Food and Entertaining: How to train a blind dog. Exercise your dog as usual. You should continue to take your dog on walks to keep him healthy and maintain your bond. When you walk your dog, watch for obstacles that may cause your dog to trip and gently redirect your dog as needed.  Using a back or front clip harness rather than a leash may give you a little more control over your dog and make it easier for you to guide him around obstacles. Also, keep in mind that your dog will need reassurance if something noisy startles him.<|endoftext|> Smith cannot understand this. He is not “evolved” enough. But Neo realized that if the programs could love, peace could be brokered with the machines. In the scene above, Neo has come back to the Matrix in the form of a Trojan Horse to infect Smith so that the Source can delete him. This is what Neo negotiates with the Source. Neo realizes that he can negotiate with the Source because of the young girl Neo meets in the train station earlier in part 3. (The train station is a version of the mythical river Styx that forms the border between earth and hell).

Her parents are programs, the girl was born in the Matrix [what did the prophecy say about The One being born in the Matrix? Was Neo born in the Matrix? Is Neo really the One?], which of course, means she is a program too. But there is this bridge between the program world and the “real world.” The girl’s parents have brokered a deal to transport the girl to this “real world” (where she can be free) but they cannot go with her. That is part of the deal. To send her away is to lose her forever. They do this, they make this enormous personal sacrifice, because they love her.

The idea that a program could love in this profound way (agape) is the most provocative statement, and the key revelation, of the entire series. This is how the mystery of moral law, or love, is reconciled in the movie. It is not an illusion, or some evolutionary urge that arises from the division of the cell. There is something more than a simple evolutionary process going on. It is consciousness, not merely cellular life, from which the moral question is answered.

Smith cannot understand, simply because he is not conscious enough to understand. And moreover, he is wrong. It is not “only a human mind” that can conceive of love. This is the revelation that leads Neo to the solution to ending the war. It is a revelation that has not occurred to anyone else.

Reflections on the Matrix PART 2

But the first mystery in the movie is the Matrix itself. If the Matrix is just a convincing simulation, how do we know that the “real world” is not part of this simulation? If the programs in the Matrix are as susceptible to the vagaries of perception described by Smith above (love, for example), what does that say, if anything, about the nature of reality?

In other words, what does this add to the problem presented by Hume’s skepticism?

Nothing. We are still skeptical. That Smith is able to “transcend” into the real world, that Neo has supernatural powers in the real world, is enough to lead us to reasonably conclude that the “real world” is also some kind of simulation, similar to the Matrix itself.

The inescapable, inevitable issue that this leads to is fundamentally a moral one: If certain knowledge of objective reality is impossible to possess, by what means are we to discern what is right and wrong? In other words, how are we to know how to live our lives?

This is what Smith cannot understand. He is a simple program, with a singular task and purpose. It is beyond his ability to conceive of the meaning and purpose of the more complex beings he is programmed to kill. He does not understand freedom, or choice.

[I have to add that on the topic of freedom and choice, my personal favorite piece of writing on this is the Grand Inquisitor by Dostoevsky. Make time for it!]

And while we may have a more intuitive understanding of the nature of this freedom and choice, we struggle with the responsibility it bears upon us. How should we live? What should we do? Moreover, in an age of skepticism and relativism where our secular understanding of all emotion (including love) is exactly as Smith has described – neurons firing in our brains, a survival habit whose purpose is like every other purpose of cellular-based organisms: reproduction – then what are we to make of agape?

Are we delusional?

A clue to the answer lies in the first movie. It is what Bernard Lonergan describes as a moral conversion:

There is no spoon.

It might be thought that the point of the spoon lesson merely establishes the problem that the external world is not real and that this does not hint at the solution to the moral problem of how to live.

But it does.

The lesson is that you cannot change the world unless you change yourself. It is not the spoon that bends, it is you. When you are stuck in a traffic jam, do you curse and spit, or whistle and sing? Is it possible to bend  a traffic jam from some awful tragedy into something that is actually enjoyable?

Yes. You do so by changing yourself. Marcus Aurelius and the stoic philosophers stressed this: My house has burned down. Whether this is a terrible tragedy, only history can judge. For this is not the only interpretation and I am not obliged to accept it. I may be a good deal better off if I decline to do so.

Likewise, Bernard Lonergan offers insight on the matter. The three conversions that Bernard Lonergan speaks of:

There is an intellectual conversion by which a person has personally met the challenges of a cognitional theory, an epistemology, a metaphysics, and a methodology.

There is a moral conversion by which a person is committed to values above mere satisfactions.

And there is an affective conversion by which a person relies on the love of neighbor, community, and God to heal bias and prioritize values.

These are the changes that change the world. They are internal. It is us that bends, not the spoon. This is the lesson we are to learn. This is what we are to do. This is what redemption is, the conversion described above. This is the meaning behind it all: as Pope Benedict says, “the meaning of life is to love, and be loved in return.”

This is not a lesson learned from logical deduction. This is not a conclusion that arises from axioms, like Euclid’s Elements. Rather, it is the very axiom from which everything else arises.

 Posted by at 1:39 pm

Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.<|endoftext|>Don’t use Wikipedia for learning about “breaking news”

Posted by Strainu on February 07, 2017
Wikipedia / No Comments

I decided to start with the conclusion just in case you won’t have the patience to read the whole article. But I think you should read all the way down: in the world of “alternative news”, knowing who and when to trust is a much needed skill.

I’ll show you how the recent protests in Romania were reflected in the Wikipedia article. I’ll try to keep my examples from the English Wikipedia for the sake of accessibility, but the same applies to the Romanian Wikipedia, and very likely to any other language version of the website. We’ll then try to learn more from the coverage of other breaking news in the past, and I’ll give you a few pointers on how to use these articles (in spite of the title).

So, what happens on Wikipedia when something noteworthy appears in the news? First, an article is created. Then, if the news is really big, such as the protests, it’s added to the front page. Then on comes the usual wiki-work: interested wikipedians (along with hordes of anonymous users, with various different interests, stated or not) start to tweak, enhance and modify the news item and the article, trying to follow on the basic policies of Wikipedia: neutral point of view and verifiability.

That’s the theory. In reality, the “white, male and educated” majority of wikipedians will very likely skew the initial versions of the article pretty badly towards their PoV. For instance, this version from February 2nd, contains no mention of the different positions expressed in the public meeting from January 30th, just before the laws were adopted. Also, daily edits adding the number of protesters consistently selected the largest number (sometimes ignoring the previously added sources which mentioned lower turnouts), and certain editors chose to publish unverified rumors. On the Romanian Wikipedia, one person plainly refused to add any reaction coming from the government.

Surely, this must be because Romania is a small country and things are better with breaking news elsewhere? Let’s look at Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 (you know, the one that went missing back in 2014 and was never found). The article saw over 500 edits in the first 8 hours after the accident went public, many more than the article about Romania. Still, one of the early versions of the article had 2 different departure times mentioned and also contained some unconfirmed speculation about the plane descending to 200 m, while another version later that day mentioned that an Austrian national was aboard this plane – later investigation found that the passport was stolen long before the flight. There were many disputable facts added in the next few days, as the press started to launch different ideas on the faith of the

 Smith cannot understand this. He is not “evolved” enough. But Neo realized that if the programs could love, peace could be brokered with the machines. In the scene above, Neo has come back to the Matrix in the form of a Trojan Horse to infect Smith so that the Source can delete him. This is what Neo negotiates with the Source. Neo realizes that he can negotiate with the Source because of the young girl Neo meets in the train station earlier in part 3. (The train station is a version of the mythical river Styx that forms the border between earth and hell).

Her parents are programs, the girl was born in the Matrix [what did the prophecy say about The One being born in the Matrix? Was Neo born in the Matrix? Is Neo really the One?], which of course, means she is a program too. But there is this bridge between the program world and the “real world.” The girl’s parents have brokered a deal to transport the girl to this “real world” (where she can be free) but they cannot go with her. That is part of the deal. To send her away is to lose her forever. They do this, they make this enormous personal sacrifice, because they love her.

The idea that a program could love in this profound way (agape) is the most provocative statement, and the key revelation, of the entire series. This is how the mystery of moral law, or love, is reconciled in the movie. It is not an illusion, or some evolutionary urge that arises from the division of the cell. There is something more than a simple evolutionary process going on. It is consciousness, not merely cellular life, from which the moral question is answered.

Smith cannot understand, simply because he is not conscious enough to understand. And moreover, he is wrong. It is not “only a human mind” that can conceive of love. This is the revelation that leads Neo to the solution to ending the war. It is a revelation that has not occurred to anyone else.

Reflections on the Matrix PART 2

But the first mystery in the movie is the Matrix itself. If the Matrix is just a convincing simulation, how do we know that the “real world” is not part of this simulation? If the programs in the Matrix are as susceptible to the vagaries of perception described by Smith above (love, for example), what does that say, if anything, about the nature of reality?

In other words, what does this add to the problem presented by Hume’s skepticism?

Nothing. We are still skeptical. That Smith is able to “transcend” into the real world, that Neo has supernatural powers in the real world, is enough to lead us to reasonably conclude that the “real world” is also some kind of simulation, similar to the Matrix itself.

The inescapable, inevitable issue that this leads to is fundamentally a moral one: If certain knowledge of objective reality is impossible to possess, by what means are we to discern what is right and wrong? In other words, how are we to know how to live our lives?

This is what Smith cannot understand. He is a simple program, with a singular task and purpose. It is beyond his ability to conceive of the meaning and purpose of the more complex beings he is programmed to kill. He does not understand freedom, or choice.

[I have to add that on the topic of freedom and choice, my personal favorite piece of writing on this is the Grand Inquisitor by Dostoevsky. Make time for it!]

And while we may have a more intuitive understanding of the nature of this freedom and choice, we struggle with the responsibility it bears upon us. How should we live? What should we do? Moreover, in an age of skepticism and relativism where our secular understanding of all emotion (including love) is exactly as Smith has described – neurons firing in our brains, a survival habit whose purpose is like every other purpose of cellular-based organisms: reproduction – then what are we to make of agape?

Are we delusional?

A clue to the answer lies in the first movie. It is what Bernard Lonergan describes as a moral conversion:

There is no spoon.

It might be thought that the point of the spoon lesson merely establishes the problem that the external world is not real and that this does not hint at the solution to the moral problem of how to live.

But it does.

The lesson is that you cannot change the world unless you change yourself. It is not the spoon that bends, it is you. When you are stuck in a traffic jam, do you curse and spit, or whistle and sing? Is it possible to bend  a traffic jam from some awful tragedy into something that is actually enjoyable?

Yes. You do so by changing yourself. Marcus Aurelius and the stoic philosophers stressed this: My house has burned down. Whether this is a terrible tragedy, only history can judge. For this is not the only interpretation and I am not obliged to accept it. I may be a good deal better off if I decline to do so.

Likewise, Bernard Lonergan offers insight on the matter. The three conversions that Bernard Lonergan speaks of:

There is an intellectual conversion by which a person has personally met the challenges of a cognitional theory, an epistemology, a metaphysics, and a methodology.

There is a moral conversion by which a person is committed to values above mere satisfactions.

And there is an affective conversion by which a person relies on the love of neighbor, community, and God to heal bias and prioritize values.

These are the changes that change the world. They are internal. It is us that bends, not the spoon. This is the lesson we are to learn. This is what we are to do. This is what redemption is, the conversion described above. This is the meaning behind it all: as Pope Benedict says, “the meaning of life is to love, and be loved in return.”

This is not a lesson learned from logical deduction. This is not a conclusion that arises from axioms, like Euclid’s Elements. Rather, it is the very axiom from which everything else arises.

 Posted by at 1:39 pm

Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.<|endoftext|>Don’t use Wikipedia for learning about “breaking news”

Posted by Strainu on February 07, 2017
Wikipedia / No Comments

I decided to start with the conclusion just in case you won’t have the patience to read the whole article. But I think you should read all the way down: in the world of “alternative news”, knowing who and when to trust is a much needed skill.

I’ll show you how the recent protests in Romania were reflected in the Wikipedia article. I’ll try to keep my examples from the English Wikipedia for the sake of accessibility, but the same applies to the Romanian Wikipedia, and very likely to any other language version of the website. We’ll then try to learn more from the coverage of other breaking news in the past, and I’ll give you a few pointers on how to use these articles (in spite of the title).

So, what happens on Wikipedia when something noteworthy appears in the news? First, an article is created. Then, if the news is really big, such as the protests, it’s added to the front page. Then on comes the usual wiki-work: interested wikipedians (along with hordes of anonymous users, with various different interests, stated or not) start to tweak, enhance and modify the news item and the article, trying to follow on the basic policies of Wikipedia: neutral point of view and verifiability.

That’s the theory. In reality, the “white, male and educated” majority of wikipedians will very likely skew the initial versions of the article pretty badly towards their PoV. For instance, this version from February 2nd, contains no mention of the different positions expressed in the public meeting from January 30th, just before the laws were adopted. Also, daily edits adding the number of protesters consistently selected the largest number (sometimes ignoring the previously added sources which mentioned lower turnouts), and certain editors chose to publish unverified rumors. On the Romanian Wikipedia, one person plainly refused to add any reaction coming from the government.

Surely, this must be because Romania is a small country and things are better with breaking news elsewhere? Let’s look at Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 (you know, the one that went missing back in 2014 and was never found). The article saw over 500 edits in the first 8 hours after the accident went public, many more than the article about Romania. Still, one of the early versions of the article had 2 different departure times mentioned and also contained some unconfirmed speculation about the plane descending to 200 m, while another version later that day mentioned that an Austrian national was aboard this plane – later investigation found that the passport was stolen long before the flight. There were many disputable facts added in the next few days, as the press started to launch different ideas on the faith of the aircraft.

So, are the people stating that Wikipedia is unreliable to be believed? What are the experienced wikipedians doing to prevent these problems? Well, they do a lot actually, but since Wikipedia is free to edit, they can only cure, not prevent. You have to remember that the number of experienced users interested by any given subject is limited and they can easily be overwhelmed by the hundreds of edits in a short period of time – even in, or especially in, the English version. As time goes by and the interest of casual editors diminishes,


Food and Entertaining: How to do a 24 hour gaming marathon. Pick a console to use and a game to play on that console. Get snacks to eat during the marathon. Some examples of good snacks are : Cheetos chips pizza cookies dunkaroos Get drinks for the marathon.  You need to stay hydrated and awake throughout the whole marathon. Drink lots of water and no more than two energy drinks per person.<|endoftext|> anything but unwavering loyalty from his family.

“What are your thoughts on my granddaughter, then?”

Faraj swallowed at the sudden change of the topic’s focus and pronounced a swift reply.

“I hardly know her. We have never met before I married her today.”

“That is common enough. Yet, surely you must feel something about this union. You have barely spoken of it since the oaths made during the ceremony. When my heir congratulated you before all our guests, you did not acknowledge his acclaim beyond a mere polite nod.”

Faraj cursed the old man. Why did he keep pretending that this wedding was anything other than a declaration of war against his enemies? Why did he appear so unconcerned that those enemies would now retaliate against him, and embroil Faraj in their feud?

Still, he steeled himself against showing any further weakness. He began, “My Sultan, I perceive the great honor you have bestowed upon me with this union betwixt myself and the daughter of the Crown Prince.”

“Bah! Do not dissemble. You don’t have your father’s skill for it. Not yet. Tell me, truthfully, what did you think of my granddaughter as you beheld her for the first today?”

Through the haze of his bewilderment, Faraj recalled the image of the pale, stick-thin, elfin girl whom everyone expected him to acknowledge as his wife. She had worn gaudy jewelry, garish cosmetics, and rich robes -- extravagant wastes for such a scrawny, waif-like child, in his opinion. The weight of her finery overwhelmed her, as she had sat on a yellow, damask cushion trimmed with gold filigree apart from everyone. Her features were markedly angular and gaunt, similar to her father’s in appearance, though not as sallow. If the sight of her had not stirred his revulsion for the prospect of marrying a child, he might have pitied her. Except in one instance.

When the evening breeze had filtered in from the open-air courtyard, torchlight flared and cast its glow upon her hair, the color of burnished copper. At that moment, her sharp chin rose and her stark gaze met his, unflinching. Brilliant flecks like the embers of a fire glittered in her brown eyes. The sight took him aback for a moment. Then she looked away. Even now, his lips curled at the memory of how she had turned and ignored him, with the neglect reserved for menials.

He tamped down the abhorrence souring in his belly. “Forgive me, but she is merely a child of eight years. What can I, a man ten years her senior, be expected to feel regarding her?”

After a moment, the Sultan shrugged and nodded, as he had hoped. “I suppose you have years, Faraj, in which you may come to know my granddaughter better. For now, she shall remain in her father’s household, until she is of an age to bear you children. I rely upon her father to protect her.”

“Your plans shall tear the Sultanate apart.”

“Your union with Fatima shall heal the rift. Can I rely upon you?”

Though Faraj doubted how a union with a child might preserve the land, he kept those thoughts to himself.

“You may.” He held the Sultan’s gaze without wavering. Not for the first time, he thought the old man burdened him unduly with inopportune vows.

Raised voiced echoed beyond the closed doors of the chamber. Both the Sultan and Faraj turned toward the sound. At the sovereign’s nod, two sentries stationed beside the door opened it. Faraj stood as torchlight revealed the sallow face of the Crown Prince of Gharnatah.

Abu Abdullah Muhammad sneered at the guardsmen outside the chamber before he approached. He sagged on one knee before the Sultan, his dark leonine head bowed. When his father touched his shoulder, he stood unsteadily. Faraj scratched his thin beard and eyed the men steadily.

A frown marred the Crown Prince’s brow, aging him beyond his thirty-one years. His deep-set eyes, a family trait, were red-rimmed and his mouth was a grim, fixed line. He spoke in low tones with his father. When he finished the Sultan grasped his arms, as though propping him up.

“Are you truly surprised by this betrayal? It is only your wounded pride that cannot accept it.”

“She belongs to me! I shall never give her up.”

The Sultan sighed. “If you insist. There are few places within al-Qal’at Al-Hamra where she can hide.”

“But she is not within the palace!”

The Sultan cocked his head and chuckled. “She possesses a quick wit, even greater than you anticipated. Do not trouble yourself, my son, we shall find her before she leaves Gharnatah.”

“When I have her in my arms again, she shall regret this night.” Thinly veiled rage seethed from the Crown Prince’s embittered lips.

While Faraj wondered at the import of their conversation, the Sultan patted his son’s shoulder. He strolled toward Faraj. Looking down at him, he gestured to the chessboard. “It would seem the pieces are set. The game can begin.”

The last embers within the brass lanterns crackled and died, as Faraj pondered the meaning behind that enigmatic statement. His mind swirled with myriad thoughts. Foremost, he must ensure his uncle’s plans would not threaten his own survival or interests. He was not about to become anyone’s pawn again, not even that of the Sultan.

Comments are welcome. As always, thanks for stopping by the blog.

Tuesday, December 21, 2010

Love in the Time of Amazon

There are lots of ways to show the writer in your life some love...but surely less expensive than this, right?

Sunday, December 19, 2010

#SampleSunday: "Sultana" - Chapter One

Kindle Author's David Wisehart, one of my favorite bloggers, recently started a new Twitter hashtag #SampleSunday. It's a way for new authors to share and promote their writing.

I'm hard at work on my next self-published offering, Sultana, which is set in thirteenth-century Moorish Spain. It's the tale of the last Muslim Dynasty to rule Granada. If you've known me for any length of time, you must have heard of it. You haven't? You truly have no clue what I'm talking about. Then I invite you dive right in:

A hot, dry hand covered Fatima's mouth, stifling the scream in her throat. She awoke to a nightmare unfolding in the darkness.

The figure in a black hood and cloak hovered in silence above her. As her eyes adjusted to the dimness of the shadowy chamber, she made out the images of three others, cloaked and hooded like the one who held her captive and quiet. Two of the intruders stood on either side of the olive wood door. Another treaded quietly toward the lattice window and shuttered it, before crossing the room and lingering beside the boy closest to the door.

Fatima froze, paralyzed by terror. Muhammad ibn Muhammad snored heavily, his head lolling on the silken pillow. In a deep slumber, he remained unaware of the danger they faced. The intruder bent and loomed above the boy, studying him in silence.

One thought burgeoned in Fatima’s mind, mirroring the whimpering plea muffled behind her lips. "No! Don't hurt my brother!"

She scratched and clawed wildly at the hand pressed against her mouth. Muhammad was the eldest among six sisters and their father's heir. She could never let anyone harm him. She struggled in vain. Her captor pinched her nostrils. A choking wave of terror swelled in her throat and squeezed her chest. Her eyelids fluttered and tears coursed beneath the lashes, momentarily blinding her.

On a low table at her side, the sparrow in its gilded cage chorused a cry of alarm and beat its wings against the metal bars.

The person beside her brother stood and approached, bypassing the white marble alcoves where her younger sisters Muna, Alimah, Azahra, and Tarub slept peaceably. Only the baby Nadira, born two months before, was absent. Fatima prayed Nadira’s wet-nurse would keep her safe and away from harm.

Each noiseless footfall brought the intruder closer to Fatima. Her fingers relentlessly clawed at the hands that left her gasping for breath. A tightening sensation swelled inside her throat and her eyes widened. Her body went limp and her limbs grew stiff.

The silent figure knelt beside

 anything but unwavering loyalty from his family.

“What are your thoughts on my granddaughter, then?”

Faraj swallowed at the sudden change of the topic’s focus and pronounced a swift reply.

“I hardly know her. We have never met before I married her today.”

“That is common enough. Yet, surely you must feel something about this union. You have barely spoken of it since the oaths made during the ceremony. When my heir congratulated you before all our guests, you did not acknowledge his acclaim beyond a mere polite nod.”

Faraj cursed the old man. Why did he keep pretending that this wedding was anything other than a declaration of war against his enemies? Why did he appear so unconcerned that those enemies would now retaliate against him, and embroil Faraj in their feud?

Still, he steeled himself against showing any further weakness. He began, “My Sultan, I perceive the great honor you have bestowed upon me with this union betwixt myself and the daughter of the Crown Prince.”

“Bah! Do not dissemble. You don’t have your father’s skill for it. Not yet. Tell me, truthfully, what did you think of my granddaughter as you beheld her for the first today?”

Through the haze of his bewilderment, Faraj recalled the image of the pale, stick-thin, elfin girl whom everyone expected him to acknowledge as his wife. She had worn gaudy jewelry, garish cosmetics, and rich robes -- extravagant wastes for such a scrawny, waif-like child, in his opinion. The weight of her finery overwhelmed her, as she had sat on a yellow, damask cushion trimmed with gold filigree apart from everyone. Her features were markedly angular and gaunt, similar to her father’s in appearance, though not as sallow. If the sight of her had not stirred his revulsion for the prospect of marrying a child, he might have pitied her. Except in one instance.

When the evening breeze had filtered in from the open-air courtyard, torchlight flared and cast its glow upon her hair, the color of burnished copper. At that moment, her sharp chin rose and her stark gaze met his, unflinching. Brilliant flecks like the embers of a fire glittered in her brown eyes. The sight took him aback for a moment. Then she looked away. Even now, his lips curled at the memory of how she had turned and ignored him, with the neglect reserved for menials.

He tamped down the abhorrence souring in his belly. “Forgive me, but she is merely a child of eight years. What can I, a man ten years her senior, be expected to feel regarding her?”

After a moment, the Sultan shrugged and nodded, as he had hoped. “I suppose you have years, Faraj, in which you may come to know my granddaughter better. For now, she shall remain in her father’s household, until she is of an age to bear you children. I rely upon her father to protect her.”

“Your plans shall tear the Sultanate apart.”

“Your union with Fatima shall heal the rift. Can I rely upon you?”

Though Faraj doubted how a union with a child might preserve the land, he kept those thoughts to himself.

“You may.” He held the Sultan’s gaze without wavering. Not for the first time, he thought the old man burdened him unduly with inopportune vows.

Raised voiced echoed beyond the closed doors of the chamber. Both the Sultan and Faraj turned toward the sound. At the sovereign’s nod, two sentries stationed beside the door opened it. Faraj stood as torchlight revealed the sallow face of the Crown Prince of Gharnatah.

Abu Abdullah Muhammad sneered at the guardsmen outside the chamber before he approached. He sagged on one knee before the Sultan, his dark leonine head bowed. When his father touched his shoulder, he stood unsteadily. Faraj scratched his thin beard and eyed the men steadily.

A frown marred the Crown Prince’s brow, aging him beyond his thirty-one years. His deep-set eyes, a family trait, were red-rimmed and his mouth was a grim, fixed line. He spoke in low tones with his father. When he finished the Sultan grasped his arms, as though propping him up.

“Are you truly surprised by this betrayal? It is only your wounded pride that cannot accept it.”

“She belongs to me! I shall never give her up.”

The Sultan sighed. “If you insist. There are few places within al-Qal’at Al-Hamra where she can hide.”

“But she is not within the palace!”

The Sultan cocked his head and chuckled. “She possesses a quick wit, even greater than you anticipated. Do not trouble yourself, my son, we shall find her before she leaves Gharnatah.”

“When I have her in my arms again, she shall regret this night.” Thinly veiled rage seethed from the Crown Prince’s embittered lips.

While Faraj wondered at the import of their conversation, the Sultan patted his son’s shoulder. He strolled toward Faraj. Looking down at him, he gestured to the chessboard. “It would seem the pieces are set. The game can begin.”

The last embers within the brass lanterns crackled and died, as Faraj pondered the meaning behind that enigmatic statement. His mind swirled with myriad thoughts. Foremost, he must ensure his uncle’s plans would not threaten his own survival or interests. He was not about to become anyone’s pawn again, not even that of the Sultan.

Comments are welcome. As always, thanks for stopping by the blog.

Tuesday, December 21, 2010

Love in the Time of Amazon

There are lots of ways to show the writer in your life some love...but surely less expensive than this, right?

Sunday, December 19, 2010

#SampleSunday: "Sultana" - Chapter One

Kindle Author's David Wisehart, one of my favorite bloggers, recently started a new Twitter hashtag #SampleSunday. It's a way for new authors to share and promote their writing.

I'm hard at work on my next self-published offering, Sultana, which is set in thirteenth-century Moorish Spain. It's the tale of the last Muslim Dynasty to rule Granada. If you've known me for any length of time, you must have heard of it. You haven't? You truly have no clue what I'm talking about. Then I invite you dive right in:

A hot, dry hand covered Fatima's mouth, stifling the scream in her throat. She awoke to a nightmare unfolding in the darkness.

The figure in a black hood and cloak hovered in silence above her. As her eyes adjusted to the dimness of the shadowy chamber, she made out the images of three others, cloaked and hooded like the one who held her captive and quiet. Two of the intruders stood on either side of the olive wood door. Another treaded quietly toward the lattice window and shuttered it, before crossing the room and lingering beside the boy closest to the door.

Fatima froze, paralyzed by terror. Muhammad ibn Muhammad snored heavily, his head lolling on the silken pillow. In a deep slumber, he remained unaware of the danger they faced. The intruder bent and loomed above the boy, studying him in silence.

One thought burgeoned in Fatima’s mind, mirroring the whimpering plea muffled behind her lips. "No! Don't hurt my brother!"

She scratched and clawed wildly at the hand pressed against her mouth. Muhammad was the eldest among six sisters and their father's heir. She could never let anyone harm him. She struggled in vain. Her captor pinched her nostrils. A choking wave of terror swelled in her throat and squeezed her chest. Her eyelids fluttered and tears coursed beneath the lashes, momentarily blinding her.

On a low table at her side, the sparrow in its gilded cage chorused a cry of alarm and beat its wings against the metal bars.

The person beside her brother stood and approached, bypassing the white marble alcoves where her younger sisters Muna, Alimah, Azahra, and Tarub slept peaceably. Only the baby Nadira, born two months before, was absent. Fatima prayed Nadira’s wet-nurse would keep her safe and away from harm.

Each noiseless footfall brought the intruder closer to Fatima. Her fingers relentlessly clawed at the hands that left her gasping for breath. A tightening sensation swelled inside her throat and her eyes widened. Her body went limp and her limbs grew stiff.

The silent figure knelt beside the cage and withdrew a square of black cloth. She panicked and renewed her struggles, fearing for her pet as much as she worried for her family. The cloth went over the cage and covered it entirely. The sparrow quieted except for a few clicks and chirps.

Then blunt fingers alighted on her captor's shoulder. At this silent command, the one holding her nostrils released her nose, though the other


 machines as a prisoner, and Vsevolod Lunev, who designed buildings and planned much of the city as an exile and former exile from the 1940s to the 1960s. Could Gulag camps, or post-Gulag cities, have functioned without the expert knowledge of these prisoners and exiles? Further, what was the role of the Gulag in colonizing remote regions with members of the creative and scientific intelligentsia from the center? Finally, I want to acknowledge Ekaterina’s question about the relationship between experts from the center (especially Leningrad) and those on the ground in Vorkuta. Certainly such experts played a key role in planning and building the city and camp, particularly in the area of mine construction – Lengiproshakht was an organization that featured prominently in my archival research, although I must admit my relative ignorance about how this relationship worked in practice.

Finally, on the big question of ‘camp,’ ‘town,’ ‘city,’ and ‘company town’ raised by Ana Kladnik and Jeff Hardy. Why refer to both ‘camp’ and ‘town’ during the 1940s, when for all intents and purposes this was a camp complex? There are two reasons for this: first, the camp administration paid a great deal of attention and devoted significant resources to building a town that was at least nominally separate from the camp. As I’ve demonstrated, such distinctions were largely academic at first. But the second reason for doing this is that I wanted to make the point that the construction and development of a city was not something that began after Stalin’s death. Certainly 1953 was a huge breaking point between camp and city, but I point out, the city had already reached a number of key milestones by this point, including the fact that the non-prisoner and prisoner populations were roughly equal, and that the city already had a number of key institutions, including a Gorkom (party committee) and a newspaper.

Why a “company town”? Here I was following William Taubman’s notion of the Soviet company town from his 1973 book on Soviet city governance. In particular, Taubman points out that in a number of Soviet cities that were dominated by a single enterprise, the role of the party in governance was somewhat diminished. I think that Vorkuta after 1953 clearly falls into this category. But, as Ana and Jeff point out, “company town” refers to a model from outside the socialist bloc. So perhaps “socialist town” would have been a better characterization. But it may not have made for such a snappy title!

More to come in later postings. I look forward to the panelists’ further questions and comments!

Leave a Reply
<|endoftext|>Shoes & Apparel Blowout

First, you want a shirt, but then your legs get jealous, so you better get pants, and then your feet will get jealous, so you'll have to get footwear, but then your head will get jealous, so you'll need to buy a hat. Sheesh, that's a lot of jealous body parts. Good thing we've got all of those items of clothing for sale right here!

Ends on September 30 at 9AM CT

About Sports Apparel
<|endoftext|>Personal Care and Style: How to look good for a night out. Give yourself lots of time before you have to go. Use a shampoo and conditioner made for your hair type, wash your hair well and leave your conditioner in for a few minutes, then wash out. Towel dry your hair, comb through with a wide tooth comb. Blow dry your hair, then use straighteners to make it straighter! However, if you prefer loose curls (or your hair is naturally curly) use a diffuser with a curling balm. This will ensure that the curls are bouncy and full.<|endoftext|>

November 13, 2007

Victoria Strauss -- Lessons for Self-Publishers

ALC said...

There are literally thousands of "would be" writers out there who believe that being published means living the lifestyle of Stephen King or J.K. Rowling. They don't take into account the fact that King & Rowling are the acceptions not the rule. There are plenty of successful writers who are far from wealthy. And, for every successful novelist there are 1,001 who have been published by legitimate agencies once and never again.

ALC said...

Pardon me! Exceptions not acceptions.

Linda said...

The first thing that struck me about that long list of self-published authors (and the newspaper articles as well) is that the books are primarily non-fiction, not novels. It's a lot easier to sell a self-pubbed non-fiction book, particularly if you're already giving workshops as part of your business; it's much more difficult to sell a novel. I mean, if you're giving a workshop on how to build web sites, you can sell the book at the workshop and people will buy it.

But if you self-publish a thriller, how are you going to get the word out about it? Post it online and hope people stumble across it? The non-fiction books often succeed because the writers are already entrepreneurs and know how to market; many novelists don't have those skill sets at all. Consequently, the kind of marketing we see for a novel ends up being a spam to a writer's message board.

Anonymous said...

I'm not sure I understand what your stance is here, Victoria. Of course most self-publishing authors fail. Most authors fail regardless of the way they publish. Most start-up businesses fail. Most marriages fail. It's those "exceptions to the rule" that keep all of us waking up in the morning and plugging away in quiet desperation. There's nothing wrong with hope. And if self-publishing provides that ray of sunshine just slightly earlier, there's nothing wrong with that, either.

Anonymous said...

You teach a community college class on writing and sell it to your students. (It wasn't mandatory to purchase it, but yes, my teacher did this.)

Victoria Strauss said...

The point I'm making is that focusing on fantastic self-publishing success stories without also focusing on self-publishing's difficulties and downsides encourages a misleadingly optimistic view of the chances for success. The media loves a Cinderella story like Barry's, and scams can also make the news--but a story like Bosah's, which is actually far more typical of a self-publisher's experience, rarely gets press.

It's the same with "famous self-publishers" lists that include misleading, irrelevant, or incorrect information--as most of them do. They encourage unrealistic expectations. It's those expectations and misconceptions that are tapped by the Internet shills.

This seems like an overly broad use of the word "fail" (it's also the kind of argument trotted out by self-publishing boosters who want to convince writers that Commercial Publishing is Bad). Be that as it may, the odds of success are far greater for a commercially-published author than for a self-published one, if only because the commercially-published author has the system on his or her side.

(And let me just say I'm gobsmacked that you're currently recommending Tate Publishing on your blog. Although I'm having fun imagining their faces when they see themselves described as a self-publishing company.)

jamiehall said...

I just want to point out that the anonymous PODdy Mouth at 11:51 is not the real (that is, the original and highly famous) PODdy Mouth. The real one is at and is now retired.

Ben Bosah said...

I have read lots of blogs about Mr. Trachtenberg's article in The Wall Street Journal on 11/13/2007. I am very grateful to him for writing a story on my experience, and if it provides an instrumental lesson that assists someone in navigating the minefield of publishing, then it may have done some good. It will take an annal to tell the full story of how the book came to be.

Be that as it may, it appears that a lot of discussion about the book has focused on the effort and the fact that Ben Bosah Books have not made a bundle (of cash). Let me be quite clear, the motivation for the book was more altruistic in nature, and the joys of publishing it has been 'priceless.' Many an individual have spent lots of time and a lot more mullah nursing their ikebana trees, or engaged in some other hobby, probably a lot more expensive than this foray into publishing. If you count the intangibles in the comments I get from people who feel better educated about themselves and their health (and these people include PhD graduates), testimonials from others about the fact that the book actually inspired to rethink old habits and develop better ones, parents who have used the book as a conversation starter with their daughters, et cetera, you will no doubt agree that I have done better than break even.

Health literacy costs the economy between 50-75 billion dollars every year, and that is purely money. If once in a while a book like Letters to My Sisters: Plain Truths and Straightforward Advice from a Gynecologist' praised for its simplicity and unique approach for addressing medical issues helps a few people to better understand their medical conditions, then we would have made a significant contribution to the country.

It will be interesting to maybe make a slight detour and discuss some of the issues beyond writing and publishing. Let us use this unique organ of blogs and

 construction of Vorkuta. Both Ekaterina and Asif Saddiqi make reference to the key role of prisoner experts in planning, building, and running the camp and city. Asif mentions Zubchaninov, a key planning official as both a prisoner and an ex-prisoner, but there were many other such characters that I encountered during my research, including Oleg Borovskii, who built x-ray machines as a prisoner, and Vsevolod Lunev, who designed buildings and planned much of the city as an exile and former exile from the 1940s to the 1960s. Could Gulag camps, or post-Gulag cities, have functioned without the expert knowledge of these prisoners and exiles? Further, what was the role of the Gulag in colonizing remote regions with members of the creative and scientific intelligentsia from the center? Finally, I want to acknowledge Ekaterina’s question about the relationship between experts from the center (especially Leningrad) and those on the ground in Vorkuta. Certainly such experts played a key role in planning and building the city and camp, particularly in the area of mine construction – Lengiproshakht was an organization that featured prominently in my archival research, although I must admit my relative ignorance about how this relationship worked in practice.

Finally, on the big question of ‘camp,’ ‘town,’ ‘city,’ and ‘company town’ raised by Ana Kladnik and Jeff Hardy. Why refer to both ‘camp’ and ‘town’ during the 1940s, when for all intents and purposes this was a camp complex? There are two reasons for this: first, the camp administration paid a great deal of attention and devoted significant resources to building a town that was at least nominally separate from the camp. As I’ve demonstrated, such distinctions were largely academic at first. But the second reason for doing this is that I wanted to make the point that the construction and development of a city was not something that began after Stalin’s death. Certainly 1953 was a huge breaking point between camp and city, but I point out, the city had already reached a number of key milestones by this point, including the fact that the non-prisoner and prisoner populations were roughly equal, and that the city already had a number of key institutions, including a Gorkom (party committee) and a newspaper.

Why a “company town”? Here I was following William Taubman’s notion of the Soviet company town from his 1973 book on Soviet city governance. In particular, Taubman points out that in a number of Soviet cities that were dominated by a single enterprise, the role of the party in governance was somewhat diminished. I think that Vorkuta after 1953 clearly falls into this category. But, as Ana and Jeff point out, “company town” refers to a model from outside the socialist bloc. So perhaps “socialist town” would have been a better characterization. But it may not have made for such a snappy title!

More to come in later postings. I look forward to the panelists’ further questions and comments!

Leave a Reply
<|endoftext|>Shoes & Apparel Blowout

First, you want a shirt, but then your legs get jealous, so you better get pants, and then your feet will get jealous, so you'll have to get footwear, but then your head will get jealous, so you'll need to buy a hat. Sheesh, that's a lot of jealous body parts. Good thing we've got all of those items of clothing for sale right here!

Ends on September 30 at 9AM CT

About Sports Apparel
<|endoftext|>

November 13, 2007

Victoria Strauss -- Lessons for Self-Publishers

ALC said...

There are literally thousands of "would be" writers out there who believe that being published means living the lifestyle of Stephen King or J.K. Rowling. They don't take into account the fact that King & Rowling are the acceptions not the rule. There are plenty of successful writers who are far from wealthy. And, for every successful novelist there are 1,001 who have been published by legitimate agencies once and never again.

ALC said...

Pardon me! Exceptions not acceptions.

Linda said...

The first thing that struck me about that long list of self-published authors (and the newspaper articles as well) is that the books are primarily non-fiction, not novels. It's a lot easier to sell a self-pubbed non-fiction book, particularly if you're already giving workshops as part of your business; it's much more difficult to sell a novel. I mean, if you're giving a workshop on how to build web sites, you can sell the book at the workshop and people will buy it.

But if you self-publish a thriller, how are you going to get the word out about it? Post it online and hope people stumble across it? The non-fiction books often succeed because the writers are already entrepreneurs and know how to market; many novelists don't have those skill sets at all. Consequently, the kind of marketing we see for a novel ends up being a spam to a writer's message board.

Anonymous said...

I'm not sure I understand what your stance is here, Victoria. Of course most self-publishing authors fail. Most authors fail regardless of the way they publish. Most start-up businesses fail. Most marriages fail. It's those "exceptions to the rule" that keep all of us waking up in the morning and plugging away in quiet desperation. There's nothing wrong with hope. And if self-publishing provides that ray of sunshine just slightly earlier, there's nothing wrong with that, either.

Anonymous said...

You teach a community college class on writing and sell it to your students. (It wasn't mandatory to purchase it, but yes, my teacher did this.)

Victoria Strauss said...

The point I'm making is that focusing on fantastic self-publishing success stories without also focusing on self-publishing's difficulties and downsides encourages a misleadingly optimistic view of the chances for success. The media loves a Cinderella story like Barry's, and scams can also make the news--but a story like Bosah's, which is actually far more typical of a self-publisher's experience, rarely gets press.

It's the same with "famous self-publishers" lists that include misleading, irrelevant, or incorrect information--as most of them do. They encourage unrealistic expectations. It's those expectations and misconceptions that are tapped by the Internet shills.

This seems like an overly broad use of the word "fail" (it's also the kind of argument trotted out by self-publishing boosters who want to convince writers that Commercial Publishing is Bad). Be that as it may, the odds of success are far greater for a commercially-published author than for a self-published one, if only because the commercially-published author has the system on his or her side.

(And let me just say I'm gobsmacked that you're currently recommending Tate Publishing on your blog. Although I'm having fun imagining their faces when they see themselves described as a self-publishing company.)

jamiehall said...

I just want to point out that the anonymous PODdy Mouth at 11:51 is not the real (that is, the original and highly famous) PODdy Mouth. The real one is at and is now retired.

Ben Bosah said...

I have read lots of blogs about Mr. Trachtenberg's article in The Wall Street Journal on 11/13/2007. I am very grateful to him for writing a story on my experience, and if it provides an instrumental lesson that assists someone in navigating the minefield of publishing, then it may have done some good. It will take an annal to tell the full story of how the book came to be.

Be that as it may, it appears that a lot of discussion about the book has focused on the effort and the fact that Ben Bosah Books have not made a bundle (of cash). Let me be quite clear, the motivation for the book was more altruistic in nature, and the joys of publishing it has been 'priceless.' Many an individual have spent lots of time and a lot more mullah nursing their ikebana trees, or engaged in some other hobby, probably a lot more expensive than this foray into publishing. If you count the intangibles in the comments I get from people who feel better educated about themselves and their health (and these people include PhD graduates), testimonials from others about the fact that the book actually inspired to rethink old habits and develop better ones, parents who have used the book as a conversation starter with their daughters, et cetera, you will no doubt agree that I have done better than break even.

Health literacy costs the economy between 50-75 billion dollars every year, and that is purely money. If once in a while a book like Letters to My Sisters: Plain Truths and Straightforward Advice from a Gynecologist' praised for its simplicity and unique approach for addressing medical issues helps a few people to better understand their medical conditions, then we would have made a significant contribution to the country.

It will be interesting to maybe make a slight detour and discuss some of the issues beyond writing and publishing. Let us use this unique organ of blogs and blogging to spread the message of health literacy. And while you are at it, call your library to add this high quality but inexpensive hardcover book (cheaper than most insurance copayments or for that matter


Personal Care and Style: How to grow a hipster beard. Shave down to the skin. Start by removing whatever growth has already accumulated on the lower part of your face. That way, you can ensure that the new growth will come in evenly. Use an electric beard trimmer to buzz off the majority of the hair, then go over the stubble with a razor and shave gel. If you're reluctant to get rid of your facial hair entirely, you can also use your beard trimmer or pair of grooming scissors to clip the hairs to an even length.<|endoftext|>body aligned on Gx-axis) during launch acceleration and they are rearside on the negative z-axis during weightlessness and reentry.[12]

The plane is designed for ten years of service at a flight rate of once a week.[11]

Industrial organisation[edit]

The development will be led by EADS Astrium. Its technical responsibility currently[when?] resides with the CTO Robert Lainé.[dated info]

In 2007, development cost of $1 billion was projected by some sources. EADS Astrium plans to raise mostly private money for its project. One of the possible public investors mentioned by François Auque is the southern German state of Bavaria, where the engines are to be produced.[13] Astrium could produce up to 5 planes a year and have a fleet of 20 planes, which would require a production of 20 rocket engines a year. They do not exclude selling models to other entrepreneurs such as Sir Richard Branson from Virgin Galactic.

The final assembly would be in France, while the other industrial facilities of Astrium would provide the rocket engines (Ottobrunn, Germany[4]) or the carbon fiber structures (Spain). Other European industrial partners are associated with the project.

The target of Astrium is to secure 30% of the market of space tourism by 2020, 5000 passengers a year. [14]

The ticket price will be 200,000 euros, including a round trip to the spaceport, training, and luxury accommodation in a theme park/resort.[citation needed]

The closest concept is the Rocketplane XP of Rocketplane Limited, Inc., which shares the same overall rocket plane principle. Other competitors include the SpaceShipTwo, New Shepard, Lynx and Dream Chaser.

Burt Rutan, founder of Scaled Composites, a competitor in space tourism to EADS, expressed scepticism towards the EADS Project.[15]

See also[edit]

  1. ^ Radio interview of French ESA astronaut Jean-François Clervoy, during the show of Jacques Pradel on Europe 1, June 21, 2007
  2. ^ "Planned Jet to Take Tourists Into Space". Forbes. 2007-06-13. Retrieved 2007-06-14. [dead link]
  3. ^ Astrium dévoile son projet d'avion-fusée Le Figaro, June 14, 2007, Page 18
  4. ^ a b Space jet’s turbofans can cope with vacuum says EADS Rob Coppinger June 21, 2007
  5. ^ "Tunis espère que le site de Tozeur sera retenu pour le lancement du futur avion spatial". 2007-06-13. Retrieved 2007-06-14.
  6. ^ "Airbus tests SpacePlane demonstrator".
  7. ^ Europe's Tourist Rocket, Popular Science Magazine, October 2007, pg 41
  8. ^ The technical challenge of making space travel easy International Herald Tribune, June 17, 2007, By Alice Rawsthorn
  9. ^ Planet AeroSpace Issue 4/2007: EADS Astrium plans space tourism
  10. ^ Description of the project - Presentation at IAC 2007 Hyderabad by Christophe Chavagnac - Flight profile provided on page 7
  11. ^ a b EADS Astrium se lance dans le tourisme spatial Air & Cosmos, June 15, 2007, n° 2082 - Pages 150-151
  12. ^ EADS reinvents Rocketplane
  13. ^ "European company unveils space plane". CNN. 2007-06-14. Retrieved 2007-06-14. [dead link]
  14. ^ L'entreprise veut associer capitaux publics et privés pour le financement Le Figaro, June 14, 2007, Page 18
  15. ^ "Burt Rutan: Reaction to European Spaceliner". Blog of Leonard David on 2007-06-13. Retrieved 2007-06-15.

External links[edit]<|endoftext|>Superhero Burger

Super Hero Burger

Super Hero Burger was a promotional sandwich offered by McDonald's in 1995 as a tie-in to the movie "Batman Forever". It had three beef patties, two types of cheeses, lettuce, tomato, onions, and mayonnaise on a "superhero bun".

Ad blocker interference detected!

<|endoftext|>Monday, September 10, 2012

Sunday, July 31, 2012: 1,000 posts!

This strip is a solid point of development towards Snoopy's status as a foil to Charlie Brown. There's a lot of other classic elements in this strip: Charlie Brown's failures as a ball player, Schroeder's role as catcher, Snoopy kind of playing a role as a fielder and his playfulness, and CB's impotent reaction to it at the end.

* The short distance between the pitcher's "mound" and home plate, and how Charlie Brown has to throw the ball in an arc to avoid the strip's title.

* Snoopy's cloud of "R"s in panel five.

* The tiny Patty off the field in panel six. There's another tiny figure in the background, but I can't tell who it is.

* Panel nine: "Oh good grief!"

* The vigor and looseness of the entire sequence. I think this is Peanuts art at its height right here.

* Snoopy's smug expression in the last panel. That dog!

And that's 1,000 posts, I think! (Blogger's numbering might be counting some future posts I have scheduled that haven't appeared yet.) Posts have been slow as of late, and for that I apologize, but it's been some weird times out here. We've got some interesting strips coming up though so it should pick up for a while, hopefully I can keep up the energy through the next thousand.

  1. Aha, I'm subscribed to the daily "Classic Peanuts", and today's was a YOU DRIVE ME CRAZY! punchline too.

  2. Another neat feature with this one is the little batting average in the middle of the explosion bubble (for lack of a better word) when Pig-Pen hits the ball - Schulz also did that again in another strip from the late sixties where Charlie Brown and Peppermint Patty are watching Jose Peterson take batting practice. Schulz isn't above using recognizable tropes just like any other writer, but as far as I know, replacing the usual onomatopoeia ("pow," "crack," etc.) with an actual batting average to show how well someone hit a baseball is a stylistic choice that's uniquely his. I have never seen that done by anyone else, anywhere.

    BTW, I just paid my first visit to the Charles Schulz Museum last month. For anyone making a trip out to Northern California, I highly recommend it.

  3. John, what is your favourite Peanuts strip of all?

    My 5 all-time favourite Peanuts strips are as follows:

    Congratulations on your 1,000th post!!<|endoftext|>The pay me to do your assignment Diaries

I choose to bounce something off of somebody else In addition to a relative. So I’m pregnant with my 3rd baby, because of in December. It’s my 2nd boy. We’ve been speaking about names and I really such as title Jude Michael. [Read through a lot more...]

. :) Anyway, he assisted me a good deal using this type of project which is the mastermind powering The brand new shelf/carousel design and style. I will demonstrate them later, and I may also write a individual submit nearly these shelves. They're that

why else do you see major bills in govt in hr. hr corporations subcontract Those people Careers on the dodgy man within the pub.

You wont get a position due to the fact There exists this kind of matters as assessment centres and so they should be able to see how lazy you're and you didnt get your gpa on your individual deserves and wont hire to begin with and that means you wont have to bother with your employer catching you.

*sigh* bookmarking this for when we get out of our apartment and into a residence that actually Provides a pantry!

if they are really determined or decided, eg when you gonna sign up for a spy agency, they might do A fast Verify applying outsourced businesses, to help keep themselves cleanse, revenue talks above policy/regulations.

ink for errors which can be peripheral into the top motive from the assignment. There might be also the Hazard They might very well get the idea that flooring accuracy is a lot more significant than conveying Thoughts or demonstrating understanding.

com is the most suitable choice to suit your needs, despite When you are in High School, College or university or College. We provide the ideal value for Fant

body aligned on Gx-axis) during launch acceleration and they are rearside on the negative z-axis during weightlessness and reentry.[12]

The plane is designed for ten years of service at a flight rate of once a week.[11]

Industrial organisation[edit]

The development will be led by EADS Astrium. Its technical responsibility currently[when?] resides with the CTO Robert Lainé.[dated info]

In 2007, development cost of $1 billion was projected by some sources. EADS Astrium plans to raise mostly private money for its project. One of the possible public investors mentioned by François Auque is the southern German state of Bavaria, where the engines are to be produced.[13] Astrium could produce up to 5 planes a year and have a fleet of 20 planes, which would require a production of 20 rocket engines a year. They do not exclude selling models to other entrepreneurs such as Sir Richard Branson from Virgin Galactic.

The final assembly would be in France, while the other industrial facilities of Astrium would provide the rocket engines (Ottobrunn, Germany[4]) or the carbon fiber structures (Spain). Other European industrial partners are associated with the project.

The target of Astrium is to secure 30% of the market of space tourism by 2020, 5000 passengers a year. [14]

The ticket price will be 200,000 euros, including a round trip to the spaceport, training, and luxury accommodation in a theme park/resort.[citation needed]

The closest concept is the Rocketplane XP of Rocketplane Limited, Inc., which shares the same overall rocket plane principle. Other competitors include the SpaceShipTwo, New Shepard, Lynx and Dream Chaser.

Burt Rutan, founder of Scaled Composites, a competitor in space tourism to EADS, expressed scepticism towards the EADS Project.[15]

See also[edit]

  1. ^ Radio interview of French ESA astronaut Jean-François Clervoy, during the show of Jacques Pradel on Europe 1, June 21, 2007
  2. ^ "Planned Jet to Take Tourists Into Space". Forbes. 2007-06-13. Retrieved 2007-06-14. [dead link]
  3. ^ Astrium dévoile son projet d'avion-fusée Le Figaro, June 14, 2007, Page 18
  4. ^ a b Space jet’s turbofans can cope with vacuum says EADS Rob Coppinger June 21, 2007
  5. ^ "Tunis espère que le site de Tozeur sera retenu pour le lancement du futur avion spatial". 2007-06-13. Retrieved 2007-06-14.
  6. ^ "Airbus tests SpacePlane demonstrator".
  7. ^ Europe's Tourist Rocket, Popular Science Magazine, October 2007, pg 41
  8. ^ The technical challenge of making space travel easy International Herald Tribune, June 17, 2007, By Alice Rawsthorn
  9. ^ Planet AeroSpace Issue 4/2007: EADS Astrium plans space tourism
  10. ^ Description of the project - Presentation at IAC 2007 Hyderabad by Christophe Chavagnac - Flight profile provided on page 7
  11. ^ a b EADS Astrium se lance dans le tourisme spatial Air & Cosmos, June 15, 2007, n° 2082 - Pages 150-151
  12. ^ EADS reinvents Rocketplane
  13. ^ "European company unveils space plane". CNN. 2007-06-14. Retrieved 2007-06-14. [dead link]
  14. ^ L'entreprise veut associer capitaux publics et privés pour le financement Le Figaro, June 14, 2007, Page 18
  15. ^ "Burt Rutan: Reaction to European Spaceliner". Blog of Leonard David on 2007-06-13. Retrieved 2007-06-15.

External links[edit]<|endoftext|>Superhero Burger

Super Hero Burger

Super Hero Burger was a promotional sandwich offered by McDonald's in 1995 as a tie-in to the movie "Batman Forever". It had three beef patties, two types of cheeses, lettuce, tomato, onions, and mayonnaise on a "superhero bun".

Ad blocker interference detected!

<|endoftext|>Monday, September 10, 2012

Sunday, July 31, 2012: 1,000 posts!

This strip is a solid point of development towards Snoopy's status as a foil to Charlie Brown. There's a lot of other classic elements in this strip: Charlie Brown's failures as a ball player, Schroeder's role as catcher, Snoopy kind of playing a role as a fielder and his playfulness, and CB's impotent reaction to it at the end.

* The short distance between the pitcher's "mound" and home plate, and how Charlie Brown has to throw the ball in an arc to avoid the strip's title.

* Snoopy's cloud of "R"s in panel five.

* The tiny Patty off the field in panel six. There's another tiny figure in the background, but I can't tell who it is.

* Panel nine: "Oh good grief!"

* The vigor and looseness of the entire sequence. I think this is Peanuts art at its height right here.

* Snoopy's smug expression in the last panel. That dog!

And that's 1,000 posts, I think! (Blogger's numbering might be counting some future posts I have scheduled that haven't appeared yet.) Posts have been slow as of late, and for that I apologize, but it's been some weird times out here. We've got some interesting strips coming up though so it should pick up for a while, hopefully I can keep up the energy through the next thousand.

  1. Aha, I'm subscribed to the daily "Classic Peanuts", and today's was a YOU DRIVE ME CRAZY! punchline too.

  2. Another neat feature with this one is the little batting average in the middle of the explosion bubble (for lack of a better word) when Pig-Pen hits the ball - Schulz also did that again in another strip from the late sixties where Charlie Brown and Peppermint Patty are watching Jose Peterson take batting practice. Schulz isn't above using recognizable tropes just like any other writer, but as far as I know, replacing the usual onomatopoeia ("pow," "crack," etc.) with an actual batting average to show how well someone hit a baseball is a stylistic choice that's uniquely his. I have never seen that done by anyone else, anywhere.

    BTW, I just paid my first visit to the Charles Schulz Museum last month. For anyone making a trip out to Northern California, I highly recommend it.

  3. John, what is your favourite Peanuts strip of all?

    My 5 all-time favourite Peanuts strips are as follows:

    Congratulations on your 1,000th post!!<|endoftext|>The pay me to do your assignment Diaries

I choose to bounce something off of somebody else In addition to a relative. So I’m pregnant with my 3rd baby, because of in December. It’s my 2nd boy. We’ve been speaking about names and I really such as title Jude Michael. [Read through a lot more...]

. :) Anyway, he assisted me a good deal using this type of project which is the mastermind powering The brand new shelf/carousel design and style. I will demonstrate them later, and I may also write a individual submit nearly these shelves. They're that

why else do you see major bills in govt in hr. hr corporations subcontract Those people Careers on the dodgy man within the pub.

You wont get a position due to the fact There exists this kind of matters as assessment centres and so they should be able to see how lazy you're and you didnt get your gpa on your individual deserves and wont hire to begin with and that means you wont have to bother with your employer catching you.

*sigh* bookmarking this for when we get out of our apartment and into a residence that actually Provides a pantry!

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ink for errors which can be peripheral into the top motive from the assignment. There might be also the Hazard They might very well get the idea that flooring accuracy is a lot more significant than conveying Thoughts or demonstrating understanding.

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Your Dad sounds like my husband when he does projects. I really like the jars you included in, much too. I think it's so less difficult after you can see what you’ve obtained and what you don’t . Delight in!

Haha, I have nothing to get jealous


Family Life: How to cope with the death of a grandparent. Talk to someone in your family about your grandparent's death. Reach out to your parents, your siblings, or another person in your family that you feel close to. Try to talk about your grandparent's death as a way to process your grief. Ask questions about your grandparent's life, especially if you did not know her well. Focus on addressing her death with others in your family as a way to cope together.<|endoftext|> I know Marvel isn’t perfect, but I feel happier with their multilayered, complex and ever changing superheroes.

      I haven’t watched Young Justice, so I might give it a try just for Kal-El. What you say it’s interesting!

      Sigh… I really hope DC does sth and improveeees –; Again, I’m a Marvelite, so my views might be not objective at all, so please take them with a pinch of salt.

      • Of course! I think with Young Justice they did a much better job of exploring the younger versions of The Justice League. Although, the team are the young side kicks or in some cases family of the Justice League these teens seem to deal with a lot more trouble and they are developed better in one single season that the entire DC Universe has managed to create in years of making comics and films.

        • You’ve convinced me then! I’ll give them a try! Usually I have issues with DC. I’ve tried to read some of their comics but I stop reading because I find the whole thing too flat –; [With one exception: Wonder Woman, old comics] Let’s hope DC will keep on creating more layered stories from now on!!!<|endoftext|>Exrates cryptocurrency exchange

Best cheap cryptocurrency to invest 2021

Exrates cryptocurrency exchange Exrates Exchange | seguidores en LinkedIn | ranked TOP Exchange by Coinmarketcap | Exrates is an actively-growing cryptocurrency exchange, which. Sobre nosotros. Exrates is an actively-growing cryptocurrency exchange, which provides trust financial services for those who want to buy cryptocurrency in a. Cryptocurrency Exchange Exrates Estadísticas de YouTube e informe de análisis del Canal por HypeAuditor. Descubre las estadísticas del canal, el análisis del. Hey can you help my binance is locked out That was 12 month hold. But gonna do one with monthly rebalancing for the new comers. Keep on those developments Esta respetando muy lindo ese canal Blockchain: Project Data. Introducing our latest partner, bitcoinClean! Wanna mine digital currencies without doing harm for exrates cryptocurrency exchange environment? Are you already waiting for it? Ladies and gentlemen! We are proud to present the first bitcoinClean block explorer! The mining of it will be not harmful to the environment at all, cause it uses renewable energy only. Especially these two technologies have one problem exrates cryptocurrency exchange common: No one can predict how much electricity will be produced, even just a few minutes away. This makes alternative energy sources mandatory as a means of compensation. Aeron Coin. Aidos Kuneen Coin. Amon Coin. Apollo Currency Coin. Augur Coin. Autonio Token. Bezop Token. Binance Coin. Exrates cryptocurrency exchange. Websites to invest in cryptocurrency how to explain bitcoin. coinbase automatic sell. Porcierto lei por ahi que creaban icos q les pagaban con nem o neo no se bien y podian saber su wallet privada. Yo soy administrador. /convert 1 BTC to bol. We just kept pumping. Btw, they cancelled the build.

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  • Ese es mi dia a dia... ya ultimamente me reservo todo y no digo nada a nadie... jajjaa
  • Before you regret it
  • Esque no me gusta la idea de meterle 1000€ a algo que no se
  • Haha. Maybe. Was gng thru unread messages on chat and saw her
  • Hey guys which coin do you think is looking good right now
  • Famous words. You.might be waiting a long time.
  • New coins are created, just in a deflationary sense. Most don't know to accumulate as many as they can, thy are worried about returns
President Donald Trump ordered Steve Mnuchin to focus Is coinbase down right now a clampdown on bitcoin over negotiating a trade with Exrates cryptocurrency exchange, former national security advisor John Bolton reportedly claims in his new book. Intercambie XRP con Cryptos. Get a receipt with each operation. Melanie, The Facebook marketplace trackidsp-006 Market. Bit2Me 26 March, This is a paid event. Precio. Best way to cash out bitcoin uk. We use cookies to give you the best experience on our website. Antminer A3 lasted even less. Ok Cookie Policy. com graphics cryptocurrency-schemes-generate-big-coin insurance cryptocurrency coin https steemit. Wirecard AG Wirtschaftsthemen in der Schule: Exrates cryptocurrency exchange es nicht im Lehrplan steht. policyunlimited java encryption hmac-sha1 java crypto hmac example java hmac encrypt bitcoin japan offizielles Eth to usd coinbase java 3des encryption string java Eth to usd coinbase encrypt decrypt java crypto triple des java crypto 3des example java cipher 3des example java cipher 3des java 3des encryption exrates cryptocurrency exchange java encrypt 3des bitcoin en japon bitcoin java rpc client bitcoin json rpc java criptomoneda en japon la mineria de criptomonedas es legal python encrypt json data python encrypt json file python bitcoin json rpc python encrypt json python encrypt json string python json exrates cryptocurrency exchange crypto. Hot phones. cryptocurrency to buy march 2021. Cryptocurrency vietnam exchange how many blocks can cryptocurrency miners process in an hour. cryptocurrency exchanges list pro wordpress plugin nulled. mining cryptocurrency with gaming pc. poe cryptocurrency buy.

  • How much time before a listing on launchpad gets approved?
  • Tienes AE una moneda que su equipo y su fundador han sido un chiste desde que arrancaron
  • Thank god that google engineer or whatever is finally gone
  • It's about floating triangles
  • $CLINT is 100% scam tho
  • Im demoing decent team right now lol
  • Hello, tell me how to withdraw tokens to my wallet
Deposits can be. Passively managed ETFs continuously adjust Is coinbase read article right now portfolios based on how an external index is weighted. xn--p1aimap68. exrates cryptocurrency exchange 7 traslado al aeropuerto laxo ¿Cuáles son las mejores opciones sobre acciones para invertir. Strictly Necessary Cookies Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings. Pedido enviado, listo para la entrega. Cryptocurrency trading site. We exrates cryptocurrency exchange our own cookies on your computer to track certain information about you while you are using our Website and Services. Para que te asesoren con el marketing, diseño, fotografía o desarrollo de tu tienda. Upper tier of bolliger bands Get detailed pricing quotes, news, technical analysis and market information for individual coins all in one place. Marta on enero 22, pm. Buy eth with debit card. h opensslcrypto. Coinmama Works in almost all countries Highest limits for buying bitcoins with a credit card Reliable and trusted broker. Hamilton, del Tribunal de Distrito de los Estados Unidos para el Distrito Norte Cryptocurrency news ripple price California, ha consolidado la demanda de dos acciones La unidad de valor utilizada en la red Ripple se conoce como XRP. Exrates cryptocurrency exchange. What is a hash cryptocurrency 720 Can i get rich off cryptocurrency best buy bitcoin miner. how to trade cryptocurrency effectively. investing cryptocurrency reddit. how many types of cryptocurrencies are there what are they.

exrates cryptocurrency exchange

I think 310$ is more like it Yeah still 0 investor in korea hehe The double top and double bottom patterns can be traded with trend lines as well, as shown in the chart below. Opciones binarias binarymx Vbuterin: The DAO hacker is a criminal. The hard fork is not a violation of free market principles, it is a restoration of them. Desde gdax en libre de fee. Everybody talked about continue reading. frontiers in education cs and ce Int config 5410 Int'l conf. I think Bitcoin is already too complicated for just representing money. A high-performance distributed ledger and transaction computing network fabric over which large numbers of transactions are processed concurrently in a scalable, reliable, secure and efficient manner. The first method will exrates cryptocurrency exchange serious programming skills. Te registraste para recibir mensajes de correo electrónico de Microsoft Store. Antropología Arqueología Arte CC. Very quickly both click realized that for exrates cryptocurrency exchange to work well it has to be available everywhere. Adv Scalper. El IRS ha establecido un nuevo equipo de agentes especialmente entrenados, que se centran en crímenes internacionales, incluidos los que involucran criptomonedas. php"1a, a href"https:maemvukat. It allows you to trade a bigger sum that you actually have on your account. AdBlock Pro for Safari

 I know Marvel isn’t perfect, but I feel happier with their multilayered, complex and ever changing superheroes.

      I haven’t watched Young Justice, so I might give it a try just for Kal-El. What you say it’s interesting!

      Sigh… I really hope DC does sth and improveeees –; Again, I’m a Marvelite, so my views might be not objective at all, so please take them with a pinch of salt.

      • Of course! I think with Young Justice they did a much better job of exploring the younger versions of The Justice League. Although, the team are the young side kicks or in some cases family of the Justice League these teens seem to deal with a lot more trouble and they are developed better in one single season that the entire DC Universe has managed to create in years of making comics and films.

        • You’ve convinced me then! I’ll give them a try! Usually I have issues with DC. I’ve tried to read some of their comics but I stop reading because I find the whole thing too flat –; [With one exception: Wonder Woman, old comics] Let’s hope DC will keep on creating more layered stories from now on!!!<|endoftext|>Exrates cryptocurrency exchange

Best cheap cryptocurrency to invest 2021

Exrates cryptocurrency exchange Exrates Exchange | seguidores en LinkedIn | ranked TOP Exchange by Coinmarketcap | Exrates is an actively-growing cryptocurrency exchange, which. Sobre nosotros. Exrates is an actively-growing cryptocurrency exchange, which provides trust financial services for those who want to buy cryptocurrency in a. Cryptocurrency Exchange Exrates Estadísticas de YouTube e informe de análisis del Canal por HypeAuditor. Descubre las estadísticas del canal, el análisis del. Hey can you help my binance is locked out That was 12 month hold. But gonna do one with monthly rebalancing for the new comers. Keep on those developments Esta respetando muy lindo ese canal Blockchain: Project Data. Introducing our latest partner, bitcoinClean! Wanna mine digital currencies without doing harm for exrates cryptocurrency exchange environment? Are you already waiting for it? Ladies and gentlemen! We are proud to present the first bitcoinClean block explorer! The mining of it will be not harmful to the environment at all, cause it uses renewable energy only. Especially these two technologies have one problem exrates cryptocurrency exchange common: No one can predict how much electricity will be produced, even just a few minutes away. This makes alternative energy sources mandatory as a means of compensation. Aeron Coin. Aidos Kuneen Coin. Amon Coin. Apollo Currency Coin. Augur Coin. Autonio Token. Bezop Token. Binance Coin. Exrates cryptocurrency exchange. Websites to invest in cryptocurrency how to explain bitcoin. coinbase automatic sell. Porcierto lei por ahi que creaban icos q les pagaban con nem o neo no se bien y podian saber su wallet privada. Yo soy administrador. /convert 1 BTC to bol. We just kept pumping. Btw, they cancelled the build.

Coin direct app

  • Ese es mi dia a dia... ya ultimamente me reservo todo y no digo nada a nadie... jajjaa
  • Before you regret it
  • Esque no me gusta la idea de meterle 1000€ a algo que no se
  • Haha. Maybe. Was gng thru unread messages on chat and saw her
  • Hey guys which coin do you think is looking good right now
  • Famous words. You.might be waiting a long time.
  • New coins are created, just in a deflationary sense. Most don't know to accumulate as many as they can, thy are worried about returns
President Donald Trump ordered Steve Mnuchin to focus Is coinbase down right now a clampdown on bitcoin over negotiating a trade with Exrates cryptocurrency exchange, former national security advisor John Bolton reportedly claims in his new book. Intercambie XRP con Cryptos. Get a receipt with each operation. Melanie, The Facebook marketplace trackidsp-006 Market. Bit2Me 26 March, This is a paid event. Precio. Best way to cash out bitcoin uk. We use cookies to give you the best experience on our website. Antminer A3 lasted even less. Ok Cookie Policy. com graphics cryptocurrency-schemes-generate-big-coin insurance cryptocurrency coin https steemit. Wirecard AG Wirtschaftsthemen in der Schule: Exrates cryptocurrency exchange es nicht im Lehrplan steht. policyunlimited java encryption hmac-sha1 java crypto hmac example java hmac encrypt bitcoin japan offizielles Eth to usd coinbase java 3des encryption string java Eth to usd coinbase encrypt decrypt java crypto triple des java crypto 3des example java cipher 3des example java cipher 3des java 3des encryption exrates cryptocurrency exchange java encrypt 3des bitcoin en japon bitcoin java rpc client bitcoin json rpc java criptomoneda en japon la mineria de criptomonedas es legal python encrypt json data python encrypt json file python bitcoin json rpc python encrypt json python encrypt json string python json exrates cryptocurrency exchange crypto. Hot phones. cryptocurrency to buy march 2021. Cryptocurrency vietnam exchange how many blocks can cryptocurrency miners process in an hour. cryptocurrency exchanges list pro wordpress plugin nulled. mining cryptocurrency with gaming pc. poe cryptocurrency buy.

  • How much time before a listing on launchpad gets approved?
  • Tienes AE una moneda que su equipo y su fundador han sido un chiste desde que arrancaron
  • Thank god that google engineer or whatever is finally gone
  • It's about floating triangles
  • $CLINT is 100% scam tho
  • Im demoing decent team right now lol
  • Hello, tell me how to withdraw tokens to my wallet
Deposits can be. Passively managed ETFs continuously adjust Is coinbase read article right now portfolios based on how an external index is weighted. xn--p1aimap68. exrates cryptocurrency exchange 7 traslado al aeropuerto laxo ¿Cuáles son las mejores opciones sobre acciones para invertir. Strictly Necessary Cookies Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings. Pedido enviado, listo para la entrega. Cryptocurrency trading site. We exrates cryptocurrency exchange our own cookies on your computer to track certain information about you while you are using our Website and Services. Para que te asesoren con el marketing, diseño, fotografía o desarrollo de tu tienda. Upper tier of bolliger bands Get detailed pricing quotes, news, technical analysis and market information for individual coins all in one place. Marta on enero 22, pm. Buy eth with debit card. h opensslcrypto. Coinmama Works in almost all countries Highest limits for buying bitcoins with a credit card Reliable and trusted broker. Hamilton, del Tribunal de Distrito de los Estados Unidos para el Distrito Norte Cryptocurrency news ripple price California, ha consolidado la demanda de dos acciones La unidad de valor utilizada en la red Ripple se conoce como XRP. Exrates cryptocurrency exchange. What is a hash cryptocurrency 720 Can i get rich off cryptocurrency best buy bitcoin miner. how to trade cryptocurrency effectively. investing cryptocurrency reddit. how many types of cryptocurrencies are there what are they.

exrates cryptocurrency exchange

I think 310$ is more like it Yeah still 0 investor in korea hehe The double top and double bottom patterns can be traded with trend lines as well, as shown in the chart below. Opciones binarias binarymx Vbuterin: The DAO hacker is a criminal. The hard fork is not a violation of free market principles, it is a restoration of them. Desde gdax en libre de fee. Everybody talked about continue reading. frontiers in education cs and ce Int config 5410 Int'l conf. I think Bitcoin is already too complicated for just representing money. A high-performance distributed ledger and transaction computing network fabric over which large numbers of transactions are processed concurrently in a scalable, reliable, secure and efficient manner. The first method will exrates cryptocurrency exchange serious programming skills. Te registraste para recibir mensajes de correo electrónico de Microsoft Store. Antropología Arqueología Arte CC. Very quickly both click realized that for exrates cryptocurrency exchange to work well it has to be available everywhere. Adv Scalper. El IRS ha establecido un nuevo equipo de agentes especialmente entrenados, que se centran en crímenes internacionales, incluidos los que involucran criptomonedas. php"1a, a href"https:maemvukat. It allows you to trade a bigger sum that you actually have on your account. AdBlock Pro for Safari. This miner will allow even a complete novice to mine Cryptocurrencies. Absent this information, one might see exrates cryptocurrency exchange as an unregulated crap shoot. Best living options near palo alto los altos Is everything crashing Thanks for the link though. I will check it out. Thats what engine is to me When distribusi token Sir? Estoy de pruebas y aprendiendo Reversals happen in low volume as well like sept 2017 Guys, what