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Ed Sheeran is better than "The A Team."
That folksy pop single, which has nothing to do with the similarly named '80s TV show starring Mr. T, is the reason why most of us know the British singer-songwriter on this side of the Atlantic. Yet, it doesn't even begin to summarize all that he has to offer.
To get a proper sense of his talent, one needs to see this 21-year-old rising star in concert. I know that sounds cliché, like something Phish "Phans" would say about their favorite band, but it's also true.
Sheeran's show Friday at the Warfield in San Francisco was nothing short of a revelation. He was alone onstage, with just a guitar in his hands, and yet he still managed to absolutely mesmerize the capacity crowd of some 2,200 throughout the 90-minute concert.
Of course, the tune that drew the highest-pitched screams, from the heavy contingent of preteens and teens in attendance, was "The A Team," the smash hit that is up for song of the year at the Grammy Awards on Sunday. Yet, fans seemed nearly as jazzed about all the other offerings. That's mighty impressive for an artist who has released only one full-length studio album, 2011's "+."
"My name is Ed," Sheeran told fans midway through the first offering, "Give Me Love." "My job for the next two hours is to entertain you. Your job for the next two hours is to be entertained."
It's hard to say who handled their assignment better. Let's just call it a draw and look forward to seeing Sheeran when he opens for Taylor Swift's Red Tour later this year. (Swift still hasn't announced a Bay Area date, but a likely time frame would be mid-to-late August, when the country-pop star is in the Golden State to perform in Los Angeles, San Diego and Sacramento.)
Sheeran, who is already a massive star in his native U.K., exhibited many different sides during the Warfield show. He showed that he can croon a sensitive ballad ("The A Team") and fashion a boy-band-friendly love song ("U.N.I."). He's particularly adept at the latter, which is likely why he's scored songwriting credits on both of One Direction's albums. (He also co-wrote "Everything Has Changed" with Swift for "Red.")
He's at his very best, however, when he's building unbelievably complex, beat-happy rockers right before fans' very eyes. He uses "live loops," where he records himself playing or singing a little something and then plays that segment back to accompany his next move. He might start with particular guitar rhythm, or a percussive beat hand-drummed on the body of his guitar, and then combine it with a vocal line or a different guitar part.
Then he keeps right on constructing, using his foot pedals to control the many different live recordings, until what you see onstage certainly doesn't match what you hear. It's still just Sheeran up there, but what you are hearing is a massively rich full-band sound. Others do similar things in concert, but very few are as successful at it. Sheeran accomplished the feat several times at the Warfield, but the standout efforts were the herculean rockers "Grade 8" and "You Need Me, I Don't Need You."
His vocal technique is reminiscent of both Dave Matthews (on the rockers) and Damien Rice (on the ballads), but not so much so that you could call him a clone of either. He doesn't hide his influences (which reportedly include Rice) and he clearly finds inspiration in many different kinds of music. I mean, who would suspect that Sheeran would cover a signature tune by one of the greatest jazz-blues female vocalists of all time?
"This song is by Nina Simone," Sheeran said midway through his rendition of "Be My Husband," from Simone's great 1965 effort, "Pastel Blues." "If you haven't heard of Nina Simone, go on iTunes, go on Amazon, and check out everything she's done."
Simone isn't the only artist worth checking out. As he proved on Friday at the Warfield, Ed Sheeran is also worth your time and effort.
Follow Jim Harrington at http://twitter.com/jimthecritic, www.facebook.com/jim.bayareanews and http://blogs.mercurynews.com/aei/category/concerts.


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By guest blogger Stan Whitcomb
Stan is a freshman at Santa Clara University. He is currently undecided, but is leaning towards a major in computer science. He is new to the blogosphere but is a seasoned writer (thanks English class!). In his free time, he likes to Dougie with his hallamtes and he is an avid Frisbee player.
College athletics, particularly basketball, are awesome. The raw thrill of competition, the simple power of the crowd when you are packed in like sardines, rocking the bleachers to swished three-pointers or a sweet dunk: It is better than most parties, I must say.
Attending athletic events doesn't only benefit you though. Studies have shown that teams play better when more people from their school come out to watch them. Ever heard of home field advantage? The cheering of the crowd positively influences the players on your team to allow them to attain that peak performance level. But home field advantage doesn't exist unless you get out there and start cheering your heart out.
Going to these games are a win-win for both you and the athletes. You get to have a great time, while the athletes can feed off your energy in the crowd. You don't only have to go the big sports though (men's basketball, football, etc). To be honest, sometimes the men's and women's volleyball games are way more fun than the basketball games. And just think about how much fun basketball games are…
There's only one problem. How do you know where and when these awesome sporting events occur? Well, the easy solution is to look on your school's athletics website. Schedules for every single team, male and female, are posted there. If your school sends out an email about the sports for the week, read that email and your school newspaper's sports section likely has the schedule, as well. But there is the still the grapevine (are we still calling it that?), posters, and did I mention the thing about the internet?
So now you have your plans for the next Saturday. Your school is playing some other school, and they need your support TO DESTROY THAT VICIOUS, EVIL OTHER SCHOOL. It may be heart wrenching if you lose, and exalting if you win, but there is no greater feeling than being the person freaking out on the Jumbotron.

subset: commoncrawl


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"Do you know the secret of life? It�s �one thing� � just one thing. You stick to that and the rest don�t mean shit. What�s the one thing? That�s what you have to find out.�
Those are lines from the movie City Slickers when old-time Cowboy Curly is life counseling City Slicker Mitch.
Today is my 35th wedding anniversary and in six months it will also be my 35th emergency service anniversary. I must have done some things right to thrive for this long in two challenging ventures. So, if I had to boil it down � like Curly � to one thing, what would that one thing be?
It would be �harmony.�
The definition of harmony that I like best is � �A combination of sounds considered pleasing to the ear.� This musical definition is one that can apply to every situation � the smallest to the largest, the least fortunate to most fortunate.
Music is something that you can produce with the smallest of resources to the grandest. You can have a full orchestra accompaniment or you can sing a duet with no instruments at all.
Somebody famous once said, �If you can�t be happy with what you have, how could you be happy with more?� To me what this means is happiness should be happening all along during your trip. You won�t have much fun � possibly none at all � if happiness doesn�t come until you reach some grand attainment.
Strive for harmony. Harmony will bring happiness.
*I was listening to this song forty-one years ago while talking to a young girl named Rosie. Luckily she married me six years later. Happy 35th Wedding Anniversary Rosie!


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Today's young people will be the decision makers of the future. That means it is crucial to encourage them to get engaged in their communities if we are to tackle the world's environmental problems. The Volvo Adventure – in partnership with the United Nations Environment Programme – encourages teenagers to identify an environmental issue affecting their community, and then come up with ways to address it.
The internet-based competition attracts participants from around the world. Teams of two to five members aged 13 to 16 perform an environmental project in their community. The ten finalists receive a paid trip to the Volvo Adventure Conference in Sweden, where they present their projects to an international jury.
Previous participants have focused on protecting wild dolphins and manatees, taking used cooking oil from fast food restaurants and using it to produce renewable vehicle fuel, and preventing the wasting of water from public taps.


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PHOENIX — John Jaso will be behind the plate Tuesday for the A's in a Cactus League split squad game against the Brewers at Phoenix Municipal Stadium, but if Milwaukee runners try to steal to him, he may not be able to do much to stop them.
The area around Jaso's right elbow is still wrapped in a soft protective casing from where he was hit by a pitched ball Wednesday. Jaso said he tried to throw on Monday and it did not go well.
``I still feel it,'' Jaso said. ``But I have to get out there. I have to catch. I need to call a game, get used to being in the flow.''
He is a little out of practice. Jaso's game Monday was the first for him as a catcher since a bout with concussions on July 24 ended his 2013 season.
Hence his eagerness to get into the game.
``Getting back there is the most important thing,'' Jaso said. ``So what if I lollipop a throw to second base?''


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The village council has voted to place an additional police levy on the primary ballot.
Voters will see a 2-mill continuing additional levy in the May 6 primary. That means if approved, the levy would remain in existence forever.
Last year, voters turned down the same levy, which would have generated about $20,000 a year to help fund the operation of the village police department.
Location, ST | website.com


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Booker's Father Dead at 76
Newark mayor Cory Booker's father, Cary, died Thursday morning at the age of 76. He had suffered from Parkinson's disease and recently had a stroke. He died in Las Vegas.
Mr. Booker, who is running in a special election Wednesday for an open U.S. Senate seat, canceled afternoon campaign events Thursday, his campaign confirmed. The Democrat was scheduled to attend an afternoon rally with Monmouth County members of the party and state Sen. Barbara Buono, who is running for governor.
Born in North Carolina to a single mother, Cary Booker was active in the civil rights movement. He and his wife, Carolyn, were two of the first black executives at IBM in the 1960s. They lived in Washington, D.C., where Mr. Booker was born in 1969, before moving to New Jersey.
They raised Mr. Booker and his older brother, Cary, in Harrington Park, a largely white borough in Bergen County. They joined Mr. Booker—who was elected mayor in 2006—in living in Newark in recent years.
"Many people in our city came to know and love Cary Booker. Mayor Booker's father was an inspiration to him, and someone the mayor has often credited with being a principal reason for him entering public service," said the city administration in a statement.
"Housing rights activists helped the family buy their first home after initially being turned down because of the color of their skin," Mr. Booker said on his campaign website.
Mr. Booker often mentioned his father's path of pulling himself up from poverty in speeches. He brought his parents on a "trip of a lifetime" to Israel in 2011.
"It brought us to tears," Mr. Booker said during a speech in Hamilton, N.J. last year.
Mr. Booker faces Republican Steve Lonegan in the Oct. 16 contest for an open U.S. Senate seat. Frank Lautenberg, who long held the seat, died in June.


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SAN FRANCISCO -- The Brooklyn Nets hadn't even decided whether to sign 7-foot center Jason Collins to a contract, yet the mere possibility of the club adding the NBA's first openly gay player was already approaching a fever pitch Friday.
In the wake of the Nets working out Collins in Los Angeles a day earlier, point guard Deron Williams was already anticipating what he and his teammates would be in for if and when it actually happens.
"I think it definitely will be a media circus, just because of the situation," Williams said. "It'd be a historic day. But with the type of veteran team we have, with so many people on our club who know Jason, I don't think it would be a problem."
Even if Brooklyn were to sign Collins within the next 24 hours, it's unlikely he'd be in uniform when the Nets visit the Warriors on Saturday night at Oracle Arena. So the media circus won't stop here. That said, there was a large media contingent at the Nets' workout questioning players on the notion of the 35-year-old Collins, the one-time Stanford star who publicly announced he was gay at the season's outset, joining them.
"If he can help our team, I'm all for it," said Williams. "I know he's a great role player because I played with his brother (Jarron) for five years in Utah, and they have similar games. And I've known Jason for years, too. I really think he could help our team."
Williams believes Collins, who hasn't played since the end of last season, hasn't gotten a job before now because many teams have balked at the potential distractions. But he thinks the Nets could handle the distraction of having an openly gay player on the roster, even in the media fishbowl of the New York metropolitan area.
"It's not him being the distraction, it's just the media being on him," he said. "Every city you go through, it's going to be a recurring thing. You can't just answer the questions once. But I don't honestly think that'll be a problem with us."
Veteran swingman Joe Johnson knows Collins as well as anybody on the Nets, having played with him for three seasons in Atlanta. He also gave the potential move a thumb's up.
"I think it'd be great," Johnson said. "He was a great teammate and a very hard worker. I don't think it'd be a problem. I think the guys on the team would accept it. We've got a veteran group, and I think everybody's pretty comfortable in their own skins. It's about what he can do to help us out."
The Nets, who are 15-6 in their last 21 games after starting the season 10-21, have been in a depth pinch on their front line because of myriad injuries. That issue was exacerbated when they dealt power forward Reggie Evans, along with guard Jason Terry, to the Sacramento Kings for guard Marcus Thornton just before the trade deadline.
But with other possible options surfacing, such as Glen "Big Baby" Davis, whose contract was bought out by the Orlando Magic, Brooklyn isn't jumping to make a deal with Collins.
"I don't think there's a rush," coach Jason Kidd said. "We have an opportunity to get better, so management has to look at all the different options. There has to be a decision if we're going to go with Jason or if there's an opportunity for another player. It's a process."
Kidd believes Collins could help some NBA team down the stretch, though, and theorized that the lack of player movement throughout the league before this week probably prevented it from happening sooner.
"The league has been slow in making moves this year, but I think at some point, Jason will probably be on a roster," Kidd said. "He's a basketball player, he's a great guy and he can help a team. I think that's the way any team is going to look at it."
As for the social ramifications, Williams was blunt about the NBA and other professional sports leagues getting in step with the times regarding acceptance of gay athletes.
"It's 2014," he said. "We have the situation with (Michael) Sam, who just came out in college and his teammates welcomed him. So it's time for the NBA to do it."
The Warriors are well aware of that -- Thornton has a 15.4-point scoring average against them in 18 career games with the Kings. Thornton has been sidelined with a hip injury and did not practice with the Nets on Friday. He did not play Wednesday night in the Warriors' win at Sacramento.
Brooklyn (25-27) at Warriors (33-22), 7:30 p.m. CSNBA
Jason Collins
Center hasn't played in NBA since last season.


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In diverse contexts, the graduate is able to dance with superior artistry—demonstrate (through a body of work for evaluation), professional, entry-level competence in the major area(s) of specialization, including significant technical mastery, capability to produce work and solve professional problems independently, and a coherent set of artistic/intellectual goals that are evident in their work.
The graduate is able to choreograph and produce (plan, prepare, direct, and manage) dance effectively.
History and Criticism
In historical, cultural, and stylistic contexts, the graduate is able to respond to dance critically and analytically –form and defend analyses and critiques of dance and to communicate dance ideas, concepts, and requirements to professionals and lay persons related to the practice of the major field.


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Trey Anastasio Band,
Friday, 05/13/2005
Hammerstein Ballroom, New York, NY
Set 1: Night Speaks to a Woman, Burlap Sack and Pumps, 46 Days, Push On 'Til the Day, Dig a Pony[1], Dark and Down, Will It Go Round in Circles?, In the Light, Drifting, Sledgehammer
Set 2: The Way I Feel > Mr. Completely > Cayman Review, Goodbye Head > Space Oddity > Black, Come As Melody
Encore: Mean Mr. Mustard[2] > Polythene Pam[2] > She Came In Through the Bathroom Window[2] > Golden Slumbers[2] > Carry That Weight[2] > The End[2]
[1] Dedicated to Tom Marshall.
[2] TAB debut.
Notes: Particle opened. This setlist is unconfirmed as recordings of the performance do not circulate. "Dig a Pony" was dedicated to Tom Marshall. All of the encore songs (from The Beatles' Abbey Road) were TAB debuts.
Musicians: Trey Anastasio, Skeeto Valdez, Ray Paczkowski, Peter Chwazik, Les Hall


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BATON ROUGE, La. – Demie Mainieri, the father of LSU baseball coach Paul Mainieri, will be inducted Saturday night into the College Baseball Hall of Fame. The ceremony will take place at the Overton Hotel in Lubbock, Texas, as part of the annual Night of Champions event.
Click here for the original story.
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Prep school football previews
Head coach: Tyler Whitley (2nd season, 6-2)
2012 record: 6-2
Assistant coaches: Nick MacDonald, defensive coordinator, OL-DL; Casey DíAnnolfo, QB-DB; Tom Cesarz, (OL-LB), Mike Hoffman (WR-LB), Bob Ganung (WR-DL).
Captains: Alex Huard (Sr., WR-CB-PK), Carty Campbell (Sr., OL-LB), Petey Colon (Sr., RB-LB).
Other key players: Quentin Harris (Jr., QB), Chuddy Nwachukwu (PG, OL-DL), Bradni Black (PG, OL-DL), Mick Pernell (PG, RB-WR-CB, of Naugatuck), DeJion Evans (PG, WR-S), Will Sipperly (Sr., RB-S), Nadir Pearson (Jr., WR-DB).
Other area players: John Jones (Sr., WR-DB, Southbury), John Gribbin (Jr., (OL-LB, Watertown), Richard Gilland (Jr., TE-LB, Thomaston), RJ Susi (So., Ol-DL, Litchfield), Dean Pope (Fr., WR-DB, Middlebury).
Whitley's take: "We have a very talented team with excellent overall speed and quickness. Taft will spread the field and use our athletes to attack the opponent's defense."
Season opener: Saturday, vs. Salisbury, at Taft, 3:45 p.m.
Cheshire Academy
Head coach: David Dykeman (2nd season, 7-2)
2012 record: 7-2, New England Bowl appearance
Assistant coaches: Jeff Davidsson, defensive coordinator; Mike Greene, special teams; Kevin Kehoe, OL; Rich Ferraro, WR; Jermetryius Troy, DB; Ed Bobinski, head JV.
Captains: Mike Caldwell (Sr., OL-DL, Cheshire), Matt Torrey (Sr., TE-LB, Cheshire), Alec Keener (Sr., OL-DE, Wallingford).
Other key players: Patrick Kehoe (Jr., QB), MJ Kehoe (Jr., OL-DL), Alex Bell (Sr., OL). Area players: Sean Herdman (Sr., WR-DB, Cheshire), Rudy Fleischmann (So., WR-DB, Cheshire), Joe Zukauskas (Jr., QB-DB), Jack Davis (Fr., RB-LB), Steven Fowler (So., OL-LB, Cheshire), Jon Fox (Fr., WR-DB, Wolcott), Travis Ecke (Fr., TE-DB), Nick Mango (Fr., WR-DB, Wolcott), Adler DeMack (Fr., QB-DB, Cheshire).
Dykeman's take: "Cheshire Academy looks to have another great year. The offensive line will be crucial to our success. On defense, we look to fly around and play a very aggressive style."
Season opener: Saturday, Home vs. Pomfret, 7 p.m.
Head coach: Ken Parson (5th season, 20-13)
2012 record: 6-2
Assistant coaches: Sean Milano (WR-DB), Ben Brauer (RB-DB).
Captain: Noah Rak (Sr., RB-LB).
Other key players: JJ Dunn (Jr., QB), Ezra Holmes (Sr., OLB), Da'Sean Downey (PG, OT-DE), Zach Mesdey (PG, FB-LB), Steve Randazzo (PG, C-LB), Casey Fuller (Sr., TE-DE), Julien Higgs (Sr., WR-DB), Connor Collier (Sr., WR), Mike Decker (Sr., PK-P).
Other area players: Tyler DeJesus (Sr., Southbury), Chris Anderson (Sr., Woodbury), Wiley Walker (Jr., Middlebury), John Calcagni (So., Cheshire), Scott Carusillo (Sr., Woodbury).
Parson's take: "Our offensive line is pretty stout. If they can come together, our running game can be pretty decent. Defensively, we have good athletes who run to the ball. Our kicking game is very solid."
Season opener: Saturday, at Wilbraham & Munson.
Information in previews submitted by coaches.
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Top Hair Trends of 2012
What's dangly, bedazzled, and gorgeous all-over? These earrings. Put them on and you'll be surprised how quickly your jeans, tee, and classic black pumps transform into an instantly date-night ready look.
Express Stone Encrusted Drop Earrings, $30, express.com
This continental-style zip wallet gets upgraded with calf hair detailing in the uber-chic, luxe shade.
C. Wonder Calf Hair Continental Zip Wallet in Emerald, $88, cwonder.com
Jenni Rivera's Fearless Style Through the Years


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Event Details
Walk for Justice
Event Date: Monday, January 21, 2013
Time: 1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.
Location: Schroeder Family School of Business Administration Building
Join us for the University of Evansville's 25th annual re-enactment of the 1963 Civil Rights March on Washington. 2013 marks the 50th anniversary of the original March on Washington. It is also Inauguration Day for President Barack Obama.
Participants should gather at 12:45 in the Bernhardt Atrium of the Schroeder Family School of Business Administration Building.
Add to My Calendar


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Art is all about freedom and fun - until you remember your fourth-grade teacher, you know, the one with the pinched nose and squinty eyes, who criticized your rooster tail or said your house couldn't possibly have a round window above the garage. Then, suddenly, your free-flow muscles get a little tight, just like that teacher's cranky mouth, and your forehead starts to fret and your mind freaks until you're holding your paintbrush so tightly your knuckles turn white.
And that's where Brittney Wilson steps in with her play workshop: Canvas and Cocktails.
Wilson's Canvas and Cocktails studio has been making a splash in Cherry Creek and South Glenn for three years by bringing the fun back into art. Though she earned a fine arts degree from Auburn University and continued her studies at the Lorenzo de Medici School of Art in Florence, Italy, she has dropped any stuffiness she might've picked up along the way, and now she's all about the essence of art:
"It is my objective to bridge the gap between fun art and fine art," Wilson writes on her website. "I look forward to helping you relax, have fun, and go home with a piece of art you can say is uniquely yours."
The studio caters to everything from families to bachelorette parties, and now Wilson takes it to go.
"Everyone I know who has gone has just loved it," said Maja Russer, director of events and entertainment at The Keystone Neighbourhood Company. "The store in the Front Range has been getting rave reviews, but sometimes it's hard for people to make it to Denver so we thought we'd bring them up to the mountains."
And with the upbeat creative class for both the artistic and not-so artistic comes a theme most mountain people can relate to: Participants will learn, step by step, to paint pairs of colorful skis. Russer expects 50-75 people.
"It's easy, fun and totally stress free," Russer said. "By the end of the night, you will be amazed at the artwork you have created."


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SACRAMENTO -- Gov. Jerry Brown's new budget proposal drew praise Monday from state analysts for his "prudent" commitment to pay down the state's debt, but they slammed his pitch to use a climate change fund to prop up the bullet train.
Last week, Brown introduced a $106.8 billion general-fund budget for the next fiscal year that would spend $11 billion, or more than 10 percent of the overall budget, to pay off the state's credit cards.
He also wants to put $1.6 billion in a reserve fund to protect the state from financial meltdowns.
"The governor's proposal would place California on an even stronger fiscal footing," said the report from the nonpartisan Legislative Analyst's Office. "Setting aside money for a rainy day is exactly what the state should be doing when revenues are soaring as they are now."
Indeed, the report suggests billions more may come in by the spring.
But transferring $250 million in fees collected from the state's biggest polluters under the state's landmark "cap and trade" program to the cash-strapped high-speed rail project would be "legally risky" and "inefficient," according to the report.
The high-speed rail project's state and federal funding has been in jeopardy since late last year when a Sacramento judge rejected the California High-Speed Rail Authority's request to sell $8.6 billion in bonds. The judge ordered officials to show how they will pay for the first 300 miles of track, from Merced to the San Fernando Valley.
If the San Francisco to Los Angeles rail line is ever built, it will reduce emissions by deterring travel on the state's roadways, the analysts conceded. Until then, the project's heavy construction equipment will actually produce new emissions.
And because the cap and trade fees must be used to ease the adverse effects of the activity on which the fee is levied, the state's lawyers advised the analysts that spending cap and trade money on high-speed rail presents legal challenges.
Speaking at Fresno City Hall on Monday, Brown defended his bullet-train financing plan, the Los Angeles Times reported.
"I believe it's legal, my lawyers believe it's lawful," he said. "It's a very appropriate source of funding. You take funding that's coming off petroleum or fossil fuel use and put it into a rail system that will over time reduce greenhouse gases."
Monday's report is the sharpest indictment yet of the governor's plan to spend new state money on the train, and the analysts' concerns echo criticisms lawmakers and environmentalists voiced last week after they learned of the plan.
Many environmental advocates who questioned spending some cap and trade money on high-speed rail still praised the plan to spend $600 million on more immediate greenhouse gas reductions, such as retrofitting state buildings, reducing the risk of forest fires and water conservation.
"He's put together a really good plan for cap and trade money, with the exception of high-speed rail," said Kathryn Phillips, executive director of Sierra Club California. "It doesn't make sense to use this kind of money for a project that isn't going to (produce) greenhouse gas reductions when we need them most desperately, and that's now."
The analysts also expressed concern over spending on higher education, jails and the teacher pension plan.
New money for state colleges and universities should come with more strings attached, according to the report, and California may not need the new county jails Brown has pledged hundreds of millions of dollars to build.
The analysts also stressed that Brown must allocate some of the state's unexpected revenue to CalSTRS, the underfunded teacher pension system. Currently, it hasn't enough money to ensure its solvency.
Contact Jessica Calefati at 916-441-2101. Follow her at Twitter.com/calefati. Read the Political Blotter at IBAbuzz.com/politics.


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BCS championship tickets still pricey
Published: Monday, December 24, 2012 at 3:30 a.m.
Last Modified: Sunday, December 23, 2012 at 11:19 p.m.
MONTGOMERY | If you want to take in the BCS National Championship Game between Alabama and Notre Dame, it'll only cost you $950, plus some fees.
That's the lowest price listed on StubHub, a leading online ticket exchange. It's actually lower than a few weeks ago, and less than the average get-in price for the two previous championship games involving Alabama and Auburn.
That price is for standing-room only. It'll take another $50 to get actual seats in the end zone of the upper levels.
From there, prices skyrocket. Want to sit close to midfield? In the upper deck, it's at least $1,650. In the lower level, try $2,500. At the top of the ladder, there's a suite close to midfield. Get the whole thing for $158,828.
Reader comments posted to this article may be published in our print edition. All rights reserved. This copyrighted material may not be re-published without permission. Links are encouraged.


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Another common mistake made by duck hunters, according to Curtis, is failing to adjust their calling tactics to changes in weather and duck behavior. "You can't just call the same way every day and expect it to work," Curtis says. "You have to adapt your calling to the conditions and find out what the ducks want to hear on that particular day. On a sunny, windy day, ducks may respond well to loud, aggressive calling, while on a still, cloudy day, they may work better to feeding calls and single hen quacks. Mix up your calling and see how the first few flocks respond to different calls. If they react favorably to a particular call or style of calling, go with it."
Haydel also encourages duck hunters to experiment with their calling techniques. "Back in my younger days, I did a lot of contest calling," Haydel recalls. "There was one morning when I tried every calling trick I knew, and the ducks never responded. So I finally took out my contest call and started ringing it like I was on stage. Sure enough, the ducks started responding, and before we knew it, we had a limit. You never really know what is going to work best on any given day."
Arkansas outfitter and call maker Jim Ronquest concurs. "You want to establish a dialogue with the ducks when you're calling," he says. "Read the birds and see how they respond to different calls. In this way, you can see what's working and then use those tactics to get the birds to do what you want them to.
"Say you have a high bunch of ducks," he continues. "I'll usually hit them with a couple of loud, hard greeting calls. Then I'll see if their wings check or their wing beat slows down a little. If they do, I'll become even more aggressive with my calling, and if they keep coming, I'll keep on calling the same way. But if they slow down, or start to waver a little, then I'll back off and slow down my calling. Or vice versa, if I start calling soft and easy and get a good response initially, I'll stay with it. But if they start to drift, I'll pick up the pace and the urgency of my calling and try to get them back on line."
Like people everywhere, waterfowlers can be creatures of habit, and many duck hunters use the same call for years simply because it's what they've always used. But Ronquest advises waterfowlers to be more discerning in their call selection. "A duck call is just like a pair of waders—if it doesn't fit you, you won't want to put it on every morning," he explains. "A lot of people get a call and stick with it when they would really be better off with another call. On the other end of the spectrum, there are guys who are constantly switching from call to call without ever really mastering one. They just keep buying calls trying to find the magic flute, and they never really succeed.
"You need to find a call that you like and then learn to do everything that call can do," Ronquest adds. "The best way to find the right call is to blow and experiment with a lot of different calls. We always encourage guys to come by the shop to try our calls, or go to outdoor festivals and shows and visit the booths that are selling calls. Don't be embarrassed to blow all the different calls and to ask the call makers questions. That's what we're there for. There are lots of good call makers out there, and all of us will do whatever we can to get you the call that's best for you."
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President Franklin D. Roosevelt signs the Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp Act into law.
First duck stamp, designed by Pulitzer-prize winning editorial cartoonist, Jay N. "Ding" Darling, issued.
Prairie drought peaks.


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|2008 Inductee (Basketball 1951-1954/Baseball 1952-1953)
Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi has named former University of Corpus Christi (UCC) Basketball and Baseball player, Octavio "O.B." Garcia as a 2008 inductee into the Athletic Hall of Honor.
Garcia was born and raised in San Diego, Texas where he played basketball for three years and was the salutatorian of the Class of 1951. Garcia didn't have to travel far to continue his education as well as his stellar playing career. O.B. represented the UCC Tarpons on the basketball court from 1951-1954 and played baseball from 1952-1953 prior to his graduation in the summer of 1954. Again, Garcia did not stray far from his South Texas roots earning a master's in education from Texas A&I Kingsville in 1957.
Upon graduation, he accepted a job as a math teacher and head basketball coach from 1954-1959 in his hometown, San Diego. Garcia migrated back to Corpus Christi and began a 34-year career with Corpus Christi Independent School District (CCISD). Garcia spent nearly all of his time with CCISD in administrative roles serving as Assistant Principal at both Northside/Coles Junior High School and Miller High School as well as serving as Principal at Martin and South Park Junior high schools. Upon his retirement from CCISD, Garcia accepted a position with his alma mater, now Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, as a part-time teacher recruitment coordinator, a position his still holds today.
Garcia held a number of leadership roles during his professional career including serving on the board of directors of the Texas Association of School Principals, president of the Texas Association of Secondary School Principals, and executive director of the Corpus Christi Principals and Supervisors Association. Garcia has also found time to give back to the South Texas community. He has been a Red Cross Volunteer in the Disaster Services field for more than 40 years and has served two separate terms on the local chapter of the Red Cross board.
In recent years, Garcia has very active on campus at A&M-Corpus Christi. In addition to his position as a teacher recruitment coordinator, he has served as an adjunct professor, and National Alumni president-elect.
Garcia has received numerous accolades during his distinguished career. He is most proud of the fact that the City of Corpus Christi proclaimed May 17, 1985 as O.B. Garcia Day. Garcia was also selected as the top Secondary Principal in Corpus Christi by CCAFT in both 1987 and 1992. He was inducted into the San Diego ISD Hall of Honor in 1995.
Garcia, whose wife Viola is deceased, spends as much time as possible with his daughter and two sons, as well as five grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.


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Central Christian College invites the community to participate in its fourth-annual art exhibit, which opens on Saturday in the Wesley Black Fine Arts Center, 1200 S. Main St., McPherson.
This exhibit is in conjunction with homecoming weekend festivities. The college will showcase the work of visual artists from the college, alumni, friends and the community.
It is the college's hope many artists will participate in this opportunity to share their enthusiasm for visual art that reflects Christianity.
The community also is invited to the 2013 artists' reception, which will be at 2 p.m. Oct. 20 in the Wesley Black Fine Arts Center.
Frank and Jean Ballew will be guest artists. This year's theme is "A Reflections of Kansas."
Location, ST | website.com


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Apple Cheerleaders Still Wave Pom Poms Despite Stock Swoon
As Apple shares tumbled from $700 to $500 last year in a matter of weeks, many longterm shareholders say they weren't frazzled.
In fact, they pounced on the opportunity to scoop up more stock on the cheap.
"Apple is still king of the hill," says David Rolfe, chief investment officer at Wedgewood Partners in St. Louis.
Investors large and small are grappling with what could be a watershed moment for Apple. In many fund managers' eyes, the recent decline could mark Apple's transformation from a high-flying growth stock to a more plodding value stock—one that trades at a low price relative to earnings and offers regular payments such as dividends.
Even so, many of the faithful haven't been shaken. Rolfe said he was adding to his Apple stake during the fourth quarter and the first few weeks of 2013 as the stock tumbled. It now makes up more than 9% in the RiverPark/Wedgewood fund, by far the fund's biggest weighting, and is pushing up against the firm's maximum holding thresholds.
More In Apple
- Apple and Yahoo May Take 'Coopetition' to a New Level
- Goldman Drops Apple From 'Conviction Buy' List, Keeps Buy Rating
- S&P 500's Record, With or Without Apple
- Podcast: Europe's Back, Volatility's Back, Is BlackBerry?
- BlackBerry Launch a Dud; Shares Keep Falling
- Apple's Big Technical Breakthrough Could Bode Well
"I wish we could add even more at these levels, but we can't," says Rolfe, who is the lead portfolio manager of the fund, which has about $500 million in assets under management.
Apple's meteoric rise during the bulk of 2012 pushed the stock above $700 in September, making it the biggest U.S. company ever, measured by stock-market value. But it then dropped by more than 30% to below $500 earlier this week.
Shares recently fell 0.3% to $504.55.
The fall exposed Apple – the largest stock in the Nasdaq Composite and the S&P 500 – for how large and influential it had become.
Yet Apple bulls still like the stock for a number of reasons. Many of the company's product lines were refreshed at the end of 2012, including the releases of the iPhone 5 and the iPad Mini. The company's cash hoard continues to grow and the stock is cheap on a valuation basis.
"It was certainly ripe for some profit taking," Rolfe said. "But the market is now pricing in a bear market of Apple's fundamentals, which just isn't the case. If you assume margins hold steady and the company maintains a single-digit growth rate, the fair value of the stock is still $750."
Others have expressed similar sentiment.
"I'll take Apple trading at a 20% discount to the S&P 500 any day," says Channing Smith, a portfolio manager at Capital Advisors in Tulsa, Okla., which has about $1.1 billion in assets under management.
Apple's trades at a price-to-earnings ratio of 10, compared with 13 times for companies on average in the S&P 500.
"It seems to me that the valuation is at trough levels here," says Smith, co-manager of the Capital Advisors Growth Fund, which has been long Apple since December 2009 and currently is the fund's second-biggest holding.
"The market's pricing in a very pessimistic scenario," he says. "If Apple delivers what it normally does at its next earnings report, we think the stock easily moves back into the $600 range. And if they continue to execute, it becomes a $700-to-$750 stock."
Jamie Cox, managing partner at Harris Financial Group, a financial-services firm in Colonial Heights, Va., believes much of the sell-off in Apple was driven by transitory factors. For starters, investors had been looking to take profits after a massive bull run for the stock ahead of a potential rise in capital-gains taxes in 2013, he said.
In addition, traders who make bets based on price movements – so-called technicals – have been regarded as bearish. That won't last forever.
"We've been buying a lot of it recently," said Cox, whose firm manages money for retirees and oversees about $500 million in assets. "The selling has been driven largely by technical as opposed to fundamental factors."
He argues the company's fundamentals make it a buy. In particular he points to the company's Apple cash hoard of $121.25 billion as of the end of September. At that level, the amount of cash on Apple's books of bigger than all but 18 of the companies in the S&P 500.
"A company with as much cash as Apple still has an enormous amount of power than it can bring to the marketplace and reward investors," says Cox, whose firm has owned Apple shares since 2005.
Chip Cobb, senior vice president at Bryn Mawr Trust Asset Management, which oversees about $6.1 billion, said the firm added to its Apple position a few weeks ago when the stock first fell near $500.
"We're still a true believer," said Cobb, whose firm has owned Apple since 2010. "The company has an unbelievable balance sheet and is a true innovator in what they do."
Related: Paul Vigna and Steven Russolillo discuss on Markets Hub whether it's time to rethink investing in Apple.
For more MarketBeat and other streaming markets coverage from The Wall Street Journal, point your mobile browser to wsj.com/marketspulse.


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July 6, 2014 - Over the past ten months, Chance Copperstone, an Applied Archaeology M.A. student at the University of Arizona in Tucson, Arizona, has been analyzing the animal bone recovered from the Stable Quarter, South Yard, Tobacco Barn Quarter and the Field Quarter.
July 4, 2014 - White House-backed group to study Madisonian concepts of government.
June 25, 2014 - Award-winning civics curriculum training at Montpelier's Robert H. Smith Center for the Constitution to be led by University of Richmond Professor of Law Henry L. Chambers, Jr.
June 21, 2014. This winter and spring Archaeologist Sam Henderson has spent her time analyzing plant remains collected from the three early 19th century slave quarters excavated at Montpelier as part of a National Endowment for the Humanities grant.
June 9, 2014 - Last week, Montpelier archaeologists made an exciting discovery that changes our understanding of the Montpelier landscape and reveals new questions to investigate!
May 13, 2014 - Hampton-Sydney's David Marion and international human rights advocates convene at the Robert H. Smith Center for the Constitution to explore the Madisonian approach to human rights issues.
May 1, 2014 - Maggie L. Walker Governor's School for Government and International Studies of Richmond, Virginia places third in the 27th Annual We the People National Finals.
Wrapping up the winter metal detecting expeditions atop Chicken Mountain, Montpelier Archaeology returns to the mansion in hopes of learning how the plantation landscape changed after James and Dolley returned to Montpelier from Washington.
April 24 - Professor of History and Political Science Emertitus at Syracuse University, foremost biographer of James Madison, and founding member of The Montpelier Foundation, Ralph Ketcham, Ph.D., shares insight and reflections on the significance of James Madison's library.
March 16 - Keynote Speech from Michael Signer, Ph.D, at James Madison's 263rd Birthday Celebration.
Administered by The Montpelier Foundation © 2007–2016 The Montpelier Foundation


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rogerfederer.com - Taking the rivalry to a new level
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Taking the rivalry to a new level
Sunday's match between Roger and Rafael Nadal will be their 19th encouter as professional tennis players. But the final of the Australian Open will take their rivalry to another level. The two have never met Down Under before. And it is the first time that Nadal will enter the court as world number one.
Roger has been defeated 12 times in 18 career meetings. The question now is whether Rafa can beat Roger on hard courts. This will be the Spaniard's first major final on the surface he has found hardest to master and on which Roger has ruled for five years. Roger won both matches they played on hard courts so far: 2006 and 2007 at the Tennis Masters in Shanghai. Our champ has won eight of his 13 Grand Slam titles on hard courts and has certainly proved that he is in great shape with impressive displays in Melbourne.
Roger is moving forward in many aspects of tennis history. With this weekend's final he is just one shiy of Ivan Lendl's unprecedented 19 major final appearances. And a win would lift him into a tie with Pete Sampras for 14 Grand Slam titles. "It's an unbelievable opportunity for me, not being No. 1 anymore, trying to beat No. 1 in the world and getting the 14th Grand Slam," Roger said.
Sublime shot-making from both players. It's a pity in end that there had to be loser.
I didn't have the heart to watch most of the final set after Roger was down 1-3. After that, it was inevitable that he would lose.
Well, now I guess t
SHOULD Any of us reproach ROGER for this loss?
I do not think so. Becouse He did an amaizing Game. and he deserved to WIN. We all are FANS and maybe we are Upset, MAd, o
guys please be understanding.he was so great don t punish him he suffers enough.
Roger you are GREAT. Thank you ons more
I can't imagine how you feel but have an inkling. You're always number one to me!
Go, Rogie!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
dun cry! !!!!!(maybe the god just kidding you)
you are still our hero and still No.1 in fan's heart:)
Tonight you played a wonderful game because you never give up..
All the best for the next game:)


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Jbird wrote:sounds like the only thing that sucks now is you and youre buddys golf game. mabe you should build some baskets of your own, then mabe you can apprecate others hard work, it's a hell of alot easyer to open a box and put a basket together and send the bill to the city council
marty67 wrote: my buddy bounced his disc off the frozen lake and around the corner on hole 2 and put it 2 feet from basket for easy bird , easily one of the craziest shots i have ever seen , he skipped it up off froze lake on 11 as well.
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Holiday Types
Holiday TypesKE Adventure Travel offer holidays with a difference, with packages to suit everyone from family groups to seasoned explorers. Whether you want to climb Kilimanjaro, trek the iconic Inca Trail to Machu Picchu or cycle across the Tibetan plateau, we can make it happen.
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Our School Expeditions programme presents a worldwide collection of adventurous and educational itineraries, each of which has been devised with school groups and students in mind.
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Discover the unique wildlife of the Arctic and Antarctica, perhaps the last pristine and true wilderness left on our planet
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DestinationsA holiday with KE Adventure Travel will expose you to the world's most amazing landscapes and cultures and allow you to get under the skin of your chosen destination! With over 400 adventure holidays to more than 80 countries on offer, where will you choose next?
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With more than 40 countries and as many different languages, Europe has great cultural diversity.
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Lying between the Mediterranean and the Arabian Sea, the Middle East is steeped in history and this is part of the appeal of any holiday to this region.
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The Polar regions are possibly the only true wilderness areas left in the world and we take the utmost care to keep it that way on our exciting range of Polar holidays.
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The varied lands of South-East Asia have a mystique which makes them irresistible to adventurers.
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About UsWith more than three decades of worldwide experience, KE Adventure Travel is one of the world's most respected adventure tour operators. Proudly independent and with a team of some of the most travelled staff in the industry you can always find someone to talk to who has actually been on your chosen trip.
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Holiday Overview
Holiday Overview
- Everyone will love Vesuvius Volcano and the amazing Pompei
- Kids will love the cheesy visit to a Mozzarella factory!
- Get to know your gelato - the world`s best ice cream is in Italy!
- All the family can learn to make the perfect Italian pizza!
Italy and the Amalfi Coast may be famed for its delicious food, stunning coastline and its 10 hours of daily sunshine, but they also have all the ingredients for an amazing family adventure! Our base for this great Italian family holiday is in the traditional hillside village of Agerola where we stay in a family-friendly hotel. During the week we explore the rugged Amalfi coast taking in several short walks, retracing the steps of Romans, ancient traders and even modern-day packs of mules. With visits to the pink town of Positano and Amalfi itself, we embrace the Italian culture with time for the best gelato in the world and plenty of opportunity for swimming. We have more family fun with a boat ride from Amalfi harbour along the coast and out to the Isle of Capri, which is Amalfi in miniature. Here we walk the lanes of the 'passeggiata and the Via Tragara to see the limestone stacks of the Faraglioni. Back on the mainland, we visit the town of Pompeii, buried for centuries by volcanic ash and we walk up Mount Vesuvius to look into the smouldering crater. The week ends with a lesson in pizza making - magnifico for the bambinos!
Is this holiday for you?
Suitable for children from 7yrs old
This is relaxing centre-based family holiday, exploring the Amalfi coast of Italy. During the week of this family holiday the group will make day excursions from their base in Agerola. On five days there will be a short walks lasting no more than 2 - 2.5 hours, conducted at a leisurely pace. The group will travel by boat or hydrofoil to the Isle of Capri. There is ample time during the holiday to enjoy the beach and also a free day for families to make their own explorations or excursions.
Brief ItineraryView in full
- Meet at the group hotel in Agerola. A single transfer from Naples Airport is provided.
- Full day trip to Island of Capri to see rock formations, sea grottos, an easy walk, swim and snorkelling
- Easy walk through vineyards and terraces. Visit local hand made mozzarella cheese factory
- Visit and walk through streets of Pompeii. Afternoon walk on slopes of Vesuvius.
- Drive to Ravello, try some gelato, easy walk through Valley of Mills, learn how paper is made.
- A free day for optional visits to the town, the coast, a boat ride and surrounding area.
- Walk along one of Europe's best walks 'The Walk of the Gods'
- Departure day. A single transfer to Naples Airport is provided.
Tour dates and prices
Tour dates and prices
Land Only
|Sat 22 Oct - Sat 29 Oct
|Code FAF /06/16/
|Status Available
|Book now
More information
|Sat 08 Apr - Sat 15 Apr
|Code FAF /01/17/
|Status Available
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|Sat 27 May - Sat 03 Jun
|Code FAF /02/17/
|Status Available
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|Sat 15 Jul - Sat 22 Jul
|Code FAF /03/17/
|Status Guaranteed
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|Sat 19 Aug - Sat 26 Aug
|Code FAF /04/17/
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|Sat 21 Oct - Sat 28 Oct
|Code FAF /05/17/
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|Sat 07 Apr - Sat 14 Apr
|Code FAF /01/18/
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|Sat 26 May - Sat 02 Jun
|Code FAF /02/18/
|Status Available
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If flying from the UK there are a number of low cost airlines offering flights to Naples. These include Easyjet who have flights from London, Liverpool & Edinburgh. Other airports may be available.
Flights SHOULD NOT be booked until you have received your booking confirmation and the departure is showing 'Guaranteed to Run' or 'Limited'.
If you would prefer to book a 'flight inclusive package' using scheduled airlines from the UK please contact our flights department for a quote. Whilst flight prices are likely to be more expensive you will benefit from full financial protection.
BOOK WITH KE CONFIDENCE - No surcharge guarantee
The price of our holidays can change depending on a variety of factors but unlike some other tour operators, KE have undertaken to guarantee the Land Only price of your holiday will not change after you have booked. The price when you book is the price you will pay, whether you are booking for this year or the next. Book early to avoid any tour price increases, get the best flight prices and take advantage of our 'No Surcharge Guarantee'.
KE Adventure Travel is a fully ATOL licensed and bonded tour operator with ABTA and AITO.
Map & Itinerary
Map & Itinerary
The Route
- point
- airport
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- transfer
- trek
Holiday Itinerary
Meet at the group hotel in Agerola. A single transfer from Naples Airport is provided.
The group will meet at Naples airport and take the single timed transfer to our rural location for the week, in the hilltop town of Agerola. With time to settle into our accommodation for the week, in the afternoon we have a briefing from our guide on the week's activities
Accommodation Hotel
Meals d
Full day trip to Island of Capri to see rock formations, sea grottos, an easy walk, swim and snorkelling
After breakfast we travel by local bus and enjoy a picturesque journey down to the colourful port of Amalfi to board our private boat as we enjoy a mini-cruise to reach the island of Capri. With resplendent views of cliff side villages, we skirt around the coastline to view many of the rock formations and sea grottos which once a hide out for vagrants of the sea. On arrival into Capri, we start our island adventure on foot and follow a network of picturesque lanes known as 'the passeggiate' as we walk our way to the Via Tragara. This tree-lined walk offers spectacular views over Capri's iconic, limestone formations known as the Faraglioni rocks. Taking a traditional picnic lunch, there is free time in the afternoon to continue exploring Capri Town and it's uphill rival, Ana Capri or find a spot for an afternoon swim. In the late afternoon, we return to the mainland by public ferry to meet our private transfer back to our group hotel.
Swimming: In the sea on Capri Island
Accommodation Hotel
Meals bld
Time 2 hours walking
Easy walk through vineyards and terraces. Visit local hand made mozzarella cheese factory
Perched high above the coastline, the town of Agerola sits in a fertile valley, surrounded by forests. Starting from our hotel, we walk along ancient mule tracks, passing through terraces of pomordori and vineyards of the local farmers, where we may meet some local characters along the way. Our well-paced walk, follows wonderful limestone ridge where there are beautiful views of the Amalfi coast and plenty of historical tales to be expected from our guide! Before we return to relax at our accommodation we stop by the local mozzarella cheese making factory. Unlike traditional buffalo mozzarella, the Agerolan people continue to hand make mozzarella with cow-milk and there will be plenty of opportunity to kneading and stretching necessary to make this iconic cheese!
Accommodation Hotel
Meals bld
Time 2 hours walking
Visit and walk through streets of Pompeii. Afternoon walk on slopes of Vesuvius.
Taking a short private bus transfer, we descend from the hills and head to the sleeping town of Pompeii. The story of Pompeii is well-known. After a cataclysmic eruption of the nearby volcano, Vesuvius, the town of Pompeii was buried under the hot spewing ash for around 1700 years until it was rediscovered by Italian architect Domenico Fontana. Walking around this town is a real education for children and parents alike, as we tour the streets, visiting well preserved sites such as the amphitheatre, baths and many shops. We have lunch at a wine farmhouse on the slopes of the volcano – good food and wine! In the afternoon we transfer by private minibus to the Mount Vesuvius and begin our very achievable summit walk. Talking approximately 45 minutes to reach the first section of crater rim, we can look right down into Vesuvius and begin to imagine the eruption of 79AD as we enjoy extensive views back across the Bay of Naples. Entrance fees to Pompeii and Vesuvius are payable locally. Pompeii is €13 per adult (children are free), Vesuvius is €10 per person. With around a 90 minutes drive back to our accommodation in Agerola we enjoy another local pasta dish! Magnifico!
Accommodation Hotel
Meals bld
Drive to Ravello, try some gelato, easy walk through Valley of Mills, learn how paper is made.
After breakfast we take a local bus from Agerola down to the coast and up to Amalfi's jewel in the crown, Ravello. Peaceful and picturesque, Ravello sits high on a cliff with wonderful views across the Mediterranean and down to Amalfi. Taking some free time to explore this beautiful village we gather in the main square to sample local gelato flavours before beginning our delightful walk through the 'Valley of the Mills'. Known locally as 'Valle Mulini' we follow the Caneto River, stopping for a waterside picnic as we wander past many of the old paper mills of Amalfi. On arrival into Amalfi, you may wish to visit one of the paper-making shops and learn how they still produce 'Amalfi' paper by traditional method. As you wander the streets in Amalfi you will see, many of the shops selling colourful ceramic souvenirs. Later in the afternoon we take a visit to one of the local factories, where we learn about the local ceramic production.
Accommodation Hotel
Meals bld
Time 2 - 3 hours walking
A free day for optional visits to the town, the coast, a boat ride and surrounding area.
Whether you prefer to explore the beaches and warm calm waters of the Mediterranean, take a boat ride along the coast, visit the buried city of Herculaneum or simply relax at the hotel, today is a free day for you to do as you please! Your guide will be able to assist you with any plans you may have as there are plenty of options available.
Accommodation Hotel
Meals b
Walk along one of Europe's best walks 'The Walk of the Gods'
Rated as one of the best walks in Europe the 'Walk of the Gods' follows an ancient mule track which links the village of Agerola to the pink town of Positano. Leaving our accommodation on foot, we begin our straightforward walk and enjoy spectacular views across the Sorrentine peninsula and Isle of Capri. Passing through terraces of grapes, lemons and tomatoes, we may be able to meet some of the local famers on our way to the charming hillside village of Nocelle where we will stop for a picnic lunch. Finishing our journey to Positano with a short bus ride, we have plenty of time to stroll the streets of this cosmopolitan hang-out, or cool off with time on the beach. Finishing our Italian adventure with a boat journey back to port of Amalfi, we may have time for one last gelato before heading back to our accommodation for pizza making!
Swimming: In the sea at Positano
Accommodation Hotel
Meals bld
Time 2 - 3 hours walking
Departure day. A single transfer to Naples Airport is provided.
After breakfast there is a single timed transfer to Naples airport, where KE Land Only services end. Depending on flight times we may have time for some final gelato or coffee.
Meals b
Holiday Information
Holiday Information
What's included
- English-speaking local guide
- Group airport transfers
- All accommodation as described
- Meals as detailed in the Meal Plan
- All land transport required by the itinerary
- All activities mentioned in the itinerary except where specified as 'optional'
What's not included
- Travel insurance
- Visas (if applicable)
- Airport transfers other than group transfers
- Some meals as detailed in the Meal Plan
- Entrance fees to Pompeii and Vesuvius
- Extra activities and excursions indicated as optional
- Tips for local staff
- Miscellaneous personal expenditure
Breakfasts are taken at our overnight accommodation and consist of tea and coffee, cereals, bread, jam etc. For lunch, the group will carry a few items to make up a picnic. Local produce such as cheeses, olives, fruits and vegetables, dried meats and biscuits are used. Dinner will be taken at the group hotel and will be traditional Amalfi fare.
Meal plan
Joining Arrangements & Transfers
View the gallery below for images of the style of accommodation used
Group Leader & Support Staff
Spending Money
Approximately €300 - 350 per family (based on 2 adults and 2 children) should be sufficient to cover your personal spending requirements including beer, wine, soft drinks, and mineral water. Cash can be withdrawn from ATMs in most towns and if you are bringing your spending money with you, we recommend that you carry your travel money in the form of Euros. If you are intending to buy expensive souvenirs, you should budget accordingly. Also, if you expect to buy considerable quantities of soft drinks, wine or beer, you should make an allowance for this too.
Guidance on Tipping
Tipping is the accepted way of saying 'thank you' to your leader and local team. Tipping is entirely voluntary and should be dependent on good service. We recommend that you decide levels of tipping and give any tips as a group rather than from individual group members.
Baggage Allowance
There is no weight limit as such other than that imposed by the airline, but we do ask you to restrict your luggage to one main bag and one daypack per family member. Please bear in mind that you may have to carry your own bags for short distances in the airport and at the hotel. You may prefer to use wheeled luggage for this holiday.
KE Trek Bag
All KE clients will receive a FREE KE trek bag. These have been specially made to stand up to the rigours of adventure travel. Your KE bag will be posted to you when your trip is guaranteed to run or on receipt of your booking if the trip is already guaranteed. If you have travelled with us before and already have a KE trek bag you can select an alternative free gift in the booking process.
Equipment List
The following checklist should help you with your packing. As a general rule, you should always try to keep the weight of your equipment to a minimum.
You must bring the following items:
Comfortable hiking boots or walking shoes
Sandals or trainers
Trekking trousers
Baselayer shirts
T-shirts and/or casual shirts
Loose-fitting, long-sleeved shirt with collar (for sun protection)
Fleece jacket or warm jumper
Lightweight waterproof jacket
Warm hat
Lightweight gloves
Daypack 30 to 40 litres (depending on how much of the kids' stuff you want to carry)
Sun protection (including total bloc for lips, nose etc.)
Water bottles (approx 1 litre per person)
Swimwear and towel
Washbag and toiletries
Antibacterial handwash
Basic First Aid Kit including: Antiseptic cream, throat lozenges, diarrhoea treatment (Imodium) painkillers, plasters and blister treatment, Insect repellent, and re-hydration salts.
The following items are optional:
Trekking poles
Travel clothes
Small padlock (to lock your luggage)
Group Size and Holiday Status
For each holiday there is a minimum number of participants required to enable it to go ahead. Once the minimum number is reached, the trip status will change from 'Available' to 'Guaranteed to run'. You can check the trip status for each departure in 'Dates and Prices' table. Other than in exceptional circumstances, we will not cancel a trip once it has achieved this guaranteed to run status and so you are free to proceed with your international flight booking and other travel arrangements.
Passport & Visas
A passport with 6 months remaining validity at the end of your stay is generally required. The information that we provide is for UK passport holders. Please check the relevant embassy or consulate for other nationalities. It is your responsibility to ensure that you have the correct travel documents and visas for your holiday. Visa requirements and charges are subject to change without notice. If you are travelling outside the EU you should have at least 2 blank pages in your passport for each country that you visit.
Visa Europe
UK and USA passport holders do not require a visa.
Health & Vaccinations
You should contact your doctor or travel clinic to check whether you require any specific vaccinations. UK residents should obtain a free European Health Insurance Card (EHIC). This entitles you to state provided medical treatment, but is not a substitute for medical travel insurance which is still vital when travelling overseas.
The unit of currency in Europe is the Euro.
Electricity Supply & Plug
We recommend you check if you require an adaptor for your electrical items at:
Know before you go
As a reputable tour operator, KE supports the British Foreign & Commonwealth Offices 'Know before you go' campaign to enable British citizens to prepare for their journeys overseas, and we recommend that all KE travellers take a look at the FCO Travel Advice for their chosen destination on the official FCO website: www.fco.gov.uk. North Americans can also check out the U.S. Department of State website: www.travel.state.gov for essential travel advice and tips.
KE treat the safety and security of all clients as the most important aspect of any trip we organise. We would not run any trip that we did not consider reasonably safe. Should the FCO advise against travel for any reason, we will contact everyone booked to travel to discuss the situation. We receive regular updates direct from the FCO and are in constant touch with our contacts on the ground. If you have any questions about government travel advice, please call our office.
In May, June and October we can expect daytime temperatures of around 25°C , dropping at night to 15°C. We are unlikely to experience any rain, as Amalfi enjoys a favourable Mediterranean climate. During July and August you can expect hotter temperatures, up to 30°C .
Recent Reviews & Blog Posts
Recent Reviews & Blog Posts
Good or bad we publish ALL reviews so you can make an inspired and informed choice.
Why KE?Italia Magnifico! Our recipes for fun-filled family adventure holidays are tried and tested and guaranteed to satisfy the appetites of all the family
At A glance
- Max group size: 12
- 6 days activities and sightseeing
- Join in Naples
Accommodation & Meals
- 7 nights Hotel
- 7 breakfasts, 5 lunches and 6 dinners
KE Holiday Gallery
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Ирвинг против Липштадт
Holocaust Denial on Trial, Trial Judgment: Electronic Edition, by Charles GrayTable of Contents
|The case for the Defendan... >
|Irving's response >>
5.215Although this episode is one of those deployed by Evans in his report to substantiate the attack upon Irving's historiography, I will take it shortly because the Defendants did at one stage indicate that they were not intending to rely on it. Irving nevertheless chose to cross-examine Evans about it.
5.216The position in Italy in October 1943 was that Mussolini had been overthrown three months earlier to be replaced by a new Italian government which promptly surrendered to the Allies. The Nazis thereupon invaded Italy. Rome fell to the advancing Nazis. The country in general and Rome is particular were in a state of some administrative confusion. The position in the north of Italy was unstable.
5.217Both the 1977 and 1991 editions of Hitler's War recount how on 6 October 1943 the SS chief in Rome received an order to transfer 12,000 Roman Jews to northern Italy where they would be liquidated. According to Irving's account, the matter was then referred to Hitler's headquarters and the order came back that these Jews were to be taken to a concentration camp in upper Italy named Mauthausen to be held there as hostages, rather than be liquidated as had been ordered by Himmler. Irving argued that this episode reveals Hitler again showing concern for the Jews and striving to ensure that they would be kept alive.
|The case for the Defendan... >
|Irving's response >>


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Product Description
The Best of Bruce
by guest editor Steve Perry
Steve is editor-in-chief of City Pages newspaper in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
The Wild, the Innocent, and the E Street Shuffle (1973)
After a folk-rockish debut album that bubbled with ideas and dense lyrical play, this is where Springsteen began to find his voice as a rocker and as a songwriter. The prisoner-of-love romanticism of "Rosalita" and "Incident on 57th Street" hinted at what was coming, and this early version of the E Street Band--jazzier and more spare than later versions, thanks largely to David Sancious's piano--sounds great, if a little ragged, these many years later.
Born to Run (1975) and Darkness on the Edge of Town (1978)
These two records, which belong on any compilation of the top 100 rock albums of all time, sketched the themes that he would spend his whole career chasing, and defined the expectations fans would bring to his records ever after. The first chords of "Born to Run" sounded like freedom itself the first time I heard them on the radio, and the album lived up to them. "Thunder Road" is still the greatest rock & roll love song anyone's ever written. The record sounded so big and impassioned and propulsive it was easy to miss the dread running underneath it. Darkness... put the dread front and center. There are more of his best songs here than anywhere else, even if the sound is muddy and leaden at times.
Nebraska (1982)
After The River (the best record that didn't make this list) and the ensuing tour answered his rock & roll prayers--he was a big star now, not just a perennial critics' favorite--Springsteen holed up in a rented house on the Jersey shore, where he wrote these songs and sang them into a four-track recorder in his living room. The tape was supposed to be a demo for the band, but after several false tries he concluded that the tape he'd been carrying around in his pocket was the record. Quiet and bleak, Nebraska nonetheless grabbed you by the collar and made you listen as surely as his rock & roll records ever had.
Tunnel of Love (1987)
The glare and hubbub surrounding the Born in the USA tour (the tour was great--the record itself overrated) made him pull back again, this time to write a cycle of songs about love and fear and self-doubt. After this, Springsteen's first marriage broke up, and he started a family with Patti Scialfa, disappearing for the better part of 10 years, notwithstanding the pair of not bad, just disappointing albums he released in 1992, Human Touch and Lucky Town.
The Ghost of Tom Joad (1995)
Some call it Nebraska II, but his second acoustic album was not a repeat of his first--the characters and settings had changed, and their circumstances were more expressly desperate, and social--though it did share the same interest in what happens to people whose isolation or marginal status renders them invisible.
The Rising (2002)
Everybody--including Springsteen himself--seemed to think it was a record about 9/11, but the subject was broader: death and loss as seen from more than halfway down life's road. Dave Marsh nailed it: "A middle-aged man confronts death and chooses life." Brendan O'Brien's production sounds great.


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College for Public Health and Social Justice > About the College > Academic Units > Epidemiology
In the Department of Epidemiology at the College for Public Health & Social Justice, we are committed to improving global health and eliminating health disparities through our teaching, research and service.
Epidemiology is critical to public health because it defines the health of populations, focusing on determinants of disease and risk factors for disease.
These factors allow us to understand much of what causes human disease, leading to public health interventions to prevent disease in populations. These are fascinating and challenging times for epidemiologists - we have more methods and tools at our disposal than ever before, but we constantly face new health challenges in our global environment.
Our teaching at Saint Louis University seeks to provide students with a strong foundation in epidemiologic methods, ensuring that graduates are well-equipped to work in a variety of settings.
A major strength of our program is our close linkage with public health practice, including state and local health departments, community organizations, and health care organizations. We strive to provide our graduates with rigorous training, along with a real-world perspective on the role of epidemiology in understanding and preventing disease and disability.
We help our students gain experience in the field - in the St. Louis Metro area, other areas of the United States, and globally. We aim to make our graduates marketable and to help them work toward fellowships, such as the Epidemic Intelligence Service at the CDC.
Students who graduate with this degree are well-prepared for professional roles as project managers, study coordinators, and directors of outcomes research in a variety of settings such as health departments, the CDC, nonprofits, hospitals, and health systems.
Our faculty has a broad range of research interests, including maternal and child health, infectious diseases, injury-related epidemiology, environmental epidemiology, and cancer and chronic diseases. Our faculty members are able to draw from real-world experience, with various members previously holding positions in the CDC, the WHO, and as state epidemiologists.
Students can find specific areas of epidemiology that interest them where they can work one-on-one with faculty members to expand their research ability and apply what they have learned in the classroom to real public health issues; this experience can then be applied to future jobs.
Epidemiology can help thousands of people at once by identifying what their needs are and how to meet those needs in the most effective way.
Epidemiologists identify with the Jesuit mission by working side-by-side with people, where they are, to solve problems together. By controlling and preventing the spread of disease and finding better ways to improve health outcomes, epidemiologists can help to improve global health and eliminate health disparities.


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Just a Show Radio Ep#10 – No Small Talk Today
Producer Shawn summarizes his recent family vacation, and reveals that he may have been incepted when having a dream within a dream. Keith and Shawn had slightly different experiences while at the dentist. Keith's baby makes him feel fat. Weekly Rant: People who use their smartphone at the theater. Guest: Musician Wayne Sayres (Well Trained Monkey and The Party Clams). Hug Plug: Roku.
To learn more about Wayne Sayres visit the Well Trained Monkey page at http://www.reverbnation.com/welltrainedmonkey and The Party Clams page at http://www.reverbnation.com/thepartyclams.
Just a Show Radio is brought to you by Audible.com. Get a FREE audiobook download at http://www.audibletrial.com/justashow. Over 85,000 titles to choose from for your iPod or mp3 player.
Just a Show Radio is LIVE every Saturday at 12 noon CDT. Listen, participate, and download at http://www.justashow.com. You can also watch LIVE on UStream at http://www.ustream.tv/user/justashowradio and download in iTunes. Call in during the LIVE show at 651-315-TALK. Thanks to David Anthony for the show voicework.Download


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(1) How does one get QCad to have a particular scaling each time on start up? For example, a 4"by 4" grid on the screen. Can this be gotten through a template or other mechanism?
(2) How does a person scale an imported bit mapped or svg image to fit in the area defined by (1)? Right now imported images present at a scale of several feet across and are translated several feet away from the center point.


text:
Hi all, i've been trying out some settings for streaming 720p mkv files using a wired connection. The problem is I ain't got a clue what i'm doing!
What is the difference when i choose (on PS3) the normal mkv file or the mkv in 'transcoded'??
Which is best? What sort of settings should I be using given that its a wired connection?
And finally, if for e.g 'transcoded' is best is there a way of hiding all the other stuff (on PS3)?
Thanks to shagrath for the awesome app and all you who are helping us novices.


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Five times the Warren Local Board of Education placed a bond issue for new schools on the ballot, and five times Barlow resident John Nichols and a majority of voters in the district opposed it.
But a sixth, different issue is on the Nov. 6 general election ballot and Nichols - now a member of the board he criticized for putting the original question before voters a third and fourth time - is backing it. He hopes others who opposed the previous attempts will, too.
"The previous bond issues ... I just didn't feel that we needed five new buildings, especially with the economy the way it is now," Nichols said.
Then and now
The first four issues sought the 42 percent local share of a $74.6 million bond issue to replace the district's three elementary schools and high school and add a middle school. The last was at a rate of 8.19 mills, with a required half-mill permanent improvement levy, and failed by just eight votes. A fifth attempt sought three elementaries and a middle school, with voters asked to approve a 5.4-mill bond issue and 0.5-mill levy to raise 38 percent of a $53.6 million project. It was rejected by a more-than-1,300-vote margin.
The latest proposal asks for a 3.45-mill bond issue to raise the 36 percent local share of a $10.75 million project to build a new high school. Barlow-Vincent Elementary School would be torn down, and the existing high school converted to an elementary. As part of the same vote, the district is seeking a 5-mill permanent improvement levy that would raise $1,149,524.20 a year to fund needed repairs on the remaining schools while taking the burden for those costs off the district's general fund.
Fact Box
The issue
Rate: 3.45 mills for a 20-year bond issue to fund the local share of building a new high school; 5 mills for a 10-year permanent improvement levy).
Revenue: $10.75 million for the high school project, plus $1,149,524.20 a year for the permanent improvement levy.
Cost: $258.79 a year for the owner of a home valued at $100,000 for the first 10 years; $105.66 for the last 10 years.
Source: Warren Local Schools.
That's a combined 8.45 mills, which Nichols agrees at face value seems similar to the first four issues. But he noted the period for the bond issue repayment is 20 years instead of 28, a change made in response to some residents' criticism the original payback period was too long. And the levy is for 10 years, meaning the amount residents pay would drop halfway through the life of the bond issue if the levy isn't renewed.
And the money from that 5-mill levy won't go toward interest like some of the bond funding will, Nichols said.
"A hundred percent of the PI levy is showing up here," he said.
As with the previous votes, this issue has its supporters and detractors.
"I think it's too much money for what they're wanting, and it's over too long a time," said Helen Yeager, 74, of Warren Township.
The plan is not different enough from the previous ones to change her vote, said Yeager, who criticized district Superintendent Tom Gibbs for "more or less trying to shove it down the people's throats."
Yeager said she's part of the older generation without children in the school district that some people have blamed for the previous defeats.
"We paid our dues when our children were in school, and when you're on a fixed income, you can't always pay these higher taxes," she said.
Little Hocking resident Kim Gandee, 38, voted for the last five issues and says she's voting for this one.
"I think our children deserve the very best facilities to learn in that they can have," she said.
The mother of four Little Hocking Elementary students who she said are "receiving a wonderful education," Gandee is comfortable with this approach, which will make some repairs to the 75-year-old school instead of replacing it.
"If it's the best option that the board feels that they can put out there at this time, then I'm in full support of it," she said.
Current facilities
Some have questioned why district leaders are willing to move forward with buildings they previously wanted to replace.
"I still think (all) our buildings need replaced, but residents have said that's not something they're willing to support," board President Bob Allen said.
Nichols and Allen agree Barlow-Vincent - with open classrooms separated by shelves rather than walls and modular units for additional classroom space - is in the worst shape. Moving those students to the high school, which has already undergone some roof repairs, and building a new high school will touch most of the students in the district, Nichols said.
An estimated $7.5 million in repairs are needed at the high school and Warren and Little Hocking elementaries, including roof work, boiler replacements, electrical upgrades, plumbing replacements and more. District officials have repeatedly said there are no plans to close Little Hocking and Warren elementaries in favor of a single campus, as some people have suggested.
High school busing
One of the most divisive outcomes of the previous rejections is the elimination of high school busing, part of a series of cuts made in 2011 to free up money to repair the existing buildings. The service is not required under state law, but many residents, board members included, believe going without it is a significant hardship.
There is anecdotal evidence the change has contributed to the district's declining enrollment, as families transfer their children to other districts or enroll them in online schooling. State funding follows those students.
The board unanimously voted at its September meeting to approve the reinstatement of busing if the bond issue passes. Some residents have criticized that - as they did the initial cutting of busing - as blackmail. Allen and other board members have said it was a choice they didn't want to make but that previous cuts left them with few options.
More cuts
Allen said if this bond issue fails, the board will have more difficult choices to make.
"And that's not blackmail; it's just we have all these building repairs to make that's going to have to come from the general fund," he said.
Allen noted the district has already made numerous cuts over the years, to the point where it ranks 22nd out of Ohio's more than 600 public school districts in terms of cost per pupil in fiscal year 2011.
Gibbs said Warren is near state minimum staffing levels but could "theoretically" cut five more teaching positions.
"This would require either (a) doing away with all-day, everyday kindergarten or (b) reducing nearly every remaining elective course at Warren High School," he said. "Additionally, there would not be money to continue to make building repairs."
Gibbs noted that in the time since cuts like high school busing and the elimination of 12 teaching positions were approved, the district's state stabilization funding total dropped from nearly $900,000 (thanks to federal stimulus money) in fiscal year 2011 to zero in fiscal year 2012. Meanwhile, the acceleration of the tangible personal property tax reimbursement cut $322,000 last year and the same amount this year.
The latest five-year forecast shows the district in deficit spending each year, with a negative cash balance starting at the end of fiscal year 2015 as costs continue to rise. By law, the district must have a balanced budget.
Gibbs said the board has not discussed potential courses of action should the bond issue and levy be rejected. If that happens, he said, an updated staffing analysis would happen in January and planning would go from there.


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USMC Collectibles Honor a Proud Heritage
The United States Marine Corps has one of the most honored histories as a fighting force for our country. "From the halls of Montezuma to the shores of Tripoli," the Semper Fi spirit of the Marines is legendary across so many generations of service personnel. The Bradford Exchange Online is proud to honor this renowned service branch of the military with an exciting and exclusive array of USMC collectibles, sure to bring the rugged spirit of the Marines into your home to display with understandable pride. Select a handcrafted, hand-painted Marine Corps figurine to make the Marines' storied history come alive again, with powerful images of the flag-raising on Iwo Jima and other honored tributes to the Few, the Proud, the Marines!
It's time to make your support of the Marines a very personal statement of style when you wear a bold and beautiful Marine Corps ring that expresses your pride in your USMC connection. Each exclusively designed and handcrafted USMC men's ring is decorated with time-honored symbols of the US Marine Corps in USMC jewelry designs that are NOT sold in stores!
Bold Marine Corps Rings Capture the Semper Fi Spirit
For US Marine Corps service members past and present, one of the most personal statements that can be made about USMC affiliation is to wear one of our USMC rings that capture the rugged spirit of the Marines in exclusive fine jewelry designs not available in stores! Handcrafted of solid sterling silver, this USMC ring features a fierce sculpted eagle embracing the motif of the USMC eagle, globe and anchor, with the motto "Semper Fi" engraved inside. USMC rings like this celebrate your pride in your Marines service, and there's even a stunning diamond USMC women's ring available!
Choose Marine Corps Jewelry for Men and Women
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Marine Corps Apparel Shows Your Oo-Rah! Spirit
Your Marine Corps pride can be on display every day when you wear - or carry - Marine Corps apparel or fine personal accessories that have been designed to celebrate the honored "esprit de corps" of the United States Marines. From a luxurious USMC leather jacket featuring full-color artwork of Marines in action to a sleek USMC men's leather wallet or zippered travel case, you'll find the perfect USMC-themed item to round out your wardrobe and express your undying Ooh-Rah! spirit as well as your own personal style. To see the best selection of US Marine Corps collectibles, jewelry and apparel outside of the honored service branch itself, find them here at The Bradford Exchange Online. Shop Now!


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Raceland teen remembered as a 'good boy'
Published: Saturday, April 27, 2013 at 10:47 p.m.
Last Modified: Saturday, April 27, 2013 at 10:47 p.m.
A 17-year-old bicyclist struck and killed by a pickup Friday night was a student at Central Lafourche High who loved to play sports, a family friend said Saturday.
Serge Sumano Ortega, of Raceland, was riding south on an unlit section of La. 308 when a Ford F-150 hit him from behind about 8 p.m., State Police said. Ortega flew off his bike, onto the road, where the driver hit him again.
The driver, Andre Leblanc, 48, of Raceland, was not injured, police said. He agreed to a breath test, and police said he was not driving drunk.
Ortega was pronounced dead at the scene, just north of Raceland Junior High near the Alidore community, State Police said.
The teen did not have any illuminated devices on his bike, according to Troop C in Gray. As in all fatal crashes, officials will test Ortega's blood to determine if he was intoxicated. Those results are pending, and the crash remains under investigation.
Ortega was born in Mexico but has lived in Louisiana for at least seven years, said his father's friend Antoio Brito.
Ortega lived with his father along La. 182 in Raceland. He was his only child living with him in Louisiana, Brito said.
"He was a good boy," Brito said.
Ortega loved sports, including American football. Brito met the teen by playing soccer with him.
Ortega, who didn't have a car, rode his bike everywhere, Brito said.
Michael Comardelle, 56, didn't know Ortega but lives off La. 308 and often rides his bicycle along the highway, which runs along Bayou Lafourche. It would be dangerous to ride a bike where Ortega did on La. 308 because there's no sidewalk, Comardelle said.
"A lot of people don't respect you on the bike," he said. "A lot of people don't understand. They see a bicyclist on the road, and they think they're not supposed to be there."
Reader comments posted to this article may be published in our print edition. All rights reserved. This copyrighted material may not be re-published without permission. Links are encouraged.


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- Tea Pouches
- Loose Tea
- Iced Tea
- Teaware
- Gifts
- Sale
- Why Mighty Leaf?
Stainless Steel Loose Tea Travel Mug - 12 oz.
This Stainless Steel Loose Tea Travel Mug is ideal for brewing loose tea on the go. Made of 18/8 stainless steel inside and out, the mug keeps tea hot or cold and fresh for hours. To brew, you simply drop your tea leaves inside the infuser basket and pour hot water into the cylinder - your tea steeps inside. You can snap out the basket attached to the top of the lid. The slim profile of the mug makes it easy to carry in the hand, tote or purse.• 18/8 Stainless Steel Cylinder • Heat-resistant metal and plastic infuser basket • Cap disassembles and infuser disengage for quick, easy cleanup • 12 oz. capacity
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