The fountains and statuary of battle abbey

Alexander Neckam, an Augustinian monk living in the twelfth century, is the earliest English writer on fountains, statuary, and gardens. In his De Naturis Rerum, he describes the herbs, trees, and flowers growing in a noble garden, flanked by flowing water from statuary fountains. His list, however, can hardly apply literally to plants then flourishing in England, for the pomegranates, almonds, dates, oranges, nor lemons mentioned by him could have survived there out of doors, even with the abundant water supplied by the fountains. On the other hand, "the drowsy poppy," the daffodil, and brank ursin (acanthus), peony, violet, rose, marigold, and lily, are among other flowers he cites, and were likely grown in many gardens, as they are also described in the oldest English herb diaries.

Battle Abbey, the first great monastery in England founded after the Norman Conquest, belonged to the Benedictine order, and was originally called "La Bataille." William the Conqueror ordered it to be built on the site of the decisive conflict between the Norman and Anglo-Saxon armies, with a series of fountains to honor the ferocity of the battle. The high altar garden statue is said to mark the spot where, in the thick of the fiercest fighting, Harold, the king, was killed and his body found by his betrothed, after nightfall.

A step away from this historic spot, stretching between it and the restored outdoor fountains of the monastery, are some beautiful modern gardens enhanced with large statues laid out by the late Duchess of Cleveland. The stiff, geometrical patterns of the most modernistic statuary, bedded out with geraniums and edged with box, covering the edge of each fountain, produce an effect harmonious with the building, although they are utterly unlike the homely plantations formerly cultivated by the monks. Another attractive garden dйcor arrangement is the terrace walk of grass through the fountains, and beside the Abbey, with enclosures in the thick wall for seats, where, walking or sitting, one overlooks a wonderful stretch of woodlands and dancing fountains once traversed by William and his army.

Book report basics

A book report is defined as a short summary of a book, the reader’s interpretation of it and their reaction. While every book report does include details, it is most often customized to it’s audience with an emphasis on related aspects studied in a classroom or educational group.

From an educators viewpoint, the goal of a book report is to test the student’s reading comprehension, their ability to relay their thoughts in a clear manner and their writing ability. Educators commonly assign book reports to students in order to help them to build or acquire additional knowledge about a particular subject and to help them better understand how to interpret a book and it’s meaning.

From a writer’s standpoint, book reports are often used to entice readers to buy a specific book that has recently been released. This is commonly called a book review, which usually includes the columnist’s viewpoint, opinion and criticism (if any) of the book. Much similar to the structure of a movie review, a journalist is often employed to critique book’s and their storyline. This provides potential readers with insight and often persuades or deters another from buying a particular book.

The structure of a book report will depend solely on the age group that it is being tailored for. An example would be that of an elementary class and how their book report would greatly differ from that written by a college student. In general, however, every book report will be similar in it’s layout. Commonly consisting of a title, brief introduction, the main body of the report including a plot or summary and several concluding paragraphs at the end. The final paragraphs would offer the individual’s personal viewpoint or interpretation of the book and a conclusion as to how that particular book is relative to the subject area being studied.

The actual length of a book report will again vary depending on the age group for which it is intended. Most book report assignments will range from one to three pages. Higher learning students are often asked to further examine details of the book and offer a more in-depth interpretation of the book’s characters, the plot, etc.

Writing a book report can require extensive reading, planning and finally writing. The actual length of time that it may take to complete a book report will depend on the length of the book and the requested length of the book report itself. Generally, a book report assignment is requested within one or two weeks. In certain circumstances, additional time may be granted.

Atlanta school district receives high marks and scholarship funds

Newsweek Ranks North Atlanta High School in Top 2%

Newsweek magazine ranks twenty-seven thousand high schools throughout the nation and North Atlanta High School, part of the Atlanta School District, ranks among top 2%. Newsweek magazine compiles the lists of Best High School and releases the list at the end of every school year. This year North Atlanta High School was ranked at 531 out of the 27,000 schools ranked. These rankings are based on the high schools’ use and offering of Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate courses. Advanced placement classes are college preparation courses. The international baccalaureate uses an internationally recognized course curriculum.

North Atlanta High School offers and encourages students to take and pursue advanced placement classes or international baccalaureate courses. North Atlanta High School also operates International Studies and Performing Arts magnet school programs. The International Studies magnet program offers courses that focus own foreign languages, communications and social studies courses. The International Studies magnet program offers students opportunities to take part in youth foreign exchanges and internships in international companies. The Performing Arts magnet program stresses high academic achievement with performance art training.

Mays High School Teacher Receives Award

A Mays High School, a high school in the district of Atlanta Schools, teacher received the Close Up Foundation’s Linda Myers Chosen Award for Teaching Excellence in Civic Education. Hajj Womack received a plaque and one thousand dollars. Mr. Womack, a social studies teacher, was awarded the Close Up Foundation’s Linda Myers Chosen Award for Teaching Excellence in Civic Education while in Washington D. C. with students participating in the Close Up Washington program. Civics education is vital for students because teens often feel separated from politics in America.

Atlanta School District’s Douglass High School Receives Scholarship Funds from Magic Johnson

Former NBA player Magic Johnson visited Douglass High School on his nationwide AIDS awareness tour. He spoke to the students about safe sex, the value of education and their future. He gave the school twenty thousand dollars for college scholarships for graduating seniors. Twenty students were awarded $1000 scholarships as part of Douglass High School’s Visions of the Future Awards program. The awarded students were: Bianca Barnswell Talesha Noble, Lawrence Boddie Jihan Pankey, Mychael Bond Andrea Parks, Seron Fields Louis Perrino, Ramia Finley Shatila Platt, Aamir Fard Adrienne Richardson, Mavia Hanson Anthony Rogers, Yareli Hernandez Catrina Searcy, Kadayas Howard Delisa Stevens, Kenya Merritt Paul White. Magic Johnson gave the students advice that they should continue their education in college or start their own business. Johnson discussed his own work as a businessman after retiring from basketball. He also gave out Los Angeles Lakers jerseys to eight students in the audience. The jerseys bore Johnson’s own number and current Lakers players.

Buy life insurance online - low rates have never been easier to find

Online life insurance quotes make life insurance shopping easy. The drudgery of purchasing life insurance is being eliminated by the using the web. The search engines will take you right where you need to be with a variety of options. It’s an insurance buyers dream. There are hundreds if insurance carriers online and there are a wide variety of products. That is the landscape that exists and so it behooves you to take advantage. The best approach to online shopping is to prepare yourself before you start your search.

There are two very important questions that need to be answered before you start the process.

Why am I buying Life Insurance? – Believe it or not there are a lot of folks shopping for life insurance without a well defined reason. When you purchase life insurance without a credible purpose in mind then you are throwing money away. People usually drop their life insurance because they do not understand why they purchased it in the first place. Guard against this type of purchase or you may end up repeating this many times. A short needs analysis will give you a basic understanding on the purpose and the amount needed to protect your family and or business.

Should I purchase Term or Permanent Insurance? – This may not be an either or type question. You may want to purchase both. The rule of thumb is that term insurance is purchased for temporary needs and permanent insurance is purchased for lifetime permanent needs. The difference in rates between term and permanent can be significant and so it is better for you to pre-determine a fixed amount that you can afford in your budget. That will help you determine what type of policy to purchase. A nice balance of permanent and term life insurance is preferable but your budget may only allow for term insurance. That’s alright. You can convert the term life to permanent life in the future.

Nunavut canadas diamond

The province known as Nunavut has supported a continuous population for more then 4000 years. The province was founded by Martin Frobisher back in 1576 while leading an expedition to find the Northwest Passage. In 1976, talks for a land claim agreement and the new territory between the Inuit Tapirisat of Canada and the federal government began. Then in April 1, 1999 Nunavut Act were passed by the Canadian Parliament.

The population of Nunavut as of 2004 is 29,300, the economy is based on, mining, diamonds, gold, zinc, lead, copper, and nickel. There are a lot of companies investing there money to look for diamonds as we speak.

Here are some quick facts

-Iqaluit is the largest city

-The Population 29,300

-13th province Admittance into Confederation on April 1, 1999

-13thTime zone

There are many neat things to do and see, you can tour some of the old mines that have been shut down, fishing in the summer is awesome, hunting if you are the hunting type, touring the cities and villages. It is pretty amazing to see the people up there, the way they live, how they hunt and how they keep there traditions alive in there children. I think that it is worth while place to visit because you will learn so much that you thought never existed. So you will want to visit here in the summer so you can see nature at its best unless you like cold weather.

The craze that is the kakuro puzzles

Kakuro puzzles are the latest craze that is currently making great waves in the puzzle game field. It also has played a significant impact in many areas around the world. These puzzles are closely following the footsteps of the Sudoku puzzles that is currently enjoying worldwide success. Kakuro puzzles are also known as a numbers game, which require simple and pure logic as well as a basic knowledge of the addition and subtraction mathematical concepts.

Also referred as Cross Sums, especially during its early days, Kakuro puzzles are also considered by many as the numerical equivalent of the crossword puzzle. This is because it makes use of numbers instead of the usual words. And just like the crossword, the Kakuro also comes in various sizes, from the compact size to the giant size, and ranges, from the very easy to the extremely hard.

The modern version of Kakuro puzzles nowadays comes in a variety of forms. While the traditional type, which is of the square and rectangular shape, is still around, referred to as the classic kakuro, there are other variations of the puzzle game which have already been developed and which can surely catch the attention of many puzzle game enthusiasts. There is, for instance, the holey kakuro, which is similar to the classic kakuro, except for the fact that it has holes in the middle. Then there is the round kakuro which, as its name suggests, is round on the outside, although the shape is actually more diamond-like, with some versions having holes in the middle as well.

Today, with the advent of modern technology, Kakuro puzzles now also come out in computer software program formats, which naturally makes the game more enjoyable to play, in terms of visuals. The puzzle has also found it way on the worldwide web, where kakuro players are given the opportunity to try to solve the puzzle online. One can even get to see how other players are faring as far as solving the puzzle is concerned. Kakuro news and articles as well as various techniques and strategies designed to either make the game more enjoyable to play or make it easier to solve are also available on the internet.

However, many people still prefer to play Kakuro puzzles the old-fashioned or traditional way, which is the pen-pushing method. That is why the game is still being published in many newspapers as well as magazines. This is part of the reason why a new monthly magazine, known as the Kakuro Light, was conceptualized. Formally launched last March in the Netherlands by Sanoma Uitgevers B. V., the magazine, of course, carries the popular Kakuro puzzles and is marketed primarily for beginners of the game who are nevertheless eager to know how the puzzle is being played as well as finding out why this new puzzle kind in town is fast gaining the imagination as well as fancy of everyone who just happens to love the thrill of a puzzle game.

Alternative ways to driving

As gas prices continue to rise, you may find yourself losing more and more money in your budget each month. Gas prices, like stocks are unpredictable. You don’t know if the prices are going to go up each month or if they are going to go down. This makes it extremely tough to budget your gas expenses.

A lot of people don’t realize that there are many alternative ways to travelling instead of driving yourself. This can cut back on a lot of gas money if you’re tight with your budget month to month. Even if you follow through on a few of these techniques each month, you may find yourself saving more than expected.

Public Transportation

If you live in or near a big city, it should have some sort of public transportation. Refer to your city’s public transportation website on scheduling. Wheather you have to go to work or up to the grocery store, a bus will usually take you there. The only downside to this alternative travelling method is that you can’t just get up and go. You will have to wait for the bus to arrive and leave. Public transportaion can be extremely cheap, especially if you purchase a yearly pass.

Carpooling

If you already know some people at work, school, etc that live nearby, you could set up a carpooling schedule. A lot of the times people will choose to drive one week while the other drives the next. This will cut your fuel costs nearly in half! Be sure to also check out to see if your state offers a park and ride program. This is where you can meet up with other people who are looking to carpool like yourself. There are designated areas throughout the highways where you can park and meetup.

Exercise!

Exercise is good regardless and if you live near a city, hop on your bike or just walk up to the store. While we know you can’t walk everywhere, it’s always safe to walk to areas that are about one to two miles close to your house. This is ensures that the weather doesn’t change and rain you out while you leave the grocery store.

Biking is also another great method of transportation. If you live near a city with a lot of sidewalks, this can make the biking trip a lot safer and easier. Now we know you can’t bike in the winter but in the warmer months, be sure to take advantage of this!

Many people just don’t sit down and think on ways of cutting back on costs. Besides the topics mentioned above, you can always cut back on your lesiure driving. Instead of driving to the store three times a week, only travel up there once a week. Also be sure to make sure your car is properly maintained and you know how to properly save on mileage.

There are many ways to save on fuel and it’s up to you to ensue them. If you don’t have the motivation or dedication to try, you’ll never save money with gas!