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|Tybee Island, GA
Description: In 1733, General James Ogelthorpe founded the colony of Georgia and established the town of Savannah, seventeen miles upstream from where the Savannah River meets the open Atlantic Ocean. Early on, Ogelthorpe realized the importance of a marker on Tybee Island at the mouth of the river and ordered a ninety-foot, wooden structure erected there. After construction on the tower had started, Ogelthorpe became upset at the lack of progress being made and jailed the head carpenter, threatening to hang him. The carpenter's crew pled for his life, promising they could complete the tower in five more weeks. During the next sixteen days, they accomplished more than they had in the previous sixteen months. Apparently, government contractors earned their reputation centuries ago. The tower, used as a daymark for vessels entering the river, was completed in 1736.
The third tower rose to a height of 100 feet, was constructed of brick with wooden stairs and landings, and makes up the bottom section of the current Tybee Island Lighthouse. After Georgia ratified the Constitution in 1790, the tower was ceded to the federal government. President George Washington directed that a "plain stair case" be used in modifications made to the tower in 1793 rather than a more expensive "hanging stair case," and, for the first time, the tower was outfitted with an official lamp. Candles with reflectors were first used atop the tower before being replaced with whale oil lamps.
A fifty-foot tower was built seaward of the lighthouse in 1822, and an array of lamps in the shorter tower paired with those in the main tower functioned as a range light. As American lighthouses adopted the use of Fresnel lenses, Tybee Lighthouse received a second-order lens in 1857, while the front light was given a fourth-order lens. Now, instead of having to tend multiple lamps, the keepers were responsible for just a single lamp in each tower. The efficient Fresnel lens, with the single lamp at its center, greatly increased the range of the lights.
In 1861 during the War Between the States, Confederate forces abandoned Tybee Island for the safer confines of Fort Pulaski on Cockspur Island, roughly two miles upriver. Before retreating, the troops removed the lens and set fire to the lighthouse, burning the wooden stairs and landings. Union soldiers occupied Tybee Island and bombarded Fort Pulaski with newly developed rifled Parrot guns, prompting the surrender of the fort in just thirty hours.
In 1866, after the end of the war, a reconstruction crew began work on the lighthouse, using $20,000 appropriated by Congress on April 7, 1866 and another $34,443 provided the following year. Work was progressing well until federal troops arrived on the island bringing with them cholera. The foreman and four workers died from the disease, prompting the remaining workers to flee the site. A replacement crew was brought in to complete the work. Only the bottom sixty feet of the 1773 tower was salvageable, and on this base an additional ninety-four feet of tower was added, bringing the total height to 154 feet. A new, fireproof cast-iron staircase with 178 treads formed the spine of the lighthouse, and a first-order Fresnel lens was placed in the lantern room. The all-white structure, flanked by new keeper's dwellings, displayed its fixed white light for the first time on October 1, 1867, along with a new fourth-order beacon light displayed from atop a fifty-foot skeletal tower.
In 1886, an earthquake, a rare occurrence for the east coast, struck the area. The Annual Report of the Lighthouse Board for 1887 summarized the damage to Tybee Island Lighthouse:
The earthquake of last August extended the cracks that have been observed in this tower for several years and made some new ones, but not to any dangerous extent. The lens was displaced and the attachments to its upper ring were broken. The damage was repaired without delay. The entrance for which these lights made a range is gradually moving to the southward and in January last it became necessary to move the front beacon 98 feet in that direction.
Battery Garland, a part of Fort Screven, was built east of the between 1898 and 1899, and in 1901, the Lighthouse Board noted that the firing of heavy guns at the battery was bringing down the plastering in the principal keeper's dwelling. Ceiling boards, finished in hard oil, were installed in the dwelling instead of the plaster.
Electricity reached the lighthouse in 1933, replacing kerosene as the light source, and the staff at the lighthouse was reduced to just one keeper, George Jackson, who served until his death in 1948. The Coast Guard, who took control of the tower in 1939, occupied the station buildings until 1987, when they moved to a modern facility on Cockspur Island.
In 1998, Tybee Island Lighthouse underwent a major restoration after Tybee Island Historical Society had spent twelve years raising the nearly half a million dollars needed for the project. International Chimney Corporation of Buffalo, New York served as general contractor, and Scottish masons, Irish painters, and local craftsmen were recruited to work on the lighthouse. From 1970 through 1998, the top half of the lighthouse was black and the bottom portion was white. When the lighthouse was painted as part of the restoration, the top and bottom portions of the lighthouse were painted black and the middle section white. The lighthouse had sported this particular daymark for more time than any other (from 1916 to 1964). To see a picture of the various daymarks used on the Tybee Island Lighthouse click here.
Following the renovation of the lighthouse in 1998-99, the head keeper's house was restored in 2000-01, the first assistant's dwelling was renovated in 2003-04, and from 2005-08 attention was placed on the second assistant's house, which was converted into a lecture hall, art gallery and audio-visual space.
The tireless efforts of Tybee Island Historical Society were rewarded in 2002 when they received ownership of the station under the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act. The lighthouse was one of the first to be transferred under the act. Visitors to Tybee Island Lighthouse today are treated to one of America's most complete and well-maintained light stations. The five-acre site is home to the lighthouse, a head keeper's house built in 1881, a first assistant's house built in 1885, a second assistant's house built in 1861, a summer kitchen built in 1812, an oil house built in 1890 to house the volatile kerosene fuel, and a garage built in the 1930s.
The lighthouse is still active, illuminating the skies above Tybee Island nightly with its first-order lens.
Located on the southern side of the mouth of the Savannah River. Tybee Island Lighthouse is open every day, except Tuesday, from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The lighthouse is also closed on St. Patrick's Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas Day, and New Year's Day. For more information, call (912) 786-5801.
The lighthouse is owned by the Tybee Island Historical Society. Grounds/dwelling/tower open.
Tybee Island Lighthouse is open every day, except Tuesday, from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The lighthouse is also closed on St. Patrick's Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas Day, and New Year's Day. For more information, call (912) 786-5801.
The lighthouse is owned by the Tybee Island Historical Society. Grounds/dwelling/tower open.
Notes from a friend:Kraig writes:
Located just seaward of the Tybee Island Lighthouse is Battery Garland of Fort Screven, which is now home to the Tybee Island Museum. Besides being a great place from which to photograph the lighthouse, the museum contains numerous exhibits detailing the history of Tybee Island. Fort Screven was built for the Spanish American War and was used until the end of World War II.Marilyn writes:
We loved this lighthouse! We spent so much time there both day and night that we could be docents. Seriously, it is worth the visit at night too. The fort is very cool too, but those people must have been darn short which didn't work well for me and barely did for Joanne.Joanne writes:
Night and day, day and night, both are spectacular. Be sure to tour the fort as well and watch your head when going through the doors.
See our List of Lighthouses in Georgia
Pictures on this page copyright Kraig Anderson, used by permission.


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Habbush letter
The Habbush letter, or Habbush memo, is a handwritten message dated July 1, 2001, which appears to show a link between al-Qaeda and Iraq's government. It purports to be a direct communication between the head of Iraqi Intelligence, General Tahir Jalil Habbush al-Tikriti, to Iraqi president Saddam Hussein, outlining mission training which Mohamed Atta, one of the organizers of the September 11 attacks, supposedly received in Iraq. The letter also claims that Hussein accepted a shipment from Niger, an apparent reference to an alleged uranium acquisition attempt that U.S. President George W. Bush cited in his January 2003 State of the Union address.
The authenticity of the letter has been hotly disputed since it was first made public in December 2003. In 2008, journalist Ron Suskind claimed that the forgery had been created by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), under the direction of the White House. Two of Suskind's sources denied having knowledge of anyone in their chain of command ordering the forging the letter.[1] Former CIA officer Philip Giraldi alleged that the Pentagon was behind the forgery. The controversy that erupted as a result of Suskind's allegations led to an investigation by the House Judiciary Committee.[2]
On December 13, 2003, the day of Saddam Hussein's capture by US forces, The Daily Telegraph of London ran a front-page story that not only claimed Saddam Hussein had trained one of the hijackers in the September 11 attacks, but also that his government, assisted by a "small team from the Al Qaeda organization", was expecting to receive a suspicious consignment from the country of Niger. This exclusive article, and a second piece, were both written by Con Coughlin, executive foreign editor to the paper.[3][4]
Coughlin's information came from a secret intelligence memorandum, purportedly handwritten during Saddam Hussein's final days in power and discovered later by the newly formed Iraqi Interim Government, which summarized an operational relationship between Mohamed Atta, a known associate of al-Qaeda and one of the hijackers in the aforementioned attacks, and the Iraqi Intelligence Service (IIS). The letter was signed by General Tahir Jalil Habbush al-Tikriti, chief of IIS, and directed to the President of Iraq. Coughlin said that he had received this document from a "senior member of the Iraqi interim government", though this person "declined to reveal where and how they obtained it."[5]
Habbush's July 1, 2001, letter is labeled "Intelligence Items" and is addressed: "To the President of the Ba'ath Revolution Party and President of the Republic, may God protect you." It continues:
Mohammed Atta, an Egyptian national, came with Abu Ammer [the real name behind this Arabic alias remains a mystery] and we hosted him in Abu Nidal's house at al-Dora under our direct supervision.
We arranged a work program for him for three days with a team dedicated to working with him... He displayed extraordinary effort and showed a firm commitment to lead the team which will be responsible for attacking the targets that we have agreed to destroy.[4]
Initial reaction to the letter[edit]
Ayad Allawi, interim Prime Minister of Iraq, was quoted in the original report, offering personal assurance over the document's authenticity: "We are uncovering evidence all the time of Saddam's involvement with al-Qaeda.... But this is the most compelling piece of evidence that we have found so far. It shows that not only did Saddam have contacts with al-Qaeda, he had contact with those responsible for the September 11 attacks."[3]
The story was quickly picked up and repeated by several conservative columnists in the US, including syndicated columnist Deroy Murdock[6] and William Safire.[7] Safire talked about the document in an op-ed for the New York Times, claiming Saddam had attempted to cover-up his links to 9/11 by assassinating Abu Nidal, who the letter claims was with Mohammed Atta in Iraq. Stephen F. Hayes, a staunch proponent of Mohamed Atta's alleged Prague connection, ignored the letter entirely.
Three weeks later, in an interview with the Rocky Mountain News, Vice President Dick Cheney spoke more broadly on Saddam Hussein and al-Qaeda link allegations:
We haven't really had the time yet to pore through all those records in Baghdad. We'll find ample evidence confirming the link, that is the connection if you will between al Qaida and the Iraqi intelligence services. They have worked together on a number of occasions.[8]
On December 17, 2003, a Newsweek article titled "Terror Watch: Dubious Link Between Atta And Saddam", by Michael Isikoff and Mark Hosenball, outlined some of the main reasons to doubt the authenticity of the letter:
...the FBI has compiled a highly detailed time line for Atta's movements throughout the spring and summer of 2001 based on a mountain of documentary evidence, including airline records, ATM withdrawals and hotel receipts. Those records show Atta crisscrossing the United States during this period—making only one overseas trip, an 11-day visit to Spain that didn't begin until six days after the date of the Iraqi memo...
... Ironically, even the Iraqi National Congress of Ahmed Chalabi, which has been vocal in claiming ties between Al Qaeda and Saddam's regime, was dismissive of the new Telegraph story. "The memo is clearly nonsense", an INC spokesman told Newsweek.
The article also quoted an Iraq document expert named Hassan Mneimneh, as well as unnamed "US officials", who claim that the document was probably part of "a thriving new trade in dubious Iraqi documents".[9]
Ron Suskind's allegation[edit]
Ron Suskind, in his 2008 book The Way of the World, claimed that the Habbush letter had been forged by the White House, with the co-operation of senior CIA officials, including Robert Richer, the Associate Deputy Director of Operations . The letter was intended to be used as evidence of a link between al-Qaeda and Saddam Hussein, thereby further justifying the invasion of Iraq.
The idea was to take the letter to Habbush and have him transcribe it in his own neat handwriting on a piece of Iraq government stationery, to make it look legitimate. CIA would then take the finished product to Baghdad and have someone release it to the media.[10]
Suskind goes on to describe what he believes happened next: Richer spoke to John Maguire, a CIA Iraq expert, who said that this plan would not work, as Habbush would not sign anything himself because the insurgency would harm his family. This, by Suskind's account, led to the White House telling the CIA to hand-write the letter itself. Suskind's book says that this new order was eventually passed down to the Iraq Operations Group, who carried it out. Maguire left for Baghdad to help run the CIA station there and was not involved directly in the mission, other than discussing the mission with Richer.
Suskind also contends that Habbush, who still carries a $1 million reward for his capture, was secretly resettled in Jordan by the CIA with $5 million in US taxpayers' money.
Suskind claimed to have held tape-recorded interviews with Richer, Maguire, and Nigel Inkster of the British Secret Intelligence Service, in which they apparently testified that the White House was behind the forging of the letter.[11] According to a partial transcript of one of Suskind's interviews with Richer, published on Suskind's website, Richer saw a letter on White House stationery that had been passed down the ranks of the CIA – through George Tenet, then-CIA director, then to James Pavitt, the Deputy Director of Operations, then to Pavitt's chief of staff, who passed it on to Richer. The letter, which Richer said might or might not have come from the vice president's office, described a plan to create a forged document and release it "as essentially a representation of something Habbush says".[12]
On August 5, 2008, the White House issued a statement on behalf of George Tenet, Robert Richer and John Maguire, addressing Suskind's allegation. Tenet said:
It is well established that, at my direction, CIA resisted efforts on the part of some in the Administration to paint a picture of Iraqi – Al-Qaida connections that went beyond the evidence. The notion that I would suddenly reverse our stance and have created and planted false evidence that was contrary to our own beliefs is ridiculous.[13]
The CIA issued its own statement on August 22, 2008, saying that Suskind's allegations regarding Habbush "did not happen",[14] and Tenet followed the same day with a second statement saying that Suskind's charges were "demonstrably false in every regard."[15] Nigel Inkster told the Guardian that "Mr Suskind's characterisation of our meeting is more the stuff of creative fiction than serious reportage".[16]
Philip Giraldi's allegation[edit]
Former CIA officer Philip Giraldi, writing in The American Conservative, claimed to have a reliable source who tells him that Suskind's basic story about the White House ordering the forgery is correct, but some of the detail is wrong.[17] His source claims that Dick Cheney ordered the forgery, but not from the CIA, instead using the Office of Special Plans, an office created by Donald Rumsfeld and run by Douglas Feith.[18]
Subsequent reactions[edit]
Author Joe Conason noted that Ayad Allawi had visited CIA headquarters in Langley just days before speaking with Con Coughlin of the Telegraph.[19]
Con Coughlin, in a blog post highly critical of Suskind, confirmed that he had indeed received the letter from Ayad Allawi. He also called the letter a "leak" and said he got it in November 2003, in Baghdad.[20]
Congressional investigation[edit]
On August 11, 2008, the House Judiciary Committee announced that it would investigate the allegations. The Chairman of the Committee, John Conyers, stated:
I am particularly troubled that the decision to disseminate this fabricated intelligence is alleged to have come from the highest reaches of the administration. The administration's attempt to challenge Mr. Suskind's reporting appears to have been effectively dismissed by the publication of the author's interview recordings and transcripts. I have instructed my staff to conduct a careful review of Mr. Suskind's allegations and the role played by senior administration officials in this matter.[2]
As chairman, Conyers wrote to some of those alleged to have been involved (George Tenet, Robert Richer, John Maguire, John P. Hannah and Lewis Libby) on August 20, 2008, but as none of their replies confirmed their knowledge of the fabrication, he concluded "the Administration figures who ordered and authored the apparent forgery... remain unidentified".[21]
See also[edit]
- Iraq War
- Iraq War misappropriations
- Mohamed Atta's alleged Prague connection
- Niger uranium forgeries
- ^ "Author stands by his claim of White House forgery". MSNBC. August 6, 2008. Retrieved 2012-01-06.
- ^ a b "Conyers Announces Review of Allegations of Bush Administration's Forged Iraq Intelligence". United States House of Representatives. August 11, 2008. Archived from the original on November 26, 2008.
- ^ a b Coughlin, Con (December 13, 2003). "Terrorist behind September 11 strike was trained by Saddam". Daily Telegraph.
- ^ a b Coughlin, Con (December 13, 2003). "Does this link Saddam to 9/11?" Daily Telegraph.
- ^ "The Capture of Saddam Hussein". Meet The Press. December 14, 2003.
- ^ Murdock, Deroy (December 15, 2003). "On the Interrogation List" at the Wayback Machine (archived June 17, 2010). National Review. Archived from the original on June 17, 2010.
- ^ Safire, William (December 15, 2003). "From the 'Spider Hole'" New York Times.
- ^ Sprengelmeyer, M. E. (January 9, 2004). Transcript of interview with Vice President Dick Cheney at the Wayback Machine. Rocky Mountain News.
- ^ Michael Isikoff (December 16, 2003). "Terror Watch: Dubious Link Between Atta And Saddam". Newsweek. Retrieved 2012-01-06.
- ^ Suskind, Ron (2008). The Way of the World. Harper. p. 371. ISBN 0061430625.
- ^ "Ron Suskind Alleges War Fought On False Premises" at the Wayback Machine (archived August 28, 2008). NPR. August 7, 2008. Archived from the original on August 28, 2008.
- ^ "Interview with Robert Richer". Ron Suskind. August 8, 2008. Retrieved 2012-01-06.
- ^ Blackledge, Brett (August 5, 2008). "CIA officials deny fake Iraq-al-Qaida link letter". Associated Press.
- ^ "CIA Statement: Hardly 'The Way of the World'". CIA. August 22, 2008. Retrieved 2012-08-27.
- ^ Tenet, George J. (August 22, 2008). "Statement on Ron Suskind Book". Retrieved 2012-04-27.
- ^ Norton-Taylor, Richard (August 6, 2008). "Angry denials are not enough". The Guardian. Retrieved September 10, 2012.
- ^ Giraldi, Philip (August 7, 2008). "Suskind Revisited". American Conservative.
- ^ Borger, Julian (July 17, 2003). "The spies who pushed for war". The Guardian.
- ^ Conason, Joe (August 8, 2008). "New evidence suggests Ron Suskind is right". Salon.
- ^ Coughlin, Con (August 19, 2008). "The Great WMD Conspiracy Theory Unravels". Daily Telegraph.
- ^ House Judiciary Committee (2009). Lessons and Recommendations Relating to the Presidency of George W. Bush. p. 262.
Further reading[edit]
- Froomkin, Dan (August 5, 2008). "A White House Forgery Scandal?". Washington Post.
- Froomkin, Dan (August 6, 2008). "The White House's Weak Denials". Washington Post.
- Witheridge, Annette (August 6, 2008). "Spy chiefs warned Blair and Bush Saddam had no WMDs, Pulitzer prize winner claims in explosive new book". Daily Mail.
External links[edit]
- Interview with Ron Suskind – Part I, Democracy Now.
- Interview with Ron Suskind – Part II, Democracy Now.


text: While the baby is anesthetized and asleep (general anesthesia), the tissues around the defect are trimmed and sewn together with several layers of stitches (absorbable sutures). The skin is sewn together with very small, fine stitches (sutures) to make the scar as small as possible. In cleft palate repair, tissue from the back of the mouth (pharynx) may be taken to add tissue to the deficient soft palate (this is called a pharyngeal flap). Occasionally more than one surgery is required for complete palate closure.


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School age child development
School age child development is a range from 6 to 12 years of age. During this time period observable differences in height, weight, and build of children may be prominent. The language skills of children continue to grow and many behavior changes occur as they try to find their place among their peers. As always, safety is important in school age children and proper safety rules should be enforced in and out of the school area.
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Actor Daniel Craig is 44. Author Tom Wolfe is 81. Former Soviet President Mikhail S. Gorbachev is 81. Author John Irving is 70. Singer Lou Reed is 70. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar is 57. Rock singer Jon Bon Jovi is 50. Rock singer Chris Martin (Coldplay) is 35. Actress Bryce Dallas Howard is 31. NFL quarterback Ben Roethlisberger is 30.
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It is the glory of God to conceal a thing, but the honor of kings is to search out a matter.—Proverbs 25:2
You don't know what a welcome surprise it was to hear from you," Irene Garza wrote in her graceful longhand, in a letter to an old friend postmarked April 9, 1960. As she filled five pages of unlined paper, the 25-year-old schoolteacher seemed content for the first time in a long while. "I've made quite a few friends this year and am much happier than I've ever been," she wrote. Of her love life, she reported that she had been dating two men but was coy with her friend about one of them: "I won't mention his name, but we double-dated the last time you were here." The other, she wrote without much enthusiasm, was an "Anglo boy—not real handsome, but cute and religious (which is important)." She noted that her ex-boyfriend had sent her several cards and a box of candy on Valentine's Day. "I can't lie—I think of him often and wonder if I'll ever get over him (between you and me and the four walls)," she confided. "I pray constantly that if it be God's will, I will get over him eventually."
To her friends and admirers, Irene was many things: a natural beauty who had been crowned Miss All South Texas Sweetheart 1958; a former prom and homecoming queen at Pan American College; an accomplished teacher who worked with McAllen's most disadvantaged children; a devout Catholic who was active in the Legion of Mary; the first person in her family to attend college and graduate school. But in her letter, Irene appeared more fragile than anyone might have suspected. At the elementary school where she taught second grade, she wrote, she had been elected secretary of the PTA. "This may not sound like much, but to me it means a great deal," she explained. "It means I'm overcoming my terrible shyness and becoming surer of myself." Her job was a source of great pride ("These children I am teaching have been such a joy to me"), but it was her faith, which she returned to again and again in her letter, that sustained her. "Remember the last time we talked, I told you I was afraid of death?" she wrote. "Well I think I'm cured. You see, I've been going to communion and Mass daily and you can't imagine the courage and faith and happiness it has given me."
The following Saturday, April 16, 1960, Irene borrowed the family car to go to church, promising her mother she would not be long. She left her parents' house around six-thirty in the evening and made the twelve-block drive to Sacred Heart Church, where she planned to go to confession. Irene rarely went unnoticed; some would-be suitors came to mass just to admire her, and that night, as people waited for absolution, many caught sight of her. One parishioner noticed Irene make the sign of the cross as she entered the sanctuary. Another parishioner saw her kneeling by herself in a pew on the fifth row. A third remembered Irene asking if she might edge in front of her in the long confession line because she was running late. Some recalled her draping a white lace veil over her head, while others said she had stepped out of line, as if turning to go. Yet no one ever saw her leave the church that night. The next morning, Easter Sunday, her car was still parked down the street from Sacred Heart. Irene never came home.
A single high-heeled shoe, which had been cast to the side of the road, was the first clue that she was dead. A passerby named P. W. Miller happened upon it two days later, on an empty stretch of McColl Road, where it lay two inches from the curb. It was a small, beige, Fiancées brand pump, which fit a woman's left foot; it was slightly scuffed, and its heel tap was missing. Irene's family confirmed that she had worn the same shoe to confession.
The trail of evidence continued north, scattered beside the road. Three hundred yards from the spot where the shoe had landed on the pavement, a fellow teacher, Alfredo "Peewee" Barrera, caught sight the following morning of what appeared to be a black patent-leather purse lying in the middle of a field. It looked as if it had been flung out the window of a passing car. Barrera used a stick to pick it up so that investigators could dust it for fingerprints; none were found, but Irene's driver's license was discovered inside. Still farther north, investigators came across a piece of white lace crumpled in the brush.
Seventy members of the Hidalgo County Sheriff's Posse, many on horseback, fanned out through the orange groves and mesquite thickets east of McColl Road in the days that followed to look for Irene. Detectives combed through the brush on foot and canvassed the 32-square-block area surrounding Sacred Heart, going house to house. Skin divers dragged irrigation canals that fed off of the Rio Grande, and two Border Patrol planes circled overhead. Sixty-five National Guardsmen were called out to assist with what had become, at that time, one of the most extensive investigations in Valley history. Detectives followed up on hundreds of leads, including the boasts of a tourist at the Highway Grill, in nearby Edinburg, who told a waitress that he had killed Irene, warning, "You are next." (He later admitted that he had drunk half a bottle of tequila across the border and was only joking.) Then came what seemed to be a break in the case; a woman identifying herself as Irene called home and pleaded for help, claiming she had been kidnapped and was being held in a motel room in the neighboring


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Saturday, April 12, is National Grilled Cheese Day.
Check out grilled cheese favorites at Tom+Chee, a grilled cheese and tomato soup restaurant in Hamburg at 2200 War Admiral Way. Call (859) 263-0144 or go to Tomandchee.com.
Here are some ideas from Tom+Chee for jazzing up your homemade grilled cheese sandwiches.
- Goetta+Cherry Peppers+Fried Onions+Sweet Hot Mustard+Pepper Jack+Sourdough+Rye
- Roasted Turkey+Bacon+Pickles+Gouda+
- Mac & Cheese+Cheddar+White
- Hummus+Cucumber+Mixed Greens+Tomato+Cheddar+Wheat
- Pepperoni+Tomato Sauce+Mozzarella+Sourdough


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Posted: 09/03/09
Hoping to whip the Wii's action library into shape, the ominously titled Cursed Mountain materializes as a somber thriller with a twist. It shucks away more farfetched notions of the occult with the eerie possibility of vengeful Tibetan spirits, canning the experience in a high-altitude survival-horror set in the Himalayas. It's certainly an intriguing premise, but some precipices aren't worth the climb.
Cursed Mountain drops you in the snowshoes of Eric Simmons, a climber on a personal mission to find his missing brother, Frank. The few clues he has to go by point to the fictional peaks of Chomolonzo, where Frank was said to be seen pursuing an ancient and mysterious Buddhist artifact. As Eric ascends its perilous cliff sides, he's stricken with a curse that stirs the restless spirits of the dead. Battling the terrible visions that befall him, Eric trudges on in the blind hope that his brother hasn't already been claimed by the mountain's treacherous heights.
Though it doesn't necessarily score with its anemic cinematic interludes, Cursed Mountain definitely earns some points for originality. Its commitment to its Buddhist and Tibetan themes is refreshing, even if it doesn't completely manage to follow through with the immersion. The ensuing developments leading up to the climax feel sparse and overextended, but at a svelte eight to 10 hours, you can take comfort in knowing that this sojourn in the snow won't outstay its welcome.
With its eager sampling of survival horror tropes, Cursed Mountain ventures into some very familiar territory. The scattered bread crumbs of clues, journal entries, and life-giving incense sticks is a very traditional, if not conservative, take on the Silent Hill paradigm, while the vision shifting mechanic owes much to the shutterbug styling of Fatal Frame.
The game shoots for individuality primarily through its distinctly themed environments, and nets a minor victory thanks to its moody vistas and dilapidated base camps. Notes on Buddhist principles set the tone for those with the inclination to read them, but the overall spiritual presentation feels more like a facet of the game that, instead of being elegantly woven into its seams, is literally thrown at your feet.
The biggest grievance that Cursed Mountain is victim to, however, is a general lack of atmosphere. The absence of an engrossing narrative and driving mission objectives make all the macabre imagery feel hollow, and its excessive reliance on highly-telegraphed monster closets work against the game's subtler elements. The game's snail-like pace can make it feel like it takes hours to get from one snowbound locale to the other, and though the game is successful at establishing its setting, it's less so at pulling all the right strings to see you through each one.
Vastly outnumbered by the embittered specters of fallen Sherpas and monks, the odds suddenly don't look good for Eric's rescue expedition. But thanks to the power of Buddhism, Eric finds himself with an elegant solution to the ghostly threat: a laser-shooting ice pick. As you line up the sights on your spiritually-enhanced tool, the game switches gears into something of a third-person shooter, where the resulting barrage of religious energy depends on the attachment currently on your pick.
It all sounds rightly ridiculous, and it certainly doesn't do the atmosphere any favors. Progression is somewhat appreciable, however, thanks to slight upgrades to your spirit-scouring armaments, allowing you to better face some threats, like flying monks, with the appropriate weapon type.
The bigger gimmick, however, rests with Eric's ability to peer into the spirit realm, revealing weak points that signify which enemies and obstacles can be exorcised with a careful execution of Buddhist meditation poses. In Wii-speak, this translates to some spastic waggling. You'll receive prompts denoting which way to direct your spiritual chakras, but with inputs that barely register half the time, you'll find yourself cursing motion controls more than the mountain. It's that frustrating.
In all, this crag has its share of peaks and valleys, marred mostly by its inelegant implementation of motion controls. The game deserves some credit for mixing things up with the right dose of action, but with such an unwieldy control scheme, it all ultimately suffers.
On an artistic level, Cursed Mountain strikes an appropriately realistic look that sits well with the graphical limitations of the Wii. The interface wisely retracts into oblivion to draw attention to Chomolonzo's keenly built locales, and the visual effect that results from every jump into the spirit realm looks genuinely cool. Overall, the game's production values are respectable, even if a bit coarse in achieving right mood for the occasion. It would have been nice to see some more use out of the raspy transmissions sent directly to your Wiimote's speakers, though.
Cursed Mountain is an earnest attempt at staking its own niche in the survival horror space, but uninspired gameplay and clumsy controls keep it from reaching its own summit. It doesn't go far beyond an interesting concept, and unless you're willing to pay the price for a few fleeting hours into the maw of Chomolonzo, this one is better left on ice.
Reviewed on Nintendo Wii.
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Posted by Ginger Filed under Movies 3 Response
Bahman Ghobadi's latest film Rhino Season was a surprise omission from this year's Cannes programme. Venice could now serve as the launch pad for the acclaimed director's drama about a couple who are unjustly incarcerated during Iran's Islamic Revolution.
Bellucci plays Minah, the wife of an incarcerated poet Sahel (Behrouz Vossoughi), who emigrates to Istanbul with her two children after serving a ten-year jail sentence and believing her husband to be dead. Yilmaz Erdogan (Once Upon a Time in Anatolia) plays the couple's nemesis.
Multi-hyphenate Ghobadi says his latest work is not strictly a political film: "This film is very different to my previous works. It is a poetic film about an artist whose life was interrupted for thirty years when a person he knew used the political situation at the time to throw him and his wife in prison out of a deeply-seeded obsession and personal vendetta."
Ghobadi drew inspiration for Rhino Season from the real life events surrounding a Kurdish poet and family friend who disappeared for thirty years. Presumed dead by his friends and relatives, the man was in fact incarcerated in an Iranian prison.
Source: ScreenDaily
Take a look behind the scenes of Bahman Ghobadi's Rhinos Season! Here's to you the very first video release from the making of the movie Monica is shooting in Turkey since March 5. The caps are already in our gallery – click here to check them out!
Posted by Ginger Filed under Gallery, Movies 2 Response
Filming for Rhinos Season is not done yet! Pictures of director Bahman Ghobadi and Monica Bellucci were taken today in the Cappadocian region of Turkey, where the the last scenes for the movie will be shot in the next days.
Posted by Ginger Filed under Gallery, Movies 2 Response
More candids from Istanbul! Looks like Monica's Turkish journey has come to the end – filming for her scenes in Bahman Ghobadi's Rhinos Season is complete and now she is just enjoying the beautiful city of Istanbul with husband Vincent Cassel, who joined her a few days ago.
Enjoy a few pictures we have added to the gallery. And don't miss a super-cute family portrait of Monica, Vincent and adorable Léonie (Deva was not pictured) having lunch at Suada Club today!
Candids > Candids from 2011 > Family lunch at Suada Club
Candids > Candids from 2011 > Leaving Hotel with Vincent
Candids > Candids from 2011 > Having dinner with Bahman Ghobadi
Movies > Rhinos Season > Making of [Stills]
Posted by Ginger Filed under Gallery Leave a Response
Monica, Director Bahman Ghobadi and a few more people stopped by a typical restaurant in Istabul yesterday. We added some candids in the gallery – you can see Monica washing her hands in roses water before having dinner.
We have also added more pictures from Moscow – check them out here!
Posted by Ginger Filed under Movies, News Leave a Response
As we had previously reported, Monica Bellucci is going to Turkey next month, where shootings for Kurdish director Bahman Ghobadi's Gergedanlar Mevsimi (Rhinos Seasons) are about to begin. Monica is playing the wife of Berhouz Vossoughi (while young actress Beren Saat is playing her daughter), and will reportedly come to ?stanbul between March 5 to 20 for the shootings.
Monica Bellucci herself has confirmed the rumour:
«The movie is set before and after the Iranian revolution. I'm playing an Iranian woman. It is a political movie, but it is first of all about a great love story.»
As for Jagmohan Mundhra's much anticipated biopic Sonia (a movie about Sonia Gandhi, Monica is rumored to be playing the leading role since 2005), she says:
«I know. But I haven't received the script yet. Sonia Gandhi is a huge personality and you have to make a movie that respects her. We'll see.»
Come abbiamo riportato qualche giorno fa, Monica Bellucci sarà in Turchia il mese prossimo, dove inizieranno le riprese di Gergedanlar Mevsimi (L' epoca dei rinoceronti), del regista curdo e vincitore della Palma d'oro Bahman Ghobadi. Monica interpreterà la moglie di Berhouz Vossoughi (mentre la giovane attrice Beren Saat interpreterà sua figlia), e sarà a Istanbul orientativamente tra il 5 e il 20 marzo per le riprese.
La stessa Monica Bellucci ha confermato la voce:
«Il film è ambientato prima e durante la rivoluzione in Iran. Interpreterò una donna iraniana. E' un film politico, ma è prima di tutto una grande storia d'amore.»
Per quanto riguarda il film di Jahmohan Mundhra, il chiacchieratissimo Sonia (una biopic su Sonia Gandhi, si vocifera che Monica debba interpretarla fin dal 2005), dice:
«Ho saputo. Ma non ho ancora ricevuto il copione. onia Gandhi è una figura femminile epocale, bisogna realizzare un film che la rispetti, che ne sia all' altezza. Vedremo.»
Posted by Ginger Filed under Movies, Rumours Leave a Response
According to some rumors, Monica Bellucci will be in Turkey next month, shooting a new movie under the direction of Cannes Film Festival winner Bahman Ghobadi. Turkish actress Beren Saat should be in the movie too.
No further news on this project is available.
Monica is also about to shoot another untitled movie directed by her husband Vincent Cassel in Brazil, and yet another Italian-Turkish movie after the summer, directed by Ferzan Ozpetek. Harem by Fabien Pruvot should be in the works too, but there never was an official announcement about it.
Secondo alcune voci (non ancora confermate) Monica Bellucci sarà in Turchia il mese prossimo, per girare un nuovo film sotto la regia del vincitore del Festival di Cannes Bahman Ghobadi. L'attrice turca Beren Saat dovrebbe essere la co-protagonista.
Non ci sono ulteriori particolari sul progetto.
Monica è anche in procinto di girare un altro film ancora senza titolo diretta dal marito Vincent Cassel, in Brasile, e ancora, un altro film italo-turco dopo l'estate, diretta da Ferzan Ozpetek. Harem di Fabien Pruvot sarebbe in lista anche, ma non c'è mai stata una conferma ufficiale.


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When it comes to overall cruising comfort, it's hard to beat the advantages of a catamaran and that's why Mariner Boating is using them for some of their 2014 events. Even devoted monohull purists can admit that, for coastal cruising and island hopping, it's nice to have that extra bit of space and ventilation. Plus, the low angle of heel is much more conducive to easy handling and lunches seem to have a much better chance of staying on the table.
Teaming up with Multihull Solutions, Mariner has put together three events early in 2014 that feature cats in the famous rally format. The yacht rallies are a great way to explore a destination with the convenience of technical back-up and the reassurance of cruising in company. The events are hosted by Australians Trevor and Maggie Joyce who have been conducting yacht rallies and cruising for more than 40 years.
Featured charter boats for the rallies from Catana including OC41, the Carbon-Infused 42 and 47 and there are other yachts available as well. Of course, monohulls are available too for those who just really prefer a little less beam.
Thai-Langkawi Yacht Rally 4th–19th January, 2014 More Info
This rally takes in the less visited Thai islands of the southern Andaman Sea and along the coast and islands of Malaysian Langkawi – timed for the dry season when the weather is at its best.
Caribbean Canter Rally - 23 February-10 March, 2014 More Info
Following a one-way itinerary from Antigua the trip follows favourable trade winds and currents along a route that includes Barbuda, Nevis and St. Kitts, Saba and St. Barts, before finishing in St. Martin in time for the Heineken Regatta.
Sail Tahiti Yacht Rally 13-23 April, 2014 More Info
The idyllic Leeward Islands of French Polynesia are the setting for this 10-day cruise that includes Raiatea, Bora Bora and Huahine.
No matter where in the world you live, from Hong Kong to Italy to San Francisco, you are welcome to join any of these voyages. For more information, contact Mariner Boating Holidays by checking out the website at Mariner Boating


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New NetBase Partnership Brings Facebook PYLON Access to Our Customers
Thanks to a new partnership with DataSift, the Human Data Intelligence provider, NetBase is bringing Facebook topic data to our customers. Facebook PYLON is the only way for brands and agencies to understand all of Facebook's audience and gain insights into their behavior. We're thrilled to be among the limited number of partners working with DataSift, the only data provider currently with access to topic data for Facebook, the world's largest social network. Using DataSift's PYLON for Facebook Topic Data, NetBase will be able to offer our customers anonymized and aggregated insights from all of Facebook posts to power their [...] Read more →
Enterprise Social Visualization Best Practices: Use social analytics visualization to run your business at the speed of social
Executives today have the opportunity to see visualization of social media analytics on a large-scale in real time. Picture a wall of oversized flat screens with scrolling images and numbers that quickly provide insights on the most shared images from your product launch, what's driving share of voice and loyalty for your brand, the number of mentions a brand is getting on social media, whether those mentions are negative or positive, and how a new product launch is being received in Dallas or Dubai. Now, companies are able to harness and properly visualize the unprecedented and valuable amount of information [...] Read more →
The Next Generation In Social Analytics At Scale Is Already Here
Understanding what's happening in your category RIGHT NOW can be helpful knowledge to have in order to drive growth and focus campaign efforts. For instance knowing when something game-changing is happening. Knowing where, why, and who is driving it – and then taking actions ahead of a competitor can really make a difference. As a social savvy operation, with a marketing or digital team in charge of your social sites, you're probably already thinking along these lines. You may be operating with limited resources, but do recognize the potential and you are starting to carve out a solid digital footprint [...] Read more →
Man Shaves Beard Off After 14 Years, and Family Reacts in Shock, in Remarkable Razor Ad
Yesterday, AdWeek reported on an ad campaign promoting M6 Razorblades in which an Israeli man shaves his beard off after 14 years. The commercial was filmed almost like a mini documentary and you get to experience the real emotional reaction from his wife, child, etc. Since the story delves into the man's personal connection to his beard, I thought it would be interesting to get a broader perspective. No time for a focus group or survey, I of course turned to our social media analytics which in a matter of minutes surfaced the top 10 things men like and dislike about their [...] Read more →
Why Do European Brands Dominate the Global Luxury Conversation?
What is it about luxury brands – those of European origin in particular – that have the global consumer so smitten? At a time when many economies across the globe are far from thriving, people will still save for that irresistible item that they cannot seemingly live without. Or simply buy it on credit. Why are we so passionate about luxury brands – and who is a luxury brand in the consumer's eye? Here are a few theories: The identity factor – Whether you're struggling to make the rent or carefully balancing a budget, a Louis Vuitton purse puts up [...] Read more →
Siri-ous Trouble
As someone with a title like Chief Innovation Officer, I probably should have been one of the first smart phone adopters. Truth be told, I didn't jump on that bandwagon until an investor looked at my phone during a board meeting and teased me for having an "old man phone". In my defense, I was actually an early adopter, but I got burned by the earliest Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) from Sharp. Does anyone remember the Sharp Wizard? Ok that was what I used back in the 90s! But it was so useless I decided to take a break from [...] Read more →
Finding Daily "Dunk in the Dark" Moments to Drive Supernormal Growth, and Why Most Brands Are Failing to Achieve That
During the third quarter of Super Bowl XLVII, a power outage halted play for 34 minutes. Oreo tweeted: "Power out? No problem," along with a photo featuring the now-famous tagline, "You can still dunk in the dark." Oreo's marketing reflexes were something magical on that day. Surely, they couldn't have predicted a power outage, yet it took them less than a half-hour to deliver one of the most memorable advertisements in the past few years. To date, the tweet has garnered more than 6,000 'favorites' and more than 15,000 re-tweets – and it's possibly still the most unforgettable part of [...] Read more →
Haute Couture – When Birds Of A Feather Don't Flock Together
As pink ostrich feathers took flight at Sotheby's inaugural haute couture auction in Paris last week, which featured vintage gowns from Didier Ludot's collection, the Balenciaga gown that plucked top dollar at auction where the entire lot sold out at triple pre-sale estimates—birds of a like feather were spreading their plumes in sometimes phantasmagorical settings at Haute Couture Fashion Week 2015 in Paris and Rome. But birds of a feather don't always flock together. Given the escalating pressures to produce 12 collections annually, plus a couture label, and maybe your own eponymous collection, there is a trend aloft to go off-piste, wherein designers literally escort [...] Read more →
Join NetBase on Our Brand Innovators Speaking Tour
Author: Hope Nguyen, VP Marketing We're hitting the road this summer and fall to bring insights surrounding NetBase's brand of sentiment-driven consumer social analytics to audiences at a number of Brand Innovators Summits across the U.S. and beyond – and we want YOU to join us! Brand Innovators Summits bring together a variety of key stakeholders and experts in the social space – from client side CMOs to media directors, brand marketers, and more – to share their expertise on the way social media and social data are evolving, and how brands can best wrangle these shifting technologies for maximum [...] Read more →
Men's Fashion: Even Punk Doesn't Sacrifice Tailoring
Last month's Fashion Week flurry of Spring/Summer 2016 Men's Collections staged in London, Paris and Milan revealed both distinct trends and divergences among presenting designers. In an attempt to unravel and decipher what some fashion pundits suggested was an 'anything goes' hodgepodge of trends in men's fashion, I ran a social media analysis in NetBase. The resulting Crosstab analysis in this post is an attempt to provide a glimpse of some of the themes pervading men's fashion, where they might intersect, and to identify brands leading the narrative. The Paris Men's collection garnered significantly higher discussion around Street Style-both [...] Read more →


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Tomorrow Fund creating brighter future
The Tomorrow Fund for Hispanic Students, which provides scholarships to help students from low-income families with college costs, has created opportunities for some admirable young people who are richly deserving of the education they are receiving.
Founded by Diane Evia-Lanevi, the fund this year helped 28 students with scholarships ranging from $1,000 to $16,000.
The stories of some of the students who have benefited from the organization show the thirst, desire and drive these young people have, as well as they lengths to which they are going to get an education.
Take, for instance, Alberto Negrellos-Aguilera. His road to get a diploma has been anything but easy. By the time he graduated from high school, his mother was having health issues and his father was without a job. He helped keep the family afloat by picking berries and working construction. Still, he pursued his education. He would sleep in the halls of his science labs if he missed his last bus. He had to take time off to earn enough to pay for another semester of school.
But Negrellos-Aguilera is now in the home stretch, with only three more semesters to go at Appalachian State. He wants to attend medical school after he graduates so he can help others and his family.
It would have been a travesty if Negrellos-Aguilera had never had the opportunity to achieve his full potential.
We want the best and the brightest in this country so that we can continue to be a world leader. We want the best students to enter our state universities and hope they will remain in North Carolina, which will benefit our state economy.
The Tomorrow Fund and organizations that share a similar mission should be applauded for helping ensure gifted students are not blocked from pursuing higher education because of the price tag.
It also helps ease the burden for children who unfairly face stiffer college tuition bills because their parents immigrated here to seek a better life without documentation. They are being penalized for their parents' decision. If these students were granted in-state tuition, it would allow the Tomorrow Fund to stretch its dollars further, perhaps.
We appreciate the dogged pursuit shown by the students that the Tomorrow Fund has assisted. We hope they achieve the better life that their families sought.
As Glenda Polanco, a native of El Salvador and a scholarship recipient who attends Meredith College, noted: "I knew I had to go to college. That was the whole reason my mother brought me here."


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Now Playing
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Date(s)/Time(s) of Auditions: Saturday June 25, 2012 from 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Directors will contact actors at a later date regarding callbacks.
Location of Auditions:
Michigan Actors Studio
648 E 9 Mile Rd.
Ferndale, MI 48220
Audition by appointment only.
Actors please go to www.michiganactorsstudio.com/det-theatre-shows to sign up for a time slot.
Seeking/Roles Available:
Various roles, male/female, looking for all ages (over 18) and ethnicities
Audition Preparation:
Two contrasting monologues no more than three minutes total.
Please bring five copies of headshot/resume so all directors may have a copy.
Type of Contract:
Non union; all roles paid
Other Dates (rehearsal/production):
See below
The Season: All shows Friday 8 p.m., Saturday 8 p.m., Sunday 2 p.m.
The 59ers written and directed by Patrick Moug (Nov. 25-Dec. 11)
Lovers and Other Strangers by Renee Taylor and Joe Bologna directed by Steve Tadevic (Jan. 20-Feb. 5, 2012)
The Zoo Story and The American Dream by Edward Albee directed by Barton Bund (March 16-April 1)
Beyond Therapy by Christopher Durang directed by Kate Peckham (May 18-June 3)


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I think they made a great choice for a dog. They are full of energy and very playful. My friend had one and they are very close their owners. People are mad because Obama took in a
DOG?! If more people took care of their dogs there wouldnt be so many in shelters. People who dont have time for a pet they picked out should be ashamed of them selves for giving up on it. I just dont see how anyone could do such a thing.


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Even with the change of ship we found the service and commentry of the highlights of the Sydney harbour was great and the meal was very tasty and mde my 60th birthday a memorable occasion.
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08-30-2010, 09:56 AM #1Regular Contributor
- Join Date
- Apr 2009
- Posts
- 41
Placement of gutters below extended roofline
On a 6/12 roof gutter's outer edge of the gutter would have to be about 1/2" below extended roof line to avoid sliding ice / snow. I understand this rule is important for metal / tile roofs, but what about shingles ?
My concern is that on a 30 ft. run if I follow 1/16" rule about pitching the gutter for proper drainage AND this rule of placing gutters below ext. roof line my gutter will be 4" below the top of gutter apron and it will not cover gutter properly.
Any feedback on this one ?
Thank you in advance.


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Stocks stabilize on Wall Street after a sell-off
NEW YORK -- The steep losses stopped Wednesday as the stock market turned calm, a day after one of its biggest sell-offs of the year. Indexes ended with slight losses after the Federal Reserve said the U.S. economy still needs support.
The Dow Jones industrial average closed down 25.19 points at 13,077.34, a day after one of its worst drops this year.
The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 4.36 points to close at 1,408.75 while the Nasdaq composite index fell 8.76 points to 2,991.70.
The market flitted between small gains and losses for much of the day. Indexes started to fade after 2 p.m., after the Fed repeated its assessment that the U.S. economic recovery remains modest at best.


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Cranberry-Oat Bars are moist and just sweet enough. / Carolyn Doyle/The Star
Don't worry about gaps on top of the cranberry sauce filling; the dough will spread to fill most of them in. / Carolyn Doyle/The Star
At the market
Nice to see such a good turnout at the Winter Farmers Market in Downtown Indy. The array of produce is enough to provide inspiration all week. Lots of varieties of apples, greens, lettuce, radishes, spinach and winter squash, along with Asian pears, basil, beets, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, carrots, celeriac, garlic, kale, onions, parsnips, potatoes, sweet potatoes, shitake mushrooms, red and green tomatoes, plus turnips.
There are leftovers you have to use up in a few days ... and then there are the seasonal canned items that can sit happily on your shelf for months, but that you dont tend to use but once a year.
Cranberry sauce falls into the latter category. Mindful of the Great Cranberry-less Thanksgiving of 1997 (which Cousin Bink never lets ANYONE forget), you buy a couple of extra cans ... and they sit ... and sit on the pantry shelf.
Well, not any more.
Cranberry-Oat Bars
Makes 20 bars
10 tablespoons (5 oz.) unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon EACH cinnamon and salt
2/3 cup finely chopped walnuts
1 cup whole-berry cranberry sauce
1/2 teaspoon fresh orange zest (grated from about half an orange)
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Beat butter and sugar to combine; beat in egg.
3. In separate bowl, stir together dry ingredients (oats through walnuts). Using a spatula, combine into butter mixture until a crumbly dough forms.
4. Butter a 9x9-inch pan and pat almost 2/3 of dough to cover the bottom. Spread cranberry sauce to within a half-inch of edges. Sprinkle orange zest evenly over sauce.
5. Sprinkle or pat remaining crumb mixture evenly over top (some bare spots will remain). Bake 25-30 minutes, until top is lightly browned. Let cool completely (at least one hour) before cutting into squares.
You can use cranberry relish or even slices of jellied cranberry sauce, but whole-berry sauce works best.
For thicker bars, use a 7x11 or 8x8 pan, reduce baking temperature to 325 and bake for up to 40 minutes, until crust in center is done.
Find me on Twitter: www.twitter.com/CarolynDDoyle; Facebook: file://localhost/CarolynDoyleCooking; or call (317) 444-6972.


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I was looking up Gambit here on Commicvine and I came across something I was not aware of. It's the fact that Gambit is immune to telepaths.
"Gambit's ability to tap energy also grants him superhuman agility and dexterity, as well as creating a static interference that shields his mind from detection and intrusion by even the most powerful telepaths."
Firt off
I was wondering if this was true?
When has he been show doing this?
Who has tried to use telepathy on Gambit and failed?
How far does this immunity go?
Has anyone been able to perform any type of tepethic attacks on him, such as projecting illusions in his head, hitting him with mind blasts or persuasive thought pushing?
Has Charles Xavier or Mr. Sinister ever been able to use their telepathy on Gambit?
Thanks to anyone that can help me out on the matter.


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With MLB's free agency hot stove set to heat up, the Detroit Tigers are sure to be active in retooling their roster with nearly 23 million coming off the books. Though new contracts, like Jose Valverde's 2012 option and raises to Justin Verlander and Miguel Cabrera will offset a chunk of that, the Tigers still figure to be involved. What positions should they target, and in what order? Who should be the various names they consider? We attempt to answer those questions in depth in the Tigers' installment of the offseason game plan.
The most important order of business should be to bring some stability to the infield at the key positions of third base and second base. Which position commands the bigger ticket addition? That's the critical choice which will have to be made. After that, depth within the starting rotation, the bullpen and catcher should each be addressed.
Third base: Wilson Betemit did some decent things down the stretch for the Tigers this fall, but disappeared in the playoffs and should be allowed to sign elsewhere. Without Betemit, the Tigers will be left with Brandon Inge and Don Kelly as their only options at third base. Though they have their moments, neither Inge nor Kelly alone will contribute what is needed offensively every day to win a World Series, and their roles on the team seem to cancel each other out. In a perfect world, the Tigers swallow Inge's deal, find a new third baseman and use Kelly for the super-sub role. The problem? Much like second base, the free agent market for third basemen is sparse at best. Aramis Ramirez will be the biggest prize available, but his bat comes with the caveat of age and expense.
Game plan: Explore a trade. If the Tigers choose to upgrade third base instead of second base with a big ticket addition, the trade market would be the most appealing place to find a long term solution. Dombrowski should call the Mets regarding David Wright and the Padres about Chase Headley. Otherwise, they could choose to get involved with Ramirez, but they should probably steer clear of him and anyone else on a sparse free agent list.
Second base: After two years of confusion following the departure of Placido Polanco, the Tigers should make finding a new everyday second baseman a goal this offseason. The bad news? Like third base, free agency provides few game changing options at second. Kelly Johnson and Aaron Hill are two names that come to mind which would add some speed and pop to the order. Both are good contact hitters that could set the table for the middle of the order. Jamey Carroll is a steady option in free agency, but is likely more of a platoon player. Beyond that, there isn't much on the open market. If the Tigers decide to solidify second base long term this offseason, they may have to explore a trade.
Game plan: The Tigers should sign Aaron Hill or Kelly Johnson, but not before they kick the tires on Brandon Phillips of the Cincinnati Reds. Phillips had his option picked up recently, but there have been a few rumblings that he may be available. Dave Dombrowski should at least give the Reds a call and inquire on his availability. If the Tigers don't move fast in free agency to pick up a Hill, Johnson or even someone like Carroll, you can bet there is something in the works somewhere with regards to a trade.
Starting pitcher: Last offseason, the Tigers were reluctant to add to their pitching staff with a bigger name and instead chose to go the route of promoting Phil Coke to the rotation while signing journeyman veteran Brad Penny. That plan didn't work out so well during the season. This offseason, the Tigers should be in better shape having already obtained Doug Fister during the summer. They could choose to make one bold move that would make the rotation tough to beat. If the Tigers were to make a move here, a left handed pitcher would be the best option. Fortunately, a few good names exist. C.J. Wilson and Mark Burhle are both left handers who could be the missing piece to a Tigers rotation in dire need of a capable southpaw.
Game plan: Sign Mark Burhle. The Tigers should negotiate with Wilson, but if teams like the New York Yankees and Washington Nationals get involved, expect his price to increase tenfold. He'll likely price himself out of the Tigers salary range, unless they deem him the number one target on their free agency list. Burhle seems like the better option. He's a crafty veteran who knows the Central Division well and could give the Tigers what Kenny Rogers gave them in the 2005 offseason. Burhle may need convincing to stay in the A.L. and join a bitter division rival, but that's what money and incentives are for.
Middle reliever: In 2011, the Tigers threw a ton of money at Joaquin Benoit to occupy the eighth inning. The year before, they did the same thing with Jose Valverde, who will be back in 2012 to pitch the ninth. During the playoffs, those two were as good as it gets. The Tigers bullpen is most in need of quality depth to occupy innings six and seven, bridging the gap between Benoit and Valverde. The playoffs demonstrated how important this can be, as both the Rangers and Cardinals used an extensive bullpen help to secure games and late leads. Expect the Tigers to find a few mildly priced free agents to help out here.
Game plan: Sign any two of these free agent relievers, but think mid to lower tier. Don't expect the Tigers to get involved with any of the big names this time around, ala Heath Bell. Instead, look for them to wisely add some quality and affordable depth.
Catcher: The wear and tear on Alex Avila was crushing in 2011, and if the Tigers want him to live to see age 30, they should find another catcher to help spell him behind the plate. Instead of counting on Victor Martinez for this, the TIgers should scour the free agent market. A few good options exist, such as Ryan Doumit (formally of Pittsburgh) and Kelly Shoppach (formally of Tampa Bay). Gerald Laird is also free agent, but the potential blowback from the fans upon his return would outweigh any benefits he would provide.
Game plan: Sign Ryan Doumit. Doumit is versatile enough to play other positions (outfield and first base) when not in use as a catcher. His bat is good enough to give the lineup some pop in the absence of Avila (Doumit hit .303 in 2011 with eight home runs) and he would be a capable player to plug into the lineup without a strict decline in offense.
One potential big (but unlikely) move that could be made: Sign Jose Reyes, move Jhonny Peralta to third base, eat Inge's contract, sign a lower tier free agent to play second base. This scenario might seem far fetched, but if Mike Ilitch likes Reyes enough to make him the team's number one priority, it's wise to never say never. This is despite Reyes' high price tag (perhaps 100 million?) and Peralta's previous aversion to the hot corner. Reyes also isn't getting any younger at age 30, and he has been injury prone in the past, meaning any long term deal will be extremely risky. Despite that, Reyes' speed and leadoff ability would make him a natural fit for the Tigers and Comerica Park. Tuesday, Dombrowski indicated he didn't plan to get involved with anyone like Reyes, but free agency is a high stakes game of poker. Until Reyes signs with someone else, take that with a grain of salt.
With these simple additions, the Tigers should be set up well to contend for a second straight division title and a return trip to the ALCS in 2012.


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|About the Change
American Ballet Theatre
June 2007
New York, Metropolitan Opera House
by Eric Taub
Last night I was enchanted by ABT's The Sleeping Beauty. The sets and costumes were opulent but never garish. The Aurora danced every act with sinews of steel, and her Prince was the embodiment of classical grace. The Petipa choreography was burnished to a roseate glow, and by the apotheosis love and mercy had again triumphed over chaos, and all was right with the world. Then the videotape ended, jerking me away from those thirty-year-old images of Cynthia and Fernando, and ABT's long-lost Messel production. Instead, I had to face the reality of today's ABT, and the train-wreck of their new Beauty.
I'm daunted by the task of describing the monumental awfulness of this production. It's so utterly wrong-headed, so happily ignorant of The Sleeping Beauty's deeper meaning, and filled so copiously with staggeringly bad artistic choices that I scarcely know where to begin. Three million dollars sure buys an awful lot of stupid. Stupid ideas, stupidly executed, all speaking volumes of the utter contempt in which today's artistic directors hold their forebears.
The Sleeping Beauty is, in many ways, the beating heart of this fragile, hot-house flower of an art form. Three decades ago, Lucia Chase and Oliver Smith understood this, and mounted a reverent recreation of Sergeyev's Sadler's Wells staging, complete with Oliver Messel's gorgeous costumes and scenery. For Kevin McKenzie, The Sleeping Beauty, like The Nutcracker and Swan Lake before it, is just a problem to be solved, an stodgy anachronism all-too-deserving of any butchery necessary to gain the attention of today's attention-challenged audiences. That The Sleeping Beauty might contain a message about, say, the triumph of love and mercy over chaos, or even how the order and harmony of the revived kingdom is itself a reflection of the pure and codified forms of classical ballet, is of no importance whatsoever to McKenzie and his collaborators, Gelsey Kirkland and her husband, Michael Chernov. Of Petipa's story, the Rose Adagio and Grand Pas de Deux and bits of the Vision Scene survive, more or less, but stripped of their greater contexts they're driven down to the same level of on-stage special effects as the turbocharged dry ice machine, or the wires upon which unlucky dancers must fly. Perhaps in his next production McKenzie will use lasers to liven up those dull wasted moments when Aurora's not actually balancing forever or risking death in the fish dives.
Although the ABT team's narcissistic blindness to the values of the old Sleeping Beauty cheapens their every decision, there's nothing, in theory, wrong with trying to revamp a classic. The real problem is trying to revamp a classic, and doing a terrible job, which is what this team's done. McKenzie, Kirkland and Chernov have the chutzpah to rip apart this once-great ballet; ripping apart is easy. They clearly do not have the talent, vision or even basic dramatic competence (even though Chernov's contribution has been billed as that of a "dramaturge") to rebuild it into something even a tenth as coherent as what was destroyed, let alone into something better.
There's such a profusion of idiocies, such an embarrassment of embarrassments, that the story of Aurora herself gets lost in the grating static from one ridiculous dramatic "enhancement" after another. This Beauty can't decide what story it's trying to tell (even though it should be obvious from the title), because it wants to tell so many. The Prince gets much, much more stage time, and so does Carabosse, and so do the tireless Fairies and their attendant Knights (bet you didn't know there were knights in The Sleeping Beauty, did you?). It's like being stuck listening to someone tell a story who keeps losing the narrative while meandering into irrelevancies. By the time Veronika Part and Marcelo Gomes came out for the Grand Pas in the third act, I thought, "oh, look, it's that girl again."
OK, Mr. Taub, thanks for the rant, but what about the ballet?
For the prologue, the curtain went up on an elaborate set for the kingdom's throne room, as designed by Tony Walton. For some reason, there's a big shower curtain covering much of the upstage wall; shouldn't every throne room have a shower curtain? The courtier's costumes, by Willa Kim, are gorgeous: sumptuous, brilliant combinations of deep blue, whites and silvers: pages with white tights, ladies with flowing double wimples, and the King (Victor Barbee) and Queen (Susan Jaffe) truly resplendent in acres of gilded fabric in designs reminiscent of those in the Duc du Barry's Book of Hours.
© Gene Schiavone
As the fairies make their entrance, the shower curtain revealed its purpose. It would be too pedestrian for the fairies to merely walk onstage in a dignified procession, even though Tchaikovsky makes the moment special, and, when done right, it's like the arrival of the land of Faerie, en masse. No, let's guild the lily by having all the Fairies carried onstage in showy lifts by their cavaliers, I mean Knights. So, first we saw the various Fairies' heads and shoulders floating, in silhouette, against the curtain, which then opened to show them entering from a sunlit balcony. Each Fairy was carried in by a Knight, until we got to Lilac (Stella Abrera), who required two men to carry her in a sky-high fish position, as if she were already raining her benediction down upon the baby Aurora (in this production you'll often see a character's "signature" image echoed again and again, as if McKenzie were determined to get his money's worth out of each motif along with his beloved dry-ice machines).
Once the fairies alit, I was blinded by their extraordinarily tacky costumes. Peacock feathers abound like staring eyes, tinsel and sequins and glitter are everywhere, and too-bright, too-saturated colors of their tutus add to their look of dancing Christmas-tree ornaments. For their own part, the Knights wear what appear to be dragon-scale breastplates and dragon-wing capes. As neither Tchaikovsky nor Petipa actually made music or steps for these Knights, they're never more than superfluous annoyances throughout the ballet, popping up when McKenzie thinks we need to see them jumping and turning, and, otherwise, generally getting their asses kicked by Carabosse (come to think of it, they have a lot in common with Jedi knights, who spend six entire movies getting their asses kicked). I mean, if the knights could defeat Carabosse, it would be a pretty short ballet, wouldn't it? (Not that I would've complained.)
As the fairy solos began, the dreaded Makarova-Slow-Tempi which were to suck out what little air this silly production left in the Met asserted themselves. I'll never again complain about sluggish Royal Ballet tempi; ABT's were indeed slower than empires. The first Fairy, danced by Maria Ricetto, might as well have been the "Fairy Somnolente," so gradually did she progress across the stage. I thought the Fairies weren't supposed to put everyone asleep until after the prologue. As Fairies, they were a desultory bunch, although Sarah Lane gave her all to the songbird solo. Kristi Boone started out the Fairy Violente (finger-fairy) with gusto, but she soon lost her focus to the languid tempi which claimed the others. Apparently the tempi also claimed her pas de chats, which were nowhere to be seen. After Abrera's pretty yet wooden Lilac solo, the fun started with the arrival of Gelsey Kirkland's Carabosse.
You could tell something big's about to happen as the dry ice machines wooshed into noisy activity, and suddenly there's Kirkland in silhouette against the backlit fog, rising slowly like a malevolent toadstool from a hump-backed crouch. As in decades past, Kirkland's presence onstage belied her petite size. Her mime, uncanny in its directness and simplicity, recalled her dancing days, when even her slightest gesture might sear itself into your eyes as she pared every movement down to its purest, ineluctable form.
Would that Kirkland's conception of the role were as interesting as her execution of it. There was little cold or contained fury here, just repeated, explosive fits of self-indulgeng pique (that's actually a pretty good summary of this entire wretched production). Carabosse is most frightening when she's hardly moving at all, but Kirkland stomped and stamped around the stage with such tempestuous fury that she reminded me of Barbra Streisand having a mute hissy fit.
Carabosse was attended by some alarmingly over-costumed human flies, who sometimes skittered across the stage back-to-back like those repugnant revelers in Prodigal Son. The Kights spring forward to attack the flies and defend Aurora, but Carabosse ignored them, and I wish I could've, too. What a waste of good soloists like Sascha Radetsky and Gennady Saveliev! Kirkland's histrionics took her so far as to seat herself on the king's throne, scolding all the way. After she delivered Carabosse's curse on Aurora and Abrera's Lilac mitigated it with her own blessing, Kirkland vanished in an enormous burst of flash powder (someone must've offered McKenzie a good deal on flash powder, so prodigal is he with explosions), and it was on to the first act, where things began to go truly awry.
The first act began outside the gates of the garden in which Aurora's birthday party was about to take place. Some very silly girls in hideous yellow and green peasant costumes were playing together, as Kirkland's Carabosse slunk s-l-o-w-l-y toward them from the left of the stage, hunched over and pulling herself with her cane like a predatory snail. She presented them with a spindle, and skulked away as they play with the shiny, unfamiliar toy. Yes, in this production the "spinners" aren't risking death to do something productive like make clothing, as is usually the case in this scene; they're just clueless youngsters who are painfully ignorant of the import of their actions. Ah, isn't irony sweetest when it's unintentional?
Of course, the girls were found out, in a bit of overdone slapstick in which anyone who touches the spindle is seized by guards and condemned. As the King, Victor Barbee has to repeatedly shake his finger (to a trill of Tchaikovsky's which deserves better), like an angry lunchroom monitor or substitute teacher. The entire incident, Barbee clenching his jaw and staring into space as the Queen (Jaffe) and the various condemned beseech him for mercy on their knees, dragged on so slowly that I wanted to beg Barbee to set me free, too, but that wasn't to be. Finally, after an eternity of contemplation, he released the hapless girls just in time for the Garland Waltz.
© Merlin Hendy
And that arrival! For some reason, there's a bridge leading from the castle proper at the left of the stage (a very elaborate set, with balconies and turrets and more crenellations than I could count) towards a small pillar on the right circled by a ridiculously steep spiral staircase. As the music for Aurora's entrance built, her friends must one-by-one cross the bridge and with admirable, and hands-free, nonchalance, descend the stairs (which are so shallow it looks like each step has only room for a dancer's heel) without killing themselves. When it was time for Aurora to appear, she had to pose at the center of this Bridge to Nowhere, then trot down the Stairs of Death before she could launch into her perky opening solo. This kind of takes the wind out of the sails of her entrance, because already saw her cross the bridge and descend the stairs in advance of her "entrance" music, but who's counting?
After the disaster of Part's Rose Adagio at ABT's opening-night gala, I was worried she might again have trouble with the deadly balances. She played it very safe, though, and got through them with the least risk or flair possible. However, she flagged noticeably in Aurora's solos, and it's painfully noticeable when a big, tall dancer like Part starts dancing smaller and smaller. In one slow diagonal of piqué poses where she presents herself (and her beautiful front leg in attitude) to each prince, she seemed scarcely to cross the center of the stage at all, leaving two princes to acknowledge her attentions from across a yawning gulf. Although Part was quite an effective actress in La Bayadere, her Aurora seemed mired in a kind of saccharine cuteness right out of the Soviet era, at least when she wasn't disguising her shortness of breath with a grimace-like smile. Throughout all, though, Part's carriage of her shoulders and arms was gorgeous in the grand Vaganova style she's a perfect Lilac Fairy ill-served by this miscasting.
Kirkland returned and gives Aurora the deadly spindle, with the familiar result. However, at the point in the choreography where Aurora usually recoils from the gloating Carabosse, who stalks her across the stage, Part had to recoil from nothing, as Kirkland had already ascended to the middle of the Bridge to Nowhere, the better to enjoy the view, I suppose, and dominate the stage. Of course, this means that before she can deliver her mimed "I told you so!" soliloquy, Kirkland has to hobble c-a-r-e-f-u-l-l-y down those stairs. After some suitable diabolical laughter, she climbs back on the bridge and disappears in shock of flash powder so enormous it looked to have rocked Kirkland off her balance for a second ("Famous ex-ballerina injured in stage mishap read all about it!"), but fortunately she ducked behind the battlements before, I swear I'm not making this up, a firework like a shooting star burst across the stage, representing, I suppose, her fiery exit.
Abrera dutifully mimed the Lila Fairy's message of hope: that Aurora's not dead, but will sleep, etc., but what's this? The King and Queen don't get to nap like everyone else, but mean ol' Lilac kicked them out of the Garden, I mean the garden. I guess that's a catch to Aurora's survival that Lilac forgot to tell them in the prologue. So everyone else in the kingdom sleeps for a century or so, but the royalty must fend for itself with nothing but the jewels on their backs. So once again Jaffe sobbed inconsolably, and Barbee looked stoic, as vines devoured the castle.
After the single intermission, we were back in Kevin-McKenzie-land, where nature abhors a vacuum that doesn't contain men jumping and turning. As the curtain rose on the second act, the Prince, Marcelo Gomes, was having a lark with four of his manly buddies, manfully cleaving the country air with frolicsome jeté coupés and, as youth must be served, finishing up with a happy concordance of turns in second. They all rushed off in time for the arrival of the aristocratic hunting party, where, after a seemly pause, Gomes and his friends return on the Prince's proper entrance music. Once again McKenzie's ruined a character's entrance, as we'd just seen the Prince gamboling in the meadow with his cohort.
Now comes the one good idea McKenzie and team have, which they immediately beat into the ground. During the game of blind-man's buff, the blindfolded Prince had a vision, projected high above the backdrop, of Aurora's enchanted castle. This explains quite marvelously why the Prince is so rude to his fellow aristocrats. Usually he seems to be merely a sulking misogynist, but here he's been granted a glimpse of something better, so he's at least got a reason for looking beyond his shallow friends. Had this prequel Vision been left at that, it would've been a deft touch indeed, yet you might gather by now that leaving well enough alone isn't part of this team's intellectual mindset.
Soon, to the violin entr'acte originally intended for the long-gone Panorama, and played with lugubrious slowness, the backdrop's painted river covered the stage in a effluence of, you guessed it, dry ice, and, slowly, the Prince bent down to drink of the Enchanted Fog Machine. If only I'd known dry ice could be such a potent hallucinogen! My own vision was getting blurry from the oxygen being constantly sucked out of the Met, but I recall those hapless fairy Knights circling about an understandably befuddled Gomes in, of course, big leaps and turns, and then four subsidiary Fairies, with the songbird busily songbirding, similarly emboxing him, before flittering into the wings. Best of all was the Prince's glimpse Aurora, laid out on a bier in a swan-winged boat, drifting languidly through the downstage ripples of fog, as if to a Viking funeral. Somewhere in the midst of this slow-motion nonsense I found myself wishing someone might put me to sleep for a hundred years, but I was afraid I'd wake up and it'd still be the second act.
After coming to what passes for his senses, the Prince eventually freed himself from his entourage, only to find the corners of the stage blocked off by dryads arrayed in garlands of B-plus positions, and it was time for his second Vision of the day. Lilac appeaered, and after the usual "Why are you so sad?" and "Have I got a girl for you!" mimes, in came the vision of Aurora. But, remember, we'd already seen Aurora this act, so yet another entrance was ruined, and ruined even more because, instead of appearing as a vision, before stepping onto the stage, here Part simply bourrees in from the wings. Big whoop, as they say. In this Vision scene, the corps was far more aggressive about separating the Prince and Aurora and very obtrusive about arranging themselves into pretty, garland-like displays. I'm not familiar with the solo Part danced, but much was familiar, like the endless circling the pair did around the mulberry bush of dryads, before Gomes could finally hold Part. Here, they both danced with appropriate grace, although Part's tricky arabesque turns into pirouettes had their stiff moments.
Abrera then took Gomes on a journey up the creek in a paddle-less and, for a few depressing moments, motionless, enormous swan-boat. For a few seconds it appeared that no more than the bow would make it onstage, but after a few jerks it sailed majestically, freeing Gomes from any need to hop out and push. As the boat exited to the right, a large, shadowy, cobwebby curtain covered half of the front of the stage, and Kirkland reappeared, and, after using an invisible air-sickness bag, she produced invisible spiderwebs for her insectiod minions to create a trap for the Prince. Gomes entered, alone (I assume the Lilac Fairy was off powdering her nose), and became ensnared as the minions scooped him up, to much gleeful posturing by Kirkland who, no longer crouching, waved her cane about with great abandon, as if perhaps she really wanted to be Madge when she grew up. Gomes appeared spread-eagled against a spider web on a high platform, and Kirkland levitated skyward to menace him with her cane. Yes, Carabosse can fly. I guess those bitty fairy wings are good for something after all. Apparently her cane can double as a proboscis for exsanguinating her victims, and as she poked poor Gomes with it, his spotlight changed from white to red. Ewww. Then suddenly Lilac, having perhaps remembered that she shouldn't have sent the Prince alone into the spooky dark cave, stepped out from behind the web and attacked Carabosse, as, below, the various Fairies and their Knights drove off Carabosse's bug-men. At our last glimpse of Kirkland, she's spinning slowly clockwise while still floating in mid-air, doing a great impression of the dead floating astronaut from 2001. Ah, nostalgia.
Suddenly the lights went up, we're back in the garden, and Gomes is standing, to great applause, on the Bridge to Nowhere. For some reason Aurora's bed was now exposed to the elements, but nevermind. He marched across, kissed her, then everyone trotted down the Stairway of Doom, and Lilac blessed the couple's marriage. Oddly enough, Aurora seemed neither to notice or care that her parents were gone, but that's a teenager for you. A small group of courtiers appeared, magically transformed (by Lilac?) into magnificent Louis-XIV-era garb, golden coats and tonnelets for the men, dresses with enormous panniers for the women, all in golden fabric with stunning embroidered roses. After a procession before a drop curtain so that the stage crew can work their magic, it was on to Aurora's Wedding, or what passes for it in this sad production.
© Gene Schiavone
The upstage curtain rose, and one-by-one the various fairytale guests for the wedding entered: Puss in Boots and the White Cat, Little Red Riding Hood and the Wolf, and Cinderella looking for her shoe, and her Prince Charming. I soon realized that we wouldn't actually see any of these characters dance to their familiar music; all their dances had been cut, doubtless to make up for the time wasted on the Wet Vision Scene and the Cobweb of Doom. Instead we got some silly cartoonish mashups of all the characters, where Puss in Boots hit on Cinderella, and the flapping-toungued Wolf (complete with rhinestones on his tongue to represent drool!) was admonished by Prince Charming to present Little Red Riding Hood with a flower instead of eating her, an order which he, crestfallen, obeyed. This business wouldn't have been funny thirty years ago on Saturday-morning kiddie TV, and it's certainly not funny now, just embarrassing.
Then Xiomara Reyes arrived in a cage, and was released to dance an overly bubbly Bluebird pas de deux with Herman Cornejo, who's so beladen with blue feathers it's a wonder he can jump at all, but jump he does, and for the only time in the entire ballet there's some dancing which isn't stultified in the service of dubious technique or pedantic dramaturgy. Cornejo's the best Bluebird I've ever seen, with leaps that hang in the air and utterly soft, noiseless landings. The audience erupted in cheers, for the only real time in the ballet.
Then Abrera returned for a perfunctory solo, and it was time for Part (remember her?) and Gomes to deliver the Grand Pas de Deux, complete with tinselly, garish, spray-painted costumes. There were times when Part was gorgeous, but, as in the first act, there were times she seemed just barely holding herself together while squeaking through the trickier parts of her solos. At least the fish dives were impressive, a magnificent display of Part's long, flashing limbs and Gomes' strength. Stripped of its normal context of a celebration of harmony restored (has she still not noticed her parents are gone?), the pas de deux seems less a culmination than an appendage, with the real story perhaps still back in the second act, swirling in a whirlpool of dry ice and tinsel. Again, Part found little to express of Aurora's character beyond an occasional pert smile and toss of her head.
Then it was off to the races for the mazurka, and a very odd apotheosis. The Fairies and Knights returned, yet again, to pin capes on the happy couple, who paced towards downstage center, as Abrera returned with an oversized crown to hold over their heads (at first I thought it was Aurora's long-belated birthday cake). Two Knights lifted Abrera overhead, and then she, too, flew upwards on wires as the curtain slowly fell. By this time, all my benumbed mental facilities could accomplish was to wonder what sort of candies and toys might erupt if someone were to hit Abrera with a stick.
I haven't felt such relief leaving a ballet since I saw ABT stage the second act of McKenzie's Nutcracker at City Center years ago, when I was also tempted to kiss the pavement upon my escape.
I've heard this production, with Kim's wedding-cake costumes and Walton's prettified sets, described as a "Walt Disney" version of The Sleeping Beauty. Would that it were so. Disney would never have allowed a mess like this onstage. Look at all the recent successful and wonderful films Disney's made and then converted to stage hits. Unlike ABT's team, Disney knows how to tell a story. They understand pacing, respect their audience's intelligence, and don't fall so in love with bits of their own handiwork that they allow the parts to overwhelm the whole. This production would've been much, much better had ABT hired Disney to develop it for them. And let's not forget Disney's already had some success working with the Sleeping Beauty story.
Although McKenzie and NYCB's Peter Martins often seem to be in a competition to create the worst new production of a classic (it's a tossup whose Swan Lake is worse), Martins' Sleeping Beauty, despite many cuts and tightenings, never loses sight of the ballet's story and meaning (and it has Patricia Zipprodt's magnificent designs, too).
Once again we've been reminded that simply because an artistic director was a brilliant dancer, and is now a decent organizer and manager, it doesn't mean that he knows anything about being an artist, even with help.


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Rocky Mountain Research Station Publications
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Articles, External Publications, and Special Reports
Landscape scale attributes of elk centers of activity in the central Black Hills of South Dakota
Stubblefield, Cynthia H.; Vierling, Kerri T.; Rumble, Mark A. 2006. Landscape scale attributes of elk centers of activity in the central Black Hills of South Dakota. Journal of Wildlife Management, Vol. 70, Issue 4, 10601069.
We researched the environmental attributes (n = 28) associated with elk (n = 50) summer range (1 May30 Sep) in the central Black Hills of South Dakota, USA, during 19982001. We defined high-use areas or centers of activity as landscapes underlying large concentrations of elk locations resulting from the shared fidelity of independently moving animals to specific regions on summer range. We divided the study area into 3-km grid cells to represent the distance elk travel in a 24-hour period. We computed mean elevation and slope, proportion and configuration of overstory canopy cover, proportion and configuration of dominant vegetation type, estimated biomass, road density, traffic rate, and amount of habitat not dissected by improved surface roads for each cell. We used a combination of multiple stepwise regression and likelihood ratio tests to develop spatially adjusted models with total number of elk locations per cell as the dependent variable. Environmental attributes varied in their significance based on their availability to different elk subpopulations. Collectively, the number of elk locations was positively associated (model r2 = 0.50, P < 0.001) with elevation, proportion of nonroad-dissected habitat, shape complexity of meadows, proportion of forest stands with <40% overstory canopy cover, and proportion of aspen (Populus tremuloides). Elk were responsive to a landscape structure emphasizing forage potential, and their selection was based on the composition and pattern of both biotic and abiotic variables. Defining the characteristics of high-use areas allows management to manipulate landscapes so as to contain more of the habitats preferred by elk.
Keywords: Black Hills National Forest, Cervus elaphus, dissected habitat, elk, habitat selection, high-use areas, landscape metrics, landscape-scale, road pattern
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