Posted: Sunday September 23, 2012 11:29AM ; Updated: Sunday September 23, 2012 11:29AM
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Sunday, September 23, 2012
Friday, September 21, 2012
UK needs more ambitious electric car grant scheme - MPs
LONDON (Reuters) - Britain needs a more ambitious programme to encourage the uptake of low-carbon vehicles, as sales of the cars have disappointed, a committee made up of MPs said on Thursday.
As part of its aim to reduce carbon dioxide emissions to 80 percent below 1990 levels by 2050, the government has offered 25 percent off the price of a plug-in electric car capped at 5,000 pounds.
Plug-in cars, such as the Chevrolet Volt, Nissan Leaf, Toyota Prius and Vauxhall Ampera, typically cost in excess of 20,000 pounds.
The government expects to see tens of thousands of plug-in vehicles, which have a longer driving range than all-electric vehicles but which still need to be charged, on the roads by 2015, but demand has been weak, said a report by the Transport Select Committee.
In 2011, 1,052 vehicles eligible for the plug-in car grant were registered. The committee said consumer demand was lagging behind and that the subsidy was ineffective because the purchase price was still too high.
"So far, Department for Transport expenditure on plug-in cars - some 11 million pounds - has benefited just a handful of motorists," said Louise Ellman, chair of the committee.
"Ministers should not sit back and hope that the government's policy on plug-in cars will reduce transport carbon emissions. Far more work is required to ensure that this programme is a good use of public funds."
Emissions from domestic transport account for around a quarter of the UK's total carbon dioxide emissions, with car emissions accounting for over half of that amount.
There is also uncertainty over the number of charging points being installed across the country.
"It is unclear whether the provision of public charging infrastructure encourages demand for plug-in cars. Indeed, the government does not even have a register of all the charge points installed at public expense," Ellman said.
The government should set milestones for the number of plug-ins it expects to see on the roads so the success of its low-carbon vehicle strategy can be assessed, the report said.
(Editing by Louise Heavens)
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/uk-needs-more-ambitious-electric-car-grant-scheme-021221539--finance.html
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McGraw-Hill's Anatomy & Physiology REVEALED? Is Both An ...
When I was offered the opportunity to check out their latest title, Anatomy & Physiology REVEALED?, I jumped at the chance. The app offers an amazing look at all of the systems that make up the human body, with details usually reserved only for Medical Students and Serial Killers (of which I can assure you, I am neither). In broad strokes, it is a virtual dissection app that lets you go layer by layer into every component of the human body, exploring skeletal, muscular, nervous, cardiovascular, lymphatic, respiratory, integumentary, digestive, urinary, reproductive & endocrine systems. The app goes much deeper than just a series of photographs, it?s a study aid, a reference book and a learning tool with plenty of knowledge to impart.
In my High School Biology class we were never given the opportunity to perform a dissection, even our planned starfish dissection lab was cancelled. In a way it almost feels like I missed out on some sort of right of passage. I know there are a number of great apps to simulate animal dissections, but unless you plan on becoming a medical doctor or a Chilean soccer team trapped in the Andes you will (hopefully) never be dissecting a human cadaver. Even if the opportunity to attend an actual Gross Anatomy class were to somehow arise, I have no doubt it wouldn?t take but a second for me to be laid out flat on the floor unconscious.
The app?s photographs look so lifelike on the third gen iPad?s Retina screen that all that is missing is the smell of formaldehyde. Using an amazingly effective layering technique to let your curious mind ?peel away layers of the human body to reveal more than 5,000 anatomical structures?. Complementing the photos are a plethora of medical X-Rays, MRIs and CT scans to help users practice identifying components of the body, audible tags to help you properly pronounce each structure. There are also videos to show how complex systems work, interactive slides to learn microscopy anatomy of cells tissues and comprehensive search and bookmarking features for finding and marking sections. A cool note taking system allows for both text and voice-based annotations. The app even contains a built-in self-test, quizzing system that helps you gauge your comprehension and memory by assessing your ability to identify various anatomical structures.
While the app does a fantastic job at helping students identify, pronounce and locate anatomical structures, it doesn?t always provide a lot of detail about exactly what purpose each of these serves. This is one area where the app could be expanded as I could see this being useful information to have, even if were just a few sentences that might help give the student a bit more insight and help him or her remember and understand a system better.
Anatomy & Physiology REVEALED? is broken down into five different modules and the $49.99 ?All Systems? app contains them all. McGraw-Hill also offers a cheaper $12.99 alternative version of the app which just comes with the Skeletal and Muscular systems module and the ability to purchase remaining four modules for $12.99 each as desired.
In Conclusion
Anatomy & Physiology REVEALED? is a detailed educational tool that can offer a more engrossing learning experience to anyone studying human anatomy and physiology. While certainly not an inexpensive purchase, the app provides a well thought-out package, from a trusted educational publisher. The cost my be prohibitive for casually interested parties but for anyone looking for a reference and/or study guide it is worth considering making the investment in this app.
Purchase these apps from the App Store:
Anatomy & Physiology REVEALED?: Skeletal & Muscular | Anatomy & Physiology REVEALED?: All Systems |
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Thursday, September 20, 2012
In protests, Mao holds subtle messages for Beijing
BEIJING (AP) ? The face of dissatisfaction with China's Communist Party is the face of the man synonymous with it: Mao Zedong.
Portraits of the revolutionary leader often led packs of demonstrators in protests over Japan's effort last week to bolster its hold on islands claimed by China. Many were hoisted by people born after his death 36 years ago.
Mao, widely revered by Chinese and praised by Communist Party leaders, is supposed to serve as a unifying symbol, but it often isn't so.
To some he represents a condemnation of corruption and inequality under a government that long ago abandoned his radical policies. More frequently this week, his image was a subtle slap by nationalists who accuse leaders of being too weak in the territorial dispute.
"Mao Zedong was tough. He never backed down when it came to the national interests," said Lu Lei, a Beijing salesman who went to the Japanese Embassy with his friends to protest Tuesday. "Our current government is spineless. If Mao were alive, we would have already attacked Japan."
Mao has become a safe way for Chinese to criticize a government bent on stifling dissent. His giant portrait still looks out to Tiananmen Square in the heart of Beijing, and his name is etched into the country's constitution and the party's charter, even if his ideology has been abandoned in practice.
His image has rarely been displayed in such numbers as during the protests this week. Rows of his portraits floated through the parades ? often in the company of a sea of red flags ? in an eerie resemblance to the scenes from the fervent days of the Cultural Revolution when Mao was worshipped as a god.
Behind the scenes of the angry protests that rippled across more than two dozen cities this week runs an undercurrent of grievances, many of them critical of the government.
Protesters held up signs that touched on broader social issues such as corruption, food safety and the widening gap between poor and rich. Some protesters even joked that urban code enforcers ? resented by the Chinese public for their brutality against unlicensed street peddlers ? should be sent to fight the Japanese military.
Those messages mixed with anti-Japanese slogans on a rare occasion where the government tolerated and at time abetted public demonstrations.
"This movement has multiple purposes. Nationalism is only part of the protests." said Zheng Yongnian, director of the East Asian Institute at the National University of Singapore. "More people are angry about the current government, and they wanted to use this opportunity to vent."
The government, normally inclined to crush protests, allowed these of public anti-Japanese fury to gain leverage in its latest tiff with Tokyo over small uninhabited East China Sea islands called the Senkaku by Japanese and the Diaoyu by Chinese.
Japan controls the islands and purchased them from their private owners last week, thwarting plans by Tokyo's nationalistic governor to buy and develop them. China responded with furious rhetoric.
Both countries have sent patrol ships to the waters surrounding the islands, and there is no sign of progress in resolving the dispute between the two Asian economic powerhouses.
Allowing the protests, however, carries risks for China, as protesters can bend the intended message. They sent a quiet critique with a sign seemingly hard for the government to quarrel with: "Chairman Mao, we are missing you very much."
After his death in 1976, Mao was much criticized for radical excesses in which tens of millions killed and persecuted in mass movements. Laid-off workers, however, eventually began parading his portrait at protests as a plea for more egalitarian policies.
Mao first became a protest icon about a decade ago during mass layoffs that accompanied privatization of state industries. Social injustice, corruption and a yawning rich-poor gap have only worsened since and were themes amid the anti-Japan protests.
Many Chinese are worried about the chairman's re-emergence on the scene. His most ardent supporters tend to be stridently nationalistic and advocate an authoritarian populism. Some protesters called for the release of Bo Xilai, the disgraced politician and a populist who was ousted from the leadership in a political scandal.
Wang Zheng, a Beijing teacher who has been detained for her support of Bo, said the public remembers Mao as a resolute man who showed no ambiguity on sovereignty issues.
"Our government has been spineless on many things ? Diaoyu being one of them," she said. "The diplomatic protests are meaningless when they are not backed with actions. The government has behaved the same year after year, making the public more nostalgic about Mao."
Some protesters employed other methods to use the outrage against Japan as a jumping-off point to deliver other messages.
In Beijing, some held up signs saying they would be willing to eat unsafe food to reclaim the islands. Food safety is a big public concern in China.
In Changsha, a small group of protesters at an anti-Japan rally held up a hand-written sign calling for the ouster of corrupt officials. Some of them wore mouth covers marked with an "X."
"That means we cannot freely speak our minds," local protester Wu Qingjun said.
Wu said his group did not catch police attention, but the rights group China Human Rights Defenders reported at least three cases when activists were taken away.
It said Jiao Guobian, a former college teacher, was arrested on Sept. 12 on suspicion of "inciting subversion of state power," allegedly for saying the government should have kept an eye as close on the islands as it does on dissidents.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/protests-mao-holds-subtle-messages-beijing-083841730.html
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Monday, September 17, 2012
Personal Finance Tips To Keep Your Money In ... - Personal Loans
Being uncertain about your financial future can cause stress and depression. You can start taking better care of your financial obligations by reviewing the advice presented below.
Although paying off your debts is very important, you may want to make building up an emergency fund a higher priority, especially if emergency credit card use is where your debts came from. Expenses can pop up when we least expect it, and having a fund for emergencies can help prevent a financial crisis.
Check your credit report regularly. You can look at your credit report absolutely free! Make sure that this is done two times a year to make sure that there aren?t any unauthorized changes done to your report, and that someone hasn?t committed identity theft by using your information and name.
If you?re currently married, make sure that the spouse that has the best credit is the one that applies for loans. If you?re suffering from bad credit, building it can be done by getting a card that you can pay on time. When you get back to having a credit score that is good, try getting a loan and pay it off together.
Always start saving your money quickly, so you can manage finances more effectively. Stop delaying saving and instead, make it your priority. Put aside money each payday for your savings account. By doing this, you will start to build up an emergency fund.
By learning how to take care of your cash flow, you?ll have a well controlled property. Look at your expenses compared to your income, this is a good indicator of your spending habits. You must have an established property budget.
Acquiring bulk packages of lean protein can save both money and time. Buying product in bulk is usually much cheaper if you actually use what you purchase. You will save time and money by cooking many meals at one time. Choose dishes that freeze well and you can have dinner ready for a week!
Although organizing your finances can be a daunting task, you can reach financial stability if you employ patience and invest some time. Do your research and talk to a financial adviser to get well-informed. Use the tips above to aid you in getting your finances right on track.
Quick Online Personal Loans
Tags: credit report, emergency fund
Source: http://www.personalloanspro.com/blog/personal-finance-tips-to-keep-your-money-in-your-pocket.htm
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Sunday, September 16, 2012
Namibia: 40 babies, fetuses dumped monthly in city
WINDHOEK, Namibia (AP) ? The Namibia Press Agency reports that some 40 babies and fetuses are dumped and flushed down toilets every month in Windhoek, Namibia's capital of just 350,000 people.
It quotes Women in Action Development chief Veronica De Klerk as blaming violence against women and parents' failures.
The agency reported Sunday that De Klerk at the weekend said barely a day goes by without a report of a woman being killed or a newborn infant dumped. She said most offenders are young.
The southwest African country of 1.2 million has a low population growth of 0.8 percent. It is better known for its spectacular desert landscapes with terracotta-colored sand dunes and as the place celebrities Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt chose for the birth of their first baby.
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10 Tips for Planning a Fit Pregnancy | Health & Fitness
Pregnancy places nice physical demands on the body, however the fitter you're, the higher you'll be able to cope. Supple joints groin and body part muscles build it easier to adopt helpful position like squatting throughout labor and birth, robust leg muscles encourage sensible circulation that helps to stop fatigue, cramps and unhealthy veins and powerful abdomen muscles can facilitate with delivery.
Here are tips for designing your Pregnancy fitness plan:
1. Continue a schedule: - Regular exercise is best for you than intermittent workouts.
2. Keep in your comfort zone: - Attempt to continue your pre-pregnancy fitness arrange as long as you are feeling comfy doing thus. If necessary, break a daily effort into 2 shorter workouts and cut back the speed or intensity.
3. Enter in Associate in Nursing exercise class: - If you haven?t been active, taking straightforward walks on an everyday basis or enrolling during a beginner exercise category engaged towards pregnant ladies can cause you to feel intended and higher throughout your gestation.
4. Lesson your intensity: - Attempt to limit your overall exercise intensity to a minimum of fifty % of your pre-pregnancy intensity. Watch your respiration, and stop exercise if you?re short-winded. Keep your rate below one hundred forty gait to avoid depriving the baby of O. in and of itself you get additional on in your gestation, you'll get tired and short-winded a lot of quickly.
5. Keep off your back (and off your feet): - Avoid exercises that need you to lie on your back once the primary trimester, as a result of the pressure of the growing craniate restricts blood flow back to your heart. additionally, don?t stand still for long periods of time; the surplus weight of gestation will cause unhealthy veins. Jog, walk, or go snows hoeing as long in and of itself activities feel sensible. Swimming and aquatic categories are also glorious workouts. Swimming is that the solely time you'll be able to lay prone (on your tummy) for Associate in Nursing extended amount of your time, and it offers your back a well-deserved break.
6. Be aware of your center of gravity: - As your body form changes, thus will your center of gravity. Activities that are fine and cozy timely may not be later in your gestation. In your trimester, you must avoid sports that need balance or that place you in peril of abdominal trauma.
7. Wear comfy effort clothes: - Loose, non-constricting garments are vital for the pregnant exercise. once activity becomes uncomfortable, strive carrying additional breast or abdominal support, or switch to non-weight-bearing exercise, like swimming, water walking, water cardiopulmonary exercise, support stepping, Associate in Nursing elliptical trainer, or decumbent or stationary sport.
8. Continue strength coaching with some modifications: - You almost certainly shouldn?t get on a workout routine once you?re pregnant, however keeping your muscles toned and firm can ease you thru gestation, childbirth, and recovery. Continue strength coaching (keeping in mind the rules arranged? down by WF fitness team) with weights and exercises bands, however avoid exercises that need you to lie on your back (as antecedently mentioned).
9. Eat right: - Make sure to eat healthy foods and to eat enough-but not an excessive amount of. Remember, you?re feeding for 2, not four (unless you're expecting triplets). Pregnant ladies want a further three hundred calories on a daily basis. Alcohol and caffein ought to be consumed meagerly, if at all, throughout gestation.
The guidelines they are mentioned below:
? Eat many wholegrain, fruit and vegetables for vitamins and fibre.
? Have breakfast.
? Avoid food, cakes and sweets.
? opt for food instead of processed.
? Use vegetable oils rather than animal fats.
? Drink a pint (570ml) of milk a day.
? Have a minimum of 2 servings on a daily basis of high- supermolecule foods like lean meat, eggs, fish, pulses or farm product.
? Eat food that's high in iron, like lean pork, whole meal bread, edible fruit and leafed inexperienced vegetables. Iron is required to form additional red blood cells to provide the placenta and uterus, and also the unhatched baby.
? Attempt to drink a minimum of six glasses of water a day.
? Avoid alcohol utterly throughout the primary twelve weeks of your gestation, and haven't any quite one or 2 glasses once or double every week thenceforth.
? Eat foods wealthy in vitamin Bc, metallic element and iron, like daft and leafed inexperienced vegetables.
10. Bear in mind of overheating: - Pregnant ladies generate additional heat, particularly within the trimester once vital foetal organ formation is occurring. For this reason, you would like to drink many water and avoid things during which you would possibly overheat. Raise the red flat on exercise arduous in atmospheric condition, soaking within the tub, and sitting during a steam room or vapour bath, particularly throughout your trimester. heating will cause the temperature of the humor within the female internal reproductive organ to rise too high, which might seriously hurt your baby.
Every lady will continue together with her pre-pregnancy exercise program as long as your body feels okay. Use the rules listed and detain mind that your effort goals ought to be modest. Your main goal ought to be to deliver a healthy baby. If you've got any queries relating to your fitness routine, contact our gynaecologist team and United States of America through mail can rush you with resolution to your drawback.
Source: http://www.healthidia.com/2012/09/10-tips-for-planning-fit-pregnancy.html
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Saturday, September 15, 2012
Tie Down ATV Using Ratchet Straps | Free Auto Vehicle Repair ...
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Source: http://vehiclefixer.com/videos/tie-down-atv-using-ratchet-straps/
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Thai FA facing disbandment over alleged graft
BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thailand's Football Association could be forced to disband following allegations of corruption, a spokesman for a parliamentary committee looking into the issue said on Friday.
The FA of Thailand (FAT) could face an investigation over alleged tax evasion and for setting up the Thai Premier League as a profit-making arm of the group, said Supachai Chaisamut, a spokesman for the house corruption committee.
Worawi Makudi, the FAT's president and a FIFA executive committee member since 1997, appeared before the committee on Thursday to give his explanations on financial transactions.
"If FAT is found to have deliberately set up the Thai Premier League for profit-making purposes the Thai Revenue Department will follow up the case. The FAT will then have a duty to withdraw the name of the football association, disband and set up again," Supachai told Reuters.
Worawi said he was in discussions with his lawyers and would respond to the allegations at a news conference next week.
This is not the first time Worawi has been accused of corruption.
In 2011, FIFA launched a formal investigation after he was accused of spending $860,000 in football development grants for projects on land he personally owns. Soccer's world governing body eventually cleared him of any wrongdoing.
In the latest accusations to hit the FAT president, Worawi and Thailand's FA are alleged to have set up the Thai Premier League company to generate profits and authorizing Siam Sports Syndicate Pcl, a sports publishing company, to manage commercial benefits.
Under Thai civil law, the FAT is barred from seeking profits.
The FAT president was asked to submit documents showing the minutes of meetings held by the FAT that dealt with Thai Premier League Company, Siam Sports Syndicate and to produce balance sheets dating back five years for both companies by next week.
The issue is fast dividing Thai soccer fans who have taken sides in the dispute with some claiming personal grudges and allegiances are influencing the investigation.
"Some people on this committee want this to become a political issue but that is not what I want and that is not the aim of this investigation," said Prompong Nopparit, vice chairman of the parliamentary anti-corruption committee.
Thailand's top league underwent a massive revamp three years ago following a marketing blitz that brought in dozens of corporate sponsors and provided revenue for clubs to invest in foreign players and coaches.
At a packed news conference in Bangkok earlier this month former England manager Sven-Goran Eriksson was named technical director of Thai Premier League club BEC Tero Sasana.
His appointment will be a much-needed boost to the Thai league as it struggles to make its mark against other teams in regional competitions.
(This story is corrected to clarify investigation yet to be launched)
(Additional Reporting by Aukkarapon Niyomyat; Editing by Patrick Johnston)
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/thai-fa-investigated-face-possible-disbandment-092806331--sow.html
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Mayor Jones Talks about Meeting with Airbus
(MOBILE, Ala.) Local 15 News caught up with Mayor Sam Jones Friday to talk about his recent trip to Washington D.C.
Jones met with the president of Airbus America, with the goal of getting Airbus setup and ready to go in the Port City. Airbus has a tight deadline to meet and it's fast approaching.
"Just kind of talked a little bit about where we're headed, what some of the time cycles are," Jones said. "They basically talked about they have a plan between February and April that they're going to break ground and start doing some things."
The first plane must be delivered by January of 2016 and those take about two years to build.
Click here to read this story on www.local15tv.com
Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/49040878/ns/local_news-mobile_al/
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Friday, September 14, 2012
COTE DE TEXAS: A Personal Family Story !
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Briargrove ? Houston?s hot neighborhood for newlyweds.
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It seems like every time I hear about a young couple buying a new house, it?s in the? Briargrove neighborhood.? I?m not sure why all the newlyweds that I seem to know are moving there, but, as always, once a few claim stakes, friends will follow.
The neighborhood is close in ? right outside the loop - with neat, nicely landscaped lots and plenty of curb appeal.? Most houses are one story ranchburgers which were built in the early 60s.? But like every appealing neighborhood, the smaller houses are slowly being torn down, replaced by larger 1 1/2 story houses.? Still, the older houses are charming with front porches and large oak trees that shade the front lawns.?
The houses are typically 2,000 to 3,00o sq. ft. and many have been added on to by extending the back family room.? The younger set tends to turn the living rooms into the dining room and the former dining rooms become offices or playrooms.?? The neighborhood is relatively small with only 1,400 houses.? Briargrove Elementary is a big draw ? it?s one of Houston?s finest public schools.? But, going public becomes a problem at the high school level, so families with older children either move out or go to a private school.??? Despite the high school issue, the neighborhood could not be hotter.??
One of my nephews moved into the neighborhood about four years ago and recently his newlywed brother, Jeffrey and his bride Brooke, bought a house right down the street.?? Luckily it came with a swimming pool for both the brothers? families to enjoy.? The house they bought was in good shape and had been the home of an older art-collecting, single man (something of an anomaly in this neighborhood where families with young children are pushing out all the empty nesters.)
Although the house was quite nice, my new niece had a lot of changes in mind when she signed on the dotted line.?? Recently I stopped by to take pictures so you could see the before and afters and hopefully get some ideas if you are remodeling and updating a home.
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I didn?t get a picture of the outside for some reason, so this is how it looked on the realtor?s web site.? It is a typical Briargrove house with 3 bedrooms, 2 baths and just over 2,000 sq. ft.? Since there are no children yet, this house should be perfect for them for years and years unless they end up having more than 3 children ? then things might get a little tight!? The neighborhood is known for its towering Live Oak trees.? They are lucky to have three in the front yard.?
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And here is how it looks on Google Maps.? So cute!!
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When you enter the front door, Brooke has placed an antique pine table and mirror along with a pair of candles on each side.? The dining room is to the left and the family room is straight ahead.
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BEFORE:? This is how the dining room looked with the previous owners.? He had installed wall to wall seagrass and art lights for his collection, along with a crystal chandelier.? Brooke pulled up all the seagrass because it really was showing its age and needed to be replaced.?? The former dining room ? through the opening - was an office.
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AFTER:? And here is a glimpse into the dining room from the entry hall.?? You can see the lantern they installed in the entrance.?
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The view from the dining room into the entry hall.? Once Brooke and Jeffrey pulled up the seagrass, they installed hardwoods in here to match the hardwoods throughout the house ? and then they stained all of it a much darker brown. The walls were painted a light gray throughout, but in the dining room they painted it just a bit darker for effect.?
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And looking the other direction towards the former dining room.? That room will become a study, and then later a playroom ? after they install French doors between the two rooms.?? The fabulous Belgian styled table came from Restoration Hardware and the French chairs with a faded toile on the back came from Zentique.?? Brooke ordered the chandelier from Ballard Designs.
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Though the back of the chairs have a faded toile print, the front is upholstered in linen.?
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And against the wall is this chest which has been newly painted and fauxed by the great Mr. James Farmer (jfarmer762@yahoo.com or at 713-398-7657.)? Inside, Brooke put Tara Shaw?s white books and some string tied books.? So cute!
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BEFORE:? Here is how the former owner? had the family room.? This side is the original family room and the other side on the left is an addition.?
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BEFORE:? And here is how the former owner had the addition decorated.?
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AFTER:? Brooke and Jeffrey painted the walls a soft gray (Benjamin Moore Revere Pewter) and the brick fireplace was painted the same color as the walls.?? Then, they darkened the hardwoods to a much richer, deeper brown.?? This side of the family room was furnished with the Ikea slipcovered sofa and chairs in white, while the other side has a linen covered sofa.?
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Brooke got the two trellis pillows in green from Z Gallerie to add some pops of color.? The mirror came from Ballard Designs.? When the newlyweds moved into the house, they didn?t have enough furniture for both sides of the room.?? So, the Ikea slipcovered furniture was a perfect choice for right now.? It is inexpensive enough that it is easy on the pockets of newlyweds, plus it looks stylish.? The slips are perfect for babies and puppies - just take them off and wash.? One day they might replace the Ikea sofa with a new one, but for now and the near future, it?s the right choice.?? I still stay this is the BEST bargain in furniture out there!
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And looking straight on ? here you can see into the entry hall.? Brooke was lucky the former owner left them a pretty fireplace screen.?
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Brooke always tries to keep a few roses in her Juliska vase, which she puts on a silver tray layered over a wicker one.?
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And looking towards the book shelves in the family room.?? Through the door is the bedroom hall ? which also got new hardwoods laid.
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Here?s the addition of the family room ? Brooke and Jeffrey added a large built in to house the flatscreen and books.??
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On this side of the room, they have a linen slipcovered sectional from Halo Styles with gray Les Indiennes pillows in two different sizes from Neal&Co.?? An Irish antique dining table that has been cut down is used as a coffee table.? And that?s Tucker sitting on the sofa!? Remember I told you how their puppy Riley got sick and had to be put down?? Well, a few months later they adopted Riley?s litter mate and brother ? Tucker.?? And he is soooo sweet!? Look at that face!? Wait, let me get a close up for you.
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Tucker!? We can?t wait for this weekend when we get to babysit him for 3 whole days!!!
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And here you can see the built-in.? Notice how the back of the sectional has a cute arch.?
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Behind the sofa, Brook added the antique map of Paris that came divided and framed from One Kings Lane.? Underneath is their bar, set up on a wood table.
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Here?s a closeup of the map of Paris ? love this!
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Cute tablescape with a mirrored tray and vintage white alabaster grapes!? I spy Bobby McAlpine?s book.
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And looking from the addition back into the family room.?? The layout of the house is really nice ? it?s all so open.?? They can have a lot of people over with these two seating areas.? And you can see how pretty the dark hardwoods came out.? Before, they were more of a honey tone, and now with the gray walls, the dark woods look so much better.
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Raul, my painter and construction man, built the new shelves in the addition ? he tried to match them to these shelves that were already in the house and he did a great job.? It?s hard to remember those new shelves weren?t always there!? Brooke has plans to get bamboo or textured shades for the windows.?? When you move in, there are so many things to do and buy, you have to prioritize some things and the window treatments are one of those.? Not everything has to be done all at once ? what?s the fun in that anyway???
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BEFORE:? Here is the breakfast room when the bachelor lived here.? Thankfully he left this great iron light fixture.
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AFTER:?? The breakfast room is past the family room ? Brooke and Jeffrey bought the table and chairs at Ikea for their rented townhouse ? and it fits perfectly here.? Brooke wants to eventually get a round table, but I think this looks great.? The chairs are slipped which makes for easy clean ups.
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BEFORE:? The kitchen as it was when they bought it.? This room was probably? the most updated ? but luckily they had white subway tile as a backsplash to work with.
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First, the tile floor was replaced with the dark hardwoods, which made a huge difference.? Next, Carrara marble replaced the Formica countertops.? The Carrara was chosen instead of the Calacutta Ora at a very, very substantial savings.? And it really looks great.? The honed marble came from Colors of the Rainbow.?? Next Brooke added a farm sink and a bridge faucet she bought online, along with all new hardware, also at a great savings.??? She really looked for ways to stretch her budget by buying online.?? And finally ? new appliances in stainless were added.
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Other changes were the overhead cabinets got glass doors ? Raul just cut out the wood centers and inserted the glass.? Brooke added a lantern she bought online which replaced the large fluorescent fixture that used to be there ? another huge change.?? One splurge was the farm sink from Shaw, but then she saved on her fixtures by getting the polished chrome finish instead of polished nickel.? You really can?t even tell the difference.? The shade for the window is ordered, but hasn?t come in yet.? And through the door is the soon to be study and one day playroom ? which was once the dining room.?
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The front room is used as a guest bedroom now.? There?s a cute tufted headboard and a crystal chandelier that Brooke ordered on line.?? The bedrooms all had wall to wall seagrass that truly needed to be replaced ? which they did with a flat pile neutral carpet.?? This aunt begged them to put in hardwoods in the bedrooms too ? but her nephew wanted it soft under his feet when he woke up!? MEN!!!!!
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BEFORE:? The bathroom before had all green tile that was original to the house.? While I love this particular wall paper, it just didn?t go with the gray paint and hardwoods in the house.
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AFTER:? What a difference!? The tile was all removed ? the dark hardwoods went down on the floor and the same honed Carrara marble was put on the vanity, along with a new sink and faucet.? The walls were painted a dark gray ? the same as found in the dining room.?
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And here is the master bedroom.? They got the headboard from Zentique and the night stands from Z Gallerie.?? The bench came from an online source and it matches the headboard perfectly.
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The bedding is white and linen and the two mirrors balance it all out!? I didn?t take a picture of their bathroom because it wasn?t changed ? luckily it had a nice light gray tile that actually matched the new d?cor perfectly.?
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And, I also forgot to take a picture of the back yard, so this is from the real estate ad.? They are so lucky that they have this great pool which is a huge plus for Houston?s summers! Next on the list is new outdoor furniture, but Jeffrey got sticker shock while shopping for it.? It?s crazy how outdoor furniture can be more expensive than indoor furniture!!? Hmm.? I wonder if Ikea sells outdoor furniture?? I need to look into that.
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I hope you?ve enjoyed seeing my nephew and niece?s new house and learning a little bit about their neighborhood ? Briargrove.
To search available houses in Briargrove ? go to www.har.com ? put in the search engine Briargrove AND zip code 77057.?? Currently, there are just 24 houses for sale ? ranging from $375,000 to $1,400,000 for a brand new 5,000 sq ft. spec house.
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AND, to read Brooke?s darling fashion blog ? Style Wise - go HERE.
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We have a winner in the Vero Linen contest!? The contest was a great success, so as a thank you for all the entrants, Vero Linen is offering Cote de Texas readers 20% off any order over $300 that is placeddd before September 17th ? midnight.?
Please use the promo code verocote20 as the code.
After you make your selections, when you are ready to check out ? enter the code at the bottom of the shopping cart and then click the update button.? This will ensure you get the 20% off.
To visit the Vero Linen site ? go HERE.
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AND, coming up next, we will have another great giveaway ? think coffee tables!!!
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Source: http://cotedetexas.blogspot.com/2012/09/a-personal-family-story.html
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Thursday, September 13, 2012
Hard-working Loretta Devine up for second Emmy
FILE - In this Aug. 9, 2012 file photo, actress Loretta Devine poses for a portrait in Los Angeles. Devine is up for a second Emmy this weekend for her guest role on "Grey's Anatomy," as the long-suffering wife of surgery chief Richard Webber. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP, File)
FILE - In this Aug. 9, 2012 file photo, actress Loretta Devine poses for a portrait in Los Angeles. Devine is up for a second Emmy this weekend for her guest role on "Grey's Anatomy," as the long-suffering wife of surgery chief Richard Webber. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP, File)
FILE - In this Aug. 9, 2012 file photo, actress Loretta Devine poses for a portrait in Los Angeles. Devine is up for a second Emmy this weekend for her guest role on "Grey's Anatomy," as the long-suffering wife of surgery chief Richard Webber. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP, File)
LOS ANGELES (AP) ? Loretta Devine would love to win a second Emmy for her guest performance as Adele, the long-suffering wife of surgery chief Richard Webber on "Grey's Anatomy."
But the actress, who won last year for the same role, isn't quite sure how her first statuette would feel getting about a sister.
"Well, my Emmy is sleeping with five NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People Image Award) boys," Devine joked, breaking into big laughter. "So, she's having a good time. She may be mad if somebody else enters the room."
Devine's laugh is building-filling huge, which likely came in handy this season on the "Grey's" set when, after a long, slow decline, her character realized she had Alzheimer's disease and needed to be placed into a full-time care facility.
"That particular scene, it was just wrenching for me," said Devine. "Sometimes when I watch it, I get so sad myself. And I know I'm acting it out, you know?"
Devine said audiences have connected with Adele and Richard's plight.
"It does have a major impact on people that actually have parents at home, that they're having to care for," she explained. "I always feel like I've been hit on the head many too many times. I got hit on the head a lot on 'Dreamgirls.' I'm real scared that I'm not remembering as much as I should."
There's a lot to remember. Devine came to fame in the original Broadway cast of the Supremes-inspired musical "Dreamgirls" in 1981. Since then, she hasn't stopped working for long, in films including "Waiting to Exhale" (1995) and "Jumping the Broom" (2011). Recent TV series gigs include playing the massage-parlor madam on Lifetime's "The Client List" and voicing Hallie the Hippo of Disney Junior's popular "Doc McStuffins."
"It teaches not be afraid to go to the doctor. It's cute and it has songs," Devine says, then breaks into the series oft-repeated chorus: "'Time for your checkup. Time for your checkup. Woo! Woo! Time for your checkup.'"
Devine's pipes are still intact. Thirty-two years after "Dreamgirls," perhaps a Tony is in her sights?
"That would be a dream, because you know my history with Tonys and 'Dreamgirls,' and I was the only one that wasn't nominated," she said. "My heart beats every time anybody says, 'Tony.'"
For now, however, it's all about Emmy No. 2. She'll get the news Saturday night at the Creative Arts Emmy Awards, which honors primarily technical artists. And, if Devine, 63, wins again, she'll also appear at the primetime ceremony a week later.
"I can't even explain to anyone how it even feels to be on the red carpet because you were invited, instead of just crashing," she said, laughing again. "Just walking in there, like I'm supposed to be there. That's really nice."
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www.emmys.com
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White House: Deplores prophet film inciting raids
Bloodstains at the main gate believed to be from one of the American staff members of the U.S. Consulate, after an attack that killed four Americans, including Ambassador Chris Stevens on the night of Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2012, in Benghazi, Libya, Thursday, Sept. 13, 2012. The American ambassador to Libya and three other Americans were killed when a mob of protesters and gunmen overwhelmed the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, setting fire to it in outrage over a film that ridicules Islam's Prophet Muhammad. Ambassador Chris Stevens, 52, died as he and a group of embassy employees went to the consulate to try to evacuate staff as a crowd of hundreds attacked the consulate Tuesday evening, many of them firing machine-guns and rocket-propelled grenades. Arabic writing reads, " Villa of Jamal al Beshary". which was written by the original owner to protect the property from another attack. (AP Photo/Mohammad Hannon)
Bloodstains at the main gate believed to be from one of the American staff members of the U.S. Consulate, after an attack that killed four Americans, including Ambassador Chris Stevens on the night of Tuesday, Sept. 11, 2012, in Benghazi, Libya, Thursday, Sept. 13, 2012. The American ambassador to Libya and three other Americans were killed when a mob of protesters and gunmen overwhelmed the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, setting fire to it in outrage over a film that ridicules Islam's Prophet Muhammad. Ambassador Chris Stevens, 52, died as he and a group of embassy employees went to the consulate to try to evacuate staff as a crowd of hundreds attacked the consulate Tuesday evening, many of them firing machine-guns and rocket-propelled grenades. Arabic writing reads, " Villa of Jamal al Beshary". which was written by the original owner to protect the property from another attack. (AP Photo/Mohammad Hannon)
GOLDEN, Colo. (AP) ? The White House says the U.S. deplores the content of an amateur film that denigrates Islam, but America's free speech rights allow such films to air.
White House press secretary Jay Carney told reporters Thursday that the Obama administration also condemns the violence in several Islamic countries the film has reportedly triggered. He says the attacks on U.S. facilities in Egypt, Libya and Yemen are totally unjustified and should be squelched by local governments.
The attack in Benghazi, Libya, killed four U.S. diplomats, including the ambassador.
Carney said America has a long tradition of free expression that puzzles some foreigners, who blame the government for not blocking the film from the Internet.
Attorney General Eric Holder said Justice Department officials had opened a criminal investigation into the diplomats' deaths.
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Apple Might Bring Siri Voice Control to Macs [Patents]
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