text:
(KSDK Sports) -- Last month, the St. Louis Sports Commission submitted its proposal to bring the 2016 U.S. Olympic Swim trials to town.
Today, USA Swimming, in collaboration with the United States Olympic Committee, today announced the cities it is considering for the event and St. Louis was included among the top six.
In addition to St. Louis, the cities are Greensboro, N.C., Indianapolis, Jacksonville, Fla., Omaha, Neb., and San Antonio. The winning community will be the site of the biggest swimming event in the country.
The Trials will select the 2016 U.S. Olympic Swim Team.
St. Louis' plan includes the installation of two temporary, Olympic-sized pools inside the Edward Jones Dome. The competition pool and warm-up pool - will be constructed on the Dome floor. USA Swimming's Aqua Zone fan and sponsor experience will take place in the adjoining America's Center convention complex.
According to the St. Louis Sports Commission, the bid evaluation period will run through the end of April and will include site visits to select finalist locations. An internal evaluation team from USA Swimming, along with an outside member of the USA Swimming board, will visit each location and select finalists from the group. In addition to reviewing the bids and making site visits, this team will ask follow-up questions of each city and evaluate all information and responses before ultimately making a recommendation to USA Swimming Executive Director Chuck Wielgus, the USA Swimming Board of Directors and the USOC.
"We are thrilled to begin this process and are excited to see what these cities have to offer," said Mike Unger, USA Swimming assistant executive director. "The Olympic Trials is the marquee swimming event in the U.S. and has grown into an amazing sports event. We are truly excited to continue to enhance the event and make it even more spectacular in 2016."
Of the bid cities, only two have previously hosted the event - Indianapolis and Omaha. Indianapolis hosted Trials in 1952 (women only), 1984, 1992, 1996 and 2000, while Omaha played host to the event in 2008 and 2012.
A formal selection announcement is expected to be made following the USA Swimming Board Meeting at the end of April.


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I'm just re-sharing a battle map that I did last night (working time about 2 hours) with CC3/DD3. It shows an overgrown ruin in a forest setting and prints at A2 size.
You can find full-sized PNGs and PDFs (grind and no grid) at my website Mapsandmore.com and the souce CC3 file (FCW format) at the Profantasy forum.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
WASHINGTON, D.C. (WUSA) - An MPD officer shot a person in the 400 block of Kenyon St NW on Wednesday night, according to a police spokesman.
The adult male who was shot is conscious and breathing.
No other details are available at this time. We will update this story as information becomes available.


text:
how to resolve open relay problem
how to resolve open relay problem
Why do you believe you are a open-relay ? By default Zimbra is not installed in such a manner others can openly relay through your server.
i was test on mxtool.com
What have you defined forBy any chance have you included the IP address of your firewall ?Code:su - zimbra zmprov gs `zmhostname` zimbraMtaMyNetworks
Not changed
Sorry but that tells us nothing at all ... Even if it has not been changed recently you may have always been a Open Relay. Please post the information above.
zimbraMtaMyNetworks: 127.0.0.0/8 192.168.88.0/24
Acompli: A new adventure for Co-Founder KevinH.
Is the internal IP of your firewall within that range ? Have you tested your server yourself by telneting to port 25, from a external host, and attempting to relay a email through ?
can you provide me step, how to remove open relay on my server


text:
Tea Room Bella Salad
By Chef Jason Magee
Serves 8-10
1 cup Hydrated couscous
½ cup sliced Granny smith apples sticks
½ cup sliced seedless grapes
½ cup mandarin oranges slices cut into small pieces
Mix all ingredients in a bowl and add 2 tbl spoons of the honeysuckle dressing. Mix again and taste. Add more dressing for a sweeter flavor if necessary.
How to hydrate Couscous
Couscous can be hydrated by any hot stock. We use Jasmine tea when we make our Bella Salad.
The ratio is 1¼ cup of almost boiled liquid to 1 cup of couscous .
Add hot liquid to cover all of Couscous and let stand until all liquid is absorbed. Wait until cooled then fluff with a fork.
You can use chicken stock, vegetable stock, or tea add fresh vegetables, fruits, or meats to make a great salad.
Honeysuckle Dressing
by Chef Jason Magee
2 tbls loose Jasmine Tea (2 bags) brewed for 4 min and strained into a bowl
9 tbls honey
½ cup sugar
8oz apple Cider vinegar
1 orange zested
1 tbl Dijon mustard
½ tsp salt
2-1/2 cups virgin olive oil
½ lb unsalted butter (melted)
Add honey, sugar, vinegar, orange zest, salt, and Dijon mustard to hot Jasmine tea and whip.
Whip melted butter and then olive oil until mixture is smooth and creamy for two min.
Mix couscous and fruit, add 2 tbl spoons of dressing and fold in.
Add more dressing depending on degree of sweetness you want.
Secret Tea Room Irish Cottage Pie
(Bread Pudding)
By Chef Jason Magee
Severs 10-15
2 Tlbs Blueberry or Maple Tea steeped in 16 oz of hot water for 4 minutes strain and put aside
1 cup brown sugar
1 Tbls vanilla
½ cup heavy cream
1 cup Milk
5 large eggs
2 tsp cinnamon
2/3 cups dried blueberries or fresh
8 cups dried bread crumbs
Start with tea in large bowl.
Add brown sugar, vanilla, heavy cream, milk and cinnamon.
Whip until creamy add eggs and whip again until completely smooth.
Add blueberries and bread crumbs and mix well.
Let sit for 5 min.
Knead mixture with hands until bread coated completely with liquid.
Let sit for 10 min. Then repeat above step.
Butter or spray a 12" X 12" pan.
add mixture.
Cook in preheated oven at 350 for 45 min.
May be served hot or chill for later.
Cut into 3"X 3" squares.
top with caramel and whipped cream


text:
Surprise, AZ (SportsNetwork.com) - David Adams knocked in the go-ahead run in
the seventh, and Ryan Rohlinger added a sacrifice fly the following frame as
insurance, as Cleveland held on to beat Texas, 6-5, in Cactus League play.
Jeff Francoeur and Elliot Johnson added two RBI apiece for the Tribe. David
Aardsma picked up the win despite yielding two runs on three hits in one
relief inning.
Jurickson Profar and Mitch Moreland each knocked in a pair of runs for the
Rangers. Aaron Poreda took the loss, charged with Cleveland's lead run in the
The Sports Network


text:
Atlanta, GA (Sports Network) - Henrik Stenson carded a 4-under 66 on Friday to
push his lead to four strokes after two rounds of The Tour Championship.
Stenson ended 36 holes at East Lake at 10-under-par 130. The Swede collected
his third PGA Tour win two weeks ago at the Deutsche Bank Championship.
This is the finale of the FedExCup Playoffs and the winner of the Tour
Championship has the chance to win both titles at the same time. Stenson is
second to Tiger Woods on the points list and would win both crowns with a
victory this week.
Masters winner Adam Scott managed a 1-under 69 to remain alone in second place
at minus-6.
Jordan Spieth, who started the season with no status on tour, shot 3-under 67
to move into third place at 5-under 135.
U.S. Open champion Justin Rose (68), Dustin Johnson (68) and Billy Horschel
(70) are tied for fourth at minus-4. Five Americans, including Steve Stricker
and Zach Johnson, share seventh place at 3-under 137.
World No. 1 and two-time winner Woods had five birdies through 13 holes and
was about to move into the top 10, but he dropped six shots in a 4-hole span
en route to a 1-over 71. That left Woods tied for 26th at 4-over 144.
Woods' rough stretch included a bogey, a double bogey and a triple bogey.
Defending champion Brandt Snedeker struggled to a 5-over 75. He fell into a
tie with Woods and Jason Dufner (70) at plus-4. Since the FedExCup playoffs
started, Snedeker is the first Tour Championship winner and FedExCup champ to
qualify for the following year's Tour Championship.
The Sports Network


text:
Moose "Unofficial" Fan Club
Hasn't even inked a deal yet and he already has a fan club and a nickname.
Selected first by the Royals in the First Year Player Draft last Thursday, Mike Moustakas (pronounced 'moo-STOCK-iss') has at least four Royals fans hoping he signs with Kansas City.
Justin DaPrato, Blake Carlson, Jason DeJonge and Ryan DaMetz (above, left to right) showed their support of the Royals draft selection by sporting some homemade "Moustakas – Moose Tacos" T-shirts for Sunday's win over the Phillies. The T-shirts are a result of the guys – who all work together at Level-4 Engineering, LLC. in Leavenworth, Kan. – really, really getting into the 2007 Draft and being big Royals fans.
Even though they admit they were a little surprised by the Royals pick at first, the "Moose Tacos" crew is convinced – after reviewing both video and stats – that Kansas City made a wise choice.
Let's hope Moose makes the same wise choice and signs.


text:
Log in to Your eLawSoftware Account Here:
Access to your office 24 hours a day, 7 days a week – from anywhere!
Access to your office 24 hours a day, 7 days a week – from anywhere!
Certified Account Managers — A company with Google Partner status must have employees with Google Adwords certifications managing their accounts. Google makes sure the company meets Google's standards for customer care best practices.
Masters of AdWords Features – Google Partners must be well-versed in all the features of AdWords and use them in a way that is profitable to the client. This includes the use of negative keywords, site links inside of ads, ad extensions, split testing with AdWords, ad scheduling, etc.
Google Ensures Profitability & Quality Customer Service — Google does this by reviewing accounts to make sure that they are providing their clients the best service through improved quality scores. Google also checks for conversion rates and client retention to be sure that the clients are happy with the services they are receiving.
Beta Features First – Google Partners get access to Google's beta features. This means that after Google has developed a new feature or application, its partners can test and use this feature up to a year or more before it is available to the general public.
Dedicated Google Reps – Google Partners with a large ad spend get their own Google Reps that they can contact any time a client has an issue.
Testing & Innovation – Google Adwords Partners are required to show that they do split testing on ads to get the greatest volume of customers to a client's site. Google checks for multiple ads per campaign group to ensure the use of different keywords and messaging.
eLawSoftware has been developing criminal case management software since 1992. Our mission is simple – develop a comprehensive, easy to use program, designed specifically for the criminal defense attorney. With eLawSoftware, you are able to track billable hours and case expenses, or set up payment plans. This, along with the built in collection letters, invoices, and payment receipts makes managing your accounts receivable very easy. You can generate financial reports, as well as letters and motions in just a few simple steps. eLawSoftware also has a self-contained office calendar and court calendar everyone in your office can use, so no more cross-referencing. With these capabilities along with the ability to attach documents created outside of our program, we have given you an all-inclusive client file at your fingertips. All of these features, plus many more, makes office management effortless, but efficient, because it was designed solely for the criminal defense practice.
Our firm experimented with two different case management programs before being introduced to eLawSoftware. Through the use of eLawSoftware we have an incredible ability to manage our caseload, collect our fees and calendar our court appearances. One of the best things about the software is that it can be accessed from any location with internet access. Every time I speak to criminal lawyers I am constantly plugging the powerful software. I can generate court notices in seconds while my competition has to cut and paste all of the information into their pleadings. Its truly a powerful and successful program that will allow you to spend time practicing law instead of worrying about administrative tasks.
Having owned and used 2 different case management software packages, I was hesitant to move my files online. It would have been a major mistake to continue the 'old fashioned way.'
eLawSoftware has allowed me more time to practice law, allowed me to practice more efficiently and has made my practice more profitable. I have worldwide, 24/7 access to my client information, calendar and billing. This allows to me to efficiently and quickly respond to any situation. It also allows targeted billing at the push of a button which had reduced my receivables by 80%.
The staff at eLawSoftware is most pleasant and responsive and has made several personalized changes as soon as requested. Additionally you can incorporate as many personalized letters into your file as you desire. Do yourself a favor and let them walk you through a live online demonstration. You will see how your software can make money for you rather than being an expense.
Awesome program, awesome case management system, more than satisfied — the support staff is wonderful!
At first, we debated whether we really needed a practice management software. After using eLawSoftware, now we wonder how we ever got along without it.


text:
Hi. I've a brand new 8.0.2 yesterday upgraded to .3, I'm trying to add an external IMAPs account but I get the following toaster message:
and after the error I go to the mail tab I see the folder created.Invalid request: /external_account_name Folder creation conflict
Apparently the folder is created "normal", while IMAP account have a "special" folder.
I found no errors in mailbox.log.
What really puzzles me if I do the same operation in MY personal installation this doesn't happen! Apparently looks like a setting problem, but I cannot understand which setting can trigger such a behavior!
Anyone had the same issue?


text:
The commercial preparation of acellular pertussis vaccine depends on the effective recovery and purification of the antigens pertussis toxin (PT), filamentous haemaglutinin (FHA), and pertactin (PRN) from Bordetella pertussis fermentation. This study describes the recovery of the antigens using an open channel 0.45-μm tangential flow filtration module with optimization of the process parameters of transmembrane pressure, cross flow, and flux. Under the optimized conditions, greater than 98% recovery of FHA and PT was obtained.
To keep the disease under control large amounts of PT, FHA, and PRN must be prepared for mass immunization. The first step toward purification is the clarification of the fermentation broth for the recovery and further downstream processing of the antigens. The traditional method available is centrifugation. The scale-up of the process using centrifugation may lead to lower recovery of the antigens and a huge capital investment with low scalability. Therefore, an efficient bioseparation technique that can be easily scaled up with lesser capital investment is necessary. Membrane-based technology for biopharmaceuticals has been widely suggested and used.5,6 Tangential flow filtration (TFF) technology using an open channel, steam-sterilizable device allows microorganisms to be washed and concentrated in an efficient, rapid manner by using a closed recirculating filtration system, where both the concentrated cell mass and the filtrate can be collected under aseptic conditions. The factors that must be considered for successful scale-up of TFF technology are purity, yield, and reproducibility, for which the process parameters of the TFF must be optimized accurately. This article describes the optimization of the TFF process for high recovery of the acellular pertussis vaccine antigenic components: PT and FHA.


text:
|Okee Dokee Brothers win Grammy
|Written by Darci Tomky
Two Colorado boys ended a fantastic journey Sunday night, Feb. 10 when The Okee Dokee Brothers won a Grammy for best children's album at the award show in Los Angeles, Calif.
The bluegrass duo, Joe Mailander and Justin Lansing, are childhood friends from Denver who moved to the Twin Cities in Minnesota in 2007. 28-year-old Mailander is the son of Bob and Rita Mailander of Denver (formerly of Holyoke) and the grandson of Marie Mailander of Holyoke.
Joe Mailander, at left, and Justin Lansing are childhood friends from Colorado who are now Grammy winners after an unexpected nomination for their bluegrass, nature-inspired children's music.
Clad in plaid bow ties and vintage-style suspenders Sunday night, The Okee Dokee Brothers accepted the shiny Grammy award for their children's album "Can You Canoe?" which was inspired by a 30-day canoe trip down the Mississippi River in the summer of 2011.
According to the StarTribune in Minneapolis, Minn., Mailander pulled what was probably a first at the Grammys, thanking "the Mississippi River for inspiring the music."
These two indie music artists have fulfilled their dream of making children's music and now have a Grammy to put an exclamation mark on their journey, something they "never saw coming."
The Okee Dokee Brothers' "Can You Canoe?" album wins a Grammy for best children's album.
Friends since age 3, Mailander and Lansing have been making kid-oriented music since 2005, and their "Can You Canoe?" album has sold about 10,000 copies since its release last May.
While they did have a couple sold-out gigs in December, these full-time musicians usually play in schools and libraries, promoting audience participation.
With the message of encouraging families to enjoy the outdoors, Mailander and Lansing have plans for another adventure-type album, this time on the Appalachian Trail.
Holyoke Enterprise February 14, 2013


text:
FAIRFAX, Va. (WUSA) -- Fairfax police want you to call them if you have seen Nicole Yvonne Willis, who was reported missing by her family on Tuesday.
According to police, Willis has been diagnosed as a paranoid schizophrenic and also suffers from diabetes and multiple sclerosis. They believe she doesn't have any identification or medications with her and "may be irrational." She has been entered into NCIC and VCIN, say police.
Willis, who is 33 years old, was last seen by her family at a Fairfax hospital at the end of August.
She may be in the Annandale area of Little River Turnpike.
If you have any information about Willis or her whereabouts, please call Detective Albert Leightley at 703-385-7887 or dispatch at 703-385-7924.


text:
Idylle Eau Sublime Perfume
By Guerlain for Women
Idylle Eau Sublime Perfume by Guerlain, Created by perfumer thierry wassler, this is the latest edition to the collection that tells the story of rose and water . Rose water has been part of guerlain's heritage since 1830, but this is the very first time it has ever been paired with rose essence. This unprecedented duo is blended with lychee accents, jasmine and peach that glides into the velvety notes of patchouli and white musk. Merited a masterpiece, this is the perfect expression of ... Read More ... Read More sensuality and romance. All products are original, authentic name brands. We do not sell knockoffs or imitations.
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About Guerlain
History and background of Guerlain. Entering the Guerlain universe means crossing the threshold into an exceptional world where respect for tradition and a feel for innovation weave the most beautiful creations. Guerlain has been in existence for nearly 170 years and for a company so firmly anchored in history, the challenge has always been to reconcile the richness of tradition with a sense of innovation Read more about Guerlain
More Guerlain fragrancesfor Women: Shalimar , Samsara , Champs Elysees , Insolence , L'instant , more
for Men: Habit Rouge , Vetiver Guerlain , L'instant De Guerlain Extreme , L'instant , L'homme Ideal , more
See all Guerlain products
Customer Comments
I'll sure return to FragranceX before going out and fighting the over crowded malls.
S. England (Tempe, AZ)


text:
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Product Description:
Women's prAna® Manori Tankini Top :: The Manori adds tankini versatility to sandy lifestyles. Elegant knot and twist details create style that stands up to more than water; pull on a pair of shorts as you leave the beach and you're dressed for lunch on a nearby patio.
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text: The secret history of Iraq's war Technology 17 June 11 by Noah Shachtman USMC In the early years of the Iraq war, the US military developed a technology so secret that soldiers would refuse to acknowledge its existence, and reporters mentioning the gear were promptly escorted out of the country. That equipment -- a radio-frequency jammer -- was upgraded several times, and eventually robbed the Iraq insurgency of its most potent weapon, the remote-controlled bomb. But the dark veil surrounding the jammers remained largely intact, even after the Pentagon bought more than 50,000 units at a cost of over $17 billion.Recently, however, I received an unusual offer from ITT, the defense contractor which made the vast majority of those 50,000 jammers. Company executives were ready to discuss the jammer -- its evolution, and its capabilities. They were finally able to retell the largely-hidden battles for the electromagnetic spectrum that raged, invisibly, as the insurgencies carried on. They were prepared to bring me into the R&D facility where company technicians were developing what could amount to the ultimate weapon of this electromagnetic war: a tool that offers the promise of not only jamming bombs, but finding them, interrupting GPS signals, eavesdropping on enemy communications, and disrupting drones, too. The first of the these machines begins field-testing next month.On a fist-clenchingly cold winter morning, I took a train across the Hudson River to the secret jammer lab.Tucked behind a Target and an Olive Garden knock-off, the flat, anonymous office building gives no hint of what's inside. Nor do the blank, fluorescent-lit halls. But open a door off of one of those halls, and people start screaming."Screens off!" barks a man with a fullback's build. "Turn off the test equipment!" On the ceiling, a yellow alarm light flashes and spins -- the sign that someone without a security clearance is in a classified facility.Afghan militants began attacking US troops with improvised explosive devices in the first days after the October 2001 invasion. By early '02, al-Qaida bomb-makers were cramming radio frequency receivers and simple digital signal decoders into the bases of Japan InstaLite fluorescent lamps. Then they'd connect the two-and-a-half inch wide lamp bases to firing circuits, and to Soviet-era munitions. The result was a crude, radio-controlled weapon dubbed the "Spider" by the Americans. With it, an attacker could wait for his prey, set off the bomb at just the right moment -- and never have to worry about getting caught. When the explosion happened, he'd be hundreds of yards away.Worse, US forces had no way of blocking the Spider's triggering signal. Military bomb squads carried around a few half-assed jammers. But they couldn't be mounted on vehicles, "and they were too weak to provide protection beyond a few yards," Rick Atkinson notes in his exquisite history, Left of Boom: The Struggle to Defeat Roadside Bombs.Navy engineers hustled to build something a little stronger, and a little more portable. By November of 2002, they had a jammer called Acorn that was hard-wired to stop Spiders. It wasn't much. As a so-called "active jammer," the Acorn put out a relatively-indiscriminate "barrage signal" that ate up power and generated all kinds of interference. That kept its effective radiated power -- the amount of signal hitting any one bomb receiver -- low. The signal was so weak, the jammer had to be left on and screaming constantly. Otherwise, troops would be inside the bomb's danger radius before they ever had a chance to block it. Worse, it could only block the specific receivers used in Spiders. If the bombers switched frequencies, the countermeasure would be useless.Meanwhile, the Army looked for ways to modify its Shortstop Electronic Protection System, designed to shield troops from artillery and mortar fire. This was a so-called "reactive" countermeasure. It monitored the airwaves, listening for one of the radio signals used by the munitions' proximity fuses. Once the countermeasure heard that signal, Shortstop recorded it, modified it, and then blasted it back at the munition. By confusing the weapons with their own signals, Shortstop could fool the shells into prematurely detonating.The soldiers tweaked the Shortstop to scan for radio-controlled bombs' triggering frequencies, and torely on a Humvee's power supply. "The wife of one Fort Monmouth engineer collected miniature kitchen witches that inspired a new name for the device: Warlock Green," Atkinson recounts.Five Warlock Greens accompanied US forces into Iraq in March, 2003. By mid-summer, there were 100 jammers in the warzone. It wasn't nearly enough. Iraq's militants had learned from their compatriots in Afghanistan, and were setting off remotely-detonated explosives everywhere.Just like the first turn of this improvised explosive device (IED) war, the electronic countermeasures were having trouble keeping up with the bombs. It took Warlock Green, ultimately manufactured by the EDO Corporation, a couple of seconds to record, modify, and rebroadcast a triggering signal. An insurgent bomber could set off an explosive in a few fractions of a second, if he had a simple, low-powered trigger, like a garage door opener. The jammer didn't have time to catch up.The jammers could only cover a small slice of the radio frequency spectrum. Whenever the insurgents should change triggers -- from say, door openers to key fobs -- the jammer-makers would have to go back to the drawing board. Warlock Greens could be reprogrammed, within limits. The Acorns couldn't; the new threats rendered them useless. "Every time we put a countermeasure in the field -- especially with Warlock -- they were able to outstrip it," says Paul Mueller, a long-time defense executive, who supervised jammer-building operations at EDO and at the ITT Corporation. "They were a step ahead of us." Read page 2 12345 Read on one page Latest on wired.co.uk


text:
Good morning!
Is there a more specific release date than Q3/2006 available? I have to make plans for testing and going live (I'm asked daily for functions which are coming with the next release) so it would be good (that means I need) to have a more specific date like e.g. week 35.


text:
Faculty and Staff
Steven Berkowitz, MD
Curriculum vitae (pdf)
Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist
Associate Professor of Clinical Psychiatry
Perelman School of Medicine
University of Pennsylvania
Dr. Berkowitz develops treatment and intervention models and evaluates their effectiveness. His work focused on psychosocially stressed and disadvantaged children, adolescents and individuals. He is currently the principal investigator in Philadelphia on a DSM V field trial for children that have been chronically traumatized. The study is funded by the Juvenile Research Institute in Boston.


text:
STOTT PILATES Hot Yoga Mat
|Eligible for Free Shipping on Orders $39 or More! (see promotion details)
|Members of The League get 5% back when you spend $100! (see promotion details)
Product Details
Don't lose your grip in Chaturanga; the STOTT PILATES® hot yoga mat features an anti-slip design that's specifically engineered for humid or wet conditions. It's crafted using PER (Polymer Environmental Resin) foam, perfect for softening hard surfaces.
- PER (Polymer Environmental Resin) hot yoga mat
- Anti-slip grip
- Ideal for humid or wet conditions
- Does not contain phthalates or heavy metals
- Thickness: 2.4mm
- Dimensions: W 25" x L 68"
- Made in Taiwan
Product Recommendations
Product Reviews
Reviewed by 1 customer
Best Uses
Comments about STOTT PILATES Hot Yoga Mat:
This mat just arrived in the mail and is NOT 6mm it is only 2.4mm. Inaccurate description!
- Was this a gift?:
- No


text:
Bill Tentinger
Bill Tentinger is the KLEM "Citizen of the Day" for Monday, April 12, 2010. Bill is the Iowa Pork Producers Association northwest Iowa regional director. Bill received the 2010 Outstanding Service to Agriculture award from the Le Mars Area Chamber of Commerce. Bill will recieve a boutonniere from the Le Mars Flower House, pizza from Pizza Hut in Le Mars or Kingsley, a movie or game rental from Jo's Movie House in Le Mars and a car wash from Easy Clean Car Wash in Le Mars.
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text:
Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton have reteamed in the studio for a new track.
The couple hit the top of the charts with Islands in the Stream in 1983 and now Rogers and Parton are hoping for another smash with You Can't Make Old Friends, the title track on The Gambler singer's new album.
Rogers says, "What a thrill it was for me to work again with my buddy, Dolly Parton, and what a special song. Working with Dolly is always a little like going home. Everything felt comfortable."
The new album, which is released in October, will be Rogers' first since Water & Bridges in 2006.
He adds, "I can honestly say this may be the best album I've ever recorded. The musical diversity is extraordinary. It goes from songs I would normally sing, to songs I would normally never even listen to. In this business, you do albums to both grow artistically, and for the sheer love of music. We chose what I think are the most diverse and best songs I've ever had access to."


text:
May 31, 2016
WASHINGTON (AP) -- House Speaker John Boehner has invited President Barack Obama to deliver the State of the Union speech on Feb. 12.
In a letter sent Friday, Boehner says the country faces immense challenges, and Americans expect the Congress and White House to work together on solutions. Boehner says cooperation will require, quote, a "willingness to seek common ground as well as presidential leadership."
The Ohio Republican says the president can present his plan and specific solutions at a joint session of Congress in the House chamber.
Last year, Obama delivered the State of the Union speech on Jan. 24.
Click Here to access the online Public Inspection File
Viewers with disabilities can get assistance accessing this station's FCC Public Inspection File by contacting the station with the information listed below. Questions or concerns relating to the accessibility of the FCC's online public file system should be directed to the FCC at 888-225-5322, 888-835-5322 (TTY), or email@example.com.


text:
wow, pretty nice map. Looks good.
I drew this map while stationed at Fort Leonard Wood, MO in 1993. Map is based on a 1:50,000 scale army topo map. Scanned from an old sketchbook.
I also stated a blog posting some more of my maps. Michael Smith's Map Collection
I am hoping to add a lot more maps and start on some new ones.
wow, pretty nice map. Looks good.


text:
Nov 05
Texas Race Report - GEICO Ford Fusion
Posted by: lori on Nov 05, 2012
Tagged in: Untagged
Fort Worth, TX (November 4, 2012) – After a few tough weeks at the racetrack, the Germain Racing team and driver Casey Mears rebounded with a solid effort in Martinsville last week. They hoped to continue the momentum when they arrived in the Lone Star State for this week's race, a 500-mile event that would challenge even the best, well-funded NASCAR Sprint Cup Series teams.
When the team unloaded the #13 GEICO Ford Fusion for the weekend's first practice on Friday, the car reacted negatively and sent the engineers scrambling. However, by session's end, crew chief Bootie Barker and his staff made changes that saw Mears head north on the speed chart, where he ended up 19th. Qualifying got underway at Texas Motor Speedway late Friday afternoon and Mears wheeled the #13 GEICO Fusion around the 1.5-mile quad-oval in just 28.672-seconds, landing him 20th on Sunday's starting grid.
With a late start time of 2 PM (CST) on Sunday, each team would be faced with the changing attitude of their racecars, as the sun was sure to set prior to the conclusion of the race. Starting from 20th, Mears lost ground when the green flag waved and fell as low as 26th while being challenged by a tight condition. Although he found the car tough to handle, that didn't deter Mears from driving the #13 GEICO Fusion to the front of the field, where he entered the top ten before being forced down pit road for a scheduled green flag pitstop on lap 46. After being outfitted with four fresh Goodyear Racing tires and a full tank of Sunoco racing fuel, he rejoined the field and continued to battle his racecar until the long green flag run dictated Mears make a second scheduled green flag stop on Lap 91. This stop would prove fruitful, as Mears reported just two laps later that the car was turning better than it did during the previous run.
The on-track action heated up a bit for Mears when he narrowly avoided a spinning AJ Allmendinger on lap 108. The #13 GEICO Fusion sustained grill damage from the incident, but the Germain Racing pit crew quickly got it taped up and repaired while under caution. The race went back under green on lap 118, but not for long. Bobby Labonte lost an engine on the restart and forced a chain reaction crash that saw the #13 GEICO Fusion fall victim to damage to the rear left-side of the racecar. Mears made two visits to pit road under caution for repairs and his crew returned him to the racing surface without losing a lap. Barker assured his driver that the damage was inconsequential and would not affect Mears when the race returned to green.
As the race began to wind down, the Germain Racing team used strategy in an attempt to rejoin the lead lap. With just eight laps to go, Mears and the #13 GEICO Fusion had raced their way into the Lucky Dog position and sat in 25th place. Barker's strategy would pay off a brief three laps later when Mark Martin brought out the event's final caution flag with five laps remaining, returning Mears to the lead lap. While he restarted from the 24th position with two to go, Mears managed to pass three cars on the final lap to record a 21st place, lead lap finish when the checkered flag halted 502-miles of racing. Mears effort accounts for the team's 17th top 25 finish of the 2012 season.
"Not a bad night, especially with the repairs we had to make after that restart incident, but the guys on our GEICO crew did a great job all night and it showed in the end," Mears said. "These guys never quit and it's great when you're in the trenches with people who keep fighting and absolutely refuse to quit. We kept working our strategy and in the end we were on the lead lap and almost got another top 20. Our team is special and the character and heart of everyone shows each week. I'm grateful for the support of everyone at GEICO, Germain Racing and Ford, and I'm glad we could fight back tonight and get another top 25." He continued, "We've had two solid weekends and I'm hoping we can continue the momentum and end the season strong."
Next weekend, the Germain Racing team will head west for the final time this year to Phoenix, Arizona, for race number 35 of the 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series season.
Mears and the #13 GEICO Ford Fusion will hit the track at Phoenix International Raceway for the opening practice session on Friday, November 9th, at 2:00 PM (EST). Qualifying will follow at 6:10 PM (EST).
The AdvoCare 500 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race is on Sunday, November 11th, and it will be televised live on ESPN beginning at 2:00 PM (EST). The Motor Racing Network (MRN) will carry the live radio broadcast.
To learn more about the GEICO Racing program, please visit: www.caseymearsracing.com
You can also follow GEICO Racing on Twitter: www.twitter.com/geicoracing
Please visit the Casey Mears Facebook fan page: www.facebook.com/caseymearsracing
Contact: Doug Barnette, Player Management International
Email: firstname.lastname@example.com


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|Kim Killin resigns school board seat
|Written by Holyoke Enterprise
A vacancy has been declared on the Holyoke School District Re-1J Board of Education with the recent resignation of board member Kim Killin. She became ineligible to hold the office when she was appointed Phillips County judge this month.
Her written resignation was accepted by the board at its June 17 meeting, effective June 30. The board must fill the vacancy by appointment within 60 days.
Killin was first elected to the Re-1J board in 2009 and was re-elected for a four-year term in 2013. The new appointee will serve until the next regular school election in November of 2015. At that point, an election will be held for a two-year term to complete the remainder of Killin's unexpired term.
Those interested in being considered for the vacant board position should pick up an application at the district administration building at 435 S. Morlan Ave. in Holyoke. Applications must be returned by 4 p.m. Friday, July 18.
To be eligible for appointment, a candidate must be a registered elector of the school district for at least 12 consecutive months prior to the date of appointment.
Any person who has been convicted of a sexual offense against a child is ineligible for the office of school board member.
Each candidate for appointment to the vacancy must establish their eligibility to hold office by submitting a sworn affidavit attesting to their qualification for office by the July 18 deadline.
The board will interview some or all prospective candidates Tuesday, Aug. 5, at a public meeting.
Holyoke Enterprise June 19, 2014


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2010 L.A. Roadster Show And SwapWritten by Eric Geisert on January 1, 2011 Contributors: Ron Ceridono, Chuck Vranas Think Of It As Street Rodding In High Definition
Father's Day is certainly special-but it can be disappointing. More than likely you'll get new underwear or socks along with a card full of heartfelt sentiment instead of that big-screen HD TV you really wanted. Of course, if you want to avoid disappointment tell your loved ones what you really want is trip to the Los Angeles County Fairplex for the L.A. Roadster Show and Swap Meet.
This year marked the 46th such event and by all statistics it was a huge success-there were 850 roadsters, 2,500 specialty cars, 1,140 swappers, 200 vendors, and 15,000 walk-ins, but numbers like that only tell part of the story.
For those driving '36 and earlier roadsters, entry for the driver and a passenger is free, however, the car must be finished, which means paint and upholstery, with no flat finishes allowed. But that doesn't mean unfinished, primered roadsters, closed cars, and customs aren't welcome. All those and any specialty car with model year up to 1974 have a designated parking area. The end result makes for some interesting comparisons. The roadster area contains some of the best topless cars you'll ever see, it's like a car show with palm trees, while the specialty parking area contains the most eclectic collection of cool rides you're likely to find. It's not unusual to see a full-on custom, a flat-black beater, and a high-dollar restoration all in a row.
Of course one of the big draws at this event is the swap meet, and with well over 1,000 vendors it's always a good one. But be aware, while this is an event where you're likely to find the rare and unusual parts, pieces, and complete cars you're looking for, most of the vendors know exactly what they have and what it's worth. This is not to say prices aren't fair, for the most part they are as reasonable as any such event, and vendors are there to sell. It's just that cool stuff always comes at a price. For those looking for new parts there are plenty to choose from as many of the premier vendors display their wares. Most of them offer show specials and in some cases cash and carry deals can eliminate shipping costs as well.
Along with the cars, swap meet, and the vendors, Father's Day at the Fairplex draws a good size crowd, which makes it a great opportunity to meet old friends and make new ones as well-and there are always a number of street rodding's celebrities in attendance, too.
All things considered, we can't think of a better way to spend Father's Day weekend than attending the 47th L.A. Roadster Show and Swap Meet. And it's more fun than sitting in front of a big-screen TV.
The 14th Annual SO-CAL Party
Once, a weekly Wednesday night get-together with a few friends at the back door of SO-CAL Speed Shop in Pomona, California (back when the business was called PC3g), became the annual party held the Friday afternoon before the annual L.A. Roadster Show. It is now one of the best "car shows" in the country, and it only goes on for four hours! With the luxury of being located in the heart of the hot rod world-Southern California-SO-CAL Speed Shop now sees 500 cars show up, many of which don't attend any other "organized" car shows. Parked on the street in front of the shop four wide for more than an eighth of a mile and another two-wide for another eighth, attendees were treated to free In & Out burgers while checking out the 14 or so projects SO-CAL is currently working on. A mini cackle-fest with a single front-engine dragster (courtesy of Texas-resident Tom Prufer) wowed the crowd before a special reveal reunited Gary Lorenzini with the untouched T-bucket he built 35 years ago and sold three decades ago. For more photos from this event, check out www.streetrodderweb.com.
Walden's After-Party Party
Though they specialize in making new doorskins and roof panels for most hot rods between 1928 and the late '30s, Bobby Walden's shop can do all levels of fabrication and assembly, from a simple chassis to finished drivers. But their close proximity to the SO-CAL Speed Shop-about a mile away-made it easy for a few rodders to show up on Walden's doorstep four years ago to see what they were working on. Now hundreds of folks stop by between 5 and 10 p.m., check out projects in the shop as well as what's in the parking lot, grab a free ice cream (Walden went through 600 of them Friday night), and soak in the traditional vibe. You can see more photos at www.streetrodderweb.com.
The Swap
The Roadster Show's Legendary Swap Meet
Though the event is usually referred to as "The Father's Day Show," the given moniker for Southern California's oldest annual hot rod function is the L.A. Roadster Show and Swap-a name that puts the swap meet section of the event on par with the car show. And, in this particular case, that equal billing is perfectly warranted.
For decades this swap meet has been the place to find, buy, and sell whatever you could possibly want, from just a pair of framerails to complete, driveable cars and everything in between. And even though the show didn't officially open until Saturday morning, several hundred vendors were set up early on Friday to take advantage of some of the early birds looking for bargains, with the hearty ones staying well into the sunny afternoon Sunday to make sure they had sufficiently cleared out their garages.
Deals are, of course, in the eye of the beholder, but we wandered each and every aisle scanning for items of interest, noting the prices along the way. Some "asking prices" were outrageous, and we didn't check back later to see if they had actually sold, nor did we check on the low-priced items, either. For those who were not able to attend, this is a slice of the swap meet but, for dozens of more images, check www.streetrodderweb.com for more coverage.
Specialty Parking
Non-roadsters at the L.A. Roadster Show
2010 L.A. Roadster Show and Swap
There's a reason they call it the L.A. Roadster Show. In fact, there are two. One is that it happens in Los Angeles, the other is that it's a show for roadsters. So don't even think about trying to sneak your coupe, sedan, wagon, or pickup into the main event. If it's not topless, it's not getting in. But that doesn't mean you have to go home. The L.A. Roadsters Club reserves the huge parking lot adjacent to the swap meet for pre-'75, non-roadsters, and any roadsters not wearing the shiny paint required in the main show area. They call this section "Specialty Parking" and it draws hundreds of participants every year-not just locals, but rodders from all over California and out of state. And as anyone who's been there can tell you, Specialty Parking draws cars every bit as nice as the roadsters on the other side of the fence. In addition, the L.A. Roadsters have started to use the Specialty Parking area to highlight milestone years, makes, and models. This year's event included a special '35-36 Hot Rod Corral, celebrating the 75th anniversary of the beginning of the fat fender era.
This portion of the L.A. Roadster Show keeps getting bigger, better, and more popular, making Specialty Parking one of the best "car shows next to a car show" in Southern California.
More Photos From This Article View Slideshow
Paul Gommi must have scoured the earth to come up with the rare accessories found on his '32 Ford phaeton. Some, like the Pines Winterfront grille, the S.Co.T. supercharger, and the Electroline headlights are easy to pick out. Others, like the modified '50 Ferrari air cleaners, Pierce Arrow inside rearview mirror, and '34 Rolls-Royce stop/turn light require a second look.Bruce Elder drove his '29 Ford phaeton from Staunton, VA. The tub rolls on ribbed fronts and dirt track rears. Note the headlight bar and the framerails that don't appear to be A or '32.Gary Defer spent 10 years building his '15 Ford T-bucket. The Grabowski inspiration is evident-the '50 Caddy mill, Horne four-pot intake with Stromberg 97s, Offy valve covers and Roto-faze distributor, and a carved shifter knob by Grabowski tops it all off.Luis Loyola owns this pale yellow '29 Ford roadster. It rolls on steelies wrapped with bias-ply tires, wearing '41 Ford hubcaps. Between the A 'rails is a Studebaker V-8 with a Paxton centrifugal supercharger.This T is a real survivor. The Jack Foye and Ross Heale collaboration utilized the front half of a '26 T touring and a custom bed with blown Chrysler power. It ran 130-mph-plus at the drags in the late '50s and early '60s, it was at the first L.A. Roadster Show and appeared in the movie Palm Springs Weekend. Ross and Doug Peterson dug it out of storage after 30 years.You're likely to see anything in L.A., and here's proof it won't all be subtle. King of the Kustomizers, George Barris, cruised the grounds in the Munster Koach. There were two built, the first one took 21 days in 1964 and cost $18,000.Another roadster from the past, Tom Cobb's '29 Ford roadster used a 268-inch Flathead with a GMC 3-71 blower under a quartet of Stromberg 48s modified for methanol. The unusual grille was from a '34 Desoto.Another example of this subtle approach is this '28 Ford roadster. Note the modifications to the cowl-the gas filler has been removed and the seam on the sides have been filled and smoothed.
We didn't get the owner's name, but we sure like the wide-five wheels on this Model A roadster pickup. Used on Fords from 1936-39, the wheels are getting scarce and so are good brake drums to mount them to.With total production of just over 3,000 for Master and Standard series, John Flores' '34 two-tone blue Chevy is a rare roadster.If there had been a prize for the largest roadster in attendance, Richard Tupper would have hauled it home in his two-tone gray '35 Seagrave roadster pickup. A former fire truck, Tupper's creation is remarkably graceful for a vehicle of its size.When we say just about everything without a solid roof and roll-up windows is likely to show up, we're not kidding. What this Studebaker racer lacked in finesse was made up for with a hearty exhaust note.While not eligible for the roadster display, we wouldn't throw this '39 Ford convertible out of our garage. This year and body style was the last Ford to offer a rumble seat.Another case of building what never was, John and Karen Mee are the owners of this '36 Ford roadster pickup. It takes a good eye and more than a little skill to take the top off any vehicle and make it look right.So it's not a true roadster, it's hard to find fault with a '32 Ford cabriolet, as there is a lot to be said for roll-up windows.That's a surprised Gary Lorenzini behind the wheel of the T-bucket he built 35 years ago, which was given back to the rodder by his son, Scott (leaning in), and the rest of his family after it was relocated and purchased for Gary. He is planning to finish up the bucket the way he wanted to back in the day, including a fuel injection system.
One of the best facets of the SO-CAL party is you get to see vehicles that you probably won't see out at the Roadster Show. Lots of heavy flake in this customized hauler.You can make a four-door look great, too, just like this sedan, which was customized with a unique headlight/driving light treatment, a decent chop, and big-inch wheels.Eric Barajas, from Chula Vista, CA, brought his original Hemi-powered '32 coupe to Waldens for new doorskins, a filled roof, and more.Since his move from Texas to Pomona, CA, a few years back, Walden has enjoyed a reputation for building finely crafted hot rods, and his large shop is full of metalworking machines amateur metal benders dream about.Customs were well represented at Walden's party, too, with this pair offering a contrast in build styles.The owner of this Model A calls his coupe "Live Wire," and it's equipped with a '52 331 Cadillac and a '56 Pontiac rear.We hadn't seen this unpainted roadster before, but we like it! Cowl steering, polished Flathead, and Model 40 wheels all added to the look.
A bit ragged around the edges, but this large (about 36 inches) vintage Texaco neon sign had a price of $2,800 on it.Ultra-rare Kinmont brakes are always pricey when we find them, and this set was available for $12,000.Five-spoke Americans look great on anything, but this set was a vintage one made from Magnesium, and was offered at $4,500. Vintage Halibrand smoothies could also be found, but were a bit higher at $8,500.Gauges, by themselves as well as a set into inserts, were everywhere. You can't get much better than an Auburn dash with five vintage gauges ($2,800), while some of the smaller inserts were going in the $450-$650 range. The complete dash and gauge setup (out of a '34 Lincoln) was $2,800 while the '32 Lincoln gauge-filled insert was $1,800.
For $3,000 you could have picked up a complete front and rear suspension system out of a '95 ZR1. The seller would also split the pair: $1,000 for the front, $2,000 for the rear.Heading up the "what?" category was this aluminum belly tank advertised as coming from a P-38. The price? How does $15,000 grab you?Original steel bodies are always at the top of a "Want List," but at the L.A. Roadster swap meet, anything goes. From one-man, Indy-type roadsters ($500) to '32 five-windows, it's all out there. The rough, but fairly complete Deuce on the trailer was $11,000, while the less-rusty version on the ground was $25,000.Interested in a fleet sale? These pedal car bodies were $25 each, but you probably could have gotten the whole group at a discount.
Both of these roadster pickups were runners. The '25 T on the trailer was offered at $9,500 while the red '28 had a $10,500 price tag on the windshield.You don't see many tall T tudors around nowadays, but in the '70s they were all the rage. This '26 had a new frame, Jag rear, TCI Engineering Super Bell front end, and two hoods for $6,900, OBO.The Weiand-blown small-block Chevy probably moved this '27 roadster pickup around town just fine! The owner was asking $15,000 for his ride.One of the better deals might have been this '27 roadster. With a 425 Nailhead, 400 trans, and a 9-inch rear, the roadster had less than 1,000 miles on the odometer, so $9,500, OBO, didn't sound bad.For $17,000, you could have picked up this all-steel '31 Ford roadster, and it looked like it didn't need anything.
Ken Reister's Foose-built '36 Ford roadster was the '05 Ridler winner and '06 America's Most Beautiful Roadster at the Grand National Roadster Show, and showed up in the '35-36 Hot Rod Corral at the L.A. Roadster Show.John Lawson has one of the most impressive collections of hot rods anywhere, and traveled from Fresno, CA, to the Fairplex to show off this beautiful black-on-black, Cadillac-powered '36 roadster.Not quite as famous as the Pierson Brothers' '34 coupe, Bob Pierson's '36 Ford coupe used to haul the historic '34 and was quick in it's own right, running 121 mph at Bonneville in 1950. Frank and Mary Nay now own the '36."El Abuelo" is the nickname of this suede tail-draggin' '36 coupe. In addition to its low altitude, the truck grille, wide whites, and wheel covers add to the attitude of the small-block-powered car. (The nickname means grandfather in Spanish.)We love the look of this proud, nose-in-the-air Gasser. From the straight-axle to the Cragars, blower, and fender-filling headers, the only thing missing from this bright red Willys is a cloud of white tire smoke.Lots of work and all-new wood went into Steve Early's '51 Ford woodie wagon. It's got a ZZ4 underhood, plus a Fatman IFS and Currie 9-inch rear. The '58 Thunderbird center console features a DVD screen. Surfboard-shaped armrests carry out the West Coast woodie theme.We like seeing combinations of contemporary and classic when the combo is as successful as Ralph Sear's tomato red '35 cabriolet. The car manages to mix modern elements (especially in the leather interior) with '30s-era taste and some hot rod flavor, too.We also love '32 roadsters, like this squash-colored highboy with split wishbones, and a dark stripe down the beltline. On the inside, there are some low-key, Tommy the Greek-style graphics decorating the dash and accenting the Stewart-Warner gauges.Al Curletti took the opposite direction with his beautiful '34, going the resto rod route by keeping the interior original looking, including a mohair bench and stock steering wheel and dash. The engine is a '59 AB Flathead. The paint was shot in 1978. Curletti paid $182 for the coupe almost 50 years ago.
Surprise! How often do you see a full-fendered, unchopped '31 Model A five-window coupe packing a 1,000-plus horsepower, 415ci Dart small-block with an 8-71 blower and big Mickey Thompson rear meats? Roger Liberator from Riverside, CA, sees one every day.This '30s lakester survivor, originally built by Alfred Churchill, ran 104 at Muroc in 1940. "Meteor" was built from junked cars, a truck, tractor, motorcycle, and plane. The body was hand formed from mil-spec aluminum-surplus scrap from Douglas Aircraft. George Nakamura bought it and drove it before sticking it in storage where it stayed for 60 years. His son, Walt, now owns it and is seeking information about Alfred Churchill. Please email him at firstname.lastname@example.com red grille and 'striping to complement the off-red upholstery set off this full-fendered Deuce five-window. There aren't any radical sheetmetal modifications-doesn't need 'em-but some assorted hot rod elements (five-spokes, drilled I-beam, tuck 'n' roll interior) got our attention.The late-Larry Watson's customs provided inspiration for Jim White's air-bagged Lincoln Continental. Jeff Roberts (aka "Von Father") applied the graphics, which include panel paint, metalflake, fades, gold leaf, and some elaborate 'striping along the roof. Bellflower exhaust tips add to the period-custom look.The flames on this smooth "power everything" '47 Ford convertible were painted by owner Pat Kelley, who also painted and 'striped the car and built the interior using late-model Nissan bucket seats. The engine is an injected Ford 351 Cleveland.Derek Meacham's '47 sedan is Chevy-powered, with a 350 engine. Custom mods include shaved sheetmetal, frenched Cadillac taillights and, on the inside, Classic Instruments gauges in the stock dash, a Budnik banjo wheel, and Grand Am bucket seats.Slim, from Slim's Fabrication, calls his rear-engine '64 Chevy G-10 a "street-legal wheelie machine." The Chrysler engine is reverse-mounted with a V-drive gearbox, motorboat style. The top was chopped 13 inches and modified with an Olds Vista Cruiser glass roof.Few people guess that the engine in Eddie Perez's '31 sedan is a 425ci Cadillac. They do recognize the seats built out of metal car ramps and the speaker covers made from drilled Ford step plates. Eddie's low '31 has been on the road since May, gets driven every day, and sits so low the rear license plate drags.
These two '32 sedans drove together from Tucson. Ryan Mapes' homebuilt Fordor is still waiting for an interior, but features a 500ci Cadillac engine, hairpins, and Pete & Jakes rear ladder bars. Mike Kerwin's plum-colored Tudor, also homebuilt, runs a 350 Chevy, wishbones front and rear, and a 3-inch chop. In keeping things traditional, Kerwin chose a mohair interior and sanded and buffed the Hot Rod Flatz paint to look like lacquer.


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Protected areas are central to climate change responses
Protected areas are proven, and sustainable governance systems for managing land, coastal and marine ecosystems. Whether managed by state agencies or local communities and indigenous peoples, protected areas reduce deforestation and greenhouse gas emissions from land conversion. Improving management and expanding protected area networks are cost-effective strategies to address climate change.
Protected Areas can contribute to the major challenges facing the world today – biodiversity loss, water shortages , food insecurity and the greatest threat humanity has ever faced– rapid climate change. Although they cover only 11.9% of land and just over 1 % of the oceans, protected areas are the cornerstones of biodiversity conservation, protecting 80% of threatened species. Many protected areas also provide social and economic benefits, supporting local livelihoods and economies, and safeguarding crucial services such as fresh water, food and carbon storage and mitigation of natural disasters. Protected areas can thus play a critical role in national and local mitigation and adaptation strategies, as natural solutions to climate change.
Carbon Storage and Mitigation: Globally protected areas store more than 312 gig tons of carbon (GTC) or 15% of terrestrial carbon stock. Tropical, temperate and boreal forests, sea grass beds, mangroves, and salt marshes are key carbon stores and sinks.
Reducing Vulnerability and Adapting to Climate Change: Water stress, food shortages and natural disasters, with loss of lives and assets, will become increasingly frequent, exacerbated by climate change and more dramatic climatic events.


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|START Conference Manager
(Submission #16)
Community networks have usually been examined as individual entities. In this paper, we summarize ways community networks have been viewed over time, describe Aldrich and Ruef's community evolution perspective, and apply the community evolutionary perspective to community networking activity in the United States. We then propose examining Indiana's community networking initiative as a single organizational community through the lens of evolutionary processes of variation, selection, retention, and struggle. Specifically, we plan to use the evolutionary framework to explain how the content of Indiana's community network websites has changed from 1997 to 2005. This work should be useful to explain how well community networks adapt in the Web 2.0 environment.
|START Conference Manager (V2.54.4)
|Maintainer: firstname.lastname@example.com


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Best of 2011
As the calendar gets ready to turn over to November, there are going to be a rash of year ending, authoritative sounding Best of 2011 lists being released – whether it's for albums, singles, movies, TV shows, iPhone apps, nipple slips, etc. I'm warning you: everyone makes one for something, and everyone thinks theirs is the definitive one on that particular subject.
What is it about lists that fascinate our feeble minds so? I will read any list I come across, judge it harshly, and probably leave a comment on where I believe it was wrong. But in reality, who the hell cares whether the new Black Keys album is placed at #4 on one list or at #5 on another, when I think it should be at #3? (Note: this is an example, and is not what I actually think about the new Black Keys album, since I haven't heard it yet.)
Every list is arbitrarily made, most are hastily thrown together, and none of them are going to encompass the whole of the continuous march of culture that has taken place in the past 12 months. But that shouldn't stop anyone from making one. Why? Because they're fun as hell, and even if you're not a critic, it's fun to play one every so often.
Make a list, share it on Facebook, tweet about it, email it to everyone you know. Make it about whatever you like most in life. Beer you tried, humiliating Yankee losses, jokes about Steve Jobs' death. (Too soon?) But God help you if you put the Bon Iver album any lower than number 5 on Best Albums.
There has been a rash of discussion on Twitter about a service called Klout – whether it's useful, how it measures people, what everyone's score is. Klout describes itself as "the standard for influence." What that actually means is that they attempt to measure, when you tweet, how much it's acted upon, and they give a number that represents that action. If you haven't tried it to see your own score, go ahead. I'll wait. Put your score in the comments so we can all laugh at how little sway you have over anyone else.
But here's the trick: no one should care in the slightest what that number is. It's a made up number, arrived at through fancy algorithms and inane bullshit, and it's not relevant to anything outside of Twitter, which is already the least effective tool for judging anything.
My Klout dropped a point! *sob*
If you're looking to converse with people about a certain topic, don't you already know who the influential people are? Besides, it doesn't seem like it really knows what the hell is going on. I mean, Klout will tell you that Mike Danger is influential about Religion & Spirituality. Maybe he's talking to other people about his thoughts on the Abrahamic religions, but I've never seen it.
Stick to who you know. Stick to who they know. Chances are, if you're already following someone you like, you'll probably like the people they follow as well. And if you don't, just unfollow them. You don't need fancy metrics for that. And if someone ever, anywhere, asks you in a serious manner what your Klout score is, you should immediately cease conversing with that person.
The End of a Baseball Season
No one, except for me and Ken Burns, cares about baseball anymore. Sure, six billion people show up to watch baseball games each year, but no one goes for much more than the ambiance of being at a baseball game. Speaking as a fan, even I could wander around Frontier Field for the entirety of a game, eating hot dogs and fried dough and drinking Rohrbach's Red Wing Ale. How many 6 to 3 putouts can a casual fan be expected to take in over the course of three hours?
With the completion of the World Series this week, we'll all have to wait until next April for that experience again – unless you're in Florida or Arizona, in which case you only need to wait until February.
Parking Tickets
I saw Danger's story about his wife keying the hell out of some poor bastard's car when they first met, and the accompanying picture of a "You Suck At Parking" card.
When I was in Urban Outfitters in Buffalo not long ago (waiting for my girlfriend; I perused their vinyl and kitschy book selection), I saw them selling whole books of those tickets that you could tear out when someone offended you with his or her terrible parking job.
The best one? "The way you pulled in makes me wish your dad had pulled out."


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The Battle of the Bloody Mary Mixes
or now, the popularity of the Bloody Mary has remained in the hands of folks who have been getting it right. Hopefully these crusading officiants of the watering-hole, "Bar-Tenders" as we'll call them, will keep this train at full steam, carrying a payload of vine-ripe tomato. To keep this tradition alive at home, let's examine some of the more interesting Bloody Mary mixes, shall we?


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Derek Mooney with his unique mix of conversation, information, advice and entertainment.
We find out about the unpredictable cycle of the Titan Arum - also known as the "stinky plant" - and why it's currently flowering in Washington. We learn how older male beetles make better fathers. And: close encounters of the reptilian kind - we chat to the Dubliner who encountered a snake in his bathroom!


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May 30, 2016
Another arrest has been made in a more than year long drug roundup in West Alabama. Terrence McNealey is the most recent to be taken into custody as part of this effort for the Demopolis Police Department. The department started the roundup 14 months ago. Terrence McNealey was recently taken into custody in Toledo, Ohio. He's charged with two counts of distribution of a controlled substance and one count of contempt of court for failure to appear. So far, more than 30 arrests have been made as part of the roundup. Demopolis Police Chief Tommie Reese says even more arrests are expected.
Click Here to access the online Public Inspection File
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Women's Volleyball
News: Women's Volleyball Records Round 1 Playoff Sweep Over SBCC
Rated No. 9 in the state and the fifth seed in the Southern California Regional playoff field, the Pasadena City College women's volleyball team swept state No. 18-ranked Santa Barbara City College, 25-20, 25-19, 25-15, Tuesday night in a round 1 match before more than 200 fans at Hutto-Patterson Gymnasium.
PCC ran its record to 20-4, extending its home winning streak to 14 matches dating back to last year. Santa Barbara, the Western State Conference North Division champions, saw its school-record, 14-match winning streak end and season end at 16-7.
PCC advances to the second round on Saturday, Nov. 24 when it travels to face state No. 8-ranked and region No. 4 seed Orange Coast College, a three-set winner over No. 20 Citrus. The Pirates (19-2) swept Pasadena earlier this season. Match time in Costa Mesa is 6 p.m.
The Lancers used a steady diet of blocking (nine team kills) and serving (nine aces) in completely controlling the contest. In the third set, freshman outside hitter Nora To'omalatai twirled four aces in one sideout as PCC jumped out to a commanding 11-1 lead. To'omalatai also led PCC in overall kills with 13 and aces with six.
Recently named All-State, 6-foot middle blocker Jackie Valle-Acosta combined with 6-foot opposite Yanise Joseph in dominating the net. Valle-Acosta powered 11 kills (hit .421) and added seven blocks (two solos). Joseph was also a force with nine kills and five blocks.
PCC's defense was at its best again thanks to the play of outside hitter Viridiana Gallardo (15 digs) and SCC MVP Jennifer Estrada, who only had six digs, but made numerous point-saving plays off of Santa Barbara blocks and was nearly flawless on serve receive. Defensive specialist Cassandra Delacruz added five digs. Setter Kailey Faust made 40 assists in continuing her fine season.
For Santa Barbara, All-Region selection and opposite Jenna Anderson made 12 kills.
"We did extremely well at serving and blocking, two big parts of our game," said PCC head coach Tammy Silva. "We never let Santa Barbara get into any groove. We dictated things at the net. It was a very pleasing first round win. Now, we have to prepare for Orange Coast."
[Photo--Lancers' All-State middle blocker Jackie Valle-Acosta fires a kill during PCC's sweep over Santa Barbara City College Tuesday night, image by Richard Quinton, sports information photographer.]
Release Date: 11/21/2012


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Evidence-Based Maternity Care/Evidence-Based Health Care Resources
Childbirth Connection's Resources Relating to Evidence-Based Maternity Care/Evidence-Based Health Care
Childbirth Connection provides in-depth coverage of maternity care that is consistent with results from the best available research. We give you tools to understand and seek such care. We use principles for evidence-based maternity care when developing our website content.
Evidence-Based Maternity Care: provides an overview of what we mean by "evidence-based maternity care" and why it is important
Informed Decision Making, Informed Consent or Refusal: explains what it means to make informed decisions and offers information to guide you through your decision-making process
Evidence-Based Maternity Care Directory: this and other resources in our Health Professionals area include many items that could be of interest to pregnant women
Other Resources Relating to Evidence-Based Maternity Care/Evidence-Based Health Care
Consumers United for Evidence-based Healthcare (CUE): CUE is a pioneering effort to improve consumers' ability to engage in and demand high quality health care. Childbirth Connection and other member organizations work in partnership with the US Cochrane Center and other scientists to strengthen the voice of consumers and provide leadership in health care research.
Making sense of research and evidence: An interactive online course: developed by the Cochrane Dementia and Cognitive Improvement Group, these tools are available for all health care consumers, to help improve familiarity with the Cochrane Collaboration, systematic reviews, and opportunities for consumer involvement.
Most recent page update: 11/27/2012
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Worked With:
Jack Huston
Birth Name: Jack Huston
Born: 12/07/1982
Birth Place: London, England, GB
Born: 12/07/1982
Birth Place: London, England, GB
Jack Alexander Huston was born Dec. 7, 1982 in London, England to Walter Antony (Tony) Huston, a screenwriter-turned-attorney, and Lady Margot Lavinia Cholmondeley, daughter of Hugh, the 6th Marquess of Cholmondeley. Beyond being the grandson of the legendary director-writer-actor John Huston, and great-grandson to Oscar-winning actor Walter Huston, Huston was also nephew to both Oscar-winning actress Anjelica Huston and to acclaimed actor-director Danny Huston. The future actor was drawn to the family craft at an early age, but did not understand the significance of his family heritage at that age. At six, he played the title role in a school production of "Peter Pan," and would later claim... Continue Bio >>
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Nexus 5
At a glance
High-res 5" display
Brilliant colours by day, brighter photos by night and crisp action shots.
Instant photo features
Create photo collages, panoramas, animations and mini movies set to music.
Longer-lasting battery
Up to 8.5 hours of battery life,¹ so you can unplug and play.
Always up to date
Get Android updates straight from the source.
Google built in
Here are a few of the Google apps that are ready for you to enjoy on your phone.
"Spec for spec, there's nothing that comes close in price to the Nexus 5."
"...it's a fantastic device for reading, working, browsing the web or watching movies."
What's in the box
¹Testing was conducted by Google using pre-production Nexus 5 devices and software. Talk time tests used default settings with Wi-Fi off and LTE on. Standby time tests used default settings with LTE on and Wi-Fi connected to a test access point. Wi-Fi Internet tests had Aeroplane Mode on with Wi-Fi connected to a test access point, while loading three popular websites cached on a local server. The Nexus 5 loaded a page, waited 40 seconds and then loaded a page from the next site. LTE Internet tests had Wi-Fi off and LTE on, and used the same testing method as the Wi-Fi Internet tests. Battery life may vary with usage and other conditions.
²To learn more about Android updates, click here.
³Not available in every country. Available only for first-time subscribers to Google Play Music or for those who have not trialled the Google Play Music subscription service in the past 12 months. Credit card required at sign-up. Once your 30-day trial period has ended, you'll be automatically billed each month for your Google Play Music subscription (for country monthly prices, please visit play.google.com). As an active subscriber, you'll have access to unlimited streaming music from Google Play Music. During your free trial, you can cancel at any time. Unless you cancel, you will not be charged until the start of the first paid billing period.
⁴Not all features available in every country.


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win your own copy of her "Puppet Play" book!
all of the clever ways you
socks and lost gloves into friendly toys!
Comments are now closed.
Winner will be notified via email.
The book looks wonderful and we are always happy to have new and inspiring craft ideas!
Not to mention that you conversation with Dianne bought back fond memories of middle school sewing lessons!
great book! love it!
einateliash AT gmail DOT com
This book looks wonderful -- we love puppets at our house and have a great doorway puppet theater and I'm sure some homemade puppets would be an awesome addition to our puppet shows! Thanks for this fun giveaway.
kathy at newagrarian dot com
this could possibly lend a hand in saving our summer from bored hands/minds. ;)
rachel dot e dot pattison at gmail dot com
mgeerling at gmail dot com
This looks like an awesome book! Thanks for the giveaway as well as all of the puppet inspiration.
danettefoster at yahoo dot com
The book looks fun and I'd love to get us more into puppets.
seems like a great book. would be neat to recycle some of the singleton socks in our home! :)
we have many puppets & I make sure to attend some of the great puppet shows our area has to offer. Making puppets hasn't been something I've felt incredibly confident with - I'd love to see this book, try out making puppets with my kids & share the experience with friends. Thanks :)
I would love to win a copy. As a librarian I love books and my daughter loves play so this is perfect for us!
ykatrina at hotmail dot com
Oh what fun!!! It looks like the sort of book my kids will totally love!!!
Thanks for sharing so many great ideas with us all.
This book looks like a must have for fun, summer days! I also love the use of paint chips for your puppet theater! I really enjoy your ideas--thank you for sharing them.
I would love to win this book to use in my Family childcare. Thanks to sharing such good ideas. Susan email@example.com
I'd love to be entered for this! Sounds like a great resource. I haven't gotten past paper bag puppets with my guys, but this looks like tons of fun!
jberrec at gmail dot com
Love the ideas (and all the pictures!) and I enjoyed the conversation as well!
ambrose at comcast dot net
I love puppets!
The book looks like so much fun! Thanks for the givaway!!
Christopher_hagler @ yahoo dot com
This book looks like so much fun!
ashleyksaylor at yahoo dot com
Ooh so cute!!! I love the puppet stage for those toilet paper tube puppets!!
Thanks for the chance to win a copy. This books looks like so much fun!
What a great looking book! My kids are constantly on the search for "the single sock" so they can transform him! Thanks for the chance to win.
y daughter is such a performer, we get plays, dance recitals, concerts and yes, puppet shows..she would love all the new characters I could make her with this book
Thank you for letting us know about think great book and of Diana Schoenbrun's upcoming events. I live in San Francisco so I will be taking my daughter to the event here! I can't wait.
Sounds like a great book!
Puppets are one of our favorite things at our place!
This looks like a wonderful book to help keep kiddos engaged over the summer break!
Disclosure of Material Connection: My family and I received one or more of the products or services mentioned in some of my posts for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe my readers will enjoy in connection with my blog theme. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising." All opinions expressed on this blog are my own and all content is mine. I do not post pre-written posts from outside parties. My lesson plans and craft ideas are not to be sold for profit by others. Please play nicely. This blog does not share personal information with third parties nor do we store any information about your visit to this blog other than to analyze and optimize your content and reading experience through the use of cookies. You can turn off the use of cookies at anytime by changing your specific browser settings. We are not responsible for republished content from this blog on other blogs or websites without our permission. This privacy policy is subject to change without notice and was last updated on April 21, 2013. Pink and Green Mama is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.


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WRITTEN BY: John Johnston, The Cincinnati Enquirer
MONTGOMERY, Ohio - A few weeks ago, Mike Sweeney and his wife, Natalia Zimina, flew to Russia and met the 4-year-old boy they want to welcome into their family.
They visited the boy, named Constantin, in a St. Petersburg orphanage several times over the course of a week. They signed adoption papers with Russian officials.
"The child now calls us Mommy and Daddy," Sweeney said.
The couple, who live in this Cincinnati suburb and have biological children ages 14, 8 and 5, need two additional trips to finalize the adoption. In the meantime, they left photo albums with the boy "and said we would be back soon to get him. So he's expecting us," Sweeney said.
But now that appears to be impossible. On Friday, Russian President Vladimar Putin signed a bill to ban Americans adopting Russian children. It becomes effective Tuesday with the start of the new year.
For Sweeney and Zimina and other U.S. families whose Russian adoptions are in progress, the news is devastating.
"It's really unbearable," said Sweeney, a professor of philosophy at Xavier University. "We feel like we're failing the child. We said we'd come back for him. It's just hard. It's hard to imagine how crushed he's going to be.
"And on top of that, we're concerned about him getting the medical care he needs."
The special-needs boy has neurological and spinal problems.
Russia's anti-adoption bill is widely seen as the Kremlin's retaliation against an American law that calls for sanctions against Russians deemed to be human rights violators. It comes as Putin takes an increasingly confrontational attitude toward the West, brushing aside concerns about a crackdown on dissent and democratic freedoms.
Dozens of Russian children close to being adopted by American families now will almost certainly be blocked from leaving the country. The law also cuts off the main international adoption route for Russian children stuck in often dismal orphanages: Tens of thousands of Russian youngsters have been adopted in the U.S. in the past 20 years. There are about 740,000 children without parental care in Russia, according to UNICEF.
For Sweeney and Zimina, especially, there is a sad irony to a Russian ban on adoptions by Americans. She is a Russian native, born in Moscow.
"We speak Russian at home. We lived in Russia for a while. We have family in Russia," Sweeney said. "We are about as Russian as you can be without actually being in Russia."
His wife works for the city of Cincinnati as an architecture designer. "My connection to Russia is strong," she said, adding that she comes from a family that, in the years before the Russian Revolution, was among the country's most powerful.
"I really did want to help Russia," she said. And the way to do that, she felt, was by adopting one of its children. The couple say they have so far spent about $17,000 on the adoption.
Dr. Mary Staat, director of the International Adoption Center at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, said children adopted from Russia often pose challenges.
"The thing that stands out for Russia and Eastern Europe is the high rates of alcohol use and drug use that places those kids at higher risk. A lot of (adoptive) families have struggled with the long-term effects of fetal alcohol syndrome in their kids."
Because Constantin has special needs, he had already been rejected by an Italian couple who initially agreed to adopt him.
"He's going to consider this another betrayal," Zimina said.
"We still hope for the best, and we pray," she said. But as she follows developments in Russia, she feels hope is dwindling.
If need be, she said, she will ask her adoption agency to deliver a letter to the boy. In it, she will try to explain why the people he had begun calling Mommy and Daddy will not be coming back for him.
WATCH: Ret. Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf Dies
WATCH: Russian President Signs Bill To Stop Americans From Adopting Russian Children
WATCH: Dog Rescued From Freezing Lake
WATCH: Starbucks Owner Using Cups To Send Fiscal Cliff Message To Lawmakers
WATCH: 'Tap's Designated As National Song By Congress
WATCH: How To Capitalize On Year End Donations


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A family favorite from Terri's kitchen
1 package wood skewers or metal skewers
1.5 lbs. boneless, skinless, chicken breasts, cut in 1½ inch cubes
1 20oz. can of pineapple chunks in juice
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup olive oil
2 Tblsp. brown sugar
1/2 tsp. garlic powder or 2 cloves of garlic, crushed
1 tsp. ground ginger
1 green pepper
1 red pepper
1 sweet onion
1 small zucchini
fresh mushrooms
cherry tomatoes
Before you leave home: in a small container, mix soy sauce, oil, sugar, garlic and ginger.
On-site: immerse wood skewers in water to soak so they won't burn on the grill.
Cube chicken and put into a large bowl.
Add pineapple with juice and the other marinade ingredients that you mixed up at home.
Toss with chicken so it can marinade while you prep veggies.
Wash veggies. Cut peppers and onions in squares, leave mushrooms whole or cut in half, slice zucchini, tomatoes need no prep at all. Add veggies to bowl and toss until all are well coated.
Now the fun begins! Wash hands and let everyone create their own Kabob-combos.
It's a great way to start gathering early for family time around the fire.
Grill, turning once or twice until chicken is done and start savoring the memories.
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KevinH listed many possible limiting factors for production systems (http://www.zimbra.com/forums/showthread.php?t=368), but did not give any hard data or even general ideas on how much each factor affected service/performance. This is understandable as the interactions can be varied and complex. He also gives the hardware specs for a production system, but these specs are useless without knowing the factors he listed (e.g. how many users? how much use?).
Could we possibly get a few production system profiles? Hardware plus usage and performance stats? That way we can approximate new systems to some degree. Squid is another project that has way too many factors to easily predict load/performance; and by having a library of example production system profiles they do their best to help sysadmins. The squid people also have a good document outlining general principles for cache design--telling us which factors are the most important in different scenarios, giving tips, illustrating good design, etc.
E.g. Hypothetical Example:
Hardware/OS--dual Opteron 3100s, 4GB Ram, 6X200GB software RAID5, FC3 with stock SMP kernel, only services running are Zimbra related.
Usage--2,500 users, 8am--6pm heavy usage by all of them, they all use the AJAX web interface, no POP, very little IMAP, mixed http/https, quota limit of 10GB, average inbox size of 200 messages, average total disk use of 50MB, total messages sent internally 70,000, sent externally 15,000, received externally 30,000, antivirus is ON, antispam is ON, avge # attachments received every day is 1,000, average # spam every day is 15,000.
Performance--at 2250 users we began to notice a speed drop. We plan to put in another identical server in the zimbra cluster, migrate 500 users off of the old server, and put all new users on it.


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Discomfort drives change. But by the same token, change creates discomfort.
Al Topin
Allure of comfort
We human beings are hard-wired to find and sustain comfort: comfort food, comfort zones, and old favorites. We are loyal to the tried and true. We move to and try to stay in our place of comfort.
Yet our job as marketers is to change customers' perceptions, preferences, and behaviors towards our products or services. Our job is to make people uncomfortable enough to change their current behavior. Their comfort is not in our best interest. Left to their own devices, our target customers would choose to stay in their comfort zones, which means they wouldn't use or even try the product or service we're offering.
Discomfort, unmet needs, and challenger brands
Obviously, not all product categories are populated by fiercely loyal patrons who cling to their comfort zones like intrepid Chicago Cubs fans. Many categories of consumer products have users loyal only to the next coupon or sample. In our industry, the challenge of changing customer preferences is made more intense by the seriousness of the healthcare professional's responsibilities. Changing preferences for toothpaste carries a significantly lower risk than changing preferences for chemotherapy alternatives, diagnostic techniques, or surgical protocols. There's got to be a very compelling reason to consider changing.
If we want to convince a physician to change prescribing behavior, we must first convince him or her that there is something lacking with the way things are currently done. We must stir the pot a bit to create discomfort with the current brand, brands, or processes that can only be rectified by changing to our brand. We must move them to the point of discomfort that creates urgency to change, where not changing is simply unacceptable.
This process is especially true when developing plans for challenger brands that don't have the big budgets. Challenger brands need to think differently from market leaders. They need to offer new criteria for choice. For challenger brands, a clear path to leveraging your target customer's discomfort is critical to success.
Figure 1: Maslow's hierarchy of needs.
Our job is to engage an HCP in a conversation about a product or service and point out issues that may: diminish confidence in the status quo; limit problem-solving; or make patients less satisfied with the outcomes achieved. If we can demonstrate how our product or service can help the HCP perform better, find a clinical issue that might make them doubt their current preferences, or isolate a patient type that might better benefit from a different product, we can use this discomfort to drive change.
|Learn more about topics like this one at
The most compelling and comprehensive
marketing meeting for life sciences professionals.
The process
Figure 2: Deconstructing the discomfort/comfort process.
Some call it disruption. Some call it creating a tipping point in the customer's beliefs. But it's all based on creating discomfort, then moving the customer to a new comfort level. This creates a more productive framework to evaluate challenges, develop strategies, and formulate the marketing mix. The process consists of five stages:
Stage 1. The customer is in his or her comfort zone with the product currently used.
Create discomfort—open a dialogue to make the status quo less secure.
Stage 2. The customer becomes engaged and neutral/mildly open to discussion or consideration.
Create discomfort—clearly define unmet needs with current product.
Stage 3. The customer becomes uncomfortable with the current practice and is open to considering new solutions.
Create a new comfort zone—align your product's strengths and values with your customer's needs.
Stage 4. The customer moves to a new comfort zone with your product.
Strengthen the comfort zone—make the change as easy as possible and reward the new choice.
Stage 5. The customer settles into the new comfort zone as competition begins to attack.
Strengthen the new comfort zone—defend the comfort zone with expanded support and value.
Finding unmet needs
Behind the process is an assessment of the underlying comfort and discomfort drivers, somewhat akin to an ATU study. This begins with key questions about the physician and his or her practice.
How comfortable are your target customers?
» How long have they been using the product or service?
» What's the risk involved in the use or treatment?
» How well do they understand the disease or drug category? (For example, a PCP may be the initial treater for a specialty disease and would not have in-depth experience.)
» How difficult is it to administer or use the product?
How and when do they use the product(s) you plan to displace?
» At what stage of the disease?
» On which type or profile of patients?
» Which treatments do they use and when?
Do they recognize specific unmet needs?
Is their attitude open or closed?
» Age of physician
» Department or individual formulary?
» Do they practice at a teaching or community hospital?
» Are they the decision maker?
Armed with the details of your customers' basic attitudes, trial, and use drivers and a well-structured process, moving them from their comfort zone to yours can help convert a challenger brand into a significant contender.
Al Topin is President of Topin & Associates, and a member of Pharm Exec's Editorial Advisory Board. He can be reached at [email protected]


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The Darkness
Birth Place: Lowestoft, Suffolk, England
Years Active: -
Genres: Hard Rock, Glam Metal, Glam Rock
Years Active: -
Genres: Hard Rock, Glam Metal, Glam Rock
The Darkness are a British glam rock band from Lowestoft, Suffolk, formed in 2000. The band consists of Justin Hawkins (lead vocals, guitar), his brother Dan Hawkins (guitar, backing vocals), Frankie Poullain (bass, backing vocals) and Ed Graham (drums) and are characterised by their classic rock influences and elaborate stage performances. The Darkness came to prominence with the release of their debut album, "Permission to Land," in 2003. Backed by the singles "I Believe in a Thing Called Love," "Growing on Me," "Get Your Hands Off My Woman" and "Love is Only a Feeling," the album was certified quadruple platinum in the United Kingdom. After extensive touring in support... Continue Bio >>
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and similar artists - Play Now
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