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Philippe Duclos, Immunization Safety Priority Project, Department of Vaccines and Biologicals Health Technology and Pharmaceuticals, World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland
Second only to tobacco as a recognized cause of a major cancer in humans, hepatitis B is preventable with safe and effective vaccines (State of the World's Vaccines and Immunization, 2002). In 2000, according to WHO estimates there were over 5.5. million cases of acute hepatitis B infection and over 520,000 deaths from hepatitis B-related diseases (470,000 from cirrhosis and liver cancer and 52,000 from acute hepatitis B infection).
Hepatitis B vaccines have been available since 1982 and way over 1 billion doses have been used. Considering the major public health burden of hepatitis B infections and the availability of safe and effective vaccines that could prevent most of this burden, in 1992, the World Health Assembly, recommended that hepatitis B vaccines be integrated into national immunization programs.
By the end of 2001, 142 countries were using hepatitis B vaccine in routine immunization schedules. The actual price of the vaccine has been a major deterrent to its introduction in many countries and has limited further use of the vaccine. The use of hepatitis B vaccine has resulted in dramatic reductions in the prevalence of the carrier state in many areas with a reduction in the carrier rate to less than 1% from levels of 15-20 % (Kane, 1998; Kane, 1997). Data from Taiwan also show that hepatitis B vaccination reduces the incidence of liver cancer in children (Chang et al., 1997; Hsu et al, 1999).
Over the recent years, however, the safety of hepatitis B vaccine has repeatedly been under attack. A number of controversial adverse events have been purported to be associated with hepatitis B vaccines including rheumatoid arthritis, diabetes, chronic fatigue syndrome, demyelinating diseases (e.g. multiple sclerosis (MS) and more recently lymphoblastic leukemia.
These allegations have generated a large flurry of media coverage challenging the safety of the vaccine and resulted in a number of legal actions. This had a major impact at the global level on the image of the vaccine and its acceptance. In addition to allegations involving specifically the hepatitis B vaccine, a number of safety issues have been raised with respect to specific vaccines components such as thiomersal and aluminium adjuvants also included in other vaccines. This has resulted in the further undue amalgamation of issues and blame over the hepatitis B vaccine.
In this context, the purpose of the following is to summarize information on the safety profile of the hepatitis B vaccine and on the occurrence of adverse events following its administration. Before reviewing this, however, it is important to consider the actual content of the vaccine as well as the various sources of information.
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Vaccine preparations
Hepatitis B vaccines (HBV) are composed of highly purified preparations of hepatitis B "s" antigen (HBsAg). This is a glycoprotein that is a component of the outer envelope of hepatitis B virus, and is also found as 22-nm spheres and tubular forms in the serum of people with acute and chronic infection. Vaccines are prepared by harvesting HBs Ag from the plasma of people with chronic infection (plasma derived vaccine) or by inserting plasmids containing the viral gene in yeast or mammalian cells (recombinant DNA vaccine). An adjuvant, aluminium phosphate or aluminium hydroxide, is added to the vaccines that are sometimes preserved with thiomersal. The concentration of HBs Ag varies from 2.5 to 40 µg per dose, according to which manufacturer is used and the target population (Mahoney et al., 1999).
Although vaccines were initially mostly of the plasma derived type the biggest share of the market is now represented by recombinant vaccines which have become more affordable and plasma derived vaccines will likely be phased out.
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Sources of information
In establishing a safety profile for a vaccine, it is important to discriminate between allegations or facts and to consider the source of information and if data is obtained from surveillance or from properly controlled studies. Surveillance, case reports and case series represent an incomplete picture since they only focus on those vaccinated individuals which develop a particular medical condition without consideration neither to un-immunized individuals nor to those vaccinees that remain free of the particular condition of interest.
Globally, post-marketing surveillance capabilities are improving and more importance is attached to the reporting of suspected links between vaccination and adverse events and signal generation. However surveillance and case-series reports can identify spurious associations and generate false hypotheses. One has therefore to clearly distinguish hypothesis generating and hypothesis testing. Hypothesis testing must be done quickly and to high quality scientific standards. Epidemiological and laboratory investigations need to be carefully conducted to avoid introducing bias; data must be carefully validated and scrutinized before results are communicated.
Establishing a causal relationship between many of the purported adverse events mentioned before and hepatitis B vaccine is difficult: these events are rare, occur in the absence of hepatitis B vaccination and have their peak incidence in the older age groups who did not receive hepatitis B vaccine as part of routine childhood vaccination.
To respond promptly, efficiently and with scientific rigor to vaccine safety issues, in 1999, the World Health Organization (WHO) has established a Global Advisory Committee on Vaccine Safety (GACVS) to provide an independent scientific assessment of vaccine safety issues (GACVS, 1999) and to make scientific recommendations which are intended to assist WHO, national governments and international organizations in formulating their policies regarding vaccine safety issues, including problems which particularly affect developing countries. The committee has published the principles underpinning vaccine adverse event causality assessment that it uses (GACVS, 2000) and has been asked to review a number of hepatitis B related safety issues.
In 1998, the Viral Hepatitis Prevention Board organized a technical consultation on the safety of the hepatitis B vaccine (Halsey et al, 1999). In addition, recently, the US Institute of Medicine (IOM) commissioned an independent comprehensive review paper (Waubant et al, 2002) and went on to review the evidence bearing causality on the relationship between hepatitis B vaccine and central and peripheral nervous system demyelinating diseases in March 2002 (Stratton et al., 2002).
The following summary is based on published literature, information presented at public conference as well as analysis of surveillance data. It also builds on the conclusions of the IOM and on that of the GACVS, which was presented with some yet confidential and unpublished data. Since a comprehensive review of the safety of the hepatitis B vaccine had first been completed in 1994 by the IOM (Stratton et al., 1994), the review focuses on major publications and reviews since that time and attempts to allude to all of the major issues raised.
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Adverse events following immunization
Mild adverse reactions
A large number of clinical trails have been reported in the literature. In general, there are minimal reactions reported, such as local pain, myalgia and transient fever, mostly within 24 hours. In summary, mild adverse events have been reported with an approximate frequency of 1-6% for temperature greater than 37.7°C, 3-29% for pain, 3% for erythema, 3% for swelling, and 3% for headache (Zajac, 1986; Andre, 1989; Stevens, 1987; Szmuness, 1980; Francis 1982). Several studies compare reactions after different vaccines (Greenberg, 1996), different concentrations of the same vaccine (Pooverawan, 1993; Tan 1990), different schedules (Goldfard, 1994; Giammanco, 1998), or describe the reactions of a single vaccine (Soulie, 1991; McMahon, 1992; Leroux-Roels, 1997) without placebo group. All report mild local and general reactions, lasting less than 48 hours. In placebo-controlled studies, these side-effects were reported no more frequently among vaccine recipients than among individuals receiving a placebo with the exception of local pain (Szmuness, 1980; Francis et al. 1982, Lewis et al., 2001). Children have fewer adverse reactions than adults (<10% vs. 30%) (Andre, 1989)
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Severe adverse events
Anaphylactic reactions
The estimated incidence of anaphylaxis among vaccine recipients is one per 600,000 vaccine doses distributed. No serious, severe or fatal anaphylactic reaction has been reported. Further vaccination with hepatitis B vaccine is contraindicated in people with a history of anaphylaxis to a previous dose (CDC, 1996).
Chronic fatigue syndrome
In Canada, during 1993–94 a rumour was also raised that vaccination against hepatitis B was responsible for chronic fatigue syndrome (Delage et al., 1993) but no epidemiological data have ever confirmed this allegation (Anonymous, 1993).
Hair loss
Hair loss has been reported after routine immunization, especially hepatitis B (Wise et al., 1997). Hair loss is a common event; it may be extremely difficult to confirm a causal association with HBV administration. Recent yet unpublished data from CDC using large linked databases, however, do not seem to support this hypothesis (personal communication, Robert Pless)
Claims have been made that administration of vaccines including hepatitis B vaccine can cause type I diabetes (juvenile or insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus – IDDM) in rats (Classen, 1996) and children (Classen et al., 1997). The consensus of current professional opinion accepts there is no link (Karvonen et al, 1999; Jefferson et al., 1998). A panel review of all the evidence to date was held in the United States. This also found no association (Institute for Vaccine Safety Diabetes Workshop Panel, 1999).
Fisher et al. recently reported on a study of adverse events associated with hepatitis B vaccine in US children and claimed having demonstrated an association between chronic arthritis and administration of hepatitis B vaccine in children (Fisher et al., 2000). The same study also alleged an association with ear infection and pharyngitis and nasopharyngitis. This publication was reviewed by the GACVS, which concluded that the several major methodological flaws of this publication invalidated its results.
Problems identified included: the fact that the results obtained contradict the conclusions made by the authors; the very variable distribution of subjects in the various age cohorts casting doubts on the representative of the study population; the lack of consideration given to potential important confounding variables; the fact that definitions of the adverse events were not provided; the absence of plausible biological hypothesis; the serious flaws in the analysis of the results; and the fact that a large proportion of the study population was excluded from the analysis due to missing information on immunization status.
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Multiple sclerosis and demyelating disorders
In recent years, following intensive use of the vaccine in France with over 20 millions persons vaccinated, several case reports raised concerns that hepatitis B immunization may be linked to new cases or relapse of MS (Duclos et al. 2001). Articles published in the media stating such a link further fuelled the worry over the safety of the vaccine. As a result of the public and professional concern, on October 1, 1998, the French Authorities temporarily suspended their school-based adolescent hepatitis B vaccine program. They, however, maintained the recommendation of universal infant immunization and the recommendation to administer the vaccine to adults at increased risk and reiterated continued support for adolescent vaccination through primary care physician. The French decision was misquoted and interpreted as a ban of hepatitis B immunization, which generated lots of concern in both developed and developing countries.
Three hypotheses could explain the observed cases of MS following hepatitis B vaccination: 1) coincidence, due to the large number of hepatitis B vaccine doses administered, many of them in age groups where symptoms of MS first occur; 2) "triggering": an increased risk of symptomatic demyelination following hepatitis B vaccine which would act as a "trigger" in individuals predisposed to develop MS or central nervous system (CNS) demyelinating diseases; and 3) a true causal relationship between hepatitis B vaccination and MS or other CNS demyelinating disease.
As of 2001, over 600 cases of central demyelinating diseases had been reported to the French authorities, the majority in adult females with a close match to the natural epidemiologic distribution of MS (AFSAPS, personal communication). The time between the last dose of vaccine and the onset of the neurological symptoms was distributed from 1 day to 5 years (median: 60 days). No cases were reported among children less than 25 months despite the vaccination of 1.8 million babies. Overall, 9 epidemiological studies (see Table 1) were carried out in order to estimate the association between vaccination with hepatitis B vaccination and the risk of occurrence of demyelinating disease (first attack or relapse of multiple sclerosis). Despite some slightly elevated odds ratio observed in the first initial studies, none of the studies did show a statistically significant elevated risk and the most recently completed and/or published studies do not indicate any excess risk. There is a lack of experimental data to suggest a link. The analysis of data from spontaneous reports and the results of epidemiological studies, do not suggest a causal relationship between MS and hepatitis B. The most plausible explanation regarding MS reported following hepatitis B vaccination remains a coincidental association, if we take into account all available data. Yet, although one can exclude an elevated risk of MS, a weak risk cannot be rejected nor the existence of subpopulations with specific sensitivity and it is not possible to demonstrate an absence of correlation.
Consistent with the IOM conclusions that the evidence favoured rejection of a causal relationship between hepatitis B vaccine administered to adults and incident multiple sclerosis or multiple sclerosis relapse, the GACVS committee upon review of available data concluded that there was no evidence based on safety to suggest that WHO should consider altering its recommendations that all countries should have universal infant and/or adolescent immunization programs and continue to immunize adults at increased risk of hepatitis B infection as appropriate.
With respect to other demyelinating diseases, a few articles mention isolated demyelinating cases following hepatitis B vaccination (Shaw, 1988; Herroelen, 1991; Mahassin, 1993; Trevisani 1993; Nadler, 1993; Tartaglino, 1995; Konstantinou et al, 2001). There had also been a suggested possible association between Guillain–Barré syndrome (GBS) and receipt of the first dose of plasma-derived vaccine in the US (CDC, 1991). In 1991, Guillain–Barré syndrome was reported at a very low rate (0.5 per 100 000 vaccine recipients), with no deaths in all reported cases among adults. Current available data indicate no demonstrable association between receipt of either plasma-derived or recombinant vaccine and GBS. At its 2002 review, the IOM concluded but that the evidence was inadequate to accept or reject a causal relationship between hepatitis B vaccine and first episodes of a central nervous system demyelinating disorder, acute disseminated encephalomyelitis, optic neuritis, transverse myelitis, GBS and brachial neuritis. In addition the committee concluded that there was weak evidence for biological mechanisms by which hepatitis B vaccination could possibly influence an individual's risk of any of the above mentioned demyelinating diseases.
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Hepatitis B and Leukaemia
A study recently presented as a poster by Ma et al. (2002) reported an epidemiological association between receipt of hepatitis B vaccine and the risk of acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) in a group of 334 children in northern California. This is the first study to ever report such an association. The investigators of the study further suggested that thiomersal may play a role in the mechanism as the effect was more likely to occur with repeated dosing. Additional research is being conducted by the CDC VAERS system using the Vaccine Safety Datalink to verify this hypothesis and further work will also be initiated by WHO. The findings could just be a chance association considering that several hypotheses were being tested on a single data set. This issue was reviewed by the GACVS at its June 2002 meeting in the presence of independent toxiologic and thiomersal experts.
Some animal studies have considered an association between mercury and certain cancers, but this was generally not supported by the literature and it was suggested that such an association was not biologically plausible and that cancers associated with metal carcinogens involves continual or repeated insults before cancer manifests.
The committee concluded that an association between hepatitis B vaccination and acute lymphoblastic leukemia was suggested from one source which in itself was not convincing together with no strong biological evidence. Associations such as the one described by the authors can appear through a variety of statistical phenomena and may not represent a true causal link. Although the association could not be disregarded at this stage and should be kept under review, the committee concluded that at this stage the risk was only entirely theoretical and contrasted with the proven benefits of hepatitis B immunization.
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Aluminium containing vaccines and MMF
Muscle biopsies performed in France in the deltoid of a number of patients with a variety of complaints have revealed in a small number of patients the presence of an inflammatory focus of macrophages. These localized, small inflammatory lesions have been called macrophagic myofasciitis (MMF) and have been found to contain aluminium salts. Since the location of these lesions coincides with the usual site of injection for vaccines, it is quite likely that these microscopic lesions are related to immunization. Groupe d'études et de recherche sur les maladies musculaires acquises et dysimmunitaires (GERMAAD) scientists also hypothesized that vaccination and MMF might be responsible for a disorder affecting many parts of the body (Cherin et al, 1999). However, it is possible that this is only an incidental finding or that the persistence of the lesion results from an underlying disease.
In 1999, the Institut français de veille sanitaire drew the attention of the WHO to these findings, which had been reported to them by the GERMMAD. On the advice of its GACVS, WHO initiated abroad consultation on this issue (GACVS, 1999).
WHO identified the need to determine why a macrophagic inflammation persists in a very small number of subjects and whether this histological lesion may or may not be responsible for the generalized symptoms in some patients.
These questions can only be addressed by epidemiological studies comparing individuals with and without the lesion. In 1999, WHO recommended that a study be undertaken to establish whether or not there is an association between local MMF lesions and any generalized symptom or condition. This study is now ongoing, and results should be available soon. Preliminary results of animal studies as well as studies of the macrophagic function, however, seem to further support the hypothesis that MMF may actually represent a simple vaccine "tattoo". At its June 2002 meeting the GACVS which reviewed the latest evidence concluded that in light of the data currently available, there was no evidence for a health risk from aluminium containing vaccines, nor any indication to justify changing current vaccination practices
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Safety of thiomersal
In 1999, concerns were raised in the United States about exposure to mercury following immunization. This was based on the realization that the cumulative amount of mercury in the infant immunization schedule potentially exceeded the recommended threshold set by one of the United States government agencies for methyl mercury (Freed et al., 2002). Thiomersal, the preservative in some vaccines, contains ethyl mercury not methyl mercury.
The GACVS first assessed this issue in a special meeting in August 2000 and has been reviewing the issue since. Recent expert consultation and data presented to the GACVS on 20-21 June 2002 indicate that the pharmacokinetic profile of ethyl mercury is very different from that of methyl mercury. In particular, the half-life of ethyl mercury is short (probably less than one week) compared to methyl mercury (1.5 months) i.e., exposure to ethyl mercury in blood is comparatively brief. Further, ethyl mercury is actively excreted via the gut unlike methyl mercury that accumulates in the body.
Two independently-conducted epidemiological studies were recently completed in the United Kingdom. These studies further support the safety of thiomersal-containing vaccines in infants at the amounts used in existing vaccines.
On the basis of the foregoing evidence, the GACVS concluded that there is no evidence of toxicity in infants, children or adults exposed to thiomersal (containing ethyl mercury) in vaccines and that there were no reason on grounds of safety to change current immunization practices with thiomersal-containing vaccines.
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The Very Best HTC Rezound Accessories you'll need to stay ready!
The HTC Rezound made its way through the rumor mill for quite some time codenamed as the HTC Vigor. This amazing device has become official and is being slated as one of Verizon's high end lineup for the coming holidays. While the high end specs and impress embedded Beats Audio make the HTC Rezound an amazing new smart phone, you should know it is far from indestructible or 'ready' to go out of the box. With our ever growing selection of HTC Rezound accessories you can easily find all you need to keep your phone safe, sound, charged, synced and ready when you are.
When it comes to power you can never get enough. With amazingly high end specs and 4G LTE connectivity you can bet you'll be looking for as much juice as you can find. Lucky enough for you we can help! Whether you're looking for a standard OEM spare or replacement Rezound battery we can help you with the standard OEM 1620 mAh battery. If 1620 mAh is not enough to get you through the day, no worries we have the extra juice you need with this OEM HTC Rezound extended battery and door. With a 2750 mAh power rating you can get all the power you need for a day with one full charge. Charging is of course the next step. Keeping your phones battery fully charged and ready at the helm is worth its weight in gold. We keep a full line of chargers ready when you are. This original OEM HTC Travel charger is the same charging adapter and micro USB charge/ data cable that would have come with your phone and can easily handle your charging needs. Need some charge on the move? We have you covered. With our many car charging options you can pick up original OEM HTC Micro USB car chargers like this. This charger is made by HTC and makes charging and even data syncing easy as pie.
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So check out our daily deals on HTC Rezound accessories today and sound off in the comments and let us know what you're looking for!HTC, rezound chargers, Rezound, rezound cases, rezound covers

subset: commoncrawl


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Name: Hassan Bawab
Company: Magic Logix
How can ASPIRE readers connect with you? MagicLogix.com
Tell us a bit about yourself and what you are working on right now?
I am the founder and CEO of Magic Logix, a Dallas-based digital marketing agency. We help businesses expand their online presence through engaging sites, social media campaigns and SEO. In addition to working on a variety of sites around the world, our team of developers is creating a new photo sharing concept. We're excited to roll that out soon.
How did you come up with the idea for your product or business?
I have always loved and worked on web projects. When I worked for FedEx, I was building sites on the side and I discovered that was my real passion, so I began Magic Logix in 2005.
What does a normal day look like for you?
It starts early and ends late. My team knows they can expect an email from me at any time of day. Since I am involved in every project, I want to stay on top of our progress and any issues. That means I'm in and out of everyone's offices, learning how we're doing.
If you had to start from scratch, how would you create fast BUZZ and spread the word about your product or service?
I would make sure to have an active public relations campaign from the start. You don't have to wait until you work with a certain number of clients to announce you're on the scene. Grab a megaphone and go!
Why does the world need your product or business?
Everyone is on the internet these days. Everyone wants to connect with customers. Our team creates beautiful, functional sites that build business. That's why you need Magic Logix.
What emerging trend do you think has the greatest potential to reshape the way we do business in the next 1 – 2 years?
I am most excited about Responsive Web Design. Seeing so many large companies get on board with effectively reaching customers who have gone mobile is a great start. Smaller companies are seeing the value of this as well and Magic Logix is focusing on creating RWD sites for our clients.
What are your 'must have' apps and favourite online tools/resources?
Our team has recently implemented Basecamp. It's an extremely effective way of keeping us in the loop on all our projects. We are also very proud of being a Marketo partner. Their sales and marketing software is a tremendous tool for businesses looking to manage and grow leads.
What book(s) would you recommend for ASPIRE readers?
How to Make Your Business Run Without You. If I build a strong team we'll have a strong company. If I'm away at a trade show or presenting at a conference, I'm totally confident that Magic Logix will run like a well-oiled machine.
What's the best advice you have ever been given?
Remarkably simple, but plan your work and work your plan. I have a plan for my business and I ask my team members to create a plan for themselves as well. It helps us all realize how we contribute to Magic Logix's success, both as individuals and as a team.
What do you ASPIRE to in business and in life?
I aspire to become the go-to firm when businesses want to grow their brand and influence online.


text: código:The discography of Lil Wayne, an American rapper, consists of nine studio albums, 23 singles, and 15 mixtapes. Music videos, mixtapes, and collaborations are also included. Born Dwayne Michael Carter Jr., Lil Wayne began his career when he was a teenager. In 1993, Lil Wayne teamed with fellow rapper B.G. to form the duo The B.G.'z; they released an album True Story in 1995.[1] Lil Wayne joined the group Hot Boys in 1997; Hot Boys would release three albums: Get It How U Live! in 1997, Guerrilla Warfare in 1999, and Let 'Em Burn in 2003. In 1998, Lil Wayne appeared on the hit single "Back That Thang Up" by fellow Hot Boys rapper Juvenile.código:http://www.wupload.com/file/139011236 http://www.wupload.com/file/139043017 http://www.wupload.com/file/139045960 http://www.wupload.com/file/139089903 http://www.wupload.com/file/139079124 http://www.wupload.com/file/139106209 http://www.wupload.com/file/139123976 http://www.wupload.com/file/139141579 http://www.wupload.com/file/139173561 http://www.wupload.com/file/139177613


text:
- Tab Content
- About Me
About Dork Angel
Basic Information
About Dork Angel
- Primary Style:
- Jujitsu Aikido Bodycombat
- Location:
- Norn Iron
- Occupation:
- IT analyst in NI Civil Service and freelance fitness instructor.
- Martial Arts Experience:
- Started training in Jujitsu under Davy Gracy (no relation to the brazilian ones) in 1988 (our club was one of the ones that split from WJJF over their politics. Our instructor explained it all to us but I didn't really pay attention). Black-belt in 1994. Two year wait for second dan and a lack of interest in the techniques (too many weapon katas) led me to try other things. Wing Chun - liked the trapping and simultaneous block+strikes. Found the stance too static and immobile. Tried Aikido for a year and graded to Orange Belt. Liked their kata as it contained all the footwork of their syllabus (as opposed to ours which just demonstrated different blocks). Missed the physical contact of Jujitsu. Trained in Kick-boxing but just for fitness not in ring fighting. Missed the throws and grappling. Refocused on Jujitsu becoming an instructor. Introduced pad-work and more fitness training to my Jujitsu class. Watched UFC and thought that's more of what we should be doing. Started introducing sparring and more live training. Club closed when building we were training in was condemned and we couldn't find alternative affordable premises (we ran the club to cover expenses, not profit). Went into Fitness teaching a pad-work class then becoming a Body-combat and Body-pump instructor. Couldn't risk an injury and stopped MA training bar bag and pad work.
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- Float like a butterfly and sting like a wasp.
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This Bavarian Porcelain Plate features sprays of beautiful deep pink dogwood blossoms and blue forget-me-nots interspersed with gilded scroll designs against a cream ground with a gold rim. It measures 7 ½" across and has the backstamp used by Johann Seltmann, Vohenstrauss, Bavaria, West Germany in the 1950s. It is in excellent original condition with no damage that I can see. I have another plate which is similar but with different flowers, they would make a very decorative pair. Please be sure to click on photo for enlargement and more pictures so that you can really enjoy this lovely piece. Thank you for shopping with us and please take a minute or two to check out some of our other treasures, and come back to browse anytime, you are always welcome.
Antiques and Collectibles, Fine China, Porcelain, Cups and Saucers, Egg Cups, Wood Carving, Advertising, Head Vases and more.


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Your students know all about the practical reality of taxes. If they work, it is unlikely that the sizable chomp the government takes out of their paychecks goes unnoticed. At the very least, they have heard a parent give the classic "My tax dollars pay for this?" speech.
What your student may not know is that taxes also raise some important philosophical questions. In this review, therefore, we have tried to bridge the practical and the philosophical—the daily agony of forking over our hard-earned money and the high-minded justifications for doing so.


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Italian food quotes
Recipes / Italian food quotes (1000+)
Caponata And Herb Polenta
366 views
polenta (found in Italian foods or possibly specialty foods aisles), 4 sprg fresh
Grilled Jumbo Shrimp And Pickled 'Gazpacho' Roll Ups
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salad, found in jars with Italian foods aisle) A handful flat-leaf parsley leaves
Vino Cotto (Vincotto) Cheesecake Bars
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4 cup Vino Cotto by Montillo Italian Foods, , Filling Ingredients:, , 2 (8-ounce) packages
Tuna Shrimp Cakes
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for your Man., Dinner Ideas, "Fat Italian", Food Substitutions, Left Overs, Links, Mens
Enjoy Italian Food!!
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you know Todd is not a lover of Italian food). I have never had such nice ingredients to
Celebrate Italian Food Day with two delicious Italian Dishes!
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13th is Italian Food Day and you don't have to be an Italian Mama or in a fancy Italian
Turkey Cannelloni with Roasted Peppers & Spinach Recipe
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if you have an Italian grandmother or simply know a lot of Italian food, you may know that
Italian Honey and Pine Nut Cake...
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delizioso! Italian Honey and Pine Nut Cake ~ Adapted From Mamma Mia, Italian Food Like
Italian Mushroom & Celery Heart Salad- From My Past Life to Yours
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almost everyone with the slightest interest in Italian food has a version of this salad. I
Italian Foods in Utica / Rome NY Area Amazing
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s, and fabulous Italian pastry and every great food that's Italian imaginable, you need
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everyday Italian home food
45 members
Italian home food, this group is for those who like to prepare authentic Italian home food
Italian Chefs
6 members
like the foods they submit., main ingredient: Pasta, cuisine: Italian, special category
Whats' Cookin' Italian Cuisine
1879 members
we all have one thing in common our LOVE for FOOD!, cuisine: Italian
Food of Umbria
16 members
most delicious regional food in Italy, truffle, porcini,you might have, cuisine: Italian
Austrian Cuisine
2 members
Jewish, Italian, Balkan and French cuisine, from which both dishes and methods of food
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What's Cookin' Italian Cusine
Italian Cusine, A Blog webpage that is full of traditional and new Italian foods with
Food Safety
to tomatoes, it made me question how safe the food is we are eating. After a little bit of
Finger Foods
Finger Foods, Try out these miniature foods for your next party. They work as appetizers
finger foods
finger foods, foods to be eaten without utensils. perfect for blind dining. plus
of crispiness,or the sensuousness of consumption.) Food design is fast evolving beyond the
Trusted Results with Italian food quotes
Seafood : Everyday Italian : Food Network
So if you're Italian, it's almost required that you are a fan of seafood. Today, Giada's cooking up a menu of Prosciutto-wrapped Scallops...
Paula Deen ... Dear Food Network. Diners, Drive-ins and Dives. Dinner: Impossible. Down Home with the Neelys. Easy Entertaining with Michael Chiarello. Emeril Live. Everyday Italian ...
Date Night : Everyday Italian : Food Network
Lots of Giada's girlfriends ask her for romantic dinner date recipes. Tonight, she's going to show some of them a menu that's a love potion on a plate. ...
Great Weekend Hors d' Oeuvres : Everyday Italian : Food Network
Giada demonstrates some easy and impressive ways to make weeknight cocktails a glamorous treat.
Just for Two : Everyday Italian : Food Network
Most recipes serve a crowd of four or more, but when dinner's just for two, Giada's got the perfect menu. Set the mood with a super refreshing Italian cocktail, then ...
Chocolate Tasting Party : Everyday Italian : Food Network
Chocolate lover, Giada, shows you ways to incorporate chocolate from cocktail to dessert.
My Mary's Italian Macaroni Salad Recipe : Review : : Food Network
My Mary's Italian Macaroni Salad. Recipe courtesy Willie Marino. Show: ... Giada's Top Italian Appetizers. More From Food Network. Sweepstakes and Contests. Facebook ...


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The 2013 Clio Estate Wagon Photos
Sporting Renault's latest design language, the 2013 Clio Estate wagon joins the five-door hatchback in the Clio's spanking-new model lineup. The vehicle debuted at the 2012 Paris Motor Show.
As to be expected, the new Clio Estate Wagon is even more versatile than the five-door hatchback, thanks in part to a loading sill that has been lowered. The car is longer, boosting its cargo capacity to 430 litres with the rear seats up. That's 130 litres more than offered in the hatchback.
Contributing to its "record maximum load length" are rear and front passenger seats that can also be folded flat.
The Clio Estate Wagon is available with the same engine lineup as the hatchback, including a 89 HP (90 PS) 0.9-liter three-cylinder and 118 HP (120 PS) 1.2-liter turbocharged gasoline units.


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Cooking and Baking
goat's milk gravy!???
I'm teaching a friend how to make chicken fried steak. So...I forgot she's allergic to cow's milk, and we have to make the cream gravy with goat's milk. Hmmm, think it'll be good? Should I dilute it a bit? Surely some of y'all out there have done this!??? I guess while I'm at it, I do flour/egg/flour. Any comments?
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Does this case fit iPad mini retina display?
I just got an iPad mini retina display with a Smart Cover for Christmas and I'd like to get a case to cover the back. Hoping this one fits.
- Asked by Lisa H from Eastern Passage
- Flag as inappropriate (Does this case fit iPad mini retina display?)
8 Answers from the Community
Best Answer:
Yes - it fits because the ipad mini and ipad mini 2 are same size
but the microphone which is now on the back of the ipad mini retina display will be covered !!
- Answered by Sujan K from Toride
- Flag as inappropriate Answer 1
This case will fit the iPad mini with retina display and it does have a cutout for the rear microphone, contraray to what some one else wrote on here. I have one and it does have a place for the mic without covering it up. It is also made to pair with the Smart Cover.
- Answered by Juan D from Naples
- Flag as inappropriate Answer 2
Yes this fits the Mini Retina great and is excellent coverage. If you buy the one specified for the Mini Retina, the mic hole is correctly aligned. Probably it was not out yet when Lisa was looking; around Christmas time.
- Answered by David T from Westlake
- Flag as inappropriate Answer 3
Yes I would guess so because the iPad min retina display has the same dimensions as the iPad mini
- Answered by Alison M from Winslow
- Flag as inappropriate Answer 4
Yes it fits the ipad mini retina, but..... There is an additional microphone hole on the back, towards the top which is covered by the case. It should be easy to drill a small hole to uncover it.
- Answered by Trevor D from Miami
- Flag as inappropriate Answer 5
While it does fit, it doesn't seem to align perfectly.
- Answered by Paul K from Madison
- Flag as inappropriate Answer 6
No, this case is designed for the iPad Air, as it says at the top of the page.
Their are other versions of this case designed for the iPad mini and such variants.
This case also doesn't fit the 2nd 3rd and 4th generations, because the iPad Air has a different shape overall, as well as skinner bezels.
- Answered by Katherine R from Wellesley
- Flag as inappropriate Answer 7
NO, it doesn't fit the mini. It says just above in the compatibility section that this case fits the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th generation iPads.
They do however sell a version of this specifically for the mini. Just not this one ;)
- Answered by Edward M from Paradise
- Flag as inappropriate Answer 8
Related Questions
Will this fit an iPad mini retina?
- Asked by Javier E from Phoenix
- Nov 12, 2013
- Flag as inappropriate (Will this fit an iPad mini retina?)
- Asked about: LifeProof nüüd Case for iPad Air


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I wish him all the best but to be honest I won't miss him. In his 2-year tenure, the Devil's power play was ranked 28th with a 14.4% in the 10-11 season and 14th in the 11-12 season with 17.2%. His power play lacked creativity and was stagnant when the Devils needed it most this postseason. With scorers like Kovalchuk and Parise those numbers are unacceptable. Good luck! Don't let the door hit you in the "you know what" on the way out!
Tortorella loves to run his mouth! What's worse is the media sits there like little baby birds with with their mouthes open ready to gobble up whatever garbage comes out of his beak. I'm glad DeBoer called his comments comical, the team doesn't need to lose focus. Truth be told the Devils have been the better team 7 out of 9 periods this series. The only reason the Rangers are up 2-1 is because of their propensity to block shots. Brodeur has made more spectacular saves in this series than Lunqvist. King Henrik? King of what! The Burger King has more cups than Lundqvist!
The difference in this game was simply two things. The Devils couldn't finish and the Rags capitalized on their opportunities. We only got to one rebound and that was the Zajac goal. I'm getting a little tired of the Kovalchuk sharp angle one-timer that goalies know is coming. Then when he misses, the puck rattles all the way out of the zone. There's too much room on the PP, there's no traffic in front and the Devils don't collapse the box. Brodeur really needed to come up with a big save on the short-handed 2-on-1 and he didn't. Marty made some key saves but his defense keeps failing to clear the crease. The only "clean" goal besides the empty net was the shorty. They get beat a lot with the back-door play because the defense lets the other teams forwards get behind them! I not defending Marty here but he shouldn't have been put in the position to have to make a big save on the PP, we have the extra man! I can just see the other team salivating when they go on the PK, it's like they can smell the Devils' fear and taste a short-handed goal!
I agree, I don't think Havelid was a great sign. I would have liked to see Greene play some more. Despite this crushing loss we had a great season. The bounces just seemed to go Carolina's way. But let's look at the positive... We had a franchise record of 51 wins despite losing our #1 goaltender for 50 games! We made it into the playoffs for the 12th CONSECUTIVE season! We won our 8th Atlantic Division title! Brodeur shattered Roy's all-time wins record! Parise lead the team with 45 goals, 49 assists and 94 points! Not to mention we have the greatest fans in hockey!
Maybe some people are afraid to say it but I'm going to. Marty lost this one! You can say all you want about the defense, our PK or PP but the team played one of it's best games tonight. We all knew this game was gonna come down to goaltending. Marty let up a bad goal in the first 1:02 and an even worse goal from almost the exact same spot at 19:28. The bounce off Whitney's skate and the cross-ice pass to tie the game were unfortunate. But those two that were far blocker side Marty should have had!


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Ventilator Blues has not been seen in 236 Phish shows.
It was played at 0.06% of live shows.
There have been 243 shows since the live debut.
Ventilator Blues has been played, on average, once every 1677 shows.
Since its debut, Ventilator Blues has been played, on average, every 243 shows.
It was played 1 time(s) at the following show(s):
|Show Date
|Song Before
|Song After
|Empire Polo Club, Indio, CA
|Turd on the Run
|I Just Want To See His Face
|Phish debut; Sharon Jones and Saundra Williams on backup vocals, Dave Guy on trumpet, David Smith on trombone, and Tony Jarvis on saxophone.
A blue showdate cell indicates that you were in attendance.
Yellow rows indicate recommended versions.
Check out our stats for shows featuring Ventilator Blues. You can also view stats over at ZZYZX's PhishStats.


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Twitter and the After LifeView CommentsAugust 29th, 2009Online Business, Random Stuff
The last few months a few famous people passed away and their Twitter account lived on. It just made me think how much stuff I have online and no one would know what to do with my accounts. In the case of Twitter your last update will stay online forever marking a time or place just before your death. It is morbid to think about, but technology has just created a situation that family members or friends would not know how to deal with. It would be a good idea to put all your online information in a note book and keep it in a safe place. In case something does happen you know your family can either delete an account or take care of the account. If you are an affiliate marketer you might still be getting paid a long time after your gone. Not to bring anyone down, but your online business should be treated as any other business and you need to have a plan for when you are no longer able to run the business.Tags: the after life for a blogger


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16 Life-Changing Strategies
Men's Health Editors
- Overview
- Go on a Sleep Cycle
- Eat 38 Grams of Fiber a Day
- Start Meditating
- Approach a Woman Every Day
- Do Pullups Every Day
- Train Barefoot
- Go to the Doctor
- Try New Sex Positions
- Switch to a Jacket and Tie Every Day
- Swear Off Snacks with Added Sugar
- Quit Looking at Porn
- Turn Off Your iPhone
- Keep Track of Everything You Spend
- Switch to a Stand-up Desk
- Go Low Carb
- Call a Friend Every Day
More Guy Wisdom Lists
Start Meditating
Intense mid-30s muscle guy (nickname: TNT)
To boost energy (mental and physical) and mindfulness. In a recent Harvard study, people who meditated 30 minutes a day for 2 months showed measurable changes in the parts of the brain associated with learning and memory, sense of self, emotional regulation, and stress.
THE Rx
According to study author Britta Holzel, Ph.D., the trick isn't to block out distractions or "stop thinking," but rather to nurture a greater sense of awareness and become unconditionally present in the here and now.
(1) Start by sitting quietly in a chair or on the floor (eyes open or closed), your hands on your lap.
(2) Now focus on your breath. Feel it go in and out. As your mind wanders (and it will), notice that your thoughts have drifted away, and gently bring your attention back to your breathing and body.
(3) You'll reap the greatest benefit from 30 minutes of meditation a day, but beginners can start with 10 to 15 minutes and work their way up.
"I started with 15-minute sessions, which were initially filled with a parade of random thoughts—call Dad. $4.10 for diesel? I want some cashews. Scarlett Johansson. Pay the cable bill. ScarJo. . . But after a week or so, these became less intrusive as I learned to observe my thoughts rather than get lost in them. Now each 30-minute session is like a mental oasis. At work I feel more creative and productive. At home I feel more present and engaged."
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11:04 am
Wed December 5, 2012
Former Chicano Activist Shares Her Favorite Tunes
By editor
Originally published on Wed December 5, 2012 11:30 am
Rosie Castro was a Mexican-American civil rights activist in the Chicano Movement during the 1970s. She passed down her passion for change to her children, Texas State Representative Joaquin Castro and San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro. For Tell Me More's 'In Your Ear' series, Castro talks about her favorite songs.


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On Ducks, Phil, the 1st Amendment, and the Cable Business
Let me start by saying that I am, in fact, a fan of 'Duck Dynasty'. I appreciate it for it's light-hearted entertainment value, for how much it reminds me of all my hunting-season friends back in Bama, for how closely the members of the Robertson family resemble many of my in-laws and cousins, etc. I am a fan of 'Duck Dynasty', and in fact, have slowly cultivated my wife and father-in-law into fans of the show as well. So I think I have some credibility as I launch into this discussion. With that put out as the palate cleanser, here we go . . .
As most people are aware now, Phil Robertson was suspended from 'Duck Dynasty' indefinitely for comments he made in a recently published article in GQ (published only on the internet – the print edition won't hit till next month). In the article, Phil spoke at length about his biblical beliefs, how strongly his faith ties to his personal actions and his views of the state of the United States at this time in history. Much to the chagrin of the A+E Networks (the home of 'Duck Dynasty'), he focused several comments on the homosexual community. Now, as someone who grew up in the South around men like Phil, nothing was surprising. He made the usual links to the book of Corinthians, to overall sin, to not understanding why a real "man" would want to be gay, etc. He also linked homosexuality to other sins, including bestiality (which may have been where A+E felt that had to do something).
Again, having grown up in the South, none of this shocked me. That does not mean I agreed with it – it just means that when I look and listen to Phil, I'm not looking for a fount of progressive politics or knowledge. I understand that Phil is a product of his upbringing and culture, and that he has decided that he does not agree with where many of the views of contemporary America have gone in terms of beliefs and values. While I don't personally agree with Phil, I believe Phil has a right to speak those values . . . and this is where I start to have a problem with the backlash.
Much of the COMPLETELY FORESEEABLE backlash against A+E's decision to suspend Phil has been targeted at what people see as some kind of "oppression" of Phil's 1st Amendment rights to speak his mind. This drives me crazy. Let's be very clear. A+E is not the government. Phil was not stopped from giving that interview, and A+E did not pressure GQ to not run the interview. He gave it, they ran it, and then A+E Networks decided to suspend him for espousing a viewpoint that they felt did not lineup with their cultural values. Phil was not arrested. Phil is not going to jail. Phil is still a millionaire several times over, and will still reap millions of dollars going forward based upon the empire that's been built by both the Duck Commander and 'Duck Dynasty' brands. He is also completely free to keep giving interviews and to keep espousing the exact same view that he gave in this article. So, please, enlighten me – where were his 1st Amendment rights trampled upon?
People seem to have conflated a right to freedom of speech to a right to freedom of speech FREE OF ANY REPERCUSSIONS IN THE PRIVATE SECTOR. That, my friends, is both not how the 1st Amendment works, nor is it the way the real world works. If you join the KKK and get on the local news spouting your specific beliefs and it gets a lot of attention, don't expect to get back to work and have everything hunky-dory if your workplace has significant contracts with minority-owned businesses. They're going to realize that your continued employment might impact their brand, and they will handle you accordingly. A+E Networks is not just A+E, but also Lifetime, Lifetime Movie Network, Lifetime For Women, and a shit ton of the History Channel offspring. Don't you think they know that their networks interact significantly with the gay population in America, and they'd rather protect their overall brand than one particular (though wildly popular in the moment) show?
This actually gets me to my last point, and this is a bit more conspiratorial. Many people are saying that A+E has set itself up for a significant backlash. One blogger pointed to the stand that GLAAD took against Chick-fil-A, which simply helped pushed Chick-fil-A's sales even higher during the period of GLAAD's boycott. The Machiavellian prince in me can't help but wonder if A+E thought about this and wondered, "There's no wrong move to make here."
Seriously, think about these two scenarios:
Scenario A) A+E doesn't suspend Phil. They catch flack from some minority groups, but the core constituency of DD viewers applaud A+E for not giving in, and they continue to watch the show.
Scenario B) A+E suspends Phil. DD faithful rally to the DD cause, including buying even more DD products and encouraging all their friends to continue watching the show, along with letter and email campaigns that get attention on the interwebs, all pushing the DD brand into even higher public recognition. DD ratings continue to grow.
See what I mean? A+E Networks was in a no-lose situation, and may have even positioned themselves to GAIN viewers, either by simply continuing to broadcast the show, or possibly even by bringing Phil back at a later date.
From a business standpoint, A+E, much like Parker Lewis, CAN'T LOSE!
So again, in summary – I disagree with Phil's specific comments, but I agree with his right to say them. I also agree with his private sector employer, A+E, in that they have the right to act how they sit fit to manage their overall business brand. Finally, I think it might possibly be one huge conspiratorial scheme, and everyone is going to be richer by New Year's Day. Quack quack.
Race Review: Sacramento Spartan Beast
For years, I've been a runner. I've run 3 full marathons, 2 half-marathons, and a variety of 10Ks, 5Ks, and the like. At this point, I've got my running routine down pretty well, and my body is accustomed to the rigors of a race. In the spring, I decided to run the Bay 2 Breakers race here in San Fran. It's only a little over 7 miles, so I didn't feel the need to put in too much training; I knew I could easily nail that distance. At the conclusion, I looked at my time and was generally pleased. It was a little slower than I might have preferred, but nothing I thought I should worry about too much.
Then the official race pictures became available. Holy. Cow.
What I saw in those photos from Bay 2 Breakers killed me. What I saw was a fat guy running. Yes, I ran at a solid pace. Yes, I finished in the top 20% of racers in my overall/age/gender brackets (which, honestly, wasn't hard at an event like B2B since most racers treat the event as simply a drinking experiment). The truth, though, was that I saw a guy with a very large, noticeable spare tire. That's when I had to face up to some hard facts: I was not in shape.
Despite my consistently running for the past decade, I had spent the last year or two letting my physical shape deteriorate. From the time my daughter was born in March of 2012, I used every excuse: "I'm sympathy eating with my pregnant wife"; "I can't really go exercise, I have to watch the baby", etc. The cold hard truth was that I had gained at least 10 lbs since my daughter was born, and that was from a starting point that was probably already 15lbs heavier than what I should have been.
So in May, I made up my mind that I needed to get in serious shape. To facilitate that, I knew that I needed something to motivate and drive my workouts. However, I knew just running wouldn't do the trick (I already knew how to run and still eat unhealthy). So, I started looking at the latest trend: obstacle races.
The cry of Sparta
I started out doing a general search of upcoming obstacle races. I looked at Tough Mudder, Warrior Dash, and other smaller outfits. Soon, though, I came upon the Spartan Races. There was something uniquely appealing about the description of their events, and the videos alone already had me wanting to pound my chest. I looked at the calendar and saw that their would be a race in October near Sacramento. The location was right, the timing was good (it would give me about 5 months of training/weight loss), and the distance was what I was looking for to really push me. This specific race was to be a Spartan Beast, the longest of their three main races. A Spartan Beast is at least 12 miles, and at least 25 obstacles. That meant I had to train to run at least a half-marathon, but would also have to really focus on developing my upper body and muscle stamina. I signed up almost immediately.
What followed over the next 5 months was nothing short of a blessing. The next day, I started receiving Spartan WOD (Workout of the Day) emails. Each one was a perfect mix of upper body development combined with 2-5 mile runs. Within a few months, I had already lost 10 lbs. By the time September rolled around, I was down 20lbs+, and for the first time in my life, I had a noticeable six-pack. That wasn't to say I had attained perfection, not by a long shot. The entire process, though, had been exactly what I had hoped for; it had motivated me to get into actual shape. However, that left one checkbox to still be marked . . .
Race Day in Sparta
The actual day of the race was at times exactly what I expected, and at other times much more than I could have imagined. The race event was held on a sprawling ranch to the southwest of Sacramento. It was, for all intents and purposes, in the middle of nowhere. Compared with other big marathons I've run, the facilities and vendors around the race were . . . well, Spartan. I was checked-in in a manner of minutes. This left me about 20 minutes to mill about and start getting mentally ready. I watched two waves of races start ahead of me. Seeing them be lead in a kick-off cheer by the MC, I started getting excited. Soon, I was crossing over the start wall myself. At 9:15 a.m., my wave was released from the starting gate, and my race began.
The first couple of obstacles were what I had expected – walls to climb, walls to crawl under, monkey bars to swing from, etc. I was immediately caught off guard, though, by just how much emptiness lay between the obstacles. Having mostly run city races, I wasn't prepared for the long stretches of lonely, cracked earth between each obstacle. However, in the early stages, I was handling everything pretty much as well as expected.
About 45 minutes in, I hit the first challenge that really mentally pushed me – the first barbed wire crawl. You see, I expected a stretch of mud under wire; what came before me was a seemingly 20-yard stretch of gravely rock-filled pools of water. I was soon scraping myself against rocks, trying to keep the muddy water out of my mouth, and hoping to stay low enough that I didn't snag my clothes (or skin). By the time I was done, I was soaked and cut from head to knee (my long socks and shows would save me a few times that afternoon). The race proceeded in much the same way, with each obstacle seemingly getting harder and harder.
One pleasant surprise was the rope climb. While I hard done arm and upper-body workouts, I had never found a rope to train on. So I approached the rope climb with some trepidation. However, I was happy to find that I was able to quickly ascend the rope and hit the bell. "Was that the hardest thing the course had to throw at me?", I wondered, stupidly. Of course it wouldn't be.
One of the toughest obstacles was a suspended rope crawl, upside down, over a large pond about 4-feet deep. thanks to my socks, I was able to hit the bell in the middle and finish the obstacle; however, you still had to drop down in the middle of the lake and paddle the rest of the way to the other side of the pond. Again, I was drenched. My shoes alternated between dry and concrete throughout the race.
I was motivated to finish each obstacle because of fear of the penalty for obstacle failure: 30 penalty burpees. Burpees can drain the energy from you quickly, and so I didn't want to do them if I I could avoid it. At the end of the day, there were 29 obstacles, and there was only one that forced me into the penalty box. On a obstacle called the "Hercules Lift", you were required to use a rope and pulley to elevate a 20 galled paint bucket filled with gravel all the way to the top. I approached it in a haphazardly manner, and soon I had dropped the bucket well short of the goal. Oh well, 28/29 ain't bad on your first go round.
In the end, I finished the race just a few minutes of my own personal 4-hour goal. At 4:08:08, I finished my first Spartan Race in the top 13% overall, and the top 15% in both my age and gender brackets. Considering some of the in-shape, chiseled, obviously Cross-Fity types that I was running the race with, I considered this a huge personal victory.
I am now addicted to the Spartan Races. I've already talked Hol into running a Spartan Sprint with me in January, and my goal for 2014 is to complete a Spartan Trifecta (completing a Sprint, and Super, and a Beast in the same calendar year). Better than that, though, is the feeling that at 31, I am in the best shape of my life, and i don't ever want to turn back.
A Voyage Home & The Great Mobile, AL Instagram Challenge
When I was but a wee lad, maybe one or two years old, my parents took a vacation from our home in Indiana down to visit some relatives living in Mobile, AL. On that trip, at some point, they visited one of Mobile's most famous tourist attractions, the USS Alabama. A picture was taken during that trip of my father climbing the stairs of the ship, with me strapped to his chest. This is one of my favorite pictures, because it was a foreshadowing. It was a marker in time in which my soul was rooted partially to the city that would eventually become my home at the age of six, the Azalea City of Mobile.
I lived in Mobile until I graduated from high school, when I moved off to Montevallo, AL for college. being only three hours away, though, I still took plenty of trips back home. It wasn't until I graduated from college in 2004 that my links to Mobile became more tenuous. By that time, most of my closest friends had become my fraternity brothers and other college friends. After I moved to Indianapolis for work, I came back to Alabama alot, but mostly just stopping in Birmingham and Montevallo. The trips back to Mobile became more and more infrequent.
Last year, before we moved to California, we took a road trip to Mobile. That was my first trip back in almost two years. Now, again, it's been over a year since I've been home. Yet, that's the key word, isn't it – home. I wasn't born there, and I haven't lived there in over a decade now. Without a doubt, though, Mobile, AL is still my hometown.
On August 23rd, I'll be boarding a plane for Indianapolis. After a quick stop at a friend's wedding reception that Saturday, I'll begin a roadtrip down to Mobile, AL. I won't be alone, either; GVH will be my roadtrip partner for this voyage home to the motherland. It will be a great week for her to reconnect with her grandma and grandpa from her Daddy. A few weeks ago, I started thinking again about that picture of me as a baby aboard the USS Alabama. Thus, the idea for The Great Mobile, AL Instagram Challenge was born.
I want GVH, years, from now, to feel a similar link to my hometown. So for the week of August 26th – August 31st, I plan on taking GVH to as many landmarks as possible, and taking her picture there. Those pictures will be kept on my phone, but they will also be posted to Instagram and Facebook. Why? Because as we've learned, memories live forever now on the Internet, and I want GVH to be able to look back on a journey that she surely won't remember, seeing as she's only 17 months old.
It's not just landmarks that we're going to hit, though, and that's where you all, my social media connections, come in. You see, when I look on Facebook, I have hundreds of "friends" on Facebook in Mobile. These are people who, through social media, know most everything going on in my (and GVHs) life. Yet many of you, I haven't seen you in the flesh or talked to you in years. So whereas Part I of this Challenge involves landmarks and landscapes, Part II involves people. As many people as possible. I'm going to try and take as many pictures of Mobile people in my social media network as possible, all with GVH included. Some of you I'll reach out to personally, and some of you I may just stalk at work (that's your fault for posting your place of business on Facebook, sucka!).
Where you can help in this Challenge is simple – simply ping me on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram that you're up to being a small bit player in this Challenge. Your message need be no longer than simply "I'm in.". I'll then arrange with you a time and place. Don't worry – I'm not going to take up hours of your life (I've got a baby in tow, after all). It may be as simple as a five minutes break at Starbucks near where you work or live, maybe it's a lunch, whatever you have time for that week. However, I want GVH to be able to look at this album 20 years from now and think, "Wow, I really met a lot of people in Mobile. That must be an important place for me just like it is for Dad."
So now, the question is simply this – who's in?
Thoughts at the Closing Bell:
- Miguel Cabrera won the Triple Crown and AL MVP last year. That was historic. And yet, he's actually SURPASSING his numbers from last year this season. This guy is a first-ballot Hall of Famer, and I'm just happy he's in a Tigers uniform while he's doing it.
- Drafted my fantasy football team this past Sunday, using an iPad while on the beach in Santa Cruz. Here's an indicator of how I feel about my team – the highlight of the day is that I got a sunburn on my back.
- Just finished reading "Drift" by Rachel Maddow. If you have any interest about the current state of the US military and the future of the American military, I advise giving it a look. It's a quick but great read.
- So Sydney Leathers, Anthony Weiner's sext mistress, officially cashed in and filmed a porno. Soooo . . . good for her??
- Orange is the New Black on Netflix; worth your time on a binge this weekend, I promise.
- Breaking Bad on AMC; worth ALL AND ANY OF YOUR TIME WHENEVER.
When I was 18, I couldn't wait to move away from home and off to college. When I graduated at the age of 22, I couldn't wait to move out of the dorms and into my first apartment. My first job out of college was three states away from home. At no point when I was getting ready to graduate did I ever even contemplate moving back home. Most of my friends felt the same way. The few friends that did move back home usually received the same "you're moving back home?!?!" line of questioning from our crew.
However, since the economy tanked in 2008 and took down its fair share of Jacks and Roses with it, more and more millennials have been presented with just that decision. A new pew research study has found that, at 36 percent, more young adults aged 18 – 31 are living at home than at any time in the last four decades. This shouldn't be surprising, given that this group has also been one of the hardest hit in the Great Recession, with unemployment spiking to almost 7% for recent graduates in 2010. Even more depressing, though, is the underemployment – those recent grads that can find jobs are mostly finding them as baristas and shelf stockers. Underemployment for recent grads is at nearly 45% (compared with slightly under 35% for all college graduates).
So with that kind of information, we obviously shouldn't be shocked that so many people are moving back in with their parents during and after college. For me, the bigger question is this – should we have ever been shocked? Notice that the 36% rate is the highest in four decades; this means that it was at least that high just as recently as the late 1960s. When we look at the statistics, we see that we're still not as high as the numbers coming into the 1940s.
What's changed, though, is the way we perceive and talk about living at home. The economics of the country forced many young adults to stay at home just as long, if not longer, for much our country's history. More regular economic "shocks" like the Great Recession saw many family's living together until a young adult married, and sometimes even after that; multi-family homes were not uncommon, especially in larger cities like NYC, in the late 1800s and early 1900s. However, that all started changing in the 60's and 70's, when there was more pressure to illustrate your success and "independence" as an adult by moving into your own home or apartment. By the early 80's, the percent of young adults living at home hit an all-time low.
What was won by having all those young people living on the own so early? People weren't able to save as much because they were taking on rent or mortgages earlier in life, families were forced to make longer-term commitments to homes then they weren't potentially ready for, etc. By the 90's and 2000s, the amount of money in savings and retirement accounts was in the negative.
If I hear now that a person just out of college, or still in college, is living back at home, I don't scoff or laugh like I once did. Now, I say, "Hey, man, that's not the worst idea, save some money." The trick is to get the rest of society, particularly the older members of society, to see the benefits of this shift as well (headlines like, "Millennial moochers" don't help).
Thoughts at the closing bell:
- The last week of August, I'll be going home to Mobile, AL with GVH in tow to visit my parents and just visit home. I haven't spent more than a long weekend in Mobile in forever. I've actually come up with what I think will be a fun and interesting social media experiment around that trip, which I'll likely unveil later this week or next.
- The Tigers made a great move at the trade deadline, in my opinion, and are now poised to fight off Cleveland and Kansas City as we head to the end of the season.
- Football is almost back. My fantasy team, the California Cobra Kai, will be polished and ready.
- Last week, 2016 GOP hopefulls Chris Christie and Rand Paul got in some early pot-shots at each other. However, Christie has his work cut out for him. While his favorables within the GOP are strong, his unfavorables are almost the same, which isn't good when you're thinking about the primaries. Oh, and the majority of the GOP thinks that the party needs to get more conservative . . . so there's that.
- Saw the first couple episodes of the new Netflix original series "Orange Is The New Black" this weekend, and now I'm excited to binge watch the rest of the season. Great show, just really well done.
That's all for now, kids. One love to you all.
At the ripe old age of 31, I have moved many times in my life. Some have been short moves; some have been long moves. Some have been "sweet Jesus, how are we supposed to get over there?!?!" moves. At this point in time, you would think that I would have this moving this down to a science. Here is a brief history of my move:
- 1982 – I moved from my mother's womb into a small two-bedroom house in Evansville, IN with my parents. I didn't have much to pack at that point. My only luggage, a placenta, was taken away from me immediately upon vacating my studio apartment in the womb.
- 1984 – We move from Evansville, IN to a small house in Bridgeport, IL. Again, at 2, I don't help a lot. Bridgeport has one stop light and possibly one horse.
- 1988 – We move from Bridgeport, IL to the thriving metropolis of Cottage Hill, IL, a suburb of St. Louis. A little more involved in the process, but still not much to move.
- 1989 – My first big move, we make the journey from Cottage Hill, IL to the historic city of Mobile, AL. My life is forever changed, as I become a Southerner for the formative years of my life.
- 1993 – We move from our apartment in Mobile to a new house. This is my first "cross-town" move, but again, I was too young to pick up many lessons from the journey.
- 2000 – This is the first move that is really all about me, as I move from my house in Mobile, AL to my first dorm room in Montevallo, AL. This is the first time I move furniture all by myself (albeit, it was a couch I was helping another friend from High School going to the same college as me move to her dorm room).
- 2000 – 2004 – There are at least three dorm room moves during college, but considering my "furniture" was never more than one huge couch and about 8 boxes, I can never claim it was that taxing.
- 2004 – This is my first truly big move on my own, as I rent a U-Haul trailer to pull behind my truck as I make the move from Montevallo, AL to Fishers, IN, a suburb of Indianapolis, for my first job out of college. I handle this move like a boss.
- 2006 – I make the move from my apartment in Fishers, IN to my new apartment in downtown Indianapolis, IN after exchanging these things called "wedding vows" with Hol.
- 2009 – After Hol decided on residency in Cincinnati, OH, we make what is truly the first back-breaking move of my life, as we have to get all of our apartments worth of furniture to the new home we bought in Cincinnati. This is the first time I had to rent a full moving truck, though I didn't have to drive it since my father-in-law was available.
- 2012 – This is the move, chronicled on this blog last year, from our home in Cincinnati, OH to our new apartment, almost 2000 miles away in Cupertino, CA. Trying to get all of our stuff out of that house in about 72 hours was the first time I realized just how much work moving could be, especially if not organized.
So after our last moving experience, you'd think I'd have been ready this year, right? Having made the decision, scouting locations for weeks, and then finally finding a new rental home in the area approx 15 minutes from our apartment, you'd think I'd have planned the move down to the last detail, right?
Wrong. So wrong. Oh, so wrong.
Our move out date from our Apartment was July 11th. On June 28th, we began our earnest effort to begin boxing things up. "We can take our time", we said. "We can move a couple of boxes a day", I smiled stupidly. By July 6th, I realized the leisurely pace I had set for us wasn't going to work. Couple this with the fact that I hadn't rented a truck, but had made the decision to just make the move using my brother-in-laws Ram Nitro, and I quickly realized that I'd made a horrible mistake.
From July 6th – July 10th, I spent every night at the old apartment boxing things up and moving boxes and furniture to the new house. By July 11th, I was frantically trying to get the last few straggling pieces of our life out of our apartment and Cupertino and trying my best to clean the place up. At that point, when then apartment company did a final walk-through of our place, I had averaged three hours of sleep a night for the past six days. Thus, I was a little grumpy when the inspector informed me that we were likely going to have to pay for the carpet to be replaced, based on a few spots caused by our recently deceased Golden Retriever, Karley, as she lost control of her stomach more often. No deposit back? Oh, cool story, bro. I hate money, anyways.
After all that, we still weren't even done. On July 12th, I realized that what we had now at our new place was currently just a garage slammed full of boxes. At times, I couldn't even walk through it to get to the washing machine. Thus, the "move" continued even after we were officially "moved". There are still boxes in the garage, staring at me, taunting me, laughing at me. Screw you, boxes. All of you.
In the end, though, it was worth it. Our new home in Mountain View, CA feels in many ways like we've finally regained some of what we lost after leaving downtown Indianapolis. We are right downtown, and so we can once again walk to everything we could want: shops, restaurants, theater, grocery, parks, etc. Living in a walk-able, livable neighborhood is all we ever really wanted, and so in many ways, I've already fallen in love with the new place. Oh, and we shaved several hundred dollars off of our rent, so, win-win!
The Measure Of A Man
In a young boys life, there are many people who will influence him. They can be men and women, but often times, men will make some of the biggest impressions. There is usually no bigger role model than a boy's father. After his father, though, there could be any number of men who will play a role. Who will provide an example, who will teach additional lessons, and who will guide and influence that boy.
For me, one of those men was Pete Poulos. When I was a kid, I was in an organization called Royal Rangers (think Boy Scouts, but with more Jesus). From the age of about 7 until about 13, I was spending a lot of my free time learning about the symbolism of the Ranger emblem, about surviving in the outdoors, about this history of frontiersman (especially after I was accepted into the elite Frontiersman Camping Fellowship). For the majority of that time, Pete Poulos was one of my commanders.
I'll readily admit, like most young boys, I probably didn't know a lot about Pete's personal life. What I did know is that Pete was a stern yet caring man. I knew he cared about me and wanted to help me. I knew he wanted to see me be honest, hard-working, and wanted to see me achieve everything to the best of my ability. Those things were important to him, and so they were important to me as well. I knew he was strong as an ox, despite his smaller stature (he couldn't have been more than 5'5, but he could take a punch in the stomach from a man twice his height). He was proud of his heritage (Greek) and his adopted heritage (Native American). I knew he loved his wife and his family, and that those were things to be cherished as well.
Over the weekend, Pete Poulos passed away. Because of my infrequent trips home, I hadn't seen him much in recent years. When I had gone home, though, he made sure to tell me he was proud of the man I'd become. You paid a role in that, Commander Pete. Enjoy your well-earned peace with the Lord. I can only hope to leave a legacy behind like you have, one day.
Thoughts at the Closing Bell:
- The In-laws are in town, which means we become tourists in our own city again, which is nice since we don't actually do that on our own. We took them down to Ano Nuevos State Reserve over the weekend, and today we're taking them up to Muir Woods.
- The Tigers are on fire right now . . . but Miguel Cabrera is currently out with a sore hip. Let's all take a moment to send him good vibes and healing power.
- Speaking of baseball, Braves pitcher Tim Hudson had his ankle broken last night. The warning – the video might make your retch a little bit.
- Still trying to use cords to hook up your computer to your TV for Netflix? Still thinking of paying $100 for Apple TV or some other device? Chromecast is calling, and it's changing the game for only $35.
That's all for now, kids. One love to you all.
It's Not The Race Card; It's The Cowboy Card
Like most of America over the last few months, it has been impossible for me to avoid coverage of the George Zimmerman trial. For those who have lived under a rock, here is a synopsis: George Zimmerman performed "neighborhood watch" patrols regularly around his gated community. On February 26th, 2012, Zimmerman noticed an individual in a dark hoodie walking around the neighborhood (this would later be revealed to be Trayvon Martin, a 17-year-old walking back from a convenience store to a home he was at with his father). Zimmerman called the police, and told them he was following the individual and believed he was up to suspicious activity. The police informed Zimmerman that they would handle it, and that he should stop pursuing the individual. When Zimmerman noted that he would possibly pursue the individual on foot, the police explicitly told Zimmerman that he should NOT pursue the individual. Ignoring this, Zimmerman eventually got out of his vehicle and began pursuing the individual (Martin) on foot. At some point, and this is the gray area of the facts, Martin realized he was being followed, and after approx 4-5 minutes, turned around to confront Zimmerman. An altercation ensued, and during the altercation, Zimmerman pulled out a gun and fired at Martin, killing almost instantly.
After a jury-trial, Zimmerman was found not guilty of 2nd-degree murder and not guilty of manslaughter. Many people were outraged at these verdicts. However, many people had already steeled themselves for this outcome. Why? Because the law was on Zimmerman's side from the minute he started potentially losing the fight. And this is not in a "on his side because Trayvon was black" kind of statement (though you could certainly find evidence to that if you wanted to, but I don't here); it was on his side because this ridiculous law was written specifically for people in Zimmerman's position. Florida's "Stand Your Ground" law is part of Florida Statute 776.012. At it's base is a idea that many people sympathize with – the idea that you should be able to protect your home, your property, and your body with any force available is very "American". Most gun users are echoing this statement when they say things like, "As an American, I have a right to protect myself and my family by any means necessary!"
Look, I get this. The idea that if an intruder is coming into your home, or if a mugger attacks you on the street, that you have the right to blast them into oblivion seems fantastic. We as American's have this romanticized view of the Wild, Wild West (wiki wiki), where men were men and they protected their own by any means necessary, including a piece of cold steel in their hand!
The reason these laws are usually called "Stand Your Ground" laws, is because that in most of American legal history, there has been an idea that if you CAN reasonably retreat from a fight or altercation, that you SHOULD retreat from a fight or altercation. With these laws, that duty to retreat is thrown out the window, thus giving you the right to "stand your ground" if you feel you are in danger of losing your life, or at least in danger of great bodily harm.
However, Florida's SYG law (and many of the other states in the US with matching laws) enters almost immediate shaky ground towards the end of the law. That's where we get to 776.041, which states:
Use of force by aggressor. —The justification described in the preceding sections of this chapter is not available to a person who:
(1) Is attempting to commit, committing, or escaping after the commission of, a forcible felony; or
(2) Initially provokes the use of force against himself or herself, unless:
(a) Such force is so great that the person reasonably believes that he or she is in imminent danger of death or great bodily harm and that he or she has exhausted every reasonable means to escape such danger other than the use of force which is likely to cause death or great bodily harm to the assailant; or
(b) In good faith, the person withdraws from physical contact with the assailant and indicates clearly to the assailant that he or she desires to withdraw and terminate the use of force, but the assailant continues or resumes the use of force.
So right here was the turn, ladies and gentleman, and why everyone pretty much knew that Zimmerman was going to walk. According to these laws, even if you are the aggressor in an altercation, as long as you can get someone to "reasonably doubt" that at some point the fight turned out of your favor, your free to start shooting at will. In case I have to spell it out for you, THIS IS BANANAS.
Now some would argue, "Look, this was a bad situation for Trayvon, but overall, the law is good and it works!" No, no it's not. Even if the Zimmerman case had never happened, this law is a disaster and is being abused right and left. Don't believe me?
The Tampa Bay Times, in the wake of the Zimmerman case, began in investigation in June to review as many "Stand Your Ground" cases as possible. They reviewed around 240 cases dating back to 2005. The results are mind-numbing. In review, here are just a few of the most choice findings:
- In the cases where the victim was killed, 70% of the victims were completely unarmed. In comparison, in the cases where the accused murdered the victim, 63% of the accused were armed with a gun.
- In 53% of the cases, the defendant's could have clearly retreated at some point before the killing (or attempted killing in the "lucky" cases) occurred.
- In 51% of the cases, the defendant clearly pursed the victim, eventually leading to the altercation.
- In 68% of cases, the defendant is not punished at all.
- In 73% of the cases, the victim was NOT committing a crime or even coming close to committing a crime before the altercation.
- When a black person was killed, the accused walked free 73% of the time. When a white person was killed, that freedom ratio drops to 59% of the time. That's a 14% freedom swing based on race, kids.
If these stats alone aren't enough to help you see the immense flaws in the way this law is written, then I simply point you to this case. Or this one. Or this one. Or, sweet lord, this one. The common thread with all of these is that they paint a very different picture than the one defenders of the law try to paint, of the proud American man defending his home from robbers. This law is ridiculously flawed, and deserves some fairly massive overhaul in how and when it can be applied.
But it won't. It won't be changed. It won't be altered. Because, as recent attempts at gun reform on a national level have shown, nothing is going to prevent us from retreating to our wild, wild west ways. We are a society driven crazy by the notion that there's ever a wrong time to have and use a gun, as long as we personally feel justified.
Thoughts at the Closing Bell:
- Yoenis Cespedes absolutley killed it at the HR Derby last night. He could have easily kept going, even after he clearly won.
- I don't watch Big Brother on CBS, but I'm wrapped up like everyone else in just how bat-shit crazy racist a couple of these housemates have been.
- Cory Montieth, best known as Finn on Glee, died on Saturday night. While autopsy results are not in yet, he had recently been struggling with a relapse into drug abuse. All signs show that Glee will go on, but I just don't know why. Season 4 was abysmal anyways, and the show was always about Finn and Rachel at it's core. No Finn? No Glee for me.
- It's never too early to start evaluating what to watch on TV this Fall. That being said? Breaking Bad, Breaking Bad, Breaking Bad, Breaking Bad . . .
That's all for now, kids. One love to you all.
It's Summertime, and you need a playlist!
Does anything beat driving around in the summer, windows down, hands (and maybe feet, if you're a passenger) out of the window, feeling the breeze? When you're on the perfect summer road, whether it's in the sticks of Alabama (like much of my teen years), or driving down Pacific Coast Highway 1, and all you feel is the warmth of the sun guiding you to your destination – isn't that near perfection? Well, it becomes full perfection with one addition – the radio.
Frankly, like some people have a deep love of Christmas music in December, I am a sucker for music that pulls at the emotional connections to Summer time. Friday was the official first day of Summer, and with that in mind, I invite you to look over my "Perfect Summer Playlist". These are songs that either have Summer in the title, or are so specifically about Summer that you can't help but smile while you roll down the windows. These are also songs that were crowning hits in the summer time, and thus are always linked to summer fun. Without further ado:
Andy's Summer Playlist (Spotify Link):
- "Summertime", DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince – This song came out when there was no one, I repeat, NO ONE, cooler than Will Smith. At the height of TV fame, with 'Independence Day' just a few years around the corner, Big Willie came out with the song that every child of the 90's IMMEDIATELY starts singing when they hear the words "summer time". (this song samples another Summer classic, "Summer Madness" by Kool & the Gang)
- "Summertime", Kenny Chesney – While Will Smith's 'Summertime' will always invoke my childhood, Kenny Chesney has somehow managed to invoke how I remember my teenage and early college years. So many of those years were spent driving out to friends houses on Dog River in Alabama, to Dauphin Island and Orange Beach, or to friend's houses from Montevallo who lived in countless small towns in Alabama. The picture Chesney paints of just driving down some random country rode is enough to make me want to get in a rental car now and head to Montevallo.
- "Cruel Summer", Bananarama – Let's not even talk about how this was in pretty much every summer "scene" from any movie in the 80's and 90's. This song is summer for me because it was in a key scene from "The Karate Kid". As a kid in Alabama who was basically locked up in my apartment all summer in elementary school, I watched my VHS of "The Karate Kid" at least 100 times each summer, and thus I heard this song 100 times+ each summer.
- "All Summer Long", Kid Rock – For those who don't know already, I have a deep, unabashed affinity for one Mr. Bob Ritchie, a.k.a. Kid Rock. I own every Kid Rock album, and so I was already predisposed to like his take on Summer. Then he gives me a song that combines "Werewolves in London" and "Sweet Home, Alabama"? Game over; you're on the list, Bob.
- "Summer Nights", Rascal Flatts – I'm not usually a huge fan of Rascal Flatts ( a bone of contention in the Heaton household). Damn, though, if this song doesn't make you happy and make you wish you were at the bon fire from the video. Somehow, country music does Summer better than other forms of music.
- "Summer Love", Justin Timberlake – Oh, you wanted a Summer song you could dance to? DONE. Of course it came from J. Timbo.
- "The Boys of Summer", Don Henley – How many movies has this song been in? Too many to count. Why? Because it's "The Boys of Summer"!
- "Summer of '69", Bryan Adams – Songs that make you realize that high school might have been the best time of your life aren't alwasys the best as you get older. Yet they also become ever MORE important as you get older, because, well, they really might have been the best years of your life.
- "I Get Around", The Beach Boys – Our first entry that doesn't have Summer in the title. Appropriately, it's The Beach Boys. They don't need to put Summer in the title. Summer exists wholly within their sound. You hear a Beach Boys song, and you're already in the water.
- "Walking on Sunshine", Katrina & the Waves – I mean, seriously, if this song doesn't make you immediately happy and ready to sing out loud with the windows down, you might not have a soul.
- "Steal My Sunshine", Len – Ok, so Len is the definition of a one-hit wonder. That being said, this was a summer-dominating blast of a song when I was in high school, and I can't hear it without thinking about summer. (also see LFO below in the HMs)
- "Crazy in Love", Beyonce – Just like Len dominated my middle school summers, Beyonce took over the summer during college. It's crazy to think that this song is TEN YEARS OLD now. Jebus.
- "Surf City", Jan and Dean – I hate that most people hear Jan and Dean and just assume they're The Beach Boys. Jan and Dean, for a certain generation of Americans, are the soundtrack to summer in and of themselves.
- "California Gurls", Katy Perry – I didn't want to. I really didn't want to . . . but you can't deny the dominance this song held on summer at the beginning of the decade.
- "Thong Song", Sisqo – It's almost quaint to listen to it now, but I remember the song and the video just feeling amazingly scandalous as a junior in high school. Also, this song was EVERYWHERE that summer, and thus just feels like summer.
- "Umbrealla", Rhianna – This song killed everything in it's path the summer of 2007, the summer before I started law school. Thus, it's got a sentimental place in my heart. Also, it's made Rhi-rhi's conquering of the known world possible.
- "Glory Days", Bruce Springsteen – So this song by itself doesn't really conjure up summer. However, when you tie in the theme of whistful remembrence of high school, baseball, and times gone by, and you get a perfect song to sing-a-long to as your on the long summer drive home.
- Honorable Mentions on the List: "Long Hot Summer", Keith Urban; "One Summer", 2 Skinnee J's; "Summer Nights", Olivia Newton-John & John Travolta; "Endless Summer" Aaron Lewis; "Summer Girls", LFO; "Summer in the City", The Lovin' Spoonfull; "California Girls", The Beach Boys; "In the Summer Time", Mungo Jerry, "Hot in Herre", Nelly; "Summer Breeze", Seals & Crofts; "School's Out", Alice Cooper; "We Like To Party!", Vengaboys; "Bootylicious", Destiny's Child.
Thoughts at the closing bell:
- Had my first ever annual review last week? The synopsis? Nailed it. Taking this job at Fenwick & West has been one of the best career choices I've ever made.
- After weeks of scouring Craigslist, going to numerous showing, we've FINALLY found a new place to rent. While we love our apartment in Cupertino, Cupertino itself is just too far from both our jobs for our liking. So we have found a BALLER place in downtown Mt. View, and we sign the lease tonight! More details to follow.
- The Tigers are still in first. I think they cruise to the pole at this point, seeing as Cleveland just can't match us in power or pitching, and neither can the Sox.
- Today, SCOTUS struck down Art. IV of the VRA, essentially rendering the whole Act useless. Tomorrow, though, is the big enchilada – Marriage Equality.
- Videos like this one are the only reason the internet should exist – Bandz a Make Stephanie Tanner Dance.
That's all for now, kids. One love to you all!


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By Donna MilesAmerican Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Aug. 26, 2011 With Hurricane Irene threatening the U.S. seaboard, officials at Walter Reed Army Medical Center here and the National Naval Medical Center at Bethesda, Md., have moved up the transfer of the last 30 Walter Reed inpatients.
The transfer, initially planned for Aug. 28, was accelerated by one day to beat out the approaching hurricane, hospital officials announced today.
A procession of ambulances is expected to begin making the five-mile trek between the two hospitals along Washington's Capital Beltway at about 7 a.m. tomorrow, officials said. The final patient is expected to arrive at Bethesda about three hours later.
Later in the afternoon, a flag-lowering ceremony at Walter Reed will mark its official closing.
The final patient transfer will mark an historic moment in both iconic institutions' histories and one of the final milestones before they officially merge to become the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, officials said.
Navy Capt. David A. Bitonti, chief of staff for integration and transition at the Bethesda facility, has been part of a team preparing for that merger since Congress directed it as part of the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure plan.
He was one of the chief architects behind a well-choreographed plan that included major construction and renovation projects to accommodate the newly arrived patients and medical care providers.
As the calendar moves steadily toward the congressionally mandated Sept. 15 deadline for the consolidation to be completed, Bitonti said he's excited by the possibilities that will come from bringing the two flagship medical centers together as one organization.
"When you look at the two powerhouses that Walter Reed Army Medical Center and the National Naval Medical Center are, and you think about combining them together into a singular facility, that speaks to itself about the good things to come for our patients and beneficiaries," he said. "I think the level and the quality of health care we provide will rival any institution in the country, and maybe the world."
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