Another phto from the English Garden in Munich.

Over the last 3 weeks, I've been off work and enjoying the highly unusual sunny weather. It's lovely to be able to just go with a group of friends to the park with beer and pizza to watch the sun go down.

I'm trying now to fit in as much of this as possible, because it seems that the more time passes, and as the workload and responsibilites increase, the less time we'll have to enjoy occasions like these.

(Munich, 2011)

Snap-on is a leading US designer, manufacturer and marketer of tools and equipment to professional tool users. It was founded in 1920. Snap-on is located in Kenosha, Wisconsin, and employs approximately 11,500 people worldwide.

Joseph Johnson and William Seidemann formed the Snap-on Wrench Company in 1920. The company manufactured and marketed ten sockets that would "snap on" to five interchangeable handles.

To sell the products, Johnson and Seidemann worked with Stanton Palmer, who took the tools directly to customers at their places of business and demonstrated their use. Palmer enlisted Newton Tarble to share the increasing workload.

Snap-on entered global markets in 1931. Also in the 1930s, Snap-on began offering credit to customers. In the 1950s, Snap-on expanded on the concept of bringing product to the customer by using fully stocked walk-in vans. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snap-on

It's 7:30, I'm still at work, I still haven't eaten lunch, the sudden outpouring of work isn't done yet, and I'm feeling very alone and abandoned.

Daniel Boone National Forest Archaeologist Wayna Adams successfully increased the capacity of the heritage program through partnerships. With this increased capacity, she created virtual heritage education products, enhanced government to government relations with Tribes, and completed an unprecedented number of cultural resource assessments.

Daniel Boone National Forest Archaeologist Wanya Adams has faced the challenges of documenting and protecting eastern Kentucky’s past with a broad array of modern technologies and skills. In a year marked by telework and virtual meetings, Adams's planning skills and technical expertise enabled the DBNF to remain grounded in its work and goals.

Under Adams’ guidance, the DBNF Heritage Team conducted the cultural resources assessments necessary to clear thousands of acres of timber sales, over a hundred miles of road and trail maintenance, and numerous recreation infrastructure projects in Fiscal Year2021. She supported Districts in setting ambitious schedules for these assessments and personally reviewed each report to maintain consistency and quality in the compliance documentation submitted to the Kentucky State Society Historic Preservation Office and Tribes.

Her attention to detail at this stage decreased turnaround time incompliance and ensured the steady progression of these projects. These projects have in turn supported tourism and resource extraction activities in the economically depressed counties of eastern Kentucky and have helped to mitigate pandemic-related impacts.

Even with this already hefty workload, Adams worked to make a variety of heritage and conservation education materials available to the public through video, web content, and on-the-ground science and humanities education. She was instrumental in adapting the annual Living Archaeology Weekend (LAW) for a virtual audience. As part of the LAW steering committee, she secured regional funds to develop a video series that recorded American Indian and pioneer technology demonstrations.

She also developed a Leave No Trace public service announcement that highlighted the role stewardship practices play in preserving cultural sites around the Red River Gorge.

Adams has supported heritage education efforts both nationally and globally by working with the University of Kentucky to fund the digitization of heritage records so that heritage professionals have access to key documents wherever they may be based. Much of her outstanding work has been accomplished by expanding partnership agreements, supporting volunteers, and engaging with tribes.

She manages over ten active agreements with universities, the state historic preservation offices, and other partners that have enhanced the DBNF’s capacity to conduct archaeological field schools and surveys, complete site evaluations, and support undergraduate and graduate student research.

Working with partners and Forest Service employees, Adams has increased protections to heritage resources that are integral to the identities of underserved racial groups and economically depressed communities. She has also coordinated on-the-ground meetings with the Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma and is actively working to enhance government-to-government relations to expand tribal access to Forest resources and increase protections for sites of religious significance.

Under Adams’ guidance, the DBNF Heritage Team has responded to the challenges of the past year with creativity and innovation. From an ambitious pace of work to creating a brand-new slate of virtual heritage education resources, Adams has strengthened partnerships, invested resources, and achieved milestone after milestone in her mission to serve the public.

All the horsepower of the CTRR sits in the shop on a Friday afternoon. The big #35 is used during the day usually because of the workload at the Sappi and USG plants while either the smaller #33 or #31 switch on the night shift when the workload is less.

(Left to right) Dr Godfrey Steele, WIGUT President; Mr Immanuel Gonsalves, President, College of Science, Technology and Applied Arts of Trinidad and Tobago (COSTAATT); and Professor Clement Sankat, St Augustine Campus Principal of The University of the West Indies (UWI), at the West Indies Group of University Teachers (WIGUT St. Augustine) seminar on “Sustainable Funding of Higher Education in Challenging Times”, held on March 4th, 2010 at Daaga Hall Auditorium, UWI St. Augustine Campus.

The WIGUT seminar featured six panels exploring challenges faced in funding higher education. Presenters will examine a range of practical issues, such as traditional and entrepreneurial approaches and models in higher education, quality assurance and return on investment, funding models and case applications in higher education, and cost-cutting and workload issues. These issues have national, regional and global significance.

For more information, please contact Elmelinda Lara (868) 662 2002 Ext. 3414 or Elmelinda.Lara@sta.uwi.edu or visit www.sta.wigut.info.

For the latest UWI News, click sta.uwi.edu/news.

PSSP21MSnodgrass05 - (Photo by Marc Snodgrass) Julian Barragan talking about his experience with the pandemic at Carson Park in Carson, California, on Saturday, May. 29th, 2021. Julian says as of now has been doing fine and classes have been a bit stressful, just trying to get through it. He is currently taking art and 3D modeling classes at El Camino this semester and the work hasn’t been as enjoyable as he’d hoped and wished he could be able to do work more in his own way. He also had to drop two classes due to their workload, one was color theory and the other was art advertisement, leaving him with three classes when he was taking five at the beginning of this semester. Going back before the pandemic had hit he said he remembers it was the weekend and the pandemic news came out and he emailed his professors to see if there were still going to be any classes going on the next day still after what he had heard on the news. There wasn’t and this was the transition to online classes which he said sucked and had its pros and cons. He was able to make his own schedule kind of, he also says he’s anti-social and was nice not needing to be around other people in a classroom but after a while, it didn’t feel worth being at home all the time making it mentally draining. He talked about being stuck at home a lot and how he feels caged up with nothing much to do at all other than wake up do school work, eat, and sleep but he was really happy to take the opportunity to get out and do the interview. As of now he mostly waits till he’ll be able to go back outside again when the pandemic is over. But for now, he’s "Gotta kept on trucking" he said. Julian’s thankful that people are getting their vaccines and things look as if they are going to be back to normal soon he hopes. His motivation as of now is really low and wants to be able to be back on campus and get a sense of responsibility and getting more motivation to doing classes again.

He has most of his GE classes done except for math but as of now he’s been into the stock market and is currently invested in AMC which is supposed to have a crazy squeeze and could be very life changing for him if it does. If this does happen he says he may drop out of college and figure out what he will do with his money and invest in dividends and other things that could be of use, he also wants to help his mom and dad and then start freelancing and working at home and just doing things he loves while trying to learn different things and skills that can be useful or something he has an interest in like fixing a car or knowing how to cook really good meals. If not then he’ll keep with school and what he originally plans to do and follow his major. This is something he looks forward to seeing what will happen and waits for this pandemic to be over. So he can go out again with others once more without worry.

hills southeast of hollister CA, a month ago: unfortunately have learned that we did not get the mgmt contract for this area. feeling a bit disappointed, although also relieved, have no idea how we would have managed the extra workload...

Dr Godfrey Steele, WIGUT President, delivers welcome remarks at the West Indies Group of University Teachers (WIGUT St. Augustine) seminar on “Sustainable Funding of Higher Education in Challenging Times”, held on March 4th, 2010 at Daaga Hall Auditorium, The University of the West Indies (UWI) St. Augustine Campus.

The WIGUT seminar featured six panels exploring challenges faced in funding higher education. Presenters will examine a range of practical issues, such as traditional and entrepreneurial approaches and models in higher education, quality assurance and return on investment, funding models and case applications in higher education, and cost-cutting and workload issues. These issues have national, regional and global significance.

For more information, please contact Elmelinda Lara (868) 662 2002 Ext. 3414 or Elmelinda.Lara@sta.uwi.edu or visit www.sta.wigut.info.

For the latest UWI News, click sta.uwi.edu/news.

"Strung" by Cleveland artist & illustrator, Julia Kuo.

Acrylic on masonite, framed. Artwork measures 16" x 24". Framed piece measures 20" x 28".

Julia Kuo is a Cleveland-based illustrator, originally from Chatsworth, California. She is a full-time illustrator for the American Greetings World Headquarters, and also manages a heavy freelance workload. Her work can be found everywhere from album covers to the New York Times Magazine. Her most recent published works include album covers for "Among The Oak & Ash" and "Elizabeth & The Catapult".

Pieces ship well-packed, insured, and Priority Mail. Additional shipping charges may apply. Please contact us for an exact quote before purchasing. This item ships as "Oversized".

All works from the "Here & Now" show will ship in early August.

For availability, please check www.stevebrowngallery.com after July 19th, 2009.

Lots of work.

+++ DISCLAIMER +++

Nothing you see here is real, even though the model, the conversion or the presented background story might be based on historical facts. BEWARE!

Some background:

To shore up its need for a dedicated night fighter in 1940, the United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) went ahead with modified Douglas A-20 "Havoc" / "Boston" light bombers to suit the role. Development began in 1942 in anticipation that the series would not have to fight for long as the Northrop P-61 "Black Widow" - purposely designed for night fighting - would soon arrive in 1943. An XP-70 served as the series prototype to prove the validity of the conversion and the aircraft then operated under the formal designation of P-70 "Nighthawk".

It was the British Royal Air Force (RAF) that first realized the A-20 as a night fighter when they converted their A-20 Havocs for the role by installing appropriate air intercept radar and a ventral gun pod. The glazed nose section was painted over/covered to shroud the radar suite and an additional internal fuel tank was fitted for extended operational ranges. The USAAC followed suit, arming their A-20s and outfitting them with local copies of the British AI Mk IV radar (as the SCR-540). These aircraft too lost their glazed nose sections. Some fitted a ventral cannon tray with 4 x 20mm cannons while others utilized a "gun nose" mounting six or eight 0.50 M2 Browning heavy machine guns - continuing the American reliance on all-machine-gun armament for their aircraft. In these forms, the radar suite was moved to the bomb bay. The armor protection encountered in the original A-20 was reduced to help lighten the operation loads of the P-70s. It was deemed that such an aircraft, in its given role, need not burden itself down with unnecessary protection.

By the start of 1945 all early P-70s were removed from frontline service and served as trainers until their final days. Indeed, the P-70 trainers graduated some 485 persons to serve in American night fighter squadrons. The more potent P-70Cs were kept in service until the end of hostilities, even though many lost their radar equipment from early 1945 on when the Allied forces had claimed air superiority in many regions and were more and more used for daylight ground attack missions, using their potent gun armament for strafing ground targets. At this stage many P-70Cs also had their radr equipment removed to save weight in favor for more fuel or external ordnance.

General characteristics:

Crew: 2 (pilot, radar operator)

Length: 48 ft 2 3/4 in (14.72 m)

Wingspan: 61 ft 3.5 in (18.68 m)

Height: 18 ft 1+1⁄2 in (5.52 m)

Wing area: 464 sq ft (43.1 m²)

Airfoil: root: NACA 23018

tip: NACA 23009

Empty weight: 16,031 lb (7,272 kg)

Gross weight: 24,127 lb (10,944 kg)

Fuel capacity: 400 US gal (330 imp gal; 1,500 l) internal capacity, plus

676 US gal (563 imp gal; 2,560 l) in four auxiliary tanks in the bomb-bay, plus

200 US gal (174 imp. gal; 900 l) in optional underwing drop tanks

Powerplant:

2× Wright R-2800-10s Double Wasp 18-cylinder air-cooled radial piston engines,

2,000 hp (1,500 kW) each and up to 2,250 hp (1,680 kW) emergency power with water injection,

driving 4-bladed Curtiss Electric C542S constant-speed propellers, 11 ft 0 in (3.36 m) diameter

Performance:

Maximum speed: 400 mph (650 km/h, 350 kn) at 23.000 ft (7,500 m)

332 mph (534 km/h, 288 kn) at sea level

Cruise speed: 450 km/h (280 mph, 240 kn) at 14,000 ft (4,300 m)

Stall speed: 98 mph (158 km/h, 85 kn)

Range: 848 mi (1,365 km: 737 nmi) at 23,000 ft (7,000 m) with internal fuel only,

1,560 mi (2,510 km; 1,350 nmi) w. 2× 100 US gal (454 l; 87 imp gal) drop tanks

Ferry range: 2,300 mi (3,700 km, 2,000 nmi)

Service ceiling: 35,800 ft (10,900 m)

Rate of climb: 3,000 ft/min (15 m/s)

Time to altitude: 26,000 ft (8,000 m) in 14 minutes 30 seconds

Wing loading: 52 lb/sq ft (250 kg/m2²

Power/mass: 0.141 hp/lb (0.232 kW/kg)

Armament:

4× 20 mm Hispano M2(C) 20 mm cannon in a ventral tray with 100 rpg

6× 0.5 in (12.7 mm) M2 Browning machine guns in the nose with 400 rpg,

two in the lower nose section, four in external pods on the fuselage flanks

2× underwing hardpoints for 1.000 lb (454 kg) each

The kit and its assembly:

Another submission for the "Re-engined" group build at whatifmodellers.com in mid-2023, and this project started as a kind of repurposing of various ingredients into a new whole one. One factor was a vintage Matchbox A-20G/Boston IV kit, which I had primarily procured for the cool "Green Hornet" livery of the USAAF aircraft. The kit itself is not so flashy, though: it is rather basic, offers a wild mix of raised and engraved panel lines, and the worst thing is/was that the complete clear sprue was missing - and there's no chance to get this as a spare part, e .g, through Revell's "Department X", who might have reboxed the kit, but they never did (so far). When I recently gug through my spare parts I came across a cockpit canopy for just this kit - from my first Matchbox A-20 which I had built around 40(!) years ago. With this there was a serious chance to build the kit, even though not as intended by Matchbox.

With only the canopy to save the model it was clear that the nose had to be solid and that the dorsal turret had to go (which is no loss, it is ugly, primitive, and a PiTA to mount), and a P-70 conversion was a suitable path. Even more so because I could replace the bulbous and IMHO oversized OOB R-2600s with R-2800 from a Matchbox Martin B-26 Marauder - actually procured from two different kits and then mounted upside down to change the look a little. Since the "new" cowlings came with an integrated carburettor intake I decided to remove the respective fairings on top of the wings. These were filled/faired over with 2C putty, with the side benefit that I could add some hand-made wing structures inside of the landing gear wells. Adapting the B-26 cowlings to the A-20 nacelles required some sculpting and more PSR, but it workd and the result looks quite natural. The propellers were changed to cuffed Curtiss four-blade props, I was lucky to have a matching pair of P-47 parts at hand. The tips were slightly clipped, though.

The fuselage required more massive work. To make a virtue out of necessity I used the Boston IV's clear bombardier nose, which would remain incomplete, anyway, and integrated a radome from a A.W. Meteor night fighter (Matchbox kit) with lots of PSR and even more lead inside (because the Matchbox A-20 is a notorious tail sitter). I expected to radome to be more pronounced, in the end its curvature blends well into the rest of the A-20 fuselage - it looks as if the glass nose had been painted over, just like on the early P-70s and strafer Havocs. But I left it that way, even though I had hoped for a more distinct front profile.

However, because the radome was now not wider than the fuselage I decided to not only add a cannon tray under the fuselage (a drop tank half from a Sword F3J with an oval diameter), but also two pairs of pods with 0.5" machine guns from an Italeri B-25J. Serious firepower.

Additionally the P-70C received small, streamlined underwing drop tanks outside of the engine nacelles - a small detail that changes the aircraft's look even more.

Biggest challenge became the rear cockpit for the radar operator, though. Like the earlier P-70s, the night fighter would lose its defensive armament, and in the A-20G's case this included a complete powered turret for which the fuselage had been widened behind the wings' trailing edge. For this stunt the whole area was cut out and the former roof window of the gunner's compartment faired over. The whole cabin was effectively moved forward. Biggest issue was how to cover this gap, though. A long spare safari eventually yielded a rear cabin cover from an Aoshima Ki-46, which was long enough to close the section and even had the right shape to blend the A-20's spine into the tail section. As a side benefit: it has similar heavy framing as the cockpit. Fitting this clear piece was challenging, though, as it required to fill gaps with putty and sand directly around the clear part.

Inside, the pilot's cockpit was enhanced with a dashboard (and more lead under the floor!) and the radar operator received a scratched cabin with a floor, a rear bulkhead, a seat (left over from the Boston IV's bombardier nose) and a radar console (part left over from an Italeri B-66). The OOB pilots were used and received "3D" safety belts made from white tape - after all, the clear parts would not allow good sight inside.

The landing gear, even though very simple, was taken OOB, I just added cannon and machine gun barrels in the nose cut from hollow steel needles.

Painting and markings:

I wanted something realistic, and that offered only two options for an USAAF night fighter around 1944: either Olive Drab/Neutral Grey or all-black, and both quite boring. After I had seen a picture of an early black P-61 in Europe with invasion stripes I decided to adopt this scheme, even though with the twist of overpainted stripes on the upper surfaces - a detail seen frequently on NMF fighters (e.g. P-47s and early P-51s) after D-Day to improve camouflage on the ground against strafing attacks and photo reconnaissance. Sometimes the whole upper side was painted with olive drab, sometimes only the stripes were covered, resulting in interesting finishes.

The model received an overall coat with Revell 06 (Tar Black) enamel paint, which is a "dirty black". The invasion stripes were all made with decals from various Academy kits (from a P-47 under the fuselage, and from a Spitfire and Typhoon on the wings), and on the upper surfaces these were translucently painted over with thinned Tamiya XF-62 (Olive Drab), so that the stripes would still shine through here and there.

All interior surfaces were painted with green chromate primer (I used Humbrol 159), the radome was painted with Humbrol 72.

The black and the radome were later heavily treated with dry-brushing, using several very similar "almost black" tones as well as a bit of aluminum and grinded graphite around the gun porst and the exhaust. The only colorful highlights are the red propeller tips and a nose art graphic (from an Academy P-47D). The rest of the markings are rather dry and minimal, most came from Hobby Boss P-39 kits.

Finally, after everything had been assembled, the model received a coat of matt acrylic varnish. In real life the black night fighters were supposed to be glossy, but any picture I have seen of such a machine shows a rather dull if not matte (and quite dirty) finish.

An engine conversion project that helped to save a kit from it incompleteness. And the resulting fictional P-70C looks pretty mean and purposeful, the conversions and esp. the risky implantation of the rear cabin and its canopy paid out and the result looks quite plausible. And the partly overpainted invasion stripes add a bit of extravaganza to the otherwise rather dull all-black aircraft.

Taking a selfie (of sorts) at the pharmacy where I received the COVID vaccine. And the windows are green.

Tonight was my second and final shot. I'm in awe of all the pharmacists who have taken on the additional workload of giving vaccinations.

Taken at the 2008 ZNE ConvenZioNE ... During My Baby Got Backgrounds class. (What fun we had!)

I ended my travels early to come home to a family emergency, and am just now able to even begin catching up. Thought I'd ease into the workload tonight by going through the photos, and getting excited about the event once again! Please bear with me as I work on catching up & on some deadlines due in the next few weeks.

I have thousands of pictures to go through, so expect to see a ton over the next few months! Long blog post about this fabulous event coming up after the urgent business matters are done this week!

Photo of: Christi Miller I adored her, and I promise - it has nothing to do with her fabulous name! She is so willing to learn, and i could see how much of herself she put into trying the techniques. I hope to continue getting to know her!

Life has been quite chaotic as of late. I've lost friends, gained friends, became really close with a few people, found out loads of stuff that I'd rather not know, and even gotten a tattoo. I've been stressed beyond belief with the end of my semester (which, by the way, is completely over in less than three weeks). I've been frantically trying to decide what to do with my future, and I'm still lost in a world of doubt with what seems like no hope of getting out anytime soon. All in all, though, I've been okay and life couldn't get much better for me, right now. I'm as stressed as I've been in quite some time, but it'll all be alright, I'm sure. I refuse to have it be anything less.

In other news, sorry for being so lame and having lackluster attempts at keeping my Flickr up-to-date. I miss it so much, but I've been feeling way less than even slightly inspired. I'd really like to get back to this soon. Maybe I'll start once my workload cuts down some. I miss you all and hope you've all been doing lovely.

And lastly, since I'm always so absent on here, you can follow me on one of these websites:

Facebook.

Twitter.

Pinterest.

You can view my instagram photos by clicking here, and if you'd like to follow my instagram, my user name is adamlepaul.

I did a bit of a street photo shoot for the lovely boys and girls from Hurley Burley yesterday. Rather quick edit due to my workload right now but they will do for online use. Lots more images to come today if I can fit in the editing and uploading among other things.

Rocky Jewell (4th year, Mechanical Engineering, age 22, from Sacramento, CA) is photographed for the #WeAreChico series on Thursday, March 29, 2018 in Chico, Calif. "The large workload of school, how it comes in waves, can be quite stressful. Managing your time is really hard. You have four projects, and two papers, taking six classes, and it's easy to feel like you're going crazy. I wake up early, have a cup of coffee, think about my day and try to plan on how I'll get through it.

But it's a lot to balance. Dealing with family life, trying to stay healthy and eating the right food, trying to feel safe and be a part of the community, getting homework and projects done on time, that's really stressful. I live with my girlfriend, and she's stressed out about school. She's pre-med, and she needs straight As. I want straight As and I get a good GPA, but sometimes I feel like I can't take on the stress that comes with it. When she's stressed out, I feel stressed out too, but I don't feel like I can be. I want to be balanced for her. We've worked out a balance where we really back each other up when the other one is dealing with more at the time.

The biggest help is that I have a strong relationship with her and my friends, and I'm able to communicate with people. I can complain about professors who are piling on, or vent about how my workload sucks. Having a group of people I can go to helps me calm down. I keep a daily journal and I keep track of what happened. It helps to go back on weeks that were easier and find motivation, or to look at challenges and how I got through them."

(Jason Halley/University Photographer/CSU Chico)

Working with an incredible team of freelancers for Secret Productions and Papa Projects, we managed to build and break a mammoth 8 room, Santa's Grotto theme party, for Google UK's Christmas bash, in under 24 hours! (That includes the actual party as well)

I was involved in making some hilarious creations, including a giant 'Chesterfield style' sofa, a karaoke area complete with a bespoke 'fire-place karaoke-star entrance', set into a 'faux' black brick wall, with red glitter mortar, and a christmas tree forest cinema.

Once again, a truely incredible team, making it happen in the face of late deliveries, an enormous workload and plenty of sleep-depravation. Against the odds... really good fun!

Double-Take Software and Microsoft host a video webinar on "Ensuring the Availability of Hyper-V Virtualized Workloads"

ABSTRACT

Skeletal muscles are primary sites of activity-related energy consumption and have KATP channels expressed in very high density. Data indicate that KATP channels adjust skeletal muscle excitability under extreme levels of workload. The function of KATP channels in skeletal muscles under physiological workload conditions is unclear.

Here we developed a novel technique that allows the measurement of muscle membrane and action potentials in situ under a controlled level of workload. This technique, which is based on the use of a floating intracellular microelectrode, allowed us to evaluate skeletal muscle excitability with minimal disruption of the microenvironment and with intact blood supply. Our results indicate that KATP channels open in response to a relatively low level of muscle workload. This KATP channel opening results in membrane hyperpolarization and reduction of the action potential overshoot. The response was blocked by the specific KATP channel blocker glyburide and was absent in muscles with genetically disrupted KATP channel function.

Furthermore, disruption of KATP channel-dependent membrane and action potential adjustment in transgenic mice was associated with significantly increased activity-induced energy consumption and reduced exercise tolerance, compared to wild type controls. Thus, this study provides first and direct evidence that KATP channel-dependent adjustment of muscle membrane and action potentials is critical for muscle energy consumption and function under physiological conditions.

One of the primary sectors of the world is agriculture, wherein farm mechanization is now at its all-time high. To this date, Agri industries have made numerous innovations that have reduced the workload for farmers. Many jobs which were being done by labour is now being done with the help of machines. We all know that traditional methods require strenuous and backbreaking efforts, which waste a lot of time as well. On the other hand, machines have made all this easy, where you can sit comfortably and the rest of the work will be done by your tractor. Tractors do everything fleetly and also maximize your productivity. They are a versatile and absolute piece of technology.

The invention of a tractor gave hope to farmers. As technology changes, so did the agriculture sector. Many of the Brands have brought change with such beneficial innovations that helped the farmers to perform their bid in the world’s development. As the population is increasing speedily, so did the demand for food. In this instance, we need to increase the growth. To amplify growth, we need to use technology that can connect us with our target audience.

With the Green revolution happening, agricultural production was increasing worldwide and Solis grabbed the chance to start their farm equipment manufacturing company. With the collective efforts of the workers and the love received by farmers, Solis launched their first tractor in 1995. In the following year, they also started their manufacturing plant in Hoshiarpur, Punjab, which is now the world’s largest tractor manufacturing company. In 2000, SOLIS entered into joint ventures with worldwide pioneers that helped them enter new markets and reach new customers.

Gradually, Solis extended their hands towards the Japanese market as well and we launched their first mini tractor in 2005. Since then, we have introduced a diverse range of multi-utility tractors to suit the needs of the customers. Solis became India’s 3rd largest tractor manufacturing company and 6th largest globally. Solis is the No.1 tractor exporter from India and is constantly maintaining this position from last 3 year. We have an eminent presence in more than 130+ countries. Solis is now unwaveringly providing solutions to all your farming needs. It is now a proud manufacturer of agricultural tractors, offering a wide range of the toughest tractors, starting from 20-120 HP. We are one of the renowned tractor brands with over 1,100,000 tractors running successfully in multiple field applications. Each tractor from the entire range holds the capacity of executing the toughest challenges. They are proficient in performing tasks such as agriculture farming, orchard and vineyards farming, cattle farming, garden/golf course applications, forestry and industrial sectors.

With the manufacturing of tractors, we also produce various implements for soil preparation, planting, crop care, harvesting, post-harvesting, residue management and carrier-head. Solis believes in redefining the future of farming and so it is working persistently to attain this goal. Our tractors are strengthening farmers’ potential across the globe. We have become the No. 1 Tractor Brand in Nepal, Bangladesh, Algeria, Iceland, Afghanistan, and Hungary. Also, we have maintained our position among the top 5 tractor brands in Brazil, Germany, France, Denmark, UK, Mexico, South Africa, Turkey, Iran, and Belgium. If you are looking for compact tractors for sale, Visit the Solis tractors website to discover more about their tractor features

Two Russian Airforce Sukhoi Su-30s in mirror flight

The Su27UB entered service at the same time as the Su27. It was a two seater aircraft designed for training in operational units. It had all of the same weapon systems and similar manouverability, it's only difference was a small reduction in range due to increased drag from the enlargened cockpit. Later it was though to use the extra person in an operational sense. They were able to share the workload for long missions and for this the two seater Su30 was developed. This being used for both training and operational aircraft greaty reduced costs from having dedicated aircraft for the role of training. Changes from the Su27 are small but signifigant. Since it was developed slightly after and with greater knowledge from the Su27 many features of the aircraft could be refined and improved on with new technologies and materials.

The front seat is in exactly the same position as the single seat version. The Second seat is considerably raised to give good downward visibility. The rear cockpit also has a HUD and has all of the controls in the front seat. To compensate for the raised and enlargened cockpit the vertical fins had to be enlargened by 0.425m.

Su30 Flanker

The Su30 is a long range air-superiority fighter. Due to the in-flight-refueling capability it can either remain on station for long periods or cover a large area on patrol. It incorperates a new navigation and fire and control system allowing to to operate in the command role for a tactical formation. Similarly like the Mig31 it can operate in a formation where only the command aircraft needs to illuminate through the use of radar while the data is share with the other aircraft trough a secure datalink.

The Su30MK is another development which has imporved air to ground capability. It is a truely multirole aircraft with either a very quick turn around time or is able to complete both air to air and air to ground missions in the one flight. Two additional under wing storage points were added to allow up to 12 stores to be carried. In the Su30MK the second seater takes the more traditional role of the weapons system operator while in the Su27UB and Su30 they are really a copilot.

A modified prototype of the Su30 was the first aircraft in the world to accellerate through the speed of sound vertically (up not down!). While other aircraft have been able to travel supersonic vertically none had perviously been able to acellerate to that extent (at least not reportedly). The Su30 was able to do this thanks to an increased amount of composites used in the airframe to save weight.

Oh..... It took me a long time to get back to flickr. Busy at work and busy at home. I am not sure how long before I post the next.

Was definitely missing you guys .... . How is everyone?

will catch on to you guys soon

This was taken when I was working on Burning Red Dress, a passionate and cinematic uptempo dance tune that has many effects, plugins and instruments running and playing at the same time

It's been an age but I finally have a couple new ones done.

If anyone remembers, I started drawing each vaguely important Star Wars character ( as in, worth enough to make a toy of, really ) as they appear in scene in each of the films, starting with A New Hope. With luck, a new one each Tuesday, workload permitting.

Here's all the ones done thus far, including the new one, Princess Leia. ( Yes, I'm still in the first scene... ) If you dig her, she's currently up on le Ebay over here. Each one I do needs to go to a good home.

With kittens.

And Squid.

As a member of CUPE 3903, I went on strike this morning. I know that many may be wondering why we're out. Here are the cogent issues as far as I'm concerned:

1. Contract Faculty need better Job Security. Currently contract faculty know that they are employed for 12 weeks at a time; a contract faculty working for 10 years could be let go at the end of their current contract without any warning or impediment.

2. Classes--including lectures and tutorials--need have an improved student to teacher ratio. For both the quality of education for undergrads and workload for TAs and Course Directors, these ratios should be smaller.

3. Child and Healthcare Funds indexed to to growth in the union. Our union has increased in size by 28%, so the funds available for childcare have increased accordingly.

4. A Wage indexed to Inflation. In their final offer before strike action, the University offered a wage increase of 3% for 2008-2009. Current inflation is greater than the wage increase, so in a year we would be earning less than we do now.

The traditional model of dividing the workload between development, design, production and art.

Delivering on the promise of Smarter Computing, BladeCenter PS blades deliver superior business and IT services with agility and speed—all in a simple to manage highly efficient way. The PS703 and PS704 Express blades are preconfigured and tested by IBM and are based on proven technology. Utilizing a 2.4 GHz 64-bit POWER7™ processor and available in sixteen-core or thirty two-core configuration, they are optimized to achieve maximum performance for both the system and its PowerVM virtual machines. POWER7 Express blades and PowerVM enable massive workload consolidation to deliver services faster, with higher quality, and with superior IT economics.

Taken at the 2008 ZNE ConvenZioNE ... During the Baby Got Backgrounds class I taught. (What fun we had!)

I ended my travels early to come home to a family emergency, and am just now able to even begin catching up. Thought I'd ease into the workload tonight by going through the photos, and getting excited about the event once again! Please bear with me as I work on catching up & on some deadlines due in the next few weeks.

I have thousands of pictures to go through, so expect to see a ton over the next few months! Long blog post about this fabulous event coming up after the urgent business matters are done this week!

Photo of: Julee Herrmann, Christina Olsen, and Christi Miller

Last year I had a camera (Nikon D200) that had trouble taking pictures in low light so I had to shoot at slower shutter speeds (e.g., 1/90 sec), but at least the colors was pretty consistent.

Now, I have a better camera (Nikon D3) and in lower light I can use a faster shutter speed. However, I have discovered that the lights at Blair Field 'cycle' at a rate that is caught by my new camera when I shoot at higher shutter speeds and it causes really inconsistent color results.

What this means is that the vast majority of my pictures (taken at this location) now require much more serious color correction. Yes, I can shoot at faster shutter speeds (e.g., this series of pictures was taken at 1/500 sec at 9 fps) but I have increased my workload. Oh well...

Note: These were five RAW images that had no processing other than being cropped to fit in one view and then being converted to JPG.

My son William. Ever been happy your toddler is playing quietly? Ever gone over - eventually - to see what's going on? Ever been so furious to find your workload increased tenfold (laundry, furniture cleaning, rescuing documents) but STILL had the foresight to take a photo?? Ah yes, the joys of mothering.. PS Will's nose only LOOKS like Michael Jackson's in this photo, honest..

Sick of this project now. My stupid face needs to go away.

Sick of my job. It wasn't the best to begin with, but our workload has drastically, permanently (and sloppily) increased with no pay increase, or even official recognition. And to top it off, so many people need to start later because they're going back to school, that I am the only person to start at the actual start of our shift. I start every day surrounded by work, panicking and stressed. Because of my recent promotion, I also have, on top of this, piles of paperwork. Some permanent, some because the woman who does client services for us is on medical leave and I'm filling in on some of her duties. But I have to try to do the paperwork during lulls, when we're caught up. Mostly because I would feel like an asshole if I left piles of samples to do paperwork. I'd be pissed if I were a patient, and my test results were delayed because someone was doing less important, but still necessary, paperwork instead. Every day, by my dinner break in the middle of the shift, I am on the verge of tears.

Also, I have a cold.

B and I are going backpacking in Glacier at the end of this month again. And then, for my birthday in September, I took a 5 day weekend to go to Minnesota with some friends. I am so excited to not be at work.

Pile of papers on a background of office cubicles. Selective focus at the corner of the papers

Le HSBC PARIS SEVENS (8 au 10 juin 2018 au Stade Jean-Bouin) a officiellement été lancé aujourd’hui à Paris à la Région Île-de-France.

A cette occasion les 16 capitaines hommes et 12 capitaines femmes des équipes participantes au tournoi ont pris la pose autour du trophée de la compétition dans les jardins du Musée Rodin, Paris (Crédit Photo : I.PICAREL/FFR). Ils ont ensuite rejoint les locaux de la Région Île-de-France, partenaire de cette étape parisienne, situés dans le 7ème arrondissement.

Le HSBC Paris Sevens

Ultime étape du circuit mondial de rugby à 7, le HSBC Paris Sevens se déroulera au stade Jean-Bouin à Paris, du vendredi 8 au dimanche 10 juin 2018. Tournoi mixte pour la première fois de son histoire, le HSBC Paris Sevens 2018 accueille les meilleures équipes masculines et féminines du monde.

Avec 79 matches entre 28 équipes en 3 jours, le spectacle sera non-stop sur la pelouse du Stade Jean-Bouin. Dernier tournoi de la saison, les titres des circuits mondiaux masculin et féminin se joueront donc au HSBC Paris Sevens. Les tribunes et le Village des Supporteurs seront également en ébullition pendant 3 jours, avec de nombreuses animations « CRAZY RUGBY » qui seront proposées à tous les spectateurs !

Le programme :

Vendredi 8 juin de 14h à 21h40 > tournoi Féminin (ouverture des portes au public à 13h30)

Samedi 9 juin de 9h à 23h > tournoi mixte (ouverture des portes au public à 8h30)

Dimanche 10 juin de 8h45 à 19h40 > phases finales féminines et masculines (ouverture des portes au public à 8h15)

Le World Rugby Sevens Series 2017-2018 est la 19e édition de la compétition la plus importante du monde de rugby à sept. Elle se déroule du 1er décembre 2017 au 10 juin 2018. L'Afrique du Sud est tenante du titre et l'Espagne est l'équipe promue de la saison.

Au mois d'avril se déroulent les Jeux du Commonwealth 2018 où dix équipes des World Rugby Sevens Series participent. La compétition enchaine ensuite avec la Coupe du monde de rugby à sept en juillet 2018.

Chaque étape est un tournoi se déroulant sur deux ou trois jours, entre le vendredi et le dimanche. À chaque étape est convié une équipe qui ne possède pas le statut d'équipe permanente, portant le nombre total d'équipes à seize.

En fonction du résultat du tournoi précédent, ou du classement de la saison passée pour le premier tournoi de la saison à Dubaï, les équipes sont réparties en chapeaux avant tirage au sort pour former quatre poules de quatre équipes. Chaque équipe joue les trois autres membres de sa poule et un classement est établi, tout d'abord sur le nombre de points (victoire 3 points, nul 2 points, défaite 1 point) puis sur le goal-average général. Les deux premiers de chaque poule passent en quart de finale de la Cup ou tournoi principal et les deux derniers passent en quart de finale du Challenge Trophy. Les équipes vaincues en quart de finale sont alors reversées en demi-finales de classement, respectivement pour la cinquième et treizième place. Les équipes battues en demi-finales ne disputent pas de petite finale de classement et remportent le même nombre de point, sauf pour les équipes battues en demi finales de Cup qui disputeront un dernier match de classement pour la troisième place.

Chaque rencontre, y compris la finale depuis l'édition 2016-2017, se dispute en deux fois sept minutes.

Créée en 2016, l’étape parisienne de rugby à 7 rassemble, de ce vendredi à dimanche, les meilleures nations mondiales pour décider du vainqueur du circuit mondial. Une belle vitrine pour la discipline dans un pays qui ne jure que par le XV.

Dixième étape de la saison, le Paris Sevens clôture ce week-end le circuit mondial de rugby à 7, réunissant les 16 meilleures nations du monde aux quatre coins de la planète. De vendredi à dimanche, dans l’enceinte du Stade Jean Bouin, les équipes masculines feront le spectacle à travers une discipline méconnue en France mais très appréciée dans de nombreux pays. Et, pour la première fois cette année, les équipes féminines ouvriront les festivités.

Une véritable fête du rugby à 7, discipline olympique depuis 2016 et en plein boom grâce à la vitrine que lui ont offert offert les Jeux de Rio. Chez les hommes, outre les nations majeures de l’Ovale comme la Nouvelle-Zélande, l’Australie, l’Angleterre ou les Fidji, le Kenya, le Canada ou encore l’Espagne font leur trou et voient dans cette discipline une chance de développer un sport mineur dans leur pays. Chez les femmes, la Chine, le Japon ou la Russie figurent dans le top 12.

Le crazy rugby à la fête

Créée en 2016, l’étape parisienne est également l’occasion pour la France de développer la discipline dans un pays qui ne jure que par le XV. «Nous sommes fiers de soutenir financièrement ce tournoi et de permettre qu’il existe», a tenu à rappeler le vice-président de la région Île-de-France, Patrick Karam. Et de poursuivre. «La région est également présente dans la sensibilisation. Vendredi, 360 lycéens pourront découvrir la discipline grâce à de nombreuses animations. Il est important pour nous de tout faire pour développer cette pratique, en vue de Paris 2024», a-t-il poursuivi, alors que la conférence de presse de présentation se tenait dans les locaux de la région, dans le 7e arrondissement parisien.

Dernière étape de la saison, le tournoi parisien représente en tout cas une belle vitrine pour la discipline, dans une ville au rayonnement mondial. «C’est formidable de pouvoir clôturer la saison dans une ville aussi magnifique, chez un hôte comme la France», ajoute de son côté Douglas Langley, directeur du tournoi et membre de World Rugby. «Nous nous réjouissons d’avance de ce week-end de ‘crazy rugby’», conclut-il. Et c’est bien là l’atout majeur de la discipline. Spectaculaire, chaque rencontre offre de nombreux essais et des sprints permanents.

Les Bleues veulent briller

Le public parisien, qui vient en nombre à chaque édition, est adepte de cette discipline. Le Stade Jean Bouin était plein en 2016 et 2017, et l’édition 2018, même s’il reste encore des places à vendre, ne dérogera certainement pas à la règle. Pourtant, ce ne sont pas les résultats des Bleus qui font venir les supporters. Malgré une 3e place en 2016, et une 5e en 2017, l’équipe masculine connaît une saison compliquée. 12e sur 16 au classement, les Bleus n’ont pas fait mieux que 7e cette année lors des neuf précédents tournois du circuit.

«Même si nos chances sont moindres, on rentre dans ce tournoi pour le gagner, et on a la chance d’avoir le soutien du public avec nous», déclare Manoël Dall’igna, capitaine de France 7. «Ces deux dernières années on a eu des supers résultats ici et on compte sur le 8e homme pour faire aussi bien», termine-t-il. Cette période de creux, due en partie à de nombreux départs en retraite en 2016, ne touche pas les féminines. 3e du circuit mondial, les coéquipières de Fanny Horta visent le podium à Paris. «On a reçu beaucoup de messages de soutien de la jeune génération, et on veut vraiment profiter de ce soutien pour garder la dynamique de la saison et faire un nouveau podium», confie la capitaine.

Mises en valeur ce week-end, les Bleues représentent «la véritable locomotive du 7 en France avec une très belle réussite sportive», estime Christophe Reigt, manager des équipes de France à 7. Suffisant pour développer la discipline en France ? Quoiqu’il en soit, avec cette étape parisienne, la Fédération se démène pour populariser le 7 dans l’Hexagone, avec un objectif majeur en ligne de mire : les Jeux olympiques de Paris en 2024.

The HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series 2018 Awards in Paris brought a fitting end to an enthralling season which saw South Africa and Australia crowned men’s and women’s series champions respectively.

It’s been one of the most competitive seasons on record as both the women’s and men’s series were decided by just two-point differences.

South Africa fought an incredible battle with Fiji in the men’s series to retain their title with victory at the final round in Paris, while Olympic champions Australia won their second overall title ahead of rivals New Zealand on the women’s series after reaching the podium at every one of the five rounds.

The end of season awards provided a chance to celebrate the men’s and women’s sevens players, coaches and teams that are the stars, ambassadors and role models of the sport.

World Rugby Chairman Bill Beaumont said: “It has been another tremendous year for the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series, which continues to go from strength to strength.

“I hugely admire the skill and physicality of rugby sevens and thank the players for their outstanding commitment which makes the series such a success. It is great to see the series capturing the imagination on and off the field with year-on-year increases in attendances, broadcast and fan-engagement figures, and that is a great testament to the players, coaches, host unions and everyone involved with the events.

“Rugby sevens took a quantum leap when it joined the Olympic programme in 2016 and now we look forward to a Rugby World Cup Sevens in San Francisco in just 40 days time in an iconic city and a market with great potential. It promises to be a thrilling and spectacular event.”

the workload. It is a blessing for me to be standing here.”

Rookies of the Year

Eroni Sau is the second Fijian to be named Rookie of the Year for the men’s series after being a clear winner in the fan vote ahead of his compatriot Alosio Naduva and Australia’s Ben O’Donnell. The 28-year-old featured in all 10 rounds in his debut season, using his powerful physique to score 37 tries.

France’s Coralie Bertrand, meanwhile, claimed the women’s accolade, having featured in all five rounds and helped Les Bleues enjoy their best season, reaching a first-ever Cup final in Kitakyushu and semi-finals in Langford and Paris to clinch the series bronze medal.

Fair Play Award

This award, selected by the match officials, recognises the teams who showcase rugby’s values of integrity, passion, solidarity, discipline and respect. Japan were awarded the women’s accolade after an event that saw them lose their core team status on the series, with Kenya the men’s recipients following an exciting season which saw them reach the final in both Vancouver and Hong Kong.

Roche’s kick with the final play of the match against England to snatch the bronze medal for invitational team Ireland at the HSBC London Sevens was a clear winner of the men’s award, beating Fijian Alosio Naduva’s last-gasp winning try against Australia in the Singapore Cup final and Matias Osadczuk’s break and calm head to send Renzo Barbier over for the winning try in Argentina’s Cup semi-final against South Africa in Las Vegas.

Capgemini Coach of the Series

Another inaugural category, selected by the series’ global innovation partner Capgemini, was won by New Zealand women’s coach Alan Bunting after successive victories in the last three rounds of the series in Japan, Canada and France as well as the Commonwealth Games title in April.

South Africa coach Neil Powell, who guided the Blitzboks to retaining their series title, picked up the men’s coach of the series award and paid tribute to his victorious team: “The mental focus and composure they showed was fantastic, all credit to the boys for believing in their success. We had everything to play for and the team did an incredible job, not just today but over the whole season.

“I also want to congratulate Fiji on an amazing season, they were phenomenal.”

DHL Impact Player

The race to be named DHL Impact Player of the Year in both the men’s and women’s series went right down to the final matches. In total 16 players from 12 nations won tournament awards during this season’s series.

New Zealand’s Michaela Blyde was delighted to win the women’s award: “This is pretty special. I’m shocked and truly grateful. I put this down to my teammates who create the opportunities for me and I thank them.”

La Fédération française de rugby organise, du 8 au 10 juin au stade Jean-Bouin, à Paris 16e, un tournoi international de rugby à 7 masculin et féminin, étape du HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series.

Cette manifestation sportive, soutenue par la Région à hauteur de 170.000€, va rassembler 28 équipes internationales, qui s'affronteront au cours de 45 matchs masculins et 34 matchs féminins.

Le public pourra découvrir à cette occasion, jusque dans sa pratique féminine, une discipline largement méconnue.

Quant au stade Jean-Bouin, qui est l'un des sites retenus pour les JO Paris 2024, il pourra mettre en avant sa capacité d’accueil de 20.000 spectateurs.

Ce tournoi constituant la 10e et dernière étape du circuit mondial, il s'achèvera avec la remise des titres de champion et championne du monde de rugby à 7.

En soutenant l'organisation de tels grands événements sportifs franciliens, la Région Île-de-France renforce chaque fois un peu plus l'attractivité de ses territoires tout en assurant son rayonnement à l'échelle internationale.

Le titre HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series a été décidé de façon spectaculaire après que l'Afrique du Sud a battu l'Angleterre 24-14 en finale du HSBC Paris Sevens pour décrocher la médaille d'or et conserver son titre de série.

Au cours d'une des années les plus compétitives de l'histoire de la série, le titre est allé jusqu'au tout dernier match puisque l'Afrique du Sud avait besoin d'une victoire en tournoi pour dépasser les Fidji dans le classement de la série.

L'Afrique du Sud a terminé la série en tête avec 182 points, suivie des Fidji qui ont remporté l'argent avec 180 points et la Nouvelle-Zélande avec 150 points après avoir remporté la médaille de bronze à Paris avec une victoire de 38-5 contre le Canada dans la troisième place

Les champions de la série de l'année dernière, l'Afrique du Sud, ont devancé l'Espagne 15-10 en quart de finale avec un essai à la cinquième minute de Justin Deguld, après que les pointages aient été 10-10 à la fin du temps réglementaire. Les Blitzboks sud-africains ont ensuite trouvé leur rythme en demi-finale avec une victoire complète de 24-12 contre la Nouvelle-Zélande grâce à deux essais de l'impressionnant Dewald Human, 23 ans, qui a fait ses débuts il y a deux mois à Hong Kong .

Humain était de nouveau en forme de but en finale et était ravi d'être élu Joueur de la Finale: "Ca a été une expérience fantastique ici à Paris, je me suis appuyé sur moi et j'ai apprécié chaque minute sur le terrain. sommes très heureux de la victoire. "

Le capitaine de l'équipe sud-africaine, Philip Snyman, a ajouté: "Nous voulions aller jouer au rugby et nous concentrer sur ce que nous pouvions contrôler: les gars ont joué un rugby phénoménal et ont fait honneur à l'équipe. C'est un sentiment incroyable de représenter un pays si merveilleux et les gens de chez nous n'ont jamais cessé de croire en nous et de nous soutenir. "

Fidjiens ont raté l'occasion de remporter le titre plus tôt dans la journée alors qu'ils ont été vaincus 19-17 par une équipe d'Angleterre pleine d'entrain dans un quart de finale à couper le souffle. Le capitaine de l'équipe d'Angleterre, Tom Mitchell, a complété un mouvement de 26 passes pour marquer dans les dernières secondes du match et mettre un terme à la récente domination des Fidji qui les avait vaincus lors des quatre dernières manches de la série.

Les Fidjiens se sont rétablis pour battre l'Irlande 38-5 et les États-Unis 28-7 pour terminer cinquième à Paris et mettre la pression sur l'Afrique du Sud pour la finale mais finalement ce n'était pas suffisant et les Fidjiens ont été obligés de se contenter des dix tours.

L'Angleterre a produit une autre performance puissante en demi-finale avec une victoire convaincante de 26-12 contre le Canada pour atteindre sa première finale de la série 2017-18, mais ils ont été incapables de faire face aux Blitzboks en finale alors que les hommes d'Afrique du Sud couraient vainqueurs devant une foule parisienne bruyante.

Équipe Invitational L'Irlande a battu 19-5 du quart en quarts de finale, mais après sa médaille de bronze à Londres la semaine dernière, les Irlandais se sont montrés assez prometteurs au cours des deux derniers tours un brillant avenir dans le rugby à sept.

L'Argentine a remporté le Challenge Trophy, décerné à l'équipe terminant en neuvième position, après avoir vaincu le Pays de Galles 33-26.

Toute l'attention se tourne maintenant vers la Coupe du monde de rugby à sept 2018 à San Francisco du 20 au 22 juillet, où 24 équipes masculines et 16 équipes féminines s'affronteront pour devenir championnes du monde au cours de trois journées d'action excitantes.

Makis is Cleo's husband and partner. They share the workload and keep each other company during the endless hours it takes to make each new saddle.

double layer chocolate mud cake painsakingly decorated with buttercream and hundreds & thousands.

a workload total of more than 10 hours of labour from start to finish.

Day 125 of 365: a year in songs and photos

Song: Seether, Fake It

I have a hundred reasons why I have no real "photo" for tonight and just what you see here. I had no opportunity to take a photo during the workday and as soon as I got home, I started the task of moving the contents of two bedrooms out of our living room and kitchen and into their respective bedrooms. Two bed frames and beds, two dressers, tvs, clothes, drawers, computer, other assorted items. I started at 4 and I just finished. Sort of. There's still some stuff left in the living room but my body just gave out on me.

Todd's going to be pretty surprised when he gets home. I decided to do it all myself because he has to work overtime every night this week and I know his workload is exhausting him every single day. But I'm going to be pretty useless by the time he gets here. Looking like an 8pm bedtime for me. I just realized I'm up from 4am. So no time for photography, Dr. Jones. I'm faking it.

I do love the new carpets and paint. So I got that going for me.

And I really do love this song. A lot. Which is why I chose to use those particular lyrics.

Listen/watch here.

Maj. Gen. Gwen Bingham, the TACOM LCMC commander, in the center, talking to Mr. Gabriel Camarillo, the principal deputy at Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics and Techology, about a product produced by the waterjet machine. Jake Peart, the arsenal's production planning and control supervisor, prepares to hand Lt. Gen. Patricia McQuistion a sample.

watch Trace Bundy's "Pachelbel's Canon"

A piece I've been working on for almost a week now. Unfortunately I'm still at the first minute of the song due to overwhelming workload (damn job!). Hopefully I can play this in no time, something I want to play while my girl is walking down the aisle.... hahaha, can I actually do that?

Shows current workload in an area of Stockholm

1944 Kodak Red Border Kodachrome Slides from a 2014 estate sale in Wayne, ILL. ©Dr.W.W.Sanger, 1944

Fort Gibson

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Fort Gibson is a historic military site located next to the present day city of Fort Gibson, in Muskogee County Oklahoma. It guarded the American frontier in Indian Territory from 1824 until 1888. When constructed, the fort lay farther west than any other military post in the United States; it formed part of the north–south chain of forts intended to maintain peace on the frontier of the American West and to protect the southwestern border of the Louisiana Purchase.

The fort succeeded in its peacekeeping mission for more than 50 years, as no massacres or battles occurred there. The fort site is now managed by the Oklahoma Historical Society as the Fort Gibson Historical Site. It is a National Historic Landmark.

Building the fort

Colonel Matthew Arbuckle commanded the 7th Infantry Regiment (United States) from Fort Smith, Arkansas. He moved some of his troops to establish Cantonment Gibson on 21 April 1824 on the Grand River (Oklahoma) just above its confluence with the Arkansas River. This was part of a series of forts which the United States established to protect its western border and the extensive Louisiana Purchase. The US Army named the fort for Colonel (later General) George Gibson, Commissary General of Subsistence.

The post surgeon began taking meteorological observations in 1824, and the fort provided the earliest known weather records in Oklahoma. Colonel Arbuckle also established Fort Towson in southern Indian Territory. In the early years, troops constructed a stockade, barracks, other facilities, and roads. They also settled strife between the indigenous Osage Nation, which had been in the area since the seventeenth century, and the earliest bands of western Cherokee settlers

.

Indian removal

Congress passed the Indian Removal Act in 1830, which led to a new mission for Cantonment Gibson. The Army designated the cantonment as Fort Gibson in 1832, reflecting its change from a temporary outpost to a semi-permanent garrison. Soldiers at Fort Gibson increasingly dealt with Indians removed from the eastern states to Indian Territory. These newcomers complained about hostility from the Osage Nation and other Plains Indian tribes indigenous to the region.

Montfort Stokes, former governor of North Carolina, convened a commission at Fort Gibson to address these problems, and troops at the fort supported its work. The American author Washington Irving accompanied troops exploring the southern Plains west of Fort Gibson in 1832. This excursion and another journey in 1833 both failed to find any significant nomadic Indian tribes, but Washington Irving wrote A Tour of the Prairies in 1835 from his experiences.

General Henry Leavenworth in 1834 led First Dragoon Expedition on a peace mission to the west, finally established contact with the nomadic Indian tribes. The artist George Catlin traveled with the dragoons and made numerous studies.

General Leavenworth died during the march, and Colonel Henry Dodge replaced him in command. The expedition finally established contact and negotiated the first treaty with the Indian tribes. Debilitating fevers struck and killed many men on this expedition, posing more of a danger than the Native Americans. A West Point officer assigned to the fort said the men felt that expeditions to the Plains in the 1830s were "a veritable death sentence."

During these years, the soldiers at Fort Gibson built roads, provisioned incoming American Indians removed from the eastern states, and worked to maintain peace among antagonistic tribes and factions, including the indigenous Osage Nation and the Cherokee Nation, a people removed from the American South to the Indian Territory.

During the Texas Revolution against the weak Mexican government, the Army sent most of the troops stationed at Fort Gibson to the Texas border region. Their absence weakened the military power and pacification capacity at Fort Gibson, but the reduced garrison maintained stability in the region.

At the height of Indian removal in the 1830s, the garrison at Fort Gibson ranked as the largest in the nation. Notable American soldiers stationed at (or at least visiting) Fort Gibson include Stephen W. Kearny, Robert E. Lee, and Zachary Taylor. The Army stationed Jefferson Davis, later president of the Confederate States of America, and more than 100 other West Point cadets at the fort.

The Army also assigned Nathan Boone, son of the famous explorer Daniel Boone, to the post. After leaving Tennessee, Sam Houston owned a trading post in the area; he later moved to Texas.

At a bitterly contentious meeting at Fort Gibson in 1836, the majority faction of the Muscogee (Creek) reluctantly accepted the existing tribal government under the leadership of Chilly McIntosh, son of William McIntosh, and his faction. Colonel Arbuckle tried to prevent intertribal strife within the Cherokee, but Chief John Rossand his followers refused to acknowledge the government that earlier "Old Settlers" had established in Indian Territory. After losing the Seminole Wars against the United States Army in Florida, many of the Seminole arrived in Indian Territory "bitter and dispirited." Officials at Fort Gibson prevented bloodshed and disunity among them.

Pacification and first abandonment

When Colonel Arbuckle left Fort Gibson in 1841, he reported that despite the arrival of 40,000 eastern Native Americans of decidedly unfriendly disposition, "I have maintained peace on this frontier and at no period have the Whites on our border or the Red people of this frontier been in a more perfect state of quiet and Security than they enjoy now." The removed Native American nations gradually lost their desire for American military protection.

Among the traders who operated at Fort Gibson was John Allan Mathews, who was the husband of the half-Osage Sarah Williams, daughter of William S. Williams. In the 1850s, the Cherokee complained about the liquor and brothels at Fort Gibson. They tried to prevent the sale of alcohol to their people, who could not tolerate it physically.

The Cherokee ultimately urged Congress to close Fort Gibson, and the War Department heeded their request. On May 7, 1857, Brevet Lt. General Winfield Scott issued General Orders No. 6 to abandon the Fort for the first time. The Cherokee nation received the deed to the property and improvements, and established the village of Kee-too-wah on the site.[4] It became a center of traditionalists and eventually an independently federally recognized tribe of Cherokee.

American Civil War

During the American Civil War, Union troops occasionally occupied the post. During the summer of 1862, Union soldiers repulsed a Confederate invasion of Indian Territory. They left the fort and withdrew to Kansas. In April 1863, Colonel William A. Phillips of the Indian Home Guard (Union Indian Brigade) reoccupied Fort Gibson and kept it in Union hands throughout the remainder of the war.

The Army briefly renamed the post Fort Blunt in honor of Brigadier General James G. Blunt, commander of the Department of Kansas. The fort dominated the junction between the Arkansas River and Texas Road, but Confederates never attacked the fort, though an attack on the fort's nearby livestock grew to a heavy encounter in the battle of Fort Gibson. Its troops under General Blunt marched southward in July 1863 and won the Battle of Honey Springs, the most important in Indian Territory.

In the summer of 1864, a steamboat came up the Arkansas River with a thousand barrels of flour and 15 tons of bacon to resupply Union troops at Fort Gibson. Cherokee Gen. Stand Waite, largely cut off from the rest of the Confederacy, didn’t want to sink the boat. He wanted to capture it, along with the food and other supplies on board. The ensuing battle is the only naval battle to have been fought in Oklahoma/Indian Territory History.

After the American Civil War, the US Army retained Fort Gibson. American soldiers ultimately established enduring peace with the Indian tribes of the southern Plains only after 1870, but forts farther west increasingly took on the duties of securing that peace. For more than 50 years, Fort Gibson had kept peace in its area.[4] The Army transferred most troops elsewhere in 1871, leaving only a detachment responsible for provisions in a quartermaster depot.

Cavalry mission

Ft. Gibson in the 1870s.

In 1872 the Tenth Cavalry reoccupied Fort Gibson. Soon after, workers were sent to the area to build the Missouri–Kansas–Texas Railroad from Baxter Springs, the first "cow town," in Kansas, to the Red River crossing at Colbert's Ferry, Indian Territory, along the Texas border. This would improve transportation of cattle and beef to the east as well as shipping of goods from that area to the West. The cavalry from Fort Gibson was used to police the camps of local workers. Soldiers tried to manage threats from outlaws, white encroachment on Indian lands, intra-tribal disputes, and other issues. The size of the garrison varied with the workload.

The Kansas and Arkansas Valley Railway built track through the area in 1888, and the town of Fort Gibson, Oklahoma began to develop. In the summer of 1890, the Army abandoned Fort Gibson for the last time. Troops occasionally camped at the site when unrest brought them to the town of Fort Gibson, which took the name of the fort. After the military permanently departed, the civilian town expanded into the former military grounds of the fort.

Historic site

The Works Project Administration of the Franklin D. Roosevelt administration in the 1930s reconstructed some or all buildings at the fort, as part of historic preservation and construction work that the government sponsored during the Great Depression. In 1960 the National Park Service designated Fort Gibson as a National Historic Landmark.. The old fort was located in present Muskogee County, Oklahoma. It is located at Lee and Ash Streets in Fort Gibson, Oklahoma.

The Society operates the site, which includes a reconstruction of the early log fort, original buildings from the 1840s through 1870s, and the Commissary Visitor Center, which has museum exhibits about the history of the fort. The site hosts special living history events and programs.

Fort Gibson National Cemetery lies a few miles away.

I would rather cheat than take such shitty pictures. But then I'd feel bad.

I'm sorry I've been such an awful contact with awful pictures, as well.

My junior year started on Tuesday, and I have yet to adjust to the insane workload. And I thought I had a lot of homework sophomore year...

This was taken the night before school started. I couldn't fall asleep and I realized that I hadn't taken a picture yet, so, without glasses on, I shot this out my bedroom window.

Sorry it's such crap. I didn't have time to take one during the day because I was finishing up my math packet and my summer reading book [which, yes, Brandy, I did finish :)].

SOOC. Not that that matters anyway. It's only impressive when it's a good picture.

And if you noticed, the sky, despite it having been 11:52 PM, is pink. That's because I live near a city and there's major light pollution in the sky. That means not many stars. :(

Currently listening to: Gin and Juice - Hot Rod Circuit

I don't know if I mentioned this before but the Breits are moving! Yay Breits! The new house is beautiful, but before they can go to the new house, they must sell the old house. They decided about a week ago to put the house on the market and are scrambling to get it ready. So, me being the darling friend that I am, spent my Saturday helping paint. My biggest project was painting the stairs up to the attic (pictured). I can't lie, it was hot up there. And I didn't tell Terri, but I was kind of afraid I was going to die, or at least break an important bone. The stairwell is a bit narrow and much higher than I prefer..but that's what friends do, right? After that I was pretty much useless! Terri offered to let me paint other things but they seemed important and I was scared of messing something up and creating more work; So, I sat around and kept Terri company instead. Yeah, I'm so helpful. Dan said he was glad I was there because my presence just made everything more bearable and he appreciated my support. I'm glad I could offer that, since I definitely didn't pull my weight in the workload. Sorry Breits!! I love you guys!