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It has been nearly two months since local elected leaders announced the formation of a King County Heroin and Prescription Opiate Addiction Task Force to address the regional and national heroin epidemic, and Seattle leaders have talked of establishing safe consumption sites for drug users around the city. Could Capitol Hill — a neighborhood that experiences a high number of drug overdoses — get a safe consumption site?
Safe consumption sites, which would be a first for Seattle — let alone the United States — may end up getting the green light from county's task force. Brad Finegood, co-chair of the heroin task force and assistant division director of the King County Behavioral Health and Recovery Division, told CHS that the task force is considering safe consumption spaces and including them in their final set of recommendations that they will present to regional leaders later this year. The task force is made up law enforcement, representatives from the criminal justice system, public health and addiction experts, as well as homeless and drug policy reform advocates.
"There's no other such facility that's sanctioned and operating [in the U.S.]," said Finegood. "It's definitely something that we are trying to be thorough in vetting."
While alien to the United States, supervised drug consumption sites have a three-decade long history in other nations. The Netherlands, Germany, and Switzerland opened what were then dubbed "Drug Consumption Rooms" or DCRs, back in the 80s and 90s to address public order issues associated with open-air drug use by providing addicts and users (mostly targeting users who inject) with low-threshold access to a supervised space to consume pre-obtained illicit drugs, clean equipment, emergency care in the case of overdoses (namely application of the heroin overdose antidote, Naloxone), and referrals to healthcare and drug treatment services if desired by the user. DCRs served as a public health response intending to prevent overdose deaths, reduce disease transmission, and connect addicts with health and drug treatment services. Spain, Norway have since then joined the pack and opened their own DCRs (a safe injection site has also opened in Sydney, Australia), and last year, France moved forward with opening pilot DCR's in three cities.
"There is no evidence to suggest that the availability of safer injecting facilities increases drug use or frequency of injecting. These services facilitate rather than delay treatment entry and do not result in higher rates of local drug-related crime," a summary report of DCR implementation in Europe by the European Monitoring Center for Drugs and Drug Addiction reads.
Closer to home in Vancouver, Canada, health workers opened Insite — North America's first safe injection site — in the city's Downtown Eastside neighborhood back in 2003 to address concentrated public drug use and high HIV infection rates with a harm-reduction, public health-minded approach. And, after more than a decade in operation and more than 30 independent studies on the impacts of Insite, the research indicates that fatal overdoses in the neighborhood went down along with drug-related crime and public order in the neighborhood improved. Use of HIV-risk behaviors like syringe sharing declined alongside neighborhood HIV infection rates, and intake at local drug detox treatment facilities went up, and there was no noticeably increase in drug use or drug trafficking in the area.
In addition, Insite has never lost a user to an overdose on its premises since its founding despite experiencing around thirty overdoses per month.
"They [Insite] haven't had any overdose deaths, and that's amazing," said Finegood.
"The public health arguments are absolutely irrefutable," said Kris Nyrop, national support director for the Law Enforcement Diversion Program (otherwise known as L.E.A.D), Public Defender Association drug addiction expert, and safe consumption proponent.
Outside of the county's official heroin task force, most everyone is just starting to dip their toes in the issue. But drug policy reform advocates have been ramping up their calls for safe consumption sites. Last month, Vocal-WA, a group of grassroots activists who are promoting safe consumption sites, brought the founders of the Insite to Seattle to give presentations around the city (including one to city council) on the project and its impact. Vocal-WA held a rally calling for safe consumption sites that also allow for smoking.
The Capitol Hill Community Council has endorsed safe consumption sites and plans to support Vocal-WA's lobbying efforts, in addition to conducting outreach with other neighborhood councils.
"We've heard lots of anecdotes about public drug consumption [in Capitol Hill], people are finding needles on the ground," said Zachary Pullin, president of the council.
The anecdotes are supported by empirical evidence of broader trends. Annual reports of drug abuse trends in King County released by the University of Washington's Alcohol and Drug Abuse Institute (ADAI) show that drug abuse (primarily of heroin and methamphetamine), fatal overdoses and drug treatment admissions have been on the rise while prescription opiate abuse has been steadily declining (back in 2012, changes in state law made it harder to access prescription opiates like Oxycodone, which experts have attributed to the increase in abuse of street heroin). Last year's ADAI report for 2014 showed that there 314 overdose deaths in the county, the largest number since 1997, with 156 of those caused heroin, up from 99 the year before and 29 in 2009. Capitol Hill has been dubbed a overdose hub by researchers and experts.
"For us as a council, to represent all of our neighbors, we want to advocate for things that increase everybody's quality of life. And when we're talking about neighbors, we're not just talking about homeowners or renters, we're talking about people experiencing homelessness or addiction," Pullin said.
Local proponents argue there is a legal path for safe consumption. Patricia Sully, an attorney with the Public Defender Association, says there is legal precedent for the King County Department of Health to protect drug consumption sites by declaring a public health emergency. In Washington, health departments in Tacoma and Spokane used their authority to establish needle exchanges in the 80's and 90's, actions which were ultimately held up by the courts after legal challenges claiming the exchanges violated state law outlawing the distribution of drug paraphernalia (Washington state law has an exception for individuals seeking to use a sterile needle to prevent the spread of bloodborne diseases).
"Public health departments have a longstanding capacity to take action in the name of public health," said Nyrop. "The precedent has already been set in WA state."
Last year, the governor of Indiana declared a public health emergency to allow a county health department to implement a needle exchange to combat rising HIV infection rates despite a state ban on exchanges.
Ultimately, success of any attempt to establish safe consumption sites in Seattle will require the cooperation of local public agencies, including law enforcement and the county prosecutor, the local judicial office that has the authority to prosecute felony drug charges.
"[They would need] an agreement with law enforcement not to arrest people for possession of drugs and an agreement with the prosecutor not the prosecute," said John Schochet, deputy city attorney at the City Attorney's office. "That's the primary issue.
But it appears that local law enforcement and judicial agencies have expressed either support or openness to the concept of safe consumption.
King County Sheriff John Urquhart has said that he wouldn't arrest drug users going to safe consumption sites, and doubled down on his stance in a conversation with CHS. "I don't really have any problems with a safe injection site if that's what's decided [by local leaders]," he said. "This is a pretty radical change. but it appears to have worked in Vancouver."
"We have to look at harm reduction rather than the war on drugs which we know has not been a solution," he added.
King County Prosecutor Dan Satterberg said that while he has concerns over the potential backlash from neighborhoods and residents as well as using up political capital needed for other strategies like increasing the number of regional methadone clinics and boosting drug treatment services, he will not get in the way of attempts to establish safe consumption spaces.
"For the past thirty years, law enforcement and the criminal justice system have been asked to solve this problem [drug use and addiction] and it's not working. It's time for the public health experts to come forward and law enforcement should look at ways to support the strategies they identify and not get in the way," Satterberg told CHS. "I'm willing to let the experts try things to help people."
"It [safe injection sites] will save lives. There's no doubt about it," said Satterberg.
Seattle law enforcement is more hesitant to get on board for the time being, at least publically. Seattle Police Department spokesperson Sean Whitcomb said in a statement provided to CHS that Chief Kathleen O'Toole would "need to hear more about the research before commenting on the efficacy of safe injection."
Resistance from neighborhoods is another hurdle for the movement for safe consumption sites, mainly in locating any proposed sites. County prosecutor Satterberg pointed to vocal opposition from Renton residents to the proposed construction of a Methadone clinic as cause for concern.
Pullin of the Capitol Hill Community Council is more optimistic. "I don't think people are or would be dramatically opposed to this," he said. "I'm not getting the impression that anybody [in Capitol Hill] is opposed to that right now. The issue is so on the forefront of people's minds."
Other neighborhoods might prove less welcoming, an obstacle which Pullin says the community council is ready to take on.
"Our charge as the Capitol Hill Community Council is to take the lead with working with neighbors and residents in Capitol Hill and having conversations with folks and community groups across the city and really make the case for it," said Pullin.
"You don't need to share the same reasons for supporting this but at least you and I are on the same page in agreeing that what's happening out on the street is not good."
Nyrop reminisced on a community meeting on Capitol Hill he attended years ago where a local father became extremely agitated over public drug use at Cal Anderson park. "He just said 'I don't want to see it and i don't want my kids to see it.'"
To Nyrop, the converging interests of drug policy reformers and neighbors fed up with public drug use is one of the keys to making safe consumption sites a reality.
"You don't need to share the same reasons for supporting this but at least you and I are on the same page in agreeing that what's happening out on the street is not good."
During Insite's presentation before council last month, a lead organizer in the Neighborhood Safety Alliance—a vocal neighborhood group that has protested RV camping, public drug use, and the presence of homelessness in residential neighborhoods like Ballard and Magnolia—expressed during public comment that she would be open to the concept of safe consumption sites.
"We need to convince the public this is a good idea, and by we I mean the government," said Sheriff Urquhart. "Society will be better off with these safe injection sites and there's the heavy lifting that needs to be done."
UPDATE: While Capitol Hill has been identified by proponents as a neighborhood that warrants a safe consumption site, proponents envision several such sites spread across the city in different neighborhoods. "A lot of people agree that scattered sites make sense for Seattle. Instead of a highly concentrated location, we know drug use is happening citywide," said Sully. She identified Pioneer Square, Belltown, and the University District as some other potential neighborhoods. Nyrop said that somewhere along Aurora in North Seattle would also be a good location. "Parts of downtown, Capitol Hill the University District, Ballard and up Aurora, strike me as logical places to go ahead and put a smaller scale [site] in comparison to Insite, because we don't have any area of town that's going to generate the Insite [user] volume," said Nyrop.
Down at City Hall, council members seem supportive but cautious. A mostly full council—council members Tim Burgess and Bruce Harrell were absent — was receptive to the Insite founders' presentation.
Since then, however, some council members have been reluctant to jump into the debate. Burgess declined to comment and a staffer in council member Sally Bagshaw's office told CHS that she is waiting on the official recommendations from the heroin task force before wading into the subject (Bagshaw is the chair of the council's human services and public health committee. Following the Insite presentation, after noting her belief in a housing-first strategy for homelessness and addiction, Bagshaw said that "there's going to have be some places where [homeless addicts] can use [drugs]." It was reported that both council members Deborah Juarez and Lorena Gonzalez expressed support for safe injection sites at a Seattle University forum on public health and drug policy last month.
District 3 representative Kshama Sawant said that while her office is still doing research and learning from experts in the field, harm reduction strategies like safe consumption sites are both a moral and practical approach. "We need to provide safe consumption sites for people who are dealing with drug addiction issues because the first statement you make by doing that is that you're not shunning them," Sawant said. "Harm reduction strategies [also] have a better record of leading to sobriety than programs that require abstinence from the get-go."
Mayor Ed Murray is deferring to the task force as well. "At the kick-off event of the opiate task force with Executive Dow Constantine, the mayor said he was open to the idea of safe injection sites if the experts believed the sites would save lives or help get people on the road to treatment and recovery," read a statement sent from the mayor's office.
Shilo Murphy, founder of the People's Harm Reduction Alliance needle exchange in the University District, heroin addict, and member of the county task force, said that the task force is giving local leaders a convenient way to both show support for a progressive initiative but also avoid throwing their weight behind the concept and risking political capital. "I think that the task force is giving people political cover to support consumption rooms," said Murphy. "There's no guarantee that consumption rooms will be a recommendation of the task force."
Sully believes Seattle is ripe territory for bringing the first safe consumption sites to the United States, citing broad local support for L.E.A.D, a program which gives police officers the option to funnel low level drug and prostitution offenders to social workers instead of into jail cells.
"We're well situated for an intervention that is harm reduction based," said Sully. "We have law enforcement agencies that have done a lot of innovative things that no one else in the country has done [i.e LEAD]."
"We're in uncharted territory for sure but I think this gets to the reason why if every local elected official stood together on this, the chances of this coming undone are greatly diminished," said Nyrop. "What is great about LEAD is that no one entity or individual owns [it], and therefore no one entity or individual is responsible for lead if something bad happens. We all mutually benefit or suffer [from backlash]. They can support each other."
But what about the feds? Promising research and friendly attitudes among local leaders to the harm-reduction philosophy aside, the war on drugs in the United States is ongoing. Possession of heroin (alongside other commonly consumed street drugs like methamphetamine and crack cocaine) is still very much illegal at the federal level. Despite recent efforts from former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder to remove mandatory minimums for nonviolent drug offenders, possession of heroin—a schedule one controlled narcotic—can constitute a Class B felony. Distribution of drug paraphernalia is similarly illegal at the federal level, though this past January, congress loosened regulation preventing the federal government from funding syringe exchanges.
Finegood said that the task force is aware of the looming federal preclusion and is weighing that factor in its vetting process.
Sheriff Urquhart said that he doesn't expect interference from the federal government, citing Washington state's so far unchallenged legal recreational marijuana system. "I don't think the federal government is going to weigh in on this at all. They've got bigger fish to fry."
For the time being, Urquhart's prediction seems right. A spokesperson for the Western Washington District branch of the U.S. Attorney's Office declined to comment on the local conversation surrounding safe consumption sites. "We don't have anything to say at this time."
There's still a debate to be had locally over what any pilot safe consumption site would look like. "With all of our elected officials and political leaders, there's still a lot of work to be done just sort of education on the different models and what safe consumption spaces are," said Sully.
There's questions of where the sites should be located (in what neighborhoods, and whether they should be located in or near existing health clinics, syringe exchanges, and other facilities), what organization should operate the sites, and what array of medical and social services — aside from the baseline of providing a space to shoot up and clean equipment, and emergency overdose treatment — will be offered on site.
One sticking point on the task force may prove to be whether to endorse safe injection sites or safe consumption sites — the latter would allow users to smoke as well as inject substances.
"People [on the task force] seem to be quite receptive with reservations and stipulations with the idea of safe injection," said Nyrop, citing task force meetings that he's sat in on. "But there seems to be a lot of resistance [to safe consumption sites]."
Finegood cited the state's indoor smoking ban as an obstacle safe consumption sites would need to get around. "But we don't want to perversely move people towards injection," he added.
Proponents of general drug consumption sites argue that the facilities need to allow for all types of drug users to in order to both equitably benefit the broader population of addicts in addition to make a bigger dent in reducing public drug use, a source of complaints for residents and businesses.
"We know that crack cocaine enforcement is one of the driving forces of racial disparity in our criminal justice system," said Sully. Crack cocaine is primarily smoked and by users who are disproportionately african american. Conversely, heroin users are predominantly white. Additionally, African Americans have historically been significantly overrepresented in Seattle's drug-related arrests due to law enforcement's focus on crack cocaine. "Who gets left out [with safe injection sites] is people who are smoking their drugs. That can really exacerbate racial inequities."
"A lot of what drives community residents and business concerns about this is outdoor visible drug consumption," said Nyrop. "If you really want to address the public safety issues, move drug use indoors and out of site, whether it's smoking or injecting."
Despite the disagreements, those CHS spoke with believe the task force is full-heartedly attempting to adopt a compassionate, public-health approach to regional drug use and addiction.
"Everyone on the task force, and this is something that is very beautiful to see, desperately wants to solve the problem of getting drug users love and support and getting them to a safe and stable place. There's disagreements on how to do that" said Murphy. "But everyone is there to solve the problem and not to grandstand and build careers."
The steady embracing of harm-reduction as the new mindset with which to address drug addiction is a welcome change of tune for those who have been through the wringer of addiction and life as an addict amidst the war on drugs. "Most people on the streets, they just want somewhere to lay their head and be safe," said Turina James, a LEAD program participant, former heroin addict, and member of Vocal-WA at a rally and vigil the group held two weeks ago at City Hall park in downtown. "They have addictions, but most people that are addicted really want help, they just don't know how to get it. They're lost souls."
"If we want less users, let's stop punishing people and start focusing on people's trauma," said Murphy. "Is it the only fix? No. We need more supportive drug treatment, more methadone clinics. But we need them to stop people dying and get them off the street."


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Officials at the signing ceremony held in Abu Dhabi.
Aldar sets up region's largest real estate investment firm
ABU DHABI, September 12, 2018
UAE-based Aldar Properties has announced the launch of Aldar Investment Properties, the region's largest diversified real estate investment company, which has been mainly designed to drive greater operational and capital efficiencies that will unlock value for shareholders and create the foundation for a new phase of accelerated growth.
This comes following the recent Abu Dhabi Executive Council decree, extending full onshore real estate ownership rights to Aldar Properties and its subsidiaries in the emirate. The company will take ownership of some of Abu Dhabi's highest quality, revenue-generating real estate assets, valued at Dh20 billion ($5.4 billion).
The creation of Aldar Investments allows Aldar to spin off its recurring-revenue assets into a 100 per cent-owned separate entity, with greater independence, focused governance and a more efficient cost structure, said a statement from the UAE developer.
Aldar Investments operates under the direction of its own Board, allowing greater transparency, governance and clarity around its cash flows, profit and dividends, while reducing operating and capital costs to enhance profitability, it stated.
Incorporated through Abu Dhabi's international financial centre, Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), Aldar Investments features attractive recurring revenue assets including over 5,000 residential units and over 500,000 sqm of prime retail and commercial space, said the Emirati developer.
These include some of Abu Dhabi's most recognized assets such as Yas Mall, Aldar HQ and The Gate Towers & Arc, and over 2,400 hotel keys, predominantly on Yas Island, it added.
As an immediate endorsement of its financial strength, Aldar Investments has been assigned a Baa1 rating by Moody's – the highest rating for a non-government corporate in the region and one notch above Aldar.
Aldar Investments can access capital on more favourable terms, independently of Aldar, and intends to issue a new sukuk in the near term. Aldar Investments has set formal debt and dividend policies consistent with the current asset management business providing further clarity for investors, said the company statement.
Commenting on the move, Chairman Mohamed Khalifa Al Mubarak, said: "Since its establishment in 2004, Aldar has made significant contributions to the development and maturation of Abu Dhabi's real estate industry, developing and managing some of the emirate's most iconic properties."
"Today, it is an honour to announce another significant milestone in Aldar's history, the launch of Aldar Investments - the region's largest diversified real estate asset investment company. As the owner of Dh20 billion of prime real estate assets, Aldar Investments provides an opportunity for investors to benefit from Abu Dhabi's AA rated economy," he added.
According to him, Aldar Investments' strategy was to deliver attractive returns to shareholders through investing in a diversified portfolio of real estate assets across the UAE.
"It will achieve this by maximising the performance and value of its portfolio, pursuing investment opportunities by acquiring income producing assets, and redeploying capital in higher yielding assets where it can drive value. Aldar Investments will actively assess opportunities to expand its asset base beyond traditional real estate asset classes to ensure it leverages key real estate market trends," he stated.
CEO Talal Al Dhiyebi said: "Aldar Investments allows us to accelerate growth opportunities and unlock value for shareholders. It is the latest of a series of initiatives that demonstrates Aldar's leading role in Abu Dhabi's real estate industry and builds on significant milestones including the strategic partnership with Emaar and acquisition of assets from TDIC."
"Building on this positive momentum and the maturity of our portfolio, we have now created a highly attractive real estate investment vehicle. We believe Abu Dhabi's real estate industry offers a compelling investment case, bolstered by a strong macroeconomic backdrop, commitment to growth and attractive real estate yields," noted Al Dhiyebi.
Ahmed Al Sayegh, the chairman of ADGM, said: "We are pleased to welcome Aldar Investments, the Middle East's largest diversified real estate investment company to its extensive and growing ecosystem. The launch of Aldar Investments marks a milestone for Abu Dhabi's real estate investment sector and strengthens the UAE and wider region's progress towards economic diversification and growth."
"We are delighted that ADGM is continuing to be utilised not only as a platform for international business, but also to support our domestic businesses in their ongoing development and expansion," he noted.
Aldar said the creation of the investment firm comes at a time when the Abu Dhabi government is demonstrating its commitment to adding fresh impetus into the economy through the recently announced Dh50 billion economic stimulus package.
This is set to make Abu Dhabi even more attractive by accelerating the economy, providing further momentum in the UAE's capital and making business easier, it added.-TradeArabia News Service

subset: commoncrawl


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The Old City was an ancient and abandoned city of ziggurats and pyramids located in the Red Desert, on Talss, a continent of Tython. When the Je'daii Order discovered the site after their arrival on the world in 36,453 BBY, the city was already ancient and of unknown origin.
History[edit | edit source]
Erected by a long lost civilization of unknown origin, the sprawling city was comprised of ziggurats and pyramids that erupted out of the Red Desert. Built over caverns and tunnels which had an unexplained deafening effect on the Force, the Old City, as the Je'daii Order knew it, was ancient and abandoned as of 36,453 BBY. After millennia of exploration and investigation, the Je'daii came to speculate that the Old City was constructed or at some point inhabited by the Gree, potentially for tens of millennia. Some Je'daii believed that the city predated even the Gree, citing the strangely enormous scale at which some of the architecture was constructed.
Regardless of its original builders, the Gree did install a hypergate within the bowels of the cavern system beneath the tallest of the pyramids. The caverns leading to it were dotted with pitfalls and great ravines, subterranean lakes and vents that blew warm air from the darkness. The Je'daii Council did not explicitly acknowledge the existence of the hypergate, though they placed traps along the caverns leading to its alleged location. During the year prior to the beginning of the Force Wars, Dalien Brock led a sect of Stargazers into the pits in hopes of activating the hypergate and leaving Tython behind in search of their long-lost homeworlds. Je'daii Ranger Lanoree Brock, Dalien's sister, stopped this attempt, supposedly killing her brother, though his body was never recovered.[1]
Appearances[edit | edit source]
- Dawn of the Jedi: Into the Void (First appearance)
Sources[edit | edit source]
- Star Wars: Dawn of the Jedi 0 (First mentioned) (First pictured)


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"Lynn's skillfulness and unflagging coaching support helped me remove a long-standing barrier to my professional and personal development."
Coaching Client
"I learned so much through my coaching work with Lynn but there was one truly amazing lesson I took with me and that was realizing what power I have over my own life."
Workshop Participant
"Ms. Drake is a professional and gifted instructor. I will try to copy her style, technique and attitude of giving. Thank you, Lynn."
"Lynn was very good at understanding each student's experiences; then expanding on that experience. She really engaged the students to get involved." – Workshop Participant
"Lynn is a very polished professional. She adapted her material to her audience and they responded enthusiastically to the training. People are still talking about it." – Client
"Please come back Lynn. We need you!" – Workshop Participant


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Rent an Aston Martin in Switzerland and experience the best of this majestic country. Both Switzerland and the Aston Martin are terms synonymous with beauty, elegance and sophistication, it is about time they became synonymous with each other.
Drive an Aston Martin Vantage to St Urban
From Zurich Airport hire an Aston Martin Vantage to make a day trip to St Urban, and see the ancient cistercian monastery. Initially founded in 1194, it was later reconstructed in Baroque architecture in the early 18th century. The Aston Martin Vantage can be hired in the coupe, roadster or cabrio, with either a V8 or a V12 engine, it is a powerful car that can reach a destination with speed, and arrive with flair.
A one-day trip to Luzern
Our VIP meet and greet service can be organised, to assist in the ease of hiring an Aston Martin for your Switzerland vacation or business trip. Rent the Aston Martin DB9, the perfect Grand Tourer, it is a superb blend of elegance, engineering, refinement and technology. It sits right at the iconic heart of the AM concept. Available to rent for a day or a week, hire the DB9 and hit the road in fantastic style that lead to Luzern (Lucerne). One of the most beautiful scenic towns in Switzerland, lose yourself amidst the colourfully detailed historic buildings that tell of the town's historical legacy and folklore. Available in coupé, Volante and Carbon specification, you can rent your DB9, just the way you like it.
Frequent Questions
How much does it cost to rent an Aston Martin in Switzerland?
Our entry level Aston Martin is the beautiful V8 Vantage S which costs around 680 Euros per day. For about 700 Euros per day we offer the stunning Aston Martin DB9, a sophisticated sports grand tourer, exuding elegance and refinement.
Want to impress and get noticed when you arrive at your fine-dining restaurant? The exquisite Aston Martin DB9 Volante will cost you more or less 750 Euros per day and is guaranteed to make a statement.
Also highly recommended is the magnificent Aston Martin Rapide at a cost of around 800 Euros per day.
Choose the model that defines your lifestyle! Drive the elite Aston Martin Vanquish for around 1400 Euros per day. This flagship grand tourer epitomises the height of design, technology, engineering and hand craftsmanship.
The costs of renting a luxurious Aston Martin varies depending on the model and the time of the year you choose to rent. Give us a call and we will confirm the exact price for you.
Where can I rent an Aston Martin in Switzerland?
Car Rental Aston Martin Switzerland Service will deliver a luxury car to any location in Switzerland that suits you. We can meet you at the Airport, at your hotel or luxury ski resort. Our top class service is designed to fit in with your travel plans. Tell us where you will be and we will arrange to meet you there.


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Welcome to Our Hospital
At Companion Animal Hospital, we want to reduce confusion and eliminate unnecessary stress. That's why we've provided a general overview of what to expect during your first appointment with us. We also encourage you to contact us with additional questions or concerns.
Plan Ahead
When bringing your pet into a new environment, it's important to take extra care and consideration. For safety reasons, we ask that every pet remain in a carrier or on a leash while in the waiting room. Be mindful of the temperature (make sure it's not too hot or too cold). If your companion is more sensitive to stress and anxiety, think about covering his or her travel cage with a sheet or blanket.
Some animals can be intimidating or aggressive toward strangers, so try scheduling your appointment at a time when our hospital is less crowded. If you have a more temperamental pet, feel free to discuss your concerns with us. We're happy to advise you on appropriate management techniques, as well as basic training practices.
What to Bring
Please bring any health records or documents from previous veterinary providers. This includes the vaccines your pet has received, previous parasite treatments, past surgical procedures, and other relevant medical information. We also ask every owner to complete the Client/Patient Information Form available on our website.
The First Exam
During every wellness exam, we weigh your pet and assess the following:
- Skin
- Coat
- Eyes
- Ears
- Heart
- Lungs
- Teeth
We also discuss necessary vaccines and parasite prevention, as well as spaying/neutering and microchipping.
Remember, there are no silly questions at Companion Animal Hospital. We hope you take an active role in your pet's health, and encourage you to become an educated and informed owner. Our team is always here for you and your companion.


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text: My 9 month old boxer, Abbie, looking sorry for herself after someone killed her favorite toy. And then we caught the murderer red handed, or shall I say red mouthed? Brady is my 1.5 year old boxer/doberman mix I just got this lens today (Canon 50mm 1.8) and am obviously having some difficulty with DOF.


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Unlike the other devices we usually choose to install OpenWrt on, the Seagate Dockstar is bit different: more processing power, more RAM, more flash and more USB Ports. Also, it has only one Ethernet port and no built-in switch. Thus, other deployment scenarios become interesting.
Depending on what you want to do with your DockStar, you should seriously consider to use Debian/Ubuntu/Gentoo instead of OpenWrt on this one. Have a look at this user friendly howto Rudiswiki:DockStar, for example. The installation is very simple.
Remember, there is no competition between the distributions. Use whatever suits your purpose best! And always contribute . Mind the purpose of OpenWrt and do not make needless requests for new features which are already served by the alternatives. OpenWrt is lightweight, which is far better suited for limited resources than the other OSes are. It is non the less, not quite as well suited for a serious web server. Mainly for security reasons. Also, we will never have the amount of packages the alternatives provide. Of course, the mentioned distribution are not as heavily adjusted to the RAM limitations of the dockstar.
|light build
|opkg, unsigned packages
|apt, signed packages
|huge userbase, lot of manpower and expertise, heavily tested
Note: While Debian supports ARMv4 only, it will work on any ARM architecture, but will not be as performant as it could be on the newer ISA version. Ubuntu on the other side, support ARMv7 only! Thus Ubuntu will not run on anything older then the Cortex A series.
Besides the popular full-fledged Linux distributions, there are more light-weight alternatives. Here's a brief comparison:
|Based on
|ARM processors
|Dockstar (trunk)
|Fits in Flash
|Installs to Disk
|Release model
|In-place upgrading
|Intermediate (testing)
|Bleeding Edge
|Lags (stable)
As long as you only provide services for a couple of friends and set up a stern firewall, security is not such a big deal. But if you are planning to invite all kinds of people to your server, you should take this seriously. You don't want to be OWNed, do you?
NOTE: The issue is not, what you can or cannot do, but what is the most adept (and safe) strategy to achieve your goals with least effort! Let's take a look at the bottlenecks:
With every computer, but especially with embedded devices we encounter three kinds of hardware limitations:
So, the first issue, computing power cannot be overcome, you have an ARMv5 with 1200MHz, the RAM is connected with 16Bit running at 800MHz. This is it.
The third bottleneck has already been overcome, by choosing to install to a USB hard disc.
The second one has to be dealt with, by wisely choosing the installed programs which run all the time. Amongst the choices you have, pick the least bloated ones. For example you can of course choose to run dropbear with Debian, you do not have to use standard ssh-daemon! dropbear is contained in the Debian repos, it is tested and provided with updates, so use it! Some packages are however in the OpenWrt repos but not (yet) in the Debian stable repos, such as µMurmur! Of course you can still use µMurmur on your Debian, but without the proper testing and security updates that Debian provides! And where is the point in using Debian (for stability and security) but adding alien software? Which is a biggie for a server, that is fully exposed to the Internet. You can also prefer busybox instead of the GNU stuff Debian comes with! You can also download the patched sources for the Kernel and compile it against µClibC. But then you cannot update the Kernel with the package manager any longer. You would have to compile a new kernel every time, new security patches are available for your kernel. This is of course possible, but time consuming. Then rather use OpenWrt and save yourself the trouble. Or not? YOUR CHOICE!
The Seagate Dockstar comes with 256MiB of Flash space. Thus we grant the bootloader Das U-Boot-partition entire 1 MiB of space. And this U-Boot is capable of addressing and executing a kernel located on an external device connected via USB. This give you three choices of where you can install your OS:
That way, you can avoid adopting extroot_configuration or kexec on the Dockstar. The second and third option gives you all the lightweight advantages of OpenWrt compared to other GNU/Linux distributions you could run on your Dockstar, but you'll probably want to reconfigure your System, so it makes better use of the less limited space your installation medium provides:
You can of course install a (stable?) OpenWrt version on the embedded flash, and additionally install and configure one on a USB harddrive. The Bootloader is configured in a way, that it will boot from USB if there is one, and from embedded flash if this fails. The small benefit is, that OpenWrt on flash gives you much more possibilities than the original firmware, which you could leave unaltered if you installed on external medium.


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Angela Venditti Crowned Miss Michigan, Miss GVSU Finishes As Fourth Runner-Up
Muskegon hosted the 2012 Miss Michigan Pageant over the weekend. 24-year-old Angela Venditti (Miss St. Clair Shores) was named the winner.
West Michigan was well represented at the pageant. 20-year-old Alexa Allor (Miss Grand Valley State University) finished as fourth runner-up.
2012 Miss Michigan Angela Venditti ran on the platform, "Above The Influence: Keeping Kids Drug Free". She won the swimsuit competition and performed a tap dance in the talent portion of the pageant.
Venditti said the first thing she wants to do as Miss Michigan is "eat some McDonald's". I'm guessing she's not going to order a salad.
Mlive.com reviews the top finishers from the Miss Michigan 2012 Pageant, including Miss GVSU:
• First Runner-Up: Miss Wayne County Shelby Gardiner, 19, from St. Clair Shores, who won a $5,000 scholarship.
• Second Runner-Up: Miss Oakland County Kelly Oles, 24, from Oxford, who won a $4,000 scholarship.
• Third Runner-Up: Miss Spirit of the State Sarah Suydam, 22, from St. Clair Shores, who won a $3,000 scholarship.
• Fourth Runner-Up: Miss Grand Valley State University Alexa Allor, 20, from Monroe, who won a $2,000 scholarship.
The other five semi-finalists were: Miss Washtenaw County Lauren Brown, Miss Pride of the Peninsulas Abby Grimmett, Miss Jackson County Maegan Budd, Miss Stateline Cassandra Kramer, and Miss South Central Elyse Losen. All five won a $1,000 scholarship.
Congrats to Angela Venditti on her win and to Alexa Allor for representing GVSU well with her strong finish!


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House Veterans' Affairs Committee
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- BILL1. H.R.5056 — 115th Congress (2017-2018) Confederate Commemorative Works Inventory and Joint Resource Study Act Sponsor: Rep. McEachin, A. Donald [D-VA-4] (Introduced 02/15/2018) Cosponsors: (17) Committees: House - Natural Resources; Armed Services; Veterans' Affairs Latest Action: House - 02/28/2018 Referred to the Subcommittee on Federal Lands. (All Actions) Tracker:
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Treating Familial Hypercholesterolemia With LDL Apheresis
This genetic high cholesterol condition puts you at early risk for heart attack and stroke. Find out about an effective treatment when medication and lifestyle changes aren't cutting it.
Diet, lack of exercise, and a genetic predisposition are the most common causes of high cholesterol. But a small group of people — one in 500 — have a more serious genetic abnormality that leads to much higher and dangerous levels of cholesterol, which can increase the risk for heart disease or a stroke in their forties, thirties, or even twenties.
The genetic high cholesterol condition, called familial hypercholesterolemia, leads to levels of LDL (bad cholesterol) that are three to five times higher than normal levels. By comparison, regular high cholesterol levels can be two to three times higher than the norm, said Binh An P. Phan, MD, director of the Loyola Preventive Cardiology Program at Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood, Ill.
What Is Familial Hypercholesterolemia?
Heterozygous familial hypercholesterolemia, or FH, is inherited from a parent. In many instances, you might not know you have it, said Joshua Knowles, MD, PhD, chief medical officer for The FH Foundation and a research fellow in cardiovascular medicine at Stanford University Medical Center in California.
If one parent has the condition, there's a 50 percent chance that children will inherit it. Although rare, the condition can also be inherited from both parents; that's called homozygous familial hypercholesterolemia. People with homozygous FH often have heart attacks as children and die before their thirties, said Dr. Knowles. The homozygous form affects about one in a million people.
Treating Familial Hypercholesterolemia With LDL Apheresis
Diet, exercise, and statin medications can help people get their moderately high cholesterol levels in line. But despite best efforts, those approaches do not work for everyone when there's extremely high cholesterol in the family.
One effective approach for those resistant to other treatments is LDL apheresis. Somewhat similar to kidney dialysis, the treatment pulls cholesterol out of the blood and puts the cholesterol-free blood back in your body, said Knowles. You'll receive the treatment once a week or every other week, and it takes a couple of hours. LDL apheresis can lower your cholesterol by 60 percent or more.
Fran Tobias, of Glen Ellyn, Ill., is benefiting from LDL apheresis. Tobias, now 56, had heart attacks at ages 36 and 45. She was not aware she had the genetic high cholesterol condition, although her father died of a heart attack in his forties and her mother had a heart attack in her forties. She has had quintuple bypass surgery and eight stents placed.
After receiving a diagnosis of familial hypercholesterolemia that could not be controlled by diet, exercise, and medications, she qualified to receive LDL apheresis. "I was at the point of almost stopping everything," said Tobias, noting her frustration with the disease. She explained that the treatment takes a real commitment, but she's grateful that LDL apheresis is available to her.
LDL apheresis is available at about 40 to 50 medical centers in the United States, according to Dr. Phan. Some people must travel several hours to receive treatment.
Identifying Genetic High Cholesterol
Only about 20 percent of people with familial hypercholesterolemia are aware that they have it, according to The FH Foundation — a statistic the group is working to change. "If people are properly diagnosed and receive treatment, we can reduce morbidity and mortality," said Knowles.
The first step is to get your cholesterol checked, said Phan: "If you don't know what your cholesterol is, you won't know if you have the condition." If you have high overall cholesterol, high LDL cholesterol, and a family history of early heart disease, you should talk with your physician about a blood test for the disease.
You should also discuss the possibility of familial hypercholesterolemia if you use statins for high cholesterol but still have trouble lowering your cholesterol level, added Knowles.


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Individual news stories are posted on the APRN news page. You can subscribe to APRN's newsfeeds via email, podcast and RSS.
Murkowski, Begich Split On Health Care Decision
Peter Granitz, APRN – Washington DC
Alaska's members of Congress are reacting with mixed emotions to the Supreme Court's ruling largely upholding the health care overhaul bill. The break down is along expected political lines.
Gov. Parnell Reacts To Health Care Ruling
Annie Feidt, APRN – Anchorage & Daysha Eaton, KSKA – Anchorage
Governor Sean Parnell says Alaskans stand to lose more freedom and pay more tax with today's Supreme Court ruling largely upholding the federal health care overhaul. Alaska was one of 26 states suing to overturn the Affordable Care Act. At a news conference this afternoon, Parnell said the state may have lost the battle, but isn't going to stop fighting.
Some Alaskans Relieved By Health Care Ruling
Annie Feidt, APRN – Anchorage
While the Parnell Administration is strongly condemning the Supreme Court's health care ruling, some Alaskans had a different take when they heard the news.
Transportation Bill Would Give Alaska Railroad $31 Million
Peter Granitz, APRN – Washington DC
Congress is set to vote on a transportation bill by the end of the week. The plan will fund construction projects for the next two years, and both parties are touting it as a major jobs package.
Salazar Signs Off On 5-Year Offshore Oil, Gas Leasing Plan
Steve Heimel, APRN – Anchorage
As expected, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar today signed off on a five-year plan for federal offshore oil and gas leasing that includes more sales off the shores of Alaska, despite heavy pressure by environmental groups, who have been campaigning against any more sales in the Arctic Ocean.
NOAA Crew Surveys Beaches For Tsunami Debris
Rosemarie Alexander, KTOO – Juneau
Marine debris is nothing new, and a NOAA crew found little of note in last week's survey of outside Panhandle beaches.
Ship Creek Closed To King Fishing
Ellen Lockyer, KSKA – Anchorage
Anchorage's urban Ship Creek fishery is the latest Chinook salmon fishery to be closed by the state Fish and Game department, effective July 1.
Forest Service, Conservation Groups Bet On River Restoration
Rachel Waldhoz, KCAW – Sitka
Over 30 years ago, the Sitkoh River watershed on Chichigoff Island was logged, damaging the local salmon habitat. Now, the US Forest Service is partnering with environmental groups to restore the river – and they say the project is a perfect example of broader changes taking place on the Tongass.


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NOTE: This profile is part of a series to highlight the 23 researchers who will be honored Tuesday at a ceremony for UNMC's 2011 Scientist Laureate, Distinguished Scientist and New Investigator award recipients.
|Pawel Ciborowski, Ph.D.
- Name: Pawel Ciborowski, Ph.D.
- Title: Associate professor of pharmacology and experimental neuroscience and director of UNMC Mass Spectrometry and Proteomics Core Facility
- Joined UNMC: September 2003
- Hometown: Warsaw, Poland
Describe your research in laymen's terms.
We study the relationship between structure and function of proteins and how changes of structure and functions contribute or reflect the pathological state of human organism. Broadly, we call them protein biomarkers, which can tell us about the course of disease and toxicity impact of treatment. Some of these biomarkers can become diagnostic if they are sensitive and specific enough.
How do you want your research to translate to benefit patients?
It would be ideal if more biomarkers were available for everyday clinical diagnosis and more would become predictive or early stage measures of diseases so therapeutic and/or preventive treatment can be initiated as soon as possible.
What is the best piece of advice anyone ever gave you, professional or personal?
Think twice before you start an experiment.
List three things few people know about you.
- I love daschunds and I have had one or two for more than 30 years.
- I like to study history of 20th century and I am intrigued by what now is written about "historical events" that I witnessed or personally experienced.
- I like all kind of foods; however, I hate pizza with anchovies.
Thank you, your comment will appear below once it has been approved.


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Eephus: The eephus is one of the strangest pitches in the game because the goal is to throw it as slow as possible. Not like a changeup, which is intended to be slow in relation to a pitchers fastball, the eephus has a high arcing motion. For this reason it has been alternately named the moonball (popularized when Bill "Spaceman" Lee threw it), the Bugs Bunny curve, the gravity curve, the rainbow pitch and the blooper. The effectiveness of this pitch was typically due to batters not expecting it. Rip Sewell (who pitched in the '40s) reportedly was the first to popularize the pitch. There have been some modern day players to use the pitch, but not with any regularity: Vincent Padilla, Steve Hamilton, Mark Buehrle, Dave LaRoche, Casey Fossum to name a few. (Eephus is though to have been named after the Hebrew word 'efes', meaning 'nothing'. Outfielder Maurice Van Robays is credited with naming the pitch.)
Knuckleball: The knuckleball is a trademark for a number of pitchers. Typically, those who throw the knuckleball do so almost exclusively (R.A. Dickey, Charlie Hough, Tim Wakefield). Despite the name of the pitch, most throw it using the tips of the fingers instead of the knuckles. The goal when throwing a knuckler is to put as little spin on the ball as possible. The lack of spin results in a very erratic and unpredictable path to the plate. Most who throw the pitch claim it doesn't put much stress on the body since speed is not a goal so many players use the pitch to extend their careers or will try to learn the pitch to remain effective after injuries. Most pitchers do not try to learn the knuckler simply because making mistakes with the pitch results in a very straight ball that is often hit very hard. Charlie Hough once lost a 5-hitter (7-4 final score) and all five hits were home runs. In spite of the difficulty associated with learning and mastering the pitch, there are always a few pitchers in the game throwing it.
Screwball: The screwball is considered by many to be a 'reverse curve' since it uses the opposite twisting motion of a curve. This results in the ball breaking from left to right from the perspective of the pitcher when thrown by a right-hander. Baseball historians (such as Wayne Stewart) tab Hub Pruett (pitched in the '20s) as the first pitcher to find real success with the pitch. In his time Pruett was known for his ability to be trouble for big hitters such as Babe Ruth and Ty Cobb. Screwballer Carl Hubbell often said it is best to throw if the batter is looking for a fastball since it is the change in speed that results in a swing and miss. Not many players throw this pitch currently or throughout history but some big names have: Fernando Valenzuela, Dallas Braden, Warren Spahn, Juan Marichal, Mike Marshall, Pedro Martinez, Mike Cuellar, John Franco.


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Pascal Siakam claims ignorance on T-Mac's most improved player take
He means no disrespect, but Pascal Siakam doesn't care what Tracy McGrady thinks.
So, the morning after the Raptors' energetic big man led Toronto to victory in Game 3 of its playoff series against Orlando, Siakam spoke thoughtfully of the people whose opinions he actually does care about.
McGrady, who was courtside for Siakam's impressive performance at Amway Center on Friday night, recently dismissed the Raptor as deserving of the league's most improved player award. Siakam is simply playing more this season, McGrady argued on ESPN's "The Jump," adding it was more about opportunity than improvement.
"Y'all trying to start something man," Siakam laughed about McGrady's comments. "I don't know nothin' about that, I don't know what happened, I don't watch what's going on, what people say … it's not about who said what."
But Siakam knows who is watching him. And every chest-flexing, roaring celebration of a big block, every megawatt smile after a three-point shot falls is for them.
WATCH | Raptors hold on against Magic to regain home-court advantage:
"I'm just blessed to be here, happy that I'm in this position, and people from where I'm from can look at me and hopefully dream that they can be here one day … continue to work hard, and at the end of the day if I do that that's what's important to me," Siakam said.
"That's the message I'm trying to send every night I'm on the floor, and if some kids or whoever come and tell me, 'Hey I'm watching you and your development and how you got here, and your story is an inspiration,' and maybe one day they'll be like, 'I'm here today because of you.' I think that will be more important."
Siakam steps up in Leonard's absence
On a night Raptors star Kawhi Leonard was feeling under the weather, Siakam had 30 points and 11 rebounds in a 98-93 win that put the Raptors up 2-1 in the series. He's averaging 24.3 points and 10 boards a game in the playoffs.
Siakam is also averaging 40 minutes a night through the three games. He has touched the ball 206 times and had just one turnover.
When Raptors coach Nick Nurse was asked before tip-off Friday if Siakam had become his third scoring option, he snickered and replied that if Siakam has, he's fallen one spot.
The fact he's become the second option behind Leonard says everything about Siakam's improbable story. His improvement has happened at warp speed.
"Hey, look, he was terrific," Magic coach Steve Clifford on Friday.
The 25-year-old Siakam has only played organized basketball for seven years, the same number of years the Orlando Magic had gone without making the playoffs. That fact had teammate Danny Green looking incredulous Friday night.
"Seriously?" Green asked. Siakam winked in response.
Siakam spent his childhood in a Catholic boarding school, a dusty eight-hour bus ride from his family's home in Douala, Cameroon. He was spotted at a basketball camp run by Los Angeles Clippers forward Luc Mbah a Moute, landing a scholarship to God's Academy in Lewisville, playing well enough in one year there to earn a scholarship at New Mexico State.
On the eve of the Aggies' pre-season in 2014, Siakam's dad Tchamo was killed in a car accident. Siakam, at his family's urging, made the tough choice to stay in the U.S. rather than travel home for the funeral and risk losing his scholarship over visa issues.
At a pre-NBA draft workout in Buffalo, former Raptors coach Dwane Casey loved Siakam's energy, and Toronto selected the six-foot-nine forward 27th overall in the 2016 draft.
G-League MVP
Siakam was sent down to the team's G-League affiliate Raptors 905 almost immediately, calling those early days some of the most difficult of his life. He went on to earn MVP of the G-League finals.
Last season, Siakam was a cornerstone of Toronto's popular "Bench Mob," which came up big in the Raptors' post-season series win over Washington.
In this season's revolving door of a roster, Siakam has been the one constant. He's logged the most minutes of anyone on the team. His teammates love his infectious energy. He's always animated. His wide grin matches his massive seven-foot-three wingspan.
"His personality is just to go play and have fun," said Raptors guard Kyle Lowry.
"Some of the things, I guess I'm kind of shocked at how he completes them," Green said. "(Lowry) throws a half-court lob and he catches it and figures out what to do when he's up there. Pretty impressive, some of his finishes around the basket — tough angles, like, 'I don't know how I got that to go in."'
The Raptors didn't practise on Saturday ahead of Sunday's Game 4, and so Siakam sat perched on a stool addressing the media in a massive ballroom at the team's posh resort hotel. He talked about being tired after logging so many minutes, running his hands over his long thighs.
Nurse wasn't buying it.
"He's young and riding a wave right now," the coach said. "I bet he's not that tired. I bet he's enjoying this, and I think he's got plenty of energy."
The Raptors hope to harness more of that energy when they face Orlando again at Amway Center. The series returns to Toronto for Game 5 on Tuesday. If necessary, Game 6 would be back in Orlando.


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That is…until I find them a place to live.
I've met many an author who has said that for them writing is merely taking down the movie in their head.
"Movie? You have a movie in there?" I ask.
"Yes," they respond.
They have characters, situations, homes, clothes, transportation…all of it.
I should note these are mostly authors of historical fiction, which makes it all the more amazing. I'd love to have period clothing, horse drawn carriages, and wood fired ovens in my head when I sat down to the computer every morning. My world would be more Dangerous Liaisons and less All My Children.
My imagination is more narrowly focused. I have characters talking in my head (disturbing my sleep, making me appear spacey) that's it. They do not have cars, homes, or sometimes even clothes. This is where my research comes in.
I shop online for clothes. That's easy enough. Cars, too. A home, though, is a little bit different.
I have a little research quirk that I don't share with too many people. I'll share it here though. I shop for houses and apartments for my characters—in person.
Last week was a good example. I've started a book, Stirred. It will be the fourth book in my L.A. Nights, sexy contemporary romance series.
My hero and heroine are lovely people. But until last Friday, they were lovely homeless people. In order to get them from point A to point B in a city that's all about driving, they needed somewhere to live. So the hunt began.
In Los Angeles, a subscription to Westside Rentals is a writer's best friend. I typically spend the better part of a day looking for places for them to live. I drive around neighborhoods. I make appointments. I see apartments. I go to Sunday open houses. I take detailed pictures and notes until I've found them a home.
I'm happy to report that last week's research trip was a success. My heroine, Zoe, found a lovely month-to-month rental in Los Feliz. It's a cute artists colony that's perfect for her. She'll be renting month-to-month, because she's not planning to stay in Los Angeles. Her dad's sick, and she's only here temporarily. As soon as he's well, she'll go back to living abroad.
My hero, Max; he's in Hollywood. It's a small bungalow, but on his modest (for Los Angeles) metropolitan bus driver's salary, it's comfortable. It even has a perfect hallway that he's converted into a workshop. He likes to repair old luxury watches and the natural light that floods the room from the yard makes the detail work of mechanical repair much easier.
Since research is far easier than writing, next week I'll be striking out to find homes for the hero and heroine for the last book in the series. Because they live in Malibu and Ventura County, it'll be a field trip. (Field Trip!!!) I hope to come home with brochures, pictures, and a place where my characters can lay their heads.
Dear readers, I'd love to know how you find places for your characters to live if you're a writer. If you're a reader, how much domestic detail do you like?
Sylvie Fox is the author of In Plain Sight, Qualified Immunity and The Good Enough Husband. She's also the author of Unlikely, Impasse, and Shaken from the first two books in the sexy, contemporary L.A. Nights series. Don't Judge Me, and The Secret Widow from the Judgment series. When she's not battling traffic on the freeways of Los Angeles, she's eating her way through Budapest.


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Peter Max's paintings to show at Geary Gallery
Paintings by pop art icon Peter Max will be on exhibit at the Geary Gallery in Darien in September.
Max will unveil his new masters series, interpretive works of Vincent Van Gogh, Monet, Pablo Picasso, Renoir and Edgar Degas, which are conceived in Max's signature style and colors.
The works speak to both a maturation of the artist's illustrious career, as well as to his formidable training at the 130- year- old Art Students League of New York.
Max emerged as a powerful force in the art world from the Art Students League, alongside such artists as Robert Rauschenberg, Jackson Pollack, Cy Twombly and Norman Rockwell. The league was a formative influence on the artists' innovative artwork.
Previews begin Sept. 5, and the exhibition extends through Sept. 9. Max will make two special appearances at the gallery on Saturday, Sept. 8, and Sunday, Sept. 9.
With paintings on exhibit in hundreds of museums and galleries worldwide, Max and his vibrant colors have become part of the fabric of contemporary culture.
Max has been successively called a pop icon, neo fauvist, abstract expressionist and the United States, "painter laureate." The artist has painted the last seven presidents of the United States and the world's best-loved celebrities, among them singer Taylor Swift.
The exhibit will feature his iconic and best-known pieces, as well, among them "Statue of Liberty," Max's famous "Flag" pieces, "Umbrella Man" and the 10 cent Stamp bearing the title "Preserve the Environment."
More InformationFact box
There will also be presentations of his celebrity portraiture. Max is known for his celebrity commissions and portraits.
For more information about Peter Max, visit www.petermax.com.
Meet-the-artist receptions will take place on Saturday, Sept. 8, from 6 to 9 p.m. and Sunday, Sept. 9, from 1 to 4 p.m. Appearances are open to the public and artwork will be available for acquisition.
RSVPs are requested. Call 203-655-6633 or email firstname.lastname@example.com. For more information, visit www.gearygallery.com.


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Find It Fast
District Clerk Office Information
Schedule of Fees
Standing Restraining Order
Local Rules (E-filing CCL)
Local Rules (E-filing District Ct)
Order of Nondisclosure
Waller County District Clerk's Office
Liz Pirkle, District Clerk
Welcome to the Waller County District Clerk's Website. Our goal is to provide professional, friendly and quality service to the citizens of Waller County and all those who utilize our office. If you have any questions or need assistance, please do not hesitate to contact our office.
836 Austin Street, Rm 318, Hempstead, Texas 77445
Office Ph: (979)826-7735 / Fax (979)826-7738
Office Hours: M-F 8:00am - 4:30pm
** Effective June 1, 2019 Waller County District Clerk's Office hours will be
M-F 8:00am - 4:30pm**
*Starting June 1st, 2019 this office WILL be open through lunch*
Public Access to Court Records
Please note: No Images are available on the public access site. If you would like to request a copy of an event you see listed on a case, you can contact our office at (979)826-7735.
- E-Filing of Court Records -
Beginning January 1, 2016, attorney's filing Civil Cases (Family Law, Civil and Tax cases) in the 506th Judicial District Court and statutory County Court at Law within the Waller County District Clerk's Office are mandated by the Texas Supreme Court to file electronically.
For more information, please visit the E-file Texas website Here
District Clerk's Office Directory
District Clerk
Liz Pirkle
Family Law Department
Jodi Evans Deputy Clerk / Family Clerk
Celia Martinez Deputy Clerk / Attorney General and CPS cases
Criminal Department
Adela Miranda Chief Deputy / Criminal Clerk
Civil Department
Janie Derrick Deputy Clerk / Civil Clerk
Jammie Sneed Deputy Clerk / Tax Clerk
David Kehlenbeck Deputy Clerk / Records Management Clerk and Jury Administrator
Commissioner Pct 1
John A. Amsler
Commissioner Pct 2
Walter E. Smith
Commissioner Pct 3
Jeron Barnett
Commissioner Pct 4
Justin Beckendorff
Constable, Pct. 1
Bo Hashaw
Constable, Pct 2
Glenn White
Constable, Pct 3
Herschel Smith
Constable, Pct 4
Joel Trimm
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A Lafayette man has been charged with assault after police say he hit a man with a baseball bat during a road-rage incident Sunday, but the suspect has claimed it was in self-defense.
Michael Alexander Guzak, 28, was charged with first-degree assault with a deadly weapon, two counts of second-degree assault, felony menacing, criminal mischief and reckless endangerment, according to court records.
Guzak, who is free on a $10,000 bond, appeared for a formal filing of charges Wednesday and was scheduled for a preliminary hearing July 9. Guzak and his defense attorney David Rockwell declined to comment on the case Thursday.
According to an arrest affidavit, Guzak cut off another driver, identified as Elizah West, while trying to merge on 28th Street at 2 p.m. Sunday. West told police that Guzak began to flip him off and swear at him as they both turned east onto Jay Road.
West told police that at the intersection of Diagonal Highway and Jay Road, Guzak pulled his vehicle up alongside his and the two men got out of their cars. Guzak then pulled a baseball bat out of his car and hit West, hitting his arm the first time and then his head.
Guzak left the scene, but called police himself to say he had to assault someone in self-defense. When police arrived on scene, Guzak had driven off and officers found West with a bloody head and transported him to the hospital.
Police met Guzak at his home in Lafayette, where Guzak told police he had suffered a previous traumatic brain injury and was feeling light-headed. He was taken to a hospital, where he told police West was tailgating him and was swearing at him.
Guzak told police that he took the bat out to protect himself and believed he struck West in the shoulder.
When Guzak was medically cleared, he was placed under arrest. Police later recovered the bat at Guzak's girlfriend's house and took it into evidence.
Guzak does not have a prior criminal history in Colorado, according to court records.
Mitchell Byars: 303-473-1329, firstname.lastname@example.com or twitter.com/mitchellbyars


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The journey of a thousand miles may begin with just one step, but this five hundred mile trip began more like a 400 meter sprint. With just three days available in June to squeeze in a summer trip, we quickly packed the truck and trailer, rounded up the children, and set out for the Denali Highway with hopes of clear skies and fair weather. From our home just outside Fairbanks, our trip would take us south on the Richardson Highway, across the Denali Highway, and back north again on the Parks Highway.
We headed out the door to a light rain shower and cloudy skies. None the less, we held out in hopes of clearer skies – and we were certainly rewarded.
No trip on the Richardson Highway is complete without a stop at the IGA Food Cache in Delta Junction. This part grocery store, part deli, and part restaurant offers amazing food on the go. We filled up our bellies, topped off on fuel, and continued south towards the Alaska Range. Fairer weather just south of Delta Junction let us know that we were in for a great day.
Passing under the iconic Alaska Pipeline as we left the pavement of the Richardson Highway for the dirt roads and trails of the Coal Mine Lakes area.
We decided to drop the trailer and explore the area for a bit. Donnelly Dome sits in the background. Donnelly Dome is a prominent landmark in this area.
The trails in the area provided easy access to dozens of small lakes, some of which are stocked by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game.
The beauty of the Alaska Range was seemingly never ending and made it difficult to put the camera down
Unable to resist the natural beauty, my wife Stacie opted to run – rather than ride – for the rest of our afternoon on the trails.
Even though we were only hours in our trip, we felt worlds away from our daily grind
After exploring the area, we reconnected our trailer and set up camp along one of the many pristine lakes in the area.
After cooking dinner over our Biolite stove, I took the opportunity to top off our cameras. The Biolite has become one of my favorite pieces of camping equipment; I find myself continually amazed that a device that creates electricity from fire is so affordable.
With the appetizing aroma of BBQ beans over the Biolite stove, we stayed vigilant for any unwelcome camp guests. This .308 caliber AR-10 is the last step of many bear deterrence measures that we carry.
As day two began, we packed up and began the Denali Highway leg of our trip. Our two year old son and four year old daughter took in the views as they took a break from their car seats at this pull out at mile marker 6.5
This bridge is the largest on the route and crosses the Sustina River.
The Gracious House, located at Mile Marker 82, offers fuel, lodging, and services along the Denali Highway. Unfortunately, they were closed due to a family emergency, but they were kind enough to leave a note on the gate directing that those in true emergencies could still contact them for assistance.
This true Alaska buggy was left in the bush along an unmarked trail.
Our campsite for night number was just off the road, but still provided solitude and endless beauty.
The "downstairs" annex portion of our CVT roof top tent makes a great evening play room for the kids.
On the third morning of our trip, we came towards the end of the Denali Highway and the end of our 72 hour adventure. On a side note, thanks to the widened track width of my long travel suspension, I have learned to close my side view mirrors on gravel roads. My tires have demonstrated amazing marksmanship in their ability to peg rocks right into the glass of the mirror.
Chase Kilfoyle is an active duty military officer stationed at Fort Wainwright, Alaska. Chase, his wife Stacie, and their two children enjoy exploring the outdoors in their 2006 Toyota Tacoma, which is a never ending build that can be found on TacomaWorld.
You can follow Chase and family's Alaska adventures on instagram at @chaseoutdoors.


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Cross-posted on TB-CARE I.
World TB Day, March 24th, was commemorated in many countries around the world last week to acknowledge the accomplishments made in the fight against tuberculosis (TB), and to call attention to the work that still needs to be done.
Voices of TB, a unique event organized by USAID, featured former TB patients speaking about their personal fight against TB. Survivors of TB from Ethiopia, Kenya, Namibia and Vietnam --- four TB CARE I-supported countries --- and from the United States, spoke at the event on March 22 in Washington, D.C.
In the 1990s many Brazilian patients infected with tuberculosis (TB) were not being cured, despite starting treatment. Some patients stopped taking their medication, which led to the reemergence of TB. In 1993, the World Health Organization declared that TB was a global emergency. Eventually, a multi-resistant strain of TB surfaced, making it even more difficult to fight the disease.
These occurrences --- referred to as "chronic cases" --- became apparent in some Brazilian states, but health units lacked standardized management systems to treat these cases of TB.
Centro de Referência Professor Hélio Fraga (CRPHF), which is Brazil's National Tuberculosis Reference Laboratory, took control of TB surveillance in 1994. CRPHF defined a more effective treatment scheme and a national network to register and monitor the chronic cases in 1999. CRPHF builds human capacity through training and carries out operational and epidemiological studies. They also evaluate TB and other lung disease control activities and function as a Macro Regional Reference Lab.
The images of tuberculosis patients from the developing world are often painful to look at: the outlines of rib cages taut against skin; arms and legs no thicker than wiffleball bats; a wild-eyed look of fear from sunken eyes. But the image of Mildred Fernando, captured here by photographer Riccardo Venturi, turns heads toward her.