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"The Alchemists" digs into central banks & crisis
Book Review: Reporter's inside view of role of key players in fire control
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- Written by Ed Blount
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- Comments: DISQUS_COMMENTS
Early in 2010, when financial regulatory reform in the form of the Dodd-Frank Act was still a work in progress, Dallas Fed President Richard Fisher told a visiting congressman, "I just lent $10,000 to a bank in your district last night."
The congressman's visit had been prompted by his anger over the Fed's bailout of the Wall Street banks. And he had just endorsed Ron Paul's proposed "Audit the Fed" legislation.
"Would you have wanted to be involved in that decision?" Fisher challenged the congressman. "Because effectively, if you are going to do what you signed on to with the Ron Paul bill, you are going to be involved in that decision and making monetary policy."
Washington Post reporter and blogger Neal Irwin, who relates this anecdote in his recently released The Alchemists: Three Central Bankers and A World on Fire, reports that "the congressman was startled--he had no idea that the Fed was so deeply involved in the routine operations of local banks."
Behind-the-scenes view of crisis reactions
As the Post's beat reporter for the Federal Reserve, Irwin was near the pulse of decisions that vaulted the central bankers out of the financial trade journals and into the spotlight of popular media.
Irwin claims to have had access to the inner circles of central bankers, as suggested by his recitation of a February 2010 meeting of Chairman Fred Bernanke and his key aides to consider their options in the Dodd-Frank reform legislation. As he tells it, Governor Daniel Tarullo was pointedly excluded from the meeting. According to Irwin, Governor Tarullo was being marginalized because, "with his single-minded interest in the big banks, he had hijacked the Fed's message on Capitol Hill" and was willing to concede the smaller banks to another regulator.
Throughout The Alchemists, both American and European elected officials are portrayed as never having understood the role of unelected central banks in containing the 2008 credit crisis--much less how they may have contributed to its cause. It's an easy criticism, and one that may not be entirely unfair.
If The Alchemists gains appeal among financial executives and central bank historians--though perhaps not among policy makers--the book will do so by presenting a context for decisions made during events so fast-moving that even those at the highest levels, with the best contemporaneous intelligence, were operating with fragmentary knowledge.
History contrasted with contemporary reporting
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In that way, The Alchemists is set in the style of The Lords of Finance, Liaquat Ahamed's 2009 book about the story of the central banks in the decades up to the Depression. However, unlike that well-documented history, Irwin's sources are anonymous legislative and central bank staffers, often speaking after the fact. His secondary sources are generally other journalists, also citing anonymous sources. If you're okay with that lack of substantiation, the book provides an interesting addition to any banker's library of the recent critical past.
Irwin's canny portrayals are virtual holograms of the men and women cast as lead actors in the most compelling financial drama of our time. In one example, Irwin describes a May 2011 meeting of senior officials to decide Greece's future in the Eurozone. The bankers were to meet in a secret Luxembourg location. However, just as ECB president Jean-Claude Trichet arrived, German news magazine Der Speigel suddenly revealed the meeting's existence.
"Trichet was furious," writes Irwin. "A publicly announced meeting would create expectations in the market that some major policy announcement was on the way-- and commensurate disappointment if one wasn't made." After Trichet immediately left, refusing to take part in any discussions, reporters were told that there had never been a meeting. It was a misleading, but technically accurate statement, defended by an anonymous staffer who said, in the way that bureaucrats use to justify almost anything: "We had Wall Street open at the time. There was a very good reason to deny that the meeting was taking place."
While it's well known that central bankers use communiqués or silence--at the least-- to tweak expectations among the public, Irwin tells us that similar "subtleties" are endemic among the central bankers themselves.
That summer, when the Greek meltdown threatened to spread contagion to the Italian banking system, Trichet sent a secret letter to then-Prime Minister Silvio Burlesconi outlining the reforms needed to qualify Italian bonds for the European Central Bank's quantitative easing program.
After intense negotiations, a press conference was held to outline the terms of the support program. Even among the official group, a certain level of duplicity was understood to be factored into the agreement. Despite the promises and assurances made in "private communications" among officials, Irwin quotes a senior staffer as saying, "What counted was what was said publicly. You can trust only the public commitment."
From a literary standpoint, The Alchemists presents the crisis as something of a modern Greek tragedy (pun intended), as played out within the Washington, D.C. conference room of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors and the London and Frankfurt board rooms of the Bank of England and European Central Bank. Irwin channels Euripides in showing the human faces beneath the Olympian stage (perhaps too human a portrayal for some official readers), painting senior public servants as stressed out and demanding cooperation, with expletives not deleted.
For instance, Irwin shows President Obama's then-Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel as telling Deputy Treasury Secretary Neal Wolin to "Sit down and start ________ typing" in order to craft a financial reform bill just a few weeks before an international summit in April 2009. Later, Irwin describes staffers of the Senate Banking Committee being so appalled at the central bank's virtually unlimited power to create money that they refer to the Ron Paul bill in the most unflattering terms in relation to the Fed. (We'll leave actual quotation of their terms to the book.)
The human side, without technical details
The Alchemists is essentially a series of character studies framed against the shock of the global crisis and the fatigue of the ensuing financial reform negotiations. The book offers no charts, tables, or figures to detract from the narrative about the stresses on the central bankers. Irwin glides past these inside-baseball complexities and purports instead to expose the hot-stove politics of the three key powers: the Fed, European Central Bank, and Bank of England, with a supporting role for the International Monetary Fund.
Unfortunately, the book is not a complete record of the crisis and its aftermath. There were crucial episodes and debates that evidently failed to capture Irwin's attention.
Except for describing the congressional horse-trading over the Fed's post-crisis regulatory role, Irwin fails to describe how Dodd-Frank was a response to the events that led to the crisis or its aftermath.
For instance, no mention is made that the critically important Section 13(3) lending authority used by the Fed to save Lehman's beleaguered counterparties was later restricted in the reform legislation to an indirect liquidity facility. In any future crisis, the Fed will only be able to inject funds into a market, not directly into its participants. Clearly, a majority of elected representatives have disagreed with the Fed's actions in that regard--though the entire debate appears nowhere in the book.
Irwin also omits any mention of the Fed's 2009 stress tests, while both Chairman Bernanke and Professor Alan Blinder--former Fed vice-chairman--have cited these as the turning point in the acute phase of the crisis. Similarly, Irwin makes no mention of the alleged LIBOR rate fixing by UK banks, which brought down bankers previously regarded as Olympian figures, and which has now become the third wave in litigation threatening to engulf the global banks.
Despite these omissions, Irwin has produced a valuable contribution to the record of the forces that will help create the new world of banking and finance in the 21st Century. His conclusion is hard to dispute: "Their successors will learn from their failures. Democratic societies entrust central bankers with vast power because some things are so important yet so technically complex that we can't really put them to a vote. We're wrong to expect perfection. But we must expect progress."
Most, if not all financial crises are followed by intense emotional reactions, which foster a misunderstanding of complex causes and usually lead to a wave of new legislation, regulation, and litigation. Not to be outdone, publishers fill up shop (and online) racks with books whose authors assign culpability quickly and easily. Unlike those hot-press tabloids, Irwin's book largely avoids substantive criticism of the central bankers. That said, his depiction of Bank of England Governor Mervyn King's allegedly vacuous detachment during the early days of the crisis will no doubt rankle readers at Threadneedle Street, the Bank's headquarters. Whether true, or an example of behind-the-scenes character assassination planted with Irwin by a rival of Sir Mervyn, The Alchemists delivers a lightweight retrospective to readers who presumably have more technical analyses already in their professional bookshelves.
No doubt, The Alchemists will find its place in many libraries next to the works of other journalists, such as Too Big to Fail by The New York Times' Andrew Ross Sorkin, The Devil's Casino by Vanity Fair's Vicky Ward, and Reckless Endangerment by The New York Times' Gretchen Morgenson.
A long line of post-crisis retelling continues
For a more academic treatment, liberal-minded readers will likely turn to Princeton professor Alan Blinder's own After the Music Stopped, while conservatives will refer to Stanford professor John Taylor's First Principles.
Technocrats and apologists for the central bankers will start with Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's own 2012 Lectures at George Washington University, then move across the pond to former U.K. Financial Services Authority chief Howard Davies' The Financial Crisis: Who is to Blame, along with former U.K. Chancellor of the Exchequer Alistair Darling's Back from the Brink.
Yet, it should be said that all these should be stacked loosely on bookshelves--as we are unlikely to have seen the last publishing venture on the crisis.
If you'd like to review books for our online book column, or have recently read a book that you found helpful that we haven't already reviewed, please e-mail [email protected]
Tagged under Books for Bankers,


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In that same vein, I hope to apply that same kind of pressure
to the owners in all of my leagues by beating my opponents to
the punch in regards to personnel moves. Sometimes, reaching a
conclusion about a player too quickly is much like trying to blitz
Peyton Manning – dangerous and painful. However, coming
to a correct conclusion two weeks or two minutes quicker than
your opponents is considered foresight. Fantasy owners can be
a uneasy lot, knowing that one two-or-three-game losing streak
can wreak irreparable damage to his/her team's chances to
make a visit to the fantasy postseason. But just as it is in the
NFL and in life, it's hard to land the big prize by playing
scared. Thus, I will strive each week to help each of you become
a smart blitzer, so to speak.
During the time of year when good eating is just as important
as smart gift giving, the fantasy playoffs can be considered akin
to a three-course meal spread out over three weeks. Week 14 is
the appetizer stage - not everybody is required to attend or even
wants to show up at this point, instead hoping to save themselves
for later feasting. Other people see appetizers as a way to set
the stage for a complete meal. However, as tasty and appealing
as they can be, no one wants to fill up on appetizers because,
in all likelihood, better things await.
Now, if owners want to get in on the fantasy feast during the
holiday season, just about everyone has to join the table in time
for the entree in Week 15. For those owners who survived-and-advanced
past the first round of their league's playoffs, the challenge
of overcoming the next stage is likely a bit more difficult as
the portion on your plate likely just got a lot bigger. Unless
your opponent managed to secure a first-round bye due to a great
start to the season and limped into the postseason with a plethora
of injuries or players performing poorly, the chances that an
owner cruises through this part of the meal without a little discomfort
at the end are small. But if the meal is good up to this point,
there is no way you are selling yourself short - that last bite
is going down, consequences be damned.
Week 16, as you may have guessed, is the dessert part of the
fantasy meal. All your efforts leading up to the dinner table
and during the meal have led you to this point, that is, where
you get to reward yourself for your ability to conquer the impossible
full plate by allowing yourself a sugar high. Some people are
happy just to get to this point, but not you or me. After all,
we've been focused on this day of the year for some time now,
so we aren't going to let a little thing like a full stomach keep
us from finding room for the final piece of pie.
Whether this lead-in has sent you scrambling to your fridge or
leaves you hungry for more (pun intended, I guess), the point
of it all is that while it is fun just to mix good eats with good
company, it's hard to settle for just one or two parts of the
meal when you can have all three courses with some planning and
good fortune. With any luck, hopefully, some of the tidbits I
have provided you over the course of this season have helped you
set up your "plan" to this point. But very few plans
come out just the way we envisioned them in the beginning, so
it seems about right that I do my due diligence and help you out
the best way I can with the "good fortune" part of the
For every team whose roster has two healthy and productive no-brainer
RB options, 2-3 stud WRs and elite QB/TE plays at this point,
congrats. In all of my years of playing fantasy football, I have
trouble recalling a single team in which I went wire-to-wire with
essentially the same team. More often than not, fantasy teams
that win the title in highly competitive leagues generally do
so because they "survived" the playoffs, not because
they dominated them. What do I mean? Quite likely, we have to
count on "unlikely heroes" - players who may have actually
started the season on the practice squad or been labeled as disappointments
- to carry us through the final few weeks of the season.
Therefore, much as I did last week,
I will spend my time this week identifying unsuspecting players/defenses
who I believe could emerge as the "fantasy darling"
for that week. Each player/defense will be owned
in less than a third of all leagues. (I'm using the % owned from
ESPN.com leagues as of December 15.) I settled on 33% primarily
because I'm working under the assumption that most readers of
this column don't have the luxury of plucking Jonathan Stewart
off the waiver wire at this point of the season. It should
also be noted that all recommendations are based on PPR scoring.
So, without further ado, the Unsuspecting Stars of Week 15...
Good news for Campbell: The Giants have
become a sieve against the pass.
Jason Campbell
(vs. Giants) After talking about Campbell in this spot last week,
I won't spend a great deal of time on him. His Week 15 opponent-
the New York Giants - is much better than it appears and should
be someone to consider for fantasy owners with non-elite QB options.
After a great start to the season, the Giants have become a sieve
against the pass - allowing the third-most fantasy points/game
to QBs over the last three and five weeks. Over the last two weeks,
Campbell has turned Devin Thomas into a late-season fantasy option
and Fred Davis into a somewhat reliable TE play with scores in
three straight games. Defenses still must respect Santana Moss
and new starting RB Quinton Ganther showed last week he is a capable
receiver as well. So while the black-and-blue reputation of the
Giants (and the NFC East in general) may scare off some owners,
it should be noted that only Washington has the defense that each
of its division rivals envy. Thus, feel free to trust Campbell
this week if you felt comfortable with him last week, as I did.
Chad Henne
(@ Titans) I'd much rather recommend a Titans' QB here, but Vince
Young's hamstring injury makes the thought of playing him or Kerry
Collins dicey at best this week. Therefore, I am forced to turn
to the other sideline and give a slight nod to the fast-improving
second-year Dolphins signal-caller. While Tennessee ranks as the
third-most favorable defense for opposing fantasy QBs this season,
it has been the sixth-best unit over the last five weeks. While
I admit it would take a pretty desperate owner to put Henne in
your lineup this week, I certainly would play him over the likes
of players such as Josh Freeman or Brady Quinn (perhaps in two-QB
leagues) just because of the matchup. Here's why: what the Dolphins
lack in terms of quality WRs, they make up for in quantity. Over
the last month, Davone Bess has started to emerge as a quasi-WR1
for the team, but in recent weeks, Henne has come to trust Brian
Hartline and Greg Camarillo as well. Because Ricky Williams should
have a difficult time with Tennessee's eighth-ranked rush defense,
Henne will probably be responsible for Miami�s ability touchdowns
this week the few times the Dolphins get into scoring position.
I don't anticipate much more than 210 yards and a score, but again,
he should provide a usable fantasy point total if you find yourself
in a truly desperate spot at the QB position.
Running Backs
Arian Foster (@ Rams) You have to hand it to HC Gary Kubiak.
When he decides to make a change at RB, he seems to give that
back a chance against a team in which he should be able to succeed.
What do I mean? When Steve Slaton lost his fifth fumble of the
season in Week 8, Kubiak turned to Ryan Moats against Buffalo's
league-worst rushing defense (at the time) and he promptly went
off for 151 total yards and three scores. With any luck, Part
2 of this drama may be coming just in time for desperate fantasy
owners as the coach is "fixing to pick it up big-time for
Foster" with a contest on deck against the 28th-ranked rush
defense of the Rams in Week 15. With Slaton on IR, Chris Brown
had been named the de facto starter, but that seemed like a place-filler
move for Kubiak, and after three carries in Week 14, that appears
to be the case. Of course, as luck would have it, Moats apparently
picked up on a bit of his predecessor�s ball-handling issues
(fumbling for the second time in three games of which he has played
and contributed to the box score). On a team that has shuffled
through its backs like Houston has this season, nothing is set
in stone and certainly Kubiak isn't the most committed coach when
it comes to sticking with the run or a particular RB for that
matter, so he's certainly a gamble at this point of the season.
However, the matchup is so juicy and Foster's pedigree is good
enough - especially for an undrafted free agent - that I would
be willing to roll with him over several established starting
NFL RBs this week.
Kevin Faulk
(@ Bills) If there is a Rodney Dangerfield (someone who gets no
respect, for the younger crowd) among likely free agent RBs available
each year, it has be Faulk. PPR leaguers already know Faulk is
a great end-of-the-roster filler, but he has always been a RB
that has gotten the most out of his limited touches. We all know
the drill with Patriots RBs (and last week's 38 carries by New
England RBs was definitely a one-time deal), but if there has
been one constant over the years with the Pats� runners, it has
been Faulk. His chances of putting a huge number in your fantasy
box score are extremely remote from week-to-week, but at this
point of the season, fantasy owners are quite often searching
for a RB who won't hang them with a bagel (right Chris Brown?)
or near bagel (are you listening, Jerome Harrison?); this from
supposed starters on players' real teams. (For what it's worth,
I don't hold Brown or Harrison near as accountable for last week's
sorry performances as I do their coaches, but I digress.) The
Bills and their fifth-ranked pass defense are next on the schedule
for the Patriots and given the state of New England passing game
right now - more specifically, the fact that Bill Belichick revealed
that Tom Brady was a true game-time decision last week - it may
be wise for the AFC East leaders to take the same run-heavy approach
they did last week vs. the Panthers' sixth-ranked pass defense.
In that scenario, Faulk could push 12-15 touches, which is more
than enough for him to put up 75-90 total yards.
Wide Receivers
Jenkins (@ Jets) Don't let your WRs mess with Darrelle Revis.
As the owners of Randy Moss, Andre Johnson, Marques Colston and
Steve Smith could tell you, when the Jets are the next team on
the schedule, you should actually consider benching your WR1.
Unfortunately for Roddy
White owners, Week 15 is that week for you. The Jets are one
of the few teams in the NFL that actually have their best CB shadow
the opponent's best WR and, needless to say, Revis has absolutely
locked up the opposition in 2009 with some of the best CB play
the league has seen since Deion Sanders and Aeneas Williams were
in their primes. While he's not at that level yet, he is the league's
best cover CB and has already proven time and again he will shut
down even the best WRs in the game. Because Tony Gonzalez won't
carry the passing game by himself, someone else will almost certainly
produce to fill the void left by White�s likely poor numbers.
Because the Falcons lack any kind of receiving options behind
Jenkins right now, he almost will be forced to catch the ball
by default. Considering how little attention receivers behind
Jenkins on the depth chart get from Matt Ryan and (now) Chris
Redman, there's about an 80% chance that Jenkins will be the most
productive Falcons' WR this week. Bear in mind � like most of
the names in this article - that Jenkins is only a play I would
make this week in a deep three-WR PPR league, but White owners
(or other owners desperate for WR help) could be excused for benching
him for his teammate this week.
Get this man the ball!
Cribbs (@ Chiefs) (Seriously, how many more players this decade
are we going to see from Kent St. emerge as explosive players
after playing another position - or sport - during his college
career? Cribbs and the Patriots' Julian Edelman both played QB
for the Golden Flashes during their time in Ohio and we all know
about Antonio Gates by now.) According to recent reports, there
could be some doubt whether the Browns' most explosive player
will actually qualify as a wide receiver much longer. At 6-1 and
215 pounds, Cribbs is a glorified return man with receiver speed
and quickness in a running back's body. That sure sounds a lot
like someone who should be seeing the ball more than anyone else
on the Browns' offense to me. Apparently the Browns agree, suggesting
they will contemplate moving Cribbs to running back full-time.
Position switches rarely ever go smoothly, but Cribbs' ability
to return punts at an elite level speak to his vision, explosiveness
and ability to work in space while his time as a receiver suggests
he can catch the ball and run routes. For now, we'll table the
future and focus on the present, which for the Browns includes
a game vs. Kansas City in Week 15. With the success Cleveland
had out of the "Wildcat" vs. Pittsburgh last week, plan on another
heavy dose of the running game (and Cribbs in the formation) against
a Kansas City defense that has struggled to stop the run all season
long. For those of you who receive bonus points for out-of-position
stats, Cribbs should already be on a roster, but if he is still
available, change that right now.
Tight Ends
Note: Jermichael
Finley and Fred
Davis are obvious pickups if available. Again, I'm assuming
that TEs with two-TD capability don�t stay around very long on
the waiver wire, nor should they.
Evan Moore
(@ Chiefs) I'm going to do something here most people wouldn't
think of doing in 2009 (or just about any other year this decade)
- give the Browns credit for quickly recognizing they have something
in this former practice squader and ex-college WR who doubled
as a basketball player at Stanford. Less than a month after Cleveland
signed him to the practice squad, the Browns did not waste much
time in bringing him onto the active roster as the team quickly
realized that no defender seemed to be able to guard Moore with
any kind of regularity in practice. So far, he has carried that
ability to separate from his defender pretty well to gameday as
Moore has eight catches for 114 yards in just two contests. No
one is going to mistake Brady Quinn as a franchise QB or the Browns
as an offensive juggernaut anytime soon, but Cleveland's current
starting QB does like to find his TE (17 targets in two weeks)
and he has matchups against Kansas City and Oakland over the final
two weeks of the fantasy playoffs. Even though the Raiders (Week
16) had been stingy vs. opposing TEs, Fred Davis didn�t have much
trouble gouging Oakland for a pair of scores last week. This week's
opponent - the Chiefs - have been very inconsistent at guarding
the TE this season and allowed seven double-digit fantasy point
performances to the position in 2009. Understand that Moore would
be a desperate play - to say the least - considering his meteoric
rise from practice squader to starter, but given the caliber of
upcoming opponents and his two-game track record of targets, he's
a decent bet to meet the expectations I had last month for James
Bo Scaife
(vs. Dolphins) Scaife is one of several repeat visitors to this
column, but he really shouldn't be. In traditional PPR leagues,
Scaife is tied for seventh among TEs with Brent Celek, Antonio
Gates and Finley with 21 targets over the last three games. Perhaps
more surprisingly, Scaife is eighth among all TEs - ahead of Celek
- with 12.2 fantasy points/game over that same amount of time.
Those nuggets should be all the convincing you need to find some
room in your starting lineup for Scaife, who has the pleasure
of going up against Miami's middle-of-the-road defense vs. TEs
this season. While Chris Johnson will continue to get his yards,
the Dolphins are one of the better run defenses in the league,
so Vince Young (if healthy) or Kerry Collins will probably need
to look in the direction of Scaife and Alge
Crumpler fairly often. Scaife is always a bad bet for a touchdown
(making him a poor play in non-PPR), but he's become the master
of the four-catch, 40-yard game, which qualifies him as a more-than-serviceable
PPR play for any owner getting tired of the inconsistency of higher-profile
options such as Greg Olsen or Visanthe Shiancoe.
Mare (vs. Bucs) Any owner that took my
recommendation on Jay Feely last week can already vouch for
what a kicker can do against the Bucs� defense. Among other things,
the best bet for a kicker's success in fantasy is playing for
a respectable offense that struggles when it finds its way into
the red zone, no matter who the opponent might be. Even better
if that week's foe has a struggling defense - like the Bucs. Since
HC Jim Mora blasted his kicker in the media following his two
misses in Week 3, Mare has yet to miss a field goal attempt. Prior
to Seattle's team-wide poor effort vs. Houston last week, Mare
had scored eight or more fantasy points in four of the team's
last five games. While he has yet to kick a 50-yarder this season,
Mare is 5-for-6 from 40-49 yards and has the leg for more. Also
note that he is hitting a career-high 91.3% of his attempts and,
like his team, has been a beast at home. The fact Nate Burleson
might miss this week (and probably more) only lessens the chances
Seattle will find success inside the end zone, meaning more field
goal opportunities could be in the offing for Mare.
Ryan Succop
(vs. Browns) Understand that kicker recommendations at this point
of the season are only for those owners who may still be inexplicably
rolling with Nick Folk or those people who like to tempt fate.
Either way, I like my kickers to convert when given a chance (19-23
FG, 19-19 XP) and have a big leg (seven kicks over 40 yards; two
over 50). Even though he is only a rookie and probably best known
for being this draft's "Mr. Irrelevant", Succop meets both of
those qualifications and gets a matchup in Week 15 vs. Cleveland,
which has allowed the fourth-most points to kickers this season.
Just as any owner would before a game for any other player, make
sure to check the wind and weather forecast for Arrowhead Stadium.
Also keep in mind that with Dwayne Bowe returning from suspension
and Jamaal Charles establishing himself as a threat on the ground
defenses must respect, the Chiefs have an outside shot at become
a decent resource for fantasy owners in the not-so-distant future.
Certainly, there�s nothing to indicate there is going to be an
offensive explosion in Kansas City this week, but I have a feeling
the Chiefs will enjoy a bit more offensive success than did the
Steelers did in Week 14.
Seattle Seahawks
(vs. Bucs) The 'Hawks return home this week, which means it is
time for them to pull their Jekyll-and-Hyde home-road act. Qwest
Field presents an incredible home field advantage in terms of
crowd noise and location (many of Seattle's opponents must cross
two time zones to play there), but when a team is plus-54 and
winning by average of nine points at home as opposed to a minus-105
away from home and losing by an average of 15 points/game, it
suggests they just really aren�t all that tough-minded. This week,
however, Seattle doesn't have to worry about boarding a plane
and, instead, gets to welcome Tampa Bay. Sure, Josh Freeman has
shown the ability to sink a defense like the Seahawks, but Bucs
HC Raheem Morris is reportedly looking to scale back some things
with his rookie QB after a rough couple weeks. Obviously, I would
hope that owners thought about their fantasy defense for the playoffs
long before now, but at this point, one could do worse than a
unit that has held three of its six opponents to three points
or less at home and only surrendering 15 points/game at Qwest
Field. Want further proof as to why the Seahawks are a pretty
good play this week? Seattle has recorded 15 of its 29 sacks,
seven of its nine fumbles and seven of its 11 interceptions at
home this season.
Houston Texans
(@ Rams) It's rarely ever a good idea to double-dip, but the Texans
should be good for another spin this week after blasting the Seahawks
in Week 14. Why? The answer is simple: when a bad team loses an
average QB, they must turn to a lesser QB (typically, this is
how it works anyway). Suffice it to say that Kyle Boller and Keith
Null qualify as "lesser QBs" at this point in time. Throw in the
fact that Steven Jackson is not practicing anymore and is less
than 100% now with his back acting up and it's not hard to see
why the Rams are a poor offensive team. Rams rookie RT Jason Smith
remains out with his concussion and RG Richie Incognito was released
by the team on Tuesday after a pair of head butt on the field
resulted in two personal fouls, which led to a short discussion
and second-half benching by HC Steve Spagnuolo shortly thereafter.
All this is to suggest that either LDE Antonio
Smith should have a field day or Mario
Williams will have a field day if the Texans choose to give
the former No. 1 overall pick an opportunity to make his annual
late-season run against a depleted right side of the Rams� offensive
e-mail me with any questions/comments.
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subset: commoncrawl


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Denver Police Puzzled by Murders, Arson at Local Bar
(DENVER) -- Denver police are puzzled by the late-night murder of four women and a man inside a bar that was then set on fire.
Fero's Bar & Grill erupted into flames early Wednesday morning shortly before closing time following a quiet night of drinking and poker, according to bar patrons. As firefighters battled the flames, they pulled five individuals from the fire, all of whom were dead and showed signs of traumatic homicide, police said Wednesday afternoon.
Authorities are asking bar patrons or witnesses to come forward with any information about how the homicides may have occurred. The police are currently canvassing the neighborhood seeking surveillance video, and are processing some tips, according to police chief Robert White.
"We'd like to think it's an isolated incident but we can't say that with any certainty," White said at a press conference Wednesday afternoon. "It's very alarming, that 's why it's important we investigate it to the fullest."
Police believe all of the individuals were killed by some sort of trauma before the fire began, and did not die in the fire, they said.
"More than likely [this was] an attempt to conceal the homicide with an arson," Denver police commander Ron Saunier said.
Denver Fire Lt. Phil Champagne said there was extensive fire damage in the bar, and speculated that the fire would have been difficult to survive if the victims had not already died, according to ABC News affiliate KMGH.
The names of the individuals have not been released by the coroner's office.
Champagne said the fire department received a call around 1:50 a.m. about a fire at the bar. The bar typically closes at 2 a.m., according to police.
Bar patron Tim Johnson told KMGH that the bar was quiet Tuesday night, as he and other regulars played poker. He left the bar around 10:45 p.m., he said, though other players remained after he left.
The incident is being investigated as an arson-homicide, police said.
Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio


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OS: Windows xp
I am new to nnCron and I was wondering if there was a way in nnCron of automatically stopping a service from the services window and then restarting the same service.
So far i have only been able to open up the services windows, by using the run application or open document in the action tab, then in the application or document path i've entered C:\WINDOWS\system32\services.msc and in startup folder i've entered C:\WINDOWS\system32. So now in the advance tab you will see :-
Time: 52 13 * * * *
StartIn: "C:\WINDOWS\system32"
ShowNormal NormalPriority
START-APP: C:\WINDOWS\system32\services.msc
And this will open the services window.
What i would like to know is, how, if there is a way, will i be able to automatically open a particular service in the services window and then stop that service, and then after a couple of seconds restart that same service?
Please could someone help.


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Doctors: Cold can worsen asthma, spread flu
That cold air sending a chill through your bones isn't going anywhere for the next several days. And doctors in the region said the frigid weather can have serious health consequences.
Temperatures in Stamford and the surrounding areas aren't expected to rise above the mid-20s until Sunday, when they are supposed to reach 30 degrees, according to the National Weather Service. On Thursday, the anticipated high is 20 degrees, but the wind chill will make it feel like minus-6 degrees.
There's also snow expected on Friday.
All those shivering temperatures could be hard on your health, according to some medical experts, as the cold could provide a hospitable environment for certain viruses -- including the flu.
"When the weather is cold like this, the air is very dry and viruses tend to survive better," said Louise Dembry, associate director of hospital epidemiology at Yale-New Haven Hospital.
That can include flu, which is having a boom season in Connecticut and nationwide. Last week, the state Health Department reported there were nearly 2,500 confirmed cases of the flu so far this season, more than double what the state saw in the entire season last year, when there were 1,083 confirmed cases.
Dembry and others said the recent run of brisk weather could speed the spread of flu -- because we tend to spend more time indoors.
When you're in an enclosed space with the heat on and in close contact with other people and their germs, "you're kind of creating a little microcosm for flu to perpetuate," said Frank Scifo, medical director of the St. Vincent's Medical Center multispecialty group.
To help keep flu, colds and other viruses from spreading, experts advise washing hands frequently, cover your mouth when coughing or sneezing and avoiding those with symptoms.
"The main thing, when it comes to any illness, is to limit your exposure," said Adam Pearl, chief of the ear, nose and throat department of Bridgeport Hospital.
Pearl said the key times for hand-washing are before eating, after using the bathroom and when coming in from outside. Scrubbing up then should help to limit the spread of disease, he said.
Bitter temperatures could also exacerbate chronic conditions, such as asthma or heart trouble.
"Certainly, inhaling cold, dry winter air can be a trigger for certain respiratory problems," Scifo said.
That includes asthma. This week, in reaction to the icy weather, the Naugatuck Valley Health District sent out a fact sheet warning residents of the link between cold weather and asthma. According to the district, cold weather, along with winter sports such as sledding, skiing and skating can trigger or worsen asthma symptoms.
The district recommends wearing a scarf over your mouth and nose to help warm the air you inhale.
The cold can also be tough on those with heart problems, Scifo said. Blood vessels can constrict when it's cold, causing blood pressure to go up and the heart to work harder. That's part of the reason why doctors always advise that you not overdo it when shoveling snow, particularly when your body isn't used to a lot of exertion.
Last but not least, frostbite is a major cold-related health concern, particularly among the elderly. Scifo said older people are more sensitive to the cold and need to be careful to bundle up before venturing out into winter weather.
"They may not even realize how cold it is and could expose themselves to conditions that could cause frostbite," Scifo said.
email@example.com; 203-330-6290; twitter.com/AmandaCuda; http://blog.ctnews.com/whatthehealth/


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July 22, 2013
Unwarranted Home Inspection Prevented
|Staff Attorney Peter Kamakawiwoole is a member of HSLDA's litigation team. He is married and the father of three small children.
It took a ruling from the bench for the Department of Human Services to cease pursuing an unnecessary home visit in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
In late spring, a member with Home School Legal Defense Association took her 8-year-old special needs daughter to a pediatrician's office for a medical checkup. Instead of just providing the checkup, the pediatrician insisted that she immediately enroll her daughter in a public school or "state-sponsored special education center."
When the member responded that she would continue to homeschool her daughter, the pediatrician's office questioned whether she was "qualified," despite the fact the member had successfully homeschooled her three older children. The pediatrician then threatened that the Department of Human Services would inspect "the education curriculum and environment of the home."
Several weeks later, HSLDA received a phone call from the homeschooling mother while DHS officials were outside her door, insisting that they review her homeschool curriculum and inspect her house. After the investigators left without entering the home, attorney Dee Black wrote DHS concerning the impending investigation, explaining the Pennsylvania homeschool law and assuring them that the member would submit the proper paperwork for the 2013-2014 school year.
Insistence on Home Visit
But within a few days, the member received a summons for a court hearing at the end of June. DHS had filed a motion to compel cooperation, insisting that she open her home to a visit by the social worker. HSLDA opposed this motion because the allegations of educational neglect did not warrant an inspection of the member's house.
HSLDA attorney Peter Kamakawiwoole represented our member in court. After the judge heard that the allegations DHS received did not concern the member's home, he retorted, "Then no home visit." Mr. Kamakawiwoole then represented the member in discussions with DHS to resolve questions concerning the status of her homeschool program.
Unfortunately, HSLDA's Pennsylvania member encountered both an over-aggressive pediatrician and a too-zealous DHS investigator. We appreciate your support as we stand to protect homeschool families' Fourth Amendment rights, a protection which benefits all citizens.
Protect Your Family
If you or someone you know is not a member of HSLDA, will you consider taking a moment today to join or recommend us? Your support for our work enables us to defend individual families threatened by government officials and protect homeschooling freedom for all. Join now >>


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"Ouch!" "Oooh!" "Oww!" "Omigod, that hurts!" Those grunts of pain and anguish weren't coming from us -- a group of 10 people running barefoot on a concrete pathway at Central Park in Huntington Beach early one recent Saturday morning. They were being emitted by a grimacing group of shoe-wearing, dog-walking women who were staring at us as we passed.
But surprisingly, it didn't hurt to run in bare feet. In fact, it felt great. Every step of our 30-minute barefoot run was pure pleasure -- far more natural and comfortable than a run in shoes.
My forefeet led the way, lightly and smoothly mapping the terrain instead of thunking to the ground heels-first. My air-cooled toes automatically spread wide instead of being smushed together. And my body, without even trying, seemed to instinctively run "softly" -- knees slightly bent, legs crouched, absorbing shock like a spring. My right knee, tender on runs since undergoing meniscus surgery a couple of months before, didn't feel a thing.
On top of all that, I found myself wrapped in a childlike joy that was almost addictive.
"That's a pretty common reaction," says Ken Bob Saxton, 54, the affable, long-haired, thick-bearded organizer of this barefoot-running workshop and guru of a small but rapidly growing movement. "It's like your feet are suddenly free -- like they are getting out of prison. And they are: your shoes."
Barefoot Ken, as he is known (all accomplished barefooters routinely use "barefoot" before their names), hates shoes. He never wears them, even at his computer technician job at Cal State Long Beach. He says they desensitize the feet, encourage them to land heel first; and just generally cause blunt shock and imbalances that chafe skin and wreck knee and hip joints.
Because shoes insulate wearers from real biofeedback, he says, they limit the ability to listen to one's body, leading to overuse injuries. He dumped his shoes after the 1987 Long Beach Marathon, his first 26.2-mile race. It left his feet so blistered that he quit marathons for a decade.
"I got tired of wearing out shoes, and shoes wearing out my feet," he says. "I was desperate. Since I'd always enjoyed running barefoot on the beach, I finally tried it on the pavement."
That experiment changed his life, ultimately establishing barefooting as a potential cure for some running injuries, implicating modern cushioned shoes in those injuries, and becoming the impetus for what may be the most counter-intuitive product in the history of sport: the barefoot running shoe.
Of course, Saxton isn't the first person to run barefoot. Ethiopia's Abebe Bikila won the 1960 Olympic marathon shoeless. South Africa's Zola Budd was a barefoot sensation in the 1980s. Coaches from high school through Olympic level have used barefoot drills for decades to strengthen athletes' feet. But Saxton took it to a new level.
Since 2002, he's averaged 10 shoeless marathons a year, running fast enough to qualify for the Boston Marathon twice and earn profiles in a spate of publications including Runner's World. More important, he started a website, Running Barefoot (
), that has become the leading information center on everything shoeless and a window of hope for injured runners desperate to keep it going.
Injury factor
Injuries decimate runners. Studies indicate that about half of all runners are injured every year. The London-based Sports Injury Bulletin puts it at 60% to 65%. The cause? "The heel strike," says Santa Monica physical therapist Robert Forster, who provides videotaped running-form analysis at his training facility, Phase IV. "During running, you land with an impact of five times your body weight. When you land on your heel, the shock goes right into your joints. To lessen the shock, you have to land 'softer' -- and that means on your forefoot or midfoot with a bent leg, not on your heel with a straighter leg."
A 2004 study by Dr. Timothy Noakes in the journal Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise found that the forefoot landing inherent in barefooting (in which heel-striking is painful and unnatural) transmitted up to 50% less shock through the knees than heel-to-toe landings.
Six of the 10 people who showed up at Saxton's barefoot running clinic were motivated by injury reduction.
Chris Yamasaki, 29, a real estate agent and one-year runner from Montebello who was suffering from shin splints, found out about Saxton's website from a Runner's World forum. "Now, I feel so good that I'm training to do a 10K barefoot," he said two weeks after the clinic.
John Fretwell, a 47-year-old Mission Viejo administrator who had been having trouble with his left knee since he started running 18 months ago, said the pain was almost gone after eight 5-mile barefoot runs.
Mike Rose, 57, a retired naval officer from San Diego who has been running since 1986, says: "I think barefooting will help me last a few more decades."
Three years ago, after he discovered the website of Missouri's Barefoot Rick and then linked to Saxton's larger site, Rose began barefooting in order to toughen his feet and cure his recurrent knee pain and soreness. He's now a committed barefooter with two unshod 10Ks on his race resume.
He woke up at 5 a.m. to make it to the 7 a.m. clinic so he could pick up some tips for his upcoming first barefoot marathon, Huntington Beach's Surf City, which was deliberately selected "because it's Ken's home turf." Rose says the trip was worth it; he immediately picked up his speed, having learned to lift his toes on the landing, track his feet in a straighter line, and maintain a vertical arm swing.
Though barefooters initially run more slowly than they did in shoes -- the body has to accommodate to the new forefoot form and pay more attention to the ground to avoid rocks and other obstacles until the soles toughen up -- barefoot feet can be quite fleet.
"Barefooting does not compromise performance," says Caltech doctoral student and clinic participant Julian Romero, a.k.a. Barefoot Julian, 26. "There's less weight -- no shoes -- less friction, better heat management and automatically better form." Proof: Among his 11 barefoot marathons was a second place finish at this year's Duke City Marathon in Albuquerque in a time of 2 hours, 47 minutes.
And the winner? Romero's 24-year-old brother, Barefoot Alex, also a Caltech doctoral student, who finished in 2:40 in his second barefoot marathon.
"I like being a role model for barefooting, but for the right reasons," said Alex Romero, an evolutionary biologist. "Not to be a freak, but because it's good for you. Humans evolved to run barefoot over millions of years. In 20 years, we have not adapted to these huge, cushioned running shoes that cause us to underuse our calves and all the muscles in our feet." In 2005, after he got a stress fracture in his tibia while on the college track team, he read an article about Saxton and mentioned it to his brother.
Injury-free Julian -- needing a break from his dissertation research in microeconomic game theory -- started barefooting first, intellectually intrigued by its less-is-more benefits. After just three months of running unshod, an unusually rapid adaptation period for today's artificially shortened calves and Achilles tendons, he completed the 2006 Las Vegas Marathon.
"One bad thing about barefooting in Vegas that day was all the attention; I didn't like it," says the now 7,000-mile barefooter. "But on the plus side, I met Barefoot Ken at the finish."
'Barefoot shoes'
All barefoot roads seem to lead through Saxton, regularly referred to as "the guru" or "the godfather." But now even he is being eclipsed in barefooting circles, some say, by a force he helped nourish: Barefoot Ted McDonald -- the hilarious, stream-of-consciousness ultra-running barefooter profiled in Christopher McDougall's 2009 bestseller "Born to Run."
"I get thousands of e-mails from around the world now," says McDonald, 45, who couldn't run for longer than an hour without pain until he visited Saxton's site six years ago and began barefooting. Last fall, banking on his growing fame and a tsunami of publicity from "Born to Run," McDonald left his family's Pasadena carousel business for Seattle, where he is now a full-time coach and motivational speaker.
"Ken and I are buddies, but he's too dogmatic," relative newcomer McDonald says. "He's why barefooting for too long appeared to be eccentric and not more mainstream. He says your foot is enough. But it's not."
McDonald is referring to the Vibram FiveFingers, the individual-toed "barefoot shoes" that he wears almost every time he runs. The non-padded, virtual second skin of 2-millimeter rubber is made by the renowned Milan, Italy-based maker of rubber hiking boot soles and has become a sold-out sensation among barefoot and shod runners. They were introduced by Vibram in 2006 as water shoes for kayaking and sailing, but became a hit with runners seeking the benefits of barefooting with protection from rocks, glass and twigs.
Running stores are scrambling to get FiveFingers, which come in various models, including a trail shoe, but Vibram is so swamped that it is supplying only a few L.A. area stores.
"FiveFingers started taking off last summer, and went through the roof in June, after the word about them got out and 'Born to Run' gave them validity," says Thac Lecong, the footwear buyer at FrontRunners. The Brentwood running store was the first in the region to carry FiveFingers.
"At the end of 2007, when Vibram tried to convince me that barefooting strengthened feet and muscles, I knew it made physiological sense. But they were so strange-looking," Lecong says. "Now, I look like a genius for taking a chance on the order. Everyone wants them -- runners, water people, gym-goers, yoga. Some even want them just because they're cool. But I've been in the business 17 years; this is not just a fad. There is a broad-based interest in the benefits it conveys."
The mad-scramble success of the FiveFingers -- Vibram has a patent on the individual-toe design -- has unleashed a gusher of minimalist shoes. Finland's limited-distribution FeelMax is rushing out new models. Nike is reportedly expanding on its minimalist Free line.
The buzz on Skora, a shoe set to debut in spring, is so hot that owner David Sypniewski, a Canadian who moved to Florida to launch the brand after he "discovered the joy of running through Ken's site," already has been interviewed by numerous running magazines.
This rush to "barefoot shoes" rolls the eyes of Saxton, who a decade ago, as the newsletter editor of the Snail's Pace Running Club in Orange County, irritated people by continually writing about barefooting.
"Anything you put between your feet and the ground desensitizes and weakens your feet," he says. "And if you don't learn how to run barefoot correctly to start with, you'll eventually have problems with Vibrams."
Which is why he did not allow them at the Saturday workshop.


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Be wary of these beasts when traveling through wintry forests!
"The Blizzard be strong outside, lads; settle yehself in and breathe the steam; we'll pass the time with a story."
"That's old lady Serisia's house... We don't go in there anymore." the children looked forlornly through the iron fence to their lost ball, deep within the overgrown gardens of the massive front yard.
From deep in the foliage, a menacing 'Yowl' sounded, followed by an eerie droning.
This sub is a little bit silly.
An ancient shrine of a mischievous goddess. The proper offering will give you her blessing, but 'ware you don't feed her wrong!
A summary of the Esgol Dwarves which make their home within Esgoloth, in Asydia
A well-loved and somewhat crudely hand-crafted tribal drum owned by the Tribal Half-Orc, Somnak. It is said that Somnak possessed the ability to call upon the spirit of any creature whose skin was pulled over the drum to aid him and his allies in battle, as well as curse his foes.
Mora stepped up to the wicked-looking pipe-organ; the carved demonic head which it was made from leered silently at him. Sweating with anxiety, Mora looked back to his friends before swallowing hard and shakily bringing his fingers to the ivory.
Mora pressed the keys down into several minor chords, and a thunderous peal of music echoed, sounding mockingly similar to a church. Suddenly, the eyes of the carved head lit up with fire, and with a *WHOOSH* a pillar of flames burst into life around Mora. The man's screams were cut short after just a second and the fire disappeared just as quickly. Mora was gone.
After a moment of shocked silence, Mora's friends cheered excitedly.
Sometimes what begins as a Fairy Tale can end in misery. The tale of Celsia Frostblossom is testament to this.
UAC Scientists have discovered a strange artifact on the surface of Phobos. They wish to transport it to an 'off-the-radar' base above Saturn's moon, Titan, but fear that space pirates may have gained intel on the artifact. Additional protection is needed; this is where you come in!
A Cosmic Era, Event Horizon/Doom-influenced Plot, for the optional Occult Brotherhood quest.
The result of Vauraki's wrath directed by Axtrami's will. The Sila'Khrysath is the elemental embodiment of the fury of the desert. Woe to those who encounter the Great Sand Wyrm within the Karikun Desert!
Lazarus Lightward waits in the town of Lockmour - he desires the Whitebone tomes to study demons and learn their weaknesses. Will the party help him out?
Six white tomes, Encased in bone.
They shine in light like polished stone.
Trapped deep inside, fel beasts reside.
Dark power; to the holder, the books provide.
In lakes, submersed, and tombs accursed.
Across the land they are disbursed.
This dusty, delapidated building appears to have been abandoned for some time. Within it is a plethora of ancient tomes and ancient knowledge, however rumours of a deadly curse keep curious scholars at bay.
Herein lies the histories of Warpriest Lazarus, righteous fist of Tridoa. Lord Lightward the Lunar Hammer.
Herein lies the birth of Lazarus Lightward the Hellpriest; Trickster of Devils and Master of the Bloodied Moon.
A haunting remnant of the infernal realm, caught and exiled to suffer for eternity in the swamps of the mortal plane. Now it toys with mortals; luring them from their paths into it's light. Once in the boundaries of it's aura, the FlickerWikk will feed.
A Remake of the Will'o'the'Wisp/Jack'o'Lantern
Spindly, steel spiders, spinning silk so sharp. (100-word sub)
The shining city of glass and mirror within the forboding Karikun desert. Welcome to the home city and birthplace of the Ouzquin Dremorix.
Travelling the shifting sands at night was always a dangerous task. Freshly recruited into the Ouzquin Dremorix army, young Fallava and Moruz followed the grizzled veteran before them. They were hunting a band of Latrani orcs, and the trail was fresh. The grey-haired Avaki raised two fingers in a sign of silence as the trio neared the top of the rise, and slowly, the man breached the top of the dune. "Aaahh," Avaki exhaled mournfully as he slung his Ouzala over his shoulders. Down the other side of the dune lay an oasis, and as Fallava and Moruz came forth they saw the reason for Avacti's sigh. The corpses of a dozen Ouzquin Dremorix lay in pieces across the bank of the water. Blood stained the sand. Without looking back to the young man and woman, Avaki spoke softly, "Vauraki has fed well this night."
A chill ran up Moruz's spine. He could have sworn he heard a wilting howl inside his head.
Feet forever on the path; smile forever on it's lips. It walks roads beaten and forgotten alike through day and night. With it's troupe of mindless puppets, it is accosted not by beast nor fiend nor monster. For they know that Terror walks past this night.
Death travels with the Gandacai.
The PCs have been traveling for a long time down the same stretch or round with no sign of anything suspicious. As they cross over to the next hill they see a gigantic splater of blood with a bleached dragons scull in the center of it. It the dragon skull's mouth is a tattered backpack with something wiggling inside of it.


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By Mike Lehman, TTU Sports Information
CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. – It took a little bit longer for the Tennessee Tech baseball team (35-14, 21-5) to get going Saturday evening than it did in game one, but the Golden Eagle offense indeed showed up against Southeast Missouri (22-29, 13-16), scoring nine runs in the fifth innings on its way to an 11-6 Ohio Valley Conference win.
After a rough 16-1 loss in game one, the Redhawks seemed to have solved the Tech lineup early in Saturday's contest, taking a 1-0 advantage heading to the fifth inning. Unfortunately, that was all she wrote for Southeast Missouri as the Golden Eagle offense woke up in a big way, batting through the lineup and more on its way to nine runs.
Tech opened the fifth with five consecutive hits from Dylan Bosheers (single to center), James Abraham (single to right center), Michael Morris (RBI double to right center), Jordan Parris (RBI single to left field), and Zach Zarzour (RBI single up the middle). Austin Wulf kept the scoring going with a sacrifice fly to left field. The Golden Eagles were one out into the inning and not even half way done.
Zach Stephens followed, drilling an RBI double down the left field line. Brandon Thomasson came to the plate next, singling through the left side and advancing to second base on a throwing error by the left fielder. SEMO managed to force the second out of the inning before Bosheers returned to the plate for the second time in the fifth. He was promptly hit by a pitch to load the bases.
Abraham came up again, and delivered for the second time of the inning, lacing a bases-clearing double to left center field to put the game out of reach for good. Morris singled in Abraham for good measure before the Redhawks finally put an end to madness. After 13 batters and nine runs, Tech took a 9-1 lead to the bottom of the fifth.
The Golden Eagles scored twice more in the contest while the Redhawks put up five more runs to make a final score of 11-6 in favor of Tech.
For the second consecutive day, every Tech starter recorded a hit as the team totaled 16 in the contest. Zarzour, Abraham, and Morris led the offense. The three combined for seven RBI and five runs scored. Abraham went a stellar 4-for-5 in the contest while Bosheers went 3-of-4 from the plate. Also driving in runs for the Golden Eagles were Wulf, Stephens, Bosheers, and Parris.
Sophomore David Hess (6-2) pitched nearly 3.2 innings of relief, earning his sixth win of the season while striking out six batters and not allowing a runner to score.
The win was the 35th of the year for the Golden Eagles, tying this year's team with the 1988 and 2008 squads for second most wins in a single season in program history. The victory also marked the 21st OVC win of the year for Tech, extending the school record of league wins in a single season. Tech won its 12th series of the season with the win, a single season program record.
The Golden Eagles will look to keep their one game lead in the race for the top seed in the OVC tournament in tact on Sunday. The 1 p.m. CDT match will fall on the arm of sophomore Jacob Honea (2-1), who will look to lead Tech to its seventh series sweep of the season.


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Taringa API
Taringa! is a link sharing service. The API lets you search for users, posts, cloud tags and more. Mine the Taringa! and Poringa! data using the API. Get information such as top posts, top users, and tag cloud data, plus conduct searches. Taringa is a social forum in Argentina.


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Welcome to our humble abode!
Traditionally, the warming of a new house was a literal act, with friends and family taking gifts of firewood to the new home. Fires were lit in all the fireplaces both to warm the home and to cleanse the house of any resident evil spirits. Today however, we are more likely to give housewarming gifts as a way to celebrate the purchase of a new home, when attending a housewarming party or as a welcome gesture for new people to the neighbourhood.
Housewarming Gift Ideas
Gifts to Take to the New Home:
One of the great things about gifts that you are able to take personally to the new home is that they don't need to be wrapped up for postage… so you are free to take…
A Fresh Plant:
There is always room in everybody's house for a lovely, new, houseplant…
Image via Pinterest
Home baking is always appreciated, as are dinner standby's such as casseroles and treats such as a freshly made dessert pie…
Image of Blueberry Lemon Verbena Pie from 101 Cookbooks
Nothing says celebration like a bit of bubbly…
Image via The Glitter Guide
Homemade Gift Baskets:
These are really fun to put together and can look beautiful, especially if you forget the 1980's cellophane and big ribbons look, and opt for a more lovely natural style…
Image via Daily Dose of Stuf
Or A Creative Gift Idea:
Like this fun gift presentation from The Housewife Rookie which would be great for a housewarming…
As would this beautifully styled apron, recipe and cake tin gift idea from Julie Blanner…
Gifts to Send to the New Home
But what if you don't live in the same town and can't deliver a house-warming gift personally? Then you will need to send a gift, and at The Paper Package we have some great ideas for you!
A Stylish Set of Rifle Paper Co. Notecards & Envelopes
The perfect thing for every new home-owner to have on hand… to say thanks, or hi, or let people know their new address and phone number…
Lovely Kitchen Gift Sets
Not the kind of thing people usually purchase for themselves, these stylish and practical items will make a welcome addition to a new kitchen…
Left: Kitchen Care Gift Pack : Right: Family Recipe Gift Package
Room Fragrance
The unique packaging of this Banks and Co. Room Fragrance is reminiscent of the crystal port decanters on the "Endeavour"as used by the 18th Century Sea Captains. A quality NZ-made product, that makes a lovely gift for a new home.
Gourmet Gift Baskets
A gift box of yummy treats is ideal for when you want to say "Happy Housewarming" but don't have either the time (or skills hehe) to make something yourself…
Vintage Housewarming Gift Basket
An original gift box featuring a lovely bottle of lavender linen water, delicious white chocolate brownie, organic tea from Harney & Sons and yummy loose fudge bites. A wonderful way to welcome in a fresh, new home!
And finally…
The Moleskine Home Life Journal
A new release from the uber-popular Moleskine brand, this journal is an indispensable companion for the home. The perfect place to plan domestic changes, organise large and small jobs in the home and record interior design ideas. An original and stylish gift that perfect for a housewarming!


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3-Day Sale—Save $100 | Your session can be anytime between now and October, but book on May 28, 29, or 30 to save $100. Have a credit card handy along with your calendar and call 612-382-2867.
Sunset Session | Get your portraits taken at the best time of day for light! It's one of our new sessions and it's available in limited quantities. Read about all our sessions here.
Instagram Photos | See the latest iPhone art here.


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House Texting Bill Advances in South Dakota Senate Committee
The bill that would essentially take the issue of texting and driving out of local hands passed a South Dakota Senate committee.
The measure, passed earlier by the House, would make it a petty offense carrying a $25 fine to drive while using a hand-held device to write, send or read text messages. Law enforcement officers would only be able to issue tickets for texting while driving as a secondary offense.
In addition, local governments would be barred from having texting bans that differ from state law.


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Eagan's Will Peterson looked to pass against Bloomington Kennedy during a game Saturday. Eagan is 9-2-1 this season. Photo by KYNDELL HARKNESS • firstname.lastname@example.com
Mike Taylor will be the first to tell you "sometimes it's easier getting to the top than staying on top."
The Eagan boys' hockey coach has guided the Wildcats to back-to-back appearances in the Class 2A state tournament. His squad wound up sixth last year after finishing third in 2011.
"We have steadily built this program," said Taylor, who is in his 10th season at the helm. The Wildcats' only previous state tournament appearance came in 2006. "Once you build a tradition, more kids want to be a part of it."
Senior forward Cullen Willox is one of those kids. He has had a first-hand look at the growth of the program since his childhood playing days.
"Coming up through the program, we were always told 'hard work will beat talent if talent doesn't work hard,'" Willox said. "You have to work hard if you want to win."
Eagan has done just that this season. The Wildcats are 9-2-1. They have won at least 20 games in each of the previous three seasons.
"I thought we could do better than where we finished last year," said Willox, the team's second-leading scorer with 12 goals and 10 assists on the season. "We didn't accomplish what we wanted, and now we have a chip on our shoulder this year."
The Wildcats graduated six seniors who are either playing Division I or junior hockey from last year's squad. That group finished 25-5-1, with two of those setbacks coming in the state tournament.
"We had some good teams, and then that great group came through our program," Taylor said. "You don't get to coach classes like that very often."
Naturally, that led people to wonder how good Taylor's group would be in 2012-13.
"I knew our top end players would still be very skilled," Taylor said. "It was a matter of developing our secondary scoring, and adding some depth."
The Wildcats have seven players who have scored at least five goals. Senior forward Zach Glienke leads the team with 14 goals and 15 assists.
"We had to get better every day, and do it quickly because of how tough our schedule was at the beginning," Taylor said. "I knew if they bought into the team concept we could be pretty good, and they have done that."
Their best performance of the season came a week before Christmas. Eagan went into Burnsville and came away with a 4-2 victory over the preseason favorite to win the South Suburban Conference..
"Our kids played their most complete game of the season," Taylor said. "They have a lot of respect for Burnsville, and know what kind of effort it takes to beat them. It was a complete 51-minute effort."
It's the kind of effort Eagan plans on giving every game as it pushes toward making its third consecutive state tournament trip.
"Obviously, everybody was talking about Eagan last year," Willox said. "Everybody thought we would be done this year. We lost a lot of talent, but I thought we would still be fine. We're working hard to accomplish our goals."
Ron Haggstrom • 612-673-4498


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Defensive driving training session on campus Dec. 12
The Office of Regulatory Compliance and Safety is offering the National Safety Council's defensive driving course at no charge to Mississippi State University employees, including student workers.
After participating in the one-day session delivered by MSU Safety Officer Alicia Musselwhite, attendees will receive a nationally-recognized certification from the National Safety Council. The NSC's certifications are accepted in more states than any other driver improvement or driver education program for insurance discounts.
The defensive driving course offers practical strategies to reduce collision-related injuries, fatalities and costs.
This session is limited to 15 participants and a minimum of seven attendees must be present to hold the class. The next training session and location are:
Monday, Dec. 12 from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. in Room 119 at the Life Sciences & Biotechnology Institute (LSBI).
If you are interested in attending, please follow the steps listed below to register:
1. Click http://orc.msstate.edu/quicklinks/training.php
2. Click on "Enroll in Live Training Now."
3. You will need your NetID and password to access the "Enroll in a Course" page.
4. Click the title for the date you wish to register, and then click "Yes" to enroll, or "No" to be returned to the enrollment page.
If you have questions about this course, please contact Musselwhite at email@example.com or 662-325 4607.


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Sugar Rush: The Peach Frangipane Tart at Take the Cake, Cincinnati
Take the Cake in Northside is perhaps better known for their rotating (and swiftly selling) weekend brunch menu and super-sweet cake creations. But the ever-changing selection of fruit tarts deserve shout-outs, too. We were warned that the Peach Frangipane Tart ($4.50/slice) we were ogling might not be there the next time we came in, but that's what's so refreshing about Take the Cake—they play with a large gamut of sweet and savory, giving their fullest attention to each in its own time.
The frangipane layer of the tart was exciting in an understated way—almonds are ground almost into a cream, then layered on top of a thin pastry crust that pillows the fresh peaches above it. Even after some refrigeration, the crust stayed flaky and the frangipane didn't get too soft. The fruit on top wasn't syrupy sweet; the fresh peaches and thin layering of jam adding a brightness and burst of late summer flavor. Lightly toasted almond slices on top stayed crisp, giving an extra nutty texture in contrast to the otherwise smooth tart.
Overall, nothing is too sweet about this tart, so it's fitting both warmed with a scoop of ice cream for an indulgent dessert or solo as a breakfast sweet paired with a strong coffee and some eggs. Bottom line—if the word "frangipane" is on the menu, chances are whatever fruit is laying on it will be treated well, too.
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Captain's Log, Supplemental: All Good Things
Happily, of course, MER goes on ... and on and on and on. Five years after these events, we're a rover down, but Opportunity continues exploring Mars. Just today I heard a presentation on how the radio-science work she's doing over the winter (her fourth Martian winter!) is helping to pin down the internal structure of the planet she's made her home these eight years and counting. And Spirit still continues to make science news and to contribute to graduate students' Ph.D. dissertations -- and continues to inspire us all to do more and better than we ever imagined we could.
In a couple of weeks, then, I'll say some farewells. But we're not there just yet. For now, this journey continues, just as Opportunity's does.
4 comments:
- Izzy said...
I'll be sorry to see this blog 'go'. It's been fun following along, and reading up on all the stuff you mention.
I'd love to see a similar thing happen with some of the other long-running space programs, I've learned a lot through the years.
- March 21, 2012 at 12:12 AM
- Buck said...
Love the Trek reference!
Thanks for all the work you've put into this blog. Like Izzy, I've learnt so much and enjoyed your commentary immensely.
I subscribe via RSS, so if you get the urge to comment on this or that in the future, I'll see it!
- March 21, 2012 at 6:36 AM
You do have your journal ready for Curiosity Sol 1, right?
- March 22, 2012 at 4:15 PM
Well, I have to confess that I'm disappointed. I have been reading from the very beginning. I had been very much looking forward to reading about the efforts to extract Spirit from her sand trap, but it looks like that's not to be.
We need you to write a book about that.
- March 26, 2012 at 7:03 AM


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AST - International leadership in absorber technology
AST is a globally active enterprise, headquartered in Reutte/Tirol, and an innovation, technology and market leader in absorber systems.
Since its foundation 30 years ago, AST has made significant contributions to the advance of the technology with solutions for mobile and fixed ice rinks, snow cooling systems, solar power plants for swimming pools and artificial turf heating. Over the years, many projects and sports facilities have been completed successfully with innovative solutions designed to minimise energy consumption and maximise cost efficiency, giving more people access to recreational or competitive sport.
Whether the need is for a small system for the short term or rental, or building of a full-size, permanent venue, AST knows the requirements, develops and include improvements and reliably deliver a product of superior performance and quality.
This is our claim, and this is how we will work for you.
On 9th January a very special ice hockey game took place in Dresden – the DEL2 Winter Derby. Together with AST the football stadium of SG Dynamo Dresden was changed into an ice hockey arena.
31.853 fans were celebrating the victory of the home team Dresdner Eislöwen against Lausitzer Füchse.
AST has delivered and set up a mobile ice hockey rink including boards, PC spectator protection, player benches and penalty boxes. The rink complies the standards of the IIHF.
90.000 linear metres of cooling tubes were needed to build the ice rink, which had a size of 60 x 30 metres. The mixture of water and glycol that is filled in the tubes needed about 12 minutes to flow through the whole system.
At the Winter Derby the new ice resurfacing machine WM Mammoth was celebrating a premiere. It was the first time the machine was used on german ice. The Mammoth is an all-electric ice resurfacing machine with special equipment and great manoeuvrability, which attracts plenty of attention on the international market!
Moscow residents have been meeting in Gorky Park to go ice skating since 2011.
The ice rink covers over 21,000 m², and its layout is changed every year. The Moscow City Ice Rink is open from November to March every year. On days of heaviest use, more than 24,000 skaters have purchased admission tickets.
When all of the solar absorber plants installed are counted together, our customers recover in the order of 50,000,000 kWh of thermal energy per year. If this is converted into heating oil, that would be equivalent to 6 million litres, or approximately the consumption of 750 lorries. The associated CO2 emissions would equal 18,000,000 kg.
Incredible, this AST solar absorber!
Linked Events is a consortium of well-known companies that have established themselves in the events sector. As a part of this group, we are responsible for ice technology. Other members concern themselves with organising and provide resources in management and catering. Together, we can provide and successfully stage all-inclusive "Ice Events".


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Do you like Candy? How about a big bowl of Jelly Beans? Well, I'm happy to satisfy your sweet tooth with the Beta release of the BlackBerry Runtime for Android Apps and Plug-in for Android Development Tools for BlackBerry 10.2.
If you didn't get the hint, this release includes the first beta release of Android 4.2.2 (Jelly Bean). All the great features that were previously available in Gingerbread will continue to be supported, as well as some specific Jelly Bean OS features such as Fragments, embedded fragments, animation framework and hardware acceleration. Keep in mind this is the first beta release, and there will bound to be some bugs as we work our way towards the gold release later in the summer.
If you want to start testing your app on Jelly Bean, just grab the BlackBerry 10.2 Beta SDK OS. Support for Jelly Bean in the BlackBerry 10.2 device simulator will be coming later in the summer.
Additionally, our Android Runtime tools have been updated to support Eclipse 4.2, Android Development Tools v22 and can now target Android SDK level 10 to 17.
How do you start using these new tools? Jump to the Runtime for Android Apps microsite. There is an updated 1.6 release for the BlackBerry Eclipse™ Plug-in for Android Development Tools and Command-line tools to help get you using all these Android Runtime features for BlackBerry 10. For the Eclipse users, make sure to point your update site to:
To see the full details and known issues, check out the release notes for the BlackBerry Plug-in for Android Development Tools and BlackBerry Runtime for Android Apps.
This article:
Sweet Candy! Android Runtime Jelly Bean Beta for BlackBerry 10.2


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Table of contents
Giant problem?
The loss of its anchor grocery store might be seen as a huge problem for any shopping center. However, as reporter Courteney Stuart finds, the departure of Giant isn't the biggest news at Seminole Square. The shopping center will soon get a makeover thanks to its willingness to let a new road bore through its center.
Scary dude?
The jury didn't like what Jeffrey Kitze did: slip into a home and send love-lorn letters to a young woman at the helm of a peace group. But as the jury foreman in Kitze's recent trial tells reporter Lisa Provence, the stalking law just wasn't written to re-jail the convicted rapist.
Star Crossed?
With Dean Maupin's recent departure to begin taking the helm of the venerable C&O, Keswick Hall's Fossett's restaurant has found a rising start in the culinary world in the form of 29-year-old Aaron Cross. Reporter Dave McNair finds that Cross is savoring the summer's bounty, but what will happen in the fall?
Today's teens just aren't clamoring for driver's licenses like they did in the motor-happy generations. What's driving them to abstain from this American rite of passage? Hint: face-to-face socializing has been interrupted by a certain social network.
On the cover: (of this 40-page issue)
Photo of Giant by Courteney Stuart. Sumptuous produce photos by Flickr/rick.


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Ed Helms to Star in Reboot of 'The Naked Gun'
'The Hangover' star Ed Helms has been confirmed to take over the role of Det. Frank Drebin, made famous by the late Leslie Nielsen, in Paramount Pictures' reboot of 'The Naked Gun'.
Variety reports that 'Night at the Museum' writers Thomas Lennon and Robert Ben Garant have been signed to write the script, which is being described as a new spin on the character of Det. Drebin. Lennon and Garant are best known for their work on the television show 'Reno 911' as well as collaborating on films like 'Balls of Fury' and 'Hell Baby'. Lennon and Garant also recently wrote the script for a 'Baywatch' adaptation for Paramount.
The 1988 film was a continuation of the short-lived (only 6 episodes) television spoof 'Police Squad' starring Nielsen. 'Police Squad' and 'The Naked Gun' were created and produced by 'Airplane!' creators Jim Abrahams, David Zucker and Jerry Zucker. No word yet if Abrahams and the Zucker brothers will have any connection with the reboot other than a customary listing in the credits.
This isn't the first time Ed Helms has been attached to a comedy reboot, recently signing on for the reboot/sequel to 'National Lampoon's Vacation' as the character of Rusty Griswold taking his family on a crazy road trip.
My only concern in this whole situation is Ed Helms. He was hilarious in 'The Hangover', but I'm not sure if his style of comedy is befitting of what made 'The Naked Gun' unique. Ed Helms is a bit over the top with his trademark freak-outs, which makes him a terrific successor to Chevy Chase and the 'Vacation' films, but Det. Drebin's humor came from his deadpan delivery in the ridiculous scenarios that made up the film. Sure, this is a reboot and a new spin on Det. Drebin, but its always a mistake to do a reboot that doesn't at least share a similar tone to its source material.


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A credit union is a financial institution that is owned by its members. Credit Unions were born of hard times. They were designed for people of average means to obtain loans and other financial services. This was a self help concept that enabled people to pool their resources to loan money to their fellow members.
The Farmers Credit Union was chartered in 1953. Since that time we have been located in three locations in Hays, Kansas. We have also increased our services from a starting point of savings accounts and loans to a full service institution. Of course credit unions are different from banks. A credit union is managed and supervised by a group of non paid volunteers comprised of a Board of Directors, Credit Committee, and a Supervisory Committee. These folks are elected at an annual meeting. The Board of Directors then hire paid employees who are employed to run the day to day business of the credit union.
Of course, we believe that a business that is in operation to serve its members in addition to making a profit is superior to a commercial bank, which is driven by profit alone. In order to do business at a credit union you must be a member of the organization. This requires merely opening a savings account - (called a "share account".) Once this occurs, a person is officially a member of the credit union. This person is now eligible to use all the services that the credit union offers. If you move from this location you can still retain your membership "Once a member, always a member" is the watchword.
Home | Online Services | Products & Services | Calculators | Job Opportunities | About Us | Location | Additional Links | Information | Life Events | Contact Us


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The Broward County Pollution Prevention, Remediation and Air Quality Division maintains an Interactive Map of Contaminated Sites in Broward County. This Division also prepares an Inventory Report of Contaminated Locations, which is downloadable as an Excel spreadsheet and is also searchable via the Contaminated Locations Database. The Map, Inventory Report, and Database are automatically updated daily.
Required Plug-ins: Microsoft Excel Reader®


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Bass fishing meeting
Collins will be having a parent informational meeting regarding bass fishing at 6 p.m. Thursday in the Presentation room. If your child is interested in participating in bass fishing, a new sport sanctioned by the Kentucky High School Athletic Association, you must attend this meeting. If you have any questions, please contact Mike Zoeller at 647-1160.
PGA Jr. League sign-ups
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Click the question mark below to see where your account ID appears on your mailing label.
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Spread the word! New members welcome!
I worried about how to contain all this in a dark enclosure, but duhhhhhhhhh, just remembered we have this thing here in Vermont called "night"! So I can just do it outside with my present target setup.
More critical is firing the bow and the strobe together. I may just make something like a fixed crossbow stock that accepts different sized bows, and has a trigger for both arrow release and the strobe trigger.
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As a society we eat too much, drink too much, and exercise too little. Our cities and towns are more polluted than ever, our lives are more stressful, and all of this puts added strain on our bodies, including the vital organs that work to get rid of waste and toxins so we can stay healthy. At the heart of it all is your digestive system, where the majority of your immune defenses can be found.
Most Health Problems Stem from an Unhealthy Gut
Most every health issue stems from an unhealthy and outof- balance digestive system. Why? Because the majority of your immune defenses are found in your gut. If your gut isnt functioning properlyfrom stress, years of eating processed foods, lack of exercise and many other unhealthy habitsthen your body is out of balance and your gut isnt absorbing the nutrients you need to be healthy, which opens you up to a host of health problems.
As a leading expert in natural digestive care, Ive helped millions of people get their gut and their healthback on track.It begins with the bodys ability to properly digest nutrients and eliminate waste. The more efficiently your body performs these functions, the healthier you will be. We all know you must eat plenty of fresh, unprocessed foods, chew your food well, avoid overeating, exercise regularly and take time to unwind. But there are also 4 essential nutrients we need every day to help us achieve superior and lasting health through improving our digestion: optimum amounts of Fiber, Omega-3s, Probiotics and Enzymes. This is what The H.O.P.E. Formula is all about. Brenda Watson, C.N.C.
The truth is most of us do not consume enough fiber. The average American ingests 10 to 12 grams of fiber per day, yet the digestive tract needs 35 grams of fiber daily to stay regular, help manage weight, and properly remove waste and toxins.
There are Two Types of Fiber
Think of the two fiber types as your internal dual-sided cleaning sponge:
Insoluble fiber does not dissolve in water. It helps bulk the stool and acts as a gentle scrubber along the intestinal walls to remove debris and toxins.
Soluble fiber dissolves in water and moves through the intestines more slowly, helping to absorb waste so it can be eliminated.
It is best to consume both types of fiber. In general, a higher ratio of insoluble to soluble fiber is recommended, reflecting the natural ratio found in fruits and vegetables, natures best high-fiber foods. It can be difficult to consume 35 grams of fiber from diet alone, however; taking an insoluble + soluble fiber supplement each day can give you a good head start.
The Hidden Benefits of Fiber
Fiber is not a laxative, but it does keep us regular. Fiber also:
What is Inflammation?
The two types of inflammation are:
Silent inflammation often begins with a leaky gut, a condition in which the intestinal wall has become so porous that it allows inflammatory particles to escape into the body. The three warning signs of silent inflammation are high cholesterol, high blood pressure, and high blood sugar, all of which are affected by a leaky gut. Omega oils, and particularly omega-3s, help repair the intestinal wall by reducing inflammation, the main cause of leaky gut.
Omega oils, and particularly omega-3s, help repair the intestinal wall by reducing inflammation, the main cause of leaky gut.* Todays Standard American Diet (SAD) is low in Omega-3s (typically found in fatty, cold-water fish), making Omega-3 supplementation an increasingly important part of a healthy diet.
In addition to digestion and elimination, your digestive tract is the first line of defense against invaders. Its our protection against environmental and bacterial toxins leaking into the bloodstream. Its the home of up to 80% of our immune system. Most immune cells are generated in your gut where they are supported by an important balance of good bacteria (or probiotics) in the intestines.
Of the 100 trillion bacteria cells living in the intestines, the good bacteria, or probiotics are your own Gut Protection System (GPS). Poor diet, aging, stress, overuse of antibiotics, and yeast overgrowth all reduce good bacteria levels. Gut imbalance impairs digestion and can leave the immune system at risk.
What Do Probiotics Do?
Specific types of probiotics, notably Lactobacilli and Bifidobacteria probiotic strains, are particularly beneficial in rebalancing your GPS. Why? Because they are the beneficial bacteria most commonly found in the human digestive tract. Taking a daily probiotic supplement with a variety of these types of strains, taken as you would a multi-vitamin, delivers good bacteria to help alleviate digestive issues and support your immune health.*
In the digestive system, enzymes are the key to breaking down the foods we eat into the nutrients that feed the bodys cells and tissues. Enzymes produced by the body assist with digestion by breaking apart the bonds that hold nutrients together. Once the bonds are broken, tiny molecules can pass into the bloodstream where they are used as energy. A lack of enzymes may result in impaired digestion and a decrease in overall health. Getting enough enzymes is one of the most important components of the H.O.P.E. Formula.*
Where Do I Get Enzymes?
Digestive enzymes are found throughout the digestive tract. Certain enzymes, like amylase which begins the breakdown of carbohydrates, are secreted with saliva in the mouth. Other enzymes produced by the pancreas and the intestinal lining are secreted into the small intestine to help breakdown foods coming from the stomach. The bodys ability to produce its own enzymes decreases with age. In addition, certain digestive conditions, such as low stomach acid or inflammatory bowel disease, can result in decreased enzyme production. Improper chewing and a poor diet also contribute to the inability to properly digest key nutrients from food. Without the essential enzymes necessary for proper digestion, the body may not be able to efficiently break down the food we eat and absorb its valuable nutrients.
How Do I Know if I Dont Have Enough Enzymes?
Impaired digestion is often a sign that you dont have enough enzymes. If you experience symptoms such as heartburn, gas and bloating, or fatigue after eating, it is likely that you have too few enzymes to properly digest the food you eat.
How Often Should You Take Enzymes?
To help digest a wide variety of foods including protein, carbohydrates, fats, dairy, and sugars in order to absorb needed nutrients, a digestive enzyme taken with every meal is recommended.


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North Country Home Health & Hospice Agency is a Medicare home health & hospice certified agency. It is a private non-profit organization, and a member of the Home Care Association of New Hampshire and the National Association of Home Care.
The Agency, which was founded in 1971, is made up of a team-oriented group of specially trained professionals, who work together with patients and family members to develop comprehensive care plans for either Home Health or Hospice Services, and/or Support Services; specific to the needs of the patient. Trained professionals include physicians, nurses, social workers, aides, therapists, and specially-trained hospice volunteers. The Agency's Visiting Nurses travel the vast service area 7 days per week, 365 days per year. North Country Home Health & Hospice Agency provides home care and hospice services to a 48-town services area throughout Coos County and Northern Grafton County. Services are provided to all ages, from infant to elderly. Payment sources include Medicare, New Hampshire Medicaid, private insurance and private pay with a sliding fee scale.
NCHHHA is a part of North Country Healthcare, which has a total of five affiliates in the North Country (Androscoggin Valley Hospital, Littleton Regional Healthcare, Upper Connecticut Valley Hospital, Weeks Medical Center and North Country Home Health & Hospice Agency.
About Home Care
Home care is a service to recovering, disabled, or chronically ill people who need medical treatment and/or assistance with the activities of daily living. Generally, home care is appropriate when a person requires care which family and friends cannot easily or effectively provide on their own.
Advantages of Home Care
Home care improves quality of life by enabling individuals to stay in the comfort and security of their homes during times of illness, disability and recuperation. Home care maintains the patient's dignity and independence, and is less expensive than other forms of health care delivery. A wide range of specialized services are available and are tailored to meet the needs of every individual on a personal provider-to-patient basis. Home care reinforces and supplements informal care by educating the patient's family members and friends about the care-giving process.
About Hospice Care
Hospice is a special concept of care designed to provide comfort and support to individuals living with a life-threatening illness and their family caregivers. Hospice care focuses on the person, not just the illness. Our hospice team of caregivers provide support, guidance and skilled management of symptoms in order to improve the patient's quality of life when the illness is no longer responding to aggressive curative treatment. Members of the hospice team include nurses, medical social workers, licensed nurses aides, homemakers, chaplains, and trained hospice volunteers.
Advantages of Hospice Care
The emphasis of hospice care is on comfort and quality of life. Patients and family members are highly involved and supported in making decisions about their care. Hospice care may be provided in a patient's home, a family member's home, in nursing homes or assisted living facilities. Hospice staff supplements the care provided by family or facility staff. We strive to support patients in living life to the fullest by addressing physical, emotional, spiritual needs and concerns, proving personal care, counseling, respite care and social support. We also provide bereavement support to family members after the death of a loved one. Hospice offers compassionate care through difficult times.
Glenn Adams, DO, Hospice Medical Director


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ABANDONED DISNEY Series
UPDATED 1-10-10 (with additional photos and text)
Announcing: A new ongoing series featuring the parts of Disney theme parks we grew up loving, left to rot and decay.
We already featured ABANDONED DISNEY: River Country [Part 1] and [Part 2] and look forward to Part 3.
We welcome any photos you may have that fall into this category. We are looking for photos of abandoned rides, ride vehicles props, animatronics, etc.
Don't worry- there will always be a never-ending supply of the 'abandoned'. We all know about the ever more powerful attractions chopping block with a line-up of classic, world-changing, fantastic rides just waiting their turn on this theme park death row. It really warms the heart.
To officially get this series going, we present to you some abandoned animatronic figures from our favorite futuristic adventure, Horizons (a ride abandoned only long enough to pull up the wrecking ball).
Where are they now? These naked animatronics are piled up under The Carousel of Progress. Yep, in the basement of the C.O.P building directly under one of the stages. The Carousel of Progress in it's round building is divided into 6 pie-shaped pieces- one for each of the 4 acts plus 2 small stages for load and unload. Under these stages are pie-shaped maintenance and storage rooms. Remember, the center portion of the building is stationary. Only the outer portion with seating rotates.
One (somewhat) redeeming part of this story is the fact that these figures are not completely abandoned. Their parts are used for the C.O.P family. I imagine some of these pieces are from other attractions. If you think you recognize any of the parts, let us know!
Photo of Horizons dad decorating cake courtesy of Mesa Verde Times. Thank you Hoot and Massimo for identifying some of the above animatronics!
Look for more 'Abandoned Disney' post coming soon.


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Hi there,
I'm currently a UK trial user and have a couple of days left to sign up or not.
I am particularly interested in the 'Talking Pictures TV' channel available on Freeview over here and notice that you list the channel but have no data for it.
Have you any plans to include it in the future please?
Also you seem very light on radio stations and I wondered if you can get data for my local BBC station i.e. BBC Radio Solent.
On the whole your data looks very good compared to what else I've been able to find so I'll probably sign up anyway but having these two favourites available would be very useful.