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Anna: That sounds promising!!! Our first cycle was like that too, apparently since our bodies aren't used to being exposed to the prostaglandins in semen on a regular basis, they can do funny things. It took a couple cycles for DW to settle into it. :)
Lise: usually I beg DW to just wait it out (she never can), but I agree that the blank white space staring up is pretty daunting...
Esenbee: Good luck on your TWW!!! Here's to hoping for a nice big juice BFP for you guys!
Our christmas present was a BFN, cramping and lots of spotting (the same spotting that predates any AF) and now my DW is having a relapse of her post-cholecystectomy syndrome (involves crushing abdominal pain because the biliary tree is freaking out and spasming). She's puked all evening and I've drugged her up *very* well. Saying we are devastated is an understatement. I have never cried over a failed cycle yet, but I have bawled about it three times today. J could hardly get out of bed yesterday morning (after she got up, POAS, discovered it was negative and crawled back under the covers) because she was so sad.
Any advice on this? Since we are using a KD, we inseminated multiple times per cycle. We would love to keep him, but if it's not working out we're ready to move on. How long do we give it with KD, and when should we look at cutting our losses and moving to a fertility clinic? In BC, we can't use KD in a fertility clinic, they won't do it. So we either lie (which I *hate* doing, but the fertility clinics don't care what you do), or we give up our KD and move to frozen swimmers with IUI (and probably clomid).
Thanks guys. I'm drinking the rest of the vodka cocktail my mom made for Christmas dinner last night (my mom is not a drinker and there's probably only 3oz of vodka in a 4L mix!)... We'll probably miss the January cycle, since we're in Mexico from the 11-25th.
Hope you all had a lovely day yesterday. Aside from our being very sad, we had a great day with family!
Me (31) and DW (34). Taking a long break from TTC, back at it late 2015. PRO VAX ON TIME.
hey Allison,
I am so sad for your sadness at Christmas... I really feel your pain.
And you had such a good vibe and positive omens this cycle, too. I think you're feeling so much more raw this time because you emotionally committed and believed in your heart that this would be it.
Or that's what I felt from your posts over the past few weeks.
And now to have your DP not only get a BFN but also to be so sick... that's rough.
I know I'm a total noob to this, but I would recommend you wait a week or so before you make any big decisions about your KD, how to proceed from here, etc.
I would even suggest putting any big conversations you guys have about it on ice for a week or so. Whatever decisions you make right now would be made while you're in the darkest, deepest, crappiest part of nature's cycle. And nature is amazing. Yes, it sucks to get AF, to be sick and sad, but it's also a new beginning, right? It's a circle, and right now you're at the bottom, but you've already turned the corner and are unerringly on the way back up again... and like winter is at it's worst and most miserable (and rainiest in Vancouver, anyway) at the moment, we're already past the solstice and the sun is on it's way back, even if we can't feel it yet.
So I would suggest that you wait.
This is the cleansing part of the cycle, the making room, getting ready for it all to start again in a few week's time...
Give yourself and your partner time and space, to heal and to grieve and to find your balance again and then make the big decisions.
I do have some thoughts on using frozen sperm.
1. I imagine you know your KD's sperm count (and analysis findings ie. morphology, etc). Assuming all is well with his sperm, your chances of getting pregnant in any one cycle using fresh sperm is significantly higher than with frozen sperm. So all things being equal (ie. your insemination timing, your DPs fertility and overall health, etc) your best bet is to stay with fresh.
There are 4 main reasons:
- ease of access/ number of inseminations per cycle
- count/ quality of sperm in sample (up to half of sperm do not survive freezing/thawing)
- life span of fresh sperm is several DAYS longer than previously-frozen sperm
- volume of ejaculate per insemination
Again, I'm pretty sure you know this, but just in case:
2. Fertility clinics in Vancouver CAN help you with known-donor frozen sperm, BUT it has to meet Canada's Assisted Human Reproductive Act, which is a pain in the ass.
There is 1 (yes, ONE) sperm bank in Canada, and it is ReproMed in Toronto. Your KD has to meet all the same health and quarantine requirements as other anonymous donors, meaning he (and perhaps one of you?) has to fly to Toronto, have all his medical screening tests (re)done, donate (hopefully) several samples over a number of days. That sample is then quarantined for 6 months at which point he is re-tested and the samples are released to you. Vancouver fertility clinics can then use them to do IUIs or whatever.
What's good about that:
- super safe, protects your health, etc
- once you go through that whole pain-in-the-a** procedure, that sperm is yours forever, totally legal in Canada, can be stored indefinitely, and can be used by any fertility clinic you like. All the paperwork is legit. You can also use it in future, should you want more children, and your KD is no longer healthy or available, etc etc
What sucks about it
- it costs a lot of money. Flights to Toronto (for at least 1, possibly 2 or 3 people), hotels, etc, plus the costs at ReproMed are extortionate. And no, they won't accept any health tests or sperm analysis tests done anywhere else, and yes, they can charge whatever they want as they have the monopoly.
- the whole process takes about 8 months, mostly due to the 6 month quarantine.
If you guys are thinking that this might be something you might need to rely on in the future, and you can afford it, you might want to get started on it now. Because waiting 8 months is a long, looooong wait. If you have the money, and your KD is willing, you might as well put some sperm on ice, no? Then you can still continue as you are with fresh, at home, which will then of course work immediately since you've just spent a load of money on the frozen. Murphy's law, right?
Plus, if you're considering using another donor's anonymous/or ID release frozen sperm (ie. purchasing from a clinic) your costs will quickly climb up to the costs of using ReproMed. I believe only Xytex Cryo sperm meets the Canadian standard, so have a look at their shipped prices, plus IUIs at a Vancouver clinic... it adds up fast!
and finally
3. I believe you can have directed-donor sperm frozen at the Seattle Sperm bank.
(I called them up to get more details on this once, but the guy I needed to speak to wasn't in the office that afternoon, and I never followed up...)
This sperm will NOT be accepted in Canada, so Vancouver fertility clinics cannot use it to do IUIs or anything else. The Reproductive Health Act forbids it. I believe (although I'm not sure, you'd have to ask them) that they may be able to ship it (frozen) to your home address to do an at-home IUI yourself (or with the help of a midwife). If not, you would drive to Seattle to have your IUI done there at the clinic.
What's good about it:
- start-up costs are cheaper! Driving to Seattle is a day trip (or 2 or 3), no hotels, flights, etc etc
- I believe the wait is shorter as you may be able to opt out of the 6 month quarantine with a directed donor (you'd need to check this)
What's bad about it
- if it turns out that you (or your DP) have fertility issues, you can't get help from a local Vancouver fertility clinic. They can't touch this sperm, and never will be able to help you with it. So in the long run, you may find you have to do MORE travelling going back and forth to Seattle each month, depending on how long it takes you to conceive...
- if this goes on for a while and you need to have IUIs done in a clinic (rather than having vials shipped to your home) the costs will start to climb up to and possibly above what ReproMed would have cost to start with.
- laws change, governments come and go, your sperm will be in the US, under US laws, you will be in Canada, etc. Things could get complicated. This is what we were told at Genesis clinic in Vancouver anyway.
So, you guys have options!!
My suggestion would be to wait a week before you decide anything. Then get a referral from your family doctor to see Dr Beth Taylor at Genesis on W Broadway.
We went to see her back in November and she was lovely, very calm and relaxed, and gave us some tips and sent us off 'to procreate'. She also said that if nothing had worked after 6 months we should come back and see her and she'd do some more investigations.
So, maybe you guys are at that stage.
Maybe it would help to have someone new look at your DP, check her blood/ hormone levels again (did you guys have a HSG done originally?), maybe do some extra tests. Maybe you just need to have someone new say 'yes, everything is good, you're very healthy and able to make a baby' to give you some confidence back so you guys can get pregnant next month (or the one after).
found the love of my life 13 years ago, married 5 yrs ago, now TTC #1
Anna, did your DP end up testing? Sorry that AF showed up :( And yes, first time, just think of it as practice ;)
lisedea, internet cheapies are usually quite sensitive. I got a very dark bfp on 10dpo when I was pregnant with my DD. However, even with a sensitive test, 8DPO is absolutely far too early for the results to be conclusive! Good luck!
Welcome to the TWW, esenbee :)
invitn: Thanks for the kind words :) And yay for fresh sperm! I hope it makes a difference for you!!
Allison, sorry your DP and you are having such a hard time :( It's hard. Really, really hard. How many tries have you had with your KD? Have you ever gotten a bfp? We didn't get our KD's sperm analysis done because I got pregnant very easily however, if I wasn't pregnant after 3 tries (with great timing) I would have asked for an analysis. 5 years ago I would have waited 6 tries. Big hugs to you.
Afm: Well, I'm having a great cycle...got a positive opk today, all other signs lining up and I can't reach our KD!! I'm terribly disappointed because I'm O'ing right on "schedule" and it would be a great try. He said he was available over the holidays to try for sure but I had told him I was expecting to start trying around the 29th so I'm guessing he's just offline completely until then. He's usually really dependable and super accommodating so this is very unusual indeed. *sigh* I expect I'll O tomorrow...*maybe* the next day....so tomorrow early would still give us a possible shot at it. Everyone, please send my KD "check your email and text messages" vibes please ;)
Carmen- I've sent your KD "check your email and text messages" vibes for the past 10 minutes.
I'm getting 'this mail box is full, please try again later', so I'm guessing others have been vibing, too?
Hope he gets the message soon!!!
yes, DW tested on the Friday morning, which was, I think 14 DPO? It was kind of redundant, though, as we already knew.
He period came on a few hours later... no big surprise there.
found the love of my life 13 years ago, married 5 yrs ago, now TTC #1
M (30), D (30) TTC #1 since October 2010. 13 unsuccessful cycles--no meds (2 m/c). First medicated IUI July 2012: BFN. Second medicated IUI: BFP! Triplets! Actual Due Date: May 17...GOAL: April 5th!
Sawyer, Elliott, and Miles arrived on March 24th @ 32 weeks & 2 days.
Desert - Please move me to the TWW?? Thanks!
Sorry to hear about the several BFNs and AF arrivals these past few days. Sending out lots of warm thoughts to everyone!
Me (S-26), DSp (B-29) married May 21, 2010 in Connecticut. DD (L-4). Billa, Hurley, Spitfire (Leroy) and Nollie too!
2 of my 2 were with frozen sprem - IUI in a clinic on Ontario. They were 1st try (partner) and 2nd try (me). They have the same donor.
Thinking about each of you - following along and hoping for your new year veggie dance!
PS - I also had a really wack and painful period after 1st try. Felt like it might have been chemical or perhaps reaction to sperm? Not sure.
@Anna: we've looked into all of that before, I'm not really interested in spending every penny we have on flying KD to Toronto for sperm harvesting. He got a semen analysis done last spring before we started all of this (and before we started the legal paperwork), and it was borderline (good morphology, good swimming, adequate semen, count was on the low end of acceptable, he's since done many things to improve it), and we've asked him twice to get it done again, but since his family doc isn't in Vancouver (from up north), he's been told (at walk-ins) that it's something he has to pay for (which is bogus, it's covered by MSP). Since DW is so sick, we're off to see a doctor (not our doctor, since she *never* has appointments for day-of problems), I'll ask about it again.
DW just had all her hormones checked (after 5 cycles we got antsy and wanted everyone to get checked out), and everything looks OK (she's got a slight imbalance in one of them, but is on a supplement to fix that).
And thanks to you guys for being here, I feel a lot less miserable today (although am sufficiently worried about DW that not being pregnant isn't really at the forefront).
Anyways, due to yesterdays barf fest in our house, Christmas hasn't been quite put away yet, so that's on my plan of attack today. Hope you're all enjoying whatever weather with whatever plans you have for today!
Me (31) and DW (34). Taking a long break from TTC, back at it late 2015. PRO VAX ON TIME.
invitnconceptn, so nice to see your name pop up here! Thank you for checking in. I'm so sorry to hear about the loss of your cat, especially around the holidays, that's never easy. Hugs to you. Best of luck when you are able to continue trying!
Oh Allison, that sounds horrible! UGH. I am so sorry your DP is feeling so ill, on top of not being pregnant. I hope she starts to feel better soon. Things always look the very worst the day before and the day that AF arrives, that's our experience at least. I imagine it looks much worse at your house right now because of your DP's illness acting up. I am thankful that you were able to enjoy your time with family even on such a terrible, heartbreaking day. My thoughts are with you guys.
Anna - bummer! I was really hoping you guys would give us some first-timer's luck this cycle! Oh well. Second-time lucky is just as good, right?
Carmen, oh no! I'm thinking really really urgent thoughts to your KD that he check his phone and email! I really hope you guys can get an insemination in tonight AND tomorrow and again the next day.
Lise - I hate when that temperature takes a dip. I was never really able to be hopeful after DW's temp dipped while we were waiting to test, as it ALWAYS meant AF was due to arrive any time. That sucks, I'm so sorry. 2012 is a great year to make AND have a baby, and since you'll certainly conceive in January, you'll get to have a 2012 baby still!
esenbee, I hope you and DD are feeling better soon! Congratulations on being in the TWW, you've been moved.
Well, as for us, we're having a BLAST up here in northern Arizona. Yep, still here! Leaving tomorrow morning, and not really looking forward to getting back to "real life". Although I guess that isn't really true. With routine comes a good amount of comfort for me, so I am glad to be getting back to the real world. But it's just been such a fantastic past five days, I am mourning the end of it. A few days back, some people were discussing family and how supportive/excited they are about us being queer couples and trying for babies. I thought it was worth mentioning that while DW's family has always been 100% on board and supportive, my family took some time to come around. When we first started dating, my parents said some truly hurtful and mean things about my relationship with DW, including but not limited to: the fact that we were just scared little girls clinging to one another in times of uncertainty, that I would never go to heaven because homosexuality is akin to bestiality, my mother was very depressed because I was never going to get married or have babies (!!) and at the time, our bank accounts were linked and they took all the money out of my account, came and got my truck and sold it, and I had to sell my horse because I couldn't pay to support him any longer. To be fair, I was 18 at the time and had moved away to college that fall and so they did own all those things and help support me at the time, and their message was that I was going to come back home and go to college there and when I refused was when they took all the money and support away. I imagine it was to help sway me to move back home but I've got my father's stubbornness and I still live in Tucson, and they still live in Phoenix. Let's see... that was seven years ago. We were married three years ago and even then, they weren't completely on board. They came to our reception in Tucson, but did not attend the actual wedding in California.
My point in this whole thing is to show how very far my family has come in its acceptance of myself and DW as a couple and in our desire to have a family of our own. They now are completely involved in our lives and are thrilled to become grandparents. This will be their first grandbaby, and it's coming out of my wife instead of me... and they are so, so excited. I'm in awe of the 180 they've made in the past few years. So for those of you with less than thrilled families, my advice is just to have some faith and be patient. I don't think all families will come around, but I do think that given enough chance and time, a lot of them will.
Okay! Enough of THAT novel. It's nearing the end of the month, which means its time to choose a new Threadkeeper! Anybody interested? Whoever is, I'll PM you the front page list as the month ends.
Here are some pictures from northern Arizona to finish out:
Manni plays in the snow in his coat!
Family shadow picture! From left to right: my brother, me, DW, Mom, our dog Manni, Dad
Mom and Mama to our Clever daughter (9.1.12), and cautiously expecting our rainbow baby after a miscarriage in February! We have a blog, too!
Peak on the monitor today! KD is here as I type so will be insem'ing in a few minutes :) I'm afraid I may have O'd already today but we'll see! Slight temp dip today so hopefully it goes up tomorrow and we nailed the timing!
eta: love the family photo, desert!
lise: Ugh, sorry :( I hope 2012 is a better year too.
Afm: insem went fine, good sample amount and I was able to chill out in bed for 20 minutes or so before my DD got home, ran into the room and jumped on top of me :) I'm fairly confident I O'd today or will shortly so I think this try was it (and may have been too late) but if my temp stays down tomorrow KD will drop by again tomorrow. Lots to do in the next few days, my DD turns 2 on the 30th so we're planning a party for her on the 31st :) And she starts going to daycare 2 days a week in January so we need to make sure we have everything set up for that transition too. Wow, can't believe it's almost 2012!!
Carmen- Glad to hear KD got back to you in time. It sounds like the timing was good so hopefully this will be it!
Lise- Here is the link to my chart: http://www.fertilityfriend.com/home/380cb7 Sorry to hear about the temperature dip. I hope the positivity you are looking for finds you soon.
Desert- Thanks fo sharing your photos with us. It looks like you are all having a great time! I've shared the link to my chart, and will you also put me in the waiting to know section?
Anna- Im sorry to hear about your BFN. I've read several times on here that the first time is always good practice to prepare for a BFP on your second try.
Esenbee- Congratulations on your first insemination! It sounds like the timing worked out after all!
Invitin- Im so sorry to hear about your kitty. I hope you are healing from the loss. Good luck with the new donor.
Allison- Im sorry about your BFN and all the sadness and sickness in your house. I hope as the time passes the answers you are looking for come to you.
AFM: Im still unsure of what are plan is, which is really difficult for me because I am such a planner. DW really thinks we need to wait one more cycle and I am having a hard time with it. We both have been so excited and planning this and talking about it for what seems like a really long time. I know I just need to trust her just as I would want her to trust me but it is hard. So for now, we are just waiting to know, waiting for some sort of sign to tell me that she is right and that I need to be patient.
After years of waiting, DP and I are so excited to announce the arrival of our baby girl, born 1/27/15.
Remebering our Angel Baby, Emery.
Anna: Wow girl, you have alot of knowledge about navigating the health system in your neck of the woods. Thank you for your two cents about the benefits of fresh sperm. I just wish that finding a KD wasn't such a weary process.
Desert: I would be willing to be threadkeeper for January if there are no other takers. My only hesitation is that I feel like a newbie with this blogging business but I am willing to give it a shot.
Carmen: It's so great your KD was able to b reached in the nick of time...like batman swooping in to save the day. Ok. Maybe not like Batman at all. It was a random funny visual that came to mind.
Hopeful: I definitely understand how hard it is to be on the same page with your wife with this process. One of the biggest conflicts between my wife and I had been agreeing on trying each month. I typically saw trying as top priority where as my wife believed that not getting behind on bills was the priority. I was able to see her point of view better after reviewing concrete details. The most important thing was having a plan that worked ultimately for both of us. Sometimes when we find ourselves at a standstill we will both do a pros and cons list of trying v not trying for a given month then compare answers. This exercise always helps us cut through the arguing and go straight to solutions.
Also I think it is difficult to trust the process of trying since there are so many unknowns and always atleast a little frustation. I think it's really easy to doubt decisions. Paraphrasing what a wise woman has said before (krista) as you go along in this process something you would be opposed to one month may be something you may be open to several months down the line. I know that krista said it more succinctly than that but u get my point. Good luck to u and your dw.
M (30), D (30) TTC #1 since October 2010. 13 unsuccessful cycles--no meds (2 m/c). First medicated IUI July 2012: BFN. Second medicated IUI: BFP! Triplets! Actual Due Date: May 17...GOAL: April 5th!
Sawyer, Elliott, and Miles arrived on March 24th @ 32 weeks & 2 days.
Not a lot of time for personals...but hugs and love Ro the bfn....I know it never gets easier ...
We are still in Az...missing our fur miss tons !
I'm waiting for AF ..started the provera on 25th...
Dp and I arel ooking through donors....weird to pick someone from.a catalog of sorts
Desert...my mom.was like yours but not as drastic...but over the last ten yrs, she has finally calmed down and loves my DP .....I'm so glad your fam is supportive and excited!!!
Carmen..fx this cycle is IT !!!!!
Fx to everyone in tww:)
Carmen-...for you.
Me (29) in with DW (40)
DD (12) and DS our special needs baby (4) placed 03-01-10
Our furbaby Bella (Yorkie)
Layla Janae 11/22/11
ds2(8mos)placed 08-o3-2012
Ok i will be january threadkeeper
Cananny: So sorry to hear about the bfn. I really dont think it gets easier seeing a neg preg test when u r so deliberate in your efforts. Good luck finding a donor. It is hard to know for sure if "he" is the one. It is so strange. I've never given guys so much thought until we started looking for a donor. Its weird how when u have the choice to pick the person who is going to supply half of the genetic makeup of your child it is easy to scrutinize every little factor...eye color... Height... Etc.
Carmen: I hope your temps go up tomorrow.
Ooops it looks like I am too late to claim treadkeeper for the new month I was really looking forward to that treadkeepers luck for january insems.
Carmen I am hopeing this is your cycle
we welcomed our on 11/18/12
I'm sorry to hear about all the disappointments.
Carmen -good luck!
Mother to one dd .
Hi everyone. I too am sorry to hear about the disappointments of the last week. Good luck to everyone who still has a shot this cycle, and a warm welcome to Hopeful. I am CD 6 and waiting to O. Better luck to all of us in 2012!
... due in late June.
Lise: thanks for kudos.
Ok i will be january threadkeeper
Cananny: So sorry to hear about the bfn. I really dont think it gets easier seeing a neg preg test when u r so deliberate in your efforts. Good luck finding a donor. It is hard to know for sure if "he" is the one. It is so strange. I've never given guys so much thought until we started looking for a donor. Its weird how when u have the choice to pick the person who is going to supply half of the genetic makeup of your child it is easy to scrutinize every little factor...eye color... Height... Etc.
Carmen: I hope your temps go up tomorrow.
Thanks...my bfn was a while ago ....six seven weeks or something.g...but AF has been a stubborn Bitch and I'm having to take meds to make her show up last cycle we did fresh ..but no iui..my re thinks with my pcos..an iui might be better....so I'm going to try that....so that's why we have to pick a donor .....dp and I are on fence about wtbk or anon... . .. n....its a 120.00$ difference...that I feel is a bit much....being the vials are 500 already.....
Do you do wtbk or anon? What is everyone's reasoning ?
My temp went up today so I think we had perfect timing :) I can officially be moved to the TWW, please! I forgot to mention yesterday that I "lost" half the sample when trying to fill up the syringe...the little rubber stopper thing popped off and the end came out. It was pretty funny but a bit annoying lol
Cananny, I know picking a donor is a very personal decision but my 2 cents is that you should absolutely go for a wtbk donor. While you might not care, your future child/children may care very, very much and to deny them the option of learning more about their donor if they choose may cause a lot of heartache for them and your family. Of course, they may not care either but I think it's extremely important to provide people with an option to know where they came from genetically - in fact, I believe it is a person's right to know. In my opinion, it is similar to adoption, and I believe several countries are making closed adoptions illegal (for various reasons).
Carmen, GOOD LUCK!!! :D
Anon vs wtbk: well, thankfully the National Lesbian Longitudinal Family Study has a article they published last year about this: http://www.nllfs.org/publications/ (scroll down, it's the 5th or 6th one). You can make your own informed decision about your own kids. I'm with Carmen on this one though, I don't feel that it's something I can take away from my kids. As you can read from the study, most kids don't seem to give a rats ass, but some did. There was recently a big showdown in BC about an adoption case, where the woman was in her 20's and her file had been ripped up years ago, and she's fighting to end all closed adoptions, as she believes children have the right to information about their biological family.
We're using a KD for *SO* many reasons, but the most important is that we wanted to give our kids the most access to their biological roots as possible. We really like our donor, he's so awesome and very sweet and will love and adore our kids and that's what sealed the deal for us. In BC we're not entirely protected, but it's better than some other places. There's no case law history in BC that awards custody to the donor. Even though, we did a lot of research and spent a good chunk of money on having legal contracts drawn up (Carmen/Anna/other Vancouver peeps, who did you guys use, out of curiosity).
In the end though, you have to make the decision that YOU can live with. Our families are so colourful and different and awesome (huh hello ZERO PERCENT SEXUAL ABUSED FROM LESBIAN HEADED HOUSEHOLDS!!!) and I think overall we do a great job in raising our kids to be aware of where they come from and how a family is still a family because we say it is, not because of blood relations. Kudos people, we make better kids. ;)
So, quick update: DW saw our super granola-ey energy sensitive very intuitive RMT yesterday morning. She says she's pretty sure J conceived, but that her body freaked out (thanks, stupid biliary colic... caused by Christmas) and ditched the pregnancy because it knew that the next few days were going to be very very bad (and they were). So, I feel much better about this (and also that I'm not completely NUTS). I ended up giving DW a boatload of narcotics and all kinds of crap to get her pain under control, and I would have NOT DONE SO if she was pregnant, rather we would have spent the night in the ER (oh fun times). We're also hopping on a plane to Mexico mid-January for 2 weeks, which exposes you to the same amount of radiation as a chest X-Ray, and me being the crazy NICU nurse makes me EXCESSIVELY PARANOID about these kinds of things (it's easy to dismiss stats when you don't see it every day!). We're missing our January cycle, but I think we need a vacation (and a break).
KD is pleasantly optimistic (he's so awesome), and is happy to do whatever we need done.
Anyways, hope for sticky uteruses for those of you in a TWW! :D
Me (31) and DW (34). Taking a long break from TTC, back at it late 2015. PRO VAX ON TIME.
Anon vs wtbk: well, thankfully the National Lesbian Longitudinal Family Study has a article they published last year about this: http://www.nllfs.org/publications/ (scroll down, it's the 5th or 6th one). You can make your own informed decision about your own kids. I'm with Carmen on this one though, I don't feel that it's something I can take away from my kids. As you can read from the study, most kids don't seem to give a rats ass, but some did. There was recently a big showdown in BC about an adoption case, where the woman was in her 20's and her file had been ripped up years ago, and she's fighting to end all closed adoptions, as she believes children have the right to information about their biological family.
We're using a KD for *SO* many reasons, but the most important is that we wanted to give our kids the most access to their biological roots as possible. We really like our donor, he's so awesome and very sweet and will love and adore our kids and that's what sealed the deal for us. In BC we're not entirely protected, but it's better than some other places. There's no case law history in BC that awards custody to the donor. Even though, we did a lot of research and spent a good chunk of money on having legal contracts drawn up (Carmen/Anna/other Vancouver peeps, who did you guys use, out of curiosity).
I agree with everything you said there, Allison.
Anonymous vs Willing To Be Known:
I also feel very strongly that I don't want to take away my future children's ability to find out about their genetic make-up. Or maybe it's the other way around: that access to their genetic make-up (and other 'family of origin') is something of value that may one day become important to them.
I know not everyone feels that way, but I do. We looked at sperm banks for years and years and i just couldn't get comfortable with it. I couldn't move past this feeling that something wasn't right. It added years of waiting and frustration to our journey of starting a family, meaning we've almost run out of time.
But i couldn't get past this.
We're also lucky to have found an awesome KD who is willing to participate in the children's lives and provide information about family, etc. We're even going so far as to include his parents in the 'village'.
I realise that may be pushing it a bit for some people, but they're lovely people, and if I was a child I'd love to have them as my grandparents. So, we're trying.
In the end though, you have to make the decision that YOU can live with. Our families are so colourful and different and awesome (huh hello ZERO PERCENT SEXUAL ABUSED FROM LESBIAN HEADED HOUSEHOLDS!!!) and I think overall we do a great job in raising our kids to be aware of where they come from and how a family is still a family because we say it is, not because of blood relations. Kudos people, we make better kids. ;)
Also agree with this very much.
Whatever we decide as parents (or parents to be) as long as we make those decisions with a true heart, our children will grow up safe and confident in the knowledge that their parents made the right choices for their family.
I really can't say it any better than you did, Allison.
And yes, we also consulted a lawyer (Larry Kahn of Kahn Zack Erlich Lithwick ). He charges a fortune.
We saved some cash by writing our own donor contract and showing it to him. He read it over and said 'this is fine and will hold up in court. Save your money. I don't need to write one of these for you'...
We think we will use him to do the Declaration of Parentage when the time comes though, to get both our names on the Birth Certificate. It's a little more expensive than the 2nd Parent Adoption, apparently, but is quicker and done within weeks of the birth. I suspect a lot of stuff may change for all of us (esp. our KD) after the birth, so I don't want any delays...
Call me paranoid.
Who are you using, Allison?
And carmen, did you do a 2nd Parent adoption for your daughter?
found the love of my life 13 years ago, married 5 yrs ago, now TTC #1
And yes, we also consulted a lawyer (Larry Kahn of Kahn Zack Erlich Lithwick ). He charges a fortune.
We saved some cash by writing our own donor contract and showing it to him. He read it over and said 'this is fine and will hold up in court. Save your money. I don't need to write one of these for you'...
We think we will use him to do the Declaration of Parentage when the time comes though, to get both our names on the Birth Certificate. It's a little more expensive than the 2nd Parent Adoption, apparently, but is quicker and done within weeks of the birth. I suspect a lot of stuff may change for all of us (esp. our KD) after the birth, so I don't want any delays...
Call me paranoid.
Who are you using, Allison?
And carmen, did you do a 2nd Parent adoption for your daughter?
Just curious, why are you planning on doing a declaration of parentage? The lawyer we consulted (queer lawyer who specialized in queer family law) said it's really only necessary if you are really worried about your KD trying for custody at the beginning....she also said it can sometimes take so long that your adoption will likely be close to being completed (at 6 months) when you receive it. We decided not to do it. Also, both my DP and I are on DD's birth certificate...it asks the sex of the "other parent" on the application. We are planning on doing a 2nd parent adoption but because we don't feel 'threatened' whatsoever by our donor in terms of custody we were going to wait until we have a 2nd child (hopefully!) and then do it together. I also believe you still have to do the adoption even if you do the declaration of parentage in the beginning.
Happy New Year's Eve, all!
As this year finishes, I'm left feeling very contemplative and thankful. I am so glad to have known you all and to have had the support of this group. It's hard to believe that last January is when we decided to start planning out this journey. I hope you all find yourselves with friends and/or family on this night, celebrating the end of one year and the fresh start that a new year brings.
I've updated the roster and sent it to Invitnconceptn, she will be your Threadkeeper for January. I'm hoping it'll be okay with everyone if I stick around here, probably mostly lurking but I would like to keep up with you guys. I don't want to be disrespectful of anyone, so I will avoid discussion of our pregnancy, but I want you all to know that I care about you and I'm looking forward to continue reading about all of your journeys!
Much love to you all.
Mom and Mama to our Clever daughter (9.1.12), and cautiously expecting our rainbow baby after a miscarriage in February! We have a blog, too!
Hello everyone please join me for January at http://www.mothering.com/community/t/1340469/queer-conceptions-january-2012#post_16808575
@Anna: we used barbara findlay (she doesn't use capitals in her name), sounds like the same one Carmen used. She was fabulous, she does several of these KD contracts, so she just sent us a questionnaire and then filled in the blanks on her donor contract and then went over it with us. Our KD had to have his own representation, but it was all perfectly fine. :) We paid for that, I think all in it was about $2500? Ish? Maybe less, I don't really remember (we finished our contract in MAY, and I have the memory of a goldfish).
We found barbara on the Pomegranate Midwives website in the resource section. She's bad-ass, we will be using her again. We wrote our donor contract in such a way that it still applies to each child conceived through either of us, so we don't have to repeat the whole process for each kid (AAUGH!). I don't think we'll be doing the declaration of parentage, unless KD suddenly starts making noise about wanting to be more involved suddenly. We'll definitely seal our 2nd parent adoption, but by the time our baby is born, the new laws might be around that'll completely eliminate KD as any possible threat to our legal parentage (dunno if you've heard of this?). It got kinda pushed back when the Liberals totally screwed around and Gordo stepped down, but it's here http://www.ag.gov.bc.ca/legislation/pdf/Family-Law-White-Paper.pdf, it's from 2010 though, so it's actually OVERDUE to pass. :) But the fancy part that REALLY affects us is this:
Birth mothers should be considered legal parents at the birth of the child, whether or not their eggs were used to conceive the child and that they can give up this parental status in two ways: adoption or surrogacy.
The birth mother's partner, male or female, should be presumed to be the other legal parent, unless it is proven otherwise.
A person who donates eggs or sperm for another person's use should not become a legal parent, even though there is a genetic link to the child. An exception to that general rule is that a person who donates genetic material can agree in advance of the child's conception to be a legal parent, which means that in certain circumstances, a child can have more than two legal parents. For example, a lesbian couple and a male friend whose sperm is used to conceive a child can agree before the child is conceived that the donor will also be a legal parent. Responses were mixed on whether the pre-conception agreement between a donor and the parents should be sufficient to establish the donor's status as an additional parent or whether a court declaration should be required.
Me (31) and DW (34). Taking a long break from TTC, back at it late 2015. PRO VAX ON TIME.
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Is the stress getting to Nicki Minaj? Her new album, Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded, debuted to semi-underwhelming critical and commercial response, selling 253,000 copies in its opening frame and averaging a 59/100 on Metacritic. Over the weekend, while a holographic Tupac was delighting 70,000 fans at Coachella, Nicki got into a Twitter altercation with NickiDaily.com, one of her many fansites. Nicki Daily had begun posting leaked songs, reportedly from Nicki's NEXT album, when Minaj took exception and blasted the site on Twitter. Things quickly escalated, with Minaj tweeting "On 2nd thought I'll just follow a new set of barbz. The ones I follow r very mean and ratchet. *side eyes them* *looks into the sea 4 more*", which she then followed up with "Like seriously, its but so much a person can take. Good f*cking bye."
Then, just like that, @NickiMinaj was no more. Minaj deleted her Twitter account and, along with it, her 11 million+ followers. This led the popular (yet not always reliable) gossip site MediaTakeOut to report that "there are signs that she may have had a NERVOUS BREAKDOWN" (caps theirs). The site claims that Minaj is suffering from exhaustion after an endless promotional campaign for her oft-delayed sophomore solo LP, including a controversial stop at the Grammys and a lip-synced performance on American Idol. At this moment, there is no evidence to back up the site's claims, but either way, we just hope that Nicki is able to collect herself, brush off the haters, and get back to doing what she does best, soon.
Nicki Minaj Quits Twitter After Fansite Leaks Music [Billboard]
MTO WORLD EXCLUSIVE: Nicki Minaj DISAPPEARS . . . Friends Fear That NICKI Minaj Had A NERVOUS BREAKDOWN . . . Or WORSE!! (Details) [MediaTakeOut]
[Photo: Getty Images]

subset: commoncrawl


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Summary: Barclays Capital Inc. Series 2012-1W, 2010-25W, And 2012-4WX; Tender Option Certificates/Bonds Mar 13
- Language: English
- Published: March 2013
Standard & Poor's Ratings Services has raised its ratings on Barclays Capital Inc.'s series 2010-25W municipal trust receipts, floating-rate trust receipts (Floater-TRs), relating to the Rutherford County Health & Educational Facilities Board, Tenn.'s series 2010C revenue bonds (Ascension Health Senior Credit Group) to 'AA+/A-1+' from AA/A-1+' and Barclays' series 2010-25W municipal trust receipts, residual interest trust receipts (RI-TRs), relating to Rutherford County Health & Educational Facilities Board's series 2010C revenue bonds (Ascension Health Senior Credit Group) to 'AA+' from 'AA'. The long-term component of the rating is based on the underlying bond (CUSIP # 78324PAB5). The short-term component of the rating is based on the liquidity facility provided by Barclays Bank PLC. This action follows Standard & Poor's May 04,...
Companies mentioned in this report are:
- Ascension Health Alliance
- Barclays Capital Inc.
- Rutherford Cnty Hlth & Ed Fac Bd
Action: Upgraded
Standard and Poors RatingsXpress Credit Research provides in-depth coverage of international corporates, financial institutions, insurance companies, utilities, sovereigns and structured finance programs. RatingsXpress Credit Research lets users determine the credit rating of holdings and identify key factors underlying an issuer's creditworthiness, distinguishes the different risk exposures for new and existing deals, and provides an understanding of how their analysts interpret key regulatory, political and environmental events and their economic impact.
This product consists of a Summary Analysis: Bi-annual (at least). An abbreviated analysis containing Standard & Poor's issuer credit ratings as of the time the article was published. The analysis includes a rating rationale - the basis on which the rating was assigned - and an outlook section if the issuer is not on CreditWatch. Financial statistics are not included. SHOW LESS READ MORE >
- Ascension Health Alliance
- Barclays Capital Inc.
- Rutherford Cnty Hlth & Ed Fac Bd


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Hotels in 15260 - Pittsburgh PA
Only hotels in 15260 zip code are listed below. Search for cheap and discount hotel rates in Pittsburgh, PA for your upcoming leisure or conference / group travel. We list the best 15260 hotels and motels so you can review the Pittsburgh hotel list below to find the perfect lodging. Hotels in Allegheny county and area code 412 are also listed.
15260 Hotels/Accommodations
Next: Show All Available 15260 Hotels with Pricing >


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The Best Peruvian Rotisserie Chicken in Washington, DC
There's no shortage of excellent pollerias selling rotisserie chicken to Washington, DC's sizable Peruvian population. Here are four especially worth seeking out. More
There's no shortage of excellent pollerias selling rotisserie chicken to Washington, DC's sizable Peruvian population. Here are four especially worth seeking out. More
It's a well known fact that the best Asian food in the DC area lies outside of DC proper. That's why it's worth the drive to Falls Church, a destination for cooking from all over Southeast Asia, from the Vietnamese haven of Eden Center to Thai groceries with tiny (excellent) takeout counters. More
Roughly speaking, a half-smoke is a coarsely ground and smoked half-beef, half-pork sausage seasoned with red pepper flakes. But even those basic parameters are up for debate. What we can say: the half-smoke is a DC icon worth getting to know. More
Washington, DC is commonly considered the second largest Ethiopian city in the world, second only to Addis Ababa. Those immigrants have built America's foremost destination for Ethiopian cooking. Here's where you should go. More
DC is a commuter city, which means most restaurants close up shop early. But look around and you'll find some exceptions for quality meals beyond giant slices of greasy pizza. More
Depending on who you ask and what subjective gerrymandering is involved, you may or may not lump Washington, DC in with the American South. Cultural geography notwithstanding, DC is still a town that can boast some solid Southern-style fried chicken. Here are our favorites. More
After a stubborn winter, you can be sure that everyone who can in DC will be out and lining up for every available seat on roof decks and patios. From scenic roofs to hipster beer gardens to historic, secluded courtyards, Washington has more than enough outdoor dining real estate to accommodate its Vitamin D-starved public. We picked 10 of our favorite outdoor dining spots for you to check out. More
Sure, there are bars with dollar PBRs or cheap, passable wings; those are a dime a dozen. But these Washington, DC happy hours are excellent on their own merits. Looking for a discounted impeccably curated beer list? Cheap well-made cocktails? There's a happy hour for you somewhere in town. Here's our guide to the best options. More
With a sprawling Chinatown, a significant Salvadorian population, and a school bus serving serious barbecue, DC has plenty to satisfy the hungry bargain hunter. More
Gelato fans take notice: DC's resident gelato experts at Dolcezza are moving into a massive new headquarters/tasting center just behind Union Market. More
The recently opened brewery-restaurant Bluejacket Brewery and its internal restaurant The Arsenal are sharing more than just a space: they're both using the same grains to make both beer and food. We went behind the scenes to see how grains go from malt room to macaroni and cheese. More
A chicken parm is the kind of sandwich that's pretty delicious no matter how it's prepared, and even a bad one is still going to be pretty good. You can't really go wrong with fried chicken, mozzarella, tomato sauce, and bread. So elevating the familiar deli classic is best done by approaching it from a place of subtlety, lest you undermine the essential qualities that make it great. At Mike Isabella's latest project, G Sandwich Shop, his iteration of the Chicken Parm ($11) is immediately recognizable, but augmented just enough to make it its own delicious beast. More
Rose's Luxury is a new spot on Barracks Row from former Momofuku Noodle Bar chef Aaron Silverman, featuring an eclectic menu spanning pho to popcorn soup, but the dish we can't stop talking about is this complex pork and lychee salad. More
"Gin, Champagne, and crisp white wines are the triumvirate of great oyster pairings." So says Derek Brown of DC's The Passenger and the more recent Mockingbird Hill. Hot off of a mission to spread the good wood about sherry at the latter, Brown has now turned his sights on oysters. Adding another stone to his ever-expanding empire two doors down from Mockingbird Hill is the newly minted Eat the Rich. More
We popped into the Red Apron Butchery at Union Market to see Tiffany MacIsaac take a blowtorch to some marshmallows and make some awesome soft serve. More
DC has no shortage of farmers markets, but great flea markets are few and far between. That's why we're so excited about District Flea, a new sister market to Brooklyn Flea in New York, with 20-odd food vendors on site to fuel the bargain and treasure-hunting masses. More
Doughnut mania in DC continues. With a number of doughnut and fried chicken operations popping up, the next doughnut-plus iteration was never far off, which, obviously, is the doughnut ice cream sandwich. More
Washington DC has its share of trendy cocktail bars and hipster hideouts, but the district's dive bars have clung to life, thriving on decades of drinking history and fierce local loyalty. Here are 8 of our favorite dive bars in the DC area. More
2013 has been something of a banner year for Washington DC's food and drink scene and there's little sign of slowing. One of the latest additions is the fourth major brewery to come online in the District. More


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August 2, 2015
Voter turnout was at a high with nearly 27,000 Brazos County residents hitting the primary election polls.
The strong numbers continued long after the those polls closed Tuesday evening. That's because for many, the voting doesn't end after casting the primary election ballot.
In fact, many Democrats headed back to the Brazos Center later in the day to take part in the evening caucus. It's a time in which Democrats get a chance to talk resolutions, and also reaffirm their presidential nominee.
"We elect delegates to the county convention based on presidential preference," Brazos County Democratic Party Chairman Charles Wiggins said. "The next step is for the groups to say, all the Obama people in one corner of the room, all the Clinton people are in the other corner of the room. Then they count heads and allocate the delegates."
Republicans also take part in what's called a precinct convention, a term which Republican officials say differs from the Democratic caucus.
"The precinct convention is held to elect delegates to the county and state convention, and to pass any resolutions from anyone in our precinct," Republican Election Chair Paul Rieger said.
Democratic party officials add that this year's caucus was one of the first times the system has really been tested locally, since both presidential candidates for the party have been neck and neck.
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Hold down Control (PC) or Command (Mac) key + mouseclick to select more than one option
|Avg. Dinner Entrée
|Greater than $25
|$18.01 - $25
|$12.01 - $18
|$7.01 - $12
|Less than $7
Posted by Yummy eats on 05/06/2008
I wish there was a Jou Jou in the Village on Prince Street! I'd be there everyday! I stumbled upon this place when I was in the 168th St. area and My Mom and I were hungry. So I got there grilled cheese for her and a Turkey Brie for me. It was fantastic. I love how they use the cheeses and herbs in their sandwhiches to give it surpurb flavor with out having to over stuff the sandwhich. We Loved it!
Posted by Anonymous on 03/10/2008
I've lived in the neighorhood all my life and this is a great addition. I've been here at 3am sometimes 6am when everything else is closed. Great wraps and soups. The staff is super friendly even at those ungodly hours. Overall the place is fantastic and not to expensive.
Posted by Anonymous on 02/16/2008
One of my favorite places to eat. Great on the run, or to sit with a book and enjoy a sandwich and coffee. I have to comment on the excellent staff. Pretty much everyone who works there is extremely friendly and I enjoy just droping in to say hello on my way to the 1 train. The sandwichs are excellent and the Ginger cookies are my favorite!! I'm glad we have Jou Jou in the neighborhood.
Posted by Anonymous on 11/20/2007
long lines and lack of personnel mean a longer wait. crowded space. no atmosphere here. loud and cramped. sandwiches are surprisingly creative and tasty, however. grilled steak burrito is fantastic. great spicy kick to it.
Posted by columbiastudent on 10/18/2007
the food here is really great but for a student on a budget, a $6 sandwich at subway would be a better value. these sandwiches and wraps are SMALL. i don't have the biggest appetite but i can easily eat two of them and still have room for dessert. the lines do move very quickly but finding a place to sit is tough during lunch hours.
Posted by Petra on 02/26/2007
Wonderful, friendly little place with VERY tasty stuff. It seems to be filled when I go (except afternoon is a good time -- less people) but in either case it's absolutely worth the wait. Seems to be very high-quality ingredients.
Posted by Anonymous on 10/25/2006
Don't get scared by line for lunch- it moves fast and there is a reason behind it- food is delicious and a good value. All leftover gets donated to the emergency room athNYPH nightly, so you cn bet it is fresh.


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Tuesday, July 28, 2015
JOSHUA TRUJILLO/seattlepi.com file
Q: Is passing on the right illegal?
A: In some cases, but not all.
State Patrol Trooper Dan McDonald points to section 46.61.110 of the Revised Code of Washington.
Section three states: "Except when overtaking and passing on the right is permitted, overtaken traffic shall give way to the right in favor of an overtaking vehicle on audible signal and shall not increase speed until completely passed by the overtaking vehicle."
Exceptions include when a car is signalling a left turn and as long as the car passing on the right does not leave the roadway.
"The key," McDonald said, "is doing it safely, professionally and where there is no road rage involved."
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Our colleagues over at Hotline on Call have the latest on a Washington-state-based super PAC kerfuffle in which a political action group formed to attack a candidate was funded entirely by the mother of her opponent.
Yes, moms appear to be funding super PACs now.
So here's what happened, as reported by the Seattle Times: Laura Ruderman's mother, Margaret Rothschild contributed $115,000 to the political group Progress for Washington to attack Suzan DelBene in the 1st District race in the Evergreen State.
Hotline on Call's Sean Sullivan explains what this means.
There is no apparent evidence to suggest improper coordination in Washington's 1st District, but the episode is a reminder that while outside groups aren't allowed to coordinate with the candidates they support, the entities often involve people who have formed longstanding, close relationships with them.
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As legislation to allow wine in grocery stores moves forward, opponents and proponents alike are keeping watchful eyes on the bill as it passes through the legislature.
House Speaker Beth Harwell broke a tie vote Wednesday to advance the bill to the full House Local Government Committee.
The bill, which is sponsored by Rep. John Lundberg of Bristol, would allow cities and counties to hold referendums on whether to allow wine to be sold in supermarkets and convenience stores. The companion bill recently cleared its first Senate committee by a single vote.
Current state law prohibits supermarkets from selling any alcohol stronger than beer, while package stores are only allowed to sell wine, liquor and lottery tickets.
One Stop Wine & Liquors owner Phil Scharfstein said he was disappointed with the bill's progression this past week.
"I'm disappointed in the vote. With Harwell coming in and breaking that tie, there's a lot of pressure from the top, obviously, trying to push this bill through those subcommittees," he said.
Like many liquor store owners across the state, Scharfstein has been a staunch opponent to the bill, and he believes the measure would greatly impact the Johnson City liquor store market if passed.
"If we vote on it in the referendum to allow it to be voted in the municipality, then you're going to open it up to at least seven stores just right here in this quadrant," Scharfstein said from his South Roan Street office. "Take my intersection and multiply that throughout Johnson City and throughout the other cities and towns in Tennessee and you've got 5,000 to 6,000 new outlets with wine exposure."
At One Stop, Scharfstein said sales would diminish if grocery stores and other markets were able to sell wine, which would mean he would have to let some staff go.
"I do expect sales to diminish. With diminished sales, the only thing I can do is cut loose employees. The majority of my staff has been here for over six years. They are trained to sell these products. Most of them have families," he said.
Some legislators have said now is the time for liquor store and supermarket owners to compromise on bill, but Scharfstein said he does not see how compromise is possible when there are so many rules and regulations associated with the sale of alcohol.
"At this moment, compromise is very difficult the way I see it. It all goes back to these," he said, holding up his book of rules and regulations. "How do you not just take these and throw them in the trash if that's what it's about?"
With the push coming from the GOP supermajority on support of the bill, Scharfstein said he's worried about the measure's progress as it continues to move through its hurdles.
"You've got (Lt. Gov. Ron) Ramsey and Lundberg and Harwell that are really pushing hard, I think, on a lot of individuals, a lot of representatives, a lot of senators that probably in their heart would vote against this, but with the pressure from above they're not allowed to vote with their heart. They're having to vote the party's thoughts," he said.
Food City President and CEO Steve Smith said the bill still has a long to way to go, but he's hopeful it will pass so it will benefit customers in Tennessee.
"Would it be a profit center for us? Certainly if we sold wine, we'd make a profit from it, but as much as anything, we in our business gotta listen to customers about what they want in our stores, provided it's legal and ethical and it's the right thing to do," he said.
A number of Food City's customers, particularly those live in Bristol and Kingsport, travel across the border to Virginia to do their grocery shopping because they know they can pick up a bottle of wine at one location, according to Smith.
Smith acknowledged the fact that liquor stores would lose some business, but he said they will adapt just as liquor stores, grocery stores and other retailers have in places like Virginia.
"Nobody protected the supermarket industry from Walmart or from drugstores selling food or Costco or Sam's selling food, so the free enterprise system is a pretty good system to be able to get customers the best prices, the best variety and the most convenience at the end of the day," he said.


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After seeing the SplashLight from Avoooq and enjoying the image of a pouring bottle lamp, I felt I had to make one and make it awesome. My first idea was to recycle a lamp from around the house and create something completely new. I discovered that all my lamps already had a good use case. So I dug into the electronics drawers and found I had an unused Arduino UNO and enough electronic bits and lights to build my own lamp.
An Arduino Compatible Hexapod
I had a chance to build the iitsii Robugtix hexapod and took some time to play with BigFoot Inverse Kinematics engine that comes with the platform. The engine really simplifies the gait management with the six legged platform. The build was easy, even though you have to manually position 18 servo motors by hand. The documentation is great and includes a serial command reference if you want to do some arduino interfacing work.
MorphHex Robot
The MorphHex robot looks to be an interesting and rapidly evolving robot type. There is a nice write up on it and other types at vice.com.
Hot Springs and Creepy Carnival Rides
I've been playing more with slow motion video on IOS. Here is a shot from Hot Springs, Arkansas:
Hot Springs from Rich Thompson on Vimeo.
I also took a very creepy carnival ride shot:
Memphis Cotton Carnival from Rich Thompson on Vimeo.
Mac OSX ACLs
I went down a rabbit hole working on OSX ACLs, luckily this page on OSX ACLs was around to help out.
Rip DVD to Kindle Fire – Handbrake DVD Ripping
I got tired of having to remind myself how to setup handbrake for DVD ripping. Yes I am ripping my own DVDs for Kindle, iPad, iPod and Android Tablets. Here are the fast instructions for Windows 64-bit computers DVD ripping and the software is all free.
- Download the appropriate LIBDVDCSS decryption file for Windows 64-bit systems here. http://download.videolan.org/pub/libdvdcss/last/win64/
- Make sure you rename your downloaded file to libdvdcss.dll and *do not* leave it named libdvdcss-2.dll as you have downloaded it.
- Install HandBrake from http://handbrake.fr/downloads.php or if you already have it installed, go to the /Program Files/HandBrake/ folder.
- Copy this libdvdcss.dll file to the /Program Files/HandBrake/ folder.
- Run Handbrake. You may get a startup error when you run the program. Close it and run the program again.
- Find you source video by clicking the source button in handbrake and choosing your DVD.
- Select the iPad preset since it will be most compatible.
- Set you destination folder by selecting the browse button by the Destination line. Choose the desktop of your computer so you can find the video and move it to your kindle or other device.
- On the kindle the file will show up in the Gallery…not Videos. Genius.
Quad Holomonic Drive Robot
Over at RJ McNamara's Blog, he has put together a new Quad Holomonic Drive Robot based on the LEGO® NXT. The robot uses dual Rotacaster® Omni-wheels on each of the four axis's and four LEGO® NXT Ultrasonic Sensors.
Head on over to RJ McNamara's Blog and check it out.
July 2011 Screenshot
My July 2011 Screenshot features lots of use of GeekTool on Mac OSX. I made a multi-layered wallpaper and embedded GeekTool information.
Dog Beats Girls at Soccer
Lucy beats my two youngest daughters at Soccer.
Lucy the Dog Beats My Youngest Daughters at Soccer from Rich Thompson on Vimeo.
Holy Rosary Soccer 2010
Pictures and video from the Fall 2010 Soccer season.
September 2010 Holy Rosary Soccer from Rich Thompson on Vimeo.