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CLEVELAND (AP) — Campaign 2012 packed frantic suspense to the finish Tuesday, with Vice President Joe Biden flying unannounced up next to Republican Mitt Romney in battleground Ohio even as voters across the country were deciding who would win the White House.
President Barack Obama stayed in hometown Chicago, reaching out to swing-state voters on the phones and via satellite while the other three men on the rival tickets had a high noon show-down along the shore of Lake Erie.
Romney and running mate Paul Ryan had scheduled the stop together just Monday, and Biden flew in to play defense as Romney waited on his plane for Ryan's arrival. The vice president rolled off the tarmac without comment to the surprised media traveling with him, just as Ryan's charter pulled in for a landing.
The rush for Ohio and its 18 electoral votes highlighted the importance of the state to bothcampaigns' victory plans. Polls going into Election Day showed Obama with a narrow lead there, and Romney said the eleventh-hour campaigning was meant to leave him with no regrets.
"I can't imagine an election being won or lost by, let's say, a few hundred votes and you spent your day sitting around," Romney told Richmond radio station WRVA earlier in the day. "I mean, you'd say to yourself, 'Holy cow, why didn't I keep working?' And so I'm going to make sure I never have to look back with anything other than the greatest degree of satisfaction on this whole campaign."
Meanwhile, Americans headed into polling places in sleepy hollows, bustling cities and superstorm-ravaged beach towns deeply divided. All sides are awaiting, in particular, a verdict from the nine battleground states whose votes will determine which man can piece together the 270 electoral votes needed for victory.
Obama has more options for getting there. So Romney decided to make the late dash to Cleveland and Pittsburgh on Tuesday while running mate Ryan planned another stop in Richmond, Va.
Obama visited a campaign office close to his home in Chicago and was met by applause and tears from volunteers before he picked up a phone to call voters in neighboring Wisconsin. He told reporters that the election comes down to which side can get the most supporters to turn out.
"I also want to say to Gov. Romney, 'Congratulations on a spirited campaign.' I know his supporters are just as engaged, just as enthusiastic and working just as hard today," the president said.
Romney was asked on WTAM radio in Cleveland whether he agreed that voters always get it right in the end. "I won't guarantee that they'll get it right, but I think they will," Romney replied.
It wasn't just the presidency at stake Tuesday: Every House seat, a third of the Senate and 11 governorships were on the line, along with state ballot proposals on topics ranging from gay marriage and casino gambling to repealing the death penalty and legalizing marijuana. Democrats were defending their majority in the Senate, and Republicans doing likewise in the House, raising the prospect of continued partisan wrangling in the years ahead no matter who might be president.
The forecast for Election Day promised dry weather for much of the country, with rain expected in two battlegrounds, Florida and Wisconsin. But the closing days of the campaign played out against ongoing recovery efforts after Superstorm Sandy. Election officials in New York and New Jersey scrambled to marshal generators, move voting locations, shuttle storm victims to polling places and take other steps to ensure everyone who wanted to vote could do so.
In New York City, authorities planned to run shuttle buses every 15 minutes Tuesday in storm-slammed areas to bring voters to the polls. In Ocean County along the New Jersey coast, officials hired a converted camper to bring mail-in ballots to shelters in Toms River, Pemberton and Burlington Township.
"This is the happiest vote I ever cast in my life," said Annette DeBona as she voted for Romney in Point Pleasant Beach, N.J. The 73-year-old restaurant worker was so worried about not being able to vote that she called the police department several days in advance, as well as her church, to make absolutely sure she knew where to go and when.
Renee Kearney, of Point Pleasant Beach, said she felt additional responsibility to vote this Election Day. The 41-year-old project manager for an information technology company planned all along to vote for Obama, but said her resolve was strengthened by his response to Sandy.
"It feels extra important today because you have the opportunity to influence the state of things right now, which is a disaster," Kearney said.
Election Day came early for more than a third of Americans, who cast ballots days or even weeks in advance. An estimated 46 million ballots, or 35 percent of the 133 million expected to be cast, were projected to be early ballots, according to Michael McDonald, an early voting expert at George Mason University who tallies voting statistics for the United States Elections Project. None of those ballots were being counted until Tuesday.
Biden and his wife, Jill Biden, were among the first voters Tuesday in at a polling place in Greenville, Del., Biden's home state. Smiling broadly, Biden waited in line with other voters and greeted them with a handshake. Outside he sent a message to people across the country who may encounter crowded polling places. "I encourage you to stand in line as long as you have to," he told television cameras.
The Obamas voted last month in an effort to encourage supporters to vote early. The men on the GOP ticket each voted with their wives at their side Tuesday morning in their hometowns — Romney in Belmont, Mass., and Ryan in Janesville, Wis. — then headed to meet in Cleveland for some retail politicking at restaurants and other unannounced stops. The last-minute nature of the swing made it too difficult to arrange a big public event, but their hope was their joint visit would get local news coverage that might translate to more support.
Romney and Ryan visited a campaign office in in Richmond Heights, Ohio, to thank volunteers. "This is a big day for big change," Romney said." The pair then stopped at a nearby Wendy's for quarter-pound hamburgers.
Ten miles to the west, Biden stopped at the Landmark Restaurant lunch counter and apologized for the commotion caused by his entourage. He told diners in one booth he understands they just came to get some spaghetti "and Joe Biden shows up."
Both sides cast the Election Day choice as one with far-reaching repercussions for a nation still recovering from the biggest economic downturn since the Great Depression and at odds over how big a role government should play in solving the country's problems.
"We can make sure that we make even greater progress going forward in putting folks back to work and making sure that they've got decent take-home pay, making sure that they have the health insurance that they need, making sure we're protecting Medicare and Social Security," Obama said in an interview broadcast Tuesday on "The Steve Harvey Morning Show." "All those issues are on the ballot, and so I'm hoping that everybody takes this seriously."
Romney argued that Obama had his chance to help Americans financially and blew it. "If it comes down to economics and jobs, this is an election I should win," Romney told Cleveland station WTAM.
With both sides keeping up the onslaught of political ads in battleground states right into Election Day, on one thing, at least, there was broad agreement: "I am ready for it to be over," said nurse Jennifer Walker in Columbus, Ohio.
The election played out with intensity in the small subset of battleground states: Colorado, Iowa, Florida, New Hampshire, Nevada, North Carolina, Ohio, Virginia and Wisconsin. Romney's late move to add Pennsylvania to the mix was an effort to expand his options, and Republicans poured millions into previously empty airwaves there.
In the campaign's final hours, voters around the country echoed the closing arguments of the two presidential candidates.
Jim Clark, a 42-year-old computer administrator from Topeka, Kan., is a registered Republican who voted for Obama in 2008, seeking change. But he voted Tuesday for Romney after losing a full-time job two years ago and working temporary assignments since then.
"I'm just ready for a change," Clark said. "It's tougher for me, personally. The economy has not improved."
Lauren Clay, 28, a doctoral student in disaster science and management, voted for Obama.
"He has a done a really good job given what he was handed four years ago," she said.
See also:
Obama vs. Romney: 6 key differences on health care
Obama vs. Romney: 6 key differences on taxes, regulation
Pickler reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Julie Pace in Chicago, Wayne Parry in Point Pleasant, N.J., Patrick Walters in Philadelphia, John Hanna in Topeka, Kan., Darlene Superville in Arlington, Va., Matthew Daly in Wilmington, Del., and Philip Elliott in Cleveland contributed to this report.


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Fearing's Map
2121 McKinney Ave.
214-922-4848 | Make Restaurant Reservations | Menu
Need directions to Fearing's? This map will help you find the best route to and from the restaurant so you can enjoy your meal. Clicking on the green arrow can help you get the best route to and from this restaurant if you don't see the "Get directions" pop-up.
Check GAYOT's list of
Top Thanksgiving Wines.
Wine of the Week Review by GAYOT

subset: commoncrawl


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PING Glide Forged Wedgesview other products
This wedge is gorgeous to look at and is packed with premium technology making it one of the best wedges on the market today in terms of looks and feel.
The Glide Forged wedge has a tour-inspired design, with a small profile and gooseneck-tapered hosel, giving the club a smooth transition through the turf. The 8620 carbon steel makes for an incredibly soft feel in the blade-style head, giving you maximum feel in your short game.
Key features and benefits:
- Precision-milled grooves create more friction for improved spin and trajectory control
- Tungsten toe weight for added forgiveness
- 8620 carbon steel for superb feel
- Tour-inspired shape for a captured look
Some clubs have to be seen to be believed how good they are - the Glide Forged is definitely one of them. Drop by the shop to see what all the fuss is about.


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Give us a call!
Steven A. Crawford
(816) 728-7360
Sarah Schneider
Date of Birth: 23
Birth Place: Kansas City, MO
Weight: 135 lbs.
Height: 5'5"
Fighting Out Of: Overland Park, KS
Training Facility: Crawford's/ Caveman Crew
Style: American Jujitsu
Pro Record: 2-0-0
Amateur Record: 2 wins 0 loses
Hobbies: Fighting, Wrestling


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Randy Blythe Supporters to Hold Vigil in Front of U.S. Supreme Court
While Lamb of God singer Randy Blythe remains in a Czech prison, facing manslaughter charges stemming from an incident where a fan died after an alleged onstage altercation with Blythe in May 2010, his hometown supporters in Richmond, Va. continue to do their part for him. Friends of Blythe are staging a vigil out front of the Supreme Court of the United States in Washington, D.C., on Sunday, July 22 from 1PM to 3PM ET.
Blythe next appears in court this Thursday (July 19), where a panel of three judges will hear his case again. He posted the $200,000 bail amount yet remained imprisoned since the prosecutor has protested his release, which is how the Czech Republic's legal system works. Such actions are considered typical.
Jonathan Crane, a reporter at the English-language Prague Post, offered some clarity regarding the legality of the situation, saying, "Blythe has not been denied bail, but rather, the bail has been challenged by the state prosecutor. I know this seems strange — in most other countries, you post bail and then you're released. Bail in the Czech Republic is subject to appeal, which is what happened here."
The singer's friend Tommy Streat, who also organized last week's rally, told the Times Dispatch, "Hopefully, we'll be welcoming him home" after his Thursday court appointment. However, if his friend remains detained, their work to raise awareness about his situation will continue in full effect. He said, "But if not, we'll be sending the message that will support him."
Streat also stated that his efforts are part of a larger goal to awaken a sleeping giant: the government. He said, "I'm hoping this will bring enough awareness so the federal government will do any and everything within its power to diplomatically bring Randy home while remaining on good terms with the Czech Republic."
He also acknowledged that fans are unaware of the key differences of the Czech legal system regarding bail posting and the prosecutorial protest, so they should refrain from making ignorant comments, which are being reported on by Czech news sources and could shed a bad light on Blythe's case. Streat said, "A lot of the Czech news sources are starting to pick up on that stuff, and it's getting nasty. There's no reason to bash another country. They have a different legal system from ours, but we have to respect that."
Other fans have shown their support. A Kentucky fan launched a petition asking President Obama to take steps to intervene and assist the singer. It has 40 percent of the required signatures to elicit a response; 25,000 signatures are needed within a 30-day period. It took just eight days to get 10,000 signatures.


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Hailee says: "Lumpy was dropped out of a car and abandoned in a residential area where she came to sleep in our bare rose bed. We intended on only keeping her until her owners contacted us but no one ever came! Can you believe it? Now she is a certified autism service dog (and bed hog)."
That is a tragic story, but I am so glad it has a happy ending! Also that is wonderful that Lumpy is now able to help others in need; I think many of us are tearing up with heartfelt squees.
-Sally Squeeps
Do you have a squee pet that you want to share with the world? Send us your pet pictures and stories, and they could end up on Daily Squee!


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Clinton Volunteers Feds
At the "Presidents' Summit" on volunteerism in Philadelphia on Sunday, President Clinton pledged that federal agencies would lead the way in encouraging Americans to volunteer in their communities.
Standing with former Presidents Bush and Carter and Colin Powell, the former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff who is chairing the summit, Clinton said the Defense Department would "mentor, tutor and teach more than one million children" in the next four years. The Transportation Department and the private companies it serves will do the same for a million more children, Clinton said.
Clinton also pledged that agencies would "adopt" more than 2,000 schools. In the America Reads program, Clinton said, the government would recruit more than one million tutors to help children learn to read.
"This is not the time to say, 'Are you substituting for government?' " said Powell. "This is not the time to ask, 'Is there more that government should be doing or less that government should be doing?' This is a time for each and every one of us to look into our own heart, to look into our own community, find someone who is in need, find someone who is wanting, find someone who is looking up to us, and for each and every one of us to reach down, to reach back, to reach across, to lift up a fellow American and put him on the road to success in this wonderful country of ours."
NEXT STORY: Will Reg Reform Pass?


text: Epigenetic Modification of Gene Expression in Honey Bees by Heterospecific Gland Secretions So if you feed Apis mellifera with royal jelly from Apis ceranae, will you get mutant Godzilla bees? Royal jelly (RJ) contains a range of proteins, amino acids, vitamins and nucleic acids. MicroRNA (miRNA) has been found to play an important role in regulating the expression of protein-coding genes and cell biology. Heterospecific royal jelly can modify gene expression in honey bees through an epigenetic mechanism. http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0043727


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Chinchilla brevicaudata and Chinchilla lanigera (currently available pet breeds are probably a cross of these two species)
20+ years
400-1000 grams
Females are generally larger than males
Chinchillas ("chins") are susceptible to heat stroke. Cage temperatures must be kept below 75 degrees; higher temperatures can be extremely dangerous, possibly fatal.
Chinchillas are from the Andes Mountains of Chile, Argentina, Bolivia and Peru in South America. They occupy areas that range from sea level all the way up to 16,000 feet. The areas where chinchillas roam are arid and very hot during the daytime hours. Chinchillas are therefore nocturnal (active mostly at night), avoiding the hot day temperatures by staying in cool tunnels and caves. Chinchillas were almost hunted into extinction by people who prized their luxurious coat, which is estimated to be 30 times softer than human hair.
Chinchilla are round-bodied rodents, which feature extremely soft fur, large back feet, tiny front feet, long brushy tails and large eyes and ears. The density of the fur is due to the fact that each follicle on the chinchilla's skin has at least 60 hairs growing from it. These hairs can be released easily to allow the chin to escape the grip of a predator. The thick fur protects the chinchilla from the potential cold weather of its habitat. The hair on a chinchilla's coat is said to be finer than the filaments of a spider's web and an individual chinchilla hair is believed to be invisible to the naked eye.
The toes of the chinchilla do not have the claws that are present on most rodent feet, but have rounded nails instead. The ears are large and sensitive. They have extremely well developed hearing. For this reason, chinchillas are often used in laboratory experiments for human hearing studies.
Very social & engaging - generally very gregarious. Chinchillas are very active & outgoing, but they are not "cuddlers" and don't like to sit still for long. They will tolerate being picked up and held for short periods, but their patience is short. Chinchillas need out of cage time to run around, but they are avid chewers, so the room must be "chinchilla proofed". Hide or cover all electrical cords and other cords that you don't want severed. They are usually the first thing targeted. Chinchillas are colonial animals and should not live alone. Keep at least two chins together. It's easiest to buy them together as siblings, but single chins can be slowly and carefully introduced to each other. Chinchillas can be spayed and neutered. Place your pet's cage in a place in the home where it will be around the family, yet protected from direct light, drafts and excess noise during the day. Chinchillas have extremely sensitive ears; they have excellent hearing, so loud noises and vibrations are very upsetting to them. Also be sure the cage is high enough to be out of reach of dog noses and small children's hands. Chinchillas are prey animals and can feel threatened by large bodies hovering above them or in their faces.
Herbivores; grain eaters. Commercially prepared chinchilla diets are available at all pet stores. Plain pellet diets are best, as they offer a complete balanced diet. Chinchilla diets should be 16-20 percent protein, 2-5 percent fat and about 15-35 percent fiber. Diets that include seeds and treats seem to be nicer for your pet, but many chinchillas will only pick out the treats and not eat the pellets. This may result in malnutrition and obesity. You can feed seeds as a treat for your pet and use them for training and taming purposes. 2-3 tablespoons of pellets per chinchilla per day is enough, and they should have as much timothy hay, botanical hays, orchard grass, Bermuda grass, and other hays as they will eat. Treats such as sunflower seeds, no-sugar cereals, dried apples, raisins and other dried fruit can be given in moderation. Treats can be given two to three times a week. Chinchillas do not eat fresh fruits & vegetables. They will give them diarrhea.
** Please avoid feeding sugary treats such as yogurt drops or honey sticks to your chinchilla. These treats contain far too much sugar and can cause several health issues such as diabetes.
If fed a balanced diet, supplements are not necessary for your chinchilla. However, chinchillas can benefit from calcium and lava chews. These will boost their calcium intake and help wear their teeth down. Salt and/or mineral spools should not be used.
Clean, fresh chlorine-free water must always be available. Change it daily. All water given must be 100% free of chlorine and heavy metals. (Not all home water filtration systems remove 100% of the chlorine and heavy metals from tap water). We recommend that you use unflavored bottled drinking water or bottled natural spring water; never use untreated tap water. If tap water is used, you should treat it with a de-chlorinating treatment. De-chlorinator is available in the fish department. If you do not want to chemically de-chlorinate the water, you can leave an open container of tap water out for at least 24 hours. Do not use distilled water, which can cause severe medical problems, since it lacks minerals that are essential to important body functions.
|A good chinchilla cage - at LEAST 3' H x 2' W x 2' L but preferably larger. Chins also enjoy several levels in their cage.
|Running wheel with solid running surface. Non-solid surfaces can cause injury.
|Several toys - wooden for chewing, choose small mammal toys or good parrot toys
|Pelleted, timothy based commercial chinchilla food & a variety of hays
|Hide houses - one for each chinchilla
|Shredded aspen bedding, "Carefresh", or newspaper for the bottom of the cage
|Water bottle
|Ceramic crock or metal food bowl
Many different types of chinchilla cages are available. Chinchillas require a lot of room to run, jump and hide. The more room, the better! There's no such thing as "too big of a cage". A good chinchilla cage should be at LEAST 3' H x 2' W x 2' L, but preferably larger. The cage should be coated wire with bar spacing of about 1" (baby chins will be able to fit through these bars, believe it or not. You must make some changes to the caging if babies arrive). The cage should have at least a couple levels along with well-placed shelves for jumping and leaping. ** Chinchillas are often seen by vets for rear leg injuries, which are often impossible to fix and can result in amputations. These injuries are often the result of old, badly wired cages or cages with wire mesh floors. Floors should be solid surface plastic for easy cleaning and for safety. ALL surfaces, even shelves and the running wheel surface; should be solid. A single square of marble flooring tile can be placed in the cage for hot days. Your chinchilla will lie on it to stay cool.
<strong">HIDE HOUSE: The hide house is extremely important to the chinchilla, and will most likely become your pet's main 'bedroom'. Chinchillas will not often relieve themselves inside the hide house or 'nest', so it is not necessary to disturb the nest to clean it daily. Cleaning of the hide house can be done during the more intensive bi-weekly cleaning. Wood, cardboard or clay pipe can be used (which will cool them in the hot weather) as a hide house. Do not use plastic, as the chin will chew it and possibly ingest it, which will result in a veterinary visit. Each chinchilla in the enclosure should have his or her own hide house.</strong">
FOOD DISH: Choose a heavy ceramic crock or metal food dish. Do not use plastic bowls.
BEDDING: We recommend an aspen bedding or soft recycled newspaper bedding such as "Carefresh". Neither of these choices will cause allergic reactions or respiratory distress and it is easy to clean. DO NOT use cedar chips, as they contain dangerous phenols, which are toxic to your pet. Corn cob bedding quickly grows dangerous molds and fungus when wet. Also, SOME chinchillas develop an allergy to pine shavings.
TOYS: Several types of toys must be available to your chinchillas. Chewing toys such as wooden toys, including wooden parrot toys (available at the pet store), hide houses, wheels, cardboard boxes, paper towel tubes and dried untreated fruit tree branches are all excellent toys for your chinchilla. Chinchillas MUST chew constantly in order to wear their teeth down, which grow on a continual basis. Therefore, toys that allow the chin to chew and wear the teeth down are invaluable. Stick to toys bought at the pet store, as these are generally made of pet-safe materials.
DUST BATHS: Chinchillas love to take dust baths. Dust bath sand is available at the pet store; it is a fine grain sand ideal for small mammals. Pet stores also offer dust bath containers. These containers are generally made of glass or plastic with a roof and small opening in the front to contain the sand while the chinchilla is flailing about inside. The dust helps keep oils in the fur controlled and the pet clean. Offer the dust bath to your pet inside his cage at least three times a week, even every day. It should be removed from the cage when the chinchilla is finished. If left inside, the chin will use it as a litter pan, which is unsanitary for a bath! Also, if the bath is made of plastic, the chin will chew on it and possibly ingest the plastic.
Daily maintenance should consist of spot cleaning by removing soiled substrate, cleaning water bowl thoroughly and wiping glass clean.
The entire tank should be cleaned thoroughly at least once every couple months with:
See "DUST BATHS" above. Since dust baths are offered, it is not necessary to clean or bathe your chinchilla. Chinchilla fur does not respond to conventional bathing. They are extremely neat and will groom themselves! If it seems as if your pet has not been grooming him or herself, he may be ill. Contact your exotic pet veterinarian.
Healthy chinchillas have a rounded, full body and smooth, even fur with no bald patches. The nostrils, under-tail area, under-chin area, ears and eyes should be clear and free of discharge - fur should not be damp or stained in any way. Your pet should have bright eyes; teeth should be even and well aligned with no staining around the chin; breathing should be even and not labored, with no wheezing or gurgling sounds. Healthy chinchillas are very energetic and busy; although they are nocturnal and may be caught napping during the day.
We recommend physical exams every year with an exotic pet veterinarian for small mammals. If your vet sees your pet regularly, many common conditions that afflict your pet can be caught and treated early. If not caught early enough or if left untreated, many of these conditions can become far worse if not fatal.
|Dental disease
|Wet chin, drooling, may stop eating
|See your exotic pet veterinarian IMMEDIATELY, disease runs its course quickly. Vet will administer sub-q fluids and antibiotics.
|Hind leg injuries
|Limping, hanging or dangling leg, refusal to put weight on the leg.
|See your exotic pet veterinarian immediately for treatment.
|Traumatic injury
|Obvious open wounds or weeping spots on body
|See your exotic pet veterinarian for treatment. Cuts must be cleaned properly and antibiotics may be necessary
|Pododermatitis (inflammation of foot pads)
|Swollen, sometimes red feet, clear signs of injury or sores
|See your exotic pet veterinarian immediately. The abscess must be drained and antibiotics administered
|Dental issues
|Drooling, pawing at mouth, scant stool
|See exotic pet veterinarian
|Intestinal obstruction, gastrointestinal disease, diarrhea
|Lethargy, not eating, feces small in size or non-existent, gurgling belly sounds. Obvious, wet & loose feces
|See your exotic veterinarian IMMEDIATELY, disease runs its course quickly. Vet will administer sub-q fluids, antibiotics +/- other drugs
©2012 Evan J. Reed DVM and Dawn M. Trainor-Scalise Courtesy of: Specialized Care for Avian & Exotic Pets In conjunction with Pet Supplies Plus 10882 Main Street, Clarence, NY 14031 Ph (716) 759-0144 www.buffalobirdnerd.com


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Muscle Mustangs & Fast FordsProject Vehicles
1988 Ford Mustang GT Project Hypersilver - Body And Soul, Part 1
Part 1: Hypersilver gets a facelift with the help of Cervini's Auto Designs and Spike's Performance.
If you've ever watched movies like Stephen King's Christine or Disney/Pixar's Cars, then you've seen Hollywood's methods for giving automobiles lifelike features. Windshields are eyes, grilles are mouths, and wheels are feet. But even non-animated and non-possessed cars have personalities of their own—without the help of special effects. Some are boring, some are mean, and others are goofy, like 'Mater.
The Fox-body Mustang didn't gain popularity in the performance scene for its stunning good looks or imposing personality. In fact, in stock form (save for the '93 Cobra, maybe), most would consider it too simplistic. Thankfully, the lightweight design coupled with an easily modified powertrain and an affordable price tag catapulted the five-point-oh Mustang into automotive superstardom.
On the coattails of that popularity was built an industry of performance and styling parts that still lives strong today. Many existing companies like Edelbrock, Paxton, and Flowmaster jumped on board the Mustang train, while other companies got their start by feeding the ever-growing horde of people buying and modding these rides.
One of the companies that started during this time was Cervini's Auto Designs. In 1991, founder Danny Cervini had a black '89 Mustang convertible. Being a body guy, he cut the hoodscoops out of a '71 Mach 1 hood and grafted them onto the hood of his Fox for a custom look. Once complete, he began taking it to local New Jersey car shows, where he received many compliments. People kept asking where they could buy their own, so Cervini formed Cervini's Auto Designs. The rest, as they say, is history.
What started in 1991 as a three-man operation in a garage has grown to a 50,000-plus-square-foot facility with about 50 employees. "About 95 percent of our manufacturing is done in-house, in the USA, with materials purchased in the USA," says Jim Frie, director of marketing for Cervini's. The company is still owned by Cervini, and that original Cervini hood hangs proudly on the wall at the company's state-of-the-art facility in Vineland, New Jersey.
In search of the right look and personality for Hypersilver, our 25th Anniversary project, we turned to Cervini's. Being a hatchback GT, we had our hearts set on a Saleen-style wing, a small cowl-induction hood, and a body kit. We certainly love the look of the '93 Cobra, but it's been done so many times. Plus, we wanted something unique, not a clone of something else. So we picked the Stalker front bumper (PN 3334; $624.99), a 2.5-inch cowl hood (PN 105; $599.99), Cobra side skirts (PN 4335; $429.99), Cobra rear bumper (PN 3336; $399.99), and the SLN spoiler (PN 200; $339.99).
The hood and spoiler are high-quality fiberglass, the company's specialty, and the rest, including the Stalker nose, is made from a state-of-the-art eurethane.
"The Stalker started off in fiberglass, then it was manufactured with an open-face eurethane mold. Now, all of our eurethane components are Reaction Injection Molded (RIM)," said Frie. "It's much more consistent and provides more flexibility." This is the same process that OEM manufacturers use to manufacture bumper covers, and Cervini's has been using the RIM process for about 10 years.
Elsewhere on the exterior, we turned to National Parts Depot (NPD). It offers a comprehensive catalog of Fox-body Mustang restoration parts including moulding, trim, weatherstripping, and even body panels.
"At NPD, we put a high priority on going beyond the shallow-end categories of performance cosmetics, and dive all the way into the deep-end of comprehensive restoration needs..." said Rick Schmidt of NPD, "In effect, offering the entire swimming pool of parts for your Fox, in-stock and ready to ship, with the same dedication to quality that our '65-'73 customers have known for decades."
Product Sponsors


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The Knicks cannot even beat the Bobcats. Are they are going to win another game this season? Do they have a legitimate shot at an epic collapse? I think the only reason the Knicks are going to make the playoffs at this point is because with 9 games to go even if they lose every game they may still end up with the 8th seed. So here is a basic recap that you could use for any game lately:
- This game was close but then the Knicks lost control of the game in the _______ (insert quarter).
- _________ (insert name of superstar) had a really poor shooting night tonight and was noticeably upset at himself for how he played.
- The Knicks had a ton of trouble containing ___________ (insert name of mediocre player from the other team) who had one of his best performances of the season.
- Coach D'Antoni inexplicably gave _______ (insert name of crappy bench player) a bunch of minutes tonight while unexpectedly sitting ________ (insert name of crappy bench player) for much of the game.
- The Knicks overall looked confused on __________ (insert word: defense or offense) for long stretches tonight.
- Hopefully, the Knicks will be able to get their pizazz back in their next game against _________ (insert name of next opponent who will clobber them).
This is just getting awful. The only explanations that make sense any more is that the team is doing this on purpose to get rid of D'Antoni or that Ashton Kutcher, with the Knicks help is going all out for the new season of Punk'd.


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If you've been paying any attention at all to the evolution of Louis Vuitton under the creative direction of Nicolas Ghesquiere, then none of the new bags on the brand's Fall 2017 runway in Paris should have come as any surprise to you. This was a collection that built out variations of the Vuitton's existing, successful bag ideas instead of establishing any new themes or dropping any new blockbusters.
The collection did include one all-new bag, which was a sharp-cornered day satchel with double top handles and a front lock. It was my least favorite part of the new collection--something about the trim and proportions made it feel vaguely like something you buy from a cart at the mall. The new top handle version of the City Steamer made up for it, though, as did all the glittery little Petite Malle clutches. Check out all the bags from the show below.
[Photos via Vogue Runway]


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Verizon is now taking pre-orders for the Samsung Galaxy Note II, according to a post on the company blog. Priced at $299.99 with a two-year service agreement, the carrier has yet to finalize the release date, listing only as "coming weeks". That said, if you want to get your hands on the next big, big thing, you can put some money down and ensure you get to do so. By the way, have you seen the home button on this thing? Yikes.
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By DAVID GREEN
When Morenci mayor Doug Erskin was elected in November 2007, he had campaigned for better enforcement of property maintenance issues.
He also stated that portions of the International Property Maintenance Code—regulations adopted by Morenci City Council in 2003—might be too harsh for a small town.
"They're really good guidelines," he said, "and some that you have to comply with, but there should be some leeway on other issues."
Erskin was looking for change in the enforcement of maintenance problems, but he hoped to find "friendly" ways to create change, rather than demands that came straight from the code book.
Now Erskin is asking council members to repeal the International Property Maintenance Code due to financial conditions.
At the Nov. 10 council meeting, Erskin read the following recommendation:
"Due to the economic conditions that many of us are facing in the community, and since the standards called for in the International Property Maintenance Code place such a high financial burden on the residents of Morenci, the Mayor recommends that the International Property Maintenance Code of 2000, adopted on June 23rd of 2003 be repealed."
Erskin sought no immediate action from council, but he will seek a motion for the recommendations at the Nov. 24 council meeting.
He will seek opinions from the public about how to proceed with maintenance issues.
Erskin gave one other recommendation for councilors to consider. He said he's heard concerns from citizens about council voting too quickly on issues.
The mayor suggests that an issue should be read twice—at two meetings—before a vote is taken.
"This will allow time for the citizens of Morenci to interact with council before a vote is taken on the issue," Erskin said.
Erskin also revived a practice from many years ago of reading the minutes from the previous meeting at the start of the meeting.
POLICE—Police chief Larry Weeks told council about a change in basic standards through the Michigan Commission on Law Enforcement Standards (MCOLES) that requires police officers to log at least 520 hours annually in order to maintain certification, beginning in 2012.
This would hurt many police departments in small communities, Weeks said, because part-time officers are not always able to obtain that much work in a year.
Weeks and other police chiefs are urging the MCOLES to abandon this idea and instead establish minimum standards through training requirements rather than hours worked.
Council unanimously supported a resolution calling for a change in the standards.
CONTRACT—Councilors approved changes in a proposed union contract with police officers.
Legal and finance chair Keith Pennington presented the motion and was asked by Mayor Erskin if this would open the door to further negotiations. Pennington answered that he did not think it would.
"What happens if it's rejected?" Erskin asked.
"There would be no changes in the existing contract that expired in June," Pennington said.
Negotiations could begin again during the regular 90-day period before the annual contract expiration date.
APPEALS BOARD—Council and audience members discussed the existence of an appeals board for the International Property Maintenance Code( IPMC), as specified in the code.
City administrator/clerk Renée Schroeder said that she thought the city's Construction Board of Appeals was also designated to serve as the maintenance code appeals board.
Erskin stated that board appointments had expired and said the board no longer existed.
Schroeder pointed out that council re-appointed board positions Jan. 14 to two-year terms, and that same board was designated to serve as the rental inspection board of appeals.
Board members are:
• Don Merillat, general contractor;
• Chris Merillat (chair), general contractor;
• Chris McCowan, mason;
• Tom Barnes, electrician;
• Larry Borton, plumber.
Schroeder said the city's rental inspection ordinance, adopted in 2004, specifies the IPMC as the applicable standards. Therefore, she believes appeals would go to the rental board.
Erskin suggested that the city attorney give an opinion on the issue.
APPOINTMENTS—Council members approved the mayor's recommendations for department heads and appointments, with no changes from the existing list: chief of police, Larry Weeks; city superintendent, Lonnie Vanderpool; city administrator/clerk, Renée Schroeder; city treasurer, Stephanie Mossing; library director, Colleen Leddy; zoning administrator, Jack Baird (residential) and Jacob Barnes (commercial); code enforcement officer and building inspector, Kevin Arquette; EMS coordinator, Cindy Lazarz; fire chief, Chad Schisler; city assessor, Marty Marshall; city attorney, Fred Lucas.


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Vouchers don't do much for students
Stephanie Simon – Ever since the administration filed suit to freeze Louisiana's school voucher program, high-ranking Republicans have pummeled President Barack Obama for trapping poor kids in failing public schools.
The entire House leadership sent a letter of protest. Majority Leader Eric Cantor blistered the president for denying poor kids "a way into a brighter future." And Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal accused him of "ripping low-income minority students out of good schools" that could "help them achieve their dreams."
But behind the outrage is an inconvenient truth: Taxpayers across the U.S. will soon be spending $1 billion a year to help families pay private school tuition — and there's little evidence that the investment yields academic gains.
In Milwaukee, just 13 percent of voucher students scored proficient in math and 11 percent made the bar in reading this spring. That's worse on both counts than students in the city's public schools. In Cleveland, voucher students in most grades performed worse than their peers in public schools in math, though they did better in reading.
In New Orleans, voucher students who struggle academically haven't advanced to grade-level work any faster over the past two years than students in public schools, many of which are rated D or F, state data show.
And across Louisiana, many of the most popular private schools for voucher students posted miserable scores in math, reading, science and social studies this spring, with fewer than half their voucher students achieving even basic proficiency and fewer than 2 percent demonstrating mastery. Seven schools did so badly, state Superintendent John White barred them from accepting new voucher students — though the state agreed to keep paying tuition for the more than 200 voucher students already enrolled, if they chose to stay.
Nationwide, many schools participating in voucher programs infuse religion through their curriculum. Zack Kopplin, a student activist who favors rigorous science education, has found more than 300 voucher schools across the U.S. that teach the biblical story of creation as science; some also instruct children that the world is just several thousand years old and use textbooks describing the Loch Ness Monster as a living dinosaur. Parents at one such school in Louisiana received a newsletter calling secular scientists "sinful men."
Asked whether he was confident that the private schools funded by vouchers are better than the public schools students would otherwise attend, Jindal told POLITICO that parents, not government officials, should make that decision. "We make no apologies for giving parents the option to determine the best educational path for their children," he said. "President Obama has the means to send his children to the school of his choice. Parents in Louisiana should have the same opportunity."
His rationale resonates widely these days.
Vouchers are booming in popularity; a record 245,000 students in 16 states plus D.C. are paying for private school with public subsidies, according to the Alliance for School Choice. Nine states added or broadened voucher programs this year and new initiatives are on the table in states including New Jersey and Tennessee.
By 2014, states will be spending $1 billion a year to send children to private schools through vouchers, tax credits and similar programs, according to Robert Enlow, president of the Friedman Foundation, an advocacy group for school choice.
"These programs are expanding, and they're not going away," said Kevin Chavous, executive counsel for the American Federation for Children, a school choice advocacy group that just released an emotional campaign-style video promoting vouchers.
The expansions are stretching voucher programs far beyond the stated intent of rescuing poor families from failing public schools.
For one thing, participants don't always have to be poor. In Milwaukee, a family of four with an annual income as high as $71,000 can get a voucher. In Louisiana, a family of four earning nearly $59,000 a year is eligible. The federal poverty guideline for a family of four is $23,550.
Also, voucher recipients aren't always trapped in failing public schools; in fact, some have never even tried the public system. Fully two-thirds of students in Wisconsin's Parental Choice Program were already enrolled in private schools before they received the tuition subsidy — and an additional 5 percent were home-schooled, state data show.
As for academic gains, voucher backers often point to two studies, in D.C. and New York City, for hopeful signs. The research in D.C. found that giving vouchers to low-income students didn't raise their test scores. But it did boost their high school graduation rate, according to their parents. In New York, meanwhile, African-American students who received vouchers were more likely than their peers to enroll in college, but the effect didn't hold true for other groups, including Hispanic students.
Longitudinal studies of the Milwaukee voucher program have found mixed results. In one study, voucher students did no better than peers in the public schools for four years, then outpaced them in reading – but not math — in the fifth year. In another, voucher students lagged behind their peers in reading, math and science in fourth grade and continued to lag in 8th and 10th grade math, though they did better in reading and science in the upper grades. Another study found voucher students were 3 percentage points more likely to graduate high school and persist past their freshman year in a four-year college.
Matthew Chingos, an education policy analyst at The Brookings Institution, sums up the research this way: Kids don't make big gains when the state pays their way through private schools — but at least "there's no evidence that people are being harmed."
In his view, that means the programs should continue: "If their children are at least doing no worse … it seems reasonable that it's OK to let people make these choices," Chingos said.
Vouchers don't do much for students – Stephanie Simon – POLITICO.com.


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We shared three new trailers for the upcoming fifth season of HBO's True Blood a little over a week ago, but another one has gone online that we thought was fitting to share simply because it revolves around everyone's favorite duo Eric (Alexander Skarsgard) and Pam (Kristin Bauer van Straten). Additionally, HBO has released a pretty funny teaser poster for season five. Though I haven't been crazy about the show for the past two seasons, its soap opera dramatization has me hooked and I'll most likely be finishing out the entire series. Season five does have a few promising grabs, including Christopher Meloni as a powerful vampire (is there any other kind?) and the return of a fan-favorite character.
Hit the jump to check out the trailer and poster. The season five premiere of True Blood airs on Sunday, June 10th.


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Katherine Sharp, the curator for Monk's House (which I featured earlier), has just told me of a recent gift to the house of some books once owned by Virginia Woolf.
They are a set of the Arden edition of Shakespeare which Virginia covered with coloured paper in 1936. Her diary entry for 25 February 1936 reads: "… I've had headaches. Vanquish them by lying still and binding books …" – by 'binding' she meant re-covering the books with glued paper.
Although I wouldn't personally recommend glueing coloured paper all over your books, it does vividly illustrate the earthy modernist taste of the Bloomsbury Group. And of course it is also poignant evidence of Virginia's need to soothe her sometimes fragile state of mind with repetitive manual work.
The books come with a bookcase that is recorded as being in the Woolfs' London home in the late 1930s and later came to Monk's House. After Leonard's death in 1969 the bookcase and the books were given to Lady Lintott, a longstanding friend of the Woolfs who lived nearby in Rodmell. Her children have now donated it to Monk's House.


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First Drive: 2014 Kia Forte
The old Kia Forte was a decent car with terrible timing. It debuted four years ago, just ahead of a tidal wave of vastly improved small cars like the Chevrolet Cruze, the Ford Focus, and the Hyundai Elantra. To add insult to injury, the car's launch coincided almost exactly with the federal government's Cash For Clunkers initiative, forcing Kia to divert much of its advertising budget toward promoting the program. The compact never recovered, becoming a rare underperformer in Kia's lineup. Although the brand's overall sales have nearly doubled in the last five years, the Forte doesn't do any better than the Spectra it replaced.
The good news for the Forte is that Kia has enough money to create its own timing. Four years after its debut, when we'd normally expect to see a significant refresh, we're instead getting an all-new car, the 2014 Kia Forte sedan.
Styling: Blander but better
In other segments, Kia has been able to win over buyers with a healthy helping of styling and quirkiness. For its new small car, however, Kia seems to have bowed to the practicality-first conventions established by perennial segment leaders Honda and Toyota. "When consumers shop for a small car, the rational part of the brain dominates," says Kia product planning manager Ralph Tjoa. So it makes sense that the new Forte's design prioritizes packaging. The window line slopes down toward the A-pillar, providing the driver Honda-like visibility, and then stretches back into a traditional C-pillar. Whereas the old Forte has a relatively muscular hood and flared front fenders, the new one has an unmistakable cab-forward nose, which further improves visibility. The car looks longer than its predecessor, which it is. Its wheelbase is two inches longer than before (the same as the Hyundai Elantra's), and overall length has increased by a little more than an inch.
The Forte doesn't completely give up on style -- Kia's trademark tiger nose grille juts out more prominently than ever, and optional bits like LED lights and smartly applied chrome window trim create a sense of drama. In this respect, the Forte reminds us of the new Dodge Dart, putting a handsome face on a traditional compact car shape.
Interior: Getting in touch with Kia's softer side
For about a minute, the old Forte had one of the best interiors in the compact segment. Then, as noted, we got spoiled by the likes of the Focus and the Elantra. The new cabin rivals those competitors with a healthy helping of soft-touch materials. A nicely laid out color touchscreen is optional and doubles as a backup camera display. Passenger volume has dropped slightly despite the larger exterior, but the front passengers enjoy more head, leg, and shoulder room. The already generous trunk has also grown slightly larger. As always, Kia offers plenty of features, including optional heating for just about every conceivable surface -- front seats, rear seats, and steering wheel. Much like the exterior, the cabin dispenses with most of the outgoing car's sporting pretensions: the formerly purposeful-looking steering wheel has become bloated and almost droopy; gauges no longer feature hotdog orange backlighting. There is a bit of faux carbon fiber to liven things up, although it looks very fake, indeed.
Driving dynamics: Learning some manners
Dismissing the old Forte's sports car touches as being mere pretense is a bit unfair -- it certainly tried to please enthusiasts with a powerful engine and a stiff suspension. And yet, it never quite came together into a compelling driver's car. The old 2.4-liter four-cylinder was coarse and slow to respond to accelerator inputs, and the rock-hard ride didn't yield a worthwhile handling advantage. With the 2014 Forte, Kia has taken a more sophisticated approach. There's a lot of hardware derived from the Elantra, including a lighter platform and a smaller 1.8-liter base engine. Kia also applied what Tjoa calls "aggressive" noise, vibration, and harshness countermeasures, including larger bushings to isolate the front subframe, acoustic sound insulation under the dash, and a dual-layer engine mount.
The manicured roads around Scottsdale hardly present the toughest ride-quality test (indeed, the good weather isn't the only reason car companies love to introduce new cars here). We'd venture to say that the suspension has improved over that of the current Forte. It still lets in more road noise, though, than refinement leaders like the Focus and the Volkswagen Golf.
Whereas the styling and the interior sacrificed sportiness in the name of refinement, the actual driving experience is now more engaging than ever. We drove the EX, which features a 2.0-liter directed-injected four-cylinder. It has the same output (173 hp) and slightly less torque (154 lb-ft) than the top engine in the outgoing Forte sedan, but in real-world driving it feels considerably more responsive. It winds quickly through its rpm range and never seems out of breath, even as we head toward higher elevations. The EX now comes only with a six-speed automatic, something we'd be more upset about if the old car's manual transmission hadn't been so vague and notchy (a stick-shift is still offered on the base model). The accelerator pedal isn't the only control to have improved -- the brakes feel firm, and the steering, now electric rather than hydraulic power assist, is refreshingly heavy, especially when the optional "Flex Steer" system is set in Sport. As we've unfortunately come to expect from Kias (and Hyundais), though, that weight doesn't build naturally.
Kia has not announced fuel-economy numbers for the new Forte, but one can assume that the 1.8-liter engine will match rather closely the figures it achieves in the Elantra: 28 mpg in the city and 38 mpg on the highway. Optional stop/start technology could provide a small bump in the city.
Conclusion: Catching the crowd
Even with its strong powertrain, the 2014 Kia Forte doesn't have quite as much character as we'd hoped -- perhaps we've been spoiled by the larger Optima and all those dancing hamster commercials. Nevertheless, there's no doubt that this is a more polished car than the one it replaces. Its interior quality, driving dynamics, and feature content all safely meet our very high standards for small sedans. For a dose of style and performance, we can still look forward to new versions of the Forte coupe and hatchback.
On sale: Early 2013
Engine: 1.8L four-cylinder, 148 hp, 131 lb-ft; 2.0L four-cylinder, 173 hp 154 lb-ft
Drive: Front-wheel
Transmission: Six-speed manual or six-speed automatic
EPA Fuel economy: 25-28/35-38 mpg city/highway (est.)


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(1) Lagrangean description. Let us consider a $N\times N$ system of autonomous ODE: $$ \dot x=a(x),\quad \mathbb R\ni t\mapsto x(t)\in \mathbb R^N,\quad a:\mathbb R^N\rightarrow \mathbb R^N. $$ Instead of assuming the traditional Cauchy-Lipschitz hypothesis, let me suppose $$ \vert a(x_1)-a(x_2)\vert\le \omega(\vert x_1-x_2\vert) $$ where $\omega:(0,+\infty)\rightarrow(0,+\infty)$ continuous increasing, $\omega(0_+)=0$ such that the so-called Osgood condition holds: $$ \exists R>0,\quad\text{such that}\quad \int_0^R\frac{dr}{\omega(r)}=+\infty.\tag{Osgood} $$ It is of course satisfied by $\omega(r)=r$ (Lipschitz case) but also by $\omega(r)=r\log(1/r)$ or $r\log(1/r)r\log\log(1/r)$. Existence and uniqueness are not difficult to prove and follow from a Gronwall-type argument. The flow has some regularity properties, is not Lipschitz-continuous in general, but is better than Hölder of any index $<1$.
(2) Eulerian description. We consider the PDE, in fact the autonomous vector field $$ X=\sum_{1\le j\le N}a_j(x)\frac{\partial}{\partial x_j} $$ where $a=(a_1,\dots,a_N)$ satisfies the above Osgood assumption. MY QUESTION: How can we prove uniqueness of $L^\infty$ weak solutions $u$ to the IVP $$ Xu=f,\quad u_{\vert \Sigma}=0,\quad \text{$\Sigma$ is a $C^1$ hypersurface transverse to $X$}? $$
(3) Comment: DiPerna-Lions theory does not apply since derivatives of the function $a$ could even fail to be a measure and may be a distribution of positive order. If you don't like autonomous vector fields, you can formulate the question for $$ X=\frac{\partial}{\partial t}+\sum_{1\le j\le N}a_j(t,x)\frac{\partial}{\partial x_j},\quad \Sigma\equiv t=0,\quad \vert a_j(t,x)-a_j(t,y)\vert\le C\omega(\vert x-y\vert). $$


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Pokémon Scent-sation! (エリカとクサイハナ Erika and Gloom) is the 26th episode of the Pokémon anime and of Pokémon: Indigo League.
After arriving to Celadon City, Misty, Brock and Pikachu went to a perfume store. Ash believes that it is a waste of money, which gets him kicked out of the shop. Worse, the same people working in the shop work in the Celadon Gym and also forbid him from challenging Erika, the Gym Leader. After seeing Team Rocket were also kicked out, Ash and Team Rocket make a pact to get Ash in the Gym to battle Erika. What is Team Rocket up to?
Episode plot
Ash, Misty, and Brock have reached Celadon City at last. Everyone except Ash notices a sweet smell in the air. Brock runs off and Ash follows him to a perfume shop with some girls inside. Ash tells Brock he is wasting time and that they should leave but Ash can't find Misty or Pikachu. Brock points to inside the store and Ash sees Misty and Pikachu inside. Misty asks the manager how much a bottle of perfume would cost and Ash says that perfume is a waste of money. Everyone in the store, including his friends, give Ash an angry look and they kick him out of the store. Ash gets to the Celadon City Gym, but the trainers at the front of the gym won't let him in. They know he hates perfume and since the perfume comes from the gym, they refuse to let him in. They take a stamp and stamp a red X on his forehead and tell him he is banned from the gym, leaving him begging for them to let him in to acquire his Rainbow Badge, to no avail.
Meanwhile, Team Rocket sets up a ladder so they can sneak into the gym and steal the perfume formula. They explore the forest inside the gym and Jessie runs into a Gloom. James waves his hand in front of the Gloom's face, waking it up. James sends out Koffing and tells it to use Poison Gas. But the attack doesn't work on Gloom and it relealses its purid smell, knocking Team Rocket out. Meowth isn't hurt by it because he doesn't have a nose, but the trainers in the gym whack him with a hammer. The trainers stamp red X's on their heads, take them outside, and tie them to a tree.
Ash finds them tied up in the tree. James asks Ash if he can untie them, but Jessie says not to ask him. She makes fun of Ash because he was rejected from the gym. Jessie says she will help him get inside the gym, but only if he unties them. Ash is a bit apprehensive about helping Team Rocket, but he needs to get into the gym, so he accepts their offer. He unties them and Team Rocket takes him to a department store and they put a blonde wig and a dress on him so he can sneak into the gym. They also tell him to speak in a high pitched voice. Jessie and James disguise themselves so they can pretend to be Ash's parents. They decide to enroll him at Pokémon training classes at the gym under the name Ashley. When they get to the gym, Ash notices that the girl registering him is one of the same ones who kicked him out of the perfume shop. Ash decides not to say anything so he doesn't blow the disguise. Team Rocket runs off to find the secret perfume formula and Ash unknowingly distracts the trainers. Meowth pulls out a bomb (or blaster ball as they call it) and asks James what their plan is. Jessie tells him to plant the bomb.
The trainers work out with their Pokémon while Erika tells them a story. Ash comes into the room and he sees Misty, Brock and Pikachu with the other trainers. Ash discovers that Erika is the gym leader and the perfume manager that kicked him out of the shop earlier. Brock indroduces Erika to Ash/Ashley. Misty asks Erika why Gloom doesn't emit the awful smell. Erika explains that if Gloom feels safe, it won't let off the smell. Erika remembers how she met Gloom when she was a little girl and she ran into a Grimer. Gloom came and rescued her by letting off the smell and scaring the Grimer away. When Erika finishes the story, Misty says that she wishes Ash could have heard the story. Ash speaks in his normal voice and Misty is confused. Pikachu figures out that Ashley is Ash and jumps on him and shocks him, destroying the disguise. Though she remembers him, Ash challenges Erika to a gym battle while Team Rocket breaks open the safe with the formula in it.
Erika accepts the challenge under the league rules that she can't refuse and sets up a three on three battle. Ash sends out Bulbasaur and Erika sends out Tangela. Bulbasaur uses Vine Whip, but Tangela uses Constrict and then Stun Spore. Ash recalls Bulbasaur and Erika offers to heal it with a Paralyz Heal, but Ash refuses. He considers sending out Primeape, but knowing how wild it is, he sends out Charmander. Erika sends out Weepinbell and it uses Razor Leaf. Charmander uses Flamethrower and Skull Bash to knock out Weepinbell. Erika sends out Gloom and it releases its smell. Charmander jumps into the air holding its nose before it faints. Pikachu steps forward to battle and Ash is sure Pikachu will win.
Team Rocket interrupts the battle and drops down onto the battle field. Meowth detonates the bomb, while he's still holding it, and everyone goes flying. Team Rocket escapes with the perfume formula, and the bomb creates a huge fire. Everyone runs out of the gym. As Erika's Trainers struggle to fight the fire and await the Celadon City Fire Department, Ash (who, at first, does nothing due to feeling guilty about the mess he made) and Misty have Squirtle, Starmie and Staryu try to put out the fire with Water Gun while Brock has Geodude help by tossing dirt and mud on the fire to bury it. Erika runs around like crazy because she can't find Gloom. Ash runs back into the gym and fights the flames to rescue Gloom. Ash finds Gloom, very scared. Ash steps towards it, but Gloom releases its smell. The ceiling around them starts to cave in and Ash holds his breath and picks up Gloom. Ash stops holding his breath because he's about to pass out and he notices Gloom stopped releasing its smell. Ash remembers from Erika's story that Gloom won't release its smell if it feels safe.
Ash runs out of the gym, carrying Gloom, and everyone cheers for Ash's bravery. The next day, despite the bad state the gym is in from the fire damage, Erika gives Ash the Rainbow Badge for saving Gloom. Ash reminds her about the lost formula, but Erika tells him not to worry, the bottle had Gloom's smell in it. Meanwhile, Team Rocket opens up the bottle, the smell knocking them out. Ash and his friends head to the next gym.
- "Augh! My nose is on fire!" - Meowth
- "Meowth you don't have a nose." - Jessie
- "Huh? AHHH! My nose! The stink must've dissolved it off my face. Hm? Oh, I forgot, the cartoonist never gave me a nose." - Meowth
- "(Clears throat) (sounding like a girl) I'll show those meanies!" - Ash
- James: "Meowth! Where did you put that blast ball?!"
- Meowth: "Near us so I wouldn't lose it."
- Jessie: "At least we managed to steal this, their secret perfume formula."
- "But Team Rocket stole your perfume formula." - Ash
- "(giggles) No they didn't. The bottle they stole was one of our perfume's ingredients: Essence of Gloom." - Erika
- When Team Rocket was attacked by Gloom, Meowth broke the fourth wall by saying the artist designed him without a nose.
- This episode was banned in South Korea, due to Team Rocket's use of bombs.
- This is the first episode where Ash dresses up as a girl.
- Though in the games Erika was the fourth Gym Leader to be challenged, in the anime she is the fifth.
- The Rainbow Badge Ash earned is the fifth he got, though in the games it is the fourth.
- The "Who's that Pokémon?" is Gloom.
- While she told the trainers at the gym about Ash and his rude comments on their perfume, it may have not been her intention to have him denied entry to the gym since it would be against Pokémon League Policy to ban trainers for trivial personal matters, so the ban may be due to a heated misunderstanding.
- During the scene where the girls are trying to use hoses to put out the fire, in the upper right corner it looks like the people are missing the gym and watering the grass. They may be do this to avoid the fire from spreading to other buildings.
- The purple-haired assistant is voiced by Veronica Taylor at the start of the episode, but changes to Rachael Lillis during the gym battle (this applies only to English version).
- When Erika finishes telling the story about Omanyte, a miniature Victreebel is seen next to Gloom and Tangela in the respect that it is only slightly taller than the two of them.
- The pigtail-haired assistant was last seen capturing Pokémon in the burning gym. After that she disappeared for unknown reasons.
Dub differences
- The bombs are called "blaster balls".
|Pokémon the Series: The Beginning
|Other series: Gold and Silver · Ruby and Sapphire · Diamond and Pearl · Black & White · XY and XYZ · Sun & Moon · Journeys


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Tonight on Spike TV, Joel Johnson, Stephen Totilo, and Brian Crecente spend several minutes chatting with GameTrailers TV's Geoff Keighley on the roof of Kotaku's New York City headquarters about the big fall game releases, and not one of them ironically plummets to the street below.
If you happen to be up and about tonight at 1:05AM Eastern time, do tune into this week's episode of GameTrailers TV, if only to see three of New York City's finest (Kotaku editors) risking life and limb to discuss this fall's game lineup with former Kotaku guest editor Geoff Keighley. Record it to your favorite television recording device, import the footage to your computer, and make them dance like marionettes for your amusement.
Or just watch them talk and be informed. I suppose that's okay too.
You can contact Michael Fahey, the author of this post, at email@example.com. You can also find him on Twitter, Facebook, and lurking around our


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Amicus - Adding mass communications PrerequisitesSpecial
This course covers the mass communications functionality within the Amicus system:
- How many users can be part of mass communications
- How to set up a mass communications
- Using communication templates
- Managing salutations and contact preferences
This course is suitable for fundraising and alumni relations staff within CUDAR and Colleges who have fully migrated to Amicus, and who need to send the same communications to multiple contacts.
You must complete the following online courses prior to attending this course:
- Amicus online - Logging in and navigation
- Amicus online - Viewing a contact record
- Amicus online - Updating contact preferences
All user guides are available online via the Amicus Support Area. However, if you would like to print a copy of the procedure to bring with you and make notes, please follow the link below.
30 minutes
Events available


text: Young motorsports fans will be able to throw these caps in the air with excitement when a Porsche crosses the finishing line. All motorsports fans will want to cheer on the Porsche team together with their sons and daughters, even if it is only on the miniature race track at home. With the Porsche Driver's Selection range for children, you will be perfectly prepared for those winning moments. Whether you choose a traditional design with the famous Porsche crest or a tasteful applique motif, these caps are certain to attract attention. And, of course, your children will be proud to wear them every day. Children's caps from Porsche: let the race begin.


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Parents: Teacher filmed girl taking clothes off in class
12-year-old girl is autistic
Parents are asking questions after their daughter was videotaped taking her clothes off in school.
A teacher at the Bobby B. Fairfax School recorded the girl as she took her clothes off in class.
"I want every parent to be aware that this occurred at the school for children that cannot speak for themselves, don't have a voice," Jeff Iles said. His daughter is autistic.
News 5's Jackie Congedo went to the Hamilton County Developmental Disability Services office Friday after the family asked for help with answers.
"She's 12 but ideally, cognitively, she's probably between the ages of 3 and 4," Iles said of his daughter.
He said the incident took place in January. Friday was his daughter's last day at the Fairfax School because of what happened.
"She was completely naked (from) head to toe," Iles said.
Iles said rather than stopping his daughter, the teacher picked up an iPad and began recording the girl.
"(It's) baffling and, to me, I have no idea what the thought process is from an educational standpoint that this would be done," Iles said.
Iles said a classroom aide told his daughter's nurse about what happened. She was at lunch at the time of the incident.
Representatives from Hamilton County Developmental Disability Services said recording a student is not unusual. They sometimes do it when a student gets agitated so they can look back at what may have triggered the actions.
They admitted that a teacher's aide recorded the girl taking her clothes off with the teacher's permission and that the aide should have stopped and redirected the girl to put her clothes back on.
"It makes me lose faith with schools in general and I don't want to do that," Iles said.
The disability services board said the teacher would be suspended for three days for failing to maintain control of the classroom.
Iles said his daughter would not be returning to the school.


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Editor's note: Ruben Navarrette is a CNN contributor and a nationally syndicated columnist with the Washington Post Writers Group. Follow him on Twitter: @rubennavarrette. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of the author.
San Diego (CNN) -- Texas Gov. Rick Perry is right to immediately send 1,000 National Guard troops to the U.S.-Mexico border in response to the border kids crisis.
In fact, "immediately" wasn't soon enough. While Perry has been demanding that the Obama administration send in the troops for several weeks now, the governor shouldn't have wasted his time trying to get the folks in Washington to focus on a border that President Obama didn't even bother to visit recently when he was doing a fundraiser in Dallas just 500 miles away.
For those Americans in both parties who think the United States is undergoing an invasion from the South, it makes perfect sense to call out the troops.
I'm not in the "invasion" crowd. After 25 years of writing about immigration, and a half-dozen trips to the U.S.-Mexico border, I know this much: What we see down there isn't comparable to the encroachment of a foreign army.
Most of it is more like a jobs fair, where people from poor countries in Latin America -- especially Mexico -- go north to do jobs that Americans aren't doing or won't do for anything less than bankers' wages.
In the last few months, due to the humanitarian crisis involving at least 57,000 unaccompanied minors who have crossed the U.S.-Mexico border since October 2013, we've seen the rest of the story -- that some of what goes on down there is tantamount to a fire drill, where the frightened and desperate jump out of a burning building and into what they hope is the warm embrace of a compassionate neighbor.
The real reason that Perry is right to send the National Guard to the border is not what you'll hear from conservatives who continue to show through their rhetoric and rants that they don't have the foggiest understanding of that part of the world.
Key questions about Rick Perry's border plan
Some folks on the right probably think that, under what Perry has in mind, there will be armed troops standing guard on the line and apprehending unauthorized border crossers, including children.
Yeah. That's not going to happen. Can you imagine the horrible optics of that kind of operation, or the international incident that would be created if -- heaven forbid -- a soldier were to hurt a child?
As a likely 2016 presidential candidate, Perry would never risk that possibility. Let's remember that, in 2012, during an earlier and unsuccessful bid for the Republican nomination, the governor went after members of his own party. Defending his support for a Texas law that let undocumented students pay in-state tuition, Perry said that Republican critics who had a problem with that didn't "have a heart."
Now, encouraging a confrontation between armed soldiers and a bunch of underage refugees would show that Perry doesn't have a brain. So, we can expect the National Guard to be used much the same way that George W. Bush twice used it during his presidency -- as a support system for the Border Patrol, intended to free up personnel by relieving some of the more mundane duties that occupy the time of those who are supposed to be guarding our borders.
Don't be surprised if the troops wind up freeing up border patrol agents to get out and patrol by doing paperwork, transporting those in custody, fixing vehicles and performing other essential tasks that don't force a confrontation between soldiers and children.
Perry told reporters this week that the guard would be "force multipliers" who help border patrol agents catch those crossing the border who aren't children -- which may be the majority at this point -- and to combat ancillary crime associated with smuggling and drug cartels.
My sources on the border tell me that's the real and untold story here. It's not the kids. It's just how much unabated street crime is occurring every day in the border region, now that so much of the Border Patrol is tied up babysitting the lost children of Central America.
Most Americans who are unfamiliar with the border don't realize that, under normal circumstances (and we're a long way from there), Border Patrol agents don't just keep away uninvited visitors. They also act as a deterrent to the host of street crimes that bad guys might engage in along the border that has nothing to do with immigrants: drug dealing, shootouts, robbery, sexual assault, cartels raiding stash houses and stealing from one another, etc. That is what is going on at our back door as we speak. It's total mayhem.
The Border Patrol can stop some of it, but only if the National Guard frees its hands to do so.
All that at a price tag of $12 million a month, with Texas being forced to pick up the tab.
Meanwhile, two of Perry's fellow border governors — California Gov. Jerry Brown, a Democrat, and New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez, a Republican — have already said they have no plans to send National Guard troops to the border.
Once again, Texas is going its own way. Appearing at the press conference with Perry, Texas Adjutant General John Nichols said the troops could detain people if they were asked to do so, but emphasized that they will primarily play a "referring and deterring" role by referring immigrants suspected of being in the country illegally to other agencies and deterring cartel activity by their very presence.
That sounds good. Let's hope it's enough. But for now, Americans need to get behind the idea of using National Guard troops on the border -- which, frankly, had to come from the states because it reeks of too much common sense to have ever come from the current occupant of the White House.
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Luck of the Irish Giveaway Hop is hosted by Mama Does It All and Deals from MS DO. Enter to win the Grand Prize Kindle Fire sponsored by zuuzs.com.
zuuzs is a social shopping site where friends shop, share, and earn together. You can shop at more than 850 stores, share deals & opinions with friends, and control your own cash back rewards with their exclusive Buying Power functionality. It's free to join and have fun with zuuzs!


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Fibre optic sensors are a type of proximity sensor that have an optical fibre connected to a light source to allow for detection in tight spaces or where a small profile is beneficial. The optical fibre is a transparent fibre made of glass (silica) or plastic with a diameter slightly thicker than a human hair, this fibre transmit light between the two ends to produce an electrical signal.
How Fibre Optic Sensors Work
A fibre-optic sensor system consists of a fibre-optic cable connected to a remote sensor, or amplifier. The sensor emits, receives, and converts the light energy into an electrical signal. The cable is the mechanical component that transports the light into and out of areas that are either too space constrained or too hostile back to the sensor.
Uses of Fiber Optic Sensors
Fibre optic sensors are used in a number of different applications. In mechanical properties testing, fibre optical sensors are used to measure mechanical strain. They can also be used to measure acceleration, velocity, pressure, temperature and displacement.


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Kid Friendly Rosh Hashanah Recipe
Round Apple Challah For a Sweet New Year
Tear off a piece of sweetness! Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, begins at sundown tonight, and the holiday is rich in symbolism and tradition. The standard Friday night challah (or egg bread) is braided into a circle to celebrate the cyclical nature of the calendar while apples (also round) and honey are eaten to usher in a sweet new year.
While mom (or grandma) may do the bulk of the holiday cooking, inviting lil ones in to the meal prep process is easy and fun for the whole family. This round apple challah is filled with plenty of kid-friendly ingredients (apples and sugar) and needs a lot a kneading – a task practically calling for tiny hands!
See the recipe and step-by-step directions when you.
New Year's Apple Challah
From Tammy's Recipes
- Dough Ingredients
1 cup warm water (110 degrees F)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup oil or melted butter
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons dry yeast
5 to 6 cups flour
- Apple Filling
3 cups coarsely chopped apples
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon lemon juice (skip if apples are tart)
- Egg Wash
1 beaten egg
1 teaspoon sugar
Coarse sugar, for sprinkling (optional)
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the first seven dough ingredients, in order listed. Stir in a cup or two of the flour, then add yeast.
- Add enough additional flour to equal about 5 cups, and stir/knead into a smooth dough, adding additional flour if needed. Knead dough for 8-10 minutes. Shape into a ball, place in a greased bowl, cover, and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 45-60 minutes.
- Place apple filling ingredients in a medium bowl and toss to coat. Set aside.
- Punch down the risen dough, kneading to remove excess air bubbles. On a lightly-floured surface, roll the dough into a large round, about 1/2-inch thick. Spread apple mixture over the dough.
- Fold the edges of the dough over the apples and continue to fold/roll the dough to make one big lump with the filling enclosed. Let rest 5 minutes.
- Grease a 10-inch springform pan. Place springform pan on a large cookie sheet (to catch any leaks during rising/baking).
- Using a sharp knife, cut off chunks of the dough and place them in the prepared pan. You should end up with 15-20 chunks of dough (though a particular number doesn't matter). The apple pieces should be randomly dispersed throughout the dough chunks. Sprinkle with any escaped apple pieces.
- Combine the egg and sugar, and then dab the egg wash over the top of the dough. Sprinkle with coarse sugar if desired. Cover gently with a piece of plastic wrap and place pan in a warm location to rise.
- When dough has almost doubled in size, preheat oven to 350 degrees and then place baking sheet/springform in the middle of the oven (remove the piece of plastic wrap first, of course!) to bake for 45-55 minutes or until done. When I make this, usually the edges of the top get well-browned before the middle is cooked. So, after about 25-30 minutes, I cover the darker areas loosely with foil — sometimes forming a large loose "ring" of foil (with no foil in the middle) to lay on top.
- When challah is done, remove from the oven and cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Turn out of pan onto a cooling rack and cover with a clean towel until completely cool.
- Category
- Breads
- Cuisine
- Jewish


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Its 14-inch screen is baked into a 13-inch chassis, and offers minimal bezel (to make it lighter), is layered with Gorilla Glass, and has 1600 x 900 resolution. (By the way, HP put Gorilla Glass on the palm rest as well.) The company claims its battery can last nine hours. It includes a mini display port, USB 3.0, HDMI, and gigabit Ethernet, and it weighs less than four pounds.
[ What qualifies as an ultrabook? Read CES 2012: Ultrabook Ultimate FAQ. ]
The Spectre 14 includes Beats Audio, which is supposed to provide superior sound quality--both from the system's speakers and the audio jack. HP has been adding Beats Audio to many of its laptops, and HTC has incorporated it into some of its smartphones.
The wow factor in the Spectre 14 is quite high; dare I say, the keyboard looks very similar to the MacBook Air, with each key getting its own LED, and its outside is also pretty sexy. The ultrabook comes with two years of antivirus protection, Adobe Photoshop, and Adobe Elements.
Finally, the Spectre 14 includes near-field communications (NFC), so users can "tap-to-share" with NFC phones.
The Envy Spectre 14 will be available February 8, and will cost $1,399 for the base configuration.
InformationWeek is conducting our third annual State of Enterprise Storage survey on data management technologies and strategies. Upon completion, you will be eligible to enter a drawing to receive an Apple 32-GB iPod Touch. Take our Enterprise Storage Survey now. Survey ends Jan. 13.


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Objects in the shade of Sepia
The closest color to #a96341 in the Crayola® color palette is
Sepia which has the hex code of #a5694f.
Perhaps you'd like to see the intersection between this color and CSS3 or CSS4 palettes?
Alas, there are no images to show you right now.


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Kelly-Anne was your average girl, She recently moved...
The hot math teacher89986091
- by oxniallsprincessxo
- Rating:
- Published: 24 Mar 2014
- Updated: 29 May 2014
- Status: In Progress
It started at a party, will it continue? Even if his career is on the line?
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This was published 7 years ago
Internet activist dead at 26
The young digital activist and political organiser who built a website that became part of the popular Reddit service is reported to have committed suicide on Friday in New York, just weeks before he was to go on trial for downloading millions of online scientific articles without permission.
Aaron Swartz, 26, was charged in 2011 with downloading millions of documents from an online scientific journal store JSTOR.
Swartz, whose company infogami was acquired six months after Reddit's launch, had battled hard to make web content free to the public.
The Guardian, Los Angeles Times and CNN all reported he had been found dead.
Swartz was due to go on trial within weeks over accusations he stole the scientific journal articles, in a bid to make them available for free.
Swartz faced "decades in prison and a fortune in fines", the Los Angeles Times said, over the downloads from JSTOR.
The journal website, which the Los Angeles Times said did not press charges once it reclaimed the articles from Swartz, posted on its website that it had been "deeply saddened to hear the news about Aaron Swartz. We extend our heartfelt condolences to Aaron's family, friends, and everyone who loved, knew, and admired him".
The subscription journal service was used by MIT, and offered digitized copies of academic articles from journals. The prosecutor in the case, the US Attorney for Massachusetts, had accused Swartz of intending to distribute the articles widely on file-sharing sites.
Swartz's upcoming trial had become a cause for many similar-minded figures, The Guardian said: the organisation Demand Progress, which Swartz helped to found, had compared the activities of which he was accused to "trying to put someone in jail for allegedly checking too many books out of the library".
* For help or information call Suicide Helpline Victoria on 1300 651 251 or Lifeline on 131 114, or visit beyondblue.org.au


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"Hardcore Pawn: Chicago" Scores truTV's Biggest Series Launch Ever, With More Than 2.1 Million Viewers
truTV got the New Year off to a roaring start Tuesday night with the premiere of Hardcore Pawn: Chicago, which drew more than 2.1 million viewers to rank as the network's biggest series launch ever. The show also scored truTV's biggest series debut ever in delivery of key demos, including adults 18-49 (1.0 million) and men 18-49 (602,000). In giving truTV its most-watched series premiere, Hardcore Pawn: Chicago surpassed the previous record set by the original Hardcore Pawn in August 2010.
Hardcore Pawn: Chicago takes viewers behind the scenes at Royal Pawn Shop, "the baddest pawn shop in Chicago." One of the city's largest and oldest establishments in the pawn and gold-buying business, Royal Pawn Shop is owned by Randy and Wayne Cohen, two brothers who don't always see eye to eye... except when it comes to finding the best deals for the business. Hardcore Pawn: Chicago follows along as these over-the-top siblings wheel and deal with just about anyone, from a sweet kindergarten teacher to an intimidating mob boss.
Tuesday night's 9:30 p.m. premiere of Hardcore Pawn: Chicago was preceded by a new episode of Hardcore Pawn, which drew a hefty audience of 2.8 million viewers; 1.4 million adults 18-49; and 827,000 men 18-49 at 9 p.m. The success of both shows helped truTV score its second most-watched Tuesday night ever among total viewers.
truTV's Hardcore Pawn: Chicago is produced by Bischoff-Hervey Entertainment. Hardcore Pawn comes to truTV from Zodiak USA.
About truTV
truTV, one of cable's fastest growing brands, offers a wildly entertaining look at the real world through outrageous characters, unpredictable situations and irreverent storytelling. Currently seen in 92 million U.S. households, truTV features such popular original series as Hardcore Pawn, Hardcore Pawn: Chicago, Lizard Lick Towing, Storage Hunters, Impractical Jokers, Killer Karaoke, Operation Repo, South Beach Tow, Full Throttle Saloon, Black Gold and World's Dumbest. In addition, truTV is a partner in airing the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship. During the daytime, the channel features expert trial coverage under the name In Session.
truTV is part of Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., a Time Warner company. Turner Broadcasting creates and programs branded news; entertainment; animation and young adult; and sports media environments on television and other platforms for consumers around the world.


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Thursday, April 7, 2011
With your head held high
Grand Rounds today was given by a very accomplished woman (and Mom). Faculty at Harvard Medical School. She's affected national policy and changed the course of a major public health issue. What struck me was her introduction. One of the first comments was that one of her first employers, while reluctant to hire her only part-time, soon realized that even her part-time work, amounted to a dozen others working full time. (I nodded when I heard this because I often feel I'm efficient and use this rationale to justify my part-time work as well.
Her introduction was 15 minutes long as her introducer took us through her career path and mentioned all her accomplishments along the way. When finally at the end, we were all anxious to get on with the show, the introducer continued, "I can't end an introduction about this remarkable woman without telling you about her family. She has 3 amazing children who are all incredible human beings. They are all adults now and have all gone on to college. Until all 3 children went to college, she worked part-time. And the remarkable thing about her, is that every day that she left work early, she did so with her head held high. She made it clear to those around her that raising her family was as important as her work."
I love that last line - I often feel like I have to sneak out the back door when I leave early to be with the kids. Today I decided that I need to hold my head up high more often at work. I am a confident woman in the many hats I wear at work, but when it comes to leaving early, I am quiet, almost sneaky, hold my breath and only relax when I'm finally home with the kids...it doesn't need to be like that. I felt an enormous amount of pride and excitement to hear this woman's introduction today. It was a clear articulation of the woman I want to be. Proud to be both Mom and Doctor. That's the introduction I want to earn 15 years from now.
12 comments:
You just gave me goosebumps.ReplyDelete
I'm proud of you.
Thats great!ReplyDelete
I never feel bad about leaving work to be with my family. But I feel bad about leaving my family to go to work- always. So at least I only have guilt half the time ;)
I am proud to be a mother and proud to be a doctor. LOVE this post. I think we should all remember to hold our heads high! Two tough, rewarding jobs we're doing! Thanks MomT
Great post! On my early days I also find myself sneaking out despite working double time while I'm here. Today I will leave early with pride!ReplyDelete
Wonderful!! Thank you for sharing!ReplyDelete
This all goes back to refusing to apologize for your life priorities. Good for you for sticking with them!ReplyDelete
What an encouraging post! Of course, I love the phrase, but I am also so excited at the possibility of being able to make a difference and be "accomplished" and work while working part time (during certain seasons of life at least). When I was just a premed, and a nurse, a doctor I worked with told me that I had "better never go part time" bc that was such a disservice, basically. This post shows that we can be part time and still be "worthy" of the profession. Wonderful.ReplyDelete
When I finally opened my eyes I realized that everyone leaves early to meet their needs in their other life sometimes - be it mom, dad, single guy, or single girl. We should all hold our heads high for being smart enough to be efficient with our time management to take time for ourselves and our families. I don't go up to my partners when they are cutting out at four and say, "What! You are leaving early to take care of your hospitalized mother? To play piano at a jazz gig? To get your hair done?" And I don't hear it from them when I leave early to be with my kiddos (or get a pedi!). I feel lucky to be a part of a group where everyone recognizes that taking time outside of work makes you better when you are there.ReplyDelete
I used to try not to let it be known that I worked part-time or felt the need to apologize for it, having trained in a wonderful and rigorous med school/hospital that nonetheless encouraged us to put families a distant second to career. I just gave a talk at a major cancer center a couple weeks ago, and in my introduction, I explained that I came to be doing my current job because I gave birth to my first and second children during fellowship. For the first time ever, I felt that if I was going to be away from home, it had better be for something I loved on terms that were acceptable to me and my family. The faces of so many in the audience lit up, in a combination of joy and shock, and afterwards, the person who had invited me--a very prominent male oncologist--thanked me for my candor. As he put it, "We all come to work and pretend as though we don't have kids, but most of us do. Thank goodness there are a few physicians finally willing to acknowledge it!"ReplyDelete
Great post. I work part-time and have four kids. The biggest thing I learned, years ago, was not to apologize for it. This takes it one step further - hold your head high.ReplyDelete
Wish I could have been there!
- AnonymousApril 13, 2011 at 8:00 AM
I'm a nurse practitioner and was initially having difficulty finding a job because I was apologetic about needing to work part-time. Once I stopped apologizing and just laid it out there as a necessity...I had three part-time offers in a week!ReplyDelete


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Read more about the Oct. 4 Intelligence Squared U.S. debate on whether "Grandma's benefits imperil Junior's future," buy tickets, and see who else is debating.
In the 1970s, Jeff Madrick read Milton Friedman's Capitalism and Freedom. It enraged him. "[Friedman] argued that markets can solve most problems, and all we need is individual responsibility," says Madrick. "It's clear in studying economics that markets do not solve all or even most social problems." But Madrick, the editor of Challenge magazine and a former economics columnist for the New York Times, parlayed his furor into action: He's now the author of several books and numerous articles that argue in part that we can't rely on market forces to take care of the sick and the elderly. That's why on Oct. 4, he'll dispute the proposition "Grandma's benefits imperil Junior's future" at the live Slate/Intelligence Squared U.S. debate.
"I still have one parent alive," he explains. "I know how necessary [social benefits] are, and what a great American achievement they have been." I caught up with Madrick earlier this week for a conversation about why we should worry about Medicare but not Social Security, and the real causes of the deficit crisis. Excerpts from the interview are below.
Slate: Why do you believe it's necessary to maintain entitlements as they are, i.e., no benefit slashing?
Jeff Madrick: Entitlements are central to modern America and a decent society. They're central to making capitalism and a free market economy work. Back in the 1950s, a very high proportion of the elderly were poor. Now they are not. People didn't get health care. Now they do. Without sounding too self-serving, I am interested in a decent society. And entitlement programs are central to a decent society.
Slate:Of course, old people today are no longer poor because of Social Security. But recently, GOP presidential contender and Texas Gov. Rick Perry called it a "Ponzi scheme." And last month, the economist Laurence Kotlikoff said this in an interview with NPR: "We've got 78 million baby boomers who are poised to collect, in about 15 to 20 years, about $40,000 per person. Multiply 78 million by $40,000–you're talking about more than $3 trillion a year just to give to a portion of the population. That's an enormous bill overhanging our heads, and Congress isn't focused on it." But you've written that Social Security will be only a small contributor to the future budget gap. Are Kotlikoff's worries unfounded?
Madrick: Yes, his worries are entirely unfounded. He's been exaggerating this issue forever. Here's the simple arithmetic according to the Congressional Budget Office forecast. The benefits for Social Security now come to nearly 5 percent of gross domestic product. The worst they will ever get when the entire baby boom retires is 6 percent of GDP. Now if you take one percentage point of GDP, which is now $15 trillion, so 10 percent is $1.5 trillion, and 1 percent is $150 billion, that's the increase. It sounds like a lot of money, but it comes from only 1 percent of GDP. People have to get that very clear in their heads. Medicare and Medicaid will rise much more rapidly as a proportion of GDP.
Slate: So why all this alarmist rhetoric about Social Security reform?
Madrick: I don't know. I can see getting upset about Medicare and Medicaid, but I don't understand the issues about Social Security. I don't want to speculate on the motives of these people. I think they should be asked, however, whether they would profit personally if we privatized social security. That is to say, have people buy private accounts from Wall Street as opposed to guarantee benefits from the government. I'm not saying all of them are motivated by self-interest, but I'd like to ask them that.
Slate: Let's go back to Medicare and Medicaid. You and your debate partner, former DNC Chairman and Vermont Gov. Howard Dean, are both vocal about reforming the entire health care apparatus, and not simply Medicare and Medicaid. What would you suggest we do to reform the health care system?
Madrick: My favorite plan is a form of Medicare for all, not just those 65 and over, with more controls over drug costs and provider reimbursement. In fact, I have little doubt that alone could save America. Rising health care costs are our biggest domestic problem, not Medicare and Medicaid per se. And I wish the people who talk about cutting back entitlements would put some of their vigorous effort and intelligence towards solving the health care problem.
Slate:What do people most commonly misunderstand about entitlement reforms?
Madrick: There are a lot of implications that somehow Social Security and Medicare actually caused our current budget deficit, which is not remotely the case.
Slate:So what are the causes of the deficit?
Madrick: The Bush tax cuts, the Great Recession, and the wars [in Afghanistan and Iraq]—those are the main contributors to the deficit problems we now have. We have to separate that issue, which is what's alarming everybody, from the long-term issues. They're very different.
Slate:As you've said, the cost of health care is rising every year. If we aren't able to overhaul the health care system, will we inevitably need to ration health care and treatments in the future?
Madrick: Let's not forget, health care is rationed now. Anybody who thinks that everybody gets all the health care they want is not living in this world. No. 2, we spend much too much money on what is commonly called "heroic" health care practices, one major test after another. Much of this is done late in life, and I think that whole system has to be reviewed. Hospitals and doctors make too much money performing these tests. Do we keep some people alive much too long? Or should we give people the choice to die more readily earlier? I think the idea of performing tests to keep people alive a few more days has to be examined.