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Somerville, MA, United States | Member Since 2005
"Still a classic of visionary science fiction"
The last time I read this book was when it was assigned to my English class in eighth grade, and it was a pleasure to come back to as an adult and re-experience the same emotions I did back then. This is science fiction about the wonder and awe of discovery, the bittersweetness of letting go of the primitive past, and the ultimate destiny of the human race. It's not a dystopian or cautionary tale, as so much science fiction, but a book about what it means for our species to reach adulthood -- and a sacrifice that that may one day demand of us.
The story begins, in classic form, with the visitation of beings from the stars. The Overlords arrive on Cold War-era Earth in immense, silver starships, and immediately establish themselves as vastly superior, but benevolent masters. Yet, they refuse to reveal themselves in person (at least not right away) or explain their ultimate purposes. Here, one might guess, as some characters do, at sinister intentions.
But, nothing so crude comes to pass, and Clarke proceeds to a new generation of characters, as the Overlords usher in a new era of peace and worldwide prosperity for the human race. Not to mention a certain amount of ennui and loss of purpose, as mankind finds that most of its traditional problems are solved. Yet, a few people continue to puzzle over the mysteries about the Overlords and chafe against the restrictions they still impose. What are the reasons? Several intrepid explorers begin to find out.
The writing is simple and unadorned, and the characters not particularly complex in their construction (not to mention a bit 1950s), but there's a subtle eloquence to the way the story unfolds, each stage in the human race's progress revealing a little more about the fate that must eventually come. And Clarke's writing is still a pleasure to read for its vision, its thoughtful ideas about the forms that different alien races might take, the capabilities of advanced technology, and how human society might continue to function when the primary need is that of avoiding boredom. Though a few assumptions are showing their age (newspapers, radio), much of this 1953 story still speaks to the 21st century. Clarke continues to remind us of how little we know about what's out there in the universe, or how limited our evolution has been compared to what's possible.
Read it, if you haven't yet. Or read it again. Childhood's End is one of the works that sets the template for great science fiction, and will likely still contain meaning for new readers in fifty years.
4.5 stars.
"Even the monstrous among us..."
The Minotaur in Steven Sherrill's novel is a being I can relate to. He has a hulking frame that tends to bump into things, is quiet and introspective, feels like a bit of an outsider in the ordinary human world, and doesn't always know the best way to verbalize his thoughts, so he often just says "mmmmm".
Unlike me, though, he's the very same creature from ancient myth. He's lived so long, his monstrous past has mostly worn away, leaving only a few dim memories. The same is true of his ability to provoke a reaction from the humans around him. To the denizens of the North Carolina trailer park where he now lives, or the greasy spoon restaurant where he works as a short order cook at, he's a slight oddity, but, really, no more so than the girl who suffers from epilepsy or the gay waiter who's also a Civil War reenactor. The Minotaur leads a fairly unremarkable life. He worries about losing his job, feels uncomfortable around dogs and electronics, likes to repair cars, and has trouble making long-term plans.
There's not much that "happens" in this novel, which has the feel of one those subdued indie films in which the characters carry out their normal lives in a way meant to show the profundity of everyday existence. Conventional urban fantasy, this is not. The writing is quite good at capturing the feel and character of the South, though, and I enjoyed the character study of the Minotaur, called "M" by others, who yearns for connection, or at least a place in the world, but doesn't know how to fit in. He becomes, variously, an observer of human nature, a sounding board for other people's feelings and worries, an object of antagonism, and a lover.
Of course, the story isn't really "about" the Minotaur, but about the way the primal permeates life, sometimes getting lost underneath it, sometimes boiling to the surface at odd moments. Add someone a little more primal than everyone else to small, backwater town, and the dynamic shifts subtly. I enjoyed the nuance with which Sherrill weaves in myth, religion, humor, absurdity, sexuality, the innocent directness of children, and human pathos (e.g. the death and subsequent "unburial" of Sweeney's dog).
Admittedly, this is a slow, languid cloudy day book (though everything comes together in a tense conclusion) and not everyone will enjoy it. I actually quit at several points to listen to other books, but found myself drawn back again. Some credit surely goes to audiobook narrator Holter Graham's excellent reading. He grasps the text well, gives different inflections to different characters, and injects the right notes into the Minotaur's many "hmmms" and "mmmms". He even does rather well with the "dialogue" from an overheard porn movie.
Another win from the Neil Gaiman Presents project, though this one more for tone and writing than storytelling.
"Gritty medieval supernatural horror"
I got this one in a Halloween sale at audible, and it's fairly enjoyable. The setting is 14th century France, and the Black Death is ravishing a countryside already ravished by war. To the survivors, it looks like the End Times are coming and the devil's supernatural minions are loose upon the Earth. And perhaps they are...
The story feels like a mix of George R.R. Martin and Cormac McCarthy's The Road, with some Heironymus Bosch-ian freakiness thrown in (if you don't know who he is, do an image search on the internet -- it's worth your time). A hardbitten fallen knight is roaming the hellscape with some outlaws when his compatriots take an unwholesome interest in a strange girl, who claims to hear instructions from angels. The knight takes issue, swords are drawn, and soon the knight is the grudging companion of the girl, whom he intends to dump at the next village. But, after an encounter with a monster and a hallucinatory vision, he begins to think her angels might be real...
The plot takes a while to find its feet as the two protagonists go from town to town, encountering new scenes of devastation, various creatures of the underworld, and the usual demons of human nature, and picking up a wayward priest and a mule, but tightens up as it approaches the last act.
The story isn't without cliches, some dialogue of dubious authenticity, and few scenes or devices straight out of a B horror movie, but its more deliciously nightmarish moments make up for the weak patches. The monster/angel/demon battles are a little "Hollywood", but, otherwise, Buehlman does a fine job with creepy imagery and some of the more human-focused scenes.
I particularly enjoyed the mini-narratives that set the stage for each new act, describing an ongoing war between the hosts of heaven and the hosts of hell (with humanity caught in the middle) in appropriately medieval terms. I'm not sure how much of what transpires really represents Christian theology, but, then again, one could ask that about The Exorcist. The epilogue, though, seems to reach a more spiritual and less supernatural understanding of the religion.
Audiobook narrator, Steve West, does pretty well with male characters, though I wondered why he represented Frenchmen with an English accent. Maybe he can't do a French accent? His German accent might be the most Jamaican sounding one I've ever heard. And I wasn't a huge fan of his falsetto for Delphine.
Regardless, I think that fans of horror fantasy and/or gritty action set in the Middle Ages will enjoy this book. 3.5 stars overall.
"Gorgeously-written alternate history classic"
Keith Roberts's 1968 novel, Pavane, imagines an alternate 20th century in which England's 16th century split from the Catholic Church had never happened. As a result, all of the Western world is ruled from Rome, whose hierarchy has kept a jealous lid on science and technology. That which is permitted has taken on some pretty baroque forms, such as great steam-powered hauling vehicles and a communication system based on hilltop-mounted semaphors, run by a powerful paramilitary guild.
Such inventions might have been labeled "steampunk" had Pavane been published 30 years later, but that term is too hackneyed to do this book justice. While technology is part of Roberts's vision, it's also a window into a more mystical, pastoral England, where the ancient, primal religion of the past hasn't yet been supplanted by progress, and the supernatural world of Faerie still swirls around the edges of the Christianized one, playing its mischief on hearts and minds. For perhaps the old ways, both pagan and Christian, are meant to guide humanity, but in ways not fully revealed.
Pavane isn't a conventionally plotted novel, but consists of six loosely-connected "movements" that build on each other in layers. Each, centered around a different character, can be read as a self-contained story set in a shared world, but, together, they comprise a meditation on the way change can take hold of a person or society, the themes and actions of the earlier pieces taking on greater significance in the later ones.
A brief summary of the movements:
1. A young steam train driver suffers a broken heart, then is tested by bandits.
2. A semaphor operator in a lonely post is badly injured, but by who or what, we don't know at first. Flashbacks reveal his history and the nature of his guild.
3. An adolescent fisher-girl's transition to womanhood is associated with her encounters with a strange white boat, which the local folk aren't supposed to acknowledge.
4. An artistic monk is broken by a terrible assignment from his superiors, and leads a spiritual rebellion.
5. A significant death and a significant love affair lead to a vision.
6. A noblewoman faced with an unjust demand rebels against Rome. Maybe the most riveting piece.
Coda: the scientific revolution has begun at last, but with a significant difference from our own world.
While some of the stories, taken on their own, are more interesting than others, I loved seeing the connections between them unfold. I found Robert's prose to be lovely and sensory, and his storytelling quite good as well. It's not at all a surprise that Neil Gaiman used his influence to have this one brought into audio form. The major themes of the novel (discipline, change, awakening, the mystery of the unknowable) are more insinuated than spelled out, which might put off readers who require a strong, well-defined plot to hold their attention, but I'm not such a reader.
If, like me, you're drawn to the intersection between science fiction, fantasy, and literature, this book probably deserves a place on your shelf. For me, the wistful mood of Pavane, aided by Steven Crossley's fine, classically rich-voiced audiobook performance, secure it a place among my favorites. Kudos to Gaiman for calling attention to it.
"Entertaining slacker horror thriller"
14 is escapist slacker horror in roughly the same category as John Dies At the End, but with a less crass sense of humor. The setup is that Nate, a young guy with a dead-end temp job at a Los Angeles magazine publisher, moves into an apartment in an old building somewhere near Hollywood. The deal seems too good to be true, with cheap rent and a great roof deck.
Naturally, a few things are weird about the building. What's up with the green cockroaches with an extra leg? The permanently-closed elevator? The strangeness of the building layout? The cold spots? The tight-lipped, paranoid building manager? The padlocks on apartment fourteen?
As Nate investigates, he gradually meets his neighbors, including an exhibitionist artist who likes to sunbathe in the nude, a not-too-sharp movie crew guy, a female Indian computer hacker, a creepy religious guy, and an unusually fit older man whose backstory seems at odds with his skillset. Together, they form a mystery-solving gang, with lots of ironic Scooby Do wisecracks.
This really isn't heavyweight fiction, but I enjoyed watching the characters delve into the mysteries of the building and its basement, the constant banter between them, and Clines's imagination and humor. There's even a bit of sweetness, as romance blooms and we learn whom "Shaggy" really has the hots for (not Scooby). Audiobook narrator Ray Porter does a pretty good job of giving each significant character his or her own personality and accent.
The last act of the book takes us into some netherdimensional sci-fi/horror territory. The payoff isn't highly original or quite as much fun as everything leading up to it, but it's not bad, and that freaky tower towards the end is a great visual. Clines leaves a few threads unresolved and not everything makes complete logical sense, so perhaps there will be a sequel.
In sum, if you're looking for something deep, look elsewhere. If you want an audiobook that's fun to relax to, but has wit and a little creepiness, this is a great pick.
"Fantasy spy thriller, some world-building issues"
Lately, there's been a movement in fantasy away from the late medieval Western European milieu that predominates in the genre towards other kinds of settings. Why not a steampunk universe? Why not a Bronze Age universe, or a Russian-inspired one? Why not a universe where people travel in space and have "modern" sensibilities, as well as magic abilities? (See the popular "Saga" graphic novel series)
Robert Jackson Bennett is a young author who hops on that train in City of Stairs, and I took a chance on the book after it got a lot of praise online (I consider a plethora of gushy fans a cautionary sign). The novel reminds me a bit of China Mieville's The City & The City, in that the plot begins with a murder mystery and takes place in a city where there are two cultures with competing narratives, and a troubled, unspoken history behind everything.
But, where Mieville's novel was more metaphysical, this one leans more in the fantasy direction. As we learn, Shara, a foreign service agent from a country called Saypur, which has a roughly late-1800s level of technology, is one of the few people who knows much about the past history of Bulikov and the surrounding continent. This region used to be dominated by magic and a pantheon of gods, but Saypur invaded the Continent about seventy years prior, killed the gods and most of their creatures, locked up the magical artifacts, and suppressed all study of the divine. Except, of course, that being done by one prominent Saypuri scholar, whose murder begins the book. With the help of her secretary, Sigrud, a barbarian giant of few words, Shara begins a search for the culprit. And there are plenty to suspect of complicity, from an ultra-conservative Bulikov nationalist group, to an ex-boyfriend of Shara's, to her own government, to one of the gods (are they really all dead?). What was the murdered man looking for within a secret vault? And what of the legendary Saypuri leader who used a secret weapon of his own devising to slay the gods?
This was one of those novels that got off to a slow start, but gradually picked up steam towards the middle. I liked the characters, the smart but flawed Shara, the hard-headed female colonel, and the mysterious Sigrud, with his dark past. There are some great scenes involving battles with monsters, and some interesting ideas about the nature of the gods and their relationship to humanity.
The world-building, though, is a little muddled. Saypur feels like a vaguely Indian culture, but has some clearly modern and "western" attitudes. The Continent seems vaguely Russian, but is similar to "barbarian" societies we've seen in countless other fantasy and sci-fi novels. The technology and social attitudes are somewhat inconsistent -- on one hand, Saypur has cars and an advanced state of women's lib, but gunpowder and photography are relatively new inventions. And some of the magic gets a little silly, such as the final battle with the divinities. As a result, I had a hard time getting too engaged in the politics of the story -- the world never felt totally convincing.
Yet, in terms of plot, this is a pretty competent fantasy world spy/mystery thriller, and I think a lot of readers will enjoy it. The audiobook narration is good, and fits Shara well, but isn't spectacular. I had trouble distinguishing minor characters in places.
"Familiar but enjoyable youth-in-war-games SF"
If you've read The Hunger Games and other dystopian science fiction novels, the premise of Red Rising is a familiar one. The hero of the story, Darrow, is a tough-beyond-his-years teenager from the lowly "Red" mining caste, which spends its days drilling under the surface of Mars. Turns out, though, that Mars has been terraformed for centuries, and the Reds, like other color-coded castes, are dominated by the "Golds", who consider themselves to be superior to all other humans and therefore the natural rulers.
The first few chapters are a little rushed and clunky. Darrow gets on the wrong side of his masters and nearly pays for it with his life, except a rebel group rescues him at the last moment to recruit him for a special assignment. They remake him to look and act like a Gold, with the goal of having him rise up to a position of power in Gold society. This was the point at which I nearly stopped reading, because the tropes felt so overdone.
Luckily, the story becomes much more engaging once Darrow and a crop of young Golds are thrown into the trials of the Institute, which is designed to find those with the most leadership potential and weed out the least capable. The Golds, as we learn, fear decadence and have a Darwinistic philosophy to keep it in check. Accordingly, the Institute is a vast competitive proving ground that falls somewhere between the arena of The Hunger Games and the battle school in Ender's Game. Students are assigned a house (each named after a different Roman/Greek god) and placed in a large, open preserve where they must figure out how to defend a base, make use of resources, and conquer the other tribes. Fans of the aforementioned books will probably enjoy all the scheming, combat, alliances, double-crossing, and tests of character. It's not original stuff, but Brown makes good use of factions, symbols, and the personalities of his central characters to keep the wheels of the plot turning -- and to make some deeper points about the nature of governance and social order, as they evolve from law of the jungle.
If the characters are a little too crafty and mentally tough to be fully believable as teens, the taut storytelling and good sense of pacing kept me hooked until the end. The echoes of the Iliad, with interfering "gods" and warriors trying to build names for themselves, might strike some readers as cheesy, but I enjoyed them. At this point, the youths-forced-into-contrived-war-games subgenre of science fiction is rather crowded, but Red Rising will probably please fans of it. There's plenty of setup for the next book, which promises dangerous political games amongst the grownups.
I enjoyed the audiobook narration, which uses an Irish brogue to suggest the Reds, and an upper-class British accent for the Golds. Tim Gerard Reynolds does a good job of switching between the two, for Darrow's inner monologues and spoken dialogue. A few of the side characters might have been easier to distinguish.
"Ambitious, many-placed contemplation of mortality"
David Mitchell's sixth novel is a globe-and-time-hopping six-part meditation on the way death shapes human existence, though we may try to deny it beneath the trappings of modernity. As in Cloud Atlas and Ghostwritten, there isn't a traditional narrative drivetrain, but a loose story thread that passes through multiple characters, all of whom seem like they might have come from different novels, but are pulled together by a shared degree of separation.
While Mitchell has always played with magic realism, here he goes for out-and-out fantasy, an indulgence that editors might would have talked a less-established writer out of. If you recall the ageless villain in The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet, Mitchell has expanded this mystery into an ongoing supernatural war between two factions of immortals, the Anchorites (who prolong their lives by sacrificing psychically-gifted victims) and the Horologists (who are reborn into new bodies each time they die, but also with a sacrifice of sorts).
For the first four acts of the novel (roughly 400 pages), this conflict remains mostly in the background, with bits of it spilling a la Murakami into the primary characters' lives, usually in the form of visions or encounters that they don't understand. The first act follows Holly Sykes, whom we meet through her own words as a teenager in 1984 England, when she runs away from home. In the second, she becomes an important figure in the life of a charming but manipulative young Cambridge University libertine, who has just schemed himself into a corner. In 2004, we see her through the eyes of her husband, a journalist covering the awful early days of the Iraq occupation, who has a glimpse into Holly's psychic gifts at a crucial moment. And later, she becomes friends with a cantankerous 50-ish author whose star is falling fast, and a vehicle for some good "literary" wit.
As always, Mitchell's ability to hop between tones, styles, places, and voices is impressive. The first four acts of the novel have to be read as separate stories, though the reader will notice shared elements, images, locations, characters, and ideas that ripple and reflect through them. And, of course, that each protagonist is older than the last, gradually shifting the perspective on mortality. However, several of the characters feel more like artfully crafted "types" than real people, and I wondered if so much time needed to be spent in the worlds of privileged students or famous novelists to make the point. (Maybe?)
The fifth act, where the paranormal Anchorite/Horologist war at last comes to the fore, dragging in Holly, may strike readers as a little silly, with its talk of "psychic voltages", "old souls", and "chakra eyes". There's an elaborate history here, and we take a trip back to Czarist Russia and 19th century Australia, but the essential struggle isn't complex. One side seeks eternal youth via a system that exploits others; the other seeks deeper continuity, but has limited power. Looked at one way, it's fantasy cosmology; looked at another, it's the very struggle in our souls.
So we arrive at the last act, told from an older Holly's perspective, set in a grim 2040s where the supernatural good guys have been unable to save humanity from the consequences of its own actions, though there's a ray of bittersweet hope. In trying to hide from our own individual mortality, do we collectively hasten it for civilization? Good question.
Probably more than Mitchell's other novels, this one is written in the security of a fanbase, and might frustrate the non-initiate who randomly pulls it off a shelf. But, I'm part of the club and I couldn't help but enjoy the ambition, ideas, craft, storytelling, connections, and resonant themes. I also had fun reviewing it in my mind afterwards, working out deeper meanings -- as one needs to with Mitchell.
The voice actors are mostly pretty capable, though Eddie's and Crispin's sound a little too old, and some accents might have been better.
"A little light but interesting"
I enjoyed Jon Ronson's 2011 foray into the world of psychopaths and special interest groups out to protect or demonize them, and this seemed like a good book of his to read next. Though published in 2001, just before 9/11 and the Bush and Obama presidencies drove conspiracy theory and anti-government groups to new levels of hysteria, it's an enlightening window into how fringe groups form around certain rallying ideas and code words.
As advertised, Ronson discovers that Islamic extremists in Britain, anti-government paranoids in the US, racist groups, anti-Catholic groups, and a man who claims that the world is ruled by secret alien lizard people all have something in common: fear that a shadowy cabal of bankers, businessmen, media elites, and politicians is scheming to impose some sort of Orwellian New World Order. In their own minds, these extremists are fighting a resistance against those who would turn them into, to use a well-worn internetism, weak and helpless "sheeple".
As in the Psychopath Test, Ronson carefully humors his subjects and lets them express themselves in their own words, which sometimes veer towards the Monty Python-esque. Hard not to find the bumbling Islamic activist, Omar Bakri Muhammad, somewhat ridiculous, as he makes over-the-top pronouncements, then furiously backpedals towards a more genial facade whenever challenged. Same with KKK leader, Thomas Robb, who is trying to rebrand his organization with a more friendly image after being inspired by some leadership books from the self-help section. Ronson's own self-deprecating wit is also amusing, if a little distracting at times.
Other people Ronson spends time with, though, seem like they might have a point, such as the survivors of the infamous Ruby Ridge Incident, in which the feds seemingly came down on a misunderstood survivalist family in Idaho with excessive force. His investigations into the claims of anti-Zionist groups raises a question: are Jewish film moguls really just acting out their own insecurities about being Jews in Hollywood... and giving some people the wrong idea? And when Ronson joins Alex Jones (of Infowars fame) and several others in investigating the Bilderberg Group, a publicity-shunning private conference of political, business, and academic elites, it's somewhat unclear where paranoia ends and dull reality begins. Is a bacchanalian gathering in the woods of Northern California about rich old men celebrating dark, perverse rites of power, or just harmless, fraternity-like fun? Is it scarier to think that these people might indeed have a lot of influence over the world's affairs... or that they don't?
Ultimately, this might be a little too light-hearted of a book on extremism -- Ronson, not surprisingly, doesn't spend much time in the company of the most hateful or militant types of groups, such as neo-Nazis, so his character studies tend more towards crackpots and self-promoters. And this *is* a pre-9/11 book. Still the character studies are interesting.
Audiobooks narrated by their own authors are a mixed bag, but Ronson's pleading voice adds a lot to the funnier parts, like when he talks about trying to "tone down" his Jewishness.
"Still powerful"
Though not a long book, All Quiet on the Western Front is the prototype for nearly every modern novel about going to war. Young men with their heads crammed full of patriotism and dreams of glory volunteer for the army. There is a strenuous boot camp with a martinet drill instructor. Then the horror and carnage of battle, which often amounts to hunkering down and hoping not to be hit by shells fired by a far-off enemy, while nearby comrades are randomly cut down by shrapnel, explosive, bullets, and poison gas, sometimes to die hideous, lingering deaths.
The story is told through the eyes of Paul Bäumer, an everyman character whom Remarque never defines in much depth -- though part of this is the conceit that Paul, at 19, sees himself as a person who was unformed before war claimed him. The novel, written in the immediate tense, reads more as a series of fragmentary scenes and impressions than an ordered narrative, which might put off some readers, but I think this adds to its effectiveness. Over the course of the novel, Paul and his companions experience all the usual responses to modern war. There's horror, disillusionment, shell shock, and alienation from the civilian world, with its self-satisfied values and artificial lives. To Paul, the ability to care about the things that his student self once cared about is lost, the only meaning now in small, primal acts of life and in his comrades-in-arms.
The prose is haunted by bleakness and despair, though there are some scenes that are quite beautiful in their melancholy humanity, such as Paul's visit to a camp of Russian POWs, or of his regrets after being trapped in a shell hole for a few hours with a dying enemy soldier, who, now disarmed, is little different from himself. There are a few moments of levity, such a scene where a pompous teacher gets his just desserts, but they're few. For their part, the sequences set in the trenches are rich in images of dull, hellish squalor, such as passing time by killing ever-present corpse-fed rats, or the cries of a wounded man slowly dying somewhere out in No Man's Land. Yes, no surprise that the Nazis banned this one for "defeatism" (and got to relive it all at Stalingrad).
Though the specific causes of World War One are now buried in the dustbin of history, the reader doesn't need to be familiar with them to grasp the essential themes. All Quiet on the Western Front still maintains its timeless message of youth pointlessly squandered by the impenetrable stupidity of politics. When Paul's companions discuss the reasons they've been sent to fight and die, they can only observe that they never had anything against the French, nor the average French soldier against Germany, but, as always, the few people who make and benefit from policy aren't the ones deemed young and physically fit enough to die for it. While no 21st century generation is likely to experience the kind of wholesale meat-grinder warfare that could wipe out thirty thousand lives in one battle, we shouldn't forget the naivete that led to it, or the callousness it inflicted. These are aspects of modernity that have hardly left the world, even a century later.
Audiobook narrator Frank Muller gives a restrained but haunted reading that fits the spirit of the text well.
"A good conclusion"
Fillory, the magical land in this series, is a flagrant riff on CS Lewis's Narnia. In Lewis's classic children's books, the young protagonists entered the world through a magic portal, had adventures, and got into trouble, but had Aslan the lion (and Christ figure) to set them on the right path again. Here, though, the heroes aren't children, but jaded young adults, and the gods are a lot more fallible. And magic is dangerous.
In the hands of other writers, such a premise might not have gone beyond parody, but Grossman's marvelous mix of creativity, snark, grimness, and squirmy truth shows that he had more serious things in mind. His story might be a metaphor for the messy process of growing up, for reaching that age where you've outgrown childish things, but haven't fully abandoned them. It's when you find out that the world doesn't always answer your dreams with wish fulfillment, but with sharp edges. So it happens with the mopey, self-absorbed Quentin Coldwater and his disaffected friends, who, after learning magic at a special university that recruits the smartest misfits, manage to open a gateway to Fillory, which they become rulers of after removing a monster. Though not without death and suffering, and not without quite a bit of angst.
In this novel, the nearly-thirty Quentin, who was banished from Fillory at the end of the last book, returns to Earth, while his friends continue on as rulers of the magic land or go on other missions (in the case of Julia, the hedge witch now turned demigod). There, he takes up a post as a professor at Brakebills, until something/someone from his past comes back to haunt him. Along with a new character named Plum, who has her own secret, he joins a team of renegade magicians to carry out a mission for a talking bird, who wishes them to recover a lost suitcase. This suitcase, well-guarded and kept closed by powerful magic, once belonged to one of the Chatwin children.
If this is meant to be the last adventure in the Magicians universe, it finds its way to a somewhat expected, but not unsatisfying conclusion. Yes, Quentin finally matures and embraces being an adult, and his friends have their own growth. The plot is a little more rushed than previous entries, as Grossman works his way towards tying up all the loose ends, sometimes at the expense of spending enough time with his more interesting or likable characters or fully addressing some of the series' outstanding questions (who's behind the Neitherlands?).
Still, he has talent as a writer, which stands out in more than a few moments. I especially liked a journal sequence that reveals, with fitting Britishness, more about the relationship between the Chatwins and Fillory. As in the previous books, there's plenty of snarky humor, with irreverent young adults talking back to monsters and one another, but Grossman can also do emotional honesty, existential doubt, and genuine wonder. There's poignancy to a few scenes, such as Quentin's emotional response to his father's death, or a surprisingly beautiful scene in which one world comes to an end and another is born. A creative duel between Quentin and a ghostly being has an otherworldly creepiness to it, as well as an extra layer of emotional tension.
Overall, I think that readers who enjoyed books one and two will like this one, even if it lacks many surprises in overall plot arc or character development. Grossman has created a world whose biting twists on traditional fantasy are as much of a pleasure to explore as the original thing was when we were kids. These books ain't for kids, and that's okay by me. Audiobook narrator for the series, Mark Bramhall, brings his usual droll style, though I felt he gave a little less personality to some of the characters than before.


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Score a home run for your heart at the University of Oklahoma baseball game April 10. Norman Regional Health System, OU, and the Norman Chamber of Commerce are teaming up to promote heart health at the game.
From 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., free blood pressure screenings will be offered. Three free heart scans will also be given away; each is valued at $100. Norman Regional's President and CEO David Whitaker will help throw out the first pitch.
"I'm very grateful to OU and the chamber for helping raise awareness about this important issue," Whitaker said. "This event will reach a lot of people who otherwise might not have thought about their own heart health."
Cheer on the Sooners as they play Texas Tech. General admission is $8 and tickets are available by calling either (405) 325-2424 or toll-free (800) 456-GoOU. Purchase tickets online at www.soonersports.com
Contact Kelly Wells
Norman Regional Health System
Office (405) 307.2143
Fax (405) 307.2144
Email firstname.lastname@example.com

subset: commoncrawl


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Viewer video: Mother bear, cub take down bird feeder
UPDATED 11:00 PM CDT Jul 30, 2013It was a team effort for four bears to take down a bird feeder in the back yard of a Longwood home late Tuesday night.
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Recently Google Adwords and Overture, leaders of the PPC market with a total of 90% of the market, changed their interfaces and upgraded their systems. This article will discuss these new changes, why there was a need for change, and will also analyze what this means for the PPC customer.
In the past, Google Adwords and Overture had different solutions to running and managing their PPC ads and interfaces. Both had advantages and disadvantages but we can see from the new features that they have introduced, that these 2 leaders are become more similar than ever.
Google Adwords and Overture's both realized that the other leader had great features, and implemented them within their own system. Google Adwords and Overture's management strategies are becoming more and more alike, but there are still key differences between them. These changes show that each of them is willing to fight and strive to be the best. The question still remains, which is better for the PPC market today' The answer is both. Even though their management systems have improved, they represent a huge percentage of the market and one cannot exclude either when running a successful PPC campaign. Even though it is best to use both, circumstances do not always allow this. In these cases, decide which of the two is the "correct" for your campaign. Both Google Adwords and Overture have quality assurance mechanisms and time will tell whether they will learn more from each other ' will Overture's Conversion Counter turn into successful conversions, or will Google learn from Overture, and include their own "Conversion Counter. In short, a successful ROI and conversion is what you should ultimately want to see from your campaign. Let's wait and see if Overture's Conversion Counter will convert into a good ROI for Overture, and if Google will follow.


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Whole Wheat or White Pizza Dough
December 1, 2011
These crusts are versatile and really simple to make. You can make the dough a day or two in advance...
Dairy Noodle Kugel for a Crowd
December 7, 2011
Dairy noodle kugel is a favorite with all ages. When I made this recipe for the first time, I had...
Low-fat Fettuccini Alfredo
December 10, 2011
I have a good friend who was looking for a healthier option to serve her husband who Yield: 4
Crispy Cheese Latkes
December 10, 2011
I have to confess, it was my cousin Ruchi who requested this recipe. I was making these latkes one day...


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Molecular Biology of the Cell
Author:Bruce Alberts, Alexander Johnson, Julian Lewis, Martin Raff, Keith Roberts, Peter Walter
4 Customer Product Reviews
Edition: 5
Pub Date: 2007
Publisher: Garland Science
Summary: For nearly a quarter century Molecular Biology of the Cell has been the leading cell biology textbook. This tradition continues with the new Fifth Edition, which has been completely revised and updated to describe our current, rapidly advancing understanding of cell biology. to list but a few examples, a large amount of new material is presented on epigenetics; stem cells; RNAi; comparative genomics; the latest cance...r therapies; apoptosis (now its own separate chapter); and cell cycle control and the mechanics of M phase (now integrated into one chapter).The hallmark features of Molecular Biology of the Cell have been retained, such as its consistent and comprehensive art program, clear concept headings, and succinct section summaries. Additionally, in response to extensive feedback from readers, the Fifth Edition now includes several new features.It is now more portable. Chapters 1-20 are printed and Chapters 21-25, covering multicellular systems, are provided as pdf files on the free Media DVD-ROM which accompanies the book.* and for the first time, Molecular Biology of the Cell now contains end-of-chapter questions. These problems, written by John Wilson and Tim Hunt, emphasize a quantitative approach and the art of reasoning from experiments, and they will help students review and extend their knowledge derived from reading the textbook. The Media DVD-ROM, which is packaged with every copy of the book, contains PowerPoint® presentations with all of the figures, tables and micrographs from the text (available as JPEGs too). Also included is the Media Player, which plays over 125 movies'animations, videos, and molecular models'all with voiceover narration. A new reader-friendly feature is the integration of media codes throughout the text that link directly to relevant videos and animations on the enclosed Media DVD-ROM. The Media DVD-ROM holds the multicellular systems chapters (21-25) of the text as well.By skillfully extracting the fundamental concepts from this enormous and ever-growing field, the authors tell the story of cell biology, and thereby create a coherent framework through which readers may approach and enjoy this subject that is so central to all of biology.* There is also a reference edition of Molecular Biology of the Cell, Fifth Edition (ISBN 0-8153-4111-3) that contains Chapters 1-25 entirely in printed format.
Bruce Alberts is the author of Molecular Biology of the Cell, published 2007 under ISBN 9780815341055 and 0815341059. Four hundred twenty Molecular Biology of the Cell textbooks are available for sale on ValoreBooks.com, one hundred sixteen used from the cheapest price of $40.97, or buy new starting at $88.99. [read more]
Bruce Alberts is the author of Molecular Biology of the Cell, published 2007 under ISBN 9780815341055 and 0815341059. Four hundred twenty Molecular Biology of the Cell textbooks are available for sale on ValoreBooks.com, one hundred sixteen used from the cheapest price of $40.97, or buy new starting at $88.99. [read more]
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Some parts of the book was not concise. Could present the information in a more interesting manner.
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The illustrations in the book are really good. The CD that comes with the ebook is also very helpful. -
this book is a GREAT resource, I hated to let it go!
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This really helped me get a jump on my studies for medical school. -
The least helpful part of this book were the questions in the back of the book and the figures. I felt that the questions were very vague and the figures were to heavy they could have been more clear.
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The actual text of the book was very helpful and explained the concepts very well.
Product Details
Pub Date: 2007
Publisher: Garland Science
Edition: 5th
Pub Date: 2007
Publisher: Garland Science
Valore Books is the smartest bookstore for cheap Molecular Biology of the Cell rentals, or used and new copies available to buy.
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Kenneth J. Koval, MD - Orthopaedic Surgery, Orthopaedic Trauma
Dr. Kenneth Koval reviews medical content for Healthwise, a nonprofit organization with a mission to help people make better health decisions. Dr. Koval is a Professor in the Department of Orthopaedics at Orlando Regional Medical Center in Orlando, Florida. He is recognized for his world-class research on hip fractures and serves as editor and author for the major trauma journals and textbooks.
Education and Training
MD: New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, 1984
Internship in Surgery: Beth Israel Medical Center, New York, NY, 1984–1985
Residency in Orthopaedic Surgery: Hospital for Joint Diseases Orthopaedic Institute, New York, NY, 1984–1985
Fellowship in Orthopaedic Traumatology: University of South Florida, Tampa General Hospital, Tampa, FL, 1989–1990
Academic Appointments
Professor, Department of Orthopaedics, Orlando Regional Medical Center, Orlando, FL, 2011–present
Professor, Dartmouth Medical School, Department of Orthopaedics, Lebanon, NH, 2003–2010
New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY:
- Professor, 2001–2003
- Associate Professor, 1998–2001
- Assistant Professor, 1994–1998
- Instructor, 1991–1994
Current as of: June 27, 2014
Author: Healthwise Staff
This information does not replace the advice of a doctor. Healthwise, Incorporated disclaims any warranty or liability for your use of this information. Your use of this information means that you agree to the Terms of Use. How this information was developed to help you make better health decisions.
To learn more, visit Healthwise.org
© 1995-2015 Healthwise, Incorporated. Healthwise, Healthwise for every health decision, and the Healthwise logo are trademarks of Healthwise, Incorporated.


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Bubble Charms
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Pop bubbles by matching 3 or more of the same kind of bubble, and multiply your points by bouncing trick shots off the walls and making streaks of successful shots to unlock new puzzles and locations. Watch out for cats and other obstacles that block your way – you must use your wits to knock out the bubbles above them. A variety of power-ups can help you through the game, but use them wisely! You'll need them for the most challenging levels!
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can I store a large kitchen aid stand mixer inside.
Black Finish with Marble Top Create-a-Cart
Add valuable cabinet space and counter space to your kitchen with this marble-top kitchen cart from Home Styles. This attractive piece features a solid wood construction for durability, and four wheels help you easily move it where it is needed.
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This attractive cart from Home Styles features a black finish with a three quarter inch marble top. In addition, this piece features a durable, solid wood construction and wheels for mobility.- Materials: Solid hardwood
- Finish: Black with marble top
- 0.75 inch marble top
- Four (4) utility drawers
- Two (2) cabinet doors open to storage with adjustable shelf inside
- Handy spice rack, towel bar, and paper towel holder
- Heavy duty locking rubber casters for easy mobility and safety
- Dimensions: 35.5 inches high x 48 inches wide x 17.75 inches deep
Assembly required.
Note: This product will be shipped using Threshold delivery. The product will be delivered to your door or the nearest ground-level entrance of your residence. Signature required upon delivery.
Features | |
Color | Black |
Material | Wood |
Assembly | Assembly Required |
Cart Type | Kitchen Cart |
Counter Type | Granite/Marble |
Dimensions | See description |
Warranty | 30 day Limited Manufacturer |
Materials | See description |
Model Number | 9100-10440G |
Product Reviews
Questions & Answers
Hello city2country, that shouldn't be a problem. There are two (2) cabinet doors open to storage with an adjustable shelf inside. Thank you for shopping with us.
Shopping Guides
What to Store in a Kitchen Cart
Including a handy kitchen cart with your other kitchen furniture will keep you organized and help your everyday kitchen activities go smoothly. Kitchen carts provide extra space for food preparation and serving; once you're done, or need some extra space, just wheel it out of the way. This versatile piece of kitchen furniture will keep your kitchen in line. All you have to decide is how to best optimize your kitchen cart. Keep reading for ideas on what to store in a kitchen cart.
Tips on Organizing a Kitchen Cart
When you need extra storage in your kitchen, a kitchen cart can come in handy. However, you may have some questions about arranging items efficiently on your cart. This guide provides you with tips on organizing a kitchen cart and finding one that works best for your home.
How to Add a Kitchen Island
If your kitchen has little counter space but a lot of floor space, adding a kitchen island is a smart way to increase your work and storage areas. There is wide a variety of ready-made kitchen islands and kitchen carts available to match any design, style, or decor, with features that will work in your kitchen.
Kitchen Island Buying Guide
When you imagine your dream kitchen, it probably has the perfect kitchen island and other kitchen furniture available to store your pots and pans, knives, dishes and appliances easily. Even without your dream kitchen, a kitchen island or smaller kitchen carts can offer some additional counter and storage space and give your kitchen a fresh new look. This buying guide will help you figure out how to buy a kitchen island table for your home and provide you with kitchen island ideas when you're planning your dream kitchen.
Kitchen Storage Buying Guide
A well-organized kitchen is a great asset to any home or apartment. Maximize comfort and convenience with the right kitchen storage. The first step to figuring out what kind of kitchen storage items will benefit your kitchen the most is to take a look around your kitchen and make a note of all the problem areas and how much space you have to work with. If you have a spacious kitchen, you probably need kitchen storage of an organizational nature. The more space you have, the more options you have for adding things, like baker's racks and kitchen carts. For space-challenged kitchens, kitchen storage is probably a much bigger problem. Your biggest consideration will be efficiency. Read to discover both organizational and efficiency kitchen storage solutions, as well as the major kitchen storage products you can use in your kitchen.
Best Kitchen Island for Your Home
Add extra storage and counter space without remodeling when you buy a kitchen island for your home. Whether you need a drop-leaf kitchen island so you have plenty of room for chopping vegetables or a sleek stainless steel kitchen island that provides storage for your pots and pans, the following suggestions will help you buy kitchen islands and carts that work for your space. Read on for tips on finding the best kitchen island for your home.
Tips on Choosing Kitchen Furniture
Moving swiftly through your kitchen is essential if you want to prepare a gourmet meal on a schedule. Your kitchen is much more enjoyable when you can find every bowl and you have a clean surface for chopping, mixing and measuring. If your kitchen isn't quite meeting your needs, then you may benefit from some new kitchen furniture. Islands, carts, cabinets and racks can transform your kitchen into a more useful space while adding a fresh new style to your home.
Top 5 Bath Accessories to Create an At-Home Spa
Any bathroom can be a lavish retreat with the right bath accessories. A step above your basic bath coordinates and bath hardware, luxury bath accessories help you achieve a calming bathroom and provide stylish functionality that will make you feel like you're at a spa. If you want to create the feeling of a day spa at home, start with these five bath accessories.
Top 5 Cabinet Knob Styles
Successful home decor often comes down to the little details. One way to add a flourish to your kitchen or bath is with cabinet hardware. The right cabinet knobs and pulls can provide the perfect accent to your kitchen. You can find almost any knob to fit your cabinet and kitchen style. Here are the top five styles to give your kitchen or bath that perfect finishing touch.
Things to Make with a Blender
When you think of kitchen appliances, one of the first to come to mind is a blender. Blenders are a kitchen staple; they're versatile enough to make hot and cold foods plus drinks and more. Blenders come in a variety of sizes and shapes, plus your choice of colors and finishes. Pair those blender choices with all the optional features and you'll find there's a blender out there for everyone. No other kitchen appliance has the potential to create so much fun.
How to Choose a Ruby Ring
The perfect finishing touch for a variety of outfits, a ruby ring can look stunning with dark skinny jeans, black silk top and shiny silver heels. This outfit will take you from work to drinks in style. Ruby rings aren't limited to accessorizing jeans and sexy heels, however. Your favorite casual green sack dress, yellow tunic top and long pink dress can use the touch of fiery red rubies. Even if buying gemstone jewelry is new territory for you, these tips can help you select stunning ruby jewelry for your wardrobe.
Best Computer Tables for Laptops
When you want to use a laptop computer in your home or office, you can prop it up on a specially designed computer workstations. Computer tables for laptops range in style from ergonomic designs to mobile carts to save on space. They help support a healthy posture and increase productivity. Whether you're a student or businessperson, there are several different styles of computer tables for laptops to consider for your workspace. Below, you'll learn about the best computer tables for laptops. Split-top laptop computer caddy: Split-top laptop computer caddies are designed to hold laptop computers at a certain angle while accommodating beverages, pads of paper or other small computer accessories. These caddies are set on wheels and feature adjustable heights. These caddies are suitable for office spaces or homes with limited space. Their ergonomic design makes them simple to use with a laptop while sitting on a couch, working from a bed or sitting in a regular office chair. Adjustable laptop desk: If you want to use a laptop while sitting in an armchair or when working from your bed, consider investing in an adjustable laptop desk. These computer tables are designed to hold and raise laptops over surfaces such as beds or armchair rests for easy access. These desks can be adjusted to different heights to suit your comfort level and may be equipped with cup holders or smaller side tables to hold small pads of paper, mice and other computer accessories. Utility cart with laptop shelf: Adjustable-height utility carts designed with laptop shelves offer the added benefit of storage space for printers, computer paper, computer accessories, books and other office supplies. These carts are set on wheels for easy mobility around the workspace, and their laptop shelves can be pushed in when not in use. This type of computer table can be a practical option for a work area with limited space. Ergonomic adjustable computer cart: Ergonomic adjustable computer carts are designed to hold laptops and computer accessories. The height of these computer tables can be adjusted for optimal comfort. These computer carts are set on wheels and may be available in several colors to match workspace styles. Ergonomic computer tables are designed to hold laptop computers at a certain angle so that users exhibit good posture while typing. The design of these tables may also reduce stress in the back, shoulders and arms. Mobile laptop stand: Mobile laptop stands are lightweight computer tables set on wheels. They may be designed to hold small printers, paper and other computer accessories and supplies. These laptop stands can be positioned at any height or angle and tucked into a corner of a room or a storage area when not in use. Mobile laptop stands are very simple in design and structure, and are typically made of steel or metal.Mobile laptop stand: Mobile laptop stands are lightweight computer tables set on wheels. They may be designed to hold small printers, paper and other computer accessories and supplies. These laptop stands can be positioned at any height or angle and tucked into a corner of a room or a storage area when not in use. Mobile laptop stands are very simple in design and structure, and are typically made of steel or metal. View All Computer Workstations Back to Guides Directory View All Computer Workstations
Top 5 Home Appliances for the Kitchen
Make preparing and reheating meals even easier when you buy home appliances for your kitchen. While your refrigerator and stove do most of the hard work, there are a few appliances that can simplify your life and save you valuable time -- and you can often buy home appliances at incredibly affordable prices online. Read on for the top five home appliances you can use in the kitchen.
Top 5 Timesaving Kitchen Appliances
Kitchen appliances help you take care of your family and impress your friends, but you have more things to do than slave away in the kitchen. At Overstock.com, we know how busy you are; that's why we offer a wide selection of the high-quality, timesaving kitchen appliances you need at prices you'll love. Read on to discover the top five kitchen appliances renowned for saving you time.
Top 5 Wedding Gifts for the Kitchen
Newly married couples are often starting fresh, so kitchen items are a necessity, and they're among the most preferred gifts for the wedding. These are the best kitchen gifts to give the bride and groom to help them get started on their new life together.
Top 5 Kitchen Appliances You Don't Have
You consider your kitchen well-stocked with a shiny new microwave, a top-of-the-line blender and a high-end food processor, but don't put away that wish list just yet. Some modern appliances are so new that you may have not had the chance to learn about their amazing features. Others are a big improvement over their older counterparts. These five appliances are desirable additions to any modern kitchen.
Food Processor Buying Guide
What exactly can you use a food processor for? It can be confusing to know what you're supposed to do with all the different attachments. It seems simpler to just keep using your old blender to do whatever it is a food processor does. A food processor is so much more than just a mixer. When you use your food processor, you'll save time, kitchen space and dishes. Another perk to these food processors is the wide variety of colors and finishes available. Not only will you create amazing food; you'll also get the option of matching your food processor to your picture perfect kitchen. It may seem a bit intimidating at first to have so many options, but once you get to know your food processor, you'll find that it is more than just a vegetable chopper. Don't let your uncertainty keep you from investing in a quality food processor for your kitchen.
Top 5 Most Popular Styles of Kitchen Sinks
With more options becoming available all the time, there is a wide selection of kitchen sinks to choose from. Whether you're looking for a sink with a specific aesthetic appeal, a sink to match your current decor or a purely functional sink, the style of kitchen sink you choose is important. No longer are only certain styles of sinks the standard. As homes are becoming more customized, more people are choosing what they want instead of letting the developer decide. One of the most customized rooms is the kitchen, with the sink fast becoming one of the most integral parts of the design. The following are five of the most popular styles of kitchen sinks.
Kitchen Faucet Buying Guide
Kitchen faucets must be durable and stylish to meet the needs of a modern kitchen. This kitchen faucet buying guide will help you choose the right kitchen faucets for perfect functionality and style in your kitchen. You'll learn how to buy kitchen faucets based on such criteria as sink type, handle type, style, finish and construction.
Top 5 Little Black Dress Styles
The little black dress is a timeless classic and wardrobe staple. When all else fails, a little black dress is there to save your look. This favorite has gone through a lot of makeovers in recent years, with plenty of dresses available in both formal and casual styles. With all the options available, it's becoming easier and easier to find the right dress for you. Start by reading about the top five styles.
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Trending Searches: FY2016 Budget | Taxes | Parks | Library
Preserving Our Historic Resources The Department of Public Works is dedicated to the preservation of Prince William County's historic resources. Our Historic Preservation Division staff serve as the caretakers of historic structures, interiors, archaeological resources, natural resources, historic landscapes, artifacts and collections. We also help build community identity through telling the story of our community. Staff recognizes the critical role we play in caring for our historic treasures and traditions. This role benefits our community, our state and our nation. We take this responsibility very seriously and strive to fulfill the need to identify, protect, preserve and rehabilitate historic sites for public use and posterity. Our goal is to show the connections between our history, our present, our future and our growth as a community. We pledge to: Bring history to life and to light through interpretation, research, living history, special events, lectures and exhibits Collect, preserve and interpret objects, documents, structures and archaeological resources Advance our knowledge of our community's history Make these resource meaningful and worthwhile for every citizen Invite and train citizen volunteers so they can learn about our community's past and share it with their fellow citizens and neighbors Prince William County is important at a local, state and national level. Locally, our community served as an important agricultural and commerce center. Yesterday's citizens played a critical in the history and formation of our state by serving in the state legislature, militia and business community. Prince William County citizens also played a significant part in the foundation of our nation by actively participating in important discussions and working diligently to provide critical crops and supplies, as well as the transportation of those goods to the places that needed them. Many people have called Prince William County home. Our rich heritage features a diversity of cultures spanning hundreds of years from: a long prehistory of American Indians to . . . the early contact of American Indians with English settlers to . . . the establishment and expansion of the English colonies to . . . the foundation of a new nation to . . . the horror of an American Civil War to . . . the struggles and victories of an enslaved community to . . . the healing of a nation to . . . the industrial revolution to . . . the step into the 20th and 21st centuries. Our staff interprets the lives and struggles of all people, as well as the events and places in our community's history. Please join us to learn and appreciate the importance of the very community where you live and its contributions to the history of our nation. Tidbits of History In the early 20th century, President Theodore Roosevelt banished one of his hunting dogs to Ben Lomond after the dog bit an ambassador. Presley Marion Rixey, the owner of the house at the time, was a good friend and hunting companion of the former president.
January 23, 2015
A One Day Symposium on the End of the American Civil War May 16, 2015- Manassas, VA
November 26, 2014
Join us for this year's special historic lectures at the Old Manassas Courthouse. Learn more.
June 16, 2014
Enjoy a short tour of our sites then make plans for a visit in person to learn more about the fascinating and important past of our community!
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The No.1-selling spray head in the world!
Reliability and versatility have made the Rain Bird® 1800® series spray heads a favorite worldwide. Features a simple top adjustment screw to make nozzle changes without tools. Efficient operation even at low water pressure. Full circle spray pattern. 4" pop-up height. 8- to 15-ft. spray radius. 2.6- to 3.7-GPM flow rate. Pressure range 15 to 30 psi. 1/2" NPT inlet.


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"Dotty in Love," the title of Katie Hillier's Spring/Summer 2012 collection, sums up exactly how we feel about the season's offering of gold bunnies, diamonds, and ladybug spots. Fresh from consulting for Marc Jacobs and Luella Bartley, accessories designer Katie Hillier brings her namesake line to OC for the first time. The mischievous Brit casts her playful doodles in 18-karat gold, hanging adorable woodland creatures and polka-dot hearts from pendants and friendship bracelets. In Katie's own words, it's "luxury with a wink."
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A new microfluidics chip lets researchers analyze the nucleic acids of 300 individual cells simultaneously.
A new microfluidics chip lets researchers analyze the nucleic acids of 300 individual cells simultaneously.
The Nobel Prize winner who discovered the gene that encodes the major histocompatibility complex passes away at age 90.
Starving brain cells can stimulate hunger through a common cannibalistic act, possibly explaining why some dieters can't resist temptation.
While gut microbiota appear to have both positive and negative impacts on our health, in the guts of healthy, lean individuals, the good outweighs the bad.
Gut bacteria that feed on healthy food appear to amplify the nutritional benefits of those foods. However, they also appear to amplify the undesirable effects of unhealthy food.
Using the strongest molecular binding partnership in biology to separate different cell types.
Isolating specific cell types from a mass of plant or animal tissue is laborious and tricky.
August 1, 2011
|For more than 100 years, pathologists have observed cancer cells engulfing other live cells, but scientists are only now beginning to understand how it happens and what it means for tumorigenesis.
New types of biological filaments are turning up in yeast, fly, bacterial cells and in rat neurons, and they may yield clues to how the cytoskeleton evolved from metabolically active enzymes.


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Friday, August 2, 2013
| 6 pm
Free. No reservations necessary. Meet at West Building Information Desk.
Complementing the NCMA's own collection of Rodin bronzes, the image of his lover, Camille Claudel, carved in white marble in Farewell adds another layer to the story of the master and his muse.
Join a Museum docent to look at 1 or 2 works on loan from the Chrysler Museum. Explore the conversations and connections between these visitors and the NCMA's own works in the European galleries.
Camille Claudel, Bust of Rodin, French, Modeled 1888–1892, date of cast unknown, bronze, 15 3/4 x 9 1/4 x 11 in. (40 x 23.5 x 27.9 cm), Gift of the Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Foundation


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Energy Efficient Retrofits |
New buildings account for a relatively small percentage of the energy used in the building sector. Retrofitting existing housing and commercial/industrial facilities is an important goal in terms of energy savings. It is also a complex endeavor, with many factors to consider, from preserving historic features to controlling costs.
The following articles and reports discuss a wide variety of materials, situations and techniques that may be encountered when undertaking an energy-efficient retrofit. As well, many case studies are provided to illustrate how to do retrofits right.
Search Filters
CP-1012: Residential Exterior Wall Superinsulation Retrofit Details and Analysis |
By Kohta Ueno |
CP-1013: Assessing the Freeze-Thaw Resistance of Clay Brick for Interior Insulation Retrofit Projects |
By Straube/Schumacher/Mensinga |
CP-1301: Field Monitoring and Simulation of a Historic Mass Masonry Building Retrofitted with Interior Insulation |
By Kohta Ueno |


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Posted on 6/30/2014 by Jacquelyn White
There are lots of beloved books getting the big-screen treatment in 2014 — like The Giver, Dark Places, Gone Girl, and Serena just to name a few. Many of these titles can be enjoyed as eBooks and audiobooks free, by visiting the North Carolina Digital Library powered by Overdrive.
The North Carolina Digital Library contains a collection of downloadable audiobooks, eBooks, video, and music for Library customers. Download titles to your PC or Mac computers; you can also download to many eReaders and portable smart devices like phones or tablets.
The North Carolina Digital Library is simple to navigate and can be accessed with an internet browser or the Overdrive Media Console App, a free download from your preferred app store. We also offer classes on getting started with the NCDL at many of our location, visit our Computer Training Bridge webpage to find the next class.
Not interested in movies? NCDL has a growing collection of fiction and nonfiction genres to browse and check out.
August "The Giver " by Lois Lowry (Movie release date: Aug. 15)
September "Dark Places" by Gillian Flynn (Movie release date: Sept. 1) "The Maze Runner" by James Dashner (Movie release date: Sept. 19)
October "Gone Girl" by Gillian Flynn (Movie release date: Oct. 3)
December "Unbroken" by Laura Hillenbrand (Movie release date: Dec. 25)
2014 "Wild" by Cheryl Strayed (Movie release date: 2014) "Serena" by Ron Rash (Movie release date: 2014). The 2014 On The Same Page title pick.
3554 Clemmons Road Clemmons, NC 27012 (336) 703-2920 (336) 712-4452 FAX
Closed Sunday 10:00 - 9:00 Monday 10:00 - 9:00 Tuesday 10:00 - 9:00 Wednesday 10:00 - 6:00 Thursday 10:00 - 6:00 Friday 10:00 - 5:00 Saturday Hours for All Locations Holiday Closings


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The original deal pioneer keeps on pinching pennies and cracking wise. No, that price isn't a typo.
Go to Woot
Candlepower and puppet shows are so passé. Get the newest TVs, speakers, home theater gear, and more.
Go to Electronics.Woot
The robots are coming! And so are the laptops, the tablets, the chargers, and all sorts of other gadgets!
Go to Computers.Woot
High living at low prices with name-brand deals for your pad, crib, nest, or castle - inside and out.
Go to Home.Woot
Make it, build it, improve it. But whatever home project you've got in mind, start by saving money on it.
Go to Tools & Garden
Sports, fitness, and outdoors deals, because saving money is only one of your passions.
Go to Sport.Woot
You don't have to spend a lot to look like you do. Werk it and twerk it with amazing deals on designer watches, handbags and more.
Go to Accessories & Watches
Deals for moms and dads and anybody else who needs kids' stuff, from toys to baby gear to furniture to clothing.
Go to Kids.Woot
Our exclusive graphic tees will make you laugh, will make you cry, will make you look totally hot.
Go to Shirt.Woot
Direct from the winery to your thirsty lips: wine deals worth doing a spit-take over.
Go to Wine.Woot
Last chance deals for hardcore cheapskates. Catch 'em before they - you guessed it - sell out.
Go to Sellout.Woot
460,620 deals (and counting) from around the web, shared and ranked by a community of deal fiends like you. Go to Deals.Woot.
Well, how do you fare compared to the Zeitgeist? Chat up your fellow wooters and let us know how lame this poll was or what obvious choices we missed. For example: Was this poll a) STUPID, b) DUMB, c) POINTLESS or d) ALL OF THE ABOVE?
Camping,we went camping. In a pop-up trailer.
The beach. We went to the ocean.
We live in a community with a private beach on a lake so there was that almost every weekend, we went to Sesame Place one weekend, and we are going camping on the Long Island Sound one weekend (Don't judge, the sound is cleaner than you think). Why go crazy on Summer vacation? There are warm places to go in the winter.
My kids are in their 30's. Did go camping with one of the kids & the grandkids, though...
Didn't go anywhere with her, but sent her to the beach twice with friends, a couple of sports camps, a couple of church retreats. We really didn't see her more than about 7 days in a row this summer.
Went to the Mall of America.. we don't live close to it...so it was a vacation.
Although we DID go to a theme park, it was just the one about 3 miles from our house. Granted, people DO come from a long ways away to come to it, but to us it's not much different than going to the mall. AND we only go because my son works there and we can get in for $11/each versus $50/each. So, does that count under the "disneyland and theme park" option? Probably not...
jediokie wrote:The beach. We went to the ocean.
I totally forgot I took mine to the beach. First time I had gone since I was 10. I was not impressed. The little one loved it. The things we do for our children.
We took our little one to a friend's wedding, and my husband took our son to visit family. I do love how all of the vacation options in the poll end with how great the vacation was...but what if it was an awful experience (not that ours was, but I am just curious)..
I have a newborn, so everyone else has been visiting us on THEIR vacations.
I have a two year old so we went to the pool A LOT. But mostly we visited Papa and Grammi. We live in FL (in Orlando actually - but no Disney for us until she's old enough to enjoy it and not ruin everyone else's trip....so 4ish). We did go see the Mermaids at Weeki Wachee Springs! That was a pretty good day for $13.
Our kids are old enough now where they could plausibly not want to go anywhere with us, but Thank God they still humor us with their presence.
We took our 6 month old to Alaska to visit family. Fun trip.


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Closing listening-tests.info |
Closing listening-tests.info |
Dec 3 2009, 13:47
Group: Members Posts: 3642 Joined: 14-May 03 From: Bad Herrenalb Member No.: 6613 |
This post is to inform you that listening-tests.info will close within the next weeks. The reasons for this decision are various and I don't want to go too deep into detail.
After the last test, a lot of people complained that the page is not very user-friendly which I have to admit is true. However, unfortunately I don't have the time and to be honest also the skills to improve the situation on my own. I asked several times in public if anyone might be willing to give me a helping hand with creating a new layout and how to write better how-tos, but never received any reply. Also, several people complained that now that I work for Nero, future results might be faked to let Nero appear in better light (of course I would never do something like this). Beside this, conducting successful tests became rather difficult because only few people are willing to invest time and test the samples - most people only want to see results without putting any effort, which is quite sad. Broadband Internet and storage space also got cheap in the meanwhile and a lot of people either use lossless codecs to store their music or they encode at bitrates which are transparent for most users. If 128 kbps was such a big challenge, you can imagine that 192 kbps or higher is simply untestable. The demand for 96 or 80 kbps is no longer here. Anyways, I would appreciate it if somebody from Hydrogenaudio could "port" the existing results to the Wiki so that the results are not lost. In case a HA admin is willing to host the site as-is, I could also provide the whole site as ZIP. Cheers, Sebastian Mares This post has been edited by Sebastian Mares: Dec 3 2009, 13:53 -------------------- http://listening-tests.hydrogenaud.io/sebastian/
Dec 3 2009, 15:47
Group: Super Moderator Posts: 3398 Joined: 26-July 02 From: To: Member No.: 2796 |
I think this needs to be done. I will talk to the admins about this. If they refuse to host it (I can't see why), I'll personally offer to host the whole thing and even offer to take over paying for the domain.
-------------------- 1. Attack the argument, not the arguer.
2. Assume good faith. |
Lo-Fi Version | Time is now: 7th May 2015 - 03:48 |


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Questions? Call Us 866-733-0698
Selecting The Perfect Reception Desk
When a client enters your office, the first person he or she may greet is the receptionist or administrative assistant in the reception area. Front desk staff need to be able to not only welcome clients into the office but also deal with their projects and other tasks in an organized manner. Selecting the right reception furniture for your staff can help to ensure that they are able to easily find the documents that they need and receive clients in a timely, professional manner.
Small Reception Desks
Curved Reception Desks
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Reception Desk Styles
The styles of reception desks available vary in their shape, size, material, color, and configuration. It is important to consult with your front desk staff when choosing a reception desk to ensure that your choice fits their specific needs. Some examples of the different desks to choose from are:
How to Select a Receptionist Desk for Your Workspace
The office reception station that you choose should not only fit in with your office environment aesthetically, but it should also help to make work easier for your front desk staff. Without the right features, a receptionist desk may do little to help a receptionist get his or her job done smoothly. Some key features to keep in mind when selecting a desk include:
Along with these functional features, an attractive, modern desk can help to present a professional, organized appearance to your clients or visitors.


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Blooma Garden Trough
Ensure your plants are shown off to their best effect with this softwood garden trough. It's ideal for growing flowers, cascading tomatoes or strawberries. It comes with liners. To help prolong it's life, it's been pressure treated, which helps to protect against rot and insect attack.
- Guarantee - 15 year
Read moreabout Blooma Garden Trough
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Unavailable for Click & Collect. Please check your local store stock.
- Our stores do not stock this product
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Product Details
Technical specifications
Brand | Blooma |
Construction material | Softwood |
Pressure treated | Pressure treated |
Self assembly | Intermediate assembly |
Frost protected | Not frost protected |
Assembly required | Assembly required |
Height | 838mm |
Width | 1.04m |
Depth | 800mm |
Weight | 39.50kg |
Model | BQKGTHD |
Timber approval | FSC® approved |
Timber certificate | TT-COC-003110 |
Health and safety information
Please note that this item comes with possible health and safety hazards. Refer to the container for full information and always follow the instructions.
Help & Advice
How to guides
How to grow vegetables from seeds
Growing from seed is the most affordable and rewarding way to raise your own vegetables. Whether you're sowing into seed trays and propagators or straight into the ground, there's nothing more satisfying than a bumper crop of tasty veg you've grown yourself.
Buying guides
Plant pots buyers guide
When choosing which plant pot to make use of there are a range of factors to consider. Picking the right container can end up making a big difference to your plant's health and life span, as well as the overall effect or style which is created by your garden. Before making any purchases you need to have enough information to match your plant with a suitable container, or the other way round.
More Information
Forest Friendly
All our wood is 100% Forest Friendly. This means using it in our products (from doors to wallpaper) does not damage ancient forests, harm wildlife or jeopardize communities who depend on forests now and in the future.
B&Q is proud of our industry-leading timber policy and 20 years of pioneering work on forests.
Product reassurances
Choose a convenient delivery date on 1000's of products
45 day returns policy
Customer support team - 0333 0143357
Free delivery on orders over £50
Home delivery orders placed on diy.com.
Excludes Next Day Bulk delivery goods


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Wedding Venues near dow,il
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Your wedding day is one of the most important days of your life. With the St. Louis City Center Hotel you'll have room for up to 450 people to...(more)
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Grand Opera House Banquet Center
15 Reviews"Where Vintage Meets Contemporary"
Saint Charles, MO | 314-406-3783
We are a full service facility that allows you to bring your OWN cake, flowers, photographer and entertainment.(more)
Hyatt Regency St. Louis at The Arch
12 ReviewsOnce in a lifetime happens right here.
Saint Louis, MO | 314-655-1234
cheryl's review: I apologize in the delay of this review. The entire experience was absolutely wonderful. Thank you so much Rachel... (more)
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Expires: Dec 31, 2017
Earn Hyatt Gold Passport points to be redeemed for free nights at any Hyatt Hotel or Resort worldwide. For more information, go to www.hyattweddings.com.
Located at 112 Sidney Street, Beyond Broadway was formerly the site of the A.E. Schmidt billiards factory. This building dates back to 1847 and...(more)
Cooking is an art – and SqWires chefs will make your event a masterpiece. We'll create the perfect meeting or party for any special...(more)
Holiday Inn St. Louis SW - Route 66
12 ReviewsYou Provide the Groom, We'll Do the Rest!
Saint Louis, MO | 314-821-6600
The Holiday Inn - Route 66 offers over 18,000 square feet of newly renovated banquet facilities. Elegant and finely appointed, awaiting...(more)
The choice is yours at Innsbrook. Located less than an hour west of St. Louis, Innsbrook Resort offers the bride and groom a world of possibilities...(more)
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Book your wedding at Innsbrook and we'll throw in your engagement photo location for FREE. Rather than having the traditional and standard portraits, let your engagement photos tell the story of your love by choosing a location that is truly unique. Here are a few ideas...go hiking, by the barn at the stables, fishing, picking flowers in a field, building a sandcastle on the beach and more. With over 7,500 acres and 100 lakes, the options are truly endless.
Located at 1808 S. 9th Street, this enchanting former church, schoolhouse and meeting room was built circa 1850 in historic Soulard. Today, it's a...(more)
The Moonrise Hotel blends cool modern design and quirky sophistication to create a truly unique and memorable boutique hotel experience for you and...(more)
Visit Hidden Lake Winery for an experience unlike any other. Welcome! Hidden Lake Winery and Banquet Center, located in rural Aviston, IL. We...(more)
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The Old Rock House is one of the most unique places to hold wedding ceremonies & receptions. The multi-level space has been recently renovated...(more)
We would love the oppurtunity to show you what The Cedars has to offer you for your big day! We are willing to work with your budget and our prices...(more)
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Catering by The Christy provides the best in food service. Formed on a foundation of two decades of unmatched restaurant service, our staff is...(more)
The Courses at Forest Park have two unique Clubhouses, with multiple rooms to host your Special Events. The Probstein Clubhouse offers...(more)
La Perla St. Louis
St. Louis, MO | 314-488-0607
At La Perla event space we strive to make your wedding reception as special and unique as possible! The space itself is truly one of a kind in...(more)
Missouri's hottest new wedding venue! Located about an hour south of St.Louis, Dodson Orchards is a boutique wedding venue specializing in rustic...(more)
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Mention you found us on Wedding Wire when you make an appointment and get a free bon fire with your wedding package!
The Conservatory - Historic District
23 ReviewsGarden Weddings Anytime of the Year!
Saint Charles, MO | 636-947-0414
Garden weddings anytime of the year! The Conservatory provides a charming glass gardenhouse and courtyards for weddings. Located in the quaint...(more)
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• 4CS closed-cartridge fork from WP Suspension for optimum damping and high reserves against bottoming out
• Camel seat for improved long-distance comfort
• Skid plate for effective frame and engine protection
• Milled, orange anodised triple clamps for extremely precise fork clamping and optimum fork function
• Orange frame
• Supersprox Stealth 2-component rear sprocket with an aluminium inner ring and steel outer ring for maximum durability
• Solid rear brake disc (no slots/holes) for improved heat resistance and reduced brake pad wear
• New floating front brake disc for consistent braking performance in extreme conditions
• New front brake disc guard for optimum protection from stone impact
• New, light and sturdy racing mirror
• New Metzeler tyres developed in cooperation with KTM for outstanding grip and traction
• Radiator guard for effective radiator protection
• Radiator fan for all 4-stroke models to optimise temperature management in extreme conditions
• Carbon pipe guard on all 2-stroke models for effective expansion chamber protection
• Six Days silencer, anthracite anodised and with Six Days logo (except 125 EXC)
• Front axle puller for simple front wheel removal
• Orange radiator grille
• Orange chain guide
• Exclusive Six Days graphics, this year with a striking Argentinian design
The KTM 450 EXC Six Days has bodywork with extremely slim ergonomics and excellent contact points between rider and machine. It provides unlimited freedom of movement. For MY 2015, the bike excels again with the graphics restyled in 2014 in the colours of the ISDE in Argentina.
The 450 EXC Six Days is equipped with a tapered Neken handlebar made from high-strength aluminium alloy. In accordance with the proven KTM standard, the handlebar can be fixed in a choice of four positions. The handguards are made from a new material in MY 2015 in order to achieve even greater impact resistance.
Each EXC model has its own individual suspension settings, optimally tuned to weight and engine. At the rear, a PDS shock absorber from WP Suspension works with a direct linkage to the upper side of the swingarm. The PDS shock absorber has been updated with a new Monoseal gasket for MY 2015, for improved sealing and easier maintenance. The wide range of setting options for rebound damping and high- and low-speed compression damping are standard on KTM bikes.
The KTM Six Days models are equipped with a 48 mm 4CS closed-cartridge fork from WP Suspension. The 4-chamber technology (4CS) patented by WP not only provides a key benefit in terms of responsiveness and consistent damping characteristics, it is also lighter and oil services prove to be far simpler than on the conventional closed-cartridge versions. Naturally, the setting can easily be adapted to track and rider in a matter of a few clicks at the top of the fork: compression damping on the left-hand shaft, rebound damping on the right - another advantage of the 4CS technology.
The modern frame design of the 450 EXC Six Days, comprising lightweight, high strength, chrome-molybdenum steel section tubes, combines maximum longitudinal stiffness with optimum torsional stiffness. It guarantees easy handling and precise steering behaviour, as well as excellent ride stability. The frame clearly represents the benchmark in terms of weight and stability.
The cast aluminium swingarm has been developed with state-of-the-art calculation and simulation software and constructed, in terms of design and wall thickness, for minimum weight with optimum stiffness and precisely defined flexibility.
Meticulously finished triple clamps, machined from a solid block: Not only do they look classy in anodised orange; they are also designed in such a way that they support the responsiveness and sliding behaviour of the new fork with their special shaping.
The high-quality alloy wheels from GIANT made of extremely stable 7050 aluminium, featuring exclusive Six Days lettering and CNC-machined hubs, are standard on all KTM Six Days models. Developed in cooperation with KTM, the Metzeler tyres provide excellent traction, very precise directional control and a long service life. An additional Six Days standard feature: the Supersprox 2-piece rear sprocket with steel outer ring and aluminium star.
High-tech brakes from Brembo have always been standard equipment on KTM offroad bikes and, together with the floating front brake disc new for 2015 and the solid rear brake disc, they are the measure of all things in terms of brake technology. The new front brake disc guard ensures that it stays this way.
The cylinder head is equipped with an overhead camshaft. This actuates two titanium intake valves plus two steel exhaust valves. The weight-optimised valve train ensures low friction and therefore both improved performance and reduced engine braking.
The cylinder head is equipped with an overhead camshaft. This actuates two titanium intake valves plus two steel exhaust valves. The weight-optimised valve train ensures low friction and therefore both improved performance and reduced engine braking.
Developed for tough enduro conditions, the 449.3cc SOHC engine is characterised by an extremely compact design, very easy maintenance and outstanding robustness, with weight kept to a minimum. Together with the Keihin fuel injection system, this results in unrivalled performance and rideability - specially designed for enduro use.
For MY 2015, the DDS clutch (Damped Diaphragm Steel) is equipped with a further refined, lighter, single-piece basket, which together with its integrated primary gear, is machined from a single solid billet of high-strength steel. This process guarantees unbeatable reliability and allows the engine to be extremely narrow thanks to the compact, rivetless design of the outer clutch hub. In addition, this design allows use of thin steel discs, which also contributes to the compact dimensions of the clutch. The diaphragm spring enables implementation of an additional hub damping mechanism - a benefit in terms of traction and gearbox wear. Finally, in conjunction with the diaphragm spring, the hydraulic clutch actuation system from Brembo ensures very smooth and very precise clutch control.
The 450 EXC Six Days is "READY TO RACE " for the world's largest enduro competition, the "International Six Days Enduro". Six days in succession, over a thousand offroad kilometres, 40 hours in the saddle - a gruelling test, not only for the rider. A whole package of high-quality special options makes the KTM 450 EXC Six Days fit for this ruthless contest, in which more than half the starters bank on KTM every year. No other brand is anywhere near as strong and successful in offroad sport. In 2013 the fastest rider overall was once again on a KTM. The Six Days will take place in Argentina in 2014 and the KTM model range has been updated accordingly to be equipped for everything that the South American terrain has to offer. In the form of the new Six Days models, KTM offers well-proven, robust machines that fully satisfy the high demands of this extraordinarily tough competition.
Design | 1-cylinder 4-stroke engine, water-cooled |
Displacement | 449.3 cm³ |
Bore | 95 mm |
Stroke | 63.4 mm |
Starting aid | Electric starter/Kickstarter |
Engine lubrication | Forced oil lubrication with 2 Eaton pumps |
Primary ratio | 32:76 |
Secondary ratio | 14:52 (13:52) |
Cooling system | Liquid cooling system, continuous circulation of cooling liquid with water pump |
Clutch | Wet multi-disc clutch DDS / Brembo hydraulics |
Ignition system | Contactless, controlled, fully electronic ignition system with digital ignition timing adjustment |
Frame | Central tube frame made of chrome molybdenum steel tubing |
Fork | WP Suspension Up Side Down 4860 4CS |
Shock absorber | WP Suspension PDS 5018 DCC |
Suspension travel Front | 300 mm |
Suspension travel Rear | 335 mm |
Brake system | Disc brakes, brake calipers on floating bearings |
Brake discs - diameter Front | 260 mm |
Brake discs - diameter Rear | 220 mm |
Chain | 5/8 x 1/4" |
Steering head angle | 63.5° |
Wheelbase | 1,482±10 mm |
Ground clearance, unloaded | 345 mm |
Seat height, unloaded | 970 mm |
Total fuel tank capacity, approx. |
9 l Unleaded premium fuel (95 RON) |
Weight without fuel, approx. | 111 kg |
*+ Autovero 2381,9= kokonaishinta 13051,9


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Top Definition
Amazing player for New Orleans Hornets. Won Rookie of the month every month of the year. hes gonna be a future allstar and won Rookie of the year in the 2005/2006 season.
Chris Paul got more double doubles then Kobe.
af Agent Smith.
4. maj 2006
3 more definitions
Incredible point guard of the New Orleans Hornets. He is hands down the best point guard in the league, because the Hornets would be NOTHING without CP3. A multi-dimensional threat who can not only become a prolific scorer himself, but turn his teammates into dangerous scorers as well, and for a point guard he is a surprising force on defense. Always an MVP candidate. Talent like this is not seen very often.
Chris Paul is a generational point guard who's talent we have not seen since Magic Johnson.
af Hornets NBA champions
19. januar 2009
A verb used when referring to an excellent passing opportunity, like when passing food at the table or overtaking a car on the free way
Hey Evan, can you Chris Paul me some of those Doritos? I'm starving!
af Da Giles
10. februar 2013
(n) A low down snake. A terrific basketball player who throws temper tantrums like a 6 year old when he doesn't get the calls, and punches opponents in the testicles out of frustration (see: Bruce Bowen, Julius Hodge, Chris Duhon, etc).
"Yo I heard Tim got in a fight with Mike but Mike pulled a Chris Paul and punched him in the nuts like a lil bitch"
af youre not even from tha bronx
15. maj 2008