NewPCgadgets Introduces The 2017 Trump Tweety Bird Christmas Tree Ornament

Trump Tweety Bird Christmas Ornament 2017

NewPCgadgets introduces the 2017 Trump Tweety Bird Christmas Tree Ornament, just in time for the Holidays.

With the combined silhouettes of a Bluebird and the current President, NewPCgadgets has created a one-of-a-kind Christmas tree ornament sure to be a conversation starter this Holiday season.

The new Trump Tweety Bird Ornament is designed to appeal to the disgruntled Democrats, demoralized Republicans and frustrated Liberals. Or, as NewPCgadgets says "About 85% of the population."

Priced at $7.95 each, the laser cut acrylic shape is made from 3/16" clear acrylic and stands 4 ½" high. NewPCgadgets also includes a red, white and blue ribbon to prominently hang the new ornament on the Christmas tree.

As an impulse, under $10 Holiday gift item, the Trump Tweety Bird Ornament provides a little levity in a highly charged political climate. 

• In addition to the Trump Christmas Tree Ornament, NewPCgadgets also offers the Trump Mousepad and the Trump Commander-in-Tweet Smartphone Stand, all for under $10.

Political statement and convenience stand all-in-one

• For ordering details and additional information visit NewPCgadgets today.

SOURCE: NewPCgadgets

Bonus Pictures:
(via NewPCgadgets)

Make America Great Again - Impeach Trump smartphone stand

Donald Trump Mousepad

Bonus Videos:

Life Among the Anishinabek of Northern Ontario

Mile Post 104 and Beyond (CNW Group/Robert Wells)

In this heartwarming memoir, retired non-Indigenous hunter, trapper and provincial conservation officer Bob Wells relives his early years learning about nature, hunting, fishing and life from his Anishinabek neighbours. 

Bob spent his youth at his parents' fishing lodge. At the age of eleven he successfully hunted an eleven-point buck. As instructed, by his dear friend Moochum Joe, he Honoured the deer with a traditional tobacco offering. Moochum presented 'Bobby' his first Honour Feather for the achievement and for community sharing. 

• He pursued hunting and fishing until just last year at the tender age of 80.

Through the staff who worked at the lodge, and throughout Bob's life, he saw first-hand how his Indigenous friends were treated differently by the church, schools, government and society at large. 

His father protected his Indigenous friends from the travelling priest who was charged with ensuring all Indigenous children were taken from their families and sent to Indian Residential Schools.

Moochum Joe told Bob to, when old, "draw words on paper to tell his kind about the mistreatment of 'Indians.'" Over six decades later, Wawahte was published and is one of only two books on the Assembly of First Nations' online "It's Our Time" curriculum package.

The book and a professional film documentary tell the stories of three Elders and their experience of residential schools. The book was endorsed by Chief Dr. Robert Joseph, Ambassador, Reconciliation Canada who travelled to Kingston to speak at the Documentary's launch.

Mile Post 104 and Beyond is Bob's first non-fiction title. This second edition has been revised and updated in light of the findings of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. 

It also includes a new final chapter written by the author's grandson about the impact of a suicide within their family. It sends a message to all young people to seek help and support to deal with their mental health issues and life challenges.

Bob Wells

Bob Wells was recently awarded the Sovereign's Medal for Volunteers by the Mayor of Kingston on behalf of the Governor General. The medal – one of Canada's highest civilian awards – honours a lifetime of civic involvement and dedication to the advancement of Canadian society. Mile Post 104 and Beyond is a special part of that legacy.

• For more information, visit wawahte.com.

SOURCE: Robert Wells

More Residential Schools Related Videos:

Indigenous-Produced Docu-Drama Series "1491" Reveals Untold History Of The Americas Before Columbus

1491: The Untold Story of the Americas Before Columbus

The Aboriginal Peoples Television Network (APTN) will present the world premiere of the docu-drama series 1491: The Untold Story of the Americas Before Columbus starting November 8th on APTN East and HD at 7:00 p.m. ET, APTN West at 7:00 p.m. MT and APTN North at 7:00 p.m. CT. The series is also slated to air on ZDFE (Germany) and SBS (Australia).

Based on Charles C. Mann's best selling book, 1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus, the eight hour miniseries, produced by Animiki See Digital Production of Winnipeg and Aarrow Productions of Victoria, takes its audience on a journey dating as far back as 20,000 years ago through to 1491. 

The series focuses on the origins and history of ancient civilizations and groundbreaking achievements in North and South America in the areas of agriculture, astronomy, architecture, environment, governance, medicine, technology, science, trade and art.

The series is produced, directed and written by Indigenous Canadians and most of the 35 historians, archaeologists and cultural experts interviewed have Indigenous ancestry. The series features 20 drama scenes and an Indigenous cast of actors that provide context on Indigenous history in the Americas.

Mann's critically acclaimed book dispels long-held theories that prior to European contact, Indigenous Peoples were largely nomadic, did not alter the natural landscape, and were not as advanced as other civilizations in the world at the time.

1491: The Untold Story of the Americas Before Columbus

• Award-winning filmmakers, Barbara Hager (Cree/Métis) and Lisa Jackson (Anishinaabe), directed the series in locations throughout North and South America. 

• The series was written by Barbara Hager and Marie Clements (Métis). 

1491: The Untold Story of the Americas Before Columbus docu-drama series logo
(CNW Group/1491 Productions Inc.)

• Other key creatives include composer Russell Wallace (Lil'wat), production designer Teresa Weston, costume designer Carmen Thompson (Nuu-chah-nulth), director of photography Bob Aschmann and narrator Dr. Evan Adams (Tla'amin).

SOURCE: 1491 Productions Inc.

The Trailers:

Rules For Booking Live Entertainment

Audience

You would think that booking live entertainment, a magician or clown for example, should be a simple and straight forward process but it is common for mishaps to occur. We will discuss a few general guidelines you need to follow in order to make the process smooth and frustration-free for you and the entertainer.

When to book

First, you should figure out exactly what kind of live show you are looking for. There will be numerous options to look into so having a general idea of what you want will help cut the search down, and save you time! Take into consideration your budget range as well. Many professional or well-known performers won’t be nice to your wallet. Of course, if it’s a big once-in-a-lifetime moment, any cost could be worth it in order to make the event memorable and beautiful.

Try to picture the image that you desire the guests to leave with and decide what you are willing to spend in order to attain that. So be upfront and honest about your budget, the worst that will happen is for the entertainer to politely decline your offer. Be aware that you should give at least 3-4 weeks of notice to any performer before your big event. Some entertainers will charge more for short notices because they will be under pressure to create custom routines, prepare for your unique event, and/or obtain permits.

Know your venue

It is very important to know certain details of your venue, which will make the booking process simple and fast. Have these written down when calling performers for cost estimations and schedule availability; exact date of the event; time you require the performer to arrive & begin performing, as well as expected duration; type of event; any special requests you want from the entertainer down to the very last detail; your budget; number of guests estimated; description of the location where the event will take place; appearance of other entertainment; and finally, have all your contact information available.

Selecting a performer

As you search for the perfect entertainment, you will find that prices will differ greatly. Even when the acts are similar (as in the same area, not the same performance) prices can go from the hundreds to the thousands. Do not use the mindset that expensive is best. Take your time to select perhaps two or three performers and review them carefully before making your last choice. Ask for samples of performances, read through testimonials, look at their websites, and contact them with any doubts. Good performers will have teasers of their show available to potential customers, will answer all questions, and will have referrals from trustworthy sources.

Expect a contract

No matter how “little” your event is, it is important to the performer for a legal contract to be a part of the booking process. Contracts help him or her keep track of all gigs, expenses, and income for tax purposes so don’t be offended if they want to establish a contract even when the event is small. Contracts will also help you feel reassured about the whole booking process. Make sure to abide by your agreements (payment agreements as well, whether it means paying before or immediately after performance) so that both you and the performer can have a tranquil and pleasant business transaction. 

About Today's Contributor:
Florin is known as a freelance publisher and foodie whose work has been highlighted in personal blogs, websites, publications, and TV advertisements.


Featured Picture: 

License: Image author owned

Stranger Things: Inventiveness In The Age Of The Netflix Original

Stranger Things. Netflix

By Arin Keeble, Edinburgh Napier University

The Netflix series Stranger Things, which shortly returns for a second season, was the surprise TV hit of summer 2016. Fans and critics revelled in its allusions to Hollywood hits from the American 1980s in which it is set. Every haircut, every rippling synth pattern, BMX chase and adolescent gesture of friendship seemed to come from an 80s movie. Its young protagonists communicated through references to Star Wars and Dungeons and Dragons and the first trailer for season 2 shows them trick-or-treating as the Ghostbusters.

So what made Stranger Things feel fresh and new? Was it somehow innovative in its referencing? It certainly wasn’t because of a new kind of aesthetic recycling, as JJ Abrams had already done an 80s Steven Spielberg pastiche with Super 8, and borrowing or referencing has long been prevalent in American cinema. From Film Noir’s adoption of German expressionist techniques in films like The Maltese Falcon or Touch of Evil to the postmodern genre-mashing of Pulp Fiction, Hollywood storytelling has a rich history of pastiche, allusion and homage.

But what happens when serial TV does this? Stranger Things featured eight hour-long episodes developing characters who inevitably cannot exist solely in the stylistic shoes of Spielberg or Stephen King. And though the referencing is there, the immediate pleasures of its clever nods to E.T. or The Goonies evolve into a more sophisticated meditation on the processes of allusion.

Nostalgia and trauma
The achievement of Stranger Things is twofold. It is not just highly referential – it is actually about referencing. The series explores the way people – especially young people – communicate through patterns of reference or allusion. The programme’s retro register is also paired with an ongoing discussion of what we can see as the opposite of nostalgia – traumatic memory.

The casting of Winona Ryder is integral to this convergence of nostalgia and trauma. Ryder’s star power was born in the 1980s, when she was a teenager, through films like Heathers and Beetlejuice. In the 1990s her screen successes were accompanied by extreme tabloid scrutiny of her personal life. This included high-profile coverage of her struggles with drugs and anxiety. Because of this public history, the casting of Ryder was itself referential, as is the casting of any “star”.

As Keith Reader argued in Intertextualty: Theories and Practice: “The concept of the film star is an intertextual one, relying as it does on correspondences of similarity and difference from one film to the next and on supposed resemblances between on and off-screen personae.” So while Stranger Things’ teen drama story, centring on Nancy Wheeler, evokes the high school world of Heathers, Ryder’s performance as Joyce Byers, draws on her real life experiences. Joyce is a loving, thoughtful, single mother and a sufferer of anxiety. This is exacerbated by the disappearance of her youngest son and for much of the first series she is upset and hysterical.

Stranger Things Season 2. Netflix

Ryder’s performance was widely acclaimed – including by Rolling Stone journalist, Noel Murray, who suggested Stranger Things “brought her back”. Murray notes that the performance is powerful because the show takes advantage of what we already know about Ryder: that she is a “likeable celebrity who’s fallen on hard times”. Joyce’s hysteria certainly carries the power and authenticity of experience and it sharply juxtaposes the nostalgic innocence of Eggo waffles and BMX chases.

Joyce’s experiences are also echoed by other strands of the story. We learn that Chief Hopper is still struggling with the traumatic loss of his daughter and it is inferred that mystery child Eleven, who is the subject of sinister experiments, was taken as an infant from her now-institutionalised mother. Ultimately, Stranger Things’ nostalgic frame magnifies the intensity of its traumatic realism and stories of loss and psychosis.

Navigating an ‘upside down’ world
But Stranger Things is also invested in how its characters communicate through allusion. The boys, Dustin Henderson, Mike Wheeler, Lucas Sinclair and the missing Will Byers use these references to map out and understand their world – and that of The Upside Down (a dark alternate dimension existing in parallel to the human world). In the first episode we learn that they have renamed the streets of their small Indiana town using references to The Hobbit and in episode three, puzzling over the mysterious Eleven, Dustin asks his friends: “I wonder if she was born with her powers like the X-Men or if she acquired them like Green Lantern?”

Eleven by Aelini

Sometimes references serve as a code that adults and other kids won’t know – which is important as the boys are outsiders (geeks before geeks were cool). Sometimes references are charged with imaginative and emotional meaning. For example, Mike cites his missing friend’s boldness and bravery in a Dungeon’s and Dragons “campaign” as a reason for him and his friends to be brave in trying to find him in real life.

Literature academic and blogger Aaron Bady has pointed out that what makes Stranger Things’ allusions unique is that it has no “anxiety” over its gratuitous borrowing. This subverts the need “to play authenticity detective.” This is undoubtedly the case and it is striking in the world of “Netflix originals” where everything seems to be an adaptation or re-imagining, like House of Cards or Daredevil. But I believe what sets the show apart is its clever use of allusion to amplify the impact of its depictions of anxiety, trauma and loss and its exploration of allusion as a mode of communication.

About Today's Contributor:
Arin Keeble, Lecturer in Contemporary Literature and Culture, Edinburgh Napier University

This article was originally published on The Conversation. 

Bonus Pictures:
(via DeviantArt.com)

Stranger Things - Nancy and Jonathan (via JCLF88)

Upside Down, Downside Up (via NuclearLoop)