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Scroll down for updates…Balzano and other SEIU executives in Allentown PA quit over Boy Scout thuggery…
Photoshop credit: American Power
My column today provides context for the SEIU bullying of Boy Scouts in Allentown, Pa. As you'll see, there's a long history of Big Labor thuggery against volunteers who threaten the union racket. On a related note, be sure to check out the video of Fresno homecare providers exposing how SEIU staff threatened them and changed their ballots to secure a razor-thin advantage in a controversial union election this June. As I've been reporting over the last several months, the home health care power grab across the country gives you a glimpse of the SEIU-endorsed Obamacare future.
When Big Labor bullies and volunteers collide
by Michelle Malkin
Copyright 2009
The Boy Scouts' motto is "Be Prepared." Who knew it meant preparing to defend themselves against Purple-Shirted union thuggery over community service? Kids, pay attention. This is a teachable moment for all of you on power, politics, and Big Labor's culture of corruption.
Last week at a city council meeting in Allentown, Pa., a top official of the local Services Employee International Union chapter ranted about 17-year-old Scout Kevin Anderson's park clean-up work. Anderson devoted some 200 hours to the job in order to earn an Eagle Scout badge. He picked up trash and helped clear a 1,000-foot walking path with fellow members of Boy Scouts Troop 301 of Center Valley.
But SEIU's Nick Balzano gave them hell instead of thanks.
Balzano disparaged altruistic efforts in city parks and asserted that "there is (sic) to be no volunteers" since his union members were laid off. He then issued a witch hunt threat: "We'll also be looking into the Cub Scout or Boy Scout who did the trails. We may file another grievance on that." Citing union rules, he gave the Allentown city council, the Boy Scouts, and all potential volunteers an iron-fisted ultimatum: "None of them can pick up a hoe. They can't pick up a shovel. They can't plant a flower. They can't clear a bicycle path. They can't do anything. Our people do that."
That's right. Balzano was ready to bludgeon the Boy Scout because his gung-ho volunteerism posed a threat to the SEIU labor monopoly. The outrageous display of Boss Balzano's union protectionism provoked a national furor. SEIU headquarters in Washington immediately blamed "the disreputable Fox News and other right-wing outlets like Michelle Malkin's accuracy challenged blog" for the backlash. While decrying their critics' "fiction," SEIU distanced itself from Balzano, denying that he was a top union leader and dismissing his remarks as "unauthorized."
Fact: U.S. Department of Labor records from 2008 (their most recent filing), show that Balzano is no rogue, rank-and-file member. He currently serves on the SEIU local's Executive Board and previously served as president.
Fact: The union tried to minimize Balzano's grievance threat as "inappropriate." But the dirty open secret is that public-sector unions have routinely attacked volunteer workers who threaten their stranglehold.
Last June, union officials in Baraboo, Wisconsin filed a complaint against volunteer firefighters who built sandbag barricades to protect the city from record flooding. They whined that city Department of Public Works employees should have been called first and demanded overtime pay (for work they didn't do) to compensate them.
Yes, kids, the city was knee-deep in water and the government union got mad that other people scrambled to work together in an emergency to put sand in bags, save homes, and help their neighbors. Public-sector unions aren't about serving the public interest. They're about serving their people, their power, and their self-preservation.
In Montpelier, Vermont, several years ago, the teachers' union went after a superstar educator, Bill Corrow. The students, staff, and supervisors at his school loved the social studies teacher and Vietnam veteran. But the Vermont Educators Association hated him because he was a volunteer who did not accept payment for his elective course. Teachers' unions are all for parents and schoolchildren volunteering their time to engage in political lobbying and power-expanding initiatives on the union's behalf. But God help the community service-oriented individual with a passion for sharing his knowledge in their classrooms.
In California, union heavies in the Sacramento area sued a non-profit environmental group for using college-age volunteers on a state-funded project to clean up a canyon and build a community trail. Big Labor dusted off an old law to require that community service volunteers be paid prevailing wages for doing the same kind of clean-up that Allentown Boy Scout Kevin Anderson was punished for doing freely. The law was finally repealed, but not without a brass-knuckles fight.
As National Right to Work Committee president Mark Mix, whose group monitors forced union abuses, pointed out during the battle: "Discerning California union bosses' real agenda…is not hard. Volunteer workers don't have to pay compulsory union dues to serve their communities, but most paid workers on public projects in California do…[It] is yet another example of how government-authorized compulsory-union dues corrupt the political process and furnish unscrupulous union officials with an enormous incentive to act against the public interest."
SEIU president Andy Stern in Washington speaks for all of Big Labor when he describes his organizing philosophy: "[W]e prefer to use the power of persuasion, but if that doesn't work we use the persuasion of power." President Obama, who has made national service an administration priority, has been and will continue to be silent about the Big Labor bullies who make public enemies of Scouts with trash bags and hoes.
You see, kids, Obama owes Stern (his most frequent White House visitor) and his union brethren. SEIU alone poured more than $60 million in compulsory member dues into Obama's campaign and leaned on its workers to "volunteer" to knock on doors, place phone calls, and send out mailers for the Democrat Party. No good deed goes unpunished by union bosses—unless it benefits their political empire.
Update: The Morning Call reports that Balzono and other SEIU execs in Allentown PA have quit…
Allentown union official Nick Balzano has been a political punching bag all week because he threatened to file a grievance against the city for allowing a Boy Scout to clear a walking path in a city park.
Three days of taking body blows nationally from conservative pundits, a rebuke from the Lehigh Valley's congressman and even a lashing from his own union led Balzano to voluntarily resign his position Thursday as head of the local Service Employees International Union.
Balzano said he and seven other executive officers of the local SEIU stepped down.
"I am proud of the work I and the rest of the executive board have done over the years," he said.
He had "nothing against Boy Scouts" and was just "trying to protect my jobs," said Balzano, who had served as union president for nearly a decade.


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Margaret, it appears that rape remains unpopular among likely voters, gays are people too, and Rocky Mountain High isn't just a song. It isn't final yet, but at the time that I am writing this, Michele Bachmann, bless her heart, might not be too popular with voters either. And while he wasn't actually running for anything, Donald Trump proved to be unpopular with just about everyone.
Once the real news called the race for Obama, I tuned into Fox News to see if Karl Rove was giving refunds. I had to laugh at the meltdown that was happening. Karl wanted a recount in Ohio and some blonde woman with too much make-up lamented about the inconvenient truth of Hurricane Sandy. Evidently Sandy and fraudulent voters had given the election unfairly to Obama. Honey, Hurricane Sandy reminded us that we had a good man in the White House much the same way Hurricane Katrina reminded us that we had an idiot in the White House. And fraudulent voters are about as common as unbiased reporting on Fox News. I had to turn the channel back to the more civil CNN coverage with that lovely Anderson Cooper. Too much Fox makes me itch.
After running for President for nine hundred years, Mitt Romney accepted defeat and gave a surprisingly short and genuinely gracious concession speech. I was touched, truly touched, when he called for unity and wished the President success. President Obama too gave a lovely speech. He always gives lovely speeches. It was a tad bit long and I must admit I drifted off a couple of times. I am old and it was getting late.
But back to Mitt… you had me there, sir. You had me ready to put aside my partisan ways in hopes that our elected officials could come together and find common ground. I was all ready to write my letter to the President asking him to govern to the middle and bring us together. I would get a good night's sleep and then write the letter in the morning and send it off to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
But just before I headed to bed, this flashed across my television screen:
"The American people did two things: they gave President Obama a second chance to fix the problems that even he admits he failed to solve during his first four years in office, and they preserved Republican control of the House of Representatives. The voters have not endorsed the failures or excesses of the president's first term, they have simply given him more time to finish the job they asked him to do together with a Congress that restored balance to Washington after two years of one-party control. Now it's time for the president to propose solutions that actually have a chance of passing the Republican-controlled House of Representatives and a closely-divided Senate, step up to the plate on the challenges of the moment, and deliver in a way that he did not in his first four years in office."
– Mitch McConnell, Senate Minority Leader
Well Margaret, so much for me giving up my partisan ways. Mitch McConnell is a jackass and the Republican Party can kiss my ass. I mean it. Really.
Well, here we go again. Honey, why don't you just move to Kentucky and run against McConnell? I would vote for you. I mean it. Really.
CLICK HERE to support Margaret and Helen's website

subset: commoncrawl


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Install Base 621
Pendo iOS SDK
iOS Apps With Pendo SDK
Pendo is currently installed in 621 apps. As of 2022-09-01, it was installed in 615 apps. That is a change of 1% over six months.
Monthly Installs And Uninstalls of Pendo SDK
Pendo was installed in 0 apps and uninstalled in 0 apps last month. That's a net change of 0 apps over the last month.
Pendo SDK Market Share in the User Engagement Category
Pendo currently owns 7% of the User Engagement SDK market. As of 2023-01-01, it owned 7% of the User Engagement SDK market. That is a change of 0% over six months.
1 apps in the top 200 apps
Pendo has 1% of the top 200 apps, for a total of 1 apps.
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on current trends?
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Man goes on shooting rampage in Calif.; 3 killed
TUSTIN, Calif. (AP) - The early morning commute was just getting under way on suburban Orange County's network of freeways when Melvin Lee Edwards pulled up to a stop sign near a busy off-ramp.
It was just after 5 a.m. and Edwards, 69, was on his way to work when, police say, a fleeing murder suspect forced him out of his BMW at gunpoint, marched him across the street and shot him three times from behind as horrified commuters watched.
The shooting was the second of three murders in a trail of carnage early Tuesday that spanned 25 miles - but lasted just an hour. The shooter, 20-year-old Ali Syed, killed a woman in the home he shared with his parents, killed two drivers during carjackings, injured two others and shot up cars on a busy freeway interchange before committing suicide as police closed in, authorities said.
Syed, an unemployed part-time community college student, had no known motive and acted alone, said Tustin police Chief Scott Jordan. The first victim, a woman in her twenties, has not been identified and was not related to Syed, he said.
The violence began at 4:45 a.m., when deputies responded to a call from Ladera Ranch, a sleepy inland town about 55 miles southeast of Los Angeles. They found the woman shot multiple times.
Syed's parents were in the house at the time, fled the residence when shots were fired, and reported it, Jordan said.
From Ladera Ranch, the gunman headed north and pulled off Interstate 5 in Tustin, about 20 miles away, with a flat tire, police said.
A man who was waiting in a shopping center parking lot to carpool with his son saw Syed had a gun and tried to escape in his Cadillac, Jordan said. Syed ran after the car as it drove away and fired his shotgun through the back window, striking the driver in head but not killing him.
The driver "noticed that he was loading his shotgun, so he simply gets back in his car and tries to escape," Jordan said. "He's driving through the parking lot trying to get away and the suspect is actually chasing him on foot, taking shots at him."
Syed then crossed the street to a Mobil gas station, where he approached the driver of a pick-up who was filling his tank and asked for his keys, Jordan said.
"He says something to the effect of, 'I've killed somebody. Today's my last day. I don't want to hurt you. Give me your keys,'" the police chief said. "He hands over the keys and he gets in the truck and leaves."
Syed got back on the freeway, where he pulled to the side of the road at the busy I-5 and State Route 55 interchange and began firing at commuters, Jordan said.
One driver was struck in the mouth and hand. He didn't have a cellphone, but was able to drive home and call police. Two other cars were hit but their drivers weren't injured, Jordan said.
"All of this is happening so quickly," he said, estimating that Syed shot at drivers from the side of the freeway transition for about a minute.
The shooter then exited the freeway in nearby Santa Ana but ran the curb and got his car stuck, authorities said.
He approached Edwards, of Laguna Hills, who was on his way to his Santa Ana business. Syed shot Edwards three times, including in the back of the head and the back, Jordan said.
Onlookers "tried to get away. They saw what was going on, they tried to get away and they called police," he said.
Syed took Edwards' BMW and next popped up at the Micro Center, a Tustin business, where he shot and killed construction worker Jeremy Lewis, 26, of Fullerton. Lewis' co-worker rushed to intervene and was shot in the arm, Jordan said.
Syed took the second construction worker's utility truck and fled to Orange, this time with California Highway Patrol officers in pursuit. He jumped from the moving utility truck at an intersection in Orange, about five miles away, and shot himself in the head, Jordan said.
"There really wasn't a confrontation at the very end," he said. "It happened so quickly."
A shotgun was recovered at the scene and is believed to be the only weapon used.
A message left at Syed's parents' home wasn't immediately returned on Tuesday.


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{This post is largely derived from these posts on my blog — for more detail on my ALA '10 experiences, check them out!}
Last year, I attended my first ALA conference as a library school student, and it was an eye-opening experience. Of all the local and national librarian conferences I've been to, it is by far the biggest and most overwhelming. Here are some of my tips for staying on a library school student budget, networking, and more:
- Seek funding to offset your expenses. ALA's Student to Staff program has already picked its members, but ask around at your library school for other opportunities. Are there any scholarships or grants for travel at your school? Do you know anyone you can split a hotel room with (if not, ask librarians on Twitter)?
Click through for more!!
- ALA is not flowing with free food. To reduce your food expenses, sign up for free vendor lunches (not sure what I mean? wait until you start getting vendor emails a few weeks before the conference). These will give you a free meal AND help you learn something about a new library product. For breakfast, I recommend stopping at a local grocery store and packing muffins or breakfast bars. The ones in the convention center will cost you $3.00-$5.00 apiece. You're pretty much on your own for dinner, but it's not bad to have a nice dinner once in a while, especially in New Orleans. You may want to use dinner as a networking tool, even — use Twitter or other means to find some librarian dinner dates!
- Create business cards. I used Vistaprint, and it was extremely cheap. What should you put on them? See Erin Dorney's extremely helpful post. You need to make your own networking opportunities, so don't wait for a librarian to talk to you! I monitored Twitter for networking events, and found a Facebook/Twitter networking social at a local pub. I also found that certain round tables and committees had events like "Lunch with LIRT" – try to find out if a round table you're interested in is doing something similar, because it's a great way to meet librarians in your area of interest, as well as potentially give you a jump start on round table/committee work!
- If you want to take advantage of any of the ALA Placement Center's offerings, such as the resume reviewing or career counseling, make an appointment, even if it's not required. Trust me — everyone else made an appointment, and you'll be waiting a while for an open one.
- If you plan to spend time in the exhibits, try to make a plan beforehand. My friend Courtney made a list of vendors she specifically wanted to visit and why, and that saved her from wandering around feeling aimless and overwhelmed (like me). When you see the exhibit hall, you will understand. Also, if you plan to take a lot of free books home, plan to ship them, or pack an extra bag or suitcase. I have friends who shipped home 4-5 boxes worth of books — you know who you are!
- Don't be afraid to pick "fun" sessions (like author talks) over librarian sessions. I felt guilty about this sometimes, but ultimately I knew I wouldn't get the chance to see these authors again, and there's always a way to get your hands on a program handout if you're resourceful — many speakers post links session presentations or handouts on Twitter and on the ALA Conference Wiki.
- Speaking of Twitter, follow the ALA hashtag whenever you can – I made many, many contacts (even in-person ones) by interacting with librarians that way.
- Finally, don't forget to get some rest — if you stay out late, skip that early morning session. You will be SO exhausted by the end of the week if you never sleep. Sounds simple to do, but wait until you plan your ALA schedule and your New Orleans tourist schedule!
Do you have any ALA tips and tricks of your own? If you're a first-timer, is there anything you'd like to know? Feel free to ask!
Categories: Hack ALA


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|Name ▲▼
|Origin ▲▼
|Description ▲▼
|Goddess name
|A goddess of fertility, love, beauty, sex & youth
|Scandinavia held at Yuletide the festival called Jul, in honour of Freya, wife of Odin.
|Goddess name
"Freya, Freyja"
|Freya or Freyja [Feminine of Freyr]. The daughter of Njord and sister of Frey. She dwells in Folkvang. Half the fallen in battle belong to her, the other half to Odin. She lends her feather disguise to Loke. She is the goddess of love. Her husband is Oder. Her necklace is Brisingamen. She has a boar with golden bristles. Norse
|With the costs of higher education at an all-time high, the American Dream of
a college education can seem like just that — a dream.
However the reality is that there are lots of things a prospective student can do to help offset the high costs of higher education.
If you're trying to figure out how to go to college for free, we have some advice that might help you on your way.
We've covered a wide range of options from how to get free tuition through a grant to various service opportunities.
Take a look at these and other ways you might be able to score a free college education.
8 ways to attend college for free
1. Grants and scholarshipsFinancial aid — the traditional way of eliminating college costs — is still available. To increase the odds of landing grants and scholarships, Doug Hewitt, co-author of "Free College Resource Book," advises students to fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, and then focus on local prizes.
"There are more scholarships you'll qualify for in your home state than nationally," says Hewitt. "Look at local organizations and talk to your high school (guidance) counselor."
And remember to start your search early. You won't be the only person wondering how to go to college for free and scholarships can be limited to a first come, first served basis. You should also keep in mind that you don't need to wait for your senior year to start hunting for scholarships. There are grants and awards available at all high school grade levels.
2. Give service to your countryThe U.S. Coast Guard, Air Force, Military (West Point), Merchant Marine and Naval academies offer free college opportunities to students who serve after college, but cash is also available through ROTC programs closer to home.
Service requirements for ROTC programs vary, but all require students to complete military training on campus and commit to up to 12 years, depending on the branch of service. Students leave with training, a guaranteed job and opportunities for more free education.
AmeriCorps, a national service organization that offers education awards in exchange for community work, provides an award of up to $5,730 for each full year of service. Maximum years of service vary among AmeriCorps programs. Members also receive a living stipend while serving in the program.
3. Work for the schoolSchools charge students tuition, but their employees often can get a free education. "This is a great option, especially for older students with job experience," says Reyna Gobel, author of "CliffsNotes Graduation Debt." "If you're 18, you might not qualify for a job that provides (tuition) benefits."
Schools typically provide benefits for full-time workers and sometimes require a certain level of experience, Gobel says. Future students can find out about their school's policy by calling the admissions office.
4. Waive your costsSome students can get a free pass based on academic performance or other factors.
The North American Council on Adoptable Children in St. Paul, Minnesota, reports that Connecticut, Kentucky, Virginia, Maine, Massachusetts, Texas, Florida and Maryland offer waivers at certain public schools for adopted and foster care children.
Other schools offer waivers for Native American students, senior citizens and dislocated workers. To find out what your school offers, call the financial aid office.
5. Become an apprenticeAn apprenticeship is another solid option when you're determining how to get free tuition. They can also open you up to job opportunities post-college.
Overall, your average apprenticeship program will take 1-6 years. You will probably be required to put in that time along with at least 2,000 hours of field work annually. The good news is that there are apprenticeships in more than 1,000 occupations, which can give you more options.
In exchange, the sponsoring employer pays for college or technical training and provides a salary. A list of available programs is available at the ApprenticeshipUSA website.
6. Have your employer pick up the costsAnother way you might receive a free college education is through your employer. Often given in the form of an employee reimbursement, there are plenty of employers that can help curb the cost of higher education.
7. Be in demandAnother great way to find out how to go to college for free is to determine if your field of study is "high-needs." Will your studies result in a career that's high in demand? Ask yourself this before you even enroll if you're trying to cut the cost of college.
Generally, schools will offer incentives to anyone focusing their studies on math, science, nursing, teaching, and social work. There are also additional opportunities available through organizations like Teach for America, the Nurse Corps Loan Repayment Program and the National Institutes of Health.
The nursing program at the University of Portland in Oregon has offered scholarships covering approximately 80% of the final 2 years of undergraduate study, if students sign a 3-year employment contract with the local health system, Fabriquer says. "There are similar programs in (high-needs) fields across the country," he adds.
8. Choose a school that pays youLast on our list of ways on how to get free tuition, and probably the riskiest. There are, indeed, schools that will pay you to focus your studies in a single subject (which they dictate). Schools such as the Webb Institute and the Curtis Institute of Music offer a select range of academic programs and pick up the tuition cost for every student. Just think long and hard about your decision before you commit to this course.
In one of the Eddic poems, for example, Loki accuses Freya of having slept with all of the gods and elves, including her brother. She's certainly a passionate seeker after pleasures and thrills, but she's a lot more than only that. Freya is the archetype of the völva, a professional or semiprofessional practitioner of seidr, the most organized form of Norse magic. It was she who first brought this art to the gods, and, by extension, to humans as well. Given her expertise in controlling and manipulating the desires, health, and prosperity of others, she's a being whose knowledge and power are almost without equal. Her father is Njord. Her mother is unknown, but could be Nerthus. Freyr is her brother. Her husband, named Odr in late Old Norse literature, is certainly none other than Odin, and, accordingly, Freya is ultimately identical with Odin's wife Frigg. Source: norse-mythology.org/gods-and-creatures/the-vanir-gods-and-goddesses/freya/


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Feb 06, 2020
Countrywide Visa's has been operating and helping clients from August'15 but already has a vastly growing database of both clients and employers among other things. With an aim to have offices around the world is the main mission of Countrywide Visa's but of course with the help of our satisfied clients and growing demand.
1201-1208, 12th Floor, Devika Tower, Nehru Place


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Patient Education at Advanced Podiatry
Our team of specialists and staff believe that informed patients are better equipped to make decisions regarding their health and well being. For your personal use, we have created an extensive patient library covering an array of educational topics. Browse through these diagnoses and treatments to learn more about topics of interest to you. Or, for a more comprehensive search of our entire Web site, enter your term(s) in the search bar provided.
As always, you can contact our office to answer any questions or concerns.
Mallet toes are deformities caused by bone and muscle imbalances that become exaggerated in people with active lifestyles. Arthritis can also lead to mallet toes. Mallet toes can cause extreme discomfort and may be aggravated if restrictive or improperly fitting footwear is worn for a prolonged period of time.
Treatment is designed to relieve pressure, reduce friction, and transfer forces from the sensitive areas. Shoes with a high and broad toe box (toe area) are recommended to prevent future irritation for people suffering from mallet toes. Other conservative treatments include forefoot supports, such as gel toe caps, gel toe shields, and toe crests. Gel forefoot supports provide immediate comfort and relief from common forefoot disorders without drying the skin.


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Earlier this week, Joanna wrote about her experience at a small library in Florence, Italy. Last week, my wife and I travelled to Scotland. Our home base was Glasgow, but we made day trips to other places, such as the Isle of Skye, Oban, Inverness, and Edinburgh. Scotland is a beautiful country in both its landscape and the friendliness of its people. And Glasgow is a working city, not a tourist city like Edinburgh, so it's unpretentious and fun. For the most part, it was a vacation, but it also served to strengthen my library and information science education.
Ever since I decided to enter an LIS graduate program, my wife and I have visited university libraries everywhere we travel. We've been to libraries all across this country from South Carolina to Kansas to California. So when we decided to go to Scotland, we said, "It wouldn't be a vacation if we didn't visit a university library." So we ended up visiting the University of Glasgow library. The University of Glasgow was founded in 1451. It amazes me to hear that since our country wouldn't even be founded for over 300 years after this library was started. It was a beautiful campus buzzing with students — all holding umbrellas to keep dry in Glasgow's notoriously wet weather. The most educational part of visiting Glasgow's library was seeing its classification system. As we explored the stacks, I didn't recognize the classification system. It was one or two letters followed by three or four numbers, plus a Cutter number. It looked like the Library of Congress Classification system, but I thought that was unlikely. I knew it wasn't LCC when I realized the letters spanned the alphabet even within one topic, such as music. So I inquired at the circulation desk. The student working the desk didn't know, so she asked someone else. That person didn't know, so they both asked a third person. Finally, someone figured it out — it's a customized, home grown classification system for just that library. I knew that libraries had home grown classification systems a long time ago, but didn't know it still happened. It was interesting to see and get outside of my Library of Congress/Dewey Decimal world here in the states.
Another thing I have always tried to do when I visit other universities is make contact with someone there who is doing data curation and try to set up a meeting with them to learn what they're doing at their library. I did the same thing in Glasgow, but instead of meeting with someone within the library, I met with some people from the Digital Curation Centre (DCC), a partnership among the Universities of Glasgow, Edinburgh, and Bath. Here in the states, if you're into data curation, you read many of the publications put out by the DCC, which are extensive and comprehensive. We develop a perception that they are way ahead of us in the UK regarding data curation. But in talking to the DCC representatives, it became clear that while the DCC is publishing lots of guidance documents, the data curation landscape is not much different than here in the US. Researchers and libraries are still trying to wrap their heads around what it all means. They said they think the US is ahead of the UK in offering services to researchers on university campuses. They said in the UK, they are just beginning to engage the university stakeholders in developing services. It was encouraging to see that we aren't far behind, after all.
The lessons I took away from these meetings and encounters are two-fold:
- Everyone is experiencing the same challenges, but are working through them slightly differently. There is much room for international collaboration.
- The way we do things here isn't the only way, or even the best way, but is a different way.
What experiences have you had that opened your mind within your library and information science education?
Categories: International


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If you follow me on Facebook, you know that last week I harvested our garlic. This was our second year planting garlic and it has become on of my favorite crops to grow and harvest. Garlic is so incredibly easy.
In the fall, you plant your garlic cloves, cover them and then just wait. When spring hits, your hardnecks will send up scapes. Cut those babies off; they make a delicious dish, and cutting your scapes will force the garlic plant to put its energy into making a bulb instead of a flower. Trust me. Cut the scape. This year, I missed about three scapes, and here are the garlic heads to compare.
These two heads of garlic are the same variety. The one on the left had the scape cut off, but the one on the right got overlooked during scape cutting time. Amazing difference, isn't it.
Last year I harvested my garlic in a fit of nesting during the pouring rain, a mere week before C was born. I was insanely driven to pull all the garlic right then. It couldn't even wait the extra day to let the soil dry from the rain.
But if you are not nesting a week before your labor, how do you know when your garlic is ready to harvest?
By looking at the leaves.
When the leaves at the bottom of the garlic plant start to turn brown and dry, your garlic is ready. As you can see from this picture, my leaves are almost all brown. I probably could have harvested a week or so earlier than I did, but as you might guess from all the weeds, I was sort of neglecting the garlic beds. Not to worry, garlic will usually keep as long as it's not an overly soggy summer.
This year we planted three different varieties of garlic; a mystery variety that I've been saving from our CSA farm share (Monroe) for the last couple of years, Georgian Fire, and Erik's German White. Judging by size alone, you can guess which has made me happiest. I've yet to do the taste test.


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February 18th, 2012
Facing death, a top pastor rethinks what it means to be Christian
Editor's Note: The short film accompanying this story, called "My Garden," comes from EdsStory.com. CNN.com is premiering the latest installment in the "Ed's Story" series.
By Dan Merica, CNN
Washington (CNN) – Ed Dobson is not afraid of dying. It's the getting there that really scares him.
A former pastor, onetime Christian Right operative and an icon among religious leaders, Dobson has Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig's disease. When he was diagnosed, doctors gave him 3 to 5 years to live.
That was 11 years ago.
"I am a tad happy to be talking to you right now," joked Dobson, whose voice has deteriorated since his preaching days, in a phone interview. Speaking with him feels like being exposed to a brief moment of clarity. He speaks slowly, but with an understated confidence and authority.
As pastor at Calvary Church in Grand Rapids, Michigan, a position he held for 18 years, Dobson would regularly preach to 5,000 people or more on Sundays. Back then, Dobson said he looked at himself as a man filled with lessons, proverbs and, most of all, answers.
CNN's Belief Blog – all the faith angles to the day's top stories
After retirement six years ago, the massive crowds went away.
"I went from 100 miles an hour to zero miles an hour overnight," Dobson said. "That was a shock to my system."
Dobson says the answers vanished with the crowds.
"I know that sounds a bit lame," he said. "I know that that I should have all the answers, but the truth is, the more I live, the fewer answers I have."
And yet the people Dobson comes in contact with – those who call him dad, husband and friend, or those who have read one of his 12 books and watched his short films, don't agree with that assessment. To them, the last six years of Dobson's life have led to a remarkable ability to put life into context. To them, Dobson is a man filled with lessons.
From 5,000 to 1
In the 1980s, Dobson rose to prominence as an executive at the Moral Majority, Jerry Falwell's evangelical political organization, which had influence with the Ronald Reagan White House. Dobson's rise continued when he accepted the pastorate at Calvary Church in 1987. He cut a national profile, with Moody Bible Institute naming him "Pastor of the Year" in 1993.
After being diagnosed with ALS, Dobson suddenly felt unsure of himself. At times, he said, he didn't want to get out of bed. After years of intense Bible study, Dobson said this is not how he thought he would react to news of his own mortality.
"I thought that if I knew I was going to die, I would really read the Bible and if I really was going to die, I would really pray," Dobson said. "I found the opposite to be true. I could barely read the Bible and I had great difficulty praying. You get so overwhelmed with your circumstances, you lose perspective."
Eventually, Dobson regained perspective. But feelings of listlessness led him to take his preaching to a more personal level. He now meets with congregants one-on-one. Sitting with them in their homes or offices, Dobson provides whatever help he can. "Most of the people I meet with have ALS and basically I listen," he said.
"When I meet with someone and look into their eyes, it is like I am looking into their soul," Dobson said. "We are both broken, we are both on the journey and we are both fellow pilgrims."
Going from 5,000 congregants to one at a time was a big change for Dobson, forcing him to reevaluate his job as a pastor. "I am trying to learn that one-on-one is just as important as speaking to thousands," he said. "I reemphasize – I am trying to learn that."
During his one-on-one meetings, Dobson says he remembers Adam and Eve being charged by God to work the Garden of Eden. For years Dobson's garden was Calvary Church – the baptisms, weddings, the Sunday preaching.
"Whether it is preaching to 5000 or meeting one on one, I am trying to take care of the garden," he said.
The wind knocked out
One way Dobson strove to tend the garden is by writing a book about dealing with serious illness. In 2007, he wrote "Prayers and Promises When Facing a Life-Threatening Illness."
Dobson's son Daniel read the book while deployed in Iraq. After returning home, Daniel made it his mission to turn the book's stories into videos.
He pitched the idea to Steve Carr, the executive director of a faith-focused production company called Flannel. "When I met Ed, when he came to our office, something really spoke to me," Carr said. "Not too long before that, I had been diagnosed with Leukemia."
"I thought that this guy, he has been where I am right now and he has somehow mastered it," Carr said.
So far, Flannel has released five Dobson films, available through the company's website. There are plans for two more. Though the films range in topic, from loss and forgiveness to healing and growth, all are centered on lessons Dobson learned through his battle with ALS. The videos toe the line between a dark look at a dying man's life and an uplifting glimpse at someone who exudes clarity.
"My Garden," the most recent title in the series, centers on Ed's struggle to deal with ending his preaching career.
Dobson talks about the films as if they are his swan song, his last words of encouragement to a group of supporters he has inspired for decades.
"My desire is that people who have had the air knocked out of them, whether divorce or losing a loved one or illness, that they will get a sense of hope by watching the films," he said.
Surviving (with help)
The series' first short film opens with Dobson explaining what it was like to be told he had ALS. After lying in bed, Dobson gets in the shower, brushes his teeth and starts the day. Even he would admit, however, it is not that easy.
Dobson has lost much of the function in his hands and is seen struggling to brush his teeth, his frail body using two hands on the small brush. Though he is able to do a lot, including drive, Dobson wouldn't be able to make it on his own, a fact he is keenly aware of when about when describing his wife, Lorna.
"She is my right hand, my left hand, my left foot, my right foot, my heart and my brain," Dobson said. "Without her, it would be impossible to go on."
Standing in the kitchen in one video, Lorna helps puts Ed's belt and gloves on. The two don't speak on camera, but their love is obvious.
"Our love has grown each year of marriage," Lorna said. "I didn't want to just wither in the sorrow of how our life was changing. It took a while to get used to what our life was going to be like but I realized that I needed to be more available to him."
Dobson says he is also more available to her.
"I am no longer a preacher," said Dobson. "Today, I would say I am a Jesus follower. Period."
Lorna said she continues to learn from her husband. Throughout their life together, she said she learned by being in church with him, by raising three kids together and by loving one another.
The last 11 years, however, their love has changed. Dobson's illness has taught her to focus on the important things, she said, primarily their kids and five grandkids.
After tending the garden for decades, Dobson is now being tended himself, largely by Lorna. "ALS forced me into a situation where I grew in understanding of what it means to obey Jesus," Dobson said in the latest film.
"It took me quite a while to find an alternative purpose," he said. "But the good news is out there – there is a purpose for everyone."
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Skyjacker JL36SLSK-SX Suspension Lift Kit w/Shock
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Beyonce talks surprise album, success at NYC event
NEW YORK — Despite all the hard work she put in on the songs and videos from her new album, Beyonce had her doubts minutes before its surprise release.
"I was terrified. I was so scared. I already envisioned like the worst things that could happen," Beyonce said recently at a screening for her new music videos. "I was really nervous because this was a huge risk."
The singer's fifth album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard charts this week after it was released without the public knowing. "Beyonce" sold 617,000 units in the U.S. in a week; it has sold more than 1 million albums worldwide.
The album includes 14 songs and 17 videos, which fans were able to see during the screening at the School of Visual Arts in New York.
Beyonce answered fans' questions via Instagram, including one about her opening up personally on the new album.
"I'm very private and I'm very respectful, and I think it just took me no longer being someone's child — once I became a mother, I felt like I could tear those fourth walls and I just felt like it was time," she said. "I completely feel liberated."
The album features collaborations with her husband Jay Z, Justin Timberlake, Drake and her daughter, Blue Ivy. "Beyonce" is the follow-up to 2011's "4," the first album the singer released on her production company, Parkwood Entertainment, after parting ways professionally with her father-manager, Mathew Knowles.
"I felt like I wanted to follow in the footsteps of Madonna and be a powerhouse and have my own empire," she said to cheers from the crowd. "And (to) show other women when you get to this point in your career, you don't have to go sign with someone else and share your money and your success. You can do it yourself."
The album's unconventional release became one of the year's top pop culture and social media moments. Beyonce, 32, said she became bored in the music industry after her last release, and the new album is a reflection of experimentation and growth.
"Honestly I was at a point where I felt like, you know, everything feels the same ... that's how I felt and if I could not challenge that, then maybe it's time for me to do something else or develop more artists, which is something I want to do," she said. "I just hope that I continue to move forward and challenge myself, and I think now that I've become a mother, I just want my legacy to inspire people."
She added that the goal of the new album was not to produce No. 1 hits, but to showcase her evolution and create her own lane.
"I took all of my insecurities, all of my doubts, all of my fears and everything I've learned over the 17 years and I applied it into this project," she said. "But more than the music — I'm proud of myself as a woman ... the biggest message is owning your imperfections and all the things that make you interesting, because I refuse to allow someone to put me in anyone's box."


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Scarpa Rebel Ultra GTX Review
The Scarpa Rebel Ultra GTX is the latest and most advanced ice and alpine boot. It's also the lightest. Rock and Ice's field test results.
Scarpa Rebel Ultra GTX | $539| scarpa.com | ★★★★★
Last winter, Rock and Ice tested and reviewed the Asolo Eiger, a forward-leaning ice and alpine boot that was lighter, less bulky and more agile than anything out there. The boot was so impressive we gave it a Best In Gear (B.I.G.) award, an accolade as hard-earned as spousal praise.
Now, Scarpa has unveiled the Rebel Ultra GTX, a model that is in the same class as the Eiger, but about four ounces lighter per boot and even trimmer. Caveat: The Rebel is lighter and trimmer because there's no spat over the laces, the rands are shorter, it lacks a conventional tongue, and the upper is all synthetic. The Rebel is also less warm.
I wore the Rebel on a variety of terrain, 39 pitches that included slabby WI 2, vertical WI 5+, overhanging M8 drytooling and traditional mixed. I also hiked a lot, and was out in temperatures below zero.
I've heard the svelte Rebel lauded as having "mixed boot" performance. I wouldn't go that far, but the Rebel does climb closer to a mixed boot than it does a mountaineering boot. It is agile and so light on the foot it doesn't feel at all like a boot. It's more like a shoe. Still, compared to any mixed boot, the Rebel is a step down in performance, as a boot with a crampon clipped to it can never keep up with a shoe and integrated crampon.
For old- and new-school mixed, the Rebel is an excellent choice for someone considering a mixed boot, but who prefers the practicality of being able to remove the crampon to hike or drive or rock climb.
The Rebel did well for me on steep waterfalls. It was plenty rigid provided I cranked down the ankle laces, and toe protection was good. I got very little heel lift. Anyone who has climbed in a traditional leather or double boot will find the Rebel as liberating as sawing a cast off a leg.
Part of the reason the Rebel climbs and feels so good is because it is soft. A carbon-fiber insole makes the boot rigid heel to toe, but the upper is Cordura and Kevlar with a thin layer of insulation. Most interestingly, the boot lacks a conventional gusseted or bellows tongue. Instead, the upper is essentially a mono-sock that you slip on—it's the slipper of the boot world. Because of all the foot-conforming synthetic materials, and because the ankle is also unconventional with floating "wings" instead of a rigid cuff, slipping into the boot is like sliding into the cockpit of an F1 racing machine.
A mid-shin-high, built-in stretchy Gore-Tex gaiter seals around your leg like a hungry remora. A flake of snow turned edgewise could not squeeze past this security system. I like that, but the gaiter makes the boot desperate to pull on, and at times I strained so hard I thought I might rip either the finger loop right off the boot or my fingers right off my hand.
Once the Rebels are on, the wrestling match is behind you, so it isn't a big deal, just something to note if you are expecting a boot that you can quickly slip into. The gaiter is also so snug you will be inclined to keep your pants on the outside. Tucking them into the gaiter is tough, especially with pants that have a bulky crampon-protection patch. This means, if you have pants with wide cuffs, you sometimes can't see your feet as well as you'd like.
I wore the Rebel down to slightly below 0 degrees F and that was pushing it, unless I was active, either climbing or hiking. Down to 10 degrees F (or so) I was usually fine, depending on other conditions such as wind and whether I was standing in deep snow. In Colorado, the Rebel is a four-season boot if you are moving. In colder climes such as Canada, I'd think of the Rebel as a three-season boot. It is warmer than a single boot, but not as warm as a double boot. To be more precise, the insulation in the Rebel seemed about what you would expect from wearing a second pair of thick socks.
I used the BD Stinger crampon and it attached securely although I was worried because the boot sole is so thin at the toe there's scant material to hold a bail. I can see a crampon popping off if it isn't really cranked down—I had mine so tight I could barely engage the heel lever. I also used the crampon toe strap (some people hate these and cut them off) and reefed that down so tight I could feel it through the boot.
The really bad news is that the Rebel is already being discontinued, replaced by a more familiar design, the "Pro." (Look for a review of the Pro in an upcoming issue.) This is, I think, a shame because the Rebel is the most technically advanced boot yet to set foot in the mountains. I guess there just aren't that many climbers willing to try something so outside the box. The good news is that Scarpa is going to keep selling the boot until their inventory is depleted.
ABOUT THE RATING: The Rebel received four out of five possible stars, with one star deducted because it is so blasted hard to put on.
• Lightest technical boot; 1 pound 10 ounces for size 42 (per boot)
• 37-47, 48 (half sizes)
• Unconventional design, with no tongue and a floating ankle.
• Rigid heel to toe, but soft, flexible upper.
• Three-season warmth, but pushable to four-seasons in most lower-48 conditions.
• Recommended for steep ice, alpine ice, traditional mixed and mountaineering.
• European fit on the narrow side, but the boot forms to your foot and can widen with use.


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AP Exclusive: Taliban offer to free US soldier
KABUL, Afghanistan - The Taliban proposed a deal in which they would free a U.S. soldier held captive since 2009 in exchange for five of their most senior operatives at Guantanamo Bay, while Afghan President Hamid Karzai eased his opposition Thursday to joining planned peace talks.
The idea of releasing these Taliban prisoners has been controversial. U.S. negotiators hope they would join the peace process but fear they might simply return to the battlefield, and Karzai once scuttled a similar deal partly because he felt the Americans were usurping his authority.
The proposal to trade U.S. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl for the Taliban detainees was made by senior Taliban spokesman Shaheen Suhail in response to a question during a phone interview with The Associated Press from the militants' newly opened political office in Doha, the capital of the Gulf nation of Qatar.
The prisoner exchange is the first item on the Taliban's agenda before even starting peace talks with the U.S., said Suhail, a top Taliban figure who served as first secretary at the Afghan Embassy in the Pakistani capital of Islamabad before the Taliban government's ouster in 2001.
"First has to be the release of detainees," Suhail said Thursday when asked about Bergdahl. "Yes. It would be an exchange. Then step by step, we want to build bridges of confidence to go forward."
The Obama administration was noncommittal about the proposal, which it said it had expected the Taliban to make.
"We've been very clear on our feelings about Sgt. Bergdahl and the need for him to be released," State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said. "We have not made a decision to ... transfer any Taliban detainees from Guantanamo Bay, but we anticipate, as I've said, that the Taliban will all raise this issue."
Bergdahl, 27, of Hailey, Idaho, is the only known American soldier held captive from the Afghan war. He disappeared from his base in southeastern Afghanistan on June 30, 2009, and is believed held in Pakistan. Suhail said Bergdahl "is, as far as I know, in good condition."
Donna Thibedeau-Eddy, who has spent the last few days at the Idaho home of the soldier's parents, Bob and Jani Bergdahl, said the family was hopeful.
"I was with his Mom and Dad this morning when they got the news of the exchange offer. They were ecstatic," said Thibedeau-Eddy. "They actually saw the news before they got the call from the military. Bob saw it online and said 'Jani, Donna, look at this.'"
While there have been talks before, Bob Bergdahl is putting more faith and hope into the latest developments because it appears the Taliban are taking the initiative, Thibedeau-Eddy said.
Bergdahl's parents received a letter this month from their son through the International Committee of the Red Cross. They did not release details of the letter. The soldier's captivity has been marked by only sporadic releases of videos and information about his whereabouts.
The reconciliation process with the Taliban - seen by most as the only way to end the nearly 12-year war - has been a long and bumpy one.
The U.S. began secret talks with the militants more than two years ago in off-and-on discussions that lasted several months.
The two sides discussed prisoner exchanges and for a brief time it appeared that the five Guantanamo Bay prisoners would be released and sent to Qatar to help further the peace process.
But Karzai, furious that he had not been told of the talks in advance, demanded that the Taliban operatives be returned to Afghanistan rather than Qatar.
Since then, the U.S. has been trying to jumpstart peace talks and the Taliban have made several offers - including sharing power in Kabul. The Taliban have also attended several international conferences and held meetings with representatives of about 30 countries.
Afghan and U.S. officials have said the Taliban being considered for any exchange deal are:
- Mohammad Fazl, a former Taliban chief of army staff and the deputy minister of defense.
- Abdul Haq Wasiq, former Taliban deputy minister of intelligence. He was in direct contact with supreme leader Mullah Mohammed Omar during the Taliban rule, according to military documents.
- Mullah Norullah Nuri , who has been described as one of the most significant former Taliban officials held at Guantanamo. He was a senior Taliban commander in Mazar-e-Sharif and previously was a Taliban governor in two provinces in northern Afghanistan.
- Khairullah Khairkhwa, a former Taliban minister of the interior and military commander. According to military documents, he had direct ties to Mullah Omar and Osama bin Laden and was also a friend of Karzai.
- Mohammed Nabi, former chief of security for the Taliban in Qalat, the capital of the southern province of Zabul.
If the Taliban hold talks with American delegates in the next few days, they will be the first U.S.-Taliban talks in nearly 1½ years.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry was expected in Doha ahead of a conference there scheduled for Saturday on the Syrian civil war. He was not expected to meet with the Taliban although other U.S. officials might in coming days.
On Wednesday in Washington, State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said the U.S. had "never confirmed" any specific meeting schedule with Taliban representatives in Doha.
Prospective peace talks were again thrown into question Wednesday when Karzai became infuriated by the Taliban's move to cast their new office in Doha as a rival embassy.
The Taliban held a ribbon-cutting ceremony Tuesday in which they hoisted their flag and a banner that evoked the name they used while in power more than a decade ago: "Political Office of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan." Later, the Taliban replaced the sign to read simply: "Political office of the Taliban."
At the ceremony, the Taliban welcomed dialogue with Washington but said their fighters would not stop fighting. Hours later, the group claimed responsibility for a rocket attack on Bagram Air Base outside the Afghan capital, Kabul, which killed four American service members.
The U.S. expectation had been that U.S.-Taliban talks would be followed several days later with direct talks between the Taliban and a Karzai peace delegation.
But on Wednesday, Karzai announced that his government would not participate, apparently also angered by the way Kabul had been sidelined in the U.S.-Taliban bid for rapprochement.
The Afghan president also suspended negotiations with the United States on a bilateral security agreement that would cover American troops who will remain behind after the final withdrawal of NATO combat troops at the end of 2014.
That left U.S. officials scrambling to save the talks, and Kerry spoke with Karzai in phone conversations in an effort to bring him back on board.
On Thursday, Karzai spokesman Fayeq Wahidi said the Afghan president is willing to join peace talks with the Taliban if the U.S. follows through with promises he said were made by Kerry over the phone.
Wahidi said Kerry promised Karzai that the Taliban flag and a nameplate with their former regime's name would be removed and that the U.S. would issue a formal written statement supporting the Afghan government and making clear that the Taliban office would not be seen as an embassy or government-in-exile.
"If all those assurances and commitments the U.S. had given, if we are assured that they will be fully put in place on the issue of talks in Qatar," Wahidi said, "we would see no problem in entering into talks with the Taliban in Qatar. "
A decision on whether to restart the U.S. security agreement talks would be made after those assurances, he added, referring further questions to the foreign ministry.
On Thursday, the "Islamic Emirate" nameplate had been removed from the Taliban office. The flagpole inside the compound was apparently shortened and the Taliban flag - dark Quranic script on a white background - was still flying but not visible from the street. Journalists gathered at the office shot images of the flag through the gaps in the walls.
The Taliban have long refused to talk to Karzai's representatives but the opening of the office was seen as a first step toward those meetings.
Suhail said the Taliban are insistent that they want their first interlocutors to be the United States. "First we talk to the Americans about those issues concerning the Americans and us (because) for those issues implementation is only in the hands of the Americans," he said.
"We want foreign troops to be pulled out of Afghanistan," he added. "If there are troops in Afghanistan, then there will be a continuation of the war."
Suhail indicated the Taliban could approve of American trainers and advisers for the Afghan troops, saying that "of course, there is cooperation between countries in other things. We need that cooperation."
He said that once the Taliban concluded talks with the United States, they would participate in all-inclusive Afghan talks.
Suhail ruled out exclusive talks with Karzai's High Peace Council, which has been a condition of the Afghan president, who previously said he wanted talks in Doha to be restricted to his representatives and the Taliban. Instead, the Taliban would talk with all Afghan groups, Suhail said.
"After we finish the phase of talking to the Americans, then we would start the internal phase ... that would include all Afghans," he said. "Having all groups involved will guarantee peace and stability."


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Last year I reviewed my ten favorite moments of 2009, and set some personal goals for 2010. First I would like to see how successful I was at achieving my 2010 goals:
"1. Continue to write more articles. My goal will be to have at least ten articles accepted in 2010 (if not necessarily published during the year, due to editorial lead times). You know what, why sell myself short? Let's make it twenty articles!"
Made some pretty good progress here. In 2010, I had the following articles published in various magazines:
"Social Networking: Unplugged." Discovering Family History. Jan/Feb 2010.
"'Tweet' Your Family History: Using Twitter for Genealogy." Internet Genealogy. Feb/Mar 2010.
"Autopsy of a Death Record: What You Need to Know." Discovering Family History. Mar/Apr 2010.
"Indirect Lineage." Family Chronicle. May/Jun 2010.
"Social Security Applications: What You Need to Know!" Family Chronicle. Jul/Aug 2010.
"Research and Collaborate: MS Live Workspace." Internet Genealogy. Aug/Sep 2010.
"Understanding Passenger Lists." Family Chronicle. Sep/Oct 2010.
"Crafting an Effective Research Plan." Family Chronicle. Nov/Dec 2010.
Two other articles have been accepted, but not yet published. Keep your eyes open!
"2. Become a Certified Genealogist. My "clock" is up at the end of February, and I am steadily working on my portfolio. Hopefully, the results will come back in my favor, to demonstrate my commitment to the highest research standards."
I filed for a year extension, in order to give myself more time to cross the t's, and dot the I's. The clock ends in about a month, so we'll see how quickly I can finish it up, or if another extension is on the horizon. ;(
"3. Present for local historical and genealogical societies, and local conferences…."
I took off like a champion in 2010, presenting 12 times (including two lectures on one of those occasions). I currently have just one lecture scheduled so far in 2011, but if anyone is looking for a lecturer for their genealogical society, library, or other organization, I am available!
"4. Publish a few books. I currently have several books in various stages of planning and completion, including one on the Civil War draft in Maryland (containing the names of over 20,000 free and enslaved men) that will be published within the next month or so."
I didn't finish that Civil War draft book in the "next month or so," but I did finish it in October 2010. I also published two other books, containing transcriptions of the first two registers of the Slave Claims Commissions, for a total of four print books. I also wrote and published an e-book Research Guide for Prince George's County, Maryland, the first of a series of research guides on all of the counties of Maryland.
"5. Publish at least one article in a scholarly journal."
I had one article published in the Maryland Genealogical Society Journal in the April 2010 issue, entitled, "Identifying the Last Slave-Owner of Freedmen in Maryland Using Local Records."
"6. Complete more research into my study on the slaves of Prince George's County, Maryland. My notes currently contain the names and final owners of over 6,000 slaves. I want to flesh out the details of the lives of many of these people this year."
I was able to finish extracting information on the slaves identified in two of the Prince George's County Register of Wills Inventory Books. Where possible, I have matched these slaves from the estate inventories with later records.
"7. Publish my Examiner.com column more often. Since 22 April 2009, when the first article was published, I have published 79 articles. This is an average of 1 article every 3 or so days. I will try to bring that average up to about 1 article every 2 or so days."
I won't even try to calculate the average. I know it went down.
"8. Contribute more often to my Genealogy Trails websites for Maryland: Prince George's Co., Charles Co., and St. Mary's Co."
In the springtime, due to time restraints, I made the decision to give up administration of these Genealogy Trails websites. However, I would like to recommend the sites to all researchers—don't just check them for information on your families, but please contribute as well. These volunteers work very hard to make information available online at no cost.
"9. Find a good balance between professional/client research, and research for personal publishing projects. …"
Due to uncontrollable circumstances, I am now a full-time, self-employed professional genealogist. This change has forced the balance to shift to much more client research, in order to pay the bills. However, this has so far been a great experience, and is providing many more projects for use in case studies, etc., as well as the income that it provides directly. Somehow I have also made the time to work on publishing projects, etc., publishing four books in 2010, with at least three more coming in the first quarter of 2011.
"10. Continue to explore new and innovative sources for revenue based in genealogical and historical research. If my desire to become self-employed in this field, then I will have to be able to generate enough income to support myself and my family."
See #9. Still looking and still working.


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Penn Museum rediscovers ancient skeleton in storage
PHILADELPHIA – An archaeology museum in Philadelphia has made an extraordinary find – in its own storage rooms.
The University of Pennsylvania's Penn Museum announced this week it had rediscovered a 6,500-year-old human skeleton originally excavated from southern Iraq around 1930.
The complete remains, which had been kept in a coffin-like box, were missing documentation until researchers recently began digitizing the museum's collection from an expedition to Ur, an ancient city near modern-day Nasiriyah.
Project manager William Hafford was matching archaeological objects with inventory lists from the Sumerian trek when he came across a description of a full skeleton that he couldn't find.
He consulted Janet Monge, chief curator of physical anthropology, who happened to know of an unlabeled, mystery skeleton in the facility's basement storage area.
"So we went, found the crate, opened it up and compared it to the field notes and the field photographs, and we had a match," Hafford said.
The body is believed to be that of a well-muscled man at least 50 who stood 5 feet, 9 inches tall, according to Monge. She hopes a skeletal analysis, possibly including a CT scan, will reveal more about his diet, stresses, diseases and ancestral origins.
Complete human skeletons from that era – known as the Ubaid period, from 5500-4000 B.C. – are rare, partly because the region's burial practices and type of land didn't lead to good preservation, Monge said.
The skeleton was cut into deep silt, indicating that the man had lived after an epic flood. That led Penn researchers to nickname their re-discovery "Noah."
Scholars from the Ivy League university teamed up with researchers from the British Museum in 1922 for a dig led by Sir Leonard Woolley. Half of the objects found over the next 12 years at Ur were sent to the National Museum of Iraq in Baghdad, while the other half was split between London and Philadelphia.
Hafford and his counterparts in Britain are now working to digitize their share of the collection. They hope curators in Baghdad will eventually do the same, but coordination with officials in the war-torn nation has been difficult, Hafford said.
Coincidentally, in June, researchers at Bristol University in Britain discovered a box of materials from the same Ur expedition on top of a cupboard. Researchers determined the objects were 4,500 years old, including pottery, seeds, carbonized apple rings and animal bones.
No one knows how the box got to Bristol, which had no connection to the Woolley dig.
Monge said it's not uncommon for a research institution like the Penn Museum – which is filled with hundreds of thousands of objects, from the smallest pottery shard to enormous totem poles – to have question marks surrounding the origins of some items.
"I have quite a few specimens that are cold case, orphaned museum collections," Monge said. "So that gives us the fun enterprise of going back and sleuthing through all of the archival material and trying to identify them as best as we can."


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Four arraigned on drug charges
Three of the four individuals arrested Monday in a multi-county, six-agency drug investigation have now been arraigned on charges of drug trafficking and drug possession.
Paul Allan Anderson, 31, of Jackson, Mich., appeared Thursday in Emmet County 90th District Court along with Darryl Deshawn Atkins, 34, of Detroit. The pair were apprehended by Michigan State Police from the Gaylord Post in connection with drug activity in Emmet County's Carp Lake Township and Bear Creek Township.
Anderson and Atkins are each charged with two counts of delivery of a controlled substance/ cocaine. Anderson is also accused of maintaining a drug house and driving with a suspended license, and will be tried as a three-time habitual offender. Atkins is being charged as a two-time habitual offender.
The Emmet County arrests followed a request from agents of the Straits Area Narcotics Enforcement team, commonly known as SANE, for area law enforcement to be on the lookout for a suspect vehicle. Troopers from the Gaylord Michigan State Police Post spotted the car and found crack cocaine, powder cocaine, marijuana, cash and digital scales.
An as-yet unidentified 33-year-old Cheboygan man is scheduled for arraignment Friday on a nine-count felony warrant that includes two counts of delivery of heroin, one count of delivery of crack cocaine, possession with intent to deliver methadone, possession with intent to deliver marijuana, possession of heroin, possession of Adderall, maintaining a drug house and maintaining a drug vehicle.
The Cheboygan suspect was taken into custody following a traffic stop in Cheboygan and allegedly found in possession of methadone and heroin. Police then obtained a search warrant to search the man's Mackinaw Avenue apartment and say they found marijuana, Adderall, cash and digital scales.
Also arraigned Wednesday in Cheboygan County 89th District Court was 21-year-old Kristin Fast of Honor, Mich., arrested at a motel room in Mackinaw City during the execution of a search warrant. Fast is facing charges of possession of marijuana and maintaining a drug house. She is currently on probation for a charge of controlled substance/morphine.
Fast is being held on a $10,000 cash or surety bond in Cheboygan and bonds for Anderson and Atkins have been set in Emmet County at $150,000 and $100,000 each.
SANE was assisted by police in Cheboygan, Mackinaw City and Petoskey, Michigan State Police and the Cheboygan County Sheriff's Department.
Two vehicles used to transport the drugs were seized by SANE, a news release states.


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Stockman Bank to help federal employees during shutdown
The Laurel Outlook
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September/October 2009 Editorial: Home Energys New Compilation of Articles
Posted by Alan Meier on September 10, 2009
But this editorial is more than just an advertisement, it's an opportunity for introspection. Viewing all of the Home Energy articles in various forms of organization is a wonderful way of reflecting on the topics that we covered and what we should cover in future issues. That's why I was intrigued to discover that we published only sixteen articles related to diagnostics. Sixteen is surely more than any other source but you can't manage what you can't measure. The home energy industry needs better tools to assess energy-saving opportunities and evaluate successes and failures. We will redouble our efforts to report on the effectiveness of new and existing diagnostic procedures.
I hadn't realized how heavily we covered water in all its forms—hot, cold, grey, fresh, and flushed—until I scanned "W" in the index. Once there I was immediately transported (via one mouse-click) to an outstanding article on low-flush toilets whose coverage far exceeded anything done by Consumer Reports, while providing technical background that energy auditors need. Then there was the sobering photo essay of dangerous water heaters found by the Kansas City weatherization crews to remind us that energy-saving retrofits can also remove hazards. Meanwhile we haven't gotten around to covering the electricity consumption of those enormously popular tankless gas water heaters.
Refrigerators received much less attention in the 21st century, scoring just five articles. This reflects the astounding success that minimum efficiency standards have had in reducing the electricity use of modern refrigerators, which falls below the consumption of several models of television set-top boxes (also five articles).
Motors are responsible for over half of the nation's electricity use, so why did we publish only three articles about motors? Most residential motors are built into refrigerators, air conditioners, and fans. But we need to devote more space to motors and motor applications. Expect, for example, an article on residential elevators (where the United States trails behind Italy and Japan in the number of installations).
You wouldn't know that a revolution in "smart" meters is occurring by reading the pages of Home Energy because we published only five articles on meters. But perhaps this reflects our skepticism—well, my skepticism—of the value of smart meters. Right now we see dozens of companies offering technologies in search of a solution. None of them have produced anything that bridges the needs of consumers and utilities in a form that people will actually want to use for more than a month. I expect that, sooner or later, friendly interfaces will appear and you can be sure that we will cover them because facilitating energy-saving behavior is typically the most cost-effective investment around. At the same time, we have watched how wattmeters have become cheaper, more accurate, and equipped with more features. Every energy auditor should have a couple of them. We plan to review these meters soon.
I urge you to buy the 2000–2008 compilation. You will rediscover many valuable articles. At the same time, please tell us what topics you want us to cover. One category of articles that you won't find in the collection are my editorials. Maybe the compilers will include them next time after I write something useful.
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