#technically may is still spring... however the nature of spring as a transitional period between winter and summer makes it ambiguous

[fishyfishyfishtimes]

I love you spring!

I love you, feeling the warmth of the sun on my skin for the first time in many months. I love you, cloudy skies with bright blue peeking through. I love you, dry roads. I love you, greenfinch and chaffinch songs I haven't heard since summer. I love you, meltwater flowing down the road forming intricate patterns. I love you, sugary doughnuts and churros. I love you, stepping on the ice crusts on the sides of the road and hearing the satisfying crunch. I love you, airplane contrails through the empty blue sky. I love you, overflowing streams full of life and vigour. I love you, cycling season! I love you, homemade sima. I love you, redwings and black-headed gulls. I love you, waking up early in the morning to find my room bathed in yellow light. I love you, catkins in the willows. I love you, crunchy gravel under my shoes. I love you, afternoon walks with the family while the sky is light and the grass is ever so slightly greener. I love you, clean streets free from gravel. I love you, pheasant cocks looking for new ground. I love you, sunsets stretching out late into the afternoon, then to the early evening, then to the late evening. I love you, light drizzles and heavy rains. I love you, realising that the weather is warm enough so I can grab my leather jacket and leave home in a t-shirt for the first time in months. I love you, frogspawn in the stream and ditches. I love you, swans and geese and cranes flying overhead. I love you, coy snowflakes making way to the ground as a last goodbye from the months gone by. I love you, ever-increasing outdoor parties, treasure hunts, and formal occasions. I love you, watching as the lake ice slowly thins out, the shore ice melting first, open water slowly taking area from the ice slushy before it’s all there is. I love you, awaking butterflies and spiders and neuropterans and bumblebees and nematocerans and beetles. I love you, explosion of green plants and new leaves in the trees the moment the last snow melts. I love you, pink and orange tulips and purple crocuses in the garden. I love you even more, dandelions!! I love you, nightingale song in the night. I love you, picnics with friends, on the hill where the pine trees' shadows and sunlight dance around through the afternoon or the grassy field, and it's so nice and warm, and you can just lay down on the blanket and close your eyes and listen.

I never did appreciate you enough. But now I hopefully do! I love you, spring!

I love you winter!

I love you, first snowfall of the season. I love you, powdery snow and frozen grass in the mornings. I love you, pink and purple sunsets. I love you, heavy snowfall. I love you, waking up in the morning to find a thick blanket of untouched white snow. I love you, skiing trips through the woods. I love you, hot berry juice. I love you, making running steps through the untouched snow to see how far you can leap. I love you, frost and snow in the tree branches making everything look glistening and perfect. I love you, grey cloudy days when everything looks monochrome except for the red trunks of the pines. I love you, downhill skiing. I love you, trying out new routes and tricks while downhill skiing and getting out of my comfort zone! I love you, hot chocolate and whipped cream. I love you, great tits and magpies flying about looking for food. I love you, clear days when the sky is blue and you remember how beautiful it really is. I love you, heavy snowfall illuminated by the street lamps at night. I love you, walking on the sea ice and lake ice and accessing places I never could before. I love you, glögi. I love you, snowflakes and inspecting your patterns. I love you, steaming hot saunas. I love you, ice swimming, even though you also frighten me! I love you, fairy lights in the trees. I love you, wind-carved waves and shapes in the snow. I love you, blue hour. I love you, warm blankets. I love you, tiny black streams still staying unfrozen and moving. I love you, icicles and other beautiful ice formations. I love you, crown snow-load and thick snow covering the trees. I love you, northern lights. I love you, fireplaces. I love you, waking up in the middle of the night in your warm bed, finding the house completely quiet as you walk through the hall, and upon looking out the window, all you can see is the calm snow slowly making its way to the ground, illuminated by the colourful fairy lights and the orange street lights. And you get this magical feeling inside of you, that you’re so warm, and calm, and perfectly safe and sound in this very moment. And you feel like you could stand there forever and just… take it all in.

I love you winter!

[evgeniamedvedeva4u]

Exclusive: Evgenia Medvedeva Reflects on Difficult Transition Season, Newfound Love for Canada

TORONTO, Canada — It’s been quite a year for Russia’s Evgenia Medvedeva.

Around this time last year, the two-time World champion and two-time Olympic silver medallist sent shockwaves around the skating world when news broke that she was leaving her longtime Russian coach, Eteri Tutberidze, to train under Brian Orser and Tracy Wilson at the Toronto Cricket and Skating Club.

In a difficult transition season that saw her uproot everything in order to move across the world with her mother, Zhanna, the Russian teenager certainly hasn’t had it easy. Speaking in a narrow hallway at the Scotiabank Arenaahead of this year’s Stars on Ice show in Toronto, a relaxed Medvedeva reflected on her first season with her new coaching team, her newfound love for Canada — which she considers solely her new “work” home — and her first time touring in North America.

As anyone in figure skating will tell you, a lot can change in a few years. After winning back-to-back World titles in 2016 and 2017, Medvedeva was easily considered the most dominant force in ladies’ figure skating and seemed primed for Olympic glory. However, the unpredictability of injuries and the unexpected emergence of a compatriot three years her junior (Alina Zagitova) quickly saw that title slip from her grasp.

Determined to prolong her competitive career for as long as she could, Medvedeva made the decision to switch to Orser a couple of months after the Olympics, and she struggled in large part to recapture the same magic of her first two senior seasons. Through all her struggles, the 19-year-old admits that she was able to discover a lot of things about herself, thanks in part to her strong support system.

“I can say that I’m a really, really strong person,” she said with a big smile. “Last season, last year, I’ve just been through a lot of things — not always good things — through some bad things, but yeah… Now I’m here and things are going as it’s going and everything is fine.”

For a period of time, that did not seem to always be the case in a roller-coaster first season with Orser and Wilson. After winning a silver medal at the Autumn Classic International, the Russian managed to produce an incredible free skate to recover from a disastrous short program to place third at her first Grand Prix event, the Skate Canada International. With a shot at qualifying for the Grand Prix Final at her next event in Grenoble, France, Medvedeva barely missed the podium and, with it, her chance to qualify for the prestigious six-skater event.

A month later, Medvedeva returned to Russia to skate in her first competition on home ice since switching training bases at the incredibly competitive Russian Figure Skating Championships. With Orser by her side, the Russian didn’t know what to expect. When she made the unexpected switch last spring, she had inadvertently ended an unspoken trend that had become second nature for most of her compatriots: successful Russian skaters always stay in Russia. By becoming the sport’s first prominent Russian to leave the country to train with a non-Russian coach, Medvedeva did not know what sort of reception would await her in her unofficial homecoming. The result was better than anything she (or Orser) could have ever imagined.

Despite another disappointing short program that saw her sitting in 14th place going into the free skate, Medvedeva still received a hero’s welcome after both programs, which helped to finally put her at ease over a decision that she had mulled over for more than six months. With a 7th-place finish at this year’s Nationals, the 19-year-old left her homeland with a greater sense of purpose.

“That was really unexpected for me and so unexpected for all our team, ’cause Brian was, like, shocked a little bit and he would say that he never saw something like this in his life — that support, that energy that the crowd gave us at Nationals,” she said, beaming. “It’s really amazing and [at] Nationals, I started to feel confident in myself and started to understand that the real crowd really loves me.”

Due to her placement at Nationals, Medvedeva was not immediately selected by the Russian Figure Skating Federation to compete in the World Championships, but after winning the Cup of Russia, she became one of the three Russian women sent to compete this past March in Saitama, Japan. Despite sustaining an injury to her thigh, the two-time former champion managed to win the bronze, earning new personal bests in both the short and free programs in the process.

A couple of months later, Medvedeva says she feels much better now and just needs some time and practice to recover all of her triple jumps. While she struggled to find the words to describe the kind of technical strides that she has been making in the last 12 months with Orser and Wilson, the former World champion admits that she does feel like a completely different skater now than when she dominated the sport. “My body’s changed and the whole feeling of figure skating has changed for me in a good side,” she remarked.

“And I continue to improve my feeling of competitions ’cause the old ways that I went to competitions before, it doesn’t work at all anymore, so I have to find new ways to prepare myself mentally and physically ’cause I’ve got a totally different body, a different mind and sometimes I’m trying to go back to my old ways but it doesn’t work!” she said, laughing.

“So, yeah, I will continue to find it and I know Brian and Tracy will work [with] me and help me with it.”

For someone who has already tasted success at such an early age, it goes without saying that this was the most difficult season of Medvedeva’s career. Once considered the heavy favourite at every event that she entered, the Russian now finds herself returning to the same competitions as a sort of dark horse, which she says is something that she is slowly learning to take in stride, along with the little things that she continues to learn about herself every day.

“I’m proud of that I’m not gave up and I’ve been in situations where I’ve really thought to give up, but I’m lucky that now I’ve got a lot of people around of me who always support me and will support me in all decisions that I will do,” she said, when asked about what she is most proud of looking back on her difficult season. “There’s all my friends, all my coaches — Brian, Tracy especially — [and] my mom, who is living with me here and put everything into my figure skating. That’s amazing to have a lot of many people like this because not everyone has that person [or support system].”

With the help of this crucial support system, as well as an incredibly diverse group of training mates at the Toronto Cricket and Skating Club, Medvedeva admits that she has gradually become more comfortable with the idea of living in Canada. As an avid coffee drinker, she raved about the simplicity of Tim Hortons. While travelling from Ottawa to Laval for this year’s tour, she even ate her first Beavertail, a classic Canadian fried dough pastry that is shaped like a beaver’s tail. (“[The] guys just bought a box of Beavertails and they said, ’Ah, she’s Russian! She never tried it!’”)

While she has learned to appreciate some aspects of the Western world, Medvedeva has stated repeatedly in past interviews that she has no intention of representing any country other than her motherland and in many ways, she still considers herself to be completely Russian.

“I can feel a difference [between Canada and Russia] but in this difference, I’m trying to stay myself, I’m trying to stay Russian and yeah, I feel like work home here. I don’t feel like home home and yeah, I miss my country, I miss my language sometimes. I changed the language, even my main language that I’m talking every day.”

In a year of firsts for the 19-year-old, Medvedeva’s competitive career is not the only thing that has seen a refreshing change of pace. For the first time in between seasons, the Russian has decided to join the famous Stars on Ice tour in Canada, a 12-city tour that will finish in Vancouver on May 16. Asked about what the experience has been like before her fourth show in Toronto, a very exuberant Medvedeva exclaimed, “This is a lot of fun!”

“I was a little bit worried in the first few days ’cause I had to learn a lot — a lot of steps, a lot of material — and I just can’t see how [other] guys are learning so fast. I was really worried ’cause I’ve always been so slow in remembering something, but in the last day, everything’s fine and I just relaxed a little bit. We’re just having fun, especially the ’90s number — that’s so much fun and we can feel like the crowd loves it.”

While skating show programs has been a nice change of pace for the two-time World champion, one would be remiss to think that she has not been conscientiously using the extra ice time between shows to perfect her jumps, particularly her triple salchow, which appears multiple times throughout the show.

Going forward, as someone who has become more known for her world-class artistry, Medvedeva is well aware of the current state of figure skating across all four disciplines, whose new scoring system has been designed to benefit those who attempt more difficult elements. It is a system that the Russian unfortunately knows all too well — after all, she was only 1.31 points away from capturing the gold last year in PyeongChang.

With her sights already set on going one better at the next Olympics in Beijing, Medvedeva has set a very ambitious goal for herself — one that she knows could take years to properly develop, let alone put to use in competition. “Quad salchow is my main goal for me for the coming season and I would like to land it clean — maybe step-out, maybe three turns, but somehow land it with no under-rotations,” she revealed.

“Now you can see how ladies start to do everything like this (jumping quads) and keep ladies’ figure skating [at a high level] and it’s really amazing. Not everyone [can do it], of course, but you’ll see sometimes a quad sal even looking like a trick. But there’s a lot of girls who still look like [young] girls and doing quads, and it’s really amazing and it’s our future of figure skating and this is life. Life is always improving in whole things and figure skating is improving too.”

“I’m ready to improve myself and I’m ready [and know] that learning quads can take a few years — same as triples. I didn’t learn all the triples or even one triple, like a triple flip, in one year — I didn’t. It was three years.”

As she attempts to develop one of the most difficult jumps in all of ladies’ figure skating, Medvedeva will also be looking to add new combinations to her repertoire next season, explaining that the process actually fascinates her and continuously pushes her creatively as a skater. “I can do a few combinations with the loop too, like not only salchow loop, but it’s much harder for me so I have to work on it to make it easy,” she said, referring to the new 3S-3Lo combination that she added midway through this season.

With the most difficult part of her transition now behind her, the 19-year-old has already announced on Instagram that she will skate her new short program to Matt Bellamy’s “Exogenesis: Symphony, Part 3” and her free program to music from Memoirs of a Geisha, a decision that she made entirely herself long before this year’s World Championships.

In terms of goals for the upcoming season, the 19-year-old kept things short and sweet but in a way that perfectly encapsulated the maturity that she has shown in the last 12 months: “I just want to find the way how to prepare myself and to learn as much as I can.”

With a strong support system in tow and the lessons of a roller-coaster transition season now under her belt, Medvedeva will be in for a real battle next season with the emergence of a very talented group of young skaters, but like a phoenix rising from her own ashes, there is now no question that she will emerge stronger than ever, poised to reclaim her throne atop the world of ladies’ figure skating.

Author: Max Gao

Source: https://medium.com/@MaxJGao/exclusive-evgenia-medvedeva-reflects-on-difficult-transition-season-newfound-love-for-canada-100f385316a4?_referrer=twitter

[slothcritic]

Dragon Ball Z Abridged - Episode 4 Review

Hit-or-miss introduction makes way for some golden moments.

The opening skit for Snakeway to Heaven has a satisfactory comedic weight to it, though upon re-watching it for this review, I noticed an editing mistake I had never noticed before, despite becoming a fan of the series in 2012. When Goku falls off Snake Way, the scene actually freezes on that frame. It wouldn't be noticeable if the truck itself hadn't frozen as well. Small gripe but I thought it was an interesting observation to share.

[Title Sequence]

Goku's scream carries over into the first few seconds of the intro and resumes near the last few seconds, which I found to be a well played editing decision.

Once Goku has stopped falling, we're treated to an amusing take on the filler ogres from hell. The blue one is given the Swedish Hansel-und-Gretel accent while the red one speaks like a German or Austrian. And puritan as ever, KaiserNeko made sure to use the original, unedited footage. It would’ve been funny to see them maybe have a scene or two with the ogres wearing their different HFIL shirts, or maybe a bit more fun poked at the Ocean Dub, but no such luck in this scene.

TFS doesn't spend too much time on this scene at all, really. It’s filler, and so nothing here really matters to the story aside from laugh-factor. The comedic nature of this first scene is that it’s rushed. Goku swindles the two ogres out of a fight, like he’s trying to swindle the show into skipping this filler arc, as he immediately guns it for the exit... and then stops?

It would've been a much more emphatic punchline if the scene had changed right here. Instead we have an awkward stop-and-go motion to the scene they're trying to orchestrate and it feels stilted. A lot of this scene after Goku finds the exit I find to be entirely unneeded. Raditz has already been established as being in Other World so the callback here wasn't necessary, the special King Yemma fruit could be argued for having no plot relevance as it never existed in the manga, and we didn't really need that post-Goku scene to get the hint that these ogres were very chummy with each other when it came to subjects like oil wrestling and speedos.

But then, where would they put that great joke about the Blood Fountain? And the small dialogue about Dabura I did find risible as a fan of the original DBZ, despite my usual curmudgeonly take on yet-to-be-established jokes. Like many things, this does get much better as the series continues, eventually turning some moments of sequence-breaking into moments of well-crafted foreshadowing. This is just a funny pointless joke, and a nod to fans of DBZ, that has no impact on the actual story of DBZA itself.

Again, this isn't too much of a big deal. Just a whole work-with-what-you've-got bizarre scenario likely due to bizarre source material. Yet this was all deemed funny enough to edit, voice and keep in the episode instead of trimming it out like the other 90% of this mini-arc. I'm not convinced the presentation was done to par, but I do feel that the inclusion of "Goku in Hell" is necessary for the sake of tying loose ends together. Also, it would've been a far more egregious decision to have that cold open end in a do-nothing cliff hanger. So, a goofy scene and perhaps iffy writing, but not terrible.

We then return to the person who has so far been the breadwinner of the series, and Piccolo hasn't let up on either the humor or Gohan. Kind of a contrast to how somber he is in the show. It's not whack-a-doodle humor, it's exaggerated frustration and exasperation, which lands almost dead-center on my humor nexus.

But even better than Piccolo has to be this next scene - Debatably the first "meme" or seriously quotable moment in the show's history: Popo's Pecking Order.

On paper this doesn't look like it'd be necessarily funny, but when you attach to it a very do-nothing character like Mr Popo and turn him into a sadistic dictator, combined with the special emphasis and excellent delivery of the line, it's simply outstanding, and raises the bar for this entire episode.

Now I've said before that the source material of Z shouldn't factor into the end product that is DBZA. If I were to show this episode to my mother, I shouldn't have to show her all 291 episodes of Z so she can understand it. The show should be able stand on its own. That's not to say parody should have zero factor in the writing of this, or that there should be zero references at all, ever. By god what a silly thing to imply. But people can still enjoy Spaceballs even if they haven't seen Star Wars.

However, in the case of Mr Popo, DBZA does a good job of setting up Popo in the same way Z does. He initially speaks in a low, subdued tone, and is spoken of by Kami as some kind of adviser, or perhaps a respected peer, but as someone who is indirectly and respectfully implied to be below him. After all, it's called Kami's Lookout, not Popo's Lookout, and Kami is literally regarded as "The Guardian of Earth" while Popo just appears to be... there.

That all changes the second Kami leaves the outdoor area and Popo is entrusted with the reigns of the new Z Fighters. LISTEN UP, MAGGOTS!

The Krillin Owned Count also chimes three in this scene, and shows its first signs of picking up momentum.

Back on Snake Way, Goku gets eaten by the head of snake way, which leads into Jadoshin's palace. This is such a quick, cheesy, quirky but funny edit that I'm not sure what to say beyond I enjoyed it. It just hits you and then boom, you're in her castle.

The joke of Jadoshin being voiced by Solid Snake (Princess Snake, Solid Snake, on Snake Way) seems like a bold strategy but I think it's one of the better jokes they've committed to that ended up being really good, at least this early on. The voice even lends itself to the awkward dialogue that would've simply lost its charm or fallen flat otherwise.

Unrelated, but one of my favorite lines from the dub happens in this scene, where Jadoshin's attendant simply says "I've got something to show you. And it's my gun.", and then kills herself with it. I didn't expect to see that in this scene, but a small part of me did hope.

When Goku finishes up in the hot springs (with a Metal Gear Solid box gag to boot) and tries to leave, Jadoshin then states that she wants Goku inside her. Goku is confused, of course, and smash cut to Goku flying for his life from a massive green fire-breathing snake trying to eat him.

Jadoshin however still has the voice of Solid Snake even in this form, complete with periodic grunts as they maneuver through the air. This eventually transitions into Jadoshin saying waka-waka, and the backdrop changes into a Pac-Man map. The Pac-Man skit was perhaps a bit overdone, with Goku finding meat instead of the normal fruit, but on the whole this was a very "solid" scene.

During the Ozaru scene, I feel like Piccolo just screaming "MOOOOOOOON!" in the DBZA Kai version is funnier than the "Stop mocking me!" we got in DBZA proper. Also, donkey kong barrel, really? It's not bad, but it's an "oh, brother" moment, like hearing a very bad pun.

When Gohan transforms back into his human (or Half-Saiyan technically) form, his junk is censored with a Dragon Ball. This is an interesting contrast in philosophy over the years, as KaiserNeko explained the decision "to not censor baby dicks" in a Episode Breakdown livestream on the Broly Abdridged movie, where Broly's baby wiener can be seen uncensored in a few scenes of that movie.

The episode ends with Goku continuing down Snake Way, having tied Jadoshin up into a tangled ball, prompted the GAME OVER screen and someone yelling "Princess Snaaaaaake!"

Conclusion

Despite my lackluster thoughts on how Hell was handled, this episode had a lot going for it compared to it's predecessors! Most of the episode was spent on two strong scenes, and while I didn't think the Ozaru scene was anything special, it didn't feel out of place or off-kilter, but provided more insight and I suppose world-building into the relationship between Piccolo and Gohan and the constant reminder that they're training to eventually face off against the Saiyans. This is further reinforced by Stinger #2 with Nappa and Vegeta en route to Earth.

This was almost opposite to Episode 3, which I felt had strong bookends. While I didn't find the end of this episode to be bad, it was simply "alright" when compared to the Popo and Jadoshin scenes. Characters are starting to have stronger internal identities instead of simply being parodies of their original counterparts. Though it is noteworthy, and rather obvious, that this only applies to characters with speaking lines. Tien, Yamcha and Chiaotzu made their first appearances but had nothing to say. Maybe it would have been cluttered or detracted from the pacing of the Popo scene, but it may prove challenging to properly attach sentimentality to these characters in the short few episodes they have before the inevitable happens. 

Because y'know, nobody watched Dragon Ball.

Score: 73

Passing Thoughts

I liked that Stinger #1 dealt with the actual ramifications of DESTROYING THE MOON unlike the series proper did. I guess it was just no diff for the Dragon Ball world?

"He made a horrible mess of the blood fountain." "Looks fine to me." "IT USED TO BE WATER!"

"I killed everything here with my bare hands. Including the bear hands." -Pictured in the top left of the frame are actual bear hands.

"Stop grunting, it's creepy!"

"CLOTHES BEAM!" and “That is easily my most metro attack.”

[dist-the-rose]

Section 7: Repulsion and Attraction of Workpeople by the Factory System. Crises in the Cotton Trade All political economists of any standing admit that the introduction of new machinery has a baneful effect on the workmen in the old handicrafts and manufactures with which this machinery at first competes. Almost all of them bemoan the slavery of the factory operative. And what is the great trump-card that they play? That machinery, after the horrors of the period of introduction and development have subsided, instead of diminishing, in the long run increases the number of the slaves of labour! Yes, Political Economy revels in the hideous theory, hideous to every “philanthropist” who believes in the eternal Nature-ordained necessity for capitalist production, that after a period of growth and transition, even its crowning success, the factory system based on machinery, grinds down more workpeople than on its first introduction it throws on the streets.146 It is true that in some cases, as we saw from instances of English worsted and silk factories, an extraordinary extension of the factory system may, at a certain stage of its development, be accompanied not only by a relative, but by an absolute decrease in the number of operatives employed. In the year 1860, when a special census of all the factories in the United Kingdom was taken by order of Parliament, the factories in those parts of Lancashire, Cheshire, and Yorkshire, included in the district of Mr. Baker, the factory inspector, numbered 652; 570 of these contained 85,622 power-looms, 6,819,146 spindles (exclusive of doubling spindles), employed 27,439 horse-power (steam), and 1,390 (water), and 94,119 persons. In the year 1865, the same factories contained, looms 95,163, spindles 7,025,031, had a steam-power of 28,925 horses, and a waterpower of 1,445 horses, and employed 88,913 persons. Between 1860 and 1865, therefore, the increase in looms was 11%, in spindles 3%, and in engine-power 3%, while the number of persons employed decreased 5½%.147 Between 1852 and 1862, considerable extension of the English woollen manufacture took place, while the number of hands employed in it remained almost stationary, “showing how greatly the introduction of new machines had superseded the labour of preceding periods.”148 In certain cases, the increase in the number of hands employed is only apparent; that is, it is not due to the extension of the factories already established, but to the gradual annexation of connected trades; for instance, the increase in power-looms, and in the hands employed by them between 1838 and 1856, was, in the cotton trade, simply owing to the extension of this branch of industry; but in the other trades to the application of steam-power to the carpet-loom, to the ribbon-loom, and to the linen-loom, which previously had been worked by the power of men. 149 Hence the increase of the hands in these latter trades was merely a symptom of a diminution in the total number employed. Finally, we have considered this question entirely apart from the fact, that everywhere, except in the metal industries, young persons (under 18), and women and children form the preponderating element in the class of factory hands. Nevertheless, in spite of the mass of hands actually displaced and virtually replaced by machinery, we can understand how the factory operatives, through the building of more mills and the extension of old ones in a given industry, may become more numerous than the manufacturing workmen and handicraftsman that have been displaced. Suppose, for example, that 220 Chapter XV in the old mode of production, a capital of £500 is employed weekly, two-fifths being constant and three-fifths variable capital, i.e., £200 being laid out in means of production, and £300, say £1 per man, in labour-power. On the introduction of machinery the composition of this capital becomes altered. We will suppose it to consist of four-fifths constant and one-fifth variable, which means that only £100 is now laid out in labour-power. Consequently, two-thirds of the workmen are discharged. If now the business extends, and the total capital employed grows to £1,500 under unchanged conditions, the number of operatives employed will increase to 300, just as many as before the introduction of the machinery. If the capital further grows to £2,000, 400 men will be employed, or one-third more than under the old system. Their numbers have, in point of fact, increased by 100, but relatively, i.e., in proportion to the total capital advanced, they have diminished by 800, for the £2,000 capital would, in the old state of things, have employed 1,200 instead of 400 men. Hence, a relative decrease in the number of hands is consistent with an actual increase. We assumed above that while the total capital increases, its composition remains the same, because the conditions of production remain constant. But we have already seen that, with every advance in the use of machinery, the constant component of capital, that part which consists of machinery, raw material, &c., increases, while the variable component, the part laid out in labour-power, decreases. We also know that in no, other system of production is improvement so continuous, and the composition of the capital employed so constantly changing as in the factory system. These changes are, however, continually interrupted by periods of rest, during which there is a mere quantitative extension of the factories on the existing technical basis. During such periods the operatives increase in number.. Thus, in 1835, the total number of operatives in the cotton, woollen, worsted, flax, and silk factories of the United Kingdom was only 354,684; while in 1861 the number of the power-loom weavers alone (of both sexes and of all ages, from eight years upwards), amounted to 230,654. Certainly, this growth appears less important when we consider that in 1838 the hand-loom weavers with their families still numbered 800,000,150 not to mention those thrown out of work in Asia, and on the Continent of Europe. In the few remarks I have still to make on this point, I shall refer to some actually existing relations, the existence of which our theoretical investigation has not yet disclosed. So long as, in a given branch of industry, the factory system extends itself at the expense of the old handicrafts or of manufacture, the result is as sure as is the result of an encounter between an army furnished with breach-loaders, and one armed with bows and arrows. This first period, during which machinery conquers its field of action, is of decisive importance owing to the extraordinary profits that it helps to produce. These profits not only form a source of accelerated accumulation, but also attract into the favoured sphere of production a large part of the additional social capital that is being constantly created, and is ever on the look-out for new investments. The special advantages of this first period of fast and furious activity are felt in every branch of production that machinery invades. So soon, however, as the factory system has gained a certain breadth of footing and a definite degree of maturity, and, especially, so soon as its technical basis, machinery, is itself produced by machinery; so soon as coal mining and iron mining, the metal industries, and the means of transport have been revolutionised; so soon, in short, as the general conditions requisite for production by the modern industrial system have been established, this mode of production acquires an elasticity, a capacity for sudden extension by leaps and bounds that finds no hindrance except in the supply of raw material and in the disposal of the produce. On the one hand, the immediate effect of machinery is to increase the supply of raw material in the same way, for example, as the cotton gin augmented the production of cotton. 151 On the other hand, the cheapness of the articles produced by machinery, and the improved means of transport and communication furnish the weapons for conquering foreign markets. By ruining handicraft production in other countries, machinery forcibly converts them into fields for the supply of its raw material. In this way East India was compelled to produce cotton, wool, hemp, jute, and 221 Chapter XV indigo for Great Britain.152 By constantly making a part of the hands “supernumerary,” modern industry, in all countries where it has taken root, gives a spur to emigration and to the colonisation of foreign lands, which are thereby converted into settlements for growing the raw material of the mother country; just as Australia, for example, was converted into a colony for growing wool.153 A new and international division of labour, a division suited to the requirements of the chief centres of modern industry springs up, and converts one part of the globe into a chiefly agricultural field of production, for supplying the other part which remains a chiefly industrial field. This revolution hangs together with radical changes in agriculture which we need not here further inquire into.154 On the motion of Mr. Gladstone, the House of Commons ordered, on the 17th February, 1867, a return of the total quantities of grain, corn, and flour, of all sorts, imported into, and exported from, the United Kingdom, between the years 1831 and 1866. I give below a summary of the result. The flour is given in quarters of corn. (See the Table on p. 42.6.) QUINQUENNIAL PERIODS AND THE YEAR 1866 ANNUAL AVERAGE 1831-1835 1836-1840 1841-1845 1846-1850 1851-1855 1856-1860 1861-1865 1866 Import 1,096,373 2,389,729 2,843,865 8,776,552 8,345,237 10,913,612 15,009,871 16,457,340 Export 225,263 251,770 139,056 155,461 307,491 341,150 302,754 216,218 Excess of import over export 871,110 2,137,959 2,704,809 8,621,091 8,037,746 10,572,462 14,707,117 16,241,122 POPULATION Yearly average in each period 24,621,107 25,929,507 27,262,569 27,797,598 27,572,923 28,391,544 29,381,460 29,935,404 Average quantity of corn etc,. in qrs., consumed annually per head over and above the home produce consumed 0.036 0.082 0.099 0.310 0.291 0.372 0.501 0.543 The enormous power, inherent in the factory system, of expanding by jumps, and the dependence of that system on the markets of the world, necessarily beget feverish production, followed by over-filling of the markets, whereupon contraction of the markets brings on crippling of production. The life of modern industry becomes a series of periods of moderate activity, prosperity, over-production, crisis and stagnation. The uncertainty and instability to which machinery subjects the employment, and consequently the conditions of existence, of the operatives become normal, owing to these periodic changes of the industrial cycle. Except in the periods of prosperity, there rages between the capitalists the most furious combat for the share of each in the markets. This share is directly proportional to the cheapness of the. product. Besides 222 Chapter XV the rivalry that this struggle begets in the application of improved machinery for replacing labourpower, and of new methods of production, there also comes a time in every industrial cycle, when a forcible reduction of wages beneath the value of labour-power, is attempted for the purpose of cheapening commodities.155 A necessary condition, therefore, to the growth of the number of factory hands, is a proportionally much more rapid growth of the amount of capital invested in mills. This growth, however, is conditioned by the ebb and flow of the industrial cycle. It is, besides, constantly interrupted by the technical progress that at one time virtually supplies the place of new workmen, at another, actually displaces old ones. This qualitative change in mechanical industry continually discharges hands from the factory, or shuts its doors against the fresh stream of recruits, while the purely quantitative extension of the factories absorbs not only the men thrown out of work, but also fresh contingents. The workpeople are thus continually both repelled and attracted, hustled from pillar to post, while, at the same time, constant changes take place in the sex, age, and skill of the levies. The lot of the factory operatives will be best depicted by taking a rapid survey of the course of the English cotton industry. From 1770 to 1815 this trade was depressed or stagnant for 5 years only. During this period of 45 years the English manufacturers had a monopoly of machinery and of the markets of the world. From 1815 to 1821 depression; 1822 and 1823 prosperity; 1824 abolition of the laws against Trades’ Unions, great extension of factories everywhere; 1825 crisis; 1826 great misery and riots among the factory operatives; 1827 slight improvement; 1828 great increase in power-looms, and in exports; 1829 exports, especially to India, surpass all former years; 1830 glutted markets, great distress; 1831 to 1833 continued depression, the monopoly of the trade with India and China withdrawn from the, East India Company; 1834 great increase of factories and machinery, shortness of hands. The new poor law furthers the migration of agricultural labourers into the factory districts. The country districts swept of children. White slave trade; 1835 great prosperity, contemporaneous starvation of the hand-loom weavers; 1836 great prosperity; 1837 and 1838 depression and crisis; 1839 revival; 1840 great depression, riots, calling out of the military; 1841 and 1842 frightful suffering among the factory operatives; 1842 the manufacturers lock the hands out of the factories in order to enforce the repeal of the Corn Laws. The operatives stream in thousands into the towns of Lancashire and Yorkshire, are driven back by the military, and their leaders brought to trial at Lancaster; 1843 great misery; 1844 revival; 1845 great prosperity; 1846 continued improvement at first, then reaction. Repeal of the Corn Laws; 1847 crisis, general reduction of wages by 10 and more per cent. in honour of the “big loaf"; 1848 continued depression; Manchester under military. protection; 1849 revival; 1850 prosperity; 1851 falling prices, low wages, frequent strikes; 1852 improvement begins, strikes continue, the manufacturers threaten to import foreign hands; 1853 increasing exports. Strike for 8 months, and great misery at Preston; 1854 prosperity, glutted markets; 1855 news of failures stream in from the United States, Canada, and the Eastern markets; 1856 great prosperity; 1857 crisis; 1858 improvement; 1859 great prosperity, increase in factories; 1860 Zenith of the English cotton trade, the Indian, Australian, and other markets so glutted with goods that even in 1863 they had not absorbed the whole lot; the French Treaty of Commerce, enormous growth of factories and machinery; 1861 prosperity continues for a time, reaction, the American Civil War, cotton famine: 1862 to 1863 complete collapse. The history of the cotton famine is too characteristic to dispense with dwelling upon it for a moment. From the indications as to the condition of the markets of the world in 1860 and 1861, we see that the cotton famine came in the nick of time for the manufacturers, and was to some extent advantageous to them, a fact that was acknowledged in the reports of the Manchester Chamber of Commerce, proclaimed in Parliament by Palmerston and Derby, and confirmed by events.156 No doubt, among the 2,887 cotton mills in the United Kingdom in 1861, there were 223 Chapter XV many of small size. According to the report of Mr. A. Redgrave, out of the 2,109 mills included in his district, 392, or 19% employed less than ten horse-power each; 345, or 16% employed 10 H. P., and less than 20 H. P.; while 1,372 employed upwards of 20 H. P.157 The majority of the small mills were weaving sheds, built during the period of prosperity after 1858, for the most part by speculators, of whom one supplied the yarn, another the machinery, a third the buildings, and were worked by men who had been overlookers, or by other persons of small means. These small manufacturers mostly went to the wall. The same fate would have overtaken them in the commercial crisis that was staved off only by the cotton famine. Although they formed one-third of the total number of manufacturers, yet their mills absorbed a much smaller part of the capital invested in the cotton trade. As to the extent of the stoppage, it appears from authentic estimates, that in October 1862, 60.3% of the spindles, and 58% of the looms were standing. This refers to the cotton trade as a whole, and, of course, requires considerable modification for individual districts. Only very few mills worked full time (60 hours a week), the remainder worked at intervals. Even in those few cases where full time was worked, and at the customary rate of piecewage, the weekly wages of the operatives necessarily shrank, owing to good cotton being replaced by bad, Sea Island by Egyptian (in fine spinning mills), American and Egyptian by Surat, and pure cotton by mixings of waste and Surat. The shorter fibre of the Surat cotton and its dirty condition, the greater fragility of the thread, the substitution of all sorts of heavy ingredients for flour in sizing the warps, all these lessened the speed of the machinery, or the number of the looms that could be superintended by one weaver, increased the labour caused by defects in the machinery, and reduced the piece-wage by reducing the mass of the product turned off. Where Surat cotton was used, the loss to the operatives when on full time, amounted to 20, 30, and more per cent. But besides this, the majority of the manufacturers reduced the rate of piece-wage by 5, 7½, and 10 per cent. We can therefore conceive the situation of those hands who were employed for only 3, 3½ or 4 days a week, or for only 6 hours a day. Even in 1863, after a comparative improvement had set in, the weekly wages of spinners and of weavers were 3s. 4d., 3s. 10d., 4s. 6d. and 5s. 1d.158 Even in this miserable state of things, however, the inventive spirit of the master never stood still, but was exercised in making deductions from wages. These were to some extent inflicted as a penalty for defects in the finished article that were really due to his bad cotton and to his unsuitable machinery. Moreover, where the manufacturer owned the cottages of the workpeople, he paid himself his rents by deducting the amount from these miserable Wages. Mr. Redgrave tells us of self-acting minders (operatives who manage a pair of self-acting mules) “earning at the end of a fortnight’s full work 8s. 11d., and that from this sum was deducted the rent of the house, the manufacturer, however, returning half the rent as a gift. The minders took away the sum of 6s. 11d. In many places the selfacting minders ranged from 5s. to 9s. per week, and the weavers from 2s. to 6s. per week, during the latter part of 1862.”159 Even when working short time the rent was frequently deducted from the wages of the operatives.160 No wonder that in some parts of Lancashire a kind of famine fever broke out. But more characteristic than all this, was, the revolution that took place in the process of production at the expense of the workpeople. Experimenta in corpore vili, like those of anatomists on frogs, were formally made. “Although,” says Mr. Redgrave, “I have given the actual earnings of the operatives in the several mills, it does not follow that they earn the same amount week by week. The operatives are subject to great fluctuation from the constant experimentalising of the manufacturers ... the earnings of the operatives rise and fall with the quality of the cotton mixings; sometimes they have been within 15 per cent. of former earnings, and then, in a week or two, they have fallen off from 50 to 60 per cent.”161 224 Chapter XV These experiments were not made solely at the expense of the workman’s means of subsistence. His five senses also had to pay the penalty. “The people who are employed in making up Surat cotton complain very much. They inform me, on opening the bales of cotton there is an intolerable smell, which causes sickness.... In the mixing, scribbling and carding rooms, the dust and dirt which are disengaged, irritate the air passages, and give rise to cough and difficulty of breathing. A disease of the skin, no doubt from the irritation of the dirt contained in the Surat cotton, also prevails.... The fibre being so short, a great amount of size, both animal and vegetable, is used.... Bronchitis is more prevalent owing to the dust. Inflammatory sore throat is common, from the same cause. Sickness and dyspepsia are produced by the frequent breaking of the weft, when the weaver sucks the weft through the eye of the shuttle.” On the other hand, the substitutes for flour were a Fortunatus’ purse to the manufacturers, by increasing the weight of the yarn. They caused “15 lbs. of raw material to weigh 26 lbs. after it was woven.”162 In the Report of Inspectors of Factories for 30th April, 1864, we read as follows: “The trade is availing itself of this resource at present to an extent which is even discreditable. I have heard on good authority of a cloth weighing 8 lbs. which was made of 5 1/4 lbs. cotton and 2 3/4 lbs. size; and of another cloth weighing 5 1/4 lbs., of which 2 lbs. was size. These were ordinary export shirtings. In cloths of other descriptions, as much as 50 per cent. size is sometimes added; so that a manufacturer may, and does truly boast, that he is getting rich by selling cloth for less money per pound than he paid for the mere yarn of which they are composed.” 163 But the workpeople had to suffer, not only from the experiments of the manufacturers inside the mills, and of the municipalities outside, not only from reduced wages and absence of work, from want and from charity, and from the eulogistic speeches of lords and commons. “Unfortunate females who, in consequence of the cotton famine, were at its commencement thrown out of employment, and have thereby become outcasts of society; and now, though trade has revived, and work is plentiful, continue members of that unfortunate class, and are likely to continue so. There are also in the borough more youthful prostitutes than I have known for the last 25 years.” 164 We find then, in the first 45 years of the English cotton trade, from 1770 to 1815, only 5 years of crisis and stagnation; but this was the period of monopoly. The second period from 1815 to 1863 counts, during its 48 years, only 20 years of revival and prosperity against 28 of depression and stagnation. Between 1815 and 1830 the competition with the continent of Europe and with the United States sets in. After 1833, the extension of the Asiatic markets is enforced by “destruction of the human race” (the wholesale extinction of Indian hand-loom weavers). After the repeal of the Corn Laws, from 1846 to 1863, there are 8 years of moderate activity and prosperity against 9 years of depression and stagnation. The condition of the adult male operatives, even during the years of prosperity, may be judged from the note subjoined.165

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Downhill Mountain range Bicycling A Dangerous Sporting activity For The Powerful Hearted

While residing in or visiting Southern The golden state, a travel to the hills is closer than you could presume. Between base as well as top, despite just what concerns you run into or what conveniences you have, a mountain is climbed up by putting one foot facing the other. F. Various other scrambling devices: A pair from prussic loopholes are actually consistently practical - 1.3 m from 5mm or 1.4 m of 6mm cord with the ends tied together into an open loop along with a dual angler's knot that enables you to shield abseils, ascend ropes and also established rescue devices. You may acquire a better Colorado ski travel for the money if you engague in some study (mountaineering ski). Your mountain range exploring devices ends up being a more crucial factor to consider the greater the altitude and also the farther your area. At the edge, overlooking Steed Camping ground far under, there are dirty clearings in the stones where the climbers camp. Conquer that solitary item from ground and you will absolutely overcome the hill on time. Our learning and also social outreach efforts possess a clear goal-to inspire the next generation from hill stewards. The main reason why people should buy used mountain bikes online is actually that since neighborhood stores seldom or even never ever offer made use of bikes. Although the truck seems to be to become having you up the mountain range in a high equipment without concern, that could begin to overheat. Just before you may buy a mountain bike, you must understand just what form of using you will definitely be actually doing. Over half from the globe's new water originates in mountains, plus all the planet's primary streams are supplied from hill sources. If the program had gone ahead it would have indicated that trekkers can have been actually expelled from the mountain within 25 moments off the emergency phone call being actually put. Nevertheless, after the groups separates the price, the mountain range cabin still appears a lot more budget friendly than if everyone leased an accommodation room. This is actually one thing you must watch out for, ordinarily you will definitely discover the purchases in the autumn and also winter season as these are the moments when folks don't normally walk out as well as spring season as well as summer is actually the major getting period when much more brand new bikes are out so eliminating outdated sell is required. Deal with your apparel ... you don't must have actually padded cyclist pants and also exclusive clothes to start riding bikes If you feel definitely about these points, probably you should certainly look at a crossbreed bike, whih has a number of perks from a mtb, however is actually much more adjusted to the metropolitan atmosphere. You merely need to possess the service teches repair your bikes as well as the next thing you understand is that you will possess a new overview on your bikes. What much better technique to enjoy this wonderfully picturesque areas of the United States compared to staying in a mountain cabin for lease. Found in South China's Anhui Province, Yellow hill is actually claimed to become among one of the most attractive mountain ranges in China. Like the mountaineer, when that intermediary target is actually performed, at that point you are going to locate your own self midway up the hill. Suitable for Harsh Experiences: Though bikes are actually a great methods from transit, however they can not go through stiffened hills. Your riding style, cost variety as well as option of landscapes will definitely aid you choose in between suspension and difficult rear bikes. Climbers get on body panels, university boards and also climbing up wall surfaces training grasp and finger toughness, job ability and endurance. You observe, like an alpinist which can not find the top, salesmen as well as business people without precisely specified goals (daily, once a week, monthly, annually) are actually even more prone to everyday disturbances and interruptions, as well as most likely to lose your valuable source called time. When the snowfall clears up on the ancient pines, rocks, and swimming pools from Huangshan Mountain, what helps make Huangshan Hill's snow other is the miracle that happens. They are actually qualified to recognize the signs of altitude sickness as well as the mountain is actually no place to have opportunities with your health and wellness. Note that particularly recumbent stationary bicycle are actually large and massive, so it can be both challenging as well as costly to return them. The higher altitude, very early snowfall storms, and also snowfall production devices may help skiers receive a very early start in these hotels. Although stationary bicycle are reasonably simply devices, some of them could receive raucous after a few months. Other locations to remain in the area consist of Meru Mt.Kenya Bandas; The Serena Hill Lodge; Naro Moru River Resort; Hill Roc Bantu Hotel; Palace Woodland Lodge; Rutunda Log Cabins and also Sportsman Arms Lodging. At the time of creating no choppers had actually landed as well as no person has actually been saved from high up on the hill via helicopter. Having said that, lots of people are not, passed away in the wool, mountain bicycle fanatics, many of their using is actually done on the street, along with occasional light-toned path riding. A staff from French climber was the first to ascent this mountain in 1955. The tool sized mountain range board, nevertheless, excellents to eat motorcyclists wanting to carry out every thing. If you adored this write-up and you would certainly like to obtain more details regarding yellow pages online residential uk - please click the next internet page - kindly browse through the web-page. Kona bikes have actually grown with the sport and also they have actually possessed a big result in the growth from mountain cycling and path that's going. Our company have actually simply dealt with the rudiments from a true mtb, a bike created for route riding. Leading our team were actually a team of qualified mountain climbers off Dalattourist Business, several of whom are actually K'ho indigenous people who stay in the communities at the feet of Lang Bian Mountain. Whether you are actually an expert rider who recognizes exactly the form of Boardman MTB they desire, or even you're looking for your first Trax Mountain Bike to take out, our team'll assist you discover the best match. Maintaining early societies in mountainous regions is actually equally as vital as saving their natural environment as well as boosting mountain economic situations. Every one of the primary professional athletes of the sport will tell you that mountain bicycle instruction is greatly significant as well as you must participate in mountain bicycle exercise instruction when ever the opportunity develops. Hill cycling entice many people, no matter age, gender, or socioeconomic condition. From Glencoe Mountain Option, Link of Orchy is only 11 kilometers and also Kinlochleven is actually only 9 miles away, the route southern delivers an easier path as well as the option north is actually a lot more technical with the well known 'devils stairs' to think about. . Tires - Mtb generally keep up wider, knobby tires delivering even more substantial grasp and footing on different landscapes. Before beginning your children on the much larger hills, have all of them practice using by means of a variety of landscapes to aid provide an off-road feel and also to create the muscular tissues as well as strength required for extra aggressive mountain cycling.