Odds & Ends: Benedict Cumberbatch Gets Engaged & More
Here’s a quick roundup of stories you may have missed today. Unheard Frozen Songs to Be Unveiled Frozen’s Oscar-winning songwriting team Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez are set to reveal never-before-heard songs from the hit Disney movie! They’ll be letting it all go at an upcoming show and tell on November 9 at Brooklyn College’s Whitman Theatre. Broadway fave Kerry Butler, along with her hubby and puppeteer Joey Mazzarino, will also join in the fun, which is all in aid of the Poly Prep Country Day School. Oh, and rumor has it a certain snowman may be making a cameo… 007 Turns to The River’s Jez Butterworth Jerusalem scribe Jez Butterworth has been working with director Sam Mendes and Daniel Craig on the new James Bond movie, reports The New Yorker. It’s the second 007 script he’s tinkered with—the playwright was also brought in for Skyfall. Butterworth is currently represented on Broadway by the Hugh Jackman-led The River and Mendes is by Cabaret. Craig appeared on the Great White Way last year in Betrayal. Adam Brody Boards Neil LaBute Incest Drama Adam Brody (The O.C.) and Lisa Joyce (A Master Builder) have been tapped for playwright Neil LaBute’s DirecTV drama Billy & Billie. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the 10-episode series will follow two young adults, Billy (Brody) and Billie (Joyce), as they fall in love. The problem? They’re stepbrother and sister. LaBute’s work will next be seen off-Broadway in The Way We Get By, starring Orphan Black’s Tatiana Maslany and Tony-nominated The Newsroom star Thomas Sadoski.
View Comments Benedict Cumberbatch Picks His Cumberb*tch The interweb sobbed celebrated today with the news that stage and screen star Benedict Cumberbatch is getting Cumberhitched. The Olivier-winning class act announced, old-school style in the London Times, his engagement to theater director Sophie Hunter. We are very jealous hope that Oxford graduate Sophie is very happy with her sweet prince; we’ll just have to make do with loving him from afar (or a few rows back) in Hamlet next year and The Imitation Game in movie theaters from November 28.
Vermont Hard Cider Company, LLC,Woodchuck Hard Cider is again expanding its line of craft cider. November will see the debut of the Farmhouse Select Hard Cider Series. Farmhouse Select is a small batch artisanal line, featured in a 750ml corked bottle. The first of the Farmhouse Select Series is called Original ‘91. It is crafted exclusively with Vermont apples. The Vermont Hard Cider Company, LLC ‘ makers of Woodchuck Hard Cider ‘ reached an agreement with Shoreham based Champlain Orchards to custom press a weekly shipment of sweet cider from locally grown apples. ‘This agreement with Champlain Orchards, an orchard that also calls Addison County home, reinforces the strong commitment we have to our home state,’ said Bret Williams, President and CEO of the Vermont Hard Cider Company. ‘We source only the highest quality ingredients for our cider, and Vermont apples are some of the best in the world.’ For local fruit growers the relationship brings additional business and helps to fully utilize their crop, which can often be damaged by severe weather. ‘When frozen rain or hail hits and cuts the apple, the price we can get for a bushel devalues from $28 to $4,’ said Bill Suhr, owner of Champlain Orchards. ‘With a commitment like this from Vermont Hard Cider, our full apple crop will be utilized.’ Original ‘91 is a throwback to our early days in cider making from a Proctorsville, Vermont garage. The year was 1991. ‘We have grown considerably since those early days,’ said Williams. ‘But we strive to remain as locally rooted as we can.’ ‘We can grow apples in Vermont and the hard cider is being made in Vermont. It’s just good business,’ said Suhr. ‘Vermont Hard Cider Company is paying a premium, but the trickle-down effect on the local economy is the pay off. It’s walking the walk and not just talking the talk.’ A new bottling line will be dedicated exclusively to the Farmhouse Select Series. At 6.9% alcohol by volume (ABV), Original ‘91 has a suggested retail price of $10.99 per bottle, with year-round availability in major markets across the United States, including Vermont.
FacebookTwitterLinkedInEmailPrint分享From the Times of India:There is no public funding for Adani’s 21.7 billion dollars coal mine project, Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has said as he sought to assure a protester dressed in a fish costume that he took climate change “as seriously as you.”Turnbull made these remarks during an election campaign in South Australia.An environmental protester dressed as the clown fish from animated movie ‘Finding Nemo’ asked him to commit to no public funding for Indian mining giant Adani’s controversial project.“There’s no public funding in Adani’s coal mine,” Turnbull said. He told the protester that he took climate change “as seriously as you.”Adani’s plan to build one of the world’s biggest coal mines in Australia has been hampered time and again. A federal court in August last year had revoked the original approval due to environmental concerns.In October last year, the project got a new lease of life after the Australian government gave its re-approval. Reacting to Turnbull’s remark, Director of energy finance studies at the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) Tim Buckley said, “With the permanent decline in seaborne thermal coal markets causing a meltdown in the Australian thermal coal industry, it is hard to imagine a more inopportune moment to attempt to open a multi-billion dollar new mine.”Full article: No public funding in Adani’s coal mine: Australia PM Australian Prime Minister: ‘No Public Funding’ for Adani’s Proposed Mega-Mine
The vast majority of respondents (about 80 percent) are hotels, hostels, camps and private accommodation, according to the Croatian Chamber of Commerce, which conducted the survey. The majority of surveyed (58,5 percent) entrepreneurs did not adjust the prices of their services at all compared to last year. Nearly a quarter lowered prices before the start (12,7 percent) or during the high season (10,6 percent), while 18,3 percent of respondents raised prices in the same period. Although as many as three quarters of the respondents (74,3 percent) invested significantly in the quality of the offer during the preparations for this tourist season, these investments did not significantly affect prices. Tourist entrepreneurs who are satisfied with this season owe their success primarily to investments in the quality of the offer. This is also shown by the results of a survey conducted by the Croatian Chamber of Commerce among its members, in which the prevailing view is that the tourist season has not failed. Sanela Vrkljan, Assistant Director of the Tourism Department of the Croatian Chamber of Commerce Cover photo: Medora Auri Family Beach Resort The key sales channels of respondents are direct sales (79,3 percent), travel agencies (46,4 percent) and online agencies (45,7 percent). Global distribution systems are the main sales channel for 30 percent of respondents, while 17,1 percent of them reach customers through fairs, B2B workshops and the like.
Thus, a third of respondents (32,6 percent) believe that the high season is at the same level as last year, and 33,3 percent believe that it is better than last year, or excellent (6,4 percent). A quarter of respondents (25,5 percent) rate the season as bad, and only 2,1 percent have the impression that it is extremely bad. In addition to standard benefits, just over half of respondents (51,4 percent) also offer a wide range of additional content for guests. The offer includes everything from sports facilities and wellness to various excursions and tours through which guests get to know the local natural beauty, gastronomy and cultural tradition. Price adjustments are mostly minimal. Over 40 percent of the subjects changed prices in the range of up to 5 percent compared to last season, and 30 percent made adjustments of 6 to 10 percent. Significant price changes of 11 to 20 percent were present in 13,2 percent of respondents, while 14,7 percent of them adjusted prices from 21 percent upwards. “The results of the research clearly indicate that investments in the quality of the offer are the key to success in tourism. Modern tourists are better informed and more demanding, and all those who want full capacity and profitability must, following global trends, offer additional content designed according to the needs and desires of their guests. Each next season will be more and more challenging, so while maintaining price competitiveness, it is necessary to continuously invest and raise the quality of services and products in tourism.”Said Sanela Vrkljan, Assistant Director of the Tourism Department of the Croatian Chamber of Commerce. Investing in the quality of the offer is the key to success in tourism 
I hope that we will learn a lesson when this extraordinary situation around the coronavirus passes and that we will finally connect small agricultural producers, ie our production, with our market. Also, a big, if not the main role is played by consumers, who dictate the entire market with their demand and behavior. Also, this will be a real opportunity to finally connect blue and green Croatia. Photo: Pexels.com Also, Matijevic adds that in the current situation necessarily take care of a secure and sufficient supply of the population, which they as a company do. “It is especially important to take care of small farmers who are now in challenging times. We must not allow them to stop working, because they are an important link for achieving self-sufficiency in the future.”, Matijevic emphasized. The company’s headquarters are in Slatina, where one of the most modern production plants for pasteurized fruits and vegetables in the region is located, and small producers who want to place their goods in retail chains, from Marinada are invited to feel free to contact the company’s purchasing centers. Virovitica, Varaždin, Donji Miholjac, Zagreb and Opuzen. Interested farmers can contact the distributors of PIK Vinkovci, Marinada and Fragarija, who will purchase and deliver to Konzum. After five days from Marinada, they report that the response is very good and that they have communicated with over 100 producers so far, and the cooperation has been realized with about 40 of them. “So far, most of the chard, lettuce and spring onions have been bought, among the products that are now in season, and of course we are ready to buy everything else that follows seasonally.”, Matijevic points out The initiative of Marinada was also recognized by large retail chains With this initiative, we are ready to offer our purchasing capacities and sales network to those who do not have the possibility of marketing their products, Konzum points out and adds: “Fruits and vegetables of Croatian origin already account for over 80 percent of turnover in this category in Konzum, and through a new initiative we are ready to offer our purchasing capacities and sales network to those who do not have the opportunity to market their products after closing the markets. in the markets, citizens will soon be able to continue shopping in Konzum stores throughout Croatia” For all details about the placement of your goods in retail chains, contact the company Marinada HERE The quarantine and closure of markets to prevent the spread of coronavirus has particularly affected small farmers, who no longer have access to an important sales channel and thus endanger their livelihoods. At the same time, the Marinada launched an initiative for other production organizers and purchasers to do the same, with an appeal to retail chains to accept such goods. SPAR will buy fruits and vegetables from small producers Thus, they invited all family farms from Marinada to contact them in order to take over and deliver the products of Croatian agricultural producers to the market. “We are ready to react by buying fruits and vegetables from agricultural producers, whether they are our subcontractors or not, we standardize the product as much as possible and deliver it to the market. ” said Marinada owner Denis Matijevic. To further help small domestic farmers who, due to the emergency situation, can no longer sell their products in the markets, SPAR invites all small producers to contact them to ensure the placement of their products on the shelves of SPAR and INTERSPAR stores. “Products from more than 40 small domestic producers and family farms can be found on our shelves. In addition, we cooperate with small producers of fruits and vegetables through our brand “Croatian Gardens”. We invite all small producers of fruits and vegetables who can no longer place their products on the markets to contact us directly on 01 2410 900 “They point out from SPAR. Clusters, connectivity, quality standard, branding – this is the only real step towards the development of agriculture and tomorrow’s merger with tourism. Be sure that the competition will strengthen its production, and if we want to, it is up to us. “The initiative was readily accepted by the retail chains Konzum and Spar, which will place these goods according to customers, and it is expected that others will be included, given the positive reactions.”Concludes Matijević. Soon, various Facebook neighborhood, city, county groups appeared as online markets that in one place promote local family farms and their offer and connect them directly with customers. Also, various IT companies have created small web shops to help family farms, in order to facilitate communication and sales. But since the beginning of the week, among the first, if not the first, Marinada – a leading company in the region in the production, processing, purchase and sale of fresh and processed fruits and vegetables, launched a campaign to buy small producers to help small family farms . First and foremost we need to provide irrigation, greenhouses, increase efficiency, technology, ensure sufficient quantities, standardize quality, and later storage, cold storage, delivery and only then comes the question of the price of the product itself. The cluster model is the only market model that works, and we are just beginning to raise awareness of the same. Konzum will buy fruits and vegetables from small domestic producers who sold their products at markets. Currently, in the whole paradigm, price plays the last role. Find out more about the added value in tourism in the attachment below. Good response to the Marinade initiative: The purchase of chard, lettuce and spring onions has started Opportunity to reset Konzum will also open a much-needed sales channel to small domestic producers after the markets close. But to achieve this, we need to start dealing with the strategic development of agriculture. On the one hand we have exact consumption and demand every year through tourism (20 million arrivals and 100 million overnight stays), and on the other hand production. So we just need to connect the two points. It is insane and counter-productive that we encourage imports through tourism, and thus import basic products such as eggs, eggs, potatoes, lettuce, tomatoes, etc.… this is the added value of tourism that we chronically lack. 
Japan’s $1.23trn (€905bn) Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF) has posted a loss of 0.8% in the January to March quarter, its first loss in seven quarters, as domestic shares slid.However, the fund returned 8.6% in the year to 31 March, helped by a rally in domestic and overseas equities over the first three quarters.For the full year, the fund’s Japanese shares returned 18%, while international stocks had the best performance among the asset classes, with a 32% gain.Overseas bonds delivered a 15% return, while local debt returned 0.6%. The fund’s asset value was JPY126.58trn (€913bn) at the end of March, down 0.2% from December’s record high but up 5% for the fiscal year.The GPIF’s weighting in domestic bonds was little changed at 55%, while Japanese shares made up 16% of holdings, down from 17% in December.Foreign equities increased to 16% from 15%, while overseas debt, which includes infrastructure, was virtually unchanged at 11%.The GPIF is expected to shift more money into local equities in the coming months.Prime minister Shinzo Abe’s government has pressed the GPIF to overhaul its portfolio, putting more money into domestic stocks and other riskier instruments to seek higher returns for Japan’s rapidly ageing population.Among the GPIF’s active local stock managers, Nomura Asset Management oversaw the most money, with JPY528bn in assets.
According to a late-2016 report by IHS Markit, the decommissioning of aging offshore oil and gas platforms, subsea wells and related assets is increasing dramatically, with more than 600 projects expected to be disposed of during the next five years alone.IHS Markit expects spending on decommissioning projects to increase from approximately $2.4 billion in 2015, to $13 billion-per-year by 2040, or an increase of 540 percent.Offshore Energy Today Staff U.S.-based oil company Marathon Oil has submitted a draft decommissioning program for its Brae Area facilities in the UK sector of the North Sea to the authorities. The Brae Area lies approximately 170 miles (274 km) north-east of Aberdeen in a water depth of approximately 110m.The area consists of three fixed jacket platforms, three Marathon Oil operated subsea tie-backs and numerous pipelines and subsea components. Third parties also use the Brae Area facilities.In the draft submitted to the UK’s Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BSEI), the oil company as the operator outlined four decommissioning programs for 14 installations and 64 pipelines.The document contains combined decommissioning programs for Brae Alpha and Brae Bravo platforms including jacket/sub-structure and Brae Bravo flare jacket/sub-structure and bridge. It also includes, Central Brae subsea template, associated pipelines, flowlines umbilicals and power cables. Furthermore, it includes West Brae subsea wells, manifold and extension manifold, Sedgwick wells and associated pipelines, flowlines and umbilicals.The East Brae platform topsides, jacket/sub-structure and Braemar subsea facilities are covered by a separate decommissioning program.Before decommissioning work can proceed, the programs must be approved by the regulatory bodies, following engagement with all stakeholders.Brae Alpha started production in 1983, Brae Bravo in 1988 and East Brae in 1993. The Central and West Brae/Sedgwick subsea tie-backs to Brae Alpha started production in 1989 and 1997, respectively. The Braemar subsea tie-back to East Brae started in 2003.Marathon Oil has already extended the life of the Brae field beyond initial projections. According to the company, production will become sub-economical in the short term and other hydrocarbon opportunities have been evaluated and considered unviable, therefore the decision to cease production has been made. Brae Bravo to cease in 2018 A COP (Cessation of Production) application for Brae Bravo was submitted in 2015 and approved by OGA in 2016. COP of Brae Bravo is currently expected in 2018. COP of Brae Alpha, Central Brae, West Brae and Sedgwick will take place after Brae Bravo COP, and COP applications will be submitted for these facilities at the appropriate time.The Brae Alpha and Brae Bravo platform topsides will be returned to shore for reuse, recycling or disposal.When it comes to jackets/sub-structures for the Brae Alpha and Brae Bravo, these will be removed to the top of the footings, which is approximately 28m above seabed for Brae Alpha and 34m above seabed for Brae Bravo. Recovered material will be returned to shore for recycling or disposal.Marathon Oil has proposed to put in place post-decommissioning safety zones around the Brae Alpha and Brae Bravo footings to assist in preventing fishing vessels inadvertently snagging their nets on the jackets/sub-structure footings or trawling through drill cuttings piles. The post-decommissioning safety zones will be recorded on the FishSAFE system and Admiralty charts to warn mariners of the presence of subsea obstructions. 600 projects up for decom
The Batesville Lady Bulldogs traveled to East Central Tuesday night to participate in their Invitational and brought home the 1st place trophy winning their division by 20 points.The Bulldogs scored 25 points as Greensburg came in 2nd with 45 pointsfollowed by Jac-Cen-Del with 61, South Ripley 114 and Lawrenceburg who was incomplete.Batesville was led by Kelsey Gausman who came in 2nd overall with a time of 20:58. She followed by Mary Poltrack, 4th at 21:52 who was closely followed by her sister, Sarah for 5th at 21:54. Coming in 6th was Maria Wessel at 22:13. She was followed by Katie Baumer at 8th place with 22:24 and Emma Gausman closely behind in 9th place at 22:36. Finishing out the top 7 for the Dogs was Madeleine Robben taking the 14th spot with a time of 23:56.There was also a JV (Open) race and the Bulldogs dominated this as well as they took 7 out of the top 10 spots, led by Kylie Lehman with the overall victory by over 1 minute with a time of 22:52. Batesville claimed the next 3spots with Molly Weigel in 2nd, Elizabeth Cuttle, 3rd and Jamie Day 4th. Others taking the spots in the top 10 were Mary Catherine Barnett, 7th, Breanna Hartman, 8th, and Sarah Canady, 9th. Three of the ladies ran personal records and they were Katie Baumer, Madeleine Robben and Sarah Canady. Congratulations ladies!The Bulldogs compete again in a week at the Jennings County Invitational.Courtesy of Bulldogs Coach Lisa Gausman.
Press Association It took extra-time for Real to eventually triumph and things could have been so different had star man Costa not been forced off just nine minutes into what proved his last match for Atletico. The bustling forward moved to Chelsea in the summer and has so far justified his £32million price tag, with the Boxing Day strike against West Ham making it 13 goals from his first 15 Premier League matches. Alderweireld faces the unenviable task of attempting to stop Costa adding to that tally on Sunday, with the defender well aware of the threat his former team-mate poses. “It is very difficult because he is fast, he is strong, he has technique,” he said. “He can score goals, is good with his head, so I have to be at my best to stop him.” Costa is not the only threat Alderweireld knows all too well about, having this year also played alongside Eden Hazard, Thibaut Courtois and Filipe Luis. “They are the best players in the world, especially Diego and Eden Hazard,” he said. “We have to be at our top to beat them.” Despite that, he says Southampton will head into the match brimming with confidence after continuing their impressive resurgence at Selhurst Park. Fresh from ending their worst losing streak of the 21st century against Everton, Ronald Koeman’s men triumphed 3-1 against Crystal Palace thanks to goals from Sadio Mane, Ryan Bertrand and Alderweireld. “It’s the best feeling, even for a defender,” the latter said after his first Premier League goal. “I am very, very pleased that I could help the team and after we made it 3-0 it was over, I think. “It is always difficult to win here and play here, especially over the Christmas period. “They need the points and we knew that before, but I think we played very good, defensively it was fantastic and in important moments we killed the game. “It is very important after a couple of difficult weeks to win again. “They were two difficult games, Everton and now here at Crystal Palace, but we got six out of six points, made six goals and conceded one. We are getting our confidence back.” Chelsea will be a much bigger test, though, as will having to deal with such a quick turnaround – a new issue for manager Koeman and number of his players. “Two days after a game, play another game – that has never happened to me before,” Alderweireld added. “I will prepare myself the best way I can and I hope to be 100 per cent for Sunday.” This has been quite the year for the 25-year-old, having made the loan move to Saints fresh from helping Belgium to the World Cup quarter-finals and Atletico Madrid shock the football world. Alderweireld was part of the Los Colchoneros side which won a first Primera Division title in 18 years and came off the bench in the Champions League final, where rivals Real Madrid cruelly denied them a famous double. Southampton’s Toby Alderweireld began 2014 playing alongside Diego Costa and ends it trying to shackle a player he believes is one of the best in the world.
Texas State looks to sweep App State SQUAD LEADERSHIP: Appalachian State’s Justin Forrest has averaged 18.6 points while Isaac Johnson has put up 10.9 points and 7.3 rebounds. For the Bobcats, Nijal Pearson has averaged 19.5 points and 4.9 rebounds while Isiah Small has put up eight points and 6.5 rebounds.NIJAL IS A FORCE: Pearson has connected on 39.2 percent of the 153 3-pointers he’s attempted and has made 15 of 38 over the last five games. He’s also converted 78.9 percent of his free throws this season.SLIPPING AT 68: Texas State is 0-7 when it allows at least 68 points and 15-2 when it holds opponents to less than 68.STREAK SCORING: Texas State has won its last four road games, scoring 75.5 points, while allowing 63 per game.DID YOU KNOW: Texas State has committed a turnover on just 16.6 percent of its possessions this season, which is the second-lowest percentage among all Sun Belt teams. The Bobcats have turned the ball over only 11.2 times per game this season and just seven times per game over their last three games.___ February 7, 2020 Associated Press 
Share This StoryFacebookTwitteremailPrintLinkedinRedditTexas State (15-9, 8-5) vs. Appalachian State (13-11, 7-6)Holmes Convocation Center, Boone, North Carolina; Saturday, 4 p.m. ESTBOTTOM LINE: Appalachian State seeks revenge on Texas State after dropping the first matchup in San Marcos. The teams last met on Jan. 11, when the Bobcats outshot Appalachian State from the field 53.8 percent to 37.8 percent and made six more 3-pointers on the way to the 82-57 victory. For more AP college basketball coverage: https://apnews.com/Collegebasketball and http://twitter.com/AP_Top25___This was generated by Automated Insights, http://www.automatedinsights.com/ap, using data from STATS LLC, https://www.stats.com