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Some stories deserve to be told for the sheer grit and determination that a person has shown while battling societal expectations and mockery. One such inspiring tale is of Vanshika Abrol, a second year student of Keshav Mahavidyalaya, Delhi University (DU), who transformed her life by losing around 22 kilos since the starting of lockdown last year!

Abrols journey to a healthy lifestyle is full of body positivity, self love and inspiration. Today, as her peers, who once taunted her, reach out to her for #WorkOutTips, she says, I have over 6,000 comments on my Insta video, asking me how I did it. My Instagram DMs are flooded with queries. I have responded to more than 100 people already, I guess, and still have a lot of pending requests. People are still reaching out to me, to get tips that they can include in their routine, too.

Today an influence who is motivating many youngsters to lead a healthy lifestyle, this Delhi girls journey is something that will bring you too to agree to the adage: Nothing is impossible. I am 20 years old, and have been overweight for almost 12 years of my life. At my heaviest, I weighed 118 kgs! I have tried to lose weight many a times, and in fact I did reduce a few kilos, but each time I ended in giving up somewhere in between. Its not that easy after all... During the lockdown, when I gained back a few kilos, I became much frustrated with my lifestyle. Then one day, I saw a friend of mine posting videos of work out. Something got into me that moment, and I decided to start working out, too!

Surrounded by a sea of diet recommendations and lifestyle changes, it was hard to decide what works and what doesnt. What worked for Abrol? Keto diet, Paleo diet or any other diet actually works only when you are in a caloric deficit. I tried intermittent fasting too, but I had really low energy levels during that period. What really worked was being in a caloric deficit. I ate whatever I wanted to, but in moderation.

Its been around 10 months now, since that day and Ive been working out and eating a good diet consistently, shares Abrol and adds proudly, Thats how I lost 22 kgs!

Being an over weight person isnt easy, and same was the case with Abrol, who had to face a lot of hurt and taunts and that took a toll on her confidence. Ive been mocked at by people including my friends. It just might be a joke to them, but to me it was something that shook my confidence. I always tried to not let my weight affect any of the things I do in life, but it somehow just ended up coming in my way. With time, even I accepted that the society is going to judge you no matter what. So I just stopped worrying about what people said or thought about me, she adds.

Now, as she beams like an ambassador of body positivity, and addresses queries of brands who are approaching her to model for them, Abrol says, Body positivity for me is to love yourself the way you are. I have had stretch marks all over my body for a better part of my life, and now, after losing 22 kgs, I have been left with a lot of loose skin. But, I dont let any of these things affect me because I love the way I am... And you dont have to fit into societys perception of what an ideal body should look like. You are amazing the way you are. Theres no need to lose weight to be body positive. On the contrary, I believe that one should lose weight to live a healthy life and be free of ailments and not because the society expects you to! Loving myself means acceptance to me. To be able to love yourself, you need to fully accept yourself the way you are!

And what advice does Abrol have for anyone aiming to have a fitter physique? To lose weight, one needs to have patience. Dont try to lose weight quickly. You might just end up gaining all of it back. Just try and find an eating pattern and a physical activity that you can stick to for the rest of your life. Losing weight is not a one time thing, its a lifestyle change, she says, adding, Dont worry if you go off track on some days. Just bounce back on track as soon as you can. Consistency over perfection is what works because consistency is the key, concludes Abrol while tapping in to her gram to answer the hundreds of questions from her enthusiastic followers who have been awestruck by her journey to attain a fitter body.

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DU student sheds weight, inspires peers to be body positive - Hindustan Times

Back in the summer of 2019, when joking about omens of the apocalypse still seemed fresh and fun, an endless swarm of grasshoppers descended on the Las Vegas Strip.

These insects were not biters or crop killers. But for weeks, every evening after sunset, their flapping wings filled the Sky Beam shining up from the pyramid of the Luxor casino, and their dead exoskeletons littered the sidewalks. The news media speculated that the outbreak could be attributed to a wet winter that allowed more eggs to hatch, and to the citys artificial lights, which lured in grasshoppers like moths to flame.

A new analysis substantiates the link to the citys lights with worrying implications for the grasshoppers. Elske Tielens, an insect ecologist at the University of Oklahoma, found that on July 26, 2019, the peak night of the invasion, some 46 million grasshoppers took wing and then clustered over the brightest parts of the city.

Its really hard to wrap your mind around that volume, she said. Were getting more grasshoppers in the air on a single day than you get humans coming to Vegas to gamble across an entire year.

Visitors, of course, already knew Las Vegas cranked up its wattage at night. But some of that glow escapes straight up into space, where satellites measure it as the brightest city on the planet by a wide margin. The rest of that light, overflowing up into the atmosphere, forms a glowing dome that the U.S. National Park Service recently measured from 200 miles away, at the Great Basin National Park in Nevada.

Insect ecologists, for their part, have spent years studying how individual lamps and nighttime traps can be a silent siren call for insects, tempting them to their deaths. But Dr. Tielens and her colleagues, inspired by coverage of the 2019 Vegas grasshopper invasion, saw an opportunity to hunt for a wider pattern. They found that the roving clouds of grasshoppers had also been visible in weather radar data. Then they overlaid those radar movement patterns with separate maps of the citys vegetation and its nighttime lighting.

Their study, published Tuesday in Biology Letters, suggested a daily commute. Before dusk, the grasshoppers began spread out over a wide area, gathered near vegetation. But as daylight faded they took to the skies. Then they clustered up to dozens of miles away, traveling not just toward individual bright points, as previous research has documented, but toward the glowiest regions of the Vegas sky.

This is a really exciting paper, said Brett Seymoure, an ecologist at Washington University in St. Louis who didnt participate in the research. We really dont have evidence until right now, with this paper, that the light dome is guiding insects.

Insect ecologists were already worried that different insect populations were declining around the world, perhaps because of pesticide use, habitat loss, pollution, climate change and artificial light at night. Dr. Tielenss study, she says, does not estimate how many grasshoppers died, or how the nightly trip into the heart of Vegas might influence the next generation of grasshoppers. But it does show that artificial lighting can influence insects on a regional scale, and that on July 26, 2019, the citys shimmer summoned 30 metric tons of crunchy, airborne biomass that might otherwise have been spread out across a much larger ecosystem.

Its scary from an ecological perspective, Dr. Seymoure said. Its also probably pretty terrifying for a lot of people in Las Vegas, to have all of these grasshoppers swarming around. Although I think that would be pretty cool to see.

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New Study Sheds Light on Why Grasshoppers Flocked to Vegas - The New York Times

While Covid-19 ravaged the broader American economy, the largest U.S. employers added more jobs than they cut.

Overall, global employment rose by about 370,000 people among the 286 members of the S&P 500 that filed annual reports between July 1 and March 31, a Wall Street Journal analysis of securities filings shows.

Those gains masked wrenching changes and job losses for workers in many companies and industries. And the net gain in jobs for 2020 wouldnt have happened without a single company: Amazon . com Inc.

The giant internet retailer added 500,000 workers around the world during the yearmore than 400,000 of them in the U.S. Amazon created nearly as many jobs last year as the 136 other companies in the Journal analysis that added workers.

By hiring that many people, we were not only able to deliver essential items for our customers during a critical time, but also provide an opportunity to those who lost their jobs or saw their hours cut because of Covid, said Beth Galetti, Amazons senior vice president for human resources. Amazon became an employment beacon for hundreds of American communities. Workers at an Amazon warehouse in Alabama are voting on whether to unionize.

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Tesla, Facebook, FedEx Hired Through the Pandemic as GE, Marriott, Others Shed Jobs - The Wall Street Journal

In seven more games, the Stars and general manager Jim Nill will know where they stand at the April 12 trade deadline, whether they will be adding for a playoff push or subtracting to reset next season.

Either way, it doesnt seem like the teams goaltending will be on the move.

Thats going to be more of a summer situation, Nill said Wednesday morning. Well monitor that as we go forward. I wouldnt say that goaltending is something were thinking were going to do something at the deadline right now.

The Stars crease could become crowded in the last month of the regular season, with Ben Bishop returning from offseason knee surgery to join Anton Khudobin and rookie Jake Oettinger. Bishop has begun skating again, but a firm timeline for his return isnt set.

Now hes got to get into the goaltending position, theres a lot of up and down and real quick reactions, Nill said. Thats the next process hes got to go through. Is he two weeks, three weeks, four weeks away? I dont know. Were just going to monitor that and see how it goes.

Oettinger, meanwhile, has proved capable during his first NHL season, posting a .909 save percentage and 2.34 goals against average across 17 games. At one point this year, he started four straight games, and seemed to move past Khudobin on the depth chart.

His quick development is a huge positive for the Stars in the long term. While his first season hasnt been perfect (rebounds have been too loose at times, and extra time has been a struggle), Oettinger is ahead of schedule for where the Stars thought he would be.

Hes come in and done a great job, Nill said. I think hes grabbed the situation of being at this level, understanding what it takes. The work ethic is there, hes had a chance to work with [coach] Jeff Reese on goaltending. Hes worked with Ben Bishop and Dobby, theyve helped him along. I think hes done a great job.

In the short term, Oettingers play will force the Stars to do some juggling in net.

When Bishop comes back, he will be the No. 1 goaltender. Khudobin and Oettinger have been serviceable, but will not be starting over a Vezina-caliber goaltender, even one coming off knee surgery. The Stars could rotate three goalies, opting to play Oettinger every now and then rather than have him sit on the taxi squad or play in the AHL.

We have plans in place, but those change every day, either because of the injuries or COVID results, Nill said. You never know. Well monitor that as we go. Put it this way: Itd be a good problem to have if youve got all three guys back.

Khudobins future is the murkiest.

He will be exposed in this summers expansion draft, as Bishop has a no movement clause and Oettinger is not eligible. Even with the down year this season, Khudobin may be the most attractive piece for the Kraken to take (unless theyre already set at goaltender with Brayden Holtby or Jake Allen or Antti Raanta). It would be nice for Seattle to take Khudobin off the Stars hands, clearing a path for Oettinger and removing the final two years of his $3.333 million cap hit.

But the Stars cant rely on Seattle doing that, especially if they decide to poach a forward like Jason Dickinson or Joe Pavelski from the Stars. So might the Stars want to trade Khudobin instead? Plenty of teams need goaltending, but the complicating factors of the pandemic (league protocols regarding travel plus financial restrictions from owners) and the expansion draft could make it tough for Dallas to find a trading partner in a couple weeks.

Nill said the current six-game road trip through Nashville, Carolina and Chicago will dictate which direction the team wants to go at the trade deadline, whether buying or selling.

When we come out of this trip, itll be close to the deadline on April 12th and well know where were sitting pretty well by then, Nill said. The games are going by fast, were playing every second day, so well have a good feel of where our teams at. And then also, over this next week, 10 days, have a good feel of where the leagues at.

The Stars have options if they choose to become sellers. Jamie Oleksiak, Blake Comeau and Andrew Cogliano are on expiring contracts. Esa Lindells no movement clause kicks in next season. John Klingberg is the teams most attractive trade chip.

While shipping out rentals at the trade deadline is often the least messy move, Nill said his options arent limited to small deals.

You never know, is there going to be a hockey trade that makes sense for both teams? Nill said. Were open to anything, and I think thats what teams are trying to figure out right now.

+++

Find more Stars coverage from The Dallas Morning News here.

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As Ben Bishop nears a return, Stars GM Jim Nill sheds light on the future of Dallas' goalie situation - The Dallas Morning News

FORT BENNING, Ga. (WRBL) April is National Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month. To highlight this, Fort Benning has partnered with The Army Sexual Harassment Assault Response and Prevention Program to bring awareness to the issue.

Out of the four branches, the Army and Navy had the highest reports of sexual assault, according to the most recentdatafrom the Department of Defense. In the fiscal year of 2019, therewere2,684reportsofsexual assaultmade by service members in theArmy.

To bring awareness to the issue, an informative session was held at the McGinnis-Wickam Hall Thursday morning to discuss and report sexual assault cases. This years theme is Building Cohesive Teams through Character, Trust and Resilience. Protecting Our People, Protects Our Mission. The Deputy Commandant of the United States Army Armor School, Colonel Sean Barnes, told News 3 why this event is important.

We have this ceremony to bring everybody together, Colonel Barnes said, to talk, communicate and share our experiences as we go into April, with other events that bring awareness to our soldiers and our leaders that this is a continual problem.

Colonel Barnes also said women arent the only ones being sexually assaulted; and men, between 18-24, are becoming victims, too.

Each year during SAAPM units and organizations across the Army have activities and training to bring awareness to sexual assaults that may take place within the Army community.

Kyle Bair, Executive Director of The Center at 909, tells News 3 shes glad she can help those who have been sexually assaulted.

Its unfortunate that there are as many survivors as there are but were so happy to help people and support them through the process, Bair said.

Even if a survivor chooses not to report the incident, the organization still supports them. Bair said sexual violence doesnt just affect survivors but it affects those around them such as family and friends.

Bair told News 3 that there is a difference between a victim and a survivor, some chose to claim the word victim and others chose to claim the word survivor.

This is a crime committed against you, you are a victim of a crime, Bair said, but survivor is what we all want to realize they can be. We can help them through the healing process, support them through the healing process. So we tell everybody if you survived this crime, that is amazing.

Officials at Fort Benning want those to know they can report these types of crimes to whoever they trust, it doesnt matter how long ago the incident took place. Leaders at Fort Benning come together every month to find ways to help those who have been assaulted.

This command takes this seriously, every month we talk about how to get better and how to get treatment and to get our soldiers that have been in contact with sexual assault to get them back on their feet, Colonel Barnes said.

Colonel Barnes wants soldiers to know there are more than enough people on base who they can report these types of incidents to.

There are more than enough people here on this insulation that will listen and take you seriously and get everything in motion to help you first and then make sure the perpetrator is brought to justice, Colonel Barnes said.

Sexual assault awareness and prevention programs will be taking place all month at the Fort Benning base. Bair wants those to know that you can say no without saying no by no longer engaging in the activity, letting them know your boundaries have been crossed or by saying stop.

I do want people to understand that no is not necessarily involved. The law doesnt require a no but many people will not establish the boundary or do not establish the boundary, Bair said no should not be apart of it, if theyve stopped or withdrawn or asked you to stop then it should stop.

You can report a sexual assault crime to DoD Safe Helpline 877-995-5247.

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Fort Benning sheds light on sexual assault during sexual assault and prevention month - WRBL

Both the PS5 and Xbox Series X released last November with a host of issues and design oversights. That said, of the two, the PS5 has some of the more rather peculiar issues. For example, the PS5 outputs -- as a default -- everything with High Dynamic Range, which isn't a problem until you go to play a game that doesn't support HDR and uses Standard Dynamic Range (SDR). Of course, this -- reported -- problem isn't a huge deal because the console's HDR can be turned off, but, for whatever reason, the console's SPR output isn't right, and so it's a major problem.

Taking to Twitter, Alexander Battaglia of Digital Foundry recently revealed that the PS5's SDR is not working, though right now it's unclear what the problem is. That said, while it's unclear what the issue is, what Battaglia does note is that it can lead to a black crush or other tone/color issues.

"PS5 is actually not displaying original SDR content correctly - unfortunately," said Battaglia. "Does it with Backward Compatibility titles for sure. Could lead to a black crush or other changes in reproducing the game's color or tone. It is not as dramatic as the limited vs full issue shown in the quoted tweet - but if you capture SDR on a PlayStation 4 Pro and compare it to SDR on PS5 of that same game there are differences which can be negative."

At the moment of publishing, it's unclear if Sony is aware of this problem, but Battaglia isn't the only one who has noticed it.

"The PS5 does not properly display SDR," added John Linneman, also of Digital Foundry. "If we capture the same game from all PS4s and Xbox systems using the same settings, blacks are crushed on PS5 in SDR. Im convinced SDR output is broken. SDR in HDR container is better here. SDR just doesn't seem to be quite right - all of our captures from PS5 in SDR are slightly crushed compared to all other machines...but if your display does a poor job with HDR it might still look better in SDR."

Again, it's important to note that it's unclear what the issue is here and right now Sony hasn't confirmed or acknowledged any of this, which means it's unknown if a fix is in the pipeline.

For more coverage on the PS5 -- including all of the latest news, rumors, leaks, speculation, and deals -- click here.

H/T, Wccftech.

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PS5 Report Sheds Light on Bizarre Issue With the Console - ComicBook.com

Sometimes a setup promoted on social media stops you dead in your tracks, and its not because youre excited about the hardware. Sometimes its the amazing, hand-built man shed where the setup lives that stuns you.

Such is the case with CourseEcstatic6202s offering on Reddit. The cloud architect lets just call him CE works in Amazon Web Services on Californias central coast. He designed and built a beautiful little house for his MacBook Pro-based setup in his back yard.

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The shed, approximately 13 feet by x 9 feet in size, has 119 square feet of space inside and cost $15,000 to build.

It features a MacBook Pro workstation, a guest Windows-based workstation, a TV monitor, sophisticated audio, a Google Nest security system, a mini fridge, an air purifier and a portable air conditioner all powered from the main house via a dedicated 20-amp circuit.

A few weeks in AutoCad and a few months of construction. Everything including cabinet work, roofing, etc. all hand done, CE commented in his post. My kids are grown up so I replaced the rotting play structure with the shed. Put it in 18 months before Covid. Turned out to be a wise investment.

CE fielded some admiring comments about his distinctive-looking audio rig, a Harmon Kardon Soundsticks III Speaker System. He has it Bluetooth-paired to an Amazon Echo Show 8 Display, on which he listens to Spotify in addition to watching his Nest security camera footage.

He also hard wired the Soundsticks to his trusty CalDigit TS3 Plus Thunderbolt 3 Dock, which serves as a network hub for the shed.

His one complaint about the Soundsticks? The cables are a bit short and have proprietary connectors, which keeps him from running extension cables through the wall so he can put his woofer further away.

But as far as how the Soundsticks look and sound, hes delighted.

Arent we as Mac users obligated to like everything designed by Jony Ive? he asked in a comment. The speaker system was originally developed with Apple and first released in July 2000.

Not only did Ive design them but when they first came out they were an Apple exclusive item, CE wrote. Another fun fact, the workstation in the background on the set of The Big Bang Theory also rocks the Soundsticks. Not until they are a couple seasons in but they remain there for the rest of the series.

CE called his CalDigit TS3 Plus Thunderbolt 3 Dock the best dock hes ever used.

It is a bit pricey but it allows single cable connection to my MBP, he said. Everything on the desk and everything on the media wall are all connected through that single point.

CE uses an Apricorn 2 TB Aegis Padlock 3 Encrypted External Hard Drive for Time Machine backups. He likes its security features.

If someone were to steal the device, it cannot be read until you punch in the code. 10 attempts and the HDD erases itself, he said.

CE noted that fully half of the cable management going on in the shed is not even visible in the photos.

Every shelf on the media wall has two CAT 6 drops, 2 USB ports back to the CalDigit TS3+, and two 120V outlets just in case I get some more gear that I do not want to put inside a cabinet or on the desk.

In addition, a couple of the rooms shelves have an HDMI connection back to the TV just on case CE ends up getting more video sources, he said, adding hed like to add an Xbox.If you like this cable management, you should see what he has going on inside the walls and the attic.Photo: CourseEcstatic6202@Reddit

As a function of wanting almost everything wired and not dependent upon wireless connectivity, CE has HDMI and USB cables running all over the place. And yet you cans see many of them.

He explained that the HDMI output of the CalDigit TS3 Plus goes enters the wall, which has 4 inches of space behind it, behind the side table cabinet. The HDMI cable then runs across the attic and down the wall behind the TV, feeding it via a low-voltage wall plate.

CE uses a similar cable setup for the guest desk, which has a Windows workstation under a drop leaf tabletop. Its screen view can appear on all three displays in the office. The MacBook Pro can be on the main desk or the TV.

And finally, the entire video wall is 9 inches off the exterior wall so that you can run new cables from the inside of the lower cabinets just in case you need future expansion, he said.

CE pointed out that he has four UPS (uninterruptible power supply) devices in the small room. They run everything in it except the TV, he noted.

In reply to a commenter who said if he lived in a house and had a back yard, his wife would build him such a shed to get rid of him, CE said the shed was, indeed, his wifes idea. And moving permanently to WFH just happened to fit in perfectly with the new reality when the pandemic struck.

The great part is that when Covid happened and the shutdowns hit, very little changed for me other than worrying about toilet paper supplies, he said.

If you would like to see your setup featured onCult of Mac, send some high-res pictures toinfo+setups@cultofmac.com. Please provide a detailed list of your equipment. Tell us what you like or dislike about your setup, and fill us in on any special touches or challenges.

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Cloud architect builds man shed to beat all man sheds [Setups] - Cult of Mac

Concert venues in NYC were allowed to reopen for the first time since the pandemic on April 2 and among the shows that happened that night was cellist and singer Kelsey Lu, who kicked off The Shed's"An Audience with" series. The month-long program is being presented in The McCourt, the main space of The Shed, which ordinarily has a seated capacity of 1,280, but which now has been reduced to 150 seats for these events to comply with state-mandated measures for Covid safety. The series went on sale in March and sold out quickly during a member pre-sale before the general public had access to the online sale. For this specific evening, Kelsey Lu did offer spots to a few lucky fans via their Instagram.

In addition to socially-distanced seating, The Shed implemented requirements for attending patrons including evidence of a recent negative Covid test result or the completion of a Covid vaccine, an emailed health survey prior to receiving tickets, a temperature check at the door, and the wearing of face masks throughout the evening. Attendees were assigned specific time slots to enter the line, which resulted in a minimal wait outside the venue. Having received my second dose of the Covid vaccine over two weeks ago, I felt compelled to try the new Excelsior Pass as proof of my compliance. Unfortunately, the staff member who attempted to scan the QR code on my pass had trouble reading the printout with her iPad, so I showed a photo of my vaccine card instead - a slight hiccup in an otherwise highly organized, well-run evening with respect to Covid safety protocols.

For the event, which was billed as THIS IS A TEST -- The Opera (A Sonic Recalibration in Three Acts Performed by Kelsey Lu & Friends), Lu assembled a group of12 musicians and vocalists: Alice Bacon (cello), Alicia Hall Moran (vocals), Brandee Younger (harp), Bryndon Cook (guitar), Christine Lyons (vocals), Lady Jess (violin), Malcolm Parson (cello), Maria Jeffers (cello), Melany Watson (vocals), Rob Schwimmer (theremin), Spencer Zahn (multi-instrumentalist), and Trace Johnson (cello). The 80-minute show began at approximately 8:15 PM, with ambient music and the sounds of birds chirping leading into the musicians entering one by one from the rear doors of the hall and going to their respective stations, which were themselves distanced on the main stage, along the sides of the hall,with two of the cellists even seated within the audience area. Lu made the last entrance, wearing an elaborate costume, clad head to toe in black ruffles and lace, and sporting a feathered headpiece giving them an appearance of a bird-like creature, or perhaps a witch about to conjure a spell over the audience. They settled in front and center, alone on a smaller, lower platform, which was covered in an earthy mixture of dirt and mulch and located at the foot of the main stage.

The performance wove together songs spanning Lus career, drawing upon the 2016 EP Church, the 2019 LP Blood, and a few singles, with instrumental interludes peppered throughout, leading off with the song Time. As the set progressed, Lu gradually removed various elements of their costume and boots, eventually standing barefoot and revealing their arms and face. Lu alternated between singing and playing their cello for the songs, some of which were reworked here. Lus repertoire straddles the line between lush orchestration and pop music, and the performance -- in conjunction with the expertly designed lighting -- really filled the cavernous space of The McCourt despite the reduced number of people in attendance.

Towards the latter portion of the show, Lu walked to the rear of the main stage and disappeared for a stretch, and returned wearing a new costume comprised entirely of large pink ruffles. It was at this point Lu made some of their few comments, stating that, Spring has sprung. Were all flowers here. And with the blossoming of Spring, there is new awakening, restart, regrowth, and love. Up until then, the set felt like a carefully paced, moody dream, and then it seemed to burst forth with the song Blood, climaxing with their cover of 10cc's Im Not in Love, and finishing with 2020 single Let all the poisons that lurk in the mind seep out.

In a recent Instagram post by The Shed, Lu said, I love listening to the reactions of whatever is going on in the audience. That energy is flying throughout the room, and its buzzing and its vibrating. My favorite are, like, queer audiences. And, like, young queer audiences cause theyre just, like, having a blast. Just really excited and happy to be hearing live music again.

I was fortunate to catch Lu on two different occasions in 2019, including at Afropunk, and loved the energy they displayed then, vibing off the crowd, and showing an exuberance one often observes during live music. This event, commissioned by The Shed, was quite different from a standard concert performance. The rearranged songs flowed seamlessly into interludes and solos and vice versa with no breaks,and the audience exhibited restraint and held its applause until the very end. While there normally might be a crowd of dancing young people clamoring to be up front on the rail with their faces showing their excitement, and their cell phones raised in the air to capture moments, Friday nights audience members were masked, spaced apart and seated, with the artist requesting that no photos or videos be taken. My first indoor concert in over a year was a stress-free event as far as Covid safety goes, and it was nice not having any tall people or illuminated screens obscuring my view, but I have to wonder if this will be the tone of in-person concerts for the foreseeable future in the age of Covid.

Next up at The Shed, conductor Esa-Pekka Salonen and the musicians of the New York Philharmonic on April 14 and 15; Rene Fleming, Bill Frisell, Christian McBride, and Dan Tepfer on April 21; and comedian Michelle Wolf on April 22. All are sold out.

Check out pictures from Kelsey Lu's performance below

Setlist (more or less)1. Time2. Atlantic3. [unknown]4. Liar5. Shades of Blue6. Pushin Against the Wind7. Blood8. Im Not in Love (10cc cover)9. Let all the poisons that lurk in the mind seep out

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Kelsey Lu played The Shed on the first night NYC venues could reopen (pics, review) - Brooklyn Vegan

Capital MarketsMonday April 05 2021 By PATRICK ALUSHULAMore by this Author Summary

Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) stocks posted the largest weekly loss since the start of the year as investors reacted to fresh lockdown and longer curfew hours introduced to stem the spread of Covid-19 infections.

The market capitalisation reduced by Sh89.38 billion, closing Thursday trading at Sh2.468 trillion as Safaricom #ticker:SCOM, East Africa Breweries Limited #ticker:EABL (EABL) and the big banks led in shedding value.

Safaricom, Equity #ticker:EQTY, EABL and Cooperative Bank #ticker:COOP shareswhich account for 77.6 percent of total NSE wealth fell by between 4.4 percent and 12.1 percent, collectively losing by Sh92.86 billion.

The fall in share prices was in line with analysts expectation that investors were going to price in the implications of stiff Covid-19 control measures on the outlook of sectors such as banking, manufacturing, hospitality, transport and communication.

NSE was on an upward, having hit a 15-month high of Sh2.598 trillion on March 23 but the roll-out of State restrictions hurt prospects of various sectors, diming attractiveness of stocks.

Head of research at Genghis Capital Churchill Ogutu last week said the return of strict Covid-19 control measures in absence of any stimulus package such as tax cuts to soften the hit on businesses will see large stocks take a hit as foreign investors exit.

The open-ended nature of these restrictions raised the layer of uncertainty for investors. We also havent seen any fiscal measures accompanying these resections to help absorb the shock and this makes the outlook bleaker, said Mr Ogutu.

The market was basking in the excitement of dividend payouts as firms upped their optimism level in the economy.

Safaricom, KCB, Co-op, Stanbic and Stanchart had all announced a combined Sh32.53 billion dividends, with that of banks coming in six trading sessions to the day the State rolled out the tough measures.

President Uhuru Kenyatta last Thursday ruled out tax reliefs for all workers and businesses despite enforcing fresh Covid-19 restrictions that are set to lead to job losses and depressed earnings for Kenyans.

The Head of State said that tax reliefs, if any, will only be given to specific sectors and the five counties Nairobi, Kiambu, Machakos, Kajiado and Nakuruthat are under travel bans.

President Kenyatta on March 26 ordered the closure of all bars and liquor selling joints, banned social gatherings, closed churches and banned travel into and out of the five counties.

The curfew hours in the five counties were also increased to start from 8pm and end at 4am in moves expected to hurt revenues for businesses that have reduced operating hours. Domestic flights were also suspended, among other stringent measures for hotels.

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The Telegraph

She has been known by an anglicised version of her name for the entirety of her hugely successful career. But Thandie Newton has revealed that she will now revert to the original, Zulu spelling of her name, declaring: Im taking back whats mine. Born Thandiwe, meaning beloved, the actress simply accepted that her name would be adapted as she embarked as a teenager on a career in the competitive and cut throat world of film. At the age of 48, she has reclaimed her heritage, declared that in future films, she will be credited as Thandiwe Newton, after the W was dropped from her first credit. Thats my name, she told Vogue magazine. Its always been my name. Im taking back whats mine. Newton has previously considered reverting to her original name, but said in 2017 she did not think it worth the hassle, believing it was more important people recognised her work. "What's in a name? What's in a skin colour? she said in an interview. C'est la vie. C'est la guerre." But the world is a different place and Newton, a different woman. Last week, she expressed outrage over the Governments contentious report over race disparity in the UK, taking to Twitter to suggest it could only be an April Fools joke. Theres no way it can be real - it would be unethical insanity, she wrote, urging young people of colour to share their responses to the report, which claimed systemic racism did not exist in the UK. Newton has lived with racism for her entire life. Born in London to a British father, Nick, and a Zimbabwean mother, Nyasha, a princess from the Shona tribe, she spent time in Zambia before the family relocated to Penzance, Cornwall, when she was three. On her first day at a Catholic school, a nun told her mother: Were very excited, weve never had one before and she was later banned from a school photograph for wearing cornrows. Newton has acknowledged that her mixed race heritage meant that when she was younger, she had no sense of herself. I was not considered anything, she once said. There was a lot that people could have been interested in in me when I was young. They didnt want to express it, because they didnt want to praise the black girl. Forced to look abroad for work because of a lack of opportunities in the UK, she has said: I can't do Downton Abbey, can't be in Victoria, can't be in Call The Midwife well, I could, but I don't want to play someone who's being racially abused. Elsewhere in the Vogue interview, Newton indicated that as she had become older, her mindset had changed, and that she had been inspired to use her personal experiences to be more outspoken. Discussing her role in Westworld, she said she loved how subversive it was. Wherever I position myself now, I dont want to be part of the problem, I want to be part of the solution, she said. Im not for hire anymore. Im not going to speak your story or say your words if I dont feel they couldve come from me. The actress said she found that acting took more and more away from her because Im more connected to myself than Ive ever been, whereas before I couldnt wait to get away from myself, truly, I had such low self-esteem. The actress also discussed how she was abused by a director when she was 16 and the moment she realised she needed to seek help for an eating disorder. Newton responded to a now deleted tweet about the spelling of her name in 2016. Thandiwe is a Zulu name meaning Beloved, she said. Thandie is an abbreviation. You don't have to pretend anything. See the full feature in the May issue of Vogue available via digital download and newsstands on Friday April 9

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