because I was not a trade unionist;
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out–
because I was not a Jew;
Then they came for me–
and there was no one left to speak out for me.


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(Photo by Michael Buckner/Getty Images)

Deputy Sgt. Ron Helus Killed By Borderline Bar Gunman: “He Died a Hero”

A sheriff’s sergeant, Deputy Sgt. Ron Helus, who was on the verge of retirement was killed in the tragic shooting at the Borderline Bar & Grill in Thousand Oaks, California, on Wednesday, November 7.

“It tears at our hearts and emotions, as it should,” Ventura County Sheriff Geoff Dean said of all the victims and their families.

Dean explained that Helus and a highway patrol officer immediately entered the bar when they knew what was happening.

“Ron was a hard working, dedicated sheriff’s sergeant,” Dean said. “He was totally committed. He gave his all. And tonight, as I told his wife, he died a hero.”

Countdown To New Country Christmas

Upcoming Events

Tue 20

Upcoming Concerts

October 29, 2018 @ 8:00 am - October 16, 2026 @ 5:00 pm
Thu 22

Join Us For The Folsom Turkey Trot!

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ap lang 2008 essay examples

AP® ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION ... language. 8 – Effective. Essays earning a score of 8 effectively analyze* the rhetorical strategies Louv uses to develop his argument about the separation between people and ... Louv's strategies, or the explanations or examples may be particularly limited or simplistic. The.
You can use the resources below as you prepare for the AP Exam. Click here for details about the exam format. Sample Questions. You'll find sample multiple-choice and free-response questions in the AP English Language and Composition Course Description (.pdf/3.25MB). Sample Responses. Student Responses to
28.04.2011 -
This page will provide you with additional resources to prepare for the AP English Language and Composition exam.
2008 APm ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION. FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS (Form B). Question 2. (Suggested time—4t) minutes. This question counts for one-third ot' the total section score.) Read the following passage from “America Needs lts Nerds” hy Leonid Fridman. Then write an essay in which.
05.10.2017 -
essay that develops a position on whether or not the penny coin should be eliminate? "~INo ... 2008 AP~ ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS. Lewis. ... Visit apcentral.collegeboard.com (for AP professionals) and www.collegeboard.com/apstudents (for students and parents).
Because this AP English Language and Composition Practice Exam has never been administered as an operational AP Exam, statistical data ... 2008 The College Board. All rights reserved. College Board .... essay responses be written in blue or black ink to simulate an actual administration. • In the multiple-choice exam
10.02.2006 -
03.05.2011 -

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The commitment

I’m about to get really real up in here. I have planned to do a Whole30, starting tomorrow. I decided this a few days ago and I had big plans to write a big blog post about it, explaining what it is and why I had decided to do it. Alas, life got in the way. And now it is Sunday, I am about 50% hungover and 80% tired and I have stared at my screen for about half an hour, unable to put any words in this blog.

But since I am starting tomorrow and I am planning on writing and letting you know how I am going throughout it, I knew that I had to at least acknowledge that I was starting it. I will say that if you are interested in what a Whole30 is, google is amazing and will tell you heaps or you can check out  Pick and Paleo who have a great explanation of it, also.

What I can think straight enough to tell you is that it is a 30 day commitment of eating and drinking nothing but “Whole” foods. This means I won’t be having any dairy, grains, legumes or refined sugars.

The one thing Google wont tell you is why I am doing this. And I think after a weekend of binge eating and drinking, the way I am feeling is a good explanation why. As proud as I am of the progress I have made in my eating habits since losing 30kg, I am still not perfect. Somedays my eating habits are great but some days leave little to be desired. Leave me in a house full of fresh fruit and veges and meat and that’s what I’ll eat. Put me in a work morning tea and I will eat all the bread and chips and dip and cheese and chocolate and lollies and biscuits. At the moment I’m eating anything and everything and I am feeling tired and bloated and generally a bit “ick”. It’s time for me to go back to the basics and reset the way I look at food.

I have done a Whole30 back in December 2013 so I know that I can do it. Granted, my situation was different back then and I wasn’t trying to balance a full time job, errands, exercise and a social life. This time will be different but I know that people in much harder circumstances successfully complete Whole30 so I really don’t have any excuse. I’m excited to reset my body and my mind and I can’t wait to bring you along on the journey with me.

Have you done a Whole30 before? Do you have any advice for me? Leave it in the comments below!

The commitment

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kritisk etnografi – Swedish Journal of Anthropology is published by the Swedish Society for Anthropology and Geography (SSAG) in collaboration with the Swedish Anthropological Association (SANT). The journal website was started 18 March 2018 and the first issue of the journal was launched 15 August 2018 at the European Association of Social Anthropologists (EASA) conference in Stockholm.

The journal is an open access publication. The full content of all issues and every article can be downloaded from the Swedish digital academic archive, DiVA. A record of issues and articles are available at Issues.

Anders Rickegård

The content of is covered by the copyright law. Please quote the materia and refer to the source. Changes in the text and images are not allowed. The content may not, in whole or in part, be used for any commercial purpose without written permission from the editors-in-chief. kritisk etnografi declines any responsibility for any material that can be linked to or is linked from the website.

The website uses cookies. These cookies store information on who is logged in and facilitate visits to make the site more dynamic. No information is given to any third party.  kritisk etnografi make reservations for functions and future functions that use cookies, e.g. collect statistics. kritisk etnografi guarantee that information on individual users will never be disclosed to any third party. Legal matters are excluded from the warranty on the disclosure of information to third parties.

You can delete cookies by selecting this option in the browser. You can also set the browser to refuse all cookies, or accept cookies from certain sites but deny all others. How this is done depends on the browser used (see the respective browser documentation for details on settings).

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Mysterious Flash of Light Spotted Over SoCal Prompts Questions on Social Media
How to Help Those Affected by SoCal Brush Fires

Mark Zuckerberg Debuts Facebook’s AI Assistant Voiced by Morgan Freeman

This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated.

Forget Siri. When Mark Zuckerberg wants an artificial intelligence-driven assistant, he recruits the “Voice of God.”

The Facebook CEO and cofounder posted a video teasing an artificial intelligence application on Tuesday that he built for his home, voiced by none other than actor Morgan Freeman.

In October, Zuckerberg asked his followers for suggestions to be the voice for Jarvis, his AI tool inspired by Iron Man. Freeman was a top pick.

Zuckerberg personally called Freeman to ask him to do it. Robert Downey Jr. had also offered his services.

Like Amazon’s Alexa, Jarvis can be activated by voice (or by text) and connect with various objects in the home.

In the video, the assistant is shown adjusting thermostats, making toast for breakfast and buzzing Zuckerberg’s parents into his home by recognizing their faces.

Jarvis can also play music on command — or choose not to, as the case may be.

“Play us some good Nickleback songs,” Zuckerberg asks in the video. “I’m sorry Mark, I’m afraid I can’t do that,” Jarvis responds with Freeman’s iconic voice. “There are no good Nickleback songs.”

AI burn.

The video is intended to be a “fun summary and not a live demo,” according to Zuckerberg.

An actual demo provided to Fast Company proved to have a few more glitches when turning off lights and playing music.

Zuckerberg made it his New Year’s resolution to “build a simple AI to run my home and help me with my work.” The project proved more challenging than he expected.

He struggled to find appliances whose power could be controlled remotely by an app and had to figure out the nuances of language used to request songs. In total, he spent about 100 hours building Jarvis — while running Facebook.

“As the CEO of Facebook, I don’t get much time to write code in our internal environment. I’ve never stopped coding, but these days I mostly build personal projects like Jarvis,” Zuckerberg wrote in a Facebook post this week.

In the future, Zuckerberg hopes to build an Android app for Jarvis and connect it to more appliances and rooms in his home.

“My goal was to learn about the state of artificial intelligence,” Zuckerberg wrote in the post, “where we’re further along than people realize and where we’re still a long ways off.”


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California Divorce Blog– Assistant U.S. Secretary of State Comments on Parental Child Abduction in Japan

According to multiple sources including the Mainichi Shinbun, a Japanese newspaper, American Diplomat and academic Dr. Kurt Campbell, the current United States Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, spoke to families of Japanese victims kidnapped by North Korea. During the meeting Assistant Secretary Campbell voiced his support for the Government of Japan to take action on the issue of Parental Child Abduction (presumably urging support for the Hague Convention).  This wrinkled feathers as the Japanese Government views the two issues as separate and distinct. Kidnapping as a state sponsored action as compared with parental child kidnapping.

Certainly the two issues are separate. However, an argument can certainly be made that they are one in the same if the Japanese Government is complicit in allowing parental child kidnappings to occur in Japan. I believe this is the case.

The world has been urging Japan, a first world nation, for years to on to sign on to, and ratify the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction.  The Government of Japan, which has again stated that Japan will sign the Hague Convention, has requested amendments to it, prior to signing. The problem with this request is that all parties have signed the Convention in its present form.  If Amendments were made to the convention then this would require ratification and likely dilute enforcement of its provisions.  It is best for all non-party nations to sign on to the Hague Convention as children should not be allowed to be spirited away from one country to the next without permission.

The United States Department of State recently made changes in how it approaches cases involving children in Japan.  An American parent recently received communication from the State Department which provided in part that “the Office of Children’s Issues’ (OCI) procedures have recently changed and we will be unable to request future welfare visits for your children, as we are no longer making these requests for access-only cases.”  This seems to indicate that the Department of State will no longer work on these types of cases which is very unfortunate for American parents with children in Japan who are being denied visitation by their ex-spouses. Recently OCI has been referring parents of children abducted to Japan to the Japanese Court system.  As we are all aware, a referral to the Japanese Court System to obtain custody has been a dead end referral to date. It is certainly the very rare exception when any non-custodial parent prevails in the Japanese Court system.  Everyone is aware of this issue, which makes this a sad day for American parents of children stuck in Japan.

I became an attorney because I believe in the Rule of Law. Without law we would have anarchy. There are places in the world where the Rule of Law is non-existent. We all know what happens when this occurs. The Country of Japan does not have the Rule of Law regarding Parental Child Abductions.   I urge Japan to ratify the Hague Convention as they have indicated they may.  Parents and children demand the certainty of the Rule of Law. Without it we are simply left with chaos, which clearly does not work.

Attorney Keith F. Simpson is a California Lawyer in Manhattan Beach, California and represents clients regarding all types of Family Law matters. Please call Keith Simpson today to discuss your question at 310-297-9090.

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One Response to “California Divorce Blog– Assistant U.S. Secretary of State Comments on Parental Child Abduction in Japan”

  1. Gail Harada Says:

    The best role model in any child’s life is the same-sex parent (except in extreme cases) with the opposite sex parent close behind. Why, then, would any parent want to deny their child this valuable person – which in turn negatively affects the child’s mental stability? A parent who does this is putting their own emotions above those of their child. IMO this is the worse case of selfish parenting. I completely agree with you Mr. Simpson!

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barcelona · cementery · mysterious corners · spain

A walk through the city of the dead

IMG_20150327_185053IMG_20150327_184435Visiting a graveyard may seem a strange thing to do if you are not actually visiting someone close to you and who now rests there. Nevertheless, Barcelona’s main cemetery is kind of a tourist attraction. Many times I heard it was worth a visit before I finally decided to go there and, to be honest, it was not at all what I expected.

Shortly after I had passed the huge entrance gate, I felt like I just walked into a different world. The cemetery is like a small city of the dead. There are hundreds of miniature buildings looking like tiny cathedrals, churches, and houses. The cemetery has a number of squares with benches, trees, Mediterranean plants and flowers, and you can find many art sculptures, antique statues, and the like. It feels a little bit surreal to stroll through the streets of this city of the dead.

The first thing I noticed is that there are numerous statues of angels that are watching over particular graves. You can immediately tell who was once wealthy and who was not. Some of the dead city’s inhabitants dwell in small modernist palaces and mausoleums surrounded by sculptures, others only have a window in one of the many high walls.

One particular sculpture that immediately calls one’s attention is that of a skeleton covered in blankets lying on a robust stone coffin. It felt strange to walk among the tombs, somehow creepy but also fascinating and overwhelming.

The cemetery is huge. It starts at the food of the city mountain and goes up all the way to the top. The whole place covers an area of 56 hectares. Although a quite unusual place to go, it is definitely worth seeing even if you are not visiting any of its eternally resting inhabitants.

The city cemetery is located at the back side of the city mountain, the Montjuic (‘Jewish mountain’). You need to take the bus to get to the main entrance in Zona Franca. It’s about a 15 minutes ride from Plaza España.

IMG_20150327_190002IMG_20150327_185832IMG_20150327_184708IMG_20150327_185527 IMG_20150327_185746 IMG_20150327_190137IMG_20150327_185939 IMG_20150327_184753     IMG_20150327_185634IMG_20150327_185600

IMG_20150327_185910 IMG_20150327_185848

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