Sophomore Katie Mattie has loved writing for years, but recently took her passion to a new level. Mattie wrote a young adult fantasy novel that brings different stories from ancient Greek mythology to the context of modern day life. She currently has a literary agent and is working on getting her novel published. “It is going to be a trilogy,” she said. “I’ve completed the rough draft for the second book, and I am working on the third.” Mattie, who is from Ypsilanti, Mich., said she began writing the book in December 2007, when she was just a sophomore in high school. “When I first started writing, I had the beginning and ending in mind. So [I] just [needed] to fill in the middle,” she said. “I needed to figure out what happened to make the characters get to where they did.” In Mattie’s novel, a great war occurs between the Olympians and the Titans. The Olympians are banished from Earth because of an ancient curse, and live on Mount Olympus on planet Jupiter. Their arch enemy, the Titans, were imprisoned in the underworld — Pluto — for 3,000 years, but have just escaped back to Earth. When the Titans arrive on Earth, they try to take over the planet. Since the Olympians can’t come down to Earth because of the curse, they send their powers to five humans — Melanie who has “super speed” power, Alice who can generate a force field, Jenn who is “super smart,” Izzy who can fly and turn invisible and Colleen who is “super strong.” The first letters of the five main characters’ names create the acronym, MAGIC. Members of MAGIC go on a quest through different dimensions of the universe, completing tasks to unleash a secret weapon that will destroy the Titans. Mattie said the seventh Harry Potter book inspired her to begin writing her own story. “The seventh Harry Potter book came out in July 2007 and I didn’t want to pick up another book because I loved Harry Potter so much,” she said. “I thought I could entertain myself by writing my own book.” Mattie said she did not let anyone read her first draft, but after doing some editing, she allowed her father and a few friends to read it. “There were times when I didn’t feel like I wanted to continue writing the book, but I [had] told 50 friends I was writing a book and I had to finish it,” she said. Eventually, Mattie said, everything in her story fell into place. She sent out query letters to 50 literary agents, but only four of them showed interest. “Writers House, a huge literary agency in New York, [sent a] rejection letter, but said I had potential,” Mattie said. “I knew I was close.” Publishing groups like Little Brown and Company and Bloomsbury USA looked at Mattie’s manuscript, but turned it down. Mattie said the key to success in the publishing world is not to take rejections personally. “Persistence is the key when it comes to getting books published,” Mattie said. “I just had to find someone who believed in [the story] as much as I did.” She said the manuscript is currently ready to be published, and she will continue sending her work out. Mattie said she has enjoyed the writing and publishing process thus far, despite the letdowns, and will continue working to get her novel published. “What stuck out to me the most was how fun it was,” she said. “Writing it, I felt like it was in the characters’ hands to unfold the story. I needed to get to know who they were to tell the story the right way.”
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CUNA supportive of DOL’s proposed 18-month fiduciary delay
US Department of Labor continue reading » CUNA is pleased that the Department of Labor (DOL) appears to have considered its request for a delay to the implementation of its fiduciary rule. In a DOL brief filed this week in the lawsuit by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans challenging the rule, the agency indicates that it is proposing an 18-month delay for the rule.CUNA has sent a number of comment letters urging DOL to delay the implementation of its fiduciary rule to give credit unions time to resolve compliance ambiguities. The rule defines who is a fiduciary of an employee benefit plan.The DOL indicates in the brief that it has submitted a proposal to delay implementing the remaining parts of the fiduciary rule for 18 months to the Office of Management and Budget. Pending approval by the OMB, the effective date would be pushed to July 1, 2019, back from the current Jan. 1, 2018 date.
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Innovative info center and souvenir shop opened in the heart of Zagreb – Hello Zagreb
A new info center & gift shop – Hello Zagreb – officially opened the doors of its branch office in Zagreb on Wednesday.It is an innovative brand for both domestic and foreign tourists, and this is just a logical sequence of Darrer’s development, which has been producing printed tourist maps since 2014. The info center and gift shop are located in the busy Radićeva Street at number 14 as a reference and starting point for all tourists and visitors to Zagreb, of which there are more and more every day. Our center is also home to our unique design. We strive to make souvenirs as functional innovative memories of Zagreb. From our own symbols of the city to domestic production from natural materials, we express ourselves traditionally, but also creatively in the trend with the time ahead. ” Sven Darrer, the company’s director, points out and adds that for the third year in a row they are making city maps and part of the European family USE-IT maps (free maps for young travelers made by locals) created through the eyes of locals, distributed in more than 40 European cities.The philosophy of the innovative info center and souvenir shop is based on the aspiration to realize souvenirs as functional and innovative memories, and the promotion of young designers and fresh ideas waiting for their place under the sun. In front of us are new issues of city maps, authentic products and projects that we plan to encourage the local population to get to know their own city, but also to travel and experiences that we all strive for, Darrer points out and adds.We want to provide a unique experience to all generations who visit Zagreb. And that is why we approach visitors individually”Darrer concludes.Related news: PRINTED TICKETS ARE IN FASHION AGAIN
Govt probes report of Indonesian sailors jumping overboard into Malacca Strait
According to a report by Destructive Fishing Watch (DFW), an Indonesian NGO working to prevent destructive practices in fishing and other environmental issues, the two crew members decided to jump off the ship because they could not withstand their treatment on board.The NGO said they had been intimidated and physically harmed, either by the ship’s captain or by fellow crewmen.“The allegation of forced labor emerged after we found violations such as unpaid wages, poor working conditions, threats and intimidation, [all of] which Andri Juniansyah and Reynalfi had experienced,” said DFW Indonesia coordinator M. Abdi Suhufan.According to DFW data, at least 30 Indonesian crew members were victims of such violations aboard Chinese vessels from November 2019 to June of this year. Of that number, seven reportedly died, three remain missing and 20 survived.Topics : The Foreign Ministry and the National Police are investigating a report that two Indonesian crew members jumped off a Chinese vessel while it was underway in the Malacca Strait last week.The Foreign Ministry confirmed the existence of the NGO report on Wednesday, saying that the two crew members in question were from Pematang Siantar, North Sumatra, and Sumbawa, West Nusa Tenggara.“They decided to jump off the Chinese-flagged Lu Qing Yuan Yu 901 while they were underway in the Malacca Strait,” said the ministry’s director for citizen protection, Judha Nugraha, in a press briefing. The two crew members, identified as Reynalfi, 22, and Andri Juniansyah, 30, jumped off the boat on Friday. After about seven hours adrift, they were rescued on Saturday by a group of fishermen from Tanjung Balai Karimun regency in the Riau Islands as they were passing through the area, Antara news agency reported.“They are now in the Tebing Karimun police station and are in good condition. We are still investigating the case in coordination with the National Police,” Judha said in the briefing.Read also: Indonesian sailors’ deaths on Chinese fishing vessel raise questions about working conditionsThe two Indonesian citizens were allegedly victims of human trafficking.
US, China clash anew as top officials meet on tensions
The United States on Wednesday pressed China over its treatment of Uighur Muslims and Hong Kong as the two powers stood firm in high-level talks in Hawaii on soaring tensions.Secretary of State Mike Pompeo met with senior Chinese official Yang Jiechi at a Honolulu military base, in the two countries’ highest-level meeting since the coronavirus pandemic sent tensions skyrocketing, a State Department official said.They met away from media as excerpts came out from an explosive memoir by former US national security advisor John Bolton, who said President Donald Trump asked President Xi Jinping for assistance in his re-election. Pressing on pandemic The United States was cooler in its assessment, saying Pompeo told Yang the two nations need “fully reciprocal dealings.””He also stressed the need for full transparency and information sharing to combat the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and prevent future outbreaks,” State Department spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus said.Pompeo has been in the forefront of denouncing China, saying in recent remarks that it was “truly hostile” to the United States and “ruthlessly imposes communism.”The conservative former congressman has taken the lead in promoting a theory, discounted by mainstream scientists, that the coronavirus came out of a Chinese laboratory.Susan Thornton, a career diplomat who served as the top State Department official on East Asia earlier in the Trump administration, had voiced skepticism that the meeting would produce much.”My own view is that the United States and China both face serious crises, as does the rest of the world from COVID-19 and the consequent economic meltdown,” said Thornton, now at Yale Law School.”It seems to me that talking about US-China rivalry in this environment is out of touch with the reality that people are facing.”Whether the United States and China reach any rhetorical truce could become clear quickly. Pompeo is set to speak Friday at a Danish forum, where the State Department says he will discuss “threats to democracy around the world.” Explosive charges With Trump under fire at home over his handling of the coronavirus pandemic, his Republican Party has increasingly cast China as the villain ahead of November elections.But Bolton’s book — which the administration is trying to block — tells another story, saying Trump asked China to boost his election prospects by requesting that it buy more farm produce.Bolton, according to an excerpt published by The Washington Post, also said that Xi explained the Uighur camps to Trump, who replied that they were “exactly the right thing to do.”Activists say China is forcibly homogenizing minorities in a brainwashing campaign with few modern precedents. Beijing counters that it is running vocational educational centers that offer an alternative to Islamic extremism.Yang reportedly sought the meeting with Pompeo, following a similar quiet encounter with him in New York in August to address tensions.China’s state-run People’s Daily, which said Pompeo and Yang also met the night before, called the talks “constructive.””Both sides agreed to continue maintaining contact and communication,” it said. Just as Pompeo met Yang, Trump signed into law an act that authorizes sanctions for Chinese officials involved in the detention of some one million Uighur Muslims and other Turkic Muslims.Beijing quickly responded that the law “maliciously attacks” China and threatened consequences.China will “resolutely hit back and the US will bear the burden of all subsequent consequences,” the Chinese foreign ministry said.And Pompeo and his counterparts from the other Group of Seven major industrial democracies put out a joint statement voicing “grave concerns” about a draft security law in Hong Kong.
Topics : “We strongly urge the Government of China to reconsider this decision,” said the joint statement by Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States.China is moving ahead with a law that would prohibit subversion and other perceived offenses in the financial hub, to which Beijing promised autonomy before taking back the British colony in 1997.In response, Yang said at the meeting with Pompeo that Beijing’s “determination” to introduce the law was “unwavering”, according to a statement on the foreign ministry website.Yang said China “resolutely opposes the statement made by the G7 foreign ministers on Hong Kong-related issues,” according to the statement.
Fancy Cooper Cronk for a landlord? His bachelor pad is up for rent
The master bedroom also has a balcony with views of the city. Picture: CoreLogicIt has two living areas, a study area, modern kitchen, off street parking and even a low maintenance paved entertaining area that’s perfect for backyard barbecues.The league star has been making major property moves of late, buying a $3.5m Mosman house with fiancee Tara Rushton. The living zones follow an open plan. Picture: CoreLogic Tara Rushton & fiance Cooper Cronk. Cooper announced that the 2017 season will be his last season with the Melbourne Storm. Picture: INSTAGRAM @tararushtonfoxNRL superstar Cooper Cronk’s bachelor pad has come on the market but you may need a deep pocket to rent it.His two bedroom townhouse in Richmond, Victoria, which has views of the city has hit the rental market at $850 a week, almost double the median asking rent in the popular Melbourne suburb. Cooper Cronk’s new home in Mosman bought with his partner Tara Rushton. His Mosman house has a pool with a glass side so you can look into it from the barbecue area. On the rental market for $850 a week. Picture: CoreLogicMore from newsParks and wildlife the new lust-haves post coronavirus1 day agoNoosa’s best beachfront penthouse is about to hit the market1 day ago The Calamvale house that Cooper Cronk recently sold. Picture: Realestate.com.auHe’s also sold off a four bedroom home in Brisbane’s Calamvale for $610,000. His fiancee has also put her Sydney unit up for rent at $650 a week.Mid-last year, the Maroons star bought another Queensland property, a unit in Mount Gravatt, for over $472,000.
Decatur County Marching Band scores top 10 finish in state competition
Photo courtesy of FacebookIndianapolis, In. — From a field of 49 Indiana high school bands, the Decatur County Marching Band finished ninth. The competition was part of “Band Day” at the 2017 Indiana State Fair. Nobelsville High School earned the top spot.For complete information about the 2017 Indiana State Fair go online to indianastatefair.com/state-fair/schedule/?2_route=/client-embeds/indiana-state-fair-2017/1/2/__/
Nigeria targets Archery debut at 2024 Olympics
RelatedPosts Lagos CP declares war on cultists, traffic offenders Sanwo-Olu: We’re committed to fulfilling promises to Lagosians Sanwo-Olu celebrates Sen. Tinubu at 60 Newly-elected 2nd vice President of Nigeria Archery Federation, Mike Egbayelo, has pledged his commitment to ensuring Nigeria becomes a force in the sport in Africa, while also aiming for the country to rub shoulders with the best in the world by way of debuting at the 2024 Olympics Olympics in Paris, France. Egbayelo, who defeated incumbent Ayo Phillips to also emerge as the South West representative on the board in Wednesday’s poll in Abuja, said various plans have been tailored for the phenomenal rise of the sport in Nigeria. He stated: “Last year, we launched the Strategic Action Plan for Archery in Lagos in line with the THEMES agenda of Governor Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu to make the sports a driving force of development and empowerment of the grassroots and there has been rise in the popularity and growth of the sport. “As it stands, Archery is the fastest growing sport in Lagos with the establishment of 25 clubs in just one year. “The same template would be used to develop the sport across Nigeria and we are sure that it will help us achieve our ultimate goal, which is to be a leading force in Africa and also to compete with the best at major international tournaments, particularly at the 2024 Olympics.” As at the start of March, there are 33 more places to be filled for Archery at the forthcoming Tokyo 2020 Olympics, but Egbayelo, the Vice Chairman of Lagos Archery, said it would be wise to plan for the one in four year’s time. Archery is also a Paralympics sport and Egbayelo pledged that the physically-challenged athletes won’t be left out of the development programme.Tags: 2024 OlympicsAyo PhillipsBabajide Sanwo-OluLagos StateMike EgbayaloNigeria Archery FederationTHEMES
Alvarez will coach Rose Bowl
Wisconsin Athletic Director Barry Alvarez will be looking to improve his record to 4-0 as the head coach Rose Bowls against Stanford Jan. 1.Former Wisconsin coaching legend Barry Alvarez had no plans of returning to the sideline for his fourth career Rose Bowl after Bret Bielema left for Arkansas. But a few calls later from seniors Mike Taylor and Curt Phillips, Alvarez was back in the reigns for one more game.As his phone erupted with text messages and voicemails in the hours after news broke that Bielema was taking the new job with the Razorbacks, he first ignored several calls from a Green Bay area code. The persistent caller was Taylor, a fifth-year senior linebacker.“Mike told me he and the captains and the leaders of the team have discussed the fact that they would like me to coach them in the Rose Bowl,” Alvarez said. “I told him I would be honored to coach them and I wanted them to understand that if I was going to coach, we weren’t going to screw around, we would go out there to win.”At a press conference Thursday morning, Alvarez confirmed earlier reports that he will serve as the head coach for the Badgers against the Stanford Cardinal at the 99th Rose Bowl but said it is only a special, single-game commitment. Alvarez, whose last game as UW head coach was a win over Auburn in the 2006 Capital One Bowl, is 3-0 in Pasadena. Ironically, his last win at the Rose Bowl came in 2000 against the same opponent – Stanford.The Wisconsin Athletic Director also stated that all assistant coaches on the team are staying with the team at least through the Rose Bowl.Alvarez said he was very surprised by Bielema’s decision to leave and that Arkansas did not ask for permission to interview the Wisconsin head coach. The Wisconsin athletic director said he returned from breakfast Tuesday morning in New York – where he was being inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame – to a message from Bielema saying he need to talk with his former mentor.It was there that the 42-year-old UW head coach informed his athletic director that he was leaving for Fayetteville. “I said you’re not telling me you’re going to visit with the Arkansas people, you’ve already taken the job,” Alvarez said. “And the answer was ‘yes.’”Alvarez said he already has a short-list of potential candidates and has reached out to some of them, but will not start interviews until after the weekend. Though not ruling out those who have only worked as assistants, Alvarez said he will first consider those with head coaching experience.“There’s been a lot of interest shown in the position because it’s a great job, it’s on solid footing, new facilities and a very good nucleus coming back,” he said.Alvarez added that former Badgers’ offensive coordinator and current Pittsburgh head coach Paul Chryst – an early front-runner for the vacant head coaching spot – will remain with the Panthers.“I asked some very close friends of mine to help get Paul that job and I think Paul’s already come out and said he’s committed to Pitt and I think he should be committed to Pitt,” Alvarez said. “I wouldn’t think it would be right for him to leave after one year, I wouldn’t feel right and I don’t think it would be appropriate for me to hire him back after I asked someone to do me a favor and help him get that job.“Paul is going to stay at Pitt.”Alvarez will handle Wisconsin’s upcoming recruiting weekend and said he will preach a simple message to recruits: that Badger football will still chug along behind a pro-style rushing attack and that the changing of the guard does not mean the program will experience a serious makeover.“Bret used my gameplan to win,” Alvarez said. “The coach that I will hire will be someone that will have to understand who we are (and) how we go about our business.”Many questioned if Alvarez’s returns to the sideline would be more symbolic than anything, and he said he will “manage the game” while relying on the game-planning of his coordinators.The man often credited with turning Wisconsin football into a top Big Ten program emphasized several times that he did this for the players and that he does not want the attention to fall on him. But as a Rose Bowl Hall of Fame inductee coaching his first team in Pasadena in 12 years, Alvarez will have a hard time staying out of pregame headlines.Only this time he brings in a 7-5 Wisconsin team (the first five-loss team to ever appear in a Rose Bowl) that has faced harsh criticism for being the Big Ten’s lone representative in the four BCS bowls.“I’ve been through that before where we were the worst team ever to be represented at the Rose Bowl,” Alvarez said, a nod to an infamous remark by ESPN analyst Craig James. “So I bring history with that and I’m accustomed to answering those questions.“The best comeback was I know there’s at least one team worse than us.”Follow Ian and Badger Herald Sports on Twitter for more breaking updates
Syracuse’s defense on free position shots makes up for its tendency to foul
Asa Goldstock banged her stick on the two goalposts, alternating twice before spinning the stick and stationing herself in front of the goal. It was late in the second half of Syracuse’s April 3 game against Virginia Tech, and the Hokies’ Mary Claire Byrne had just earned a free-position shot.The whistle blew and Byrne quickly shuffled forward before the attack was met by a pair of SU defenders. A shot headed straight for the upper-left corner of the goal before Goldstock sprung up and picked it off, her sixth save of the game.The No. 5 Orange (14-3, 5-2 Atlantic Coast) went on to defeat Virginia Tech, 14-13, marking their fifth victory of the year by one goal. Syracuse’s defense, which allowed seven free-position goals to the Hokies in a 15-14, double-overtime loss last season, held Virginia Tech to just two scores on seven free position opportunities.Opponents are converting on just under 38% of their free-position chances against SU’s defense, the second-lowest mark the Orange have allowed in program history. The efficient clip has saved SU, which has faced an average of 5.8 free position attempts per game, from allowing teams to take advantage.“We watch a lot of film, certainly put it on the scouting report,” SU head coach Gary Gait said. “Some players tend to have the outside rip, some want to carry it in every time.”AdvertisementThis is placeholder textIf a player likes to shoot from the outside instead of running in, like Syracuse’s leading scorer Emily Hawryschuk (57 goals, 21 from the free-position) tends to do, the Orange will rush to force a deflection or errant shot. If the player is like Byrne and prefers to take a few steps toward the goal before releasing its shot, Syracuse’s game plan is to get as many bodies possible to congest shooting lanes.Against Florida on March 13, another game the Orange won by just one score, the Gators earned 14 free-position shots, including eight in the second half. SU stopped nine of them, the most they have prevented in a game this season.The Orange also keep track of players’ dominant hands in relation to where the shot is on the eight-meter arc. If a player is a lefty and they’re on one of the left hash marks, they’ll likely shoot the ball. If they’re on an opposite hash, they’re more prone to pass, which is something Syracuse has to be aware of at all times.“Most players maybe won’t take that shot they’re not sure of,” SU midfielder Sam Swart said. “We’re pretty smart about that on our team.”One of the reasons SU is so adept at both scoring off free-position opportunities as well as defending them is because it practices eight-meter shots every day during practice. While other aspects of the game — like clears and rides — aren’t practiced frequently due to their time constraints, free-position shots are routine.During games, Goldstock usually takes on the responsibility of moving around the defenders in front of her. If Goldstock doesn’t like the defense, she’ll move her teammates around accordingly. Nearly every free-position shot leads to attack and defenders jockeying for position.“Asa will help us rearrange if we need based on the circumstance,” SU defender Sarah Cooper said. “If they’re putting players behind we know we need to get someone behind, and Asa’s the one telling us.”Syracuse hasn’t found a way to reduce its penalty numbers. But so far this season, its recipe to stop free-position tries, and limit the damage, has been successful.“Sometimes we do a great job then it comes down to Asa making some saves at the end,” Gait said. “We wanna get solid and get some stops, so we work at it.” Comments Facebook Twitter Google+ Published on April 17, 2019 at 10:06 pm Contact Eric: erblack@syr.edu | @esblack34