Personally, I think the army should tighten up a little more as far as grooming goes, but tattoos have long been used to create an esprit de corps and to designate an affiliation or history. Taking that away completely is not good, but modifying it so that a uniformed soldier looks professional makes sense. Neck and hand tattoos are not particularly professional looking, in my opinion. Keep it in less visible areas.
The Prince Albert? I will take people's word on whether or not it's there and try not to think about it. The Army’s Sergeant Major, Raymond Chandler, is sick and tired of military bases just teeming with thugs and hoodrats. So along with several other Army leaders, he’s looking to institute a major overhaul of the branch’s grooming standards, including rules for attire, hair, accessories and body modification. |
Soldiers typically don’t have much sartorial leeway. But after decades of strict restrictions, the Army in 2006 loosened up. They permitted neck and hand tattoos — just in time for soldiers to score some of those ubiquitous finger letterings that’ve been all the rage lately. Women can style their hair with braids and cornrows, are allowed discreet makeup and can even opt — if combat sometimes interferes with all that “putting their faces on” business — for permanent, tattooed eye and lip-liner. And men’s hair, once restricted to a buzz-cut, can now grow wild — provided it doesn’t graze the collar and “conforms to the shape of the [soldier's head].” |
Above all, Chandler is looking to return to a more literal interpretation of the Army’s intricately-detailed grooming policies. On paper, soldiers are forbidden “extreme, eccentric and trendy” hairstyles, including dreadlocks (aptly described by the Army as “unkempt, twisted, matted, individual parts of hair”) and hair colored with exotic hues like “fire engine red, fluorescent and neon.” Goatees and beards are big no-nos, and even mustaches should be carefully measured so as to never “extend sideways beyond a vertical line drawn upward from the corners of the mouth.” And that Prince Albert [NSFW] you love showing off in the chow hall? Think again, champ: All body piercings, including those on “surfaces of the body not readily visible” are out of bounds. |
Chandler’s put out a call for commentary on his Facebook page, and has already elicited nearly 500 comments — many of them supportive — from soldiers. And with hundreds of troops already heading home and 41,000 slated to return from Iraq by Christmas, they’re likely embracing the chance to — finally! — debate such frivolous fodder as the do’s and don’ts of fingernail polish and tramp stamps. |
$60 million will go a long way in supporting the mission of Shriners Hospitals for Children.
His life’s desire was to leave his full estate to the organization he loved and worked to support throughout his lifetime: Shriners Hospitals for Children. On Oct. 22, the hospitals’ officials will gather in St. Louis with A.B. Hudson’s family and friends to honor him for a gift of more than $60 million, the largest in the organization’s nearly 90-year history.
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Known widely throughout Kansas as a rancher, businessman, entrepreneur, inventor and benefactor, A.B. Hudson passed away in 2008 at the age of 84 at his home in Wichita Falls. |
“It humbles us to know that someone of Mr. Hudson’s accomplishments had the lifetime desire to leave his estate to Shriners Hospitals for Children,” said Douglas E. Maxwell, president and CEO of the international pediatric hospital system. “This is the largest single gift any one donor has given to our hospitals, and it’s perfectly fitting that we name our St. Louis hospital in his memory.”
Hudson’s daughter, Michele Rothe, members of her family, and numerous friends, employees and colleagues of Mr. Hudson’s will gather in St. Louis for the special ceremony in his honor Saturday, Oct. 22, at 4:30 p.m. |
I saw this not too long ago at the Korean market near where I work. I see a lot of practical reasons to go this route. It is lighter, and thus cheaper to ship, it stacks better, and it is easier to open with bumbling, drunken fingers. Seriously, this is a great idea. I like even more how target sells its brand of wine - in containers that look almost like juice boxes. that is even better than milk containers like this. Ecohols series by German designer Jörn Beyer features alcoholic beverages packaged in cartons instead of distinctive glass bottles. |
I think this article sums up the attitude of a new generation of Freemasons. From what I have seen, what the younger brothers are looking for is a meaningful experience, not a social fraternity, although that is part of the package and very much enjoyed. the bottom line is that if we want our society to prosper, we need to make it attractive enough for people to pursue. We can't hand out the title of Master Mason like it is penny candy. Folks need to earn that title. They need to do something to get it.
As a younger member myself, both in time and age (40), and as master of my lodge, I know that I have a pivotal role to play to help instill the "right" way of bringing in new members. It's tough to change the old ways but I feel good about my efforts to bring the lodge back on track. What happens next year, under different leadership, is a different story. I can't account for that, and can only hope that things continue as I think they should. My generation wants the old school brotherhood, the fun and the fraternity. We want the brandy and cigars. We also want the esoteric stuff. We want to earn it. We want the rituals. We want the Jedi, the Hogwarts. There is no need for a new book or anything fancy. Just put what I have suggested into motion and viola, our Craft is back on track. It has to start at the top and from the grassroots. |
Young Freemasons have to do their part. Hang in there with your lodge. Don’t start a new one. Start living these reforms. Be patient and loving to your older brothers. Show some respect. They kept it alive this long when our fathers wouldn’t join. Eventually, we will outlive the naysayers and we will be Freemasonry. Just maintain quality and wait. It will be our Masonic conspiracy. |
However, I do think you can learn things in the other rites AND they are a big part of our tradition. So do them if you can. I am going to. Just know you don’t have to do them to be complete. That is bunk. It’s a sales pitch and a recruiting gimmick, but its not truthful. You don’t need them to get further light. You need internet access and a stack of books. However, I appreciate them so I plan on supporting them. I only say what I have said to help the Master Mason out there who might feel like he is missing something . YOU AREN’T. |
As far as the York Rite is concerned, just keep doing your thing. I have no advice for the Shrine, either. It is what it is. People either love it or hate it. It doesn’t claim to have any secrets and they help a lot of people. And the hats are classic. Just keep helping those kids brothers! |
(TAMPA, Fla.) As parents flood the stores to prepare for the new school year, new backpacks for their children are likely on many shopping lists. There are many factors to consider when choosing the most appropriate one. |
When shopping for a backpack it is important to find one that is no wider than the child’s chest, has adjustable and padded straps, includes a waist strap, is made of lightweight material and has several compartments. “A backpack that is adjustable helps bring the weight closer to the upper part of the back, where the body can more efficiently carry the load with larger muscles of the back,” said Robert Cho, M.D., orthopaedic surgeon at Shriners Hospitals for Children® — Los Angeles. “A waist strap helps to distribute the load to the lower body and legs so that the shoulders do not bear all of the weight.” |
It is also helpful to make sure a child is only packing what is necessary for the day and to distribute these items evenly throughout the compartments, with the heaviest objects placed closest to the child’s back. It is recommended that kids carry no more than 10 to 15 percent of their bodyweight in their backpacks. |
“Too much weight in a child’s backpack can lead to muscular strain and back pain, which can limit physical functioning and can even lead to poorer overall health,” said Dr. Cho. “I recommend either minimizing the amount of textbooks carried in a backpack, or using a rolling backpack, if allowed by the child’s school.” |
Placement of the backpack is also important. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, the best place to carry a backpack is between the neck and curve of the lower back – not far below the waist, as is often popular among the kids. |
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This is one of my new favorite blogs. She has some great tips on lots of different things, but since it is crab season (I guess), this seems particularly relevant. Eating blue crabs is an integral part of Maryland’s culture. And for my mother it approaches the level of religious event. So I thought I’d pick her brain (pun intended) for some newbie tips. |
8. Get your beverages lined up before you sit down ( at least one frosty cold beer is essential)…. once your get your hands all messy you are not going to want to get up to get something to drink. Depending on the spice factor of your crabs you may need several beverages. If you are drinking soda an extra glass of ice at the ready is helpful. |
4. Go to the bathroom before you sit down. As with getting something to drink… you will not want to get up to go once your hands are coated with crab spice. |
2. Don’t smash the claws. Although everyone has their own method it is essential that you not follow the example of people who smash the claws. Place the blade of your knife of the claw, tap gently with the mallet until a single crack appears in the claw. You can then snap the claw into two pieces and extract the meat without a lot of little pieces of shell. |
Many digital hearing aids nowadays are coming with Bluetooth functionality. It is an obvious tie-in but something I had never considered. Very cool and a great idea! Hearing aid technology has come a long way in the last few years, thanks to the computer microchip and digital circuitry. Here are some of the latest innovations. |
Bluetooth Connectivity
Today, a number of hearing aids come with a Bluetooth® device that serves as a gateway between your hearing instruments and electronic devices such as Bluetooth®-enabled mobile phones or external audio sources. The audio signal is picked up by the Bluetooth® device, and streamed directly into the hearing instruments. In addition to enjoying hands-free binaural connection to phones, you are able to connect to TVs, PCs, mp3 players and car navigation systems; and hear those sounds through your hearing aids. |
Interesting. I love reading the Stratfor security briefs I get in my email. I highly recommend signing up for this service. With the Palestinians demonstrating and the International Monetary Fund in turmoil, it would seem odd to focus this week on something called the Visegrad Group. But this is not a frivolous choice. What the Visegrad Group decided to do last week will, I think, resonate for years, long after the alleged attempted rape by Dominique Strauss-Kahn is forgotten and long before the Israeli-Palestinian issue is resolved. The obscurity of the decision to most people outside the region should not be allowed to obscure its importance. |
The region is Europe — more precisely, the states that had been dominated by the Soviet Union. The Visegrad Group, or V4, consists of four countries — Poland, Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Hungary — and is named after two 14th century meetings held in Visegrad Castle in present-day Hungary of leaders of the medieval kingdoms of Poland, Hungary and Bohemia. The group was reconstituted in 1991 in post-Cold War Europe as the Visegrad Three (at that time, Slovakia and the Czech Republic were one). The goal was to create a regional framework after the fall of Communism. This week the group took an interesting new turn. |
On May 12, the Visegrad Group announced the formation of a “battle group” under the command of Poland. The battle group would be in place by 2016 as an independent force and would not be part of NATO command. In addition, starting in 2013, the four countries would begin military exercises together under the auspices of the NATO Response Force. |
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