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For assessing reading levels A-K, students need to have both text and pictures.
The books that accompany our reading level assessments can be ordered through Bebop Books or Scholastic Books using the following forms:
Important Announcement: Schools in NYC that are using TCRWP Running Records as a MoSL must use the updated list of books for MoSL. Follow the directions already implemented for the TCRWP running records.
New York City schools that have chosen TCRWP Running Records as part of their MoSL plan for ELA: click one of the following links to browse or download specific, required materials for the beginning and end-of-year MoSL assessments.
Important Note About Instructional Implications of TCRWP MoSL Running Records
Download ALL Measure of Student Learning files
Browse ALL Measure of Student Learning files
The TCRWP offers a set of informal reading inventories for narrative texts which correlates to the Fountas and Pinnell system for leveling books. These assessments help teachers identify which level of texts students can read independently and will therefore be able to practice all the reading strategies they are learning during the Reading Workshop. The assessments provide an analysis of comprehension, miscues, and, fluency (fluency is only assessed for Levels J-Z).
Browse Fiction Reading Assessments By Level (A - Z), with Running Records
Level Conversions Chart
Download ALL fiction reading assessments levels A-K or L-Z with one click :
Levels A - K Support Materials
Levels L - Z Support Materials
Based on their home and early school experiences with print, children come with different understanding about the arbitrary conventions that we use to communicate meaning in print. An assessment of each child's level of understanding, and sometimes misunderstandings of these conventions, helps teachers know what their students are attending to in print and what still needs to be learned.
What does your student know about letters? Which letters can he/she identify? Although research has shown that students do not need to know the names of all letters before they begin reading books, knowing letters helps them communicate with the teacher and each other. (Samuels, 1972) Being able to discriminate and quickly recognize important letter(s) is also helpful in attaching sounds to the correct letters when reading words (Neuhaus, 2003).
The purpose of this assessment is to determine the number of high-frequency words that students know. LaBerge and Samuels (2006) call this automatic recognition of high frequency words part of automaticity. They state that when these words are instantly recognized, the short term memory is not overloaded and is freed to focus on comprehension of what is going on in the story. Therefore, this assessment can be used throughout the year to record students' growth in automatic word recognition. Ehri (1998) found students eventually encapsulate the letters of a word into a bonded unit that is recognized immediately.


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Because of changes in the federal tax laws, many Americans are finding that it makes sense to increase their charitable giving as they plan for the distribution of their estate.
You may want to consider:
By carefully planning your decisions, your individual taxes may be less, and your generosity will help MontanaPBS -- a statewide resource serving Montana families and individuals every day of the year.
For more information, you or your financial advisor should contact Crystal Leach, Director of Development at 406-994-6221 or via email at firstname.lastname@example.com.
Your company may match your gift to MontanaPBS and increase the total amount of your contribution. Review the list of companies below. If you are a current or retired employee of one of these companies, they may match your gift. If your company is not listed, ask your personnel department if they have a matching gift program. Many do.
If this is an option for you, send a copy of your completed matching gift form to MontanaPBS and we'll take care of the rest.
You make the donation, we receive the proceeds of the sale, minus the costs. We gladly accept cars, trucks, motorcycles, RV's, campers and even some farm machinery. Your donation supports Friends of MontanaPBS -- and you may be able to take a tax deduction.
Just call toll-free 1-866-628-2277. When you call, please let the person who answers know the vehicle's mileage and other particulars (make, model, year, color). We will arrange for pick-up at your home or office. There are no towing or other charges. Typically, your vehicle will be picked up in four days or so, but you may also have the option of delivering it to a specified location.
To donate a vehicle, it must be clear of liens or assignments; you need a clear title - a title with your name as owner.
You may be eligible for a tax deduction equal to the gross proceeds from the sale of the donated vehicle. Contact your tax advisor about the possible tax deduction.
Many of our members choose to give through volunteering. There are many ways to volunteer, from serving on our Friends of MontanaPBS board, to helping with pledge drives and special events. There are opportunities for groups and individuals. Please call Crystal Leach, Director of Development at 406-994-6221 for more information.
Many of our members have chosen to indefinitely contribute a certain amount every month via electronic funds withdrawal from bank accounts, or monthly charges to their credit cards. This form of giving saves the cost of mailing renewal notices. The Friends of MontanaPBS will continue to withdraw or charge the requested amount until you ask us to stop. If you are interested in this option, please call 1-800-426-8243, or, the next time you pledge, request the Sustainer Membership option.

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If you're trying to lose weight, don't let your midday meal sabotage your best intentions.
Latest Fitness
A few minutes every day now will quickly turn into a backside that wows.
Check out that and more stories from across the POPSUGAR network.
The shows we can't stop watching!
How this expecting mom balances it all with a healthy, honest attitude.
Yes, you can eat your way to a less-bloated belly.
- Why one personal training session is all you need — Greatist
- Stop letting your boobs ruin your workout! — Women's Health
- This might be the best post-workout meal ever — Self
- J.Crew introduces new size 000 — Shape
- Get white bread out of your life for good — Health
- Lessons learned from marathon running — HuffPost Healthy Living
- Your LOL for the day: what everyone thinks about in yoga — Fitness
- Paleo fudge in only 5 ingredients — Fit Bottomed Girls
A little prep goes a long way.
Today's challenge is all about intervals and antioxidants.
A celebrity trainer offers a simple tip for cheat days.
Doctor's orders: drink this green smoothie the day after a big night out.
Crack life open and find your everyday escape.


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What Happened Last Time We Had a Budget Sequester?
Despite what Bob Woodward says, Obama didn't invent the sequester.
Think the sequestration is a new idea? Think again. There's nothing new under the sun, and that includes universally hated automatic spending cuts.
Back in 1985, when the budget deficit was a quaint $220 billion, Congress decided the only way to ensure Republicans and Democrats address the deficit was mandatory across-the-board spending cuts. So they passed the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Balanced Budget Act, which did just that, as U.S. News explained at the time:
"Under the law, enacted in the final days of the 1985 session, Congress and the President must agree on a budget that meets annual deficit-reduction targets, or spending will be cut automatically under a complex system called "sequestration." Sound familiar?
Then, as now, the cuts were evenly divided among defense and nondefense programs. Then, as now, onlookers warned the cuts would leave food and drugs uninspected, airport runways unwatched, and soldiers unequipped.
[READ: 10 Industries That Will Be Hurt Most by the Sequester]
"All of us, and that includes the President and his advisers, will have to give a little if we are to avoid the wreckage," said Pete Domenici, the Senate's budget chairman at the time, sounding very much like current House Speaker John Boehner.
So what happened? It didn't work. The Supreme Court declared the automatic cuts unconstitutional, and when a revised version of the bill passed in 1987, Congress mostly evaded the cuts, and the deficit continued to grow. Congress scrapped the plan altogether in the Budget Enforcement Act of 1990, which included more carefully chosen spending cuts.
This time around the deficit is larger, the faces different, but little else has changed. If history is any guide, the budget Rapture isn't upon us, and the sequester isn't written in stone.
This article originally appeared in the Jan. 27, 1986 issue of U.S. News & World Report.
The Curtain Rises on Gramm-Rudman; Budget Law Takes First Bite
By Jeffery L. Sheler with Andy Plattner, Kenneth T. Walsh and Melissa Healy and Robert J. Morse of the Economic Unit
The costs of balancing the federal budget began hitting home for millions of Americans in mid-January as the nation caught a startling first glimpse of life under the Gramm-Rudman Act.
Just days before Congress reassembled for what promised to be a chaotic election-year session, the government unveiled details of nearly $12 billion in automatic spending cuts — the first under the new deficit-reduction law — that will slash hundreds of federal programs, from farm aid to defense, on March 1.
Even before the cuts were announced, lawmakers were peppered with complaints from constituents.A broad cross section of senators and House members, interviewed at home between sessions, reported growing concern and anger over reductions in cost-of-living allowances and other benefits and services. "People are seeing the direct effect of Gramm-Rudman on their pocket-books," explained Representative Peter Visclosky (D-Ind.).
The first visitation of automatic spending cuts raised the specter of even greater chaos in October when a budget ax five times as large will fall unless Congress and the President agree on a budget that reduces red ink by nearly $60 billion. Already, pressure is mounting on Capitol Hill to raise taxes and cut defense spending — moves that President Reagan opposes. "All of us, and that includes the President and his advisers, will have to give a little if we are to avoid the wreckage in October," says Senate Budget Committee Chairman Pete Domenici (R-N.M.).
Despite signs of nervousness — and a court test that threatens to strip the law of its enforcement feature — lawmakers and the White House were braced for a trial run under the landmark budget law designed to wipe out deficits by 1991.
Under the law, enacted in the final days of the 1985 session, Congress and the President must agree on a budget that meets annual deficit-reduction targets, or spending will be cut automatically under a complex system called "sequestration." Social Security benefits, interest payments on the national debt and some "safety net" programs for the poor would be exempted from cuts, and certain health-care expenditures would be partially shielded.
The first automatic cuts, for the fiscal year that began October 1, were outlined on January 15 in a joint report by the Office of Management and Budget and the Congressional Budget Office. Based on a "snapshot" of the economy on January 10, the two agencies predicted that, without the automatic cuts, this year's deficit would top a record $220 billion — some $42 billion more than the OMB predicted in August for this year and nearly $49 billion above this year's Gramm-Rudman target.
Lawmakers agreed to limit the first-year automatic cuts to $11.7 billion, evenly divided between defense and nondefense items, and to grant the President some leeway in distributing defense reductions.
The administration planned to use that flexibility to spare Reagan's Strategic Defense Initiative from cuts, to protect purchases of certain Navy aircraft and other weapons on long-term contract and avoid reductions in manpower. Instead, Pentagon cuts will focus on such things as purchases of M1 tanks for the Army, F-15 and F-16 fighter jets for the Air Force and slowing production of Navy cruisers and of MX missiles. Hardest hit will be the Pentagon's operations-and-maintenance account that keeps airplanes flying, ships steaming and spare parts in plentiful supply. Almost half the $5.9 billion total in defense reductions will be chopped from that account.
Meanwhile, millions of Americans will be affected by across-the-board cuts of 4.3 percent in nondefense programs ranging from agriculture and education to law enforcement.
Already canceled is a 3.1 percent cost-of-living pension adjustment due in January for 2 million federal civilian and 1.5 million military retirees. Cuts at the Department of Agriculture will reduce funding for loan guarantees and direct loans to farmers. Public elementary and secondary schools will get less federal help, and fewer guaranteed loans will be available for college students.
Despite OMB Director James Miller's prediction that the cuts would cause "a minimum of disruption" in federal offices, several agencies — including the Food and Drug Administration and the Labor Department — were weighing layoffs and other cuts in staff expenses.
The automatic cuts also will mean less spending this year on highways, housing, mass transit — in all, hundreds of programs. Even expenditures to operate the White House, Congress and the Supreme Court face cutbacks.
Beyond the projected savings, details of the first-round spending cuts gave Congress and the President a graphic and foreboding preview of what will occur in October if they fail to negotiate a budget agreement for 1987.
"We know that if we fail to act the hammer in October will be five times this first experience," says Domenici, who predicts it would take a sequestration of nearly $60 billion and across-the-board cuts of nearly 25 percent below current levels to reach next fall's $144 billion deficit target.
Cuts of that magnitude, say budget experts, would wreak havoc on government programs. That assessment is borne out in an analysis by the Economic Unit of U.S. News & World Report and interviews with budget officials in key federal agencies. Among the potential 1987 disruptions:
♦ The defense budget, instead of getting the $20 billion increase Reagan wants, would be slashed by nearly $30 billion to a total of $237.4 billion — the first actual decline in military spending since 1973. That, say military experts, would force reductions in manpower, a scaling down of purchases of ammunition and spare parts and abandonment of some major weapons programs. If that occurs, predicts Defense Secretary Caspar Weinberger, "it will become damaging to the point of real danger."
♦ A projected cut of nearly $80 million at the Food and Drug Administration would force deep reductions in personnel, according to an FDA spokesman, resulting in "fewer inspections in the field, which raises the risk of bad products getting onto the market." It would also take FDA researchers longer to review drugs and devices before granting approvals.
♦ The Federal Aviation Administration, which already is weighing cuts in technical and maintenance personnel as a result of the March 1 order, would face even deeper reductions that, some officials warn, could jeopardize air safety. Says Senator Alan Cranston (D-Calif.): "There would be cuts in air controllers and air-safety inspectors at a time when it is clear that it isn't safe to be flying."
One escape from the budget squeeze could come next summer in a federal court challenge of the Gramm-Rudman Act. Under expedited procedures, the Supreme Court is expected to rule by July 4 on a suit filed by a group of House members who contend that the law's provision for automatic cuts violates the Constitution by yielding congressional control of the government's purse strings to unelected bureaucrats.
So far, there are no signs of consensus on just how to avert a budget stalemate next fall — or even if that is possible. "I hope I'm wrong, but from here I don't see how we'll avoid it," says Willis Gradison (R-Ohio), a member of the House budget panel.
The first major test of wills comes on February 3 when the President sends Congress his budget for the year beginning next October. That budget, according to senior White House aides, will call for a 3 percent real boost for defense, deep cuts in domestic spending, including the elimination of about 20 programs, and no tax increase. Already, key lawmakers — Democrats and Republicans — predict the President's plan will be rejected. Not even Reagan's closest allies expect his defense-spending plans to survive long in Congress.
Still, the White House was determined to lobby hard to keep lawmakers from dismissing Reagan's budget, starting with his state-of-the-union message on January 28. Repeating a tactic he used to quell a Republican revolt on tax reform in December, Reagan planned a trip to Capitol Hill on January 31 to rally GOP support for his budget blueprint.
But many lawmakers are convinced that it will take more than spending cuts alone to slash the deficit. Some experts estimate a tax hike of $15 billion to $20 billion will be needed if automatic cuts are to be avoided next fall. But few expect a serious move on taxes unless Reagan takes the lead. Although White House officials say Reagan is as determined as ever to veto any tax bill that crosses his desk, some budget strategists predict he will change course as a last resort to stave off sequestration that would cut deeply into his defense budget.
Hopeful of avoiding a last-minute crisis, some lawmakers are calling for a "budget summit" involving the President and congressional leaders early in the year to work toward a "grand compromise" that includes taxes as well as cuts in spending on defense and domestic programs. "Let's get up to Camp David with the President, put everything on the table and not leave until we have an agreement," says James Jones (D-Okla.), former chairman of the House Budget Committee.
While that idea is gaining support, not everyone is convinced that it will provide the desired breakthrough. Predicts Representative Leon Panetta (D-Calif.): "With all of the political games being played in an election year, it's going to take us right to the wall before anything meaningful happens."
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Military Semester Startup: Joint Anacostia Bolling
Date: Wednesday October 10, 2012
Time: 9:00 - 4:00 PM
Location: Joint Base Anacostia Bolling
Attend this informal—and informative—event to find out everything you need to know about UMUC's programs, offered online and on-site.
- Apply and register for courses.
- Meet with an advisor to learn how to maximize your educational benefits.
- Sign up for UMUC 411 Military, our no-obligation weeklong course that allows you to test-drive online learning.
- Explore military scholarships and other payment options.
Plus, save $50*. When you apply for admission at this event, you will be eligible to receive a waived application fee ($50 value).
*Offer is only available to prospective students who apply at the October 10, 2012, Semester Startup event. The $100 application fee for the Doctor of Management program cannot be waived.
Register today!
Walk-ins are also welcome.


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Tribune-Star staff report
The Tribune-Star
The victim in a Parke County homicide that occurred last week has been identified as Kathryn A. Bays, 55, of Rosedale.
The Parke County Sheriff's Department issued a statement Tuesday morning saying the suspect in the slaying — 52-year-old Earl L. Edwards — was arrested Friday afternoon in Alpharetta, Ga.
Edwards is expected to be brought to Parke County from Georgia by investigators today to face charges in Parke Circuit Court later this week.
An autopsy conducted Monday determined that the cause of death for Bays was blunt force trauma to the head.
Bays was discovered dead in her Rosedale home on Friday afternoon. Police have said that Edwards turned himself in to Georgia authorities.
A 911 call from Georgia allegedly placed by Bays was routed through Vigo County Central Dispatch before it was redirected to Parke County Central Dispatch. That call was received at about 1:30 p.m. Friday.
Police went to the home to investigate, Parke Sheriff Mike Eslinger said, and police found the body. Detectives were called to the scene, along with the Indiana State Police.
It was not clear when the homicide occurred.


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- Study at Deakin
- Life at Deakin
- Research
- Alumni
- Industry and community
- About Deakin
|Enrolment modes:
|Trimester 1: Cloud (online)
Trimester 2: Cloud (online)
Trimester 3: Cloud (online)
|Credit point(s):
|EFTSL value:
|Cohort rule:
|(For Bachelor of Laws students only)
|Work experience in industry:
|This is a Work Experience in Industry (WEI) unit.
|Unit chair:
|M Ebejer
|Incompatible with:
Quota and special permission applies: applications must be made to the LLB Program Coordinator. Please see http://www.deakin.edu.au/buslaw/law/students/lawclinic.php for selection criteria, application forms and further information. You will need to access substantial learning resources and experiences in CloudDeakin (Deakin's online learning environment). Compliance with the Standards in computing, connectivity and student capability are a condition on your enrolment.
The unit enables students to gain an appreciation of certain aspects of legal practice and to extend and deepen their theoretical knowledge of the law by working under supervision in a community legal service. During their placement in the legal service, students will receive instruction in the following areas of legal practice: taking instructions and client interviewing; fact finding; dispute resolution and negotiation; providing advice and counselling of a legal nature; legal research and problem-solving; the litigation process; and advocacy.
Journal 40%, Host Assessment 60%
Unit Fee Information
Unit fee information available soon


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It probably isn't a collector's item yet but this 2008 Cadillac STS is more than just a super clean low-mileage used car too. With... More
2008 Cadillac XLR convertible for sale in our Tampa Showroom. Do you want luxury performance and a convertible all in one package? Look no... More


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By Phil Stacey
Sports editor
---- — NEWBURYPORT — Judging solely by the way they've been playing recently, you'd never guess the Peabody High hockey team will hang up its skates for the final time in the 2012-13 campaign tomorrow night.
Playing their best hockey of the season, the Tanners are finally enjoying the fruits of their labor. They may not be going to the playoffs, but they're certainly showing their resolve and will to keep competing.
Upsetting a Northeastern Conference North rival for the second time in three days, Peabody got the game-winning goal from senior defenseman Pat Ruotolo midway through the third yesterday to knock off Danvers, 3-1, in the first round of the 18th annual Newburyport Bank Classic.
It was the third straight victory for the Tanners (7-11-2 overall), who got a huge lift from Joe Powers in net. The senior netminder was brilliant in stopping 40 shots, including 18 in the middle period and another 13 in the final frame.
"I'm so proud of this team. They've worked so hard and come so far," said Peabody head coach Mark Leonard. His team will meet Lincoln-Sudbury tomorrow night (7) in Newburyport in the Fournier Division championship game at the Bank Classic.
"They didn't quit when we started the season (1-4-2); that shows a ton of character. We went from last place in the conference standings to finishing up in third place. That says it all."
Coming off of a shocking 5-3 victory over previously unbeaten Beverly in Monday's Carlin Cup, Peabody was once again resilient defensively, forechecked effectively and blocked shots. They never flinched after Danvers tied it up in the third period, either, as Ruotolo's shot from the top of the right circle found the top left corner of the Falcons' net just 86 seconds later.
"They had more will to win than we did," Danvers (9-6-4) head coach Kevin Brown said of the Tanners.
"We've got to play better; you can't be satisfied with 41 shots if 41 shots doesn't get you what you want. It's consistency, having all nine forwards, six defenseman and goalie on the same page at the same time. And it's not just about consistency and fighting through adversity; we've got to be more tenacious and dictate the game, not let (the opponent) dictate it."
Captain Matt McIsaac's first period goal, created by some terrific forechecking by linemates Andrew Bisconti and Mike Vadala, was the only score through 30 minutes of play. Danvers peppered Powers with shots, but he was up to the task.
Finally, on the Falcons' 34th shot, captain Rob Buchanan tied the score after flying down the left wing, cutting towards the Peabody net and sliding a smooth backhand into the cage.
Undeterred, the Tanners came right back and re-took the lead when Bisconti found Ruotolo at the right point. The co-captain flung a wrister through traffic and over goalie Alex Taylor's (17 saves) right shoulder. Reed Foster's empty net goal with 13 seconds left iced it for the Tanner City boys.
"All three captains stepped up," said Leonard. "Matty got us going with that first goal, Pat had a great game and got the winner, and Joe was unbelievable in goal. And Biscuits (Bisconti), we've gotten a lot better because of him. He throws his body all over the place; he makes us tougher and grittier."


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planking: "the act of lying face down, motionless… just like a plank; usually performed in bizarre locations where same persons would normally not lay down."
What is planking all about?
Planking is probably one of the most popular Internet memes in the past few years, meaning it's a dumb idea that spread very rapidly and profusely, just like a virus. In essence, it's a lying down game in which participants compete by resting flat in the most unusual and bizarre places. To qualify as perfect planking, a pose must obey certain rules:
1) person must be laid down voluntarily
2) arms should be stretched alongside body, palms up
3) face should be pointing down, expressionless
4) planker should remember his life is most valuable than playing
What's so stupid about planking, anyway?
It's not that laying down in unpredictable places is such a dumb thing to do. It's not that we're concerned about the disruption of the urban status quo, or whatever. It's not that we aren't amused with the deluge of planking pictures available on-line. Much the other way around, in fact: to create this post we've spent a bunch of hours looking at hundreds of pictures, selecting the very best. And it was fun.
No, the reason why we think planking is stupid is because people have been injured doing it. People have been suspended and even fired for doing it during their work hours. People have been arrested for planking on top of a police car. There's at least one report of an Australian youth who perished while trying to engage planking on a balcony. We're very sorry to know this, but the take-away is not "planking is dangerous":
The take away should be "dangerous planking is stupid".
As mentioned before, planking only makes sense while you're alive. After that, it becomes "corpsing", and it's no fun at all. So if you want to keep having fun participating in the latest Internet memes, make sure you treasure your life and keep it going.
Further Criticisms of Planking
Some critics have pointed out that Planking is also stupid because it's reminiscent of a common practice in the dark period of history in which slave trade occurred. To maximize the space in slave ships, sometimes the unfortunate African slaves were forced to lay down in a plank-like fashion. While this is indeed an historical fact, we believe the comparison does not make sense except in the head of historians.
The overwhelming of people who are entertained with planking and indulge upon it have no idea of this historical detail, and their intentions bear no connotation to the unfortunate practice of slavery which seemed like such a good idea to our ancestors.
Why are we still publishing all these planking pictures?
Are you kidding? Just wait until you scroll down and look through the pictures we've selected for your viewing pleasure. There's comedy, there's drama, there's stacked human bodies. There are spin-offs such as naked planking, and there's even a bunch of pictures showing some great displays of animal planking. There are even celebrities who have been caught planking – can you spot one Hugh Hefner of "Playboy" fame, in the following gallery?
Make no mistake: planking can be utterly silly, and it can be dangerous if you are not careful about it. But when done right, it can be a great way to express your sense of humor and shake up the routine of people. A fun way to prompt awareness to their surroundings, if only to observe a moment of simple dumbness. Yes, it can even be a way to promote social intervention, as you can see in this special picture… where 1500 people planke together as a sign of political protest, in Thailand.
Tom Green and the Real Origins of Planking
Several factions have claimed merits on the invention of this "noble" modern "sport", planking. But since none of those people have produced video evidence dating as far back as 1994, capable of sustaining their claims… the credit goes to one Mr. Tom Green, the visionary who stars in the following video. Which incidentally is the oldest documented evidence of a human being planking deliberately and voluntarily.
Did you know? Planking is also known as….
"Playing Dead" – South Korea
"On Your Belly" – France
"Extreme Lying down" – Australia
"Facedowns" – Ireland
The most humongous planking gallery you've ever seen, EVER:
Nude Planking: just like a naked board
Some people don't just settle for planking and insist on taking it to the next level. In some cases this implies stripping off their clothes before acting like a plank. Like so:
Planking masters of the animal kingdom
If you think planking is something that humans made up, these pictures will prove you wrong. As you can see, may animals have been doing it for a long while… although some of these admittedly haven't quite nailed down the rules of planking.
Not exactly planking, but worthy of mention…
While the following pictures wouldn't accurately be described as planking per se, they're just too cool not to be posted here. Enjoy!
And remember, If you don't think planking is *so* last week, have fun doing it… but keep it safe.


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Celebrity Tan Lines and Sunburns
Credit: Coqueran/FameFlynet Pictures; Courtesy of Kim Kardashian; David Livingston/Getty Images
1 of 11
Celebrity Tan Lines and Sunburns
If there's one thing celebrities are known for more than mixing and mingling at awards shows, it's frolicking at the beach. But even Hollywood's brightest stars can make some pretty amateur mistakes -- see Rachel Bilson, Kim Kardashian, Kelly Osbourne and other bold-faced names with some seriously awkward tan lines and sunburns. Stars: They're just like Us!


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By Tim Graham
Asked for his take on Seattle Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch, former Buffalo Bills teammate C.J. Spiller said with a grin:
"He's a hard runner. He's a physical runner. I hope he has his worst game ever."
Back in July, when Lynch had been arrested for drunk driving, I wrote the Bills were lucky to have rid themselves of him and his off-field antics.
The Bills' trade seemed like a relief then. Lynch was in trouble with the law again. The Bills used the two draft picks they acquired from the Seahawks on two players who showed promise: Chris Hairston and Tank Carder.
I was wrong.
The trade unmistakably has swung back to Seattle's favor. Hairston is a backup tackle when everybody's healthy, and the Bills cut Carder at the end of training camp.
And Lynch? He avoided a suspension and has been one of the NFL's best running backs.
A collection of factoids about Lynch's production since he left Buffalo:
1) Lynch ranks second in the NFL with 1,266 rushing yards and sixth with 1,415 yards from scrimmage.
2) He has seven 100-yard rushing games this year.
3) ProFootballFocus.com's stats show Lynch ranks fourth in the NFL with 762 yards after contact and third with 46 tackles broken or avoided.
4) He set Seattle's record for yards per carry last week. He averaged 11.6 yards against the Arizona Cardinals, rushing 11 times for 128 yards.
5) In the past two years, he has rushed for three of Seattle's five best single-game averages.
6) He's on pace to establish career-highs with 1,558 rushing yards, 321 attempts and a 4.9 average. He would be only the third Seahawk to rush for more than 1,500 yards, joining Shaun Alexander and Chris Warren.
7) Lynch leads the NFL in rushing since Week Nine of last year with 2,207 yards. That's 332 yards ahead of the next-closest runner, Ray Rice.
8) Lynch has rushed for 100 yards in 13 of his past 22 games and has been held under 85 yards only three times in that span.
9) He has been held out of the end zone just seven times over the past 22 games. He has rushed for 18 TDs and caught one TD pass.
10) He scored at least one touchdown in a club-record 11 straight games last year.


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Pleadings, Briefs, and Jury Charges
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This is a copy of a Washington arbitration award that awarded general and special damages.
King County Arbitration Award (08/21/2006) (pdf - 27.12 KB)


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USSF Training 2012
The Texas Rush Soccer Club is very proud to announce that the following players were invited to take part in the United States Soccer Federation Training Center event at Burroughs Park, TX on February 2, 2012. US National Coaching Staff were present to evaluate the best talent within the geographic area, this happens once in the Spring and Fall. The event was invite only. (View/print article.)
Abigail Janszen - U13G Nike Blue
Brianna Woodall - U13G Nike Blue
Kelsey Brann - U13G Nike Blue
Julia Revils - U13G Nike Blue
Kimberly Rodriguez - U13G Nike Blue
Jasmine Richards - U13G Nike Platinum
Grace Piper - U14G NIke Blue
Sommer Stanley - U14G Nike Blue
Carmen Webster - U16G Nike Blue
"The players that were invited to attend by the United States Soccer Federation have worked hard on their game and shown consistencies in their training methods over the last couple of years. It"s another great opportunity for the players to play with others of similar ability and be evaluated by the US Federation"s Coaching Staff." Stuart Fitzsimons, Director of Coaching.


text: From Cars to Carpet, and Hospitals to Hot Beverages, to say that our client roster is varied is kind of an understatement. Which is why we don't impose an over-arching agency style on our clients when it comes to the work. All of our clients have very specific needs, and fulfilling those needs is what we do so well at Intermark. Whether it's a hard-sell car campaign for a dealer group, creating a website that moves donuts, or building a fully integrated marketing campaign from scratch for a flooring company, our goal is to provide solutions for the marketing challenges of our clients, on a client-by-client basis.


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How bad do things have to be for it to disturb a hockey team?
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PHOENIX (AP) — An Arizona strip club has endorsed a Democratic candidate for Congress. And the candidate, the Rev. Full Story
(Andy Kropa/Andy Kropa /Invision/AP)
Gaga on Bennett duet CD: Jazz comes easier vs. pop
NEW YORK (AP) — Lady Gaga is a bonafide pop star, but the singer says recording jazz music was easier than pop. Full Story
(Gary Reyes/Bay Area News Group)
Batkid documentary in the works
A film about Miles Scott, the 5-year-old who stole the hearts of millions when he "saved Gotham" as part of a Make-a Wish Foundation event in San Francisco, is underway, but needs funds to be finished; a trailer has aired at Comic-Con.


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Star Wars Cap – Imperial Cog
This movie Cap is inspired by Star Wars
This Movie cap is inspired by The Imperial cog which was a crest symbol of the Galactic Empire.
- Low profile cotton screen printed Cap.
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No Copyright infringement is intended in this design[widgets_on_pages id="Language"]


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Thursday, January 10, the Learning Opportunities Quality Works, Inc. (LOQW) launched a three and a half year project —the Northeast Missouri Show Me Careers Project. This project is to help improve the lives of youth and young adults with disabilities transition from school to community based employment.
LOQW, which is targeting Macon, Kirksville and Moberly, received a grant from the University of Missouri Kansas City for $65K and was one of eight project proposals selected for funding throughout Missouri.
Project Director at UMKC's Institute for Human Development, Oliver Burnette, said, "We are working on a transition path from high school into integrated work settings or post secondary education. We just want positive outcomes and innovation."
Although each community has its own dynamics, they still must follow six guiding principles set by the Show Me Careers initiative. These principles include: early work experience and career development, employer engagement and business partnerships, family involvement, integration of systems, post-secondary education and training, and youth development.
According to Project Coordinator for LOQW, Lacy Yutzy, this project and its activities will be a beneficial tool for local businesses in the future. "These pilot communities want to ensure that they are preparing youth with disabilities to be a vital part of their future workforce," said Yutzy.
LOQW began providing progressive, high-quality community services in 1983 and plans to continue those practices.


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Lockport Union-Sun & Journal — A 19-year-old East Avenue man faces assault and harassment charges following an incident on Regent Street on Tuesday evening.
Charles J. Nemec, 145 East Ave., lower was charged with third-degree assalt, second-degree harassment and obstruction of breath. He turned himself in at police headquarters at 6:30 p.m.
Police responded to Regent Street to a 911 call. According to the report, Nemec came to the residence and yelled at the victim. Nemec struck the victim in the face multiple times with his fist, put his arm around the victim's neck and cut off his breathing for a short amount to time.
After police were called, Nemec left in a car. There was swelling around the victim's eye. He had lacerations, swell marks on his neck and pain in his jaw.
Nemec heard the call on the police scanner and turned himself in.


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As for Prince's public re-emergence, L. Londell McMillan, the singer's longtime friend and business partner, says simply, "It began with a yes." McMillan is referring to Prince's surprising agreement to perform on the Grammy Awards after years of turning down such requests. That appearance and his Hall of Fame induction had two significant results. First, sharing the stage with Beyoncè at the Grammys and being hailed by OutKast and Alicia Keys at the Hall of Fame induction demonstrated to Prince how decisive an influence he has been on an entire generation of younger artists. He was so moved by Keys' speech—"Because of him, I've never wanted to be like anyone but myself... Because of his music, my music has wings to be different"—that a video of it introduces him every night on the Musicology tour.
Prince is well aware that his antics in the past have caused him to be portrayed as, in his words, a "petulant brat" or "a megalomaniac." That aspiring musicians heard a call to freedom amid the din of controversy surrounding him couldn't possibly be more important to him. "The respect of young artists—I love that," he says. "Despite everything, no one can dictate who you are to other people. Alicia Keys gets it. All these hip-hop artists, the first thing they do is start their own label and lock their business down—we had a lot to do with that."
But, perhaps even more important, the initial steps that Prince took to re-engage his fans reignited their passion for his music. "I think people sometimes forget how great a genius he is," McMillan says. "What's happening now represents the vindication of one of the best all-around artists of all time."
Because "Musicology" is so listener-friendly, Prince overcame his near-pathological wariness about record companies and agreed to allow McMillan to work out a deal with Columbia Records. Columbia, which is part of Sony Music, will distribute and help market the album domestically (and be reimbursed for the costs of doing so) and license it for sale in the rest of the world. It's an arrangement that essentially requires no upfront costs on the label's part, while providing a strong profit incentive for the company to sell as many copies as possible. On his end, Prince gets the enormous reach of an international corporate powerhouse.
According to Sony's president, Don Ienner, the label has filled orders for upward of a million copies of the album worldwide. "And with the first copy shipped, we started making money," he adds. "We have really high expectations for this, and, though there are no guarantees, we hope to remain in business with Prince for a long time. How often does an artist of his stature become available on any terms?"
Prince received no advance payment from the label—"That's the price of freedom," McMillan says. But the singer retains complete ownership of the album, the whole point of his grueling battle in the Nineties with Warner Bros. He also gets a much higher percentage of sales than he would under a more traditional arrangement. "One advantage of writing 'slave' on my face back then is that when I meet with a label now, they already know they're not going to be owning anything," Prince says wryly. "Maybe at one time they could get Little Richard for a new car and a bucket of chicken. We don't roll like that no more." In addition, everyone who purchases a ticket to the Musicology tour receives a copy of the album, though without the packaging or the "Musicology" video included in the Columbia version.
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- Entertainment
- WARMfest returns to Indianapolis on Labor Day weekend INDIANAPOLIS - The second annual WARMfest will return to Indianapolis Labor Day weekend Aug. 29 through Sept. 1 at Broad Ripple Park. WARMfest is a four-day music and arts festival dedicated to helping preserve the White River. Tickets available at w
- Indy Jazz Fest announces 2014 lineup INDIANAPOLIS - Indy Jazz Fest returns in 2014 with a 10-day lineup in venues All Around Town September 11-20, featuring special headliner and Indianapolis native Josh Kaufman, recent winner of NBC's hit show The Voice. The announcement marks the star
- Country Stars to hit Brickfest Music Festival stage INDIANAPOLIS - The Indianapolis Motor Speedway will once again host an award-winning list of Big Machine Label Group country music artists, including headliners Brantley Gilbert, The Band Perry and Justin Moore, at the Brickfest Music Festival on Sat
- National tour of Menopause The Musical returns to Indy INDIANAPOLIS - GFour Productions, winners of 54 Drama Desk and 44 Tony Awards are proudly bringing the international hit show Menopause The Musical® to Indianapolis for a triumphant return at the Egyptian Room at Old National Centre for 8 performance
- Book review: 'The Illusionists' by Rosie Thomas Now you see it. Now you don't.The magician's coin jumps from hand to hat and though you're astounded, that would be an easy trick to learn. You could research, and know how he made an elephant disappear. You could teach yourself how to conjure the ri
- Black Label Society coming to The Vogue INDIANAPOLIS - The Vogue in Broad Ripple welcomes Black Label Society on Wednesday, July 30, 2014 at 9:00 p.m. EST (Doors open at 8:00 p.m. EST) with special guests Wovenwar and Kyng as part of the Sun King Concert Series.Tickets are $29.50-$30.00 an
- Tickets on sale for The Piano Guys INDIANAPOLIS - What do you get when you mix up a marketing genius that does video, a studio engineer that writes music, a pianist that had a successful solo career, and a cellist that does pretty much everything? The Piano Guys: a miraculous meeting
Movie preview: "Sex Tape"
Plot: Though they're still very much in love, ten years and two kids have cooled the passion for Jay and Annie. To spice up their relationship, they decide to make a home video of themselves.
Movie preview: "Planes: Fire and Rescue"
Plot: When world-famous air racer Dusty learns that his engine is damaged and he may never race again, he must shift gears and is launched into the world of aerial firefighting.
Movie preview: "The Purge: Anarchy"
Plot: A defenseless young couple find themselves stranded in the city on the one night of the year that all crime, including murder, is legal, in this self-contained sequel to the 2013 sleeper hit.
- More Entertainment Headlines


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Home › Campaigns › GROW › Press Room › Video › Oxfam at COP 17: Hungry for action at the UN Climate Conference
Oxfam at COP 17: Hungry for action at the UN Climate Conference
- Author: Oxfam
- Copyright: Oxfam
- Date: 1 December 2011
Oxfam is in Durban, South Africa for the latest round of climate negotiations, COP 17.
Oxfam kicked off our efforts with a dinner party in the sea to provide a stark illustration of the effects that extreme weather will have on our already creaking food system.
Poor people already spend a big proportion of their incomes on food and this will increase if crops fail due to an unpredictable climate.
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Here's the audio of owner Jerry Jerry telling UB's Josh Thomas that he's been selected by the Dallas Cowboys.
---Rodney McKissic
April 30, 2011 - 3:29 PM
Here's the audio of owner Jerry Jerry telling UB's Josh Thomas that he's been selected by the Dallas Cowboys.
---Rodney McKissic
April 30, 2011 - 2:40 PM
UB cornerback Josh Thomas was selected in the fifth round by the Dallas Cowboys with the 143rd pick overall today. Thomas is the fifth UB player since 2000 to be selected in the draft joining Drew Haddad (2000), Trevor Scott (2008), Jamey Richard (2008) and Niagara Falls native James Starks (2010).
Thomas elevated his stock during the postseason during the East-West Shrine game and was one of five MAC players invited to the NFL Combine.
---Rodney McKissic
April 29, 2011 - 12:09 PM
---Temple Muhammad Wilkerson became the first MAC player since Northern Illinois linebacker Larry English (2009) to be selected the first round. Temple's punishing run stuffer was selected by the New York Jets with the No. 30 pick overall.
No one from the league is projected to be picked in today's 2nd and 3rd rounds. Here's a list of MAC players selected by the NFL.
---Rodney McKissic
April 29, 2011 - 9:57 AM
---Opportunity brought God's Gift Achiuwa, pictured left with his coach Alex Nwora from his home in Nigeria to ECC and that's what will take him next year to St. John's. Here's more stories about Gift from the New York Post and Daily News. Meanwhile, Washington is scrambling after losing out on Gift.
---Adam Zagoria expects Iona's Mike Glover to have a breakout year.
---Jonathan Givony, evaluates all of the early entrant decisions, while Andy Katz reacts to the new names released on the NBA draft list.
---Kevin Ware has decomitted from UCF.
---Gary Parrish believes that despite the addition of Colorado and Utah, the Pac 12 will remain the weakest power-six conference.
---John Rothstein provides a list of teams on the rise next season.
---Rodney McKissic
April 28, 2011 - 2:46 PM
---God's Gift Achiuwa, a 6-foot-8 forward at ECC, officially signed a national letter of intent with St. John's this aftertoon.
Achiuwa, who also considered Cincinnati and Washington, was one of the top remaining big men in the country. His decision to attend St. John's has been rumored since Monday after he returned from an official visit. In the process St. John's coach Steve Lavin beat out close friend Lorenzo Romar for Achiuwa's services. Lavin and Romar were assistants under Jim Harrick during the 90s at UCLA.
"Gift' is a talented frontline player who possesses tremendous size, strength, speed and skill," Lavin said in a statement released by ECC. "He is an ideal fit for our baseline-to-baseline attacking style of play. The maturity Gift gained from two years of junior college basketball with a combined 55-6 record will make him a nice complement to what will be the youngest roster in the country next season. He is fundamentally sound and comes from a program with a tradition of winning, where a strong work ethic, playing hard and discipline is demanded on a daily basis."
---Rodney McKissic
April 28, 2011 - 7:13 AM
The New York Post is reporting that ECC forward God's Gift Achiuwa will select St. John's over Cincinnati and Washington. Achiuwa has scheduled a press conference today at ECC to announce his decision.
St. John's already has one of the nation's top ranked recruiting classes and the addition of Achiuwa could push the Red Storm near the top. The latest ESPN.com rankings list St. John's third behind Kentucky and Duke. Achiuwa averaged 22.3 points, 11.7 rebounds and 2.2 blocks last season for ECC.
---Rodney McKissic
April 27, 2011 - 9:06 PM
---ECC's God's Gift Achiuwa will announce his college choice at 2 p.m. Thursday at the school.
"He's going to announce his decision based on the three schools he visited: St. John's, Cincinnati and Washington," ECC coach Alex Nwora said.
Kentucky also expressed interest in Achiuwa, a 6-foot-8 forward, who visited St. John's last weekend.
---Rodney McKissic
April 27, 2011 - 9:14 AM
With the NFL Draft is approaching, Rivals.com put together a chart of draftees by conference dating back to 2000. Miami (Ohio) leads all teams in the Mid-American Conference with nine draft picks and the league had four first-round draft picks in the last decade, including Northern Illinois' Larry English, pictured above, in 2009.
UB had four draft picks since 2000 in Drew Haddad (2000), Trevor Scott (2008), Jamey Richard (2008) and Niagara Falls native James Starks (2010). CB Josh Thomas is expected to be drafted on the third day of this week's draft. I re-arranged Rivals MAC chart to show in order of number of draftees:
Miami (Ohio)
Draft picks: 9
Last first rounder: Ben Roethlisberger, QB, 2004
Northern Illinois
Draft picks: 7
Last first rounder: Larry English, LB, 2009
Central Michigan
Draft picks: 7
Last first rounder: Joe Staley, OT, 2007
Draft picks: 6
Last first rounder: Dan Williams, DE, 1993
Draft picks: 6
Last first rounder: Paul Palmer, RB, 1987
Draft picks: 6
Last first rounder: None
Western Michigan
Draft picks: 5
Last first rounder: Jason Babin, LB, 2004
Ball State
Draft picks: 5
Last first rounder: None
Kent State
Draft picks: 5
Last first rounder: None
Eastern Michigan
Draft picks: 4
Last first rounder: L.J. Shelton, OT, 1999
Bowling Green
Draft picks: 4
Last first rounder: Bernie Casey, WR, 1961
Draft picks: 4
Last first rounder: Art Lewis, T, 1936
Draft picks: 4
Last first rounder: None
Also from that story, is the list of the most draft picks among all schools:
1. Ohio State 73
3. Miami 67
4. Georgia 61
5. Tennessee 60
6t. Florida 59
6t. Florida State 59
9. Virginia Tech 52
10t. Michigan 49
10t. Oklahoma 49
The most first-rounders:
1. Miami 26
2. Ohio State 16
4t. Florida State 14
4t. Texas 14
6t. Florida 12
6t. Oklahoma 12
6t. Tennessee 12
9. Georgia 11
10. Penn State 10
---Rodney McKissic
April 26, 2011 - 9:46 PM
---Here's the official announcement on the Golden Griffins seven-man recruiting class which also mentions that freshman guard Ashton Khan and junior forward Rokas Gricius won't return to the team. Also not returning is freshman walk-on Eric Kindler although he's not mentioned in the release.
It's been long rumored that Khan wouldn't return. In March, Khan and sophomore David Santiago were suspended indefinitely from Canisius in connection with an on campus theft. Days after the theft, a source told The News that Khan attempted to register an iPod to the campus Internet system which made it traceable. The items were later returned.
Khan played in 15 games as a freshman. In 58 total minutes, he averaged 1.0 points. Santiago, who remains under suspension, sat out last season after transferring from American University in Puerto Rico.
Gricius, who played in 25 career games for the Griffs, will graduate and is currently pursuing his master's degree in sport administration at Canisius.
"Rokas is currently pursuing some opportunities presented to him in the professional work world, and I'm very proud of the effort he gave to this program, both on and off the court,'' Canisius coach Tom Parrotta said in the release. "Ashton and I mutually agreed that he should pursue other options. We're helping him in his search to find a school that will give him an opportunity to continue his education and play a more pivotal role on the court. I wish both of those guys nothing but the best as they move forward."
---Rodney McKissic
April 26, 2011 - 1:39 PM
---Jaden Cotton, a 6-foot-5, 295-pound offensive tackle from Depew, has given a verbal commitment to UB, according to sources. Cotton is the second member of the Bulls' 2012 recruiting class, joining Canisius offensive guard Corey Madlock. Cotton and Madlock were two of UB's primary targets from Western New York along with St. Francis tailback Akeel Lynch and St. Joe's quarterback Chad Kelly.
---Rodney McKissic
Western New York native Bob DiCesare covers UB football, Big 4 basketball and writes an occasional column. He still holds a grudge against Chris Ford who, he's convinced, cost St. Bonaventure the 1970 NCAA basketball championship.
@TBNDicesare | email@example.com
Amy Moritz, a native of Lockport, has covered colleges for The Buffalo News since 1999. She has a bachelor's degree in journalism/mass communication from St. Bonaventure University and a master's degree in humanities from the University at Buffalo. An endurance athlete, she has completed several triathlons, half marathons and marathons.


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For a certain type of reader, there are four brief syllables that, when encountered, bring a slight flush to one's cheek, an impulsive curl upward of the lips, and even, perhaps, a faint quickening of the pulse—Jackson Brodie.
The weathered, harried British private detective is hardly traditional hardboiled heartthrob material. He's adept with wisecracks, but the humor generally eludes whomever Brodie's speaking to. He likes his whiskey, but not too much of it. He's divorced and frequently falls for the wrong women, but he genuinely loves his daughter, Marlee.
As his latest adventure, Started Early, Took My Dog (Reagan Arthur Books), opens, Brodie has been on a long vacation driving around the English countryside touring the ruins of medieval abbeys and reading Emily Dickinson; his country music collection and "Jane," the voice of his satellite navigation system, are his sole companions. Would Philip Marlowe, even a retired and middle-aged Marlowe, ever be caught doing the same? Hardly.
It's that normalcy, that sense that Brodie really is just an average hapless Everyman shambling along through life who just happens to keep getting caught up in deadly situations, that has made him such an appealing character since his first appearance in Kate Atkinson's Case Histories seven years ago. He reappeared, with some fanfare, in 2006's One Good Turn and then 2008's When Will There Be Good News? The BBC is now making Case Histories a miniseries, so Brodie could soon become a legitimate physical heartthrob.
Yet by the end of Started Early, Took My Dog, this reader found herself beginning to wonder if there can indeed be too much of the good thing that is Jackson Brodie. The novel is classic Atkinson—smart and literary, dark and dreary, full of mediations on the good and evil of which everyone is capable—but something is missing.
Atkinson stumbled into the British literary world in 1995 as a relative unknown, winning the prestigious Whitbread Book of the Year award for her first novel, Behind the Scenes at the Museum. It is a weird and haunting book, interweaving the themes of dead and missing children, unhappy relationships, and dark, mysterious secrets that have since become Atkinson's stock in trade. Human Croquet, which followed two years later, was even weirder and even darker, and the title of her 2000 novel, Emotionally Weird, says it all.
Atkinson's first three books were not mysteries in any conventional sense at all. There were plot twists and turns; secrets were unveiled; there were murders and disappearances and many, many lies. Her work was clearly influenced by elements of crime fiction, but the complicated narrative structures and unreliable speakers turned the mystery genre upside down. It doesn't really matter who did it or whether a crime was even committed, Atkinson seemed to being saying: These messy, complicated, weird, damaged people and situations—this is life, and it's unsolvable.
The same themes and ideas abound in the four Brodie novels, but they're tempered by the sane, unflappable detective. Which is to say, Brodie always solves his case (in some way or another), and there's always a resolution (even if it isn't as neat and tidy as a conventional mystery reader might expect). While Brodie can never solve the one mystery that consumes him—the 30-year-old murder of his teenage sister—he has become awfully adept at solving other people's decades-old crimes.
"His specialist subject on Mastermind would be looking for people. Not necessarily finding them, but half the equation was better than none. 'Really you're looking for your sister,' Julia said. 'You own dear grail. You're never going to find her, Jackson. She's gone. She's never coming back.'
"'I know that.' Didn't make any difference, he would go on looking for all the lost girls, the Olivias, the Joannas, the Lauras. And his sister, Niamh, the first last girl (the last lost girl). Even though he knew exactly where Niamh was, thirty miles away from where he was at the moment, mouldering in cold, damp clay."
But in Started Early, Took My Dog, there are more found girls than lost ones. Brodie has a client who wants to find her birth parents, except they don't seem to exist. At the same time, retired police officer Tracy Waterhouse suddenly finds herself with a would-be adoptive daughter of equally uncertain parentage. At the heart of both narrative threads is the unsolved 1975 murder of a prostitute in Leeds, just before Peter Sutcliffe, aka "The Yorkshire Ripper," began his string of brutal killings in the region. Started Early, Took My Dog jumps back and forth between the present and 1975, painting a bleak picture of police procedure and privilege in the era.
Interspersed with this are the stream-of-consciousness memories of aging actress Tilly Squires. Mourning the end of her career and the children she never had, she takes a role as the mother of a police detective on a television drama. It soon becomes clear Tilly is in the first stages of dementia.
Atkinson's writing is masterful in Tilly's sections, but other than the character's part in a key (but brief) plot development, she doesn't seem to contribute much of anything to the novel as a whole. Yes, Tilly's dementia is a thematic counterpoint to the ways in which a lot of people lose their minds over the course of the book, but are so many pages of it necessary?
In the end the most disappointing thing about Started Early, Took My Dog is the sheer lack of urgency in Brodie's sections. They seem rote, by now: Brodie gets beat up by thugs; he gets robbed; he finds a dog; he discovers maybe there's more love in his heart than he once thought. He seems exhausted. Maybe Atkinson is exhausted by him?
And so one wonders if at the beginning of the next Brodie book—because the end of this one does seem to imply there will be at least one more—will all of this have gone missing again? Will he still be alone and lost and wandering and stumbling into cases far more complicated than he says he wants to take on? Will Brodie ever find his own narrative closure?
Atkinson being Atkinson, it seems unlikely that she'll ever leave things so tidy. But for our sake, I hope she'll also know when to let a beloved character go gently into dark British countryside.
© 2011 MetroPulse. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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Staff Advisory Committee
The Staff Advisory Committee (SAC) meets the third Thursday of the month with the Vice President of Human Resources and other human resources staff to discuss new policy issues, update existing policies, consider questions of concern or interest to staff, suggest staff to sit on various University committees and to make other suggestions and recommendations pertaining to staff. Any staff member who is not a member of a collective bargaining unit is welcome to join SAC. The SAC Executive Board consists of the Chair, Chair-elect, Past-Chair, Corresponding Secretary, and Recording Secretary. Standing and ad hoc committees are established as needed.


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Niagara Gazette
Niagara Gazette — Members of Gleason's Gymnastics recently competed in New York State's Level 7 Championship Meet.
Elizabeth Suhay placed fifth all around in the Senior-D competition with a total score of 35.650, while Samantha Peterson took seventh place all around with a score of 35.525. She took 4th place on beam with a score of 8.7. Samantha also placed 6th on bars with an 8.850, 7th on vault with an 8.8 and 9th place on floor with a 9.175.
In the Junior division, Jenna Peterson placed 11th in the A division with an all around score of 34.8.
Allison House tied for seventh all around in the Junior-F division with a score of 34.825. Nicole Ross finished ninth overall in the Junior-C pool with a score of 34.950, which included a third place finish in floor exercise. Allison Murchison finished 11th overall in the Junior-D competition with an overall score of 35.2.


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City (9)
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Reviewed (6)
Lunch (5)
Dinner (8)
Late Dinner (5)
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Take-Out (4)
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Catering (5)
Bar Scene (5)
Kids Welcome (5)
No Jeans (1)
American Express (8)
MasterCard (8)
Visa (8)
Carte Blanche (2)
Discover (7)
TransMedia (1)
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This eclectic chophouse is the United States' second-highest restaurant and is located at the top of...
The Country Epicure restaurant and lounge features a snappy, casual atmosphere in a French country d...
(American, Eclectic, European)
The restaurants philosophy is slow and local. If that sounds pretty fashionable these days, note th...
(American, Continental, Eclectic, European, French, Seafood, Salads, Soup, Burgers)
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Contemporary American and European specialties served in an open, airy setting. Filet mignon with bo...
(American, Eclectic, European)
Creamy cheese fondue prepared tableside, succulent entrees and decadent chocolate fondue. 2009 Most ...
(American, Eclectic, Vegetarian Menu)
"Casual, fun and sophisticated four-star bistro in Southfield, Michigan serving incredible sandwiche...


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Prerequisites: ENSP 101, ENSP 102, BIOL 201 and one 300-level BIOL course for undergraduates; ENV 501 and 502 for graduate students; or permission of the instructor. (Second semester/3 credits)
This course is designed to introduce students to the basic principles of natural resource management and the complexities of applying these principles to real-world problems. The focus is on the biological and ecological basis for wildlife and fisheries management. Students will gain experience with quantitative and qualitative techniques used to analyze and manage ecosystems in an integrated fashion that combines biological, economic and political considerations. The impact of global climate change on long-term management plans will also be considered.
Hood College prepares students to excel in meeting the personal, professional and global challenges of the future. Hood is committed to the integration of the liberal arts, the professions and technology, to the exploration of values, a sense of community and to the preparation of students for lives of responsibility, leadership and service.
401 Rosemont Ave.
Frederick, MD 21701


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At Croke Park, we are very proud of our green credentials, and we're not just talking about the pitch! We have worked hard towards achieving our sustainability goals and we have become one of the first stadia in the world to be awarded the ISO 20121 accreditation for Sustainable Event Management.
We have systems in place to manage our energy consumption, recycle our waste and manage our water usage. And we're working to improve all the time. But, what does this mean for you?
Now, more than ever, it is important to consider sustainability when organising your event. Not only will it help the environment, it will also give your event a competitive edge as more and more people become aware of their environmental impacts. You and your guests can attend a truly sustainable event when you book Croke Park.
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This weather boy helps you decide your appropriate clothing for the day. 7 Icons suggest what to wear based on the wireless outdoor temperature which updates every 4 to 16 seconds within a 330 ft range. This unit has the added bonus of absolutely accurate atomic time & date that sets itself and automatically updates for Daylight Saving Time... you even have the option of 12 or 24 hour time display. Indoor Temperature & Humidity with MIN/MAX records are also monitored to help keep. Wall Hanging or Free Standing.
This is a Special Order item shipped directly from the manufacturer and may take up to 10 days for delivery.
This product is available online only.
Item:# 83
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Date: 1953-10-02
Description: View of the field during the Wisconsin High School vs. Monroe High School football game at Breese Stevens Field.
Date: 1948-08-28
Description: Arlene Kuehl and Reuben Pribnow Wedding. Well wishers throw rice at the couple as they depart the church.
Date: 1953-08-29
Description: Mrs. Garth K. Voight and daughter Valerie Voight, 18 months, sit in the front seat of an automobile. Mrs. Voight is membership chairman for the Junior Divi...
Date: 1914
Description: A few men stand around the International Harvester Mogul 30-60 tractor, other tractors and an assortment of farm implements. The men are likely at the "Fre...
Date: 1946
Description: The television crew stands on stage in front of an audience at the Iowa State Fair.
Date: 1953-09-28
Description: Beth Ross sits at a typewriter while her husband, John E., holds their two-month-old son, Tommy. Beth is the president of the Junior Division of the Univer...
Date: 1946-08-10
Description: Helene Stratman-Thomas and Dr. Charles O. Lindberg, a Swedish singer.
Date: 1925 ca.
Description: Interior views of the new Rennebohm Drug Store #1, 1357 University Avenue at the corner of Randall Avenue, including the soda fountain and tables on the le...
Description: Elevated view of the Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railroad stockyards, at about 25th Street.
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Date: 1952-06-07
Description: Nancy Allarding and Leroy Koll are united in marriage at Saint Theresa's Catholic Church.
Date: 1905 ca.
Description: Group of men baling cotton in a warehouse.
Description: Officers of the New York College of Pharmacy: George Masey (VP), John Caswell (VP), Samuel Fairchild (President), Horatio Fraser (Treasurer), J.N. Hegeman...
Description: Song collector Helene Stratman-Thomas, left, and probably Mrs. Kamma Grumstrup, a singer of Danish songs, and one of her daughters (Esther or Alma Grumstru...
Date: 1957-08
Description: An Algerian National Liberation Front member on patrol, looking for enemy French forces. He is holding a rifle and wearing a turban and a tunic. Behind him...
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Fine Form Jacket
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By Will Broaddus
Staff writer
---- — A herd of trained cats is coming to Salem.
If you have trouble believing this could be true, you will fit in with half the audience that usually goes to see them.
"There's two types of people at our show," said Samantha Martin, founder and trainer of The Amazing Acro-Cats, a feline troupe that will perform at The Griffen Theatre from July 17 through 20. "There's cat lovers, because there's no entertainment for them out there. And there's the people that are, 'No way, I've got to see this for myself.'"
What visitors will see is one of four companies in the country that features trained cats, Martin said.
There are 13 Acro-Cats — with a supporting cast that includes a groundhog and two chickens — that play musical instruments, jump through hoops, ride skateboards and hoist flags.
Perhaps even more amazing is the fact that, before the Acro-Cats, Martin trained the Amazing Acro-Rats.
"They're a misunderstood animal," she said. "I wanted to change people's minds about rats. Rats are really smart and sweet and fun to train."
They are also agile, said Martin, who persuaded rats to do somersaults on a high wire, climb ladders, walk through hoops, bowl and play basketball.
Where some people shudder at the mere thought of rats, Martin's only misgivings about them were economic.
"It was very popular, but I couldn't make a living with rats," she said.
So Martin turned to educational zoo keeping and for the last 25 years has exhibited small exotic animals, although she never lost the desire to train creatures to perform.
She started with dogs at age 10 and turned to cats 10 years ago because they are the second-most-requested type of animal act for videos and film, Martin said.
But they do live up to their reputation for independence.
"The cats do run the show, and change things up, based on the cats' mood that day," Martin said.
Martin's training techniques are mostly self-taught, but she does use the Karen Pryor clicker training method, which she learned at a chicken training camp in Hot Springs, Ark.
"You can use the tools through the training camp with any species," she said. "Clicker training is all positive reinforcement. If they do behavior we like, we click and give them a treat.
"It's an effective way to communicate with animals, because you can pinpoint the moment they do the right thing."
Training a cat can take from two minutes to three months, depending on the trick.
The act of rolling on a ball in a barrel, for instance, has to be broken down into segments, from simply standing on top of a stationary ball to staying on top of one that wobbles, then causing it to roll.
While the clicker method works with cats, Martin said, they often need more retraining than other animals.
"They are easy to train, but it's difficult to have them do anything on your time schedule," she said. "They do things on their time schedule, and they're always wanting to renegotiate."
Martin said it can be like working with "reckless rock stars."
"They're very unprofessional," she said. "Sometimes they do a meet-and-greet in the middle of the show. They have little spats amongst themselves, or they're looking for catnip."
Once she had trained her troupe, Martin put on shows in art galleries, to give them some exposure.
"It took on a life of its own," she said. "They showed up in droves."
She "took the plunge" and rented a local theater in Chicago, where the Acro-Cats sold out for weeks. Four years ago, she started taking them on tour.
"I got hooked on traveling," Martin said. "Now I spend three-quarters of the year on the road in a bus full of cats."
The Acro-Cats have taken on a mission with their success, as Martin now trains mostly foster cats and brings cats to shows that audience members can adopt.
"We hand out applications," she said. "If people are interested, they pick up a kitten on the last show day in our area. We have five foster kittens on this trip."
These kittens have all been trained by Martin to run into a pet carrier in an emergency, when their owner blows a whistle, and they also do a bit of performing.
"They do some cute tricks the owner can easily do," Martin said. "They come with a free training kit, if the owner wants to do some other tricks.
"They're super-easy to train. Sitting in a room with a cat, you'll be amazed what you can get that cat to do."
If you go
What: The Amazing Acro-Cats
When: July 17-19, 6:30 and 9 p.m.; July 20, 1, 4 and 7 p.m.
Where: The Griffen Theatre, 7 Lynde St., Salem
Tickets: $18 for adults, $15 for kids 12 and under at www.circuscats.com
More information: 773-549-3357


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PathHunter™ EAstern Blot Assay Kit
DiscoveRx Corporation
Fast Antibody-free Alternative to Western Blot The PathHunter™ EAstern Blot Assay Kit offers a new antibody-free method for recombinant protein characterization based on ß-galactosidase complementa...read more
Fast Antibody-free Alternative to Western Blot
The PathHunter™ EAstern Blot Assay Kit offers a new antibody-free method for recombinant protein characterization based on ß-galactosidase complementation that is exceptionally fast and simple. After protein transfer, the EAstern process takes only 1.5 hours compared to about 4 hours for a Western blot. Blocking and wash steps are unnecessary, substantially streamlining the protocol, and with no antibody present, non-specific binding does not occur, delivering exceptionally clean background.
PathHunter Application Compatible
The EAstern Kit may be used to purify or characterize expressed ProLabel™-tagged protein in PathHunter applications. Researchers can generate double-stable cell lines by transfecting PathHunter EA-Nuc Cell Lines with ProLabel Cloning or Expression Vectors. Then for monitoring recombinant protein size and relative abundance, the EAstern Kit offers a fast and convenient alternative to Western Blots.
Features and Benefits
» Exceptionally fast & simple with no wash or blocking steps
» Antibody-free method reduces non-specific binding
» Compatible with many PathHunter applications
How the EAstern Blot Works
The EAstern Blot Assay Kit detects ProLabel-tagged recombinant proteins using EFC complementation. The simple procedure involves transferring total cellular protein to PVDF or nitrocellulose membrane, rinsing the blot briefly with water, and adding EA Reagent. The ProLabel tag fused to the recombinant protein is a small fragment of ß-galactosidase that complements with a larger EA fragment on the membrane surface, forming active enzyme. After 60 minutes, Substrate Working Reagent is added and the active ß-gal hydrolyzes substrate right on the membrane, releasing chemiluminescent signal proportional to the amount of ProLabel-tagged protein present.
Kit Contents
» EAstern Blot Substrate
» Substrate Reconstitution Buffer
» Substrate Dilution Buffer
» EA Reagent
» Positive ProLabel-tagged Protein Control
Instrument Requirements
» Luminometer, Multimode Microplate Reader or CCD Camera


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Dana White and Lorenzo Fertitta will be holding a press conference Tuesday October 30 at 4 pm EST, to address the whole Randy Couture resignation.
I'm sick of this whole situation, but their are rumors that Randy Couture and Dana White have come to terms. Also, Randy and his wife released statements defending randy on their blog, but have now been taken down. We will have the key point, if any that come out of this press conference live.
UFC Press Conference Key Points
- Speaking at the conference, Lorenzo Fertitta, Dana White, and UFC CFO John Malkey.
- Dana White, "Randy Couture is still a friend of mine"
- Malkey, talks really fast, stating out a bunch of numbers, all to say Randy Couture received a 500k signing bonus.
- Fartitta, "He damaged our company", with his press conference.
- Dana White, Chuck Liddell "Is my best friend in this world industry".
- Regarding taking legal action with Randy, Couture is still under contract with the UFC "We will do what we have to do to protect our rights"
- Dana White, Talks more shit about Fedor Emilianenko, at the end saying Randy Couture is a the best fighter in the world, not Fedor.
- Dana White, again talks about Randy Couture's "Hollywood Agent" feeding him bullshit.
- Dana White, we will be offering Randy Couture a fight later this week.
- Dana White, If Randy turns down this fight we will consider him retired and the two top contenders will fight for the UFC Heavyweight Title.
- Sounds like if Randy Couture ever fights again in another organization, the UFC will take legal action. Regardless of the nine month time limit.
- Dana White, Randy will get 2.9 Million this year from two fights.
- Dana White refuses to talk about Randy Coutures contract.
- UFC plans two expand to UK, Europe, Canada and Latin America.
- In the end Dana White states, we will no longer see Lorenzo Fertitta again at a press conference and the UFC will not talk about money again to the press.


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Stewart Cink grabbed sole possession of the clubhouse lead at the Farmers Insurance Open with a bogey-free 8-under-par 33-31=64 on the North Course at Torrey Pines.
In what will go down as one of the strangest injuries of 2014, Jesper Parnevik broke a rib when he fell off a Segway.
Steve Stricker has elected not to compete in next week's Open Championship.
With a bogey-free, 6-under-par 32-34=66 at today's open qualifier at Pinnacle Country Club in Milan, Illinois, Andrew Ruthkoski earned a berth into the John Deere Classic.
Roger Sloan claimed his first Web.com Tour victory in a playoff over Derek Fathauer on a long day at the Nova Scotia Open.
With a 3-under-par 33-34=67 in his final round of The Greenbrier Classic, Steve Marino finished in a five-way share of 11th place at 8-under 272, good for $137,800.00, just $174.00 more than he needed to secure conditional status for the remainder of the season.
Ángel Cabrera captured The Greenbrier Classic title by two strokes over George McNeill with a 6-under-par 31-33=64 in the final round.
Cameron Tringale spun a 1-under-par 33-36=69 in the final round of The Greenbrier Classic to post 9-under 271, good for a seven-way share of fourth place.
George McNeill twirled a bogey-free, 9-under-par 28-33=61 in his final round of The Greenbrier Classic to post 14-under-par 266, two strokes in arrears of champion Ángel Cabrera.
Bud Cauley fired a 6-under-par 32-32=64 in the final round of The Greenbrier Classic and is the first to post 9-under 271.
Thanks to his fourth-place finish at the Alstom Open de France, Sweden's Robert Karlsson has qualified for The Open Championship.
Graeme McDowell successfully defended his title at the Alstom Open de France at Le Golf National in Paris.


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Four former elementary school students alleged they were sexually abused by former Freeburg School District 70 Superintendent Robin Hawkins and the district knew but did nothing to stop it.
The four cases settled last year for payments worth more than $5.6 million.
The Belleville News-Democrat obtained a copy of the four settlement agreements under the Illinois Freedom of Information Act. Although all of the settlement agreements contain a confidentiality clause that bars the release of the information, Freeburg School District 70 attorney Mike Wagner said the district was compelled to release the documents under FOIA.
In the complaint, Mike Weilmuenster, who represented three of the victims, alleged that school personnel knew for decades about the claims of misconduct and failed to properly supervise Hawkins to prevent the abuse. Hawkins killed himself in 2009.
"They had knowledge that he was dangerous around minor children and failed to take the appropriate measure to ensure the safety of their students," Weilmuenster said.
As part of the settlement, Wagner, the school district's lawyer, said the district personnel have admitted no fault.
* The first case, which was filed in 2010, settled for a lump sum payment of $1.6 million and $1,000 monthly payments for 30 years, plus annual payments of $50,000 in 2014, $25,000 in 2017, $50,000 in 2022, 2027 and 2032, ending with a $60,000 payment in 2037.
* The second case was filed in 2012. The settlement includes a lump sum payment of $2,078,000, plus $2,000 per month payments for 40 years, increasing 3 percent annually, with the last payment in 2056.
* The third lawsuit was filed in 2012. The settlement was for a single payment of $124,0000.
* There was no lawsuit filed in the fourth case. It settled for a lump sum payment of $200,000.
The plaintiffs' identities remain protected by a federal judge's order, but the settlement amount wasn't listed in the court documents because of a confidentiality clause.
"Confidentiality clauses are standard operating procedure in these kinds of cases," said Mary Jo McGrath, a California attorney and expert in sexual abuse cases involving schools. "The district may not want people to know how deep their pockets are."
Weilmuenster cannot discuss the settlement because he said he is still bound by the confidentiality clause. Wagner said the settlement was within the limits of the insurance coverage and would not expose taxpayers to additional liability.
The allegations dated back to the early 1980s. In 1991, a male Carl L. Barton Elementary School student alleged Hawkins took him to the boy's locker room, wrapped an elastic bandage around his hands and eyes, then fondled him and performed oral sex on him, according to a Freeburg police report. Hawkins was not charged in the case.
In 2009, another male student alleged sexual abuse by Hawkins. The Illinois State Police were called. During the investigation, Hawkins body was found sitting in a 1964 Mustang convertible in a barn on his property near Belleville. The cause of his death was listed as suicide by carbon monoxide asphyxiation.
After Hawkins' death, some Freeburg residents rallied behind Hawkins, Weilmuenster said, vilifying the victim. That's when other victims came forward.
That's not uncommon, said McGrath, who also trains schools on how to avoid sex abuse litigation.
"It's not unusual for people to bury (these kinds of allegations) and protect the adults," McGrath said. "These are professional people with reputations, families and are respected in the community. The perpetrators know this and play that advantage. They also pick victims because they are in some way marginalized. They are poor or they come from single-parent families or they have behavioral issues. They pick these kinds of victims because they are easy to discredit."
In federal lawsuits of these kinds, McGrath said plaintiffs have to prove that the school knew about the abuse and failed to act.
"It's a pretty high standard," McGrath said. "To settle a case like this, it must have meant that the claims were, at the least, substantive."
The four cases settlements ended cases connected with Hawkins, Wagner said.
"To my knowledge, that's true," Wagner said.
The Illinois State Police investigation, obtained by the News-Democrat under the Freedom of Information Act, stated there were five possible victims, including a minor who was interviewed after Hawkins' suicide. The boy told police that Hawkins promised him a car and college tuition. The boy's father said Hawkins gave the boy money, took him to dinner and bought him $80 earrings.
It isn't clear whether that child was a plaintiff in any of the lawsuits.
Weilmuenster also represented victims of sexual abuse cases filed against the Catholic Diocese of Belleville in several abuse cases. A former altar boy received a $1.2 million settlement after he alleged he was molested by his parish priest. Weilmuenster also received a $5 million verdict for James Wisniewski, who claimed the diocese covered up sex abuse by the Rev. Raymond Kownacki. Despite these large awards, deciding to be part of sexual abuse lawsuit is a tough decision, Weilmuenster said.
"It's a difficult thing to do," Weilmuenster said. "These victims have to put themselves out there and relive all of that over again."
Contact reporter Beth Hundsdorfer at firstname.lastname@example.com or 618-239-2570.


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Results 56 to 60 of 133
April 10th, 2013 10:05 AM #56
Last edited by renrose; April 10th, 2013 at 10:08 AM.~Boys~
Jory Leander Atticus, August Eli Benedict, Casimir Mordecai Stewart,
Edmond John Meirion, Horatio Ethell Emery, Bram William Jasper,
Julian Remy Charles, Vasiliy Lochlan Michael.
Aira Rose ___, Eleni Fiorella Charlotte, Sylvia Sayuri Noor,
Merit Eleanora Adelaide, Clover Elodie Seraphine, Bridie Scarlett Viola,
Marguerite Cecilia Iris, Eilidh Clara Valentine.
Beta read The Self Invention: The book is now complete. All chapters are up!
April 10th, 2013 10:10 AM #58Junior Member
- Join Date
- Feb 2013
- Posts
- 28
This isn't necessarily offensive, just a little disappointing in how they've described Royce for a boy (Make up your mind: Roy or Reece, but not both.) but somehow it's totally appropriate and "cool" for a girl? (Upscale thanks to Rolls, and a contempo way to honor a grandparent Roy or Joyce.) To me, it's clearly a boy's name, especially because the meaning is "son of the king".
April 10th, 2013 10:28 AM #60
Jo- names, but it's been the Cornish form of George for eons.
Some of these descriptions are awful, but I notice many of the origins are off too. Does the 'Names We've Missed?' thread ever get checked?!William ♠ Thomas ♠ Peter ♠ Henry ~ Rose ♠ Alice ♠ Ivy ♠ Lowenna
April 10th, 2013 10:53 AM #62
Now, back to the TOPIC.... when I first started visiting Nameberry years ago one of the first names I searched was Cedric. At the time, the info provided put me off from the name. However, now that I'm older I am less concerned with other people's opinions.
To Pam and Linda's credit, they've built a great site. I also trust that they're making changes to the descriptions. I don't think they knew that some people would take the name descriptions as general consensus (as I did years ago). However, comments like "sissified" and "limp-wristed" MUST be changed... In fact, I'd put Lance and Cedric on the priority list. This might sound *sensitive* to some, but anything directly offending the LGBT community or any ethnic group shouldn't at all be tolerated. After all, we're all here to name babies of all different backgrounds.
I would like to raise one question: Are people wanting ONLY general/factual/objective/historical information in the name descriptions? Should words like "handsome" and "exotic" also be taken out, as they are also opinions?
This is a great topic, by the way. I'd like to add Maxine to the list, although the description doesn't really offend me: "Playing mah-jongg down at the clubhouse with Bernice and Thelma." It's actually a bit funny to me, but I guess the reason it confuses me is because I don't see Maxine as "stale" as Bernice and Thelma. I think Maxine is quite ripe and ready for revival... But that's just my own opinion.James ~ Ariston
Aurelia ~ Sidra ~ Elizabeth ~ Gia ~ Julia
The others I hold close.... Quade ~ William (Liam) ~ Dresden ~ Giordana ~ Lydiana ~ Laurenza ~ Vivara ~ Fonya ~ Sagelle
April 10th, 2013 11:16 AM #64
Dorian's entry, but it's a prime example of one that contains an authoritatively-delivered falsehood, in that it never went to the girls: not years ago, not now, and not in anyone's wildest delusions. AGH)
I do think it's annoying that the opinion portrayed in the descriptions can be very one-sided. Just because the author doesn't like a name is no reason to dismiss it out of hand, you know? Comments like "better to leave this one alone" are neither necessary nor appropriate. I can acknowledge the appeal of names that aren't to my taste and I can see the drawbacks of using even my favorite names; every name has positive and negative qualities, and I'd like to see a little more recognition of this amid all the opinion.on my mind, for the moment
Daria | Athena | Ramona | Winifred | Maeve | Blythe | Nadine | Dorothea | Margot | Cyra | Renata | Hypatia | Junia | Thisbe
Flynn | Otto | Winston | Claude | Leif | Roald | Tavish | Lionel | Cormac | Tobin | Oswin | Rory | Damon | Tycho
Mildred "Red" ☆ Obedience "Bede" ☆ Relief "Leafy" ☆ Dorothea "Doro" ☆ Penelope "Pen" ☆ Ruth "Rue" ☆ Eudoxia "Exie"


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Thor 2: The Dark World
'Thor 2′ Extended TV Spot Spouts "The Planets Align" Talk, Plus New Photos
New 'Thor 2′ Spot Proves Hitting Doesn't Solve Everything — Well, Almost
Failure is not an option for Thor and his brother Loki in the latest international TV spot for 'Thor 2.' As the army of Dark Elves descends upon Asgard and London, these two must team up and prevent the universe from falling into chaos, but not before the god of thunder dishes out some hammer of justice.
'Thor 2′ Posters: Heimdall Defends Asgard Against Malekith's Army
Apparently the best things come in pairs. The 'Thor 2' posters have been releasing in sets of two -- Loki and Odin, Jane and Sif, and now the Asgardian protector Heimdall and the Malekith-led army of Dark Elves get their share of the action.
'Thor 2′ Trailer From the 'Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.' Premiere
Tuesday night marked the highly anticipated premiere of the Marvel TV series 'Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.' (read our review HERE), and for those not watching at home, you missed a look at the brand-new 'Thor 2' trailer. Fortunately, you can see it and its bits of new footage right here.
Cosplay of the Week: This Lady Loki Isn't a Low-Key Affair
Although his brother's name is the one on the poster and in the opening titles, Loki (and by extension, actor Tom Hiddleston) has one of the hearts of the fans. The scheming Norse god and Marvel supervillain menaced Asgard in 'Thor,' brought an alien invasion to Earth in 'The Avengers' and will soon return to the big screen in 'Thor: The Dark World.' Calm down, Tumblr. We can hear you breathing from here.
With Loki fever in the air, how about a Rule 63 take on the beloved bad guy?
'Thor 2′ Posters Feature the Bombshells of 'The Dark World'
The latest 'Thor 2' posters have prominently featured the god of thunder himself (Chris Hemsworth), Loki (Tom Hiddleston), Odin (Anthony Hopkins) and even the villain Malekith (Christopher Eccleston), but now it's time for the ladies to claim the spotlight. Marvel has released a pair of new one-sheets, featuring two of the most important women in Thor's life: the apple of his eye, Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), and his best gal pal, Sif (Jaimie Alexander).
Natalie Portman Says a Female-Led Marvel Movie Is Coming
We know that Marvel Studios has longterm plans for the future, with various "phases" set until near the end of the decade. However, we haven't heard of any concrete plans for a movie starring a female superhero -- at least not yet. But according to 'Thor: The Dark World' star Natalie Portman, we may be closer to a female-driven Marvel movie than we think.
How 'Avengers 2′ Director Joss Whedon Helped Save 'Thor 2′
Though Joss Whedon is busy working on the script for 'The Avengers: Age of Ultron' and has admittedly been conceptualizing his sequel for some time, he still answered the call when 'Thor: The Dark World' director Alan Taylor was in trouble. According to Taylor, Whedon came in to save some major issues he was having with the film.
'Thor 2′ Posters: Loki Escapes, the King of Asgard Reigns Supreme
Two new 'Thor 2' posters have descended upon Marvel fans, featuring fan-favorite Loki, Tom Hiddleston, and the king of Asgard, Anthony Hopkin's Odin.


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Days Inn - Parkway
Address: 536 Volunteer Pkwy. Bristol, TN 37620 Contact Email: firstname.lastname@example.com Phone: (423) 968-2171 Toll-free: 800-DAYSINN
Take exit 3 off the VA I 81. go straight for 2.8 miles you will cross into TN we are on the right side. or simply just call us at 4239682171
Bristol Motor Speedway and Dragway only 5 miles, Viking Hall less than 1 mile, Historic Down town Bristol: Bars, restaurants, live music, entertainment, and antique shops less than a mile. Bristol Mall 3 miles. We are pet friendly, Free continental breakfast, smoking/nonsmoking rooms avaialble, refrigerators in every room, microwaves in most rooms, available upon request.
Tennessee Vacation eGuide
The 2014 eGuide gives you instant access to Tennessee's irresistible attractions and destinations. Peruse venues online, then put in your order to get a free guide delivered to your doorstep.