text:
James Nitties: Welcome to the PGA Tour
BY Anthony Powter | Australasian PGA Tour | 2008 Australian Open | General | 10 Dec 2008
In a space of only a few weeks much has changed for James Nitties. Last month at the NSW Open in his local region of the Hunter Valley he was playing the season ending Von Nida Tour event not knowing what his options in 2009 would be.
Nitties headed to the US in an attempt to gain playing privileges of some type, a right that had eluded him at that point in his career. The recent finishes back home had lifted his confidence, yet he had no idea what would unfold within such a short time back in the US.
James Nitties Audio Interview
His next event was the Final Stage of the USPGA Tour Q-School and after six gruelling rounds he finished in a share of second place on Monday and secured his right to play the 2009 PGA Tour.
Six rounds of torrid golf had crystallised a dream he'd held since picking up a club at the age of 12. He was heading to the PGA Tour with playing status and returning back to Australia a completely different player to what had left just weeks earlier. The pathway to the main tour has been anything but easy for the 26-year-old, but his dream was now a reality.
"I had no status at all prior to last week," he said this morning at Royal Sydney after just arriving from the US.
"To be able to now go and play the tour that I've dreamed to be on is a real thrill. I want to prove that I can play there and it's something I'm looking forward to doing."
Nitties has come off a horror last few years that has seen him plagued by injury.
There was also considerable frustration with his game that came from having to Monday qualify in order to gain one of five to seven spots in the main event each week. During 2007 Nitties played fifteen of those qualifiers from which he progressed to the main draw six times.
In 2008 he played only three Monday qualifiers, shooting 6-under-par in two, yet a main draw slot alluded him. He felt he was hitting his head against a wall and in retrospect those experiences were for the better, as it forced Nitties to reconsider his playing strategy, as well as his immediate future.
Nitties has never lost sight of his broader objective to gain a US tour card of some type and to settle in to the grind of four-round tournament golf. Scheduling consistency is something he has missed and to an extent, injury aside, it's restricted his career since turning professional in 2004.
"I've been a type of golfing nomad," he said this morning. "I played where ever I can get a start, Gateway, Hooters, as well as trying to 'Monday' for the Nationwide. It's not been easy as there's a lot of guys out there doing it, but it's certainly hardened me as a player."
Nitties became a globe trotting road warrior, who travelled between Nationwide Tour Monday qualifiers, Gateway and Golden State Tour events, usually by car, in a routine that virtually bordered on nomadic. Dedication and a desire to achieve his goal of playing the PGA Tour were the only motivating factors on his long journeys between tournaments. Many others have faded under the same circumstances and become statistics of the tour, Nitties has survived and is better from it.
"It was an experience that made me a better person and a player and it's one that I'll take with me onto the main tour. It's been a hard grind, but it's one I'm glad to have had."
Nitties' only real base for the last three years has been in Tallahassee in Florida, staying with good mate Long Sellenz, who himself has done wonders for many emerging players. Sellenz looked after Nitties like a father figure and provided a sanctuary during the many down periods, reinforcing to Nitties that the effort would eventually be worth it. His words of wisdom proving right.
Sellenz was one of the first Nitties called this morning after stepping off his flight from the US to convey the good news that he'd made the main tour and to thank him for all the support over the years.
Nitties turned professional in October 2004, immediately after representing Australia at the Eisenhower trophy in Puerto Rico, with the Queensland PGA Championship the following month his debut tournament where he made the cut. The next week at the NSW Open he did the same.
He'd already played in several professional events including the 2003 MasterCard Masters on the European Tour where he finished an impressive 8th and in the 2001 and 2003 Australian Opens, where he was the leading amateur on both occasions. The transition to the paid ranks was seen at the time as more a formality for Nitties, following an outstanding career as an amateur.
A month after turning professional Nitties finished runner-up to Peter Lonard at the Australian PGA Championship in only his fourth professional start. Had Lonard not been in such a purple patch at that time, history may have been different. Nitties would then go on to finish a top-30 at the 2005 Heineken Classic and a 10th at the Jacob's Creek and with this came exempt status from stage one of the 2005 USPGA Tour School and straight to second stage that was scheduled for November 2005.
"I want to be on a main tour, be that either in the US or Europe and within two years," he said in an interview in April 2005 at Newcastle Golf Club, where he has been coached by Jason Laws for the past six years.
It was an outstanding debut season and a spot on the 2006 Nationwide Tour seemed certain. As Nitties would later experience, in professional sport nothing is certain.
In August 2005 when his game was on the way up in the US, Nitties was diagnosed with reactive arthritis. It would hamper his immediate playing future, frustrating the talented Novcastrian, as he felt a sense of uselessness as if he drawn the short straw early in his career. It would represent a low point, which for many may have even proven fatal, but not for Nitties.
He would play the Hooters Tour, winning his first professional tournament with the Base Camp Realty Chesdin Landing Open in 2006. Nitties also played any other events he could qualify as he had no playing privileges on the Nationwide Tour. In fact he has never had any Nationwide Tour playing rights.
But that's the past and some golfers, particularly Nitties, never dwell on the past, but rather focus on the future.
James Nitties is a suave golfer with a powerful approach to the game. He's an impressive package that attracts the female eyes in the galleries. Looks aside, Nitties has always possessed the game to match it with the world's best and he confirmed it over an outstanding six days at the USPGA Tour School.
He held it together and he brings to the game of golf a touch of "007" status. A licence to kill a golf course and thrill a gallery. A risk taker who likes to play the numbers game, yet is determined, capable and focused.
For James, the immediate focus has become the PGA Tour and it's richly deserved for one of our most talented and emerging professionals.


text:
Zoey Nixon
Nb of Scenes: 2
Categories: amateur , glasses , red head , natural big tits
Checkout Zoey Nixon naked & having hardcore sex on Mofos mobile! Your iPhone won't believe it as she sucks big dicks and takes messy cumshots to the face, tits and perfect ass. Homemade amateur mobile porn with reality sex videos will excite you until you shoot a huge load!

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Store News
Click the item and enter your postcode to find your nearest store!
Your friendly local independent toy store will be only too happy
to reserve your item for you to collect when you are ready.
• Whilst stock lasts • Available at selected stores
|Branded Store
|Associated Store


text:
It should be of great concern that the needs of men and the perception of manhood are rarely addressed in positive & constructive ways. This book's purpose is to do just that...to aid in improving the relationships with the men in your life.
"From the perspective of a man, I feel that one of the greatest prejudices that plague our families, our work places, and our communities, is the prejudice against masculinity." -James W. Falcon
The author is a father of girls and it is extremely important to him that his daughters and as many other people as are interested have a healthy understanding of what a man is and what a man is not; and how to communicate and how to effectively relate to the men in their lives. This is the 2nd book in the Quick But Powerful Reads Series. Order a copy and begin the reconciliatory process today!
James Wayne Falcon was born, raised, and currently lives in Baltimore, Maryland. James is the product of a strong, family centered, North & South Carolinian values-based upbringing. The lessons learned from his interactions with his parents and with his brother would serve as the basis for many of James' endeavors. Because verbal expression was so strongly encouraged in the Falcon home, James could not help but develop a passion for speaking and writing. James is the founder of a collection of encouragement based projects gathered under a single heading called Encouragement Is Key. Wherever, whenever, and however encouragement can be conveyed, James is committed to using that method to help others. James holds an Associate's Degree in Biblical Studies, a Bachelor's Degree in Psychology and a Master's Degree in Organizational Leadership. For more on James W. Falcon and Encouragement Is Key visit: http://encouragementiskey.blogspot.com/
Comment posted.
Sign in or create an account to post a comment.
The Daddy Pages Published June 07, 2014
PITCH BLACK Published June 07, 2014
UP & OVER Published June 07, 2014
Juggernaut Published April 25, 2014
Emotional & Cerebral Published April 25, 2014
BROKE Published April 25, 2014


text:
Da Ville Hotel
- Info
- |
- Tarieven
- |
- Kaart & Route
- |
- Recensies
- |
- Faciliteiten
Informatie Verblijfplaats:
We are able to offer a variety of rooms to suit all the visitors; with en-suites, standard, double, twin and family rooms. Breakfast is hearty, satisfying and home cooked with a choice of full English breakfast or lighter choices. For the children, a Playstation 2 will keep them amused when you are in and there is a DVD player too for watching movies in comfort. We are always happy to assist in the planning of your stay, just give us a call and we can let you know what is happening around the time of your visit. Please note that there are cooking facilities available for our guests in the hotel. From the M6 motorway take junction 32 the M55 motorway follow M55 and come off at junction 1 Blackpool north shore, at round-about take 3rd exit on to dual carriage way. Follow this dual carriage way straight for about 1.5 miles, until you get to a major set of traffic lights. Go straight through the lights, you are now on park road. Follow park road, through a set of traffic lights, you pass a launderette on your left hand side, palatine road is the second turning on your left after the launderette. Once you turn in to Palatine Road, we are about 300 yards down on the right hand side. We have black and white shades over the windows and door. *****PLEASE NOTE CHECK IN FROM 12-3PM. PLEASE PHONE IF YOU WILL BE LATER*****
Nieuwste recensieVertaald door Lees meer
Bekijk alle recensies »
- Anoniem, Verenigde Staten, Vrouwelijk, 31-40
- Bar
- Inclusief ontbijt
- Gratis parkeergelegenheid
- Haardrogers
- Thee-en koffievoorzieningen
AnnuleringsvoorwaardenDeze accommodatiemogelijkheid heeft een 1 dagen annuleringsvoorwaarden.
Wanneer u niet binnen deze termijn annuleert zullen de annuleringskosten gelijk zijn aan de eerste nacht van uw verblijf.


text:
Mehmet Kesimer, PhD
Research Laboratory's Website
The Kesimer Lab at UNC can also be found here: http://www.med.unc.edu/pathology/kesimerlab
Research Focus
|Mehmet Kesimer, PhD, Research Assistant Professor of Biochemistry and Biophysics
One of the main focuses of my work is the characterization of the large mucin gene products (Mr 2-3 million) and the complexes they make (Mr 10-100 million) essential for the formation of the mucus gels vital for epithelial protection and function. My current work is focused around the human lung where there are many hypersecretory human diseases including asthma, cystic fibrosis, and chronic bronchitis in which these glycoconjugates are centrally implicated. My proteomic interest includes designing and implementing novel mass spectral methods for identifying proteins and glycoproteins in mucus gels where conventional proteomic methods do not work. Many of the molecules are heavily modified and thus MS methods for characterizing post-translational modifications are vital in this work. We are using state-of-the-art mass spectrometer systems such as MALDI-TOF and 1D, 2D and even 3D separations employing nano-UPLC-MS-MS.
Current Projects
Mucins and Mucin Interactome in the Airway
Normal airway mucus is highly structured, containing five dominant mucins (MUC5AC, MUC5B, MUC1, MUC4 and MUC16) an excess of 100 proteins that form distinct protein complexes many of which are centered around these mucins. These complexes constitute a discrete secretory entity we call the 'mucin interactome'. We propose that gel properties emerge from a dynamic interplay between the mucins and proteins and that these structures engender specific rheological properties of mucus that tune it to removal by cough and flow clearance.
|Figure 1. MUC5B (gel/mucus forming mucin).
The Effect of Cystic Fibrosis Post-Secretory Settings on Mucin Expansion and Maturation
Cystic Fibrosis in the lung is characterized by the failure of mucus clearance. Clearly mucus plays an important role in all manifestations of CF. There are some two hundred' mainly globular proteins in human sputum, but it is the gel-forming mucins MUC5AC and MUC5B that we believe create the structural scaffold. The mechanisms underpinning the packaging of the large gel-forming mucins in granules and their subsequent expansion to mature the mucus are very poorly understood. This work is investigating the hypothesis that in the absence of CFTR, mucin expansion/mucus maturation is impaired due to different post-secretory environment in CF mucus. In testing this hypothesis, using the resolving power of the electron microscope in addition to a broad range of biochemical and biophysical techniques, we are testing: 1) To determine the factors effecting the normal maturation of the MUC5B just after secretion; 2) To test the hypothesis that the MUC5B mucin as born into the CF environment is prejudiced in its development and subsequent maturation.
Funding: CF foundation (KESIME10I0)
Role of Human Airway Epithelium Derived Exosome-Like Vesicles in Innate Defense of the Lung
Exosomes are small, 50-150 nm, organelles secreted by different cell types including epithelial, haematopoietic and some tumour cells. The molecular organisation of these structures depends mainly on the cellular source from which they are derived. The detailed roles of the exosomes remain largely unexplained. We have demonstrated their presence in lung secretions and propose that they play important roles in innate lung defence, such as binding to and neutralizing the viruses. The objective of this work is to elucidate the organization of the human tracheobronchial epithelial (HTBE) exosomes and identify their cellular origin, ultimately we wish to understand their roles in airway host defense. Our preliminary data from HTBE cell culture indicate that exosomes are highly organized structures arising from different cell types to be found in the culture and that they interact with human influenza virus. Many of them have membrane tethered mucin coats that control their recognition properties.
Funding: American Lung Association (RG-167538-N)
Ongoing Research Support
KESIME10I0 Kesimer (PI) 04/01/2010-03/31-2012 Cystic Fibrosis Foundation
Effect of CF-post-secretory settings on mucin expansion and maturation
The major goals of this project is to understand why mucus clearance is problematic in the CF lung. The concept underlying this proposal is that the environment in the CF airway impairs "mucin expansion/maturation" ("unpacking to form mucus gels") after secretion from granular forms of MUC5B.
RG-167538-N Kesimer (PI) 07/01/2010-06/30/2012 American Lung Association
"The role of human airway epithelium derived exosomes in innate defense of the lung"
The major goals of this project is to further elucidate the organization of the HTB exosomes, identify their cellular origin and assess their role in airway host defense against respiratory viral and/or bacterial pathogens and to determine the nature of HTBE exosomes-influenza virus interactions.
1 R01 HL103940-01 Kesimer (PI) 07/01/2010 - 06/30/2015 NIH, NHLBI (Pending administrative review)
"The role of mucin-protein interactions in the innate defense of the lung"
The major scientific goal of this proposal is to elucidate the organization of the airway gel layer, which is formed by very large glycoproteins termed mucins (MUC5B and MUC5AC) coupled with other protective biomolecules through labile interactions, and assess the role of these interactions in airway mucus integrity as an essential pre-requisite for therapeutic intervention.
5 P50 HL 084934-02 Boucher (PI) 9/15/06-7/31/11 NIH/NHLBI
SCCOR in Host Factors in Chronic Lung Disease, Project I: The Mucus Transport Apparatus: Why Two Layers?
The major goals of this project are, using a human bronchial epithelial cell line and normal and pathological sputum, to characterize the properties of the peri-ciliary gel layer and to identify the molecular mechanisms underlying the MUC5AC-rich gel and the MUC5B flowing mucus.
Recent Publications
For a more exhaustive list of publications, please see links from the Pubmed feed in the righthand column.
Abdelwahab, S., Gupta, R., Radicioni, G., Jones, L., Dang, H., O'Neal, W., & Mehmet, K. (2015). Airway Epithelial Derived Exosomes on Protecting and Remodeling of the Lung. The FASEB Journal, 29(1 Supplement), 763-8.
Kesimer, M., & Gupta, R. (2015). Physical characterization and profiling of airway epithelial derived exosomes using light scattering. Methods.
Anderson, W. H., Coakley, R. D., Button, B., Henderson, A. G., Zeman, K. L., Alexis, N. E., ... & Boucher, R. C. (2015). The Relationship of Mucus Concentration (Hydration) to Mucus Osmotic Pressure and Transport in Chronic Bronchitis. American journal of respiratory and critical care medicine, (ja).
Mehmet Kesimer, Alexander M. Makhov, Jack D. Griffith, Pedro Verdugo and John K. Sheehan. Unpacking a gel forming mucin: a view of MUC5B organization after granular release. Am J Physiol Lung Cell Mol Physiol 298: L15–L22, 2010
Kesimer M, Kilic N, Mehrotra R, Thornton DJ, and Sheehan JK. Identification of salivary mucin MUC7 binding proteins from Streptococcus gordonii. BMC Microbiol 9: 163, 2009.
Mehmet Kesimer, Margaret Scull, Brian Brighton, Genevieve DeMaria, Kimberlie Burns, Wanda O'Neal, Raymond J. Pickles and John K. Sheehan. "Characterization of exosome-like vesicles released from human tracheobronchial ciliated epithelium: a possible role in innate defense. FASEB J 23: 1858-1868, 2009.
Mehmet Kesimer, Sara Kirkham, Raymond Pickles, Ashley Henderson, Neil Alexis, Genevieve DeMaria, David Knight, David Thornton, and John Sheehan. "Tracheobronchial air-liquid interface cell culture: a model for innate mucosal defense of the upper airways?" Am J Physiol Lung Cell Mol Physiol. 2009 Jan;296(1):L92-L100.
Mehmet Kesimer and John K. Sheehan. Analyzing the functions of large glycoconjugates through the dissipative properties of their absorbed layers using the gel-forming mucin MUC5B as an example. Glycobiology. 2008 Jun;18(6):463-72.
John K. Sheehan, Mehmet Kesimer and Raymond Pickles. Chapter: Innate immunity and mucus structure and function, in: Innate Immunity to Pulmonary Infection, Novartis Foundation series No 279, ISBN: 0-470-02656-1, pages 155-69. (2006).
Contact Information7111 Marsico Hall
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7248
Phone: (919) 843-3178
Email: firstname.lastname@example.com
Laboratory website: www.med.unc.edu/pathology/kesimerlab


text:
Daemen College : Admissions : Financial Aid : Student Employment
On campus employment can also be a great way to earn money for college and gain valuable work experience. Work study and non-work study positions are available throughout campus and jobs range from office assistance to catering.
Funded by Daemen College, this award is designed to help students meet their college cost. The Financial Aid Office arranges jobs on campus. The hours worked per week will vary.
This is a federally funded work program based on financial need. Students typically work 10 hours per week during the academic year and receive a biweekly paycheck. Participants in the Federal Work Study program are primarily employed on campus, however there are occasions were students work off-campus in community service positions. Students are paid the minimum hourly wage. An award of Federal work study does not guarantee job placement.
Daemen College Federal Work Study Program Handbook 2015-2016
Career Development and Cooperative Education services provide students of Daemen internship and co-op positions through out the community and beyond. An added bonus: internship employer's frequently offer Daemen interns full-time positions.
Faculty accompanied students to Mexico City and Cuernavaca for the January inter-semester term.
Health Care Studies
"Living on campus has been an amazing experience. I love my friends who live on and off campus and there's never a dull day."
©2014 Daemen College : 4380 Main Street, Amherst, NY 14226 : 800.462.7652


text:
Model Motorcycles
Whichever type of bike you want: racing bikes, dirt bikes, street bikes, choppers, Harleys, or WWII military motorcycles; Rider's has the perfect model motorcycle for you! We have the best selection of model motorcycles; find your dream bike today!
Scot Racing Team Honda 250 '09 WGP250 Cham 1/12
Regular Price: $67.99
Our Price: $56.38
YAMAHA YZR500 WGP Champion 1/12
Regular Price: $74.99
Our Price: $62.19
Honda RS250RW 2008 Limited 1/12
Regular Price: $67.99
Our Price: $56.38


text:
Subscribe to the short story podcast by Jerry Godolphing on Itunes by clicking here.
Free Online Short Stories are all written by Leonard Koza. Browse the free Ebooks or listen to the free audiobooks (you can also download them to listen later). I am an old writer with a love for short stories. Hope you enjoy.


text:
The Burlington City Council aired a familiar town-gown issue at its Monday night meeting: The appeal and impact of undergraduates who revel in downtown digs.
Presentations by University of Vermont and Champlain College officials, both of which include possibilities of more college-affiliated apartments downtown, dominated the agenda.
Richard Cate, University of Vermonts vice president for finance and administration, acknowledged an underlying tension.
There will be disagreement over whats the right site, Cate said, in response to questions. But were prepared to have that conversation and move as quickly as possible.
How soon might juniors and seniors encounter new UVM-affiliated housing options in downtown Burlington? In three years, at the earliest, he said.
Cates cover letter to the draft master plan states:
Currently UVM houses 61 percent of its students;
UVM has renewed its annual payment-for-services of $1.2 to the city (in lieu of taxes);
The university will continue its efforts to more accurately track the addresses of its off-campus students, and to advocate for better town-gown relations.
City Councilor Kevin Worden, D-Ward 1, told Cate that, as the university improves its housing stock, it might consider a corollary effort to help the city revitalize neighborhoods that have for decades served as student quarters.
Housing: Champlain College
A more tantalizingly concrete proposal emerged from Champlain College, which hopes to buy the Browns Court parking lot at King and St. Paul streets in order to build market-based, apartment-style housing.
The development would complement (and incorporate) the colleges plans to build student housing at the former Eagles Club on St. Paul and Maple streets. Together, the project would add 60-80 units, and house up to 300 students, Senior Vice President David Provost told the council.
The buildings, tentatively to be developed and owned by R.E.M. Development, would help achieve the institutions goal of providing housing to 90 percent of its students, Provost said.
Williston-based R.E.M. Development has tentatively agreed to be the developer and owner of the properties, Provost said, although Champlain College would manage the apartments.
The Browns Court/Eagles project would add a $20 to $30 million property to the tax rolls, he added: The parking lot is currently city-owned, and therefore tax-exempt, he said.
If the project is approved, Champlain College will design a building that we are proud of, and that the city will be proud of, Provost concluded.
Burlingtons administration has indicated it welcomes the development.
New downtown housing is consistent with Burlingtons long-term planning goals, said Brian Pine, the Community and Economic Development Offices assistant director for housing and neighborhood vitalization.
As required by the city zoning ordinance, some of the units would be set aside as affordable housing, Pine said.
The development has the potential to increase pedestrian activity with street-level, non-residential tenants and preserve its 38 public parking spaces, Pine wrote in a memo to the council.
Larger, covered recycling bins
The council unanimously approved a resolution that aims, through an ordinance change, to reduce wind-blown litter from recycling containers.
The ordinance would require owners of buildings with more than 10 units to provide, for every three units, 60-gallon covered and wheeled recycling bins.
It would take effect on Oct. 11 of this year.
The resolution sponsored by Councilor Max Tracy, P-Ward 2, calls for a gradual, phased-in inclusion of smaller apartment buildings (larger than three units) in the ordinance.
In comments to the council, Planning Commission member Emily Lee described the toters and plain old good sense, and a strategy that might help reduce storm drain blockages by wayward recyclables.
Burlington landlord Mark Porter said because the cost of new bins would be passed on to tenants, the strategy would likely go forward without a hitch.
Ultimately, Porter added, the citys litter problem would be well served if single-family dwellings and duplexes were included in a covered-tote plan.
Under-funded pensions
The council voted to postpone its consideration of a resolution that would have outlined strategies to rein in Burlingtons $60 million liability on pension plans for employees.
The resolution called for the mayor to appoint an 11-member retirement summit panel, to include representatives of the citys union employees.
The panel would be asked to convene a public meeting in the fall, and to subsequently develop goals and timelines and to deliver a report Dec. 16 to the council and the mayor
Pension benefits awarded before the financial recession that began in late 2007 have been cited in previous budget discussions as key drivers of the ballooning obligation.
The draft resolution terms the unfunded pension fund unsustainable, one that places an unreasonable tax burden upon the taxpayers in Burlington.
Contact Joel Banner Baird at 660-1843 or firstname.lastname@example.com. Read his blog at http://bit.ly/BairdsEye and follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/vtgoingup.


text:
And I am starting to get static from family members because I am still breastfeeding. How are you ladies handling it?
And I am starting to get static from family members because I am still breastfeeding. How are you ladies handling it?
No advice unfortunately, but I am feeling the pressure as well!
DD Gianna born 12/2/11
A lot of people who make BF comments to you are misinformed. You may just have to tell them that it is recommended by the American Pediatric Society to BF for at least the first year. Ask them they would want you to stop offering something to your baby that is medically proven to have health benefits that will last a lifetime.
Tell them that the World Health Organization recommends breastfeeding till at least two years and beyond that. So, college !
Christina (30) + Hubby (33) and ODS- N 2009, DD- A 2011, Angel Baby-A 1/13, and YDS- E 1/1/14
"Je suis folle.... et je l'aime" :)
Tell them you will stop when you and your LO are ready! I had pressure from day one from my in laws since none of them did it. And they didnt think I could do it working full time. Well here I am almost a year later and I am glad I didnt listen to them. Remember, you know what is best for you and your baby so listen to what your heart is telling you, not anyone else.
Smile no one likes a b*tch
Smile no one likes a b*tch
I've been feeling the pressure a little too--no real comments yet, just disapproving glances and whispers to others from what I've seen. I try not to let it get to me. It's no one's business but mine, and I'm planning to go as long as my son and I both want to. Even my husband has said a few times "you can keep going a couple more months" like he's going to LET me breastfeed for a little while longer...ha. Poor guy, he doesn't know who he married I guess. In the end, they're our bodies, and our children so we have the final say. Don't let other people get you down. :)
Call me 妈妈! Lucky mama to TWO half-Chinese, and whole lotta cute boys, born on 12.13.11 and 01.02.2014! Silly Conoroo and sweet baby Quinnykins.


text:
Physical activity has been consistently associated with enhanced quality of life (QOL) in older adults. However, the nature of this relationship is not fully understood. In this study of community dwelling older adults, we examined the proposition that physical activity influences global QOL through self-efficacy and health-status.
Participants (N = 321, M age = 63.8) completed measures of physical activity, self-efficacy, global QOL, physical self worth, and disability limitations. Data were analyzed using covariance modeling to test the fit of the hypothesized model.
Analyses indicated direct effects of a latent physical activity variable on self-efficacy but not disability limitations or physical self-worth; direct effects of self-efficacy on disability limitations and physical self worth but not QOL; and direct effects of disability limitations and physical self-worth on QOL.
Our finding
- s
The demographic landscape of the United States is changing rapidly, with older adults representing the fastest growing segment of the population [1]. It has been well-established that the aging process can be associated with increased susceptibility to chronic conditions, disability, and comorbidity, which often results in reductions in quality of life (QOL). Physical activity has been consistently associated with enhanced QOL [2-4]; however, few efforts have been made to determine whether this relationship is direct or whether it potentially operates through other psychosocial factors.
The traditional approach in the physical activity literature has been to conceptualize QOL as representing physical, mental, and social indicators of health status, or health-related quality of life (HRQL; [5]). Stewart and King [5] adopted this approach to explain the relationship between physical activity and QOL in older adults by conceptualizing QOL as an overarching term with other factors, such as function and well-being, influencing the effect of physical activity on QOL. More recently, McAuley and colleagues [2] have tested several alternative models of the physical activity and QOL relationship in a sample of older women. In these models, they adopted Diener and colleagues' [6] position that QOL is a global construct reflecting a cognitive judgment of an individual's life. This contrasts with more traditional approaches to HRQL which view physical and mental health status as QOL outcomes. McAuley et al. [2] argued that HRQL represents a more proximal QOL indicator than global QOL. The model that best fit their data was based on social cognitive theory [7] and suggested that physical activity had a direct influence on self-efficacy [7] and, in turn, indirectly influenced QOL through indicators of physical and mental health status. Some support for such a model has also been reported in a study of individuals with multiple sclerosis [8].
In the context of older adults, a number of physical and psychosocial factors might represent mental and physical health status outcomes. For example, Elavsky and colleagues [9] have noted that self-esteem has consistently been shown to be influenced by physical activity, especially when measured from a multidimensional and hierarchical perspective [10-12]. Moreover, self-esteem has repeatedly been shown to be a strong predictor of QOL [13,14]. Importantly, self-efficacy has also been suggested to mediate physical activity effects on self-esteem [11] and some evidence exists to support this proposition [15]. Thus, self-esteem, and in particular physical self-esteem, would appear to be an important mental health status indicator in the context of the physical activity and QOL relationship. From a physical health status perspective, the likelihood of developing some type of disability increases exponentially as we age, [16] and there is evidence to suggest that disability is an important outcome of physical inactivity [17,18]. Additionally, physical activity has been suggested to offer a protective effect against functional limitations [19], a precursor to disability. Whether factors such as physical self-esteem and disabilities are implicated in the physical activity and QOL relationship, however, has yet to be determined.
Prohaska et al. [20] have made the important observation that many theoretical approaches to understanding physical activity and its consequences in older adults rarely take into consideration the role played by the demographic characteristics of participants. This may be an important issue to consider given that the lowest levels of physical activity participation are reported by adults of poorer socioeconomic status (SES) [21] and that fewer exercise facilities are found in low SES neighborhoods [22]. Furthermore, minorities typically report greater levels of sedentary behavior than their white counterparts [23]. Moreover, age is inversely related to physical activity with only 26% of individuals aged 65–74 years, and only 10% percent of those aged 85 years and over, meeting public health recommendations [24]. It is therefore important to determine whether the proposed relationships among physical activity, self-efficacy, and indicators of QOL hold when controlling for demographic influences.
In this study, we attempted to replicate the McAuley et al. [2] model of the physical activity and QOL relationship in a sample of community dwelling older men and women. We hypothesized that physical activity would directly influence self-efficacy, which would be associated with health status indicators. In turn, we expected health status to be associated with global QOL (see Figure 1). Finally, we examined whether these relationships were independent of the influence of demographic factors.
Figure 1. Model of relationships between physical activity, self-efficacy, physical self-worth, disability limitations, and quality of life. Values in parentheses represent relationships after controlling for age, income, race, education, and chronic health conditions. PA = physical activity; GLTEQ = Godin Leisure Time Exercise Questionnaire; PASE = Physical Activity Scale for the Elderly; SE = self-efficacy; PSW = physical self-worth; DL = disability limitations; QOL = quality of life.
Participant recruitment
We recruited community dwelling adults aged 50 and older via flyers and electronic newsletters advertising participation in a study of physical activity beliefs. A total of 349 individuals expressed initial interest and 343 individuals agreed to participate following telephone contact. We mailed a battery of questionnaires to the participants, of which 320 (93%) were returned. Incorrect or missing contact information was the primary reasons for non-participation following initial recruitment into the study.
A brief questionnaire was used to collect the demographic variables of sex, age, education, income, and race/ethnicity.
Physical activity
We used two self-report measures to assess physical activity participation. The first was the Godin Leisure Time Exercise Questionnaire (GLTEQ; [25]), a simple, self-report instrument assessing usual physical activity during the past seven days. This measure includes three open-ended items that measure the frequency of strenuous (e.g., jogging), moderate (e.g., fast walking), and mild (e.g., easy walking) exercises for periods of more than 15 minutes. We also measured physical activity with the Physical Activity Scale for the Elderly (PASE; [26]). The PASE is a 10-item instrument designed to assess physical activity in large samples of older persons over a one-week time period. The PASE assesses frequency and duration of participation in leisure activities (e.g., walking outside the home, light, moderate and strenuous sport and recreation) along with participation in housework, lawn work/yard care, home repair, outdoor gardening and caring for others. Scores from the PASE have been reported to be a valid measure of physical activity participation in the elderly [27,28] and are expressed as activity counts. In subsequent analyses, we modeled these two measures as a latent physical activity variable.
We measured self-efficacy with a modification of the Exercise Self-Efficacy Scale [29] which assesses participants' beliefs in their ability to continue exercising five times per week, at moderate intensities, for 30 or more minutes per session, and at two-week increments over the next 12 weeks. This measure has been frequently used to assess self-efficacy for physical activity [30,31] and is composed of six items scored on a 100-point percentage scale ranging from 0% (not at all confident) to 100% (highly confident). Item responses are summed and divided by six resulting in a possible range of 0–100. Internal consistency for the measure was excellent (α > .90).
Physical Health Status
We used the eight-item disability limitations subscale of the abbreviated Late Life Function and Disability Instrument (LL-FDI; [32]) to assess physical health status. The measure is scored on a 1 to 5 scale (1 = completely limited; 5 = not at all limited) with higher scores reflecting fewer limitations. This measure had good internal consistency (α = .83) and reflects physical health status in the context of carrying out household and social activities.
Mental Health Status
As previously noted, we characterized mental health status as self-esteem, specifically, physical self-worth, as it has been identified as a consistent psychological determinant of QOL. We used the 6-item physical self-worth scale of Fox and Corbin's Physical Self-Perception Profile [33]. A sample item from this scale is "I am extremely proud of who I am and what I can do physically." Participants indicated on a 4-point scale the degree to which each item was characteristic or true of them. Responses range from 1 (not at all true) to 4 (completely true). Internal consistency of this scale was excellent (α = .90) in the present study.
Quality of Life
We measured global QOL with the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS; [34]), a 5-item measure, with each item rated on a 7-point scale from strongly disagree (1) to strongly agree (7). Higher scores represent greater life satisfaction. In a review of SWLS research, Pavot and Diener [35] presented evidence for the ability of SWLS to successfully detect changes in life satisfaction over time and the course of clinical interventions. The SWLS has demonstrated acceptable internal reliability and validity in older populations [35,36] and has been shown to be associated with physical activity levels [2,9]. Internal consistency in the present study was excellent (α = .90).
Complete details of recruitment procedures and data collection procedures can be found elsewhere [37]. Briefly, Institutional Review Board approved informed consent and all study materials were mailed to participants who then returned completed forms in a self-addressed stamped envelope whereupon participants were entered into a lottery to win one of twenty $50.00 cash prizes.
Data analysis
We analyzed the data using covariance modeling with the full-information maximum likelihood (FIML) estimator in Mplus 5.0 [38]. In the present study, 0.9% of disability limitations data (n = 3), 0.3% of self-efficacy data (n = 1), 1.9% of GLTEQ physical activity data (n = 6), 1.9% of physical self-worth data (n = 6), 1.9% of satisfaction with life data (n = 6), and 6.2% of PASE physical activity data (n = 20) were missing.
Model testing
The hypothesized model proposed: direct effects of the latent physical activity variable on self-efficacy but not disability limitations or physical self-worth; direct effects of self-efficacy on disability limitations and physical self-worth but not QOL; and direct effects of disability limitations and physical self-worth on QOL. Given that the proposed model adequately fit the data, we conducted a second analysis in which the effects of demographic factors on model fit and path coefficients, as well as the model components themselves, were tested.
Model fit
We evaluated the fit of the proposed model for the data with the chi-square statistic, standardized root mean square residual (SRMR), and Comparative Fit Index (CFI). The chi-square statistic assesses perfect fit of the model to the data [39]. The SRMR is the average of the standardized residuals between the specified and obtained variance-covariance matrices. The SRMR should be less than .08 to indicate good model fit [40]. The CFI is an incremental fit index and tests the proportionate improvement in fit by comparing the target model to a baseline model with no correlations among observed variables. Values approximating 0.95 are indicative of good model-data fit [40]. The model tested and standardized parameter estimates are shown in Figure 1.
Descriptive Statistics
Complete demographic details of the sample have been reported elsewhere [37]. Briefly, the sample was predominantly white (88.7%) and female (80.1%) with a mean age of 63.8 yrs (SD = 9.6). The majority of the sample (68.1%) earned $40,000 or more per year. Table 1 shows the mean scores and standard deviations for all measures included in the data analysis plus their correlations with each other. As can be seen, the sample was low to moderately active, moderately efficacious, and with few disabilities. Correlations indicated that both of the physical activity measures (i.e., PASE and GLTEQ) were significantly correlated with all model constructs with the exceptions of the association between the PASE and SWLS and the GLTEQ with disability limitations. Self-efficacy was significantly associated with all model constructs. In sum, being more active was associated with being more efficacious, having fewer disability limitations, reporting higher physical self-worth, and being more satisfied with one's life.
Table 1. Correlations among all model constructs
Structural Equation Modeling of Hypothesized Relationships
The path model tested and all standardized path coefficients are shown in Figure 1. The model represented a good fit to the data, χ2 = 15.59, p = .05; CFI = .97; SRMR = .04, meeting the accepted criteria suggested by Hu and Bentler [40] with the SRMR below .08 and CFI approximating .95. As can be seen, higher levels of the latent physical activity construct were significantly associated with greater self-efficacy (β = .60) which was, in turn, associated with fewer disability limitations (β = .28) and higher physical self-worth (β = .44). Finally, reporting fewer disability limitations (β = .20) and higher self-worth (β = .40) was associated with being more satisfied with one's life. Overall, the model accounted for 22.4% of the variance in satisfaction with life. Thus, these data would appear to support the social cognitive perspective argued by McAuley and colleagues [2] that self-efficacy and physical and mental health status variables play intermediary roles in the physical activity and QOL relationship. Additionally, the findings are supportive of the position that self-esteem, in the present context reflected by physical self-worth, is an important component of the physical activity and QOL relationship.
Physical Activity, Quality of Life, and Demographics
As noted earlier, relationships among physical activity and quality of life have been examined relatively independent of demographic characteristics. Thus, the next model that we tested controlled for the contribution of age, race, sex, education, and income to model constructs. This allowed us to determine: (a) whether demographic characteristics changed the nature of the model relationships and (b) how demographic factors were related to individual components of the model.
This model fit the data reasonably well, χ2 (13) = 38.16, p < .001; CFI = .93; SRMR = .04. The path coefficients of the hypothesized model were not dramatically changed, although the relationship between physical activity and self-efficacy increased from β = .60 to β = .73. All path coefficients for this model are shown in parentheses in Figure 1. In terms of the relationships among model constructs and the demographic factors, several interesting relationships emerged. Participant age was significantly (p <.05) associated with physical activity (β = -.34), self-efficacy (β = .30), physical self-worth (β = .22), and satisfaction with life (β = .12). There were less consistent patterns of significant associations among the other demographic factors and model constructs: females reported fewer disability limitations (β = -.12), white participants had a better sense of physical self-worth than other races (β = -.21), and those participants reporting higher levels of education also reported higher levels of satisfaction with life (β = .13). Finally, participants reporting higher income also reported fewer disability limitations (β = .20).
The purpose of this study was to determine whether the relationship between physical activity and QOL operates through self-efficacy and physical and mental health status pathways, as proposed by McAuley and colleagues [2], in a sample of community dwelling older men and women. The hypothesized associations were all significant, supporting the position that the relationship between physical activity and QOL can be understood as incorporating more proximal, modifiable, and temporally sensitive factors (e.g. self-efficacy), as well as more stable and global constructs (e.g. satisfaction with life). When we controlled for demographic variables the nature of these relationships did not change. The strengths of this study include the adoption of a well-established theoretical framework to understand the physical activity and QOL relationship, use of a relatively large community dwelling sample, and the application of contemporary statistical methods to examine the hypothesized associations.
In testing this model, we have restricted our assessments of mental and physical health status to physical self-esteem and disability frequency, respectively. In the case of esteem, we have done so because self-esteem has been frequently identified as a determinant of QOL. However, it has been demonstrated that the effects of physical activity interventions on global self-esteem have tended to be rather small [41]. This contrasts with physical activity effects on domain levels of self-esteem, i.e., the physical level [11]. Given that we have previously proposed a model of physical activity and QOL as one which capitalizes on factors which are modifiable and thereby likely to be influenced by physical activity interventions, the inclusion of physical self-esteem in concert with other indicators of mental health status may be warranted.
Similarly, there is an increasing literature which suggests that physical activity has a protective effect on functional limitations as we age [19,42]. Within the disability model framework [43], functional limitations precede disability. However, little is known about physical activity effects on disability in older adults, in large part because few physical activity studies have measured disability [44]. Even in the present sample, which was relatively disability-free, disability limitations were significantly associated with QOL and self-efficacy. Importantly, self-efficacy has previously been reported to be predictive of self-reported disability over a 30-month period in a large sample of older adults with osteoarthritis of the knee [45]. Further identification of other factors that might map onto physical and health status outcomes is called for in order to further understand the complex relationship between physical activity and QOL in older adults.
Self-efficacy, however, does appear to play an important role as both an outcome of physical activity and an antecedent of more distal QOL indicators. Perceptions of capabilities are modifiable by virtue of providing the appropriate sources of efficacy information from physical activity participation and interventions. This would suggest that such interventions can be effectively structured to maximize physical activity effects on those factors which may influence more global QOL. For example, it has been demonstrated in both cross-sectional and longitudinal designs [15,46] that self-efficacy is associated with elements of physical self-esteem reflecting physical conditioning, strength, and attractive body. Designing programs that provide information about improvements in those aspects of physical activity associated with these elements of esteem (i.e., enhancing self-efficacy) are likely to further improve physical self-worth and, in turn, QOL. In a similar vein, provision of these types of efficacy enhancing experiences can lead older adults to change their views on what might be disabling conditions or perceived frequency of disability limitations [45]. Indeed, Katula, Rejeski, and Marsh [47] have recently reported that a relatively short (12-week) intervention of high velocity power training resulted in impressive gains in self-efficacy and QOL outcomes in a sample of older adults.
Although our findings offer support for a social cognitive model of physical activity and QOL, it is not without its limitations. First, we acknowledge the cross-sectional nature of the data and therefore relationships must be interpreted cautiously. Prospective studies and randomized controlled exercise trials will be needed to determine how the proposed relationships among changes in model constructs hold up across time. Additionally, our analyses, with the exception of physical activity, were all conducted using manifest or measured constructs rather than latent variables. We believe that this is a necessity in the early stages of developing complex models of these relationships. Effectively determining which factors may or may not play an important role in representing the latent elements of physical and mental health status is necessary for further understanding their roles in this relationship. McAuley et al. [2] tested their model on a sample of older women, and although we include both males and females in our sample, the numbers of males included was substantially less than females. In this regard, our sample could be considered relatively homogenous and testing the model on more diverse samples is recommended.
In conclusion, our findings support the role of self-efficacy in the relationship between physical activity and QOL, as well as an expanded QOL model including both health status indicators and global QOL. Given that the life expectancy of many countries continues to increase, a more comprehensive understanding of how we can enhance quality, as well as quantity of life would appear important. Physical activity has been consistently linked to disease risk reduction [28,48] but the manner in which it influences quality of life is not as well-understood.
Our findings have a number of implications for future research and practice. From an application perspective, self-efficacy appears to play an important role in the relationship between physical activity and quality of life. As a modifiable construct, physical activity programs that target sources of efficacy information (e.g., provision of successful experience, supportive feedback, and credible role models) are thereby likely to have a greater effect on efficacy and, in turn, enhance QOL. Such positive experiences may have implications for adherence to community exercise programs. We note that we have sampled only a few of the possible variables that act as mediators between physical activity and QOL. McAuley et al. [2] has suggested that more complex models continue to be tested. In addition, it will be important in future studies to determine whether different types of physical activity interventions differentially affect model relationships.
Competing interests
The authors declare that they have no competing interests.
Authors' contributions
SW, TW, EM have all made substantial contributions to conception and design, acquisition of data, analysis and interpretation of data, have been involved in drafting and revising the manuscripts, and given final approval of the version to be published.
Edward McAuley is supported, in part, by a Shahid and Ann Carlson Khan Professorship in Applied Health Sciences and by a grant (#AG025667) from the National Institute on Aging.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and The Merck Company Foundation: The State of Aging and Health in America 2007. Whitehouse Station: The Merck Company Foundation; 2007.
McAuley E, Konopack JF, Morris KS, Motl RW, Hu L, Doerksen SE, Rosengren K: Physical activity and functional limitations in older women: influence of self-efficacy.
J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci 2006, 61(5):P270-P277. PubMed Abstract
Netz Y, Wu M, Becker BJ, Tenenbaum G: Physical activity and psychological well-being in advanced age: a meta-analysis of intervention studies.
Psychol Aging 2005, 20(2):272-284. PubMed Abstract | Publisher Full Text
Rejeski WJ, Mihalko SL: Physical activity and quality of life in older adults.
J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci 2001, 56A(Special Issue II):23-35.
Stewart A, King A: Evaluating the efficacy of physical activity for influencing quality of life outcomes in older adults.
Diener E: Subjective well-being.
Psychol Bull 1984, 95:542-575. PubMed Abstract | Publisher Full Text
Bandura A: Editorial: The anatomy of stages of change.
Am J Health Promot 1997, 12(1):8-10. PubMed Abstract
Motl RW, McAuley E, Snook EM, Gliottoni R: Physical activity and quality of life in multiple sclerosis: intermediary roles of disability, fatigue, mood, pain, self-efficacy, and social support.
Psychol Health Med 2009, 14(1):111-24. PubMed Abstract | Publisher Full Text
Elavsky S, McAuley E, Motl R, Konopack JF, Marquez DX, Hu L, Jerome GJ, Diener E: Physical activity enhances long-term quality of life in older adults: efficacy, esteem and affective influences.
Ann Behav Med 2005, 30(2):138-145. PubMed Abstract | Publisher Full Text
Marsh H, Shavelson R: Self-concept: its multifaceted hierarchical structure.
Educational Psychologist 1985, 20:107-123. Publisher Full Text
Sonstroem R, Harlow L, Josephs L: Exercise and self-esteem: validity of model expansion and exercise associations.
McAuley E, Blissmer B, Katula J, Duncan SC, Mihalko SL: Physical activity, self-esteem, and self efficacy relationships in older adults: a randomized controlled trial.
Ann Behav Med 2000, 22(2):131-139. PubMed Abstract | Publisher Full Text
Diener E, Diener M: Cross-cultural correlates of life satisfaction and self-esteem.
J Pers Soc Psychol 1995, 68(4):653-663. PubMed Abstract | Publisher Full Text
Lachman M, Weaver S, Bandura M, Elliott E, Lewkowicz C: Improving memory and control beliefs through cognitive restructuring and self-generated strategies.
J Gerontol 1992, 47:293-299. PubMed Abstract
McAuley E, Blissmer B: Self-efficacy determinants and consequences of physical activity.
Exerc Sport Sci Rev 2000, 28(2):85-88. PubMed Abstract
U.S. Census Bureau: 2000 Census of Population and Housing, Demographic Profile. Atlanta: U.S. Census Bureau; 2000.
Vita AJ, Terry RB, Hubert HB, Fries JF: Aging, health risks, and cumulative disability.
N Engl J Med 1998, 338:1035-1041. PubMed Abstract | Publisher Full Text
Leveille SG, Guralnik JM, Ferrucci L, Langlois JA: Aging successfully until death in old age: opportunities for increasing active life expectancy.
Am J Epidemiol 1999, 149(7):654-664. PubMed Abstract | Publisher Full Text
Keysor JJ: Does late-life physical activity or exercise prevent or minimize disablement? A critical review of scientific evidence.
Prev Med 2003, 25(3):129-136. Publisher Full Text
Prohaska T, Belansky E, Belza B, Buchner D, Marshall V, McTigue K, Satariano W, Wilcox S: Physical activity, public health, and aging: critical issues and research priorities.
J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci 2006, 61(5):S267-273. PubMed Abstract
Sproston K, Primatesta P, Eds: Health Survey for England 2003. London: The Stationery Office; 2004.
Estabrooks PA, Lee RE, Gyurcsik NC: Resources for physical activity participation: does availability and accessibility differ by neighborhood socioeconomic status?
Ann Behav Med 2003, 25(2):100-104. PubMed Abstract | Publisher Full Text
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System Survey Data. Atlanta: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; 2007.
Federal Interagency Forum on Aging-Related Statistics: Older Americans 2008: Key Indicators of Well-Being. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office; 2008.
Godin GS, RJ : A simple method to assess exercise behavior in the community.
Can J Appl Sport Sci 1985, 10:141-146. PubMed Abstract
Washburn RA, Smith KW, Jette AM, Janney CA: The Physical Activity Scale for the Elderly (PASE): development and evaluation.
J Clin Epidemiol 1993, 46(2):153-162. PubMed Abstract | Publisher Full Text
Martin KA, Rejeski WJ, Miller ME, James MK, Ettinger WH, Messier SP: Validation of the PASE in older adults with knee pain and physical disability.
Med Sci Sports Exerc 1999, 31(5):627-633. PubMed Abstract | Publisher Full Text
Washburn RA, McAuley E, Katula J, Mihalko SL, Boileau RA: The Physical Activity Scale for the Elderly (PASE): evidence for validity.
J Clin Epidemiol 1999, 52(7):643-651. PubMed Abstract | Publisher Full Text
McAuley E: Self-efficacy and the maintenance of exercise participation in older adults.
J Behav Med 1993, 16:103-113. PubMed Abstract | Publisher Full Text
Duncan TE, McAuley E: Social support and efficacy cognitions in exercise adherence: a latent growth curve analysis.
J Behav Med 1993, 16(2):199-218. PubMed Abstract | Publisher Full Text
McAuley E, Jerome GJ, Marquez DX, Elavsky S, Blissmer B: Exercise self-efficacy in older adults: social, affective, and behavioral influences.
Ann Behav Med 2003, 25(1):1-7. PubMed Abstract | Publisher Full Text
McAuley E, Konopack JF, Motl RW, Rosengren K, Morris KS: Measuring disability and function in older women: psychometric properties of the Late-Life Function and Disability Instrument.
J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci 2005, 60(7):901-909. PubMed Abstract
F Fox KR, Corbin CB: The Physical Self-Perception Profile: development and preliminary validation.
Diener E, Emmons R, Larsen R, Griffin S: The Satisfaction with Life Scale.
J Pers Assess 1985, 49:71-75. PubMed Abstract | Publisher Full Text
Pavot W, Diener E: Review of the Satisfaction with Life Scale.
Psychol Assess 1993, 5(2):164-172. Publisher Full Text
Pavot W, Diener E, Colvin CR, Sandvik E: Further validation of the Satisfaction With Life Scale: evidence for the cross-method convergence of well-being measures.
J Pers Assess 1991, 57(1):149-161. PubMed Abstract | Publisher Full Text
Wójcicki TR, White SM, McAuley E: Assessing outcome expectations in older adults: the Multidimensional Outcome Expectations for Exercise Scale (MOEES).
Muthen L, Muthen B: Mplus user's guide. Los Angeles, CA; 1998. PubMed Abstract
Bollen KA: A new incremental fit index for general structural equation models.
Sociol Methods Res 1989, 17:303-316. Publisher Full Text
Hu L, Bentler PM: Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: conventional criteria versus new alternatives.
Spence JC, McGannon KR, Poon P: The effect of exercise on global self-esteem: a quantitative review.
McAuley E, Morris KS, Doerksen SE, Motl RW, Liang H, White SM, Wojcicki TR, Rosengren K: Effects of change in physical activity on physical function limitations in older women: mediating roles of physical function performance and self-efficacy.
J Am Geriatr Soc 2007, 55(12):1967-1973. PubMed Abstract | Publisher Full Text
Verbrugge LM, Jette AM: The disablement process.
Soc Sci Med 1994, 38:1-14. PubMed Abstract | Publisher Full Text
Keysor JJ, Jette AM: Have we oversold the benefit of late-life exercise?
J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci 2001, 56A(7):M412-M4232. PubMed Abstract
Rejeski WJ, Miller ME, Foy C, Messier S, Rapp S: Self-efficacy and the progression of functional limitations and self-reported disability in older adults with knee pain.
J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci 2001, 56B(5):S216-S265. PubMed Abstract
Baldwin MK, Courneya KS: Exercise and self-esteem in breast cancer survivors: an application of the exercise and self-esteem model.
Katula JA, Rejeski WJ, Marsh AP: Enhancing quality of life in older adults: a comparison of muscular strength and power training.
Health Qual Life Outcomes 2008, 6:45. PubMed Abstract | BioMed Central Full Text | PubMed Central Full Text
Macera CA, Hootman JM, Sniezek JE: Major public health benefits of physical activity.
Arthritis Rheum 2003, 40(1):122-128. Publisher Full Text


text:
It's less than a week until World Cup 2010 kicks off. I found this cool widget from Gigya on GreenwichMeanTime.com that tracks the progress of the US MNT in the tournament. Enjoy!
2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa™
BA Notes: Renting a Car
Renting a car in Argentina is not like in the US. It's strange to me the agency we chose, Europcar (which is a major international agency), didn't provide any instructions in my reservation on how the process works. Unlike in the US, the agencies don't have cars at the airport and I don't believe they have shuttle buses. Instead, they bring the car to you. Had I understood this, we would have taken a very different approach than we did: rather than using a car service to get to our destination and going out later for the car, I would have instead coordinated a car pick-up immediately at arrival and would have saved several hours (literally). But I didn't know any of this until after I got there.
Before we left for BA, I had done some investigating and scoped out the address for the rental company offices. I didn't take long to figure out that the address was nowhere near the airport (it was actually some 20km away), so we decided we'd use a car service to get to the home of the friends we were staying with, Doug & Kelly Parker. I figured everyone would be tired and nobody would be up for a long shuttle ride. After we'd gotten to our destination and settled in a little, one of our hosts could run me to the car place. With this simple plan made, I actually changed the reservation to rent from an office with an address near Aeroparque Jorge Newbery which was closer to where we were staying than the address for the office associated with Ezeiza International Airport. BA has an international airport (Ezeiza) and a domestic / regional airport (Newbery).
After I got my family settled in, Doug and I hopped in the car and headed out to Newbery. We arrived to discover Europcar didn't have a service counter there. I looked at my reservation info and we determined the address was about 10min away in the CBD. We later found the office, but it was closed despite being about 2:00pm in the afternoon and clearly within the office hours on my confirmation. I was eventually rescued by Mercedes, a local woman who works in Doug's office. She made some calls the next day and determined the office was closed because the person was shuttling a car to someone else. Mercedes told me that everything was sorted out and I need to go to a location altogether different than the pair I knew about. She sent a car service to retrieve us, I gave the driver the address (he knew zero English) and 20min later we arrived at the Buquebus building downtown.
Buquebus is the dominant company operating ferry services to Uruguay and other destinations around the River Plate Delta. It turns out Europcar had a counter at the ferry terminal. We walked into the terminal and I immediately saw signs for Europcar. Hooray! We followed the signs to a very nice office area with a waiting room and a bunch of cubes filled with people in matching uniforms meeting with others. Apparently, Buquebus also has a travel agency business. We waited our turn and then we were re-directed back out into the main hall of the terminal to a unmarked service counter. We had walked right past the Europcar guy. I strode up to the counter and announced who I was. He spoke very little English, but he figured out that I was the guy that had been looking all over town for a car (Mercedes is apparently a very effective communicator and networker). He had paperwork with my name and had the rate correct, so things flowed pretty well from there.
The only oddity was when we talked about insurance, he showed me a figure on the rental documents that was in US$ for about 4x what our rate was. It made no sense and the language barrier was in our path. He put me on the phone with an English speaking co-worker who explained they don't do insurance there. Instead, they pre-authorize a deposit on your credit card. You wreck the car, you lose the deposit and that's it. Nothing else to worry about. You don't wreck the car, no loss of deposit. This sounded odd to me and I couldn't see how that amount of money would cover: a) a serious wreck or b) injuries, but it was difficult to communicate, so we went with it. I later inquired with Mercedes about this deposit business and she too found it odd.
After all the paperwork was done, we settled on a rendezvous point for dropping off the car at the end of the week. In the prior 24hrs, I had begun to get a picture for how things worked and we settled on dropping off the car at the United Airlines ticket counter at Ezeiza the evening of our return to the US. We went to the car, inspected it (a late model Renault Mégane with a 5 speed manual transmission), signed the paperwork and off we went. The car was fine all week with no complaints. I did have to get gas part of the way through and this too was a little different than the US. Argentine gas stations make use of the service model we had in place in the US back in the '50s: an employee of the station fills your car. Simple enough provided you know how to indicate the amount of fuel you'd like (I did it the easy way and ask for "completo"… fill 'er up) and that you remember to give the person a tip. AR$2 or AR$3 is usually enough.
At the end of the week, we managed to return the car, but not without a little drama. I had set a time that was a couple hours before our flight. We checked in with the airline, got rid of our bags, then hung out in the United Airlines ticketing area. 15min after the appointed time, still no guy from Europcar. I wandered all over looking for someone who might be looking for me (with about 5,000 other people also looking for someone) and finally walked over to the area where most of the rental car agencies had counters. I was getting a little desperate to rid myself of the car as we had been told the security lines were at least an hour long. I found an English speaking employee of another car company who actually knew the person from Europcar that shuttled the cars back n' forth to the airport. What were the odds of that?
He called the guy on his mobile and he soon arrived in front of me. We walked to short term parking to inspect the car and sign the paperwork again. I also gave him my ticket for the parking lot. One disconnect was the final receipt he wanted to give me showed a much larger US$ than it should have. I thought to myself: "Is this the deposit coming back to bite me like some sort of super insurance surcharge?". The Europcar guy spoke no English, but he quickly figured out my concern and indicated it was a mistake. He said they would mail me the receipt. Nearly a month later, still no receipt at my home, but the credit card charges match my reservation, so I guess it all worked out.
Looking back on this, there appear to be two different scenarios. One, agencies that have a presence at the airport. Usually a small service counter or kiosk. The other scenario is agencies that have no formal presence. For both, the process is best started with making a reservation on-line. I would NOT recommend trying to rent a car on the spur of the moment as I expect it takes a LONG time to handle such a transaction.
Scenario 1: With a Presence
When you arrive at the airport, check in at the kiosk for the agency you have selected. The agency will work out the paperwork with you (credit card info, passport info, etc). Ahead of time, they should have shuttled your car to the airport. The agency staff will go out into the short term parking area to inspect the car with you. Sign the paperwork and away you go. It is not a fast process, but it works. I did notice that at Ezeiza International Airport a couple of the big car companies had a few cars sitting in short term parking. There were signs for Alamo, Hertz and Avis sitting in front of 3-4 parking spots. So these companies at least have reserved parking spots for their cars, but that's not the same as having a whole parking lot of cars waiting for you. If you haven't made a reservation in advance, I suspect you'll be waiting a very long time for the agency to call the compound where their cars are stored, find a driver and have the vehicle shuttled over to the airport.
Scenario 2: Without a Presence
If the agency does NOT have a kiosk (e.g. Europcar), then I believe their people will meet you in the arrivals lounge at the airport with a printed placard showing your last name, much like a car service would. The agency staff will go out into the short term parking area to inspect the car with you, work out the paperwork, etc.
Returning your car under each scenario would follow similar processes, but in reverse. All in all, it was slow and confusing, but it will obviously be much easier the next time. If you absolutely must rent a car in Argentina, just be prepared for what I've described and it should work out. While I haven't been to other countries in the region, I'd bet the process is similar in many places. Just inquire ahead of time. Good luck!
- Be patient.
- When filling up your car with gas, go "completo". Unless you actually know Spanish. Don't forget to tip.
- Allow extra time to pick-up and drop-off your vehicle. And do it at the airport.
- Don't lose the airport parking lot ticket.
- Find out about insurance and deposits before you go.
Buenos Aires Notes
Well. Where to start? Despite having quite a bit of international travel under my belt, most of it has been for business which means I really haven't spent a lot time getting to know the places I've been. Last month I, my family and I traveled to South America and spent a week banging around Buenos Aires. It was both frustrating and thrilling. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend a trip like ours to others, but be patient and enjoy the experience: the good, the bad and everything in between.
I have a lot of content to share, so I thought I'd spread it around between this blog and my family blog:
- Over on RockyMtnFuller.com, there are daily accounts of what we did and saw.
- Here on OpenKimono, I am going to post a few things about language, culture and more "technical" posts talking about the challenges and tricks of traveling not only in a country where we didn't know the language, but also within a massive city with nearly 13M residents in the metropolitan area.
Now, without further ado…
Wordle & TagCrowd
Here's a pretty cool tool: Wordle. It's a Java applet created by an employee of IBM Research (on company time… nice!) who has shared it with the world. You can use it to create really nifty text graphics.
To the left is one I did that may become the header for my family blog over at RockyMtnFuller.com. The tool will automatically change the size of text based on how often a word is used (more usage, bigger text) and you can also customize the color palette, fonts and text orientation.
Another on-line tool I like is: TagCrowd. This little app takes a bunch of words and creates a cloud similar to the "CATEGORY CLOUD" over on the right side of this blog. It too is simple to use and sizes text base on word usage, but it doesn't have as many customization knobs to twiddle. Still, it's also useful.
I can imagine using these websites to make some interesting graphics for slide decks. Now, where'd I put my copy of slide:ology… ?
The Art of Wining & Dining Evolved
There was a time in my business career when I regularly dined out with vendors or suppliers of various goods and services. Invariably, the destination for such evenings out was the classic, high end steak house. I'll refrain from naming names, but you know the format: à la carte menu, mostly beef, lobster or crab add-ons, creamed veggies, decent wine list, an armada of servers with those little crumb brush gadgets. Typically, the check will come out to ~$100 a head. For chain restaurant food. I've eaten at that kind of place across America and even in western Europe. If it's expensive, it must be good. Right?
Tonight I ate at one of those places (on someone else's dime) and left wholly unsatisfied. Stuffed, but unsatisfied. The food was boring. The service regimented. The ambiance stuffy. It was like eating at a dinner theater staged in a funeral parlor. Maybe it's just me, but I think the Art of Wining & Dining as a business activity has taken a left turn. It's no longer just about the hunk of meat and price tag. It's about style, about fun, about thoughtfulness.
If I were a potential customer agreeing to take time from my schedule, either while at home or on the road, I would be looking for something a little more creative:
- What's good?
- What's new?
- What's interesting?
- What's local?
- Most importantly: what's memorable?
Particularly when you are talking about trying to build a relationship, I think American business needs to move beyond "impressing" someone to something more meaningful. Did your customer enjoy themselves? Did you make a unique, differentiated impression upon them that made them think: "That was worth my time. I would like to see these people again and learn more about why I should be in business with them."? To me, this is what you're aiming for and this is how you judge the ROI on the receipt you turn in with the rest of your expenses.
Maybe that's the longtime employee-owner talking. Or maybe after a couple years on my own and a couple working within a very thoughtful, client-focused organization, perhaps my perspective has been influenced. Either way, I calls it likes I sees it. So next time you're taking out a prospective or current client, be bold. Take a chance and do something interesting. Even if the food turns out to be a bust, there's a conversation starter to be found in the shared experience of doing something different. The End.
2009: A Brief Year in Review
Well. Here we are once again. Another year come and gone. For some reason this year I feel like I didn't really accomplish as many things as I'd hoped to. I really threw myself into working with my Point B friends / colleagues to help our clients and our firm weather the storm, which took its toll on my personal time especially since my work assignments have been at client locations 30 to 45 miles from home, sapping away precious time driving on the days I need to be in the office. I also gave up quite a few evenings for work-related outings plus business trips to Frankfurt (once), Hartford (several) and Seattle (once). I believe it was worth it, but hoping to take a small step back in 2010.
Still, I did manage a few other things. Made personal trips to Kīhei, Bismarck and North Platte. Sold off my '88 Jeep Wrangler and acquired an '03 Flagstaff 208 pop-up camper. Spent 300+ hours on soccer from coaching practices and games to coaching education and even playing. Plus at least 100 more hours doing work with / for our soccer club's board. Soccer has become my number 1 hobby, dominating weeknights and weekends alike. Made a batch of beer. Built new friendships in the neighborhood where I live, which is something sort of new to me as I tend to hang out with work colleagues. Thanks to John, Tinna, Mark and Cee Cee for the good times this year! And thanks to Julie for getting me out of my office to socialize. Helped out Erin with her school's Flat Stanley Project. Hosted Thanksgiving for 11 including my first fried turkey (much to learn about that process). Sitting at 591 LinkedIn connections and 259 Facebook connections. Posted to this blog a dozen times and 8 times on RockyMtnFuller.com. I say it every year, but I need to write more! Supported Bal Swan Children's Center and Hope House of Colorado.
Now for some New Years' resolutions. I need to run, ride and swim more. My mileage (e.g. only 358 run miles in 2009) was pushed down to the bare minimum and that has to change. More beer making. I need to work with Grace on posting to the family blog. She's become a wonderful, imaginative writer and should be leveraging the outlet. A bit less soccer (although I'm not sure how I will make that happen yet). Put the new camper to use and accrue a lot of outdoors time this coming summer. I live in Colorado. Time to get back to why we live here.
And I leave you with this: JibJab's usual irreverent compilation of recent events encapsulated in their short film entitled Never a Year Like '09.
DIA In & Out Parking Policy Needs Work
It's snowing and very cold in Denver today. Perfect day for air travel. So, I arrive a bit early and start scouting for spots in the parking ramp. After a good bit of searching, I throw in the towel and head outside to the economy lot.
Naturally, I have to go through the pay booths so I can exit the covered parking and circle around to go into economy. I roll up to the booth, hand the cashier my ticket and she says: "$2, please.". Ahem. What? $2 to look? How long have I been in there? "11 minutes." And how long am I allowed? "!0 minutes." You must be kidding. I pay the toll to the troll (the only other option being to drive through the gate Duke Boys-style) and exit.
Now, I understand why you'd have a 10 minute policy, but on a day like today when the ramp will be packed and there will be a lot of travelers searching with no success, you'd think DIA would flex a little. Good gravy. It's only $2, but still.
Technorati Verification
Yammer: Hanging Out at the ol' iWater Cooler
For about a year now my company has been using a social networking tool called Yammer. Yammer describes the service as "enterprise microblogging", but it's basically a secure, private Twitter that an organization can use internally. Yammer's home page currently claims 40,000 companies use the service. Like Twitter, each user can build a short profile about themselves, then shoot out little messages to everyone in their network (e.g. your company) regarding what they are doing or thinking including the ability to attach a file to the message. There's a way to subdivide the Yammer network into smaller groups (e.g. a group for office A and another for office B) so folks with common interests can communicate without everyone getting potentially unwelcome information. Messages can be generated and viewed using an Adobe AIR-based client, a Blackberry or iPhone app or through a web browser. There are other features, but these are the big ticket items. In generally, it's a well designed service.
I use Twitter in my personal network and mostly I get random messages from friends about their children's strange behavior, plans for the coming weekend, current weather and so forth. My own messages almost always fall within this same garden variety. If you look at typical Twitter traffic, it's essentially electronic chit chat. How is Yammer traffic different? By and large it isn't and that's precisely its value. In today's modern business place where employees often work remotely, by choice or due to travel, the proverbial water cooler conversation has largely disappeared. For some businesses in particular (such as consulting) or in segments of businesses (such as sales), employees can be especially isolated from one another. Tools like Yammer provides a way of maintaining a personal connection between far flung team members. And that connection isn't always idle conversation or gossip. Often times, great ideas are generated or big problems solved by the casual hallway meeting that is increasingly uncommon. An unlike regular instant messaging, many people can listen in and join the conversation, just like that hallway meeting.
My experience with Yammer has also shown that it's a useful tool for:
- disseminating information about what's going on in the organization ("Hey! Didja hear we just won this deal with such and such new client?"),
- quickly reaching out with a question to many colleagues via a channel that's not as busy as e-mail (and which is logged away for future reference by everyone in the company) and
- for simply sharing person tidbits.
It's an impersonal way of making personal connections, if that makes sense. There are people I only know on Yammer because they live in Seattle or some other city, but their personalities and interests show through across the Internet based on the comments they make and the way they make them. It's a little weird, but wonderful at the same time, because I'd not know them at all if it weren't for my use of Yammer.
So, I like Yammer, but I'd be remiss if I didn't offer that much of the basic functionality (if not all) could be recreated using direct competitor Present.ly, DIY social networking offerings such as Ning (which is more than messaging), the ageless Internet Relay Chat (IRC) or even Twitter (one can have a private account, you know). You can even make your own with open source package StatusNet. There are many options. So it's not so much the tool I like, but the idea. I'm enamored with this type of communication capability, regardless of how you achieve it. If you work in an organization where face-time is ever decreasing, you might want to strongly consider rolling-out a capability like this.
Want more? Here's a nice compilation of similar services from Mike Brevoort.
Jason Mraz @ Red Rocks
On the evening of Saturday 19.Sep.09, Julie and I made our first trip to Red Rocks Amphitheater to take in the Jason Mraz show. We've lived in Colorado for 11 years, yet we'd never been to this world renowned venue. Shame on us… it's truly one of the coolest, most spectacular gathering places in the world. More on that later.
Julie had bought the tickets off Craiglist for this sold-out show as a wedding anniversary gift for the pair of us. At the time, I wondered: what the hell is she thinking? They were expensive and my perception of Mraz was one of teenie bopper, highly produced, pop schlock (i.e. not really my thing). The guy owns the record for most weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 for the single "I'm Yours". If that isn't an indictment, what is? I began to wonder if I knew what I was talking about when I offered a Facebook update about my concert plans the morning of the show and promptly received some very positive responses from a number of unexpected sources.
Turns out, I was indeed wrong. Mraz is a true talent. I really enjoyed the show from the introductions by MC Billy "Bushwalla" Galewood through Somali / Canadian opening act K'Naan and on into the main event. Mraz had a horn section, keyboards and a couple different percussionists in addition to a three man guitar section which includes himself. Although I didn't realize it at the time, the set that evening was pretty heavy in tunes from his current CD (I had listened to "We Sing, We Dance, We Steal Things" only once before going to the show). But he mixed in some other stuff including a cool version of the Seals & Croft song "Summer Breeze" (I say cool because the original was pretty… umm… uncool). Mraz kept the chit-chat with the crowd to a minimum and instead he and the band focused on cranking out great music. I was thoroughly impressed and so was Julie. It is supremely unusual for us to like the same sort of music. After all these years together, could it be we're starting to rub-off on one another to create some sort of bilateral, mutually moderating influence? Or something like that.
Maybe some of it was the location. Red Rocks is really a special place. From the natural surroundings to the great acoustics and the amazing views looking up at about 9,000 people from our great seats in the 20th row. All of it was memorable and worth the expense and hassle of a live concert. For years, I had been to very few shows and those I had attended were for smaller acts in smaller venues. I'd grown tired of the traffic, the drunk kids and poor sound quality. If I wanted the sound of live music, I'd buy a live recorded CD and skip the rest. Getting old, I suppose, but I feel much the same way about live sports. However, I will absolutely go to another show at Red Rocks and it certainly won't take a decade for it to happen.
But, as tempting as it may seem, I would not take a kid to Red Rocks for their first (or even 10th) live concert. Not that they wouldn't enjoy it. No, I'd avoid it because the kid would be ruined for life when it comes to venues. I'd grown up catching shows in sterile, boring places like the Bismarck Civic Center, the Bison Sports Arena on NDSU's campus and the long departed Metropolitan Sports Center in Bloomington, MN. Red Rocks is spectacular and nothing short of a classic, mega arena (i.e. pro football stadium) could ever eclipse a show at Red Rocks. And even then it might not beat Red Rocks.


text:
Chinatown Leaders Mixed on China's U.S. Bank Buy
David Louie, chairman of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce of New York, said he has serious reservations about China's largest bank, the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, buying an 80 percent stake in the U.S. subsidiary of Bank of East Asia, which has branches in Manhattan's Chinatown, Sunset Park, Brooklyn, and Flushing, Queens.
The deal was announced earlier this month during Chinese President Hu Jin Tao's visit to the U.S.
If the purchase is approved by federal regulators, it would be the first time that a bank controlled by the Chinese government acquired retail bank branches in the U.S.
"As a citizen of the United States, I'd have to be concerned about a foreign country owning 80 percent of a very important bank in our area and using this as a testing ground for more investment into banks," said Louie who was born in Brooklyn and whose parents were born in Taishan, China, and Hong Kong. "You always have to worry about that."
But Louie also acknowledged that such a move could help Chinatown and ultimately translate into more lending to Chinese and Chinese-American businesses.
"They're not coming in for status quo. They're coming in to shake things up and try to make some money," he said.
Wellington Chen, executive director of the Chinatown Partnership, a nonprofit organization, believes the deal, if approved, will strengthen relations between China and the U.S. because ICBC, as a new lender to Main Street businesses in the U.S., will have an interest in those businesses doing well and vice versa.
"I have less fear," Chen said. "I don't think this is so much that they (ICBC) want to dominate Chinatown. I think it's part of their global perspective. They need to diversify their portfolio."
While China has surpassed Japan as the second largest economy in the world -- second to the U.S. -- its financial institutions, including ICBC, the largest bank in the world by market capitalization, still have a very small footprint outside China. A major reason for this purchase is to "compete with other big banks that operate internationally, the likes of Citibank and Bank of America," said Nicholas Lardy, a fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, a Washington think tank.
Lardy said ICBC has the resources to dramatically expand the U.S. operations of Bank of East Asia, but he believes the expansion will be gradual.
"I think it's a sensible strategy to start small with a customer base you're more familiar with and build on that franchise," Lardy said.
And some analysts believe ICBC's decision to buy branches in the U.S. may have less to do with trying to draw American customers, and more to do with trying to service the Chinese companies trying to do business in the U.S.
"Why should a Chinese company gives the fees associated with banking to an American-owned bank when potentially it could give those fees to a Chinese-owned bank?" asked Carl Weinberg, chief economist at High Frequency Economics.


text:
Houston County Courier - Local News
Stories Added - August 2009
Copyright 2009 - Polk County Publishing Company
Regular Called Board Meeting
Houston County Courier - August 2009
The Latexo School Board met in a regular monthly board meeting on Thursday Aug. 13 in the Latexo ISD Wilcox Community Center.
President Butch Patton called the meeting to order at 6:30 pm with invocation by Buddy Taylor.
Members present: Butch Patton, Mike Furrh, Thomas Gilson, Kent Clark (arrived at 6:31), & Sharla Kilian
Members absent: Jennifer Patton and Barbara Stewar
Administration present: Dr. Roy H. Tucker, Cynthia Neel, and Dr. Stacy Easterly
WELCOME and OPEN FORUM
President Butch Patton welcomed those in attendance. No one spoke in Open Forum.
Thomas Gilson made motion, seconded by Sharla Kilian to approve the prior minutes for July 16, 2009 and August 4, 2009. Motion passed unanimously.
No Action taken on bids for dirt work for baseball field, concession stand, restrooms, tennis courts, baseball field fencing, metal building for concession stand, restrooms, and wiring.
No Action taken on 09/10 budget.
Butch Patton made motion, seconded by Mike Furrh to accept new transfers as presented. 4 for and 1 abstain (Thomas Gilson).
Mike Furrh made motion, seconded by Thomas Gilson to adjourn.
Time was 7:46 p.m. Motion passed unanimously.
Polk County Publishing Company
Copyright 2009
Contact Us: firstname.lastname@example.com
Call us at - (936) 327-4357
Webmaster: Gregg Faith


text:
MLS draft: RSL trades Mathis to Galaxy; selects Portland midfielder
Defending Major League Soccer champion Real Salt Lake traded midfielder Clint Mathis and the 16th pick of the 2010 MLS SuperDraft to the Los Angeles Galaxy for the Galaxy's 15th pick of this year's draft and the third-round selection of the 2011 SuperDraft.
RSL used the 15th pick to take Collen Warner, a senior midfielder from the University of Portland. Warner, a 5-foot-10 native of Denver, was named to the All-West Coast Conference First Team and to Top Drawer Soccer's All-Season Third Team.
Mathis, in his second go-round with RSL, played 28 games in 2009, scored two goals with seven assists. He played a large role in RSL's march to the 2009 MLS Cup.
The Philadelphia Union selected Oregon State sophomore, and a member of Generation Adidas, Danny Mwanga as the draft's No. 1 pick. The 18-year-old forward was the PAC-10 Player of the Year and one of eight Generation Adidas roster player selected among the first 10 picks.
Generation Adidas players receive educational grants and do not count against an MLS team's salary budget.
See more about comments here.


text:
IICT Member Referral Program
Our NEW Refer a Friend system is easy - just send out an Invitation email to as many email addresses of friends as you wish using the Tell A Friend form and for anyone who Joins IICT using an email address from your invitation list you will receive $10*!
You can also keep track of who you have sent invitations to, who has joined and how much credit you have earned.
The Referral REWARDS® Program
Here's how it works.
1. Simply refer our IICT Membership to others using our Tell A Friend contact form.
To access this form log in to the members area and click on the Tell A Friend Icon.
2. Add your own personal message to the email and click Send.
3. Each time you refer a friend (and upon this friend registering with a successful application),
the IICT will pay you $10.00* per referral.
Refer 1 friend = $10.00
Refer 3 friends = $30.00
Refer 5 friends = $50.00
Refer 10 friends = $100.00
+ Get x2 free greater union movie passes valued at $30.00
Refer 20 friends = $200.00
+ Get a free $50.00 Coles/Myer gift voucher
Refer 50 friends = $500.00
+ Get a free 16GB iPod Touch valued at $219.00
Refer 100 friends = $1,000.00
+ Get a free 16GB iPad3 valued at $579.00
The more people you successfully refer, the more we gift to you.
NOTE: The Referral Program is only open to current IICT members.
If you're not already an IICT member you can join by clicking here
Referral payments are made within 21 days of all applications received. If a new member has joined using an email address sent from your Tell A Friend Invitation via our system, the IICT will contact you to arrange your rebate.
All referral payments are made via Internet Banking, therefore you will need to supply the IICT with your Account Type, Branch and Account Name along with your BSB and Account Number*.
*NOTE: All personal and financial details are protected under our privacy policy.
Need IICT flyers to help referring?
We can post you hard copy flyers in the mail where
you can put your name on the back
as the person who shared IICT.
Order now through the form below:


text: Adele Davis | IBDB: The official source for Broadway Information IBDB: The official source for Broadway Information Official Broadway League sites: - sites - broadway.org broadwayleague.com broadwayfanclub.com kidsnightonbroadway.com stagespecs.org tonyawards.com Quick Search For: In This Category: All Show People/Org. Theatre Season Adele Davis Performer Female Productions ProductionsDate of ProductionsThe Prince of India[Play, Drama, Original] Performer: Adele Davis Sep 24, 1906 - Nov 1906 Find out where Adele Davis and are credited together © 2001-2015, The Broadway League, All Rights Reserved. (Copyright and Disclaimer)


text:
- Filed Under
? Acord's Pizza, Sub and Pub, 2254 Blain Highway. Friday and Saturday, Chillicothe Karaoke and DJ; Tuesday, pool tournament, 7:30 p.m. acordspizza.com.
? American Legion Post 62, 53 W. Main St., Saturday, live music from Six To Noon, 8:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. Open to the public.
? Bub's Timeout Sports Bar, 66 N. Paint St. Today, DJ and karaoke; Friday, live music from the Greater Goods; Saturday, live music from Theo's Loose Hinges, of Columbus, 10 p.m., no cover; Tuesday, DJ and karaoke; Wednesday, live music from Ashley Good. 740-851-4027.
? Owl Tavern, 289 E. Main St. Today, pool tournament, sign-up is at 6:30 p.m., tournament starts at 7 p.m., entry is $5.
? Patrick's Pub, 20 N. Plaza Blvd. Today, live music from Pete Blevins.
? Thirsty Fox, 31 S. Paint St. Saturday, live music, 9:30 p.m. to 1:30 a.m.
? Shawnee Lanes, 1680 N. Bridge St. Today, bowling is $2 per game, 8 p.m. to close; Friday, bowl two games, get one free, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Friday, Thunder Alley, rent lanes by the hour, 9:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. Leagues are forming now. 740-773-3300. shawneelanes.com.
? Buckeye Lounge, 865 Eastern Ave. Today, ladies night; Friday, DJ; Saturday, live music from JokersWild, 9:30 p.m.; Monday, men's night.
? Dock at Water, 80 E. Water St. Friday, Paper City Music presents live music from Hollis Brown and Smooth Hound Smith: 9 p.m. to 12:30 a.m., cover is $4; Saturday, live music from Six To Noon; Tuesday, live music from Loose Pockets.
? Jerry's Pizza, 319 S. Paint St. Sunday, Howie Dog Karaoke, 9 p.m. to 1 a.m.
? Jerry's West, 23 Star Drive. Friday, live music from Tom Edwards, 8:30 p.m., no cover; Saturday, karaoke, 8:30 p.m.; Tuesday, open mic night hosted by Tom Edwards, 7 p.m., all ages welcome; Wednesday, karaoke, 9 p.m.
? Tecumseh Inn, 833 Eastern Ave. Today, free coffee from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.; Friday, Fearless Friday with DJ Gabby, 6 p.m.; Saturday, Super Saturday with DJ and karaoke from DJ Fozz, 7 p.m.; Sunday, Slammin' Sunday with videos on a big screen from DJ Gabby, eight-ball pool tournament starts at 6 p.m.; Monday, couples night, free pool from 6 to 8 p.m.; Tuesday, men's night, free pool from 6 to 8 p.m.; Wednesday, ladies day, Big Starr DJ and Karaoke featuring DJ Fozz, 6 p.m. Open from 10 a.m. to close Monday through Friday, from 11 a.m. to close Saturday and from 2 p.m. to close Sunday. Mary's Kitchen is open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday. Wi-Fi is available.
? Crosskeys Tavern, 19 E. Main St. Today, live music from the Goosetown Astonishers and guest musicians, 8 p.m.; DJ Jimmy Dyke, 10:30 p.m.; Friday, jazz lunch featuring guitarist, Dean Inboden, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.; DJ Jimmy Dyke, 9:30 p.m.; Saturday, live music from Ben Davis, 9 p.m.; Sunday, sports and beers with Brother Ben, noon; Monday, soft tip dart finals, 7 p.m.; Tuesday, Ohio Horsemen dinner and gathering, 7 p.m.; Wednesday, steel tip dart league, 7 p.m.
? 17 East, 17 E. Main St. Friday, Valentine's Day dinner with a live jazz trio, 5 to 9 p.m., reservations are encouraged; Saturday, live music from Ben Cydrus & Friends, 6 to 8 p.m.
? Backstage, 47 S. Paint St. Saturday, Soul to Soul, benefit concert for Bill Mace, 2 p.m. to 2 a.m., live music and comedy from more than two dozen performers. Proceeds help pay Mace's medical expenses.
? Lo Di's Bar & Grill, 124½ E. Main St. Today, ladies night, ladies pool tournament starts at 7 p.m.; Friday, Valentine's Day party, live music from Cactus; Sunday, pool tournament, 6 p.m.; Wednesday, pool tournament, 7 p.m.
? Tootle's Pumpkin Inn, 119 E. Main St. Friday, live music from Rodney & The Regulars and Johnny & The Apple Stompers, 10 p.m. to 2 a.m.


text:
Best of News
Palabras clave
Shiite Muslims raise their swords outside the shrine of Imam Abbas... Fotografía de noticiasAshura,Celebración,Chiíes,Espada,Irak,Islam,Karbala,Niño,Oriente Medio,Peregrinación,Religión,Santuario,VerticalPhotographer AHMAD AL-RUBAYECollection: AFP 2013 AFPShiite Muslims raise their swords outside the shrine of Imam Abbas early on November 25, 2012 in Karbala during the celebration of Ashura. Millions of pilgrims pour into the Iraqi shrine city of Karbala for the peak of commemorations for Ashura today, the most important day in the Shiite calendar, with security tight following mass-casualty attacks in previous years. AFP PHOTO / AHMAD AL-RUBAYE (Photo credit should read AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP/Getty Images)