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Coming off the heels of an exciting year of lens announcements from Sigma, they have started 2014 with two more notable lens announcements as part of the Art and Contemporary lines of their Global Vision structure: the 50mm f/1.4 DG HSM and the 18-200mm f/3.5-6.3 DC Macro OS HSM.
Editor's Note: this post was written by Bjorn Petersen
Sigma recently announced a bunch of compelling new products, and we had the opportunity to chat with company representitive Jared Ivy about our favorites. In this video, we take a look at the new 18-35mm f/1.8 lens, the world's first f/1.8 constant-aperture zoom. We also learn some interesting tidbits about the Sigma USB Dock for lenses, and we get a first look at the new 24-105 f/4 optically-stabilized zoom.
When it's time to buy new gear, we usually need to seek out options that offer the best bang for the buck. In the process of doing so, we're forced to suppress our deep desire for the gear that provides the loudest bang. We've rounded up of some highest-ticket items sold at the B&H SuperStore, so we could fantasize about clicking the Checkout button with the confidence of a newly-minted billionaire.
When director Rick Mowat needed a quick and inexpensive solution for staging a play that involved multiple street locations and a hospital room, he turned to New York City photographer Stephen Andrus and a Panasonic projector. The nearly carpentry- and paint-free production of the new drama, Coda (For Freddie Blue) by Fred Crecca, can be seen June 10 - 13 at the Puerto Rican Traveling Theater, 340 W. 47 St.
Continuing our discussion of the year's most interesting lenses, let's revisit those exciting announcements as they pertain to digital SLRs. In 2008 we had PMA, Photokina and PhotoPlus - the trifecta of photographic expositions. These shows brought forth a plethora of delectable tools for both the serious and budding photographer. The following overview is in reverse-alphabetical order (as a change) so we begin with Sony.


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City still atop Maclean's crime ranking
Prince George continues to lead Maclean's Magazine's annual crime ranking as the country's most dangerous city even though only one homicide was reported in the city in 2011.
Maclean's uses data from Statistics Canada for municipal police services using the crime severity index (CSI) score for the country's l00 largest cities of 10,000 people or more. They take into account the rates for six crimes – homicide, sexual assault, aggravated assault, vehicle theft, robbery, and breaking and entering – then compare them to the national average, calculating the percentage difference. Maclean's then calculates the ratios by dividing the population by the raw number of crimes.
The crime severity index complements the traditional crime rate statistic by ranking the severity of police-reported crimes in comparison to other crimes.
The news that Prince George is, once again, leading the pack as Canada's most dangerous city is surprising since a Statistics Canada report including the CSI rankings showed that the city dropped 20 points to 159 in 2011, the lowest overall the city had experienced.
The rate of violent crimes dropped about 20 per cent as well, from 196 to 158.
In a press conference this summer discussing the numbers, Supt. Eric Stubbs said several strategies were put in place to tackle the criminal activity giving the city its rather notorious reputation, thanks to Maclean's annual report.
The crime reduction team targeted prolific offenders, mid- to high-level gang members became the focus of investigators, and the downtown enforcement unit reduced crime in that area by 20 per cent.
Two to three times every week search warrants helped remove everything from drugs and weapons from the streets while offenders were arrested.
Challenges particular to the city, Stubbs explained during the conference, included the significant number of transients who travel through the city, property crimes, which were experiencing a spike and a continuing concern about gangs and guns.
Compare this to 2010, when the city earned the most dangerous city title thanks in great part to seven murders that year. Cody Alan Legebokoff has been charged with two of those murders and a 2009 murder.
Two others occurred in a grow-op outside the city and were drug-related and the other three were resolved or were in the process of moving through the court system.
Yet going from seven murders in 2010 to one murder in 2011 doesn't seem to have affected the city's rating as most dangerous city in the country according to the way Maclean's calculates its rankings.
According to the magazine, the top 10 most dangerous cities are: Prince George, Red Deer, Grande Prairie, Regina, Surrey, Saskatoon, Wood Buffalo, Victoria, Winnipeg and Kelowna, all in the west and in fact all the same cities that made the top 10 list last year, if in a slightly different order – with the exception of Prince George.
Though the city didn't rank at all in the top 15 cities with the highest homicide rates, it came in fourth in sexual assaults, eighth in aggravated assaults, 14th in robberies, third in breaking and entering, and ninth in motor vehicle thefts.

subset: commoncrawl


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Lorain police
Friday, May 16
- 9:18 p.m. — West Seventh Street and Reid Avenue, Patrick Black, 50, 500 block Washington Ave., arrested and charged with domestic violence. Black's girlfriend said while they were intimate, they argued over a man she has been seeing. The woman, who police said had bruising on her neck and cuts on her arm, said Black tore her shirt off, choked her in and out of consciousness, threw a glass vase at her that cut her arm, and repeatedly threatened to kill her.
Saturday, May 17
- 8:06 p.m. — 4600 block Oberlin Ave., a man who said he was suicidal was taken from his home to Mercy Regional Medical Center for psychiatric treatment. Police said the man's left arm was cut and bleeding and there was a pool of blood on the living room floor.
Elyria police
Monday, May 19
- Noon — 4690 Midway Mall, an employee at Lenscrafters said she saw a woman steal numerous glasses frames on security camera footage.
- 8 p.m. — 100 block Ridge St., a man said someone stole his car's spare tire while the car was parked in front of his house.
Wednesday, May 21
- 12:01 a.m. — 100 block Brunswick Drive, a woman said someone broke into her car and stole her wallet while the car was parked in a parking lot for two hours.


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Blood in the urine (hematuria) can be caused by many things! Some are serious, like cancer or infection, but some are no big deal! Check with a doctor to see what is your cause! Any Suggestions here?
Although there might be no reason for panic if you feel a burning sensation while What Does Blood in Your Stool Mean? How to Stop Burns From Dog Urine Source:http://www.ehow.com/way_5379408_mean-burns-urinate.html
Blood in the urine can be a sign of a serious urinary tract infection and you need to see a doctor as soon as possible. Blood in urine is not normal.
I think it depends on if there is pain. If you have a lot of pain when you pee, and there is a little blood, it might be hemorraghic cystitis. Which is a severe urinary tract infection. You should definitely get to the doctor right away. If… Source:http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Why_Blood_after_peeing
go to the doctor IMMEDIATELY! Source:http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_if_a_boy_pees_blood
when you are peeing blood it means you are having your period Source:http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_peeing_blood
I am 11 weeks pregnant, I went to pee and was pressure during the end there was red blood instead, what happend? I just had sex and of pee but no clots it didnt hurt but there
Could be a urinary tract infection and if not treated can turn into a kidney infection, which are very painful and dangerous! You will need a urinalysis and an antibiotic and you will be better, but do not wait, get an appt! ASAP! Feel better!
There are several causes for painful urination. One of the most comman reasons for burning and blood in the urine is a bladder infection. This should be treated
Spamer is not welcome,every link should be moderated.


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NetWellness is a global, community service providing quality, unbiased health information from our partner university faculty. NetWellness is commercial-free and does not accept advertising.
Wednesday, September 20, 2017
Bleeding and Clotting Disorders
Arm pain following blood test
I had a blood test drawn from my median cubital vein in my left arm approximately 2 months ago. After the blood test, I developed a bruise (1-1/2" by 1-1/2") and my arm was very sore whenever I tried to extend it normally. The bruise healed in 10 or so days. I have been expereincing strange sensations in my arm since. Sometimes there is itching inside my arm.
Sometimes there is pain in my elbow, sometimes above where my bicep and tricep meet on the medial aspect of my upper arm, sometimes below on the anterior surface of my lower arm but not always. There is no redness and my circulation seems to be fine (normal skin and nail color, normal temp). Is it possible that my symptoms could be related to a complication from my blood test and require follow up with a doctor? I`m unsure if this is something serious or nothing to worry about. Any comments would be appreciated. Thanks.
It is possible that there has been an injury to a (very) small superficial nerve at the time of the blood draw. Do you have pain down the hand? Have you noticed swelling, abnormal sweating or color changes? Alternatively, the timing of the blood draw may have been incidental with the development of pain in that part from another cause (e.g. herniated disc in the neck).
If the discomfort is due to injury of a small superficial nerve, the pain frequently resolves on its own, after a few months. There are safe medications that can alleviate the discomfort. It is always a good idea to follow up with a physician. A neurologist or board certified pain management specialist may be appropriate physicians for your condition.
Salim M Hayek, MD, PhD
Associate Professor of Anesthesiology & Perioperative Medicine
School of Medicine
Case Western Reserve University


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Item Name: Voyage Of The Troubadour by Jack Gates
Category: Jazz Music


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Mohd., Alias and Hui Ming, Gan (2012) A case study on the transmission of Voice Over IP (VoIP) over the Faculty of Electrical Engineering (FKE) local area network. Journal Of Electrical Engineering, 7 (2). ISSN 0128-4428
Full text not available from this repository.
Official URL: http://www.fke.utm.my/elektrika/dec05.html#A case
This paper presents a case study of analyzing Voice over IP (VoIP) traffic over the IP-based FKE Local Area Network (LAN) using COMNET III. The study is done to investigate the feasibility of transmitting VoIP packets stream over the network. Through the analysis, the important characteristics of VoIP traffic such as end-to-end delay in different background traffics, different packet sizes and packet loss due to buffer size will be determined and compared with the values recommended by ITU-T for voice conversation (G.114 Recommendation). The results show that packet size of less than 320 bytes will have the total end-to-end delay of less than 150ms values which is the maximum latency value in G.114 recommendation. For packet loss of less than 5%, the buffer size has to be kept larger than 5Kbytes
|Item Type:
|T Technology > TK Electrical engineering. Electronics Nuclear engineering
|Electrical Engineering
|ID Code:
|Deposited By:
|Mrs Liza Porijo
|Deposited On:
|12 Jun 2012 04:27
|Last Modified:
|10 Sep 2017 06:08
Repository Staff Only: item control page


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Price: $7.9 million
Bedrooms: 3
Bathrooms: 6
Square Footage: 8,876
This full-floor penthouse condominium offers 360-degree views of Chicago, including a terrace to appreciate all the surrounding examples of high-rise architecture. For those who want the fastest possible undisturbed delivery to those views, an express elevator delivers penthouse residents directly to their private lobby. The residence also features a media room, spacious his-'n-hers marble master baths, and an enormous walk-in closet.


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Women's Leadership Luncheon
The School Sisters of Notre Dame (SSND) are hosting the Women's Leadership Luncheon March 13 on their Sancta Maria in Ripa campus in south St. Louis County. This year's luncheon is held in honor of the 180th anniversary of the SSND congregation and the 250th birthday of the city of St. Louis.
The guest speaker is Lynne M. Jackson, president and founder of the Dred Scott Heritage Foundation and great-great-granddaughter of Harriet and Dred Scott.
The purpose of the luncheon is to further the understanding of leadership, bringing women leaders and colleagues together to reflect on the integration of the spiritual and professional dimensions of life.
Seating is limited. No charge to attend but registration is required by March 6.
To register online, go to https://www.ssndcentralpacific.org/Experience/Womens-Leadership-Luncheons-2014/St-Louis.
Past dates
- Occurred Thursday, March 13th, 2014 @ 11:30 am – 1:00 pm


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We live in NJ and I drive between NJ, PA and NY - about 90 miles a day several times a week. The Outback looks like a terrific winter car (as well as summer). The Limited adds side air bags, 6 CD changer, leather and the two sun roofs, etc.
We have a local model in the color my wife wants for $25.5 less the $1000 back (25.5K + tax - $1000). Is this the right price for the car?
Options are cargo net and L7C package. My wife likes the Champagne two tone color.
We'll be adding a hitch to the back for a bike rack and having the windows tinted (baby hates bright sunlight in her eyes), but those items aren't in the price.
Anything I 'need' that I've overlooked?
Is this a good, fair or poor price?
Thanks all
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Guest Message by DevFuse
About to Purchase Outback Limited - price check/what I might add?
Started by AndyInNYC , Jan 10 2004 07:18 PM
1 reply to this topic
Posted 10 January 2004 - 07:18 PM
Posted 10 January 2004 - 10:59 PM
If you check www.kbb.com I think you'll find the invoice price for your area is around 24,950 the dealer cost may have been a little less, the L7C adds $231 cost and the cargo net adds $32, so I'd call it a good price. We have a 2001 Ltd and I installed my own hitch from www.hitchesonline.com for about $175 with wiring harness and ball.
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|Trad, TR, 1 pitch, 80'
|YDS: 5.10c French: 6b Ewbanks: 20 UIAA: VII ZA: 20 British: E2 5b [details]
|John Gill, onsight solo
|Page Views:
|Submitted By:
|Tom Anderson-Brown on Aug 10, 2003
|Comments on Gill's Crack
|Add Comment
|Show which comments —
By Dave Bohn aka "Old Fart"
Aug 10, 2003
|Wow, another great example of Devil's Lake sandbags in the old days. I climbed this multiple times 71'-73' and my guide called it F9b and I thought it right on for Devils' Lake. (Not counting having to get my buddy rescued after his knifeblades pulled on his lead attempt) Another "Must Do" Lake classic!!
By Steve Sangdahl
From: eldo sprngs,co
Aug 12, 2003
|first lead:Jim Ericksonfirst top rope: ???
By Steve Sangdahl
From: eldo sprngs,co
Aug 12, 2003
|sorry ,my other guide says first lead John Gill ,solo 1962.
By Stephen Schaefgen
Aug 13, 2003
|The guidebook is wrong (as usual). First ascent was done by Gill, as Steve has mentioned. I did an article on some of his classics at Devil's Lake, including Gill's Crack. I interviewed John for said article. Ascent was solo, in boots, and in 1958 or 1959 (the years he completed the seven routes I had asked about--1958-59 was the answer).
By Jay Knower
From: Campton, NH
Nov 28, 2006
|I heard the following story: Gill attempted to solo this route and when he got to the crux, he botched his sequence. He fell, but managed to land, cat-like, on the slab of Boy Scout. Without returning to the ground, he climbed back up and completed the route. Since he stayed on the wall and did not return to the ground, his fist ascent was considered an onsight despite his fall.
By randy baum
From: Minneapolis, MN
May 24, 2010
i second the route description. fun moves on varied rock (don't forget to look out right for some features).
take a purple TCU for the first piece, IMO.


text: Feb 19 - Fitch Ratings has assigned an initial 'BBB-' Issuer Default Rating (IDR) to Wyndham Worldwide Corp. (Wyndham). Fitch has also assigned a rating of 'BBB-' to Wyndham's proposed issuance of senior unsecured notes. The Rating Outlook is Stable. A full list of rating actions follows at the end of the release. Wyndham has announced that it will be issuing five- and 10-year senior unsecured notes that rank pari passu with all existing notes and credit facility. The proceeds will be used to repurchase existing debt and for general corporate purposes. On Feb. 6, 2013, the company announced an any and all tender offer of its 5.75% notes due 2018 and 7.375% notes due 2020. Fitch expects today's issuance will be leverage neutral to Wyndham. The ratings reflect Wyndham's strong free cash flow (FCF) profile, its focus on an asset-light/fee-driven business model, strong market position in all of its businesses, and management's public commitment to maintaining investment-grade credit metrics. Rating concerns include the company's high exposure to the more capital intensive timeshare industry, cyclicality in the lodging and timeshare businesses, material working capital swings, and leverage being managed at the high-end of Fitch's target level for the given rating and business risks. STRONG FREE CASH FLOW GENERATION Since rightsizing its timeshare business in 2008, the company has generated strong annual FCF. At year-end 2012, the company generated FCF (after dividends) in the amount of $662 million, or roughly 25% of its total core debt balance (excludes securitized debt). Fitch expects FCF/debt will remain between 15% and 20% over the next few years, with most of the deterioration coming from dividend increases. ASSET-LIGHT/FEE-DRIVEN FOCUS Most of Wyndham's business is asset-light and fee-driven, with the exception of vacation interval sales. Approximately 60% of total revenues are fee-driven. Fitch's expectation is that management will continue to focus on asset-light alternatives in the timeshare segment (e.g., Wyndham Asset Affiliation Model and management fee revenue) in addition to maintaining its current asset-light, fee-driven lodging and vacation exchange and rentals models. The ratings reflect the addition of owned properties, which will be used for Wyndham's mixed use (lodging and timeshare) concept. Fitch expects the company's main focus to be on the franchising of its hotel brands with the mixed use concept comprising a small component of its overall strategy. POSITIVE LODGING FUNDAMENTALS Wyndham is primarily a franchisor of midscale and economy hotel brands in the U.S. (roughly 80% of current room count is in the U.S.). U.S. demand trends remain strong, although growth is moderating as the current lodging cycle matures. Fitch expects weaker growth in 2013 with a conservative U.S. RevPAR base case scenario of +4.5%. U.S. RevPAR grew 6.8% in 2012 and 8.2% in 2011, according to Smith Travel. Fitch expects Wyndham's RevPAR performance to be slightly below the industry average at this stage of the lodging cycle, as hotels in the mid-to-lower end segments generally have less pricing power than ones in the upper-scale segments. The industry is currently benefitting from high occupancy rates and low supply growth, which is leading to greater pricing power. Fitch believes that supply growth has reached a trough, with supply growing at only 0.5% in 2012. However, Fitch expects U.S. supply growth will remain below 1% in 2013 and well below its long-term historical average of 2% in 2014. DIFFERENTIATED SEGMENT: EXCHANGE & RENTALS The vacation exchange and rentals segment differs from the traditional businesses of other high-profile lodging companies. Fitch views them as a modest positive contributor to Wyndham's business profile risk. Vacation exchange and rentals comprises roughly 30% of the company's revenue and EBITDA and is almost entirely fee-driven, with the exception of a small portion of owned/leased properties on the rentals side. This segment provides stability to the business profile as it had less severe declines during the past recession (-8.5%) compared to both the lodging and timeshare segments. In addition, it has a fairly flexible cost structure allowing for easier cost reductions during a downturn. Scale is a significant barrier to entry in the vacation exchange industry because a large amount of resorts are needed to make it an attractive exchange. The industry is essentially a duopoly. Wyndham's vacation exchange, RCI, has over 4,000 vacation ownership resorts and competes mostly with Interval Leisure Group, Inc., which has approximately 2,700 resorts. Near-term business risk is slightly elevated in Wyndham's rentals business due to its exposure to Europe and its small ownership position in several assets. However, it remains largely an attractive fee-for-service business that complements its other business lines well. Wyndham maintains a strong and growing competitive position, which should enable it to capitalize on opportunities in the fragmented rentals industry. This may present some M&A risk, but Fitch believes most acquisitions would be bolt-on rather than transformative and asset heavy. HIGH EXPOSURE TO TIMESHARE Fitch generally views the timeshare industry less favorably than lodging. Fitch estimates that roughly half of Wyndham's revenues and slightly less than half of its EBITDA comes from timeshare operations. The industry is currently in a stage where development spending is low compared to historical levels due to the high supply growth and demand slowdown that occurred prior to and during the past recession. Longer-term, cash flows for timeshare companies will eventually become more volatile as higher development spending will be needed to build new inventory. Wyndham has reduced its cash flow volatility exposure by focusing on recurring management fees as evidenced by its acquisition of Shell Vacations, which mostly consists of already sold inventory. Wyndham also has implemented alternative models that are less capital-intensive, such as WAAM. The WAAM models allow Wyndham to either sell other developers' inventory into Wyndham's timeshare network for a fee or buy inventory on nearly a just-in-time basis once Wyndham has a subsequent buyer in place. Fitch does not expect a significant ramp up in development spending over the next few years. Rather, Fitch expects the company will continue to seek asset-light alternatives in addition to modest inventory spending of roughly $150 million annually as it works through existing inventory. Longer-term, the ratings incorporate Fitch's assumption that inventory spending will ramp up modestly, resulting in a continued solid FCF profile. INCREASED CONTINGENT LIABILITIES The ratings reflect increased contingent liabilities from its recent management agreements with FelCor and Hospitality Properties Trust (HPT). Fitch does not expect the company to deviate materially from its lodging franchisor business model. However, Fitch recognizes the company may need to enter into management agreements, which may increase contingencies through performance guarantees, in order to grow its hotel supply and bolster the competitive position of its more upscale hotel brands. Such contingencies are factored into the ratings through an analysis of Wyndham's liquidity position and the potential impact to increased leverage as a result of having to fund some, or all, of the contingency amount. LBO RISK Fitch recognizes the company has some common characteristics of an LBO candidate, particularly a strong FCF profile, a historical valuation discount to peers, and the potential perception of a misunderstood business model. This risk is heightened in the current accommodative credit environment. However, there are several mitigants, including change of control provisions in its bond indentures, the company's competitors are largely investment grade issuers, and there is limited leveragability on some of its businesses. LIQUIDITY PROFILE Wyndham's ample liquidity position is supported by $195 million of cash, $631 million of availability (less commercial paper and letters of credit) under its corporate revolving credit facility, and $460 million of availability under its two-year vacation ownership conduit facility as of Dec. 31, 2012. Wyndham has a sizable and well-established consumer financing business related to its timeshare business. Term securitization transactions of timeshare receivables provide an additional source of liquidity and recent transaction terms have been favorable. Market accessibility was better than Fitch's expectations through the recent recession, although transaction terms were much less favorable than the current financing environment. The company's maturity schedule is favorable with no major maturities coming due over the next four years. The company had $273 million in commercial paper outstanding, as of Dec. 31, 2012. The company will continue to have a negative drain on working capital from its timeshare contract receivables. Fitch expects future changes in working capital to be roughly negative $200-$250 million, with a slight uptick coming from increased development spending on timeshare inventory. SENSITIVITY/KEY RATING DRIVERS --Fitch calculates year-end 2012 core lease-adjusted leverage of 3.35x. Fitch believes this is at the higher-end of the range it expects Wyndham to manage its balance sheet, though we expect leverage will remain around current levels in the near term. Fitch's core lease-adjusted leverage target (excludes securitized debt and consumer financial profit) for an IDR of 'BBB-/Stable Outlook' is 3.25x, with a cap of 3.5x. There is little tolerance in the current rating/outlook for leverage at or above 3.5x. Fitch allows for leverage to be slightly above its target level at 'BBB-' due to its strong FCF profile. --Wyndham's current FCF/Debt ratio is 25%, which is very strong for the rating category. If the company's FCF/debt deteriorated to below 15% without the company reducing leverage to within 3.25x there would be negative pressure on the rating/Outlook. --Negative rating pressure could result if Fitch's outlook for development spending and the capital intensity of the company's businesses were to increase materially. --There could be positive ratings momentum if the company reduced its leverage and adopted more conservative financial policies. Fitch does not expect this to occur in the near term, but upward rating momentum could ensue if core lease-adjusted leverage were reduced to around 2.75x while maintaining a solid FCF profile, and management instituted the policy to maintain leverage around that level. Fitch has assigned Wyndham the following ratings: --IDR 'BBB-'; --Short-term IDR 'F3'; --Commercial paper 'F3'; --$1 billion senior unsecured credit facility 'BBB-'; --Senior unsecured notes 'BBB-'. Additional information is available at 'www.fitchratings.com'. The ratings above were solicited by, or on behalf of, the issuer, and therefore, Fitch has been compensated for the provision of the ratings. Applicable Criteria and Related Research: --'Inn the Footnotes: Comparison of Adjusted Credit Metrics and Contingency Risk for U.S. Lodging C-Corps' (Jan. 7, 2011); --'2013 Outlook: Cross-Sector Lodging & Timeshare - The Penthouse View' (Dec. 18, 2012); --'Corporate Rating Methodology' (Aug. 8, 2012); --'Short-Term Ratings Criteria for Non-Financial Corporates' (Aug. 8, 2012). Applicable Criteria and Related Research: Inn the Footnotes: Comparison of Adjusted Credit Metrics and Contingency Risk for U.S. Lodging C-Corps 2013 Outlook: Cross-Sector Lodging & Timeshare - The Penthouse View Corporate Rating Methodology Short-Term Ratings Criteria for Non-Financial Corporates


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Credit Card Center Advertiser Disclosure†
Young if barclays havent closed you then I dont have nothing to worry about. You have opened several new accts lately. I feel like I really have hope now
Credit314 wrote:
I have a serious question.
I was approved for the priceline card with barclays about 5 weeks ago. Since then I have gotten approved for 2 with the possibility 3 cc's within the last 48 hrs. Now knowing how bad barclays are with new accts. Should I just call and closed the barclays acct to avoid it saying " closed by creditor" or just take the chance and hope I slip by?
I dont want to mess up my credit when I just cleaned it up.
Hi all, I'm new here and just got approved for the NFL extras card. What's the problem with Barclays and new accounts?
From what I've read Barclays doesn't like it when people open new accounts and they aparently will close tradelines is the rumor. I want to app for fidelity amex but am a little nervous about barclays just opened the card a week or so ago.
Capital One Quicksilver- $5,400 | Chase Freedom - $8,000 | Chase Freedom Unlimited- $13,000 | Chase Amazon -$5,000 | Priceline Visa -$10,000 | US Bank Cash+ - $18,200 | Fidelity Visa -$10,000 | Sallie Mae- $10,000 | DCU Platinum $12,000 | Discover IT - $10,000 | Amex EveryDay - $25,000 | Amex BlueCash Everyday- $9,800 | Citi DoubleCash - $18,000 | Sapphire Preferred- $13,000 | Freedom Unlimited- $7,000 | Blispay- $12,000 | Chase Sapphire Reserve- $18,000 | Consumers Credit Union Visa Sig Cash Rebate- $25,000
Hey All!
Barclays, contrary to popular belief is a conservative lender with practices that they believe helps them with default problems. Many on this forum are approved through recon because they are very good about giving you a chance if you can explain yourself to an analyst. The flip side is that they will AA you if they feel you are acting in a way that they deem irresponsible credit habits. ( this is not rumor, it's been documented many times on this forum ). Rule of thumb- don't app for anything for 6 months if you were marginal in your approval.
If you've already taken some apps since their approval, lay low and don't app anymore. Don't close the account. You've already taken the hit on inq- let them make the decision about AA.
With regards to Amex, quit worrying and quit apping. They are a pretty easy lender to deal with as long as nothing crazy shows up on your reports and you don't spend more then what they deem above your ability based on your internal profile with them. Enjoy using the card treat them like you would a new pair of shoes. Work them into your spending profile.
Also, Barclays is in a lot of trouble with US and UK regulators facing a record $470M fine (for manipulating CA energy markets) from the US after being fined $451M in June (the LIBOR fixing scandal). So they may become even more conservative in their credit card business to reduce risk and preserve earnings.
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We always welcome a Letter to the Editor to share with our readers. If you have something you'd like to share, get in touch. Ed
I would just like to tell you of the good brave work of Debby and Martin Walder at Blackwater, Road Newport.
On Monday night a drain got blocked outside their home, so Martin went out to unblock it.
Then Debby and Martin slowed down traffic that was traveling too fast to let them know that there was a two foot deep flood just around the bend and to drive on the other side of the road.
Martin stayed out in the bad weather for two hours.
I would like to say well done to the for their kindness on such a dreadful night when they could have stayed indoors in the warm and dry.
I am sure there were many others out there helping on the Island.
Image: corpsnewengland under CC BY 2.0
Saturday, 28th December, 2013 11:20am
ShortURL: http://wig.ht/2bso
Filed under: Letter to the Editor


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About ALF
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[LA Weekly]
THE HOME OF DR. ARTHUR ROSENBAUM isn't hard to find. He lives a few
blocks south of Sunset Boulevard, near the UCLA campus, in a white
two-story house with a front yard jammed with aspen trees. There is a
short driveway on the side of the home, and during the evening, a
bright, white light illuminates the carport. If someone wants to
sabotage the doctor's car under the cover of night, a flashlight isn't
On Sunday, June 24, just that kind of person struck. Rosenbaum, a
highly regarded pediatric ophthalmologist who had been regularly
harassed by animal-rights activists for his research work with cats
and rhesus monkeys at the Jules Stein Eye Institute at UCLA, noticed a
device underneath his luxury sedan. The bomb squad was dispatched to
the scene and hauled away a makeshift -- but deadly -- explosive. A
faulty fuse was the only reason it didn't go off.
Three days later, the so-called Animal Liberation Brigade sent a
typo-riddled "communiqué" to the North American Animal Liberation
Press Office in Los Angeles. It was posted on the NAALPO Web site:
Rosenbaum wouldn't comment. In an e-mail, he wrote, "I have been asked
by law enforcement to not discuss any events surrounding the incident
at this time. I look forward to doing so in the future." According to
a Bel-Air Patrol guard, though, the doctor's neighbors are "jumpy."
According to the Anti-Defamation League, which closely watches
extremist groups of all kinds throughout the world, Los Angeles has
become the capital of a more aggressive brand of animal-rights
extremism in the United States -- with UCLA as ground zero. "Los
Angeles, for now, is the epicenter of this movement," says Oren Segal,
co-director of ADL's Center on Extremism in New York City. "We've seen
a lot of humans targeted overseas, and now it's happening here."
The prominent mouthpiece for this new extremism, according to Segal,
just happens to live in Los Angeles. His name is Jerry Vlasak, a
49-year-old trauma surgeon and resident of Agoura Hills in the West
ON AN 85-DEGREE DAY, Vlasak wears all black -- black long-sleeve dress
shirt, black jeans, black Crocs and black socks. He pulls into Astro
Family Restaurant in Silver Lake in a black 318i BMW. Vlasak, a tall
and lanky man with short salt-and-pepper hair and a faded goatee,
settles into a booth and begins speaking excitedly, and somewhat
loudly, about his obsession.
"I think the animal-rights movement has been way too slow in taking
radical actions," he says. "And they've been way too nice."
full story:


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Three Wildcats named all-BRC
Three members of the Wildcat football team have been named to 2013 All-Big Rivers Conference teams in voting by the conference coaches.
Senior Sebastian Larson was named to the All-BRC First Team at inside linebacker while senior Colton Jones earned honorable mention on the defensive line and junior Gregg Matheson received honorable mention at outside linebacker.
Conference champion Hudson had the most players selected to All-BRC teams with 12. Wildcat head coach Jason Wolf said he was pleased to see three River Falls players selected, even though he thought there could have been more.
"You always wish you had more people but with our conference record the way it was you know it's going to be tough," he said. "That's why I told the kids; 'Let's go out and win conference next year and we'll all be recognized.'"
Read more about how these kids earned their honors in the Nov. 21, 2013, print edition of the River Falls Journal.


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" Manufacturer: Indiagames Ltd / Type: iPhone Game "
Bruce lee dragon warrior is a arcade style fighter , along the lines of tekken.
===Start up===
A very respectable 5 seconds to get into the app, bringing up a brown sandpaper coloured , flickering background with an iconic image of Bruce lee. Not pressing the start button will let you see a short fight before bringing you to the main menu.
Again the old style kung fu music and video plays in the background. The menu consists of Play, profile , settings , credits etc.
Going into play their is several different modes, these range from story and arcade to time attacks and survival, as well as a handy training ground.
3 save slots are given as well as 3 difficulties.
Starting in hong kong , 1958 , a brave Bruce lee takes up a challenge to fight when no one else dares. He then goes on to be taught the way of kung fu by a master. And so follows a bunch of fights leading to not very much except giving you new moves and enemies. This does a goodjob of teaching you how to play but the storyline isn't very thorough.
Select your fighter and conpete angainst all the characters you have unlocked.
Time attack
Defeat your oppenent as quickly as possible in 60 seconds, this very exciting once your used to the combo's.
Select your fighter , scenery , rounds and time. And try to defeat your opponent , this is your bog standard fighting mode and has everything you could want.
In this mode you must beat as many opponents as possible before your health is finished, the health bar only replenishes slightly after every bout.
Training ground
Hone your skills and learn kung fu against Shon lo, he doesn't fight back here so a great place to let out some anger.
The graphics are very good for a fighting game, my issue is more with the character design. Bruce lee looks a little like an american zombie when the cut scenes are played and for me this takes a little away. But apart from that the scenery is good.
The gameplay feels a little jumpy and rigid, the pad is only in 4 directions yet tries to do 360 movement and it just doesn't work as well. The buttons are split between punch and kick and their really doesn't feel like theirs the ability to make an impressive combo.
An intresting little drum beat plays through the menus and in the background of the fights. Characters make stereotypical kung fu esque noises as they fight , which adds a little light comedy to the game.
The games available on the appstore for £1.79, this feels a bit much and I think if it was in the 59p zone it may be worth a look.
A good effort but the lack of depth and design lets it down where other fighting games flourish.
"There is no weapon more deadly than the will."
Bruce Lee - a name synonymous with the rise in popularity in the martial arts world, a name so famous, that more than 30 years since his death people are still fascinated by the man, the myth, the legend. To that end it's no surprise that people are still trying to capitalise on his tremendous success and his legendary status that in 2010 people are still wanting more from the late, great Bruce Lee. Infact, Lee is so popular that he has now even been digitalised, in order to capture a new growing market - the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad users.
"A goal is not always meant to be reached, it often serves simply as something to aim at."
That's right, those masterminds at Apple have now made our favourite Chinese movie star accessible to all ages through the magic of the 'i'. The app is currently available from the app store and is priced at £1.79 - a little more than your average app, but I'm here to tell you why it's 100% worth the purchase. The app requires 84.7mb of your memory, which, like the price, is nothing substantial, but more than most apps require. Due to its relatively large memory capacity, you're unable to download this directly on your iPhone or iPod Touch, therefore you'll have to use your computer/laptop.
"I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times."
If you've ever played any sort of games console, well, ever, you'll no doubt have heard of the legendary Street Fighter series, or more recently the Tekken franchise. These fighting games have become the most popular of their kind and the key ingredients are of course simplicity, blended nicely with a dollop of infatuation, conveniently whisked with a smidge of good gameplay, all to create a successful fighting game. Bruce Lee: Dragon Warrior encapsulates all these things, but with one crucial upper hand on its opponents - it's got Bruce Lee in it for crying out loud!
"As you think, so shall you become."
Not only does the legend himself star in the game, of course with some appropriately placed subtitles (it wouldn't be the same without them would it?), this game actually follows a semi-coherent narrative. You begin in 1958, where an 18 year old, promising Kung Fu fighter that goes by the name 'Bruce Lee' has placed a bet on an open challenge that he can defeat the older, more experienced Shen Lo in a one on one, timed battle. Upon defeat and impressed with his skills, Shen Lo refers Lee onto his master for more intense one on one training. The master instantly sees potential in Lee and pushes him hard, entering him in tournaments all to hone the skills of the future legend...
"Knowledge will give you power, but character, respect."
So, there you have it, the premise summed up in one, easy to swallow chunk - well, you weren't expecting some complicated murder mystery were you? The premise is a simple one, but the important thing is, that this game actually has a premise, as the majority of fighting games follow a simple 'you're in my way, I'm going to kick you in the face until you fall down' routine - entertaining for a while, but lacking anything to aim for soon sucks the fun out of things. This game, has somewhat countered that issue. The only problem being, you're not entirely sure what you're supposed to aim for and how long the game will continue and after getting passed level 19, completing the exact same thing over and over the game can start to lose a bit of steam. However, that's not to say that this game isn't an enjoyable one. The narrative (weak as it is) keeps you vaguely interested to continue and the different game modes breath some much needed life into this game.
"If you always put limit on everything you do, physical or anything else. It will spread into your work and into your life. There are no limits. There are only plateaus, and you must not stay there, you must go beyond them."
The Arcade mode, gives you a nice bit of variety and escapism from the somewhat tiresome story mode. The only problem is, to gain that variety you need to make your way through the storyline (as much, or as little as you want) in order to unlock certain fighters, otherwise you'll be stuck playing as Lee for the entirety of the game. There are around 20 different fighters to unlock along the way, giving you a much needed respite from all the Bruce Lee action. In the arcade mode you'd expect to be given the freedom to decide who you fight, the venue in which your fight will take place and the difficulty level for which your fight will undertake, however, shamefully the only bit of freedom you're given is the ability to decide who you wish to fight as. This makes the game a tad repetitive as the 'random selection' often seems to be just the opposite and out of all the fighters you unlock you'll always find yourself up against the same three or four which makes the game extremely lacklustre. Fortunately in the Time Attack mode you're given the option to choose who you fight and where you fight. You're also able to play around with the settings of how long you'd like the time attack to go on for, the number of rounds you fight and the difficulty levels. Other modes include Versus, which is basically just Time Attack without the time limit (rather pointless, if you ask me) and Survival Mode, which is a little more interesting. In this mode you select a player and a time limit, before going on to face a number of opponents simultaneously. This mode is the best of the lot if you're not interested in the storyline, as, even if you've only completed a small fraction of the storyline and not unlocked many fighters/locations, you're still able to play as various characters and in various locations, without needing to unlock them first.
"Our grand business is not to see what lies dimly at a distance, but to do what lies clearly at hand."
The training mode is the perfect way for you as Lee to hone your skills. You'll be placed against Shen Lo in the same location everytime and Shen Lo proceeds to stammer around the arena like a drunken football hooligan (this isn't for your benefit, this is his fighting stance!), while you punch and kick the holy hell out of him - a lot of fun, as you can imagine. In this mode Shen Lo doesn't fight back, bringing out your vindictive side, to beat up those defenceless morons around us! In this mode, if you hit the pause button a list of the usual options will appear (exit to menu, continue, blah blah blah), the only option really worth mentioning is the 'techniques' option. This takes you to a screen, in which you're shown which buttons to press to perform special attacks. This is where the game becomes strikingly similar to Tekken in that you need to press an array of directions in order to perform powerful attacks on your opponent. Also, during Story Mode you'll notice that you'll occasionally unlock new fighting moves for Lee to utilise. These are established by entering Training Mode and selecting Style Editor. This takes you through every fighting method you've unlocked and you're able to select the one that suits you best. This is an excellent option that helps you tremendously during Story Mode as the default fighting attacks that Lee is given are really quite pathetic. This, of course is all part of the game in that you're playing as a young Lee who must capitalise on his potential and fight his way through the ranks to become the martial arts master he was.
"Take no thought of who is right or wrong or who is better than. Be not for or against."
In terms of gameplay, Dragon Warrior comes up trumps. You control Lee using the directional pad which is almost invisible to the naked eye. It's situated at the bottom left of the screen and as you navigate it, it illuminates, although not so much to distract you from the gameplay itself. The directional pad is extremely easy to use and the touch screen of the iPhone really comes into its own with this superb game. Infact, gameplay on this game is as good as any console game I've played. You're able to navigate your player (primarily Lee) around each arena, using the gentlest of touches and instead of having to take your finger off one button in order to press another, you're able to slide your finger around the directional pad in one smooth motion. Control wise everything is kept very simple, using the directional pad you're able to perform attacks. You'll notice two buttons toward the right of the screen, one is to perform a punch, the other a kick. What type of punch or kick depends on you. There are four different punches and four different kicks in your arsenal and it's a good idea to integrate a variation into your technique, so not to become predictable to your opponent. Performing an array of punches and kicks is done by using the directional pad (or d-pad for short), pressing the up button on the d-pad and the punch button at the same time will perform a high punch, likewise pressing down will have the opposite affect, whereas the left and right buttons perform random attacks. The same goes for kicks. Blocking, a button that you'll undoubtedly need regardless of what difficultly mode you've chosen is done by pressing the left button on the d-pad and blocks all attacks if timed correctly. Using the 8 different attacks on your opponent is all well and good, however, if you want to add some real variety into your game you'll want to utilise the various techniques. Some of these you have at your disposal from the very start of the game, some become available once you unlock them in the Story Mode. However, either way you're going to want to use these as they're the most fun part of this game. Whilst in the training ground, you'll need to hit the pause button, before selecting 'command list' this will take you to an extensive list of all the different attacks you're able to perform on your opponent, ranging from the very basic to the advanced. They're all done by pressing a variation of directions on the d-pad before pressing your chosen attack (punch or kick). Some need a mere 3 buttons, whereas others require 6 or 7 so using the training ground is a great way of practising them. Of course, in the training ground everything is easy, as, you're basically fighting a punch bag. However, during proper fights these become rather difficult to perform and you'll have to time them just right because, one hit from your opponent will cancel out anything you've pressed and you'll be forced to start all over again. This can become very frustrating at times because it happens even on the easy mode, however, once you've mastered it, it gives you a lot of enjoyment and provides the game with some longevity.
"My will to do springs from the knowledge that I CAN DO. I'm only being natural, for there is no fear or doubt inside my mind."
The graphics let the game down somewhat, although you should be sure to remember that this is just an iPhone app and not a Playstation 3 or an Xbox 360 game, therefore the graphics are going to lack a bit of finesse. From afar the graphics look rather impressive though, with notable backdrops that really stand out throughout this game, infact the scenery is one of the most well thought-out things in the entire game. With stereotypical Chinese backdrops from beautiful wooden bridges, to pink trees and gorgeous buildings. The good thing is, it isn't just one steady backdrop that looks like the characters have just been stuck in front of a green screen, you actually get a 360 degree view of all the backdrops and you'll notice just how much detail has gone into them and it pays off in abundance, resulting in one of the most visually stunning games I've played in a long time. During fighting the characters look great, again, with a lot of detail clearly poured into making them, and the game in general look as realistic as possible. Shadows appear during the daytime backdrops and move fluidly with the character, whereas in the artificial light, shadows remain in close contact with the characters, making this game feel extremely realistic indeed and I was thoroughly impressed with just how much depth this game has gone into, after all, it is only a fighting game. Viewing the characters up close can be a little disheartening, given all the effort and detail you'll notice from afar, it takes you back to the days of the Playstation 2 with the simulated looking people. Fortunately this is a minor discrepancy which doesn't affect your enjoyment of the game in any shape or form. Sound wise, everything is kept rather simple, a Chinese inspired music piece runs continuously in the background, while the usual fighting noises are apparent here. If you've ever seen a Bruce Lee film you'll be aware of all the screeching sounds that he made during a fight and this game follows that trend tremendously, with Lee making his trademark noises, before, during and after fights. There is no dialogue in the game, understandably, so subtitles are used adequately, there is never much to read so if reading isn't your strength you're not going to be bombarded with subtitles. Just a few necessary lines here and there when Lee communicates with his master. The poignant quotes from Bruce Lee himself that appear on each loading screen really give the game some credibility and a touch of class and the Chinese influences shine through throughout this fantastically crafted game.
"Always be yourself. Express yourself. Have faith in yourself."
For a mere iPhone app, this game is simply sublime. Sure, there are a few minor flaws but these can be overlooked in favour of the beautiful backdrops, excellent gameplay and the chance to reminisce about a legend. For a game that surpasses the brilliance of Tekken this really is a must.
"You just wait. I'm going to be the biggest Chinese Star in the world."- Bruce Lee.
Highly recommended.


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A Lithuanian school teacher is planning to honour the friendship between Mahatma Gandhi – the preeminent leader of Indian nationalism in British-ruled India and the South Asian country's 'Father of the Nation' – and Jewish architect Hermann Kallenbach in an unique style.
Vytautas Toleikis, who teaches ethics, has requested eminent Lithuanian sculptor Romas Kvintas to create a life size bronze statue of these two historic figures. The 'Times of India' daily reported that the statue would be built in Rusne – the birth place of Kallenbach.
Talking to the Indian media, Vytautas recently said that Gandhi's philosophy influenced him a lot and he watched a film on the great Indian leader a number of times. The movie also helped him know about Gandhi's friendship with Kallenbach. Later, Vytautas conducted a research on Kallenbach's past and discovered that the architect was born in Lithuania.
Vytautas – a student of Jewish history – told the Indian daily that Gandhi's doctrine of non-violence influenced the people of Lithuania especially during their struggle against the Russian occupation. "We fought the Russian without arms, inspired by Gandhi's doctrine. I first became aware of Gandhi and Kallenbach's friendship while watching the Ben Kingsley-starrer movie on India's father of the nation. I then stumbled upon further historical record of the two in Lithuanian writer Leva Simonaityte's works. It is important to popularise this friendship in Lithuania," he stressed.
Vytautas explained that Kallenbach met Gandhi for the first time in South Africa and developed a close and long-lasting friendship after exchanging their views on different issues. Kallenbach, born in 1871 as the third of a seven children German-Jewish family, arrived in South Africa in 1896 to meet his uncles in Johannesburg. In Johannesburg, he also served as an architect.
According to Vytautas, Kvintas, too, wholeheartedly accepted his proposal to make a bronze statue in honour of the historical friendship between the two great characters. Vytautas also discussed the issue with the local City Council in Rusne for finalising the location where the statue would be installed. He also said that it would cost USD 100,000 to build the statue and local businessmen agreed to bear 50% of the total cost.
Meanwhile, Kvintas said that he has already prepared an initial model of the statue in plaster and the bronze statue would be ready by July 2015. Head of the Lithuanian Jewish community and lawyer Faina Kukliansky, too, welcomed Vytautas' venture, saying: "Having such a sculpture is a great idea. It has to be agreed by the local community in Rusne. There are very few places across the world where prominent Jews are commemorated."
In a separate development, the University of Calcutta is all set to honour Lithuanian traveler anthropologist Antanas Poska with a posthumous doctorate degree. Lithuanian Foreign Minister Linas Linkevicius confirmed the news, telling the Times of India over phone that Poska would be honoured by the Indian University at its next convocation ceremony in September.
In the eastern Indian city of Kolkata, Vice Chancellor of the University Suranjan Das said that they would honour the Lithuanian anthropologist for his role in symbolising "an eastern European's inquisitiveness about India". According to him, Poska made a valuable contribution in making India famous, especially in the Baltic region through his writings.


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Police identify woman in fatal hit-and-run
UPDATE: Portland police now believe the suspect vehicle in this hit-and-run is black in color. They are now looking for a black Honda Accord sedan with hood and windshield damage. Originally, they were looking for a dark green car.
Police also say there is bondo or some other kind of car-repair material on the car, leading them to believe that the car had been previously repaired.
PORTLAND, Ore. - Police have identified the woman who was killed in a hit-and-run incident over the weekend.
Police are still looking for the car that hit and killed 63-year-old Nancy Margaret Schoeffler on West Burnside Street near Tichner Drive late Saturday night. From eyewitness accounts, police say it is a late 1990s to early 2000s dark green Honda Accord sedan. It will have damage to the hood and a shattered windshield on the driver's side.
A least one witness saw the car at a nearby QFC where two women were arguing nearby.
The women were described to be in their late 20s and have blond hair.
Police say Schoeffler lived near where she was killed and they were able to identify her through her Fred Meyer Rewards card on her key chain.
She was out for a walk when she was hit, police said.


text: Most of my stuff is in xls but we do have a few xlsx files we are creating now. On 9/9/10, Homme, James <james.homme@xxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote: > Hi, > Are you typically working with xls files or xlsx files? > > Thanks. > > Jim > > Jim Homme, > Usability Services, > Phone: 412-544-1810. Skype: jim.homme > Internal recipients, Read my accessibility blog. Discuss accessibility > here. Accessibility Wiki: Breaking news and accessibility advice > > -----Original Message----- > From: programmingblind-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx > [mailto:programmingblind-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Alex Midence > Sent: Thursday, September 09, 2010 9:55 AM > To: programmingblind@xxxxxxxxxxxxx > Subject: Re: Eclipse Keys HTML File Take 2 > > Wow. When I try to do that, there's this enormous bunch of css code > and even some of what looks like javascript or possibly j-script in > the header of the document and each td and tr tag for cells and rows > has all this MSO class = garbage in it. I wonder how your excel 2007 > is configured that it made such a clean htm file for you. I've > probably got all this company-wide theme/layout preconfiguration stuff > on my installation here at work. > > Alex M > > On 9/8/10, Homme, James <james.homme@xxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote: >> Hi Alex, >> I started with Excel 2007 and simply did a save as. I told it that I only >> wanted to save the current worksheet. I also typed the title into an edit >> box. It saved a bunch of files. I grabbed the htm file and sent it. >> >> Jim >> >> Jim Homme, >> Usability Services, >> Phone: 412-544-1810. Skype: jim.homme >> Internal recipients, Read my accessibility blog. Discuss accessibility >> here. Accessibility Wiki: Breaking news and accessibility advice >> >> >> -----Original Message----- >> From: programmingblind-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx >> [mailto:programmingblind-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Alex Midence >> Sent: Wednesday, September 08, 2010 9:59 AM >> To: programmingblind@xxxxxxxxxxxxx >> Subject: Re: Eclipse Keys HTML File Take 2 >> >> Hi, >> >> This does not look like it was made in excel. If so, that is some >> serious code cleaning that took place. I looked at the source. I'm >> used to seeing all sorts of stuff in the head containing special MSO >> class tags for office type formatting which microsoft loves so well to >> put in. This looks like straight up html. If you did this in Excel, >> I'd be interested to find out how you managed to get your code so >> clean. If not, what editor did you use? I use KompoZer which is >> wysiwyg but also lets you code by hand with the source file. Very >> accessible and it's free. You just have to cut and paste the contents >> of the Mozilla script file in Jaws firefox.jss, I believe, and put it >> in the Kompozer script file. It then works pretty good. Did the same >> thing with SeaMonkey for that matter. Anyway, that's a very >> comprehensive cheatsheet. Thank you for posting it. It'll come in >> real handy over here. >> >> Thanks. >> Alex M >> >> On 9/8/10, DaShiell, Jude T. CIV NAVAIR 1490, 1, 26 >> <jude.dashiell@xxxxxxxx> wrote: >>> Very probably what really happened was that excel got all of the text >>> for each cell but because all column widths in the excel file were not >>> set to autofit, not all of the text would have been shown thus leading >>> to the appearance that some cell contents were cut off. Thanks for the >>> heads up about cell widths needing to be expanded to autofit on this end >>> though in order to read all of the text though. >>> >>> -----Original Message----- >>> From: programmingblind-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx >>> [mailto:programmingblind-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Homme, James >>> Sent: Tuesday, September 07, 2010 15:25 >>> To: program-java@xxxxxxxxxxxxx >>> Subject: Eclipse Keys HTML File Take 2 >>> >>> Hi, >>> >>> When I was reading through the original file, I noticed that some of the >>> cells were cut off, so I re-did the file and checked closer this time. >>> >>> >>> >>> Jim >>> >>> >>> >>> Jim Homme, >>> >>> Usability Services, >>> >>> Phone: 412-544-1810. Skype: jim.homme >>> >>> Internal recipients, Read my accessibility blog >>> <http://mysites.highmark.com/personal/lidikki/Blog/default.aspx> . >>> Discuss accessibility here >>> <http://collaborate.highmark.com/COP/technical/accessibility/default.asp >>> x> . Accessibility Wiki: Breaking news and accessibility advice >>> <http://collaborate.highmark.com/COP/technical/accessibility/Accessibili >>> ty%20Wiki/Forms/AllPages.aspx> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> ________________________________ >>> >>> This e-mail and any attachments to it are confidential and are intended >>> solely for use of the individual or entity to whom they are addressed. >>> If you have received this e-mail in error, please notify the sender >>> immediately and then delete it. If you are not the intended recipient, >>> you must not keep, use, disclose, copy or distribute this e-mail without >>> the author's prior permission. The views expressed in this e-mail >>> message do not necessarily represent the views of Highmark Inc., its >>> subsidiaries, or affiliates. >>> >>> __________ >>> View the list's information and change your settings at >>> http://www.freelists.org/list/programmingblind >>> >>> >> __________ >> View the list's information and change your settings at >> http://www.freelists.org/list/programmingblind >> >> __________ >> View the list's information and change your settings at >> http://www.freelists.org/list/programmingblind >> >> > __________ > View the list's information and change your settings at > http://www.freelists.org/list/programmingblind > > __________ > View the list's information and change your settings at > http://www.freelists.org/list/programmingblind > > __________ View the list's information and change your settings at http://www.freelists.org/list/programmingblind


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Where to Shop Vs. Where to Buy
- Where to Shop Vs. Where to Buy
- Where to Shop Online
- Where to Buy Online
Where to Shop Online
Active online shopping (as opposed to idle surfing) usually entails two goals: obtaining inspiration and gathering information.
Discovery Phase: Get Inspiration
Technically, almost any site can be an 'inspiration' shopping site, but optimal shopping sites offer solutions along with products. More than just 'pretty picture' sites, these discovery channels are specifically geared toward online shoppers in a content-focused manner. They are organized in a way that makes finding, saving, sharing and moving toward purchasing items especially user-friendly.
If you're looking to buy but don't yet know what you want, head to contemporary discovery channels for shopping.
Four such sites currently gaining momentum include Wanelo, TheFancy, Svpply, and TheFind. Each site aims to cater to a wide audience and has an app for mobile browsing. While individual usage may be a personal preference, the unique shopping integrations, social aspects, and visual focus of these sites mean all are convenient channels to discovery shop and find more than a few product ideas.
Discovery shopping sites also encompass a wide range of newer buying sites and shopping platforms. Daily deal and auction sites are prime sites to discover new items. MR PORTER is an excellent discovery site for men and Refinery29 provides a similar experience for women. Gilt Groupe, the once invite-only deal site, has expanded to comprise a full range of product and experience offerings. While such sites do allow you to buy, they are great discovery sites to help you make purchase decisions rather than impulse purchases.
Additionally, apps are more discovery-shopping-friendly than desktop or mobile websites because they're especially image oriented and tend to keep excess noise and advertisements to a minimum. Since apps lean more toward a 140-character limit mindset, they provide a convenient way to find and save products in an efficient manner.
No matter where you choose to do your product discovery, remember that just because a site has a product, it doesn't mean it's the only—or best—site to buy from.
Research Phase: Gather Information
Once you have a product in mind, find out the most possible about the product functionality, product components, and where to get the best deal. The amount of research you perform on a product will usually correlate with the product price.
User reviews can provide an unbiased source of insight into products that go above and beyond a product description. Look for user reviews on discovery channels, third-party sites, and the social sites of an individual brand. While some reviews may be skewed based on individual circumstances, it's usually easy enough disregard these and use the collective reviews to capture a realistic picture of a product.
Professional reviews also provide insight into products untainted by brand marketing or promotion. Published reviews commonly provide more realistic images and even video demos of how a product works from the original packaging state to actual use.
If the product is available on more than one retailer site, which a simple price comparison app can tell you, check multiple sites' product descriptions. Spotting blatant inconsistencies in product descriptions is a red flag, as is finding illogical price jumps from one seller to the next. Third-party sites only get a cut of the product selling price, and seeing major price inflation and discounts of the purchase price on these sites isn't uncommon. Regardless, the description and price of a product shouldn't change dramatically, no matter where you find it. The more inconsistencies you see, the more information you'll want to get about the product before making your purchase.


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Bicyclist Hospitalized After Being Struck Along High Street
Columbus police said a bicyclist was struck along High Street near 15th Avenue just after 4:30 p.m. Tuesday afternoon.
Authorities said the biker was riding on the sidewalk, which is illegal, before he pulled out into the street.
The bicyclist hit the windshield of the car. He was taken to Riverside Methodist Hospital, where he was recovering from his injuries.
Police were on the scene investigating the crash, but said they did not expect the driver to face charges. The driver was not injured.
The bicyclist could face charges.
Earlier on Tuesday, an OSU task force announced new plans to increase safety around campus after a number of pedestrians were seriously hurt in accidents over the last few months.
The names of the people involved were not immediately released.
Watch 10TV and refresh 10TV.com for the latest news.


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When racism is tolerated, the reconciling work of Christ on the cross is contradicted.
Air Force Academy cadets will no longer be required to include the words "so help me God" when taking their annual Honor Oath.
On Friday officials at the Colorado Springs, Colo., campus announced its 4,000 current cadets would be allowed to opt out of the final phrase of their honor code, which they reaffirm each of their four years of study and training.
"Here at the Academy, we work to build a culture of dignity and respect, and that respect includes the ability of our cadets, Airmen and civilian Airmen to freely practice and exercise their religious preference — or not," said Lt. Gen. Michelle Johnson, the academy's superintendent, in a statement.
"So in the spirit of respect, cadets may or may not choose to finish the Honor Oath with 'So help me God.'"
The current oath reads: "We will not lie, steal or cheat, nor tolerate among us anyone who does. Furthermore, I resolve to do my duty and to live honorably, so help me God."
Each weekend, 18,000 people gather at one of Eagle Brook Church's five locations outside St. Paul, Minn., to hear pastors preach family-friendly sermons on avoiding excuses and learning to forgive.
When it's time to ask for donations, Executive Pastor Scott Anderson said he's careful to ask only when God deems it necessary.
In recent years, it's been necessary a lot.


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The Maine NextGen College Investing Plan -- Client Direct Series is available through Merrill Edge. The plan utilizes BlackRock (including iShares) funds in its age-based and static options. In addition, the Principal Plus Portfolio and the NextGen Savings Portfolio are available.
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text: 9/28/12 9/28/12 POPSUGAR Fashion Isabel Marant Isabel Marant Spring 2013 | Runway Isabel Marant Spring 2013 September 28, 2012 by Christina Pérez 19 Shares Chat with us on Facebook Messenger. Learn what's trending across POPSUGAR. View On One Page Photo 44 of 46 ADVERTISEMENT () Start Slideshow Share This Link Copy What's Your Reaction? Thanks for your reaction Don't forget to share this with your friends! ← Use Arrows Keys → 44 Isabel Marant Spring 2013 0 previous images 15 more images Previous Next Start Slideshow A Little Turn On The CatwalkSpring 2013Isabel MarantEditor's PickParis Fashion Week


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The decisions coaches make are too frequently boiled down to overly binary, results-based evaluation. A choice was good or bad depending on the final score, as opposed to the logic driving it or the context creating it. It's one of the reasons quantifying the impact of coaches is tough, and why they often get credit or blame for things they shouldn't. The swings for coaches of marquee teams in major markets can be massive and often reflexively tilted negatively, something for which Mike Brown wasn't fully prepared entering his first season as Lakers coach.Stephen Dunn/Getty Images
You can't blame Mike Brown for pointing at one of his best games of the season.
Working under extremely difficult circumstances, Brown's first season has been a mixed bag. Clearly his credibility isn't firmly established, whether with his team, the media covering him or the fans evaluating him. While it may have been lost in the wake of the vicious foul of James Harden by Metta World Peace, Sunday's win over the Thunder at Staples was significant for Brown.
Down their starting small forward after World Peace's ejection and best bench player (Matt Barnes was limited to just over nine minutes in the second half after turning an ankle early in the game), the Lakers mounted a furious fourth quarter comeback fueled in part by choices Brown made from the bench.
If it wasn't his best day as coach of the Lakers, it was right up there, and was badly needed just one game away from the start of the postseason.
It started by dusting off Jordan Hill in one of the more significant games of the season.
Brown explained his thinking after the game. "On my ride back from the airport after our loss to San Antonio, I just had a gut feel. I picked up the phone and called Hill at two in the morning and said, "Jordan, you ready to play?"
Brown told Hill he wanted athleticism and aggression against the pick and roll, and a presence in the paint. Hill gave him all three, rewarding Brown with a great first half, and more good play starting the fourth. Faced with the decision to stick with Hill or give Andrew Bynum, ineffective Sunday but still an All-Star averaging 18.7 points, 11.8 rebounds, and toting a team leading PER of 23.02, his normal playing time, Brown stuck with Hill.
In some ways, the decision was easy: The Lakers' fourth quarter comeback was sparked by excellent defense on OKC's relentless pick and roll game, and Hill was integral to that effort. Bynum, meanwhile, was only periodically engaged. Still, while keeping an effective group on the floor sounds logical, had the Lakers come up short or had Hill made key mistakes, Brown would have been criticized.
Putting Bynum back in the game might not have been the best decision, but was safer.
Less publicized was Brown's choice to leave Steve Blake on the floor and sit Ramon Sessions after only 3:52 of playing time in the fourth quarter, and through both OT's. Blake was better than the (somewhat) slumping Sessions Sunday, but has come under criticism from Lakers fans all year (with cause), and by leaving him on the floor Brown again opened himself to criticism.
Perhaps most importantly, Hill's effort and the results it helped produce -- OKC shot 21.1 percent in the fourth, 28.6 percent in the first OT, and 30 percent in the second -- became a brilliant advertisement for what Brown wants out of his team defensively and how effective it can be, along with tangible proof he's willing to go with the guys properly executing his game plan.
"I know in pick-and-roll coverage, if we tell our bigs -- whether it's Andrew or Pau [Gasol] or whoever -- to be up the floor, if you're not up the floor at the point of the screen and we're getting hurt and somebody [else is playing up on screens], then somebody else is going to play. If we give our guys a coverage, then they've got to do it," Brown said.
The Lakers cannot succeed in the postseason without again rising to an elite level defensively. Aggressive play from their bigs on the pick and roll was crucial in their early season success -- for much of the season, Synergy rated the Lakers as the league's second stingiest team in half court sets -- and is needed going forward, particularly out of Bynum, whose effort and commitment to Brown's directives has been inconsistent.
As an added benefit, the Lakers may have found another guy in Hill who can be effective defensively against the Thunder should they meet in the second round.
How all of this impacts the playoffs is an open question. We might look back on Sunday's game weeks from now and see it as a turning point, or just as easily as a positive blip on the way to disappointment. Still, the goal is always for teams to be playing at their best before the postseason begins, and pile up as many positive moments that can be drawn on in key moments during the spring.
It applies to players, and coaches, too.


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|100% Nylon
|3 cm
|Suitable For:
This white tulle trim is embroidered with myriads of shaped paillettes and glass beads in rose, coral, golden and white. Complemented with an array of sparkling crystals, it breathes spring and inspires new ideas. Apply it to the waistline or run along the hem for a romantic twist. Its eye-catching floral design will make you stand out no matter which color you choose – and we have it in five colorways.
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Learn more about our payment and delivery terms.
All fabrics on our website are priced by the meter. The term "running meter" or "linear meter" is used in the fabric industry.
To convert meters to yards, use the conversion factor 0.9144. In other words,
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Up to Date Enrollment Reports
Child care centers, daycare facilities, preschool and after school programs all need to keep up to date enrollment reports. Sometimes it's even desirable to print a report showing historic enrollment, in other words, the number of children enrolled in a past period. This can be useful to establish staffing trends and to compare enrollment over periods of time. Another reason to run enrollment reports may be to satisfy Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) requirements showing the number of children enrolled at various reimbursement levels.
Current Enrollment
It's very easy to generate a report of your current child care enrollment. In my opinion the best report for this purpose is the Child's Key Date Summary which is located under General Reports > Family Data > Letter K – Special Reports. The Primary Sort determines how the names are presented on the page. If you just want a long alphabetical list set the Primary Sort to None. If you want a list by class set it to Primary Classroom.
Enrolled During a Period
If you want a list of new children, who enrolled during a specific period, that's also easy to do. It will include just new enrollees during the dates you select. Run the same report above but click the Enrollment Date button on the Report Criteria screen and choose Between, then enter the enrollment dates you wish to have included. You'll also want to included both Active and Deactive families and check the box to Include Withdrawn Children. This is because you want all children who enrolled during the period even though they may have later withdrawn. Also set the Primary Sort to None (see hint below).
CACFP Enrollment
To get a list of children currently enrolled at each Food Program reimbursement level (like Free, Reduced, and Above Scale) use the same report mentioned above but set the Primary Sort to Food Program Status.
Historic Enrollment
It's important to note that the child's classroom may change over time. Since most reports are based on their currently assigned class it can be challenging to retrieve certain types of enrollment information. Often attendance based reports are the best source. For those of you using the ProCare Attendance Tracker I'd suggest the Monthly Attendance Summary (under Letter H – School Attendance Summary). This doesn't show the classroom, but it does allow you to enter a Date Range to get a list of children who attended during a prior month. Another possibility would be the Daily Distinct Count (under Letter F – Child Attendance Summary). The Daily Distinct Count shows you the names of children who attended on a given day including the classroom they were checked into at that time.
Hint: It's best to sort these reports by None to get an alphabetical list. Sorting by Primary Classroom could cause confusion since that would be their currently assigned class, which may not be the class they were in at the time.
The Future of Reporting
Making it easier to report on children who were actively enrolled during a specific period, including their historic classroom information, is something we've been discussing lately. It's likely that a next generation ProCare product will include greater flexibility in this regard. A number of people have suggested that tracking enrollment trends over time would be a valuable feature.
Your Ideas
Share your thoughts about enrollment reporting with a comment below. What types of information would be useful or are required for your child-centered business?
Until next time, cheers!
If you have questions or comments about this article (or suggestions for another article) I'd be pleased to hear from you. Drop me at note at email@example.com.
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Beating the odds
NEW PORT RICHEY - Michael Jordan was one of the greatest collegiate and professional basketball players of all time. But during his sophomore year at Laney High School in Wilmington, N.C., he was cut trying to make the varsity basketball team. He later wrote, "I think that not making the varsity team drove me to really work at my game and taught me that if you set goals and work hard to achieve them, the hard work can pay off." In 2009, a local basketball player, Aron Handan, failed to make the Ridgewood High School basketball team as a junior. Handan, 19, turned a setback into success. Last fall, despite lifelong ailments in his feet and legs, he made the PHCC basketball team as a walk-on. "I was determined to lose weight, get in shape and develop strength in my legs to make the team at PHCC," he said.Standing 6-foot-9 and weighing 310 pounds as a high school junior, he searched online and developed an individualized program to reach his goal. He ran two miles every day on his high school track. He lifted weights for 45 minutes per day, alternating between his lower and upper body. After school, he headed over to the New Port Richey Recreational and Aquatic Center, where he swam and practiced basketball. To develop stamina, he ran "suicide drills," comprised of running full speed from the end line of a basketball court, touching the free-throw line, then running back to the end line. He also changed his diet. He cut out sweets and fast food and ate only whole grain cereal, fruit, fish, vegetables, and pasta. His weight dropped to under 250 pounds. "At the Recreation Center, I have seen Aron literally grow from a kid into a man in the few years I have known him," said strength and conditioning specialist Justin Lawrence. "After his senior year, I saw a change in him. His work ethic and maturity have increased dramatically. He was in here every day working out, swimming and playing pickup basketball games." With no varsity high school basketball experience, Handan realized the difficulty in getting recruited by the PHCC coach. Hoping to get noticed, he started going to the gym to shoot baskets and run laps. One day, head basketball coach James Johnson saw the young athlete and started a conversation. Handan was challenged to complete a variety of drills and exercises. Shortly afterward, he was invited to join the team. "Aron is a great student and a person who is a joy to be around," Johnson said. "He's always asking questions so he can be clear as to what he needs to do. Because of his height, everyone who sees him expects him to be able to play basketball. Although his skills need improvement more than most college players, last season he worked just as hard in practice as any player that I have coached in 20 years." As further testimony to his perseverance, Handan is required to wear a set of leg braces during the day and another pair when he sleeps. "Aron has a condition known as plantar fascial fibromatosis," said John Hoppes of Advanced Prosthetics/Orthotics in New Port Richey. He also suffers from one leg being about an inch shorter than the other. Despite the agony of the braces, he realizes that he cannot take them off for even a day. "They are hot, itchy and cause me constant pain," he said. "But, if I stop wearing them, I could not reach my dream of playing at a four-year college."
If you would like to nominate an outstanding local athlete to be featured in an upcoming In the Community article, contact Cliff Gill at email@example.com or (727) 860-4903.
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- //Home
- //Books
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- //Kevin Sessums
It's time to retire the memoir.
After Oprah Winfrey took James Frey to the woodshed two years ago—he admitted making up parts of his recovery memoir, A Million Little Pieces—opinion on this recently evolved literary form fell into two distinct camps.
Mississippi Sissy
Kevin Sessums
(St. Martin's Press)
One, which might be called "art for art's sake," argues all that matters is the final product. If a piece of "nonfiction" delivers the goods—if it's well-shaped, well-written, fun to read and engages real human emotion—then who cares if it may have been fudged for dramatic purposes? Creative writers are most apt to hold this view.
The other position, primarily defended by journalists and critics, argues for the validity of the distinction between fiction and nonfiction. A memoir, which, after all, is supposed to be an accurate account of real life, is by this definition nonfiction, and therefore should never contain false information, not even the kind that improves the story.
For what's it worth, I am the strongest possible proponent of the second point of view, and after Frey's public flogging, I expected a correction to ensue, with subsequent memoirs hewing closer to factuality.
A book like Kevin Sessums' Mississippi Sissy challenges both sides of this debate, however, by the simple virtue of literary excellence.
A veteran celebrity journalist, a frequent contributor to Vanity Fair, Allure and other slick magazines, Sessums proves himself a craftsman with this brilliantly structured, beautifully written book.
The eldest of three siblings, Sessums grew up the son of a star athlete who gave up the chance to play with the New York Knicks to come home and marry a local beauty.
The title suggests a coming-out memoir, but while Sessums' struggle to find a way to be his effeminate self in a hyper-masculine time and place is an important part of the story, it is not really the major source of conflict in the narrative.
That's because as a child, Sessums had the love and support, if not the understanding, of his family. His mother positively encouraged him, sometimes sneaking him makeup or dressing him like a girl. Even his father, a tough high school basketball coach given to calling his son "sissy," or "girl," may have withheld approval, but he did show flashes of genuine paternal love.
Besides, Sessums, both as adult narrator and child subject, displays an appealing resilience of character, seldom if ever indulging in self-pity. Sure, small-town life can be cruel for any sensitive child, gay or not, but little Kevin comes across as strong enough not only to endure but also to thrive.
Actually, this is not so much a coming-out story as an orphan memoir. When Sessums was 7, his father died in a car crash; barely a year later, his mother succumbed to cancer. Kevin and his siblings, thereafter locally famous as "the Sessums orphans," were raised by various relatives and black maids.
Sessums writes a prose that is crystalline yet supple, providing sharply focused images within a compelling narrative. He is willing to cast himself in a poor light in order to illustrate his own development, and show what life was like back then.
As a teen, Sessums met his mentor, Frank Hains, arts editor of the Jackson Daily News, who recognized the boy's potential and welcomed him into the small circle of progressive Mississippi intelligentsia. This group included the great Southern writer Eudora Welty, whose miniature portrait is one of the many joys of this book.
Indeed, Mississippi Sissy, which ends with Sessums at age 19, clearly headed to the big world of New York, is such a strong piece of literary storytelling that I would like to recommend it without reservation.
Alas, the book is too crafty, too worked over, to qualify as nonfiction, however faithful it may be to the general outlines of Sessums' life. For one thing, Sessums frames his story with an account of Hains' shocking murder, which grabs the reader's attention at the outset, only to be revisited near the end of the book in a strategy of satisfying narrative harmony.
Problem is that such novelistic artfulness runs counter to reality. Life is a shaggy, not a neat, experience, kind of like trying to regain your balance as you fall down a flight of stars. Likewise, Sessums gives us reams of dialogue—and excellent talk it is, too—somehow remembering conversations that occurred as early as when he was 3 years old.
I don't think so. The stench of fiction is all over this book. No "memoir" with this much made up or reconstructed dialogue, with this much reliance on the tools of fiction, can be trusted to convey the facts of what happened.
And yet, the book remains a terrific read, one that, facts aside, gets at truth—the truth of childhood, small-town race relations, youthful alienation, grief, loss, recovery and self-discovery. Truth, as we all know, is not in any case the province of nonfiction, which can only deal in facts, but of the magic that solely occurs when a novelist engages his creative imagination.
Which brings us full circle. As a memoir, Mississippi Sissy is subject to the queasy kind of suspicion that tripped up Frey. Sessums is 10 times the writer, however, so let's call Mississippi Sissy what it really is, an autobiographical novel, and very good one.
In my mind, that's a promotion anyway.
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Syracuse, N.Y. -- A North Carolina-based financing firm agreed to a $9.5 million settlement for luring Fort Drum soldiers into high-interest payment agreements for laptops, gaming systems and televisions, according to New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman.
Schneiderman, who made the announcement on the observed Veterans Day, said it was the second settlement his office has made with SmartBuy and its affiliated companies. With the two agreements, Schneiderman said, a total of $12.9 million in debt for servicemembers has been wiped out.
"SmartBuy took advantage of servicemembers using deceptive practices, roping them into high interest contracts and ruining their credit," the attorney general said in a news statement. "These actions are nothing short of unconscionable."
Schneiderman said the sales happened at a kiosk in the Salmon River Mall near Watertown. Sales staff pushed soldiers to take purchase electronic equipment, the attorney general said. But instead of taking cash, the sales people insisted on signing the soldiers up for payment contracts with "hidden fees and exorbitant interest rates," Schneiderman said.
In one instance, a soldier purchased a Playstation 3 and a 32" Sony Vizio TV for $162 a month. He was never told the total cost would be $3,123.67, plus interest, according to Schneiderman. When the soldier tried to protest the charges, he couldn't reach anyone at the company. As of August 2012 he still owed $2,601.48.
With the settlement, debts like that are washed away. The agreement requires SmartBuy and other settling companies to release about 358 New York-based soldiers from debt. Nearly 4,000 more soldiers nationwide are also freed from debt under the settlement.
The investigation began two years ago under then-Attorney General Andrew Cuomo.
The settling entities include Frisco Marketing of N.Y., LLC, doing business as SmartBuy and SmartBuy Computers and Electronics; Integrity Financial of North Carolina, Inc.; Britlee, Inc.; and GJS Management, Inc.; all owned and/or operated by Fayetteville, N.C.-based family John Paul Jordan, Stuart Jordan and Rebecca Wirt.
The defendants will also clear all negative credit reports related to the contracts and will pay a $150,000 penalty to New York, according to Schneiderman.
Under the consent order and judgment signed by State Supreme Court Justice Hugh Gilbert in Jefferson County, the settling companies are banned for good from doing business in New York.
Contact Teri Weaver at: firstname.lastname@example.com, 315-470-2274 or on Twitter at @TeriKWeaver.