 impact, but rather the impact of the staff on the evaluation and the impact of the evaluation on the staff.

Make sure that contributions made by frontline workers are highlighted and recognized in a meaningful way. Putting an acknowledgement in a report that is never circulated to frontline staff does not constitute meaningful recognition. One example from my own experience was when we invited staff to the board meeting where we presented our evaluation findings. The staff had spent a great deal of time collecting data that year and afterward expressed how rewarding it was to see their efforts come to fruition and have their hard work acknowledged. This reassured them that the evaluation process was meaningful and that their time had been well spent.

On the flip side, it's equally useful for staff to recognize the impact of evaluation on themselves. When staff see either the processes or the outcomes of evaluation as being beneficial to them and their organization, this will increase their support and willingness to get involved. To that end, it can be helpful as an evaluator to identify the evaluative needs the frontline staff as well as those of the program administrators in order to try to meet both, if possible. Sometimes it can be as simple as providing specific feedback to frontline staff on an issue relevant to them or framing findings in terms of actions that can be taken at both the macro/administrative level and the micro/individual staff person level. When we collected data about program activities, administrators were pleased to be able to have a big-picture view to present to funders, while frontline staff appreciated seeing their site-specific results.

5) Remember their priorities

In the BC non-profit labour market survey referenced above, one of the key attractors for people working in non-profit organizations is their ability to 'make a difference' in their jobs. This commitment to the mission and purpose of their work is a distinguishing characteristic of many people working in non-profits. Whenever people care about their programs and its goals, this can translate into caring about an evaluation if it aligns with their goal of making a positive change.

Different approaches may be needed to make this link between evaluation and staff's own goals. Some staff may be of an evaluative mindset themselves and will appreciate efforts to verify that their work is effective or feel that evaluation legitimizes their program. Others may feel that evaluation isn't strictly necessary, but will respect the reality of funding requirements. Staff don't have to love every aspect of evaluation in order to appreciate its benefits. It is always more difficult when evaluative findings are seen as threatening the status of the program (and it should be acknowledged early on that evaluation findings are not always positive and often point to areas for growth and change), but in this case it is best to focus on the goals of the program rather than the program itself (e.g., is change happening, are clients' needs being met, are limited resources being deployed to greatest effect?).

This factor is the most critical when time is short or the task required is burdensome and other strategies for engagement are lacking. In situations where there has been little time to build meaningful relationships with staff prior to interviewing them, the passion of frontline staff for their work is usually the biggest determiner of the quality and depth of the information they share, even with a stranger who has just introduced themselves as an evaluator. This includes staff who are passionately frustrated with what they perceive as limitations or challenges in their service delivery and who want to see things done better, so it is not a question of emotional investment discouraging them from being critical or honest about their services.

Crucially, this is not a factor that the evaluator can control, only build on, which leads to the final point...

"The data itself that came out of it is very valuable and it does affect the way I do my job."

"It's just a pain in the ass and time-consuming and not my favourite thing, but I understand the importance."

6) Recognize structural problems

This final comment is less of a strategy and more of a warning and gentle reminder. Engagement is about relationships and not all relationships succeed. Within an organization, there may be many barriers to fostering strong engagement with frontline staff, including high turnover rates, burn-out among staff, competing priorities and insufficient resources, or a lack of support for staff engagement from program administrators and management. Some staff members may never be open to engaging with the evaluation process regardless of the evaluator's best efforts. A relationship can't be forced.

When engagement is a priority, it is critical to work with program administrators and management to ensure internal support for frontline staff participation (e.g., allocating work time, balancing priorities, communicating the significance of the evaluation process to the organization). However, while frontline staff engagement can be greatly beneficial to an evaluation, it is not always a realistic prospect, at least not on a wide scale, depending on these other factors. When staff engagement is desirable but not achieved, it may be worth highlighting the reasons why in the subsequent report as it may speak to an area for development in the organization's evaluative capacity.<|endoftext|>nor invulnerable to an armed enemy; and in their desire
to obtain complete submersion, the French inventors of the next few
years--Hubault, Conseil, and Masson--all returned to the hand-winch
method of propulsion. Riou, however, in 1861, adopted steam for one of
his boats, and electric power for the other; and in 1883 the American
engineer, Alstitt, built the first submarine fitted with both steam
and electricity. Steam was also used in the _Plongeur_ of Bourgois and
Brun, which was completed in the same year.

The American Civil War then gave a great opportunity for practical
experiments in torpedo attack; but the difficulty of wholly submerged
navigation not having been yet solved, the boats used were not true
submarines, but submersibles. Their propulsion was by steam, and their
dimensions small. A more ambitious invention was put forward in 1869
by a German, Otto Vogel, whose design was accepted by the Prussian
Government. His submersible steamship was to be heavily armed, and<|endoftext|>Scrambled Egg Bake

I love making breakfasts for my family that I can’t eat. I’m not even being sarcastic right now, I really do! I think making food for other people to eat is pretty exciting, because who doesn’t want to eat without actually having to cook anything? I love doing that. Why else would I love leftovers so much?

On the weekends I get excited to cook up grain-free pancakes, muffins or an bacon and egg breakfast dish. At least I can eat the bacon. That’s the best part anyways, right? I’m asking a lot of rhetorical questions in this post. I guess I should clarify that I don’t like to make my family these meals because I can’t eat them. I just enjoy cooking them a meal I know they’ll love. If my unfortunate intolerance to eggs didn’t exist, you can bet I would be all over this scrambled egg bake!

Scrambled Egg Bake

Baking scrambled eggs is pretty great, because they take less effort while actually being harder to mess up. There’s nothing worse than a dry, crunchy egg when you expect a fluffy egg breakfast. Okay, maybe there are a few things that are worse. Only a few. They also take up less stove space. You could no doubt serve this by itself or along side fruit for a filling breakfast. If you want to prepare a big brunch or family breakfast, though, you’ll still have room to make sausage, pancakes and hash browns. All without worrying about cooking dry, crunchy scramble eggs!

Scrambled Egg Bake
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 4
  • 8 Slices precooked bacon
  • 12 Eggs
  • 1 Cup coconut milk
  • 8 Ounces roasted red peppers
  • 4 Ounces mushrooms (sliced)
  • 1 Teaspoon salt and pepper
  1. Cook your bacon on the stove top over medium high heat or by baking in the oven at 400 degrees until cooked through.
  2. Slice the bacon into 1-inch pieces.
  3. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
  4. In a large bowl, whisk the 12 eggs with the coconut milk. Stir in the roasted red peppers, cooked bacon, sliced mushrooms and salt and pepper.
  5. Pour the egg mixture into a large glass baking dish and place in the preheated oven.
  6. After 10-12 minutes, remove the dish from the oven and mix the eggs well to scramble. Return the dish to the oven and cook until the eggs are completely cooked through (another 10-15 minutes).
  7. Serve along side fresh fruit and enjoy!

Leave a Reply

Rate this recipe:<|endoftext|>Elasticsearch part 3: The implementation

In my last blog post on Elasticsearch I covered the majority of the theory and commands that I learned at the Elasticsearch for developers course I completed at work now I want to have a play around with Elasticsearch and the RESTful API you use to interact with Elasticsearch called Kibana.

I decided to install both of these systems onto NMIT Windows laptop. What was a seamless installation process last time on my other laptop turned into a more complicated troubleshooting exercise this time.

After starting both Elasticsearch (accessible at http://localhost:9200) and Kibana (accessible

 guarded. Positioning oneself as a helpful third-party who is there to facilitate communication (in more than one direction) can help as long as everyone is on board with this definition, including the evaluator and the decision-makers who brought you in.

If there is conflict between (or within) stakeholder groups, rather than let the evaluation become a conduit for power struggles, it can be more productive to frame this as an unexpected outcome of the evaluation and encourage the conflicted parties to work to address and resolve the issue together. If there is sufficient trust (and time) and the issue is directly related to the evaluation itself, the evaluator may mediate, or may step back and allow internal processes to take care of it.

"It is a team approach rather than a 'must do'. It gets buy in and participation willingly from all players."

"We get to actually see what it is that we do. […] This really goes to show, holy, we do a lot of work with these kids. It puts it on paper and helps."

4) Demonstrate impact

This does not refer to program impact, but rather the impact of the staff on the evaluation and the impact of the evaluation on the staff.

Make sure that contributions made by frontline workers are highlighted and recognized in a meaningful way. Putting an acknowledgement in a report that is never circulated to frontline staff does not constitute meaningful recognition. One example from my own experience was when we invited staff to the board meeting where we presented our evaluation findings. The staff had spent a great deal of time collecting data that year and afterward expressed how rewarding it was to see their efforts come to fruition and have their hard work acknowledged. This reassured them that the evaluation process was meaningful and that their time had been well spent.

On the flip side, it's equally useful for staff to recognize the impact of evaluation on themselves. When staff see either the processes or the outcomes of evaluation as being beneficial to them and their organization, this will increase their support and willingness to get involved. To that end, it can be helpful as an evaluator to identify the evaluative needs the frontline staff as well as those of the program administrators in order to try to meet both, if possible. Sometimes it can be as simple as providing specific feedback to frontline staff on an issue relevant to them or framing findings in terms of actions that can be taken at both the macro/administrative level and the micro/individual staff person level. When we collected data about program activities, administrators were pleased to be able to have a big-picture view to present to funders, while frontline staff appreciated seeing their site-specific results.

5) Remember their priorities

In the BC non-profit labour market survey referenced above, one of the key attractors for people working in non-profit organizations is their ability to 'make a difference' in their jobs. This commitment to the mission and purpose of their work is a distinguishing characteristic of many people working in non-profits. Whenever people care about their programs and its goals, this can translate into caring about an evaluation if it aligns with their goal of making a positive change.

Different approaches may be needed to make this link between evaluation and staff's own goals. Some staff may be of an evaluative mindset themselves and will appreciate efforts to verify that their work is effective or feel that evaluation legitimizes their program. Others may feel that evaluation isn't strictly necessary, but will respect the reality of funding requirements. Staff don't have to love every aspect of evaluation in order to appreciate its benefits. It is always more difficult when evaluative findings are seen as threatening the status of the program (and it should be acknowledged early on that evaluation findings are not always positive and often point to areas for growth and change), but in this case it is best to focus on the goals of the program rather than the program itself (e.g., is change happening, are clients' needs being met, are limited resources being deployed to greatest effect?).

This factor is the most critical when time is short or the task required is burdensome and other strategies for engagement are lacking. In situations where there has been little time to build meaningful relationships with staff prior to interviewing them, the passion of frontline staff for their work is usually the biggest determiner of the quality and depth of the information they share, even with a stranger who has just introduced themselves as an evaluator. This includes staff who are passionately frustrated with what they perceive as limitations or challenges in their service delivery and who want to see things done better, so it is not a question of emotional investment discouraging them from being critical or honest about their services.

Crucially, this is not a factor that the evaluator can control, only build on, which leads to the final point...

"The data itself that came out of it is very valuable and it does affect the way I do my job."

"It's just a pain in the ass and time-consuming and not my favourite thing, but I understand the importance."

6) Recognize structural problems

This final comment is less of a strategy and more of a warning and gentle reminder. Engagement is about relationships and not all relationships succeed. Within an organization, there may be many barriers to fostering strong engagement with frontline staff, including high turnover rates, burn-out among staff, competing priorities and insufficient resources, or a lack of support for staff engagement from program administrators and management. Some staff members may never be open to engaging with the evaluation process regardless of the evaluator's best efforts. A relationship can't be forced.

When engagement is a priority, it is critical to work with program administrators and management to ensure internal support for frontline staff participation (e.g., allocating work time, balancing priorities, communicating the significance of the evaluation process to the organization). However, while frontline staff engagement can be greatly beneficial to an evaluation, it is not always a realistic prospect, at least not on a wide scale, depending on these other factors. When staff engagement is desirable but not achieved, it may be worth highlighting the reasons why in the subsequent report as it may speak to an area for development in the organization's evaluative capacity.<|endoftext|>Scrambled Egg Bake

I love making breakfasts for my family that I can’t eat. I’m not even being sarcastic right now, I really do! I think making food for other people to eat is pretty exciting, because who doesn’t want to eat without actually having to cook anything? I love doing that. Why else would I love leftovers so much?

On the weekends I get excited to cook up grain-free pancakes, muffins or an bacon and egg breakfast dish. At least I can eat the bacon. That’s the best part anyways, right? I’m asking a lot of rhetorical questions in this post. I guess I should clarify that I don’t like to make my family these meals because I can’t eat them. I just enjoy cooking them a meal I know they’ll love. If my unfortunate intolerance to eggs didn’t exist, you can bet I would be all over this scrambled egg bake!

Scrambled Egg Bake

Baking scrambled eggs is pretty great, because they take less effort while actually being harder to mess up. There’s nothing worse than a dry, crunchy egg when you expect a fluffy egg breakfast. Okay, maybe there are a few things that are worse. Only a few. They also take up less stove space. You could no doubt serve this by itself or along side fruit for a filling breakfast. If you want to prepare a big brunch or family breakfast, though, you’ll still have room to make sausage, pancakes and hash browns. All without worrying about cooking dry, crunchy scramble eggs!

Scrambled Egg Bake
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 4
  • 8 Slices precooked bacon
  • 12 Eggs
  • 1 Cup coconut milk
  • 8 Ounces roasted red peppers
  • 4 Ounces mushrooms (sliced)
  • 1 Teaspoon salt and pepper
  1. Cook your bacon on the stove top over medium high heat or by baking in the oven at 400 degrees until cooked through.
  2. Slice the bacon into 1-inch pieces.
  3. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
  4. In a large bowl, whisk the 12 eggs with the coconut milk. Stir in the roasted red peppers, cooked bacon, sliced mushrooms and salt and pepper.
  5. Pour the egg mixture into a large glass baking dish and place in the preheated oven.
  6. After 10-12 minutes, remove the dish from the oven and mix the eggs well to scramble. Return the dish to the oven and cook until the eggs are completely cooked through (another 10-15 minutes).
  7. Serve along side fresh fruit and enjoy!

Leave a Reply

Rate this recipe:<|endoftext|>Elasticsearch part 3: The implementation

In my last blog post on Elasticsearch I covered the majority of the theory and commands that I learned at the Elasticsearch for developers course I completed at work now I want to have a play around with Elasticsearch and the RESTful API you use to interact with Elasticsearch called Kibana.

I decided to install both of these systems onto NMIT Windows laptop. What was a seamless installation process last time on my other laptop turned into a more complicated troubleshooting exercise this time.

After starting both Elasticsearch (accessible at http://localhost:9200) and Kibana (accessible at http://5601) I saw that


if we want to live near to
the Lord, I am persuaded we must not be ashamed of tracing the footsteps
of His people.  We must be prepared to identify ourselves with them; we
must not set aside their experience as a thing of nought; and must so far
yield our own will as to be guided by their concurrent judgment.  When,
therefore, a young person finds that all the most decidedly serious
persons of his acquaintance have thought it best to abstain from any
particular amusement, I am persuaded that he is more likely to enjoy the
presence of his Lord if he decides on abstaining with them, even though
he may not see their reasons, than if he sets aside their experience, and
follows in the steps of those whose boast it is that they make no
profession.

(5.)  There is another practical suggestion with reference to amusements,
though I cannot urge it as one of principle; viz., this: _There is great
risk in adopting_, _or introducing_, _an amusement_, _if it is likely to
lead on to something<|endoftext|> his agent. That's it. During Sunday night's celebration, when Kobe's family materialized immediately -- almost on cue -- the cynical side of me wanted to throw up, but the rational side was thinking, "Of course, they're here. He doesn't have anyone else." I wouldn't call the situation weird or anything, just atypical for a league in which stars normally surround themselves with longtime friends who knew them before they were famous. And it fits in with the rest of the Kobe package: He's an unconventional superstar in a conventional league. Almost like a successful child actor who beat the odds and turned out relatively normal.

Two months ago, I wrote that Kobe made a mistake playing in the 2008 Olympics because his biggest threats (LeBron, Paul, etc.) were given a glimpse into what made him him -- how hard he worked, how committed he was, how he was consumed by basketball -- and argued that he inadvertently gave away a competitive advantage. When I mentioned this theory to colleague and longtime Kobe expert J.A. Adande during a recent podcast, Adande respectfully disagreed, saying Kobe NEEDED that experience. He needed to fit in with that crew. He needed to be accepted as one of the guys. He craved that social respect from his peers. He wanted to crack jokes, bust chops and everything else. He would absolutely do it again, Adande maintained.

Listening to the argument, I joked Kobe sounded like one of those high school seniors who killed herself finishing with a 4.0, running the newspaper and the yearbook and playing three sports, and only realizing right at the end that she had never bothered to develop any lasting relationships. Like Ione Skye in "Say Anything," actually. But Adande was right. Kobe was making up for lost time. Most superstars prove themselves statistically on inferior teams, work up a healthy hunger for winning and getting over the hump, then make all the necessary sacrifices to make that happen. Kobe went in reverse -- he enjoyed team success early without ever establishing his statistical chops, leading to some serial ball-hogging, four scoring titles and even an 81-point game. After that, maybe he realized there was a better way and awkwardly reinvented himself from there. A little like watching A-Rod, actually -- another "child athlete star" -- only Kobe learned to play the part and A-Rod still can't figure it out.

That brings us back to Sunday. There was a certain detachment compared to other moments we witnessed over the years: the Celtics breaking the Sweaty Awkward Hug record as the '86 Finals wound down; Magic's Lakers flipping out after vanquishing the '87 Celtics; Isiah's teammates hoisting him in the air after the 1990 Finals; the prolonged, "I couldn't have done this without you" hug between Jordan and Pippen after a grueling 1998 Finals; Duncan beaming as he watched Tony Parker accept the 2007 Finals MVP; even the crazed display of emotion from the Celtics last June. We can tell when a team connects as a whole. We can. I wasn't quite there with Kobe and the 2009 Lakers, for the same reason that those overachieving high school girls can't make up for lost time just by hitting a few parties after final exams. Nice effort, I understand why you did it ... but no. You can't change who you are.

One last thought: Will Kobe's teammates make the same sacrifices next season that they did this season? Pat Riley argued in his book "Showtime" that a defending champion's biggest threat is the "Disease of More" -- players wanting more shots, more money, more minutes, more everything. He also argued younger teams are more likely to fall prey to this disease. The 2008-09 Lakers happen to be a fairly young group of guys. Will Kobe's supporting cast remain as unselfish next season? I am dubious. Arrangements only last so long.

3. Why was the media so desperate to convince us Kobe HAD changed, that his quest to win a fourth title was a storyline that dwarfed all others, that we needed to understand this was a GREAT PLAYER WE ARE WATCHING, that he really wants this, that he's like a coach out there ... I mean, what was the motivation here?

I wish I knew. It was perplexing. In my opinion, the following storylines were more interesting ...

Storyline A: I have written about the "Nobody Believes In Us!" phenomenon many times, but the 2009 Lakers were the first "Nobody Believed In Me!" team. As Washington Post columnist Mike Wise pointed out, the key Lakers were alternately dismissed, dumped by a previous team, pigeonholed as a certain type of player, overlooked for whatever reason or thought to be washed up: Kobe, Odom, Gasol, Ariza, Bynum, Fisher, even Jackson. All of them had something to prove -- not as teammates, but as individuals. Now that's a unique angle. I wish I had thought of it first.

Storyline B: OK, this has nothing to do with anything ... but I can't stop thinking about Joey Buss. Granted, there's a chance I would have been just as tongue-tied on national TV at age 19. But who thought it was a good idea to have him speak extemporaneously in front of a worldwide audience? How did he become the "alternate governor of the Lakers," and what does that mean? Are people in Southern California frightened that two of their governors are Arnold Schwarzenegger and Joey Buss? Did they throw him out there to answer the question, "What would have happened if Fredo had gotten control of the Corleone family?" Did they bring him out to make the Maloofs feel better about themselves as overmatched legacy kids? Has he ever been discreetly stared at by a bunch of country club workers and had one of them say, "Fifty bucks says the Buss kid picks his nose." Do I have to retire the Unintentional Comedy Scale now?

Where was Jerry Buss? Where was Jeanie Buss? How did this happen? How can I get more Joey Buss in my life? And why didn't I know about him before Sunday night? More importantly, when are they putting the Buss boys in charge of the Lakers????? I vote for right now. Like, today. This moment. Please. I am begging you. This would be like a cross between the Hank Steinbrenner Era and "Tommy Boy." I never thought there would be a silver lining with a Lakers title, but dammit, there was.

Storyline C: The 2009 Lakers were built the same way someone goes on a three-hour craps run. In other words, don't even think about duplicating it. Seven solid "What if that coin flip had turned up tails instead of heads?" moments shaped the team. Namely, what if Jackson hadn't developed a relationship with Jeanie Buss? (No way he comes back to deal with Kobe again otherwise.) What if Anthony Carter's agent hadn't forgotten to send in his contract in time during the summer of 2003, creating enough cap space for Miami to sign Odom as a free agent, then giving Miami enough pieces to trade for Shaq a year later? What if the Lakers had traded Odom like they almost did about 35,000 times? What if Kobe hadn't blocked the Chicago trade -- and he did -- right before the 2007-08 season because the Bulls were giving up too much? What if Chris Wallace hadn't given them Gasol for 30 cents on the dollar? What if Otis Smith hadn't done the same in giving away Ariza? And what if Fisher's daughter hadn't fallen ill, forcing an unprecedented situation in which Utah released him from his deal so he could play for the Lakers?

(That's seven "what ifs." Seven. Amazing. The Chicago part remains the most incredible. You forget how close that was; I don't think I saw it explored once during the Finals.)

Storyline D: Kobe and Phil. I know, it has been done. Many times. But the story had so many layers that I still don't feel as if we nailed all of them. My favorite image of the 2009 Finals was Phil's face after Kobe went one-on-four at the end of Game 2, something I jokingly called The "Should I point out to him that MJ would have absolutely passed there?" Face in my column.

It's just one more reason why Phil Jackson

 his agent. That's it. During Sunday night's celebration, when Kobe's family materialized immediately -- almost on cue -- the cynical side of me wanted to throw up, but the rational side was thinking, "Of course, they're here. He doesn't have anyone else." I wouldn't call the situation weird or anything, just atypical for a league in which stars normally surround themselves with longtime friends who knew them before they were famous. And it fits in with the rest of the Kobe package: He's an unconventional superstar in a conventional league. Almost like a successful child actor who beat the odds and turned out relatively normal.

Two months ago, I wrote that Kobe made a mistake playing in the 2008 Olympics because his biggest threats (LeBron, Paul, etc.) were given a glimpse into what made him him -- how hard he worked, how committed he was, how he was consumed by basketball -- and argued that he inadvertently gave away a competitive advantage. When I mentioned this theory to colleague and longtime Kobe expert J.A. Adande during a recent podcast, Adande respectfully disagreed, saying Kobe NEEDED that experience. He needed to fit in with that crew. He needed to be accepted as one of the guys. He craved that social respect from his peers. He wanted to crack jokes, bust chops and everything else. He would absolutely do it again, Adande maintained.

Listening to the argument, I joked Kobe sounded like one of those high school seniors who killed herself finishing with a 4.0, running the newspaper and the yearbook and playing three sports, and only realizing right at the end that she had never bothered to develop any lasting relationships. Like Ione Skye in "Say Anything," actually. But Adande was right. Kobe was making up for lost time. Most superstars prove themselves statistically on inferior teams, work up a healthy hunger for winning and getting over the hump, then make all the necessary sacrifices to make that happen. Kobe went in reverse -- he enjoyed team success early without ever establishing his statistical chops, leading to some serial ball-hogging, four scoring titles and even an 81-point game. After that, maybe he realized there was a better way and awkwardly reinvented himself from there. A little like watching A-Rod, actually -- another "child athlete star" -- only Kobe learned to play the part and A-Rod still can't figure it out.

That brings us back to Sunday. There was a certain detachment compared to other moments we witnessed over the years: the Celtics breaking the Sweaty Awkward Hug record as the '86 Finals wound down; Magic's Lakers flipping out after vanquishing the '87 Celtics; Isiah's teammates hoisting him in the air after the 1990 Finals; the prolonged, "I couldn't have done this without you" hug between Jordan and Pippen after a grueling 1998 Finals; Duncan beaming as he watched Tony Parker accept the 2007 Finals MVP; even the crazed display of emotion from the Celtics last June. We can tell when a team connects as a whole. We can. I wasn't quite there with Kobe and the 2009 Lakers, for the same reason that those overachieving high school girls can't make up for lost time just by hitting a few parties after final exams. Nice effort, I understand why you did it ... but no. You can't change who you are.

One last thought: Will Kobe's teammates make the same sacrifices next season that they did this season? Pat Riley argued in his book "Showtime" that a defending champion's biggest threat is the "Disease of More" -- players wanting more shots, more money, more minutes, more everything. He also argued younger teams are more likely to fall prey to this disease. The 2008-09 Lakers happen to be a fairly young group of guys. Will Kobe's supporting cast remain as unselfish next season? I am dubious. Arrangements only last so long.

3. Why was the media so desperate to convince us Kobe HAD changed, that his quest to win a fourth title was a storyline that dwarfed all others, that we needed to understand this was a GREAT PLAYER WE ARE WATCHING, that he really wants this, that he's like a coach out there ... I mean, what was the motivation here?

I wish I knew. It was perplexing. In my opinion, the following storylines were more interesting ...

Storyline A: I have written about the "Nobody Believes In Us!" phenomenon many times, but the 2009 Lakers were the first "Nobody Believed In Me!" team. As Washington Post columnist Mike Wise pointed out, the key Lakers were alternately dismissed, dumped by a previous team, pigeonholed as a certain type of player, overlooked for whatever reason or thought to be washed up: Kobe, Odom, Gasol, Ariza, Bynum, Fisher, even Jackson. All of them had something to prove -- not as teammates, but as individuals. Now that's a unique angle. I wish I had thought of it first.

Storyline B: OK, this has nothing to do with anything ... but I can't stop thinking about Joey Buss. Granted, there's a chance I would have been just as tongue-tied on national TV at age 19. But who thought it was a good idea to have him speak extemporaneously in front of a worldwide audience? How did he become the "alternate governor of the Lakers," and what does that mean? Are people in Southern California frightened that two of their governors are Arnold Schwarzenegger and Joey Buss? Did they throw him out there to answer the question, "What would have happened if Fredo had gotten control of the Corleone family?" Did they bring him out to make the Maloofs feel better about themselves as overmatched legacy kids? Has he ever been discreetly stared at by a bunch of country club workers and had one of them say, "Fifty bucks says the Buss kid picks his nose." Do I have to retire the Unintentional Comedy Scale now?

Where was Jerry Buss? Where was Jeanie Buss? How did this happen? How can I get more Joey Buss in my life? And why didn't I know about him before Sunday night? More importantly, when are they putting the Buss boys in charge of the Lakers????? I vote for right now. Like, today. This moment. Please. I am begging you. This would be like a cross between the Hank Steinbrenner Era and "Tommy Boy." I never thought there would be a silver lining with a Lakers title, but dammit, there was.

Storyline C: The 2009 Lakers were built the same way someone goes on a three-hour craps run. In other words, don't even think about duplicating it. Seven solid "What if that coin flip had turned up tails instead of heads?" moments shaped the team. Namely, what if Jackson hadn't developed a relationship with Jeanie Buss? (No way he comes back to deal with Kobe again otherwise.) What if Anthony Carter's agent hadn't forgotten to send in his contract in time during the summer of 2003, creating enough cap space for Miami to sign Odom as a free agent, then giving Miami enough pieces to trade for Shaq a year later? What if the Lakers had traded Odom like they almost did about 35,000 times? What if Kobe hadn't blocked the Chicago trade -- and he did -- right before the 2007-08 season because the Bulls were giving up too much? What if Chris Wallace hadn't given them Gasol for 30 cents on the dollar? What if Otis Smith hadn't done the same in giving away Ariza? And what if Fisher's daughter hadn't fallen ill, forcing an unprecedented situation in which Utah released him from his deal so he could play for the Lakers?

(That's seven "what ifs." Seven. Amazing. The Chicago part remains the most incredible. You forget how close that was; I don't think I saw it explored once during the Finals.)

Storyline D: Kobe and Phil. I know, it has been done. Many times. But the story had so many layers that I still don't feel as if we nailed all of them. My favorite image of the 2009 Finals was Phil's face after Kobe went one-on-four at the end of Game 2, something I jokingly called The "Should I point out to him that MJ would have absolutely passed there?" Face in my column.

It's just one more reason why Phil Jackson is the greatest basketball coach ever. He sold the greatest player ever on the benefits of being a good teammate, which wasn't an easy task because Jordan was a demanding, insensitive jerk at the time. Jackson nearly brought the Bulls to the '94 Finals without the greatest player ever, which remains the single most incredible coaching job of my lifetime. He won 72 games. He won 10 titles. Last but not least, he harnessed the talents of the single most difficult superstar not named "Wilt" the NBA has ever seen. He did this gradually, over the span of a solid decade, and he even had to walk away once for effect. You can't credit him for "changing" Kobe, just for nudging him in the right directions and helping him understand the balance between dominating and winning. What Kobe did with that understanding, ultimately, was up to him.

Anyway, I could have listened to people explain the Phil-Kobe relationship all day. Frankly, I still don't understand it myself. But if a coach spends enough time with a player, they really do start to feel like a married couple. Russell and A


== Camp David summit ==
At Camp David on 18 August 2023, Biden announced the pact, marking the first time that international leaders visited the retreat since 2015, when then-president Barack Obama held a Gulf Cooperation Council summit there. The summit was the first time in Biden's presidency that journalists were allowed on Camp David's grounds.

== Implementation ==
The pact implements a formal casus foederis in which a threat to one member constitutes a threat against all, but does not mirror Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty; the response to an attack against one member must be discussed. The pact also improves trilateral ballistic missile defense and military exercises. The three countries will develop a security framework for the Indo-Pacific region.
The first Indo-Pacific Dialogue, building upon commitments made during the August 2023 Camp David summit, was held in Washington, D.C., on January 5, 2024. In a joint statement released by the US State Department, which<|endoftext|> Methods

In this section, I'll quickly summarize the available payout methods.

I'm sure everyone is familiar with PayPal. Idle-Empire sends USD to your PayPal account. There's a fee of $0.30 + 2.9%.

Gift Cards

They currently offer gift cards for the following platforms:

Idle-Empire has cryptocurrency payouts through Coinbase. The coins will be sent to your Coinbase account with zero fees. These currencies are supported:

Perfect Money

Perfect Money might be an alternative to PayPal for some people, especially when PayPal isn't available in your country. Perfect Money funds can be converted to Bitcoin, Skrill, Neteller, Payeer, Payoneer, and many others. Idle-Empire sends USD to your Perfect Money account.

BitSkins is a marketplace for Steam items, mainly for CS:GO and TF2 skins but many other games are supported too. Idle-Empire sends USD balance to your BitSkins account.

OPSkins is a marketplace for virtual and physical items. Idle-Empire sends Operation Points to your OPSkins account.

CSGOShop is a marketplace similar to BitSkins but apparently, it has fewer users and supports fewer games. Idle-Empire sends USD balance to your CSGOShop account.

KeyJoker seems to be a website where you can buy cheap indie Steam games. Idle-Empire sends credits to your KeyJoker account.

Idle-Empire has "Boosters" that are randomly created on weekends (Saturday and Sunday). Boosters temporarily increase the earnings for one earning method, the boost can range from 1% to 100% and lasts a few hours. I've seen boosters for surveys/offers, videos, mining, and the game servers.

Idle-Empire can be a good alternative to traditional GPT sites for many users, especially since it doesn't have any country restrictions.
It has some unconventional earning methods like idling, mining, and some promotions but you'll also find the usual surveys, offers, and videos. Idle-Empire has many different offer walls, so that's nice if you like to grind.
The payout methods are primarily targeted towards gamers but they also have payouts through PayPal, Gift Cards, Cryptocurrencies, and Perfect Money. So I guess there's something for everybody.
The boosters on weekends are a good opportunity to complete some high paying offers and get a nice bonus on top. Coupons are also regularly posted on Twitter and the other social media channels and they can be redeemed in just a few seconds, so that's fast and easy.
I hope this extensive overview was helpful to some people! :)
submitted by z3rAHvzMxZ54fZmJmxaI to beermoney [link] [comments]

Most Common Beer Money Sites: DO NOT Create Threads Promoting These

SwagBucks [International*]

This is one of the oldest, most well known GPT (Get-Paid-To) sites. They have plenty to offer, so you shouldn't get too bored. You can earn bonus points for meeting your daily goals, and you can earn up to 300 points ($3) for meeting your goal each day. They have one of the largest selections of rewards available, so you should easily find something you like. — Payment Proof. / Is it available in my country?
*The site is International, but most earning opportunities are for US, UK, CA and AU.
↪ Get a 500SB ($5) bonus if you sign up through this link and earn 500SB in your first 30 days. Points are awarded the next day after reaching 500SB.
↪ Use signup code REDDIT for a free 70SB bonus for new users. Click “I have a sign up code (optional)” which is underneath the “Confirm Password” Box.
↪ Age minimum: 13
↪ Offers: Mobile and Desktop Videos, Surveys, Polls, Offer Walls, Tasks, Special offers, Coupons, Games, Search bar, Limited Time Codes, Download offers, Cash Back from Shopping, Swago (like Bingo) and more.
↪ Payout: [Minimum: $3] Amazon, PayPal, Prepaid VISA, Wal-Mart, PSN, Xbox, Sweepstakes, Charity and many more.
• Earn up to 300 SB ($3) for meeting your goals for 7, 14, 21 and 30 days in a row.
• Once a month you can redeem a $25 gift card for 12% off.
• Make up to 10 Swagbucks easily each day by playing games in the Play category.
• Click And Earn List to Earn 38 Points Daily Here
• Check out /swagbucks and the discord after signing up for up to date info about the best paying offers.

GAIN [US, GB, IE, SE, DE, CA, NL, NO, AU, BE, ES, FR, DK, IT, RU, SG and MY]

Gain is a high paying GPT site that allows you to complete offers, watch videos, complete surveys and more to earn coins. Gain operates in many countries. New users can start out with 100 coins by using this link. — Payment Proof.
↪ Withdrawal options include BTC, ETH, LTC, BCH, CSGOSHOP, Coinbase. Gift cards (through Tango/Rewardlink) also available in certain countries only.
Free daily bonus coins from 10-100 depending on your user level, claim them every 24h on the Gain offerwall
↪ Age minimum: 13+
↪ No screwy point to dollar conversion ratios. 1,000 coins = $1.
↪ Active, friendly and easily accessible support
↪ Earn extra coins for being one of the top 3 earners each day and each month.
• Referral Incentive: New users get 100 coins ($0.10). Referring users get 5% of the referred users earnings.
• Click on the PayPal Guide link after signing up to learn how to easily convert your earnings from Crypto>PayPal with CoinBase.
5% Earning Bonus: Sign up to the site with your Steam account and add gain.gg to the end of your steam username to earn a 5% bonus on your earnings.
Offers over 4000 coins are automatically held, message Support Chat (click Support on the top right of the chat box) to have the coins released for you.

GG2U.org [International*]

GG2U is a GPT (Get-Paid-To) site. The website is a bit outdated looking, and it can feel clunky at times, but don't let that fool you. It has some of the highest paying rates, and has a few unique offer walls and plenty of survey routers that you rarely see on other sites. The customer support is great as well. The owner responds pretty quickly and is always willing to help out. This site is focused on gamers and has some gaming tasks, but there are plenty of things to do for non-gamers as well. — Payment Proof.
↪ Age minimum: 13
↪ Offers: Surveys, Offer Walls, Tasks, Videos, Gaming Tasks, and Promotional Link Shortener.
↪ Get paid for listening to the radio (US, CA, UK)
↪ Payout: [Minimum: $7] PayPal, BTC to Coinbase, Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop, Google Play, iTunes, Nintendo eShop, Playstation GC, Steam, Target, Walmart, Xbox GC
↪ Referral Incentive: The referring user earns 5% for life.
• For every 5 cash out requests, you get a Golden Token which will give you $1-7. This results in an average 7.8% higher payments if cashing out at the minimum each time.
• If you contact support, you can request to have your payouts issued at the minimum cashout amount rather than for your full balance. This will let you make the most out of the Golden Tickets.

PrizeRebel [International*]

PrizeRebel is a GPT (Get-Paid-To) site. They have many offer walls and survey providers available. You can earn bonus points for meeting your daily goals, and they have bi-monthly contests that reward the top earners. They also have a Level program that allows you to earn a bigger percentage from your referrals, prize discounts, special bonuses,

 Methods

In this section, I'll quickly summarize the available payout methods.

I'm sure everyone is familiar with PayPal. Idle-Empire sends USD to your PayPal account. There's a fee of $0.30 + 2.9%.

Gift Cards

They currently offer gift cards for the following platforms:

Idle-Empire has cryptocurrency payouts through Coinbase. The coins will be sent to your Coinbase account with zero fees. These currencies are supported:

Perfect Money

Perfect Money might be an alternative to PayPal for some people, especially when PayPal isn't available in your country. Perfect Money funds can be converted to Bitcoin, Skrill, Neteller, Payeer, Payoneer, and many others. Idle-Empire sends USD to your Perfect Money account.

BitSkins is a marketplace for Steam items, mainly for CS:GO and TF2 skins but many other games are supported too. Idle-Empire sends USD balance to your BitSkins account.

OPSkins is a marketplace for virtual and physical items. Idle-Empire sends Operation Points to your OPSkins account.

CSGOShop is a marketplace similar to BitSkins but apparently, it has fewer users and supports fewer games. Idle-Empire sends USD balance to your CSGOShop account.

KeyJoker seems to be a website where you can buy cheap indie Steam games. Idle-Empire sends credits to your KeyJoker account.

Idle-Empire has "Boosters" that are randomly created on weekends (Saturday and Sunday). Boosters temporarily increase the earnings for one earning method, the boost can range from 1% to 100% and lasts a few hours. I've seen boosters for surveys/offers, videos, mining, and the game servers.

Idle-Empire can be a good alternative to traditional GPT sites for many users, especially since it doesn't have any country restrictions.
It has some unconventional earning methods like idling, mining, and some promotions but you'll also find the usual surveys, offers, and videos. Idle-Empire has many different offer walls, so that's nice if you like to grind.
The payout methods are primarily targeted towards gamers but they also have payouts through PayPal, Gift Cards, Cryptocurrencies, and Perfect Money. So I guess there's something for everybody.
The boosters on weekends are a good opportunity to complete some high paying offers and get a nice bonus on top. Coupons are also regularly posted on Twitter and the other social media channels and they can be redeemed in just a few seconds, so that's fast and easy.
I hope this extensive overview was helpful to some people! :)
submitted by z3rAHvzMxZ54fZmJmxaI to beermoney [link] [comments]

Most Common Beer Money Sites: DO NOT Create Threads Promoting These

SwagBucks [International*]

This is one of the oldest, most well known GPT (Get-Paid-To) sites. They have plenty to offer, so you shouldn't get too bored. You can earn bonus points for meeting your daily goals, and you can earn up to 300 points ($3) for meeting your goal each day. They have one of the largest selections of rewards available, so you should easily find something you like. — Payment Proof. / Is it available in my country?
*The site is International, but most earning opportunities are for US, UK, CA and AU.
↪ Get a 500SB ($5) bonus if you sign up through this link and earn 500SB in your first 30 days. Points are awarded the next day after reaching 500SB.
↪ Use signup code REDDIT for a free 70SB bonus for new users. Click “I have a sign up code (optional)” which is underneath the “Confirm Password” Box.
↪ Age minimum: 13
↪ Offers: Mobile and Desktop Videos, Surveys, Polls, Offer Walls, Tasks, Special offers, Coupons, Games, Search bar, Limited Time Codes, Download offers, Cash Back from Shopping, Swago (like Bingo) and more.
↪ Payout: [Minimum: $3] Amazon, PayPal, Prepaid VISA, Wal-Mart, PSN, Xbox, Sweepstakes, Charity and many more.
• Earn up to 300 SB ($3) for meeting your goals for 7, 14, 21 and 30 days in a row.
• Once a month you can redeem a $25 gift card for 12% off.
• Make up to 10 Swagbucks easily each day by playing games in the Play category.
• Click And Earn List to Earn 38 Points Daily Here
• Check out /swagbucks and the discord after signing up for up to date info about the best paying offers.

GAIN [US, GB, IE, SE, DE, CA, NL, NO, AU, BE, ES, FR, DK, IT, RU, SG and MY]

Gain is a high paying GPT site that allows you to complete offers, watch videos, complete surveys and more to earn coins. Gain operates in many countries. New users can start out with 100 coins by using this link. — Payment Proof.
↪ Withdrawal options include BTC, ETH, LTC, BCH, CSGOSHOP, Coinbase. Gift cards (through Tango/Rewardlink) also available in certain countries only.
Free daily bonus coins from 10-100 depending on your user level, claim them every 24h on the Gain offerwall
↪ Age minimum: 13+
↪ No screwy point to dollar conversion ratios. 1,000 coins = $1.
↪ Active, friendly and easily accessible support
↪ Earn extra coins for being one of the top 3 earners each day and each month.
• Referral Incentive: New users get 100 coins ($0.10). Referring users get 5% of the referred users earnings.
• Click on the PayPal Guide link after signing up to learn how to easily convert your earnings from Crypto>PayPal with CoinBase.
5% Earning Bonus: Sign up to the site with your Steam account and add gain.gg to the end of your steam username to earn a 5% bonus on your earnings.
Offers over 4000 coins are automatically held, message Support Chat (click Support on the top right of the chat box) to have the coins released for you.

GG2U.org [International*]

GG2U is a GPT (Get-Paid-To) site. The website is a bit outdated looking, and it can feel clunky at times, but don't let that fool you. It has some of the highest paying rates, and has a few unique offer walls and plenty of survey routers that you rarely see on other sites. The customer support is great as well. The owner responds pretty quickly and is always willing to help out. This site is focused on gamers and has some gaming tasks, but there are plenty of things to do for non-gamers as well. — Payment Proof.
↪ Age minimum: 13
↪ Offers: Surveys, Offer Walls, Tasks, Videos, Gaming Tasks, and Promotional Link Shortener.
↪ Get paid for listening to the radio (US, CA, UK)
↪ Payout: [Minimum: $7] PayPal, BTC to Coinbase, Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop, Google Play, iTunes, Nintendo eShop, Playstation GC, Steam, Target, Walmart, Xbox GC
↪ Referral Incentive: The referring user earns 5% for life.
• For every 5 cash out requests, you get a Golden Token which will give you $1-7. This results in an average 7.8% higher payments if cashing out at the minimum each time.
• If you contact support, you can request to have your payouts issued at the minimum cashout amount rather than for your full balance. This will let you make the most out of the Golden Tickets.

PrizeRebel [International*]

PrizeRebel is a GPT (Get-Paid-To) site. They have many offer walls and survey providers available. You can earn bonus points for meeting your daily goals, and they have bi-monthly contests that reward the top earners. They also have a Level program that allows you to earn a bigger percentage from your referrals, prize discounts, special bonuses, and automatic prize processing. Level up by earning more points. — Payment Proof.
↪ Age minimum: 16
↪ Offers: Surveys, Offer Walls, Tasks, Videos, Coupons, and Earning Contests.
↪ Payout: [Minimum: $2] Amazon, PayPal, VISA, Wal-Mart, Best Buy, Raffles and many more.
↪ Referral Incentive: 15-30% of what your referrals earn for life.
• Meet your daily goal each day to earn bonus points.

Fetch Rewards Invite Code: V3DVK [US, Puerto Rico]

Fetch is an app available for both Android and iOS where users earn money for scanning receipts and for purchasing specific products or brands. You get points for every receipt from a grocery retailer, supermarket, club wholesaler, home improvement/hardware store, pet store or convenience stores, regardless of what you buy. You


the military forces of both sides to withdraw, and thereby temporarily ending fighting on it.
Due to the destruction of the dam, water levels on the lower Dnieper rose about 5.31 meters, fully submerging the swampy islands in the delta, as well as the whole of Hola Prystan and most of Oleshky. The Russian controlled southern bank is a low lying swamp and floodplain while the northern bank that Ukraine controls is elevated, sparing it from the worst of the flooding. In total, 108 settlements along the Dnieper flooded as the Kakhovka Reservoir continued to drain, with its water level dropping from 16.8 meters to 12.7.
Alongside the civilian cost of the flooding, Russia lost both men and material in the flooding, particularly the 7th Air Assault Division and elements of the 22nd Army Corps. In the aftermath of the flood, Russia withdrew its defensive positions between 5 and 15 kilometers further south, leaving the southern bank virtually undefended. Additionally, the Kinburn Spit has<|endoftext|> options, they feature a separate living room room area where you can entertain guests. The Luxury Suite is unique in that it has artefact decors that are sure to entice the heritage lovers. For those who love nature, opt for the Garden Luxury Suite where you would have your own garden on the ground area of the suite. And for those who want to feel like royalty, a stay in the Presidential Suite or Tata Suite can give you just that.

    What are the Dining Options in the Taj Palace Hotel in New Delhi?

    Your taste buds won't be disappointed with the dining options in the Taj Palace Hotel. With a number of award-winning and culinary exemplar restaurants, there's no need to venture outside for satisfying meals. The best part is that the hotel has diverse restaurants, with cuisines ranging from both local ones to international ones. They have four on-site restaurants, one cafe and one bar slash lounge, so for any foodie out there, you can find your match right at the Taj Palace Hotel.

    Dining Options in Taj Palace Hotel

    RestaurantCuisine/sTimingsBest-Seller Dishes
    Masala ArtNorth Indian12:30 to 23:45Dal Makhani
    Orient ExpressEuropean19:00 to 23:45Camembert Souffle
    Spicy DuckChinese12:30 to 23:45Wok-Fried Duck
    Capital KitchenEuropean, North Indian and Asian12:00 to 12:00Lobster Roll
    The Tea LoungeCafe8:00 to 23:30Dimbula Tea
    The Blue BarFinger Food and Drinks17:00 to 00:45Sichuan Tofu
    Masala Art is one of their most known restaurants which specialises in Mughlai cuisine dishes. The ambience is phenomenal because of the all-wooden interiors. A must-try dish here is the Dal Makhani, a classic dish from the Mughlai cuisine, creamy yet not overpowering at the same time. Orient Express is their train-inspired restaurant patterned after the luxury train service which one ran from Paris to Istanbul. As such, the cuisine served here is mainly European, with delicacies such as the Camembert Souffle, Lobster Ravioli and Tenderloin Steak. Spicy Duck is their Chinese cuisine restaurant which as the name suggests, have specialty duck dishes. Capital Kitchen is a multi-cuisine restaurant which offers European, North Indian and Asian cuisines dishes to guests. The latter two, The Tea Lounge and The Blue Bar, serve mainly beverages to guests, in the form of tea and cocktails respectively.

    What are the Facilities Offered by Taj Palace Hotel in New Delhi?

    There's an outdoor swimming pool with depths ranging from 4 feet to 10 feet. It is surrounded by a patio with some sun loungers for lazing in the sun. There's an on-site spa known as Jiva which specialises in Ayurvedic treatments and massages. You can also pamper yourself with body scrubs, facials and even salon services here. There's a gym as well with equipments such as treadmills, weights and even a kinesis machine. There's a trainer here as well to help you if you're a beginner in fitness training. There's a mini golf course as well within the lawn premises of the property. If you have little ones with you, the management can arrage for child-friendly activities that they can enjoy.

    If you have special events that you want to celebrate in the hotel, they have some events halls that you can rent. The Durbar is the largest gathering indoor hall of the hotel which can accommodate up to 1,000 individuals at the same time. There are also some smaller halls like Jehangir and Alamgar, where you can conduct your meetings or conferences in. The expansive lawns can also be a venue for receptions or birthdays. There's a functional business centre as well with equipments such as computers, printers and fax machines. You can also access internet in this area if ever you need to do so. Speaking of internet, you can access it free of charge from any area of the hotel. But they also have premium internet with better speed that you can avail of for additional charges.

    Practical facilities in the hotel are ATM, elevator, currency exchange and luggage storage. There's a travel desk as well wherein guests can inquire about travel-related questions. Staff in this section can also arrange for sightseeing tours whether within the city or outside of the city. They can also reserve for railway or bus tickets in case you need them. Parking can also be availed within the premises without any charges for staying guests. There are some shops on-site where you can buy souvenirs to take home as gifts to friends or families. Services such as laundry, housekeeping, suit press, shoe shine and ironing are also available in the hotel.

    What is the Verdict?

    This ends our guide on the Taj Palace Hotel in New Delhi. The hotel is located in the Diplomatic Enclave, in a quiet area away from the chaos of the city, but still easily accessible via road or public transport. This five-star hotel offers a myriad of dining options that even fussy eaters can't resist. That's not all, the hotel offers a range of facilities that everyone in the group can enjoy, from leisure, up to business needs. With the well-trained staff, hospitality and warmth are never taken for granted, which truly makes a difference in any property, whether big or small. I hope this helps you!<|endoftext|>Jump to content

  • Content Count

  • Joined

  • Last visited

Everything posted by mikuel

  1. When a shaman is teaching a character a spirit magic spell, can he do something else? Or is he/she committed to working with that character all week, 6 to 8 hours a day? If your clan only has one shaman with the teach spirit magic spell, and it takes a week, I'm assuming that they can only teach one spell at a time. Or can a shaman work with 3 or 4 characters at the same time during that week teaching each a different spell? My players will have some 7 or so weeks of down time and will want to learn some spells from their shaman and cult leaders.
  2. mikuel

    Spirit Combat

    Does this mean that the shaman, in spirit form do the same thing? Could a shaman go scout out ruins by travelling through the walls and seeing what is in each room?
  3. mikuel

    Spirit Combat

    That could be really convenient for the shaman. Warrior: So Shaman, why didn't you help us there with that Broo ambush? Shaman: Sorry guys, I was...uhh.... fighting this disease spirit in the spirit realm. Yeah! That's what it was!
  4. mikuel

    Spirit Combat

    So does it take a spirit a round of combat to become visible, then the next round it attacks the player? Or does it become corporal and attack in that same round? Is it then visible for the entire spirit combat, or does it become discorporate the following round? If someone is being attacked by a spirit in the spirit realm, what does it look like to those in the material world? Is the attacked character just staring into space? Or is he/she swiping at the air?
  5. mikuel

    Spirit Combat

    I've recently been reading about shaman's in RQG. If a shaman is ambushed by a malign spirit, how does he fight it in spirit combat if it takes him an hour to discorporate? What am I missing?
  6. I have a question about Rune points. During character creation, step 6, when picking a cult, it states:" As an initiate, your adventurer starts play with 3 Rune points dedicated to that cult. " So do you lose 3 Power from your character for these 3 rune points? the chapter on Rune magic states that you have to sacrifice a rune point for each rune point. p.313 "A cult member may sacrifice additional points of POW to the deity, increasing the number of Rune points with the deity and gaining greater access to cult special magic. The sacrifice requires a full week of prayer and meditation in the temple. At the end of the week, the adventurer sacrifices 1 or more POW points and gains an equal number of Rune points. " I'm confused.
  7. How do game masters use allied spirits? Do players just use them as

 options, they feature a separate living room room area where you can entertain guests. The Luxury Suite is unique in that it has artefact decors that are sure to entice the heritage lovers. For those who love nature, opt for the Garden Luxury Suite where you would have your own garden on the ground area of the suite. And for those who want to feel like royalty, a stay in the Presidential Suite or Tata Suite can give you just that.

    What are the Dining Options in the Taj Palace Hotel in New Delhi?

    Your taste buds won't be disappointed with the dining options in the Taj Palace Hotel. With a number of award-winning and culinary exemplar restaurants, there's no need to venture outside for satisfying meals. The best part is that the hotel has diverse restaurants, with cuisines ranging from both local ones to international ones. They have four on-site restaurants, one cafe and one bar slash lounge, so for any foodie out there, you can find your match right at the Taj Palace Hotel.

    Dining Options in Taj Palace Hotel

    RestaurantCuisine/sTimingsBest-Seller Dishes
    Masala ArtNorth Indian12:30 to 23:45Dal Makhani
    Orient ExpressEuropean19:00 to 23:45Camembert Souffle
    Spicy DuckChinese12:30 to 23:45Wok-Fried Duck
    Capital KitchenEuropean, North Indian and Asian12:00 to 12:00Lobster Roll
    The Tea LoungeCafe8:00 to 23:30Dimbula Tea
    The Blue BarFinger Food and Drinks17:00 to 00:45Sichuan Tofu
    Masala Art is one of their most known restaurants which specialises in Mughlai cuisine dishes. The ambience is phenomenal because of the all-wooden interiors. A must-try dish here is the Dal Makhani, a classic dish from the Mughlai cuisine, creamy yet not overpowering at the same time. Orient Express is their train-inspired restaurant patterned after the luxury train service which one ran from Paris to Istanbul. As such, the cuisine served here is mainly European, with delicacies such as the Camembert Souffle, Lobster Ravioli and Tenderloin Steak. Spicy Duck is their Chinese cuisine restaurant which as the name suggests, have specialty duck dishes. Capital Kitchen is a multi-cuisine restaurant which offers European, North Indian and Asian cuisines dishes to guests. The latter two, The Tea Lounge and The Blue Bar, serve mainly beverages to guests, in the form of tea and cocktails respectively.

    What are the Facilities Offered by Taj Palace Hotel in New Delhi?

    There's an outdoor swimming pool with depths ranging from 4 feet to 10 feet. It is surrounded by a patio with some sun loungers for lazing in the sun. There's an on-site spa known as Jiva which specialises in Ayurvedic treatments and massages. You can also pamper yourself with body scrubs, facials and even salon services here. There's a gym as well with equipments such as treadmills, weights and even a kinesis machine. There's a trainer here as well to help you if you're a beginner in fitness training. There's a mini golf course as well within the lawn premises of the property. If you have little ones with you, the management can arrage for child-friendly activities that they can enjoy.

    If you have special events that you want to celebrate in the hotel, they have some events halls that you can rent. The Durbar is the largest gathering indoor hall of the hotel which can accommodate up to 1,000 individuals at the same time. There are also some smaller halls like Jehangir and Alamgar, where you can conduct your meetings or conferences in. The expansive lawns can also be a venue for receptions or birthdays. There's a functional business centre as well with equipments such as computers, printers and fax machines. You can also access internet in this area if ever you need to do so. Speaking of internet, you can access it free of charge from any area of the hotel. But they also have premium internet with better speed that you can avail of for additional charges.

    Practical facilities in the hotel are ATM, elevator, currency exchange and luggage storage. There's a travel desk as well wherein guests can inquire about travel-related questions. Staff in this section can also arrange for sightseeing tours whether within the city or outside of the city. They can also reserve for railway or bus tickets in case you need them. Parking can also be availed within the premises without any charges for staying guests. There are some shops on-site where you can buy souvenirs to take home as gifts to friends or families. Services such as laundry, housekeeping, suit press, shoe shine and ironing are also available in the hotel.

    What is the Verdict?

    This ends our guide on the Taj Palace Hotel in New Delhi. The hotel is located in the Diplomatic Enclave, in a quiet area away from the chaos of the city, but still easily accessible via road or public transport. This five-star hotel offers a myriad of dining options that even fussy eaters can't resist. That's not all, the hotel offers a range of facilities that everyone in the group can enjoy, from leisure, up to business needs. With the well-trained staff, hospitality and warmth are never taken for granted, which truly makes a difference in any property, whether big or small. I hope this helps you!<|endoftext|>Jump to content

  • Content Count

  • Joined

  • Last visited

Everything posted by mikuel

  1. When a shaman is teaching a character a spirit magic spell, can he do something else? Or is he/she committed to working with that character all week, 6 to 8 hours a day? If your clan only has one shaman with the teach spirit magic spell, and it takes a week, I'm assuming that they can only teach one spell at a time. Or can a shaman work with 3 or 4 characters at the same time during that week teaching each a different spell? My players will have some 7 or so weeks of down time and will want to learn some spells from their shaman and cult leaders.
  2. mikuel

    Spirit Combat

    Does this mean that the shaman, in spirit form do the same thing? Could a shaman go scout out ruins by travelling through the walls and seeing what is in each room?
  3. mikuel

    Spirit Combat

    That could be really convenient for the shaman. Warrior: So Shaman, why didn't you help us there with that Broo ambush? Shaman: Sorry guys, I was...uhh.... fighting this disease spirit in the spirit realm. Yeah! That's what it was!
  4. mikuel

    Spirit Combat

    So does it take a spirit a round of combat to become visible, then the next round it attacks the player? Or does it become corporal and attack in that same round? Is it then visible for the entire spirit combat, or does it become discorporate the following round? If someone is being attacked by a spirit in the spirit realm, what does it look like to those in the material world? Is the attacked character just staring into space? Or is he/she swiping at the air?
  5. mikuel

    Spirit Combat

    I've recently been reading about shaman's in RQG. If a shaman is ambushed by a malign spirit, how does he fight it in spirit combat if it takes him an hour to discorporate? What am I missing?
  6. I have a question about Rune points. During character creation, step 6, when picking a cult, it states:" As an initiate, your adventurer starts play with 3 Rune points dedicated to that cult. " So do you lose 3 Power from your character for these 3 rune points? the chapter on Rune magic states that you have to sacrifice a rune point for each rune point. p.313 "A cult member may sacrifice additional points of POW to the deity, increasing the number of Rune points with the deity and gaining greater access to cult special magic. The sacrifice requires a full week of prayer and meditation in the temple. At the end of the week, the adventurer sacrifices 1 or more POW points and gains an equal number of Rune points. " I'm confused.
  7. How do game masters use allied spirits? Do players just use them as a spare tank for extra magic points? I notice that they have Power and Intelligence. Which makes me wonder what's it like to be a spirit. What do they talk about? What do they do in their spare time? Do they get bored?
  8. I'm assuming that when you sacrifice Power to enchant a magic item, cast Magic Point Enchantment, or become an initiate of a cult, you don't get those power points back? These are permanent losses?
  9. Ok. I thought you just purchased the spell protection and then put as many magic points in it as you had CHA. This is not correct. So you, for example, could buy protection 3 at 300L or whatever, then you could put up to 3 magic points into it if you wish. So if spells were like songs, protection 1 would be Hot Crossed Buns and protection 5 would be one of Beethoven's symphony's. Each spell is a different entity. Is this correct?
  10. Ahhhh...Ok. I get


 to be able to point you in the right direction.

This scheme allows for pet owners to move their dogs and cats to Europe (and a host of other countries, see list here) by following certain criteria set by the The Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs:

1. a microchip

2. a rabies vaccination (make sure your pet is microchipped first or the vaccination won’t count)

3. a pet passport or official third country veterinary certificate.

4. tapeworm treatment (for dogs only)

You must wait 21 days from the date of the rabies vaccination before traveling.

The cost of the procedures including vaccinations and documents could be in the region of £200, but remember the cost of flying or shipping them to your new destination may be expensive, and include the price of a ticket and transportation. Costs will be dependent upon the size of the animal and whether it can travel with you or it has to go in the hold. Shipping or flying costs will also vary.

Moving from the UK to Australia

Moving your dog or cat or horse (hamsters, ferrets and rabbits need not apply!) is relatively complicated in Australia and it’s worth getting yourself fully versed in what’s required. The Department of Agriculture and Water Resources has step-by-step lists for both dog and cat owners about what they need to do before and during the moving process.

Certain dogs are not allowed into Australia and a full list can be found here

First up, all dogs must be microchipped and need to receive a rabies virus vaccine after which they are then scanned for the Rabies Neutralising Antibody Titre (RNAT) test. There are strict rules around the test and dogs are not eligible to be allowed into Australia until at least 180 days from the date the blood test was drawn.

Once this is complete you will then need to apply and pay for an import permit, book tentative post entry quarantine accommodation, take out various other tests on your dog, including an external parasite treatment before obtaining a Completion of Veterinary Health Certificate.

Once your pet has arrived in Australia they will be subject to 10 days quarantine, but if there are any health issues, this time can be extended. Clear step-by-step information can be found here. Information about transporting cats can also be found at the same address.

It can cost anything from £1,900 to £3,000 to transport a dog or cat from the UK to Australia, so once again factor this all in when you are pulling together a budget. It actually may be more expensive to take your dog abroad than it is a young child.

If you are considering a move abroad PSS International removals can help. We are a family run company and our desire is to ensure your family receives a friendly, professional and stress free overseas move. We have specialised in international removals for over 34 years, so whether you are planning on sending a full or part household removal, excess baggage or a vehicle we recognise the importance of ensuring our customers receive the same level of care and attention that we would expect ourselves.
<|endoftext|>Aaron Eckhart battles for Los Angeles

For RedEye

SANTA MONICA, Calif. Aaron Eckhart fulfills a longtime dream in his latest film, "Battle: Los Angeles." He's always wanted to wear a uniform and fire an M-16.

"This is the little boy dream," Eckhart said during an exclusive interview with RedEye. "When I first got into acting I did so because I wanted to feel something. And I still want that. I always want to be as close as I can to my characters. I remember the [costume] fitting for this movie. I put [on the uniform] and it makes you stand differently and everything … Every day I put it on I felt like a warrior."

A warrior he is. Eckhart plays Marine Staff Sgt. Michael Nance, who leads his men in a fight for survival against a gnarly band of aliens trying to destroy L.A. The film, which hits theaters Friday, is inspired by an alleged alien air raid that many at the time believe took place in L.A. in 1942.

The film has plenty of aliens, but Eckhart sees it more as a war film than a sci-fi thriller.

"It's interesting with this movie," he said. "There's a reason why, there are the conflicts and the contradictions and it all goes together in the same suit. It's an interesting little package."

Eckhart's the complete package. His resume—which includes films such as "Any Given Sunday," "Thank Your For Smoking," "Erin Brockovich" and "The Dark Knight," is as eclectic at the man himself. Born in California, Eckhart spent some time in England and Australia before returning to the states to study film at Brigham Young University in Utah.

Eckhart has gone back-and-forth from big budget flicks to indies throughout his career, but says that he often prefers the latter because they're more "intense" and spiritually fulfilling.

"In indies everyone is usually sacrificing to get the film made," said Eckhart, who turns 43 on Saturday. "The box-office movies are more of a job. The financial payoff is better but I will easily turn down all that and take no money for better material. I have to live with myself. When you're out there acting you still have to be truthful, you have to prepare."

Despite that opinion, Eckhart says he takes "this big popcorn movie" as seriously an independent film.

Part of his preparation for "Battle: Los Angeles" included six weeks of boot camp, which Eckhart enjoyed. "I love being physical," he said.

He also dug the fact that it's not a green-screen movie. They used rubber rounds in real firearms, they crashed helicopters, they blew things up. And yes, Eckhart really did get hurt. He broke his arm during shooting while attempting a "Michael Jordan-type" move during a battle scene.

But it was all for a movie he says he's very proud of. "I have great hopes for this film," he said. "I'm hoping that if it does do business that I'll be able to profit from that—not in terms of money but doing other films that I want to do. It's been a hard road." MIKI TURNER IS A REDEYE SPECIAL CONTRIBUTOR

On reprising his role as Harvey Dent in Batman:
"I was just with [director] Chris [Nolan] two days ago. Apparently, they're already in production and I haven't gotten my call time! I said to him about a month ago that people are killing me [by asking] this. Am I coming back or not? He looked at me and said, 'No.' With Heath [Ledger] dying and everything, that was our movie and now Chris is going to create something else."

On fame:
"I don't take part so much in all the benefits of movie stardom. I keep to myself and don't participate much in the Hollywood thing, so I probably deprive myself of a lot of interesting experiences. The worst thing about it is that sometimes—and this is true of other businesses—your drive to keep it alive deprives the other sides of your life. You sit there and say, 'Where did my 30s go? I was traveling, I was making movies.'"

On Chicago:
"When I did 'Dark Knight,' I had never been to Chicago. I thought Chicago gets a bad rap because it's so cold and windy. We were there in the summer and omigod, it's beautiful. I did so much in Chicago outside of the film. I would go down to the lake and run and swim everyday. I'd take my camera—I'm an avid photographer—and I'd go deep, deep into wherever walking miles and miles, taking pictures of kids playing in the fire hydrants. I really got some good stuff. Mostly what I found charming about the city is the girls—not girls like being a devil—but there are tons of young people all around. I thought if I was a young dude needing a girlfriend, I would go to Chicago!"

On aliens:
"I think we'll all kill each other before something outside gets us! I think we need to be looking a little closer to home … I don't rule it out."

Copyright © 2016, Los Angeles Times<|endoftext|>on 4 November 2023. Bawumia again won by a wide margin, confirming him as the NPP's nominee for the 2024 elections, although Kennedy Agyapong's performance was also impressive as he secured a stronger second-place finish compared to his showing at the Super Delegates' Congress.

==== Parliamentary candidates ====

=== National Democratic Congress ===
The opposition National Democratic Congress opened its nomination period on 22 February 2023 and closed nominations on 22 March 2023. Candidates were required to pay a GH₵500,000 filing fee and a GH₵30,000 nomination fee, women and persons living with disabilities were eligible for a 50% discount. The NDC selected its candidate on 13 May 2023.

==== Presidential candidates ====
Nominee

John Mahama, former President of Ghana (2012–2017)
Eliminated in primary

Kojo Bonsu, former mayor of Kumasi
Kwabena Duffuor, former governor of the Bank of Ghana and Minister for Finance and Economic Planning
Ernest Kobeah, businessman

==== Results<|endoftext|>

t book your pet in early, they may get left behind. Others require blood tests and tape worm immunisations whilst others do not.To make things easier, we’ve compiled a list of checks you need to do, depending upon which country you are moving onto.

Moving from one EU country to another:

Thanks to the Pet Travel Scheme (PETS) owners of cats, dogs and ferrets (!) can transport their animals within Europe, following a relatively easy and straightforward scheme which sees them being issued with their own passport. This is done once a series of other procedures have been completed. In the UK only Official Veterinarians (OVs) are able to produce a pet passport. Your local vet is most likely to be able to point you in the right direction.

This scheme allows for pet owners to move their dogs and cats to Europe (and a host of other countries, see list here) by following certain criteria set by the The Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs:

1. a microchip

2. a rabies vaccination (make sure your pet is microchipped first or the vaccination won’t count)

3. a pet passport or official third country veterinary certificate.

4. tapeworm treatment (for dogs only)

You must wait 21 days from the date of the rabies vaccination before traveling.

The cost of the procedures including vaccinations and documents could be in the region of £200, but remember the cost of flying or shipping them to your new destination may be expensive, and include the price of a ticket and transportation. Costs will be dependent upon the size of the animal and whether it can travel with you or it has to go in the hold. Shipping or flying costs will also vary.

Moving from the UK to Australia

Moving your dog or cat or horse (hamsters, ferrets and rabbits need not apply!) is relatively complicated in Australia and it’s worth getting yourself fully versed in what’s required. The Department of Agriculture and Water Resources has step-by-step lists for both dog and cat owners about what they need to do before and during the moving process.

Certain dogs are not allowed into Australia and a full list can be found here

First up, all dogs must be microchipped and need to receive a rabies virus vaccine after which they are then scanned for the Rabies Neutralising Antibody Titre (RNAT) test. There are strict rules around the test and dogs are not eligible to be allowed into Australia until at least 180 days from the date the blood test was drawn.

Once this is complete you will then need to apply and pay for an import permit, book tentative post entry quarantine accommodation, take out various other tests on your dog, including an external parasite treatment before obtaining a Completion of Veterinary Health Certificate.

Once your pet has arrived in Australia they will be subject to 10 days quarantine, but if there are any health issues, this time can be extended. Clear step-by-step information can be found here. Information about transporting cats can also be found at the same address.

It can cost anything from £1,900 to £3,000 to transport a dog or cat from the UK to Australia, so once again factor this all in when you are pulling together a budget. It actually may be more expensive to take your dog abroad than it is a young child.

If you are considering a move abroad PSS International removals can help. We are a family run company and our desire is to ensure your family receives a friendly, professional and stress free overseas move. We have specialised in international removals for over 34 years, so whether you are planning on sending a full or part household removal, excess baggage or a vehicle we recognise the importance of ensuring our customers receive the same level of care and attention that we would expect ourselves.
<|endoftext|>Aaron Eckhart battles for Los Angeles

For RedEye

SANTA MONICA, Calif. Aaron Eckhart fulfills a longtime dream in his latest film, "Battle: Los Angeles." He's always wanted to wear a uniform and fire an M-16.

"This is the little boy dream," Eckhart said during an exclusive interview with RedEye. "When I first got into acting I did so because I wanted to feel something. And I still want that. I always want to be as close as I can to my characters. I remember the [costume] fitting for this movie. I put [on the uniform] and it makes you stand differently and everything … Every day I put it on I felt like a warrior."

A warrior he is. Eckhart plays Marine Staff Sgt. Michael Nance, who leads his men in a fight for survival against a gnarly band of aliens trying to destroy L.A. The film, which hits theaters Friday, is inspired by an alleged alien air raid that many at the time believe took place in L.A. in 1942.

The film has plenty of aliens, but Eckhart sees it more as a war film than a sci-fi thriller.

"It's interesting with this movie," he said. "There's a reason why, there are the conflicts and the contradictions and it all goes together in the same suit. It's an interesting little package."

Eckhart's the complete package. His resume—which includes films such as "Any Given Sunday," "Thank Your For Smoking," "Erin Brockovich" and "The Dark Knight," is as eclectic at the man himself. Born in California, Eckhart spent some time in England and Australia before returning to the states to study film at Brigham Young University in Utah.

Eckhart has gone back-and-forth from big budget flicks to indies throughout his career, but says that he often prefers the latter because they're more "intense" and spiritually fulfilling.

"In indies everyone is usually sacrificing to get the film made," said Eckhart, who turns 43 on Saturday. "The box-office movies are more of a job. The financial payoff is better but I will easily turn down all that and take no money for better material. I have to live with myself. When you're out there acting you still have to be truthful, you have to prepare."

Despite that opinion, Eckhart says he takes "this big popcorn movie" as seriously an independent film.

Part of his preparation for "Battle: Los Angeles" included six weeks of boot camp, which Eckhart enjoyed. "I love being physical," he said.

He also dug the fact that it's not a green-screen movie. They used rubber rounds in real firearms, they crashed helicopters, they blew things up. And yes, Eckhart really did get hurt. He broke his arm during shooting while attempting a "Michael Jordan-type" move during a battle scene.

But it was all for a movie he says he's very proud of. "I have great hopes for this film," he said. "I'm hoping that if it does do business that I'll be able to profit from that—not in terms of money but doing other films that I want to do. It's been a hard road." MIKI TURNER IS A REDEYE SPECIAL CONTRIBUTOR

On reprising his role as Harvey Dent in Batman:
"I was just with [director] Chris [Nolan] two days ago. Apparently, they're already in production and I haven't gotten my call time! I said to him about a month ago that people are killing me [by asking] this. Am I coming back or not? He looked at me and said, 'No.' With Heath [Ledger] dying and everything, that was our movie and now Chris is going to create something else."

On fame:
"I don't take part so much in all the benefits of movie stardom. I keep to myself and don't participate much in the Hollywood thing, so I probably deprive myself of a lot of interesting experiences. The worst thing about it is that sometimes—and this is true of other businesses—your drive to keep it alive deprives the other sides of your life. You sit there and say, 'Where did my 30s go? I was traveling, I was making movies.'"

On Chicago:
"When I did 'Dark Knight,' I had never been to Chicago. I thought Chicago gets a bad rap because it's so cold and windy. We were there in the summer and omigod, it's beautiful. I did so much in Chicago outside of the film. I would go down to the lake and run and swim everyday. I'd take my camera—I'm an avid photographer—and I'd go deep, deep into wherever walking miles and miles, taking pictures of kids playing in the fire hydrants. I really got some good stuff. Mostly what I found charming about the city is the girls—not girls like being a devil—but there are tons of young people all around. I thought if I was a young dude needing a girlfriend, I would go to Chicago!"

On aliens:
"I think we'll all kill each other before something outside gets us! I think we need to be looking a little closer to home … I don't rule it out."

Copyright © 2016, Los Angeles Times<|endoftext|>Notice of choosing tapioca chips

Update: 8/4/2013

Tapioca chips are pan-fried slices of a particular variety of cassava root. They are a crunchy, starchy snack that can be consumed in place of tortilla chips or potato chips.

Tapioca chips can be flavored with sweet, spicy, or savory coatings, much in the same way as potato