Archive for March 18th, 2010

When hiring a mobile disco for your event, just like any other professional there are things to bear in mind that can help protect yourself and the people attending your event.

For instance, did you know that there is a body that represents DJ’s and mobile disco’s. SEDA (South Eastern Discotheque Association). Do not be afraid to ask if they are members. All members of SEDA are given a set of standards they must comply with and it gives you peace of mind of there professionalism in the mobile disco hire industry.

All Mobile Discotheque professional should also have their own insurance. This liability insurance protects your guests should there be any accidents with equipment. The event or function room you are holding the event in may also require to see this or may have there own insurance to cover public liability.

The professional mobile disco should also be able to cater to your events needs. For instance, if this is a wedding reception, you may want background music during food intervals or whilst your guests are seating. When the party kicks in you also want the volume levels to be at max, and if your holding a 18th or 21st birthday party then the Mobile Disco you hire should be able to set this to the levels beyond.

A good mobile disco DJ should also run the event and provide the basis to keep the momentum going. How this happens depends on how much interaction you need. For instance you may want the DJ to just mention essential information, you may need them to just play the music or you may need them to be fully interactive with your guests.

Mobile Disco’s also price the events differently depending on various factors so make sure you give them the full details before agreeing terms. The most deciding factors to price may be the venue of the event, are there stairs, lifts, limitations from the event owner?, length of time needed for the event, just for the night or throughout the day, and the number of people needed to entertain, this will decide the equipment the mobile disco DJ will need.

In summary, hosting a great event can take a lot of time and energy, but ask the right questions and get the right people, and you can have a great night to remember that people will talk about for years.

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My 21st Birthday #0590

my 21st birthday
Image taken on 2007-08-11 12:41:57 by RemixedDave.

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Chancel Repair liability is an ancient medieval law which could still affect your Conveyancing transaction when you buy a property in England and Wales.

Here is a run down of 21 questions on the common instances and practicalities of Chancel Repair Liability in modern Conveyancing practices, and how it can impact on the buying and selling of your home.

Let’s start at the beginning:

1. What is a Chancel:

The Chancel is the area where the altar, pretty much the east end of the Church.

2. What is the standard of repair required: Is it unlimited?

It was thought to be nothing more than keeping the Chancel watertight and maintain essential fittings. There was no obligation to provide repair which was purely ornamental and decorative. This seems to be no longer the case and improvements can be factored in to the cost

3. Why is it confined to Pre Reformation (1534) Churches?

It is simply a Conveyancing anomaly going back to the reign of Henry VIII. When he dissolved (or privatised as we would say now) the monasteries, he also passed on the liabilities to the new owners, who became Lay Rectors.

4. How many properties are affected by Chancel Repair Liability?

It is estimated that as many as 5200 properties may be the subject of the Liability, although some 1200 will be the responsibility of the Church Commissioners and Deans of Oxford, Cambridge and Durham Universities as well as the colleges of Winchester and Eton.

5. What act governs the law in relation to Chancel Repairs?

The 1932 Chancel Repair Act.

6. Will the Chancel Repair Liability show up on my Title Deeds?

Not necessarily. In some cases it will be, but in the majority of cases no.

7. My property is registered at the Land Registry. Will the Land Registry make it clear?

No, the same still applies. However, if there is no entry placed on your deeds by 2013 (because of legislation passed in 2002), then the liability cannot be enforced against you.

8. Who can enforce Chancel Repair Liability?

The 1932 Chancel Repair Act gave the power to bring court action, if a lay rector failed to repair the Chancel of a relevant church, to the Parochial Church Council

9. What or who is a Lay Rector?

Quite complicated to explain, but in essence, the Lay Rector was in most cases, institutions which took on the responsibility of the rector’s liability as a result of the dissolution of the monasteries. However, in some cases this could also be the person who assumed the liability handed down with land through the generations.

10. Why would a PCC want do this in this day and age?

Money is tight, and in the most recent case, the PCC were refused a grant from English Heritage because “they had failed to exhaust other avenues of finance” i.e. Chancel Repair Liability

11. Will my house be the only one liable?

In most cases the liability will be joint and several. The PCC could choose to pursue who they liked. That person in turn would be able to claim a contribution from all liable parties. (Although, that would be easier said than done). The worry is that just one registration in an area could allow the whole cost of the repair to be claimed

12. How far away from the Church does my house have to be?

It depends on ancient parish boundaries. You would normally be within sight of the church, but you could be some 30 miles away.

13. Is there anywhere where such maps could be inspected?

The National Archive at Kew has the most information. There is also an online search facility available

A personal search of various historical records could also reveal whether a property would be liable. This would be time consuming and very expensive.

14. Are there any property names which might give the game away?

Yes, there are a few telltale signs. Anywhere with the following should be investigated carefully; Rectory, Glebe, Vicarage and Parsons

15. Are properties in Wales affected as well?

Yes, but to a lesser extent, as Wales was subject to specific legislation in 1920

16. Has anyone had to pay Chancel Repair Liability recently?

Yes. The unfortunate Wallbanks ended up selling their farmhouse Glebe Farm, to pay for the repair of the Chancel to St. John the Baptist Church in Aston Cantlow, Warwickshire. The cost of the repairs was estimated at £200000, and probably as much again in legal costs taking their case all the way up to the House of Lords.

17. What about the Human Rights Act and if my religion is not Church of England?

The human rights angle was used in the Wallbanks case. The Court rejected the argument that the liability was “an unfair and arbitrary tax” as the PPC is not a public body, and church repairs were a private matter. This seems somewhat spurious.

18. Will the knowledge of the liability have an effect on the value of my house?

Yes, if it known. No, if is not known. Your Conveyancing Solicitor will be able to advise from his or her knowledge of the area

19. If there is any doubt, can I insure the property against future liability?

Yes, you can. In the first instance, your Conveyancing solicitor can carry out a screening report. A number of companies carry out such searches. The best known is perhaps ChancelCheck to see if the property is within a potentially liable parish.

20. Is this expensive? No the initial search costs £15 plus VAT

21. What happens if the property I am buying could be potentially liable?

Your Conveyancing Solicitor can then have the property insured for the full amount of the purchase price. Most general legal indemnity insurers will provide cover based on the value of the property. One such policy is ConveySure from the same company which provides ChancelCheck.

The good news is that the Chancel Repair Liability has a definitive shelf life.

The bad news is that until then the liability could bite you firmly on the backside.

The further good news is that you can safely insure where you are in doubt.

The best advice is to speak with your Conveyancing Solicitor

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Stock Photography: Going Digital.

How You Can Sell Your Digital Stock Images Online Today. Stock Photography: Going Digital.

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Part 2 of the Christmas Special & my 21st Birthday.

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Profiles of the lost

Profiles of the lost James Ahearn Concord; age 43 Major, Army Killed July 5, 2007, Baghdad Combat deathLove comes unexpectedly, and so it was for 18-year Army man and Desert Storm veteran James Ahearn, who found his while checking a house in Baghdad. Read more on Contra Costa Times

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It was the red dress she wore on her 21st birthday. I have a prom dress that looks exsactly like it. I CANT find a pic of it ANYWHERE! please help?!!
Image taken on 2008-03-16 11:32:25 by UltraCore.

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In the UK, if you or your loved ones suffered from personal injury as a result of another person’s outright negligence or misbehaviour, you are allowed by law to make a compensation claim.

Compensation claim is a legal issue and most personal injury cases allow some strict time limits for legal action to be taken. However, if the claim is for a child, a personal injury claim must be filed within three years of realizing that the injury was the fault of another person. In such cases, children are permitted to wait until their 21st birthday before they can file a claim.

To file a valid personal injury claim, you must show beyond doubt that someone had breached your duty of care in a way that caused you to suffer personal injury or a loss as a result. This means that you can make a claim if you can prove that your injury was caused by the fault of a person or the negligence of an organisation which had legal responsibility for your safety and welfare.

Providing the evidence of your injury is usually simpler than proving that the other party is negligent and responsible for your injury or loss. A visit to a doctor should confirm that you have suffered an injury but evidence to show that it was the result after an accident which someone else was legally responsible for may be more difficult. If you work for an organization, ensure that the injury is properly recorded and handled.

Emotional distress such as stress or distressed sleep and any financial losses incurred as a result of the accident can also be compensated, again providing you have proof to verify that it was the other party who is responsible.

As long as you have a strong and justifiable case with enough evidence to prove any personal injuries or losses, and provided you make a claim within three years of the accident or loss, you are entitled to make a no win no fee claim.

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Rich Blessings And Psalm 21

Psalm 21 reads as follows from the New King James version of the Bible:

The king shall have joy in Your strength, O LORD;
And in Your salvation how greatly shall he rejoice!
2 You have given him his heart’s desire,
And have not withheld the request of his lips.  Selah  

3 For You meet him with the blessings of goodness;
You set a crown of pure gold upon his head.
4 He asked life from You, and You gave it to him—
Length of days forever and ever.
Psalm 21 reads as follows from the New King James version of the Bible:

1 O LORD, the king rejoices in your strength. 
How great is his joy in the victories you give!

2 You have granted him the desire of his heart 
and have not withheld the request of his lips. 
Selah

3 You welcomed him with rich blessings 
and placed a crown of pure gold on his head.

4 He asked you for life, and you gave it to him— 
length of days, for ever and ever.

5 Through the victories you gave, his glory is great; 
you have bestowed on him splendor and majesty.

6 Surely you have granted him eternal blessings 
and made him glad with the joy of your presence.

7 For the king trusts in the LORD; 
through the unfailing love of the Most High 
he will not be shaken.

8 Your hand will lay hold on all your enemies; 
your right hand will seize your foes.

9 At the time of your appearing 
you will make them like a fiery furnace. 
In his wrath the LORD will swallow them up, 
and his fire will consume them.

10 You will destroy their descendants from the earth, 
their posterity from mankind.

11 Though they plot evil against you 
and devise wicked schemes, they cannot succeed;

12 for you will make them turn their backs 
when you aim at them with drawn bow.

13 Be exalted, O LORD, in your strength; 
we will sing and praise your might.

This psalm is considered a companion to psalm 20 where the psalmist is requesting answers and later in this psalm is a little further along and is now basking in the sunshine of the Lord’s glorious presence and rich blessings.

Verse 3 in the New Oxford Annotated Bible gives a translation of rich blessings rather than blessings of goodness.

A major theme in this psalm is that these blessings, while present in the here and now to the psalmist will be ongoing and extend into eternity and in a sense they go forward into eternity but also extend backwards from the eternal to the present so in actuality the Psalmist is seeing the presence of the eternal in the at hand blessings in the midst of his lifetime.

Verse 4 speaks of salvation and verse 5 speaks of blessings forever. The NIV translation of verse 6 says,  6 Surely you have granted him eternal blessings 
and made him glad with the joy of your presence.

The point of pondering using this psalm is the meeting with the Lord within blessings of goodness, the rich blessings, or abundant blessing as mentioned in verse 3. He is welcomed or met with rich blessings. Even in the case of the Prodigal Son, he is welcomed back with not only a greeting but new rich blessings. While the psalmist here isn’t prodigal, he is still met in the fashion of being given rich blessings. The welcoming or meeting is ongoiing and the rich blessings are ongoing.

The personal meeting with the Lord is thematic to the psalms as a whole.

With the idea of meeting, we can begin to obtain a view of the balance of the relationship and that is certainly doesn’t qualify as beggarly. The Prodigal Son did become beggarly in his meanderings as he had squandered his inheritance. However, when he met with his Father and came back, there was never a hint of earning he way back, the balance of the relationship was immediately restored and he was welcomed or met with rich blessings right away.

while the vision of meeting with the Lord may not contain Prodigal in your case, the balance of the true relationship can be pondered and seen in a greater light as it can be seen with deeper meaning and clarity..

This psalm strongly alludes to the personal encounter for better or worse and later in this psalm it is talking about those who are working evil against the policies of the Lord, yet the Lord does see the individual faces of those who are involved in this..

Try to image this, visualize this, ponder this meeting. If indeed you are seeking blessings from the Lord, it will as in the case of the psalmist David, involve a meeting with the Lord. He was welcomed with rich blessings, it is not as it the blessings were dropped off like a plane might drop of aid to an area of the world that needs help today. The blessings were part of the meeting and the personal encounter with the joyful presence of the Lord. They did not come from a seperate sphere.

Don’t be attached to  what the rich and good blessings will be, but they will characterize as rich and good. The focus should be first on the meeting and welcoming which will interwine with the blessings. If you are meeting a friend you enjoy, first you are meeting them and the blessings are more of an adjunct to this meeting.

There would be a timeless element. You might be mired in your current circumstances, but the Lord is the lover of your soul, and this meeting could be imagined in another century, another era, another location, another set of circumstances that are quite different than what you are presently facing.

Separate from all this and ponder the Lord is meeting you. The joyful presence of the Lord vastly supersedes your present circumstances and may override them only for good..

There are rich blessings and blessings of goodness within this meeting and there can be a detachment as to what you think they could be but an understanding towards what they actually are and what they signify in the joyful presence of the Lord.

There might be an incorrect view and what could or would be a better view becomes a source of speculation and maybe hope.

View what the balance of the relationship is. When you adjust the rear view mirror of a car, you are trying to get the most accurate view of what you are passing by as you proceed down the road.. Ask the Lord to give a mirror to this meeting with you so that you can see its truth and meaning in greater depth.

The view is not as much to the attached blessings as to the meeting itself.

The later verses of this psalm talk about the Lord beholding the face of the evildoer.

The face of evil is not hidden in the crowd either. The presence of the Lord is everywhere and to everyone, and to the face of the one.

The side of the riverbanks that the psalmist David is on is a personal journey and meeting with the Lord that carries the richest blessings extending all the way into eternity and this is the model of hope presented in this psalm.

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Pac-10 Conference

Pac-10 Conference Pac-10 Conference-Around the Pac 10 Read more on USA Today

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