text:
Welcome to Ford's website. We have created this website in order to spread awareness of Spinal Muscular Atrophy, the disease Ford was diagnosed with at 4 months of age. We also wanted to give those of you who have been praying for our family and mostly Ford the opportunity to get updates on how he is doing and anything else we choose to share. We ask that you please take a moment to look at our "What is SMA" page and learn a little about this disease. We thank you for visiting our site and really enjoy your company!
Please also feel free to email us at email@example.com
Grandma Welch Tribute
This past weekend we laid my Grandmother Welch (Grandma June) to rest. It was a beautiful service and I am thankful I was able to make the trip to say my final goodbye to her. I wanted to share some of the memories and accounts that were shared for those that may have known my Grams but were not able to make it to her service.
My grandmother was someone that was so special to me and someone that loved and cared for Ford from a far. The last time we were able to visit was over a year ago. We packed Ford, Moose (our dog) and all of Ford's equipment and took a drive on a beautiful Saturday to spend a couple hours with her. We brought her outside and gave her a photo album with pictures of Ford, a drawing Ford colored her and Fight for Ford bracelets she requested to pass out to all her friends. We took some family pictures which I will forever cherish because they are the last ones I have of her. She got to talk with Ford and meet my mother in law and she loved petting Moose.
The last two weeks of my Grandmother's life were hard, some days painful as the doctors tried to keep her comfortable. I spoke with my mom daily to get a report as her body was in congestive failure and her lungs began to fill as well. Last Saturday March 21st at the age of 92 she took her last breath surrounded by her daughters, my father and my uncle. She had finally met Jesus at the gates of Heaven and was no longer in pain. I know she couldn't wait to be back in the arms of her beloved of 50 years my grandpa Bill.
Her service was Friday afternoon and I got to see a lot of familiar faces of both friends and family. You knew how many lives my grandmother touched by the amount of people who came to say their goodbyes and share memories. My grandmother was a beautiful, kindhearted soul that loved the Lord. If she wasn't teaching bible lessons in Sunday school or VBS, she was singing those hymns. Man did she ever love to sing hymns. At her service many people stood to give an account of ways my grandma touched the lives of those she knew, taught and loved. Children who are now adults sharing how my Grandmother led them to the Lord as a child in her Sunday class. I am so thankful that my Grandmother instilled Christian values in my mother who in turn with my father instilled the same in our family at such a young age.
My siblings, cousins, and I shared memories that we had with my grandma. Most were about her teaching us to sing and play the piano. She read the bible to us and did sword drills (finding bible verses) at the dining room table. We would hang out at her house after school drinking tea and singing songs like "I love you a bushel and a peck". We shared and laughed about our trips to the mall and the times we didn't get to actually go because we didn't make it to the corner in time to catch the bus. We grew up spending our summers at Edinboro camp and my brother and I used take a break from playing to stop in the "old people cabin" where my grandma and her best buddy Stanley both stayed to grab an OJ from her tiny refrigerator. Kids at church called her Grandma June and fought over who got to sit with her in the back of the church. Her and my Aunt Phyllis used to sneak the kids those butterscotch candies. There are so many memories that can be shared by all of us.
When my Grandma was diagnosed with Dementia the family had to move her from her apartment to the assisted living home. There she enjoyed her days by getting her nails and hair done, playing bingo, bowling and whatever other activities the home provided to the patients that lived there. She was always excited to show us her bingo winnings, which usually consisted of costume jewelry, her favorite ring she was still wearing. We visited her as much as we could and she was so excited the first time she met and got to hold Ford. After Ford was diagnosed we were not able to get up to see her as much. I shared at her service many memories but I also shared her love of Ford:
"One thing I know for sure was my Grandmother loved her grandkids, but I think she loved her great grandkids even more. That's what grandparents are for right, unconditional love. I know that my grandmother will always have a special bond with my son Ford. She sometimes forgot who people were and couldn't remember names but for some reason she always knew who Ford was. She constantly prayed for Ford, she truly was a paryer warrior and told all her friends about his story.The Earth truly has lost a wonderful woman but Heaven has gained an angel. I know she was ready to meet her Maker and be back in the arms of my Grandpa. I will always miss you grandma until we meet again in the presence of our Savior."
My brother also shared many memories as did my sister, but my brother shared a theme that I feel must be mentioned so my Grandmother's legacy may continue to shine. This is what my brother shared after his memories:
You notice a theme with us grandkids. We loved Grams and have many memories of her. However, memories aren't all that is left behind. Love is left behind. Because, as we loved Grams, so she loved us fiercely back. Grams was a model of Christ-Centered Love. She loved playing the piano because it brought joy. She loved singing Hymns because it worshiped God. She loved her grandkids simply because this is what Grams did: she LOVED. This is Grams legacy here on this earth: True Christ Centered Love. And that is what continues to live on. I see Grams love reflected in Sandy and Dee, her children. They in turn passed it on to their children: the grandkids, Us. We, in turn, hope to pass on this Christ-Centered Love to our children. Grams passed on love because love is what she did here on this earth. That love cannot be measured. It lives on in all that she came in contact with. And I know that she is doing love even better now, in Heaven, where she is loving her Savior.
My father did my Grandmother's service and did a beautiful job. He is so good with his words and that is one of the reasons he is such a good pastor. He has great ways to get his message across while leaving a lasting memory of what he said. He is most famous for having sermon points that all consist of the same letter. He started his message stating, People live on this Earth to do one of two things, to either impress people or to impact people. My Grandmother was on this Earth to impact people and she did just that. My father shared seven ways my Grandmother impacted the world while she was here:
1. Pupil- my grandmother never earned a teaching degree but she taught hundreds of kids in both Sunday School and Vacation Bible Schools.
2. Piano- My grandmother never earned a music degree but she taught others how to play the piano and her love of music and worship.
3. Partner- My grandmother was not a marriage counseling but she showed the meaning of true love by being married to my grandfather "until death do us part" for 50 years.
4. Pen Pal- My grandmother was not an author but she was always writing letter of encouragement to others and stayed in touch with people all over the country through letters.
5. Perseverance- My grandmother did not have a medical degree but she proved the doctors of medicine wrong by living 25 years longer than they told her she would after suffering a massive stroke.
6. Praying- My grandmother never served as a soldier in our armed forces but she was a mighty prayer warrior in the army of God. You asked her to pray for or about something and she never stopped.
7. Pocket Book- My grandmother never earned an accounting degree and sometimes was not good with her money but she always gave to others before giving to herself.
So as you can see through many testimonies and accounts given that my grandmother truly both impacted and left a lasting, loving impression on this world. She showed Christ centered love to all those around her and I pray that I will in turn pass this love onto Ford. I love you so much Grandma Welch and I miss you like crazy but I know we will meet again!!! I bet the Easter celebration is one amazing experience in Heaven!!!!
Here are some pictures of my Grandmother
Fight for Ford Fundraiser
Be on the look out for a big fundraiser starting next week!!! We are trusting the Lord that this need will be supplied through the help of a community of friends and family, (Maybe even strangers too)!!!!! May the blessings flow so that we may also bless another family and to God be all the glory!
Make sure you "like" our Fightforford Facebook page to get all the updates
They are Weak but He is Strong
They are Weak but he is Strong
SMA, when I found out Ford had Spinal Muscular Atrophy my world came crashing down. Things Scott and I were told by doctors are words parents should never have to hear.
What do you mean he is not going to live to be 2?
We maybe have a year with him?
He will never sit up,
He will never walk,
He won't be able to swallow
At times he will have trouble breathing.
As new parents we were told we will have to watch our child, the being we created, fight an unthinkable, unimaginable fight that the doctors say he will eventually lose. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. All the dreams I had for my little boy slipping away in a very moment. It took me awhile to accept Ford's diagnosis, I didn't think I was strong enough to help my precious child through the journey we were about to embark. I was not strong enough to watch my child's body weaken over time to the point of this disease taking over his entire being and I am still not strong enough.
In Isaiah chapter 40 verses 29-31 it states, " He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. Even youths shall fall faint and be weary; and young men shall fall exhausted, but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint."
You see I only find strength through God, he supplies my body daily so I have the ability to assist Ford in fighting this battle. He gives Ford the strength to fight this fight. It has to be one of the most common statements said to me, "wow you are so strong, I don't know how you do it". What a misconception right, how could any parent have the physical strength, I don't. God renews my strength every day and through his promise he helps me find the joy to keep going in this life. There is so much joy, more than I could ever express in words. When I wake up and walk over to Ford's bed after hearing him squeal me awake, he reminds me that though his body is weak, he is strong. See this journey isn't about me; it's about Ford.
The true question is how does Ford do this every day? How does he have the strength to keep fighting? His spirit, that is what keeps Ford fighting and fighting. His little body may becoming weaker but God has given him a mind and spirit that are so very strong. This disease may take away parts of his physical being but his spirit will forever remain powerful in Jesus. We have watched Ford really fight over these past 3 months through an illness that landed us in the hospital and then finding out he brought home 2 bacterial infections but he continues to fight and continues to succeed in this journey. We have watched his body weaken even more but even so God is doing mighty things. He strengthens Ford's spirit and makes my spirit want to shine bright.
I am blessed in the promises of our God and I pray that he continues to shine bright in Ford. I ask that Ford continues to touch the lives of others and that through Ford's spirit others will see the strengthening power of Jesus.
Will You Be My Valentine
In the middle of December Scott and I had to face a huge fear we have had since Ford's first and only hospitalization. Ford had to be hospitalized and intubated (have a breathing tube put in) on December 18th.We spent two weeks in the hospital and spent our first Christmas away from home. We had a horrible experience the first time Ford was hospitalized so it was something we have just feared. We feared that if Ford got sick or aspirated and needed to go to the hospital that his weak little body would not survive. We almost lost him 4 times during that first hospital stay and his body has only gotten weaker. SMA has robbed him of more muscle and strength in his fragile body. Not that we didn't trust God, we did and we do. It has always been more of a fear (at least for me, I can't speak for Scott) that this is going to be it for us, God is going to ask to take his solider back.
Just to give a little back round info….at 5 months old we scheduled Ford to have his g-tube ( feeding tube) placed because children with SMA lose their swallow quite early. What was supposed to be a 2-3 day recovery turned into an almost 6 week hospital stay. Ford lost a lot of his abilities sooner than SMA could take them due to being in the hospital, intubated and sedated for the majority of his stay. You lose a lot of strength when you just lay in a hospital bed. We were a newly diagnosed family, not connected with the SMA community yet. We didn't know any better when they weren't feeding him for a number of hours, trying to extubate Ford while he was still needing oxygen, not having the proper equipment to treat Ford or refusing to keep treatments on time. We thought we were in a place that could care for Ford the way he needed to be cared for. We weren't!!
I am not at all trying to bash Pittsburgh Children's Hospital, they are an excellent hospital. However I would not consider them an "SMA treating" hospital. What that means is that the hospital is willing and actively following the protocols that SMA experts, (one being Ford's doctor we travel to see in WI) have created to give our children the proper care they need to get well and back home. This is why we have feared ever having to go back to Children's for an extended stay in the PICU. After we connected with the SMA community via Facebook, we learned that things that Children's hospital did wrong, the things that were detrimental to Ford's very well being. We knew the basics our first time around, with the help of my sister in law who is a nurse but even with that and the lead of Ford's (at the time) pulmonologist (who was familiar with SMA) the PICU did their own thing. The doctors decided what they thought was best even if it wasn't in the best interest of Ford.
I can be scared all I want but I had one choice, I had to buck up and start learning things to help Ford if he ever needed to be hospitalized again. After extended research, calls to doctors and insurance companies, Children's is Ford's only option. Insurance will never allow a transfer to another hospital because the insurance company says Children's is equipped to properly care for Ford. So I spend my days browsing through the SMA family pages on Facebook trying to learn and educated myself to best help Ford. I make books and binders so that Ford's nurses can review them and learn more about SMA. I make copies and copies of the SMA protocols so that I have them on hand if I need to show doctors. For the last 3 years I have tried to be as prepared as possible so that if Ford gets sick, goes into respiratory distress or we simply have an emergency that leads us to be in the hospital I am educated.
On January 18th our fear came to light when we finally knew that we could no longer tackle Ford's illness at home. His symptoms started that Monday with an increase of secretions. He was not sleeping well but he wasn't running a fever at all as we were checking every couple of hours. He didn't nap on Monday and then he slept horrible that night because his increased secretions were causing him to wake up as he was needing suctioned a lot. Then Tuesday he still had a lot of secretions and again was unable to nap at all which was leaving him pretty weak. He also showed signs at a g-tube infection but he still was not running a fever. Ford's pediatrician called an antibiotic in for Ford's g-tube but the pharmacy had to order it so couldn't start it until the next day. Ford developed a cough on Tuesday night which was something we have never heard Ford do. He sneezes sometimes (mostly in 4s) but we have never actually heard Ford cough. See Ford has an ineffective cough which is why we have to use the cough assist on him to make sure his lungs stay clear. Now we know he "can" cough but it would never be enough to effectively clear any junkies he had in his lungs. He coughed and chocked on his secretions most of the night and Scott and I were doing treatments every 2 hours to try and keep his lungs clear. We also increased his bipap settings to give him more support at he was wearing his bipap continuously. Wednesday I immediately called Ford's pediatrician and Dr. Schroth (SMA specialist). Dr. Sarknas called us back and wanted to wait until we heard from Dr. Schroth and take her lead. Ford whined most of day and dosed in and out of sleep between treatments. Dr. Schroth called at 9:30pm and we talked for an hour and half. She assessed the situation based off our answers to her questions and what she knows as Ford's baseline. She thought maybe Ford had gotten Rhinovirus (common cold) so she was starting him on another antibiotic. At this time Ford was already on oxygen and was not getting the adequate sleep he needed. He was becoming so weak.
Dr. Schroth advised us to take him in if we felt like it was more than we could handle at home. When your child has SMA and they get a cold things can get worse really fast. I slept with Ford that night in between his breathing treatments. Thursday morning came and we struggled with taking Ford to the hospital. Questions ran through our head and fear took over our hearts. Ford had finally fallen asleep and rested for about 2 hours, the longest stretch of sleep he had since he started with the cough. While he slept I backed out bags and got Ford's equipment ready. We were making the decision to take him in when he woke up. I knew he was getting too tired and he needed to be able to rest if he was going to beat this illness. I called Ford's pediatrician to let her know and she called ahead to the ER so we would not have to wait when we arrived.
We got the ER and there was utter madness everywhere. The waiting room was full and the ER was overflowing with people who had the flu. I instantly wanted to turn around and take Ford right back home. Were we making the right choice? What if Ford catches something else while we are here like he did last time? A million questions and emtions flooded by mind but this hospital stay was much different from our first. It was a journey are hardships but a journey of seeing God bless our family, answer direct requests of prayer and ultimately brought Scott and I closer together. While in the ER they told us we could not go straight back and they didn't know what we were talking about when Scott told them our doctor called ahead. Then our first answer to prayer was a male nurse who came along and said he would take up right to a room. He met us at the van and helped Scott load Ford's equipment up. We were met by nurses immediately wanting to get Ford's vitals and draw blood and take tests. People were grabbing and pulling and I was trying to stay calm and explain to everyone touching Ford to please be gentle, show them where his contractures are located and to please, please glove and mask up before entering Ford's room. It took 8 tries and 4 nurses to finally get an IV in Ford because he was so dehydrated. We had increased his fluids but he was loosing so much through his secretions. We were told we were going to have to stay in the ER because there were no beds in the PICU. Finally we met with the attending from the PICU and stated that Ford needed a bed in the PICU and we wanted him intubated before we got to the point of an emergency intubation. They took Ford upstairs and after we assisted in moving Ford from the gurney to the hospital bed we were asked to leave the room for the intubation. During that time we met with the fellow on the floor and reviewed Ford's chest x-ray. She told us it looked at thought Ford had pneumonia and his left lung was collapsed. She also showed us a spot in his lung she assumed was a massive plug that was too deep for just the cough assist to bring up. We then knew that we had made the right decision to bring Ford in and have him intubated. We now knew we needed to trust the Lord to provide the doctors who would be willing to listen to us and follow the proper protocols in order to get Ford healthy and back home.
We were allowed back in the room and we met the anesthesiologist who told us that Ford was a pretty difficult intubation and that 3 of his teeth were knocked out during the procedure. They had him in a horrible position and to be honest he looked awful. They had him highly sedated and his eyes were rolled back in his head. Not a way you ever want to see your child. After we preposition him and made Ford more comfortable we asked if our family could come back to the room so we could all pray over Ford. The first night was pretty sleepless for Scott and I but Ford got some rest, or as much as you can get in the hustle of the hospital. Ford was on 50% o2 and we were doing treatments every 2 hours, then you have blood draws, blood gases, x-rays, meds, alarms beeping, and just the noisiness of the nurses station. They were giving Ford two antibiotics and tamiflu to fight any viruses he may have as well as if he tested positive for the Flu. That night his fever had spikes to 102.9.
The next morning we met nutrition to talk about Ford's diet and requesting that I make it in Ford's room. They agreed to give me control over his diet but they were going to make a base mix so that I did not have to use Ford's supplies from home. We started his diet slowly with just water, pedialyte and his 2 amino acid formulas. They were going to make that mix for me and then allow me to add to his diet daily. This was another answer to pray because a lot of times the hospitals will not allow you to make your child's food while in the PICU. We also met with the attending and his team to come up with a plan to get Ford better and back home as fast as we could. There was a lot of illnesses in the PICU and things we did not want Ford to catch. We had to wait a couple days for his viral panel to come back in order to see if we were dealing with anything other than the pneumonia. We discussed a plan of attack with the team. We were going to stay on Q2 treatments to try and clear Ford lungs as well as correct the collapse in his left lung. We needed to clear his lungs and then work on lower the amount of oxygen he was on in order to remove the breathing tube. The team was moving pretty fast with lower Ford's breath rate on his ventilator, we knew it was too fast. When a person is intubated the doctors lower the breath rate on the machine to prove that the patient is going to be able to breathe on their own whenever the time comes to remove the breathing tube. We had only been in the hospital for 2 days and they lowered his rate from 18 to 8 even though we asked them to please follow the guide of Ford's SMA specialist.We asked for advice from other more experienced SMA families and we discussed the SMA protocols as well as the information we received from other parents with the doctors and our plan was met with some resistances. We didn't need to prove that Ford could breathe over the vent because when the time would come that Ford would be extubated (breathing tube comes out) he would be going directly onto to bipap at a higher settings. He would still be getting support from his bipap and they route the doctors were going was only going to tire Ford out. The reason we had brought him to the hospital and request he be intubated was for his body to rest and they were not allowing him to do that. The doctor finally agreed to speak with Dr. Schroth. We discussed a new plan of attack and the doctor agreed to increase his rate back up to allow Ford to rest. This was only a short fix though (but to us an answer to prayer) because the doctor told us he still intended to decrease the rate but agreed with us that Ford needed to rest.
We spent the next 3-4 days just keeping up on treatments and monitoring Ford. We had taken him off the sedation medicine and his chest x-rays were looking better every day. Most times when kids are intubated they must be sedated because of the probability they will try and pull the tube out. Ford cannot move so the likelihood of him pulling his tube out is zero so in turn sedation is not needed. Although I am sure having a tube down your throat and in your lungs is not the most comfortable he didn't show signs of being in pain. If we thought he was uncomfortable at all it was manageable with Tylenol. We were given much more control in helping with Ford's treatments and the staff did a much better job at getting to Ford on time to do his treatments. We did have a problem with the IV in Ford's next. They had started a strong antibiotic and about 30 minutes after the meds started I noticed Ford's next had a huge tennis ball size bump. His vein had blown and the medicine was leaking into his tissue. The nurse immediately removed it but while doing so the medicine burned Ford's skin. They had plastics come look at the site and they told us it would heal fine. They also had medivac nurse come in to try and find a new IV site on Ford because he is such a hard stick. This nurse got it right away and told us he was used to putting IV's in while in a moving helicopter so it was no big deal…to us though it was another answer to prayer.
The day after Christmas we finally had a shift change and met a new attending, Dr. Ericka. Let me just say that she was our biggest answer to prayer. Scott and I had been praying daily and asking others to pray that the doctors would put their egos aside and listen to what Dr. Schroth recommended. This doctor did exactly that. A lot of things that SMA families must do to get their child healthy are not the norms and there are protocols that hospitals don't usually follow. This doctor however was willing to listen. Each day after rounds she came back into the room to discuss the plan for the day and to further discuss protocols we were wanting to follow. She agreed that as Ford's parents and advocates we knew what we were doing and she agreed to work along side us to get Ford home. She told us that she would try it our way.
We finally has reached the time to where we thought it was time to extubate. Ford had been on room air (needing no oxygen) for days and was off all sedation meds, and had a clear chest xray. We were still dealing with a good amount of secretions however Ford's baseline of secretions has always been high. We have always been told that the older Ford gets the more he will be able to control them or they would slow down but that has not been the case for him. Some of his secretions were coming from the tube in his throat so we agreed to start making our plan for extubation. The anesthesiologist who intubated Ford wanted the extubation to be done in the OR because he said that if Ford failed and needed to be reintubated he had what was called a critical airway. He was a hard intubation the first time around and they said that his airway was curved. We had to argue this one pretty hard because what he wanted to do was way out of what we felt comfortable with as Ford's advocates. We understood that Ford is considered a hard intubation however if he failed intubation it was not going to be in a matter of minutes. This doctor wanted to remove the breathing tube and essentially see if Ford would take breaths on his own and then bag him. He wanted to do this for 20 minutes and then put him on a mask from the hospital on a hospital vent for another 20 minutes and then transfer him back to the PICU if all was successful. This plan was crazy because Ford would never be extubated and expected to just breathe on his own without the support of his bipap. IF that happened, yes he would have failed. We spoke with the attending and she agreed that we would talk to the doctor who would be there and the one performing the extubation and go from there. All worked out and there were more direct answers to our prayers. You see we requested that the extubation be done in the PICU bedside with Scott and I present with Mom (me) putting on Ford's bipap mask and him being placed on his home bipap at higher settings. There was much talk about Ford staying on the vent he was on but on bipap mode after extubation but in the end the Dr. Ericka was a blessing and the anesthesiologist agreed that everything could and would be done how we wanted it too.
December 29th was extubation day. Another huge answer to prayer was the team agreed to allow Ford to be fed. He TPN which is an IV nutrition and they didn't turn his regular food off until 6am that morning. The last time Ford was hospitalized they didn't feed him for 12 hours prior to extubation. We planned the extubation at noon but we ended up waiting a little longer on the doctor to make it too the room. Our family was in the waiting room praying and Scott and I prayed over Ford before the procedure. The doctor arrived and she pulled the tube, I placed FOrd's mask on his face and hooked him to his home bipap. It all happened in about 30 seconds and the doctor said "that was the fastest transition I have ever seen." See we were so thankful they allowed me to place his bipap mask on because no one in the hospital had ever even seen Ford's mask before and not that it is hard but I didn't want the RT to be fumbling around trying to put the mask on him when I could just do it 10 seconds. Everything went as planned and Ford was a trooper the whole day. The first 12-24 hours after extubaiton are crucial because that is when most kids fail and have to re reintubated. Ford once again showed us was strong and a fighter. He tolerated his breathing treatments and his saturation levels were amazing.
Over the next two days Ford showed the doctors his resilience. We weaned him off some of his higher settings and continued to do breathing treatments. He was back on his feeds and tolerating them well too. We spoke with Dr. Ericka about the possiblity of going home within the next day or so and she agreed that since Ford was extubated and doing great on his bipap that there was nothing they were doing in the hospital that we don't do at home on a normal basis. On New Years Eve we got our discharge papers and we were outta there.
We got home and we were finally able to celebrate our Christmas' with family. We celebrated as a family on New Years Day and then that weekend with my parents. We are so thankful that this hospital stay was much shorter than the first but still hope to be able to keep Ford healthy and not have a return visit. God truly showed us his blessings and we are so grateful for the many direct answers to prayer while in the hospital. We want to thank everyone who prayed along side us and kept up to date with Ford via his Facebook page.
It has still been a long road since we have been home. Ford is wearing his bipap most of the time during the day but his breaks are getting longer. He has days when he needs his bipap more and he can no longer go on his side without the use of his bipap. He is getting stronger though. He is back in his routine of therapies and school. We are keeping busy this winter and hope to make it through the rest of this season without any more illness.
To God be the glory, for great things he hath done!!!
December Getaway
The month of December was a bit of a crazy month. At the beginning of the month we traveled to Elk County to stay at the Elk Terrace Lodge. Ford is a child who loves his routine so we never travel super far away (except to see his specialist in WI) and we make sure it is somewhere that we can "set up" like we do at home. Traveling with a special needs child means you do not travel light!! We really needed a change of scenery as Daddy's work schedule had been so busy this year that we were only able to make it up to our camp one time. We usually travel to our church camp 2 hours away and stay at my sister and brother in laws cottage (its a free get away) but we thought is would be nice to do something a little different.
I started researching different places we could go where we could possible rent a cottage or something for the weekend. I asked others on Facebook if anyone knew of any places to too far away. We received a message from a family who gave us a link to the Terrace Lodge. It looked absolutely beautiful and we feel in love. It stated that a lot of people who stayed at the Elk Terrace Lodge were able to see the Elk come right onto the property. We made our reservations and then we were off for a 4 day getaway in our own little log cabin.
We arrived and as it looked in the pictures, it was beautiful. A long cabin on its own gated lane, the privacy we wanted. Ford was pretty impressed with the giant Elk on the wall above the fireplace, well and the fireplace itself.
We had a super relaxing weekend away. We saw a huge heard of Elk on our way through town but didn't stop because we were trying to get to the house before dark. We had zero reception or internet access so we thought it was best to travel while it was still light. We ventured out to take Ford to see the Elk but they were all gone. I guess the best time to view them is either at dawn or dusk. We only saw one Elk in a pasture (I actually think it might have been someone's pet). No wildlife came onto the property while we stayed but we still had a great weekend. We even ate and Elk burger!! It was great to be out in God's country with amazing views and the company of my little family. It was a trip we definitely needed and hope to do again in the future!!
Christmas Pictures
One thing that I love doing is taking Ford's pictures. I try and take pictures of every Holiday, season, adventure, occasion and milestone Ford has reached in his life. My two favorites are taking his birthday pictures and his Christmas pictures. I think far in advance about the set up and outfit changes. I usually have at least a couple different ideas each year. This year was a blast taking his Christmas pictures and they will be pictures and memories I will cherish forever.
I usually choose to take some pictures of Ford by himself and then I have my mother in law take some family pictures of us. Here are the pictures we did for Christmas 2014
Ford's Halloween Costume 2014
Every year we try and come up with a great idea or concept to do for Ford's Halloween pictures. Ford cannot stand or sit so we have to be creative and every year we have so much fun constructing a scene. Here are what we have done in past years.
Popeye the Sailor Man
A Gladiator saving the princess
This year we decided on Tarzan swinging through the trees
Ford's 4th Birthday Bash – Circus Party
On September 19th Ford hit a milestone that we were told he would never reach!!!! Ford turned 4 years old. Sometimes it doesn't even seem real to say it out loud. When Ford was diagnosed with SMA type 1 the doctors told us that at best Ford would live to be a year old. That statistic almost became our reality when Ford contracted RSV at 5 months old. We almost lost him multiple times while he fought that illness but God had other plans for Ford. He gave Ford the strength to fight RSV and make it home. God has since protected him and has allowed him to not only live but the thrive.
We make Ford's birthday a big deal and love to have a big celebration. Ford his 1st birthday we did a monkey theme, 2nd birthday was Mickey Mouse and last year did a superhero party to celebrate. This year I wanted Ford to be able to pick his own theme for his party. Ford is learning to use a communication device called the Tobii so I asked Ford's teacher to create some pages so Ford could tell us what he wanted for his party. I picked three themes for him to choose from, a circus party, a surfer party or a barn yard party. He ended up picking the circus party.
So the months and months of planning began!!! I so enjoy planning Ford's birthday parties and I pray God give us many more to celebrate. I wanted to share some of the many moments captured through pictures of Ford's celebration!!! We took some birthday pictures that matched the theme as well.
We welcomed our family to the circus for the day complete with hot dogs, corn dogs, nachos, pretzels, cotton candy, caramel corn, popcorn and peanuts. We were even able to provide some entertainment for our guests and Ford by having a clown come. He did an amazing job and Ford absolutely loved it. Here is what the fun looked like. Hope you enjoy
Getting Labs Drawn
Ford is on a special diet called the Amino Acid diet. His food mixed is made every day and then given to him via g-tube. He receives a combination of two amino acid formulas which are not milk or soy based and lower in fat. He also gets juices, foods, and other supplements and vitamins in his diet too. However having these amino acids in his diet allows him to digest easier and allows him to have much more energy than a high fat diet would.
Since Ford started the AA diet his respiratory health improved as it was easier for him to breathe, he no longer struggled with constipation and we saw a lot more movement from him on a daily basis. He has been on this diet since he was a year old. To maintain the correct nutrition that Ford need we calculate his diet according to his weight and tolerance. We also monitor him by getting labs done every 6 months. I hate getting labs done because, well really who likes getting stuck with a needle but in this situation it is a necessary evil. It allows us to know if Ford is deficient in something and any changes that may need to be made in his diet.
So today was the day we went and got Ford's labs drawn. We tried to get them drawn in WI last Friday since we were already at the hospital but our insurance would not allow it. We woke up early so that we could get to Children's North near where we live so we could be one of the first appointments. (Labs are walk ins so if you get their earlier hopefully you an be seen quickly) Mommy drove the van for the first time with Ford in it while his nurse Norma kept him company in the back. We arrived and there was one boy ahead of Ford so I checked him in and then went back to the van to get Ford's bipap mask on as they were going to allow us to wait in a separate room so Ford did not have to wait in the waiting room. I am grateful for this because there were lots of coughs going on in the waiting room.
(Mommy explaining to me what they are going to do)
We waited about a half hour and then it was Ford's turn. They just kept us in the room we were waiting in and the nurses came to us. They both kindly wore masks to work over top of Ford which again I appreciated because there is some type of respiratory bug going around. I gave Ford a lot of extra fluid yesterday in hopes that he would not be dehydrated and they could just find a good vein. She did have to search a little bit but found a good vein on the top of his hand. She got it on the first stick and let me tell you; I have one brave little boy. Not even a wince out of him. He just squeezed mommy's hand and watched Mickey Mouse. I'll tell you what his courage is far beyond his years!! The nurses were so impressed that Ford did so well and told him how incredibly brave he was.
(Look at all those tubes)
So of course I wanted to make Ford feel extra special since he had to go through that and did so well….a trip to the dollar store we went!!! It was too early in the day for ice cream. "Look at all the fun stuff Mommy got me".


text:
Search: Gym Class HeroesSearch profiles »
prettyeasycheesyMatch % Unknown Join to find out!
At home, playing. Or maybe out drinking cocktails, but not because it's Friday, but because Pina Coladas. Still, I'd much rather sit at home than go to public places where there are many people. They're fine for a visit, but I don't feel that comfortable in...
mustbethursdayMatch % Unknown Join to find out!
I'll be joining a gym soon.
ninja_nicoleMatch % Unknown Join to find out!
Some of the bands I'm currently into include Gym Class Heroes, Ever
SelfConstrucMatch % Unknown Join to find out!
BrazilianItalianMexicanIndianMusic :NicklebackOutkastJoss StoneAmy WinehouseGym class heroesLauryn HillErykah BaduNasLure FiascoGym class heroesJill ScottJason Mraz
tigerdriver09Match % Unknown Join to find out!
"Government is not reason; it is not eloquent; it is force. Like fire, it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master." George Washington "A democracy is nothing more than mob rule, where fifty-one percent of the people may take away the rights of the other forty-nine."...
- See More Profiles »
The My Knight in Shining Armor Test
Hey there! Have you ever wondered if the perfect girl that you had in mind is way across the other end of the world and you have no idea that such a p...
The Scene Kid Test
Welcome to the scene kid test, this test is just for fun and is based on how many scene stereotypes you fall into. Maybe you're a hardcore scene kid o...
The Do you know the 80'ies Test
So, you have lived in the best time of all times? You have listened to the best music on the radio, watched the best series on TV, took your dates to...
The guess the song from the lyrics Test
Hi! And welcome to my guess the song from the lyrics Test. Pick the song and artist that matches the line given. Its like that bit in Never Mind the B...
The Match the Song to the Band Test
Hi! And welcome to my Match the Song to the Band Test. I made a list of all of the songs that I've listened to on repeat for over 4 hours in one sitti...
- See More Tests »
- Filter results
- All Results (6)
- Tests (6)
Connect your existing OkCupid account
Sign in
Welcome Back!
Restore your account to continue
meeting new people.
Reset your password
We'll email you a link to reset it.
Email sent!
An email is on its way to .
If you don't see it, try checking
your Spam folder.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
After two years of a very private relationship, actors Regina King and Malcolm-Jamal Warner called it quits.
According to reports, their romance — which King once described as a "relationship that makes all the sense in the world"– came to an abrupt end after Warner asked King and her young son (from previous marriage to Ian Alexander Jr.) to move out of their shared home.
"He said he wasn't feeling it anymore," a source told Us Weekly before adding, "she's still very brokenhearted."
Also On Black America Web:
This Week's Celebrity Instagrams (6/19-6/25)
https://ioneblackamericaweb.files.wordpress.com/2015/06/sanaalathanig1.jpg?w=180&h=180&crop=1 https://ioneblackamericaweb.files.wordpress.com/2015/06/boriskodjoeig3.jpg?w=180&h=180&crop=1 https://ioneblackamericaweb.files.wordpress.com/2015/06/keishaeppsig.jpg?w=180&h=180&crop=1 https://ioneblackamericaweb.files.wordpress.com/2015/06/peterthomasig2.jpg?w=180&h=180&crop=1 https://ioneblackamericaweb.files.wordpress.com/2015/06/kenyamooreig3.jpg?w=180&h=180&crop=1


text:
BIG media film
User Stats
Profile Images
User Bio
BIG MEDIA FILM is a production company specialising in creative video and film solutions for short films, documentaries, music videos, ads, corporate promotions and events.
We offer our services to all areas of the project from pre-production, through production and into post-production. Quality and value being our key focus.


text:
Most Popular Titles With Cloris Leachman
- Job Types
- Movies or TV
- Genres
- Keywords
- IMDb Rating
- Instant Watch Options
- In Theaters
- On TV
- Release Year
1. The Office (2005–2013)
TV-PG | 22 min | Comedy
A mockumentary on a group of typical office workers, where the workday consists of ego clashes, inappropriate behavior, and tedium. Based on the hit BBC series.
Creators: Greg Daniels, Ricky Gervais, Stephen Merchant | Stars: Rainn Wilson, John Krasinski, Jenna Fischer, Leslie David Baker
Votes: 166,911
2. Girl Meets World (2014– )
TV-G | 23 min | Comedy, Family
More than a decade after "Boy Meets World," Cory and Topanga Matthews are married and have two children. Their daughter, Riley, faces life lessons through her family, friends, and school--where her father is her history teacher--as her parents did when they were younger.
Creators: Michael Jacobs, April Kelly | Stars: Rowan Blanchard, Sabrina Carpenter, Ben Savage, Danielle Fishel
Votes: 5,204
3. Inglourious Basterds (2009)
R | 153 min | Adventure, Drama, War
In Nazi-occupied France during World War II, a plan to assassinate Nazi leaders by a group of Jewish U.S. soldiers coincides with a theatre owner's vengeful plans for the same.
Writer: Quentin Tarantino | Directors: Quentin Tarantino, Eli Roth | Stars: Brad Pitt, Diane Kruger, Eli Roth, Mélanie Laurent
Votes: 741,417
4. Family Guy (1999– )
TV-14 | 22 min | Animation, Comedy
In a wacky Rhode Island town, a dysfunctional family strive to cope with everyday life as they are thrown from one crazy scenario to another.
Creators: Seth MacFarlane, David Zuckerman | Stars: Seth MacFarlane, Alex Borstein, Seth Green, Mila Kunis
Votes: 209,213
5. Hawaii Five-0 (2010– )
TV-14 | 42 min | Action, Crime, Drama
Steve McGarrett returns home to Oahu, in order to find his father's killer. The governor offers him the chance to run his own task force (Five-0). Steve's team is joined by Chin Ho Kelly, Danny "Danno" Williams, and Kono Kalakaua.
Creators: Leonard Freeman, Alex Kurtzman, Peter M. Lenkov, Roberto Orci | Stars: Alex O'Loughlin, Scott Caan, Daniel Dae Kim, Grace Park
Votes: 40,415
6. Two and a Half Men (2003–2015)
TV-14 | 22 min | Comedy
A hedonistic jingle writer's free-wheeling life comes to an abrupt halt when his brother and 10-year-old nephew move into his beach-front house.
Creators: Lee Aronsohn, Chuck Lorre | Stars: Jon Cryer, Ashton Kutcher, Angus T. Jones, Conchata Ferrell
Votes: 178,296
7. The Simpsons (1989– )
TV-PG | 22 min | Animation, Comedy
The satiric adventures of a working-class family in the misfit city of Springfield.
Creators: James L. Brooks, Matt Groening, Sam Simon | Stars: Dan Castellaneta, Nancy Cartwright, Julie Kavner, Yeardley Smith
Votes: 218,228
8. The Wedding Ringer (2015)
R | 101 min | Comedy, Romance
Two weeks shy of his wedding, a socially awkward guy enters into a charade by hiring the owner of a company that provides best men for grooms in need.
Writers: Jeremy Garelick, Jay Lavender | Director: Jeremy Garelick | Stars: Kevin Hart, Josh Gad, Kaley Cuoco-Sweeting, Affion Crockett
Votes: 30,489
9. Blue Mountain State (2010– )
22 min | Comedy, Sport
Three incoming freshmen attending Midwestern college football powerhouse Blue Mountain State must quickly adapt to college life and juggle football, girls, classes and nonstop hazing.
Creators: Eric Falconer, Chris Romano | Stars: Darin Brooks, Alan Ritchson, Chris Romano, Ed Marinaro
Votes: 29,678
10. Malcolm in the Middle (2000–2006)
TV-PG | 30 min | Comedy
A gifted young teen tries to survive with his dimwitted, dysfunctional family.
Creator: Linwood Boomer | Stars: Frankie Muniz, Jane Kaczmarek, Bryan Cranston, Christopher Masterson
Votes: 85,734
11. Adventure Time (2010– )
TV-PG | 11 min | Animation, Adventure, Comedy
A human boy named Finn and adoptive brother and best friend Jake the Dog, protect the citizens of the Land of Ooo from foes of various shapes and sizes.
Creator: Pendleton Ward | Stars: Jeremy Shada, John DiMaggio, Hynden Walch, Tom Kenny
Votes: 36,418
12. Phineas and Ferb (2007–2015)
TV-G | 30 min | Animation, Action, Comedy
Phineas and Ferb invent, scheme and stay one step ahead of their bratty sister. Meanwhile, their pet platypus plots against evil Dr. Doofenshmirtz.
Creators: Jeff 'Swampy' Marsh, Dan Povenmire | Stars: Vincent Martella, Thomas Brodie-Sangster, Ashley Tisdale, Dan Povenmire
Votes: 17,793
13. Sky High (2005)
PG | 100 min | Adventure, Comedy, Family
Set in a world where superheroes are commonly known and accepted, young Will Stronghold, the son of the Commander and Jetstream, tries to find a balance between being a normal teenager and an extraordinary being.
Writers: Paul Hernandez, Robert Schooley, Mark McCorkle | Director: Mike Mitchell | Stars: Kurt Russell, Kelly Preston, Michael Angarano, Danielle Panabaker
Votes: 55,805
14. Raising Hope (2010–2014)
TV-PG | 22 min | Comedy, Family
Jimmy becomes a single parent to an infant after the mother he had a one-night stand with ends up on death row.
Creator: Gregory Thomas Garcia | Stars: Lucas Neff, Martha Plimpton, Garret Dillahunt, Shannon Woodward
Votes: 28,324
15. The Longest Yard (2005)
PG-13 | 113 min | Comedy, Crime, Sport
Prison inmates form a football team to challenge the prison guards.
Writers: Albert S. Ruddy, Tracy Keenan Wynn, Sheldon Turner | Director: Peter Segal | Stars: Adam Sandler, Burt Reynolds, Chris Rock, Nelly
Votes: 115,970
16. The Love Boat (1977–1987)
TV-G | 60 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
The romantic and comic tales of the passengers and crew of the cruise ship, Pacific Princess.
Creator: Wilfred Lloyd Baumes | Stars: Gavin MacLeod, Bernie Kopell, Ted Lange, Fred Grandy
Votes: 4,595
17. The Facts of Life (1979–1988)
TV-PG | 30 min | Comedy
A group of girls attending a boarding school experience the joys and the trials of adolescence under the guiding hand of housemother Edna Garrett. Later in the series, Mrs. Garrett is ... See full summary »
Creators: Dick Clair, Howard Leeds, Jerry Mayer, Jenna McMahon, Ben Starr | Stars: Lisa Whelchel, Kim Fields, Mindy Cohn, Nancy McKeon
Votes: 3,466
18. The Croods (2013)
PG | 98 min | Animation, Adventure, Comedy
After their cave is destroyed, a caveman family must trek through an unfamiliar fantastical world with the help of an inventive boy.
Writers: Chris Sanders, Kirk De Micco, John Cleese | Directors: Kirk De Micco, Chris Sanders | Stars: Nicolas Cage, Ryan Reynolds, Emma Stone, Catherine Keener
Votes: 130,160
19. Twilight Zone (1959–1964)
TV-PG | 51 min | Fantasy, Horror, Mystery
Ordinary people find themselves in extraordinarily astounding situations, which they each try to solve in a remarkable manner.
Creator: Rod Serling | Stars: Rod Serling, Robert McCord, Jay Overholts, Vaughn Taylor
Votes: 35,230
20. Gunsmoke (1955–1975)
TV-PG | 60 min | Western
Marshal Matt Dillon keeps the peace in the rough and tumble Dodge City.
Creator: Charles Marquis Warren | Stars: James Arness, Milburn Stone, Amanda Blake, Ken Curtis
Votes: 2,778
21. The Nanny (1993–1999)
TV-PG | 30 min | Comedy
After being fired from her job and dumped by her boyfriend, a cosmetics saleswoman becomes the nanny to the three children of a rich British widower. As time passes, the two fall for each other.
Creators: Fran Drescher, Prudence Fraser, Peter Marc Jacobson, Robert Sternin | Stars: Fran Drescher, Charles Shaughnessy, Daniel Davis, Lauren Lane
Votes: 25,554
22. Perry Mason (1957–1966)
60 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
A master defense attorney handles difficult criminal cases for his accused clients.
Creator: Erle Stanley Gardner | Stars: Raymond Burr, Barbara Hale, William Hopper, Ray Collins
Votes: 2,721
23. Hot in Cleveland (2010– )
TV-PG | 30 min | Comedy
Three 40-something best friends from Los Angeles are flying to Paris when their plane makes an emergency landing in Cleveland. Realizing that all the norms from Los Angeles don't apply anymore, they decide to celebrate a city that values real women and stay where they're still considered hot.
Creator: Suzanne Martin | Stars: Valerie Bertinelli, Jane Leeves, Wendie Malick, Betty White
Votes: 9,268
24. Young Frankenstein (1974)
PG | 106 min | Comedy
Dr. Frankenstein's grandson, after years of living down the family reputation, inherits granddad's castle and repeats the experiments.
Writers: Gene Wilder, Mel Brooks, Mary Shelley | Director: Mel Brooks | Stars: Gene Wilder, Madeline Kahn, Marty Feldman, Peter Boyle
Votes: 103,901
25. Wonder Woman (1975–1979)
60 min | Action, Adventure, Family
The adventures of the greatest of the female superheroes.
Creators: William M. Marston, Stanley Ralph Ross | Stars: Lynda Carter, Lyle Waggoner, Tom Kratochvil, Richard Eastham
Votes: 3,347
26. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)
M | 110 min | Biography, Crime, Western
Two Western bank/train robbers flee to Bolivia when the law gets too close.
Writer: William Goldman | Director: George Roy Hill | Stars: Paul Newman, Robert Redford, Katharine Ross, Strother Martin
Votes: 132,735
27. The Iron Giant (1999)
PG | 86 min | Animation, Action, Adventure
A boy makes friends with an innocent alien giant robot that a paranoid government agent wants to destroy.
Writers: Tim McCanlies, Brad Bird, Ted Hughes | Director: Brad Bird | Stars: Eli Marienthal, Harry Connick Jr., Jennifer Aniston, Vin Diesel
Votes: 114,088
28. Scary Movie 4 (2006)
PG-13 | 83 min | Comedy
Cindy finds out the house she lives in is haunted by a little boy and goes on a quest to find out who killed him and why. Also, Alien "Tr-iPods" are invading the world and she has to uncover the secret in order to stop them.
Writers: Craig Mazin, Jim Abrahams, Pat Proft, Shawn Wayans, Marlon Wayans, Buddy Johnson, Phil Beauman, Jason Friedberg, Aaron Seltzer | Director: David Zucker | Stars: Anna Faris, Regina Hall, Craig Bierko, Bill Pullman
Votes: 86,021
29. The Women (I) (2008)
PG-13 | 114 min | Comedy, Drama
A wealthy New Yorker wrestles with the decision to leave her cheating husband, as she and her friends discover that women really can have it all.
Writers: Diane English, Clare Boothe Luce, Anita Loos, Jane Murfin | Director: Diane English | Stars: Meg Ryan, Eva Mendes, Annette Bening, Debra Messing
Votes: 15,477
30. Diagnosis Murder (1993–2002)
60 min | Crime, Mystery, Drama
Dr. Mark Sloan has a knack for getting into trouble, negotiating the twists and turns of mysteries and solving crimes with the help of his son, Steve, a homicide detective.
Creator: Joyce Burditt | Stars: Dick Van Dyke, Barry Van Dyke, Victoria Rowell, Charlie Schlatter
Votes: 3,821
31. Dancing with the Stars (I) (2005– )
TV-PG | 60 min | Family, Game-Show, Music
U.S. reality show based on the British series "Strictly Come Dancing," where celebrities partner up with professional dancers and compete against each other in weekly elimination rounds to determine a winner.
Stars: Tom Bergeron, Carrie Ann Inaba, Bruno Tonioli, Len Goodman
Votes: 7,332
32. Ponyo (2008)
G | 101 min | Animation, Family, Fantasy
An adventure about a five-year-old boy and his relationship with Ponyo, a goldfish princess who longs to become a human after falling in love with him.
Writer: Hayao Miyazaki | Director: Hayao Miyazaki | Stars: Cate Blanchett, Matt Damon, Liam Neeson, Tomoko Yamaguchi
Votes: 74,604
33. Franklin & Bash (2011–2014)
TV-14 | 60 min | Comedy, Crime
Lawyers and lifelong friends Jared Franklin and Peter Bash are recruited by a large firm's major partner after winning a high-profile case.
Creators: Bill Chais, Kevin Falls | Stars: Mark-Paul Gosselaar, Breckin Meyer, Reed Diamond, Malcolm McDowell
Votes: 11,362
34. Beerfest (2006)
R | 110 min | Comedy
Two brothers travel to Germany for Oktoberfest, only to stumble upon a secret, centuries-old competition described as a "Fight Club" with beer games.
Writers: Jay Chandrasekhar, Kevin Heffernan, Steve Lemme, Paul Soter, Erik Stolhanske | Director: Jay Chandrasekhar | Stars: Jay Chandrasekhar, Kevin Heffernan, Steve Lemme, Paul Soter
Votes: 51,413
35. You Again (2010)
PG | 105 min | Comedy, Romance
When a young woman realizes her brother is about to marry the girl who bullied her in high school, she sets out to expose the fiancée's true colors.
Writer: Moe Jelline | Director: Andy Fickman | Stars: Kristen Bell, Odette Annable, Sigourney Weaver, Jamie Lee Curtis
Votes: 37,672
36. Now and Then (1995)
PG-13 | 100 min | Comedy, Drama
Four 12-year-old girls grow up together during an eventful small-town summer in 1970.
Writer: I. Marlene King | Director: Lesli Linka Glatter | Stars: Christina Ricci, Demi Moore, Rosie O'Donnell, Thora Birch
Votes: 20,002
37. The Last Picture Show (1971)
R | 118 min | Drama
A group of 1950s high schoolers come of age in a bleak, isolated, atrophied West Texas town that is slowly dying, both economically and culturally.
Writers: Larry McMurtry, Peter Bogdanovich | Director: Peter Bogdanovich | Stars: Timothy Bottoms, Jeff Bridges, Cybill Shepherd, Ben Johnson
Votes: 28,867
38. Gambit (I) (2012)
PG-13 | 89 min | Comedy, Crime
An art curator decides to seek revenge on his abusive boss by conning him into buying a fake Monet, but his plan requires the help of an eccentric and unpredictable Texas rodeo queen.
Writers: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen, Sidney Carroll | Director: Michael Hoffman | Stars: Colin Firth, Cameron Diaz, Alan Rickman, Stanley Tucci
Votes: 16,225
39. Adult World (2013)
R | 97 min | Comedy
Amy, a naive college graduate who believes she's destined to be a great poet, begrudgingly accepts a job at a sex shop while she pursues a mentorship with reclusive writer Rat Billings.
Writer: Andy Cochran | Director: Scott Coffey | Stars: Emma Roberts, Evan Peters, John Cusack, Cloris Leachman
Votes: 9,791
40. Castle in the Sky (1986)
PG | 124 min | Animation, Adventure, Family
A young boy and a girl with a magic crystal must race against pirates and foreign agents in a search for a legendary floating castle.
Writer: Hayao Miyazaki | Director: Hayao Miyazaki | Stars: Anna Paquin, James Van Der Beek, Cloris Leachman, Mark Hamill
Votes: 82,342
41. Touched by an Angel (1994–2003)
TV-G | 60 min | Drama, Family, Fantasy
Monica, Tess, and Andrew are a trio of angels sent to Earth to tell depressed and troubled people that God loves them and hasn't forgotten them.
Creator: John Masius | Stars: Roma Downey, Della Reese, John Dye, Valerie Bertinelli
Votes: 4,303
42. The Untouchables (1959–1963)
50 min | Action, Crime, Drama
Special Agent Eliot Ness and his elite team of incorruptable agents battle organized crime in 1930s Chicago.
Stars: Robert Stack, Walter Winchell, Nicholas Georgiade, Paul Picerni
Votes: 1,248
43. The Beverly Hillbillies (1993)
PG | 92 min | Comedy, Family
A feature adaptation of the classic TV show, when nice guy redneck Jed Clampett strikes it rich when he finds black oil, and moves he and his kin to posh Beverly Hills.
Writers: Paul Henning, Lawrence Konner, Mark Rosenthal, Jim Fisher, Jim Staahl | Director: Penelope Spheeris | Stars: Diedrich Bader, Erika Eleniak, Jim Varney, Cloris Leachman
Votes: 13,413
44. New York, I Love You (2008)
R | 103 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
Several love stories set in one of the most loved cities of the world, New York.
Writers: Hu Hong, Yao Meng, Israel Horovitz, Suketu Mehta, Shunji Iwai, Olivier Lécot, Jeff Nathanson, Xan Cassavetes, Stephen Winter, Anthony Minghella, Natalie Portman, Fatih Akin, Joshua Marston, Hall Powell, James C. Strouse, Emmanuel Benbihy, Tristan Carné | Directors: Fatih Akin, Yvan Attal, Randall Balsmeyer, Allen Hughes, Shunji Iwai, Wen Jiang, Shekhar Kapur, Joshua Marston, Mira Nair, Natalie Portman, Brett Ratner | Stars: Shia LaBeouf, Natalie Portman, Bradley Cooper, Hayden Christensen
Votes: 37,154
45. Spanglish (2004)
PG-13 | 131 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
A woman and her daughter emigrate from Mexico for a better life in America, where they start working for a family where the patriarch is a newly celebrated chef with an insecure wife.
Writer: James L. Brooks | Director: James L. Brooks | Stars: Adam Sandler, Téa Leoni, Paz Vega, Cloris Leachman
Votes: 61,157
46. RuPaul's Drag Race (2009– )
TV-14 | 45 min | Reality-TV
RuPaul searches for America's next drag superstar.
Stars: RuPaul, Michelle Visage, Santino Rice, Jason Carter
Votes: 3,827
47. The Virginian (1962–1971)
TV-PG | 75 min | Western
The Shiloh Ranch in Wyoming Territory of the 1890s is owned in sequence by Judge Garth, the Grainger brothers, and Col. MacKenzie. It is the setting for a variety of stories, many more ... See full summary »
Stars: Doug McClure, James Drury, Lee J. Cobb, Sara Lane
Votes: 938
48. Adam-12 (1968–1975)
30 min | Comedy, Crime, Drama
Two regular police officers patrol Los Angeles.
Creators: Robert A. Cinader, Jack Webb | Stars: Martin Milner, Kent McCord, Shaaron Claridge, William Boyett
Votes: 1,786
49. Bad Santa (2003)
R | 91 min | Comedy, Crime, Drama
A miserable conman and his partner pose as Santa and his Little Helper to rob department stores on Christmas Eve. But they run into problems when the conman befriends a troubled kid, and the security boss discovers the plot.
Writers: Glenn Ficarra, John Requa | Director: Terry Zwigoff | Stars: Billy Bob Thornton, Bernie Mac, Lauren Graham, John Ritter
Votes: 99,883
50. Rawhide (1959–1965)
50 min | Western
Gil Favor is trail boss of a continuous cattle drive; he is assisted by Rowdy Yates. The crew runs into characters and adventures along the way.
Stars: Clint Eastwood, Paul Brinegar, Steve Raines, Eric Fleming
Votes: 1,839


text:
Personalise your news, save articles to read later and customise settings
If you have trouble accessing our login form below, you can go to our login page.
Brisbane Times
Previous thumbnails
Next thumbanils
Police attend the scene at Parliament House. Photo: Angela Wylie
Please enter your friend's name
Please enter a valid email address
Please enter your name
Please enter your comment
Thank You.
Your email has been sent.
Hope, and change, is where the art is
The Sunday Age Picture Editor, Danie Sprague selects the best images from around the world today on the wires.
People attend 'Melbourne Stands With Greece' rally on the steps of Parliament House on July 4, 2015 in Melbourne, Australia. As the city ...
Fairfax Media's talented team of artists, illustrators and cartoonists give us their very own humorous version of the news of the day.
The Age Picture Editor, Danie Sprague selects the best images from around the world today on the wires.
See a selection of some of the best images from around the world from the wires, chosen by today's Picture Editor.
Sorry. An error occurred when submitting the form.
Please try again later.
Picture Editor's Choice, July 4, 2015
Canberra Concrete Recyclers fire
Highlanders break Hurricanes' hearts
Dragons rolled at home by Cowboys
Gatecrasher: Art for change
The Etta James Story
A man has been shot and killed near Parliament House this evening after a violent confrontation with a Protective Service Officer.
Skip to:
Low variable rate + no monthly fees with loans.com.au
More Info
Plus earn 3 times the Velocity Points in first 3 months
Check it Out
Plus 0% p.a. on balance transfers for 15 months
Find Out More
Spend a little, get a LOT of data
Big Data
SIM-only plans with lots of data and a low monthly fee


text:
A proposed gold mine that would be built near Spearfish Canyon in South Dakota's Black Hills has cleared an initial permitting hurdle.
The Lawrence County Planning and Zoning Commission on Thursday recommended approval of a conditional use permit for the mine.
The recommendation next goes to the county commission, which will discuss the issue at a special meeting on July 23.
The Deadwood Standard Project wants to extract gold six miles west of Lead. The site is just east of Spearfish Canyon, but the conditional use permit being sought calls for a 500-foot buffer from the rim of the canyon.
To begin operations, the mine also would have to get approval from a number of state boards.
Most Popular Today
- 1.Tourism
Bear Shatters Glass Wall At Minnesota Zoo
- 2.Development
Sioux Falls Indoor Racing & Rec Business Closes
- 3.General
Don't Twist That Oreo: Cookie Gets Skinny, 'Sophisticated'
- 4.Retail & Restaurants
Starbucks: Prices For Some Drinks To Go Up By 5 To 20 Cents
- 5.Meetings & Events
KIDZ BOP Concert Coming To Sioux Falls
- 6.Retail & Restaurants
Caribou Coffee, Einstein Bagels Coming To 41st Street Strip Mall
- 7.Retail & Restaurants
Lloyd Plans New East Side Commercial Development
- 8.Retail & Restaurants
Hockey Headquarters Moving To New Location
- 9.Gas & Energy
SD Regulators Holding Hearing On Keystone XL Pipeline
- 10.Housing, General
Statewide Count Finds 1,036 Homeless People In South Dakota


text:
Elite Gymnastics
Omnivorous, sample-loving artist James Brooks talks about transitioning from a duo to a solo act and his "much poppier" and more feminine new material.
By Carrie Battan , September 26, 2012
Photo by Alexandra Lucas
Elite Gymnastics: "Andreja 4-Ever"
James Brooks of electronic-pop act Elite Gymnastics is trying to reverse-engineer his artistic career. After releasing the sample-based Ruin series, which drew inspiration from hip-hop, jungle, K-pop, and more, Elite Gymnastics transitioned from a duo to a solo project following the departure of James Clancy earlier this year. After the split, Brooks took to Tumblr to candidly answer questions about it ("things got really really shitty when we went on tour and I couldn't put myself in that situation again") and set the record straight about the roles both he and Clancy had played in the band's evolution. "I write all the songs," he clarified.
As for Elite Gymnastics' shadowy online presence-- see the faceless photo they gave us to use for their Rising profile last year-- Brooks had something to say about that, too: "I make really personal art and make really personal songs and never really intended for the project to ever come across as impersonal or aloof. That it ever did was just the unintended result of me being insecure and me and Josh preferring to leave things ambiguous rather than directly confront the discrepancies between what we each wanted out of it."
With all that cleared up, the 28-year-old is also trying to restructure the way he thinks about music as he preps a new album, tentatively titled For Life and due next year. "I'm pointedly trying to pretend I had no idea about Joy Division, or any music that came out before George Michael's Faith album," Brooks tells me in a Brooklyn coffee shop a few subway stops away from his Bushwick apartment. His hair is grunge-era long, and he speaks with the soft-spoken urgency of someone who's constantly devouring information and excitedly formulating theories; Brooks is the guy who spent all his time browsing obscure online forums and playing video games in high school, and then he worked that insatiable streak into his art.
You can hear his latest musical reformation starting to take shape in "Andreja 4-Ever", Brooks' recent contribution to the Adult Swim Singles series and his first material presented as a solo artist. On the song, his vocals are high in the mix, and the instrumental hook is almost totally uncluttered. "Even 'Andreja 4-Ever' is not an indication of how different the stuff is going to be," says Brooks about his forthcoming LP. "It's much poppier than other Elite Gymnastics stuff."
"I want [the new album] to reach people the way that Pretty Hate Machine or Little Earthquakes reached me when I was a teenager."
Pitchfork: When you and Josh split and you started answering questions on Tumblr, did you address all of them or did you pick and choose?
James Brooks: I totally welcome stuff about people being pissed at me because they like Josh. Those questions are valid and I addressed them. But something like, "What's [Grimes] like in real life?" probably doesn't need to get answered.
Pitchfork: You and Grimes and Blood Diamonds seem to have formed an informal collective.
JB: It was almost inevitable. There are all these weird connections between us. I'm from Vancouver, and Claire grew up in Vancouver. Me and Mike [Blood Diamonds] connected independently over video games, we would just play StarCraft. I went down to visit them in L.A. and I was going to stay for a week, but I ended up staying for a month and a half. Now we all just adventure together around the world in various configurations. They're two of the people that I'm closest to in the world.
Pitchfork: Was your recent move to New York from Minneapolis a premeditated thing?
JB: No, I've only been here a couple of times. My mom moved away from Minneapolis, and Josh and I's personal relationship started getting rockier. So I just left. And here I am. The idea of New York as a thing-- the cultural legacy of it-- is not really something I'm interacting with at all. I don't really buy into it. But the trains run all night, and that's sick.
I didn't come here because I'm trying to find a place where everybody thinks I'm the shit or anything. It's just really nice to go out and run into people like Gatekeeper, or Teengirl Fantasy, or Alexis Penney-- legitimate peers who I can have conversations with. I couldn't do that in Minneapolis, where people would see us get on stage and just think it was a bad joke. People there still worship the Replacements. There was never going to be a place for Elite Gymnastics there.
"People fetishize limitations a lot in music,
but the approach where you can put together any
group of sounds that you want is so much more exciting to me."
Pitchfork: What are your plans for the new album?
JB: I'm 99% sure it will be called For Life and it will have eight or nine songs and it's very different from Ruin. When I go back and I listen to Ruin now, I realize how much of a nerd-male record it is. I don't regret making it, but now I'm trying to rebuild my own canon where Joy Division or Radiohead doesn't matter but Tori Amos or Sarah McLachlan or the Spice Girls or George Michael or Des'ree or the Romeo + Juliet soundtrack do matter. It's aggressively more feminine than the Ruin stuff.
Pitchfork: Sounds like that'll make the recording process interesting.
JB: I'm not going to record in a studio. I want it to reach people the way that Pretty Hate Machine or Little Earthquakes reached me when I was a teenager. I really needed that stuff. I want people to be able to hear what the lyrics are the first time they listen and not have to look at a sheet because there's a million layers of reverb on it and it sounds like mumbling. I want the melodies to be something that you can hear and remember later on. Somehow, we've been in this really non-lyrical moment for a really long time now.
Pitchfork: As a solo artist now, what are you using to make the new record?
JB: I feel really strongly about the potential of sample-based composition. One of the knocks against making music with a laptop is that it gives you too many options: If you can do anything, what's the point of doing anything? People fetishize limitations a lot in music, but I feel like that's like the fetishization of vintage synthesizers, or how a rock band recorded with live instruments and no over-dubs. That's a thing that we're conditioned to be really impressed by. I don't mean to devalue that stuff, but at the same time, I feel implicit in that kind of sentiment is this toxic idea that people can only create interesting stuff under limitations.
The approach where you can put together any group of sounds that you want is so much more exciting to me than buying a bunch of specific gear and being like, "Let me see what I can make when I put myself in this little box." As a person who likes pop music and listens to all kinds of stuff, just thinking about that way of creating bores the shit out of me.
Elite Gymnastics: "Here, in Heaven 2" (via SoundCloud)
Pitchfork: Will you be singing on the new record?
JB: Yup. I've gotten much, much better at singing. On the song "Here, in Heaven 2", I sound like a female vocalist. That's me pitching my voice up and trying to sound more androgynous in the way that I'm actually singing. There's going to be more stuff like that because I found ways to make it sound really cool-- it will be a mix of regular vocals by me and altered vocals by me and maybe some other stuff from people I'm friends with. I have no idea how I'm going to do it live.
I have weird complexes with the idea of working with female vocalists. It always sounds better, and I listen to so many female vocalists and songwriters. I don't know if I could ever write a song for a girl to sing and feel like that was an OK thing to do. I hate that paradigm of male producer/songwriter, female frontperson. I feel like encouraging that paradigm reinforces this bullshit that all women are good for is looking pretty out in front.
Most Read Features
Stray Slack: Stephen Malkmus and Spiral Stairs Talk New Pavement Reissue Series
June 18, 2015
Drop the Bass: A Case Against Subwoofers
June 17, 2015
The Out Door
Coffee, Weed, and Prison: Six Recent Experimental Records Worth Hearing
June 16, 2015
Jenny Hval's Soft Dick Rock
June 15, 2015
Ornette Coleman
June 12, 2015
Photo Galleries
A Visual Guide to Brooklyn's Underground Electronic Scene
June 19, 2015
A New Standard: Kamasi Washington's Modern Jazz Revolution
June 9, 2015
Love and Its Opposite: In the Studio With Savages
June 10, 2015
How Much Is Music Really Worth?
April 16, 2015
Photo Galleries
Pitchfork at Northside / Tinnitus Series
June 16, 2015
Accidental Pop: A Conversation With Destroyer's Dan Bejar
May 25, 2015
Jamie xx: Taking Shelter in Loud Places
May 19, 2015
Feeling Myself: Kathleen Hanna Gets Back to Work
June 5, 2015
Stray Slack: Stephen Malkmus and Spiral Stairs Talk New Pavement Reissue Series
June 18, 2015
Festival Report
Primavera Sound 2015
June 2, 2015
Moses Sumney: Lost and Found in L.A.
June 4, 2015
A New Standard: Kamasi Washington's Modern Jazz Revolution
June 9, 2015
Love and Its Opposite: In the Studio With Savages
June 10, 2015
Love Is Strange: The Multitudes of Unknown Mortal Orchestra's Ruban Nielson
May 12, 2015
Drop the Bass: A Case Against Subwoofers
June 17, 2015
How Much Is Music Really Worth?
April 16, 2015
True Myth: A Conversation With Sufjan Stevens
February 16, 2015
The Proverbial Wisdom of Earl Sweatshirt
April 2, 2015
Evolve With the Flow: How Drake and Kendrick Found Their Voices
April 8, 2015
Perennially Contentious: The Return of Faith No More
March 26, 2015
Jamie xx: Taking Shelter in Loud Places
May 19, 2015
Love Is Strange: The Multitudes of Unknown Mortal Orchestra's Ruban Nielson
May 12, 2015
Fetty Wap: Too Many Hooks
May 1, 2015
Accidental Pop: A Conversation With Destroyer's Dan Bejar
May 25, 2015
Into the Black: Johnny Jewel's Dark Disco Empire
March 24, 2015
- Related
- Latest
- Trending
Grimes and Default Genders' James Brooks Film HANA's "Clay" Video
By Evan Minsker on June 23, 2015 at 9:57 p.m. EDT
Photo Galleries
Photo Galleries: Laurel Halo, Autre Ne Veut, Ital, and More at 285 Kent Farewell Show
Laurel Halo, Autre Ne Veut, More at 285 Kent
Laurel Halo
Chance of Rain
By Andrew Gaerig
Electronic musican Laurel Halo's releases since 2012's Quarantine can be read as a reaction to that ...
Stream New Releases From Laurel Halo, Russian Circles, and Whores Via Pitchfork Advance
By Pitchfork on October 21, 2013 at 4:53 p.m. EDT
TracksLaurel Halo: "Ainnome" (via SoundCloud)
Laurel Halo: "Ainnome"
By Andrew Gaerig on September 30, 2013
Laurel Halo Announces New Album, Chance Of Rain
By Jenn Pelly on August 20, 2013 at 10:48 a.m. EDT
Pitchfork.tv × YouTube
Pitchfork Classic
Belle And Sebastian
Belle and Sebastian - If You're Feeling Sinister
Kendrick Lamar's "Alright" Video Detailed by Director Colin Tilley
"...It's really all about the positivity."
By Evan Minsker on July 5, 2015 at 10:44 a.m. EDT
Dave Grohl Plays Entire Foo Fighters Show on Giant Light-Up Throne
At first gig after breaking his leg
By Matthew Strauss on July 5, 2015 at 9:32 a.m. EDT
Tweedy Perform "Low Key" and "Wait for Love" on "CBS This Morning: Saturday"
The Tweedy family also sit down together for an interview
By Jazz Monroe on July 4, 2015 at 11:46 a.m. EDT
Lil Wayne Releases FWA
The Free Weezy Album has been released through Tidal, where ...
By Corban Goble on July 4, 2015 at 12:30 a.m. EDT
The Chemical Brothers Share "EML Ritual"
By Jazz Monroe on July 3, 2015 at 7:29 p.m. EDT
Staff Lists
Staff Lists: Overlooked Records 2015
Some of the year's worthy records that you may have missed.
Dave Grohl Plays Entire Foo Fighters Show on Giant Light-Up Throne
At first gig after breaking his leg
By Matthew Strauss on July 5, 2015 at 9:32 a.m. EDT
Kendrick Lamar's "Alright" Video Detailed by Director Colin Tilley
"...It's really all about the positivity."
By Evan Minsker on July 5, 2015 at 10:44 a.m. EDT
Pitchfork Guide to Upcoming Releases: Summer 2015
Records to look forward to in the coming months
By Matthew Strauss on July 1, 2015 at 3:57 p.m. EDT
By Anupa Mistry
On Wildheart, Miguel makes good on all of his cross-genre dabbling of the past five years. The album ...


text:
Eaton Grove is Open year 'round?
Current Spring and Summer hours are Monday through Friday from 8 am to 6:00 pm., Saturday from 8 am to 5:00 pm. and Sunday's from 10:00 am to 4:00pm.
Question: Are you open all year?
Answer: Yes, other than the first two weeks of January, we are open year round. While spring is obviously our busiest time, we are here throughout the fall and winter too. During the fall we offer pumpkins, squash, and other fall decorations, and winter means holiday preparations. At Eaton Grove we have Christmas trees, wreaths, boughs, and poinsettias. Although Colorado's growing season doesn't last all year, it takes 12 months to prepare for the spring and summer and maintain the nursery. So, come see us or call anytime…we are here to help.


text:
Tropical Tofu Treat
Serves: 4
Prep time: 10 minutes
- 2 ripe bananas Add to list
- 1 12-ounce box silken tofu Add to list
- 1 teaspoon honey Add to list
- 1 teaspoon vanilla Add to list
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice Add to list
- 1/4 cup shredded coconut (optional) Add to list
These ingredients are:
Vegetarian Corn-free Dairy-free Egg-free Gluten-free Peanut-free Wheat-free
Place all ingredients in blender and blend until smooth. Pour into serving dishes and chill for one hour before serving. Garnish with shredded coconut, banana wheels, chopped nuts or halved orange segments.
Source: Sound Consumer February 2001


text:
Instant "Members Only" Coupon Codes Emailed NOW When You Sign Up for FREE Membership!
You are already an existing user.
Do you want to opt back in?
Please check your email inbox for a confirmation message.
Just click the link to complete your subscription and receive your coupon codes.
Popular Destinations
- Mexico
- Caribbean
- Las Vegas
- Orlando
- Hawaii
- Florida
- New York City
- Costa Rica
- New Orleans
- San Francisco
Hilton Barbados
This four-star resort is just five minutes from bustling Bridgetown, and 20 minutes from Grantley Adams International Airport. The Hilton Barbados enjoys a prime location on the lush tropical peninsula of Needhams Point, surrounded by two powdery soft white sandy beaches and pristine blue waters. Read More About Hilton Barbados
Hilton Barbados Deals & Specials
Receive $50 Daily Resort Credit
Book with Flight for Deeper Savings
- 3 Restaurants and 4 Bars
- All rooms with Private Balcony
- Fitness Suite | Treatment room
- Beautiful Infinity pool
- Three flood-lit tennis courts
- Hurry, Limited Rooms Available!
Receive $50 Daily Resort Credit
Book with Flight for Deeper Savings
- 3 Restaurants and 4 Bars
- All rooms with Private Balcony
- Fitness Suite | Treatment room
- Beautiful Infinity pool
- Three flood-lit tennis courts
- Hurry, Limited Rooms Available!
Enjoy the view through floor-to-ceiling windows, or out on one of your private balconies. Relax in the comfortable living area with sofa, sofa-bed and wet bar. The living space features a bathroom with walk-in shower and an office space.
Unwind in the master bedroom with its adjoining bathroom, which features a separate tub and walk-in shower. Enjoy access to the Executive Lounge with complimentary breakfast, evening hors d'oeuvres and Honor Bar access.
The refreshing Serenity Bath includes a separate tub, multi-jet glass walk-in shower and an elegant double vanity. Relax in the living room that showcases local artwork and a second TV and a sofa-bed.
Perfect for families requiring extra space or business travelers seeking a separate office area, this richly furnished accommodation is decked out in a distinctive colonial style with traditional Bajan colors and locally-commissioned Caribbean art.
- 24-Hour Front Desk
- Business Services
- Concierge Desk
- Fine Dining
- Golf
- Multilingual Staff
- Outdoor Pool
- Restaurant
- Room Service
- Spa Services
- Tennis Courts
- Wireless Internet Access
(+) = Additional fees may apply for the use of these amenities.
(*) = Free, some restrictions may apply.


text:
While FIFA organizers hail the 2015 Women's World Cup as a success, Edmonton's city manager says the international spotlight on the city throughout the tournament enhances its reputation for hosting global events. "I think FIFA and the Canadian Soccer Association have been very positive about the city, and I'm not surprised about that," said city manager Simon Farbrother.
The following Standard Targeting Parameters are available:


text:
Zojirushi Stainless Mug With Tea Strainer
This stainless steel mug does an excellent job at keeping drinks hot or cold, plus it has a removable tea infuser that can be used to brew tea on the go. It's on the pricey side, but is built to last — it survived our drop tests unscathed. 11-ounces. Available in pearl blue, and pink colors. amazon.com.
Reviewed: August 2010
Price When Reviewed: $39.00
- Perfect performer at keeping drinks hot or cold
- Won't leak or spill
- Stable
- Very durable
- Didn't break, chip, or dent in our drop tests
- Uncomfortable to hold
- As the lid has two parts, it can be confusing to open it and drink from
- Leaks and spills
- Hand-wash only
What do you think?
The Best Carry-On Luggage for Your Travels
See which hard case rollers passed with flying colors, and use our packing tips to ace your next trip.
The Best Tents for Your Next Camping Trip
Choose one of our top picks, and you'll be one happy camper.
Tested & Trusted: The Best Cars of 2014
Our buyer's guide is fully loaded with best-in-class picks all tested by our trusted experts.
More From Cars & Travel Products


text:
And too few insights gleaned from them
Boost for NSF funding
June 19, 2008|
The US Senate and House of Representatives have approved a 14 percent funding increase for the National Science Foundation (NSF) for 2009. A Senate appropriations subcommittee approved the measure yesterday (Jun 18), and a House subcommittee passed the bill last week. The bill will now move to the Senate floor for a vote, which has not yet been scheduled. The spending bill would net NSF, which is the second largest federal funder of academic research after the National Institutes of Health (NI


text:
Already a member? Log in.
About us…
We are forming a group of progressive democratics who like to get together in a variety of venues, including happy hours, dinners, sporting events, art happenings, live music, house parties, beach days, boat rides, fun day trips, etc. We prefer non-smoking events. We hope for lively conversations. Most events will be in the St. Pete area, but we are open to events in Tampa and other nearby towns.
1,766 Active Members
111 St Pete Socialites
1,006 Parents (plus Kids)
308 dancers
288 Comedy Improvisors
2,057 New Kids
Meetup members, Log in
By clicking "Sign up" or "Sign up using Facebook", you confirm that you accept our Terms of Service & Privacy Policy


text:
New REEF Survey T-Shirts - Our latest addition to the REEF Online store, these T-shirts provide a comic look at our world of fish surveying. The shirts sport a REEF logo and "REEF Survey Team" on the front and a cartoon on the back. Shirts are available in three colors. Click here to get yours today!
Visit REEF this weekend at the Beneath the Sea Dive show in Secaucus, New Jersey - REEF volunteers will be there to tell you about our latest activities and sign up new members. Sensational Seas Two will premiere at the show and we'll be selling the DVD in the booth as a fundraiser. Many of the production contributors will join us during the day to sign DVDs. Anna and Ned DeLoach will be there to talk fish. Stop by Booth 220 and say "hello"! You can check out a sample of the DVD on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3bC4T5bMu_s
Free California Fish and Invertebrate Identification Seminars Scheduled - Thanks to support from a regional foundation, REEF is offering a series of free training classes to be held at The Ocean Institute in Dana Point and The Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach. Classes will be held this June. Pre-registration is required. There will also be a coordinated REEF survey dive aboard the SunDiver at a reduced cost just prior to the SCUBA2010 show in Long Beach. For more information, check out the class page here.
We are pleased to present a preview of the 2011 REEF Field Survey Schedule to our valued members. Destinations include many exciting locations that offer great diving and prime fishwatching experiences, including the San Blas Islands in Panama, Saba, Hawaii, and for the first time, a South Pacific destination -- Fiji! These trips offer a great introduction to fish identification for novice fishwatchers, and are a fun way for experienced surveyors to build their life list while interacting with fellow fishwatchers. REEF staff, board members, and other REEF instructors lead these trips, and each features daily classroom seminars and a full diving schedule.
Our travel consultants at Caradonna Dive Travel are finalizing many of the trip details, and the full schedule with prices and package information will be posted on the REEF Trips website in the coming weeks. We hope that this early preview will allow you to start planning your REEF dive travel. Some of these trips will sell out quickly, so if you are interested in reserving your spot, or being on a list to find out more, contact Caradonna today at 1-877-295-7333 (REEF), or via e-mail firstname.lastname@example.com. They can also handle your airfare.
Preview -- REEF 2011 Field Survey Schedule*
*Please note that details are still being finalized. Dates listed below are tentative for some trips.
Would you like to help spread the word about REEF to your dive club, dive shop, local nature center, etc.? We now have a presentation about the REEF Volunteer Survey program in your area, complete with speaker notes. It takes about 30-45 minutes, and goes over how simple it is to conduct a survey, and how to get started. PERFECT for groups wanting to get involved with REEF but weren't quite sure how to go about it! Let us know if you'd be interested in showing it to your group - email firstname.lastname@example.com
REEF is proud to partner with over 130 dive shops, dive clubs, individuals, and other organizations as REEF Field Stations.
This month we feature the Eugene Dive Club, an active club in Oregon with over 100 members. The club serves as the go-to arm of the official REEF Field Station at Eugene Skin Divers Supply. The club's involvement was spearheaded by two active northwest REEF surveyors and Eugene locals, Christine and Jim Pendergrass. Chris and Jim took the PADI Habitat class through Eugene Skin Divers Supply, which fed them into the volunteer dive program at the Oregon Coast Aquarium. That sparked their interest in fish ID and led them to REEF. Since then, Jim and Chris have been teaching REEF fish and invertebrate ID classes, sponsoring monthly REEF dives along the Oregon coast, and helping with REEF's online training webinars. They have also created a fun ID game called 'Cash Boat', a fish/invert ID contest modeled after TV's 'Cash Cab'. Their efforts have paid off, and we have seen an increase in Oregon divers involved in the REEF survey program. They are now planning to expand their REEF class schedule, planning more REEF Blitz Weekends, and continuing to introduce folks from other dive clubs to the wonders of Oregon diving and critterwatching. When asked about what they like best about being involved with REEF, Jim and Chris say "It's a great way to learn more about the marine environment and meet like-minded people. And you get to share exciting underwater finds, like the Monkeyface Prickleback!" Thanks to Jim, Chris, and the folks at the Eugene Skin Divers Supply for helping invigorate the REEF program in Oregon.
REEF is proud to partner with over 130 dive shops, dive clubs, individuals, and other organizations as REEF Field Stations. Our featured Field Station this month, Paradise Watersports, is based at Peter Island Resort and Spa in the British Virgin Islands. Their team is led by Randy Keil, an active REEF surveyor and member of the Advanced Assessment Team. Randy was first introduced to REEF over 10 years ago by Lad Akins. Since then, he has built a great program at Paradise Watersports. All of their instructors dive with slates and pencils, and fish and creature identification is done on every dive. Randy notes that "it has been our experience that our divers and snorkelers enjoy the experience of looking at marine life and immediately having it identified. It also gives them a basis on which we can talk about the dive when we're back on the boat. Instead of 'what was that big fish with all the colors?' we get 'now you called that fish a grasby, I thought it was a grouper?' It serves as a springboard for discussion and an understanding of the relationships of the reef community."
Paradise Watersports is also involved in helping track the invasive lionfish. Randy sees this as just one advantage of having the REEF survey program in place locally. With over 1500 surveys in the BVI and over 100,000 in the Caribbean region, the REEF database is a valuable tool in tracking the lionfish invasion and better understanding the impact the lionfish is having on the various areas. In the BVI, the dive operators, including Paradise Watersports, are making a determined effort to keep lionfish off of the moored reefs. Conservation and Fisheries has issued exemptions to the strict no spearfishing laws that allow each dive operation and several of the crewed charterboats to take lionfish. Thanks to Randy and his crew at Paradise Watersports for all you do to support REEF's programs!
'Changing Seas', an Emmy award-winning original production of Miami's public television station WPBT2, premiered their newest episode, "Grouper Moon", earlier this month. The episode is now available to view online here. The episode focuses on the collaborative efforts of REEF and the Cayman Department of the Environment to study and conserve one of the last great populations of the Nassau Grouper. A WPBT team joined REEF in the field during the Grouper Moon Project last winter, chronicling our efforts to help save this imperiled reef fish.
REEF scientists and volunteers just wrapped up another season of the Grouper Moon Project, a collaborative research effort with the Cayman Islands Department of the Environment (CIDOE). Our research focuses on Little Cayman, which has one of the largest (and one of just a few) known spawning aggregations of Nassau Grouper in the Caribbean. Over 4,000 grouper amass in one location for 7-10 days following winter full moons. Since 2002, REEF and our partners at CIDOE, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, and Oregon State University have used a variety of research techniques from diver surveys to state-of-the-art technology to study this amazing natural phenomenon. The research has yielded ground-breaking results that have led to improved conservation for the species in the Cayman Islands. 2013 was a very exiting year - we continued to document increases in the number of fish at the site and there were many "teenagers" (6-8 year olds, coming to spawn for the first time). The number of spawning bursts and the number of nights spawning occured has increased. Watch this short video to see the action. We continued our education efforts. With support from the Disney Wildlife Conservation Fund, we were able to expand the program to more classrooms at Cayman Prep and High School on Grand Cayman and initiated the program at Spot Bay Primary School on Cayman Brac. The Grouper Education Project introduces children to the ecological, economic, and cultural role that Nassau Grouper have in the Cayman Islands and wider Caribbean. An integrated marine science curriculum has been developed with a focus on two age groups (Grade 4 and Grade 11), that includes a series of classroom lessons and live from the field web sessions, including a live-feed from 80 feet on the aggregation. Seattle-based educator, Todd Bohannon, leads up this effort.
To learn more about the Grouper Moon Project, watch the Changing Seas episode online here.
To see many more photos, videos, and stories from this year's work, check out the REEF Facebook page here.
Many Thanks! The Grouper Moon Project wouldn't be possible without the dedication, passion, and financial support from many individuals, Cayman Island businesses, and foundations. It truly takes a village to pull off this conservation research project. In 2013, we especially appreciate the continued generous logistical support provided by Peter Hillenbrand, local lodging and dive operators Reef Divers & Little Cayman Beach Resort and the Southern Cross Club, and Brac Reef Resort. Funding from the Disney Worldwide Conservation Fund supported field efforts and the Grouper Education Program. LIME Cayman Islands has provided support for the live-video feeds for the Grouper Education Project since 2012. Pegasus Thrusters supported the project in 2013 through the donation of Diver Propulsion Vehicles. It's impossible to list everyone here - please visit the Grouper Moon page to see the full list - http://www.REEF.org//groupermoonproject. If you would like to support this important marine conservation program, please donate to REEF - https://www.reef.org/contribute.
New Fishinars are always being added. Check out the Webinar Training page (www.REEF.org/fishinars) for the most up-to-date listing. These popular online training sessions provide fishie fun in the comfort of your own home. Fishinars are free, and open to all REEF members. You need to register for each session you want to attend. No special software is required, just a web browser. Upcoming sessions include:
Perplexing Parrotfish of the Caribbean - September 10
Keep Pointing! The Top 12 Caribbean Fish You Might Mistake For a Rock - September 26
Lesser Known Fish of Cozumel - October 17
Feel the Beat! The Top 12 Drums & Croakers of the Caribbean - October 29
You do WHAT for a living? Illustrating Fishes - with special guest Val Kells, Scientific Illustrator - November 13
Check out the Fishinar page for more details and to register for each session.
To all our members who donated to the Winter Fundraising Campaign, thank you! REEF depends heavily on individual donors to support our critical marine conservation programs. Together we raised over $97,000 to ensure REEF can continue:
• Expanding and building upon our Volunteer Fish Survey Project, including the recent addition of invertebrate and algae monitoring in our Northeast region. With this new program, all temperate REEF regions now have an invertebrate/algae component. For more information, click here.
• Protecting and monitoring Nassau Grouper in the Cayman Islands as well as educating the public about the importance of this iconic species. Our team just came back from another successful trip documenting their annual spawning aggregation. For more information, click here.
• Organizing research, training, and removal tactics to battle the lionfish invasion on the East Coast and in the Caribbean. REEF's recent research shows that strategic local efforts can control lionfish populations and help native fish communities recover. For more information, click here.
In addition to supporting these programs, donations raised by the Winter Fundraising campaign help REEF with the minimal costs required to manage operations. We ensure that every dollar spent is maximized so our projects make a difference for marine conservation around the world.
REEF's recent Field Survey Trip to Belize was wonderful in many ways, but two events were of particular scientific interest. First, everybody's favorite, the Sharpnose Pufferfish were spawning so there were literally hundreds seen on every single dive. More importantly, trip leader Jonathan Lavan got a photo of the rarely seen Glover's Reef Toadfish (Vladichthys gloverensis) down in a sponge. It was thought to only live on Glover's Reef, Belize, but this animal was photographed on an adjacent reef in Turneffe Atoll so perhaps a common name change is in order. Additionally, Jonathan's photograph is thought to be the only existing shot of the fish in its natural habitat. Great find, Jonathan!