Love Your Life

July 3rd, 2010   by Emma

However mean your life is, meet it and live it; do not shun it and call it hard names. It is not so bad as you are. It looks poorest when you are richest. The fault-finder will find faults in paradise. Love your life, poor as it is. You may perhaps have some pleasant, thrilling, glorious hours, even in a poor—house. The setting sun is reflected from the windows of the alms-house as brightly as from the rich man's abode; the snow melts before its door as early in the spring. I do not see but a quiet mind may live as contentedly there, and have as cheering thoughts, as in a palace. The town' s poor seem to me often to live the most independent lives of any. May be they are simply great enough to receive without misgiving. Most think that they are above being supported by the town; but it often happens that they are not above supporting themselves by dishonest means.Which should be more disreputable. Cultivate poverty like a garden herb, like sage. Do not trouble yourself much to get new things, whether clothes or friends, turn the old, return to them. Things do not change; we change. Sell your clothes and keep your thoughts.

Planning a home invasion

July 2nd, 2010   by Emma

It's too long," director David Finc-her2 sighs. "Nothing's worth it. "

He's wrong, of course. Fincher is exhausted, because he spent nine months on The Panic Room—from a $3 million script by David Koepp3— but there is a payoff : He has artfully reinvented the woman-in-jeopardy genre and created a Hitchcockian, close-quarters thrill ride that, at times, feels like a shot of adrenaline to the heart5. And, to make things better,

Jodie Foster is unnervingly good6. It's a perfect suspense flick7 and the first must-see of the year.But, why did it take almost a year to complete, given the careful planning and a new pre-visualization technique that's the talk of town8?

Utilizing a crack computer-engineering team (Pixel Liberation Front), Fincher made the four-story set he would create on a soundstage—before he shot a frame of film9. He worked out camera angles—moving virtual walls and stair-cases—and details of split-screen images10 and tracking shots" , even editing before he or his actors got on set. " We were able to show the actors sequences in advance. It was a great time saver," says Fincher.

Three months of rehearsals12 didn't help. They began when Nicole Kidman13 signed on to the picture. She lasted about two weeks before her knee, injured while shooting Moulin Rouge, gave out14 and rehearsals restarted with Foster. Then, four months into the shoot, Fincher's star announced she was pregnant with her second child.

"There were a lot of naps on this set," says Foster, with a laugh.

Those rehearsals included three days of work with Foster's costars Forest Whi-taker, Jared Leto and Dwight Yoakam—on props15 alone!

"They bring these two bags in," Fincher explains, "one bag has sheet-metal-

working kind of stuff, and this bag has wood-working and electrical kind of stuff. Then there's the drill16. What would you keep in the drill bag? Okay, bring in the technical advisor for drilling the safe17. How would he lay the tools out? We had to do rehearsals for that kind of stuff, so we could figure out where we were going to shoot. "

And then there are those magnificent tracking shots — including a five-minute break-in sequence — that are breathtaking in their technical method. Some of those shots took a day. "Or three," says Whitaker.

But in spite of his technical skill, the spooks and scares that you have double-checking the alarm and every lock in your house about 1 ,000 times, Fincher says the movie's really all about something else.

"Divorce," he says, stroking his stubbly chin. "The destruction of the home. One party is always after the money, and the other party's willing to allow whatever has to be destroyed to protect the children. "

The film has grossed18 $74. 1 million so far.

Born in 1962 , probably inspired by the work of George Lucas, Fincher got his first major industry job at Lucas' own Industrial Lights and Magic. His directorial debut Alien 3 was a great disappointment, but the next film Seven made the relatively unknown Fincher one of Hollywood's hottest new commodities.

With his dark, offbeat19 vision — made famous in such films as Seven, The Game, Fight Club, Fincher has been mulling20 several other post-Panic pro-jects, including the dark restaurant film Seared for New Line21 , Regency's supernatural thriller Stay and Warner Bros. ' comic-book adaptation Hard Boiled. Seared is on track22 for a fall start and Hard Boiled is in development for a 2004 release.

Literally

July 1st, 2010   by Emma

My problem with country living began innocently enough when our well ran dry and a neighbor said some pump priming would be necessary.

"I didn't come up here to discuss economics," I said. Actually, I don't understand economics. There's no use revealing that, though, to every Torn, Dick and Harry who interrupts his dinner to try to get your water running, so I said, "I come up here to get away from that sort of thing." My neighbor gave me a puzzled look.

"He's talking about the water pump," Alice told me. "It needs 10 priming."

I thought that experience might have been just a fluke — until, on a fishing trip with the same neighbor, I proudly pulled in a fish with what I thought was a major display of deep-sea angling skill, only to hear a voice behind me say, "It's just a fluke."

"This is dangerous," I said to Alice, while helping her weed the vegetable garden the next day. I had thought our problem was limited to the pump-priming ichthyologist down the road, but that morning at the post office I had overheard a farmer say that since we seemed to be in for a few days of good weather he intended to make his hay while the sun was shining. "These people are robbing me of aphorisms," I said, taking advantage of the discussion to rest for a while on my hoe. "How can I encourage the children to take advantage of opportunities by telling them to make hay while the sun shines if they think that means making hay while the sun shines?"

The Children Born to Jacob

June 30th, 2010   by Emma

When the LORD saw that Leah was unloved, he opened her womb; but Rachel was barren. 32Leah conceived and bore a son , and she named him Reuben ; for she said, "Because the LORD has looked on my affliction; surely now my husband will love me. " 33She conceived again and bore a son , and said , "Because the LORD has heard that I am hated, he has given me this son also"; and she named him Simeon. 34Again she conceived and bore a son, and said, "Now this time my husband will be joined to me, because I have borne him three sons"; therefore he was named Levi. 35She conceived again and bore a son, and said, "This time I will praise the LORD"; therefore she named him Judah; then she ceased bearing.

When Rachel saw that she bore Jacob no children, she envied her sister; and she said to Jacob, "Give me children , or I shall die ! " 2jacob became very angry with Rachel and said , "Am I in the place of God , who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb?" Then she said, "Here is my maid Bilhah; go in to her, that she may bear upon my knees and that I too may have children through her. " 4So she gave him her maid Bilhah as a wife ; and Jacob went in to her. And Bilhah conceived and bore Jacob a son. Then Rachel said, "God has judged me, and has also heard my voice and given me a son"; therefore she named him Dan. 7Rachel's maid Bilhah conceived again and bore Jacob a second son. Then Rachel said , "With mighty wrestlings I have wrestled with my sister, and have prevailed", so she named him Naphtali.

When Leah saw that she had ceased bearing children, she took her maid Zilpah and gave her to Jacob as a wife. Then Leah's maid Zilpah bore Jacob a son. And Leah said, "Good fortune]" so she named him Gad. 12Leah's maid Zilpah bore Jacob a second son. 13 And Leah said, "Happy am I.' For the women will call me happy"; so she named him Ash-er.

David's Military Victories

June 29th, 2010   by Emma

Some time afterward , David attacked the philistines and subdued them ; David took Methegammah out of the hand of the philistines.

He also defeated the Moabites and , making them lie down on the ground , measured them off with a cord ; he measured two lengths of cord for those who were to be put to death , and one length for those who were to be spared. And the Moabites became servants to David and brought tribute.David also struck down King Hadadezer son of Rehob of Zobah as he went to restore his monument at the river Euphrates. 4 David took from him one thousand seven hundred horsemen, and twenty thousand foot soldiers. David hamstrung all the chariot horses, but left enough for a hundred chariots. 5

When the Arameans of Damascus came to help King Hadadezer of Zobah, David killed twenty-two thousand men of the Arameans. 6 Then David put garrisons among the Arameans of Damascus ; and the Arameans became servants to David and brought tribute. The LORD gave victory to David wherever he went. David took the gold shields that were carried by the servants of Hadadezer , and brought them to Jerusalem. 8 From Betah and from Berothai , towns of Hadadezer , King David took a great amount of bronze.

When King Toi of Hamath heard that David had defeated the whole army of Hadadezer, 10 Toi sent his son Joram to King David , to greet him and to congratulate him because he had fought against Hadadezer and defeated him. Now Hadadezer had often been at war with Toi. Joram brought with him articles of silver , gold , and bronze ; 1 1 these also King David dedicated to the LORD, together with the silver and gold that he dedicated from all the nations he subdued, 12 from Edom, Moab , the Ammonites , the philistines , Amalek , and from the spoil of King Hadadezer son of Rehob of Zobah.

We were in paradise . . . but it was hell for me

June 28th, 2010   by Emma

EXCLUSIVE; ENGLAND'S HERO OPENS HIS HEART TO THE MIRROR2

JONNY WILKINSON3 hit rock-bottom" as he sat on a beach with his girlfriend in the sun-kissed paradise of Mauritius.

Viewed through their telephoto lenses5, the paparazzi6 lurking7 offshore saw the perfect picture opportunity: England World Cup hero relaxing with a beautiful girl.

The truth was far darker. They had exposed Wilkinson at his most vulnerable. 8

They had pictured a man living with the pain of the present and in fear of the future.

He can be philosophical about9 it now. The question mark over whether he will play again has, he insists, been lifted. It is now a question of when, not if.10

But back then, there was no lighter side to life. His body was broken and he genuinely feared he was becoming a recluse" , a prisoner in his own mind.

"It was difficult to deal with the low times," admitted the 25-year-old, for whom nothing had previously seemed any great problem. "I just tried to keep myself busy by training. "

"The more I thought about the possibility my body would not recover sufficiently for me to play again, the more I tried to help it get better. I refused to accept that I may never play again, even though deep down I knew it was a possibility. ""

It was fine once his shoulder and neck had mended sufficiently for him to start moving again. But in the days immediately after surgery, he was left alone with his mind. And that proved a dangerous place to be. So he packed his bags.

" I decided that the best place for me to get all my thoughts together and write

my new set of goals was somewhere abroad, somewhere hot," he said. "It proved to be my biggest mistake. "

" I had just had the operation and my general health was pretty low. I was in a lot of pain and I just wanted a break from everything. I was trying to deal with the question of whether I'd played my last game. "

" I was also dealing with the aftermath of the pain of the operation and the surgeon’s message that waiting was pretty much all I could do. I was also getting a bit down, hiding away a lot, afraid to do anything. "

Far from finding an inner peace, Wilkinson encountered turmoil.

"If ever I questioned whether winning the World Cup was the right thing to do, if that was the payback, then that was the time," he said. "I was very upset by what happened because it was such an important period for me. "

Time has proved a healer. Or so it appears. As Wilkinson's body has strengthened so his increased confidence has brought him out of his shell. ""Hopefully I can deal with things a bit better. Maybe not hide away quite so much , " he said.

"This trip to Asia with adidas14 has taught me to be a bit more relaxed about things.

"I wish I could have been as relaxed then as maybe I'm becoming now. I would like to have been more prepared for everything. But I dealt with it as I saw it. "

"When I wrote down my goals after the operation that for me became the end of chapter one. "

"I more or less closed the door on the first part of my life. "

"All the work I'd done up to then had been for that moment, that competition. Now I have to start again. "

" I have to look deep inside myself and ask what it will take to become a better player. How can I improve?"

"This is the start of chapter two and while I don't know how long this chapter will be I can't wait to get started on it. "

The idea of building "New Towns" to absorb growth is frequently considered a cure-all for urban problems

June 25th, 2010   by Emma

It is erroneously assumed that if new residents can be diverted from existing centers, the present urban situation at least will get no worse. It is further and equally erroneously assumed that since European New Towns have been financially and socially successful, we can expect the same sorts of results in the United States.

Present planning, thinking, and legislation will not produce the kind of New Towns that have been successful abroad. It will multiply suburbs or encourage developments in areas where land is cheap and construction profitable rather than where New Towns are genuinely needed.

Such ill-considered projects not only will fail to relieve pressures on existing cities but will, in fact, tend to weaken those cities further by drawing away high-income citizens and increasing the concentration of low-income groups that are unable to provide tax revenues. The remaining taxpayers, accordingly, will face increasing burdens, and industry and commerce will seek escape. Unfortunately, this mechanism is already at work in some metropolitan areas.

The promoters of New Towns so far in the United States have been developers, builders, and financial institutions. The main interest of these promoters is economic gain. Furthermore, federal regulations designed to promote the New Town idea do not consider social needs as the European New Town plans do. In fact, our regulations specify virtually all the ingredients of the typical suburban community, with a bit of political rhetoric thrown in.

A workable American New Town formula should be established as firmly here as the national formula was in Britain. All possible social and governmental innovations as well as financial factors should be thoroughly considered and accommodated in this policy. Its objectives should be clearly stated, and both incentives and penalties should be provided to ensure that the objectives are pursued. If such a policy is developed, then the New Town approach can play an important role in alleviating America's urban problems.

Leisure Has a Value in Its Own Sight

June 24th, 2010   by Emma

Leisure has a worth of its own which cannot be supplied by work. Some of the most valuable contributions to civilization have originated in moments of leisure, not in time of routine work.

According to the folklore of science, Newton discovered the principle of gravity while sit-ting relaxed in an orchard. James Watt discovered the motive power of steam while idly looking at a kettle on the fire. Archimedes discovered, while enjoying a leisurely bath, how the displacement of water could be used to determine the specific gravity of metals.

If these great inventors had had a narrow view of work, they would have benefited society

far less. If they had spent their time churning out articles instead of taking reasonable relaxation, their offerings would have been mediocre. In general we can say that leisure time is the time in which originality comes into its own. It is a time for experiment, for thinking new thoughts thoughts which other people never had before. It is a time when we can make a really personal contribution to society. It is a time when we infuse quality into our work.

The body' s heat-regulating devices are efficient, but there is a limit to what they can accomplish

June 23rd, 2010   by Emma

If the outside temperature is too high, one may perspire so much that dehydration and heat exhaustion can result. Heat exhaustion is a condition caused by excessive salt loss, and its symptoms include muscle cramps, dizziness, vomiting and fainting. This condition usually can be prevented by taking salt tablets in hot weather.

Sunstroke (sometimes called heat stroke) is also caused by high outside temperature. It differs from heat exhaustion in that one of the heat regulators is affected; namely, the sweat glands. Dehydration starts a chain of events which terminates in decreased blood supply to the skin and diminished secretion of perspiration. As a consequence, the body temperature rockets up to a level that can be fatal. The victim of sunstroke exhibits many of the symptoms of heart exhaustion (i. e. , dizziness, fainting) but with this significant difference; there is an absence of perspiration; the skin is dry and flushed. Sunstroke is an extremely serious emerency. The most important first aid measure is to lower the temperature; otherwise permanent jrain damage can result. Cooling of the body is accomplished by immersing the victim in cool vater or else by spraying him with it. Ice should be applied to the head, and cold drinks offered if the patient is conscious.

The body is no more capable of coping with prolonged exposure to cold than to heat. If, or example, the body is immersed in cold water for a time, the water ( a better heat conductor lian air) removes more heat from the body than can be replaced, and the body temperature ills. This can happen too, of course, in cold air particularly when clothing is inadequate, .nd excessively low body temperature is termed hypothermia, and its main effects are lowered spiratory rate and blood pressure and a feeling of drowsiness finally ending coma and perips dead. Hypothermia, the opposite of fever, is caused mainly by prolonged exposure told, rarely by abnormal conditions within the body.

Owen Stays

June 22nd, 2010   by Emma

MICHAEL OWEN will commit himself to2 a Liverpool3 future within the next few days.

The Anfield striker is due to fly out on holiday by the middle of next week, and he has indicated he will sign a new deal before he jets off.4

Owen has agreed a contract that will earn him ? 0,000 a week, worth in excess of ? million a year, making him the top-paid player at the club.5

-|-nat news wj|| delight the Anfield supporters who have been desperate to see their star striker extend his stay at the club.

It is understood Owen will sign a two-year extension to his contract, which will give new manager Rafael Benitez some breathing space as he attempts to turn Liverpool around6.

The England forward has just one year remaining on his current deal, and the Merseyside club were resigned to7 selling him this summer if they couldn't persuade him to extend his tenure8.

That was seen as a disaster for the club, who are entering a major period of rebuilding following the sacking9 of French coach Gerard Houllier and the capture of former Valencia coach Benitez. The Spanish boss will now set out10 to prove to Owen that Liverpool can win the major honours he desires.

Born on 14th December 1979 in Chester, Michael has become one of the best footballer's in the world. He is a great asset to Liverpool Football Club. " He has been a member of the England Squad for a while and plays number 10, as this position he has become a great role model for all young footballers. The match which he has played best in so far throughout his career is Liverpool v Newcastle Utd. Where he scored a hat trick12 in 15 minutes and his first two goals were scored in 85 seconds! After this match he had scored his 4th goal of the season.

Owen became known because of his debut goal against Wimbledon near the end of the 1996/97 season. The next match he played was Liverpool v Sheffield Wednesday, although he played well he didn't manage to score the goal which would have boosted his career!13 In this match he was named Man Of The Match.

The decision of Owen, who could put pen to paper over the weekend, is a coup for the club, coming just days after Steven Gerrard performed a massive U-turn14 and committed himself to Liverpool, despite the interest of Chelsea.

When the next season started he was still with the club as Robbie Fowler was still unfit to play because of his injury. Owen scored his first hatrick in the match against Grimsby in the Coca-Cola cup. He is seen to be throughout the UK one of the most promising players for the future. Michael Owen will certainly be a favourite for many years to come!

Benitez has now secured his two most important signings of the summer, and he knows he has a world class heart around which to build his team.