http://www.yourchevyguys.com (aka) MTN VIEW CHEVY in Chattanooga Tennessee says LOOK WHAT I TRADED FOR!!!!
STOCK #P3569.  A 2007 MERCURY MARINER. CHECK OUT THE VIDEO THEN CONTACT US WITH ALL YOUR QUESTIONS OR FOR MORE DETAILS. 866.803.9320 AND ALWAYS CONTACT US FOR A FREE CARFAX REPORT. 

Keep the red light to starboard and you’ll safely miss the rocks on your return to harbour.  

There are many such aids to navigation for the mariner.  As there are in life.  Placing this Guerrilla Gift got us thinking about all of the beacons that help us through life—particularly when the clouds and/or night descends and the way forward gets wrapped in fog. 

We all chart a different course in life but none of us travel completely on our own.  We are helped by the usual beacons, markers and signposts of life—experience, friends, family, faith, wisdom, tradition.   

If you found this Guerrilla Gift, we hope that all of your adventures bring joy, meaning, and, at journey’s end—a safe return.

Frank Langella really needs to buy himself a better razor.

(Warner Brothers) Cameron Diaz, James Marsden, Frank Langella, James Rebhorn, Holmes Osborne, Sam Oz Stone, Gillian Jacobs, Celia Weston, Deborah Rush, Lisa K. Wyatt, Mark Cartier, Keith Robertson, Michelle Durrett. Directed by Richard Kelly

Our lives are often a test, one in which we are called to make choices between short-term self-interest and the long-term benefit of the entire species. It is a test we continue to take over and over again, not always successfully.

It is 1976, and the Mariner project is sending data back to NASA at their Langley research facility in Virginia (and if you’re not sure what state you’re in, the filmmakers helpfully tell you in big bold letters at the beginning of the film). Arthur Lewis (Marsden) is a scientist who worked on that project (he helped design the camera that sent back those shots from the surface of the Red Planet) who dreams of being an astronaut, dreams which are dashed when he receives a rejection letter from the powers-that-be.

His wife Norma (Diaz) is a teacher at a ritzy private school where their son Walter (Stone) also attends. Norma walks with a limp and has to take pain pills because of a doctor’s who left her foot under an x-ray machine until it charbroiled. She’s just been told that the school is eliminating employee discounts for student tuition, which means that the already-financially strapped family (since when does a rocket scientist not make enough to make ends meet?) will have to live even more within their means.

Enter the Mysterious Man, in this case Arlington Steward (Langella). With a severely disfigured face that looks like one of his zits might have had C4 in it as a teen, Steward bears a mysterious wooden box that contains nothing except a glass dome that can only be opened with a key, and a large red button. He gives Norma the key and explains, in clipped cultured tones, that pushing the button will accomplish two things. First, someone unknown to Norma and Arthur, somewhere in the world, will die as a result of them pushing the button. Second, they will be paid one million dollars, tax free, in large crisp hundred dollar bills. In order to demonstrate his sincerity, he gives Norma one of them “for her trouble.” The two of them have 24 hours to decide whether or not to push the button – otherwise the offer is withdrawn and the box will be given to someone else.

The couple goes back and forth. Their conscience dictates that it is never all right to kill, even for a large sum of money but their immediate needs say that a million dollars can make their lives a hell of a lot less complicated. As the minutes tick down to the deadline, one of them will make an impulsive decision that will change their lives forever, put them all in mortal danger and introduce Arthur to a mysterious conspiracy between the NSA, NASA and other governmental organizations that may affect the future of the human race.

This is based on a short story by the great Richard Matheson (and was later developed into an episode for the 1986 version of “The Twilight Zone,” albeit with a different ending) who has given us stories that have become movies like I Am Legend, What Dreams May Come, Somewhere In Time and numerous episodes of “The Twilight Zone” and “Night Gallery,” to name a few. He is one of the most imaginative writers of the 20^th century. Here what he has is a morality play that is as relevant now as it was the day it was written – the battle of short-term gain and long-term care. In other words, doing the right thing vs. doing the easy thing.

Director Kelly has an affinity for science fiction and, well, creepy stuff. He creates an atmosphere in which anyone at any time can be “an employee” as Steward terms it, his eyes and ears on the subjects of what he labels “a test.” I know I’m being a bit vague, but I don’t want to ruin any of the twists that give the movie some of its spice. One of the things I can talk about is that he nicely re-creates the era.

Langella is fabulous as the mysterious Arlington Steward. He is creepy and not quite normal but at the same time urbane, polite and charming. He tips his fedora at a jaunty angle and walks with the deliberate pace of a man who knows exactly where he needs to be and is quite sure he isn’t in a hurry to get there. Marsden also does a fine job in the lead role of the disappointed rocket scientist who goes from financial problems to fighting for his survival.

I’m not usually a big fan of Cameron Diaz – for some reason she seems a little neurotic to me usually – but she does a solid job here. There are some nice supporting roles here too, particularly the veteran character actor Rebhorn as Arthur’s boss.

One of the biggest problems with the movie is the score. Members of the Montreal-based rock band Arcade Fire are responsible for it and I was frankly quite disappointed. It’s intrusive, overbearing, somewhat cliché in places (I don’t know about you but I am quite tired of having an Important Event or a Big Scare announced with screeching strings) and comes damn close to ruining the movie. I would have preferred something toned down a bit; a bit more minimalist.

Kelly, who wrote the movie, chose to flesh out the script with a good deal of business involving the government agencies mentioned above as well as a series of nosebleeds, slack-jawed observers, a wind tunnel and mysterious gates that may very well lead to Eternal Damnation. These sideshows, while visually effective, tend to take the focus from what was the main crux of the original short story, to the detriment of the film. That’s a shame because it might have gotten a higher rating otherwise.

There are elements of science fiction, horror, political thriller and historical drama here, so you can’t say that you didn’t get your money’s worth. What you can say about The Box is that it’s got the best use of Sartre I’ve ever seen in a horror/science fiction/thriller/drama before. Hell is other people according to Sartre but in Richard Kelly’s vision, we are all caught in our own boxes that we are stuck in until we’re planted in a pine box, and what we make of it can be Hell – or it can be something else. It’s a test that the human race continues to take – and fail.

REASONS TO GO: You can’t go wrong with Richard Matheson. A modern morality play that is an essay on human nature that is even more true and contemporary now than it was when the original short story was written. Langella gives a marvelously creepy performance.

REASONS TO STAY: An overbearing score is intrusive and nearly ruins the film. Some of the action is a little bit over-the-top. It feels like the script was fleshed out with some unnecessary business.

FAMILY VALUES: Some horrific images and a few good startle scares are sure to give the little ones nightmares. Okay for teens though.

TRIVIAL PURSUIT: Director Kelly is best known for directing the cult classic Donny Darko.

HOME OR THEATER: There are a few grand effects shots and a couple of other sequences that would look better on the big screen but otherwise just as effective at home.

FINAL RATING: 7/10

TOMORROW: He’s Just Not That Into You

I am loving the Built By Wendy Fall Collection, it is doing the whole Mariner trend in a classic way!

And some more inspirational images for the Mariner trend…

 My Mariner Trend Board…

Seattle Mariner Statue BW, July 2003 ©Weatherstone/Ron Almberg, Jr. (2009)

conflicts cause confusion
words thrown like punches
accusations jab at one another
strategies dance to seek advantage
more than win a friend

words wage war
threats attempt to flank opponents
rhetoric marches forces forward
amassing arsenals of lethal language
rather than calm a foe

©Weatherstone/Ron Almberg, Jr. (2009)

Sim, as noticias sao veeeeelhas, mas eu sempre me divirto vendo os videos antigos!!!

Seattle, WA, September 14, 2009 — For those who have sailed even just once with Holland America Line, there’s now more to enjoy on future cruises. The new Mariner Society Rewards Program provides past guests with exciting new benefits from generous onboard discounts while sailing and special rates on select cruises to reduced or free third and fourth rates when booking future cruises. Benefits are tiered and vary based on a guest’s cruise history. 

“We wanted to create a program that gives our loyal Mariner members fantastic perks, cruise values and enhances that sense of pride they feel after having sailed on several cruises with Holland America Line,” said Richard D. Meadows, CTC, executive vice president, marketing, sales and guest programs. “We have one of the highest repeat guest ratios in the cruise industry and our loyal guests deserve the valuable benefits in our new Mariner Society Rewards Program.”

The Mariner Society

Rewards Program offers a four-level progressive membership with a wide range of cruise and on-board savings and extra values. All guests who sail with Holland America Line are automatically welcomed into the Mariner Society where they receive special offers on upcoming cruises as well as advance information about new ships and the latest product enhancements. Based on past cruises recorded as cruise days, members now enjoy Star memberships with four different levels offering an ever-widening range of cruise options and enhancements. Guests automatically collect additional “cruise days” or cruise day credits based on their onboard spending or through the purchase of one of the premium line’s suite options.

Star Mariner
Guests who complete their initial cruise with Holland America Line are automatically enrolled in the Mariner Society’s first level, earning cruise days towards future cruises and an exclusive collectable gift. Among the features of Star Mariner status: special offers on select sailings, 50 percent discount for third and fourth guests on select sailings, hosted sailings with Holland America Line Ambassadors, a relaxing Welcome Back Embarkation Brunch on future cruises, a subscription to the Mariner Magazine and a Mariner Champagne Brunch on future cruises.

Two-Star Mariner
After 30 cruise day credits earned, Two-Star guests receive all the amenities of a Star Mariner plus shopping discounts, featuring 15 percent off merchandise purchased from ShopHollandAmerica.com and 10 percent off logo apparel items onboard in the gift shops. Two-Star Mariners also will receive a complimentary ship photo and be sent an exclusive annual cruise planner and special recognition pin.

Three–Star Mariner
With 75 cruise days earned, Three-Star guests automatically are given all Two-Star amenities plus generous new discounts including 10 percent off on select spa treatments; a 25 percent discount on all wine packages, mini-bar purchases, Explorations Café drinks and alternative restaurant surcharges; special advanced notice of new itineraries; and a waiver of air deviation fees.

Four-Star Mariner
At the top of the tiers, with 200 cruise days earned, Four-Star guests enjoy the benefits of all Star levels below and the bonus of free fare for third and fourth guests on select sailings; complimentary wine tasting and laundry/pressing; a 50 percent discount on all wine packages, mini-bar purchases, Explorations Café drinks and alternative restaurant surcharges; a 15 percent discount on logo apparel items onboard in the gift shops; priority tender service and check-in; priority shore excursion pre-booking; and a free subscription to Food & Wine magazine or Travel + Leisure magazine.

Can you feel it??? The air is getting a little brisk.. The sun isn’t as warm.. The girls are dressing up a little bit more.. The fall chill is on it’s way and Mishka’s fall / winter collection has the pefect answer to the soon-to-be chilly nights… The ‘Mariner’ Pea Coat.

Made of thick wool the Mariner has a soft silk lining and is available in black and grey. It also features the new ‘Born Under a Bad Sign’ clover logo on the shoulder and has a contrast stitching detail to add a nice finishing touch…

Check out more at DEFINITIVE TOUCH.

Prendre des filets de bar, couper des fines tranches dans l’épaisseur (exactement comme les tranches de saumon fumé sous vide), puis les placer dans un plat.

Préparer un bon mélange d’huile d’olive et de citron, un peu de piment d’Espelette, du sel, du poivre et verser le liquide sur les fines tranches de bar. Laisser mariner au frigo 12h et le tour est joué ! Il n’y a plus qu’a picorer à l’aide de cure-dents…

Carpaccio de Bar

SHARES in Bill Ireland’s Mariner Financial fell more than 13 per cent to a little more than 1c after the company reported a full-year net loss of $61.6 million, down 6 per cent.

Total revenue fell 54 per cent to $13.6m as the company slashed costs and staff, and sold assets in a bid to stay afloat.

According to Mariner, net assets of which have been reduced from $63.9m to $2.4m in the past year, the board acknowledges significant uncertainty exists in relation to the group’s ability to meet its funding requirements.

Uncertainties relate mainly to the group’s ongoing ability to complete the remaining asset sales in market conditions that remain difficult, and the group’s ability to continue as a going concern will be reliant on its ability to renegotiate terms with remaining creditors.

Despite a difficult market, Mariner managed to raise $8.8m by selling off Turtle Beach in Queensland and the sale of its management rights to Mariner Pipeline Income Trust, Mariner American Property Income Trust, Mariner Infrastructure Trust No1 and Mariner Mortgage Trust.

The company is also trying to sell other assets including Southern Distribution Hub, Mariner Property Trust No2 and Killalea Coastal Investments.

Although the group’s principal focus has been on completing the asset sales, the group has begun implementing its new business plans to generate advisory fee income from arranging wholesale structured transaction on behalf of institutional investors.

Inspiration hit me today.

The theme is Intrigue.

The ingredients are Dividers, Stars, Seabirds, and the Fleur-de-Lis.

There’s an award for Zombies as Protagonists.

My game will be loosely based and inspired by the poem the Rime of the Ancient Mariner. It’s a story about a Mariner who, while leading his crew on a long sea voyage, kills an Albatross (seabird) and brings bad luck to his crew. You can read the wikipedia entry here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rime_of_the_ancient_mariner .

In my game, the players will play out the story of the fateful journey of another Mariner, his ship, and his crew. 

One player will be the Mariner.

One player will be the Devil. This will be played out as a sort of adversarial role to the Mariner.

The other players will undertake the role of the crew, who will be re-animated corpses.

Over the course of play, the Fate of the Mariner and his crew will be determined by the actions of different players.

Other thoughts:

DIVIDERS- I was thinking of using one of these to make a relationship web. Player’s blindfold themselves and take turns drawing circles on a piece of paper. The circles will represent different characters in the game (PCs) and (NPCs). Intersecting circles will represent some sort of important relationship between them. We’ll see.

SEABIRD- The Mariner will have killed, or have the option to kill a Seabird through the course of play. This will have an important impact on the story in SOME way, either yielding great fortune OR great complications.

STARS- Stars will be used as a way to navigate the ship to different areas, perhaps using map. I like maps. Maybe this game will be played at night, outside, by the sea. And actual constellations can be used somehow. The role I want STARS to have is to point in a direction for the story to go to next.

FLEUR-DE-LIS- will be mark which way is North on the map (see STARS, above). Unless I can think of something more appropriate. Or it could be the name of the ship.

INTRIGUE- this could come into play, if the crew plans a mutiny against the Mariner, or something of that nature.

Anyway, those are my preliminary thoughts.

Quoting Coleridge’s “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner”, John Patrick Ford explores the problem of water shortage in San Diego in his article entitled, “Water, Water Everywhere.” While the source material is an epic poem filled with allegory and imagery, the article explores the interesting paradox of water availability.

The Pacific Ocean certainly does not suffer from a dearth of water. San Diego is home to beautiful beaches and it’s shores are met with a constant flow of water. Yet, this water is filled with salt and is not fit for drinking. San Diego gets the majority of its drinking water from the San Francisco Bay Delta. As other areas, such as Long Beach, search for ways to be more self reliant for water supply, San Diego’s most logical, yet most expensive solution is a desalination plant.

If San Diego can harvest the ample water from the Pacific Ocean and turn it into drinking water, why not do it? Poseidon Resources is already constructing a Carlsbad based desalination plant. While it will be expensive, new developments in technology make it possible to cut costs in half by switching to desalination, rather than importing from the other side of the state.

The other viable option has been soured by its nickname, “toilet to tap.” The idea of purifying  grey water and making it into potable, or drinkable, water is actually a good idea, but people refuse to get behind it until they lose the stigma that it was once toilet water.

Whatever the choice, something needs to be done soon to combat the current drought in San Diego. What do you think should be done?

Read the article here.

Every sailor out there knows that it is nearly impossible to convince a landlubber just how intense sailing can be. The perception is that we float around on very slow, ugly boats while sipping cocktails. The majority of the harbor lives up to this credence (more or less), making any sailing story laughable, not to mention pushing the sport’s credibility down with the likes of cheerleading and equestrian events. Ideally there is nothing better than getting these people out on the water to experience the thrill of sailing for themselves, unfortunately it’s not always possible or convenient. In fact it’s probably best that you don’t, at least not right away: Murphy’s Law will dictate what is sure to be the hottest, most unpleasant, least windy day of the summer on your scheduled sail date. Your best bet? Videos, and more specifically youtube. While pickings were slim a few years ago (sailing isn’t the easiest thing to capture), chances are you can find some high quality stuff on the boat and conditions of your choice. With a well planned out video playlist at the ready, you can impress just about anyone. More impressive yet? If said videos are of you personally. Steady improvements in camera technology (namely resolution and memory storage) make this possible, and surprisingly affordable. GoPro and V.I.O. both have some rad video systems up for the challenge.

GoPro’s offering is the more affordable of the two: the $199 GoPro Motorsports Hero Wide Angle Camera, to stay brief we’ll call it the hero. The hero is a 5 megapixel digital camera sealed in a ”quick release” waterproof/shock-resistant case, with a 172 degree wide angle lens. For your money you also get: an assortment of mounts, clips, and buckles; a 2GB SD memory card, 4 rechargeable batteries, a USB/RCA combo cable, and a one year warranty. The camera shoots in full video (with audio), as well as a “photo every 2 seconds mode”, with all exposure and white balance settings adjusting automatically. The 172 degree wide angle lens is impressive, leaving out little of your immediate surroundings in the picture. Video you capture is going to end up being quite small on your computer screen due to the camera’s low megapixel count, it is however very crisp and at 30 frames per second, it looks good. If you want some frames you can blow up, the “photo every 2 seconds mode” is the way to go; resolution increases dramatically in this picture mode and you should be able to get some quality shots. Being only 5 megapixels, you’re not going to get any professional caliber media out of this little guy, but at only $199 it is certainly worth a good look. Check out the video below to see the Hero in action.

V.I.O.  caters to the boating crowd with the POV MARINER. The Mariner is waterproof and shock-resistant like the Hero, as well as dustproof. For the most part, comparisons between the two systems end there. While the Hero is a digital “camera” at heart, with the ability to take photographs, the Mariner is solely a video recorder. It shoots in two modes: LOOP and CLIP. In LOOP users save key video segments, while CLIP is continous, traditional video recording with full audio support. Resolution is significantly better than that of the Hero’s, shooting in 720 x 480 at 30fps as opposed to 512 x 384 at 30fps, the only downfall being that the Mariner’s wide angle lens is only 110 degrees. Apart from the improved media quality, one feature truly sets these systems apart: the Horizon True Camera Mount.  The Horizon True Camera Mount is a beefy, self-leveling bracket for your POV system. It’s truly a thing of beauty, it doesn’t matter how much the boat heels or rocks, you’re always getting a great shot without worrying about your equipment. These features come with a price however, $999 of it. The Mariner also ships with a carrying case, 8GB SDHC memory card, and software to edit your videos. Check it out in action below, I dig it.

If you want the full scoop on these products, check out their respective websites by clicking on the hyperlinks above. I hope to be getting the Hero soon, I’ll keep you guys updated.

-Derek

7/3/09

AmericanMariner.net has officially launched. The only online community for the inland waterways – tugboat, towboat, and barge industry is now live. The online community is a meeting place for mariners, their friends and family, to make social and professional connections with employers and associates in the barge industry.

AmericanMariner.net features a National Job Board, interactive forums, photo albums, events calendar, high profile gallery advertising, and an awesome video sharing community where you can post videos publicly or privately. Come check out our new online community. Communicate with family, friends, employers, and share your knowledge of the Inland Waterways with everyone. There is absolutely no cost to mariners to utilize the National Job Board or other features of the website. Employers will find that posting jobs or advertising is very inexpensive.

Standing bye ….

BILL Ireland has quit as chairman of Mariner Financial and appointed Ian Winlaw and Denis Pidcock as directors.

Mariner has also flagged a full-year loss as it exits the retail investment funds management business and targets wealthier investors.

Mr Winlaw, who will be non-executive chairman, runs his own accountancy firm, while Mr Pidcock is a former Leighton Holdings finance director.

Mr Ireland will remain on the board and as managing director.

Both of the new directors will help steer the company away from retail investment funds management to become more diversified.

Mariner would focus on investment structures with wealthy investors, the company said yesterday.

It was looking for new corporate activities and would change its name to Mariner Corp.

In a market update yesterday, Mariner said that by selling or transferring the management rights of three funds, as flagged last week, it would complete its departure from fund management activities.

It said this would drive down expenses because management of the funds had become increasingly costly.

Most of its bank debt had been retired, with just $600,000 outstanding, the company said.

The main remaining assets were an equity investment in a $42million portfolio of commercial operating leases through the Solutions Investment Group Trust and a half-share in the Southern Hub Project near Goulburn, NSW, involving a major industrial hub.

Mariner said its remaining liabilities were convertible notes and bank debt, with most notes repayable next March.

Mariner Financial went into a voluntary trading halt last month after the surprise departure of former Victorian treasurer Alan Stockdale and his boardroom colleague David Heaney.

The trading halt was prompted by Australian Stock Exchange listing rules, which forbid companies to trade with fewer than three directors.

The appointment of the new directors will allow Mariner’s shares to start trading again on the ASX.

In March, Mariner reported a half-year loss of $45m.

Since then, staff numbers have been cut from 70 to just 8.

Its shares last traded at 1.4c.

theaustralian.news.com.au

There were 10 Mariner space probes, in part of a US space race program called the Mariner mission during the 1960’s and ’70’s. Their purpose was to explore Mercury, Venus, and Mars. The total cost for all ten of the spacecrafts was approximately $554 million.

The Mariner 10 was the first spacecraft to use the gravitational pull of a planet (Venus) to reach another (Mercury). It took pictures and collected data on Mercury. It was the first too take close up pictures of Venus and Mercury. In all, it cost about $100 million.

There were 10 Mariner space probes, in part of a US space race program called the Mariner mission during the 1960’s and ’70’s. Their purpose was to explore Mercury, Venus, and Mars. The total cost for all ten of the spacecrafts was approximately $554 million.

Mariner 9, a space probe, took 7329 pictures of Mars before being shut off after 349 days in space. It covered almost 100% of Mars, and spread much light on the Martian atmosphere. It entered the atmopshere on November 13th 1971. Originally, they designed another space probe, the Mariner 8, to do the same thing as Mariner 9 simultaneously. It failed during launch.

There were 10 Mariner space probes, in part of a US space race program called the Mariner mission during the 1960’s and ’70’s. Their purpose was to explore Mercury, Venus, and Mars. The total cost for all ten of the spacecrafts was approximately $554 million.

The Mariner 6 and Mariner 7 were launched on February 24th, 1969 and March 27th 1969. They were both intended to take pictures of the southern hemisphere of Mars. Together, they took 198 pictures of Mars. 143 of those were far away, and 55 were close-ups.

There were 10 Mariner space probes, in part of a US space race program called the Mariner mission during the 1960’s and ’70’s. Their purpose was to explore Mercury, Venus, and Mars. The total cost for all ten of the spacecrafts was approximately $554 million.

On October 19th, 1967, the Mariner 5 flew past Venus. Using special instruments, Mariner 5 was able to send back data covering the temperature and atmosphere on Venus. The mission was successful and ended in November 1967.