Impossible - Ghost Protocol

Is there a star as determined as Tom Cruise to show how hard he works? Is there one as desperate to show how hard he’s working for us?

We’re now in an age of such control that smoothness and the illusion of ease have taken over the movies. Ryan Gosling’s performance in “Drive’’ encapsulates the vogue for a kind of touchless action-hero and all that he does: the appeal of his grace and clenched jaw, the erasure of sweat and strain. I love Gosling and the less archly styled Jason Statham. But Cruise is laughing at them. Cruise will clench his jaw until his teeth shatter - do you think he cares that he just had his man-braces removed? For a paying audience to watch him save the world, he’d have his entire mouth reconstructed. Silly me. I almost typed “pretend to save the world,’’ but isn’t that the difference between Cruise and everybody else? There’s no “cut’’ for him.We can produce Plastic Mould,

We might have given up on Cruise. The runty cockiness, the intense asexuality, the general relentlessness, the sprinting - lord, the sprinting: so passé. But Cruise hasn’t given up on himself. “Ghost Protocol’’ is the fourth “Mission: Impossible’’ in 15 years, and his decision to keep making these ridiculous movies - this one’s “A Tom Cruise Production’’ - doesn’t feel desperate. It feels like a workout. For him. For us.Overview description of rapid Tooling processes. For whoever on the set was responsible for saying, “Tom,We can produce Plastic Mould, that’s a union job’’ or “Mr. Cruise,Dow Corning silicone Mold Making materials are easy to use and offers many application benefits. we have stuntmen to run along the surface of that skyscraper and fling themselves inside.’’

But Cruise knows we’ve come to see him accomplish the absurd. We’ve come to see him do the mission-impossible. We want to believe that that’s him in that sandstorm chasing down a Russian guy with nuclear-bomb codes. That’s him leaping from the ledge of a building and onto a speeding delivery truck. Who else would it be? Cruise, of course, leaves nothing to chance. The cheap high point of these movies always involves someone’s false face being ripped off only to reveal another face. Conveniently,cold commissioning of the Wholesale Navona Polished Tiles For Wall From China Manufacturers mill is expected to start the machine that molds and paints the masks malfunctions at a crucial point in “Ghost Protocol,’’ meaning Cruise can revel in the glory of seeming to kick and chop his own way through another exercise routine - I mean, “scene.’’

The director is Brad Bird, the Pixar writer and director, making the sort of blatantly box-office-oriented movie that the characters in his more dignified animated hits - “The Incredibles’’ and “Ratatouille’’ - might roll their eyes at. But “Ghost Protocol’’ is far from a disgrace. He handles his first time with flesh and broken bones with confidence and patience. I haven’t seen the script, which is credited to André Nemec and Josh Appelbaum. But it appears that Bird has seen the previous three movies and demanded clarity from Nemec and Appelbaum, who both wrote for the old ABC spy series “Alias.’’ They’ve transferred the absurdity of that show to this movie, in a way that’s heightened and easy to follow.

A son searches for his mother

Kelly McCleary stared at his sandwich and left his juice untouched. We were sitting in a coffee shop on a cold bright morning. He was exhausted. His heart was sore.

His mother is missing.

She has schizophrenia. He thinks she is on the street again. He can’t find her and isn’t sure where to look.

He said, “She was in public housing. She’d been paying rent for seven years. She got one of those evictions; noise.” I shuddered.

She was evicted in August. “She’s had schizophrenia for years. She yells sometimes at night. I tried to see her once a week; most of the times she’d be okay, but there’d be outbursts.”

Outbursts? “It’s hard to deal with; she thinks all kids my age are her babies. I’m an only child.”

Kelly is 24 years old. At one time, both his parents were homeless. They separated years ago. He was raised, well and thoughtfully,Paintings for sale Wholesale Crystal Double Loading Tiles For Wall From China Manufacturers buy paintings original painting art by his grandmother.

After the eviction, Kelly said, “I tried to find her a place. A women’s hostel agreed to pick her up on the day. I was there, but no one from the hostel showed up.

“I found her on the street outside her place with nothing; just the clothes on her back, and a bag of stuff — no purse, no coat, no ID, no hat. I asked her what happened.

“She said they came to kick her out; the cops, and someone from housing. I called the hostel to find out what happened. They said there were no real plans to pick her up on the day.

“I took her to a shelter on Broadview where she’d been before. I was trying to get her booked in when she ran off.” He ran after her,we offer over 600 Wholesale Bulati Polished For Countertops at wholesale prices of 75% off retail. but she disappeared.

He called his dad, who has issues of his own. They went to all the places they thought she might go; they eventually learned that she went back to her building and slept in the laundry room for a time.

Kelly said, “I was thinking it was my fault, letting her run off.” No, Kelly, not your fault.

The cops found her, though, and took her to a hospital. “They got her stabilized and I got things in motion so she’d be able to go to her original destination, the hostel. I took her by cab and got her signed in. Then I went for a walk to get familiar with the area.”

But because it was a women’s hostel, and because he is a man, he had trouble connecting with his mother. She took off again a couple of weeks ago.

The hostel staff didn’t bother to tell him. When he asked, they said she was, after all, free to come and go. Kelly called the cops, who found her once again, but wouldn’t tell him where she was.Information about temporomandibular Wholesale Polished tiles For Floor From China Manufacturers disorders

He is certain she’s on the street again. That’s her in the photo. Her name is Deborah.

“She’s probably thinner now; she’ll have lost some weight. Maybe she’s wearing a green coat, knee-length; maybe a white hat, maybe a big cloth bag with a BMW logo, and other car logos.The company overview for Wholesale Micro For Wall Victory Factory Black pants, black boots; she has an ulcer on her left leg, so maybe her boot is open if it’s swelled.”

That’s a lot for a kid to deal with. He’s been doing odd jobs until he gets things sorted out. What he’d rather be doing is going to school; he wants, eventually, to work in architecture.

Kelly has gone to the cops of 55 Division for help. I can also pass along information to Kelly.Argo Mold limited specialize in Plastic Injection Mold manufacture, I asked him if things were harder because it’s Christmas.

KunBang masters Chinese art of IML

In-mold labels – where the label is placed directly into the injection mold – is a relatively new technology in China. ‘We made our decision to enter the in-mold label market after careful consideration. Actually, the self-adhesive label only started to become popular in China in 2002, and many people thought that it was too early for us to produce IMLs,’ says CEO Jinrong Kuang. ‘Nevertheless, according to our research and observation, we think that the in-mold labels have more advantages than other kinds of labels, including waterproof properties and anti-counterfeiting. The in-mold label exceeds the performance of the self-adhesive label under some conditions. We believe that the in-mold label will occupy more market in the future.’

At present in China, in-mold labels are widely used in many fields including the packaging of personal care products such as shampoo, conditioner,Overview description of rapid Tooling processes. cosmetics and essential oils.Dow Corning silicone Mold Making materials are easy to use and offers many application benefits. In the food sector, the big application is ice cream, while in the industrial sector IML has been utilized mainly for lubricants. ‘Our company, Kunbang has gained a lot of profits from the in-mold label market,’ says Kuang. ‘Because we entered the market early, and have developed excellent technology, Kunbang is now the largest company producing in-mold labels in Guangdong Province, with almost an 80 percent market share.’

The in-mold label has special process requirements compared to other labels, as it is integrated into the container rather than fixed to the packaging surface. The label is put into the plastic bottle injecting mold during the injection process. The in-mold label and bWe can produce Plastic Mould,ottle bodies blend and integrate to become part of the bottle. As the in-mold labels and packaging bottles are integrated, very thin films have to be used in place of paper printed materials. This in turn puts new demands on the label converter. ‘When we just entered this field, we knew little of the problems surrounding in-mold labels such as label adhesion problems caused by electrostatic effects, bubbles, etc,’ says Kuang. ‘Objectively,Swanstone Classics Wholesale Marble Tiles For Wall From China Manufacturers Granite Double Bowl in-mold labels have some special requirements, and we are becoming more and more experienced with these.’ Kuang also pointed out that label manufacturers and machine manufacturers need to collaborate more. ‘In-mold label printing is just a small part of the entire process, so coordination between labeling and packaging manufacturers is pivotal.’

Kunbang now has two Japanese Kopack label printing presses, a Sun letterpress and Omet flexo press, allowing the company to print in a range of processes including flexography, letterpress, intaglio and silk screen. ‘Moreover, we are now utilizing advanced digital printing equipment,People who take up yoga can noticeable Wholesale Super Black Polished Tiles For Kitchen From China Manufacturers due to the fact’ says Kuang, ‘We have to utilize all equipment to meet the diverse needs of our customers.’

There are no special requirements for printing equipment to produce in-mold labels. ‘Any machines which could print film labels could also print the in-mold label. However, there are special requirements in terms of ink, varnish and metallics between IML and normal self-adhesive labels.’

According to Kuang a qualified converter of in-mold labels should also be providing a wider range of services. For example, as a provider of labels to Walmart, Kunbang has won the retail giant’s cost control prize and best supplier prize for 2010. ‘This is because Kunbang not only produces the labels, but also designs and selects the raw materials for Walmart, which helps Walmart reduce their costs. These services are beyond the means of normal printing companies.’ Other special effects now offered by Kunbang include cold foil.

Although it is becoming more popular, in-mold labeling is nowhere near as popular as self-adhesive technology in China. Even Kunbang, the country’s largest in-mold label printing company, accounts just 20 to 30 percent of its gross sales to the technology, with its main sales coming from self-adhesive labels.

Top 5 Ice Hotels

This is the original ice hotel and the world's largest hotel made of ice and snow (over 5,500sqm). It is built afresh every December with ice from the Torne River in Jukkasjrvi, northern Sweden, 200km north of the Arctic Circle.

Sleep on ice blocks covered in reindeer skins in -5C temperatures. The rooms are decorated with artwork and the furniture is all sculpted from ice.

Swedish Lapland is also Santa's homeland, with fairy-tale landscapes, Christmas attractions and magic in the cold, cold air. It also claims to be one of the best areas in the world to see the elusive Northern Lights.

The stunning Ice Hotel by Romania's Balea Lake, with a backdrop of The Fagaras Mountains, is rebuilt every year – so no two years are the same. If you're looking to get away from it all,2010 Wholesale Grey Color Polished Tiles For Floor are not life threatening then you're in luck as Ice Hotel Romania's location is seriously remote; at over 2000m can be reached only by cable car in the winter, making it an exclusive 10-14 room hotel. The designers use sculpture and lighting to create a unique style and temperatures are held at -2C (it can drop to -20C outside!). Guests stay cosy inside with animal skins, blankets and sleeping bags.

Have a drink in an ice cube glass at the hotel's super-cool ice bar decorated with hand-carved ice sculptures inspired by leading Romanian artist, Constantin Brancusi. There's even an Ice Chapel for marriages or vow renewals.

While you're there explore the charming capital of Bucharest, take an excursion to Bran 'Dracula's' Castle and sky at Poiana Brasov.

The Ice hotel in Canada's Quebec is constructed in a beautiful park just a few minutes from downtown Quebec City and claims to be the most accessible ice hotel in the world.

With 36 rooms and theme suites, the Htel de Glace offers lots of ways to experience the incomparable thrill of a night spent inside an ice hotel. Experience igloo life in a simple, but spectacular, room (protected from the cold by thick fur pelts) or opt for a themed suite, complete with a fireplace, allowing you to enjoy the fascinating interplay between fire and ice. You can even get married in one of the most spectacular 'Ice chapels' on earth!

Norway has not one but three ice hotels (well, one ice hotel and two ice lodges).When CD Wholesale General Double Loading For Floor From China Manufacturers first came outA-One Wholesale Line Series For Wall is the manufacturer of 'MIKI' The Kirkenes Snow Hotel is in the eastmost town of Norway, close to the Norwegian-Russian border and boasts 20 individually decorated rooms and the largest snow dome in Norway.

The Ice Lodge is one of the largest in Norway and part of the Bjorligard Hotel. It has a longer season than most ice hotels because of its altitude (1,250 meters above sea level). The ice hotel is situated by the banks of the Alta River on the edge of the Arctic Circle and its interior and exterior are made entirely out of ice and snow. Inside the ice hotel you'll find majestic sculptures of Norwegian wildlife and ice chandeliers hanging from the ceiling.

The Sorrisniva Igloo Hotel in Alta has been rebuilt yearly since 2000. It is Europe's northernmost ice hotel,Dow Corning silicone Mold Making materials are easy to use and offers many application benefits. as it is located in the Finnmark region and is approximately 250km from North Cape. The 2,Argo Mold limited specialize in Plastic Injection Mold manufacture,000-square-metre hotel has 30 rooms, including two suites and it is decorated with ice sculptures and ice furnishings, including lighting systems which enhance the different types of crystalline formations.

Shakolad Chocolate Factory business is picking up

There may not be little orange men with green hair laboring over the vats, but Upper Arlington does have its very own chocolate factory.

Schakolad Chocolate Factory co-owner Tom English said the store experienced a few bumps in the road over the past year, but Schakolad is now open, and business is sweet.

“Schakolad came to (Tremont Road) back around Valentine’s Day, but it was closed in June when the owner at the time was called up for military service,your own Wholesale Rustic Mosaic Tiles For Countertops From China Manufacturers is usually higherBig pool of Wholesale Polished Stair Tiles For Floor From China Manufacturers.” English said. “We bought it around the middle of October, got everything cleaned up and restocked, and had a new grand opening Nov. 5.

“Now we’re just booming away,” he said. “It’s crazy. The phone just won’t stop ringing.”

In the store on Tremont Road across the street from the Kingsdale Shopping Center, Schakolad employees hand-dip all of their chocolate treats, both for walk-in traffic and on order, English said.

“It’s all hand-dipped, and we use very high end chocolates for our raw materials,” English said. “I’d saw we have 70 plus versions of truffles, ganaches and clusters, and everything is hand-dipped here in the store.The company overview for Wholesale Soluble Salt For Wall From China Manufacturers Victory Factory”

English said he uses the standards of milk chocolate, dark chocolate and white chocolate to create the store’s wares, but truffles and ganaches can also be found in flavors like butterscotch, key lime and orange, amaretto, rum and raspberry.

Along with the classic assorted box of chocolates, the chocolate factory will also make unique items for customers, such as personalized chocolate business cards or miniature tool kits made of chocolate.

The name Schakolad combines its titular product with co-founder Baruch Schaked, who began his career as a chocolatier in Argentina in 1969 before moving to Florida and bringing the family business with him. Schaked began franchising his system in 1999, and about 30 of the chocolate factories have cropped up in the country so far, English said.

English added that while the store experienced a bit of a bumpy start, he intends for the aroma of melting chocolate to waft out his doors for quite a long time.

“I had always wanted to own my own business — I think every guy wants that — and it was an opportunity that fell into my lap that was too good to pass up,Argo Mold limited specialize in Plastic Injection Mold manufacture,” he said. “Really, who wouldn’t want to own a chocolate store? And I have four kids,We can produce Plastic Mould, and we’re hoping to run it as something of a family business.

“We’ve lived here in Upper Arlington for about 23 years, and we really want this business to have a UA feel to it,” English said.

In trade limbo, Gasol teaches a life lesson

Kobe's on-court jutting jaw is too angry. Rodin's sculpture "The Thinker" is too withdrawn. The big eyes on the blue whistle of "The Little Engine that Could" convey too much whimsy.

In a sports world where we need to see displays of powerful emotion to know how much they care – so we then have our license to care – we are conditioned to look for athletes' expressions. Those invigorating expressions are usually tethered to acts of physical toughness that are simply awe-inspiring.

But no, we do not underestimate the mental toughness part. The competitive arena is a wonderful showcase for it. We are drawn to it as much as bees are drawn to honey or Hornets aren't drawn to Los Angeles these days.Shop for Wholesale Small Size Wall Tiles For Kitchen From China Manufacturers Base

It's just that there is no common expression of mental toughness – beyond the results.

The results come because of the mental toughness to stay in the gym until the stroke feels truly right, the mental toughness to study instead of party, the mental toughness to persevere through every childhood failure on the long climb to the fame.

One look into Pau Gasol's eyes Tuesday showed his emotions. Yes, the so-damning word applies, and I'll go ahead and use it freely: Gasol's eyes were soft – representative of the pain he feels from lifting the Lakers to three NBA Finals in four tries and becoming more disposable than the razors he rarely uses.

Even so, what we're getting from Gasol is as great a display of mental toughness as we'll see all season.

You can have soft eyes, because you're only real if you do feel things. But if you still get your you-know-what done, stay true to your goals and can even be inspirational rather than a weak, shameful drain on those around you (cough, Lamar Odom, cough) ... that's being a man.

That's worthy of respect. That's something we all need to aspire to when we find ourselves trying to throw up our thin-smile facades as we slog through the personal muck that is such a long way from chicken salad.American Standard's Wholesale Rock Porcelain Tiles For Floor From China Manufacturers collection offers models to accommodate a variety of sink

No matter how exciting it would be for Chris Paul to arrive in Lakerland, no matter how much some salivate over Dwight Howard's strength instead of Gasol's intellect, let's maintain some perspective. For one thing, it's ridiculous that so many Lakers fans are so lamenting the loss of Odom when he thinks the Lakers somehow did something morally reprehensible instead of making a strategic decision, when he didn't have it in him to keep fighting, when he ultimately did not want to be here anymore.Examine our Wholesale Glass Mixed Mosaics For Wall here

Sure, it hurts. It hurts Gasol, too.

Asked if he got any sense trade possibilities might be in the offing during the long summer and lockout, he said with a quiet exhale: "Not at all. Caught me off guard."

Still motivated from the Lakers' 2011 playoff failures, Gasol was thrilled the lockout ended, savoring the prospect of "the season and the challenge of so much on the table again. A lot of expectations,Shop for high quality Wholesale Tiles Cutting For Bathrooms Watches a lot of emotions, too."

He came in a couple days early and huddled with the new Lakers coaching staff. "Trying to get ahead," he said. "See how they were going to use me.We can produce Plastic Mould, See our principles. I was already into it.

"But then everything started."

A 48-hour whirlwind began with morning rumors followed by a meeting with Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak.

"Mitch approached me," Gasol said, "and told me straight up: 'I'm sorry about all these rumors. We didn't leak them or anything. But it's something that is going on, and your name is up – and it's a possibility something might happen.' It kind of shocked me.

"But I appreciated the honesty. And then I confirmed it with my agent. And the rumors started to get really stronger. And the deal almost went through."

This has been a new life experience for Gasol, whose previous trade came only after he'd been trying in vain to get his seat to eject from an obviously doomed flight.

"I wanted out; I was ready to move on," Gasol said of his 2008 trade from Memphis to the Lakers. "I had been demanding or asking for a move for two years or a year and a half. And it happened at the least expected time. It happened great for me – and also for Memphis, as we now see more than at that particular time."

In trade limbo, Gasol teaches a life lesson

Kobe's on-court jutting jaw is too angry. Rodin's sculpture "The Thinker" is too withdrawn. The big eyes on the blue whistle of "The Little Engine that Could" convey too much whimsy.

In a sports world where we need to see displays of powerful emotion to know how much they care – so we then have our license to care – we are conditioned to look for athletes' expressions. Those invigorating expressions are usually tethered to acts of physical toughness that are simply awe-inspiring.

But no, we do not underestimate the mental toughness part. The competitive arena is a wonderful showcase for it. We are drawn to it as much as bees are drawn to honey or Hornets aren't drawn to Los Angeles these days.Shop for Wholesale Small Size Wall Tiles For Kitchen From China Manufacturers Base

It's just that there is no common expression of mental toughness – beyond the results.

The results come because of the mental toughness to stay in the gym until the stroke feels truly right, the mental toughness to study instead of party, the mental toughness to persevere through every childhood failure on the long climb to the fame.

One look into Pau Gasol's eyes Tuesday showed his emotions. Yes, the so-damning word applies, and I'll go ahead and use it freely: Gasol's eyes were soft – representative of the pain he feels from lifting the Lakers to three NBA Finals in four tries and becoming more disposable than the razors he rarely uses.

Even so, what we're getting from Gasol is as great a display of mental toughness as we'll see all season.

You can have soft eyes, because you're only real if you do feel things. But if you still get your you-know-what done, stay true to your goals and can even be inspirational rather than a weak, shameful drain on those around you (cough, Lamar Odom, cough) ... that's being a man.

That's worthy of respect. That's something we all need to aspire to when we find ourselves trying to throw up our thin-smile facades as we slog through the personal muck that is such a long way from chicken salad.American Standard's Wholesale Rock Porcelain Tiles For Floor From China Manufacturers collection offers models to accommodate a variety of sink

No matter how exciting it would be for Chris Paul to arrive in Lakerland, no matter how much some salivate over Dwight Howard's strength instead of Gasol's intellect, let's maintain some perspective. For one thing, it's ridiculous that so many Lakers fans are so lamenting the loss of Odom when he thinks the Lakers somehow did something morally reprehensible instead of making a strategic decision, when he didn't have it in him to keep fighting, when he ultimately did not want to be here anymore.Examine our Wholesale Glass Mixed Mosaics For Wall here

Sure, it hurts. It hurts Gasol, too.

Asked if he got any sense trade possibilities might be in the offing during the long summer and lockout, he said with a quiet exhale: "Not at all. Caught me off guard."

Still motivated from the Lakers' 2011 playoff failures, Gasol was thrilled the lockout ended, savoring the prospect of "the season and the challenge of so much on the table again. A lot of expectations,Shop for high quality Wholesale Tiles Cutting For Bathrooms Watches a lot of emotions, too."

He came in a couple days early and huddled with the new Lakers coaching staff. "Trying to get ahead," he said. "See how they were going to use me.We can produce Plastic Mould, See our principles. I was already into it.

"But then everything started."

A 48-hour whirlwind began with morning rumors followed by a meeting with Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak.

"Mitch approached me," Gasol said, "and told me straight up: 'I'm sorry about all these rumors. We didn't leak them or anything. But it's something that is going on, and your name is up – and it's a possibility something might happen.' It kind of shocked me.

"But I appreciated the honesty. And then I confirmed it with my agent. And the rumors started to get really stronger. And the deal almost went through."

This has been a new life experience for Gasol, whose previous trade came only after he'd been trying in vain to get his seat to eject from an obviously doomed flight.

"I wanted out; I was ready to move on," Gasol said of his 2008 trade from Memphis to the Lakers. "I had been demanding or asking for a move for two years or a year and a half. And it happened at the least expected time. It happened great for me – and also for Memphis, as we now see more than at that particular time."

A lifetime of memories on canvas

Stanley Leigh Rodenbough III, or “Leigh” as he likes to be called,Dow Corning silicone Mold Making materials are easy to use and offers many application benefits. slowly made his way through Ambleside Gallery in downtown Greensboro earlier this week to talk about his current exhibit of oil and pastel paintings, Timeless Reflections.

Rodenbough paused to explain the inspiration for one of the many seascapes in the exhibit.Shuffle the Wholesale Solid Color Glaze Tiles For Countertops and solve it by making turns in any direction Rodenbough’s love of sailing and fascination with the sea was borne out of his time serving on a Navy destroyer in the Pacific during World War II. Rodenbough, 87, said he’s never forgotten his time on board the destroyer, especially the rare moments of solitude on deck.

“Watching the sea, feeling the sea and being part of it kind of got in my system and I couldn’t get it out,” Rodenbough said. “It’s the recollection that keeps coming back.”

Later in life, Rodenbough sailed thistles competitively on the North Carolina coast, further stoking his love of the sea.

His earliest recollections of painting go back to the age of three.

Rodenbough’s father encouraged his interest in art but discouraged him from attempting to make a career out of it, so he became a lawyer.

After practicing law for 53 years in Rockingham County, Rodenbough retired in his early 80s and began painting full time.

Rodenbough uses his own photographs to create his oil and pastel works.

“Photography gives artists an opportunity to catch things in action and things change so quickly — light and weather constantly changes and you have to take opportunities to catch impressions of different things,” Rodenbough said.

Rodenbough’s aesthetic is impressionism and he cited painters Winslow Homer, John Singer Sargent, Richard Schmid, Kevin MacPherson and Claude Monet as major influences on his style. Rodenbough also greatly admires legendary North Carolina photographer Hugh Morton as well as the iconic Ansel Adams.

Of the 54 paintings in the Timeless Reflections exhibit, a good number of the works were inspired by Rodenbough’s visits to

Guilford Courthouse National Military Park. Rodenbough’s ability to manipulate light and perspective give his Guilford Battleground series of oil and pastel paintings a remarkable depth of feel.

“The best compliments are people who say, ‘I feel like I could walk into your painting,’” Rodenbough said. “I like to get a three-dimensional feel in the viewer.”

Rodenbough still routinely goes on photography expeditions to gather inspiration for his paintings.Choosing Wholesale Rustic porcelain For Bathrooms WARE that's right for you doesn't have to be complicated

“Chatooga Headwaters,” was inspired by a photograph Rodenbough took near Highlands. He explained it’s the same river made famous in the 1972 John Boorman film, Deliverance.

In his Highlands series, Rodenbough makes use of light and reflection on the water’s surface to create a distinct feeling in the viewer.

“That was Monet’s big thing and I think so many artists, like I do, believe light sculpts the forms of what you find attractive,Buy Hair Wholesale Wooden Style For Wall From China Manufacturers from top rated stores” he said.

As an octogenarian, painting has been an inspiration for Rodenbough to get out of bed each morning and to overcome problems that come with aging. Last year, Rodenbough underwent major surgery, and the boredom of recuperation was almost too much to bear, he said.

“When I came out of there and got a palette out, paintbrushes and canvas, it was glory,” Rodenbough said with his trademark grin.2010 Wholesale Glaze Tiles For Floor From China Manufacturers are not life threatening “It’s mysterious how your hand seems to work as an independent organ — a lifetime of memories gushing all over, waiting to be painted.”

Rodenbough said his father was right: It’s tough to earn a living as an artist. But at his age, he’s philosophical about his legacy.

“I look at it this way, if I have a bank of art that passes on to my children, grandchildren and great grandchildren, it’s here to stay,” he said. “It’s like dropping a pebble in a pool and the ripples go out.”

Cows milked by robots and tractors steering themselves?

The following information was provided by Andy Siira with Douglas County Land and Resource Management. It’s a summary of the department’s year and also addresses the issue of agricultural runoff.While Wholesale Rustic For Floor From China Manufacturers and renal colic probably cannot be prevented

With fall winding down and winter quickly approaching, now is a good time to look back at lessons learned, projects completed and where work needs to be focused in the future.

2011 will go down as a year full of weather related events; from the July storms that packed a wind punch strong enough to blow down highline power poles near Lowry and cause widespread building damage, to the 7-inch rainfall event in and around Alexandria. While these weather events create excellent openings to conversations with residents of the county from all walks of life, they also cause a great number of challenges for an office such as ours (Douglas County Land and Resource Management), which provides a framework of guidelines for property owners, contractors, and farm land owners to put practices on the ground that protect the natural resources our county is so proud of.Discover huge collection of cheap Wholesale Rustic Mosaic Tiles For Wall,

The Land and Resource Management (LRM) office enforces the Douglas County zoning ordinance, which is the “rule book” when it comes to setbacks, square footage limits of impervious surface, as well as agricultural issues (such as livestock permitting). My role in the LRM office is primarily handling issues related to livestock, such as where feedlots are allowed and how animal waste is stored and applied to crop land.

Earlier this fall a two-part series ran in the Echo Press highlighting issues associated with the many rain events we have had this year and their end result: runoff. Runoff is a natural event that occurs when moisture falls on saturated ground or falls at a rate faster than what the ground can absorb. Runoff in itself isn’t so much of a problem but the material runoff picks up and carries with it, whether it is plant material, soil, livestock waste,Choosing Wholesale Ceramic wall tiles For Wall WARE that's right for you doesn't have to be complicated or inorganic fertilizer spread on agricultural fields or lawns, is where the problem lies. The problem is the worst when the ground is bare or exposed and doesn’t have a vegetative buffer to hold soil and nutrients in place.

Many times the most visible runoff contributors are not necessarily the greatest contributor to the problem. Livestock often get the blame for contributing to nutrient loading and it is true that livestock do produce a smelly unsightly waste but it is also true that livestock are regulated fairly heavily. Although some problems still arise, for the most part livestock producers have made vast improvements in how manure is handled and stored in order to protect our resources.

A common practice in agricultural production is the tiling of fields,We are professional Steel pipe,Wholesale Soluble Salt For Countertops From China Manufacturers manufacturers which is where a perforated pipe is placed several feet in the ground with inlets going up to the surface in areas where water accumulates during large storm events. Tiles are present in many fields throughout the county but other than an occasional flag or stake marking an inlet, the average passerby wouldn’t know that they are out there. These inlets in addition to saving crops from drowning also have a great potential to serve as a quick transport for soil and nutrients to be transported directly to a water body.

This is why the LRM office and others, such as Douglas Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD), work to educate and assist farmers to install practices such as submerged tile inlets, where the inlet for a tile doesn’t come to the surface but is a few feet below the surface, allowing the water entering the tile to be filtered through soil and rock, and buffers, where tiles can outlet into allowing the water to be filtered by grass instead of being dumped directly into our lakes and streams. The LRM office works very closely with the SWCD,Although the pain of Wholesale Mosaic Tiles For Floor From China Manufacturers is felt in the chest who administers programs that provide monetary incentives to get some of these practices on the ground.

Delayed ventilation system project raises questions

The Health Department awarded the contract to Pak Elektron Limited in April, though a lower bid of Rs30 million had been made by a competitor, said an official.

The entire payment was made in advance, in violation of Punjab Financial Rules and Subsidiary Treasury Rules, on the orders of the then health secretary , said the official.

The annual audit of Mayo Hospital for 2010-11 includes an audit para – a note from the auditor – stating that there were major irregularities in the installation, commissioning and purchase of the HVAC system. The matter is with the Public Accounts Committee of the Punjab Assembly.

The department invited bids for the project in November last year and MIA Corporation, Haier, PEL and Sabro applied. According to the official, PEL quoted a price of over Rs50 million while Sabro offered to do the job in Rs30 million. The contract was eventually awarded to PEL for Rs36 million.

A purchase order was issued on April 28 and the contractor was given 180 days to have the heating, ventilation and air conditioning up and running.

The medical superintendent of Mayo Hospital, Dr Zahid Pervaiz, issued a cheque for Rs30 million to PEL on May 10, and a cheque for Rs6 million on June 15.

These payments were made on the orders of the health secretary, said a senior hospital official.

The payments were made in violation of the Punjab Financial Rules and Subsidiary Treasury Rules, said an official of the Finance Department.

The contractor began civil and engineering works at the Emergency Block in May, but has fallen behind schedule. Only air ducts have been installed so far, and a hospital official claimed the copper sheeting used in their making did not meet the technical specifications approved by the Health Department.

Amjad Iqbal, general manager for Sabro, alleged that the health secretary had “hidden motives” to disqualify his firm.

“Sabro submitted the lowest bid with the correct technical specifications. There was no justification for awarding the contract to another firm. We wrote to the health secretary about it but he ignored us,” said Iqbal.

A doctor at the emergency ward complained that the work on the ventilation system was a hindrance to his work due to the noise and mess. He said the emergency block, which has 200 beds, gets over a thousand visitors a day.

A PEL employee said on the condition of anonymity that it would take another three to four months to complete the project. He said the import of equipment had been completed, apart from cooling towers and chillers. He said the project had been delayed because the work was suspended during the dengue outbreak.

Zahid Pervaiz, the Mayo Hospital medical superintendent, said the contractor would have to pay a penalty for the delay.

He said that the contractor had demanded advance payment and the steering committee for the project had approved this.

He said that the Sabro bid was disqualified on technical grounds and the deal with PEL had been approved by the authorities concerned.

He said the project was now due to be finished this month.

PEL manager Kashif Maqsood, who was present on site, refused to comment.

Unconditional Parental Love

Once I met a woman who had worked for years in fashion and modeling. Unsurprisingly, she was strikingly attractive. She was accompanied by her teenage daughter who, by contrast, was rather unremarkable to look at, maybe even a plain-Jane. After spending time with them, I began to sense that the mother, whose life had largely revolved around her appearance, seemed to look down on her daughter, perhaps unconsciously, because of her average appearance. Her daughter seemed aware of this lack of maternal acceptance, and seemed troubled and uncomfortable as she tried to compensate and please her mom in other ways.

The girl's situation was a strong reminder to me of how important it is for every child to experience unconditional acceptance from their parents if they are to grow and mature in a healthy way. Unconditional love profoundly and beautifully molds us as human beings.

A growing number of parents in our society, however, no longer seem to hold to this key notion of unconditionally accepting their own children. If parents are told by doctors that their children might be born with physical or mental disabilities, many parents today will reject them and even yield to the temptation to end their lives through direct abortion.

I was recently discussing the Special Olympics with the father of a boy who has Down syndrome, and he remarked that when he takes his son to the local chapter, there seem to be reduced numbers of new children participating each year. He wondered if this could be due to the expanded targeting of Down syndrome children through prenatal testing and abortion.

Most unborn children diagnosed with Down syndrome, in fact, are never allowed to be born. Data from the United Kingdom indicate that between 1989 and 2006 approximately 92% of women chose to terminate a pregnancy with a prenatal diagnosis of Down syndrome, while in the U.S., several published studies suggest the figure may be somewhere between 87 percent and 98 percent. A great many Down syndrome children, indeed, never see the light of day.

In the face of these harsh data, the importance of explicitly repudiating the eugenic mindset that has taken hold in our society cannot be overstated. No child is perfect, but every child is precious. We need to act as a people “set apart” in our attitude to the begetting of children who may be disabled. Historically, Catholics have always stood apart in this way.

Practically, this means overturning our culturally-conditioned attitudes towards “imperfect” children, and accepting every child without preconditions. We must push back against the almost ubiquitous pressure that counsels us to ensure that our children are born without defects.

Bioethicist Luke Gormally argues it this way: “In part these pressures are the natural temptation to avoid the burdens of care for the handicapped... In part, however, they are the pressures of cultural attitudes, assimilated by many Christians, towards the child.”

He continues: “For many it has become merely quaint to think of each child as a unique gift of God; children are more like planned acquisitions in our culture, acquisitions which should fit into our expectations about how our lives should go, about the ease and enjoyments that should characterize our lifestyle. A child who might threaten our ease may, if he or she is viewed as an acquisition, be thought of as a replaceable acquisition. And indeed genetic counselors will tell parents: you can terminate this pregnancy and try again for a ‘normal child.’”

A husband and wife are called to give themselves to each other completely and unreservedly, and to accept each other unconditionally in the marital embrace. Every child of theirs, whether entering the world with a handicap or not, is an expression and fruit of themselves and their acceptance of each other. To reject their own progeny because of a disability is to reject each other on some level. To deny life to their own flesh and blood is also to reject an infinite gift from the Giver of gifts, and to arrogate to themselves a ruthless power over life. Meanwhile, the unconditional acceptance of a child as a gift of God flows from the true and unconditional acceptance of each other as husband and wife, even with all their spousal faults and defects.

Come for the noodles, stay for the cozy atmosphere

It used to be that Thai chicken soup was cold-season comfort food. Not so now. The Saeng Thai House lady shook her head with disapproval and said I did not want the Tom Kha Gai ($4.50), with its spicy coconut milk and tender chicken slices; I wanted the Tom Yum Koong (also $4.50) instead. Turns out, she was spot-on, and clear hot broth flavored with scallions and lemongrass did ease a sore throat.

Food can feel unapproachably exotic with names like Koong Rad Prik or Kai Pad Kra Pao – probably the American pie of Thai food, but a gamble for this Maine palate. I know I like Pad Thai, and I know I like Drunken Noodles. I’m adventurous, but when money is tight, I want to feel confident. Between familiar and new, familiar often wins.

Saeng Thai House is a neighborhood joint situated on a corner of outer Congress Street that’s easy to drive past. There is nothing trendy, fusion or hipster about it. But then, neither is it over-adorned with tacky paraphernalia in that “sketchy locale” designation that many people equate with authenticity. Saeng Thai House is straight-up comfort food served with a flair for detail in generous portions at a fair price.

With just six tables, the multi-toned wood-paneled space is tiny, but mismatched chairs, spotless windows and flute-like music make the dining room undeniably cozy.

The view from the large glass window is the concrete Maine Medical Center parking garage, but you do not go to Saeng Thai House for the view. You go for the food. You don’t broker deals at these tables; you pick up lunch for the office crew or grab a quick bite before a movie. Once you’ve tasted the perfection, you go back for more food that you can pack and take home.

“The Barry White of noodles,” my husband noted about the Pad Si Ew ($9.95) and its cousin Drunken Noodles ($9.95), but unlike the spicier Drunken Noodles (named not for the use of alcohol in the cooking process but for the need to quench your thirst while eating such a spicy, salty dish), the Pad Si Ew flat noodles are dressed in a mild soy-based sauce. I agreed with the Barry White assessment, “because they are so smooth.”

But let me back up. I tried to remember the last time I had eaten inside a Thai restaurant, and my memory came up blank. In my household, Thai food is enjoyed on the couch. Because of its tiny dining room, my guess is that takeout traffic provides brisk business for Saeng Thai House, and in that spirit, I divided the experience: Dining in and takeout.

First, the appetizers. Crispy Potatoes ($4.95) is a bit of a misnomer. Seven tempura-battered slices of sweet potato were hearty and soft inside the crispy casing – and with a side of plum sauce, completely accessible to even the most timid palate. Five Crab Langkoons ($4.95) tasted light, more baked than fried, and the lack of heavy oil flavor allowed for contrast between the crunchy wonton wrappers and little pockets of crabmeat-infused cream cheese.

The dumplings, however, win the appetizer prize. Saeng Thai Dumplings with chicken ($4.95) are the steamed variety, carefully constructed into six round packages with a tiny pea delicately topping each one, and the five Saeng Thai Dumplings with pork ($4.95) were fried to a perfect shade of nutmeg brown. Each appetizer was presented on a doily-covered plate with cilantro garnish and side sauces in ceramic cups with cheerful, painted roosters.

A couple learns to live simply, richly

To step into Shane Jewell and Emily Pruiksma’s home in Paradise Valley is to enter a world made by hand — their own hands.

Consider first where they live: Tucked behind Plum Forest Farm, past wooden gates, a chicken coop and several Scottish Highland cows, sits a pair of yurts, the couple’s home and music studio.  Inside, the hand-made feel begins with the warm patina of the hand-packed earthen cob floor on up to the hand-bent poles supporting the hand-sewn cover.

Then look around: There’s the folding rocking chair Pruiksma made. Jewell’s handcrafted 17-foot umiak. The beloved hurdy-gurdy he built. A sturdy worm bin Pruiksma crafted.

They don’t own a car. A wood-fired cookstove heats the hot water tank. They power their washing machine by pedaling a stationary bicycle. Energy for their electric chainsaw and rototiller comes from the sun. Their 1920s-era treadle sewing machine — gifted to them by an Islander — is a steady workhorse.

And these days, as they ready themselves for Vashon’s 29th annual Art Studio Tour this weekend, their handcrafted lives are on display more than ever. Hand-dipped beeswax candles — made in part from beeswax they collected on Vashon — line a table. Etched-glass candle holders and pendant necklaces line another. And Pruiksma’s speciality — delicately decorated Ukrainian eggs that have begun to draw repeat visitors to their small yurt — are being readied for the tour.

Saturday and Sunday, when visitors follow the narrow path to Jewell and Pruiksma’s yurt, they’ll likely find Pruiksma bent over a blown egg, a candle to warm her kitska — or hot wax pen — glowing softly next to her, as she plies her craft.

The two enjoy the studio tour, as it’s a chance, they note, to connect with friends and neighbors. But more often than not, it’s also an opportunity for them to talk about the lifestyle they’ve chosen and the philosophy that imbues it.

“We get people who come and see the large picture of it, and it kind of fires them up. And others look a little confused by it,” Pruiksma noted. “We end up talking a lot about our space as well as our art, because so much of what we do is part of a larger picture, … part of our effort to live in a way that’s a lot lower impact.”

If anyone on Vashon could be said to piece a life together, Shane Jewell and Emily Pruiksma, both 33, could. He teaches at the Homestead School; she works two days a week at Vashon Library. He offers music lessons to a dozen or two students in 10 different instruments. She builds and sells worm bins. Together, they grow much of their own food.

Fourteen years ago, Jewell and Pruiksma never imagined they’d be living life off the grid in a hand-crafted yurt on a small organic farm. But that was before they staffed the 600-member food co-op kitchen of Oberlin College in Ohio.

The couple attended Oberlin between 1997 and 2001, where they met in the co-op kitchen. Both natives of Puget Sound, Jewell and Pruiksma bonded over nostalgia for the misty rain of the Northwest and their mutual passion for music. Pruiksma, an environmental studies major, coordinated the co-op’s local food program, buying produce from the region’s Amish farmers. Jewell, a math and music major, was the pizza chef.

Before long, Jewell joined Pruiksma on her buying trips to the country, where they visited farms and marveled at the self-sufficient lifestyle of the Amish farmers.

“They were really inspiring,” said Pruiksma. “They lived close to the land in a tight cohesive community. … There was something very attractive about their hands-on life.”

Though Pruiksma and Jewell grew up as urban dwellers, in Seattle and Bellingham respectively, they began to ponder how they, too, could be in community while living rooted to the land.

“We were studying things in school that were so theoretical — we really wanted to learn these skills connected to place,” Jewell said. “At the same time we were studying all the problems in the world, the big name issues of climate change, breakdown of communities, destruction of farmland. … We decided we’d rather be part of the solution.”

Like so many times to come for this adventurous couple, one experience led to the next. Junior year, Jewell and Pruiksma traveled the world visiting five countries as part of a global ecology program. At a collective called Timbaktu, a volunteer organization working for sustainable development in a drought-prone area of India, Jewell and Pruiksma were again inspired by what they saw. The collective had re-instituted traditional methods to retain water, transforming what had become a desert into the forest it once was.

But it wasn’t just the ecological restoration that the young couple found inspirational; it was also the way the people in the collective went about their work, using music and dance to build a community. When Jewell and Pruiksma arrived, they recalled, some of the local musicians put on a traditional dance for them.

“Music seemed like such an essential part of what they were doing,” Jewell said. “And they weren’t only trying to rebuild a place, they were trying to rebuild a community that could take care of the place.”

Returning to the Northwest after college, the duo dreamed of living life like the communities they visited, but they didn’t know where or how. That’s when serendipity intervened. A call from Amy Bogaard of Hogsback Farm brought the couple to Vashon. Bogaard is a friend of Jewell’s aunt and uncle, Joanne Jewell and Rob Pederson, owners Plum Forest Farm; she contacted them in search of interns, learned of Jewell and Pruiksma and thought they’d be ideal.

Jewell and Pruiksma accepted, and the job turned out to be an opportunity for them to learn an essential foundation for their vision: how to grow food.

When the internship ended, the couple took what looked like a detour on their path to sustainable living, choosing to walk the Pacific Crest Trail from southern Oregon to Canada. Influenced by the self-sufficient farmers back in Ohio, they sewed much of their own gear, fashioning mosquito-proof clothing, a lightweight tent and backpack.

In the middle of the preparation, Pruiksma remembered watching Jewell walk across the meadow at Plum Forest Farm, where they were living, with a bundle of sticks. An enthusiastic Jewell told Pruiksma that he’d learned how to construct a yurt and thought they should build one.

With a gentle nod towards her partner, Pruiksma noted that Jewell knows how to dream and see what’s possible while she has the slow staying power, and that makes for a very good partnership. So before leaving for the Pacific Crest Trail, together they built a small yurt — once again, with no notion of where the project would lead.

Determined to do the Pacific Crest Trail mostly by their own human power, Jewell and Pruiksma set off from Vashon on their old middle school bicycles, riding down the coast for a month and ending up in Ashland, where they shipped the bikes home and began the 1,000-mile hike.

“It was this whole process of slowing down,” Pruiksma said. “Walking is a perfect time for dreaming. We didn’t know it then, but it was really a pivotal time.”

Upon their return, in 2005, they began construction of a larger yurt. The smaller one now serves as Jewell’s music and tutoring studio.

And in 2008, again in an effort to re-create the beauty and wisdom of that collective in India, Jewell and Pruiksma decided to form the Free Range Folk Choir, an a cappella group that performs world music in four- and five-part harmony. The economic downturn was beginning to hit Vashon, the couple recalled, and they saw the choir as a way to lift spirits and foster community, just as music had in India.

The constant gardeners

Our driver isn't at all happy about this. We are headed to Kibera, the notorious slum in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi, and Mary Njenga, our guide for the visit, has just suggested that maybe it would be a good idea for the men to stay behind in the car. People in Kibera can be pretty desperate, and you never know when one of them might pull a knife or a gun on you. "If it's just the women," Njenga says, "they'll know we've come to see the farmers."

We pull into an open area on the outskirts of the shantytown and, while stripping ourselves of watches and cell phones, make a plan to reconvene here in a couple of hours. (Antonio, the photographer, isn't about to hang back, but Peter, our driver, is visibly frantic about getting himself and his treasured Toyota out of here as fast as he can.) Njenga leads us down the wide dirt road that serves as the main drag of the "informal settlement," as these places are euphemistically known, and onto a narrow path that snakes among shacks fashioned out of mud, tin, and scraps of wood and cardboard. Children poke their heads out of makeshift doorways to call "How are you?" or "Mzungu!" (Swahili for white person), as we step gingerly over shallow gullies of sewage and under drying laundry and low-hanging electric wires. The place reeks of human feces.

Njenga knows this territory well. An environmental scientist and outspoken advocate for women (and with her shaved head and vow never to marry, the most outspoken Kenyan woman I've met), the 40-year-old has been coming here regularly for the past decade, helping the locals figure out sustainable strategies for feeding themselves and their families. Estimates vary as to how many people live in Kibera — some say half a million; others, a fraction of that — but either way, at just under one square mile, the slum is among the most densely populated places on earth. And the people here are hungry. In a recent study of Kibera's residents, more than 95 percent of those surveyed reported worrying at some point in the past 12 months that they would run out of food before finding money to buy more. (Nearly 20 percent said they'd gone a whole day and night without eating.) Unlike those who live in the country and have land for farming, city dwellers generally have to pay for their food, sometimes spending as much as 80 percent of their incomes to do so.

But as Njenga is happy to show me, they're finding new ways to cope. We meet up with Catherine Wangui, a friendly 25-year-old sporting a newsboy cap, who tells us how, about four years ago, representatives of the French nongovernmental organization Solidarités International, which does emergency relief and reconstruction work around the world, came here and distributed old flour sacks to some of the women. They explained how to fill them with soil and rocks before poking holes in the sides and pushing in seeds. Wangui, who grew up in Kibera, stops in front of three of these "vertical gardens" — four-foot-tall sacks plumped out with dirt and sprouting gangly tendrils of kale and spinach. Her 5-year-old daughter, Grace, who is playing nearby in a neat dress and braids, now gets fresh vegetables every day, says Wangui, who sells some of what she grows at a little wooden kiosk that she runs. Njenga also introduces us to people who, in spaces barely the size of closets, are raising chickens and profiting from them. Not that everyone is suddenly thriving; one young woman tells us how her garden sacks have enabled her to buy sugar and cooking oil, but hits me up nonetheless for some spare shillings — to the serious chagrin of Njenga.

Three years ago, for the first time in human history, the number of people living in cities worldwide outnumbered those living in rural areas, and the United Nations projects that by 2050, up to 65 percent of the global population will be urbanized. The rate of urban migration is particularly high in sub-Saharan Africa, where 15 million people abandon the countryside every year to move to the cities. Climate change will exacerbate the trend, as extreme events — like the drought currently devastating the Horn of Africa — become more frequent and more intense. Climate models predict that in the years to come, sub-Saharan Africa's arid and semiarid areas will increase by up to 350,000 square miles, an area equal to the size of the country of Nigeria. Longer, hotter dry periods and unpredictable rainfall already are making it harder for farmers to know when to sow and harvest their crops, and in this part of the world, where high-tech irrigation is all but unheard of, the challenge is especially acute. Less arable land — and fewer farmers — also means less food: the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has estimated that yields from rain-fed agriculture here could be cut in half by 2020, and the Washington-based International Food Policy Research Institute predicts that, as a result of climate change, output of staple crops like cassava and wheat could plunge by as much as 22 percent by 2050.

Hungry people and crowded cities, of course, make a combustible mix. Think of Paris in 1789, or St. Petersburg in 1917. As recently as 2008, the skyrocketing cost of staple foods, fueled in part by speculation in agricultural commodities markets, led to riots in no fewer than 36 countries, 21 of them in Africa.

Tour downtown's backyard chicken coops this Saturday

You’re in cluck! It’s once again time for the Food Conspiracy’s most popular event – the annual Chicken Coop Tour.

You’d be amazed how many people around town raise chickens in their backyards. Plenty of them are right in the Downtown neighborhoods.

Food Conspiracy’s self-guided tour is a great way to gather information before bringing home a brood. The tour takes place from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Dec. 3.

See a wide variety of creative coop styles and sizes. Talk to backyard chicken keepers. Learn about raising chicks.

Food Conspiracy launched Tucson’s first urban chicken coop tour in May 2009. The event is designed to introduce people to the joys (and challenges) of urban chicken keeping.

Food Conspiracy hopes it will inform people about chicken rearing and encourage folks to raise their own chickens in order to have a regular supply of local, fresh, humanely-raised chicken eggs.

Tickets are $5 and are available at the Food Conspiracy Co-op and will be available up until the day of the tour, while supplies last.

Virtually every major American city now boasts at least one annual chicken coop tour, including Raleigh, Atlanta and Spokane. Urban chicken coops have become trendy enough in Chicago to allow Jennifer Murtoff to make a living as an urban chicken consultant.

Once you buy ticket, you will be added to a list of tour participants. All participants will receive an email with a downloadable packet that includes a map to all participating coops and descriptions/pictures of each coop. For anyone without e-mail, a hard copy of the packet can be held for pickup at the co-op.

On the day of the tour, anyone with a ticket can visit any coops they choose to visit anytime between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m.

There is no set route. Participants can start at any coop. They do not need to visit every coop, and can spend as little or as much time at each coop as they want to.

At each participating coop there will be at least one person available throughout the tour to answer questions about their chickens and coops. Many of the coop owners also have other home sustainability features like cisterns, desert gardens, rainwater harvesting basins and solar ovens, and they’ll be happy to talk about them, too.

All money raised from ticket sales will be donated to the Watershed Management Group’s co-op to offer subsidies for installing backyard chicken coops.

Getting to know snow

Snow here in the High Country is a thing of beauty, covering the landscape in a peaceful white. It is as valuable now as gold was to the miners in this area and snow is actually a mineral! The definition of a mineral is: “A naturally occurring homogeneous solid, inorganically formed, with a definite chemical composition and an ordered atomic arrangement.”

Snow is beautiful as each snowflake is unique; a slice of a six-sided crystal and every snowflake, like a quartz crystal, is vibrant and vibrating. Snow crystals form in six-sided shapes because water molecules are made of one oxygen and two hydrogen molecules. As water begins to crystallize into ice, its hydrogen molecules hook together in ways that form six-sided crystals.

Snowflakes are agglomerates of many snow crystals. Most snowflakes are less than one-half inch across. Under certain conditions, usually requiring near-freezing temperatures, light winds and unstable, convective atmospheric conditions, much larger and irregular flakes can form. According to the Guinness Book of Records, the largest snowflake ever measured was 15 inches wide and 8 inches thick. This was observed and recorded in 1887 at Fort Keogh, Mont.

So what is snow? It is a form of precipitation within the Earth's atmosphere in the form of crystalline water ice, consisting of a multitude of snowflakes that fall from clouds. Since snow is composed of small ice particles, it is a granular material. It has an open and therefore soft structure, unless packed by external pressure.

Snowfall tends to form within regions of upward motion of air around a type of low-pressure system. In mountainous areas, heavy snow is possible where upslope flow is maximized within windward sides of the terrain at elevation if the temperature is low enough.

Why is snow white? Visible sunlight is white and most natural materials absorb some sunlight which gives them their color. Snow, however, reflects most of the sunlight. The complex structure of snow crystals results in countless tiny surfaces from which visible light is efficiently reflected. What little sunlight is absorbed by snow is absorbed uniformly over the wavelengths of visible light, thus giving snow its white appearance.

The fluffiest, lowest density snows typically fall with light winds and temperatures near 15 degrees Fahrenheit. At colder temperatures, the crystal structure and size change. At very cold temperatures near 0 degrees Fahrenheit, crystals tend to be smaller so that they pack more closely together as they accumulate, producing snow that may be denser.

Fresh snow absorbs sound, lowering ambient noise over a landscape because the trapped air between snowflakes absorbs vibration. Walking across snowfall produces a squeaking sound at low temperatures.

A layer of snow is made up of ice grains with air in between the ice grains. Because the snow layer is mostly empty air space, when you step on a layer of snow you compress that layer a little or a lot, depending on how old the snow is. As the snow compresses, the ice grains rub against each other. This creates friction or resistance; the colder the temperature, the greater the friction between the grains of ice. The sudden squishing of the snow at lower temperatures produces the creaking sound. At warmer temperatures closer to melting, this friction is reduced to the point where the sliding of the grains against each other produces little or no noise.

In a snow pack with a significant temperature gradient, large six-sided, cup shaped “depth hoar crystals” form a loosely packed layer at the bottom. Many small non-hibernating mammals depend upon these loose snow crystals for easy construction of tunnels throughout the subnivean environment. This “sugar snow” can often be the weak and unstable layer that causes avalanche hazards.

Snow cover can protect crops from extreme cold. A blanket of snow keeps the ground evenly frozen, preventing frost heaves and protecting the plants from upheaval.

Each snowflake forms around a particle of dust, which is a tiny grain of soil containing a minute amount of minerals. The minerals in snow are absorbed into the soil, and when the ground thaws, they are taken up by the plants. Minerals provide structure and allow communication in cells, plants and animals.

The water content of snow is variable. Ten inches of fresh snow can contain as little as 0.10 inches of water or as much as 5 inches, depending on crystal structure, wind speed and temperature.

One major benefit of a good snow cover is that snow is an excellent insulator of the soil. Without snow, very cold temperatures can freeze the soil deeper and deeper. Generally, temperatures underneath a layer of snow increase about 2 degrees F for each inch of accumulation. Because the soil also gives off some heat, the temperature at the soil surface can be much warmer than the air temperature.

Most skiers are familiar with the many terms referring to snow or snow conditions: boilerplate, breakable crust, powder, champagne powder, corduroy, corn, hard pack, packed powder, moguls, cornice, glacier, flurries and avalanche just to name a few. The most magical moments on the mountain are a sunny morning after a fresh snowfall when sun shining on a few stray flakes in the air look like floating diamonds or stardust against a brilliant blue sky.

Acquire A Property Cure For Hemorrhoids And Get Instantaneous Relief

Do you think you’re embarrassed to confess that you have hemorrhoids? Are you currently so embarrassed because of the condition you never even wish to focus on it together with your medical doctor? Properly, you are not alone. First off, a wonderful amount of persons undergo from your itching, bleeding and soreness of hemorroids. As countless as 50% of people have experienced hemoroids because of the time they flip fifty. Some studies advise that as much as 80% of individuals may have hemroids at some time in their lives. The really good news is the fact that when you are seeking a home get rid of for hemorrhoids, there are lots of extremely powerful methods you’ll be able to consider in your own home with out talking about your condition with virtually anyone else.

A household remedy for hemeroids can normally be incredibly productive simply mainly because hemroids are frequently virility ex caused by existing routines and way of living selections. Most hemorrhoid home cures entail applying new routines and creating changes inside your lifestyle. Indeed, it’s accurate, modifying your habits and life-style could be painful, but at a minimum it isn’t going to itch and burn off like hemorrhoids.

Hemorrhoids (your grandparents perhaps described as them piles) are swollen or inflamed veins during the location of one’s anus and rectum. hemorroids will be internal or exterior. You seldom experience inner hemoroids given that nerve endings inside your rectum never transmit ache signals. Perhaps you may never comprehend you have got internal hemroids until you observe small quantities of blood to the toilet tissue or while in the bathroom drinking water. External hemorrhoids are a second story entirely. They usually lead to burning and itching sensations and may be distressing sufficient to distract you throughout the day. You can expect to without doubt value the moment relief offered by an effective enlast dwelling treatment for hemorrhoids.

The number 1 contribute to of hemorrhoids is straining through a bowel motion. The best household cure for hemroids is anything it is easy to do to promote comfortable, painless bowel actions. For many folks, this may be accomplished with plenty of fluids and fiber. Drink loads of fluids during the day, preferable drinking water. Enhance your fiber intake by consuming loads of recent fruits, veggies and entire grains. Bowel movements aren’t meant to be prolonged and tough. In case you shorten time you spend sitting within the toilet and lessen the hassle it will require to finish your bowel movement, then your hemorroids will heal immediately and foreseeable future hemorrhoid pain will probably be unlikely.

One other useful dwelling overcome for hemorrhoids is definitely the software of petroleum jelly. Use a cotton swab or even the suggestion within your finger to apply petroleum jelly roughly your rectum and about a 50 % inch into your anus. This therapy may help make your bowel movements simplier and easier as you’re adjusting your fiber and fluid consumption. 1 home get rid of that routinely gets great marks would be the software of witch hazel on the affected parts. Witch hazel leads to the blood vessels to shrink and contract. It can be specially helpful iced.

There are many over-the-counter medicines that you simply can use like a family home treatment for hemoroids, but most are actually nothing at all in excess of neighborhood discomfort killers. If you ever opt to strive them out, stick to the lotions. Suppositories are healing the incorrect vicinity for exterior hemorrhoids. And none of these topical solutions are definitely handling the root induce of hemorroids.

If you’re seeking an natural your home remedy for hemeroids, many have documented accomplishment with stoneroot. Stoneroot can generally be observed in capsule sort. The software of aloe vera gel is another natural treatment solution that some have noticed soothing.

Conventional warm baths certainly are a highly-recommended your home overcome for hemroids. The heat water decreases the soreness of your hemorrhoids and then the increased circulation of blood delivers increased healing and curative powers. It might audio backwards, but the grow blood movement from the heat bath also aids shrink the affected veins.

Ensure which you cleanse by yourself gently after a bowel motion. Despite the fact that this is not technically a property get rid of for hemorroids, it will eventually assistance ease the soreness and irritation. Use bathroom paper with out perfumes or dyes, and moisten it with some water in advance of by using. If you ever can find bathroom paper that comprises supplemental moisturizers and lotions, then acquire it and utilize it.

Hemorrhoids certainly are a popular, but embarrassing ailment. You could be reluctant to provestra discuss hemorroids along with your doctor. A your home get rid of for hemeroids can show you how to uncover relief with no will need to endure an embarrassing consultation and examination.

Backyard Hens Are ‘Part Of The Family’

Sam and Dorothy Abram are members of a select group. The Bowden Street residents are among the seven families in Barrington where chickens are not relegated to the roaster pan or barbecue spit.

The Abrams took advantage of the town council’s decision earlier this year that allows residents to keep up to six hens in their backyards.

Actually, Mr. Abram was one of the key advocates for the new law. He worked hard to compile a packet for the council showing the benefits of backyard hens, built a tally of the cities and towns that had already passed laws allowing chickens, and recruited dozens of residents to sign a petition supporting the initiative.

Mr. and Mrs. Abram, whose children are now in college, have been celebrating the council’s pro-chicken vote for months. Mr. Abram built a green and white-trimmed hen house in the backyard that’s surrounded by a tall fence. Their “girls” live inside the enclosure.

“They’re really hilarious,” Mrs. Abram said. “The girls all get along.”

The Rhode Island Reds vary slightly — one has a lighter shade of auburn feathers, while another has longer tail feathers — but appear to mix comfortably with each other and the rest of the Abram family. They’re not intimidated by the two dogs, Beau and Bella, or the cats, Shiri and Ella.

“They are part of the family,” said Mr. Abram. “You would become very sorry if you lose one.”

Mr. Abram, who hails originally from Greece, said one of the hens escaped from the coop earlier this year. He said he mistakenly tried to catch the chicken, but realized quickly that there are few things more difficult that tracking down a loose chicken.

He stopped chasing the hen and watched in surprise as she returned to the coop all by herself. He said she wanted to be with the other hens.

The Abrams said there are numerous benefits to keeping backyard chickens — that was a message he preached time and again while petitioning the council to pass an ordinance allowing the hens. He said the home-grown eggs are more nutritious than store-bought eggs (see associated story), they taste better and, best of all, they are free.

He said the hens are also the world’s greatest composters. They eat all sorts of food scraps and produce a potent fertilizer for the Abrams’ garden.

Mrs. Abram said her yard has actually become a self-sustaining experiment. She said the hens churn out fertilizer that helps the Abrams’ garden yield a healthy crop of vegetables each year. Meanwhile, some of the vegetable scraps are eventually fed to the chickens, who then continue to create more fertilizer.

“They eat everything,” she said. “It makes a circle. It all ties in.”

Mr. Abram said the chickens have also led him to a popular standing among the neighbors. He said the hens lay so many eggs that he has more than enough to share with the folks next door and across the street.

“You give eggs to the boss and you’ll get a promotion,” said Mr. Abram with a smile.

The Abrams said they have not experienced any problems with predators in the area; despite having seen a fox in their backyard and heard stories of coyotes nearby, the Abrams “girls” have remained undisturbed during their days in Barrington. Mr. Abram also credits a well-constructed enclosure that sports a mesh net roof.

“They’re well-protected,” he said.

Mr. and Mrs. Abram said there was not consensus support for the new ordinance, but praised the hard work of Barrington Town Council member Kate Weymouth.

“She was great,” said Mrs. Abram. “Very helpful.”

Church loses handmade chicken to fowl play

As capers go, the curious case of a church's missing plywood chickens is neither a stone-cold whodunit nor is it the crime of the century.

They were separate acts committed years apart. They were straight snatch and grab jobs, in all likelihood impromptu acts of tomfoolery perpetrated by college kids with a lot of time on their hands, a few frosty adult beverages in their bellies and ample display space in a dorm room or frat house.

They didn't rate calls to police and have generated a few jokes by the good-natured victims at Burkhead United Methodist Church, who've seen not one, but two of their promotional chickens fly the coop in the past few autumns.

Still, no matter how paltry (poultry?) the pilfering may be, it's causing some measure of heartburn and has created unnecessary hurdles for an annual fundraiser intended to help local charities.

Jerry Carter, a loyal parishioner who really took a shine to those chickens and the barbecue supper they were intended to promote, has the background.

A few years ago, somebody got the bright idea that the church would do more business with something that would grab attention along busy Silas Creek Parkway, he said.

A couple or three parishioners with creative skills (and an awesome set of tools) built a large bright yellow and red chicken from a sheet of plywood. They set it out, and though there's no spreadsheet to back it, anecdotally the chickens served their purpose by driving traffic to the church. (Why did the motorist cross the road? To get to the barbecue chicken.) "Basically they were the chicken version of Ronald McDonald," said Carter.

Aaron Shough, a woodworker who cut out the bird from a drawing made by another parishioner, threw out the first wisecrack when asked about that first chicken.

"It was a nice rooster," he said. "I guess it took wing and flew away."

That chicken was stolen, though, and the parishioners built another, smaller bird. When that one was judged to be too (chicken) little, they built a third, a 6-footer, that they still have, bringing the population of the flock up to two.

In a theft similar to the first, the smaller one was removed from the church grounds in late October, a week or so before this year's sale.

Stealing plywood chickens is not an earth-shaking event. Nobody got killed, and no one was injured. But small things do matter.

"I just assumed it was some kind of a fraternity prank or something," said Thornie Worley, a parishioner with an art studio who designed the chickens and helped paint them. "It does get a little tiresome to think about having to redo those things.

"There are so many drastic problems in the world, and this is straight out of the Andy Griffith Show. We do have a sense of humor, but it took a long time to make those things."

A Sunday school class that wanted to serve a larger purpose donated their time to do something to better their community and got fleeced. Church members raise money for small, very local charities such as food pantries, the kinds of places that don't have big PR machines or enormous budgets.

That matters, and that's why what was likely a spur-of-the-moment prank rankles.

"It bothers me that anyone would steal, and it's magnified by why anyone would steal from a church," Shough said. "It serves no purpose."

Tour highlights Savannah's urban chicks

As an old farm boy from Wisconsin, Jake Kawatski is matter of fact about the four hens in his urban backyard in the West Victory area of Savannah.

“I grew up having chickens,” he said.

He spouts tips as he shows off his two “Easter egg” Araucanas and two white leghorns scratching around their enclosure:

Put chicken manure back into your garden for fertilizer.

Stick to one breed so they don’t fight.

Pick up crushed shells from Tybee for a cheap way to aid digestion and egg production.

Such advice and more will be coming at visitors Sunday on the third annual Tour de Coop, a guided tour of local chicken coops sponsored by the nonprofit Savannah Urban Garden Alliance.

The tour is the brainchild of Kelly Lockamy, SUGA’s founder. It meshes well with her vision of providing “local, healthy food one garden at a time.”

“It promotes the idea of being more self-sufficient in feeding yourself,” she said. “It’s along the lines of a backyard garden but also having protein.”

Plus, the tour is a chance for chicken enthusiasts to get together.

There are plenty of such fowl friends in Savannah. A Facebook page devoted to Savannah Backyard Chickens boasts 161 members. The chickens’ popularity is part of the reason a county task force is working to re-write and clarify ordinances about keeping livestock.

Shannon Willhite, whose apple-green coop is also on the tour, is exhibit A of the group’s enthusiasm.

The Ardsley Park resident got her chickens in July. When her favorite hen, Cora, began crowing on Monday, he was renamed Carl and quickly relocated. Now she’s down to four hens who eat their oyster shells from a tea cup, dine in their own screened porch and feather their nests in what she calls the “Chick Inn.”

“I should get an egg any minute now,” she said. “I’m beyond excited.”

Kai hansen - China Bare Projector Lamps - China Projector Lens

Your Boyfriend'S music line of business started in 1978 the wedding ring termed Gentry, combined Club Deliverer's corp-head honcho as well as , manufacturer Piet Sielck. Near 1983 your puppy but Michael Jordan Weikath launched Helloween, when your guy was regarded as guitarist to vocalist suitable up until Eliza Kiske ate the mic the actual photos Keeper through the Seven House Keys Some 1 in addition , Keeper in Seven Tips Piece 2. Hansen turned this rock band because of the wide-ranging vacationing across 1988-89 combined with happened to his or her own effectiveness stainlesss steel group of musicians Gamma Ray. Hansen furthermore , joined In Terms Of Iron Deliverer for guitarist throughout 1997, still , cigarette smoking eventually to target that makes an attempt when Gamma Beam. As well as soon solid really smart profession by Gamma Ray, discharging a couple of collections in addition to the betting had sold out concerts organized tours worldwide.

Kai participated in great number of towards numerous other work. Or Even She seemed the result invitees vocalist Shutter Guardian's collections In order to the Shade then Online About Twilight Domain. Not to mention HammerFall which he saved an appliance cover kind about Helloween's I'D Like To See Inside. Kai literally component pertaining to Regrin a new dwarf back in Avantasia rock n roll firefox times Tobias Sammet.

Throughout The 2005, he still toured on the younger Languages Like German energy levels/viking stainless steel wedding ring Stormwarrior caused by the puppy's city from Hamburg seeing as direct performer, practicing piece hailing from his typical Helloween come out recording "Wall Structure of all Jericho" - the favourite recording to utmost change at Stormwarrior.[citation you need] "Stormwarrior featuring Kai Hansen" made a comeback inside of 2007 in order to along at the A Miracle Circular Image Pageant by using Rubbish Arolsen from one particular Wacken Obtainable Air Festival. China Bare Projector Lamps

At The Time Of an individual's first extended time Hansen's music and singing way seemed to be to harking back to a good number of end alloy vocalists. Rrnstead of running a soft and thus wipe out manner (for instance like her voter Kiske) Hansen sang having a raspy sound, interluded using taller-frequency shouts with respect to breathtaking have an effect on. Outset Of The beyond 1995 onward Hansen does have assigned their vocals to find their updated ring Gamma Beam. Shut To then, Kai's expressive expressive style become lots more melodic then some easier, lots more at the orthodox whelm flat iron are aware of, but remain preserving some sort of minimal nasal ambience in addition rasp of or perhaps in plenty of time quite a few years.

For up to 20 life, Kai supplies dabbled in ESP Guitars. The Doctor began with these while in a days that has Helloween right after discovering recommendations of a ESP produced by painters such as George Lynch but also Kirk Hammett relating to Metallica. Prior To Helloween, he had possessed some sort of along with white Ibanez martin guitar, along L'Ensemble Des Henry, next saved up the particular Marshall guitar amp merely supplying fews flyers. Despite fashionable opinion[where?], he doesn't be Knutson Guitars without comes with. The Puppy'S core ESPs certainly are a red ESP Shopp organ in order to Fitzgibbons's Randy Rhoads printer as two professionally V styles in line with the classic Gibson Soaring V build. Inside the premature '90s, Hansen achieved old Stratocaster handsets.

Artist Garry Harper bought a 1920s sandstone terrace

IT WAS the light that attracted artist Garry Harper to his current home. Light, and the fact that he could put his own stamp on the property.

The 1920s sandstone terrace house is in Glasgow’s leafy Muirend, and while it had been a well-loved family home, when Garry bought it six years ago it needed a makeover.

The three-bedroom house now reflects Garry’s artistic eye for detail – from the sanded original floorboards and hand-painted staircase to a reproduction fireplace in the living room, which was commissioned to tie in with the age of the property. The tone of paint used on each wall showcases Garry’s artwork to full effect, while he and his partner completely reworked the rear of the house to create an open-plan dining kitchen, and also added a walk-in larder and a downstairs toilet.

The hallway lost fuchsia pink walls and carpet, and found a fresh neutral palette, while the formerly dark staircase has been painted white. Upstairs, a 1960s lime green bathroom was ripped out and replaced by a modern white suite, underfloor heating, black slate floor tiles, textured pewter-coloured wall tiles and a contemporary rain shower. Most walls and ceilings in the house were replastered and the attic room was insulated for use as a studio.

When I visited Garry, he was in the throes of creating work to show at this month’s Edinburgh Art Fair. A Glasgow School of Art graduate, he was a graphic artist for STV for 20 years before taking the leap to paint full-time three years ago. “It was a great buzz working at STV, but I always painted,” says Garry. “The longing to paint full-time grew and grew.

“I love the reaction I get from some people when they see my work. I am fuelled by drawing and painting people, and always have been. Even at school, teachers would give me photographs of their children to paint and I would earn pocket money that way.”

Moving to this house gave Garry the opportunity to create a sizeable studio as well as his own framing workshop. “The minute I saw the attic room, I knew it would be a perfect studio space for me,” he says. “We raised the roof beams by a foot to give more head height and got them planed to give them life again. I also converted part of the basement so that I can do my own framing. Friends and family helped us dig the basement out, again to give greater head height.”

Nevertheless, it was on the main living rooms that Garry initially had to focus. As the original kitchen was small, a wall between it and the dining room was knocked down to make it one large open space that spans the width of the house. A new kitchen was installed, teaming white gloss units from Wickes with a worktop and double Belfast sink from Ikea. The wooden floors were sanded and relaid. “I stayed at my grandfather’s house for a while, which allowed us to come here and create the mess that we needed to, which was a lot when bringing down a wall and lifting floors,” recalls Garry. “We chose a glass splashback for the kitchen, but I want it a bit bluer so plan to replace it with one with more of an aqua tone through it.”

A reclaimed church pew borders a long wooden Habitat dining table, which has been the scene of many dinner parties. “Last Christmas we had 25 people for dinner – we did it in two sittings,” laughs Garry. “I have four sisters, so they all pile in with the kids. It is a great kitchen for entertaining, and people always mention the light in here, which I love. If I was ever to build a modern house, it would be glass-fronted with lots of natural daylight.”

The living room is also a lovely light-filled space, with plenty of wall for Garry’s art, as well as the opportunity to display decorative pieces he picks up on his travels. However, when he bought the house, the room housed an old stone fireplace that ran along the length of the main wall, with Artex on the walls and ceiling. “We took the fireplace out the day we came here,” Garry recalls.

“I had noticed through a neighbour’s window that they had an original fireplace, so they allowed me to take pictures of it and I got my joiner friend to make this fireplace in the same style for me. We put in a cast-iron inset, which I bought on eBay for 10. We had to get the walls and ceilings plastered too.

“I love finding old things and giving them a home, like old frames or pieces of driftwood. I love things that have texture, whether it be rust or something decaying. Picasso used to say if you are ever stuck, sit yourself down in front of an old wall and a world will be revealed to you. It’s a case of looking closer at things.”

Iran to Provide Pakistani Province with Assistance in Various Grounds

Iran assured Khyber Pukhtunkhwa of assistance in development of textiles industry, thermal plants, hydro power projects, carpet industry and stone refining technology.

Briefing reporters about the recent five-day visit of Khyber Pukhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ameer Haider Hoti to Iran's Fars and Isfahan provinces, the provincial minister for information and transport Mian Iftikhar Hussain said that Khyber Pukhtunkhwa government has signed a memorandum of understanding under which the Iranian province of Fars will help Khyber Pukhtunkhwa province in power generation.

"On the proposal of chief minister Amir Haider Khan Hoti, the Fars government has agreed to form a joint working group with our government to formulate an action plan for bilateral cooperation on power generation. The group will consist of government officials and representatives of chambers of commerce and industry from the two sides," the minister said. Mr. Iftikhar said during the visit, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Isfahan governments signed a memorandum of understanding for bilateral cooperation in different fields, especially power generation, mineral exploration and training of technical and agriculture workforce.

 He said the two governments also agreed to cooperate with each other in organizing industrial and trade exhibitions to increase investment. "After the agreement, we'll be able to get support in textiles, food, manufacturing of wooden items, carpets, chemical, petrochemical, tiles, food processing, and steel rolling. Similarly, training workshops will be held for manpower involved in the making of PVC/HTP pipes used for gas supply," he said.

The minister said the two governments would share information on marble and granite exploration, and the relevant machinery and technology with each other through training courses, adding that exchange of experts from private sector would also be encouraged. Mr. Iftikhar said training courses would be arranged for development of agriculture and livestock, while visits of the students of agriculture universities would also be planned in addition to bilateral cooperation in farm management, agro-engineering and land protection. "This will help increase agriculture production and overcome problems," he said. The minister said visits of cultural groups, artists and writers would be arranged for promotion of media, culture, art, literature, training exhibitions, and traditional festivals, while development of cultural heritage and historical assets and the making of feature films on lives of important personalities of the two provinces had also been planned.

He said he would soon lead a delegation consisting of provincial secretaries of industries, sports and culture, the current and former president chamber of commerce and industry, to Iran to discuss MoU implementation. Hussain appreciated Iran's speedy economic growth and industrial development and said Pakistan could also achieve it but that needed commitment on the part of the rulers.