#also wish these were better quality BUT. 60s andy.

[fitnessthought]

Andy Reid Weight Loss: Lost 150 lbs Workout or Surgery?

Andy Reid, the esteemed head coach of the Kansas City Chiefs, has undergone a remarkable transformation, shedding a significant amount of weight and setting a powerful example of health and determination. His journey, marked by challenges and triumphs, is not just about losing pounds but also about gaining a new perspective on health and well-being.

Wake-Up Call: Before and After Journey

Reid’s weight loss journey began with a serious health scare. In 2017, tipping the scales at 340 pounds, he faced a moment of truth. Hospitalized due to illness and dehydration, Reid realized the gravity of his situation. He said, “I wish it had never happened. It did. I appreciate the doctors for taking care of me. They were phenomenal.” This experience was the catalyst for change, prompting him to embark on a path toward better health.

You can improve your overall quality of life

Andy Reid Transformation Process

Reid’s approach to weight loss was holistic, combining diet and exercise. He lost 60 pounds by making significant changes to his diet, focusing on low-fat foods, cutting out processed foods and sugar, and reducing portion sizes. His commitment to regular exercise, despite a demanding schedule, was equally crucial. He incorporated light cardio, walking, and weightlifting into his routine, gradually increasing the intensity.

The Diet Plan

A key component of Reid’s weight loss was following a diet plan suggested by his team trainer. He turned this into a friendly competition with his coaches, which helped him stay motivated and focused. Reid humorously reflected on his weight loss, saying, “I’ve lost a lot of human beings. I’ve had a lot of friends that have been hanging onto my love handles for a while.”

Today, Reid weighs around 190 pounds, a significant drop from his previous weight of 250 pounds. This transformation has not only improved his physical health but also his emotional well-being. He feels like a new man, with increased energy levels, better sleep, and clearer thinking. His blood pressure and cholesterol levels have improved, marking a complete turnaround in his health.

Facts about Andy Reid’s Lifestyle Changes

Early Weight Loss Efforts: Andy Reid’s journey with weight management began well before his recent transformation. In 2009, he lost 75 pounds in just three months, showcasing his long-standing commitment to health and fitness.

Medifast Plan: During his initial weight loss efforts, Reid followed the Medifast Plan, a structured diet program known for its portion control and balanced nutrition. This shows his willingness to try clinically verified methods to achieve his health goals.

Hospitalization as a Turning Point: Reid’s 2017 hospitalization due to dehydration and related health issues was a significant turning point. It was this event that truly spurred his most recent and successful weight loss journey, highlighting the impact of health scares on lifestyle changes.

Lifestyle Overhaul Beyond Diet: Alongside dietary changes, Reid also made broader lifestyle adjustments. He reduced his alcohol consumption and started practicing meditation, indicating a holistic approach to his health transformation.

Inspirational Figure: Reid’s weight loss journey has made him an inspirational figure not just in the NFL but also to those facing similar health and weight challenges. His story goes beyond the realm of sports, offering motivation and encouragement to anyone looking to make a positive change in their life.

Stress Levels Are Down And Stubborn Fat Is Melting Away

Reid’s journey is more than a personal victory; it’s an inspiration. His transformation has had a positive impact on his team, the Kansas City Chiefs. A healthier, more energetic coach can influence the team’s performance and morale. Reid’s journey underscores the importance of health and well-being, not just for oneself but also for those one leads and influences.

FAQs about Andy Reid’s Weight Loss Journey

What motivated Andy Reid to start his weight loss journey?

Andy Reid was motivated to lose weight following a health scare in 2017, where he was hospitalized due to illness and dehydration. This incident made him realize the importance of managing his weight for his overall health.

How much weight did Andy Reid lose?

Andy Reid successfully lost 60 pounds during his recent weight loss journey.

What methods did Andy Reid use to lose weight?

Reid’s weight loss strategy included a combination of dietary changes, such as eating low-fat foods, cutting out processed foods and sugar, reducing portion sizes, and increasing physical activity with regular exercise routines.

Did Andy Reid undergo any weight loss surgery?

No, Andy Reid did not undergo weight loss surgery. His weight loss was achieved through natural methods like diet modification and exercise.

SCIENTIFICALLY-BACKED prebiotic for lean body composition

What diet plan did Andy Reid follow?

In his earlier weight loss efforts, Andy Reid followed the Medifast Plan, a structured diet program. During his recent weight loss journey, he focused on a diet suggested by his team trainer, emphasizing healthier food choices.

Has Andy Reid maintained his weight loss?

Yes, Andy Reid has maintained his weight loss, showcasing his commitment to a healthier lifestyle.

What lifestyle changes did Andy Reid make to support his weight loss?

Along with dietary changes, Reid made lifestyle adjustments such as reducing his alcohol intake and starting meditation, indicating a holistic approach to his health.

What was Andy Reid’s weight before and after his weight loss?

Andy Reid weighed around 340 pounds at his heaviest in 2017 and managed to reduce his weight to about 190 pounds after his weight loss journey.

Andy Reid’s weight loss story is a testament to the power of determination and the importance of health. It’s a reminder that with the right mindset and approach, significant changes are possible. Reid’s journey is not just about the weight he lost but about the life he gained.

[carcarrot]

Various photographs of the band Dantalian's Chariot, featuring Andy Summers, circa 1967

[purplesurveys]

1050

survey by chihuahua

1~ What quality do you value most highly in others? Loyalty. Those who can stick with me through the highs, lows, and all the boring stuff. I appreciate low-maintenance friendships.

2~ Are you more aggressive or mellow? Um idk, it depends on the situation I guess. I have a non-confrontational side, but at the same time I’m also quite vocal over issues I’m passionate about. Just last weekend I made the lunch table at a family reunion awkward because Jake Zyrus suddenly became the topic of conversation; I could feel the wave of transphobic comments about to come from the oldies, so I made sure I was one step ahead of the Gen X-ers and Boomers and saying that transphobia isn’t going to fly by at the table, so they shouldn’t even try. That’s the most recent instance I remember having to get aggressive.

3~ Who has made the biggest sacrifice for you? My parents. Dad has mostly worked abroad and I never got to see him for longer than a month all my life until Covid hit and he was forced to stay here. Mom has worked thousands of overtime shifts and was always on changing shifts throughout my childhood.

4~ Do you take any vitamins or medication? No. We have a constant supply of Vitamin C tablets for the family, but I stopped taking it regularly since like May because pure laziness. I don’t take any medication.

5~ Do you want to grow old with someone? I wish this was my reality, yes.

6~ Do you treat others better or worse than yourself and why? Better. I’m still working on liking/loving myself.

7~ What sound is annoying you right now? Nothing comes to mind right now, but an hour ago we were having our virtual company Christmas party and since there were nearly 60 people in the Google Meet and I also still had some deliverables I needed to finish, my laptop couldn’t take it and started whirring its fan. That was a little annoying.

8~ Where was your last vacation to? Hasn’t changed. It was still Tagaytay and Cavite. As much as I’d like to take a vacation somewhere, I think all places require you to take a swab test and that’s a big pass for me. Nothing’s going in my nostrils and down my throat or however far down it goes.

9~ Where was your last car ride to? Aside from back home, I was headed to Feliz. After that I also stopped by the local Starbucks to try and redeem a planner for my mom, but they don’t have the variation that she wants :(

10~ Where did you last walk to? To the kitchen to make myself a cup of coffee.

11~ What gives you a peaceful feeling? Evening drives. I don’t care how bad the traffic is; there’s just something about driving at night that makes me feel very much at peace. It was better when I had the person I love with me; but driving alone isn’t bad too.

12~ Are you a light sleeper? No. I’m very likely to sleep through earthquakes.

13~ When you sleep next to someone who usually falls asleep first? They do. I’m always the last one to fall asleep, no matter who it is I’m next to.

14~ How many people have a piece of your heart? Kinda corny question, but one, I guess. It’s ridiculous that they still do, but I can’t help it.

15~ What do your salt and pepper shakers look like? Nothing too fancy in this home lol. We have a plain tub containing our salt. I don’t actually know what our pepper container/shaker looks like; we may just have the McCormick variant of pepper.

16~ When was the last time you hurt yourself? On purpose or accidentally? Hahahaha uhm I cut my finger trying to open a bottle of soju last week, and it bled pretty bad.

17~ Would you rather live in the city, suburbs or the country? Right now, I’d love a city environment. I’ve lived far too long in quiet suburban neighborhoods and a change in scenery would be nice. I hope I don’t end up feeling too lonely in the city, though.

18~ Have you ever built something? Other than Lego towers I made as a kid, I was never the building type. I’d rather have all my items in complete form when I get them.

19~ Are you more of a maker and giver, or a taker and user? I’m more a giver than any of these other labels. I feel happy from making people happy and comfortable.

20~ Do you take naps? I love naps but I avoid them now. I have very little free time these days as I’m always swamped with work even during holidays and weekends, so when I do have little bits of spare time I want to spend them awake and doing something productive and catching up on my hobbies. I think this’ll be my new normal now :(

21~ Do you buy holiday gifts early or at the last minute? Early for the people I love most. For everyone else I do it kinda late-ish, heh.

22~ Do you laugh when there is no joke and dance when there is no music? I do the laughing thing occasionally, but I only dance if there’s music.

23~ If someone else were to describe you what would you hope they would say? That they recognize the things I do for other people. I know it’s best to do things because you want to and not to be recognized and I stand by that myself, but I just want the reassurance that I’m seen. At least just once. 

24~ What is the dirtiest habit you can think of? Biting one’s toenails, trying your own earwax, or not changing your underwear for several days.

25~ Do you ever need 'quiet time'? For sure; I think all of us do.

26~ Do you think it is harder for a parent to outlive their child or for th Survey-maker didn’t get to finish this question, but the first scenario sounds painful enough. I can’t even begin to imagine the hurt a parent would feel if they had to go to the wake of their own kid.

27~ What was your best find from a flea market, garage sale, ebay or thrift? A copy of WWE Encyclopedia that was like 1/3 or 1/4 its original price. I remember not having a lot of savings left from that week but I still went ahead and bought the book because it was such a crazy good deal.

28~ What is one selfish thing you tend to do? I am not at all the poster child of selfishness... I’ve never felt comfortable doing things for myself. Everything’s always been for other people, and I rarely leave room for me, if at all. The most selfish thing I do is that I hate sharing my food, but even then I still share my favorites with the people I love.

29~ What kinds of people do you find intimidating? I try not to get intimidated by anyone because we all just go through the same shit at the end of the day, so idk. People in higher positions can sometimes be scary, but I’m not as intimidated by them as I used to be.

30~ Out of everyone you know who has the most unique personality? Maybe Andrew/Andi? They can fit in any crowd and can make a conversation last with absolutely anyone, which I find unique as not everyone’s able to do so.

31~ When do you do your best thinking? I always have to be able to think on my feet for work. Public relations is a pretty hectic landscape and communications is super crucial in it.

32~ What was a choice that you didn't want to make but you had to? The breakup. All that wasted time and effort make me nauseous.

33~ Have you ever written a letter to a soldier? No.

34~ What does your favorite coffee mug look like? This question is e v e r y w h e r e. It’s a copper Starbucks mug.

35~ What age do you think it is most difficult to be? I don’t think it’s fair to compare. Everyone goes through their own set of struggles no matter what age they are.

36~ Do you think you could handle a day in jail? Not the ones here.

37~ Who is the most overbearing person you know? My mom can definitely be one.

38~ Have you ever been on a trampoline? Yes :) Rita has one in her house and it was a lot of fun jumping on it. It was a huge one too; 7 or 8 of us were playing on the trampoline at one point.

39~ What do you use batteries for the most often? I haven’t had to use those in a while. I guess remote controls? Even though I barely touch those anymore.

40~ Would you prefer to wrap your own presents or have them all gift wrapped? I don’t how to wrap presents, so I asked my sister to do it for me in exchange for money hahahahaha. That might be my new Christmas practice from here on out.

[wittypenguin]

King Kong vs Godzilla (1964) [US Version]

There’s a fundamental problem with this film from the outset: the two studios involved are making it for entirely different reasons. Universal International was cashing in on the ‘Big Monster’ / kaijiu craze (The Blob, The Thing, The Creature from the Black Lagoon) by combining RKO’s character ‘King Kong’ with something exciting and foreign in Toho Studios’ property ‘Godzilla.’ Meanwhile, Toho Studios was using its big anniversary as a studio as an excuse to cram all of its popular actors and intellectual properties into one film, scattering logic to the four winds to accomplish it (it’s a wonder we don’t have Toshiro Mifune come strutting through brandishing a katana at some point). While those two driving forces don’t have to be at odds with each other, the US version takes the original, Japanese version and attempts to frame it in some sense of rational predictability, an approach which is inherently flawed. I’m going to try to ignore that part as much as I can here, but a subsequent viewing found me unable to stick with this version past the ½-hour mark, as the ‘framing device’ is so incredibly wooden and clunky. 

Be that as it may; on with the show!! 

COLOUR! WIDE SCREEN!! Questionable use of colour for lettering of credits!!!

We begin with a plate shot of Earth that looks a lot like the Universal International title card background did. While we slowly zoom in, we get… a Hamlet quote…? This seems a bit too much, but, okaaaaay…

Then we get a grainy UN building plate shot which we’ll see a couple of times, because this is also part of the ‘Americanization’ of the film. The UN has a News Service, and it’s telling us all about the various things happening in all the nations which are presumably united now. They beaming their broadcasts to us via the Universe Space Station in orbit around the planet. Shots of the USS are lifted from The Mysterians (1957), so we can also see alien flying saucers arriving at the station, but it’s never explained, so maybe this transfer is better than the film makers expected and we weren’t supposed to see them at all. 

Hey, the Chilean reporter is Victor Millan, the young husband / boyfriend from A Touch of Evil!

There are earthquakes in Chile, plus melting ice floes in the Bearing Straight, so the world is having a rough time of it.

The last time we saw Godzilla, he was buried in an avalanche, so clearly that’s where the big lizard will emerge from here. A recent increase in water temperature in the Bering Straight causes a US submarine with some researchers to be sent to take a look, and they debate their course of action in a large control room on the sub, which comes complete with an “undersea periscope.” I doubt that is an Actual Thing.

Buddy, you can call it any sort of exotic fruit from the Faroe Islands you feel like claiming it is, but it will still be a strawberry. — — — —

Meanwhile: King Kong is on Farou Island, where a berry is being grown which has non-addictive and narcotic properties that a Japanese pharmaceutical company wishes to incorporate into its product line (don’t ask, just accept it [we actually learned about this fruit during Mothra, but this is a different island near the Marshall Island H-Bomb testing range (I think)]). A team of Tokyo TeleVision people are sent to the island to get the berries plus the mighty Kong as a marketing stunt (ibid). 

“Hokkaido” is not pronounced like that. At. All.

Repeatedly, the English dubbing has Japanese characters pronounce it as “hawk-eh-EYE-doh,” not only mangling the name but adding an extra syllable into the bargain. The Japanese UNTV reporter, played by James Yagi, pronounces it properly as “ho-KAI-doh.” You would think someone might think to themselves ‘hey, maybe the Asian guy’s pronunciation is the right one…?’

The depiction of the natives of Faroe Island [above] are creations of racism. Not only are they in blackface, they carry African-style shields with similar markings, yet are South Sea Islanders located just off the Marshall Islands. Plus there is liberal use of feathers in headdresses which look remarkably similar to the people of the North American plains regions. Wow. There may have even been a bone through someone’s nose, I didn’t look that closely. Even allowing for early-60s comedy sensibilities, this is really bad; nearly “Andy Rooney in Breakfast at Tiffany’s” territory. It’s important to view this as a stereotype of the time, as well as a depiction of a non-existent people (perhaps with the defence ‘so how could anyone be offended?’ well… uh…).

I’m stunned that Japanese trains not only do not have radios to receive a warning about Godzilla, they also lack a reverse gear to back away from him. Also, where did these buses to save all the rail passengers suddenly come from? If they were able to corral all of these motor coaches, couldn’t they have somehow got word to… never mind. 

Must so many O-scale model trains be made to suffer?

I want many of these cars. Most of the suits, also. 

There are massive leaps of ‘logic’ here that I’m positive make more sense in the original Japanese version. Then again, it may be like the material above and we should stop looking for that. This is the problem with the American sections: they keep trying to root the story in half-real science and logic, but that should be avoided with every effort! ‘When will the fools learn…‽’ etc.

Kong looks more like an extremely badly made Sasquatch than King of the Apes. For one thing, his arms are (occasionally) much too long and the person inside clearly has their wrists at Kong’s elbows (but this detail oddly comes and goes). Also, he’s covered in some sort of steel wool or matted shag carpeting. His face is an awful excuse for any sort of simian form. It’s an embarrassment. 

Godzilla, on the other hand, is a happy, fun-filled dinosaur who is extra-mobile compared to his earlier appearances. He jumps up and down and claps his… paws? …claws? …hands? …front feet? He’s like a young child! Okay, a 300 foot tall child capable of throwing boulders bigger than houses, but he’s got that playful energy. 

The model work is really uneven: the ships, trucks, earth movers, and so on look ‘good’ to ‘great,’ but the human figures look uniformly like little plastic objects which can only described as ‘human adjacent.’ It’s like you described human form to a blind and stupid person, and they carved a figure out of Jell-O using a spatula. On a warm day. 

Why does the army try catching Godzilla in a pit and exploding dynamite around him when he survived an H-Bomb? They tried that with electricity-conductive nets in Mothra and he worked clear of them. Even with here adding an acid bath and burning gasoline, it seems…

Why does Godzilla now avoid encountering electrical lines when he basically conquered it before? Has he learned that it’s more hassle than it’s worth? Can Godzilla be considered this sentient?

Also, what’s that white guy doing in the Japanese army?

Sorry, I forgot that logic isn’t a part of these things… [:: heavy sigh ::]

When Kong grabs a girl and people shine lights at him, he does what he knows best: climbs to the top of the nearest building. In this case, it’s the Diet (Japan’s Parliament), and the top of the dome is about level with his shoulder, so it doesn’t really count as a huge visual statement or accomplishment. It would be like you standing on a chair: yes, you’re higher up, but it’s not exactly a K-2 level of accomplishment, is it?

Additionally, Godzilla actually destroyed that building in the first film, but they’ve had awhile to rebuild, I guess.

Where’d they get this awful quality of film showing people evacuating Tokyo (Chiba in the Japanese version) via the docks? Answer: Chikyû Bôeigun (1957), and there are a few other bits of footage that film supplies.

I swear the rocky area that’s supposed to be at the base of Mt Fujiyama was modelled on the big rock thing Star Trek TOS used all the time. 

Am I supposed to be rooting for Kong? I’m rooting for Kong here. Godzilla just seems like a real dick, frankly. 

Special effects director Eiji Tsuburaya deliberately gave King Kong a semi-comical personality, because he did not want Kong to frighten young children, and wanted the general audience to root for Kong over the more frightening Godzilla.

Ah. Good to know. 

The film features the Davy Crockett, a portable missile-launched nuclear weapon developed by the United States. At the time, this weapon was still classified.

Who would have expected this film to be a source of military secrets?

Late on, we see Kong practicing gavage using a tree! It’s actually a call back to a bit in an early production still from King Kong (1933) showing him doing that to a Tyrannosaurus Rex. 

Between Godzilla and King Kong, no historical monument will ever be left standing. 

Thanks to the English dubbing laying it on with a shovel, dialogue provides a fair few repeated statements about ‘electricity makes Kong stronger’ near the end. Thank goodness they do, as I certainly didn’t remember that from a few scenes ago and missed it the first five times time here. 

Godzilla disappears, presumed drowned…? Kong survives and we see him wading away from Japan, so the people of the Island Kingdom are safe once more! 

The best thing about this version is it leaves one with a strong desire to see the original version. 

★★★☆☆

[vtmusicomp]

Dear Derrick Johnson,

I’m still not ready to revisit that crazy time after Grant’s first surgery. Plus, it’s football season so it makes sense to do this next set of posts. I’ll do multiple installments because if I tried to cram it all into one it would be too much.

It really all started with a statement Connie made that day after Dr. Pikul finished telling us about Grant’s surgery. Connie mentioned Grant’s story should be shared with the Chiefs, that they would want to hear about him getting through the surgery by talking about his favorite team. Coincidentally, 2017 was the San Diego Chargers’ first year as the new Los Angeles Chargers, and that meant the Chiefs were guaranteed to play here every year. I checked the schedule, and their first LA match up was going down on 9/24/17. Teaser shot number one.

June was an in-between month. Grant had finished radiation and was pumping himself up to go back to work. Things had sort of calmed down, and I was feeling less fragile and more up to thinking about our situation. I never forgot what Connie said, and I started focusing myself on creating meaningful experiences for Grant and the kids (and me, too, but for this event in particular I felt like the kids were more important). It took me a while to psych myself up to writing the letter. I wrote probably ten different versions and edited that thing to death. I tried to leverage everything about our family that would get a foot in the door. When it was done, I sent it to Colin for final edits and to get his take on it. He added some important information and blessed it, and we both agreed the more people we could get it to the better.

We launched a dual offensive approach. Colin sent scanned copies to Denny W, Mindy W, Ryan E, Maria V H, and County Executive Frank White. Colin went the extra step with a cover letter for the copy he sent to Sam Mellinger at the KC Star. Julie and Paul took the letter and engineered some behind-the-scenes machinations to help our cause (more on that in the next installment). I sent physical copies - on high quality paper because you know, that kind of thing matters! - to the Chiefs organization: Chairman and CEO Clark Hunt, General Manager John Dorsey, Head Coach Andy Reid, Director of Foundation and Civic Affairs Anne Scharf, Marketing and Foundation Coordinator Jackson DeLay, the Eric Berry Foundation, Eric Berry, and Grant’s favorite player Derrick Johnson. Each person in the Chiefs organization got a personalized letter. John Dorsey was let go literally on the day I put these in the mail. Jeff M put it in the hands of a PR rep for a retired NFL QB who played for the Chiefs in the ‘99 and ‘00 seasons. Teaser shot number two.

Now, you know I have a gallery’s worth of images on Facebook. I’ll add the images the Chiefs photographer took of us in the next few posts. Here’s the letter, and the collage that accompanied it. I defy you to look at that collage and NOT be moved.

***********************************

June 22, 2017

To: Derrick Johnson

Kansas City Chiefs

One Arrowhead Drive

Kansas City, MO 64129

 Re:  Request for Consideration

Dear Mr. Johnson,

Thank you for taking the time to read my letter. My fiancé Grant Stoner is from Independence, MO and is a lifelong, diehard Kansas City Chiefs fan. You are his favorite Chiefs player and he does own one of your official NFL jerseys. His son Wyatt (11) and daughter Naomi (9), both born in Los Angeles, are also Chiefs fans first and maaaaaybe Rams fans (we’ll see), along with their Aunt Kim Stoner who also lives here. I love my Niners but have adopted the Chiefs as my AFC team due to a pair of QBs… The rest of his family – parents Larry and Connie Stoner, brother Colin Stoner and sister Julie Musgrove - live in Kansas City and have season tickets for games at Arrowhead Stadium.

 Let me tell you Grant’s story. In January of this year, with no warning at all we found three tumors in his brain – one the size of a small tangerine and two smaller satellite tumors. He had surgery on 1/27/17 to remove the big one from the section of your brain that affects memory and cognition. This was Awake Brain Surgery; the neurosurgeon asks questions during the procedure to map what can be removed and what cannot be touched. Dr. Pikul told us that for the first ten minutes Grant wouldn’t respond to their prompts and they thought they were going to have to stop the surgery. But, Dr. Pikul kept trying and asked him about football. That got Grant going – he started talking about the Chiefs, and through that question and answer session they were able to identify and remove 90% of the large tumor, well above what they thought they could get going in. Pathology revealed that he has grade 4 GBM multiforme, the most aggressive brain cancer there is.

 Grant recently completed an intensive round of radiation and is taking chemotherapy drugs to kill the two remaining satellite tumors. These are both in areas that cannot be reached through surgery. He is doing better than projected and has slowly begun to reintegrate himself into his former life. He does not have 100% of his memory back but has worked very hard to go back to work and move forward. He’s watched with pride as his son Wyatt turned into a talented wide out in the NFL Play 60 Flag LA league. In a happy twist of fate, this year Wyatt’s flag football team is the Chiefs.

 Grant has defied all the odds so far with his recovery and could very well continue to defy them for years to come. Yet, I know what it is to lose a parent at a young age – my mother passed away from cancer when I was 7 years old. It is critical for his children to have as many experiences possible with their Dad to balance against the hospital stay. Grant has always admired your determination and focus; he strives to emulate your work ethic to overcome injury and return to your position as a key element to the Chiefs defense. Grant was also proud of the way the Chiefs organization supported your teammate Eric Berry through his lymphoma diagnosis. He came back to peak form and triumphed on the field; Grant would love to share with him how much of an inspiration he is to someone struggling with a parallel disease. What I am requesting is for Grant and his family (his brother Colin Stoner is flying out from KC as well) to have a meet and greet with you, Eric Berry and the team when you come to play the Chargers on 9/24/17. We are excited to attend the game as a family and will represent the Chiefs’ fan base with honor.

 Please take this letter as a sign that your organization means a great deal to people all over the country and the world. Grant has stayed the committed fan he’s always been through all the ups and downs. As you can see in the photos I’ve included he took comfort in the team even while battling it out in the hospital. He’s an incredible father, a great man, the best life-partner anyone could want, and so utterly deserving of being granted this request. He would be grateful beyond measure for this moment and his children will carry it with them forever.

 Again, thank you for taking the time and for your consideration. I hope to hear from you soon – my phone number is __________ and my email address is _______.

 With love,

Valerie Taylor Grant Stoner Wyatt Stoner Naomi Stoner

P.S.: Wyatt and Naomi are not, nor will they ever be Rams fans - in hindsight I wish I could take that line back. Their NFC West allegiance belongs to me!

[thisdaynews]

Coco Gauff: Wimbledon sensation's wish to attend Beyonce concert after winning run continues

New Post has been published on https://thebiafrastar.com/coco-gauff-wimbledon-sensations-wish-to-attend-beyonce-concert-after-winning-run-continues/

Coco Gauff: Wimbledon sensation's wish to attend Beyonce concert after winning run continues

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Watch the best of the action as Gauff completes a remarkable turnaround to beat Hercog

Wimbledon 2019 on the BBC Venue:All England ClubDates:1-14 July Coverage:Live across BBC TV, radio and online with extensive coverage on BBC iPlayer, Red Button, Connected TVs and mobile app. Full details

Coco Gauff is hopeful she might get an invitation to a Beyonce concert as the 15-year-old’s remarkable story at Wimbledon continued with a third-round victory over Polona Hercog.

The American, who received a wildcard for qualifying, has become the star attraction of these championships following her stunning opening round win over five-time champion Venus Williams, then a second-round win over Magdalena Rybarikova.

Slovenian world number 60 Hercog gave the teenager her stiffest test, as Gauff lost her first set and faced two match points.

How day five at Wimbledon unfolded

Murray and Williams match postponed

Beaten Wozniacki unhappy with Hawk-Eye

Djokovic through to fourth round

Beyonce’s mother Tina Knowles posted a video of her watching Gauff’s display

However, she survived and eventually secured a 3-6 7-6 (9-7) 7-5, a minimum pay day of £176,000 and a fourth-round match against former number one Simona Halep.

In the post-match news conference, Gauff was as excited about meeting one of her music idols as the progress she had made.

She said: “Ms Tina Knowles, Beyonce’s mum, posted me on Instagram and I was screaming! I hope Beyonce saw that, I hope she told Beyonce about me because I would love to go to her concert.”

And regarding the prize money, she added: “I can’t buy a car because I can’t drive. I hate spending money.

“I love wearing hoodies, my mum actually banned me from buying them for two months as I kept getting them delivered to the house.”

Her parents, father Corey and mother Candi, were present to watch their daughter wow the Wimbledon crowd once again .

Parents Corey (left) and Candi Gauff were once again present to watch their daughter

Gauff explained the influence both have had on her career.

“My mum changed my mindset on how I look at things and my dad is the reason I dream so big,” she continued. “It’s a good mix. They definitely work together well to tell me the right things.

“My mum doesn’t like to play the coach role as my dad is my coach, so she plays the mother role.”

“I look at my dad mostly. I didn’t tell mum, but she’s going to go viral. She’s going to be a meme and I’m going to retweet it.”

Gauff’s epic contest forced the postponement of the mixed doubles match involving Andy Murray and Serena Williams.

‘Gauff will transcend the game’

Nine-time championMartina Navratilovabelieves a “star has been born”.

“I don’t think I’ve seen anyone arrive in a greater flash at their first major,” she told BBC Sport.

“I have a feeling Coco Gauff will transcend the game. She wants it, she lives it already. She was born to do this.”

Tennis’ teenage wonderkids Martina Hingiswas 16 when she won the 1997 Wimbledon singles title after winning the Australian Open earlier that year. She won the mixed doubles (which Gauff has entered with Britain’s Jay Clarke) aged 15. Boris Beckerwon Wimbledon at the age of 17 in 1985, beating Kevin Curran to become the youngest ever Grand Slam champion at the time. Maria Sharapovawon the 2004 edition of Wimbledon aged 17, beating the legend that is Serena Williams. Nick Kyrgiosbecame the first Wimbledon debutant to reach the quarter-finals in 10 years when he upset Rafael Nadal in the fourth round in 2014.

Navratilova, who won her first Wimbledon title aged 21, does think Gauff’s next match against former world number one Halep will be a “a mountain too tall to climb”.

“Against Halep it will be tricky – the pressure is all on her as a big favourite, but the crowd will be going nuts for Gauff which will be hard for the Romanian to handle.”

John McEnroe, the three-time men’s singles winner, also believes Halep will edge it but added that the world number seven’s game might suit her compatriot.

“Halep has not had a great year and looks tight on this surface,” he told BBC’s Today at Wimbledon. “I would obviously pick the Romanian to win but I’m not going to bet a whole lot on that one.

“I think Halep will be easier because she hits a solid ball. This was an awkward opponent today.”

Spice Girl Geri Horner (left) and Red Bull team principal Christian Horner were in attendance to watch the fascinating encounter

He added: “It’s better that Coco Gauff doesn’t win it this year, for her sake, long-term. We want her to be out there for 15-20 years.”

As for Gauff, she said she was taking it “one tournament at a time”.

“I watch Halep a lot – I’ve never hit with her so I don’t know how the ball will feel when I play but I’m familiar with how she plays from watching her,” said the student, who is being nurtured by Serena Williams’ coach Patrick Mouratoglou.

“I don’t believe in fate or destiny because I think you can change your own world. Fate can’t always be a good thing, so I try not to think of it being my destiny. If I do, my head is going to get big. I just take it one tournament at a time.”

Who is Coco Gauff?

Media playback is not supported on this device

Wimbledon 2019: Sprinklers, rage & Coco – The day when the fun never stopped

Gauff at 15 years and 122 days became the youngest player to qualify for the main Wimbledon draw since the Open era began in 1968.

She started playing tennis at the age of seven and comes from a sporting family having initially been coached by her father Corey, who played basketball at Georgia State University. Her mother Candi was a gymnast before moving into track and field.

Their daughter began to deliver in major arenas two years ago when she became the youngest US Open girls singles finalist, aged just 13. And last year she won the French Open equivalent only two months after her 14th birthday.

Wimbledon qualifying was a target for Gauff this year, but her ranking of 301 was not high enough to earn a shot. However, while she was shopping online, she found out she had received a wildcard.

More reaction to Gauff’s successes

Social media reaction #bbctennis

Richard Arians:Coco Gauff – controlled patience. A quality mastered by veterans. She’s 15!!!

David Symonds:Never have I been so excited to see an American win something!

Di Johnson:What a match, Coco definitely a name to watch.

Che Seabourne:Well this is turning into quite the story for Coco Gauff! A word too for Polona Hercog – who conducted herself with a lot of composure in the face of a partisan crowd. Hugely entertaining match!

Live scores, schedule and results

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[flauntpage]

50 Hot Takes for the Philadelphia Sports Fan

It’s come to my attention that I’ve been incredibly neutral lately, just trying to do quality analysis and post-game breakdowns without the knee-jerk overreaction or outrageous hot takes.

In other words, I’m trying to be fair.

But fair doesn’t necessarily move the needle in 2018, when the most well-known media personalities are people who just say ridiculous and off-base shit, contradict themselves, and continue to make things up until someone finally pulls the plug or they retire.

I can hold my own alongside Jason Whitlock and Colin Cowherd, and to prove that I’m not Mr. Milquetoast, I pulled 50 hot takes out of my rear end, which you can dive into after the jump:

Philadelphia sports writers are some of the worst-dressed people on the planet.

Both radio stations should cut down on listener phone calls by 50-60% and book more guests.

I love hockey, but it will soon be the 5th major sport in the U.S. I’m not just saying this because I’m a soccer guy, but just take a drive around the city and see for yourself the changing demographics in this country.

Baseball didn’t necessarily slow down [editor’s note: it did, as game have risen to an average of over three hours] society just sped up. We have smartphones and Grubhub and instant access to everything, which killed attention spans and our general ability to sit still and relax. The game isn’t broken, but MLB is doing a poor job of adapting to this societal change.

Television personalities who only show up to 8-10 games per year generally ask the most useless questions in press conferences. We use the derogatory term “playoff people” to describe them.

When people tell you to “stick to sports,” they aren’t trying to silence you or suppress your First Amendment rights. They’re simply saying that they would prefer to get their politics from political experts and their sports from sports experts.

Rocky is played out and cliche.

Gritty is becoming dangerously close to played out, like Philadelphia’s love for Bruce Springsteen and Pearl Jam.

More young and able-bodied writers should be actively participating in the sports they cover because it adds credibility to their stories and opinions.

We don’t care who wins the game. It’s a job. We’re going to write about it whether they win or lose. When sports becomes business, the emotion and fandom is fully drained from you (which is kind of a shame, but necessary).

Very few Philadelphia media bosses have any clue what they’re doing.

Talen Energy Stadium features the best atmosphere of any regional sporting venue.

Building Talen in Chester was a huge mistake.

The Sixers should build their own arena.

College football is better than the NFL.

I hate the fact that Philadelphia does not care about college football.

Penn State and Pitt and West Virginia and Syracuse and Rutgers should be playing each other every year. I know PSU fans don’t want this, but I’m a believer in eastern football and conference realignment really killed a lot of great rivalries and traditions.

Lincoln Financial Field is the third-best football atmosphere in Pennsylvania.

The vibe and excitement at any SEC or Big 10 football stadium is better than anything at the Wells Fargo Center, Linc, or Citizens Bank Park.

Philadelphia DOES have a large section of sports fans who are total assholes. However, bad fan behavior takes place all around the world, which is why we share those stories whenever they happen.

The best local beat writer is Sheil Kapadia. He asks smart questions, doesn’t do hot takes, puts together detailed video breakdowns, and consistently produces interesting content.

A lot of people got totally screwed during the Josh Innes RADIO WARS shuffle. Rob Ellis and Jon Marks are two of them. Jon got shoved on the morning show where he was barely allowed to talk and Rob was pulled off nights, moved to PM drive, then again moved off that shift to accommodate Josh.

I appreciated the fact that Josh challenged the typical corny radio routine that we’ve been subjected to for years. He was an outsider, which was a breath of fresh air. However, he really rubbed A LOT of people the wrong way behind the scenes and wore out his welcome rather quickly.

Butt-hurt Flyers fans need to relax. We don’t hate your sport, it’s just down in the pecking order right now because the Eagles and Sixers are good. I covered soccer for eight years, so I understand the struggle for media coverage and respect in a football town.

I hate music in the middle of a sporting event, especially during Sixers games. It feels corny and inauthentic. The fan atmosphere was great at The Wells Fargo Center last season and you don’t need shitty mumble rap to be played in the middle of a possession to generate an interesting ambience.

The best sports video game was Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater.

Robert Covington is overrated by Process supporters and underrated by Process opponents.

Saying that John DeFilippo and Frank Reich were a “big loss” is a bad take because no fan or media member can realistically quantify or qualify their behind-the-scenes contributions to the 2017 Eagles’ offense.

I’m intrigued by the Philadelphia Fusion, but the fact of the matter is that the squad features zero Americans and they do not live in Philadelphia.

The Fusion choked in the Overwatch League final.

Fortnite sucks.

The mental health of athletes is important and I appreciate the NBA’s forward-thinking here. We also have to draw lines between those who have legitimate and diagnosed issues and those who do not. It’s unfair for an athlete who is taking medication for a diagnosed bi-polar disorder to be lumped in with someone who got booed after a bad shooting night. One is a true mental health problem and the other is not.

Dreams and Nightmares is overrated, as is Meek Mill’s music.

Joe Buck and Troy Aikman do not hate the Eagles.

Say what you will about Angelo Cataldi, but the guy is a master of his craft, expertly plays to his listener base, and knows exactly what he’s doing from a business standpoint. Wing Bowl is a cash cow for WIP and the morning show has enjoyed more stability and continuity than any other program in Philly sports radio.

Villanova is a Philadelphia school. I mean, for fuck’s sake, we worship at the altar of Mike Trout, who grew up 46 miles away in Millville. Nova’s campus is 17 miles from Center City.

Every Eagles fan should be pulling for Andy Reid to do well in Kansas City.

There’s too much media availability in the NBA. There’s no reason a coach should have to speak before or during a game. Ben Simmons does not need to speak five times a week.

I don’t like being in the locker room and I don’t think reporters should be allowed in the locker room. I’ve always felt like it’s a “sacred” kind of place reserved for players and their game preparation.

I also HATE advertisements on the Sixers and Union jerseys. Jerseys should have a name, number, logo, and nothing else [editor’s note: rich take coming from a soccer Emirates fan]. I wouldn’t want to be a walking advertisement, no matter how much Bimbo or Stubhub is willing to pay.

Not every show on sports radio needs to feature a former football player.

If you’re a reporter on the team payroll (like Dave Spadaro), please let independent media ask their questions first before tossing up a couple of softballs. This goes for TV and radio broadcasters as well, or anyone affiliated with the team (they generally do a good job of this).

There are too many credentialed reporters at various sporting events who are not working or doing much of anything at all.

When a coach or athlete goes out of their way to tell you that they don’t read your stories or pay attention to Twitter, it means that they definitely read your stories and pay attention to Twitter.

All Philadelphia teams should be owned by Philadelphia-based groups. No more New York City carpetbaggers down here, please.

Big 5 basketball features a lot of interesting matchups and storylines that unfortunately become buried in a pro sports town.

The Flyers’ black uniforms are the best uniforms in town.

I wish people would appreciate mixed martial arts for the interesting clash of styles and incredible physical gifts each fighter possesses. Combat sports are much more than Conor McGregor shit-talking and a violent punch-fest.

“No one likes us, we don’t care,” is a very entry-level way of motivating yourself, though it is effective to a certain point. The best athletes in the world don’t play the rudimentary disrespect card, but have essentially risen above that to a sort of self-motivating nirvana where they know they’re the best and don’t give a shit what anyone has to say (Tom Brady, prime Tiger Woods, Serena Williams).

If you’re young or have the ability to move, go live somewhere else before resettling in Philadelphia. You’ll have a better of understanding of sport and how people around the country (and around the world) support their teams and consume content.

That’s 50. I’m not sure all of them were hot takes. Maybe a couple of aphorisms made it in there, like a Friedrich Nietzsche publication. Twilight of the Idols was my favorite.

Anyway, hope that was hot enough for you. I’ll be back tomorrow with fair and balanced lukewarm takes.

The post 50 Hot Takes for the Philadelphia Sports Fan appeared first on Crossing Broad.

50 Hot Takes for the Philadelphia Sports Fan published first on https://footballhighlightseurope.tumblr.com/

[jonathanbelloblog]

McLaren Reveals Sensational Senna

SHEFFIELD, England — Imagine the pressure. Someone has just asked you to create a piano called “The Mozart.” Or a soccer ball named “The Pelé.” Or a cocktail shaker dubbed “The Dean Martin.” Which is to say, you’ve just been handed a nearly impossible assignment: It’s your job to create a product worthy of the most iconic name associated with it. Oh, don’t worry: If you get it wrong, you’ll only be scorned and hounded by, say, millions of furious fans screaming that you’ve disgraced their idol’s legacy.

Such is the pressure on McLaren. The British maker of Formula 1 Grand Prix cars and exotic road-legal machines recently unveiled its latest homage to the greatest and arguably most ardently admired race car driver who ever lived, the late Ayrton Senna. “Project 15,” the audaciously named “Senna,” limited to just 500 examples and due late this year, is said to be the fastest, lightest, most extreme road car McLaren has ever built. It better be. Anything less would be a discredit to the Brazilian maestro who, in 161 F1 races, started from pole position an unbelievable 65 times.

Yet if anyone can build a “Senna” worthy of the legend, it’s McLaren. After all, it was with the McLaren F1 team in the late 1980s and early 1990s that Senna notched the majority of his Grand Prix victories—and all three of his world driving championships. What’s more, McLaren has the full support of the Senna family. Last December, in fact, the maker auctioned off the 500th and final copy of the Senna (the other 499 were already sold) for $2.7 million (roughly three times the car’s price)—donating the proceeds to the Ayrton Senna Institute, a non-profit headed by Senna’s sister, Viviane, and dedicated to educating and assisting underprivileged young people in Brazil.

Finally, to bake-in one additional sprinkle of “Senna-ness,” McLaren had the prototype tested and evaluated by Viviane’s son Bruno Senna, Ayrton’s nephew who is also a professional racer. “We have a relationship with the Senna family,” says Andy Palmer, vehicle line director for McLaren’s Ultimate Series. “The time was right for this car and, more importantly, the car was right for what the family wanted for Ayrton’s name. I assume they would get requests about lending Ayrton’s name to other sports cars, but they just felt that this was the right one for them to do that. We’re very pleased, obviously.”

The Senna will join McLaren’s three “levels” of road cars—including the Sports Series (570 and 540 models) and the Super Series (720S)—at the top spot in the maker’s Ultimate Series, at present the exclusive realm of the P1 hybrid and the track-only P1 GTR. Yet while the Senna will be completely street-worthy, make no mistake: its true home will be the race circuit. Indeed, McLaren calls the Senna “the ultimate road-legal track car.” Ayrton would’ve wanted nothing less.

Behind the driver’s seat lies a lion of a powerplant. A more extreme variant of the mill in the 720S, the Senna will use a twin-turbo 4.0-liter V-8 (with a flat-plane crank and a dry sump) kicking out 789 horsepower and 590 lb-ft of torque—making it the most powerful internal-combustion engine McLaren has ever built. Refinements include a new air intake and inlet manifold (fed by a roof-mounted “snorkel”), specially designed camshafts, a reworked engine-management system, and dual high-flow fuel pumps. McLaren says a single pump was unable to produce the required fuel delivery; instead, one pump does most of the work while the second pump kicks-in as needed. Mated to the engine is the same seven-speed dual-clutch paddle-shift transmission found in the 720S. In Sport mode, an F1-bred Ignition Cut system momentarily cuts the spark during gearshifts, quickening gear changes and, McLaren says, producing a stirring “crack” from the exhausts.

Making the most of the engine’s massive output are a body and structure designed for extreme strength and low weight (indeed, the Senna will be the lightest McLaren road car since the pioneering F1). Almost everything is carbon fiber, the latest Monocage III structure said to be McLaren’s most rigid ever. Once construction of McLaren’s new Carbon Composites Technology Center in Sheffield, England, is completed, all carbon-fiber components will be built in-house. Every piece has been fastidiously engineered to keep weight to an absolute minimum. Each door structure, for instance, weighs just 22 pounds (the middle of each door will feature a unique transparent panel, said to enhance the sensation of speed as the road whistles by you just inches away). The front fenders weigh less than 1.5 pounds each. The towering rear wing checks in at less than 11 pounds. McLaren even fussed over the Senna’s nuts and bolts, reducing their weight by 33 percent. All told, the Senna boasts a dry weight of just 2,641 pounds.

In person, the Senna is a striking piece—a feast of wings and scoops and rakish edges so aggressive the car looks like it’s about to bite your hand at any moment. Yet for all of its visual drama, the Senna is quite intentionally more “beast” than “beauty.” “It really is about every element for a reason,” says Dan Parry-Williams, director of engineering design. “Function taking precedence over aesthetics, at least more than we’ve done before.” Which is to say, think “purposeful race car,” not “beautiful sports car.” The Senna’s lines and scoops and wings are made for aerodynamics and ultimate performance above all else.

At the front, a huge carbon-fiber splitter—5.9 inches longer than the P1’s—slices into oncoming air to maximize downforce and cornering power. Just behind it, on either side, lie active aero blades that move in unison with the active rear wing to help maintain aerodynamic balance. Above the aero blades sit headlights incorporating 21 LEDs each. Digitally controlled, the LEDs can vary their intensity according to steering angle, helping to illuminate corner apexes without the need for a “steerable” motor-driven system. Toward the back, the powertrain is cooled by the largest intakes ever incorporated into a road-going McLaren. An artfully shaped front clamshell helps create a high-pressure flow of clean air past the A-pillars and directly into the intakes, while a rear diffuser helps suck the car to the ground at speed. And then there’s that massive rear wing. Constantly adjusting its angle to vary downforce as needed and, under braking, shorten stopping distances, the wing can support more than 100 times its own weight. In concert with the sculptured bodywork, it helps deliver nearly 1,800 pounds of total downforce—40 percent more than the P1.

The suspension is an evolution of the P1’s, using the same fundamental geometry but enhanced by smart software refined on the 720S. McLaren’s new hydraulic RaceActive Chassis Control II system includes four driver-selectable modes: Comfort, Sport, Track, and Race. In Race mode, the suspension stiffens significantly while the nose lowers by 1.5 inches—reducing underbody airflow and enhancing the effectiveness of the front splitter. “We’re looking for a car that’s agile and stable,” says Parry-Williams. “And that’s the great thing about active aero—you can have both. The Senna delivers more agility than any car we’ve done thus far, but at higher speeds, and under high-speed braking, the stability is just extraordinary.” Carbon-ceramic brakes are standard (it takes seven months to make each huge disc) and, in concert with the active-aero rear wing, help deliver the shortest stopping distances of any McLaren road car ever. Cornering prowess and steering feel are enhanced by Pirelli P-Zero Trofeo R tires developed specifically for the Senna.

Inside, the Senna is a minimalist space entirely focused on the mission of speed. The steering wheel is a simple, Alcantara-trimmed three-spoke design devoid of buttons or switches. Major controls—such as the engine-start button and even the electric door releases—are grouped in a pod in the overhead roof panel. The transmission controls move fore and aft along with the driver’s seat, while the seat shells weigh just 7.2 pounds each and are covered with seven Alcantara (or, at the buyer’s choosing, leather) pads; ducts around the pads allow air to flow, the better to cool the backsides of Nomex-clad occupants attacking a racetrack. Extremely thin roof pillars allow an exceptional view to the outside—and they’re strong enough to negate the need for a separate roll cage.

The cabin may be minimalist, but it’s not bare-bones. Air conditioning and a premium seven-speaker Bowers & Wilkins audio system are optional (designed especially for the Senna, the B&W system weighs just 16.1 pounds). Gorgeous carbon fiber trims almost every visible surface. Other options include McLaren Track Telemetry (which can capture and analyze lap sessions), a camera system to complement it, parking sensors, and a rear-view camera. Behind the seats lies storage space for two race helmets, Nomex suits, and driving shoes. If you’re really feeling racy, you can even order a “push to drink” system so you won’t dry up during extended track sessions. And while McLaren has configured a few “ready-made” color/trim combinations, in truth the company is prepared to deliver almost any color or trim accessory the buyer wishes.

So, yes, the Senna can be outfitted with enough amenities to rival almost any other premium sports car. But at its core this remains very much a track-centric, performance-focused machine. After all, McLaren claims a 0 to 60 mph time of just 2.7 seconds, a top speed of 211 miles per hour, and the most mind-blowing handling performance of any McLaren road car ever built (and having recently driven the 720S, that’s saying a lot). What’s more, the Senna has been engineered to feel raw.

“Because it’s track-focused, we’ve gone a bit mental on things like NVH,” laughs Parry-Williams. “The amount of noise, the noise quality, the amount of vibration you feel in the seat rail and how that increases as a function of speed … this is something we’ve deliberately done to add engagement.” McLaren even evolved the exhaust sound to deliver more “higher-order” content. “Compared with t from Performance Junk Blogger Feed 4 http://ift.tt/2sg2q4P via IFTTT

[eddiejpoplar]

McLaren Reveals Sensational Senna

SHEFFIELD, England — Imagine the pressure. Someone has just asked you to create a piano called “The Mozart.” Or a soccer ball named “The Pelé.” Or a cocktail shaker dubbed “The Dean Martin.” Which is to say, you’ve just been handed a nearly impossible assignment: It’s your job to create a product worthy of the most iconic name associated with it. Oh, don’t worry: If you get it wrong, you’ll only be scorned and hounded by, say, millions of furious fans screaming that you’ve disgraced their idol’s legacy.

Such is the pressure on McLaren. The British maker of Formula 1 Grand Prix cars and exotic road-legal machines recently unveiled its latest homage to the greatest and arguably most ardently admired race car driver who ever lived, the late Ayrton Senna. “Project 15,” the audaciously named “Senna,” limited to just 500 examples and due late this year, is said to be the fastest, lightest, most extreme road car McLaren has ever built. It better be. Anything less would be a discredit to the Brazilian maestro who, in 161 F1 races, started from pole position an unbelievable 65 times.

Yet if anyone can build a “Senna” worthy of the legend, it’s McLaren. After all, it was with the McLaren F1 team in the late 1980s and early 1990s that Senna notched the majority of his Grand Prix victories—and all three of his world driving championships. What’s more, McLaren has the full support of the Senna family. Last December, in fact, the maker auctioned off the 500th and final copy of the Senna (the other 499 were already sold) for $2.7 million (roughly three times the car’s price)—donating the proceeds to the Ayrton Senna Institute, a non-profit headed by Senna’s sister, Viviane, and dedicated to educating and assisting underprivileged young people in Brazil.

Finally, to bake-in one additional sprinkle of “Senna-ness,” McLaren had the prototype tested and evaluated by Viviane’s son Bruno Senna, Ayrton’s nephew who is also a professional racer. “We have a relationship with the Senna family,” says Andy Palmer, vehicle line director for McLaren’s Ultimate Series. “The time was right for this car and, more importantly, the car was right for what the family wanted for Ayrton’s name. I assume they would get requests about lending Ayrton’s name to other sports cars, but they just felt that this was the right one for them to do that. We’re very pleased, obviously.”

The Senna will join McLaren’s three “levels” of road cars—including the Sports Series (570 and 540 models) and the Super Series (720S)—at the top spot in the maker’s Ultimate Series, at present the exclusive realm of the P1 hybrid and the track-only P1 GTR. Yet while the Senna will be completely street-worthy, make no mistake: its true home will be the race circuit. Indeed, McLaren calls the Senna “the ultimate road-legal track car.” Ayrton would’ve wanted nothing less.

Behind the driver’s seat lies a lion of a powerplant. A more extreme variant of the mill in the 720S, the Senna will use a twin-turbo 4.0-liter V-8 (with a flat-plane crank and a dry sump) kicking out 789 horsepower and 590 lb-ft of torque—making it the most powerful internal-combustion engine McLaren has ever built. Refinements include a new air intake and inlet manifold (fed by a roof-mounted “snorkel”), specially designed camshafts, a reworked engine-management system, and dual high-flow fuel pumps. McLaren says a single pump was unable to produce the required fuel delivery; instead, one pump does most of the work while the second pump kicks-in as needed. Mated to the engine is the same seven-speed dual-clutch paddle-shift transmission found in the 720S. In Sport mode, an F1-bred Ignition Cut system momentarily cuts the spark during gearshifts, quickening gear changes and, McLaren says, producing a stirring “crack” from the exhausts.

Making the most of the engine’s massive output are a body and structure designed for extreme strength and low weight (indeed, the Senna will be the lightest McLaren road car since the pioneering F1). Almost everything is carbon fiber, the latest Monocage III structure said to be McLaren’s most rigid ever. Once construction of McLaren’s new Carbon Composites Technology Center in Sheffield, England, is completed, all carbon-fiber components will be built in-house. Every piece has been fastidiously engineered to keep weight to an absolute minimum. Each door structure, for instance, weighs just 22 pounds (the middle of each door will feature a unique transparent panel, said to enhance the sensation of speed as the road whistles by you just inches away). The front fenders weigh less than 1.5 pounds each. The towering rear wing checks in at less than 11 pounds. McLaren even fussed over the Senna’s nuts and bolts, reducing their weight by 33 percent. All told, the Senna boasts a dry weight of just 2,641 pounds.

In person, the Senna is a striking piece—a feast of wings and scoops and rakish edges so aggressive the car looks like it’s about to bite your hand at any moment. Yet for all of its visual drama, the Senna is quite intentionally more “beast” than “beauty.” “It really is about every element for a reason,” says Dan Parry-Williams, director of engineering design. “Function taking precedence over aesthetics, at least more than we’ve done before.” Which is to say, think “purposeful race car,” not “beautiful sports car.” The Senna’s lines and scoops and wings are made for aerodynamics and ultimate performance above all else.

At the front, a huge carbon-fiber splitter—5.9 inches longer than the P1’s—slices into oncoming air to maximize downforce and cornering power. Just behind it, on either side, lie active aero blades that move in unison with the active rear wing to help maintain aerodynamic balance. Above the aero blades sit headlights incorporating 21 LEDs each. Digitally controlled, the LEDs can vary their intensity according to steering angle, helping to illuminate corner apexes without the need for a “steerable” motor-driven system. Toward the back, the powertrain is cooled by the largest intakes ever incorporated into a road-going McLaren. An artfully shaped front clamshell helps create a high-pressure flow of clean air past the A-pillars and directly into the intakes, while a rear diffuser helps suck the car to the ground at speed. And then there’s that massive rear wing. Constantly adjusting its angle to vary downforce as needed and, under braking, shorten stopping distances, the wing can support more than 100 times its own weight. In concert with the sculptured bodywork, it helps deliver nearly 1,800 pounds of total downforce—40 percent more than the P1.

The suspension is an evolution of the P1’s, using the same fundamental geometry but enhanced by smart software refined on the 720S. McLaren’s new hydraulic RaceActive Chassis Control II system includes four driver-selectable modes: Comfort, Sport, Track, and Race. In Race mode, the suspension stiffens significantly while the nose lowers by 1.5 inches—reducing underbody airflow and enhancing the effectiveness of the front splitter. “We’re looking for a car that’s agile and stable,” says Parry-Williams. “And that’s the great thing about active aero—you can have both. The Senna delivers more agility than any car we’ve done thus far, but at higher speeds, and under high-speed braking, the stability is just extraordinary.” Carbon-ceramic brakes are standard (it takes seven months to make each huge disc) and, in concert with the active-aero rear wing, help deliver the shortest stopping distances of any McLaren road car ever. Cornering prowess and steering feel are enhanced by Pirelli P-Zero Trofeo R tires developed specifically for the Senna.

Inside, the Senna is a minimalist space entirely focused on the mission of speed. The steering wheel is a simple, Alcantara-trimmed three-spoke design devoid of buttons or switches. Major controls—such as the engine-start button and even the electric door releases—are grouped in a pod in the overhead roof panel. The transmission controls move fore and aft along with the driver’s seat, while the seat shells weigh just 7.2 pounds each and are covered with seven Alcantara (or, at the buyer’s choosing, leather) pads; ducts around the pads allow air to flow, the better to cool the backsides of Nomex-clad occupants attacking a racetrack. Extremely thin roof pillars allow an exceptional view to the outside—and they’re strong enough to negate the need for a separate roll cage.

The cabin may be minimalist, but it’s not bare-bones. Air conditioning and a premium seven-speaker Bowers & Wilkins audio system are optional (designed especially for the Senna, the B&W system weighs just 16.1 pounds). Gorgeous carbon fiber trims almost every visible surface. Other options include McLaren Track Telemetry (which can capture and analyze lap sessions), a camera system to complement it, parking sensors, and a rear-view camera. Behind the seats lies storage space for two race helmets, Nomex suits, and driving shoes. If you’re really feeling racy, you can even order a “push to drink” system so you won’t dry up during extended track sessions. And while McLaren has configured a few “ready-made” color/trim combinations, in truth the company is prepared to deliver almost any color or trim accessory the buyer wishes.

So, yes, the Senna can be outfitted with enough amenities to rival almost any other premium sports car. But at its core this remains very much a track-centric, performance-focused machine. After all, McLaren claims a 0 to 60 mph time of just 2.7 seconds, a top speed of 211 miles per hour, and the most mind-blowing handling performance of any McLaren road car ever built (and having recently driven the 720S, that’s saying a lot). What’s more, the Senna has been engineered to feel raw.

“Because it’s track-focused, we’ve gone a bit mental on things like NVH,” laughs Parry-Williams. “The amount of noise, the noise quality, the amount of vibration you feel in the seat rail and how that increases as a function of speed … this is something we’ve deliberately done to add engagement.” McLaren even evolved the exhaust sound to deliver more “higher-order” content. “Compared with t from Performance Junk Blogger 6 http://ift.tt/2sg2q4P via IFTTT

[caveartfair]

Why These 6 Artists Destroyed Their Own Art

Photo by Zlatko Unger, via Flickr.

The Belgian painter Luc Tuymans never spends more than one day on an artwork. After completing it, he once told the BBC, he leaves his studio, returns the following day, and decides whether it’s good enough to keep. If so, it goes to his dealer; if not, he destroys it.

One might marvel at the idea that Tuymans—whose paintings regularly carry million-dollar price tags—would dispose of something so valuable. Perhaps if they were preparatory sketches or studies, this act would be less shocking. Yet the history of art provides numerous instances of artists willfully discarding finished works of art, including as an expression of traditional beliefs and practices, from Buddhist sand mandalas—sacred diagrams representing the cosmos, which are labor-intensively and meticulously constructed, only to be destroyed—to the bisj or “spirit poles” of the eastern Indonesian Asmat culture, which are created to honor the dead before being left to decay.

Here are six stories of artists who chose to destroy their own art.

Michelangelo, The Deposition (1547–55)

Michaelangelo, The Deposition, 1547-55. Photo via Wikimedia Commons.

Michelangelo’s Pietà (1498–99) in St. Peter’s Basilica is an extraordinarily detailed and tender portrayal of the Virgin Mary holding Christ’s limp body after being removed from the crucifix. It is one of the artist’s most cherished works, carved and polished to a state of almost hyper-finish when the sculptor was only 24 years old.

When, decades later, at the age of 72, Michelangelo began work on The Deposition (1547–55)—which depicts Christ’s body being taken down from the cross and is now housed in the Museo dell’Opera del Duomo in Florence and known as “the Florentine Pietà”—things didn’t go so smoothly. His friend, the historian Giorgio Vasari, said that Michelangelo complained of a material flaw in the marble that made construction near-impossible, though we know the artist was good at selecting his stone.

Scholars now point to the possibility that something in the composition itself—perhaps Christ’s leg, thrown over the Virgin Mary’s lap, which could have been read as suggestive—led the sculptor to attack his piece with a hammer after eight years of work. Though the work was saved by a church official and partially restored, Christ’s missing left leg betrays Michelangelo’s violent outburst.

Claude Monet, Water Lilies (1905–08)

Water Lilies, 1906. Claude Monet "Monet: Beyond Impressionism" at Ordrupgaard, Charlottenlund

Monet, arguably the best-known pioneer of the French Impressionist movement in the 1860s and ’70s, painted around 250 “Water Lily” paintings over the last three decades of his life—works that are now the cherished possessions of major institutions and private collectors alike.

Originally, however, there were more. Before an exhibition of the paintings in 1908, Monet destroyed a group of them, disappointed by their quality in comparison to “better” canvases. Some scholars report that around 15 of the paintings were trashed, others over 30. If that seems wild given Monet’s fame and the enormous price tags attached to his work, consider this: Near his death, the aging Impressionist allegedly commanded his daughter-in-law Blanche Hoschedé-Monet to get rid of even more of his remaining works, concerned about how they would be viewed by future generations.

Gerhard Richter, early photo-based work (1960s)

In 1961, Richter escaped East Germany to West Germany, months before the construction of the Berlin Wall. Rejecting both the then-popular styles of abstraction and the Socialist Realism he had been taught in his hometown of Dresden, he experienced a breakthrough when he began painting from photographs, both ones he had found in print media and those from his own personal collection.

However, as his art developed and he oscillated between the figurative and abstract modes of painting that he has become known for, Richter began to destroy many of his photo-based works. Credited as one of the few post-World War II German artists to deal directly with the heritage of National Socialism (Richter’s family included both Nazis and their victims), Richter ultimately destroyed certain works that referenced Germany’s loaded recent history, such as a work depicting Adolf Hitler.

“Cutting up the paintings was always an act of liberation,” the artist told Der Spiegel in 2012. He is thought to have taken a boxcutter and fire to around 60 paintings from this transitional period in his career. Fortunately for those interested in his development as an artist, he was nervous enough about this destruction to photograph many of the works beforehand, prints that still exist in archives today.

John Baldessari, Cremation Project (1970)

John Baldessari, Cremation Project, 1970. Courtesy of the artist.

In 1970, conceptual artist Baldessari rounded up all of his unsold paintings from May 1953 to March 1966, took them to a crematorium, and reduced them to ashes.

In what he would later title Cremation Project (complete with documentary film and photos of he and his assistants burning his works), Baldessari effectively destroyed the abstract stage of his career. Having turned to more conceptual works involving text and photography, Baldessari ritualistically closed the door on one style to make way for the next. The artist had a bronze commemorative plaque made for the works’ “burial.”

Baldessari’s destructive act also freed up some room. Scholars have pointed out a more practical motivator for Cremation Project: The artist, who was based in San Diego at the time, had recently been offered a teaching position at CalArts in Los Angeles, and it didn’t make sense to pay moving and storage costs on 13 years of work he no longer deemed relevant.

(Baldessari’s fellow conceptual artist Susan Hiller similarly immolated a number of her paintings, beginning in 1972, placing the ashes in test tubes and tagging and signing them as new, individual works, part of her ongoing series, “Relics.”)

Georgia O’Keeffe, assorted work (1980s)

According to Whitney Museum curator Barbara Haskell, O’Keeffe trimmed her oeuvre on the eve of a show planned at the museum in the 1980s. “She wanted to go into storage to destroy some of the paintings that she didn’t think were at her level,” Haskell noted. “When she got to the end of her life, she really wanted to purge, so that her reputation remained strong.”She allegedly destroyed works throughout her career for the same reason, though some have apparently slipped through the cracks. Red and Green II (1916), one of her first watercolors, is listed in her notebooks as having been destroyed after she showed it once in 1958 at New York’s Downtown Gallery. Yet the work surfaced in a Christie’s New York American Art sale in November 2015. More recently, Michael Grauer, curator at Texas’s Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum, featured the work in an exhibition about O’Keeffe’s time in Texas.

O’Keeffe destroyed not only her own works, but those of her former husband Alfred Stieglitz, at his request. In a September 1983 interview with Andy Warhol and her friend Juan Hamilton for Warhol’s magazine, Interview, O’Keeffe admitted to trashing a large number of Stieglitz’s photographic negatives at his death. The late photographer, who printed all of his images himself, wished the negatives destroyed so that no one else could print them.

Michael Landy, Break Down (2001)

Michael Landy, Break Down, 2001. Photo by Julian Stallabrass, via Flickr.

In 1998, the Young British Artist Landy approached the London-based arts organization Artangel requesting sponsorship for his latest work, which would manifest a simple, if rather extreme, idea: He would take each of his 7,227 personal belongings—cataloguing them over the course of three years—and destroy each and every one of them. The operation, pitched as an attack on consumerism, would be staged in a department store.

The resulting artwork, titled Break Down, took a team of assistants and a sort of reverse assembly-line process to dismantle all of Landy’s belongings, which included his car, his own artworks, and those of a number of other artists, including fellow YBAs Damien Hirst and Tracey Emin.

In the end, Landy realized that the work was about much more than consumerism. Destroying all of his possessions in the name of art led him to grapple with existential questions about his memories and identity, and the way in which people are shaped by the things that they own.

from Artsy News

[icelandicandadelight]

Girlfriend Tag: Lesbian Edition

 @veggiesaurusrex-grrr <<<< My GF! 

1. Describe how you met each other.

I had a Kurt blog like the nerd I am and Cas somehow saw me as something to be intimidated by when I’m ?????? a loser???????? I’m really happy they managed to gather the courage to say hi first <3

2. What did you first notice about each other?

I noticed how awkward they were tbh. They’re still awkward but in a super cute way

3. Who first asked the other out?

Me!!

4. Where was your first date?

Haven’t had it yet but I think it’s just going to be pretty simple and chill. I really love the idea that Cas mentioned when they were answering this <3

5. Who was first to verbally say “I love you”?

I’m pretty sure it was Cas?

6. How did your first kiss happen? Who initiated it?

(haven’t kissed yet :c )

7. When is your anniversary?

September 3rd : >

8. How long have you been together?

Well depends on what you mean with ‘together’ but as in dating it’s just under a month.

9. What made you realize you were in love with her?

Oh man that’s such a loaded question tho…I think what finally made me realize it was when I noticed that I missed them when we didn’t talk for a day, and when I noticed how just seeing a message notification from them can instantly cheer me up.

10. Where you friends before you became lovers?

Heck yeah we’re still friends what you talking?

11. Were either of you out before getting with your girlfriend?

Well I’m out to my friends…that’s it. Cas was out though

12. Have either of you dated a girl before getting with your girlfriend or is she your first?

They are my first girlfriend, I legit haven’t dated anyone before them. Though they had three girlfriends before me

13. How does your girlfriend define her sexuality?

I belive they’re homosexual/panromantic

14. When is your girlfriend’s birthday? Who is older?

I’m older by a few months. Their birthday is August 21st (and I’m a month late with my birthday present I’m so sorry babe!)

15. Do you live together?

Not yet

16. Have you met your girlfriend’s parents? If so, what was that like?

I’ve seen a few pics and video’s on snapchat. They seem kinda sweet

17. How many people are in your girlfriend’s family?

I know they have one sister, I feel like they have more tho, and then there’s their parents.

18. Whose family do you hang out with more?

I mean…i’ve seen more of their family through pics and stuff so I guess theirs?

19. What nationality is your girlfriend?

American!

20 What is a typical date night like for you and your girlfriend?

Watching something nerdy together on rabb.it (mostly young justice tho)

21. How do you usually spend your time together?

Sending memes together, sending each other snapchats of our day, watching things on rabb.it, rping

22. Have you ever been mistaken for sisters?

I don’t think so?

23. Have you ever experienced any discrimination or prejudice becasue you are a same sex couple?

Not really no

24. Does anyone you know disapprove of your relationship?

Nope…but I haven’t told everyone so we’ll see

25, How much PDA do you do?

None yet I think but as soon as we meet that will be fixed!

26. Have you ever been on your periods together?

yup

27. What is your girlfriend’s middle name?

….not sure heh

 28. Who usually pays when you go out to eat?

I feel like we’re gonna do some kinda trade thing when we do go out together? Like I pay this time they pay next time

29. What is your girlfriend’s number labeled as in your cell phone?

Prinsessa <3

30. Do you have any pet names for each other?

I call them princess and babe a lot, and just…cas xD

31. Does your girlfriend have any pets?

THE CUTEST PUPPER!

32. Have you ever worn your girlfriend’s clothes?

No but I wanna!!!

33. Who is more likely to cook a meal?

They are…I will burn anything ever

34. What is your girlfriend’s favorite food? Least favorite food?

Their least favorite food is peppers and favorite food is Mac’n Cheese

35. Who is more likely to cry for no reason?

Honestly I feel like we will both cry for no reason what so ever

36. Can your girlfriend play any musical instruments?

Nope unfortunately. I wanna teach them to play guitar cause I think they’d look cool with one

37. Who is your girlfriend’s favorite musical artist?

Right now I think it’s Marianas Trench

38. What is your girlfriend’s current favorite song?

"Skin and Bones" by Marianas Trench

39. Do you have a couple song?

“Crazy beautiful” by Andy Grammer

40. Do you have a couple name?

My friend wish calls us dweebs does that count?

41. What is your girlfriend’s best physical feature?

Their eeeeyes omggggggg

42. Who is more likely to forget where they put things?

me

43. Which side of the bed do you each sleep on?

All the bed. All of it.

44. Who hogs the blankets/sheets more when sleeping together?

Me. All the blankets for me or no one gets blankets

45. What do you argue/fight about the most?

We don’t??

46. How do you usually get over a argument/fight?

N/A

47. Does your girlfriend have a “look” (i.e. an angry/mad/annoyed stare)? 48. Who is more likely to refuse sex?

They have this super cute closed lip smile which is just my fave thing

49. Does your girlfriend play any sports?

nope

50. Does your girlfriend root for any sports teams?

Don’t think so?

51. Does your girlfriend have any quirky habits?

I know they do but I can’t think when I’m put on the spot ugh

52. Who takes longer getting ready to go somewhere?

They do (so pretty)

53. Who is more likely to remember an important day (i.e. birthday, anniversary, etc.)?

They are

54. What is your girlfriend’s eye color?

Blue/gray

55. What is your girlfriend’s shoe size?

I’m…terrible at guessing tbh

56. What is your girlfriend’s dress size?

I said I’m bad at guessing these things! (also American sizes are awful)

57. What is your girlfriend’s favorite TV show?

Supernatural or Young Justice

58. What is your girlfriend’s favorite movie?

Monty Python and the Holy Grail

59. Who is your girlfriend’s #1 celebrity crush?

They don’t have on I think

60. What is one item on your girlfriend’s bucket list?

To come to Iceland or just meet me in general

61. Who is more likely to utter a curse word?

They utter, I yell it

62. Does your girlfriend prefer coffee or tea?

I wanna say tea

63. Is your girlfriend a morning or a night person?

Night person!

64. Is your girlfriend more likely to save or spend money?

Spend xD

65. Who squashes the bugs?

Neither, rather capture it (I would NEVER squash the bug in front of them you crazy?!)

66. Who’s better at telling when the other is lying?

I don’t lie to them, but I feel like they’d see right through me if I tried

67. What is your girlfriend’s favorite color?

Hmmmm blue I think, maybe red, earthy tones

68. Does your girlfriend collect anything?

Not that I know of? Maybe candles

69. Who is more likely to randomly burst out into a song?

We’ll do broadway worthy duets and no one can stop us

70. Who is more likely to randomly start dancing?

Me (badly)

71. Have you ever taken a vacation together? If so, where to?

No -n-

72. How tall is your girlfriend?

If I remember right they’re like 5’6

73. Is your girlfriend religious at all?

They’re wiccan which is the coolest thing ever

74. Who is more likely to spontaneously be romantic?

Both of us

75. Who’s laugh is cuter?

Theirs

76. Who is the better driver?

i…don’t know?

77. Who is the better singer?

They are

78. Who is the better dancer?

…me I guess? (I’m still pretty bad tho lmao)

79. Who is better at math?

Me?

80. Whose handwriting is better?

They say mine, I think it’s theirs

81. Who has a better sense of humor?

We are equally terrible

82. Who is more likely to sign a card or a note from the both of you?

They are

83. Does your girlfriend smoke?

Yeah

84. Does your girlfriend drink alcohol at all? If so, what is her drink of choice?

Yup! And they will drink whatever I believe

85. Have you ever discussed marriage?

A few times yeah : >

86. Have you ever discussed having children?

Yeh but we don’t really want them so idk what will happen there

87. What is one thing your girlfriend does that you don’t like?

Smoke, doesn’t take care of themselves, other things…

88. Is there anything about your girlfriend you think most people don’t know?

They can’t pronounce Icelandic worth a damn

89. Choose one word to describe your girlfriend. Why that word?

Independent. Because that’s what they are and it’s a quality I really REALLY admire about them

90. Pass on one piece of relationship advice.

Communication is key. Honestly, that is probably the one thing a lot of people get wrong. You gotta be able to talk to your s/o and tell them if something is bothering you or if you really like something about them. If it’s about a good thing or a bad thing, communication is key.

[academic195xb-blog]

HBR Cases Solutions Step 1 - Reading up Harvard Business Review Basics on the Sales & Advertising Also prior to you start reading a business situation study simply make sure that you have brushed up the Harvard Organisation Evaluation (HBR) basics on the Sales & Marketing. Checking out up the HBR fundamentals assists in sketching out company situation research analysis and option roadmap even prior to you start reviewing the instance study. It likewise provides starting ideas as principles frequently provide understanding into some of the elements that could not be covered in the company situation study itself. Action 2 - Reading the Documentum, Inc. To create an emphatic case research analysis and provide actionable and pragmatic solutions, you need to have a strong grips of the truths and the main issue of the HBR case research. Organisation instance study paragraph by paragraph mapping will certainly help you in arranging the info correctly and provide a clear overview to go back to the case study if you require further info. My study method entails-- Caseism.com. Where Can I locate Harvard Organisation School Case Researches? Harvard Service Posting makes a good deal of loan selling these for company school program packs and will not make them readily available to collections. You can, nevertheless, order them straight from HBS, around $8.95 each. How you can find them:. • Harvard Company Review Web Shop homepage. Search by business name or subject. Abstracts are usually included. This searches all HBR magazines; limitation to study by clicking "Instance Researches" in the lft column. Harvard also offers cases from Babson College as well as Northwestern's Kellogg College of Monitoring, to name a few. This is Harvard Business Institution's magazine of product made use of in the classroom. An abstract of the instance study is given as well as will certainly additionally inform you if it was released in HBR. • The Harvard Organisation Testimonial releases one study per concern. These usually deal with fictitious firms yet are very good studies of current troubles encountered by companies. Caseism.com. Abstract of Study:. CNS is taking into consideration taking out from the market if it can not discover a method to raise rates. This case is meant for usage an introductory advertising and marketing monitoring training course that includes a comprehensive analysis of rates. The instance presents trainees to specialized pricing systems, oligopolistic markets, the challenges of staying clear of a cost battle, the idea of price leadership, and also the possible results of a company taking this function, including what it needs to do to succeed. Harvard Service Review Situation Commentary: "We Googled You" (freshly interactive). In each problem, the Harvard Company Testimonial has actually an area called "Instance Discourse" where they suggest a sensible but fictional situation and also welcome different noticeable people to react. I was given the great honor of being invited to react to an instance qualified "We Googled You.". In Diane Coutu's hypothetical circumstance, Fred is attempting to choose whether to employ Mimi after among Fred's colleagues googles Mimi as well as locates paper cuttings regarding Mimi protesting Chinese plans. [The case study is 2 pages-- this is a very brief synopsis.] Provided the scenario, we were after that asked, "should Fred employ Mimi in spite of her on the internet history?". Harvard Company Testimonial does not make their concerns offered for free download (although they are available at the situation and the collection can be purchased for $6) * however * i acquired approval to release my discourse online for your satisfaction. (Update: obviously HBR has the case without feedbacks on their site for the Interactive Case Research. ). Update: Evidently, unbeknownst to me, HBR has actually determined to earn this study the First Interactive Study. While they do not share all our feedbacks with the general public, they welcome any individual to reply to the situation with their very own feelings on the matter. They want people to submit to their site to make sure that they can release the best-of, but personally, i would certainly be * fed * to listen to how all readers of this blog site would respond to this study. Please send something, yet additionally add your ideas to the comments or publish your reaction to your blog (as well as comment the LINK) so that we could all review your ideas. I located this exercise emotionally enjoyable as well as i wish you do as well! (tx Andy Blanco). As they begin to recuperate from the economic crisis, what challenges will organisations encounter?

The three leading priorities for personnels leaders provide some solution to that question. They're concentrated on managing benefit costs, enhancing worker interaction and also recruiting quality workers, according to a brand-new survey commissioned by Unum in partnership with Harvard Business Review Analytic Services. Nearly 80% of Human Resources leaders concur-- being a business that cares about the well-being of staff members is extremely important to preserving a quality as well as drawing in workforce. At the same time, nearly 60% stated handling benefit costs is a top challenge, and virtually 80% anticipate that challenge to increase in the next 3 years. " Human resources leaders are strolling a tightrope in balancing these demands, as well as they're informing us that the pressure is only going to boost," said Mike Simonds, elderly vice president for Unum. "Their employee benefits companions have to take an energetic function in helping them equilibrium prices and also develop a culture that adds to an engaged labor force.". Among the most preferred lower-priced packages lately is HBR's new "10 Must-Reads" collection of current articles from the magazine as well as online. The a lot more essential reward for Macht is that these packages allow HBR to experiment with motifs as well as subjects to check their popularity. Currently HBR is developing its Top 10 Checks out collection for books individuals can discover in airports or for distribution on the Kindle. The e-commerce technique at HBR functions largely because the site has actually additionally pumped up its free-content base and the raw audience on which the ecommerce can attract. About 50% of the target market currently comes from exterior of the U.S. Advertisement income at the site has actually grown around 20% a year, but Macht remains concentrated on the genuine profits stream. As we will report in "Eye on Digital Media" in following week's issue of min, Harvard Organisation Testimonial is relaunching its publication and also its Website later this week in order to take advantage of the link in between print and digital better. Caseism.com. Reading up the HBR basics aids in sketching out organisation situation research analysis and option roadmap even before you begin reading the case study. To write an emphatic situation study evaluation and provide pragmatic and workable solutions, you need to have a solid https://caseism.com understandings of the truths and the central trouble of the HBR instance research. Service instance study paragraph by paragraph mapping will help you in organizing the details properly and also offer a clear guide to go back to the instance study if you need more information. (Update: apparently HBR has the situation without feedbacks on their site for the Interactive Instance Research. ). Update: Evidently, unbeknownst to me, HBR has determined to make this situation research the First Interactive Situation Research study.

[kymkral]

the eight one: Death 4/27/17

Ever wonder who will be affected when you die? I’m sure everyone has wondered this. I guess it is only natural to contemplate one’s mortality.  I’ve always been a little weird about death.  I guess we’re all a little weird about death.  What’s normal? What’s interesting about that question is there is absolutely no normal way to handle something that is, in actuality, so incredibly normal.  Death.  The only thing that is certain in this life.  We will all eventually be leaving it.  Period.  We all die it is just a matter of when. Some get to live a long, long time-maybe too long.  Some die almost immediately after taking their first breath.  And though the latter situation is so much more heartbreaking, death always comes with so much heartbreak.  Every single time.  When someone dies, no matter who they are, someone, somewhere mourns them.

I’ve experienced, what I think, is a lot of death in my lifetime.  I’m thinking about this now because I lost a friend a few days ago.  Friend. That seems so odd to me.  I never really actively considered this person a friend until I got the news that he had passed away.  Well, more accurately drunkenly flipped over his car on the freeway (which is heartbreaking in-and-of itself, so senseless and so avoidable, but I digress.) He was a regular at the bar I work at and we had developed a friendship over the last year.  Paul Johnson.  Paul was in his 30’s, a tall African American man with a bit of an afro and a smile that completely lit up a room.  A smile that you will never forget.  He just beamed every time he came into my bar.  We’d chat about my comedy and my ever-changing dating life.  He’d give advice and we laughed.  We laughed a lot. He even came out to support a few of my comedy shows. Yet I had never considered Paul a friend until his passing.  Or I guess a better way to say it is I never really thought about it.

Then a few days after Paul, I got news of another friend’s passing.  Friend.  Same thing.  I haven’t seen or spoken to Izzy in over a decade.  I knew that she had cancer and followed her recovery on social media but never reached out.  She was in her mid 30’s, wild curly dirty blonde hair, a nose that only can be described as having “a lot of character” and a beautifully unique singing voice.  Izzy, like Paul, had touched my life in a way that I never really thought of until I got word that her cancer finally took its toll. 

I was about 22 when Izzy and I first met. I had just moved to Los Angeles.  I was full of wonder and doubt, and had yet to fully work through the wreckage of my childhood.  I drove her home one breezy Los Angeles winter night, and I confessed that I had no idea what the fuck I was doing.  I didn’t know if my dreams would ever come to fruition or if I actually wanted them to.  Maybe I didn’t deserve it.  I cried in her arms, where I felt so vulnerable and comfortable-something I hadn’t really felt in the duration of my 22 years.  She had this calm about her, this special quality that made my defenses fall to the wayside enough to tell a near stranger how fucking scared I really was.  She hugged me and in the simplest way told me that it was going to be all right, that I would figure it all out.  That was it.  So simple. And now, whenever I find myself struggling with life, I always think back to that night and am comforted. I cry as I type this, knowing I never did tell Izzy how much that conversation shaped me, how much she shaped me. 

I went to Paul’s vigil Thursday, along with about 30 other of his friends. I looked around and wondered how Paul had touched each of their lives. I had never been to a vigil, had only seen the aftermath of a few, with their old candles and dead flowers.  It was bizarre.  Everyone needs to mourn in his or her own way, I guess.  I stood there watching all of these people hugging and crying and writing notes and I couldn’t help but wonder how many of them loved Paul the way I had but had never really thought about it.  He lit up my day every time he came in, which was almost all of my shifts, and now I wonder if that was on purpose.  Had I touched his life in someway, the way he had mine? Had he ever given it much thought? If the tables were turned and I suddenly died would he be moved to tears and heartbreak the way I had. 

It made me wonder, what random person I see everyday, have I affected and have never really thought about.  I have lost so many people in this life.  Though I know it’s going to happen to all of us, it is something I don’t think I’ll ever get used to, I don’t think any of us do.

The first person I remember losing was my great grandmother Leach. She was old.  I don’t remember much about her because I was young and had very little interest in getting to know this lady. Hey, I was like 9, what the hell did the two of us have in common?  I remember she was little, very little.  She had white hair, thin, round rim glasses and just the kindest smile.  And SO Irish.  My dad told me the news of her passing in a matter a fact way, like I was an adult and I had dealt with death a thousand times before.  He even expected me to handle it like I had a thousand times before.  Which at this point you shouldn’t be surprised with all you know about that man. 

Great grandma Leach was the first dead body I had ever seen.  That is literally all I can recall from the funeral.  I was in third grade.  I do know that she was talked about long after her death and that she touched so many people in her 90 plus years.

Then Keith died.  Keith was my Uncle John’s “friend”.  He spent holidays with us and celebrated our birthdays.  He was probably in his 20s, blonde hair, handsome with what I remember to be a southern twang.  He died suddenly in his car.  Something about a ruptured organ. When I was old enough I never asked for the details, as it always seems like it was still too sad of a subject for my Uncle John.

Right before Keith’s funeral my dad revealed that Keith was not just a friend but also Uncle John’s boyfriend.  “Uncle John is gay.”  It was the early 90’s and my father was a conservative, somewhat religious man, who made it seem like it was somewhat of a shameful thing.  I remember the shame I felt and I still have guilt over those feelings.  I was young and had no other reference other than what my father had told me.  In case you’re wondering my dad got over his homophonic views, learned I guess, and he and John became extremely close until my dad passed away. 

Though I don’t remember much about Keith, I will never forget him. He still remains a member of our family that we lost so long ago.  I wonder if anyone told him how much he meant to the Krals?

Then high school came and too many kids in my class died. Marc White hung himself my sophomore year.  I had known Marc since kindergarten and though we grew into separate groups, him being way popular and me being, well, way not popular, we always remained friends.  He was tall and handsome, mocha skin with deep brown eyes.  It happened over the weekend and we all got the news on Sunday night.  His suicide devastated my high school.  Not only was he kind to the skinny nerdy girl who was missing the better part of her teeth (me), he was that way towards everyone.  I have never in my life seen so many people at a funeral, maybe 200. I wonder if he were alive now who he’d be.  If someone had gotten to him and stopped him, let him know just how many people loved him.  I don’t think I ever told him how much his friendship meant to me.  Not a week goes by in the last 20 years that I don’t wish I had.

Then a kid named Andy died of cancer.  He wasn’t well known at all and his death created little to no ripples at our school.   A kid named Brandon flipped his car on the freeway while having an epileptic seizure. He was just as unknown; I was supposed to sit by him at graduation.  Then a kid who relentlessly made fun of me, Luke, hung himself shortly after Marc did, in some sort of suicide pact.  I wonder who these kids would have been if they were alive still.  I’m friends with Luke’s older brother on facebook and often wonder how Luke’s suicide has affected his everyday life.

Then junior year came, the year of the Columbine massacre, and a girl that I had known since elementary school was killed in the historic tragedy.  She had transferred to Columbine from my high school.  I saw her that year at the Columbine’s homecoming game; I take solace in the fact that I had never seen her happier.  Every time I hear the song “Dreams” by The Cranberries I think of the time we were on the bus on the way to Carmody Junior High School, dancing and giggling away to it, and her saying she loved listening to that song and getting drunk on M&M’s.  I smile and listen to it in its entirety when I hear it now, no matter where I am, and wonder what an awesome adult she would have been.

I moved to Los Angeles when I was 21 and have buried half a dozen friends I have made here.  Margaret, a 60 year old African American woman that everyone so lovingly called “cookie” who taught me about how important it was to be kind to our earth.

Lisa, or “Chipper” as everyone called her died in her early 30s of cancer. She was the first person to ever tell me that I was smart. 

Robert Murray, an African American man who was in his early 50’s died in his sleep from complications that were never really disclosed.  Robert was lovingly referred to as everyone’s “Uncle” in comedy.  He was a loving man who supported every last comic in a room.  Always smiling.

Lorelei, who was transitioning, took her life suddenly, due to hormone complications and regulations.  She was so brave and loving and funny.  I met her as Brandon and have some solace knowing she got to live her final days as the woman she was born to be. 

Then Lonnie, who was a sergeant dad to so many of us in LA, died of a heart attack. He drank way too much PBR and played all of the bar trivia he could get his hands on.  He’s still a legend in most bars across LA, known as “The Banker”. He was tall, a man with a chuckle that you couldn’t forget.  Lonnie made so many of us “orphans” in Los Angeles feel like we weren’t alone.  Lorelei and Lonnie came just before and after my father passed away. It was a rough month.

Then came Paul and Izzy, and I was reminded all over again just how short it all is.  It could be over in an instant, and when it is over, if you did it right, (hell, even if you didn’t) it will leave a path of broken hearts in its wake.  All these people touched my life in a different way and yet each one taught me to love, taught me to be kind, taught me to stand up for those who couldn’t, taught me to stand up for myself, go after my dreams and so much more. As I sit here and type this I can’t help but tear up, some sad tears, sure, but mostly happy tears.  I am filled with the utmost of gratitude to have had them stop by my life, if only for a little while.  I can only hope that I touched their lives, even if it was a fraction of the amount that they touched mine.

[academic195xb-blog]

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Where Can I discover Harvard Company School Instance Researches? Harvard Organisation Posting makes a great deal of loan selling these for service institution course packs and will not make them offered to collections. You can, nonetheless, buy them straight from HBS, around $8.95 each. How to find them:. • Harvard Company Testimonial Web Shop homepage. Look by business name or topic. Abstracts are generally included. This browses all HBR publications; restriction to study by clicking "Situation Studies" in the lft column. Harvard likewise sells cases from Babson University and also Northwestern's Kellogg College of Monitoring, among others. • Examine the Comprehensive Teaching Materials Magazine for specific topics. This is Harvard Business College's catalog of material utilized in the classroom. This book lies in the Regenstein Library bookstacks, call number HF1134.H4H4a. If it was released in HBR, an abstract of the situation research study is offered as well as will likewise tell you. This was last poublished in 1999. • The Harvard Service Review publishes one case study each concern. These usually take care of fictitious companies however are great studies of current https://caseism.com issues dealt with by companies. Caseism.com. Abstract of Study:. CNS is considering withdrawing from the market if it can not discover a means to increase costs. This situation is planned for use an introductory advertising and marketing monitoring course that entails a comprehensive evaluation of rates. The instance introduces trainees to customized rates mechanisms, oligopolistic markets, the challenges of staying clear of a rate war, the concept of rate leadership, and the possible results of a firm taking this duty, including what it requires to do to be successful. Harvard Organisation Evaluation Instance Commentary: "We Googled You" (freshly interactive). In each concern, the Harvard Organisation Review has a section called "Instance Discourse" where they suggest a fictional however reasonable situation and also invite different noticeable individuals to react. I was given the excellent honor of being invited to reply to an instance entitled "We Googled You.". In Diane Coutu's hypothetical situation, Fred is trying to decide whether to hire Mimi after among Fred's co-workers googles Mimi as well as finds paper trimmings regarding Mimi opposing Chinese plans. [The case study is 2 pages-- this is a very quick summary.] Provided the scenario, we were after that asked, "should Fred hire Mimi in spite of her online history?". Harvard Service Testimonial does not make their concerns readily available for free download (although they are available at the situation and also the library can be bought for $6) * however * i gotten authorization to release my discourse online for your pleasure. (Update: obviously HBR has the situation without actions on their site for the Interactive Situation Research study. ). Update: Evidently, unbeknownst to me, HBR has actually decided making this case study the First Interactive Study. While they do not share all our feedbacks with the public, they invite anyone to respond to the case with their very own sensations on the issue. They desire individuals to send to their site to make sure that they can release the best-of, yet directly, i would certainly be * fed * to hear exactly how all viewers of this blog site would certainly reply to this case study. So, please submit something, but also include your ideas to the remarks or post your feedback to your blog site (as well as comment the URL) so that we can all review your ideas. I discovered this workout psychologically enjoyable as well as i wish you do as well! (tx Andy Blanco). As they begin to recoup from the economic crisis, what challenges will companies face? The three leading priorities for human resources leaders provide some answers to that concern. They're concentrated on taking care of benefit expenses, improving staff member engagement as well as recruiting quality workers, inning accordance with a brand-new survey appointed by Unum in collaboration with Harvard Company Evaluation Analytic Solutions. Nearly 80% of Human Resources leaders concur-- being a business that cares about the well-being of staff members is essential to maintaining a quality as well as attracting labor force. At the same time, almost 60% said handling benefit prices is a leading challenge, and virtually 80% anticipate that obstacle to intensify in the following 3 years. " Personnels leaders are strolling a tightrope in stabilizing these needs, as well as they're informing us that the pressure is just going to enhance," stated Mike Simonds, elderly vice head of state for Unum. "Their fringe benefit partners should take an active duty in helping them balance costs as well as build a culture that adds to an involved workforce.". Amongst the most preferred lower-priced bundles recently is HBR's brand-new "Ten Must-Reads" collection of current posts from the publication and online. The a lot more essential benefit for Macht is that these plans allow HBR to experiment with motifs and also topics to examine their appeal. Currently HBR is establishing its Top Ten Checks out series for publications people could discover in flight terminals or for distribution on the Kindle. The e-commerce technique at HBR functions greatly because the website has likewise pumped up its free-content base and the raw target market on which the e-commerce can draw. 3 years ago, the site brought in just 300,000 to 400,000 regular monthly special as well as today it is topping 1 million. It has partnerships with Bloomberg BusinessWeek and also SmartBriefs, which bring web traffic in to free posts and a large collection of bloggers. About 50% of the audience currently comes from beyond the United States Ad income at the website has actually grown about 20% a year, yet Macht remains concentrated on the actual income stream. "We definitely see online and also the ecommerce piece as a substantial possibility for us.". As we will report in "Eye on Digital Media" in following week's concern of minutes, Harvard Business Review is relaunching its magazine and also its Internet site later on this week in order to take advantage of the link between print and digital better. Caseism.com. Reading up the HBR principles aids in sketching out company instance research evaluation and also service roadmap even before you begin checking out the instance research study. To create an emphatic case research study analysis as well as offer pragmatic as well as workable solutions, you need to have a strong grips of the truths and also the central issue of the HBR case research study. Service instance research paragraph by paragraph mapping will certainly aid you in arranging the details properly and provide a clear guide to go back to the instance research study if you require more details. (Update: evidently HBR has the case without actions on their site for the Interactive Instance Research. ). Update: Evidently, unbeknownst to me, HBR has chosen to make this case study the First Interactive Situation Research.