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সোমবার, ২৬ নভেম্বর, ২০১২
These Tiny Pyramids Are Microscopic Cages For Cells
10 Ways To Fung Shui Your Home - Business Insider
There are lots of ways to apply Feng Shui to your house or bedroom. These 10 tips are a great way to start.
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De-clutter: Purging your home of stacked papers, knickknacks, and other objects you don't really need helps "clear the mind of toxic thoughts," according to Elle Decor.?
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Pay attention to color schemes: Bright colors like red and orange in a family room facilitate lively conversation, while green and blues in a bedroom cue relaxation, according to Elle Decor. The magazine also notes that "red inspires passion" and "black and white embody grace."
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Buy perennial plants: Pick up plants that will stay green year-round. These plants will inspire you throughout the year, according to HGTV.
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Allow in natural light: This is one of the basics of Feng Shui decorating, according to About.com.
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Two is better than one: When shopping for items like nightstands, buy two, according to Ken Lauher, a Feng Shui expert. Two of these items create balance and equality.
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Place more mirrors in the bedroom: On his blog, Lauher also suggests hanging mirrors around the bed. It will increase "your fortune and happiness, improve communication in a relationship, and provide a sense of 'completion' to your goals," he writes.?
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Think natural: When choosing furniture and decor, choose items that are made of wood, stone, or metal. Feng Shui's overall theme is "natural," according to Interior Design Pro.
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Move away from the door: Especially in your bedroom, be sure to place your bed against a solid wall and away from the door. This creates a feeling of safety and security, according to HGTV.
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Round it out: Opt for round lighting fixtures and curved nightstands, since square corners can create a "sharp" environment that results in negative energy, according to HGTV.
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Cover it up: Buy a folding screen to shield your desk so you're not reminded of day-to-day stresses while lying in bed or sitting on your couch, HGTV suggests.
Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/10-ways-to-fung-shui-your-home-2012-11
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Congo's government won't negotiate unless rebels leave Goma
The Congolese President met with the Rwandan-backed M23 rebels for the first time since they seized the city of Goma, about a week ago. The rebels have shown no sign of leaving the city, and plan to march on others.
By Jonny Hogg and Richard Lough,?Reuters / November 25, 2012
Congolese M23 rebel soldiers are seen on the road to Rushuru near Buhumba some 16 miles north of Goma, Thursday. Rebel spokesman Lt. Col. Vianney Kazarama vowed Thursday that the fighters would press forward toward seizing the strategic eastern town of Bukavu, which would mark the biggest gain in rebel territory in nearly a decade if it were to fall.
Jerome Delay/AP
EnlargeGoma, Democratic Republic of Congo
Congo?said on Sunday it would not negotiate with M23 rebels in the east until they pulled out of the city of?Goma, but a rebel spokesman said?Kinshasa?was in no position to set conditions on peace talks.
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Congolese President?Joseph Kabila?met with M23 for the first time on Saturday after an urgent summit in?Uganda?where regional leaders gave M23 two days to leave?Goma, which the rebels seized six days ago after U.N.-backed government troops melted away.
Eight months into a rebellion that U.N. experts say is backed by neighbouring?Rwanda, the rebels have so far shown no sign of quitting the lakeside city of one million people.
The rebels say they plan to march on other cities in the east, and then strike out across the country to the capital?Kinshasa, across 1,000 miles (1,600 km) of dense jungle with few roads, a daunting feat achieved 15 years ago by Kabila's father.
Amani Kabasha, a spokesman for M23's political arm, welcomed the meeting with Kabila but questioned the government's resolve to end a crisis that risks engulfing the region.
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Samsung 'Baffin' pops up in FCC; reportedly mixes 5-inch WVGA display, quad-core CPU
Apparently feeling we were running low on Galaxy smartphones after the current lineup of Galaxy S III, Galaxy S III mini and Galaxy Note II, Samsung's SHV-E270L just made the FCC rounds and is rumored to be next in line. Flashing its codename "Baffin" in the documents, this device does not seem destined for an appearance beyond Korean borders, but a unique blend of specs and rumors that it will arrive as the "Galaxy Grand" continue to intrigue. Listed as an LTE phone in the Bluetooth database, and appearing in GLBenchmark reporting a 1.4GHz (possibly quad-core) CPU like the Galaxy S III, but with a much lower 800x480 WVGA display. According to a report from Korea's Money Today, the idea is to create a device for older customers that's easier to read with bigger icons and letters on its large 5-inch low res screen (as opposed to the 5-inch 1080p pixel density monsters we're now accustomed to), with a quad-core CPU pushing Android 4.1 and its Smart Stay features plus a 2,100mAh battery. We're not sure if it will increase your parent's scores in Fruit Ninja, but vision-challenged KT, LG U+ and SK Telecom customers may have an interesting decision to make very soon.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Samsung
Source: FCC, Bluetooth, GLBenchmark
Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/11/24/samsung-baffin-5-inch-wvga-android-korea/
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Guest Blog: Giving Leasing Proper Credit ? Ideas and Information ...
Leasing has long been recognized as a smart financial option that can help to maximize cash flow while minimizing investment outlays. ?And indeed, more companies are now acquiring new equipment through leases than through bank loans, according to the Association for Equipment Leasing and Finance. ?Over the last ten years, use of leasing finance options in the U.S. has tripled-and while there was a slowdown in leasing activity in the past two years, a recent lease market study predicted that in 2008, because of tightening credit and cash-flow squeezes, growth in this option will be seen again.
Resorts and clubs are very much a part of this trend, with 73% of properties now reporting in industry surveys that they do some leasing, both in their staff offices (for copiers, computers, phone systems, postage meters, etc.) and elsewhere on their properties (for course maintenance equipment, kitchen equipment, furniture, etc.). ?The top three reasons cited by clubs and resorts for leasing instead of buying are: 1) to have a better ability to manage their property?s growth; 2) to take advantage of the latest technology; and 3) to improve asset management.
Leasing can be an especially good idea for minimizing initial cash investments when starting up a new club; as a manager who?s been involved in several property start-ups myself, I can personally attest to how they were a huge help in getting us up and running and through those first years. ?But I?ve also seen how too many start-up properties can get in over their heads with too many leases. ?It?s sort of like college students who sign up for too many credit cards and then find themselves with so many obligations they can?t even pay off their college loans, let alone their credit debt.
But unlike college kids who are probably charging things they really don?t need and should just find a way to live without them, the challenge for club managers is to find ways to strike a pro per balance of their financing options for all of the equipment that?s needed to run their operations. ?Usually, this comes down to cash flow-related decisions. Here are some of the key factors that, in my experience, have helped me make the best calls on lease- vs.-buy issues:
- Replacement Costs- When I arrived at my current club, I found that we had lease arrangements set up for all computer printers. While this might make sense for higher-end laser printers, the price of the inkjet printers that are fine for most departments? needs have fallen so low, they?ve also become disposable. ?Why lease these printers, when they can be purchased for a minimal amount of cash?
- Changing Technology- Equipment that meets your business needs today may be obsolete three years from now. ?Leasing can give you the flexibility to maintain a competitive edge by not only making it easier to start out with today?s best technology, but then also all owing you to upgrade more readily, if the pace of change is such that the equipment soon loses its advantage.
- Upfront Outlays-Most leases require minimal (if any) down payments, although if you?re with a startup property that hasn?t yet established a credit history, you may find that larger advance costs (or at least an extra month or two?s payments, as deposits) may be involved. ?But generally leases allow you to get immediate use of equipment with minimal upfront costs.
- Payment Flexibility-The number and variety of payment options that leasing companies now offer make it much easier to find an arrangement that works best for a specific need or budget. ?There are plans for seasonal or ?skip payment? arrangements (good for properties that have significant swings in month-to-month activity); deferred payment plans (which can help hold down costs while you?re ramping up with training and learning how to use new equipment most efficiently and productively); ?step down? and ?step up? programs (to either start out with larger payments and then lower the finance charges over time, or increase payments in step with improved revenues), and many other creative options.
- Accounting Simplicity-Leasing can eliminate the need for complicated depreciation schedules, because lease payments are generally line-item expenses on your profit and loss statement. ?And, because these payments can often be treated as a pre-tax business expense, you may even reduce your taxes, depending on your club?s status. ?(As always, you should make sure to get your club?s finance and accounting experts involved with each individual lease-vs.-buy decision; this has become even more critical as the options for leasing arrangements have expanded. ?It is also critical to have other sets of expert eyes read the fine print of any leasing contract, to make sure you haven?t missed some hidden traps.)
- Predictability-Unlike bank lines of credit that usually have variable rates, lease payments are fixed, no matter what happens in the financial markets. ?So if you?re looking to fund equipment over a period when interest rates promise to be volatile, leasing can help lock in some peace of mind. ?Remember the 1980s, when interest rates rose from 9% to over 20% in one year? ?That?s what drove a lot of the growth in the leasing market cited earlier, because no one wanted to go through that again.
- Cost of Ownership-A variety of tax benefits can often be gained through ?finance to own? leases. ?If your property qualifies (again, this is a call your finance and accounting experts will have to help you make), you may be able to deduct a significant portion of a capital expense in the first year of a lease arrangement. ?Certain types of equipment are especially well-suited to this path to ownership, including golf cars and other vehicles, course aeration, mowing and other maintenance equipment, and other equipment with long ?life expectancies? and an extended projected value to club operations.? (How a lease can qualify to be capitalized in this way is an article in itself-but you should start by becoming familiar with the ?four-point test? that?s involved with the process; if a lease satisfies any one of the four tests, it is automatically classified as a capital lease. ?The tests include Transfer of Ownership; a Bargain Purchase Option (below fair-market value); Lease Terms Above 75% of the Life of the Leased Item; and Greater than 90% Fair- Market Value.)
- Year-round Efficiency-For properties that acquire equipment at different times throughout the year, leasing can help streamline the process, through Master Lease Lines that can be secured to cover ongoing needs. ?A discounted rate can be earned for all items cove red by the master lease, and there?s only one agreement to sign.
- Avoiding ?Passing the Hat?-In private clubs, this may be the most compelling factor for taking a longer look at leasing right now. ?Because of what so many clubs are now spending on major renovation projects that are funded through special assessments, it?s certainly not nearly as easy-or advisable-to try to ? tax? membership through capital dues that fund needed equipment acquisitions. ?That often makes leasing more attractive, to help lessen the blow of unexpected expenses, retain more working capital when revenues are low, and keep more cash on hand for future needs.
Lessor Beware
If any or all of these factors lead you to a decision to lease, you still, of course, need to be careful as you proceed with the arrangement. ?Beware of early termination charges, term lease costs, and end-of-lease buyout options. ?In addition, if at the end of your lease the equipment shows more wear and tear than normal, you may be subject to additional fees; many new properties that have leased their initial equipment have found this out the hard way, getting hit with substantial extra charges at the end of the lease because of the added wear and tear caused by heavy construction dirt and grime.
As with all decisions we make as club managers, its best not to be forced by habit or convenience into any specific financing method.? Every property can benefit from using a variety of financing options, so it?s important to stay flexible. ?Yes, it takes more time to look at all of the options-but it can be well worth the effort, to help optimize savings and financial efficiencies for your club.
Don E. Vance, CCM, CPC, Chief Operating Officer/General Manager, Hound Ears Club
Thanks and have a great day!
Ed Rehkopf
This weekly blog comments on and discusses the club industry and its challenges. From time to time, we will feature guest bloggers ? those managers and industry experts who have something of interest to say to all of us. We also welcome feedback and comment upon the blog, hoping that it will become a useful sounding board for what?s on the minds of hardworking club managers throughout the country and around the world.
Club Resources International - Management Resources for Clubs!
Tags: club operations, leasing
This entry was posted on Monday, November 26th, 2012 at 1:52 am and is filed under club operations, leasing. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
Source: http://blog.clubresourcesinternational.com/2012/11/guest-blog-giving-leasing-proper-credit/
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রবিবার, ২৫ নভেম্বর, ২০১২
At renovated Iraq shrine, Shiites mark a holy day
Shiite Muslim worshippers gather at the holy shrine of Imam Hussein to mark the Muslim festival of Ashoura, an important period of mourning for Shiites in Karbala, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Baghdad, Iraq, Saturday Nov. 24, 2012. The festival of Ashoura commemorates the martyrdom of Imam Hussein, the grandson of Prophet Muhammad at the Battle of Karbala, Iraq, in the year A.D. 680. (AP Photo / Khalid Mohammed)
Shiite Muslim worshippers gather at the holy shrine of Imam Hussein to mark the Muslim festival of Ashoura, an important period of mourning for Shiites in Karbala, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Baghdad, Iraq, Saturday Nov. 24, 2012. The festival of Ashoura commemorates the martyrdom of Imam Hussein, the grandson of Prophet Muhammad at the Battle of Karbala, Iraq, in the year A.D. 680. (AP Photo / Khalid Mohammed)
Pakistani Shiite Muslims touch a horse, to symbolize the horse that carried Imam Hussein during the battle of Karbala, to pay tribute during a Muharram procession in Islamabad, Pakistan on Saturday, Nov. 24, 2012. Muharram is a month of mourning in remembrance of the martyrdom of Imam Hussein, the grandson of Prophet Mohammed. (AP Photo/Anjum Naveed)
Shiite Muslim worshippers beat themselves inside the holy shrine of Imam Hussein to mark the Muslim festival of Ashoura, an important period of mourning for Shiites in Karbala, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Baghdad, Iraq, Saturday Nov. 24, 2012. The festival of Ashoura commemorates the martyrdom of Imam Hussein, the grandson of Prophet Muhammad at the Battle of Karbala, Iraq, in the year A.D. 680. (AP Photo / Khalid Mohammed)
Children re-enact the role of companions to Imam Hussein during the battle of Karbala, at the Imam Moussa al-Kadhim shrine during the festival of Ashoura in Baghdad, Iraq, Saturday, Nov. 24, 2012. Ashoura marks the anniversary of the battle of Karbala when Imam Hussein, a grandson of Prophet Muhammad, was killed. (AP Photo/Karim Kadim)
An Iranian woman covers her face symbolically, as she takes part in a mourning ceremony in the city of Khorramabad, southwest of the capital Tehran, Iran, Saturday, Nov. 24, 2012, for Ashoura, marking the death anniversary of Imam Hussein, the grandson of Islam's Prophet Muhammad. Hussein, one of Shiite Islam's most beloved saints, was killed in a 7th century battle at Karbala, Iraq. The ceremony depicts a part of the legend of Imam Hussein's family after being detained by their enemies, and taking them to then capital of Islamic world, Damascus, through forty stations on the road. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
KARBALA, Iraq (AP) ? It is the most impassioned day of the year for Shiite Muslims ? Ashoura, when one of the faith's most revered figures, Imam Hussein, was martyred in battle. Hundreds of thousands of Shiites who flocked to his resplendent, gold-domed shrine to commemorate him Saturday found the site has radically changed.
The shrine of Imam Hussein, the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad, is seeing its most extensive renovation since the 17th century. The construction is part of a push by Iraq's Shiite rulers to reinvigorate sacred shrines long neglected under former dictator Saddam Hussein, reflecting the community's steadily growing pride and power since the fall of their nemesis.
Now worshippers find the shrines' minarets coated in gold and ? in the most dramatic change ? the sweeping plaza surrounding the mosque has been covered over with a series of domes to provide shade from the hot sun in the desert city of Karbala.
Not everyone is happy with the changes. Five experts on the shrine, including three who advised on individual parts of the renovation, say the drama of the shrine has been lost.
The covering of the once-open plaza, they argue, ruined the visual experience. Pilgrims no longer can see the awe-striking view of the mosque as they pass through the sprawling, light-filled plaza, then into the dazzlingly colorful mosque, finally reaching their ultimate destination: Hussein's richly ornate tomb, they said.
"They sacrificed considerations of Islamic architecture to do it," said Haider Naji, one of the experts.
On Saturday, throngs of Shiites who came from across the country ? some marching for miles on foot in processions ? converged on the shrine, one of the holiest sites of the faith. Men cloaked in black beat giant drums, youths blew military-style bugles, and others carried platters of sweets to sustain energy, decorated with dyed pink and blue feathers.
Outside the shrine, the crowds held Ashoura's blood-soaked, emotional pageantry of grief. Men and boys dressed in white burial shrouds ? to show their willingness to die for Hussein ? whipped their backs with chains and cut their heads with knives, drenching themselves in blood to mourn his loss. Men and women wailed in mourning, breaking down into tears.
Others dressed as the historic figures from the 7th century battle ? Hussein, in green, and his enemies, in red, with turbans decked with feather plumes, leather battle vests and swords. A fountain of fake red blood bubbled before the shrine. A horse covered with a sheet stained red was led through the crowds, representing Hussein's white steed Zuljanah, which is said to have been riddled by arrows as it tried to shield its wounded master.
Ashoura marks the martyrdom of Hussein in a battle at Karbala in the deserts south of present-day Baghdad. The event is one of the defining moments in the split between the Sunni and Shiite sects of Islam.
Shiites believe Hussain's father Imam Ali was Muhammad's rightful successor and that was he unfairly passed over by the caliphs considered by Sunnis as the rightful line. Hussein led a revolt against the Damascus-based Sunni caliph, who sent an army that crushed Hussein's small band of fighters at Karbala.
In commemorations for Ashoura held by Shiites around the world Saturday, details of the battle are retold or recreated in passion plays that bring wails of sorrow and pity from the crowds.
The stories are deeply engrained in Shiites' consciousness. The agonizing thirst of Hussein's wife and children in the desert after the besieging enemy stopped their water supply. The heroic, doomed attempt to bring them water by Hussein's half-brother al-Abbas, who ? even after the enemy cut off his arms ? rode gripping the water-skin in his teeth until he died in a hail of arrows. The killing of Hussein's loyalists one by one until Hussein was alone, wounded and finally beheaded.
So strong are the passions that onlookers sometimes stone the actor playing Hussein's killer, Shimr. At a Baghdad shrine on Saturday, the play's "Shimr" broke character to weepingly ask the audience's forgiveness, pleading that someone had to take the role.
The day has often been a chance for Sunni militants to attack Shiites, whom they see as heretics. Iraq has seen repeated deadly bombings against Ashoura ceremonies in past years, though there were no immediate reports of violence this year. In Pakistan's tribal region on Saturday, a bomb blast struck an Ashoura procession, killing seven people, including three children.
The renovations at the shrine in Karbala are the latest evolution in what was once the austere, tree-marked grave of Hussein. Over the centuries, it became more ostentatious, culminating in the shrine built in the 17th century by artisans from the nearby Persian Safavid empire, according to Ghada Razouki, an expert in medieval Islamic architecture.
Under the shrine's gold-plated dome, Hussein's sarcophagus is drenched five tons of silver and 120 kilograms (260 pounds) of engraved gold. The mosque is etched inside and out with geometrical designs, verses from the Quran and the names of Muhammad's family in green, blue and yellow. Tiny mirrors reflecting light line the arched ceiling above the sarcophagus.
The current renovations, launched in 2005, aim to provide more room to crowds reaching some two million pilgrims, said Sheik Salah al-Haydari, head of the Shiite Muslim endowment, which has overall control of Iraq's Shiite shrines.
The plaza that surrounds the shrine has been covered over with the domed roof and will be expanded four-fold to 24,000 square meters (260,000 square feet) by 2013, said Mohammed Kadhem, who is leading the $50 million project. One extension of 6,000 square meters (65,000 square feet) has been completed.
The ancient wall surrounding the shrine has been replaced with multi-level buildings with extra prayer spaces, offices and a museum. The shrine's minarets were coated in gold.
Al-Haydari countered the criticisms, saying, "We are continuing the architectural style that is there, like a river continuing its path."
To recreate the dramatic open space around the shrine, urban planners reviving Karbala's old city will increase plaza space outside the site's gates, said Mohammed al-Assam of Dewan Architects.
Shiite officials are also renovating the shrine of al-Abbas next to Hussein's, that of Imam Ali in neighboring Najaf, and the shrine of his descendants in Baghdad.
The rush to improve the shrines became more determined after al-Qaeda militants in 2006 blew up the golden dome of a shrine in Samarra, north of Baghdad. The destruction of the al-Askari shrine ? now rebuilt ? underscored to Shiite officials the need to rebuild and glorify their shrines to demonstrate their growing power.
"Shiite areas are now in the hands of Shiites. What is happening is natural and it shows their control," said analyst Hadi Jalo.
In contrast to the architects, worshippers aid the changes to the once-neglected shrine should have been even grander.
"All these changes are but a little for the Imam Hussein," said Ahmad Ali, who just arrived in Karbala from Baghdad. "But thank God it's better than before: there's air conditioning, protection from the sun and rain," he said.
Speaking before walking from Baghdad to Karbala, Abdullah Ashraf, 25, said worrying about changes to the shrine misses the point.
"What makes the Hussein shrine alive is the memory of his story."
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