Awesome and Creative Sink Designs

If you would like to give your bathroom an especially fancy and modern feel, then creative bathroom decor items could do the trick. Sinks for example if chosen smartly can enhance the opulence of any modern bathroom. What could be more basic and functionally unchanging as a sink? Today, designers are abandoning the generic, water-intensive styles of old and popping up with new designs that are heavily influenced by the natural world. Gone are the days when sinks and wash basins were ruled by right angles and flat surfaces. Today you have what I call WOW designs to pick from. From a nature inspired washbasin to a suggestively sexy one, meet 18 most creative sinks that certainly create a splash.

Origin Sink by Nothing Design Group.

Water Dance by Balin Le.

Vessels Leaf Sink

Erosion sink

Swing Sink

Ammonite washbasin.

The Abisko Washbasin by Eumar Santhenica and Johan Kauppi.

X-Light Surround Basin by Jan Puylaert.

Ebony charming wooden wash sink.

Glowing Snail Basin by Di Shen.

Splash Sink

Trendy Iris washbasin by Ekateryna Sokolova.

Crystal Wall Sink by Urbinati.

Dimara Sink from Ardino.

Glass Sink from Cogliati.

Folding Washbasin by Andrew Fowkes.

Bandini Ocean Sinks

Monasteries Hidden in The Mountains

I think these are some of the most beautiful monasteries. Hidden in the mountains, so close to the sky, they are quiet shelters far far away from secular society. No matter the religion, these isolated wonders remain an expression of pure faith and peace beyond time and space. Some of them are still inhabited, others, forgotten will become dust with time.

 St George Monastery, Wadi Qilt, Israel

The monastery, originally dedicated to the Virgin, was founded about 480. It flourished in the sixth century but was destroyed by the Persians in 614 and thereafter was abandoned. The present buildings were erected between 1878 and 1901. The church dedicated to the Mother of God has fine icons and wall paintings; the church of St John and St George preserves a sixth century mosaic pavement. In a cave are the remains of the monks who were killed during the Persian advance on Jerusalem.

Xuan Kong Temple, near Datong, China

In China’s Shanxi Province around 500km (300 miles) south west of Beijing is located The Hanging Temple (named Xuan Kong Si). This amazing structure is one of the most precarious structures in the world. Long wooden beams extend from the outer edge of the temple buildings down to holes chiseled into the massive rock face.

Anapafsa Monastery, Meteora, Greece

The Greek word Meteora means “suspended in the air”, and our words meteorite and meteorology come from the same root. The conglomerate rock at Meteora, Greece, has eroded into fantastic peaks upon which medieval monks built monasteries, several of which are still active. The isolated monasteries of Meteora helped keep alive Greek Orthodox religious traditions and Hellenic culture during the turbulent Middle Ages and Ottoman Turk occupation of Greece (1453-1829).

Djurdjevi Stupovi Monastery, Serbia

Djurdjevi Stupovi Monastery in Ras ,Republic of Serbia,near Novi Pazar was founded by the first Serbian ruler Stefan Nemanja in 1170-1171 according to the incarved inscription from the main church portail. It was built on a hilltop near old Ras and its location is a significant point in the area at his new just established state with the tour of Ras as a capital.

Petra Monastery, Jordan

Petra is a historic and archaeological city in the Jordanian governorate of Ma’an that has rock cut architecture and water conduits system. Established sometime around the 6th century BC as the capital city of the Nabataeans, it is a symbol of Jordan as well as its most visited tourism attraction. It lies on the slope of Mount Hor in a basin among the mountains which form the eastern flank of Arabah (Wadi Araba), the large valley running from the Dead Sea to the Gulf of Aqaba. Petra is an UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1985.

Madonna del Sasso, Switzerland

High up above the town of Locarno, there is a sanctuary located on a forested cliff; Madonna del Sasso. Sasso means rock, so hopefully I won’t be struck down for translating it as Madonna on the Rocks. The church was consecrated in the 19th century when a local monk, Brother Bartholomeo, claimed that the Madonna had appeared before him whilst walking in the woods.

Popa Mountain Monastery, Myanmar

Rising majestically out of the plains of central Burma, 2,417 feet up in the air atop an ancient, sheer-sided volcanic plug, the Buddhist monastery of Popa Taungkalat surveys the surrounding scene. An amazing example of a human construction merged organically with its natural setting, Taung Kalat also draws thousands of pilgrims each year because of its great spiritual significance. More about this monastery here

Glojene Monastery, Bulgaria

According to the legend, the monastery was built in the 13th century (1224), when Ukrainian knyaz Georgi Glozh settled in the area with Ivan Asen II’s approval. The knyaz founded a monastery carrying the name of St George, whose icon he had brought with himself. The icon then disappeared numerous times only to be found on a hill not far from the village of Glozhene, which was interpreted by the monks as a divine sign to move the monastery there. This was eventually done near the end of the 14th century.

Le Mont Saint Michel, France

Mont-St-Michel (also written Mont Saint Michel) is a small rocky island about 1 km from the north coast of France at the mouth of the Couesnon River in Normandy. The mount is best known for the medieval Benedictine Abbey and steepled church that occupies most of the 1km-diameter clump of rocks jutting out of the waters of the English Channel.

An Olympic Village Reality Check

A number of people have suggested that I have been too silent in responding to those who blame the NPA for the current situation at Olympic Village. To them I say I do not think there is a lot of benefit in continuing to treat this project as a 'political football'. However, I do think there is benefit in trying to understand how we got to where we are, in order to assess how best to resolve the situation and make sure we don't get into a similar situation again in the future.

The following is a modified version of an email I sent this morning to a number of people in the media who are writing about the Olympic Village, as well as a few city staff. Rather than send copies to everyone affected, I have decided to post a slightly modified version of my notes below:

As we all analyse how we got into the current situation, and how we get out of it, here are a few matters that I think need to be checked out with real estate experts as you write future articles and the city prepares further fiscal analyses related to the Olympic Village Project:

1. Is the Mayor correct in saying it's naive to bring more units onto the market, in response to the suggestion that the social and rental housing units be sold?

2. What is the average cost of the condominium units, in terms of dollars per square foot, and what is the likely rent? On this basis, is there a business case for renting these units out, as Raymond Louie is quoted as saying? Would the city ever recover its costs and land payment? (as an aside, my understanding is the average price is in the range of $1100 to $1300, or more. The rent is not likely to be more than $2.50 a foot, given the larger unit sizes. On this basis, the numbers will not work, especially when adding in the future repair and renovation costs, etc.unless there is a significant increase in market values. Furthermore....

3. This is a minor consideration, but if the units are retained by the city and rented out, just how much property tax money would be lost over 10 years? Was this factored into the business case? (my guess, and this is just a guess, the annual property taxes are in the order of $7,000 per unit x 450 units x an annual increase x ten years....that's probably $40 million right there!)

4. How much does the decision on the future of the Social Housing units affect the overall revenue projections. For instance, in addition to saving subsidy costs, and recovering costs and possibly a small profit, are the condominiums worth less if the social housing units remain as social housing? If so, how much less?

I would like to think that the UDI members who initially advised the city could provide some assistance in addressing these questions.

5. In addition, how significant is the 'obligation' to the International Olympic Committee? Should this reallybe a factor in the city's decision on how best to proceed?

While some like to blame previous councils for the current situation, the following are some of the factors that I think are responsible for where we are now:

1. The initial decision to offer the site to one developer. It was too many units for any one firm to build and market in an effective way.
   
2. Millennium's initial bid, at a time of rising prices, was too high for the land. As a result, they started off very badly. The high price also led to their decision to build very high end units
3. The law department's insistance that the city not transfer title until the project was completed. Unfortunately, Millennium and its lawyers did not fully understand the ramifications of this, until they tried to arrange financing;
4. Millennium's choice of architects. Merrick and Erickson were both talented firms, but the wrong choice for this project; Their designs were very inefficient, not truly respecting market realities and very expensive to achieve. At one point, Millennium wanted to use other architects but wasn't allowed to do so. GBL, the architects for the social housing are an experienced firm; but they saw this as a chance to design the most impressive social housing in the world, and they tried to. That too was a mistake;
5. The extensive and confused community direction, and the Planning Department's interference in the planning process. Directors of Planning and other city staff have often talked about how much they influenced the design of the overall plan, the streetscapes and buildings
   
6. The decision to make this the greenest project in the world, and a LEED Platinum award winner; None of us really know just how much this added to the cost...but as I have often told Frances Bula, it's not 5 or even 10%...it's more.
   
7. Poor project management by Millennium who had a very small staff, and had never undertaken such a large project. The company has created some very beautiful and successful projects, but was completely over its head on this one;
8. Poor project management by some city staff, especially related to the Social Housing in terms of the initial program, unit sizes, building efficiency, specifications. In part, this might have been due to all the other projects they were having to deal with. There was also an absence of involvement by the Province, who normally are involved. BC Housing let the city make mistakes on its own. This was a very unusual situation;
9. A difficult bidding climate. The project was put out to bid at a time of rising costs. ITC is an excellent contractor and Metro Can was also very experienced. I have never worked with them so cannot comment further But as I noted in Frances Bula's Vancouer Magazine article, Millennium has had past difficulties in its dealings with contractors since they often participate in certain aspects of the construction themselves. This impacted the initial bids, and the subsequent cost of change orders, etc;
10. The world global crisis. Most of us never expected the dramatic events that happened. For instance, while I didn't know much about Fortress, I never expected them to get into such serious trouble, and I admit to saying as much in a CTV interview in fall 2008;
11. The city staff's recommendation to Council that the city guarantee the loan to Fortress in order to ensure that the project was completed on time. While some would say the city had no choice given the need to complete by an imovable deadline, there were other options that could have been implemented at the time. It is unfortunate that the city councillors were either not presented, or did not appear to understand the full legal and financial ramifications of this decision.
    
12. The timetable related to the project, and deadline to complete. It is interesting that one major developer recently told me he didn't bid since he was concerned when Larry Campbell was Mayor that it was taking too long to get the project started.

Now, in terms of moving forward, I still believe the city could recover its costs for the social housing and market rental housing by selling the units as 'fettered ownership'. I don't think this is naive. They could be offered as leasehold, and carefully positioned and priced to not inappropriately compete with the market housing. One idea might be to follow the lead of earlier phases of South False Creek and give purchasers the option of prepaying the lease, or making monthly/annual payments perhaps on a pre-determined graduated payment scale, with lower payments in initial years. This could enhance affordability and broaden the community mix.

The alternative, for me is problematic due to the cost of subsidizing the units, even the market rental units. As noted above, I do not believe Vision councillors are correct in believing these units are not being 'subsidized'. They are being subsidized, when you cnsider the amount of equity the city will have to put in, with little or no return. When you add in the lost revenues on the land, the 'subsidy' is even greater.

One of the concerns I have with retaining the social housing as social housing, is that both the Mayor and the Portland Hotel Society have spoken about the need to house the homeless. The PHS has only been involved with housing the hard-to-house... the drug addicted and those with mental illness. Even if that's not who the city wants or expects to move in, this is now the public perception. The stated desire by one councillor to fill the units up quickly could exacerbate the problem.

My other concern is that the income and social disparity between the potential social housing residents and the residents of the market units is too great. We had the same potential problem at Bayshore and addressed it by relocating some of the social housing to another site, with support by politicians on the right and the left. The current proposal will not only reduce the value of the condominium units, it could result in a less than desirable community.

In terms of selling the market units, I think there are advantages and disadvantages to a number of options. Again, those lenders who have been in similar situations are in a position to offer better insights. However, from my limited experience with similar situations, the solution is not always as obvious as some lay people might assume.

One day this will be a very attractive and lively community. However a lot of wise decisions need to be made in the coming months, in order for this to happen. I hope these remarks are helpful in explaining my concerns and viewpoints and resolving the outstanding challenges.

Howl Found NOT Obscene 1957

"Howl" is a poem written by Allen Ginsberg in 1955 and published as part of his 1956 collection of poetry titled Howl and Other Poems. The poem is considered to be one of the seminal works of the Beat Generation along with Jack Kerouac's On the Road (1957), and William S. Burroughs's Naked Lunch (1959). "Howl" was originally written as a performance piece, but it was later published by poet Lawrence Ferlinghetti of City Lights Books. The poem was originally considered to be obscene, and Ferlinghetti was arrested and charged with its publication. On October 3, 1957 Judge Clayton W. Horn ruled that the poem was not obscene, and "Howl" went on to become the most popular poem of the Beat Generation.

Edgar A. Poe Found Delirious in Baltimore

On September 27, 1849, Edgar A. Poe left Richmond, Virginia, on his way home to New York. No reliable evidence exists about Poe's whereabouts until a week later on October 3, when he was found delirious on the streets of Baltimore, outside Ryan's Tavern (sometimes referred to as Gunner's Hall). A printer named Joseph W. Walker sent a letter requesting help from an acquaintance of Poe, Dr. Joseph E. Snodgrass. His letter reads:

“Dear Sir—There is a gentleman, rather the worse for wear, at Ryan's 4th ward polls, who goes under the cognomen of Edgar A. Poe, and who appears in great distress, and he says he is acquainted with you, and I assure you, he is in need of immediate assistance. Yours, in haste, Jos. W. Walker”

Snodgrass later claimed the note said that Poe was "in a state of beastly intoxication," but the original letter proves otherwise.

Snodgrass's first-hand account describes Poe's appearance as "repulsive," with unkempt hair, a haggard, unwashed face and "lusterless and vacant" eyes. His clothing, Snodgrass said, which included a dirty shirt but no vest and unpolished shoes, was worn and did not fit well. Dr. John Joseph Moran, who was Poe's attending physician, gives his own detailed account of Poe's appearance that day: "a stained faded, old bombazine coat, pantaloons of a similar character, a pair of worn-out shoes run down at the heels, and an old straw hat." Poe was never coherent long enough to explain how he came to be in this condition, and it is believed the clothes he was wearing were not his own, not least because wearing shabby clothes was out of character for Poe.

Moran cared for Poe at the for-profit Washington College Hospital on Broadway and Fayette Street. He was denied any visitors and was confined in a prison-like room with barred windows in a section of the building reserved for drunk people. Poe is said to have repeatedly called out the name "Reynolds" on the night before his death, though no one has ever been able to identify the person to whom he referred. One possibility is that he was recalling an encounter with Jeremiah N. Reynolds, a newspaper editor and explorer who may have inspired the novel The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket. Another possibility is Henry R. Reynolds, one of the judges overseeing the Fourth Ward Polls at Ryan's Tavern, who may have met Poe on Election Day. Poe may have instead been calling for "Herring," as the author had an uncle-in-law in Baltimore named Henry Herring. In fact, in later testimonies Moran avoided reference to Reynolds but mentioned a visit by a "Misses Herring." He also claimed he attempted to cheer Poe up during one of the few times Poe was awake. When Moran told his patient that he would soon be enjoying the company of friends, Poe allegedly replied that "the best thing his friend could do would be to blow out his brains with a pistol."

In Poe's distressed state, he made reference to a wife in Richmond. He may have been hallucinating, thinking that his wife, Virginia, was still alive, or he may have been referring to Sarah Elmira Royster, to whom he had recently proposed. He did not know what had happened to his trunk of belongings which, it transpired, had been left behind at the Swan Tavern in Richmond. Moran reported that Poe's final words were "Lord, help my poor soul" before dying on October 7, 1849.

Twilight Zone Premieres 1959

The Twilight Zone is an American anthology television series created by Rod Serling, which ran for five seasons on CBS from 1959 to 1964. The series consisted of unrelated episodes depicting paranormal, futuristic, dystopian, or simply disturbing events; each show typically featured a surprising plot twist and was usually brought to closure with some sort of message. The series was also notable for featuring both established stars (e.g. Cliff Robertson, Ann Blyth, Jack Klugman) and younger actors who would later became famous (e.g. Robert Redford, William Shatner, Mariette Hartley, Shelley Fabares). Rod Serling served as executive producer and head writer; he wrote or co-wrote 92 of the show's 156 episodes. He was also the show's host, delivering on- or off-screen monologues at the beginning and end of each episode. During the first season, except for the season's final episode, Serling's narrations were off-camera voiceovers; he only appeared on-camera at the end of each show to promote the next episode (footage that was removed from syndicated versions but restored for DVD release, although some of these promotions exist today only in audio format).

The "twilight zone" itself is not presented as being a tangible plane, but rather a metaphor for the strange circumstances befalling the protagonists. Serling's opening and closing narrations usually summarized the episode's events in tones ranging from cryptic to pithy to eloquent to unsympathetic, encapsulating how and why the main character(s) had "entered the Twilight Zone."

gandhi jayanti sms, 2 october, mahatma gandhi jayanti quotes

Today is 2 october 2010 and its gandhi jayanti. people around the world is searching for gandhi jayanti sms, gandhi jayanti quotes, gandhi jayanti greetings, gandhi jayanti, gandhi jayanthi, quotes on gandhi jayanti, lal bahadur shastri, 2 october, 2 october birthday, mahatma gandhi biography, mahatma gandhi, lal bahadur shastri biography. You can find here mahatma gandhi quotes, mahatma gandhi, gandhi quotes, mahatma gandhi pictures, mahatma gandhi biography, mahatma gandhi sms.

“Always aim at complete harmony of thought and word and deed. Always aim at purifying your thoughts and everything will be well.”

“Be the change you want to see in the world.”

“Whenever you are confronted with an opponent. Conquer him with love.”

“Nobody can hurt me without my permission.”

“There is nothing that wastes the body like worry, and one who has any faith in God should be ashamed to worry about anything whatsoever”

“The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.”

“I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.”

“I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.”

“We must become the change we want to see.”

“What do I think of Western civilisation? I think it would be a very good idea.”

“Whenever you have truth it must be given with love, or the message and the messenger will be rejected”

“An eye for eye only ends up making the whole world blind.”

“My imperfections and failures are as much a blessing from God as my successes and my talents and I lay them both at his feet.”

“The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.”

“Earth provides enough to satisfy every man’s need, but not every man’s greed”

“The Roots of Violence: Wealth without work, Pleasure without conscience, Knowledge without character, Commerce without morality, Science without humanity, Worship without sacrifice, Politics without principles”

“You can chain me, you can torture me, you can even destroy this body, but you will never imprison my mind.”

“Men often become what they believe themselves to be. If I believe I cannot do something, it makes me incapable of doing it. But when I believe I can, then I acquire the ability to do it even if I didn’t have it in the beginning.”

“The most heinous and the most cruel crimes of which history has record have been committed under the cover of religion or equally noble motives”

“The difference between what we do and what we are capable of doing would suffice to solve most of the world’s problems”

Desh k liye jisne vilas ko thukraya tha, Tyag videshi dhage usne khud hi khaadi banaya tha,Pehen k kaath ki chappal jisne Satyagrahe ka raag sunaya tha. Desh ka tha anmol wo deepak jo Mahatman Kehlaya tha

LECTURER: Write a note on Gandhi Jayanti.

CIRCUIT WRITES: Gandhi was a great man,

but maa kasam i dont know who is Jayanti.

Koi locha-lafda hoga buddhe ka!

“Ye mamu aaj Bapu ka janmadin hai,

Boleto Gandhi jayanti hai!

To mast me bapu ko yaad karane ka,

Aur is msg ko dosto me frwd karke.

Gandhigiri phailane ka kya mamu??

Happy Gandhi Jayanti!!”

Ye mamu aaj Bapu ka janmadin hai, Boleto Gandhi jayanti hai.to mast me bapu ko yad karane ka.aur is msg ko dosto me frwd karke Gandhigiri phailane ka kya mamu.

Santa: Sir

Gandhi Ji Ke Sar Pe

Baal Q Nahi The?

Sir> Intelligent

Logo Ki Nishani He

Santa> Ha

Tabi To

Ladkio Ke Itne

Lambe Baal Hote He !

CIRCUIT-Bhai, GANDHI JAYANTI

Ke Bare Me Batao.

MUNNA BHAI-Gandhi Mast,

Solid Admi Tha.

Par JAYANTI Ke Sath Kya Lafda Tha,

Ye Apun Nahi Janta

Similarity between Gandhiji & Mallika…?

Dono ne kapde tyag diye, ek ne desh ke liye, doosre ne Deshwasion ke liye!…….hahahah……;)

Munnabhai:Ye gandhi Bapu har note par haste kyu rehte hai?

Cicuit:Simple hai bhai…

Royenge to note geela nahi ho jayega!!

Teacher :What happened in 1869?

Student:Gandhi ji was born.

Teacher :What happened in 1873?

Student:Gandhiji was four years old.

Ek bar Gandhiji k head par 8-10 baal aaye.Wo Barbar k paas gaye.Barbar angry me pucha CUT karu ya COUNT karu? Gandhiji sharmake COLOUR Karo

Munna Bhai: Aay circuit, baapu bole to

gandhi ji kapde kyu nahi pehantay thay?

Circuit: Bhai bole toh bapu bhi us

time ke salmaan khan thay!!!

What’s the difference between Gandhi, Musharraf &Lalu?

Gandhi didn’t know what’s lie.

Musharraf doesn’t know what’s truth.

Lalu doesn’t know the difference!

Dear Friends

I m collecting Gandhiji’s Photos

I need ur help

Tumhare ghar pe jitne bhi 500/1000 ke notes ho, mere pas bhej dena.

Desh k liye jisne vilas ko thukraya tha,

Tyag videshi dhage usne khud hi khaadi banaya tha,

Pehen k kaath ki chappal jisne Satyagrahe ka raag sunaya tha..

Tags: gandhi jayanti quotes, Mahatma Gandhi Quotes, famous quotes, martin luther king quotes, mahatma gandhi quotes on education, mahatma gandhi quotes indian, action quotes mahatma gandhi, learning quotes mahatma gandhi, famous mahatma gandhi quotes, mahatma gandhi quotes love