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Turtle Power: Loggerhead and Green Sea Turtles returned to the sea from rehab in Israel – Video

Posted By on August 24, 2012

24-08-2012 04:58 Four endangered turtles have been returned to the sea from an Israeli rescue centre. Report by Rob Gillett. Like us on Facebook at and follow us on Twitter at

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Turtle Power: Loggerhead and Green Sea Turtles returned to the sea from rehab in Israel - Video

What's New to do in San Fernando Valley, greater Los Angeles and surrounding areas for the week beginning Friday, Aug …

Posted By on August 24, 2012

John Legend performs Saturday at the H20 Music Festival. (AP Photo/Jim Cooper, File)

Tickets: $11-$164. For information, visit http://www.hollywoodbowl.com or call 323-850-2000.

'CHAIlights -- Celebrating 18 years of Jewish Music' Join the Los Angeles Jewish Symphony and conductor Noreen Green for this milestone program of music reflecting two mainstreams of Jewish culture and heritage, Ashkenazic and Sephardic. The concert takes

Snoop Dogg -- who recently changed his name to Snoop Lion -- performs at Saturday's H20 Music Festival. (AP Photo/Jason DeCrow, file)

Tickets: $12-$36. To purchase, visit http://www.fordtheatres.org or call 323-461-3673.

H20 Music Festival John Legend, Snoop Dogg, Paulina Rubio, Intocable and other top music entertainers take part in Saturday's day-long concert and lifestyle festival at Los Angeles State Historic Park, 1245 N. Spring St. In addition to two main stages featuring established and emerging artists, the event put on by Univision Radio includes a festival marketplace, watering holes, cool-down tents, gaming areas and more. The kick-off is 3 p.m. Additional performers include Wisin y Yandel, Gym Class Heroes, Ozomatli, Paty Cantu and Alex Cuba. For the complete lineup, visit h20musicfestival.com.

Tickets: $25-$130. To purchase, visit http://www.ticketmaster.com or call 800-745-3000.

A Flock of Seagulls and Gene Loves Jezebel: 7:30 p.m. Friday. Tickets $23. House of Blues Sunset Strip, 8430 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood. 323-848-5100. http://www.livenation.com

The Kevin Toney Three: 8 p.m. Friday. Tickets $20-$50. Vitello's Jazz and Supper Club, 4349 Tujunga Ave., Studio City. 818-769-0905. http://www.ticketweb.com

Viva Cantina: Wreck N Sow, bluegrass and Western, 8:30 p.m. Friday; Slugger O'Toole, Irish, 8:30

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For artist Tom Laudenslager, it's a vase lovely as a tree

Posted By on August 23, 2012

In talking with Coopersburg artist Tom Laudenslager, that most famous and simple work penned by American poet Joyce Kilmer comes to mind: I think that I shall never see A poem lovely as a tree. Kilmer held such fascination for this creation in his art of the written word. Laudenslager artfully translates his own fascination into interpretive sculpture of bonsai-inspired vases.

At his Flint Hill Studio in Coopersburg, Lehigh Co., Laudenslager focuses primarily on bonsai, or bonsai-like trees for his unique creations in stoneware or porcelain clay. His work is currently on exhibit at The Gallery at the JCC (Jewish Community Center) in Allentown, through Sept. 14. Laudenslager is sharing gallery space with award-winning landscape and wildlife photographer P.B. Buddy Eleazer, and his works of the Lehigh Valley themed Stories Along the Road.

Ive always been fascinated by the study of trees, said Laudenslager, who refers to them as the most noble of subjects. Hes spent nearly four decades in drawing, painting, photography and sculpting, but its only been the last 20 years that hes been perfecting techniques with clay as his primary medium of expression. The last eight years have been occupied with sculpting bonsai vases which he exhibited locally at Stahls Pottery in Zionsville.

The Lehigh Valley native admits hes no green thumb when it comes to growing bonsai. He said it was during a family vacation in Montreal eight years ago when he was inspired after visiting botanical gardens filled with bonsai. His fascination surfaced in the many sketches and photographs he brought back home. He said his first attempts with bonsai imagery were so labor-intensive that he backed off for a while before investigating different ways to make the process work for him. He recalled that attempting cutaways in a piece created monumental problems regarding its strength, but he refused to give up. The whole process of invention, tweaking and revising still goes on for me as an artist, he said.

Laudenslagers work begins as a vase form, perhaps with its front face removed to reveal an interior back wall of glaze. Eventually it will be transformed to pure sculpture, perhaps resembling sky or a waterfall. Works become little more than ground, trunk, and delicate lattice work of branches and foliage. Constructed with traditional hand-built slabs, Laudenslagers forming techniques resemble those a metal smith or fine woodworker might use. Fuse-colored glass, stains, paints and patinas are just some of the materials that may be used.

Laudenslager has been an art instructor for more than 30 years, primarily in ceramics, photography, art history, and drawing. Twenty of those years have been in the Souderton Area School District, Upper Montgomery County, currently at Souderton Area High School. A graduate of Saucon Valley High School, he obtained bachelor and masters degrees in education at Kutztown University and pursued further studies at Tyler School of Art, University of the Arts, Art New England, and Moravian College.

Most recently, hes been creating, or calibrating, flat wall pieces that incorporate bonsai trees, carved clay, photography and wood, while cutting away negative space. He admits there are many traditional ways of working with clay, but the real challenge is the interplay between different media, where boundaries are broken down. Thats something he likes to instill in his Souderton students regarding the creative process.

Its a passion of mine that students see the work you do as an artist outside of the classroom, he said. If we want kids to be excited about art, its important for them to see adults passionate about what they do. Sometimes Ill bring in a piece from my studio, where I feel a certain technique Im tackling ties into an assignment of theirs. I want them to think creatively and problem-solve. Its all part of the creative process.

Laudenslager will be exhibiting for the first time at the 42nd annual Peters Valley Fine Craft Fair at the Sussex County Fairgrounds in Augusta, NJ, Sept. 29-30, and at the Pennsylvania Guild of Craftsmen Holiday Show at the Lancaster Convention Center, Nov. 12-13.

For further info: tomlaudenslager.com allentownjcc.org

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For artist Tom Laudenslager, it's a vase lovely as a tree

What I did this summer Connecticut’s young adults go globe trotting

Posted By on August 21, 2012

Ari Jacobson

Ari Jacobson, West Hartford Byron Glacier, Alaska Ari Jacobson, 19, is a graduate of Hall High School in West Hartford and now attends American University. This month, he spent a week in Alaska as part of Extreme HD Alaska, a three-week immersive Classroom in the Wild filmmaking course offered by the American University School of Communications Center for Environmental Filmmaking. Together with four fellow undergraduates and five graduate students, Jacobson learned high-definition filmmaking skills under challenging environmental and expeditionary conditions in Alaska. The first few days were classroom sessions where we went over topics including aircraft egress, bear encounters, and ascending anddescendingrock. Most sessions were followed by a hands-on training session. For instance, after we had a classroom session on underwater aircraft egress, we were brought to a pool, put in a cage that was supposed to mimic the inside of a cockpit, and rolled into the pool to put our training to test. We were able to go rock-climbing with cameras and learned how to tie ourselves off in order to film while suspended. Some of the most valuable lessons we learned were about how to take care of our equipment in such extreme conditions. This was put to the test when we were filming on the Byron Glacier as rain swirled around us. I had to useStyrofoamandduct tapeto make an enclosure for my camera, which proved useful on the rocks as well. There were quite a few frightening experiences. Most things we did were frightening in some respect. The underwater aircraft egress training gave most of us a scare the first time we tried it; it can be very nerve-wracking being strapped in a cage and thrown head first into a pool of water. No matter how many times we practiced above water, it was extremely disorienting when we were thrown in the pool. Another experience that was frightening was rappelling off of rock faces. We had to learn to tie figure-eight knots so that we could suspend ourselves and film or take photos at the same time. Our main film project in Alaska was an instructional and promotional video for Learn To Return (LTR), the survival company we were being trained through. We filmed a few different scenes for them that would showcase their training programs as being the best around. We are also planning on editing a few other projects from all the footage we took about a terabyte! including a video that we will submit to the video of the day feature on GoPro, [a manufacturer of film equipment for outdoor, action, and extreme conditions], and a scenic and/or environmental piece. We are also allowed to take the footage and edit it into whatever we want. So now that we are back in D.C., our work has only just begun, as we have just completed tagging and organizing all of our footage. We have a presentation on Nov. 6th where we will present our experience and work to friends, family, and the AU community through the Center for Environmental Filmmaking. The course only confirmed for me that expedition and adventure film-making is what I want to be doing, at least in the immediate future. I love the outdoors, traveling, and film-making so its the perfect job for me.

One of the highlights of the Szarvas Fellowship for Russ was singing in this camp-wide performance symbolizing the six days of creation.

Doug Russ, Westport Szarvas Fellow, Camp Szarvas, Hungary Doug Russ, 17, is a graduate of Bi-Cultural Day School in Stamford and will be a senior at Staples High School in Westport. He and his family are members of The Conservative Synagogue in Westport. Russ was among 24 North American high-school students selected for the Szarvas Fellowship, a two-week program at Camp Szarvas, the largest international Jewish summer camp, in Hungary. A joint project of the Ronald S. Lauder Foundation and the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, Camp Szarvas brings together more than 2,000 Jewish campers, aged 8 to 18, from more than 25 countries. I decided to attend the Szarvas program because, after doing research on Ethiopian Jewry for a major research paper my junior year, I realized how much more is out there in the world in terms of different types of Judaism and different kinds of Jewish people. I wanted to experience sharing Jewish heritage with my Jewish peers coming to this camp from around the world, and I was eager to learn about their experiences as Jews in the countries they live in. I knew that Camp Szarvas offered an incredible opportunity to do this. Before I got to Camp Szarvas, I anticipated that I would spend most of my time in camp activities and programs with Jews from other countries, separated from most of the other Americans much of the time. Thus, I was a little anxious upon arrival, expecting to spend most of my time with non-English speakers. Luckily, many spoke English well enough to have a conversation. I was not expecting to spend as much time as we did together as a group of American teenagers from all over the country, and we built strong connections with each other as we shared our own varied experiences as American Jews. As Szarvas Fellows, we were expected to act as leaders in the camp by being outgoing toward kids of all ages (8 to 18) and fostering a general excitement and appreciation for Judaism. Beyond cheering every day in the dining hall in Hebrew, English, Hungarian, and a host of other languages, the other American fellows and I made friends from many other nations during mifgashim, which were structured activities we took part in with one country at a time. The Americans also spent a significant amount of time together in our own activities, which gave us a chance to explore our personal Jewish identity. Every day we participated as a group in a different activity focused on topics like Zionism, American Jewish identity, and the different movements of Judaism. One of the many highlights for me was being given an aliyah at an Orthodox synagogue in Budapest. It was incredible to find myself reciting the same blessings and performing the same rituals that I am used to in America, but alongside Jews who spoke a different language and were living half a world away. Another highlight was Torah study under the trees on Shabbat afternoon at the camp, where we discussed Avrahams conversation with God concerning the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. A couple other high points included singing in a camp-wide performance symbolizing the six days of creation, reading the book of Eicha for Tisha BAv, and biking through the beautiful Hungarian countryside. What surprised me most about the experience was that I discovered so much about my Jewish identity from the other American students when I was expecting to learn the most from campers representing other countries like Turkey, Croatia, India, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia. The American group set aside an hour each day at the camp to share check-ins, where, one by one, all 24 of us spent anywhere from five to 35 minutes explaining our life stories, major struggles, and Jewish journeys, followed by questions from the group. That, in addition to our separate activities focused on various Jewish topics, enabled me to me really explore my own Jewish identity, place it in the context of the other fellows identities, and more clearly define myself as a Jew and understand what it means to be Jewish. It was also the embracing of pluralism at the camp that surprised me. I was under the impression that I would be attending a camp that followed the Modern Orthodox way of doing things, when in fact it was totally acceptable to not follow Jewish law in the Orthodox manner and to celebrate whatever
type of religiosity and observance level you practice. Lastly, I did not expect to have as much free time at the camp as we did, which ended up proving so valuable in meeting, talking, and just hanging out with the other campers.

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What I did this summer Connecticut’s young adults go globe trotting

The revenge of Ayn Rand

Posted By on August 21, 2012

Ayn Rand, the novelist and philosophical thinker whose books have for decades been ignored by literature and philosophy departments, had her revenge earlier this month when Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney named sometime Randian Paul Ryan as his vice presidential pick.

"The reason I got involved in public service, by and large, if I had to credit one thinker, one person, it would be Ayn Rand," the Wisconsin congressman told the Randian Atlas Society in 2005.

The attention has generated a swell of posthumous popularity for Rand that has boosted sales of her books Atlas Shrugged and The Fountainhead, which jumped 20 percent on Amazon.com in one day last week, according to Bloomberg News Service. Atlas Shrugged ranked 132d among all books Monday on Amazon.

Ryan is the latest in a string of (usually conservative) politicians, pundits, and entrepreneurs who have acknowledged a debt to Rand, including economist and former Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan, Texas congressman and one-time White House hopeful Ron Paul, Comcast-Spectacor chairman Ed Snider, Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales, and Craigslist mastermind Craig Newman.

What's more, two of Rand's central tenets put her at center stage in the presidential elections: She defended a form of individualism so radical that it's rarely seen in mainstream politics, and she believed America could thrive only with an unregulated free-market economy.

As Ryan put it in his 2005 speech: "The fight we are in here, make no mistake about it, is a fight of individualism vs. collectivism." (Ryan, a Roman Catholic, has since distanced himself from Rand, a radical atheist.)

What makes Rand so attractive to the right?

"She's for free markets and for free minds," said William Thomas, programs director at the Atlas Society. "She's for freedom of speech . . . and she is for economic freedom: deregulation, no taxes, and a free market."

Rand biographer Anne C. Heller said the Russian-born Rand, who fled the Soviet Union in 1925, had a lifelong aversion to collectivism and extolled the idea of the self-made individual.

"Her idea of individuals is a beautiful idea. It's the best of Ayn Rand. It's about individual rights," said Heller, author of Ayn Rand and the World She Made. "The heroes in her novels, as well as her own persona, was that of the rebellious outsider, and Americans love that. We've always loved Huck Finn and Holden Caulfield."

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The revenge of Ayn Rand

The return of retro recipes

Posted By on August 21, 2012

21 August 2012 Last updated at 00:01 By Anna-Louise Taylor BBC Food

Recipes from bygone eras are making a comeback, featuring in programmes such as The Great British Bake Off. But why?

"In baking and cakes there's only six core recipes and then they're just tweaked and amended," says Paul Hollywood, master baker and presenter of BBC One's competitive baking show.

"Nowadays 'new' recipes don't really exist."

Styles of cooking from the 50s, 60s, 70s and 80s keep on returning, he says, as "what goes around comes around, just as in music, fashion and art".

In the first week of the latest series of The Great British Bake Off, in which 12 contestants compete each week to be a star baker, Mr Hollywood demanded they create a 70s French dessert: rum baba, a "hybrid of cake and bread".

"I have been doing rum babas for a long time. I began years ago in the hotels I've worked in like the Dorchester," he says.

"Picking rum baba, I felt it was time to bring it back. What we find with doing anything on Bake Off, is that is really sets it off again, like with other things we've done, like homemade sausage rolls."

But why is it time for a retro food revival?

"There's one person on Bake Off fascinated with recipes straight out of the 70s, and for anyone really, it takes them back to their youth," says Mr Hollywood.

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The return of retro recipes

GOP Reacts After Skinny Dipping Incident in Israel – Video

Posted By on August 21, 2012

20-08-2012 19:19 Rep. Kevin Yoder's behavior at Sea of Galilee rebuked by Republican leadership.

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GOP Reacts After Skinny Dipping Incident in Israel - Video

Pair arrested for armed robbery on the West Bank

Posted By on August 20, 2012

Python spotted in Uptown Triangle neighborhood Python spotted in Uptown Triangle neighborhood last week, neighbors say a snake 6 feet long was spotted on a drain right in front of Benjamin Banneker Elementary School.more> > last week, neighbors say a snake 6 feet long was spotted on a drain right in front of Benjamin Banneker Elementary School.more> > Grand Isle fire reveals armed robbery, man shot Grand Isle fire reveals armed robbery, man shot A Grand Isle man is in a New Orleans hospital recovering from a gunshot wound, after somebody set his home on fire.more> > A Grand Isle man is in a New Orleans hospital recovering from a gunshot wound, after somebody set his home on fire.more> > Final Play: Fred Hickman's Final Word Final Play: Fred Hickman's Final Word I pray for the best for Mackey and Mathieu as well as all of those coming behind them.more> > I pray for the best for Mackey and Mathieu as well as all of those coming behind them.more> > Pair arrested for armed robbery on the West Bank Pair arrested for armed robbery on the West Bank Two men from the West Bank were arrested Sunday morning after committing anarmed robbery.more> > Two men from the West Bank were arrested Sunday morning after committing anarmed robbery.more> > Booked with murder: holdup victim had heart attack Booked with murder: holdup victim had heart attack A 26-year-old man has been booked with first-degree murder of a 53-year-old who died after a holdup, apparently from a heart attack, Baton Rouge police say.more> > A 26-year-old man has been booked with first-degree murder of a 53-year-old who died after a holdup, apparently from a heart attack, Baton Rouge police say.more> > Obama, Romney pass Sunday in church, with families Obama, Romney pass Sunday in church, with families President Barack Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney spent a quiet Sunday attending church with their families, resting up for the campaign's final 11 weeks and the approaching party nominating conventions.more> > President Barack Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney spent a quiet Sunday attending church with their families, resting up for the campaign's final 11 weeks and the approaching party nominating conventions.more> > Family remembers slain St.

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Pair arrested for armed robbery on the West Bank

Humiliation: Israel’s harsh restrictions on Palestinian prayer – Video

Posted By on August 18, 2012

18-08-2012 10:41 With the holy month of Ramadan drawing to a close - Muslims around the world are flocking to mosques to celebrate. But in Palestine - that often means standing for hours at security checkpoints - only to be denied permission to pray. RT's Paula Slier reports

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Bulletin Board: Week of Aug. 13-19

Posted By on August 18, 2012

Breakfast Buffet: 8:30 to 11 a.m. Sunday, Aug. 19, Saratoga-Wilton Elks Lodge #161, 1 Elks Lane, Route 9, Saratoga Springs. $7 adults, $6 seniors/military, $5 children 5-12, under 5 free, $8 takeouts. 584-2585.

Waterford Harbor Farmers Market: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sundays through Oct., 1 Tugboat Alley, Waterford. http://www.waterfordmarket.org.

Sunday Stroll Tour: 10:30 a.m. Sunday, Aug. 19. Tours are approximately 90 minutes, rain or shine. $5 members, $8 non. Reservations encouraged but not necessary. 587-5030 or http://www.saratogapreservation.org.

Saratoga Race Course: 11 a.m. weekdays and 10:30 a.m. on weekends, daily July 20 through Sept. 3, Labor Day, except on Tuesdays. Union Ave., Saratoga Springs. Post time is 1 p.m. $3 general admission, $5 clubhouse admission, 12 and under free (must be accompanied by adult). http://www.nyra.com.

Chicago the musical: 2 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 19, Saratoga Arts Center, 320 Broadway, Saratoga Springs. Presented by the Local Actors Guild of Saratoga. 393-3496.

Old style country dance: 2 to 6 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 19, American Legion, Clancy Street, Schuylerville. Hosted by the Country Round and Square Dance Association. All are welcome. $5 adults, $2 for children 6-17 and under 6 free. Casual dress. Floyd, 747-6687 or Sandy, 824-3719.

Summertime Storytelling Series: 6 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 19, Schoharie Crossing Visitor Center, 129 Schoharie St., Fort Hunter. Warning Lights: Bright Ideas Gone Bad. Free, open to the public. Bring blankets or lawn chairs. http://www.nysparks.com or 829-7516.

Monday, Aug. 20

Saratoga Springs Preservation Foundation fundraiser: Reservations for Preservation, 5 to 9:30 p.m. Monday, Aug. 20, Chianti II Ristorante, 18 Division St., Saratoga Springs. Mention SSPF while dining and 30% of the proceeds will benefit the Foundation. Like and Check In through Facebook to raise additional funds. http://www.saratogapreservation.org.

2nd Annual Taste of Saratoga: 7 to 10 p.m. Monday, Aug. 20, Stadium Caf, Broadway, Saratoga Springs. Guest jockey chefs and silent auction. $65, buy tickets at the Stadium Caf on Broadway or The Stadium Westside, Congress St., Saratoga Springs. To benefit the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund. http://www.thestadiumcafe.com.

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Bulletin Board: Week of Aug. 13-19


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