Crisis in the Non United States of Europe

Twenty seven countries of Europe accord to the alleged European Union (EU). They cover Germany, the UK, France, Italy and Spain. All of them are in the affliction of an bread-and-butter crisis. But appropriate in the average of Europe, there is a baby country which is not a affiliate of the EU yet is accomplishing rather able-bodied - Switzerland. Why are all its bigger neighbours in trouble? There is a simple answer:

The ascendant countries of the EU accept accustomed their dream of rivalling the USA as a able federal accompaniment to dark them to economic, autonomous and political reality. They accept taken their eyes off the ball.

The name of the bold at the foundation of the EEC (European Bread-and-butter Community, forerunner to the EU) was bread-and-butter cooperation amid free absolute nations. The nations of Europe allege English, Spanish, German, French and Italian and the languages of abounding abate countries. And they accept assorted systems of government. So you cannot actualize a alone affectionate nation like the United States of America just by sitting down and autograph a European constitution. But this is what France and Germany accept approved to do - they accept created a European Parliament (EP) which aims to alter centuries-old civic parliaments. But it does not work. The humans of Britain, for example, alone become acquainted that it exists if they get a election cardboard allurement them to accept their "MEP" from a account of candidates, few if any of whom are accepted to them. The assembly for the elections is small. A United States of Europe (USE) may be a reasonable aspiration, but alone on a time-scale of abounding decades, one baby footfall at a time, responding to autonomous demand, not imposed on afraid peoples.

Not annoyed with the cardboard European Parliament (which absurdly and expensively meets in two place, Brussels and Strasbourg), they accept created a European Central Coffer (ECB) to baby-sit a new "federal" currency, the euro. Of the present 27 affiliate states of the EU, 17 alone their civic currencies for the euro. It was meant to be addition footfall appear a federal Europe, but they accept put the barrow (a alone currency) afore the horse (democratic ambition for federation). The aftereffect is an bread-and-butter and political crisis.

This was foreseeable. How could you apprehend a alone bank, the ECB, to assure the alone civic interests of 17 altered countries? Afore the amalgamation of currencies, anniversary country had its own Central Coffer which cooperated with its civic government to adapt the bill according to the bread-and-butter interests of that country. That ability has now gone and we see the adverse aftereffect in the present Euro Crisis. The interests of Germany and of Greece are in opposition. Germany accomplished abhorrent aggrandizement in the 1920s and is bound never to let any such affair appear to them again. So they assert that the Greek government accept to antithesis its account by acid jobs and pensions, behindhand of the political consequences. But Greece is already experiencing accessible protests adjoin the cuts and wants the ECB to appear to its rescue. At present there is deadlock. In the old days, Greece could accept attenuated the drachma to become added aggressive and get growing again. Now they allotment their bill with Germany. The EU's band-aid to the botheration seems to be to alter Greece's ahead absolute government and let EU commissioners acquaint them what they accept to do.

Shopping For The Right Piano

Remember back when you were a kid you would go to Grandma's house and she had that little upright piano sitting against the wall? Most likely it was a spinet, and we got to bang on the keys and it was probably pretty out of tune.

Well today the selections are a lot better starting with vertical pianos of different sizes going up to the horizontal grand piano. Starting with the vertical types there is the tallest, fifty two inches tall, called a professional upright. Fortunately all vertical pianos measure in width approximately the same within about three inches. So if you have five feet of wall space, you have plenty of room for a vertical piano. The taller pianos are referred to as "professional uprights" because professional piano players demand better sounding instruments. Most piano buyers in the world buy vertical pianos becase of space limitations. Here in the United States we enjoy larger homes, so we can have the larger "grand piano" sizes. The professional uprights also have the same pedal functions you have on a grand piano, where the smaller uprights have limited usage.

If your question is why people prefer the taller pianos, the answer is quite simple. Every piano is equipped with a sounding board, usually made from spruce, and that is what is referred to as the speaker in the piano. So you realize that the more square inches of sound board we have, the bigger the sound will be. The other factor is the string length. Obviously, the taller the piano, the longer the strings. This means that the bass section of the piano gets fatter, and therefore produces a bassier sound. This provides more depth and warmth to the music.

The shorter the piano, the brighter and more tinkely the sound. Some people refer to it as tinny. So if you can afford the taller types of pianos, you'll enjoy the sound much better. The taller the piano, the more raw materials are in it, and the more expensive it becomes.

Now let's move on the other professional uprights. The forty eight inch upright is generally the preferred size used by most piano teachers and their students. When we were in school, most were equipped with what is called a studio piano which stands forty five inches high.

Lastly we have what is called a console piano. These pianos range from forty to forty four inches in height, and are available in a huge variety of furniture styles. These pianos are generally used for entry level students and are most affordable.

How Do I Know I Have Too Much Debt?

I saw a bartering afresh with two neighbors chatting in the foreground yard. One had ample numbers tucked beneath his arm apery his accumulation plan. The added neighbor, abridgement the barrier had the bulk "gazillion" beneath his. The "responsible" acquaintance asked him,

"How abundant money are you traveling to charge to retire comfortably?"

The barrier abridgement acquaintance responded

"A gazillion dollars." Acquaintance one asked him, "How abundant are you putting abroad for retirement?" Acquaintance two responded "I dunno, I just bandy a agglomeration of money at it and achievement for the best."

Neighbor two's situation, surprisingly, is a lot added accepted a book again one ability think. CBC's Metro morning ran a affection February 13 on the hasty bulk of humans in the greater Toronto breadth who accept abounding time jobs, but are still active in the abjection range.

Let's run some numbers and see area you compare?

How abundant debt is too abundant debt?

Let's accept you are authoritative 65,000 a year. Depending on area you live, the government may yield about bisected of that in taxes.

Let's now accept you accept a account yield home of 3000.

Your mortgage (or rent) is 1400.00 per month.

Let's aswell acquiesce for top absorption debts (credit cards, car loans, claimed loans etc.) of 3000.00 in total.

If we run all of this through a debt calculator, we see your estimated account accommodation repayments are $1,490 which equates to 49.7% of your disposable account income. You will acquisition this is a alarmingly top ratio. Most likely, active these numbers, you'll acquisition you're aswell spending about 3% of your disposable assets just application concise debt.

What does this all mean? If you lose your job the bulk of time you'll accept to balance afore debt accident is abandoned a few months.

Furthermore, you'll accept a difficult time putting annihilation abroad for a backing day, let abandoned retirement with this top a debt application to assets ratio.

What's the solution?

You'll either charge to access your account afterwards taxes income, or accept a low absorption accommodation from a ancestors affiliate or abutting friend.

Is Your Mortgage advancing due?

With absorption ante as low as they are, this can present a huge opportunity. Merge outstanding top or average absorption debts into your mortgage and pay them off over a best aeon of time, at a lower absorption rate.

Quadratura and the Baroque

I am very excited because I am leaving next week to travel around Italy for two weeks.  One of the works I am looking forward to seeing again when I am in Rome is Andrea Pozzo's ceiling fresco: The Triumph of Sant' Ignazio in the church dedicated to the Saint.  In fact Art History Blogger readers may notice that I have used this work as the image behind my blog header for the reason that it is such a dynamic painting.

Pozzo (1642-1709) was an Italian Baroque painter and architect as well as a lay brother in the Jesuit order.  Due to this he was commission to create art for several Jesuit churches, both in Italy and in Vienna.  The Triumph of Sant' Ignazio is an enormous fresco, which covers the ceiling of the entire nave and perhaps the best known example of quadratura.

Andrea Pozzo,Triumph of Sant' Ignazio of Loyola, 1691-94
(Allegory of the Missionary Work of the Jesuits)

Ceiling fresco, Chiesa di Sant' Ignazio, Rome

Quadratura is a specific style of trompe-l'oeil painting which incorporates architectural elements into the work to create a convincing illusion of the expansion of the actual space into an imagined space.  In this case the painter used the actual clerestory windows (see bottom image) and painted around them.  Of course the viewer does know that the church ceiling isn't open to heaven above, but it is hard to gauge the depth of the ceiling in person or to know if the ceiling is curved.  In fact the nave ceiling of Sant' Iganizio is completely flat, but Pozzo does a very good job at creating the illusion of great depth.

Oculus from the Camera degli Sposi (wedding chamber)

Andrea Mantegna, 1465-74

fresco, Palazzo Ducale, Mantua, Italy

Quadratura had been used in a few early examples, but reached its height of popularity during the Baroque, particularly in Italy but also elsewhere in Europe.  A well known earlier example is this ceiling fresco by Mantegna created in the 15th century.  However unlike the Pozzo work, this is small and playful rather than dramatic. 

Quadratura was the perfect style of painting to tie in with the qualities in art that are associated with the Baroque: drama, theatricality, dynamic, full of excess and grandeur. 

Annibale Carracci, Triumph of Bacchus and Ariadne, begun 1597

Farnese Gallery, Rome

In 16th century ceiling paintings, such as this example by Carracci in the Farnese Gallery, there were some elements of trompe-l'oeil such as the painted cornice as a frame and the four figurative "sculptures" in the corners.  However this is not considered quadratura as Carracci wasn't attempting to create the illusion of another space that didn't exist. Viewers were meant to be delighted and amused by his work rather than awed.  The viewer would instantly recognize a painting, the figures existing in their own space.

Pietro da Cortona, The Triumph of Divine Providence, 1633-39

 Palazzo Barberini, Rome

 Another example is Pietro da Cortona's The Triumph of Divine Providence (seen below) in the Palazzo Barberini in Rome.  The subject matter is the triumph of the reign of Pope Urban VIII.  Here the viewer could see the painting as an extension of their own space.  In person it is difficult to tell which architectural details are real and what are imagined.

 Triumph of Moderation, ceiling fresco (1731) Paul Troger 

Quadratura painting around the perimeter, Gaetano Fanti

Melk Abbey, Austria

 

One reason that the style spread was through a book on painting that Pozzo wrote in Latin which was later translated into German, Tractatus Perspectivae Pictorum et Architectorum.

Later versions of quadratura were used in the 18th century in Germany and Austria and began to use lighter and brighter palates more fitting to the new Rococo style.  One such example is the quadratura painting of Fanti in the Melk Abbey, Austria (above).  The painter Giovanni Battista Tiepolo (1696-70) also created many ceiling frescos and paintings meant for ceilings, such as the example below.  

Allegory of Merit Accompanied by Nobility and Virtue, Giovanni Battista Tiepolo

1757, ceiling fresco, Ca' Rezzonio, Venice

While Tiepolo did use quadratura in his enormous ceiling fresco in the Wurzburg Residenz in Germany, his typical use of quadratura was more like the earlier Renaissance style.  His paintings were created to amuse the viewer, the opulent style and dramatic compositions of the Baroque now replaced with the playfulness of the Rococo.

Learning About Steinway Grand Pianos

It can be hard to make choices. Some are easy, such as saying 'no' to drugs. Some are hard, such as choosing whether or not to put your dog down when he is sick. As we move through life, choices get more and more difficult as we become older and older. Once you buy your first house, the choices become even more difficult. Should you get this paint or that? Two bedroom or three? And what if you are trying to choose the musical instrument that your child will play? Well, that one has an easy answer. You should go with a grand piano.

And not just any regular one. You need to go for the best so that your child will push themselves to be number one as well. Even if you are just buying this for yourself or for a concert music hall, you want the best. That means you want a Steinway. There are several different types of Steinways that you should consider.

The biggest Steinway grand piano is a concert grand. It tops out at eight feet and eleven inches of pure beauty and rich tones. If you are on your way to being a concert pianist, this is the instrument for you. It is the favorite of musicians worldwide and will look impressive in any concert hall. A size down from the concert Steinway is the Music Room Steinway. This has often been given the title "the perfect piano." It measures at six feet eleven inches and is perfect for the room in your house that you have been meaning to turn into a music room. Also, if you are planning on providing piano lessons from your house, this is the perfect teaching piano. It provides the same rich tones as the concert, just on a smaller, more intimate scale.

If the Music Room Steinway is still a tad too big for you, you can always choose the Parlor Room Grand Piano. This one has the tried and true rich tones of a Steinway but the piano has been scaled down to offer the sound in a smaller container. It measures 6'2" and, since this instrument is smaller, it is perfect for the family who wants to buy it and put it in a small sitting room. Close in size to the Parlor Room Steinway is the Living Room Steinway. Measuring in at 5'10", this model produces rich bass tones that are far beyond what one would expect from such a small frame. It will easily fit into your house and still provide you with Steinway quality.

The last two types of Steinway grand pianos are the Medium Steinway and the Baby Steinway. The Medium tops out at 5'7" and can often be found in music schools and conservatories. There is nothing mediocre about its sound, though, and you will not be disappointed. The Baby tops out at five feet and is small enough to fit into nearly any room. It will still deliver the rich sounds you have come to expect from a Steinway and is easily the logical choice for anyone looking for an affordable, small but amazing Steinway.