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is it safe to point out that alicent is the luckiest woman in westeros for marrying viserys based off the same westerosi norms and culture that greenies cling onto to declare aegon has to be king simply because he has a cock and rhaenyra doesn’t and it’s for the stability of the realm?
#girlie knew her father would arrange her marriage one day#pro rhaenyra#pro team black#anti team green#anti alicent hightower#anti otto hightower#anti aemond targaryen#anti aegon ii targaryen#pro lucerys velaryon#pro daemon targaryen#pro rhaenyra targaryen#pro blacks#people act like viserys had designs on alicent since she was in utero#no…only after alicent started coming to his chambers#i’m not saying it’s her fault because it isn’t#but she wasn’t naive about what her father asked of her#alicent benefited from the rise in station#she flaunted her new position#while hiding behind a cloak of righteousness to cry about how tortured she is or whatever#women kill to be queen
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“SAYS REVOLVER FROM HIS HOME,” Ottawa Journal. October 18, 1932. Page 1. ---- Roy McGregor Identifies Pistol in Seabrooke Murder Trial ---- JUSTICE JEFFREY DEMANDS ORDER ---- 11 More Witnesses Are Heard in Crowded Court Room. ---- Evidence regarding the pistol figuring in the re-trial of William George Seabrooke, charged with the murder of Paul Lavigne, service station attendant, on December 12, at the corner of Sussex and Redpath streets, featured the morning session of the second day at the Nicholas street Courthouse.
Roy McGregor. 1444 Bleury street Montreal, friend of Seabrooke. identified an automatic revolver which had been missing from his apartment since a visit to him by Seabrooke from Dec. 9 to 7. It had been stolen. together with a Winchester rifle and a fishing rod, which had later been pawned. 7
Judge Questions Witness. As neither W. F. Schroeder, defence counsel for Seabrooke, nor the Crown Prosecutor, Col. J. Keillor MacKay, had questioned Mr. McGregor as to the means by which he was so positive, in his identification of .the revolver produced in court the presiding judge. Hon. Mr. Justice Jeffrey, asked the witness.
Mr. McGregor showed certain markings on the revolver, to the jury and then to the Judge.
Mr. Schroeder then asked permission, to question the witness and his lordship replied: “You deliberately refrained from cross-examining, and the thing was- very apparent. And you most deliberately put a question which would have entirely misled the jury and myself as to these guns being all alike. Don’t let it occur again. Some judges would be very angry with you." said the Judge.
Disclaims Intention. Mr. Schroeder disclaimed any intention to mislead the court.
Later, the Judge decided to allow defence counsel to question the witness about the markings on the gun.
A little later, when there was a titter in court, the Judge remarked sternly: "Clear the court if there is any demonstration. A man is on trial for his life."
One of the Jurors. in the course ef the hearing essayed a question en the matter of a photo shown by ths police to Paul Levigne just before his death. The Judge told the Juror not anticipate the evidence.
At another point the court interpreter. O. Robitaille, was rebuked for not speaking loud enough for the court to here. The opening period of the hearing this morning was occupied with further argument, and the ruling by the Judge that certain evidence which had been given yesterday with the Jury out of court was admissible. The evidence was repeated for the benefit of the Jury.
11 More Witnesses Heard Eleven more witnesses were heard when the court adjourned for lunch, to resume at 2.15pm.
Just before adjournment the Judge complimented Denis Mirabelli (14) living at 218 Dalhousie street, on the clear manner in which he had given his evidence.
“He's s bright boy," the Judge remarked, while the witness was testifyng.
In reply to G, Wellington Mitchell, one of the Jurors, who asked just as court was rising, Mr. Justice Jeffrey said he could not yet tell when they would be allowed to visit the scene of the shooting. "I Intend to go with you." said the Judge.
Shortly after 1 p.m.. about 50 spectators had already taken their seats in the public galleries for the afternoon session.
When proceedings were resumed at nine o'clock there was again a crowded court room. Witnesses Recalled Following His Lordship's ruling concerning the admissibility of certain evidence four witnesses were recalled to the stand to repeat evidence, they gave yesterday when the jury was out. They were Miss Alice Lavigne, Mrs. Rosina Lavigne and Albert Lavigne. sister, aunt, and brother of the deceased, and Dr. J. M. Laframboise.
Dr. Laframboise, in his evidence. said that a photo was shown to Lavigne by the police before he died and he said he looked like his assailant. The photo was not one of Seabrooke.
Roy McGregor. 1444 Bleury street, Montreal, friend of Seabrooke, was called twvthe witness stand st 11 15 a m. He told of his relations with Seabrooke and the latter's stay in his home from December 5 to 7.
McGregor said he had known the secured six years snd hsd once worked with him In the Regent Theatre.
Witness recalled s visit made by Seabrooke to hit home In December last.
"On December 5 I showed him Winchester rifle and a fishing rod in a case,’ said witness.
McGregor said he also kept an automatic pistol on top of a trunk in his home.
Describes Seakbrooke’s Clothing He also said Seabrooke, was wearing a brown Fedora hat, brown, coat and. buckled shoes. Shown, the buckled shoes found by police in Seabrooke's home witness said they were similar to those worn by the accused in Montreal.
In reply to questions by Col. MacKay witness said after Seabrooke had left on the Monday he discovered that his rifle, fishing rod and pistol were missing. He reported this to Montreal police two days later. His stated the pistol was contained in a hand-made holster.
Some days later, said witness, he found his rifle in a Montreal pawn shop and was called to the Ottawa Police Department to identify a pistol.
Witness then identified the pistol produced by the Crown, as the one stolen from his home. Shown the leather holster witness said it was the one he had made and had contained the pisto.
On inquiries made at the pawnshop he discovered someone had used his name and address
Remembers Pistol’s Scratches. Witness was cross-examined by Mr. Schroeder. Following this His Lordship asked witness how he could identify his pistol and witness replied he noticed marks on the barrel and bruises on the screws. He said the gun had been marked when he had kept it between the mattress and spring of his bed.
His Lordship instructed witness o show the jury the marks and Mr. schroedcer asked permission to cross-examine on this point.
His Lordship first refuted then allowed Mr. Schroeder to question witness. Witness said it was on account of the scratches on the gun that he made the holster for it. There were no scratches on the gun when be first got it.
Dr. J. B. Woods was called to testify as to the condition of Detective Tissot. He said he was in hospital, following an operation.
F, A. Magee. K.C, Clerk ot Assise, testified that Detective Tisoot had given evidence ot the last trial and had been sworn by two witnesses. Reads Tissot’s Evidence Col. MacKay then proceeded to read the evidence given by Detective Tissot at the previous trial. According to the detective Lavigne had told him he had been confronted by a young man at the gas station who pulled out a pistol and asked for that money. Lavigne told the detective when he made a grab for the gun the man shot him.
The murdered men also supplied the detective with a description of his assailant, said he was wearing a brown Boat hat, brown coat and was wearing buckled shoes.
Detective Tissot also told of a visit to Seakbrooke’s home where he found a pair of buckled shoes.
Harry Ash. Montreal pawnbroker, was next called. He said he had seen Seabrooke om December 7 last when the accused had called into the pawnshop.
"He pawned a rifle,” said Mr. Ash, “and a fishing rod in a case. He asked for $12 but I told him all he could get was $8.
“He also asked if he could pawn a revolver. I gave him $8 and a pawn ticket for the rifle but he did not pawn the pistol.”
Witness also said Seabrooke had given the name of R. McGregor, 1444 Bleury street, Montreal.
Boy is Complimented Denis Mirabelli, 14 years of age, 218 Dalousie street, the next witness, told of finding the .32 automatic pistol is a pier of the Black Bridge which crosses the Rideau River near, the scene of the crime.
“It is a very great pleasure to get such a bright boy in the witness box.”
#ottawa#murder#murder trial#shooting death#shot to death#eyewitness testimony#stolen guns#armed with a revolver#shot dead#resisting arrest#shooting a policeman#gas station attendant#great depression in canada#crime and punishment in canada#history of crime and punishment in canada
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Start of Time: 1/?
Happy birthday, @teamhook ! You have been a faithful reader of my fics from long before I came over to tumblr, and I appreciate your support so much! As a matter of fact, you were the first one to encourage me to get a tumblr blog. Anyway, I hope you have a marvelous day, my friend.
You told me this Gabrielle Aplin song was one of your favorites that reminded you of CS, so I wanted to incorporate it into a fic. Then, just a few days ago I watched a Hallmark Christmas movie (yes, I’m already watching them, don’t judge) called a Christmas to Remember. It had Elle McKinnon in it, who played young Alice Jones on Once, and the whole thing gave me CS vibes. Then I realized the song really fit the movie’s plot, and this fic was born. Unlike the movie, however, this doesn’t happen at Christmas. I also couldn’t finish it in a one-shot, so here we go, another MC/WIP. It’s worth it for you though, @teamhook. I hope you enjoy it!
Many thanks to the CSRT discord chat for helping me brainstorm parts of this, especially @shireness-says for giving me the idea to make Emma part of a rock band. I was having a very difficult time coming up with a band name that hasn’t been used yet in the fandom, when the name of a band from my college came to mind - Wendy Sews it On. It suddenly hit me what that band name is a reference too, and I was giddy with excitement!
Summary: Killian and his son are driving through a bad snow storm when they find a disoriented woman walking down the road. The question is, how can they help her get home when she has no idea who she is?
Side note: Has anyone else written from the point of view of someone who can’t remember her name? Well it’s hard, ya’ll - lol!
Rating: T
Trigger warning: Alice Jones appears in this fic and both Alice and Henry are both Killian’s adopted children with Milah. Henry isn’t Emma’s. Positive past Millian. No Neal.
Words: about 2,500 in this chapter
Also on Ao3 and part of my Fandom Birthday Playlist
Tagging the usuals::@snowbellewells @kmomof4@jennjenn615 @kday426 @let-it-raines @teamhook@kmomof4 @bethacaciakay @profdanglaisstuff @resident-of-storybrooke @thislassishooked @tiganasummertree@whimsicallyenchantedrose @snidgetsafan @delirious-latenight-laughs @winterbaby89 @distant-rose@shireness-says @xhookswenchx @optomisticgirl @spartanguard @branlovestowrite @welllpthisishappening @stahlop @hollyethecurious
Oh today I’m just a drop of water and I’m running down the mountain side. Come tomorrow I’ll be in the ocean. I’ll be rising with the morning tide.
The road stretched before Emma’s tiny yellow bug, she was sure, for miles upon miles of the thick forests of northern Maine. Yet all she could see out her windshield was about a car’s length in front of her through the thick swirling snow. Her tires kept sliding on the slick roads, and more than once she had trouble keeping the car pointed in the right direction. It didn’t help that she was completely and utterly lost, her GPS losing signal at some point miles back.
Emma cursed rural Maine, cursed the snow, and even cursed Regina for suggesting this week of r&r to begin with. A cabin with all the amenities next to a spa sounded like heaven. Or maybe anything secluded sounded like heaven - a place to get her head on right again, maybe even write a new song.
She just wasn’t sure it would be a love song like Regina and the record label was hoping for. She added Walsh to her list of stuff to curse.
Her headlights, for a brief moment, illuminated a sign up ahead: “Welcome to Storybrooke.” She cursed again as she squinted down at her phone which still mocked her with the little swirling icon and the word “buffering.”
“Come on,” she muttered. She started to type in “Misthaven Resort and Spa” again, glancing from her phone screen to the road and back again. She knew it was dangerous to use her phone while driving, especially in weather like this, but if she didn’t figure out where the hell she was, she might run out of gas and die out here in the snow anyway.
It was a cost benefit analysis, really.
God, she needed to start spending time with people besides Regina and Walsh. She hadn’t even seen her former bandmates since this solo career train had catapulted out of the station.
Anna would have loved that mixed metaphor. It was the kind of line Emma’s red-headed, bubbly, almost little sister would have put into a song. Like the Beatles, every member of Wendy Sewed it On wrote songs for the band. Anna’s were quirky and upbeat, Elsa’s were soaring, epic ballads, Ruby’s were tongue in cheek and driving.
And Emma . . . well, fans said her songs were sad and haunting, but deep. Wendy Sewed it On had their biggest hits with Emma’s songs, even though it was Elsa who belted them out. Being all alone on that stage, laying her soul bare with those lyrics . . .
Emma’s thoughts were cut off and a scream flew out of her mouth as a wolf bounded onto the road in front of her. It was all a blur after that: breaking glass, her continuing screams, pine trees surrounding her on all sides as she plowed off the road and down an embankment of snow.
There’s a ghost upon the moor tonight. Now it’s in our house. When you walked into the room just then it’s like the sun came out.
A severe winter storm warning has been issued for central Aroostook County. Visibility will be extremely low, roads impass-
Killian switched off the radio in his pickup, not wanting to alarm Henry. His windshield wipers were on the highest setting, his lights on bright, and for now, he could still make out the road far enough ahead of them that he was fairly confident they would get home long before the storm reached its peak. Part of him was second guessing bringing a ten year old along on this call, but Henry had been so excited at the prospect of helping deliver the foal at the Nolan farm.
“Dad,” Henry said, picking at the aluminum foil Mary Margaret had used to wrap up a plate of her famous chocolate chip cookies, “why doesn’t Uncle David work with you anymore?”
“Well, he and Mary Margaret had been saving up for years to buy that farm. I always knew horses were his dream, not the animal shelter.” He glanced from the road to grin at his son. “And you’re dying to have one of those cookies, aren’t you?”
Henry’s eyes widened. “How’d you know?”
Killian laughed. “I’ve been a dad for a decade now. I have a sixth sense.”
“So can I have one?”
“No, you have to share with Alice.”
“Aw man,” Henry pouted, but it was short lived. Both of his children were extremely curious and regularly peppered him with questions. “Why couldn’t Uncle David just deliver the foal himself? He knows animals.”
“Because it was breech - that means it was upside down inside the mother horse. David’s not a vet, so he called me.”
Henry arched his brows. “And they pay you in cookies?”
Killian chuckled again. “David and Mary Margaret, yes.”
“They are good cookies,” Henry agreed, taking a big whiff of the plate in his lap. “Maybe Alice wouldn’t mind if we - DAD!”
Killian saw the figure in the road at the same moment his son did, so before the word even left Henry’s lips, Killian was swerving to avoid the person. The roads were wet and slick enough to send his tires sliding, and if Killian didn’t have so much experience driving in such dangerous conditions, they may have ended up in the ditch. When the truck finally came to a stop, he turned first to Henry.
“Are you okay?” Killian asked him, running a hand nervously over the boy.
“Yeah,” Henry gasped, “I’m good.” The boy twisted around in his seat. “What was that?”
That was a good question. It had looked like a person, but who would be out in this weather? Unless they were in trouble. Killian quickly unbuckled his seatbelt.
“Stay here,” he instructed Henry, giving him a steely look lest his overly curious oldest child be tempted to disobey. Thankfully, Henry nodded, his face a mask of intensity.
After Killian exited the vehicle, he could clearly see a woman stumbling around in the middle of the road. He approached her cautiously, fully aware that a man appearing before the woman in the middle of the forest could be frightening to say the least.
“Are you okay?”
She turned then, and he could tell from the blank expression on her face that she was in shock. She had obviously experienced some sort of trauma, and his heart plummeted at the thought. He walked slowly closer. The woman was now turning in a circle, unsteady on her feet as if she might be inebriated. Her gaze was lifted to the tops of the trees, as if she were trying to make sense of her surroundings. When he was close enough, Killian reached out tentatively to rest his hand on her upper arm. She was wearing a red leather jacket; not the smartest choice of outerwear for snow like this.
“I’d like to help you,” he said in the same gentle voice he used on injured animals. “What are you doing out here?”
She blinked, as if trying to focus on his face. Her skin was almost alabaster, her hair completely coated in a layer of snow, and he wondered how long she’d been out here in the elements. He shrugged out of his coat and draped it over her shoulders. She looked down at it, almost in confusion. When she did, he noticed the blood matting the top of her head.
“You’re hurt,” he whispered.
“I - am?” she whispered back.
He smiled, relieved to hear her voice finally. “Aye, you have a rather nasty gash on your head there. Were you in an accident?”
“Was I?” her voice sounded thready and far away as she reached a trembling hand up to touch her head. “Ow, that hurts,” she gasped. Yet she kept patting at the wound frantically.
“I’m not surprised, so let’s stop touching it shall we?” he took her slender, ice cold hand in his to still her nervous movements. “What’s your name? Can I call someone for you?”
“I . . . I . . . “ she began to sway as her words turned to incoherent mutterings, then she crumpled against Killian’s chest. He scooped her up in his arms, turning his gaze nervously to the sky as the snow fell in fat, thick flakes. He followed the tail lights back to the truck. He had no choice but to take the mysterious woman home with him before the storm got worse.
**********************************************************
She awoke in a strange bed in a strange room with a strange little girl staring at her. She hurt everywhere, but her head especially throbbed with a sharp, jabbing pain. The sunlight pouring through the window made her wince, and the image of the little girl sitting at the end of the bed went fuzzy.
“This is my room,” the child told her, “but you can use it until you get better.”
She looked around her, evidence of a child everywhere from the dollhouse in the corner to the childish artwork tacked all over the walls. What was she doing here?
“My name is Alice,” the girl continued, bouncing on the bed a bit, making its injured occupant wince. “I’m seven. How old are you?”
“Alice,” another voice gently rebuked from the doorway, “let our patient rest, please.”
“Okay, daddy,” the little girl sighed, but obeyed, skipping out of the room.
A man drew closer to the bed, and her heart thudded wildly in her chest, the urge to flee overwhelming. He lifted both hands, slowing his approach, a gentle look in his eyes. It didn’t help - she didn’t know this man or where she was.
“I’m not going to hurt you,” he said gently.
“Where am I?”
“You’re in my family’s home,” he explained, “my name is Killian Jones and my son and I found you wandering in the road. We’re in the midst of a bad storm, so I had no choice but to bring you here.”
She had never been so confused in her life, and she let her head fall back on the pillow. A sharp pain caused her to cry out, and she reached up to find a bandage on the top of her head.
“What happened to me?”
“Well,” Killian told her patiently, “you had a gash on your head and some other cuts and bruises. I bandaged you up.”
“You’re a doctor?”
He smiled, and despite the situation, she found it charming. “A vet, but the principles are largely the same. Nevertheless, I’ve called the town doctor and he’ll be coming out once the roads are cleared.”
“The roads?”
“We’re snowed in.”
She moaned. Tears pricked at the corners of her eyes, and shame washed over her. She couldn’t let this stranger see her cry.
“Listen,” he said softly, “you were hurt and wandering around. Do you remember what happened?”
She lifted both hands to cover her face. “No, I have no idea where I am or how I got here.”
“Well, how about your name? Let’s start there.”
“My name is -” Suddenly, her chest tightened and she couldn’t breathe. The room was spinning. “Oh my God. I don’t know! I don’t know my name!”
“Shhh, shhh, it’s okay,” Killian soothed, laying a hand tentatively on her shoulder, “you hit your head, so it’s understandable. I’m sure it will all come back to you soon.”
How could he be so damn calm? She didn’t know who she was!
“I . . . I . . . “ she looked down at herself and saw a pajama top covered in pink roses, “I’m in pajamas.”
The man smiled again in that way that made her heart flip like a damn teenager. “And you look good in them, so that’s a win.”
“I hate pink,” she said with a wrinkle of her nose. “And flowery shirts.”
Killian’s eyebrows quirked up. They were quite expressive, she noticed. “Well there you go, you remember that!”
“Wait,” she said, narrowing her eyes at him, “how did I get into pajamas?” Surely she wasn’t wandering the road in her pjs.
His eyes grew large and he lifted both hands in a defensive gesture. “It wasn’t me! My friend Mary Margaret did that. She’s a volunteer down at the hospital.”
“I helped!” Alice called out, popping up from the foot of the bed. “Cause I want to be a nurse. Or an artist. Or a pilot.”
“Alice Milah Jones,” her father scolded, “I thought I told you to give our patient some peace and quiet?”
“Sorry, Daddy.”
Killian looked back at her, his brow furrowed with concern. “Is there anything I can do for you in the meantime? Anything I can get you?”
She bit down on her lip, those damn tears threatening to spill over again. “No. I think I just want to go back to sleep.”
He frowned, the pity on his face clear. She hated pity. How did she know that? And that she hated pink? And flowered shirts? But not her own damn name?
“Okay,” he told her softly, patting her foot gently through the down comforter on the bed. He was handsome too, she noted. Dark hair, a strong jaw covered in nicely trimmed scruff, bright blue eyes tinged with a bit of sadness that somehow made them more piercing. Suddenly, taking him in from head to toe and thinking of quirky but sweet little Alice, she was sure that she was in a safe place. How she knew she wasn’t sure, but it settled deep within her and took root.
Killian left, closing the door silently behind him. She slid beneath the warm blankets as her eyes fluttered closed. She dreamed of snow and blue eyes and strong arms but not of who she was or where she came from.
#cs ff#cs modern au#amnesia#snowed in#fandom birthday playlist#start of time#for teamhook#on her birthday
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“...and when he went by me I felt all hollow inside he was so beautiful.” ~ Hemingway
(Hi. I don’t have a title for whatever this is, please forgive any errors.)
Sonny Carisi x OFC | Part I
The courthouse was beginning to fill up. Now that she and Menthon were situated in place, early, and she felt more collected having oriented herself, Alice was finally beginning to relax. With one hundred fifty eight pounds of freshly bathed and blowdried fluff laying across the cool marble floor in front of her, and the two seated in an advantageous place outside the courtroom in which their witness would testify, she settled back against the surprisingly comfortable wooden bench. She had felt her anxiety peaking as they were driven into Midtown that morning, rising and swelling dangerously toward the rim like the foam of a recklessly poured drink. She was overwhelmingly grateful that car service was a perk offered by her new employment. She wasn’t sure how she would have navigated parking and traffic, or the subway system, when winding roads through green mountains were more her forte. Every time she remembered that she was working in Manhattan permanently she felt queasy, until she reminded herself, as she did now, that she was more than capable of negotiating such a populated city. It was of paramount importance to her that she and Menthon be accessible to any clients who might need them, wherever and whenever that need might arise, and the notion of feeling less than in command of her surroundings was always of concern for Alice. The momentary dark cloud of distraction having passed over, she turned back to the hardback lined notebook she was scrawling in, bright cobalt ink flowing from the nib of her fountain pen on the weighty paper, trailing her hand across the page.
Sonny remembered receiving an email to the effect that the new program was being instituted, and had filtered the message into his “to be read” folder, but he hadn’t anticipated the level of intrigue he would associate with the arrival of the Courthouse Dogs themselves until he saw her sitting on that bench, sun beaming through the window behind her, igniting the red gold tones in her auburn hair. He had turned the corner, expertly negotiating around others en route to their own destinations, while checking his messages, and stopped in his tracks.
She reached up and threaded her fingers through her hair, tossing it a bit absentmindedly. Menthon raised his head and looked up at her, and Sonny, unequivocally blocking traffic, his phone forgotten in his hand down at his side, watched as she placed her book beside her and leaned over to scratch his head and rumple his ears. She happened to look up in that moment, and in raising her eyes met his. Generally disinclined toward acknowledging strange men, especially those staring openly, Alice made the first of innumerable exceptions to follow and smiled, her dimples appearing on her rapidly flushing cheeks. Sonny, extremely pleased with this gesture of warmth and friendliness, grinned back in return.
Just then, Olivia arrived from the opposite direction, her eyes scanning just long enough to locate the Saint Bernard and his owner/handler. She commanded such attention in her elegant prowess that Alice’s attention was immediately diverted and she looked in her direction just as Olivia asked, in confirmation,
“Alice Haversham?”
Alice rose from the bench and stepped carefully around Menthon, smartly feminine in a calf length fitted cornflower blue knit sweater dress with bishop sleeves and box pleats at the hem. Alice reached out and shook Olivia’s hand, and as they exchanged pleasantries, Sonny saw his opportunity, striding confidently over to the pair and tucking his phone away.
Olivia was crouched down, petting Menthon as Alice related some additional details about the new service.
“It’s a fantastic program, something we needed,” Olivia was saying as Sonny approached.
Alice would kick herself for how utterly ridiculously she had conducted herself in her introduction to Detective Carisi; as he stood just a few feet from her, lean and utterly dashing in his perfectly fitted and well styled three piece suit, she failed to take the initiative and put out her hand and introduce herself, and instead, with a brightness to her voice and a repeat of the same, warm, flagrant smile she had given him only a few minutes before said only “Hi.”
He grinned, again. “Hello,” and then remembered himself, putting out his hand “Detective Carisi, Manhattan SVU. Call me Sonny.”
“Alice Haversham, Courthouse Dogs Program. I’m assigned to your precinct, with priority, but we’ll be assisting throughout Manhattan when we aren’t directly engaged with SVU.”
It hadn’t been her imagination. Aside from the firmness of his handshake and the surprising tenderness associated therewith, he had indeed, unintentionally, brushed the center of her palm with his fingertips as they pulled away.
“This is Menthon,” she said, gesturing to the dog, and Olivia stepped back to allow Sonny to greet the Saint Bernard. Alice watched as he crouched down and started rubbing Menthon’s face and neck.
“Hey buddy,” Sonny said. “Beautiful dog.” He was admiring the brand new navy vest emblazoned with the New York City seal and the bold white text designating him as a civil servant.
“Thank you,” Alice said. “He’s an excellent clinician. We’re very honored to be working with SVU.” She was so taken with how enamored Sonny seemed to be with her dog that she forgot to offer him one of the many hand towels she carried in her tote bag to protect his suit from the inevitable arrival of drool.
“Alice will be coming to the station tomorrow to brief us on the services that she and her partner can offer us,” Olivia said.
Sonny looked up at her, another smile delivered in her direction.
“Looking forward to it!” he said. Menthon nudged him with the top of his massive, blocky head, demanding further attention.
“Miss Haversham!” A man’s voice called across the expanse of the hall. Sonny tried to hide his smirk. Miss, he thought. Miss. Good.
The three turned to the sound of the voice and a middle aged man waved to her, his other hand occupied in the grip of a little girl in a pale pink lightweight spring jacket, a woman following closely behind. Rafael Barba’s colleague, prosecutor Lana Shore, had wasted no time in enlisting the help of the new Courthouse Dogs program in helping her witness, Emeline Gray, six, who had watched a shooting unfold in the street below her bedroom window and was to give her testimony that day.
Alice gestured to them to come toward her, and Sonny and Olivia stepped to the side.
“We all officially start tomorrow, and Lucky the Lab is assigned to the precinct this case came from, but we were available early.” The little girl skipped over, tugging at her father’s hand to get to Menthon, sliding down onto the floor with him and putting her arms around his neck. Alice watched with pride as he gently rested his massive head on her shoulder, tucking his head ever so slightly to offer her the security of his protection.
Olivia and Sonny backed away to allow the family to interact with Alice and Menthon in preparation for the trial.
“We’ll see you tomrorow,” Olivia said quietly.
“A pleasure to meet you both,” Alice said, and diverted her attention back to the family.
As they were driven east along the northern shore of the island, the windows partly opened to admit the cool, spring air, her interactions with Sonny playing out in her mind over and over on a loop, she looked down at Menthon, who was laid out on the bench seat, his head resting on her lap.
“Menthon,” she said, getting his attention, and raised his eyes to her.
“Hi?” She said, mocking herself, looking to him for confirmation of his disbelief at her foolishness. Alice Haversham, Master of Science in Clinical Psychology, highly proficient handler and adept trauma respondent. She would make a point to make her credentials known in tomorrow’s briefing. She was aware of how bureaucrats could be dismissive or skeptical of the documented benefits of animals in trauma therapy, despite all of the research confirming how positive the impacts were proven to be. She did not necessarily fault hardened individuals who looked cynically upon something that may seem as trivial and frivolous as ‘petting a dog,’ as she had heard it referred to, but she was frustrated by the opposition that she had occasionally been given when she had gone to bat for it as a necessary service. Thankfully, she was assigned to SVU, where, she was certain, the particular brand of assistance offered by a canine clinician like Menthon would be appreciated, based on the delicate nuances of interacting with and serving special victims.
She rolled the window down further, breathing deeply of the briny sea air.
“Hi,” she said again, shaking her head and laughing to herself.
#sonny carisi#svu#detective carisi#dominick carisi#detective sonny carisi#law and order svu#carisi#sonny carisi fic
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While the Walt Disney World Resort is preparing to celebrate its 50th anniversary with “The World’s Most Magical Celebration,” new changes and additions are coming to the resort!
New Walt Disney World Annual Pass Options
The Walt Disney World Resort Annual Passholders program will return on September 8th with four new Annual Pass options, ranging in price from $399 to $1299 plus tax.
These new passes allow holders to hold more park reservations, customize passes by adding water parks and Disney PhotoPass and continue to offer benefits such as Park Hopper, standard theme park parking, and discounts on merchandise and dining.
To enter a theme park, each Passholder must have a theme park reservation in addition to a valid pass. Park reservations are limited and are subject to availability and applicable pass blockout dates.
These new Walt Disney World Annual Passes are available online and in-person, with monthly payment plans available for Florida Residents with valid ID.
Disney Genie Debuts
Disney Genie, a complimentary and convenient new digital service designed to create your best Disney day, will launch at the Walt Disney World Resort this fall.
Built right into the My Disney Experience app, the Disney Genie service will create an itinerary designed to maximize the Magic you can create during a day in the park. Each personalized plan includes the best time to visit specific attractions, foodie experiences, and entertainment, to general interests like Disney princesses, villains, Pixar, Star Wars, thrill rides, and more.
With the launch of Disney Genie, the FASTPASS and FastPass+ services will be retired to create two new options.
Disney Genie+ service, available for purchase at $15 per ticket per day at Walt Disney World Resort, will let guests choose the next available time to arrive at select attractions and experiences using the Lightning Lane entrance. Disney Genie+ will also include Disney parks-themed audio experiences and photo features to capture your memories with augmented reality lenses.
Individual attraction selections, available for purchase on a per ride and per person sliding scale, allows guests to arrive at up to two highly demanded attractions each day using the Lightning Lane entrance. Attractions included for individual selection include the likes of Seven Dwarfs Mine Train at Magic Kingdom Park and Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and these individual attraction selections will not be not included with Disney Genie+.
Disney Enchantment lights up the Magic Kingdom
“Disney Enchantment,” an all-new nighttime spectacular, will debut in Magic Kingdom Park on October 1, and new details have been announced.
This all-new spectacular will feature captivating Disney music, enhanced lighting, immersive projection effects that extend for the first time down Main Street, U.S.A., and an original song, entitled “You Are the Magic,” by seven-time GRAMMY-winner Philip Lawrence.
In “Disney Enchantment,” audiences will join dreamers like Tiana, Miguel, Rapunzel, and brothers Ian & Barley from “Onward” as they embark on an incredible journey with adventurers such as Moana, Raya, and Judy Hopps. Joe Gardner from Disney and Pixar’s “Soul” goes into “the zone” to discover a whimsical world inspired by the style of legendary Disney artist Mary Blair. And beloved characters from classic stories like “Beauty and the Beast” and “Alice in Wonderland” to contemporary tales including “Luca” and “Wreck-It Ralph” join the adventure. Everything builds to Tinker Bell taking flight, spreading shimmering gold pixie dust, and empowering everyone to believe in themselves and the ‘magic all around us.’
“Since opening day in 1971, dazzling fireworks shows have provided that perfect exclamation point at the end of a fantastic day at Magic Kingdom Park,” said Mark Renfrow, Show Director, Disney Live Entertainment. “From ‘Fantasy in the Sky’ and ‘Wishes’ to holiday spectaculars and ‘Happily Ever After,’ each new show has raised the bar, and the best is yet to come! I can’t wait for everyone to see what we’re creating with ‘Disney Enchantment.'”
Characters Soar at Disney’s Animal Kingdom
At Disney’s Animal Kingdom, “Disney KiteTails” takes the magic of nature and Disney storytelling to new heights in the Discovery River Amphitheater, near Dinoland U.S.A. beginning October 1, 2021.
The show’s original, worldbeat arrangements of favorite Disney tunes will fill the air, and a show of three-dimensional kites depicting familiar characters from “The Lion King” or “The Jungle Book” will soar above the water. “Disney KiteTails” takes place several times a day. word
New Restaurant Opens at EPCOT
It was announced that the Space 220 restaurant, located adjacent to the Mission: SPACE attraction, will open on September 20, 2021.
This immersive and highly themed dining experience is out of this world!
Guests board two “Space Elevators” that will transport them 220 miles above Earth to the Centauri Space Station to experience amazing views and culinary masterpieces from Executive Chef Marc Kusche. The Space 220 restaurant’s upscale, contemporary fare menu includes a two-course prix fixe menu for lunch and a three-course prix fixe menu for dinner.
You can find even more news and fun by following @onthegoinmco on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube!
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2:00PM Water Cooler 7/29/2019
Digital Elixir 2:00PM Water Cooler 7/29/2019
By Lambert Strether of Corrente
Politics
“But what is government itself, but the greatest of all reflections on human nature?” –James Madison, Federalist 51
“They had one weapon left and both knew it: treachery.” –Frank Herbert, Dune
“2020 Democratic Presidential Nomination” [RealClearPolitics] (average of five polls). As of July 25: Biden up at 29.3% (28.6), Sanders flat at 15.0% (15.0%), Warren down at 14.5% (15.0%), Buttigieg flat at 5.0% (5.0%), Harris down 11.8% (12.2%), others Brownian motion. Harris reminds me of Clinton, in that her numbers are like a hot air balloon, which sinks unless air is pumped into it.
* * *
2020
Biden (D)(1): “Biden’s Medicare Lie” [Jacobin]. “Speaking at a forum sponsored by the American Association of Retired Persons in Iowa earlier this month, Joe Biden fearmongered about Medicare for All. ‘Medicare goes away as you know it,’ said Biden. Under Bernie Sanders’s plan, ‘All the Medicare you have is gone.’… It’s clever politics, but it’s a total lie. Medicare for All does exactly what it says in the name: it extends the benefits associated with Medicare to the rest of the population…. Medicare for All would effectively be a Social Security income boost of thousands of dollars per year to seniors. It accomplishes this by eliminating all co-pays, premiums, and deductibles; by covering all long-term care costs for seniors; and by capping prescription drug costs at $200 a year…. All told, the US government only pays for 65 percent of seniors’ medical spending right now. Medicare for All would make that nearly 100 percent.” • 65%? Yikes. That’s a rip-off!
Delaney (D)(1): “Delaney proposes ambitious mandatory national service plan” [CNN]. “Several 2020 candidates, including Massachusetts Rep. Seth Moulton, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, and South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg have proposed national service initiatives tied to college tuition or job training, but Delaney’s ambitious proposal, which would provide up to three years of free college tuition for those who participate in public service projects, is the first to mandate youth participation in service…. [I]nstead of offering voluntary service, it would be compulsory for all Americans upon high school graduation or upon turning 18. The proposal would apply only to those born after 2006, and would phase in over time, according to the campaign. The plan would provide two years of free tuition at a public college or university, and three years of tuition for those who extended their national service year to two years. Tuition could also be applied to vocational or technical training, the Delaney campaign told reporters.” • Who asked for this?
Harris (D)(1): “Kamala Harris Unveils ‘Medicare For All’ Plan That Preserves Private Insurance” [Bloomberg]. “Under her proposal, Americans could opt for Medicare Advantage, a program that allows beneficiaries to get coverage from a private insurer. Harris’s plan would put all Americans into Medicare over a 10-year transition period while allowing the participation of private insurance plans under a set of rules.” • Harris seems more than a little nimble in her positioning:
In which Jake asks Kamala Harris whether people would be able to keep their private insurance, if they prefer, under Medicare For All system — and she rejects that. "Let's eliminate all of that. Let's move on." pic.twitter.com/A1AY2TOT4g
— Rebecca Buck (@RebeccaBuck) January 29, 2019
Harris has also put herself on the same side as Trump:
Here’s Trump official @SeemaCMS last week bashing Medicare for All and public option – essentially Bernie and Biden plans – as “largest threats” to US health care.
But in same speech, praising Medicare Advantage as model. pic.twitter.com/VFKcbEL4lc
— Dan Diamond (@ddiamond) July 29, 2019
Perhaps that was the goal. Both Delaney and Harris seem to be sending messages to donors, not voters.
Sanders (D)(4):
On the Bern App profile page, under religion, there are many religions listed but NOT Eastern Orthodox. That will be a problem. Especially in Alaska. @fshakir
— Alice Marshall (@PrestoVivace) July 28, 2019
* * *
“Democratic 2020 race up for grabs: Half of voters have changed their minds since spring, poll shows” [Politico]. “The volatility has a limit, however. The vast majority of voters who switched since April moved among the top four candidates or between them and undecided status. The mass of candidates languishing at 1% or lower hasn’t benefited.” • No Trump-like breakout figure on the Democrat side so far.
“DCCC in ‘complete chaos’ as uproar over diversity intensifies” [Politico (RH)]. “POLITICO reported last week that black and Hispanic lawmakers are furious with Bustos’ stewardship of the campaign arm. They say the upper echelon of the DCCC is bereft of diversity, and it is not doing enough to reach Latino voters and hire consultants of color. In addition, several of Bustos’ senior aides have left in the first six months of her tenure, including her chief of staff — a black woman — and her director of mail and polling director, both women.” • In other words, DCCC should become more like the Sanders campaign?
2019
“Pelosi backers feel vindicated after tumultuous stretch” [The Hill]. “Part of Pelosi’s strategy in the first seven months of the new Congress has been to protect vulnerable centrists like O’Halleran and freshman Reps. Abigail Spanberger (D-Va.), Max Rose (D-N.Y.) and Joe Cunningham (D-S.C.) — the so-called majority-makers — whom Republicans will be targeting in 2020 in a bid to retake the House.” • (Spanberger and Rose are MILOs; all three are Blue Dogs. We’ll see how Pelosi’s DINO strategy works out, I guess.
Realignment and Legitimacy
“The Ultra-Rich Are Ultra-Conservative” [Jacobin]. “Billionaires are a politically active bunch…. Between 2001 and the end of 2012, 92 percent of the country’s hundred richest billionaires (combined wealth: $2.2 trillion) contributed to a political cause…. Yet they’re also eerily quiet…. As the trio of political scientists write, ‘many or most billionaires appear to favor, and quietly work for, policies that are opposed by large majorities of Americans’.” • Well worth a read. Since it would be irresponsible not to speculate, what if the 0.1% were “eerily quiet” about being pro-Jackpot? Thinking big, as billiionaires do, and thinking bigger than relatively minor efforts like gutting Social Security.
Stats Watch
Dallas Fed Manufacturing Survey, July 2019: “Texas manufacturing activity bounced back but not as much expected in July” [Econoday]. “The survey’s demand indicators were mixed but mostly stronger…. Today’s report shows Texas manufacturing recovering in July from June’s slide more strongly than the headline suggests, and will probably not strengthen the case for more accommodation by the Fed.”
Shipping: “Carriers across the sector are throttling back profit projections for 2019 as they wrestle with the hangover from last year’s freight boom” [Wall Street Journal]. “Freight demand isn’t far off last year’s high levels, but rates have been sinking. Measures of spot-pricing for truckload business are down by double digits from last year, and customers are cutting shipping costs rather than looking for trucks.”
The Bezzle: “California steers toward a future of self-driving cars” [CalMatters]. “The future can be glimpsed at a former Navy base near the Bay Area city of Concord, converted to the nation’s largest autonomous-vehicle proving ground where computer-driven cars are let off their leashes and are free to roam across 2,100 acres. The facility, GoMentum Station, run by the American Automobile Association, is an innovation hive where Silicon Valley marries its futuristic vision to the automobile industry’s traditional know-how. • OK… More: “But it’s a significant step from allowing testing of automated cars in protected, supervised settings to unleashing them solo on the road, which experts say remains on a far horizon. There is much to be perfected: how best to turn left in traffic, for example, a maneuver that bedevils many human drivers.” • Wait. After many billions, we don’t have an algo to turn left in traffic?
Rapture Index: Closes down one on Israel. “Israel Has been generally quiet the past few weeks.” [Rapture Ready]. Record High, October 10, 2016: 189. Current: 183. Remember that bringing on the rapture is a good thing.
The Biosphere
“Coase, Hotelling and Pigou: The Incidence of o Carbon Tax and CO2 Emissions” [Geoffrey Heal, Wolfram Schlenker NBER Working Paper 26086]. “Using data from a large proprietary database of field-level oil data, we show that carbon prices even as high as 200 dollars per ton of CO2 will only reduce cumulative emissions from oil by 4% as the supply curve is very steep for high oil prices and few reserves drop out. The supply curve flattens out for lower price, and the effect of an increased carbon tax becomes larger. For example, a carbon price of 600 dollars would reduce cumulative emissions by 60%. On the flip side, a global cap and trade system that limits global extraction by a modest amount like 4% expropriates a large fraction of scarcity rents and would imply a high permit price of $200. The tax incidence varies over time: initially, about 75% of the carbon price will be passed on to consumers, but this share declines through time and even becomes negative as oil prices will drop in future years relative to a case of no carbon tax. The net present value of producer and consumer surplus decrease by roughly equal amounts, which are almost entirely offset by increased tax revenues.” •
“Even a summer heat wave can’t light up fading natural gas prices. Some of the country’s largest natural gas producers are tearing up their drilling plans…. as natural-gas futures tumble to multiyear lows just as the calendar and the climate suggest rates should be rising” [Wall Street Journal]. “Producers point to the Permian Basin in West Texas, where oil producers are unleashing vast volumes of gas as a byproduct of drilling for crude. That’s offsetting high demand from utilities that are shifting from coal to gas, and even all-time high exports to Mexico and other overseas markets. Natural gas has been so plentiful in West Texas at times this year that the price has turned negative, meaning that producers have to pay pipeline operators more to deliver gas to market than what the fuel fetches once it reaches buyers.
“Deforestation in the Amazon is shooting up, but Brazil’s president calls the data ‘a lie’” [Science]. “Deforestation is shooting up again in the Brazilian Amazon, according to satellite monitoring data. But Brazil’s far-right president, Jair Bolsonaro, whom many blame for the uptick, has disputed the trend and attacked the credibility of Brazil’s National Institute for Space Research (INPE), which produced the data. Bolsonaro called the numbers ‘a lie’ during a 19 July breakfast talk with journalists, and suggested INPE Director Ricardo Galvão was ‘at the service of some [nongovernmental organization].’ ‘With all the devastation you accuse us of doing and having done in the past, the Amazon would be extinguished already,’ he said.” • Hmm. “[S]ome [nongovernmental organization]”?
“Climate Change in a Coastal County: Think Global, Act Hyperlocal” [Pew Trusts Stateline]. “[T]oday, sea level rise in Dare County [Virginia] is among the most precipitous in the nation, an average 0.18 inches a year in some parts, enough that scientists come from around the world to study the land… The resilience projects will carry the community only so far. Beach nourishment, for example, typically lasts five to seven years — though a single hurricane this fall could wipe out all the millions of dollars of new sand laid this summer. At some point, Nags Head and other Dare County communities will hit a tipping point and decide the return isn’t worth the investment. ‘I don’t know when that day is,’ said [Mayor Ben Cahoon, a Republican], the mayor. ‘But it’s out there.’ When that happens, [Reide Corbett, a coastal oceanographer and geochemist] said, communities will have to approach a final step in coastal resilience: retreat. Just move folks inland and out of danger entirely.”
Games
“Why the ending of Game of Thrones elevated the worst of fan culture” [Vox]. “‘Curatorial fandom’ is a general term for the area of geek culture that emphasizes amassing as much canonical knowledge as possible, no matter how minute… The other side of fandom is “transformative fandom.” If curatorial fandom is about enshrining an authorial version of canon, transformative fandom is about changing it. Transformative fandom is centered on fanworks, like fanfiction, fan art, or fan critique, all of which use the source text as the jumping-off point for original interpretations. The idea of “transformative fandom” is a core concept of fanworks-based fandom because transformativity is part of the legal framework that protects fanfiction (i.e. it’s a “transformative work”)….. Bran embodies the stereotype of a fannish geek who spends his entire day sitting surfing the internet…. Bran is a human database of facts and knowledge that he acquired from ‘reading’ the history/canon presented to him through his nebulous abilities as the Three-Eyed Raven. Not only that, but his first official act as king was to essentially go gaming in search of Drogon the dragon, while Tyrion and the small council were left to run the kingdom. These characteristics and behaviors make Bran easy to read as an avatar for curatorial fandom.” • Fandom is alien territory to me, but this certainly sounds plausible.
Health Care
“Turning 26 Is A Potential Death Sentence For People With Type 1 Diabetes In America” [Buzzfeed]. “Laverty faces a health care problem unique to many millennials with Type 1 diabetes who’ve been booted off their parents’ stable health insurance. The price of insulin, the drug that keeps them alive, tripled in the US from 2002 to 2013 — and a recent study found that, from 2012 to 2016, its average annual cost increased from $3,200 to $5,900…. That’s an impossible price tag for a generation still feeling the effects of the 2008 financial crisis and saddled with massive student loan debt and increasing housing costs. Studies show that US millennials are far worse off financially than previous generations, with an average net worth below $8,000. The result is that these young adults are rationing, stockpiling, and turning to the black market for the medication they need to stay alive — incredibly risky and desperate measures that could result in long-term harm or death.” • So Obama’s much-beloved policy of letting adult children stay on their parents’ policies until the random age of 26 — why not 25? of 27? — turns out to be an ancien regime-like added layer of complexity that fails the people who need it most. Everything’s going according to plan!
People love their health insurance companies:
Dear Blue Cross Blue Shield, Thank you for your help during this difficult time. pic.twitter.com/HV017ntjQC
— Nate Charny (@natecharny) July 19, 2019
An ObamaCare navigator speaks:
When I got a job as an ACA 'navigator' to help people who'd never had it sign up for & use health insurance, and the vast majority of them (myself included) could only afford the lowest-tier, most bare bones plans. Just disappointing people all day long.
— erik (@erikdstock) May 5, 2019
The “When did you become radicalized by the U.S. health care non-system?” is an important archive of horror stories.
Neera’s plan (Medicare Extra):
Therapist: And what do we do when the Center for American Progress keeps pushing a healthcare plan that would still cost people up to $1500?
Me: Point out how offensive it is to call that “progress” when most Americans don’t have even $1000 for emergencies
Therapist: Wow yeah
— DSA for Medicare for All (@dsam4a) July 23, 2019
“Judge OKs Trump’s expansion of short-term plans” [Modern Health Care]. “A federal judge on Friday ruled the Trump administration’s expansion of so-called short-term, limited-duration health insurance plans can move ahead, rejecting an insurer group’s attempt to strike down the move. The plaintiff, the Association for Community Affiliated Plans, immediately said it will appeal. The group represents not-for-profit health plans deeply invested in the Affordable Care Act exchanges…. The rule, finalized in August 2018 and in effect since early October 2018, allows up to 12 months of coverage through short-term plans. People can renew this coverage for up to 36 months. The plans don’t have to cover people with pre-existing conditions, nor are they subject to the ACA’s mandates such as coverage for the 10 essential benefits, includinge mental healthcare, maternity care and prescription drugs.”
“The Effects on Hospital Utilization of the 1966 and 2014 Health Insurance Coverage Expansions in the United States” [Annals of Internal Medicine]. From the abstract: “Past coverage expansions were associated with little or no change in society-wide hospital use; increases in groups who gained coverage were offset by reductions among others, suggesting that bed supply limited increases in use. Reducing coverage may merely shift care toward wealthier and healthier persons. Conversely, universal coverage is unlikely to cause a surge in hospital use if growth in hospital capacity is carefully constrained.”
“Blue-Collar Workers Had Greatest Insurance Gains After ACA Implementation” [Health Affairs]. From the abstract: “Analyzing national survey data, we found that workers in traditionally blue-collar industries (service jobs, farming, construction, and transportation) experienced the largest gains in health insurance after implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in 2014. Compared to other occupations, these had lower employer-based coverage rates before the ACA. Most of the post-ACA coverage gains came from Medicaid and directly purchased nongroup insurance.”
“Health websites are notoriously misleading. So we rated their reliability” [STAT News]. “NewsGuard was co-founded last year by journalist and entrepreneur Steven Brill (known in part for his health care reporting) and former Wall Street Journal publisher Gordon Crovitz. In rating news and information sites in the U.S., Italy, U.K., France, and Germany, it has discovered a diverse spectrum of health sites. These range from green-rated peer-reviewed medical journals such as the New England Journal of Medicine to hundreds of red-rated conspiracy-minded sites such as NaturalNews.com and Collective-Evolution.com…. This plague of health misinformation comes in many fevers, from the seemingly innocuous (there is no solid evidence behind the idea that Epsom salt baths heal sore muscles) to the potentially dangerous (if you take amygdalin, vitamin B17, or laetrile, different names for the same long-debunked “cancer cure” made from fruit pits, you can experience side effects that mirror the symptoms of cyanide poisoning).”
Our Famously Free Press
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette boss J.R. Block sounds like a real piece of work. Thread:
Since it’s out there, next week will be my last at the Post-Gazette. It’s been a privilege to work with talented journalists who have covered intensely challenging stories (the Tree of Life massacre, local fallout from Catholic clergy sex abuse, Antwon Rose) with humanity. (1/) https://t.co/BhmFEatJgW
— Trevor Lenzmeier (@trevlenz) July 27, 2019
Police State Watch
“Lafayette public defender found in contempt after filming duct taping of defendant” [Acadiana Advocate]. “[Michael Gregory, a] Lafayette public defender was found in contempt of court Friday after filming a bailiff duct taping a defendant during a sentencing hearing July 18…. [Amanda Koons, a public defender in the Harris County Public Defender’s Office in Houston said] she’s never seen physical force like what occurred July 18. She said duct taping someone isn’t appropriate or humane, especially when the option to temporarily remove the defendant from the courtroom exists.” • Plus, they had the duct tape handy. I don’t imagine they drove to a hardware store to get some.
Black Injustice Tipping Point
A walking tour of Charlottesville’s monuments (mostly Confederate); thread:
Saturday, July 27, 8:30 am (when it's cool!): Dr. Andrea Douglas of @JSAAHC & I will lead a walking tour of #Charlottesville's downtown Confederate monuments & the newly-installed @eji_org historical plaque for lynching victim John Henry James. Meet at courthouse on Jefferson St. pic.twitter.com/EmGxeT75ak
— Jalane Smash the Fash Schmidt
(@Jalane_Schmidt) July 24, 2019
Guillotine Watch
“Cosmopolitan”:
Jeffrey Epstein was Cosmo magazines' July Bachelor of the Month, in 1980 pic.twitter.com/aAsCDzwWJq
— Historic.ly (@historic_ly) July 29, 2019
News of the Wired
Speaking of collapse:
Why not “dark ages”? Why Late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages matter? This is an experiment trying to argue for it in 10 tweets (w/footnotes). It is subjective, but hopefully balanced. Not meant to replace, but to inspire other (twitter) takes on the subject. A thread. (a) 1/ pic.twitter.com/FmH31TysPh
— Mateusz Fafinski (@Calthalas) July 8, 2019
“Another side of Samuel Beckett” [Guardian]. • A long read on Beckett’s life. Well worth a read and might expand his fan base!
“Tokyo subway’s humble duct-tape typographer” [Medium]. “Sixty-five year old Sato san wears a crisp canary yellow uniform, reflective vest and polished white helmet. His job is to guide rush hour commuters through confusing and hazardous construction areas. When Sato san realised he needed more than his megaphone to perform this duty, he took it upon himself to make some temporary signage. With a few rolls of of duct tape and a craft knife, he has elevated the humble worksite sign to an art form…. Sato san’s purpose is simple: he strives to make life better for the millions of commuters who negotiate station construction sites. His unassuming dedication to craft and service embodies the best side of the Japanese approach to work.”
“Grasshoppers invade Las Vegas thanks to Luxor hotel light beam” [Yahoo News]. • Nature’s buffet!
* * *
Readers, feel free to contact me at lambert [UNDERSCORE] strether [DOT] corrente [AT] yahoo [DOT] com, with (a) links, and even better (b) sources I should curate regularly, (c) how to send me a check if you are allergic to PayPal, and (d) to find out how to send me images of plants. Vegetables are fine! Fungi are deemed to be honorary plants! If you want your handle to appear as a credit, please place it at the start of your mail in parentheses: (thus). Otherwise, I will anonymize by using your initials. See the previous Water Cooler (with plant) here. Today’s plant (JN):
* * *
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2:00PM Water Cooler 7/29/2019
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Zone Ex - what new legislation means for events
Photo by Ezra Comeau-Jeffrey at Unsplash
The events industry does not exist within a bubble. Major events intrinsically effect the community around them, including having an impact on services such as transport and policing. As event organisers, it’s important to consider these impacts to ensure both minimal negative impacts to the community and ensure the safety and comfort of your attendees throughout their entire event experience, from the moment they purchase their ticket, to the moment they step out of the taxi as they arrive back home (see my previous blog on the importance of looking at the ‘bit’s in between’ when planning an event[1]). However, how far outside of the venue does financial and statutory responsibility extend for an event organiser, and what effects can different interpretations of this have on the events industry?
In March, I had the pleasure of attending EventIt[2] at the Glasgow SECC, the annual showcase for event industry professionals in Scotland. I watched the panel discussion ‘A level and fair playing field for the national supply chain’ which was chaired by Tom Clements, Chairman of NOEA Scotland (the National Outdoor Events Association) and featured panellists Derry Morrice (Health and Safety officer for the Scottish Rugby Union), Martin Dare (Conference, Public Events and Trade Exhibitions producer from Rural Projects) and Superintendent Jim Royan (Police Scotland).
The discussion was centred around the differences in producing events across different council jurisdictions, and the group found themselves discussing the new ‘Zone Ex’ guidelines, published within the 6th edition of “The Green Guide”, which was released in October last year.
The Green Guide is The UK’s Guide to Safety at Sports Grounds, similar to the Purple Guide for music events and festivals. The Green Guide (as is the Purple Guide) is a statutory instrument, and is used by council authorities to govern best practice for sports event management, and carries legal weight[3]. The panel were unified in the assumption that similar Zone Ex guidelines would likely be rolled out across the wider events industry in due course, and as such, the implications of the new guidelines are of interest to the wider event industry. The entertainment may be different, but the principals used to manage the arrival and departure of a large audience from your venue, be it a football ground or festival site, are fundamentally the same.
So what is Zone Ex?
The Zone Ex guidelines refer to the ‘external zone’ outside a sports venue, and relates to how far beyond a sports ground an ‘event’ and the venues accountability extends. The policy replaces the previous ‘Last Mile’ guidance (which sets accountability at 1 mile outside the venue). It places on an event organiser or venue a level of responsibility for not only what happens inside their venue, but the (somewhat more ambiguous) ‘final stages’ of the journey that attendees make on their way to the event. It encompasses the main pedestrian and vehicle routes that are adjacent to the venue, such as public car parks, local train stations and bus stops[4]. While the guidelines have been developed with the intention of improving public safety (given the increase in terrorist attacks on large event crowds), it does in part come down to a discussion of cost recovery.
Tom Clements (on behalf of the NOEA) has raised concerns that some of the guidance around the new Zone Ex could be open to different interpretation by different local authorities, and could see a vast increase the size of the area for which event owners are responsible. Clements said in a recent article, “It could end up with event organisers bearing responsibility for stewarding, security and even rubbish clearance miles and miles down the road.” [5]
For example, the panel discussed a case where a sports venue was asked to pay for additional cleaning services at a local tube station, due to the increased foot-fall of persons going through that station to get to the venue. Is this a fair charge to levy at the feet of the event organiser? Well, as the panel argued, the station itself is benefitting from the increased footfall as more people are paying to travel on their services. Should the costs they’re charging the attendees to travel on their services not cover this?
The panel concluded that it’s necessary to look at what is a reasonable partnership. There has to be recognition of both the cost implications of the event on the surrounding area, and the economic boost, as trains, buses, hotels and pubs find themselves full of visitors that would not otherwise be in the city. Cities economically benefit from large events, and this cannot be disregarded. Putting the onus on event organisers to pay for every impact their event has across a city has the potential to make events unprofitable to host. This would be detrimental to not only the event organisers, venues and would-be attendees, but the city itself.
Geoff Ellis, CEO of DF Concerts & Events, has also recently spoken out against plans by Glasgow council to re-coup additional costs from events via a new tax. Glasgow Council officials have recently voted in favour of a ticket levy on all big outdoor entertainment events, that would add an extra £2.50 onto each ticket[6], with a view to re-coup more of the costs for re-instating the city’s green spaces after their use for large outdoor events. The levy is estimated to bring in an additional £650,000 a year from events to the council[7].
As organisers of both The Summer Sessions and TRNSMT Festival, which take place on Glasgow Green (a large green space within Glasgow city centre), Geoff argues that such a levy is a step too far, in light of the maintenance sums they already pay to use the space. He argues that it would force ticket sales to rise above acceptable levels[8]. “If this tax goes ahead at the proposed levels, it will see less major events in Glasgow and the loss of tens of millions of pounds to the Glasgow economy which TRNSMT and Glasgow Summer Sessions alone brings… To pull in around 250,000 visitors to Glasgow as TRNSMT and Glasgow Summer Sessions will do this summer requires tickets to be priced for mass affordability - not just aimed at the small number of people who can afford higher ticket prices.”[9]
Costs for policing were also discussed at the panel. While there was unanimous agreement that there is a role for the Police to play at major events, a role that cannot be fulfilled by stewards (such as dealing with criminality and traffic), the costs event organisers are asked to contribute to policing are seen to vary dramatically across the country. Jim Royan (Police Scotland) recognised that there are inconsistencies, and spoke about the measures they are taking to address this. For example, they are reviewing their procedures currently used for cost recovery from events across the country. As part of this, they are also training specialist Event Commanders within the police force, with a view to creating more uniform understanding of what their role is in relation to major events, how they should be deploying their staff, and what costs they should be charging for. Specifically, he expressed that the police should not be dictating what the policing profile should look like, but reviewing the event organisers plans on how they will manage it without the need for police intervention, and from there, looking at what gaps they see fit to fill.
Brigadier Allfrey, Producer & Chief Executive of The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo, called for a rethink of the way police costs are calculated during a panel at EventIt in 2017. By the same token, Brigadier Allfrey has expressed concerns that increased costs being placed on the shoulders of event organisers can have a detrimental effect to economic growth. “We all need to grow. The problem that’s happening at the moment is that almost all events and festivals have got anti-growth being built into their budget share. There are many, many costs over which you cannot control and what that is doing it is suppressing growth, which is counter-intuitive when you want your economy to grow.”[10]
The event industry is an important part of the UK’s economy, especially event tourism in Scotland. As council’s budgets are put under more pressure than ever, it’s a balancing act to promote growth while managing costs. However, the overwhelming advice was to work with your council, community, and event policing teams, and it’s only through a sense of partnership, shared responsibility, and shared benefit, that all parties can hope to meet their objectives.
Alice Hunt / @MrsAliceHunt
Got an event you need help with? Give us a shout.
[1] http://wmshappen.tumblr.com/post/168321606939/scotland-events-and-a-little-piece-of-dreaming
[2] https://www.eventit.org.uk/
[3] https://movementstrategies.com/news/movement-strategies-has-contributed-to-the-latest-edition-of-the-green-guide
[4] https://sgsa.org.uk/guidance/zone-ex/
[5] http://eventsbase.co.uk/noea-scotland-raises-concerns-over-new-zone-ex-event-guidelines/
[6] https://www.eventindustrynews.com/news/trnsmts-geoff-ellis-pushes-back-over-new-tax-proposals
[7] https://www.eventindustrynews.com/news/trnsmts-geoff-ellis-pushes-back-over-new-tax-proposals
[8] https://www.eventindustrynews.com/news/trnsmts-geoff-ellis-pushes-back-over-new-tax-proposals
[9] https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6520755479847800832/
[10] http://eventsbase.co.uk/police-charging-debate-sparks-call-policy-change/
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The Chase Files Daily Newscap 4/24/2018
Good MORNING #realdreamchasers! Here is The Chase Files Daily News Cap for Wednesday 24th April 2019. Remember you can read full articles for FREE via Barbados Today (BT) or Barbados Government Information Services (BGIS) OR by purchasing by purchasing a Midweek Nation Newspaper (MWN).
UPGRADES – Barbados will need about $160 million in upgrades and repairs to aging and inefficient infrastructure and outdated regulations and tariffs, according to an Inter-American Development (IDB) report. Roads, bridges, ports, water and sanitation, energy and telecommunications were reviewed in the IDB’s latest infrastructure report on Barbados which said “aging infrastructure, outdated regulations and tariffs, and inefficient infrastructure use represent key challenges”. But Government’s investment in infrastructure has been declining to an average of around two per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) between 2014 and 2018, “markedly lower than the five per cent level recorded during the pre-crisis years of 2000 and 2008”, the IDB said. The country was ranked 30th among 138 countries in the 2016/2017 Global Competitiveness Report (GCR) Quality Infrastructure Index, topping the Caribbean region. But this position was eight lower than in 2012/2013. The report, which examined data up to 2018, said while Barbados had some of the highest road density levels in Latin America and the Caribbean, most of the road network was at least 20 years old and in need of repair, maintenance and upgrading to accommodate the large increase in motor vehicles in recent years. The IDB said: “The cost of upgrading the public transportation system and undertaking essential road and bridge repairs is estimated to be US$30 million (0.6 per cent of GDP).” It pointed out that the island’s lone airport struggles with aging and weakening infrastructure and inadequate capacity. The report also pointed to other inefficiencies in transport, singling out the Bridgetown Port, where it said those inefficiencies made exporting “slower and more expensive despite high quality infrastructure, nautical access and availability of equipment”. The IDB insisted that economic growth in Latin American and Caribbean was sharply impacted by the failure to invest in infrastructure, adding that the cost rises over time. So far, Government has received a promised $200 million from the IDB and $150 million from the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) in support of its Barbados Economic Recovery and Transformation (BERT) programme, which includes modernisation of processes and infrastructure upgrades. Government is also in line for a further $80.8 million infrastructure loan from the CDB to carry out upgrades to the airport, and has also indicated that it would be seeking another loan from the IDB to accelerate modernisation plans. The IDB report also reviewed the country’s energy sector, declaring that the regulatory framework and market design did not adequately accommodate renewable energy and possibly lower electricity prices. “Tariff reviews, moreover, are infrequently undertaken. For instance, the most recent tariff review for the [Barbados] Light and Power Company and for the Barbados Water Authority (BWA) took place in 2009,” said the bank. In water and sanitation, the IDB said the island had a weak centralised sanitation system, pointing to the persistent sewage leakages on the south coast in recent years. The IDB report said: “Estimates suggest a cumulative cost of US$38.5 million (0.8 per cent of GDP) is required to address the challenges in the south coast sewage system, whereas fixing the south coast and Bridgetown sewage plants will have an immediate remedial cost of an estimated US$11 million (0.2 per cent of GDP).” The development Bank added that in the water sector, there were institutional challenges “including the fact that the BWA lacks authority to set its own tariff structures, which are insufficient to cover the operating costs, afford capital expenditures, and service its debt”. In telecommunications, the IDB said despite Barbados’ comparatively extensive infrastructure and information and communication technology service coverage, low levels of ICT development, adoption and use prevail in both the public and private sectors. The IDB said: “Overall, Barbados’ infrastructure stock has good coverage and quality. The latter, however, is deteriorating. At the same time, greater operational and maintenance spending and investment will be challenging in the current fiscal environment. “Developing alternative financing arrangements, such as public private partnerships (PPPs), can support resilient infrastructure financing.” It suggested a promotion of more sustainable financing mechanisms for road, promotion of greater competition in key markets including telecommunications, adding that greater private sector participation could be an alternative for long-term maintenance and rehabilitation of road contracts. The IDB reasoned that such measures would have significant implications for household and business costs and positive effects on the current account balance, the environment. The IDB recommended a more robust public/private sector partnership framework to overcome the island’s infrastructure challenges, while acknowledging that the Public Procurement Bill showed Government’s intention to explicitly consider PPPs under the procurement law. The bank said it was aware that Government considered infrastructure a key priority for the country’s medium- term development, pointing to plans to reduce reliance on fossil fuel, combat climate change and upgrade and modernise infrastructure. The Washington-based hemispheric lender released its Macroeconomic Report last week, pointing out that economic growth for Latin America and the Caribbean could fall to a disappointing 0.8 per cent, due mainly to factors such as the US and China trade dispute, a rise in US interest rates, changes in oil prices and uncertainties relating to the UK’s exit from the European Union (Brexit). (BT)
THUMBS UP – So far, so good is how commuters who use the Fairchild Street Bus Terminal have described the ongoing renovations and improvements. A week after Prime Minister Mia Mottley ordered an immediate cleanup of the island’s bus stations, passengers have expressed satisfaction with the work which has been done so far. Major industrial cleaning began at the three terminals in Fairchild Street, Princess Alice and Speightstown last Thursday. When Barbados TODAY visited the main terminal at Fairchild Street this afternoon, workers were busy cleaning the women’s bathroom. Beverley Franklyn, who uses the terminal at least three times a week told Barbados TODAY the building looked and smelled cleaner than usual. “It does look different and it smells different too, so I am satisfied with what has been done so far,” she said as she waited for either a Society or College Savannah bus. Leonard Norville said he was impressed with what he has seen so far. “The terminal is looking good, it looks clean and good. Once they are finished cleaning the entire bus stand I’m sure it will look even better,” he said. Another regular user, Leone Jones, said she had no issues with the terminal. “It’s beautiful all the time,” was her brief response. A middle-aged passenger said: “The general atmosphere looks cleaner. It feels lighter, not as congested. I don’t really use the terminal that often, maybe once or twice a month, but I can still see a difference. Something has definitely happened because it even smells better,” she said. The Transport Board’s marketing and communications manager, Lynda Holder, told Barbados TODAY the improvements to the bus terminal were long overdue. She promised with further improvements scheduled to take place, the conditions of the bus terminals would be vastly improved. “We understood the concerns raised by the commuters and we apologise for not addressing it in a speedy manner as we should have, but we are working on it and it will be an ongoing process. “We started with a complete industrial cleaning at all of the locations and that will be continuing. We also started addressing the issues with the bathrooms. “We are going to make sure that the situation never gets to the point where it was at previously,” she assured. Holder said public address announcements would also be frequently issued, allowing commuters to always be up to date with the availability of buses. Last week Mottley ordered the cleanup and beautification of the island’s bus terminals after they were deemed to be in a deplorable state. Opposition Leader Bishop Joseph Atherley had also described conditions at the Fairchild Street terminal as horrible following a tour. (BT)
EMPTY HANDED – Promised gratuity advancements are yet to materialize, unemployment benefits are about to run out and creditors are beating down their door. This is the picture painted by the National Union of Public Workers (NUPW), of the plight of 83 workers retrenched from the Ministry of Transport and Works last October. It is for this reason that Acting Deputy General Secretary of the NUPW Wayne Waldron is urging Government to cut out the bureaucracy and fulfil Prime Minister Mia Mottley’s promise to advance gratuities to these temporary workers, who were retrenched after giving ten or more years of continuous service. “We have obviously been bombarded with a number of calls in recent times, but we are continuing to represent these workers. We know that there is a lot of discontentment with these workers because they owe their creditors and they have their families to feed. To make matters worse, their unemployment benefits would be finished at the end of this month and I know that these workers are in a very desperate financial situation and this is something that the union is very disturbed about,” Waldron told Barbados TODAY. The outspoken trade unionist explained that the union has written to the relevant authorities but is yet to receive a definite time for workers to receive their monies. “We are engaging the Ministry of the Civil Service on this matter and we understand that they are working on it. We are hoping that it will be resolved shortly but I can’t say if it would be a month or months, but we want this matter resolved, so that workers can get on with their lives,” he said. Last month, the NUPW expressed elation that Mottley had agreed to the union’s proposal to advance the gratuity of those workers, which would have been otherwise due at the age of retirement. However even back then Waldron had warned that the patience of the workers was wearing thin. According to the high-ranking NUPW official, the union is concerned for the well-being of this group, some of whom have expressed frustration to the point of suicide and violence. Since then, one worker took to social media to express her frustration with the slow pace of the process, which is being compounded by the bombardment of creditors. The woman said, “all like now we still owe the banks. They keep calling by your place all the time. When they call my place, I does tell them to call Mia [Mottley] and the NUPW. I was paying the NUPW for 18 years and I still ain’t get no severance pay. Right now, I am on [high blood] pressure tablets because I studying my little severance pay to go and pay off the bank like anybody else.” However, this morning Waldron urged creditors to be a little more patient as this group of workers had every right to expect security of tenure. “In the first place the Government should not have sent home these types of workers because they had a right to be appointed. They should not have been retrenched. Government should have placed these workers in other areas of the public service,” he said. Waldron added, “We are appealing to the creditors of these retrenched workers to bear with them a little longer. It is not their fault and they never anticipated after ten years with the Crown, they would be retrenched. Hopefully very soon they would get a lump sum of money to pay them.” (BT)
MP WANTS BANK CHARGES CHECKED – One Government backbencher is calling for measures to be put in place to rein in what he considers to be “aggressive” bank fees. Member of Parliament for St Michael West Central Ian Gooding-Edghill said his constituents have been bitterly complaining about the high bank fees they have to pay in order to carry out some transactions. “We have reached a point now where we have got to look at this. So I say that this aggressive level of fees and bank charges must somehow form the basis for some discussion,” said Gooding-Edghill, adding that the fees being charged are sometimes “too onerous”. “They are questioning why it is they have to pay $35 some months, why it is they have to pay $1.50 at a minimum if you don’t take an electronic statement and it is mailed to you, and if you miss and forget to insert the date [on a cheque] and it is returned you have to pay $35, and if you forget to sign the cheque it is returned and you have to pay $35. I don’t think these things are right,” insisted Gooding-Edghill. In recent years commercial banks in Barbados have announced new or increased fees for over the counter transactions, monthly charges and cashing of cheques without an account with the bank. Gooding-Edghill said while he understood banks were in the business of making money, they were already making a lot of profits off the savings of residents, and therefore the charges were questionable and required either legislation or other measures to control them. “I don’t know what is the solution. I don’t know if a private member’ bill will solve it, but I really believe that the people who sent us here sent us here to represent their interests and I believe that the time has come where we have now to start looking at this matter through meetings or whatever means or avenues we have to. We have to start looking at these things because these fees are confusing constituents . . . and are causing people a lot of stress,” he lamented. He also pointed out that while it was accepted that more business was being carried out using technology, there were still many of his constituents who did not have the resources to do so. His comments came during the debate on the Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism (Prevention Legislation) Amendment Bill in Parliament on Tuesday. Gooding-Edghill said while it was necessary for transparency when it came to politically-exposed persons, he believed the net of scrutiny should be cast wider. Insisting that he was not questioning anyone’s wealth, he said there were people of “tremendous wealth” who should be held to the same “very high standards” politicians and their families were held. “I believe it would be a good idea for this country to move to a situation where you also have unexplained wealth legislation because often times there are persons who would come to a conclusion that a person has this and a person has that,” said Gooding-Edghill, who said other Caribbean countries were currently looking at similar legislation. “I am not questioning anybody’s wealth, but I think the time has come where there is a need for such legislation in Barbados and I will leave that to the Attorney General to respond to,” he said. (BT)
‘BACKDOOR TAKEOVER’ – Minority shareholders in Cable & Wireless West Indies Ltd (CWWI), the company that trades here as Flow, is currently racing against the clock to meet a mid-July date by which to submit documentations for a pre-trial. However, despite facing several hurdles in obtaining certain documents from Cable & Wireless, the group is very confident they will be ready with a very strong case. A September date has been set for the hearing. However, before that can take place certain procedures have to be followed including the submission of evidence including an expert “witness” evaluation by July 14. At the centre of the dispute is the value of $2.86 that the company has offered per share for the issued and outstanding shares in Cable and Wireless Barbados back in July 2017, when it announced it had made a proposal by way of an amalgamation. Attorney-at-law with the law firm Lex Caribbean Bartlett Morgan said the group continued to face some challenges in obtaining critical pieces of information. “There are certain little hitches that we have to work out with the other side. There are certain documents that are very, very critical to the evaluation process, which they still, to this day, have not handed over,” Morgan told a recent minority shareholders meeting. “So we are now in the process of attempting, amicably, to get those documents,” he said. Barbados TODAY understands that if those documents are not forthcoming in coming weeks, then lawyers of the group could go the route of further court action. CWWI owns about 81 per cent of the shares in the company that has some 2,200 shareholders. Approximately 2,000 of those are considered small shareholders. However, the minority shareholders group, which consists of both individuals and companies, is made up of about 242 shareholders. It is not known how many units of shares the minority shareholder group holds, but it is understood to be in the millions. A similar case was brought against the company in Jamaica and earlier this year the Supreme Court in that jurisdiction ruled that the minority shareholders in Cable and Wireless Jamaica can keep their shares for now. Pointing to that experience, Morgan said the judgment proved that the method used by the company to acquire the shares was wrong, and he was more confident about the prospects for the minority shareholders in Barbados. “So that certainly raises our hopes even higher than they were before . . . We were confident from the jump that this entire process was wrong. It was done in haste. So we are further emboldened in our belief as we go towards trial” he said. He described the company’s move as a “backdoor takeover”, adding that it was disclosed over time that the directives regarding the acquisition of shares came “from far further up the tree than simply here in Barbados”. “We say that when Cable & Wireless acted to take back the shares of the minority shareholders, they did so in a manner which was, for all intents and purposes, oppressive. It was without due regards for the rights of the small shareholders in Cable & Wireless [Barbados],” said Morgan. (BT)
SOUTH COAST BUSINESSES COUNTING THE LOSSES – Business owners and operators on the south coast are happy that sewage is no longer flowing in the streets but they are still reeling from the massive losses they suffered from a fall-off in business due to the crisis, which plagued them for months. While patting Prime Minister Mia Mottley and her Cabinet on the back for saving them from the nightmare of a broken sewage system many of them say they are now left to put measures in place to recover from the significant financial impact. Owner of Kelly’s Kloset in Worthing, Kelly Puma said she was pleased that within a few weeks of the Barbados Labour Party (BLP) taking office in May last year, the “river of sewage”, disappeared and has not been seen since. “It has definitely improved. And it is nice not to have it running in front of my store. I had to close my business for four months from around March until the end of July. It was horrible. We had it coming up through the tiles from under the building. We had to take everything out of here. It cost me $5,000 to come in after and redo the shop; to clean it again, to paint it again, sanitise it,” she recalled. “I lost over $150,000 in business. Every single one of us along this area lost serious money and it was a very scary time because you didn’t know when it was going to be fixed or if it was going be fixed,” Puma said. The business owner said prior to the change in Government she felt as though businesses in the area were not being fed information about the issue that was affecting them directly. Not even the Barbados Water Authority (BWA) seemed to have any answers. Meanwhile, Emily Worme, the owner of Coral Sands Hotel on Worthing Beach, estimated that the “horrendous” crisis caused her to lose over $500,000 in business. Worme explained that while she did not close her doors, at one point, she had no guests at the 20-year-old hotel. She said it hurt whenever potential guests inquired whether the situation was under control and she had to tell them the truth knowing they would not come. Worme indicated that since the situation improved last year, Coral Sands has had to lower its rates to attract guests. “I am now working on getting back my people. A lot of people did not come back this year in the winter because I could not tell them if the problem would be rectified. I couldn’t say yes come it would be better. “This is the first time I have ever suffered because of sewage. I couldn’t get my mind wrapped around how Barbados with some intelligent people could let something like that come to that; watch it happen and do nothing about it for so long,” Worme said. Assistant Manager at Chicken Barn Worthing Kimmaria Codrington said the restaurant, which also had to close its doors for several months, was pleased to report that business was back to normal. “Customers are happy and staff are happy. And we reopened with a make-over, with a bang. We have a salad bar which is new to this branch and now we have customers coming more than before, so we are doing good business here at Worthing,” the Assistant Manager said. Chicken Barn employee Crotona Lorde said she felt relieved not to have to endure the terrible stench that caused her stomach ache, itchy eyes, and irritated her throat for many months. Lorde explained that workers could once again use the changing room in the basement which they had to abandon for some time, because it became filled with sewage whenever the rain fell. In February this year, Minister of Energy and Water Resources Wilfred Abrahams disclosed while giving an update on the South Coast Sewerage Project, that a state of normalcy had been achieved, and noted that a continuous maintenance of the entire sewer network was in place. (BT)
REGIONAL TOURISM WILL SUFFER FROM A LIAT CLOSURE – If the rumblings of LIAT’s imminent demise become reality, Barbados’ tourist arrival numbers could take a significant hit, warns a Government senator. This morning Chief Executive Officer of the Barbados Hotel and Tourism Association Senator Rudy Grant, says he is troubled by recent revelations by Chairman of the LIAT Shareholder governments Dr Ralph Gonsalves, who revealed countries which use the carrier services are not responding favourably to the airline’s request for US$5.4 million to ensure its survival. “LIAT is a very important carrier for Barbados and it is also a very important regional carrier. Last year Barbados received approximately 110,000 Caribbean visitors and I would imagine that a significant portion of those visitors would have been on LIAT. In fact, in 2018, the Caribbean represented the third largest source market for Barbados. So, you can see just from that basic information that LIAT significantly assists us in the development of our tourism industry,” said Grant. The BHTA head questioned why LIAT should be struggling to receive support from regional governments when the same countries already provided support to international carriers. “We also need to look at the regional importance because for many CARICOM countries, LIAT is responsible for transporting the majority of their visitors. Many of these countries provide support to their international carriers. We are talking, Virgin, British Airways, Air Canada, JetBlue,” he said noting that support for these carriers are provided by way of a minimum revenue guarantee, cooperative marketing or a combination of both. Grant also noted that the hotel sector would also feel the pinch of a LIAT grounding, especially in the months outside of the winter tourist season. He pointed to the fact that the hotel sector has recently ramped up promotions to attract visitors from the region during the off-peak periods and therefore airlift will be critical to this endeavour. “Every year we participate in a staycation programme during the summer period. Summer represents a challenging period because tourist arrival numbers are not as high. The BHTA and IHG [Intimate Hotels Group] have extended this programme to the rest of the Caribbean because we do recognise the importance of our regional visitors to our tourism development,” he said. During a recent radio interview in Grenada, Gonsalves, who is the prime minister of St Vincent and the Grenadines, a major shareholder of LIAT, explained that due to the lack of financial input from the other shareholding countries, LIAT’s closure is imminent. Barbados is currently the largest shareholder of LIAT, followed by Antigua and St Vincent Gonsalves said that LIAT has a complement of ten aircraft – seven are leased and three are owned by the Barbados-based Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) due to monies borrowed and a decision will soon have to be made on the way forward. “We probably will have to ask the CDB to sell those three aircraft and operate seven of them and then get other smaller airlines like One Caribbean to fly between here and St. Lucia, rather than get LIAT to fly on one of the routes which is going to Trinidad which is not economical to cut”, he remarked. “… The governments have not been responding so the shareholders are reaching a critical point now and if you ask me, what is likely to happen … there will be a transitional restructuring leading to a closure of LIAT,” he said. The Vincentian prime minister revealed that a new airline would then have to be the next option for the region if LIAT is closed. (BT)
BIM IN ‘NEW’ WORLD BATTLE, SAYS HUSBANDS – Barbados could soon find itself in another compliance battle with an international body over its trade and taxation practices, Minister in the Ministry of Foreign Trade Sandra Husbands told Parliament today. She said the country could soon come up against “consequences” from the World Trade Organisation (WTO) for failing to comply with rules or for submitting a report after a deadline. “Part of the compliance they are looking for, and it is something we are seeking to deal with, they are looking at countries that do not comply with the requirements that are set out in the World Trade Organisation. “So we are always up against a big disadvantage, and one of the things now that we are going to have to battle into the international arena is that they are seeking to discuss whether or not they should put consequences on countries that take too long to comply or countries who do not report within the time they are supposed to.” She argued that Barbados was already at a disadvantage due to its limited financial and human resources when it comes to putting various measures in place. “But on top of that, because you take long, they are now discussing the fact they want to be able to put consequences on countries, and this is something that we have to fight at the WTO,” said Husbands. This, she said, was putting additional pressure on Government, who she said was now bobbing and weaving between trying to meet international standards and demands while trying to pull the economy out of the doldrums. She said while it was very difficult sometimes to get rich nations to shift their demands even when “strong and reasonable” cases were put forward, Barbados was not about to roll over and play dead. She declared that Government intends to use various international fora to “protect” the country, including the United Nations, the Association of Caribbean States (ACS), the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and the African, Caribbean and Pacific group of states (ACP). “All of these arenas are which we are fighting to protect Barbados just as we are fighting here with FATCA [Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act] and the OECD [Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development] in relation to compliance on tax issues and compliance with money laundering. And it is arduous,” said Husbands. The foreign trade minister also disclosed that there were further recent discussions between African-Caribbean-Pacific and European officials in Jamaica regarding a replacement for the Cotonou Agreement, the pact between Europe and it’s former colonies that is due to expire in early 2020. Cotonou, which focuses on development cooperation, trade and political dialogue, was signed in 2000 for a period of 20 years but did not come into force until 2003. Pointing out that the new agreement being looked at would have “a foundation agreement” between the ACP and EU and “individual compacts for each region”, Husbands disclose that a new clause regarding tax compliance, was being put forward. “What was put on the table was the idea that the EU was interested in making tax compliance another feature of this new agreement,” she said, adding that this was a way of “chasing us until they destroy the financial services industry that we have been seeking to build to be able to make money for Barbadians”. She told fellow lawmakers: “Every time we turn around there is another requirement. Every time that we turn around there is another rule that they bring and every time you look at it you can see that the primary purpose is to destroy the financial services sector in this region. “As I look at it I say in Barbados we are going to have to come up with a new way to fight to defend ourselves. We cannot succeed in that fight unless Barbadians understand why we have to bring this type of legislation here and why sometimes we have to make choices about how we spend money.” She pointed out that the Caribbean accounts for only one per cent of the international financial services sector while the bulk of the business was in the more developed countries. Husbands was contributing to the debate on changes to the law to prevent money laundering and financing of terrorism. (BT)
‘WE’RE NOT IMMUNE TO TERRORISM’ – Barbados is not immune to an act of terrorism, but officials are working around the clock to safeguard against the possibility of an attack, said Attorney General Dale Marshall. His comments came in Parliament in response to the deadly bombings in Sri Lanka over the Easter weekend, which has so far resulted in the confirmed death of over 300 people and injury of more than 500 others, plunging the South Asian island into mourning. Marshall, who was speaking during debate on the Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism (Prevention Legislation) Amendment Bill in Parliament on Tuesday, said he was not aware of any Barbadians being affected so far, but warned that Barbados was not immune to such occurrences, even if for the ripple effects. The Attorney General said: “I have to caution the Barbadian listener that the tentacles of terrorism, though they may not have seen expression in Barbados, we guard every single day against the possibility of it happening here. “Lest Barbadians feel all this talk about ani-terrorism is of no importance in Barbados because we are a small domicile, I have to warn that we continue to be exposed to all of these things.” Pointing to Trinidad and Tobago and Jamaica where he said individuals were being watched very carefully by regional and international law enforcement officials because of their association with “significant terrorism organisations”, Marshall said he has seen an increase in the number of “radicalised Muslims” in the Caribbean. “I am not trying to scare anybody, but Trinidad is 40 minutes flying time away from Barbados. Trinidadians come and go, Bajans come and go and terrorism is something that knows no borders. Nobody’s passport has on it a stamp marked under employment ‘terrorist’. You don’t see that,” Marshall said. The updated anti-money laundering legislation will result in changes to the Financial Services Commission Bill and the Corporate Trust Services Providers Act. Marshall said the Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism Act was noted to have had “a few deficiencies” and therefore it was necessary to “strengthen how that act works by way of updating definition and amending the list of scheduled offences”. Marshall explained that as part of changes under the Financial Services Commission Act, individuals who wish to acquire shares of more than ten per cent in an entity would have to seek approval from the Financial Services Commission (FSC). “This is especially important as we have individuals who are engaged in funding terrorism and so on taking controlling interest in many companies. “We are a long way from Sri Lanka but the events of Easter Sunday in Sri Lanka must give the world pause because it is clear that terrorism continues to be a blight on modern-day humanity,” Marshall said. The Attorney General pointed out that wealthy individualswere severely affected. During his contribution to the debate St Michael West Central MP Ian Gooding-Edghill called for more categories of individuals be put under greater scrutiny as politically exposed individuals, arguing that this would further prevent money laundering and financing of terrorism. “I only hope that the political class is not the only class that will continue to be pursued in tis respect. I hope that oversight will be given to other classes as well . . . perhaps we need to expand the scope so that we hold others accountable as well as we are held to that very high standard,” he said. (BT)
WOMAN IS 21ST MURDER VICTIM – A convicted manslayer is said to be the suspect linked to the fatal stabbing of his former lover as her two children watched in horror. According to sources, it was the deceased’s son who made the call to police at the Boarded Hall police station just before 9 a.m. informing them of the tragedy. When police rushed to the scene, they found the lifeless body of 39-year-old Zanaba Moore in the verandah of her house at #19 Frere Pilgrim Main Road, Christ Church. She is the 21st person to be murdered for the year. Reliable sources told Barbados TODAY that the suspect was released from prison in the last few years after serving a prison sentence after pleading guilty to manslaughter. It is alleged that he inflicted the stab wounds as the woman’s son and his two-year-old daughter watched before fleeing the scene. A source also disclosed that Moore had applied for a protection order against the suspect. When a team from Barbados TODAY arrived on the scene, a heavy police presence was evident. The entrance to the house was cordoned off as police carried out their investigations, while an officer directed traffic. Police public relations officer Acting Inspector Rodney Inniss told members of the media that the suspect had not yet been held. “Police this morning received a report via telephone from an anonymous male caller about 8:40 a.m. who indicated that he just witnessed a male having an altercation with a female and subsequently stabbed the female. “Police responded urgently to the scene, but on arrival they discovered the lifeless body of a 39-year-old female in the verandah of the residence. The male suspect is not in custody and we are looking for the person,” Inniss said. An irate cousin of the deceased who spoke to the media shortly afterwards vented her anger. “He now come out of jail for doing something similar and you come back out and do the same thing,” she shouted. A man who was only identified as Danny and said to be one of her closest friends, did not hold back the tears as he stooped over in disbelief. He said he awoke to the terrible news. “I was sleeping and when I got up a man tell me that he [the accused] hurt the woman. She was a real nice person and real pleasant. I can’t believe that he would do something like that,” he said. A resident of Frere Pilgrim who declined to give her name but who said she had resided in the area for 34 years, said she has known the deceased from the time she was a little girl. “I haven’t spoken to her in a long time, but I can tell you that she was a nice person. I knew her from the time she was a child. To hear what happened really has me in shock,” the middle-aged woman lamented. “I would never have thought that anything like that would happen in such a quiet neighourhood. My neighbour is so distraught I had to come over here to console her. This really doesn’t feel like Barbados with somebody killing somebody every minute.” Another man who rushed to the scene on hearing the news appeared to be in shock. As he stood holding his mouth, he told Barbados TODAY that while all relationships may have issues, no one deserved to die the way in which the deceased did. “Every couple has its problems, but she ain’t deserve this. This is a real sad day. The only reason I’m standing here and I haven’t gone across by the family is because I can’t see her like that,” he explained. (BT)
FAMILY SHOCKED BY STABBING – The grief-stricken family of stabbing victim Zanaba Moore wants justice after their loved one allegedly died at the hands of a man who had killed another of his lovers in 2004. Yesterday around 8:30 a.m. in Frere Pilgrim, Christ Church, neighbours were disturbed by shouting and loud scuffling before the 39-year-old was discovered dead in the verandah of her home. The brutal stabbing left Zanada’s 18-year-old son and two-year-old daughter without a mother. The suspect fled the scene but was in police custody last night after a manhunt earlier. (MWN)
COURT RULES AGAINST BAJANS – The historic extradition SAGA involving a group of Barbadian men has resurfaced in the United States. John Wayne Scantlebury and Sean Gaskin, who with now deceased Frederick Christopher Hawkesworth (below) were freed in 2014 after a ten-year fight against their handover to US authorities on drug charges, are now battling the Americans on their own turf. The charges against them were dropped more than five years ago and last week the US Court of Appeals For The District of Columbia Circuit dismissed Scantlebury and Gaskin’s application for further relief. The two Bajans and their American lawyer, Lawrence J. Joseph, now have 45 days to determine their next course of action. (MWN)
REPORT ORDERED ON ROCK THROWING TEENAGER – A presentencing report has been ordered on a 16-year-old schoolboy who threw a rock at a bus resulting in two criminal charges. Xavier Lamar Ka’shawn Johnson, of 2nd Avenue Birds River, St Michael pleaded guilty in the District ‘A’ Maigstrates’ court to throwing the stone while on Tudor Bridge Road on April 18 which was likely to cause injury to a passenger. Jonson who appeared in the District ‘A’ Magistrates’ Court over the wekend also admitted to damaging a Transport Board bus on the same date without lawful excuse. The prosecutor said the bus was on the road around 8:15 a.m. when the driver heard a loud noise like glass breaking. He went to investigate and discovered the rear right side window broken. The matter was reported to the police and Johnson was later arrested. Magistrate Doulgas Fredrick ordered the report on the accused in preparation for sentencing and also placed the teen on a daily 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew. Johnson will reappear in court on June 21. (BT)
TWO ON DRUG TRAFFICKING CHARGES – An accountant with the Central Bank of Barbados and another man have been charged with drug trafficking, supplying and possession of 15 pounds of cannabis.Corrie Randolph Walkes, 36, of Apt #3 Lot 263 Lowlands Park, Christ Church, an accountant, and Dale Orlando Nicholls, 33, of Roncliffville, Scotts Terrace, Grazettes, St Michael are alleged to have committed the offences on Saturday April 20 at Scotts Terrace, Grazettes, St Michael. Police alleged that they intercepted a van in which the men were travelling and found a duffle bag containing three packages of cannabis with an estimated street value of $30,000. Nicholls is facing another three similar charges in relation to 158 pounds of marijuana with a street value of $316 000. Officers are alleging that the drugs were found following the execution of a search warrant at an apartment occupied Nicholls at Grazettes, where 20 packages of cannabis were discovered. (MWN)
MEN ON $10,000 BAIL – Two young St Michael men were released on $10,000 bail after appearing in a Bridgetown court today on a joint criminal charge. Eighteen-year-old Sancho Fernando Springer of Block 5A Madison, Deacons Farm and 22-year-old Troy Raheem Riley of Block 3B Beach Path, Deacons Farm are accused of unlawfully and maliciously wounding Newton Jordan on February 21 with intent to maim, disfigure or disable him or to do some serious bodily harm to him. They are expected to return to the District ‘A’ Magistrates’ Court on July 29. In the meantime both must report to the Black Rock Police Station before noon with valid identification – Riley on Mondays and Springer on Tuesdays.(BT)
GUILTY PRESCOTT – Forty-three-year-old Anthony Ricardo Emmanuel Prescott was remanded to HMP Dodds after pleading guilty in the District ‘A’ Magistrates’ Court to 13 charges under the theft act. The facts surrounding Prescott’s crimes will be detailed on April 26 when he goes before Magistrate Kristie Cuffy-Sargeant for sentencing. Prescott’s burglary spree began between December 30 and 31, 2018 when he entered Desmond’s Bar and stole various grocery items, alcohol and a bicycle belonging to Lorraine Lynch worth $1,489.50. He targeted the same establishment between February 15 and 16, 2019 and stole alcohol and groceries worth $360 also belonging to Lynch. Prescott also entered the home of Edson Harewood on February 12 and again on Mach 9 and stole items valued at $3,428.49. He also damaged a window belonging to Harewood on February 13 without lawful excuse. The thief also wasted no time in telling the magistrate that he was the one who burglarised the home of Fabian Cato on February 7 and stole $1,500 cash and also the home of Noel Hitlal where he stole a number of items including jewelry worth $3,381.75. Prescott also admitted to stealing $165 in items from the home of Ricardo Atkins on March 12 and $150 in boxers from Tristan Maloney’s home on January 16. He also admitted to burglarising two businesses between February 3 and 4. He entered Taste of Health Canteen as a trespasser and stole alcoholic beverages, a grill, a deep fryer and a bottle of gas worth $665 belonging to Khari Rivere and The Reggae Jerk and stole $180 worth of chicken belonging to Alton Lewis. He further admitted to having articles in connection with theft namely a screwdriver, knife and scissors when he was not at his place of abode on April 17. (BT)
GOLDEN TITUS – Barbados’ golden girl Danielle Titus was again unstoppable as she won the 15 to 17 age group 200m long course backstroke when the 34th CARIFTA Swimming Championship concluded at the National Aquatic Center at Wildey, St Michael tonight. (BT)
NEIGHBOURLY LOVE - Three days after Eustace Alleyne went missing, a group of Good Samaritan neighbours went in search of him and found the elderly man wandering the road. And when they brought him safely to his Plumgrove, Lodge Road, Christ Church home, his reappearance brought unspeakable joy to his wife of 30 years, Marcell Alleyne, who cried at seeing him again. The 67-year-old had been reported missing from around 10 p.m. on Friday and was last seen on Saturday around 8:30 a.m. He suffers from dementia. (MWN)
MIXED BAG FROM FESTIVAL – The atmosphere at the Oistins Festival has significantly improved, but for owners and operators of small businesses, the annual event has not generated the type of economic activity which was expected. Festival chair Toni Thorne challenged business people to come forward with more local offerings and they did not disappoint. Entrepreneurs again flocked to the southern fishing town, eager to display the best of their products and services. From agricultural produce, to cosmetics and home décor products, it was clear that Barbadian entrepreneurs were presenting more innovative and unique concepts. Unfortunately, it appears Barbadians are still clutching their wallets and purses, opting for a more frugal approach. Rachel Clement, Founder, Manager and Designer of Rachel Clement’s Sea Glass Accessories, described the first three days at the festival as “slow and steady”, but still an improvement on last year’s. “Last year was horrible. This year, their whole presentation and the variety of activities and the use of various stages tend to give a whole different feeling to Oistins in comparison to what I’m used to…This year has been a great improvement and more people have been anticipating Oistins because of all of the pop ups. It’s a little better for 2019.” Clement however added: “It is a little harder to get people to spend money right now. But I have people who love my products and they will purchase regardless. There was a woman who saw my rings and requested that I make one from scratch yesterday. It’s been a growing experience,” she concluded. For Dion George, Co-owner of Frootsad246, which offers a variety of fruit and vegetable juices, the assessment was quite similar. “It’s very lively and a lot of people have been passing through today. Yesterday [Saturday] was a bit slow at first, but it got livelier in the evening and more people were passing through. “People are spending money, but they haven’t been buying as they would have at other events, but those who have bought the juices really enjoyed them,” he said. At Tandem’s Box Pop local creativity was showcased in several contemporary home wares, lighting, home decor, apparel & accessories. Israel Mapp, creative producer for Tandem movement told Barbados TODAY that the business, which started locally has expanded to become a “pan regional” enterprise. “Our mandate is to expand our exposure through the island… to let people know that we are here and that we make good quality products which are functional and beautiful,” said Mapp. “People are very surprised because our setup is a bit different, because we take well-designed objects and make an experience of them and let people know there are different ways of experiencing things that are made in Barbados. So the feedback has been very interesting. “Obviously the major issue is the price point. Because of where we are and how we source material and the cost of talent and skill, our products are a little more expensive. But it’s not that we are trying to fleece you, this is simply the cost. So people say, ‘you know what, I can work towards this, I can save towards this item because it has high value and I’m supporting a larger eco system of people’…so they may not buy now, but they have our cards, they think about us and they may come back in December and buy something from us.” For Lucette Trotman, Manager of Bajanique, which specializes in all natural handmade soaps, creams, facial masks, foot scrubs and body scrubs, this year has been a disappointment. “The experience has not been better. I’ve made one sale for two days so far. We don’t see many people at all and the festival is nothing like before. Even last year it wasn’t that fantastic, but it was a lot better than this year and we saw a lot more people and at this point [Sunday], it is just like a normal day in Oistins,” said Trotman. She also complained that Barbadians had not yet developed an appreciation for the work of local artisans and their authentic products. “I find that a lot of Barbadians haven’t caught onto the natural and local stuff, but the tourists buy them. They buy the soaps, the creams and the insect repellents especially, and they take home things as gifts. But I still find too many plastic toys are being bandied around for sale for children and not a lot of support locally for the local, handmade products,” she said. (BT)
For daily or breaking news reports follow us on Instagram, Tumblr, Twitter & Facebook. That’s all for today folks. There are 251 days left in the year. Shalom! #thechasefilesdailynewscap #thechasefiles# dailynewscapsbythechasefiles
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Your new nickname is magazine. Your hat looks like burnt maccoroni. Can I eat your crown???
“The Little Engine That Could is an illustrated children’s book that became widely known in the United States after publication in 1930 by Platt & Munk. The story is used to teach children the value of optimism and hard work. Based on a 2007 online poll, the National Education Association named the book one of its “Teachers’ Top 100 Books for Children”
BACKGROUND
The story’s signature phrases such as “I think I can” first occurred in print in a 1902 article in a Swedish journal. An early published version of the story, “Story of the Engine That Thought It Could”, appeared in the New-York Tribune on April 8, 1906, as part of a sermon by the Rev. Charles S. Wing.
A brief version of the tale appeared under the title Thinking One Can in 1906, in Wellspring for Young People, a Sunday school publication. This version reappeared in a 1910 book, Foundation Stones of Success.
Another version was published under the name “The Pony Engine” in the Kindergarten Review in 1910, written by Mary C. Jacobs. A different version with the same title appeared in a magazine for children in 1916 under the name of Mabel C. Bragg, a teacher, but she “took no credit for originating the story”.
The story first appeared in print with the title The Little Engine That Could in 1920, collected in one volume of My Book House, a set of books sold in the U.S. by door-to-door salespersons. The Book House version began, “Once there was a Train-of-Cars; she was flying across the country with a load of Christmas toys for the children who lived on the other side of the mountain.” The story was labeled “As told by Olive Beaupré Miller”; the first edition gave credit to Bragg, but subsequent editions did not as Miller subsequently concluded that “the story belonged to the realm of folk literature”. Miller was the founding editor and publisher of The Book House for Children, a company based in Chicago.
The best known incarnation of the story The Little Engine That Could was written by “Watty Piper”, a pen name of Arnold Munk, who was the owner of the publishing firm Platt & Munk. Arnold Munk was born in Hungary, and as a child, moved with his family to the United States, settling in Chicago. Later he moved to New York. Platt & Munk’s offices were at 200 Fifth Avenue until 1957 when Arnold Munk died. Arnold Munk used the name Watty Piper as both an author of children’s books and as the editor of many of the books that Platt & Munk published. He personally hired Lois Lenski to illustrate the book. This retelling of the tale The Pony Engine appeared in 1930, with a title page that stated: “Retold by Watty Piper from The Pony Engine by Mabel C. Bragg’s copyrighted by George H. Doran and Co.”
In 1954, Platt & Munk published another version of The Little Engine That Could, with slightly revised language and new, more colorful illustrations by George and Doris Hauman. Although there had been many previous editions of this classic story, “It was the work of George and Doris Hauman that earned The Little Engine the title of being worthy to sit on the same shelf as Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.” A 1976 rework featured art by Ruth Sanderson received a lot of attention at the time of its release, in part because the art reflected “the stereotypes of masculine strength and feminine weakness in vogue when it was written”.
PLOT
In the tale, a long train must be pulled over a high mountain. Larger engines, treated anthropomorphically, are asked to pull the train; for various reasons they refuse. The request is sent to a small engine, who agrees to try. The engine succeeds in pulling the train over the mountain while repeating its motto: “I-think-I-can”.
The story of the little engine has been told and retold many times. The underlying theme is the same — a stranded train is unable to find an engine willing to take it on over difficult terrain to its destination. Only the little blue engine is willing to try and, while repeating the mantra “I think I can, I think I can”, overcomes a seemingly impossible task.
An early version goes as follows:
A little railroad engine was employed about a station yard for such work as it was built for, pulling a few cars on and off the switches. One morning it was waiting for the next call when a long train of freight-cars asked a large engine in the roundhouse to take it over the hill. “I can’t; that is too much a pull for me”, said the great engine built for hard work. Then the train asked another engine, and another, only to hear excuses and be refused. In desperation, the train asked the little switch engine to draw it up the grade and down on the other side. “I think I can”, puffed the little locomotive, and put itself in front of the great heavy train. As it went on the little engine kept bravely puffing faster and faster, “I think I can, I think I can, I think I can.”As it neared the top of the grade, which had so discouraged the larger engines, it went more slowly. However, it still kept saying, “I—think—I—can, I—think—I—can.” It reached the top by drawing on bravery and then went on down the grade, congratulating itself by saying, “I thought I could, I thought I could.”
VERSIONS
Later versions would revamp the story to have a more specific appeal for children – the stranded train is recast as a train of good food and anthropomorphic toys for the children across the mountain, thus in saving the train the little engine seems to be working for the benefit of the child reader, making the successful deed all the more triumphant.
In these versions another character appeared and remained a key part of the story hereafter – the clown ringleader of the toys who attempts to find help with several locomotives but is rebuffed. The number of engines in the story also eventually became standard across the tellings: The happy locomotive on the toy train who breaks down and cannot go on, the pompous passenger engine who considers himself too grand for the task, the powerful freight engine who views himself as too important, and the elderly engine who lacks either the strength or determination to help the toys. The little blue engine always appears last and, although perhaps reluctant (some editions have the engine clarify her role as a switcher not suited for road-work), always rises to the occasion and saves the day for the children over the mountain.
Each engine is defined by its appearance or function and is not given a name or personality beyond its role on the railroad. It is only in the 1991 film adaption that the engines’ personalities are expanded on, including the granting of names: Farnsworth (the express engine), Pete (the freight engine), Georgia (the friendly engine of the toy train), Jebediah (the elderly engine) and Tillie, the titular “little engine that could”. The clown was also named “Rollo” and a sixth engine character, Doc, appeared briefly to recover the broken-down Georgia and thus tie up the hanging story-thread of what happened to the failed engine of the toy train, which all other versions leave unaddressed.
FILMS
The tale with its easy-to-grasp moral has become a classic children’s story and was adapted in November 1991 as a 30-minute animated film produced in Wales and co-financed in Wales and the United States. The film named the famous little engine Tillie and expanded the narrative into a larger story of self-discovery.
In March 2011, the story was adapted as a 3-D film named The Little Engine That Could, produced by Universal Studios and featuring the voices of Whoopi Goldberg, Jamie Lee Curtis, Alyson Stoner, and Corbin Bleu.
“LITTLE ENGINE” TOYS AND RAIL TOURS
A full-size replica of the Little Engine That Could makes an annual circuit around the United States. Arranged through Rail Events, Inc., a number of tourist and museum railroad operations host the “I Think I Can” Rail Tour. The replica was constructed in 2005 by the Strasburg Rail Road in southeast Pennsylvania. Strasburg also constructed the Thomas The Tank Engine replicas that tour the United States.
American toy company Whittle Shortline produces wooden toy trains of The Little Engine That Could as a domestic alternative to Thomas the Tank Engine. Maxim Enterprise held the license prior to 2006.
IN POPULAR CULTURE
In the 1941 Disney movie Dumbo, when Casey Jr. the circus train puffs up a hill, he chants, “I think I can!” and “I thought I could!” when going down the hill.
International champion vintage motorcycle racer Todd Henning’s motto was “I think I can!” and he named his racing team I Think I Can Racing after the book.
This book was chosen by “Jumpstart Read for the Record” to be read worldwide to tens of thousands of children on August 24, 2006.[7]
Shel Silverstein wrote the poem “The Little Blue Engine”, which referenced this story.
West End and Broadway musical Starlight Express was loosely based on the book.
The original logo for Elton John’s record label The Rocket Record Company was based on the book.
One of the Vagina Monologues is called “The Little Coochie Snorcher That Could”.
The chorus of C'mon ‘N’ Ride It by the Quad City DJ’s repeats “I think I can!” as a rhythmic part to sound like a train.
A song on The Pillows Fool on the Planet album is called “I think I can”, and the chorus is a repeat of “I think I can!”.
NBA player Kyle Lowry is nicknamed “The Little Engine That Could” by Toronto Raptors play-by-play announcer Matt Devlin.
In episode 1 of season 3 of the TV series Married… with Children titled “He Thought He Could”, Al Bundy has to return a copy of the book that he borrowed in 1957.
A Far Side cartoon by Gary Larson, published October 18, 1993, shows the little engine sitting broken on the sidewalk, panhandling with a sign reading “I thought I could, I thought I could …”.
SEE ALSO
Thomas the Tank Engine
….Vi didn’t know how to answer this one so I, here loving boyfriend @Ravioko, did so for her.
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RIBA News & Events 2020, London, UK
RIBA Events 2020, Architecture Gallery London, UK Buildings, British Architects News
RIBA News & Events 2020
Royal Institute of British Architects Exhibition + Talks + Events in London, England, UK
11 August 2020
RIBA UK News
Simon Allford elected RIBA President (2021-23)
Simon Allford: photo © Tom Mesquitta
11th of August 2020 – Simon Allford has been elected the next President of the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA). Simon will take over the two-year presidential term from Alan Jones next year (1 September 2021); from 1 September 2020 he will officially become RIBA President Elect.
The role of RIBA President was established in 1835 and is the highest elected position in UK architecture. The President Chairs RIBA Council, which acts as the representative body for the membership.
Simon is a founding director of AHMM (where he leads a design studio of 200 architects), a frequent writer, critic and advisor; a visiting professor at Harvard; a previous chairman of the Architecture Foundation; and currently a trustee of the London School of Architecture and the Chickenshed Theatres Trust.
Speaking today, Simon Allford, said: “It is a privilege to have been elected and I look forward to working with members, Council, Board and staff to create a leaner, more open, productive, engaged and reinvigorated RIBA.
We need an institute of ideas with architecture front and centre, hosting debates, lectures and exhibitions reflecting changing cultural and practice contexts. We need an institute that celebrates and promotes members’ work at home and worldwide. We need an institute that is a practice friend, enabling members to share ideas about best ways of working, using today’s technology to help advance architecture for the benefit of society – our Charter obligation.
I am committed to the ‘House of Architecture @ RIBA’, an online and physical entity capable of forming alliances with clients, consultants and contractors to influence government over procurement and education, while also helping us to address global climate change and architecture’s pivotal role in a post-pandemic world.”
RIBA President, Alan Jones, said: “Congratulations to Simon. The next few years will be crucial for our planet and profession as we navigate through health, environmental and economic crises – so Simon has a significant role to play in ensuring all architects receive the strong support and inspiring leadership they need to survive and thrive. I look forward to counting on Simon’s support over the next year before I hand over to them in 2021.”
The RIBA has also today announced the results of the RIBA Council Elections 2020. All RIBA Council appointments announced today will commence on 1 September 2020.
Simon Allford architect: photograph © Tom Mesquitta
Council Members were elected using the Single Transferable Vote. The candidates who reached the required quota and were therefore elected are:
National Seats
• Simone de Gale • Jennifer Dixon
International Seats
• Ken Wai (Asia and Australasia) • Catherine Davis (The Americas)
Regional Seats – London • David Adjei • Sarah Akigbogun • Angela Dapper • Femi Oresanya • Jack Pringle • Anna Webster
Regional Seats – South East • Duncan Baker-Brown • Danka Stefan
There was one candidate for the role of RSAW Presidency, therefore Gavin Traylor is elected unopposed. Gavin will take up his term as President Elect on 1 September 2020 and become President from September 2021 for a two-year term. The following members will take uncontested seats as Council Members:
• Alice Asafu-Adjaye (The Middle East and Africa) • Tim Clark (Europe excluding UK) • Graham Devine (South West) • Roger Shrimplin (East) • Yuli Cadney-Toh (Wessex) • Philip Twiss (West Midlands)
The overall Presidential election turnout was 13.2%; Simon Alford was elected at 4th stage with 58.9% of the votes. 17.2% of Chartered Members voted, 6.66% of newly enfranchised Student, Associate and Affiliate members voted.
Biography:
Simon Allford is a leading architect and co-founder of Allford Hall Monaghan Morris.
Working from AHMM’s Clerkenwell base, Simon leads a studio with offices in London, Bristol and the US, working internationally on a wide range of award-winning projects. In each case, the quest is to find a way of unlocking the potential for the extraordinary in everyday buildings. Key recent examples include the University of Amsterdam; Google and DeepMind’s HQ offices in London, Berlin and Canada; and The White Collar Factory, Hawley Wharf and Post Building in London.
Currently Simon is leading a series of large-scale urban research and design projects in London, the UK, Europe, India and the US. Each explores potential new ways to live, work and play in a variety of combinations. The studio also engages clients in the exploration of ways to achieve low-carbon architecture and outcomes that avoid rigid assumptions about the way a building needs to look or operate.
Simon recently retired as Chair of the Architecture Foundation. He is a former trustee of the Architectural Association Foundation; Honorary Secretary and Treasurer of The Architectural Association; RIBA Vice-president for Education; member of the RIBA Awards Group and a chair of design deview at CABE. Simon is a frequent judge of major awards and competitions, a writer, critic and advisor. He studied at Sheffield University, then the Bartlett school at University College London. He has taught and examined at schools around the world and is a visiting professor at the Bartlett and at Harvard’s Graduate School of Design.
Simon’s long-term commitment to an open and accessible profession has informed his engagement in numerous initiatives at AHMM, including his founding membership of the practice’s Employee Ownership Trust Board, and his current role as a trustee of the London School of Architecture and Chickenshed Theatres Trust.
4 August 2020 RIBA responds to new Green Homes Grant scheme
Tuesday 4th of August 2020 – The RIBA has today responded to further details announced by government on the Green Homes Grant scheme.
RIBA President, Alan Jones, said:
“It is great to see more details on the Green Homes Grant scheme to support households to become more energy efficient and reduce energy bills.
We have long called for use of a TrustMark to ensure homeowners are using accredited tradespeople and simple energy advice service for homeowners so I’m pleased to see these proposals taken forward. But it’s very disappointing that there is no requirement to compare energy pre and post retrofit to help ensure value for money and energy savings.
It is clear the government needs to urgently set out a ‘National Retrofit strategy’, with adequate funding to retrofit the homes which require upgrading and help meet our net zero targets.”
16 July 2020 RIBA Future Trends June 2020
Thursday 16th of July 2020 – Mixed views about future workload indicate a profession in flux.
Architects’ views on future workloads have improved significantly since the lockdown low in April, but the profession remains pessimistic.
The RIBA Future Trends Workload Index moved towards positive territory, climbing to –17 in June, from -49 in May, and the unprecedented low of -82 in April. The latest survey results show 40% of architects expect work to decrease over the next three months and nearly a quarter (23%) expect an increase (up from 13% in May).
The Staffing Index improved by 9 points in June; 77% of practices expect the level of permanent staff to remain the same over the next three months, 18% expect a decrease (from 26% in May) and 4% anticipate more permanent staff.
There was an increase in prospects across all sectors; the private housing sector returned a figure of -3 (from -40 in May), the commercial sector was at -32 (from -41), the community sector was at -19 (from -33) and the public sector returned a figure of -12 (from -27). Despite pockets of shared optimism, current workloads remain at significantly reduced level – down 28% compared to June 2019. 70% of respondents expect profits to fall over the next 12 months and within that, 7% consider that their practice is unlikely to remain viable.
The findings from this month’s survey also show:
• 19% of architectural staff have been furloughed – a reduction on last month’s figure of 22% • 1% of architectural staff have been made redundant; 1% have been released from a ‘zero hours’, temporary or fixed-term contract. • 32% of projects had been put on hold since the start of March. • 22% of projects which remain active are at stages 5 or 6 of the RIBA Plan of Work. • Among small practices (1 – 10 staff) there were a higher percentage of practices working fewer hours (20%).
RIBA Head of Economic Research and Analysis, Adrian Malleson, said: “Economic uncertainty remains, with many architects expressing concerns about future workloads and significant challenges ahead. The global pandemic, coupled with the risks of a no-deal Brexit, continues to impact our sector.
However, in June we saw an increase in some architects’ confidence and the early signs of returning workloads. More sites are beginning to reopen and practices, particularly those in the residential sector, reported a sharp rise in new enquires. Design work is being carried out, despite the challenges that come with home working.
The RIBA will continue to advocate on behalf of the profession and provide support to members and practices, to help guide them through this challenging time and build resilience for the future.”
Members with concerns or queries are encouraged to email [email protected].
14 July 2020 Network Rail Re-imagining Stations Competition
Network Rail and RIBA Competitions launch an international competition to shape the future of Britain’s railway stations.
The competition will provide architects, engineers and designers the chance to improve the travel experience for the millions of passengers who use Britain’s railway, and leave a lasting legacy on station design.
Network Rail Re-imagining Stations Competition
9 July 2020 Post-pandemic buildings and cities – RIBA reveals longlist for Rethink:2025 international design competition: RIBA Rethink 2025 Design Competition longlist
8 July 2020 RIBA reacts to Chancellor’s ‘Plan for Jobs’
RIBA President, Alan Jones, said:
“The RIBA has long advocated for a ‘green’ post-COVID recovery, so I welcome the Chancellor’s efforts to put sustainability front and centre of today’s announcements.
The £2bn Green Homes Grant will help some households become more energy efficient and reduce energy bills, but this must be the start, not the end, of an ambitious strategy to create a sustainable built environment. We urgently need a thorough ‘National Retrofit Strategy’ to fund the upgrading of homes.
To create safe and sustainable housing, the use of Permitted Development Rights must be scrapped, and all building owners and users must begin to measure and understand how well or badly their buildings actually perform through Post Occupancy Evaluation.
Given current levels of economic uncertainty, architecture practices will need more than the new Job Retention Bonus scheme to help them survive over the coming months. We know from past recessions that demand does not return across the whole economy at the same time – support packages for business must continue to reflect this.”
Read the RIBA’s response to yesterday’s UK government funding announcement of £3bn to make homes and public buildings more energy efficient here.
7 July 2020 RIBA responds to Government funding announcement
Wednesday 7th of July 2020 – RIBA responds to Government funding announcement of £3bn to make homes and public buildings more energy efficient.
RIBA President, Alan Jones, said:
“It’s good to see the government bring forward a significant proportion of the £9.2bn pledged for energy efficiency and acknowledge the benefits this will bring to the economy and people’s health.
But this is just the beginning. We will continue to emphasise to policymakers the leading role chartered architects have in designing, coordinating and delivering a sustainable built environment.
We will also lobby for energy efficiency funding for the private rented sector, which includes much of the UK’s most energy inefficient housing stock. We look forward to seeing the details in the Chancellor’s update tomorrow.”
1 July 2020 RIBA President-Elect and Council Candidates
The RIBA has announced the five candidates standing for election as RIBA President-Elect, alongside nominations for seats on RIBA Council.
Following comprehensive modernisation of the RIBA’s governance structures, and in recognition of their vital contribution to the future of the RIBA and the architecture profession, RIBA student members are eligible to vote in elections for the RIBA President for the first time.
The RIBA President and RIBA Council members are elected representatives from the RIBA’s membership. RIBA Council, chaired by the President, acts as the representative body for the membership. It meets four times each year and is responsible for collecting insight from the membership and the profession, to guide the strategic direction of the organisation. RIBA Council oversees the RIBA’s new Board of Trustees, the majority of whom are Council members, including the RIBA President.
The candidates standing for RIBA President-Elect are:
• Simon Allford • Jude Barber • Nick Moss • Valeria Passetti • Sumita Singha
The candidates standing for National and Regional Council seats can be found here.
Digital voting for all seats opens on 14 July at 9am and closes on 4 August at 5pm. Results will be announced on 11 August.
Two digital hustings will take place on:
• 7 July (6-7pm) – open to all RIBA members and chaired by RIBA President Alan Jones. • 9 July (12.30-1.30pm) – open to RIBA Student and Associate members and chaired by former RIBA Council VP Student/Associate Albena Atanassova.
Successful RIBA Council candidates will commence their three-year term on 1 September 2020. The RIBA President Elect’s term begins on 1 September 2020, with their two-year term as RIBA President commencing on 1 September 2021.
30 June 2020 RIBA responds to Prime Minister’s ‘Project Speed’ announcement
RIBA President, Alan Jones, said: “I welcome the recognition for ‘urgent action’ from the Prime Minister and hope the announcements today are the first of many needed to address the shortcomings of the UK’s physical and social infrastructure.
However, I am extremely concerned by the proposal to enable even more commercial buildings to change to residential use without the need for a planning application. The Government’s own advisory panel referred to the homes created by this policy as “slums”. It is hard to reconcile the commitment to quality with expanding a policy that has delivered low-quality, unsustainable and over-crowded homes across England.
I urge the Prime Minister not to waste this opportunity and to re-build a more sustainable and resilient economy, ensuring that quality and safety remain at the heart of investment.”
18 June 2020 RIBA publishes COVID-19 recovery guidance
The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) has today published guidance to help practices steer their route to recovery from the COVID-19 crisis and build future resilience.
The RIBA Recovery Roadmap is divided into three phases: Response, Recovery and Resilience. Each phase considers a series of actions that practices can take to respond to challenges across different areas of their business throughout this crisis and beyond. These range from stabilising finances and supporting staff wellbeing in the immediate term to planning to reopen the office and winning new work in the coming weeks.
The topics covered in each phase respond directly to concerns raised by RIBA members from all practice sizes across the UK.
RIBA President, Alan Jones, said: “Despite the economic uncertainty, practices must take proactive steps now to help alleviate challenges ahead.
Drawing on insights from experts and practitioners, this guidance has been created exclusively for members to guide key business decisions and adapt their strategies to be in the best position for the months ahead.
As we enter this recovery phase, it remains our priority to provide our members and practices with the support they need.”
11 June 2020 Future workloads remain uncertain – RIBA Future Trends May 2020
Thursday 11th of June 2020 – After dropping to an historic low of -82 in April, the RIBA Future Trends Workload Index rose to -49 this month. And while 62% of architects expect their workload to decrease in the next three months, 13% now anticipate an increase, up from just 2% in April.
The RIBA Future Trends Staffing Index also increased marginally by seven points, with 70% of practices saying they expect the level of permanent staff to remain the same over the next three months, 26% saying they expect levels to decrease and 3% saying they expect to increase.
The findings from this month’s survey also show: • Current workloads remain at significantly reduced levels – down 33% compared to May 2019. • 73% of respondents expect profits to fall over the next 12 months – within that, 8% consider that their practice is unlikely to remain viable. • 22% of architectural staff have been furloughed – an increase of 8% from April. • 1% of architectural staff have been made redundant; 1% have been released from a ‘zero hours’, temporary or fixed-term contract. • 38% of projects had been put on hold since the start of March. • 23% of projects which remain active are at stages 5 or 6 of the RIBA Plan of Work.
RIBA Executive Director Professional Services, Adrian Dobson, said: “The current pandemic and economic uncertainty are clearly continuing to impact both architects’ current workloads and their confidence about the future, with the majority expecting their workloads to decrease in coming months.
But while many participants continued to point to the serious recession ahead, some also began to reference glimmers of hope in the form of new enquiries and new commissions.
In these uncertain times, we are on hand, and will continue to support members and practices by helping them map routes to recovery and build resilience for future challenges.”
Members with concerns or queries are encouraged to email [email protected].
26 May 2020 Mental health concern grows – RIBA COVID-19 survey findings
Tuesday 26th May 2020 – The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) has published the findings from its second COVID-19 survey of architects, revealing the impact of the pandemic on the profession.
Findings indicate the main concerns for people, practices and projects:
People
Mental health decline– 40% said their mental health had been affected (a significant increase from 23% in April); 20% felt isolated.
Working location– 74% said they were working entirely from home, a further 10% said they were working mostly from home.
Working from home difficulties– almost a quarter (24%) are caring for others and 13% said they have inadequate equipment.
Reduced income – 56% have reduced personal and/or household income.
Working patterns have changed – 15% said they had been furloughed and 27% said they were working reduced hours. 37% reported finding ‘new and better ways of working’.
Practices
Economic impact – 58% reported fewer new business enquiries, 53% reported a decreased workload and 57% said they were experiencing a cashflow reduction.
Projects
Site closures– 60% said at least one of their project sites had closed.
Widespread project delays – 90% reported project delays, citing parties including clients, contractors, planning officers and building control officers.
Clients responsible for most project cancellations– 48% of decisions to cancel projects were made by the client.
RIBA CEO, Alan Vallance, said:
“Our latest survey findings show the continuing impact of the pandemic on the business of architecture and the wellbeing of architects.
We are particularly concerned to see a significant decline in mental health, with most having to deal with reduced incomes and many also juggling caring responsibilities with home-working. As lockdown restrictions ease, construction sites re-open and we establish new ways of working, we must prioritise our health and wellbeing – and those of our employees and colleagues – and seek support should we need to. Practice leaders can help by promoting a healthy work-life balance.
We are here to help members navigate through and beyond this crisis. We are producing regular guidance in response to the profession’s key concerns and lobbying the Government to support the sector both financially and as a key client.”
Members with any concerns are encouraged to email [email protected] for information and support.
An executive summary of the survey findings can be found here.
21 May 2020 RIBA calls for ‘decade of action’ with new report
Thursday 21st of May 2020 – The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) has today published a new report revealing architects’ views on the climate emergency and showcasing exemplar applications of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
‘A Decade of Action: RIBA Members and the Sustainable Development Goals’ reveals the profession’s strong commitment to sustainable development and climate action, but also highlights that more progress needs to be made by architects, clients and the UK Government to raise the bar.
In a detailed member survey:
66% of participants said their organisation is committed to addressing the climate emergency.
Project Cost Constraints (79%) and Client Requirements (70%) were cited as the biggest barriers to building sustainably.
82% said their organisation believes the UK Government must legislate for higher standards.
70% said their organisation would welcome the Building Regulations mandating ‘zero carbon’ by 2030.
The second part of the RIBA report showcases best practice examples of how the UN Sustainable Development Goals can be embedded in projects, practices and schools of architecture.
It highlights schools which reference and discuss the SDGs, projects which apply and further the SDGs, and practices which base their entire business strategies on them – from business operations, to supply chains, to practice structure and projects themselves.
RIBA CEO, Alan Vallance, said:
“The findings of our survey – and best practice examples that follow – show that RIBA members are committed to transforming the built environment, but also that there’s progress yet to be made.
Architects, clients and policy makers understand the need for change, but even more collaboration is required to turn this ambition into action.
While the RIBA continues to lobby the UK Government to adapt the Building Regulations to meet the scale of our environmental challenge, architects are uniquely placed to lead the green recovery of the built environment post-pandemic. This means applying the Sustainable Development Goals consistently, and encouraging clients to do the same.
It’s time to kick-start a decade of action, sign-up to the 2030 Climate Challenge, and make sure we’re building a future that will last.”
The RIBA’s Sustainable Outcomes Guide aligns with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, and outlines eight clear, measurable goals for projects of all scales, underpinned by specific design principles to achieve them.
14 May 2020 Workload expectations hit historic low – RIBA Future Trends April 2020
The latest RIBA Future Trends survey results show the worsening impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the architecture and construction industries.
During April 2020, the RIBA Future Trends Workload Index dropped to an historic low, with a balance figure of -82 (from -11 in March). Architects’ workloads are 33% less than they were twelve months ago.
84% per cent of architects expect their workload to fall in the next three months with balance figures ranging from -80 for small practices to -100 for large practices.
All work sectors and all regions also showed a significant drop in confidence. The private housing sector fell furthest from -7 to -72; the commercial sector fell from -5 to -60 and the community sector fell from -8 to -50.
The Staffing Index also saw the largest monthly drop on record from 0 to -30 with 31% of practices (saying they expected to employ fewer full-time staff in the next three months. 68% said they expect staffing levels to stay the same.
Survey results also indicate:
39% of projects have been put on hold since the 1st March.
Of the projects that remain active, 21% are at stages 5 or 6 of the RIBA Plan of Work – so vulnerable to site restrictions.
14% of practice architectural staff have been furloughed.
29% of small practice staff (1 – 10 staff) are working fewer hours.
RIBA Executive Director Professional Services, Adrian Dobson, said:
“This is a crisis is like no other. While a reduction in architects’ confidence has previously been an early indicator of a contraction in the construction sector – because design work comes first – this time, work on site was immediately disrupted.
Workload recovery will depend on the speed and nature of our move out of lockdown, and on how much architectural and construction capacity has been preserved.
As the sector adapts to new ways of working, the RIBA will lobby for continued protection of jobs and businesses and push the Government to invest in the housing and public sector projects the country desperately needs. This also means harnessing the expertise of architects who have the skills to re-mobilise communities and enable safe returns to workplaces and school.
We will continue to advocate on behalf of the profession and ensure members have the guidance and information they need to navigate the coming weeks and months.”
Members with any concerns about the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak are encouraged to email [email protected].
11 May 2020 RIBA responds to Government’s coronavirus recovery strategy
The RIBA has responded to the Government’s COVID-19 recovery strategy.
RIBA CEO, Alan Vallance, said: “The recovery from COVID-19 will clearly not happen overnight. It will take time for architects to adapt to new ways of working and during this time the Government must continue to protect jobs and businesses.
Until the Government publishes specific guidance on how to safely re-open and operate workplaces, businesses cannot make tangible plans or provide their employees with the reassurance they need.
The Government must also help the sector build resilience against future challenges and invest in public sector projects the country desperately needs. It’s time to harness the expertise of architects who have the skills and expertise to re-mobilise communities and enable safe returns to work and school.”
23 Apr 2020 RIBA opens £30K funding scheme for architecture students
Thursday 23rd of April 2020 – The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) has opened funding applications for five RIBA Wren Insurance Association Scholarships.
The annual scholarships are open to current students enrolled in the first year of their RIBA Part 2 course. A total of £30,000 will be available, with each recipient receiving £6,000 and the opportunity to be mentored by an architect member of the Wren Insurance Association throughout their second year.
The scheme, which was set up in 2013, has supported 35 recipients to date. The deadline for applications is Tuesday 26 May 2020.
RIBA Director of Education David Gloster said: “We are very grateful to the Wren Insurance Association for their continued generosity over the years and especially at this extremely challenging time. Many students are struggling with the impacts of the COVID-19 crisis, and scholarships such as this are vital tools to support, reward and retain talent in our profession.”
Applicants can find more information about last year’s award winners and how to apply for this year’s awards here.
17 Apr 2020 Workload confidence plummets – RIBA Future Trends March 2020
The impact of the coronavirus crisis on architects is starkly illustrated by the March 2020 RIBA Future Trends survey results. As the approaching disruption to the profession became clearer, the RIBA Future Trends Workload Index dropped an unprecedented 33 points to –11, the steepest fall in confidence on record.
Large architecture practices returned a balance figure of –20 (down from +60), medium practices were at ���8 (down from +67) and small practices fell 28 points, to -10.
This sharp drop in confidence was recorded in most of the UK. London fell to -19 (from +23); the Midlands & East Anglia fell to -21 (from +29); the South of England went to -7 (from +6); and Wales and the West recorded the largest fall to -9 (from +43). The North of England was the only region that remained in positive territory, at +14.
All sectors fell into negative territory with the private housing sector being the most affected, dropping 21 points to -7. The RIBA Future Trends Staffing Index also fell to 0 (from +8).
RIBA Executive Director Professional Services, Adrian Dobson, said: “Whilst concerns about the potential impacts of the coronavirus crisis had been building for many weeks, March was an obvious turning point. Many practices reported a sudden loss of revenue as the UK went into lockdown, construction sites began to close and new enquiries dropped off. New work was becoming sparse, advice to business from Government was sporadic and uncertainty grew. The profession is clearly bracing itself for the coming weeks and months.
As well as preparing for a potentially rough ride in the short term, architects need to plan for the future and be ready to respond when business picks up. The RIBA has developed our COVID-19 hub with a suite of information and guidance to best support all our members: on financial help, protecting staff, mental health and how practices can prepare themselves for the future.
We are in daily contact with the Government, advocating on behalf of architects to provide businesses with the security they need. We will continue to work hard on behalf of our members and encourage anyone with concerns or suggestions to contact us.”
Members with any concerns about the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak are encouraged to email [email protected]
6 Apr 2020 RIBA COVID-19 survey findings
45% report drop in personal income and almost a quarter struggling with mental health – RIBA COVID-19 survey findings.
The RIBA has today (Monday 6 April) published the findings from its COVID-19 survey of the profession.
Headline findings from the survey, which was completed by 1001 architects (83% RIBA members), revealed:
The business of architecture is under stress:
59% of respondents reported a decreased workload and 58% reported a decrease in new business enquires. This has led to a reduction in cash flow, with 57% of respondents already experiencing less money coming through.
A radical shift in normal working patterns:
81% of respondents are working entirely at home and around 70% of students reported that their campus had closed.
Significant project disruption:
79% reported project delays, 61% reported site closures, and over a third (37%) reported projects being cancelled. Only 5% of respondents reported no disruption.
Architects are under personal stress:
A third of respondents reported a drop in household income and 45% reported a drop in personal income. Almost a third also reported they had self-isolated with nearly a quarter (23%) reporting deterioration in mental health and 21% commenting they ‘felt isolated’.
RIBA CEO, Alan Vallance, said:
“The findings of this survey show how that COVID-19 is having a severe impact on architects, professionally and personally. For many architects, their work is more than a way to earn a living, and to see decades of hard work threatened by circumstances none of us can have foreseen is a disaster.
The RIBA remains committed to responding to the needs of its members, and will carry on providing the information, guidance and support they need so that architects can weather this storm.
We will continue to lobby the Government to protect the income of all affected architects, expand support schemes to cover directors’ dividends and shift economic policies to provide businesses with the security they need.
During this extremely unsettling time, I call on employers to prioritise the welfare and wellbeing of their staff. This means enabling them to work from home flexibly where possible, and taking advantage of the Government’s Job Retention Scheme. The RIBA is currently asking the Government to give grants or expand capital allowances so that companies can purchase or rent computer equipment to make it easier for employees to work productively and collaboratively at home.
Above all else, we must all prioritise our own physical and mental health, and seek support if needed.
The RIBA will continue to guide and support the profession as we navigate through the coming weeks and months.”
Members with any concerns about the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak are encouraged to email info(at)riba.org.
An executive summary of the survey’s findings can be found here:
RIBA COVID-19 survey of the profession
26 Mar 2020 RIBA responds to Government’s new Self-Employed Income Support Scheme
Thursday 26 March 2020 – The RIBA has responded to the Government’s new scheme to support the UK’s self-employed affected by the coronavirus outbreak.
RIBA CEO, Alan Vallance, said: “This scheme should provide long-overdue relief to self-employed people across the UK, but many will be seriously concerned about how they will manage their finances until the fund becomes available.
There are also a number of unanswered questions around the eligibility of those with newer businesses and some types of self-employment. We will be pushing the Treasury for clarity.
Almost a quarter of our Chartered Practices (sole practitioners) should be eligible to apply, but most need funds to tide them over now, not in two months’ time.
The challenge facing the Treasury is unenviably complex, but it needs to introduce some sort of interim financial support as a matter of urgency.”
20 Mar 2020 UK Government to ‘stand behind workers’ – RIBA responds
Friday 20th of March 2020 – The RIBA has responded to the Government’s latest financial measures including paying wages for workers facing job losses and deferring the next quarter of VAT payments.
RIBA CEO, Alan Vallance, said: “We are encouraged by the financial measures announced this evening and hope they will provide much needed support for practices to retain staff and manage cash flow. The RIBA is engaging with the Government on a daily basis and this latest package of support reflects proposals we put to the Chancellor earlier this week. We will continue to ensure the concerns of our members are heard, understood and acted upon.”
RIBA responds to Government’s latest package of financial support for businesses
Tuesday 17th of March 2020 – The RIBA has responded to the Government’s latest financial measures to shore up the economy against the coronavirus impact.
RIBA CEO, Alan Vallance, said: “We welcome the Government’s ‘unprecedented package’ of financial support during these unpredictable times, especially the extension of businesses eligible for loans. But more will be needed to support SMEs – most architecture practices – who are already feeling the pain of this pandemic. The Government must ease the cash squeeze faced by many practices and their clients, and provide clarity on how it will keep the planning system operating and construction sites open so that projects can progress.
We are writing to the Chancellor and Secretary of State for Housing to outline the specific support required for architects. The RIBA will do whatever is required to ensure Government provides the support our members need.”
12 Mar 2020 RIBA responds to Government’s proposed changes to the planning system
The RIBA has responded to ‘Planning for the Future’ – the Government’s policy paper which sets out post-Budget plans for housing and planning.
RIBA Executive Director Professional Services, Adrian Dobson, said:
The latest changes to the planning system contain a number of significant proposals. We are pleased with the pledges to review current house building processes, connect the development of housing and infrastructure more effectively and make land ownership more transparent.
However, there is a fundamental contradiction between the Government’s professed commitment to quality and its plans to further expand permitted development. Current rules allow developers to create housing which fails to meet even the most basic spatial, quality and environmental standards. Rather than driving a ‘green housing revolution’, the Government’s plans to allow the demolition and replacement of industrial and commercial property with housing under permitted development would make it easier to build the slums of the future.”
11 Mar 2020 RIBA reveals designers of 2020 summer installation
The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) has today (Wednesday 11 March 2020) announced Charles Holland Architects, together with multi-disciplinary artist Di Mainstone, as the designers of the summer installation at RIBA’s landmark HQ building in central London.
Responding to the theme of ‘Power’, the installation will be on show from 28 May to 12 September 2020.
Part architecture, part experience, this collaboration will combine an architectural installation with a multi-sensory performative element. Through theatrical devices, playful soundscapes and sculptural objects, it considers the power relations unspoken within the architectural plan. The arrangement of space – the architectural plan – informs how we move though buildings, what rooms we are allowed into and what we do in them. Transforming the layout of the gallery space, visitors are invited to explore how forms of power are expressed and performed in architecture.
The proposal was chosen, following an open call, by the a curatorial panel consisting of: Marie Bak Mortensen, Head of Exhibitions, RIBA; Margaret Cubbage, Curator Exhibitions, RIBA; Owen Hatherley, writer and critic; Luke Casper Pearson, Lecturer at Bartlett School of Architecture and part of selected practice You+Pea for the 2019 installation; and Catherine Yass, artist.
RIBA Head of Exhibitions & Interpretation, Marie Bak Mortensen, said: “The curatorial panel was overwhelmed with the ambition and breadth of the submissions to this year’s Architecture Open and it was far from an easy task to narrow down 67 entries to one. Combining the skills of an architect with those of a multi-disciplinary artist will bring new tactile experiences to the RIBA Architecture Gallery, while highlighting the intangible power of one of the fundamentals of architecture: the plan. We look forward to revealing this experiential installation in summer 2020 and inviting visitors to explore how architectural drawings prescribe and define our spaces.”
The installation will be on display alongside a programme of talks and events during the London Festival of Architecture (LFA).
For more details: https://ift.tt/31iUOgs
RIBA responds to 2020 Budget
RIBA CEO, Alan Vallance, said: “Given ongoing concerns about the impact of coronavirus, and the predominance of SMEs in our industry, it is positive to see specific support in the Budget outlined for smaller businesses and employers.
The significant spending on affordable, safe homes and infrastructure announced today is welcome, though arguably a decade overdue. To meet ambitious housing targets, we need to work on building high-quality, safe and sustainable homes.
We will continue to urge the Government to spend public money wisely, and ensure that every penny delivers real long-term value for communities as well as our economy. Social value must be at the heart of all procurement processes and spending plans.”
UK’s approach to trade negotiations with the US – RIBA responds
Monday 2 March 2020 – The RIBA has today responded to the UK Government’s policy paper setting out aims for trade negotiations with the United States.
RIBA CEO, Alan Vallance, said:
“Today’s announcement that the UK will be seeking a Free Trade Agreement with the US that includes the recognition of professional qualifications is a promising development for architects.
The RIBA has been calling on the Government to secure a transatlantic trade deal that supports architecture – as one of the UK’s world-leading services – through fair access to the US market and increased opportunities for professionals to operate overseas. We will continue to make this case as talks commence.”
American Embassy Building London – former US Embassy in Mayfair: photo © Adrian Welch
27 Feb 2020 EU and UK Trade Negotiating Strategies Response
‘A step in the right direction’ – RIBA responds to EU and UK trade negotiating strategies
Thursday 27 February 2020 – The RIBA has responded to the UK Government’s ‘Future Relationship with the EU’ and the European Union’s ‘Council decision authorising the opening of negotiations’.
RIBA CEO, Alan Vallance, said: “It is positive to see the European Union and UK Government’s negotiating strategies align regarding the Mutual Recognition of Professional Qualifications (MRPQ) – both agreeing this must be part of our future trade deal. This deal will affect goods, such as construction materials, and services, such as architecture. But most importantly, it will affect people across Europe, who rely on the architecture sector to design high-quality, safe and sustainable buildings.”
27 Feb 2020 RIBA publishes comprehensive new Plan of Work
The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) has today published the RIBA Plan of Work 2020 – the definitive guide for the design and construction of buildings.
For the first time, the RIBA Plan of Work includes a Sustainability Project Strategy which provides actions and tasks aligned with the RIBA Sustainable Outcomes Guide for each project stage. These range from appointing a sustainability champion to carrying out Post Occupancy Evaluation.
The updated document responds to detailed feedback from the construction industry. New additions include a section comparing the Plan of Work to international equivalents and nine Project Strategies including Fire Safety and Inclusive Design.
RIBA President, Professor Alan M Jones, said: “The RIBA Plan of Work continues to be an extremely relevant and highly effective tool for the construction industry. This new version reflects the huge environmental and societal challenges we face – as a planet and an industry. As chartered architects, we have a responsibility to ensure the delivery of high-quality, safe and sustainable environments; and the RIBA Plan of Work 2020 is our essential, definitive guide for doing so.”
The RIBA Plan of Work 2020 and RIBA Sustainable Outcomes Guide have been developed to support the RIBA 2030 Climate Challenge, an initiative to encourage RIBA Chartered Practices to achieve net zero whole life carbon for all new and retrofitted buildings by 2030.
21 Jan 2020 RIBA responds to CPRE report on new housing design
Tuesday 21 January 2020 – “As RIBA architects highlight daily and this report emphasises, the design quality of new housing developments is simply not good enough. This is a problem for people who need new homes now. The solutions available to government are clear: increased resourcing, better design skills within local authorities, and a clear planning framework that upholds standards.
It is also vital that permitted development rules, which allow developers to sidestep basic safety and sustainability standards are scrapped. Without these changes, the country will continue to store up further issues for the future.”
Alan M Jones, RIBA President
16 Jan 2020
RIBA News 2020 – architects workload trends
The impact of Brexit uncertainty on construction – RIBA reveals 2019 trends
Thursday 16 January 2020 – The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) has today published its monthly summary of business intelligence, alongside a commentary on the stand-out trends reported by architects throughout 2019.
In 2019, Brexit uncertainty had a significant impact on the architecture profession and the wider construction industry.
Monthly workload predictions were extremely volatile. In the second half of the year, as the prospect of a no-deal Brexit grew closer, the Index fell; from a 2019 high of +9 in June, to a negative figure for three of the final four months of the year. In October when crashing out of the EU looked like a real possibility, the Index stood at -10, the lowest balance score since 2011. Architects consistently described heightened client caution: with a reduction in project enquiries; projects being put on hold or failing to move past early design stages; and downward pressure on fees.
The differing levels of optimism between practices in the north and south of the UK was another consistent trend. Architecture practices in London and the South of England were far less positive about their future workloads, a sentiment shared by smaller practices, wherever they were located. Larger practices, and those in the North of England, felt consistently more positive about securing long-term work.
RIBA Future Trends – December 2019 report
In December 2019, the RIBA Future Trends Workload Index sat at -2 – slipping back into negative territory for the final month of the year.
Small practices (1-10 staff) were most negative about future workloads – returning a balance figure of -6 – while medium (11-50 staff) and large-sized practices (51+ staff) remained positive, returning a combined balance figure of +38.
London fell into negative territory (dropping from zero to –18) along with the Midlands & East Anglia who fell from -6 to -13. The South of England held steady at zero whereas practices in Wales and the West and the North of England remained level and positive, returning balance figures of +14.
The private housing sector saw the biggest rise to +2 following three months in negative territory (the longest run since 2009) and the community sector rose slightly to -3. The commercial and public sectors both remained negative, falling back one point each to -5 and -4.
The RIBA Future Trends Staffing Index remained steady, with a balance figure of +2 in December and the anticipated demand for temporary staff in the next three months increased to +2. 22 per cent of practices said they were personally under-employed in the last month, due to a lack of work.
RIBA Head of Economic Research and Analysis, Adrian Malleson, said: “2019 Future Trends data consistently emphasised the impact of Brexit and political uncertainty on the construction industry. Reports of postponed projects, downward pressure on professional fees and skills shortages were prevalent, alongside a reluctance from clients to invest in building projects.
Larger practices and those in the North of England tended to be more optimistic, suggesting a shift in the focus of activity away from London and the South in 2019. It was also a year which saw an increase in larger firms looking beyond the UK for work.
After an extended period of volatility, and with a new government in place and more clarity on plans to leave the EU, there are glimmers of growing confidence in the profession, with some practices starting to report an increase in enquiries. Our Chartered Practices are resilient and adaptable to challenge. We look forward to presenting their predictions over the coming months.”
14 Jan 2020
RIBA News & Events in 2020
RIBA launches open call to design experimental installation for Architecture Gallery
Deadline for entries: 13 February 2020
The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) is inviting architects, architecture students and creatives to design a temporary installation at the RIBA’s HQ building in central London, to coincide with the London Festival of Architecture (LFA).
Responding to the Festival’s theme of ‘Power’, the installation will be on show from 28 May through to September 2020.
The ‘Power’ theme is open to interpretation, with no prescribed brief. For example, submissions could take the form of a built installation, a set of architectural sculptures, sound pieces or a film.
Architecture Open is an annual opportunity for creatives at all stages of their careers to develop an artistic and architectural installation. The proposal can be an existing project or idea, however evidence of experimentation, thought-provoking ideas relating to the theme and imaginative thinking around audiences are encouraged. Clear consideration of material and construction methods should also be expressed, especially in relation to best practice in sustainability. Architects and architecture students are welcome to develop collaborative ideas with artists or designers.
RIBA Head of Exhibitions & Interpretation, Marie Bak Mortensen, said: “In its five-year history, the RIBA Architecture Gallery has commissioned architects and designers to present their ideas in critically acclaimed exhibitions, including Assemble, Pablo Bronstein, APPARATA, Giles Round, Sam Jacob Studio and Pezo von Ellrichshausen. The 2020 theme of Power is a pertinent and broad one which will no doubt encourage a range of responses, and I look forward to seeing the breadth and quality of the proposals submitted this year.”
The project budget is £25,000 plus a £4,000 design fee (excluding VAT).
The project is open to all RIBA Members, Chartered Practices and architecture students (for whom membership is free).
3 Jan 2020 Delivering Sustainable Housing and Communities Event
Date: Wednesday 29th January 2020
Location: Central London, England, UK
Join the Westminster insight’s Delivering Sustainable Housing and Communities Forum, which will feature key figures from government, energy and local authorities.
The forum will discuss innovative new methods in the planning, designing and building of sustainable housing stock that meets the environmental needs of future generations.
Hear from RIBA 2019 Stirling Prize Winners, Mikhail Riches Architects, who will be sharing insight into their pioneering project for Norwich City Council which delivered almost 100 highly energy-efficient homes.
Confirmed speakers:
• (Chair) Barry Goodchild, Professor of Housing and Urban Planning, Sheffield Hallam University • Lord Best, Social Housing Leader, House of Lords • James Harris MA MSC, Policy and Networks Manager, Royal Town Planning Institute • Lesley Rudd, Chief Executive, Sustainable Energy Association • Mikhail Riches Architects *RIBA 2019 Stirling Prize Winner* • Emma Fletcher, Chair, Swaffham Prior Community Land Trust • Anthony Probert, Programme Manager, Bioregional • Stewart Clements, Director, Heating and Hotwater Industry Council (HHIC) • Dr Steffie Broer, Director, Bright Green Futures • Rene Sommer Lindsay, Urban Designer and Strategic Advisor, R|S|L|ENT • Simon Tilley, Director, Hockerton Housing Projects
We will also explore how innovative new materials, systems and technologies will contribute to meeting 2050 net-zero targets.
What you will learn:
• Explore regulations, planning and future funding for sustainable housing development • Discuss the role of planning and design for a resilient homes future • Deliver on carbon reduction targets for housing in line with 2050 net-zero targets • Review practical case studies which are contributing to the achievement of a more sustainable housing environment
View the full agenda https://ift.tt/3kdpTum
Secure your place https://ift.tt/3grr5s5
Forum details:
Wednesday 29th January 2020 08:30 – 13:25 Central London
Codes:
VHGV1O-1241058 for 1 delegate place (10% off) VHGVZO-1241058 for 2+ delegate places (20% off)
Codes will expire at 9pm, 9th January 2019.
RIBA News 2019
RIBA News & Events 2019
RIBA Summer Installation 2019
RIBA London Events information from RIBA
Location: 66 Portland Place, London, UK
RIBA Events Archive
RIBA Events 2018
RIBA Annie Spink Award 2018
National Museum of African American History and Culture building: photo © Darren Bradley
RIBA Exhibition on Perspective
Building Britain’s Ideal – RIBA Discussion
RIBA News in London
RIBA News & Events 2017
RIBA London Events – Archive
RIBA HQ at 66 Portland Place
RIBA Gold Medal for Architecture
Chartered Institute of Building
RIBA Awards
RIBA Stirling Prize
RIBA Honorary Fellowships
London Architecture Events
AA School Events
Bartlett School of Architecture Event
Comments / photos for the RIBA News & Events for 2020 page welcome
Website: London
The post RIBA News & Events 2020, London, UK appeared first on e-architect.
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Jadescape – D20’s Newest Precious Stone
As anyone who has read the book and/or watched the movie would know, the Hollywood block-buster rom-com ‘Crazy Rich Asians’ movie wouldn’t be half as crazy, rich, or Asian without its Asian stars – or its Singaporean locations.
Novelist Kevin Kwan says that the movie was intended to be a homage to Singapore. And in the movie, all the usual (some say hackneyed) Singapore Tourism Board-mandated images abound.
You have your Marina Bay Sands infinity pool shots, your Gardens by the Bay outdoor party settings, our lovely CHIJMES – both interior and exterior – our beloved Newton Food Centre, and unmistakable Bukit Pasoh Road’s quaint shophouses via infatuated camera pans, scans and tilts.
And of course, no film shot in Singapore can leave out sunset shots of Merlion Park, drone views of the Singapore Flyer from above, long distance glimpses of our CBD skyline and so on.
In short, what the movie is saying to the world is – to be a crazy rich Asian, is to care immensely about where you are.
But Singapore is more than just a mishmash of uppercrust-approved cultural, architectural, sartorical and gastronomical locations. Silently, and pervasively, every frame of the movie also reminds the world that Singapore is a ‘garden city’.
So for anyone aspiring to be a Crazy Rich Asian, there’s new meaning to the phrase ‘go green with envy’ – for green is indeed our unofficial national colour.
“In every tree, leaf and flower”
The “garden city” vision was introduced by then Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew on 11 May 1967 to transform Singapore into a city with abundant lush greenery and a clean environment in order to make life more pleasant for our people.
Since then, a clean and green Singapore has meant “Singaporean” to us, as much as the iconic buildings featured in the movie – perhaps even more so, as even while iconic buildings are torn down to make way for progress, our natural habitats are preserved and protected.
This protection takes place mainly in the Central Catchment Reserve. Today, few would disagree that the Thomson district is the very epitome of a clean and green Singapore.
Perhaps, this is why QingJian Realty decided to name their latest Thomson development Jadescape.
The word ‘Jade’ describes an ornamental mineral, most prized in its green varieties. The name ‘Jadescape’ is probably intended to describe the setting of this new condo – in a neighbourhood filled with precious greenery, it can itself be the most valuable asset.
Intrigued? Here’s some other reasons why you should consider buying aJadescape property.
The District
Jadescape is located in District 20, also known as Ang-Mo-Kio-Bishan-Thomson. D20 has proven to be a desirable postal code, particularly for properties clustered around Thomson Road and Shunfu.
This might be why: overall gross rental yields for non-landed private homes from January 2017 to January 2018 have hovered around 3.2% nationally. Private property launches in this district have done well when matched up against this benchmark, and recent launches even reflect a rising trend (See Table 1.)
This makes any new launches in the area – like Jadescape – well worth a first and second look.
Do take a look at our compare tool to see how Jadescape stacks up against its competition.
Table 1: Recent & Coming New Launches in D20
TOP YearAverage PSFRental Yield*
Sky Habitat
2015$1,4383.0%
Sky Vue
2017$1,6933.2%
Thomson Impressions
2019$1,271NA
Jadescape
2023$1,527NA
* Based on transactions in the last 12 months, excluding projects with 3 or fewer transactions (https://www.squarefoot.com.sg/market-watch/rental-yield)
On top of the rental yield numbers, which are not too bad for OCR (and we have not even mentioned potential capital gains), the Thomson/Shunfu area is especially coveted for new property launches, because it is:
on the borders of a large green lung in the geographical centre of Singapore, boasting proximity to 2880 hectares of rainforests and reservoirs containing over 500 unique animal species
close to the Central Business District (31 minutes by train)
a short drive to the airport (15 to 20 minutes)
near some of Singapore’s most elite schools
Plus, on top of all the natural splendor, Thomson is also home to a small enclave of bohemian eateries, cafes, pubs and specialty shops clustered within walking distance around Thomson Plaza, Sin Ming and Upper Thomson Road, and affordable food centres and shops around the Shunfu area.
The Developer
Touted as the first new private apartments in the area to be launched in 5 years, Jadescape is a new development by developer Qingjian Realty, which has in its portfolio Natura Loft (2008), Nin Residence (2010), RiverParc Residence (2011), Riversound Residence (2012), River Isles (2012), Waterbay (2012), Ecopolitan (2013), Bellewoods (2014), Bellewaters (2014) and The Visionaire (2016).
Formerly home to a development named Shunfu Ville, the entire site was sold for S$638 million in 2016. At that time, the sale marked the third largest en bloc by quantum here.
The site has a yield of 1206 units, while break-even cost could be about S$1,250 psf, with new units fetching S$1,400 to S$1,500 psf, said marketing agency JLL at the time.
“Property cooling measures and the Additional Buyer’s Stamp Duty on developers if they cannot complete and sell all units in five years have meant that the collective sales market has been very quiet,” Ms Alice Tan, Knight Frank’s research head, said at the time. “Developers are not willing to take up more risks especially for larger investment deals of above S$500 million.”
This was true in 2016 and is even more applicable now with the extended cooling measures taking shape in July 2018. Till today, only Jadescape and Thomson Impressions have been announced in the private housing pipeline for District 20. The latter only has 283 units, which means the only sizable private development in the area remains Jadescape.
This, in addition to lack of land sales in the district, means the demand for Jadescape apartments will likely remain pent up – for at least as long as HDB’s minimum occupancy period of 5 years.
This is good news for resales, as nearby HDB dwellers (and also owners of landed properties) who wish to acquire a private property (for investment or for access to condo facilities like swimming pools, gyms and clubhouses) are likely to consider a JadeScape apartment as their first option.
So in the near term at least, you can expect the prices of your property to stay relatively strong, even if property market fundamentals weaken.
The Competition
At the moment, there’s only Thomson Impressions to choose from if you are looking for fresh property in this district.
As above, Thomson Impressions has a much smaller stock to choose from, and it is not even launched yet. And while Longhaus has been launched, it is even smaller – only 40 units are for sale.
Chances are in comparison, you would probably need pay more to afford these properties, putting them well out of reach for most buyers.
But even if you think you can afford them, and can afford to wait, there’s always the stellar advice that you should keep in mind: to “buy what you can afford, that meets your needs now.”
The Government encourages us to treat property as homes, and not as investments. Hence you should bear in mind that with this policy stance, further property market cooling measures may be in the pipeline some years down the road, choking off affordability the longer you wait.
The Investment Prospects
That said, in a study, Edgeprop looked at apartments and condominiums across Singapore that commanded gross rental yields of 4% and above and found that they have these three characteristics in common: proximity to the city centre, proximity to MRT stations and close distance to schools.
Jadescape is within 200 metres from Marymount MRT, which is just 30 minutes away from the city centre. It is within minutes from elite and prestigious schools like Raffles Institution, Ai Tong Primary School, Raffles Girls (2019) and Catholic High School.
Conclusion: a 4% gross rental yield is potentially within reach.
The Neighbourhood
Buying a property isn’t only about its potential value as an investment. There’s also what it is like to live in. While within Jadescape, you have all the usual condominium amenities: spa, pool, gym, playgrounds, clubhouse, BBQ corners, and more, what it is near to matters as well.
In the Thomson/Shunfu vicinity are several facilities to encourage public appreciation of our nation’s vast nature reserves, such as the HSBC TreeTop Walk, as well as numerous shopping centres (Bishan Junction 8, Thomson Plaza, and Ang Mo Kio Hub), schools (Ai Tong Primary, Raffles Institution, ånd Raffles Girls within 2km), primary healthcare (Mount Alvernia Hospital) and easy access to the rest of Singapore via expressways and public transport.
And if you are a card-carrying Crazy Rich Asian, there’s also the feather in Jadescape’s hat: Singapore Island Country Club, located a mere stone’s throw away.
Probably the most prestigious and elite country club in the land, it is the home of ‘old money’ families – unequalled for world-class golf courses, heritage-level club buildings and enough communal activities for you to constantly be rubbing shoulders, knees and possibly even ankles with fellow crazy rich Asians.
Can You Afford It?
Well if you have to ask…. We’ll tell you! Sign up for a TRUNew account and our onsite mortgage calculator will help you figure out what you can afford.
We will also keep you up to date on Jadescape’s launch details, access to VVIP previews via a personalised news feed, plus the following unique benefits:
The widest listing of units direct from developers (from new launches to sale-of-balance units). We have 239 listings to-date, versus 167 from Propertyguru
First-to-market information for all project launches
In-depth information that your agents may not have told you (via this blog itself)
Customised, print-friendly reports for every project you are interested in
Shortlist, save, and share detailed inter-project and inter-unit comparisons for all your needs
Enjoy free Truuue concierge services all throughout your property buying experience, from viewing to post-sales; via the Truuue Ops Team
Enjoy a personalised information feed for each stage of your purchase (viewing, balloting, unit selection, S&P, post-sales, tenant sourcing)
Appointment reminders for any listed project
Our Compare tool will also help you see what else you can be buying in this lush and green district – which by the way, we are now considering naming the Emerald of Singapore.
It’s earned that name for now, don’t you think?
TRUnew is the convenient way to get up-to-date information on all property launches in Singapore. Compare unbiased and accurate information between projects and individual units with TRUnewbefore making that important decision.
Original content is available here -https://blog.truuue.com/jadescape-d20s-newest-precious-stone/
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Jadescape – D20’s Newest Precious Stone
As anyone who has read the book and/or watched the movie would know, the Hollywood block-buster rom-com ‘Crazy Rich Asians’ movie wouldn’t be half as crazy, rich, or Asian without its Asian stars – or its Singaporean locations.
Novelist Kevin Kwan says that the movie was intended to be a homage to Singapore. And in the movie, all the usual (some say hackneyed) Singapore Tourism Board-mandated images abound.
You have your Marina Bay Sands infinity pool shots, your Gardens by the Bay outdoor party settings, our lovely CHIJMES – both interior and exterior – our beloved Newton Food Centre, and unmistakable Bukit Pasoh Road’s quaint shophouses via infatuated camera pans, scans and tilts.
And of course, no film shot in Singapore can leave out sunset shots of Merlion Park, drone views of the Singapore Flyer from above, long distance glimpses of our CBD skyline and so on.
In short, what the movie is saying to the world is – to be a crazy rich Asian, is to care immensely about where you are.
But Singapore is more than just a mishmash of uppercrust-approved cultural, architectural, sartorical and gastronomical locations. Silently, and pervasively, every frame of the movie also reminds the world that Singapore is a ‘garden city’.
So for anyone aspiring to be a Crazy Rich Asian, there’s new meaning to the phrase ‘go green with envy’ – for green is indeed our unofficial national colour.
“In every tree, leaf and flower”
The “garden city” vision was introduced by then Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew on 11 May 1967 to transform Singapore into a city with abundant lush greenery and a clean environment in order to make life more pleasant for our people.
Since then, a clean and green Singapore has meant “Singaporean” to us, as much as the iconic buildings featured in the movie – perhaps even more so, as even while iconic buildings are torn down to make way for progress, our natural habitats are preserved and protected.
This protection takes place mainly in the Central Catchment Reserve. Today, few would disagree that the Thomson district is the very epitome of a clean and green Singapore.
Perhaps, this is why QingJian Realty decided to name their latest Thomson development Jadescape.
The word ‘Jade’ describes an ornamental mineral, most prized in its green varieties. The name ‘Jadescape’ is probably intended to describe the setting of this new condo – in a neighbourhood filled with precious greenery, it can itself be the most valuable asset.
Intrigued? Here’s some other reasons why you should consider buying aJadescape property.
The District
Jadescape is located in District 20, also known as Ang-Mo-Kio-Bishan-Thomson. D20 has proven to be a desirable postal code, particularly for properties clustered around Thomson Road and Shunfu.
This might be why: overall gross rental yields for non-landed private homes from January 2017 to January 2018 have hovered around 3.2% nationally. Private property launches in this district have done well when matched up against this benchmark, and recent launches even reflect a rising trend (See Table 1.)
This makes any new launches in the area – like Jadescape – well worth a first and second look.
Do take a look at our compare tool to see how Jadescape stacks up against its competition.
Table 1: Recent & Coming New Launches in D20
TOP YearAverage PSFRental Yield*
Sky Habitat
2015$1,4383.0%
Sky Vue
2017$1,6933.2%
Thomson Impressions
2019$1,271NA
Jadescape
2023$1,527NA
* Based on transactions in the last 12 months, excluding projects with 3 or fewer transactions (https://www.squarefoot.com.sg/market-watch/rental-yield)
On top of the rental yield numbers, which are not too bad for OCR (and we have not even mentioned potential capital gains), the Thomson/Shunfu area is especially coveted for new property launches, because it is:
on the borders of a large green lung in the geographical centre of Singapore, boasting proximity to 2880 hectares of rainforests and reservoirs containing over 500 unique animal species
close to the Central Business District (31 minutes by train)
a short drive to the airport (15 to 20 minutes)
near some of Singapore’s most elite schools
Plus, on top of all the natural splendor, Thomson is also home to a small enclave of bohemian eateries, cafes, pubs and specialty shops clustered within walking distance around Thomson Plaza, Sin Ming and Upper Thomson Road, and affordable food centres and shops around the Shunfu area.
The Developer
Touted as the first new private apartments in the area to be launched in 5 years, Jadescape is a new development by developer Qingjian Realty, which has in its portfolio Natura Loft (2008), Nin Residence (2010), RiverParc Residence (2011), Riversound Residence (2012), River Isles (2012), Waterbay (2012), Ecopolitan (2013), Bellewoods (2014), Bellewaters (2014) and The Visionaire (2016).
Formerly home to a development named Shunfu Ville, the entire site was sold for S$638 million in 2016. At that time, the sale marked the third largest en bloc by quantum here.
The site has a yield of 1206 units, while break-even cost could be about S$1,250 psf, with new units fetching S$1,400 to S$1,500 psf, said marketing agency JLL at the time.
“Property cooling measures and the Additional Buyer’s Stamp Duty on developers if they cannot complete and sell all units in five years have meant that the collective sales market has been very quiet,” Ms Alice Tan, Knight Frank’s research head, said at the time. “Developers are not willing to take up more risks especially for larger investment deals of above S$500 million.”
This was true in 2016 and is even more applicable now with the extended cooling measures taking shape in July 2018. Till today, only Jadescape and Thomson Impressions have been announced in the private housing pipeline for District 20. The latter only has 283 units, which means the only sizable private development in the area remains Jadescape.
This, in addition to lack of land sales in the district, means the demand for Jadescape apartments will likely remain pent up – for at least as long as HDB’s minimum occupancy period of 5 years.
This is good news for resales, as nearby HDB dwellers (and also owners of landed properties) who wish to acquire a private property (for investment or for access to condo facilities like swimming pools, gyms and clubhouses) are likely to consider a JadeScape apartment as their first option.
So in the near term at least, you can expect the prices of your property to stay relatively strong, even if property market fundamentals weaken.
The Competition
At the moment, there’s only Thomson Impressions to choose from if you are looking for fresh property in this district.
As above, Thomson Impressions has a much smaller stock to choose from, and it is not even launched yet. And while Longhaus has been launched, it is even smaller – only 40 units are for sale.
Chances are in comparison, you would probably need pay more to afford these properties, putting them well out of reach for most buyers.
But even if you think you can afford them, and can afford to wait, there’s always the stellar advice that you should keep in mind: to “buy what you can afford, that meets your needs now.”
The Government encourages us to treat property as homes, and not as investments. Hence you should bear in mind that with this policy stance, further property market cooling measures may be in the pipeline some years down the road, choking off affordability the longer you wait.
The Investment Prospects
That said, in a study, Edgeprop looked at apartments and condominiums across Singapore that commanded gross rental yields of 4% and above and found that they have these three characteristics in common: proximity to the city centre, proximity to MRT stations and close distance to schools.
Jadescape is within 200 metres from Marymount MRT, which is just 30 minutes away from the city centre. It is within minutes from elite and prestigious schools like Raffles Institution, Ai Tong Primary School, Raffles Girls (2019) and Catholic High School.
Conclusion: a 4% gross rental yield is potentially within reach.
The Neighbourhood
Buying a property isn’t only about its potential value as an investment. There’s also what it is like to live in. While within Jadescape, you have all the usual condominium amenities: spa, pool, gym, playgrounds, clubhouse, BBQ corners, and more, what it is near to matters as well.
In the Thomson/Shunfu vicinity are several facilities to encourage public appreciation of our nation’s vast nature reserves, such as the HSBC TreeTop Walk, as well as numerous shopping centres (Bishan Junction 8, Thomson Plaza, and Ang Mo Kio Hub), schools (Ai Tong Primary, Raffles Institution, ånd Raffles Girls within 2km), primary healthcare (Mount Alvernia Hospital) and easy access to the rest of Singapore via expressways and public transport.
And if you are a card-carrying Crazy Rich Asian, there’s also the feather in Jadescape’s hat: Singapore Island Country Club, located a mere stone’s throw away.
Probably the most prestigious and elite country club in the land, it is the home of ‘old money’ families – unequalled for world-class golf courses, heritage-level club buildings and enough communal activities for you to constantly be rubbing shoulders, knees and possibly even ankles with fellow crazy rich Asians.
Can You Afford It?
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Original content is available here- https://blog.truuue.com/jadescape-d20s-newest-precious-stone/
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Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman (born March 30, 1964) is an American singer-songwriter, known for her hits "Fast Car" and "Give Me One Reason", along with other singles "Talkin' 'bout a Revolution", "Baby Can I Hold You", "Crossroads", "New Beginning" and "Telling Stories". She is a multi-platinum and four-time Grammy Award-winning artist.
Chapman was signed to Elektra Records by Bob Krasnow in 1987. The following year she released her critically acclaimed debut album Tracy Chapman, which became a multi-platinum worldwide hit. The album garnered Chapman six Grammy Award nominations, including Album of the Year, three of which she won, including Best Female Pop Vocal Performance for her single "Fast Car", and Best New Artist. Chapman released her second album Crossroads the following year, which garnered her an additional Grammy nomination. Since then, Chapman has experienced further success with six more studio albums, which include her multi-platinum fourth album New Beginning, for which she won a fourth Grammy Award, for Best Rock Song, for its lead single "Give Me One Reason". Chapman's most recent release is Our Bright Future, in 2008.
Early life
Chapman was born in Cleveland, Ohio. She was raised by her mother, who recognized Tracy's love of music and, despite not having much money, bought her a ukulele when she was just three. Chapman began playing guitar and writing songs at the age of eight. She says that she may have been first inspired to play the guitar by the television show Hee Haw.
Raised Baptist, Chapman attended an Episcopal high school. She was accepted into the program "A Better Chance", which sponsors students at college-preparatory high schools away from their home community. She graduated from Wooster School in Connecticut, then attended Tufts University. She graduated with a B.A. degree in anthropology and African studies.
Career
During college, Chapman began busking in Harvard Square and playing guitar in Club Passim, the Nameless Coffeehouse, and other coffeehouses in Cambridge, Massachusetts. She made her major-stage debut as an opening act for women's music pioneer Linda Tillery at Boston's Strand Theater on May 3, 1985. Another Tufts student, Brian Koppelman, heard Chapman playing and brought her to the attention of his father, Charles Koppelman. Koppelman, who ran SBK Publishing, signed Chapman in 1986. After Chapman graduated from Tufts in 1987, he helped her to sign a contract with Elektra Records.
At Elektra, she released Tracy Chapman (1988). The album was critically acclaimed, and she began touring and building a fanbase. "Fast Car" began its rise on the US charts soon after she performed it at the televised Nelson Mandela 70th Birthday Tribute concert in June 1988; it became a number 6 pop hit on the Billboard Hot 100 for the week ending August 27, 1988. Rolling Stone ranked the song number 167 on their 2010 list of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time". It is the highest-ranking song both written and performed by a female performer. "Talkin' 'bout a Revolution", the follow-up, charted at number 75 and was followed by "Baby Can I Hold You", which peaked at number 48. The album sold well, going multi-platinum and winning three Grammy Awards, including an honor for Chapman as Best New Artist. Later in 1988, Chapman was a featured performer on the worldwide Amnesty International Human Rights Now! Tour. According to the VH1 website, "Her album helped usher in the era of political correctness—along with 10,000 Maniacs and R.E.M., Chapman's liberal politics proved enormously influential on American college campuses in the late '80s."
Her follow-up album Crossroads (1989) was less commercially successful, but still achieved platinum status. By 1992's Matters of the Heart, Chapman was playing to a small and devoted audience. Her fourth album New Beginning (1995) proved successful, selling over three million copies in the U.S. The album included the hit single "Give Me One Reason", which won the 1997 Grammy for Best Rock Song and became Chapman's most successful single to date, peaking at Number 3 on the Billboard Hot 100. Following a four-year hiatus, her fifth album, Telling Stories, was released in 2000. Its hit single, "Telling Stories", received heavy airplay on European radio stations and on Adult Alternative and Hot AC stations in the United States. Chapman toured Europe and the US in 2003 in support of her sixth album, Let It Rain (2002).
To support her seventh studio album, Where You Live (2005), Chapman toured major US cities in October and throughout Europe over the remainder of the year. The "Where You Live" tour was extended into 2006; the 28-date European tour featured summer concerts in Germany, Italy, France, Sweden, Finland, Norway, the UK, Russia and more. On June 5, 2006, she performed at the 5th Gala of Jazz in Lincoln Center, New York, and in a session at the 2007 TED (Technology Entertainment Design) conference in Monterey, California.
Chapman was commissioned by the American Conservatory Theater to compose music for its production of Athol Fugard's Blood Knot, a play on apartheid in South Africa, staged in early 2008.
Atlantic Records released Chapman's eighth studio album, Our Bright Future (2008). Chapman made a 26-date solo tour of Europe. She returned to tour Europe and selected North American cities during the summer of 2009. She was backed by Joe Gore on guitars, Patrick Warren on keyboards, and Dawn Richardson on percussion.
Chapman was appointed a member of the 2014 Sundance Film Festival U.S. Documentary jury.
Chapman performed Ben E. King's "Stand By Me" on one of the final episodes of the Late Show with David Letterman in April 2015. The performance became a viral hit and was the focus of various news articles including some by Billboard and The Huffington Post.
On November 20, 2015, Chapman released her Greatest Hits album. Consisting of 18 tracks including the live version of "Stand By Me", the album is Chapman's first global compilation release.
Social activism
Chapman is widely regarded as a politically and socially active musician. In a 2009 interview with American radio network NPR, she said, "I'm approached by lots of organizations and lots of people who want me to support their various charitable efforts in some way. And I look at those requests and I basically try to do what I can. And I have certain interests of my own, generally an interest in human rights." She has performed at numerous socially aware events, and continues to do so. In 1988, she performed in London as part of a worldwide concert tour to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights with Amnesty International. The same year Chapman also performed in the Nelson Mandela 70th Birthday Tribute, an event which raised money for South Africa's Anti-Apartheid Movement and seven children's charities. More recently, in 2004 Chapman performed (and rode) in the AIDS/LifeCycle event.
Chapman has also been involved with Cleveland's elementary schools. A music video produced by Chapman that highlights significant achievements in African-American history has become an important teaching tool in Cleveland Public Schools. Chapman also agreed to sponsor a "Crossroads in Black History" essay contest for high school students in Cleveland and other cities.
In 2004, Chapman was given an honorary doctorate in Fine Arts by her alma mater, Tufts University, recognizing her commitment to social activism.
I'm fortunate that I've been able to do my work and be involved in certain organizations, certain endeavors, and offered some assistance in some way. Whether that is about raising money or helping to raise awareness, just being another body to show some force and conviction for a particular idea. Finding out where the need is – and if someone thinks you're going to be helpful, then helping.
Chapman often performs at and attends charity events such as Make Poverty History, amfAR and AIDS/LifeCycle, to support social causes. She identifies as a feminist.
Personal life
Although Chapman has never disclosed her sexual orientation, during the mid-1990s she dated writer Alice Walker. Chapman maintains a strong separation between her personal and professional life. "I have a public life that's my work life and I have my personal life," she said. "In some ways, the decision to keep the two things separate relates to the work I do."
Discography
1988: Tracy Chapman
1989: Crossroads
1992: Matters of the Heart
1995: New Beginning
2000: Telling Stories
2002: Let It Rain
2005: Where You Live
2008: Our Bright Future
Contributions
Duet songs:
1997: "The Thrill Is Gone" with BB King from his album Deuces Wild
1999: "Give Me One Reason" with Eric Clapton from the album A Very Special Christmas Live
1999: "Trench Town Rock" with Stephen and Ziggy Marley at the One Love Bob Marley All Star Tribute
2000: "Baby Can I Hold You" with Pavarotti from the DVD/Album Pavarotti and Friends for Cambodia and Tibet
2001: "The Maker" with Dave Matthews on October 21, 2001 at the Bridge School Benefit
2005: "Ain't No Sunshine" with Buddy Guy from his album Bring 'Em In
Covered songs:
"The House of the Rising Sun" – Rubáiyát (LP)
"The Times They Are A Changin" – Bob Dylan 30th Anniversary Celebration (LP)
"O Holy Night" – A Very Special Christmas 3 (LP) and A Very Special Christmas Live (LP)
"Three Little Birds" – Live at the One Love Bob Marley All Star Tribute
"Get Up Stand Up" – by Bob Marley featured on the Let It Rain tour edition CD2 (LP)
"Stand By Me" – by Ben E. King on the XM Hear Music Radio Sessions Volume 1 (LP)
Wikipedia
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Grape Expectations
I’ve never really been much of a wine drinker. Growing up I would eschew my parents’ offerings of a Sunday glass with our weekly roast dinners in favour of a sparkling grape juice. Only recently have I been able to tell the difference between red and white, and that’s with my eyes open. Wine was always something other people did. In fact, by the time I was living on the Sunshine Coast, alcohol was something other people did. But then I moved to the Northern Territory. Here, in the spiritual home of VB, where their green cans litter every roadside stop and every bit of roadside in between, I reacquainted myself with the amber nectar. On the Barkly cattle stations, XXXX was my beer of choice. On trips south to the Alice, something more boutique, like a Coopers Pale. Upon returns to the coast, I’d partake in beers made by men that spend too long grooming their beards and call their creations names like ‘Sad Dog IPA’ or ‘Duke of Gloucester’ or some other such nonsense.
Once I’d made the permanent move to Alice Springs and more specifically, as I started having regular meals chez Aaron and Kate, I made the move onto wine. And not just any wine. Good wine.
Naturally, I started off knowing it was good because it cost more than Yellowtail, but in time I came to know it was good because it tasted better than Yellowtail. I think I was developing a palate but without knowing what that meant. It mirrored our steak evenings (https://rufusdawes.tumblr.com/post/157518431764/fillet-oafish) in that now, it has been impossible to match our home scotch standards in any restaurant we have since attended. And so with the wine. On ordering at our local watering hole I can taste the relative inferior aspects of their offerings. Though to be fair, during our winter months, I’m not downing pub bought vino for its quality.
A year into weekly steak nights and my meat and wine standards have risen. Aaron has slowly been pulling a ��My Fair Lady’ on me. I think he stands to win a wager if he can pass me off as an oenophile during our trip to the Barossa. Which brings me on to our trip to the Barossa.
In early December, the Alice Springs Steak Lovers of Aaron, Jurgen and myself along with Kate and Jo, though sadly missing Dave and Maddy, had two nights at Tanunda in the heart of the Barossa Valley an hour or so north of Adelaide. From here we would have the opportunity to tour a smattering of the myriad wineries on offer. Prior to Jurgen and Jo’s arrival the rest of us snuck in a few early tastings at Rockford, Turkey Flat and at Artisan where I was first introduced to the word ‘tannins’ in a wine context and encouraged to use descriptors such as smoky. Also, on how to swirl a glass so that it looks like you know what you’re doing before sniffing, swirling some more, supping, sniffing, swirling, supping, and then discarding the remains nonchalantly, rather than openly weeping as the most expensive wine you’ve ever tasted gets tipped into a spittoon. I even started holding the wine up to the light to confirm that it was indeed red or looking at the legs as they glided down the inside of the glass and confirming to myself that, yep, this wine has legs. My education had begun.
However, this was only the entrée to what was to follow for our one full day in the valley. On Wednesday morning, at 10am on the dot, a black 1962 Daimler Majestic Major Limousine pulled into the gravel driveway of our accommodation. An hirsute and impressively moustachioed gentleman, in his early 50s stepped out to introduce himself as John, our guide and educator for the day. He acquainted himself with the five of us and discussed each of our wine tastes. I could confirm that I did indeed like wine and would like to taste some. Essentially, Jurgen, Jo and I tried to defer to Aaron and Kate for whom this was not their first trip in John’s Daimler.
To start us off was a trip to Tscharke and things were already looking up. Set in a German timbered style cottage amongst some of their productive vines, they were selling one particularly quaffable Shiraz (a three vineyard Shiraz called ‘Shiraz, Shiraz, Shiraz’) at just $10 a bottle, which even fell within my budget.
On to Greenock Creek where we were introduced to our first ‘Mum and Dad’ winery. A phrase that John used regularly to describe the small, family owned and operated establishments that are numerous throughout the region. Unlike the large winemakers such as Jacob’s Creek, which are running industrial scale productions and cater accordingly, the family run ones offer a more intimate setting and connection to their products.
Langmeil was our final stop of the morning, home to what are thought to be the oldest Shiraz vines in the world. Planted in 1843 by Langmeil’s German migrant founder Christian Auricht, they have earned the reputation as the oldest following the Great French Wine Blight of the mid 1800s which laid waste to the French wine industry. As such many Australian vines, especially of the Shiraz variety, are now among the oldest producing vines in the World.
A morning of three cellar door visits meant the lunchtime feast was eagerly anticipated and hoovered down. Naturally, the four meat eaters at the table chose the steak but of course, it could not fulfil the lofty standards of the Alice Springs Steak Lovers. As we dined however, John was making a couple of phone calls to set up our afternoon. We were to be in for an absolute treat.
After a quick stop at a cheesemakers which served as dessert to our two course luncheon, we were off to Cimicky Wines. Owned by husband and wife Charles and Jennie Cimicky, it was John’s personal connection to the family that got us in through the door. We were greeted by Jennie before Charles offered to take us on a tour of the production. This included a visit to a couple of barrels soon to have their contents bottled. Charles’ generosity knew no bounds as he poured us each a taster somewhere in the region of a couple of hundred millilitres. This was before we went back to the main tasting area where again, each glass was bordering on a regular serving. Charles was an incredibly unassuming fellow, modest, generous and open and it was to my misfortune that I declined a visit to the Cimicky cellars to try a port that has been aging for 25 years and never bottled, due to the time restraints that we were readily accruing thanks to Charles’ existing hospitality. Aaron’s incredulity at such a refusal will never be matched.
Fortunately, the day was still only to get better despite being on an upward curve ever since waking, since we left Charles and Jennie to meet with Dave Powell.
Dave and his General Manager, Paul, met us outside a pub where they’d been watching Australia polish off England in the Adelaide Test match. A few rum and cokes to the good and watching an Aussie victory had them both in good spirits. Piling into their Toyota Hiluxes we drove the couple of kilometres down a dirt track too dirty for a 1962 limousine and into the hub of Powell & Son wines. Here Dave regaled us with the story of his youth, his marriages, his success in founding Torbreck wines, his anger at being pushed out of Torbreck wines by his American billionaire partner, the money earned, the money lost, and his success at starting again in a more boutique operation with his son Callum.
As he told his stories, he would stop to introduce us to one of his wines and tell us a bit about its history. Like Charles, he would pour generously and all wines were opened for our benefit. Moving from the Riesling through the GSM and into the Shirazes, we were getting into the bigger and bolder wines. The cost of each was rising too and as a $125 bottle of 2015 Loechel Eden Valley Shiraz was opened, I hoped that my wine naivety would not be overtly evident. It was at this point that I made the decision not to be pouring away a single drop of anything that was offered, especially since I noticed that a bottle of the Powell & Son flagship Steinert Flaxman’s Valley Shiraz was sitting at the end of the table.
Sure enough, with corkscrew in hand, Dave reached over and opened up this $750 a bottle wine. Again, a large glass was poured and I was thankful that I’d spent a day and a half learning what I liked in a wine and how to appreciate a good one. I’m delighted that this was the best yet.
Asking if we’d yet made dinner plans, Dave suggested FermentAsian back in Tanunda. He made a call, secured us an 8pm booking and then offered us the opened bottles of the Steinert Flaxman and the Grenache to take with us, and we left with a third after Jurgen asked if we could also take his favourite, the Loechel Eden.
Sitting in the office, I don’t think any of us had any idea just how revered Dave Powell is in the industry. To finish with a quick tour, see the wine barrelled and ready to be shipped to Tetsuya’s in Sydney (one of the finest restaurants in the world) and then talk vine management and maintenance on the way back to the limo with one of the great winemakers of his generation was the icing on the cake of a day already with more icing than a Swedish hockey festival.
John dropped us back in Tanunda an hour and half later than scheduled, such was our overrun. We headed off to FermentAsian for our degustation where we were met by the house sommelier whose opening words were ‘so, I hear you were with Dave earlier’. It’s fair to say that they looked after us after that.
As a newbie to wine and looking back on this day, I found it wise to heed the words the American satirist P.J. O’Rourke attributes to his co-drinker, Christopher Buckley; “You know this trick about wine tasting? If you’re at a loss, describe someone who’s in the room”. https://www.forbes.com/forbes-life-magazine/1999/1030/112.html As far as the Steinert Flaxman’s goes though, if I should ever meet the person in the room who I can describe to do that justice, I might just have met the love of my life.
Enjoying the hospitality of Dave Powell; Entity, Riesling, the author, Sparkling & Tawny.
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Are NGOs responsible for the migration crisis in the Mediterranean?
http://bit.ly/2vR54i7
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Migrants are being rescued by members of the “Proactiva open arms” NGO, off the coast of the Island of Lesbos (Greece). Ggia/Wikimedia, CC BY-NC-SA
2016 was an extraordinarily deadly year for migrants: 5,000 people perished in the Mediterranean Sea, vastly exceeding the death toll of 3,700 in 2015. And in the first six months of 2017, more than 1,000 deaths have been recorded.
Year after year, we see the same dynamics at work. Migrants flee conflict and instability in the Middle East and Africa trying to reach Europe. In order to avoid the land checkpoints established by European governments, they take their lives into their hands, setting off across the Mediterranean in makeshift boats, often operated by unscrupulous people smugglers.
This is not a recent tragedy; migrant advocate organisations have been recording the death toll of these people since the 1990s. But now they don’t simply tally up the dead, they directly intervene by rescuing migrants at sea.
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It all started in 2014 with the discontinuation of the Italian navy’s humanitarian and military operation Mare Nostrum. The cost of the operation was too high for the Italian government, which was unable to convince its European partners to join its efforts.
The program was replaced by operation Triton, financed by the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex). But NGOs feared that the change would lead to the deaths of thousands of migrants: Triton has a lower budget than Mara Nostrum and only operates in a small section of the waters where boats are liable to sink.
Above all, Triton was primarily designed for border control, rather than saving lives.
Complex rescue missions
Launched by a couple of Italian-American millionaires, the Migrant Offshore Aid Station (MOAS) was the first private organisation of its kind to charter a boat. In 2015, Doctors without Borders (MSF, short for Médecins Sans Frontières) followed their lead, as did Save the Children in 2016.
Across Europe, citizens came together to create new organisations such as SOS Méditerranée, Sea Watch, Life Boat Project, Sea Eye, Jugend Rettet in Germany, Boat Refugee in the Netherlands, and Proactiva Open Arms in Spain.
Operation Frontex personnel operate off the coast of Malta in March 2017. Austrian Federal Ministry for Europe, Integration and Foreign Affairs/Flickr, CC BY
The number of different authorities and organisations involved has made rescue operations more complex. Since maritime law states that any vessel close to a boat in distress must come to its aid, the relevant maritime authorities coordinate rescue efforts for each zone. In the central Mediterranean Sea, it is most often the Italian coast guard, part of the Ministry of Transportation, that grants NGOs permission to intervene.
But, in reality, it’s often the NGOs who find a sinking boat and contact the coast guard themselves.
Once the migrants are rescued, they are taken to an Italian port, under the authority of another government department (Ministry of the Interior), who selects their destination, registers them and directs them towards “ hotspots ” – migrant centres set up by the European Union.
Accessories to smugglers’ operations?
In Italy, the role of NGOs in rescue operations has created controversy. In December 2016, the Financial Times highlighted Frontex’s frustration.
The European border force has reservations about sea rescue operations. In its opinion, letting migrants believe that all they need to do is take to the sea to be rescued and welcomed to Europe opens up the floodgates.
According to the British newspaper, Frontex has evidence that some NGOs are in contact with smugglers and direct them towards zones where migrants have the best chance of being rescued. In other words, they claim these NGOs are accomplices to human traffickers and are therefore guilty of the crime of assisting illegal immigration.
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The report led Italian authorities to investigate. In May 2017, the Italian senate’s parliamentary inquiry concluded that NGOs constitute a “pull factor” and that they should cooperate more with maritime police operations. The Catania chief prosecutor nevertheless stated that there was no proof of wrongdoing.
The Italian government itself is divided. While the minister for foreign affairs has denounced the NGOs, the prime minister has thanked rescuers for their help, and the coast guard says it supports “politically neutral” maritime activities.
International organisations have also taken a stand. The UN High Commission for Refugees defended the NGOs, while the International Organization for Migration gave partial support to Frontex’s arguments, while highlighting the importance of saving lives in the Mediterranean.
Saving lives or controlling immigration?
On June 9 2017, researchers Charles Heller and Lorenzo Pezzani published the report Blaming the Rescuers. Using empirical evidence, it refuted Frontex’s claims and pointed out that the border force also accused operation Mare Nostrum of encouraging illegal immigration.
Yet the end of the Mare Nostrum operation, far from limiting fatalities, led to an increase in deaths. In the 2016 report Death by Rescue, these same researchers measured fatalities during Mediterranean crossings, comparing the number of people lost at sea with the number of people who reached Europe. They showed that it was far more dangerous to migrate during the Triton operation than Mare Nostrum. Increases in fatalities and the risk of death during a crossing are therefore not due to the presence of rescuers but rather to the lack of rescue operations.
These reports accuse Frontex of ending the Mare Nostrum operation knowing that it was saving lives. They also claim that it is now doing the same thing with NGOs, attempting to get rid of them knowing full well that their absence would make the journey riskier.
The debate highlights contradictions in European migration policies, which are creating a “prohibition effect”. If it is impossible to procure something legally (access to Europe), demand shifts to the riskier back market, profiting unscrupulous intermediaries.
Strengthening border control, especially on land, automatically results in risky boat journeys and therefore a rise in the number of deaths at sea. And the humanitarian aim of saving lives inevitably runs up against government efforts to control immigration.
The issue of legitimacy
Behind the controversy lies the question of legitimacy. Who has the right to intervene and come to migrants’ rescue?
Frontex defends the right of governments to control their borders and exercise sovereignty. NGOs have another perspective: if national governments are unable to uphold certain fundamental rights, such as the right to life, civil society must intervene.
This philosophy is nothing new. State inaction is also the reason many NGOs have become involved in the fight against poverty, for instance, and the defense of minorities. What is different is its application to questions of sovereignty, which is normally reserved for nation states.
The Italian coast guard saves migrants in the central Mediterranean Sea. Maso Notarianni/Flickr, CC BY-NC-ND
To an extent, the crisis in the Mediterranean enables NGOs to challenge state control over borders. And it’s understandable that this creates resistance. But if governments wish to defend their monopoly, they should find better arguments than those put forward by Frontex.
Greater solidarity in Europe would help avoid situations like the one that led to the discontinuation of the Mare Nostrum operation. Following the Dublin Convention, countries such as Greece and Italy are continuously at the front line, which is neither fair nor sustainable.
In this context, we can see the limits of the current political approach to migration, founded on an obsession with security and a denial of fundamental rights.
With calm weather conditions ideal for sea crossings, the northern summer is almost upon us. The migration debate is only just beginning and it brings with it the need for a basic rethinking of European migratory policies.
Translated from the French by Alice Heathwood for Fast for Word.
The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond the academic appointment above.
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it’s been a long time, tumblr. how’s it going everyone?
in the spirit of transparency and honesty, (and because really, if you can’t be honest on your own blog that you’re pretty sure no one reads anymore anyway in your own private corner of the internet, then where can you be honest?) this spring has sucked. like a lot. every couple of weeks I think, surely life can’t get any harder, but then it does and i’m always left reeling a little with anger and frustration and exhaustion. but also it has started to make me think that this is just the new normal. comparing life to new york city three years ago doesn’t work anymore. so anyway, here i am in the mid-west (missouri, misery) just trying to take it one day at a time, often wondering why I’m here and what does God have up his sleeve that’s taking us down this frustrating road in the first place?
anyway! other than that, we’ve had some visitors come to stay with us, which was fantastic and such a breath of fresh air to have our nyc friends here. two of the visits were plagued with a bit of hardship, which i’ll share below.
sarah jo & peterson were our first visitors, back in mid-april. they came during the middle of the week as they did a road-trip all the way from nyc and back. if i didn’t hate being in the car so much i would totally want to recreate their roadtrip adventure! we were pretty crazy at the restaurant those days, with big catering orders and wholesale deliveries, but we still managed to squeeze in some fun things. we grilled out, got in the hot tub, made margaritas, took them to Bass Pro and Sam’s Club (ha!) and got Pineapple Whip AND Andy’s Frozen Custard in the same day. i feel like we got to know Peterson really well this visit and they are just so funny and easy to be with, it was great!
a week and a half later, our dear friends Alice and Kyle flew in. they used to live in our old neighborhood in harlem but have recently moved to Connecticut, though they’re both still commuting into the city for work. unfortunately heavy rains and storms delayed their flight and they missed their connection in Chicago. they were lucky to get re-booked on another airline and made it in the same night, just much later than expected. the next day they came to the mill and we got to show them around and have breakfast and lunch there with them. that afternoon we visited Bass Pro (truly, this is the only place we have to take people) and that night we hung out at Brew Co. the next morning I woke up with the worst back-ache I have ever, ever experienced. it had been bothering me off and on all that week and i just kept thinking it would go away but when i bent down to feed our cats that morning something just spasm’ed (sp?) throughout my whole body and i fell over and couldn’t get back up. i yelled at clif and he had to jump out of bed and carry me back to the couch. it was the most excruciating pain i have ever felt in my life, no joke. i was probably at a 9 or 10 on the pain scale throughout the day. i could not walk and could barely put any weight on it. of course, Alice and Kyle were here which made me feel even worse because I didn’t think I could muster up the strength to walk or even get out of the house. they were so sweet and patient and offered help and advice. clif and kyle got out to get lunch and icy hot and pain killers and all that good stuff while alice and i just sat in the living room and talked pretty much all afternoon. later that day we grilled out and they set me up on the patio with a chair so i could be part of the group. i kept thinking i had slipped a disc or something more serious but was relieved to find out i didn’t have any of the symptoms of a slipped or torn disc. Alice and Kyle left early the next morning and, as much as i hated that i was pretty much out of commission their entire last day here, we got to spend a ton of time just chatting and catching up and that’s what their visit was all about anyway. they are such dear friends to us and we were also so thrilled to find out at the beginning of their visit that they’re pregnant!
the next day my back felt a lot better but i still had this plaguing pain in my lower left side of my back. our friend Shelby who is a family practitioner suggested some acupuncture (Alice also recommended it when she was here and said she’d had great results) and some light stretching. I made an appointment for acupuncture the next day and I am delighted to report that after two sessions my back felt 100% better. I don’t know that I would go all the time, but I can definitely get on board with some of the benefits of it. I felt significantly less stressed (this helped a lot for what was to come the following weekend) and even noticed my cramps were almost non-existent during my next period, as my acupuncturist mentioned that was a possible added benefit from the treatments.
the previous week our friend Adrian (clif’s first roommate in NYC and the person responsible for introducing me to Clif) emailed to say he had a client meeting for work in Jefferson City, MO and would like to come a few days early and stay with us before his meetings. of course we were like “YES! COME ON!” he came the following weekend after alice and kyle were here, resulting in three visits back to back to back. Adrian arrived Saturday afternoon amidst torrential downpours and lightening storms. how his flight actually landed I am amazed! it had been raining nonstop all week and my mom sent me a text saying that the local news station was reporting on all the flooding around town, some in our neighborhood. we stayed for dinner at the restaurant with Adrian and then headed home. we checked our basement immediately and everything was fine, so we settled into the living room with some drinks and began visiting with Adrian. it had been almost two years since we’d last seen him! about 45 minutes later our cat FDR wandered into Clif’s lap and Clif noticed his paws were wet. we bolted back down to the basement and sure enough, water was pouring in from every crack and crevice imaginable. the guys took off for Home Depot to try and find a sump pump (every place in town was sold out) and eventually came back home with a shop vac, which helped out a little but couldn’t keep up with the rapid rate the water was coming in. we went to bed feeling extremely on-edge and worried, but knowing the reality was that there was nothing we could do about it. we woke at 3:30am and our hearts broke when we saw 8″ of standing water in our basement. our basement was partially finished with a wood-laminate flooring throughout. we had a lot of storage stuff down there, as well as clif’s guitars and a couch and desk and ALL of the Christmas decorations we had put up at the mill this past year. there was nothing that could be done, we just had to wait for it to recede. i got back in bed and literally prayed for a miracle - i didn’t know if it would recede on it’s own and since we knew the sump pumps were currently sold out around town i wasn’t sure how we would get all the water out on our own. i also was afraid it would keep rising and start to come up the staircase to our main floor, as it was still raining and rain was forecasted to continue for the next day and a half. at 7am I woke up and checked the basement - in nothing short of a miracle, the water was all completely gone. completely. we knew there was a ton of work to be had in our future, but luckily we didn’t have to tend to it right then and were able to spend our last day with Adrian by not dealing with standing water in our basement. thank you, Lord.
we headed to Hotel Vandivort for brunch and then I had to run off to prepare for a managers meeting at our restaurant that afternoon. the rain continued, so we ended up lounging on the couch watching a marathon on HGTV and Clif cooked us all dinner. Adrian is just the best, he is such an interesting and caring guy and we were both so thrilled he was actually able to come to our home for a few days and see our restaurant, too. he and his wife Audrey will soon be re-locating to Toronto full-time, so who knows when and how we will coordinate seeing them again.
everything has been a bit of a whirlwind since then. we spent a few days stripping the flooring out of our basement and getting it dried with fans and a dehumidifier. we still aren’t sure what to do next, but now that we know the house is capable of flooding again we certainly aren’t going to spend a lot of money to fix it back up. we’ll probably just leave the floor as exposed concrete and invest in getting a sump pump permanently installed.
as soon as my back felt 100% again, my allergies kicked in. i’ve spent the last two weeks with a stuffy nose and sore throat and haven’t had a day off for a week and half. we’ve had some work-related fires to put out and have both been so exhausted we haven’t felt up to doing much. i finally got some planters around our house planted with flowers but i doubt we’ll get anything planted in our garden this season. we just ran out of time and now it’s summer-time-hot already. where did this year go?!
we are *fingers crossed* planning some sort of getaway in June, most likely to Chicago. we need some time away again - Puerto Rico feels like it was just yesterday but that was more than three months ago already!
Here are just a few pictures from the last few months to remember what we’ve been up to that’s been good. sometimes you have to force yourself to think about the good things, so that you don’t just dwell on the negative things, am i right? until next time...
beautiful peony in our backyard
GIVE OZARKS DAY where we helped raise funds to support Ozarks Food Harvest and then took a picture with this giant fork, because duh.
my MUG DAY at Brew Co was last Sunday!
went to see our friends’ kids Grant and Mason in their school talent show, where they did a totally improvised hip hop dance and it was fantastic
just me and Fred
Hotel Vandivort bathroom selfie with Adrian
i’ve read some great novels this spring, including this one below that i devoured in just a few days
we made a new tv commercial with KY3, then I went in to help edit it and took this screenshot where i look like a true moron.
Parker and his parents came up to Springfield, where we had lunch together and Parker hung off our furniture like a little monkey :)
Alice and Kyle and this big bear at Bass Pro
when you ask your breakfast grill employee to make you a special breakfast and they spell “hi” with the bacon
playing corn hole with Sarah Jo and Peterson
...but Sarah Jo mostly just watches and laughs and drinks her wine
just the four of us, outside of Brew Co on a beautiful April afternoon
an election day beer, Clif was so thrilled when Dogfish Head finally got distribution here in MO!
had a hold on this Harry Potter for almost a month so I was thrilled when it came in and I could go check it out from the library!
at the beginning of April we took our staff out for bowling and pizza and had a great time!
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