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Google recently launched it's NFC-based payment solution, Wallet. For a company like Google, strong in engineering but less so in design, Wallet was a particularly risky product to build. You can't half-bake the design of a consumer payments product. It has to instill absolute confidence among its users. Workflows have to make complete sense with a minimum of learning. You can't do it the same old Google way.
In the face of those risks, the product launched to reviews like this from Greg Kumparak of TechCrunch:
Google Wallet is great, magical, impressive, and all sorts of other positive adjectives
How did Google do it? How did we get good design done in an engineering-driven environment? This article is a record of the strategies I used in my time as UX manager over the Commerce group at Google (which covered a range of products including Wallet).
1. We fished for champions
To get good design work done in a non-design-driven company, you simply must have a champion with decision-making power. If you're a design leader and you don't have a champion, you have to get one. Make this your single most important goal. It's a rare design leader who can charm a hostile audience and bend them to their view of the world. Focus on people who have characteristics that lend themselves to being influenced by the contributions that UXers can make.
On Wallet, Google Commerce VP Stephanie Tilenius was an obvious person to focus on from a pure power perspective, but she also had other characteristics that made her a logical focal point for relationship development:
- She had a passionate desire to force Google to break out of the pattern of mediocre product launches.
- She had the intelligence to understand the value of good design in creating high quality customer experiences.
- She was new to Google… the engineers weren't completely comfortable with her non-engineering-y leadership style. She didn't appear to have many allies in the organization. She needed UX as much as we needed her IMO.
How you actually build a relationship with an organizational leader is the subject of another post, or book, but the short version in this case is that, in any communication with Stephanie, I emphasized messages that touched on the characteristics above. "Here's how we're going to avoid a Buzz-style launch", "as you can see, this design makes anything else Google has produced appear average", "here's how we can use design review to improve product quality", "you really need your first product launch at Google to make a big splash, and this design can do that", etc. This was not about deception. It's a repositioning of design work and design process to connect with the needs of an individual who is empowered to help you and your team get good work done. I genuinely wanted Stephanie to succeed and in turn for us all to succeed. Cultivating a tight relationship with her was absolutely central to our success.
2. We stopped talking like designers and started talking like locals
To get good design work done in a non-design-driven organization, you have to use the language of the organization. Using the language of design may be useful if you're talking with fellow designers, or if you're an agency pitching services to execs. But when you're in-house, you need to talk in the language of the house. At Google, the house prizes the launch above all else. When communicating with engineers and PMs, I tend to avoid discussing anything that isn't clearly connected to the launch.
On Wallet, I rarely talked to an engineering manager without expressing my anxiety/excitement/desire to get the product shipped. "Look, I don't care about blablabla, I just want to get the best product shipped as soon as possible." And this was true. It's what I genuinely wanted. But I needed to make sure that my engineering counterparts knew that that's what I wanted. Because we had this common goal, I had great partnerships with eng leaders Wall, Rob, and AZ.
3. We generated both excitement and anxiety about the vision
To get good design work done in a non-design-driven company, you have to exploit your story-telling skills to paint the picture of what is and what could be. Designers often forget that we have the power and skills to craft a product vision in a form more tangible to humans than a PRD. By prototyping and presenting the user experience vision, and getting engineers excited about the prospect of building such a vision, we create the conditions for our vision to become reality. On the flip side, if a user experience is less than adequate, we can use our story-telling powers to raise anxiety about – and action on – the inadequacies.
In the case of Wallet (and Shopper/Offers), we created – as most project teams do – a presentation of user interfaces outlining the core use cases. We mocked onboarding flows, transaction flows, and movements between applications. We highlighted the clunkiness of app transitions. We highlighted the unnecessary inconsistencies resulting from lack of coordination across disparate project teams. We also highlighted how frighteningly simple and straightforward the Wallet experience was. The presentation told the complete story – warts and gems – of the mobile commerce experience. I delivered it weekly to Commerce leadership. Critically, we printed the presentation and pinned it on the wall in Stephanie's office, updating it as new designs came to hand. She was able to see the good, bad, ugly of what we were building along with our post-it notes and commentary. We got her and the rest of the team simultaneously excited and upset about our direction. This was a huge help in getting the team focused on solving the most problematic wrinkles in the experience while protecting the good stuff.
4. We didn't short change visual design
To get good design work done in a non-design-driven company, you have to acknowledge that many Silicon Valley people think that design is only about how products look, not how they work. "You guys make our stuff look pretty". You can use this to your advantage. To entice executives and engineers/PMs to view your team as a credible design group, present visual design work that blows them away. Wireframes are nice, but high fidelity mock ups are much better.
On Wallet, we were short on visual design talent. Jonathan Yu had his hands full with interaction design work. The talented visual designer Sunkwan Kim was spending more time on Emerald Sea and less with us. We had zero visual design support. I had some contacts at a New York-based design agency. I called them to see if they were available. Coincidentally, the same agency was supporting our marketing team. I put the enthusiastic Chris Nesladek on point for directing their work. As you should expect with an agency, the quality of their work was variable, but the good stuff was excellent. They were able to work with Chris's direction to develop a tight visual design system across all of our mobile applications. The visuals got our stakeholders excited. More importantly – right or wrong – their visual design work helped raise the perceived quality and importance of our collective design work.
5. We aired bad blood, fast
To get good design work done in a non-design-driven company, you have to resolve conflicts fast. Conflicts between eng, PM, design will arise. They always do. In an engineering-driven company, UXers should prepare themselves to lose most of the battles. Certainly, in a rational company like Google, decisions are made based on merit. But decision makers – unconsciously or not – tend to agree with like-minded people. And that's more likely to be an engineer or PM, than a UXer. The best you can do is to get all of the affected parties together to air their complaints when conflicts occur. In many cases, when you do so, everyone will realize how stupid the arguments were and will all go back to work. But there will be legitimate gripes. Have everyone air their thoughts. Go around the table. Write down the grievances and start to whiteboard ideas on how to reach a compromise. Show that you want to make allowances. People will reciprocate.
Wallet had some detailed arguments about the fundamental direction of the product. Was it going to be a consumer product or was it a system utility? These decisions would fundamentally influence how the product would be positioned from both marketing and design standpoints. The consumer angle eventually won out, but not without some disappointed people. The good news was that those people got the opportunity to voice their disagreement, were able to make their arguments, and did so to the group leadership.
6. We got the right people on the right tasks
It goes without saying that to get good design work done, you need to have solid talent. But talent isn't enough. You also need to manage and allocate that talent effectively. Huge projects like the Wallet/Shopper/Offers combo cannot be done by one designer. It takes a team. For that team to be successful, you should have some knowledge of each team member's strengths, and you need to be opportunistic in assigning those strengths appropriately to get the work done well. This is where the role of a design manager becomes more like a baseball manager. You need to know when to sit your starter, when to bring in your pinch hitter, when to warm up the bullpen, and when to ask the GM to recruit a slugger … if you have a GM. Wallet was fortunate in that we had the right set of personalities at the right time IMO:
- When I started in Commerce, Jonathan Yu and Sian Townsend were the UX team members on Wallet. Jonathan was a very solid, mature, all-round designer. Strong in interaction design, he produced many iterations of the core workflows while the Wallet team was determining the product positioning. Importantly, he had an optimistic attitude and was able to collaborate well with engineers to establish the core interaction and conceptual model for the product. Jonathan was the perfect person to establish a "beachhead" for UX with the Wallet team. Sian Townsend was a technically brilliant researcher who was able to boil her findings down to useful chunks for her audience. She had a keen sensitivity to people's willingness to accept research, rolled with the punches and got work done in an agile spirit. Yet she was never afraid to raise usability or fundamental product issues that were overlooked. She was a voice of reason.
- Chris Nesladek had been coordinating with Frank Harris on Google Offers but as I spent more time with him, it became clear that he had the most expertise in mobile (coming from Android) and, more importantly, he was the only team member who pushed the broader organization to think about the cross-product implications of their work. Chris was a prolific, detail-oriented designer and had a passionate approach to asserting his vision. He was the ideal person to coordinate a unified design system across Wallet/Shopper/Offers. I recruited him to take on this role, and while it took some time for engineers to warm up to him, he was very effective in forcing discussion and resolution on the most critical user experience issues. He was the change agent that every challenging, multi-team project needs.
- I recruited Alex Cook to the Wallet team knowing that he would be the closer: the designer who could build a team to get the project over the finish line. Alex tends to take big hairy design problems, somehow comes up with rational solutions, then works closely with engineers or directly with code to close out all of the details to get it launched. Perhaps his greatest strength though is in building teams. And that's what he did. As Jonathan and I transitioned out, Alex came in, recruited and oversaw the team of designers that got Wallet to launch.
So these were a few of my take-aways from the Wallet experience. Not necessarily revolutionary information here – this stuff isn't rocket science – but interesting to see it applied in a real world context. I didn't stick around to see Wallet through to launch. That is perhaps one of my biggest regrets re: leaving Google. Still, it's fantastic to see such a relatively well polished consumer product delivered by a team at Google. It's a rare thing. Against the odds, we got good design work done. All of us.
This is an edited version of a post that appeared on Graham's personal blog.
Graham Jenkin was an inaugural Google "Great Manager Award" winner and currently works on product and design at AngelList. You can follow his tweets @GrahamJenkin.
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This is the first catheter ablation procedure ever performed at Bay Medical Center. In fact, it's the first in all of northwest Florida and southern Alabama.
The breakthrough procedure is for people suffering with the heart rhythm disorder, atrial fibrillation. There are other treatment options, but Bay Medical doctors say this is safer and more effective. It's now available in this area, but so far only two patients have taken part.
"It takes about at least four hours, so we need to have about four hours of our time in order to perform the procedure. So it limits how many procedures we can offer, so selection is going to be very limited," said Bay Medical Dr. Hari Baddigam.
The new technology has been out for a few years, but only debuted at Bay Medical in September.
"You need to have an operator and also the equipment itself is expensive," said Baddigam.
In the past, x-ray machines gave doctors a two-dimensional look into the heart. Now when they insert the catheter it transmits electrical data about the patient's heart to a computer making a three-dimensional map of the heart. The easy-to-read maps help the doctor make an accurate diagnosis.
And though it's starting off small, doctors say the procedure will become more popular with time.
"Once the understanding is there and understand we have this capability then we'll find more patients that need the procedure," said Bay Medical Dr. Judson Colley.
Other options to treating atrial fibrillation include lifelong drugs and pacemakers. Catheter ablation is the least invasive of the options.

subset: commoncrawl


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I finally got a D2!
My 16gb D2 arrived today. And I wanna say first how suprisingly small it is. I assumed it was bigger from all the pictures I saw. But it really does fit in the palm of a hand. I've experienced a couple of problems while syncFlac files, but it seems like I've figured it all out now. But have to admit the firmware seems glitchy.
Hey is the JetAudio Media Center able to trancode music when syning?
How do I turn off the radio once I've started it?
Should I format the D2 with Panasonic SD formatter? or is that only for an SD card?
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Just got my D2: Question on Folders & Playlists
As the title says. I'm really enjoying the sound quality that's coming out of them, it sure beats the snot out of my [ugh] PSP. Really put back a lot of the life that I didn't hear anymore from the Vibes after two years.
I know the UI is a bit finicky, but there are some things I got used to on the PSP that I hope can be done here, or others that I wanted.
First, I like grouping my music into folders, then organizing them by the play order I want (kind of like making a music CD). That way, if I want to only listen to a certain set of music (video game [remixes], rock, instrumentals), I just pick the folder and listen to it like a CD, unless I feel like randomizing.
The D2 only organizes them by file name. Can that be changed, or do I have to go through the laborious process of renaming?
Lastly, playlists. On the PSP, I could organize files using a .m3u file instead of manually renaming them. Is that possible on the D2?
Also, more "traditional" playlist question: can I make my own playlists on my computer, then put them on the D2? Or can I only make them on the D2?
Currently using 2.57.
I think that's it for now, kind of rushing since I was just studying and want to watch the latest House right now. Thanks.
Edit: This is damn frustrating. The advice on iaudiophile isn't working. I don't know how to switch between MTP and MSC, WinAmp nor WMP11 support .pla, and I still don't know how to make or put playlists for the D2. I want to organize the music the way I want, conveniently. Hell, I might return this, holy fuck it's annoying.
Also, some of my mp3s aren't playing. Specifically, some Coldplay ones. They worked just fine on my PSP before. Grr.
Edit: The mp3 issue seems to have been resolved by not simply recopying the folder, but making a new folder and then transferring the original files to that folder. Why?
Aaaaaannnnnnd I'm back to the archaic method of simply renaming files to get the order I want. Hell, it doesn't even save on-the-go playlists if I liked it so much: my bloody LG cellphone could do that.
If real playlist support doesn't come along, this may very well be my last Cowon music player, and I'm not sure how long that's going to last.
Edit: Oh, I found MTP just as I was about to shut down my laptop and call it quits for the night. I'll fiddle with it tomorrow, and hope it bloody well works. It's still missing out on saving on-the-go playlists for some reason, Cowon.
The next thing I say is a lie. I am lying.
Last edited by Plan303e; 12-03-2008 at 01:53 AM.
Some people reported improvement using the Panasonic SD formatter on the internal. Only do a quick format on that though if you choose to do so.
I just got a D2 today as well.
If you goto Settings/Display/Title you can toggle between file display and ID3 tag.
Also when you are in Music, you can move in and out of Folder view to Tag view where music is soted by Artist, Album, Genre etc.
Anyone happen to buy a case, or is it even necessary? I'm going to stuff them in my jeans and pockets a lot for convenience, very much unlike my PSP.
If so, did you get the Cowon or Noreve brand? How's it look and feel when using the D2?
Also, haven't tried the MTP playlists yet, as I'm in college right now. Perhaps tonight I'll try, after some studying or so.
The next thing I say is a lie. I am lying.
The damn thing is kinda' tough, but I like to keep it covered myself. Leather case (i-nique) w/a screen protector. TBH the screen protector is a must for any piece of electronic kit.
The DarkSide's Feedback
Glossary for Newbies
Mp3 Player Recommendation Guidelines
I personally love the Javoedge case I got from amazon.com. It also came with a great screen protector.
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8 comments
Uh-oh... well someone has to go clean up...
Feb 20th
April 1st
I think most people can relate to that!!!
July 18th
My dog's the same way. She'll start gearing up, I'll try to get her out the door but she'll stay right over the carpet. Geesh!
July 18th
yep.....that happens to my kitty sid ALL the time! he's 14
July 18th
Paper? I just grab her and hold her over the toilet! (Or a tile floor, if it's too far.) Cats. Sheesh.
July 18th
28 people forgot the laugh button 1 person missed it..
July 17th
ain;t that the truth
July 17th


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Rapid and professional repair service
A good repair service means a quick response and repair of your door system. Should your EFAFLEX door system require attention, following unexpected damage, or through wear & tear of the highly stressed components, we can take care of your requirements within a short time with prompt spare parts supply.
The EFAFLEX service team are here to support you, identifying a cost effective solution for professional repair of your EFAFLEX door system.


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Things to see and do - Brest
Leaving for France
Nearby hotels
Abalys Hotel from49 €Book
Hotel Saint Louis from50 €Book
Le Regent from43 €Book
Nearby Restaurants
Cotation :
Type de cuisine : Modern cuisine
Cotation :
Type de cuisine : Traditional cuisine
Globulle Rouge
Cotation :
Type de cuisine : Traditional cuisine
France Haliotis ormers prepared by Yvon Morvan (L'Armen restaurant)
France Haliotis ormers prepared by Yvon Morvan (L'Armen restaurant)
Georges Rouzeau - 2009-12-15
Bred in the open sea and fed on fresh seaweed, France Haliotis ormers are surprisingly fresh and tender. Yvon, chef at L'Armen restaurant in Brest, gives us his recipe (video).
Alongside black truffle, caviar and foie gras, the ormer – often called the "truffle of the sea" – is earning its stripes at a rate of knots. This fine shellfish, which can measure up to 15cm long in Europe, enjoys an excellent iodine-rich reputation with gourmets and star-rated chefs.
Small ormers from Les Abers on a bed of leek fondue, with grilled andouille and potato balls
Recipe for four people:
4 x 4 ormers (40 g each)
One leek
4 Charlotte potatoes
16 slices of andouille
One leek
4 Charlotte potatoes
16 slices of andouille
Salt and pepper
4 cloves of garlic
Dulse seaweed
Open the ormers: to remove from the shell, insert a knife blade into the sharp edge, sever the muscle connection by scraping out the shell, then cut off the head. Clean the ormers in water and tap gently with a mallet to tenderise.
Clean the leeks, slice thinly, cook in butter and season.
Peel the potatoes and scoop out balls with a melon baller. Fry the balls with a sprig of thyme and two cloves of garlic.
Pan fry 4 thin slices of andouille.
Cook the ormers in frothy butter with the rest of the garlic for about 30 seconds on each side. Deglaze with a few drops of lemon juice and add the chopped dulse seaweed.
Arrange everything on a warm plate.
Practical information
L'Armen Restaurant (Yvon Morvan)
21, rue de Lyon
29200 Brest
Tel: + 33 (0) 2 98 46 28 34
France Haliotis
29880 Plouguerneau
In Lilia-Plouguerneau, from Monday to Friday, 9am to 6pm (except public holidays). Here you will find ormers of all sizes and tips for preparation. The ormers can be delivered in isothermal packaging by courier (24h) everywhere in France, to most large European cities and even further afield. They will be live on delivery and should stay alive for 3 to 4 days at 4-6˚C.


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Nico Rosberg, looking forward to Valencia. Photo courtesy of Mercedes GP Petronas
Mercedes GP drivers Nico Rosberg and Michael Schumacher have revealed that Mercedes will be bringing further enhancements to their cars as they vie for more pace and better grip to keep abreast of their nearest rivals ahead of the Valencia GP event next weekend.
Rosberg was fairly quick in Canada last weekend, but both drivers suffered from an horrendous qualifying session which saw Rosberg down in 10th and Schumacher a miserable 13th. It's a situation neither driver can afford to repeat next weekend, especially Schumacher, who was slammed by critics for his mediocre performance in the race.
"I'm really looking forward to the weekend." revealed Rosberg. "The city is pretty cool and the Spanish fans are always enthusiastic so there should be a good atmosphere around the marina. Valencia is a really good track and not what you would usually expect from a typical street circuit. There are a lot of corners but it's quite fast and flowing which combined with the barriers that line the circuit means that you have to keep your concentration levels high. The last race weekend in Canada was quite a tough one for us but I was pleased to finish in sixth and score decent points after being in thirteenth place on the first lap. Our pace was quick in the race and I hope that the upgrades we have for Valencia will bring further improvements."
(Schumacher watches the monitors in the pits during last weekend's Canadian Grand Prix weekend. Photo courtesy of Mercedes GP Petronas)
Schumacher will have the additional burden of higher expectations for next weekend's race in Spain. Adding to that pressure will be the fact that he must also learn a new circuit complicating the weekend ahead of him. "Valencia is a track which I have never raced on before so it will be another new experience for me but one which I am very much looking forward to. I always have been quite good in adapting quickly to new situations and I strongly expect that to be the case in Valencia. I like going into new experiences like this and having detailed discussions with my engineers about the challenge. We will bring further updates for our car which should help to improve the performance. We have already seen that the car has improved steadily over the last few races and in Canada, the pace was better even if unfortunately that did not show in the results. That's why I look forward to travelling to Spain a great deal."
(Schumacher and Ross Brawn. Photo courtesy of Mercedes GP Petronas)
Ross Brawn: "We were too ambitious"
Regardless of elements within the media and some members of the public's opinion of him, the team remains behind Schumacher. Ross Brawn blamed bad luck and their overly ambitious tire strategy which wrecked Schumacher's race chances last weekend.
"We were too ambitious with the use of the option tires which left him [Schumacher] struggling for pace. Looking ahead to Valencia, the circuit is similar to Montreal in many ways with long straights connected by slow corners which should suit our car. We have an upgrade package which will be another good step in our development towards competing at the front of the field."
There are no specifics from the team regarding what those changes are, but the BBC reported CEO Nick Fry complaining about the effectiveness of Mercedes' "F-Duct" while also noting they don't have the special exhaust system being run by Red Bull.
Personally I think there is more to come from Herr Schumacher, and while last weekend's race was less than ideal for him, much of the fault can be blamed on the errant qualifying session in which neither car was up to scratch. Qualifying is vital in the current competition and even the best drivers will find it difficult to make up places from way down the grid order. I have to concede that Rosberg handled the situation better than Schumacher did, but then he also didn't have a puncture requiring an additional pit stop.
We will have to wait until later next week when the cars emerge from their garages, and glimpses of any early form improvement at Friday's free practice sessions, although that was a bit of a "crap – shoot" last time. Red Bull have traditionally had an advantage on sweeping tracks, but McLaren have improved dramatically in the last few races. It's been an exciting season thus far so roll on next Friday.
Nathan can be contacted at email@example.com and welcomes your comments and suggestions, or you may post below.
For more info: www.mercedes-gp.com www.formula1.com www.bbc.co.uk www.mclaren.com www.redbullracing.com www.speedtv.com


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The Communication and Fine Arts Department at the Quad-Cities Campus has the magical ability to reach beyond the ordinary … to expand horizons, inspire imagination and touch an audience.
Small classes allow you to develop your personal style as well as technical proficiency. Art and Visual Communication majors may enter careers such as illustrator, graphic designer, media designer, animator, fine artist, or teacher. Facebook page | Webpage
ArtSpace is Black Hawk College's art gallery. Located in the hallway of Building 4 of the Quad-Cities Campus, ArtSpace displays exhibits that rotate on a monthly basis.
BHC's music department has an active, friendly music program. We offer quality instruction, personalized attention (small class sizes), and a genuine concern for our students. You can also participate in one of the many music ensembles.
Degrees, Certificates and Programs:
Associate in Fine Arts
Art (Transfer)
Art Technology
Music Business
Music Performance
Music Therapy
Speech Communications
Visual Communication
Last updated 9/5/2014


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I have nothing close to a green thumb. While I have fond memories of my dad's vegetable garden, in the past year alone I have somehow managed to kill an assortment of herbs, succulents, and a fig tree. However, I have still retained my love for the work that those with green thumbs can do! At Rienzi, we're in the midst of the gardens' loveliest season, and there are a variety of camellias and azaleas in bloom. To honor Rienzi's gardens, we chose a British garden-themed book, Women and Their Gardens: A History from the Elizabethan Era to Today, by Catherine Horwood, as our History Book Club selection for March.
Not only does the book detail a fascinating relationship between women and the world of horticulture and botany, I also came across an interesting connection to Rienzi: the stylish notion of "white" gardens in the mid-20th century. According to Horwood, white gardens came into vogue after the writer Vita Sackville-West created a White Garden at Sissinghurst, the country estate where she lived with her husband, diplomat Harold Nicolson. Sackville-West's White Garden, full of Rosa mulliganii, phlox, agapanthus, and lilies, is credited with spawning white gardens throughout the world—and perhaps even the White Garden at Rienzi!
Rienzi's White Garden is especially spectacular in March. Winding pathways weave through the bountiful garden full of azaleas: G. G. Gerbing, Fielder's White, and Kate Arendall; spirea, a saucer magnolia, and other native trees.
Stop by Rienzi to see the gardens while they're in bloom! If you can't make it, check out the slideshow above with some recent photographs.


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If you just won the point championship, the race of your lifetime, or Rookie Of The Year, or if you're simply proud of your race car-send us a photo with details about your racing career.
Not Giving UpHere's the race car driven by Kent Morgan of Louisburg, North Carolina. Morgan Racing was started 10 years ago, but Kent remained winless heading into the 2003 season. Kent says he's not giving up, however, because "we love going to the track to compete." He races at quarter-mile dirt tracks, and did manage to finish fifth in points at one track. Keep us posted on how your season goes, Kent. We're hoping you get to take that first victory lap.
78 Is Great!Chuck Bloom, of Uniontown, Pennsylvania, drives this No. 78 Chevy at two dirt tracks not far from home. Being a Dodge man, it was a big step to race a Chevy, but Bloom says, "It's worth it." He finished third in points in 2001 and second in 2002 while racing at Interstate 79 Speedway in Shinnston, West Virginia. He also raced at Roaring Knob Raceway Park in Markleysburg, Pennsylvania. Racing Friday and Saturday nights at two tracks all season is a lot of work, but a dedicated pit crew and great sponsors keep the wheels turning. "It's time to kick the tires and light the fires!" Chuck said at the start of the 2003 season.
The GodfatherDave Bentley Sr., of Woodlyn, Pennsylvania, has been racing for 20 years. He builds all of his cars and motors. He has raced in Demo Derbys, Late Models, Enduros, and most recently 4-Cylinders. He has raced at Flemington Speedway, East Windsor Speedway, and Wall Stadium in New Jersey, and Grandview Speedway in Bechtelsville, Pennsylvania. He has won features in all of the classes he's entered, but 2002 was especially a banner year. At Bridgeport (New Jersey) Speedway, he earned the nickname "The Godfather of 4-Cylinder" as he dominated the class with a total of 15 feature wins. That was good enough to win the Bridgeport 4-Cylinder Championship.


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BOWLING GREEN, Ky. (WBKO) -- Farmer and business leaders gathered early Tuesday morning in Warren County to celebrate National Agriculture Day, a day designed to recognize their hard work and dedication.
"Agriculture is important to every single person whether they farm or not. We eat and we wear the clothing," said Joanna Coles, Warren County Cooperative Extension Office.
Joining in on the celebration was Kentucky's Commissioner of Agriculture, James Comer. Comer was one of the leaders in getting industrial hemp legalized in the state, and this planting season is the first time he expects to see that change in the soil.
"The most important thing is that we will have a crop this year. That's coming a long way in a short period of time. I think if we look ahead ten years from now this will be a significant crop in the state, that's hopefully provided hundreds if not thousands of manufacturing jobs around the state for companies that will be processing the hemp from farmers," said Comer.
The Commissioner of Agriculture said his office is currently writing regulations for growing the plant.
While farmers prepare to plant their fields, the General Assembly in Frankfort is trying to come together on a budget. The House recently included in their version, that the Department of Agriculture should administer Diabetes research and prevention funding, something Comer thinks isn't a good idea.
"I guess they saw on my staff that we had three doctors. The problem is they're veterinarians. I don't think they're qualified to administer Diabetes funding. The Senate has taken that out and hopefully, that won't be put back in."
Comer said he would like to see the Senate version of the budget to pass, and that the house budget has too much debt involved.


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Your Horse has always been first for gear and now you can get involved too. See how gear scored in Your Horse magazine tests, rate your favourite items and dish the dirt on what didn't make the grade.
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Features: The Next Generation Bates Elevation DS+ saddle: If you fancy the idea of a close contact saddle but prefer the security of a deeper seat, then the Next Generation Bates Elevation is the model for you. The DS (deep seat) versions are engineered with the same technical developments and standard features as the rest of the range, with the ...
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Features: The Bates Caprilli Close Contact Saddle is ideal for show jumping and eventing. Designed for serious and professional riders who recognise the impact of saddle design on their performance. Features both the EASYCHANGE(R) Gullet System and CAIR(R) Panel System. Colour Options: Black, Havanna Brown Size Options:40" - 46"Stockists: www.batesaustralia.com.au
Features: The Bates Momentum saddle is the result of sheer focus and the conviction to create a saddle designed for pure performance. The level of comfort is unrivaled, apparent from your first sitting. A seamless transition from your seat along your inner thigh locks you in position, as if following a natural groove for immediate contact and unprecedented balance. Colour ...
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text: Best Western Burbank Airport Inn Hotel rating Quick Specs Rates $89-$179Year Built 2009 View Large Interactive Map Address 7615 Lankershim BlvdNorth Hollywood, CA 91605-2814 Web http://www.bestwestern.com Phone + 1 818-765-2900 Fax + 1 818-765-0200 Toll-free 800-WESTERN Email email@example.com OverviewMeeting SpecsPhotos & videos Description Year Built: 2009Check in Time: 3:00 PMCheck out Time: 11:00 AMNumber of Floors: 2Total Number of Rooms: 45Rates: $89-$129Chain: Best Western InternationalChain Website: http://www.bestwestern.com GDS Hotel Reservation CodesAmadeus GDS: BW BUR694Galileo/Apollo GDS: BW 18961Sabre GDS: BW 117561WorldSpan GDS: BW 05694 Best Western Burbank Airport Inn Location & NeighborhoodNear North Hollywood. Best Western Burbank Airport Inn Rates & PoliciesBest Western Burbank Airport Inn rates are Daily in USDStandard: $89-$129 Suite: $179 (USD) Credit Cards Are AcceptedReservations must be guaranteed with a credit cardMeals: Continental Plan Nearby AirportsBob Hope (2.25 miles southeast)Los Angeles Intl (18 miles south)Long Beach Mncpl (30 miles southeast)More Airports » Best Western Burbank Airport Inn Room AmentitiesBest Western Burbank Airport Inn amenities are in All rooms unless noted otherwiseAir ConditioningCoffeemakerIron/Ironing BoardMicrowave OvenRooms for Non-smokersTelephoneVoicemailRefrigeratorSafe (In Room)Cable/Satellite TelevisionTelevisionInternet Access (High Speed & Wireless) Guest ServicesFree Onsite ParkingWheelchair Access to Common/Public AreasCommon Area Internet Access (High Speed & Wireless) Nearby SightseeingNoHo Art District (1.50 miles)Universal Citywalk (3 miles)NBC Studios, Burbank, CA (5 miles southeast)Warner Bros., Burbank, CA (5 miles southeast)Audiences Unlimited, Universal City, CA (5.50 miles southeast) On-Site RecreationHealth ClubNearby RecreationGolf CoursePool (Indoor Pool) Best Western Burbank Airport Inn Meeting Rooms & Events Best Western Burbank Airport Inn Business ServicesBusiness CenterCopierFax Best Western Burbank Airport Inn Images, Videos, & Virtual Tours Photos & Videos Best Western Burbank Airport Inn Exterior Images Powered by VFM Leonardo Nearby North Hollywood Hotels More Nearby Hotels Beverly Hills Plaza HotelThe Moment HotelCrowne Plaza Beverly HillsCrowne Plaza Los Angeles Int'l AirportDoubleTree by Hilton Hotel LA DowntownFarmer's Daughter HotelHilgard House HotelHoliday Inn Los AngelesHollywood HotelHotel AngelenoHotel FigueroaLuxe City Center HotelLuxe Hotel Sunset BoulevardMarriott Airport Los AngelesMillennium Biltmore HotelThe Concourse at Los Angeles AirportThe Historic Mayfair HotelThe Westin Bonaventure Hotel & SuitesTravelodge Hotel at LAXThe Orlando Hoteliers! Is your listing up to date? With over 130,000 hotels in our database, no other source compares to our depth of information. Click here to review and be sure the travel professional knows your hotel's latest details.


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text: Durban - The Sharks will look to defend their Currie Cup crown by emulating Super Rugby runners-up, the Crusaders. Sharks assistant coach Hugh Reece-Edwards, told Sharks website editor, Michael Marnewick, they will look at the way in which the Crusaders' scrum destroyed their opposition during the recent Super Rugby tournament, and aim to replicate them."They (The Crusaders) delivered a huge lesson, making sure at scrum-time you destroy the opposition. So first phase is vital, and then looking after the ball. We didn't do enough of that in this past campaign (Super Rugby campaign), we conceded too many turnovers and that's something we're going to be focusing on now," said Reece-Edwards."It's really all about what we do with our possession and making sure we do keep possession."Overall, if we can put those things together, there's no reason why we can't have a good season."


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August 6, 2009
John Locarno
Global Sales & Marketing Manager
(608) 365-2563
Fax: (608) 365-6812
Email: email@example.com
Durst Hires New Global Sales and Marketing Manager
SHOPIERE, WI — Durst has appointed John Locarno Global Sales and Marketing Manager.
John has extensive experience in the industrial manufacturing field along with a strong senior sales and marketing management background. He brings to this position sales, marketing and management skills geared towards the manufacture of
John holds a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater with a major in Marketing.
About Durst
Durst, a Regal Beloit Company headquartered in Clinton, Wis., is a worldwide leader in gear drives and transmissions. Durst boasts one of the most comprehensive mechanical power transmission product offerings for off-highway, agriculture and material handling equipment in North America. With over 75 years of industrial experience, Durst offers full design, development and test capabilities utilizing work cells, flexible automation, three-dimensional solid modeling and four-square testing. Whether standard, modified or custom, products are designed and manufactured to customer specifications. For more information, call (800) 356-0775 or visit the Durst website at www.durstdrives.com.


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Saturday was the celebration of the Arkansas County bicentennial. It was held at the Arkansas County Courthouse in Dewitt. The festivities began at 9 a.m. and continued on until 4 p.m.
One of the highlights of the afternoon was guest speaker Judge Morris Arnold, who spoke on the rich history of Arkansas County's participation in four battles, which is more than any other county in Arkansas, including one of only two west of the Mississippi River fought during the American Revolution.
Following Judge Arnold, current Arkansas County Judge Glenn "Sonny" Cox recognized local and state dignitaries who were in attendance — state Sen. Jonathan Dismang; state Sen. Stephanie Flowers; state Rep. David Hillman, Chris Villaines, executive director of Association of Arkansas Counties; Almyra Mayor M.C. Bennett; Dewitt Mayor Ralph Relyea, St. Charles Mayor Robert Patrick and Stuttgart Mayor Marianne Maynard. Several state and local proclamations and citations were read and presented to Cox from those present. Cox presented each with a commemorative copy of the county seal in appreciation.
"We had a great bicentennial celebration," Cox said. "Successful events like this take great planning and a lot of work. It took a lot of work on the part of volunteers and elected officials to put it together and make it happen. I would like to thank all those who worked so tirelessly to make this the success it was."
The White River documentary was a huge success that many were interested in, so much so that two showings were added to the original three. The history books put together were also a big hit. Thanks to the work of the Records and Preservation Committee, people saw the importance of the restoration and preservation of records. According to Cox any monies left over from the celebration will be donated to the committee for continued work on the records.
"I would like to thank all our sponsors and donors, as well as volunteers, for all their support," Cox said. "We could not have done this without it!"
Location, ST | website.com


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SAFC back domestic violence initiative
by safc.com
Club support White Ribbon campaign.
A campaign against domestic violence in South Tyneside and Sunderland has received Premier League support.
Sunderland AFC is backing the White Ribbon Campaign, which aims to ensure men take more responsibility for reducing the level of violence against women.
The campaign message will be beamed onto the Stadium of Light's big screens before tonight's match between Sunderland and Queens Park Rangers.
The club has also agreed to include an anti-domestic violence message in its match day programme.
Councillor Tracey Dixon, South Tyneside Council's Lead Member Area Management and Community Safety, said: "We are delighted that the football club is lending its global reach and influence to this important campaign. Footballers are important role models and we are hoping that their support for the White Ribbon Campaign will encourage men to speak up about violence against women.
"The campaign urges men and boys to wear a white ribbon as a visible pledge never to commit, condone or remain silent about violence against women. Both councils have provided white ribbons to the football club and are encouraging staff and management to wear them at tonight's match."
Councillor Kath Rolph, Chair of the Sunderland Domestic Violence Partnership, added: "I would like to thank everyone who is showing their support for the White Ribbon campaign. Domestic violence is still a far too under reported and hidden crime for many people and that's why expressing solidarity against domestic violence by wearing a white ribbon is so important."
SAFC star John O'Shea added: "We hope that by Sunderland giving its backing to the White Ribbon Campaign we can help to highlight the important work being done to combat domestic violence. Football has the power to reach out to people and the club and players are delighted to give their support to this initiative."
White Ribbon Day occurs on November 25, which is also known as the UN International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women.
It was created in 1991 by a group of Canadian men who decided they had a responsibility to urge men to speak out against violence against women.
For further information about the range of services available to support domestic violence victims, log on to www.southtyneside.info/domesticviolence.


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The Seattle Police Foundation is proud to support and partner with the Seattle Police Department, the City of Seattle and many other community partners in the Greater Seattle Area to launch the Seattle Gun Safety Initiative. The Seattle Gun Safety Initiative will launch a gun buyback program and an educational campaign providing gun safety devices (trigger locks) and materials. Through this joint effort we hope to remove unwanted guns from our streets and improve the safety of guns that remain in homes.
To learn more about the initiative and how to turn in guns or obtain trigger locks and gun safety materials click here.
To financially support SPD's gun safety initiative, donate here. All donations are tax-deductible.
Contact Renee Hopkins at 206-684-0373 with any questions.


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How Do You Know Movie Reviews
How Do You Know
Release Date: Dec 17, 2010
Rating: (R)
User reviews on How Do You Know
The best part of this movie is the end! Because it is over. What a waste of 4 great actors.
There was a time when James L. Brooks was a sure thing. Writer/director of Terms of Endearment and Broadcast News, co-creator of The Simpsons. But since As Good As It Gets (I would argue THAT film is overrated), he has been on a downhill trajectory. How Do You Know is just more proof that he should take his money and live out the rest of his life on a tropical beach.
Resse Witherspoon's Lisa is a former star softball player cut from the national team, though we never see her actually playing softball. She has to decide between Owen Wilson's major league pitcher Matty (though we never actually see him playing baseball), and Paul Rudd's recently indicted corporate executive (though we never learn why he was indicted). There's a lot of things that are left out of this movie, not the least of which a question mark in the title.
This is just a sloppy movie. It's incredibly broad, and not nice to look at. Matty is a complete louse, and Rudd's George doesn't have a backbone. If I was Lisa, I would choose to be single. In fact, the whole affair looks and feels like TV (yes, that's a slight). Brooks is a veteran of both mediums, and should know the difference between the two.
Written by James L Brookes, "How Do You Know" is a romantic comedy starring Jack Nickolas, Paul Rudd, Reese,Witherspoon, and Owen Wilson. In my opinion, the cast did a great job, I loved Paul's character and Reese Whiterspoon was charming as always. I felt like Owen Wilson was kind of annoying in this movie, but then again I think he is annoying in all of his movies.
Nicholson is awesome as always. I felt like the actors were good individually but felt short as a cast. I could not relate and did not really care for any of the characters in the movie. I so miss the good old romantic comedies that move you and make you happy and sad, basically the ones that cause emotions. "How do you know" did not evoke any emotions in me and I had hope it will. In my opinion, the movie almost hit the spot to be excellent but then made a turn and became just yet another dull and unimaginative romantic comedy.
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I have an Active directory server (2008) with DNS that is configured as
internal.company.com and has an active forwarder that forwards all unknown requests to the ISPs DNS.
company.com is registered and has an active web-page hosted by an external hoster
The servers AD and DNS has been installed with DCPromo with standard settings. All works fine.
My question now is, if a client from the internal network (that has this server configured as name-server) requests an unknown address of the internal domain, such as
unknown.internal.company.com, if this request will be forwarded to the isp's DNS because my DNS does not know this host? If yes, what do I have to configure that this does no more happens.


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- Location:
- San Clemente, CA
- Party Albums:
- 10
PART TWO-Ashlyn's 4th Birthday (36 photos)
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This year was the first year that I didn't have complete say in what my daughter's birthday theme was going to be. She had a very strong opinion on the subject and decided she had to have a Rapunzel/Tangled Party. Although I have to admit I wasn't super excited about the idea, she was, so we went with it. I wanted to make her party bright and fun and wanted to include a lot of enchanted forest aspects. I designed the invitation, all of the coordinating party printables, and made most of the party decorations. For the cake table backdrop, I draped floral vines and hung a frame with my daughter Ashlyn's initial in it that I "tangled" with bright yellow yarn. I also found some amazing decorative cinder blocks that looked like Rapunzel's Tower Bricks at Lowe's that I used as bases for some of the sweets. The drink table was also decorated with Tower Bricks as well as the word FOUR tangled in yarn. The kid's tables had bright polka dot fabric table runners covered with moss runners and tons of bright yellow daffodils. Each child was given a personalized gable box with snacks in it and a Pascal straw cup. All of the princesses also received a tiara and handmade wand while the boys received Flynn Satchels. They all had fun bouncing in the bounce house and climbing "Rapunzel's Tower" which was our outdoor play equipment draped with a 10 foot braid. The highlight on the party was the look on the children's faces when they saw Rapunzel walk through the door. They were so excited to read books and sing songs with her while the parents relaxed at the "Snuggly Duckling" Pub. It was a beautiful day and everyone had so much fun, especially the birthday girl! She is still talking about her party and how much she misses her new Best Friend Rapunzel!
Invitation, Printables and Party Styling
Very Pretty Parties
Tangled Letters, Door Wreath, Fabric Garland, Lanterns, Wands
Very Pretty Parties
Elizabeth Patton Photography
Flynn Satchels
Bellisima Sofia
Custom Wooden Forks
Sucre Shop
Plastic Milk Bottles
One Stylish Party
Birthday Girl Headband
Chasing Lola


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UEFA honours
UEFA European Championship: runner-up 2012
• A native of Turin, he came up through the Torino FC youth system but spent the early years of his senior career on loan − with AS Varese 1910 in Serie C1 and AC Siena in Serie B.
• Made his Serie A debut for Torino in a 1-0 defeat by FC Internazionale Milano on 14 September 2002 but featured only occasionally as the Granata suffered relegation; by contrast he made 81 Serie B appearances over the next two campaigns before moving to Juventus.
• A fringe member of the Bianconeri side that won Serie A in 2005/06 but had the title stripped; much more prominent as Juventus returned to the top flight at the first attempt in 2006/07 but left for ACF Fiorentina after the club's promotion.
• Failed to make the grade under Prandelli's tutelage in Florence and left after just half a season for Palermo, where he finally found his feet at the top level, establishing himself immediately as the Sicilian club's regular left-back.
• Helped Palermo to three successive top-ten finishes from 2008/09-2010/11 and also into the final of the 2011 Coppa Italia, where they lost 3-1 to FC Internazionale Milano.
• Made his international debut in a friendly against Romania on 17 November 2010 and started four matches in UEFA EURO 2012 qualification, without conceding a goal; made four appearances in Poland and Ukraine as Italy finished as runners-up to Spain.
©UEFA.com 1998-2016. All rights reserved.


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The Cottonwood man accused of killing his wife faced a judge for the first time Tuesday afternoon.
Mark Duenas was arraigned at 1:30 p.m. on a charge of murdering his wife, Karen Duenas.
He's accused of stabbing Karen inside their Robinson Glen Drive home in May.
He was named a person of interest two weeks after the body was found.
On Friday, five months after Karen was killed, Mark Duenas was arrested.
Duenas' attorney, Ron Powell, who lives in southern California said the arrest has been difficult on Mark, including seeing his kids while in custody.
Powell also said that several inmates in Mark's living areas in the jail have poked fun at the fact that he has been the topic of media coverage, but Powell is hopeful it will die down.
Powell said Mark's sons, as well as some members of Karen's side of the family, fully support him.
He sat before the judge for less than 10 minutes on Tuesday but a complaint from the Shasta County District Attorney's Office lists five months of investigative detail.
The complaint alleges that Mark was having a phone relationship with a woman out of state and that he told her, "something bad would have to happen for them to be together."
The complaint also states that in the initial 911 call, Mark admitted to the operator that he killed his wife.
Powell said he has not yet listened to the 911 call and plans to spend the next few weeks conducting his own investigation.
The attorney also said Mark has passed a lie detector test that was given to him.
KRCR News Channel Seven spoke to Mark shortly after he was named a person of interest back in May.
He maintained that he did not kill his wife and that "eventually it will all come out."
Mark remains in the Shasta County Jail.
His bail is set at $1 million.
Powell said he does not expect Mark to post bail.
He's expected to be back in court October 17th.


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So, you're king of your local track and have the competition covered on a regular basis? And you've been whipping up on them so bad the track is now known as your "house." Well, what's next, Hot Dog?
If you're thinking NASCAR Nextel Cup, the logical step up from local track king may be the ARCA RE/MAX Super Car Series. ARCA runs virtually the same cars on many of the same tracks as NASCAR. The fit is so precise that NASCAR teams working development deals use ARCA races to educate and evaluate their new talent.
"I think the best way to go, for a late-model racer or somebody wanting to move up, would be to do a deal and go run Salem (IN)," says Larry Clement, an ARCA championship team owner. "If you can run fast and competitively at Salem, you can drive any speedway track there is. If you're driving a 2,800- to 3,000-pound late-model with 400 or 500 hp, and you get into a 3,400-pound car with way more horsepower, it's a big transition to make . . . If somebody's got the talent to run there, I think they could go to Michigan or Kentucky and stay out of trouble and be competitive if they're in the right car."
So, you take your test drive, do well, and decide to go ARCA racing. But how much should it cost? We talked to a few top ARCA teams that were willing to give us real numbers on what it costs to run in the series.
Bill Venturini is a two-time ARCA Champion (1987 and '91) and owns the ARCA car his son, Billy, drives. "What's it take to do it right?" says Bill. "We'll spend close to $350,000, probably, by the end of this year. That's for the whole year."
The biggest part of his budget is the same in basically any type of racing. "Everyone bitches about the tire bill, and rightfully so, because it's a necessary evil," he says. "We'll probably spend more than a quarter of our budget on tires. My tire bill at the end of the year will probably be about $90,000 . . . Usually engines are my next biggest expense, but I'm hooked up with Shaver Racing Engines this year and they've got a kick-butt contingency program and I've qualified for it at a lot of races. So it's helped me keep my engine bill in check."
But Venturini has learned to cut some expenses. "Hotel bills," he says. "I haven't paid for a hotel in two years. Believe me, I work my butt off to get those free hotel rooms. I spend 40 hours a week on the phone working deals. Ruby Tuesday's restaurants have been great. Most of the cities we go to, the Ruby Tuesday's restaurants give us free dinners. I put a Ruby Tuesday's decal on the car. That may not seem like a lot of deals, but I've got a lot of volunteer help that comes every week. When we go to dinner, there's 14 of us. My dinner bill is like $400. That's how I do it."
He talks about the guys who have won ARCA championships: "You know, the Bowshers, the Keselowskis, the Venturinis, the Kimmels-we've been here for 30 years, so we have to know how to stretch a penny. If we need a part that's going to make us better, we figure out a way to afford it. I'd die for a million-dollar sponsorship right now."
Money TrailWith ARCA RE/MAX and NASCAR Nextel Cup cars being the same, there are quite a few deals available on used cars. "Today, you could go buy an excellent Nextel Cup car for $25,000-for whatever [track use] you want except [plate] superspeedways," says Venturini. "What used to be your big-dollar expense was buying the car and engine; today it's not. Granted, if you build a new one, you're going to spend $60,000-$70,000 to build it, where you can go buy one that's one year old for $25,000. You're a fool not to. That's what we're all doing now."
Andy Belmont is another ARCA vet who is just as savvy working a deal, and his costs fall into a similar vein. "I don't see how you can do it for less than $400,000," says Belmont. "I don't see how you can be right without spending $750,000. And to be up with the Joneses, it's over a million. It depends on what kind of car you put on the racetrack, obviously . . . You've got an engine lease. You've got a $100,000-$110,000 tire bill. You've got $50,000-a dollar a mile-to run the tractor-trailer up and down the highway. You've got salaries for three or four people . . . We do it as efficiently as anybody, and we still spend about $1,200 per race in travel alone."
Belmont points out more than just the obvious: "There's an awful lot of incidentals people don't think about. You spend $10,000-$12,000 a year in decals. You spend $18,000-$19,000 at the start of the year for uniforms. You spend $10,000-$12,000 in licenses . . . I spend 90 percent of my business day working on sponsor money. I don't get to work on the cars anymore, not hardly, anyway."
Are short-track races cheaper? "Hell no, they're not cheaper," says Belmont. "You can't get to the front without tearing the body off the car. I mean, that's insane. If you can get through a speedway race, you've probably got a $6,000 or $8,000 tire bill, but you've got a whole race car-you've still got a motor to freshen up and all that. You run these places [short tracks] and you've got a $7,000 or $8,000 bill to fix the body right, and that doesn't count the components you tore off along the way underneath."
ARCA runs restrictor-plate races at Daytona and Talladega. The speeds aren't the only thing to increase. "A plate race, just because of the specialty, is a whole different animal," says Belmont. "I can't do a plate race for less than 50 grand. I mean, [engine builder] Joe Rhyne gets 25 grand to rent a motor for one race. You don't have any equity in it; you just rented it and you've got to give it back. You can't go to a plate race without testing, so you've got 2,500 miles in travel, two times, we do, anyway. We have to look at it four times-a test for each one and a race for each one. So that's four events the way I see it. You can't go to Daytona and test in December and come back with the same motor in February and expect to run fast because you suck all that sand down through the motor. You've got to freshen it."
Even the tire bill is different for the plate tracks. "Two things happen when we run a superspeedway race," says Belmont. "Your tire bill instantly goes from, say, if you buy three sets of tires here that would be $2,200 for a short-track race. At the dirt tracks, we only buy one set. You go to the superspeedways, you buy four sets. But you're not talking $750 a set; you're talking $1,550 a set. So now my tire bill is usually $6,800 to $7,200 at a speedway race-any race that we have the radial tires on."
Clement's take on a season's expenses is in the same ballpark. "If he's going to run competitively, not counting buying the cars and buying the transporters [because you can rent a transporter], but to run the race team, rebuild or lease engines and all the equipment, and pay for the expenses, I would think it would take $400,000 to $500,000 to be respectable," Clement estimates. "And it takes probably twice that much to consistently run up front or win a championship."
An AlternativeIf you don't have deep pockets to set up shop, there is another option-rentals. Cars can be leased for one or a group of races, saving money over buying all-new hardware. It's also a good way to test a driver, crewchief, and crewmembers on how well they adapt to the bigger cars on bigger tracks. But renting, like outright buying, has its detractions.
"There are people that have rent-a-cars, and there are people that rent race cars," says Venturini. "I've rented race cars to people. I don't have rent-a-cars; I rent race cars, meaning that it's a car that my son Billy races that I just put your number on and your name over the door and you drive it. For a short track, I wouldn't do it for less than $35,000 a race. It has new tires to go racing with. It's got a motor, it's got a crew, and the car's ready to go. Speedway races, I wouldn't do it for less than $50,000."
Belmont has similar prices. "Thirty thousand dollars," he says. "Ten thousand dollar crash clause. They buy the tires. If they tear the car up, a maximum of 10 grand. I get a $10,000 retainer up front. So they give me 30 grand plus the 10 grand retainer. If they don't hurt the car, I give it back to them after the race."
Crash clause? "I have a crash clause," Belmont continues. "And we agree before the race that car is worth $15,000 to $20,000, whatever it is. That's the maximum you will pay to fix it over and above your rental fee . . . You're going to have a $50,000 investment if you wad it up into the corner, because you've got the $30,000 rental fee and $20,000 crash clause. If you don't crash the car, you've just saved yourself 20,000 bucks."
What if a driver or owner wants to put together a program of multiple races? Are there any deals to be had? "If somebody is running multiple races, and they can bring something to the table, I'll work with them," says Belmont. "That's a different deal. If you look at my website (www.andybelmont.com), my rental price is on there and the reason is on there, as well. You go to the second page and it breaks down all the things you get.
"People rent the car and they forget or don't realize that [after] every race, you've got to revalve the shocks or buy pistons for the shocks. They don't realize you've got to buy $400 worth of brake rotors for the front; you've got to put new brake pads in, new brake rotors on just about every race. There's a lot of consumables that people just don't realize . . . If I get prepaid for three or four races up front, I might consider absorbing the crash clause because the costs are fixed. It doesn't change. You go to Hutch and you buy brake pads or lug nuts. You use them every race. It's not like we're getting rich off of this stuff; it's just how we make our living."
The crash clause is where the renter signs an open check for any needed repairs and/or replacement. But what determines how bad a car is wrecked before it's a total write-off? Leading Edge Race Cars of Charlotte, North Carolina, not only rents cars for intermediate tracks, but also repairs cars and hangs bodies. Owner Pat Beattie says, "You can clip both ends of the car [repair a frame section], but when you get into the middle of a car, that's usually when you start throwing it away." His rates are $20,000 if the renter has a crew with all the tools and parts and, as he says, "$30,000 if you want to just show up with a helmet."


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June 20, 2013 | Vol. 94, No. 144
EGG HARBOR, Wis. — Robert "Bob" V. Rupp Sr., 89, Egg Harbor, passed into peaceful harmony with God on Tuesday, June 18, 2013.
Friends may call at Blaney Funeral Home, 1521 Shawano Ave., Green Bay, from 4 to 8 p.m. Monday, June 24. Friends may also call from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. Tuesday at Old St. Joseph Catholic Church on the St. Norbert College campus, 123 Grant St., De Pere.
A memorial Mass will be held at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday at the church.
To send online condolences, please go to BlaneyFuneralHome.com. (Due to construction near Old St. Joseph, please observe and follow parking signs.)
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Feb. 13, 2014
Live Results (GVSU) | Live Results (Purdue) DeKALB, Ill. – Following a one-week break, the Northern Illinois University track & field team returns to action this weekend with split-squad action at Grand Valley State and Purdue. The Huskies' distance squad competes Friday and Saturday at the GVSU Big Meet, while the rest of the team heads to West Lafayette, Ind., Saturday for the Fred Wilt Boilermaker Invitational. "This weekend is important for our student-athletes concerning MAC positioning," said NIU head coach Connie Teaberry. "We have two weeks before the MAC Indoor Championships, which means time is running out to get qualifying marks. If the athletes haven't already, we must put together solid performances so they're not scrambling the last competition looking for that berth to MAC. We are headed into meets with competitive competition to get them qualified. Our ladies are physically ready." Two weeks ago, NIU posted several highlight performances at the Indiana Relays. Leading the way was Claudette Day, who tied the school record in the long jump with a leap of 18-08.50 (5.70m), claiming seventh in the invitational section. Additionally, seven different individuals posted new career-bests in the two-day meet. This weekend, the Huskies will go head-to-head with numerous top-notch programs. At GVSU, over 50 teams make up the field from all three NCAA divisions and the NAIA. Meanwhile, the meet at Purdue features the host Boilermakers, Butler, IPFW and Division II power Lincoln (Mo.), along with Charleston (W.Va.) and NAIA member Taylor. Live meet results will be available on GVSULakers.com (Grand Valley State) and DeltaTiming.com (Purdue).


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(Video) Ampatuan Massacre: President Aquino faces the challenge to ensure justice and end impunity
It looks to me now that Zaldy Ampatuan's bombshell offer to turn state witness was a trial balloon, which explains the unsigned affidavit he gave to the press and the embargoed interview he gave to TV networks. And now, it's damage control time, which is the impression I get from this photo of the President meeting with relatives of the Maguindanao massacre victims. http://yfrog.com/kg46091128j
Knowing the Ampatuans, Zaldy would never go out on a limb (like betraying his family) if he was not sure he would get something in return. The question that should be asked now is, Who is in a position to give that something to him?


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V-Neck Cotton Tee from GotApparel ($9.67)
Be it cement, underwear, illuminating primer, a plotline, tomato sauce, or olive oil… Foundations make or break any type of art or statement you attempt to create.
When it comes to dressing (your body), I find solace in basics. You know – the v-neck white tee, the zip hoodie, the spaghetti-strap tank. They give me a solid base to build upon, and therefore, their structural integrity is, well, integral.
Typically, as many do, I've a great distaste for American Apparel, so I go to independent brands like Spun, Alternative Apparel (either from their site, or Mapel); however, it's hard to turn down a new source of basics when the word "wholesale" is involved.
Enter GotApparel.com. They have all brands ending in the name "Apparel" (including Alternative and, yes, American) at wholesale prices – which translates sometimes to $9 per garment.
When it comes to easy dressing with basics, the obvious strategy is layering. This means that you can go crazy with the sheer tops without worrying about being "indecent". Then again, if you enjoy being indecent, these sheer gauze tanks will be your BFF.
Thankfully, GotApparel offers a bunch of organic options for our eco-friendly… friends. This top is also a-line, so it'll give you that little bit of an oversized feel without swallowing you up.
A lot of people say that you can't look chic in a basic hoodie. This is a lie. I will attempt to disprove that theory in future posts, perhaps!
I live in hoodies at home. Always paired with leggings.
I scoured their site for good leggings, but all they have are American Apparel brand, which I can't in good conscience put here. Hope you understand!


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When you lose your job for the first time and you watch the career you thought you had vanish, it feels like nothing you've ever felt before.
I should know.
When the economy crashed in 2008, my magazine job went down with it. Feelings flooded by mind and body: helplessness, anger, shame, disbelief. Paycheck, gone. Co-workers, no more. Purpose, disappeared.
Thankfully, I had fortifications. My wife. My 10-month-old son. My friends. My books. I still had health insurance, because my wife, through her job, still had health insurance. I also received my piece of the national safety net: unemployment benefits.
And, slowly, I clawed back into the labor market.
Partially, that is.
I grabbed a couple of contract freelance jobs. I felt like I was back to contributing something financially, however small, to our household.
But it wasn't full-time work, the kind of work that makes you feel whole. I was what economists call "underemployed," also known in statistical-speak as "U6."
Although I finally managed to find full employment as a print journalist (miracle of miracles, I know), to this day I still have U6 on the brain.
That's partly because I'll never forget the shock of being a U6 myself, of getting partly locked out of the labor market. But it's also because I now research and write about Clark County's economy. I now talk to people who are struggling like I was only a few years ago.
You may not see them in your daily life, your commutes to work, your visits to the movies. But just because you don't see them doesn't mean they're not there. Believe me, they are. In fact, Clark County has a significant underemployment problem.
First, let's define our terms.
Underemployment isn't the same as unemployment. The unemployed are people who don't have jobs but who are actively searching. Clark County's preliminary unemployment rate in June was 9.1 percent.
Underemployment, by contrast, is a more comprehensive measure of labor market inertia than unemployment.
Most of the underemployed are involuntary part-time workers — those who want full-time work but can't find it. The category also includes discouraged workers, those who've given up looking for work but who still want a job. Scott Bailey, the region's labor economist, estimates that Clark County's underemployment rate is at least 20 percent. That compares to a national underemployment rate of 14.9 percent.
Twenty percent. That's more than 23,000 people in Clark County who've been forced to swallow a shell of a paycheck.
The social costs are deeply troubling.
The internalization of a sense of shame. Marital strain. The ripple effect on children.
Economic studies show that it's not a deficit of skills or education that's keeping people from full-time work. That's a small part of it. It's largely a lack of job growth.
Knowing this comes as little consolation. Knowing it's a national problem that requires national action brings even less comfort, given our dysfunctional politics.
Nevertheless, I want to tell more of the story of underemployment in Clark County.
Not just the numbers, but people's lives. You'll find my contact information at the bottom of this column.
At the very least, perhaps it will show someone somewhere they're not alone.
Aaron Corvin is a Columbian business reporter. 360-735-4518, Twitter: http://twitter.com/col_econ; http://twitter.com/col_energy; http://www.columbian.com/weblogs/strictly-business, or firstname.lastname@example.com.


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High Holiday Schedule – 5771
Join the Stanton Street Shul for our High Holidays as we celebrate in our newly improved main sanctuary! In keeping with our motto, "all are welcome, all will feel welcome" our services are completely free to all comers. To ensure that we can continue delivering our exceptional programming and services all donations are encouraged through our convenient Shop / Donate page.
Thank you for your support and have a happy and joyous new year!
|Erev Rosh Hashana – Wed Sept 8th
Candle Lighting: 7:01pm
Minha / Ma'ariv: 7:00pm
Rosh Hashana I – Thurs Sept 9th
Shaharit: 8:30am
Shofar: ~11:00am
Minha: 6:45pm
Ma'ariv: 8:00pm
Shaharit: 8:30am
Shofar: ~11:00am
Minha/Ma'ariv: 6:45pm
Shaharit: 9:30am
Minha: 6:45pm
Havdallah: 7:56pm
Candle Lighting / Fast Begins: 6:46pm
Kol Nidrei / Ma'ariv: 7:15pm
Shaharit: 8:30am
Yizkor : ~11:00am
Minha: 5:00pm
Havdallah / Fast Ends: 7:44pm
|Erev Sukkot – Wed Sept 22nd
Candle Lighting: 6:37pm
Minha / Ma'ariv: 6:35pm
Sukkot I – Thurs Sept 23rd
Shaharit: 9:30am
Minha / Ma'ariv: 7:35pm
Sukkot II – Fri Sept 24th
Shaharit: 9:30am
Candle Lighting: 6:34pm
Minha / Ma'ariv: 6:35pm
Shabbat Chol Hamoed – Sat Sept 25th
Shaharit: 9:30am
Havdallah: 7:32pm
Erev Shemini Atzeret – Wed Sept 29th
Candle Lighting: 6:25pm
Minha / Ma'ariv: 6:25pm
Shemini Atzeret – Thurs Sept 30th
Shaharit: 9:30am
Yizkor: ~11:15am
Minha: 6:20pm
Simhat Torah – Thurs Sept 30th
Ma'ariv / Hakafot: 7:20pm
Men and women dance separately with the Torah
Simhat Torah – Friday Oct 1st
Shaharit: 9:30am
Hakafot: ~10:45am
Special Torah Reading for Women!
Minha / Kabbalat Shabbat: 6:20pm
Shabbat Bereishit – Sat Oct 2nd
Shaharit: 9:30am
Havdallah: 7:20pm


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It is important to explore and research the keywords if you want to be a successful search engine optimization expert but this is not it. Search engine optimization is about many other things such as link building, promoting content, creating content etc. There is a reason why many websites are always on top in the search engine results and many don't appear in the results at all. Proper search engine optimization and effective strategies can give websites the boost they are often looking for. Here are some of the best practices that every SEO expert must know for effective SEO.
Best Search Engine Optimization Practices:
- Get your name in Google places, especially if your business gains the biggest part of its revenue from local sales. Wherever you post any content related to your website, ensure having your correct address included in it. Furthermore, make sure that the address is written in the same format consistently. Get your services, products and website reviewed from the most popular reviewing websites and have the address included if possible.
- Don't take pictures and videos for granted. They are extremely important in getting your website recognized on the internet. Where do you think all the pictures on Pinterest come from? These are images picked and downloaded from various websites and shared because they are attention grabbing and attractive. Make sure to include clear, attractive, high quality and interesting pictures for your products and services.
- You can't think of hitting your targets without becoming social on the internet today. Liz, an SEO expert from SEO Services Shop, says "The likes you get on Facebook, follows on Twitter and +1s on Google Plus are extremely important in having your website optimized. Whatever information you put up on the internet must be directly or indirectly having a social aspect in it".
- Guest blogging has become one of the most popular activities today for website optimization. The more links you have on famous and reliable websites, the more Google will like you. However, you have to be careful since Google has introduced some strict laws on guest posting due to its popularity.
- If you think keywords are your data, you have to change the angle of looking at keywords. Keywords are the answers to the questions people have when they type a query on the search engine. Your keywords must be words and phrases that a person in need would look for when searching for an answer on the internet. Don't think from your mind, think from the mind of a user sitting on the internet and looking for information.
- Create quality content and spread it on the internet as much as possible. Content is extremely important and with time it is becoming even more important as Google has started to give quality content a lot of weight and value.
- User experience of your website is another important thing that must be a part of your search engine optimization strategies. The easier it is for visitors to use your website, the more recognition it will get. The faster your website loads, the better its ranking will get in Google search engine results.
It must now be known that search engine optimization has changed with time and the techniques and strategies must also be renewed. Stick to the best SEO strategies and you will be on top one day.


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Knee implants in young people with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) are durable – but don't last quite as long as implants in older arthritis patients, according to a multicenter study led by researchers at Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) in New York. Although about 90 percent of knee replacements last 15 to 20 years in adults, about 75 percent of knee implants last that long in patients with JIA. The research was presented recently at the 2013 Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS).
JIA is an umbrella term for a group of potentially debilitating conditions affecting the joints in children and adolescents. Although new medications and treatment protocols have improved the prognosis for many JIA patients, surgery is sometimes needed to replace a severely damaged joint. Because joint replacement in the very young is relatively rare, little is known about long-term outcomes.
"Most studies [on joint replacement in JIA patients] have been small with short-term follow-up," says Mark P. Figgie, MD, senior study author and chief of the Surgical Arthritis Service at HSS. "And none have been used to take the next step for these kids, which is to find out what we can do to make things better for them."
To help take that next step, Dr. Figgie and colleagues assessed the longevity of total knee replacement in an international group of patients with JIA. The study included 217 people who had undergone a total of 335 knee replacements at five hospitals between 1979 and 2011. Participants ranged in age from 11 to 58, with an average age of 28 at the time of surgery. The average follow-up was nearly 13 years, with a range of 2 to 33 years.
Results showed that the 10-year survival rate of knee implants among JIA patients was 92.2 percent. The 20-year implant survival rate was a little more than 75 percent. Dr. Figgie, who is also a professor of clinical orthopaedic surgery at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York City, says he is concerned by the numbers because implants in children need to last longer. "When you put a new knee in a 20 year old, it has to last a long time. If our numbers were similar to adults' – a 90 percent implant survival rate at 15 to 20 years – that still wouldn't be great [for kids] because we would still be revising 1 in every 10 knees within 15 to 20 years," he says.
Revision surgeries, in which a failed implant is removed and replaced, are technically challenging and frequently less successful than the original operation.
Dr. Figgie notes that several factors likely affect the longevity of implants in JIA patients.


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Colombia is a country of contrasts. From snowy white peaks to brilliant coral reefs, it has an extraordinary array of biological diversity, climates, cultures and people. Roughly 10% of all the Earth's living species are found here, and Colombia ranks number one in the world in terms of bird, amphibian and butterfly species. More than 90 different indigenous communities live in Colombia from Wayuu people who live in the desert of La Guajira to the Cofán Pueblo in the foothills of Amazonia.
Latest News & Features
The TNC and the LACC strengthen Food Security in Latin America
Sharing a common vision to solve Latin America's most pressing environmental challenges, the Latin America Conservation Council (LACC) held its fourth Annual Meeting in Cali, Colombia in 2014.
Magdalena river
Conservancy works for the Magdalena River Basin, in order for it to be managed in an integrated and sustainable way for the development and well-being of colombians. Find out more about what we do!
Saving Bogotá's Water
See how the Conservancy is helping ensure clean drinking water for Colombia's capital — by protecting the city's watersheds.
Latest Photos
Llanos grasslands
See pictures of the wildlife, landscapes and people found in this region
Beautiful Colombia
Watch a slideshow of some of the landscapes, flora and fauna of Colombia's Andes, Caribbean, and Llanos.
Taking Flight in Colombia!
See photos of some of Colombia's most beautiful birds!
Latest Videos
What looks like a desert, but is really full of water?
Water for 50 Million
1 in 8 people in Latin America lack access to clean water.


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In this new how-to series, Shayla Moller, graphic designer and Pinner extraordinaire (over 3 million followers!), will be sharing design and social media tips with us.
You may be wondering just what in the world is a "favicon??" A favicon is that little orange "B" sign you see next to the blogger url. It's just a little detail that can make a big difference if it's changed to a pretty, personal symbol of some sort. And the best news yet is that it's quite a simple process!
Step One: Create Your Favicon.
Creating a favicon image can be done on an Adobe program, such as Photoshop or Illustrator, or with an online tool such as PicMonkey. Remember that it's going to be a veeeery small image, so too much detail isn't necessary. Save the image in a square format, such as 200 X 200 pixels.
Step Two: Upload Your Favicon.
Go to blogger, layout, and in the upper lefthand corner there should be a "favicon" widget. Click on it and upload your image. It may take a day or two to stick but then it should show up and stay there looking all pretty and professional!
Let me know if you have any sort of questions in the comment box below!


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The U. C. Berkeley Computer Science Division is honored to announce the Mark D. Weiser Excellence in Computing Scholarship. This scholarship has been established in memory of distinguished computer scientist and innovator Dr. Mark Weiser, Chief Technology Officer at Xerox Palo Alto Research Center (PARC). Mark Weiser is widely considered to be the father of ubiquitous computing.
Donations to the scholarship may be made to:
Mark D. Weiser Excellence in Computing Scholarship
Berkeley Engineering Fund
University of California, Berkeley
201 McLaughlin Hall #1722
Berkeley, CA 94720-1722
In the left-hand corner of the check, please write "Mark D. Weiser Excellence in Computing Scholarship Fund." Gifts to the fund may also be made by credit card or by contributing securities. Gifts can also be initiated by email to Dan Estropia: firstname.lastname@example.com.
The purpose of the Mark D. Weiser Excellence in Computing Scholarship is to provide merit-based tuition scholarships for undergraduate students pursuing degrees in Computer Science.
Recipients of the Mark D. Weiser Excellence in Computing Scholarship shall be selected from the most promising undergraduate students studying in the Division of Computing Sciences of the College of Engineering at the University of California, Berkeley. Recipients of the Fund, who can be either entering or returning students, will be nominated by the Chair of the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences or his/her designee.
The corpus of the Mark D. Weiser Excellence in Computing Scholarship shall be administered as an endowment by the University of California Berkeley Foundation in accordance with established Foundation policies. The principal of the Fund shall remain intact. Income from the Fund shall be transferred annually to the Regents for disbursement.
In the event that the University of California at Berkeley policies or external circumstances change to make such expenditure impossible or impracticable then the Fund may be used at the discretion of the Dean of the College of Engineering, giving consideration to the original stated interest of the donor.
Initial capitalization shall be gifted by multiple individuals, with the intent of creating a corpus of at least $25,000, the minimum amount established by the University to create a scholarship endowment.
Any individual, corporation, foundation, trust, estate or other legal entity may make additions to the Fund and such additions shall be subject to the provisions of these fund terms.
Terms and provisions of the Mark D. Weiser Excellence in Computing Scholarship have been established by Doug Kalish, who is representing the family and friends of Mark Weiser, and accepted by the College of Engineering and the University of California, Berkeley Foundation.
[UC Berkeley]
Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences
University of California, Berkeley


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Fudge is one of the best indulgences out there, in this Examiner's humble opinion. However, if you've ever tried to make fudge at home, you may have experienced the frustration of ending up with a puddle of thick icing rather than anything even remotely fudge-like. Admittedly, this mess still usually tastes pretty good, but it has that depressing after taste of "I was supposed to turn out entirely differently."
But thankfully, this dark chocolate fudge recipe, adapted from Weight Watcher's, is more or less fool proof. This Examiner (whose fudge is frequently a disaster) has made it four times, and it has hardened perfectly every single one. Now you, too, can have homemade fudge instead of a giant pan of failure.
The bonus? The recipe requires very few ingredients (evaporated milk is by far the most outlandish one) and is easy and quick to make. So grab your chocolate and your quick-prep hats and let's get started.
- 1 2/3 cups sugar
- 2/3 cup fat free evaporated milk
- 2 Tbsp butter
- 1 1/2 cups dark chocolate chips*
- 14 large marshmallows (not jumbo)
*You could also use semisweet if you prefer, but this Examiner found that recipe a little overly sweet, which is why dark chocolate is recommended here.
Combine sugar, milk, and butter in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil. Let boil for three minutes, stirring constantly.
Add in the chocolate and marshmallows. Remove from heat and stir until marshmallows are fully melted.
Pour into an 8x8 pan coated with nonstick spray. Refrigerate for about 2 hours, until firm.
Cut into small squares, and enjoy!


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Jul 17, 2012 11:25 AM
If you've been in the mood to add more color to your wardrobe, we've got a suggestion for you. (Don't worry - it's not another pair of brightly colored skinny jeans.) Instead, check out these cheery earrings ($29). We love how large, yet surprisingly lightweight these beauties are - no more two-pound chandelier earrings hanging from your lobes. Throw your hair up in a bun or messy side ponytail and let others adore your newest purchase.
If you've got a product or service that you'd like to promote on Outblush, click here to find out about our advertising opportunities.
Outblush is a blog for girls who love to shop. Our staff digs up the best clothes, home stuff, beauty items, and more. New items are posted every day — bookmark us and check out:


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ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) -- The State Board of Education is seeking a $643 million, or 4.4 percent, spending increase next year for Florida's public schools and colleges.
The board on Tuesday in Orlando also approved a new five-year strategic plan that envisions minority students narrowing -- but not fully closing -- their achievement gap with white students.
The panel, though, delayed a decision on whether to appeal a judge's ruling that would permit in-state tuition rates to be paid by U.S.-born Florida residents who are children of illegal immigrants.
U.S. District Judge K. Michael Moore last month in Miami ruled that public colleges and universities cannot charge students higher out-of-state tuition simply because their parents are illegal immigrants.
The board deferred action because Moore hasn't yet issued a final written order.


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The term physically fit has many different definitions. To some it means being able to walk or run long distances, to others it may mean being physically strong, while other definitions include being flexible, coordinated, and agile. Each one is a different form of exercise.
For those who tend to lean towards doing aerobic activities, the term fitness implies cardiovascular fitness. This means how effectively your heart and lungs are supplying oxygen to your muscles and internal organs. Continuous exercise keeps the heart healthy.
Even for a hard-core lifter, being physically fit should include being somewhat aerobically capable and by that I mean being able to go through a heavy workout and not having to be supported by your partners when you walk from the bench to the squat rack. The more aerobically fit you are the longer you going to be able to exercise without becoming so winded you have to stop.
One of the biggest benefits of being aerobically physically fit is it that reduces your risk of major diseases of the heart such as stroke and other myocardial problems. It also enhances your ability to take in and use oxygen by making a stronger, more elastic pair of lungs.
Evaluation of the cardiovascular fitness of an individual is most often performed on a treadmill, with monitors measuring the heart function both during and after the treadmill exercise test portion is over.
There are numerous self-tests one can use to determine the degree of their aerobic physical fitness. One of the easiest is to see how fast you can walk a mile without getting winded. You should be able to do this in no more than about 18 minutes if you are a moderately fit woman between 30 or 40 years of age. For the men this test should take about 17 and a half minutes.
For those of you who are older than 40 years of age, you are allowed an extra 30 seconds for each additional decade of life.
Whatever your situation may be there is no substitute for exercise in helping to maintain a healthy lifestyle. The questions for you are this: Are you physically fit? If not, why not?