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: [Pokémon]
Survival Project
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July 15th, 2013 (12:43 PM).
you can breathe now. x
Join Date:
Jun 2007
Illinois, USA.
chapter 27 ; [SENORI]
Oh, Sai. What could I say about him after all that had happened? I never realized that we had such disparate ideas of what life could be. He believed life could be controlled from afar. He believed life could be spent scared and paranoid. And here I thought that life could be spent in the aura of forgiveness and in the hands of fate.
I had already forgiven him for what he had done, but I couldn't help wondering: was what happened meant to happen? Did fate try to take Sai away, and then Ezrem defied it? Did fate throw this obstacle at Sai with the intentions of having him survive and turn into a better, happier person? Either way, I couldn't blame fate for wanting my trainer back so soon. He certainly was special. I had always considered him special, but the events over the last week and a half had proved it. He had such great trust in us and the sudden willpower to live couldn't have been mustered so easily. Sai had an effect on my beliefs that I still couldn't quite place.
…If I tried to think about it too hard, though, my thoughts turned to mush. I was hoping some sort of understanding would just fall from the sky, but I had no such luck. All I knew was that I couldn't bear the idea of losing Sai after I had lost all my clan members. Again, it would undoubtedly be my fault for not helping him sooner. Again, I would be alone and destined to start another journey that was doomed to end far too soon.
That was how much I cared. And I cared for not only Sai, but also for the others. It seemed that every member of the team had taken on physical forms of all the fears that threatened to follow me everywhere I went. The fear of loss, the fear of guilt... They had never left. I had never lost them, not even after I evolved. These faults of mine had just been replaced with new hearts, new lives, and they wouldn't go away unless I was separated from a member of the team, permanently or not. The six of us took breaths like one, and it showed.
Even if life was only offering me inevitable pain, it was worth it to be with them and only them.
That was what I felt, anyway, as we made our way out of the hospital and past the news reporters. Did they know that a dangerous entity—Sai's mother—might be lurking nearby? Did they know that the boy whose shoulder I was standing on lost a majority of his life to people who only wanted to harm him? Probably not. Would they care, even if they knew? Probably not, unless they earned a profit from it. They wouldn't even care if Sai's old cage was placed in the middle of Mahogany Town or if he begged them for release, too exhausted to try to escape himself. All of these people and reporters passing by knew that pokémon live in the wild, babies come from eggs, and that somebody died for their sins. They never stopped to think about it, though. That was why they kept passing by, looking for the next big story. I was glad to see the other people and reporters go. It was a rather pessimistic view, but I couldn't help it. That was what Sai's story had taught me: you can only count on a small amount of capable people. For Sai, it was us, Marty, and Sasha. Maybe some nurses, maybe the police. But no one else, not until they gave us a reason to call them worthy. Of course, I would be wishing that the boy's future changed this negative view. For now, it would have to stay.
We were heading back to Ecruteak City only to leave it and set out onto our next big adventure. Of course, whenever we planned to go anywhere, something or someone interrupted us. As if fate were reading my thoughts about trustworthy people, we ran into Marty shortly after the news reporters had gone away while mumbling loudly to themselves about how Sai wouldn't talk. Surprisingly, Sasha wasn't with him, and he quickly explained that he had to see Sai right away. Alone.
"What's the matter?" Sai asked, looking behind him once more. "We're alone now…"
"Yeah, yeah. I waited for all those news idiots to get away from you. Look, I'm sorry about those things I said in the hospital. I was just stunned, that's all. But your pokémon… did a good job of protecting you from them. They must like you a lot," Marty said quietly, peering over at us one by one, giving each of us a confident yet heartbroken smile.
"I don't know why, but they do," Sai said, reaching behind him to pick me up off of his shoulder. He cradled me in his arms and pet me behind the ears. If only I could have explained to Marty that we cared because of his tender moments like this amidst the craziness.
"It was wrong of me to have said otherwise. It was uncalled for." When Marty saw that Sai was about to protest, he added, "I know we both said you're a bad trainer, but you're not. There's a difference between being a bad trainer and learning in the process of becoming a good trainer. That's why I have a request for you."
"A request…?"
Marty pulled out a pokéball from his belt and pressed the middle button to enlarge it. He threw back his arm and then thrust it forward, calling out, "Go, Gracie!"
The quilava appeared in a flash of red and white, but instead of giving off a battle cry like I thought she might, she sat there, disinterested. The very act of releasing a pokémon, however, sent everyone into battle motion. Marty was known to be extremely aggressive toward us and after everything that had transpired, we were even more on edge than usual, despite the boy's kind words.
And so, Kuiora took it upon herself to step forward and say, "I'll take care of the fire-type!"
"Seriously? Marty wants to fight us?" Atis said, slapping himself on the forehead.
"Looks like it," Ezrem said. "I'll support you, Kuiora! This *******'s got nothing on you."
"I'll fight second if you need to rest!" Rennio said.
"Guys," Sai said, grabbing Kuiora and forcing her back to him, "I don't think Marty wants to fight. Am I right?"
Gracie looked back to her trainer quizzically, even though she didn't particularly seem to want to battle herself. At this, the team relaxed and watched for the other boy's reaction. Marty frowned and nodded, saying, "I just wanted to do that… one last time."
There was a moment of silence before Sai asked, "Marty, you're not the kind of person to be vague. Is something wrong?"
"Did you know your pokémon came to find me and Sasha so we could help them find you?"
"No, I didn't," he replied, but he didn't appear to be surprised.
"Gracie helped translate what was going on. She traveled outside of her ball the entire time and talked to some of your pokémon. You see, she's been acting very strangely since then. She won't eat, she won't battle… This is the first time she's looked at me for a long time."
"Oh. I see," Sai said, setting me down on the ground. "Do you want me to talk to her for you?"
"No," Marty said quickly. "I mean, I think I know what's going on, but I don't want you to force anything out of her. I think I've done enough of that already."
I saw Gracie hang her head, which only proved Marty's words to be true. I remembered that time—it seemed so long ago now—where we had ridden on the back of the boy's mantine and talked about her past. About the abuse she endured. About Marty's persistence and assertiveness and constant reminders, and how she couldn't handle it. Perhaps I had brought up too many harsh memories for her and had caused her to treat her trainer with disdain. That hadn't been my intention, and I stared at her with sad eyes. If she looked at me, she would know that I knew and that I was feeling guilty for it. But she didn't look my way. I tried to console myself with the fact that she would have cracked sooner or later, with or without me. Surely, there had to be some way to help her now…
"What do you want me to do, then?"
"Gracie," Marty said loudly to get her attention, "I'm giving you a choice. I've given a lot of thought to this. It's been hard because you're my starter, but if you're not happy with me, then… you can leave. I brought you to Sai because his pokémon might have done something for you I'm not aware of. You should go with him, if you think that's a better fit."
"Marty, what are you—" Sai started.
"Hush, Sai. You'll take her, won't you? I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I let her go and she ended up in the hands of the wrong person. You of all people should know how I feel."
At this, Sai kept silent and, perhaps unconsciously, moved toward Atis.
Gracie spun around, stopping once in a while to look at both our group and Marty. Her face looked strained, her mouth was open as if she wanted to say something, and the fire on her back was dimming considerably out of fear. She was obviously confused and unsure of herself. While everyone else stood back and watched the scene unravel, I went up to her and tried to assist her. It was my fault that she was in this mess to begin with, after all.
"I know you don't want to stay," I said, hinting at our last conversation. "This is your chance to be happy!"
She looked down suddenly, scratching carelessly at the ground with her paws. "Will I be happy with Sai, though? Is he better than Marty?"
"Sai's… got his own problems, sure, but they shouldn't conflict with yours. He would never push you farther than you wanted to go."
"But Marty's fed me all this time, and he takes me out of my pokéball to exercise. He trained me enough to evolve and he's never afraid of me like other people are because they think I'll burn them. On the other hand, he's just so… triggering. And what about Sasha? She'll be crushed. What about the rest of the team? I-I don't know…"
"I'm sure Marty's thought about that. Maybe he even talked to them about it. They'll have to understand. And if you're not happy with what he's done, then… something's still wrong."
"You'd think that after all this time, he'd be able to understand me and hear me out," Gracie said, shaking her head. "But I was starting to think it'd never happen. I lost hope, so I ignored him… I guess that was hard for him not to notice, huh?"
I nodded, having nothing else to say. The rest was up to her. The only thing I could do now was make her know that Sai would have her if she chose to go.
"You'd take her if she wanted to come, right, Sai?" I said, turning to my trainer.
"Of course," Sai said without hesitation.
"No dice?"
"No dice."
I waited for Ezrem to make a sarcastic comment about how unfair the situation was, but none came. The team was shifting around uncomfortably, probably remembering how they had been given this very same choice once, and how much had happened since then. It was awkward to have it be happening to the initial perpetrator right before your eyes.
"You hear that, Gracie? We'll have you."
"I don't know what they're saying over there, Gracie, but… please choose. Don't worry about me," Marty said. His body was visibly tense; he was trying very hard not to show any weakness so that he could stay true to his word.
Gracie looked at her original trainer once before taking a cautious step toward Sai. With every move she made, she became more confident in her decision, and she ended up walking straight to Sai without any evident reluctance.
"So this is your decision?" Sai asked, leaning down to see his new pokémon.
"…Would you tell Marty that he's a good boy, but my heart's just not in it yet?" Gracie confirmed, extinguishing the flames on her back so she could nuzzle up to Sai's leg without hurting him.
"Well, that's that," Marty said, turning away swiftly at the sound of her voice. I could tell he could break at any moment when his shoulders crouched forward and he faltered in his first step. It had to be difficult, losing your first partner, but it had to be some consolation, to feel you were doing the right thing.
"Marty, I'm so sorry, and so is Gracie," Sai explained sincerely. "I don't know what else to say. What are you going to do now?"
"As I said, don't worry about me," the boy replied, waving his hand around weakly. "Thank you, Sai. I must say, I've grown to love your disappearing acts, so… I think I'll do one of my own. Right now. …See you around."
And with that, he ran off into the next route leading out of Mahogany Town, leaving his pokémon in our care. His disappearance marked the end of Gracie's quest for contentment, and we all welcomed her home as best as we could.
I originally thought Gracie was very shy, but she still had that determined side of her that I saw when we first fought. Anyone who could deal with Ezrem and Kuiora's witty bantering, anyway, had to be extremely determined.
"Kuiora's probably ecstatic that she has a perfect opponent on the team. You better watch out, Gracie. She may shoot a water gun at you at any time," Ezrem said, flying high enough to where Kuiora couldn't hit him in response.
"I wouldn't do that!" she cried instead.
"You were ready to do it when she was sent out of her pokéball," Ezrem retorted.
"W-Well, that was different…"
"It's okay," Gracie interrupted. "I'll practice with you anytime. The braviary, on the other hand, better not underestimate me or he'll receive a swift kick in the face."
"That's awfully rude of you. If you're finding it difficult to laugh at yourself, then I'd be happy to do it for you."
"Hmph. You can use me for your witty jokes. You can step on me and walk all over me like I'm not even here. But I will not let you look down on me."
"Wow," I said, running up to them since I had been listening to their conversation the entire time. I felt obligated to join at this point, so I did. "Gracie's standing up for herself and she hasn't even been on the team for a whole hour."
Needless to say, I knew why she said what she did. Having someone look down on her reminded her of the past abuse. I could tell by the intensity in her voice. The human who hurt her literally towered over her and struck her down as punishment constantly, so it made her think of pain. It was similar to how the sentret in my clan looked down on each other when they became taller with their tails. This was how they declared their dominance. Unlike the sentret, though, she didn't mind being invisible or used as a source of humor. That was just the kind of pokémon she was. With these characteristics, I thought she'd fit nicely into the team.
"I'll step all over you while I still can, then," Ezrem said, rolling his eyes and ignoring me.
"Is that a threat?" Rennio chimed in.
"No," Ezrem defended quickly.
"I think it is."
"Oh, Rennio, where have you been all my life? Such a reliably disappointing pokémon such as yourself deserves to be my top priority."
"I was hiding from you, like everyone else should."
"L-Let's all be nice, guys," Atis said. We were able to hear him though he was traveling behind us, next to Sai. "We don't want our new companion to think she made the wrong decision, do we?"
"Let's talk about something random," Kuiora offered. "Like, uh, how blue Sai's eyes are."
"What?" Sai said after hearing his name. So much for having an attentive trainer who was watching us to make sure we were behaving. I wondered what he was thinking about, but there was no way to know.
"You know. Like a lake or something. …I thought of it because I could really go for a swim right now. Sorry. It's been a while."
"The city we're going to, Olivine City, has a huge ocean next to the ferry port. We could go swimming there if you really wanted," Rennio suggested.
"Really? How do you know?"
"That was where me and my old trainer arrived in Johto. We were able to explore the town a bit before starting at the beginning in New Bark Town."
"I'd like to point out that I was there, too," Ezrem said. "And what he says is true."
"Wow!" Kuiora said, jumping up in excitement. "Can we go, Sai? Can we?"
"Uh," Sai said. "It's not like we have anything better to do…"
"That's a yes!" the croconaw affirmed. "Oh. Sorry, Gracie, I bet you don't like water, do you?"
"I don't mind it," she lied. "I'm not like most fire-types, I guess."
"Isn't it great to have a fire-type pokémon on our team?" Atis sighed before Ezrem could make another snarky comment. "Maybe she can help us keep warm at night…"
"It's just like you to be thinking of sleep. We pretty much just rested for a week. Don't tell me you're still tired," I teased him.
"It w-was a lot harder of a time than it looked, you know…"
I looked up at Sai to make sure he wasn't paying attention before continuing to speak. "I don't know what you did for him or what changed your mind, but thank you."
"Ah, I didn't do anything, really…" the modest hitmontop replied.
"But of course you did. We all stood back on purpose because we knew you could do it. Do you regret it or something?"
"No… I trust him."
"The error you made before was trusting him. Here's my observation, though: you'd do it again if it meant seeing him smile."
"It doesn't have to be as corny as you make it sound, but yeah."
"Excuse me, leader, but is that you talking to yourself over there? Has being with Sai too long made you a little crazy?" Ezrem asked, swooping down to get in between me and Atis.
"Of course I'm talking to myself," I said, saving Atis the embarrassment by playing along with his games. "I need an intelligent conversation once in a while, you know."
"Your wits don't match mine, but they're pretty high up there," the bird said. "Don't forget who saved your trainer. I could have left him alone. Maybe then I might not have spent that time cooped up in a tight building with strict women."
"It's not Senori's fault that braviary are so huge," Atis protested. Once he realized he had talked, however, he covered his mouth immediately and hung back a little as if trying to pretend he didn't exist.
"Oh, so you do like to talk sometimes," Ezrem said. "You know, I thought I understood evolution until I met you. I thought about it a lot thanks to my old trainer. Weren't you only supposed to evolve into a hitmontop if attack and defense were equal? But it seemed your defenses were higher than anything. Now I see—you've got a mouth on you, too. …You should use it more often."
"I should…?"
"Actually, I agree with Ezrem for once," Rennio said. "We'd all like to hear you talk more."
"And we'd like to see you battle more," Kuiora agreed.
"Then I'd be a real hitmontop, huh?" he said. And he smiled as if he had been forcing back a smile for a long time. Everyone but Sai had missed it ever since the incident.
"A real hitmontop can also spin on his head," I said. I laughed, remembering how he couldn't fully perform the trick for those at the pokémon fan club. Luckily, no one else knew what I was talking about.
Atis gave me a halfhearted glare and said, "I'll spin on my head in the water and splash you. All of you."
"Except for me, right?" Gracie said.
"Right. Sorry," Atis said, blushing.
"Sounds like a plan to me," I said. When we all seemed to quiet down, I turned to my trainer and said, "Sai, you haven't said much. Do you know how to swim?"
"No…" Sai said slowly, as if the word was completely foreign to him.
"I thought I'd ask, in any case. Well, we're going to teach you."
"I'm going to teach him," Kuiora corrected.
"And if he refuses, just remember that I'm an electric-type," Rennio said, smiling.
"Oh…" Sai said, finally getting into our conversation by grinning. "Is that a challenge?"
And that was how our next journey began.
It took us another three days to get to Olivine City. We sped through Ecruteak City due to Sai's unfavorable memories. From there, we made our way past tall grass with a bunch of wild pokémon and eager trainers. There was no time for bantering like there had been at the beginning, and we were all worn out by the time we arrived, especially Sai, who still hadn't gotten over the battle that had taken place on the roof. Perhaps he'd never get over it, and it was our duty to help him out to the best of our abilities.
Still, this was exactly what we needed. There were no memories associated with Olivine City. No one was threatening to follow or hurt Sai anymore. It was an added bonus that we had something to do besides battle the gym leader first, though I was sure we'd get around to that eventually, considering that the gym challenge was all that he had ever known. There was nothing particularly wrong with that, seeing as how Sai enjoyed battlin. He had to grow out of it sometime, though… And it seemed that Atis was starting to rub off on me…
"Senori?" Sai asked, breaking me out of my thoughts. "Are you going to go in the water?"
I looked at everything around me. Kuiora hadn't wasted any time in asking Rennio to bring her to the ocean, and Sai was happy to give in to the two of them. So here we were, on the west side of Olivine City already, surrounded by sand and a line of beach houses that people could rent out for a day or two. Sai had purchased one, but he said they were expensive so it would be a special treat after everything had happened.
"Anything to make up for what I did," he said sadly.
But the team wouldn't let him feel guilty. Not right now. They forced him out onto the sun and tried to get him into the water, but he said he'd wait to see what everyone was doing first before having some fun himself. He was concerned for us, probably because this was something new to him, and probably because he had a newcomer to care for, a newcomer that could be damaged by too much water exposure.
So I watched as Kuiora hopped on Ezrem's back. I watched as Ezrem flew into the sky and over the deeper part of the water, allowing the croconaw to jump off of him and dive right in. I watched as Atis practiced spinning on his head a few times before finally getting the hang of it. He chose to just run into the water, but I was sure he'd keep his promise. I watched as Rennio did a practice thundershock attack on the ground to get the excess electricity away from him before following. I watched as he urged Gracie to come with him, but also to not get too close. I want to be your friend because you're the new baby of the team, he had said, and it made me smile. And it made me think.
I thought too much, and so Sai interrupted me.
"Yes, I will," I said simply. "I haven't had a bath in… forever."
"Why is that?" he asked, genuinely curious.
"Because you, as my trainer, haven't given me one? You take showers by yourself. We have to stay clean too, you know."
"Oh," Sai said. "I didn't know. I'll change that from now on. Sorry."
"It's okay. The others don't seem to mind, not even Kuiora. It might just, uh, be a sentret thing."
"You're a furret."
"But I used to be a sentret, no?"
"I think I've known you longer as a furret, though, so it's a furret thing."
"…Just get in the water already," I said, running behind him and pushing his legs to make him go forward. I didn't have to do it for long, as he followed along with my movements and made his way into the ocean. He paused after seeing other people and pokémon beside us laughing and playing with toys, as if he were wondering whether or not he belonged, but I gave him one last final push before his feet were covered by sand due to the force of a wave.
Before he went in any further, he asked, "Don't I need different clothes for this? Everyone else seems to have… almost nothing on…"
"Who cares?" I said, running deeper than him and splashing him with water. "You'll just be special."
"Right." He chuckled and sat down, letting the sea envelop him, as he was afraid to go any further without being able to swim. "Now I'm just waiting for Kuiora."
Suddenly, a large figure sprang out of the water, causing a massive amount of water to spray at the two of us. Once I wiped the liquid out of my eyes, I was able to see that it was the troublesome croconaw.
"You called?" she asked, bowing at her own fantastic entrance.
"Yes. You said you were going to teach me how to swim, didn't you?"
"That I did. Let's go. You have to be in deeper water. I was barely able to hide myself here while trying to scare you."
We went into deeper water, as I was curious to see how this would turn out. Sai going through any new experience was bound to turn either horribly awkward or magnificently perfect. As it turned out, things went horribly awkward. Water-type pokémon and humans swim in a completely different way. Kuiora was able to glide seamlessly through the water. Her body did a wavelike motion as she swam, but if Sai tried to do this, he only floated right back to where he started.
"He has to move his legs and arms to get around," Rennio offered, trying hard not to laugh at our trainer.
"If you think you're so good at this, then you teach him!" Kuiora fumed, storming off to be with Gracie, who was waiting patiently at the edge of the water, careful not to get too close. "For now, I'm going to be a fire-type pokémon."
Ezrem sighed rather loudly, as if we were depriving him of attention. "Someday," he said, "we'll all look back on this day, laugh nervously, and then change the subject. I can see it now."
"Don't you get smart with me," Sai said, irritated.
"I'm sorry that you only want the dimmest of the dim for your team, dear Sai."
"I'll show you. Rennio, what have you got?"
"Well, I'm no expert, but… you should kick your legs up and down and keep pushing your arms forward. Don't take my word for it, though."
Sai tried it anyway, and it certainly worked better than Kuiora's methods. With Rennio's instructions, he was able to reach even deeper water without touching the ground, and when he stopped, he was able to keep himself afloat. Since he didn't even sink once, he seemed pretty proud of himself.
"See, Ezrem? I can do it," he said confidently.
"If you're so sure of yourself, you should swim until you hit the end of the world. And then you should stay there."
"You'd get too lonely without him, since you hate the rest of us," I said, but Sai seemed to have a different idea.
"The end of the world, huh…?" he said, making his way back to where he could stand. He peered out into the distance, seemingly lost in thought.
As usual, however, we were interrupted, this time by the most unexpected of visitors. It appeared to be an incoming tornado made of water, and it was heading relentlessly toward us. As it passed us pokémon, we all got splashed with a large amount of water. All of us held up our arms (or wings) to hide the blow, but it was pretty powerful for me to avoid entirely. When my vision was clear again, I tried to yell about how Sai should watch out, but it was too late. The tornado leaped out of the water and flipped over, revealing Atis's regular, humanlike form. He landed on top of Sai's chest, sending the boy completely underwater for the first time since he ventured out of here. Atis went under with him, and after a few moments, they surfaced, with Sai's hair covering his face and with Atis suddenly having a concerned look on his face.
"I hope I didn't hurt you," he said after spitting out the water he had gotten in his mouth.
"I didn't know you could do a thing like that," Sai said, wiping his hair out of his face.
"Yeah… Well… Now your hair doesn't look as messy," Atis said, trying to cover up for his actions.
"Now you're a real hitmontop, as you said you would be," Ezrem complimented.
"I would shock you for that, but I can't right now. I'll get you later," Rennio threatened.
"My legs are starting to get tired after swimming and traveling for so long," Sai said, changing the subject. "I'm getting out of the water for now. The rest of you can do whatever."
True to his word, Sai stepped out of the water, with Atis's arms wrapped around his neck, legs wrapped around his torso. I had no reason to stay since I was clean now (or as clean as I could be with seawater), so I tagged along. Ezrem and Rennio didn't want to be alone with each other, but that was the only reason they came, too. Gracie and Kuiora had already been waiting there for a while ago.
"If you wanted a water competition, Atis, you should have just said so," Kuiora said. "I could have showed off more of my moves."
"I'm just glad I stayed at the shore," Gracie said, shaking her head.
Sai sat down next to Gracie, setting Atis down next to him. He visibly shivered a bit and then placed his hands over Gracie's back and asked, "Do you mind?"
"Not at all," she replied, smiling and igniting her flames just enough for the warmth to radiate around us.
"Hmm…" Sai mumbled, rubbing his hands together. Though the majority of his body was facing in Gracie's direction, his head was facing toward the sea. Again, he seemed lost in thought. Had he really taken the bird so seriously? That was a mistake in and of itself, so I had to make sure he wasn't doing anything stupid.
"Sai, what are you thinking about?" I asked.
"Oh, nothing," Sai said, but then he changed his mind. "Just… you know… It's still hard to talk about. I was caged up for so long that I'm not used to seeing such… vast scenery. I like the sea."
"So do I! You have great taste," Kuiora said.
"Yeah. It tells me that there's something more out there for me to see. It seems endless, and that's what I always imagined my life experiences to be. I don't know… Sorry if I'm rambling."
An idea hit me as he spoke. "If you could be around the sea all the time," I said, "would you be happy?"
"Yes," Sai said. "It would be good to have a reminder like this. And I'd like to learn to swim more. It was quite enjoyable. The movement makes me feel free. I'm not trapped like before…"
"You know what else could get you around to places? The ferry in the city. The port is right over there," Rennio said, pointing toward a nearby building with a lone ship facing toward it.
"Ah," Sai said. "That would certainly help, too. I could go anywhere I wanted, anytime…"
"Sai, are you thinking what I'm thinking?" I said. Apparently, though, no one else was thinking what I was thinking, because they all looked at me in confusion, even Rennio, who I thought had been catching on even just a little bit. "This could be your new home for a while. We don't have to travel anywhere else if you don't want to, especially if it brings you bad memories—"
"I only rented the cabin for one night, though," Sai interrupted.
"We can get more money by battling trainers and buy more nights. Or we can buy a real place."
"What about the gyms? We only have one out of eight badges right now, since we lost some…"
"You don't have to do those anymore, remember? I mean, honestly, did you even enjoy doing them before?"
"Not since I felt rushed…"
"Then you're just making excuses!" Ezrem butted in. "It's as clear as day."
"I'd love to be here all the time!" Kuiora offered.
"You know me… and Ezrem… have always wanted to travel other places, so this is perfect for us," Rennio said, nodding.
"I don't care where we go. Location isn't an issue for me," Gracie said, licking her paws idly.
"What do you say, Sai? It doesn't get much better than this," Atis said. I could tell he was trying to hide excitement in his voice, but he was failing.
There was a moment of silence before Sai sighed and said, "First, we'll go to the gym here in Olivine City… just for fun, all right? It won't be about getting stronger or getting a badge. I want to know what it's like to be a trainer for a little while longer. I did enjoy that, at least." He paused. "And then I'll let you know what I think of your idea."
This seemed like a reversal: the pokémon were being impulsive, while Sai wanted to take his time to think. Was this a good sign or not? It was hard to tell. Difficulty making decisions was an equally troublesome problem. We saw a boy who wanted to find a place as soon as possible, with the smallest amount of traveling involved, so that he could start focusing on recovery alone. And what better place than here? We weren't lying or exaggerating any of the city's features. We were content, and today seemed to go well enough for him. Our hearts were set, but we were also content to wait. We had been loyal thus far, and we didn't intend to change that, so we granted the wish of our trainer and went to the gym.
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how to insert a file object in excel sheet using java
Jyoti Chawla
Posts: 2
Larry Frissell
Ranch Hand
Posts: 82
posted 6 years ago
Have you tried the Apache Examples? I found them to be very helpful, and learned to use the examples to adapt my requirements. If so, did you have a specific problem with the examples?
Jyoti Chawla
Posts: 2

subset: commoncrawl


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HourlyLess than 30 hrs/week
Expert LevelI am willing to pay higher rates for the most experienced freelancers
I have a set of 6 SPSS .sav files which I'd like to combine into one master file. The same questions are asked across multiple files, but with different variable names, so you'll probably need to do some scripting to combine everything. I can provide some guidance on reading the questionnaires, but you'll mostly be expected to work independently.
I'd also like to create a number of derived variables. For example, if a person answered "c" to at least one of questions, 1, 2, or 3, I'd like a new variable to indicate True. Otherwise, I'd want to indicate False.
Excellent communication skills are a must.
Have a great day, and thanks for reading!
Activity on this Job
Last Viewed by Client: 2 years ago
Hired: 2
About the Client
United States
Naperville 09:11 AM
Jobs Posted
60% Hire Rate, 1 Open Job
Total Spent
4 Hires, 0 Active
Avg Hourly Rate Paid
67 Hours


text:
Comprehensive DescriptionRead full entry
Tree 10-40 m tall; buttresses to 3 m high; bole straight and unbranched (in wild trees); crown approximately spherical or taller than wide; foliage dense and dark green. Leavese lliptic; apex tapering or occasionally with a barely discernable acute acumen; base acute to cuneate; length 4.5-8 cm, width 2-4 cm (canopy leaves from mature wild trees); secondary, tertiary and quaternary vena-tion obvious, areolaeg reater than 1 mm diam. Inflorescenceax illary, laxly branched panicle to 9 cm long. Flowers in fascicles; pedicels to 5 mm long; sepals 1-1.5 mm; petals yellowish white, 3-4 mm long; filaments 4-5 mm long. Fruit ellipsoid to cylindrical, occasionally almost spherical, only slightly laterally compressed; length 4-6.5 cm, width 4.2-6.4, thickness 3.4-6 cm; smooth; green when ripe; mesocarp bright orange, soft and juicy when ripe with a few weak fibres, fibres appressed and curly, or absent on old pyrenes; taste of mesocarp from sweet to slightly bitter with a turpentine flavour but always edible; pyrene single, woody but usually disintegrating after one season on the ground. Seeds 2.5-3.8 cm long, 1.7-2.7 cm wide, 0.8-1.2 cm thick; endosperm visible on fresh material as a white dot 2-3 mm diam. on the inside of the testa opposite the point of attachment of the two cotyledons, this sometimes extends to form a white streak 1-2 mm broad, running parallel to the axis of each cotyledon, on the inside of the testa.
Source: Harris D.J. 1996. A Revision of the Irvingiaceae in Africa. Bulletin du Jardin botanique national de Belgique 65: 143-196.


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Mitt Romney represents an unknown risk for the job of president of the United States. He is not an incumbent and has a very limited public office history, having served only one term as governor of Massachusetts. President Obama has been in office for three years, so the public is more familiar with his policies and character.
Therefore, Romney's performance in the October presidential debates is more than a chance for voters to get a last look at the candidate before Election Day. What Romney says and does when he stands on stage next to Obama during the presidential debates could swing the outcome of the election.
The following questions are just a sample of what should be on voters minds before they enter the voting booth. If Romney does not reply with coherent, detailed answers, voters will have reason to doubt his character and fitness to hold the office of the presidency. If he replies with sincere, detailed, and reasonable answers, his candidacy will earn credibility.
The Economy
The Environment
Health care
Character and integrity
There are numerous questions voters should have answered before making a final decision on whether President Obama or Romney wins their vote.
The best decision is an informed one, so please feel free to visit the website of both presidential candidates to learn more.
Candidate websites
Keep in mind that any candidate can make false claims about their opponent, so be sure to very information with independent, non-partisan sources to keep both of them honest.
Non-partisan sources
You may also like:
Negative and false campaign advertising is powerful brainwashing tool, says study


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Churchill Downs Inc. has record second quarter earnings
Churchill Downs Inc. had record net income of $50.3 million during the second quarter of 2013, the company announced late on Wednesday, as the company continues to reap gains from its leverage of the Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks while benefiting from its acquisition of standalone casinos.
Net revenues in the quarter were also a record, at $283.8 million, up 5 percent over second-quarter revenues of $270.8 million last year. Operating expenses were flat, at $82.1 million in the quarter, according to the company's financial statements.
Revenues from the company's racing operations were down 2 percent in the quarter to $157.4 million, but expenses were down 6 percent, $90.2 million this year. Revenues from the company's casino operations were up 30 percent, to $66.9 million, almost entirely because of the inclusion of revenues from a casino that Churchill bought in Mississippi in late 2012. Casino expenses were up 30 percent, the same rate of growth as revenues.
Gross operating profit in the quarter on racing operations, not including Churchill's account-wagering operations, was $67.2 million, underlining the importance of Oaks and Derby Day. Gross operating profit on casino operations in the quarter was $17.3 million.
Churchill's on-line operations, which includes twinspires.com and luckity.com, had revenues of $52.5 million in the quarter, down slightly from $52.7 million last year. In a release, Churchill said that business for twinspires.com was hurt during the quarter because of a temporary ban on account-wagering in Illinois, where Churchill owns Arlington Park.


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Enzo Giovanni
Entrepreneurial Guru Consultant, Mindset Success Coach
Internet Marketing Architect.
Business Branding Master.
Mindset and Manifestation Coach.
Together we will conquer!
From the Desk of Enzo Giovanni
Updated on October 5th, 2015
Hello there,
Thanks for visiting my page. If you're here, chances are you don't know me very well, but have heard of me, just met me, or was curious enough to google me. In that case, below is a mini-bio I wrote that will tell you a lot more about who I am and what I'm about. Enjoy!
Earlier days...
College Graduate
, English Major with expertise in non-fiction/editing and creative writing... went to Grad School for Education and became a High School
English Teacher,
Creative Writing Teacher, and
Soccer Coach
After teaching for several years, I transitioned to my other passion - my body. I studied alternative therapies and experimented with nutritional therapy, fasting, and detoxing. I became a
Certified Holistic Life Coach (CHLC)
and was a
1-on-1 weight loss counselor
at a private wellness center. On a related note, I will be soon publishing the book -- Fat Loss Mindset: The 8 Rules of Lean Body Mastery. If you go to that website, you can reserve a free copy of the e-book version.
Meanwhile... since my days in college, I had always been a
CODING nerd
, meaning I studied all the behind-the-scenes digital coding magic that was responsible for this thing that people called the INTERNET. Little did I know that I would eventually end up getting a job in the digital world, ultimately becoming the
VP of Digital Media
for a major broadcasting company. I now own a marketing agency devoted to internet marketing, online branding, and sales optimization and act as the Architect and Creative Director of said services. P.S. my clients are like my family and represent businesses and "personalities" of all sizes.
Since I was very young, I have always had an affinity for the
hidden powers of mind
, and in fact started learning things like speed reading and advanced mnemonics when I was in grade school, but
I am
most passionate about "mindset" and "intuition"
and have cultivated the application of these powers for the good of my personal success and those of my clients.
Some of my more interesting personal manifestations include:
I have hung out with my favorite celebrities 1-on-1 (musicians and professional athletes), been an
and leading goal scorer for an undefeated high school championship soccer team, won a musical chairs contest
with over 300 people
, been a
NFL Photographer
and Media Correspondent covering my favorite team for several seasons
, defeated a black belt in
less than 10 seconds
in an MMA fight using Jeet Koon Do (that's BRUCE LEE's martial art), was recently (2014) featured in a Primetime
National TV commercial
that ran for 2 months, get to drive my favorite dream car - a red
(Spider) whenever I want, and successfully transitioned from a 9-to-5-work-with-negative-people-rush-hour-sucks lifestyle to a
work-when-want-for-who-i-want lifestyle that is joyful and rewarding
I have many mentors, but my ultimate inspiration, best friend, and Jedi Master from whom I have learned how to live, pray, and love is
my mother
. She has passed from this world, but continues to bless me with her presence and teach me powerful
Truths of the Universe
in very amazing ways.
If you are interested in working with me
, send me an email and let me know what you are trying to achieve in the next 3-6 months for yourself or your business... and we can go from there. The possibilities are endless, your potential, limitless. May the Force be with you, always.
Enzo Giovanni
"Enzo is a creative genius and unequal in the visual arts."
~Rick "Doc" Walker, TV & Radio Personality, NFL Super Bowl Champion, and creator of the ProView Business Network -- DocWalker.com
"Enzo's intuitive creativity and unique marketing angles are truly genius! It feels like Christmas whenever we go over his progress!"
~Robin Dimicelli, Founder of Ripped Cream -- RippedCream.com
Copyright 2015 - Enzo Giovanni All Rights Reserved


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Today at Veterans Park, the nonprofit Companion Animal Parasite Council (CAPC), an independent council of veterinarians and other animal health care professionals fighting the diseases caused by parasites such as fleas, ticks and roundworms, will host a Parasite Education Road show.
The show is housed in an RV and features experts telling the tales of parasites in pets and people.
The public is invited to stop by and join in the free informational fun. You can ask a real vet about parasite problems and how to solve them, and get up-to-date info on how parasites can affect people as well as pets.
Zoonotic diseases – those diseases transmitted from pets to people – are a threat in every state. The Centers for Disease Control & Prevention reports that about 14 percent of the U.S. population is infected with Toxocara, or internal roundworms, contracted from dogs and cats. A 2007 CAPC survey showed that less than one-third of pet owners treat their dogs and cats year-round for flea and tick control, even though these parasites thrive all year long - either indoors or out.
The good news is that almost all parasitic diseases can be prevented with common sense, good hygiene and year-round deworming and parasite control for dogs and cats.
Summer, pets and boats can go together well-- or dangerously.
Not all doggies have sea legs, nor are they great swimmers. Here are some tips from Progressive Insurance on how to keep your pooch traveling high and dry on a boat.
It's one of the coolest events in the local dog world's calendar. The Waukesha Kennel Club will play host to more than 2,300 dogs at its annual American Kennel Club all-breed dog shows in Waukesha on July 30 and 31 at the Waukesha County Expo Center.
Many of the dogs are nationally ranked and will compete for the coveted Best in Show trophy. Dogs will also compete in two companion events, rally and obedience.
The show is a great place to learn about dog breeds and dog behavior. And this year the club offers several special events, including a talk by judge and author,Richard Beauchamp, on Friday evening. On Saturday, the club is hosting Wisconsin's first-ever AKC sanctioned Beginner Puppy Competition for puppies 4-6 months of age. Also on Saturday there is a health clinic for testing for ocular disorders.
Visitors can also pick up a present for that special pooch -- or themselves --from vendors selling dog art, jewelry and equipment.
The judging starts at 8:30 a.m. and finishes about 5 p.m.. Admission is $5 per carload; check out show details here.
Rocky J. Squirrel would hang his head: a Flying Squirrel is one of the animal species about to go extinct.
Here's Online Degree's last look at these animals facing their last days.
We get this news from the folks at Central Bark doggie day care/dog care .If you live in Wisconsin and own a dog that you consider smart, funny, cute, fluffy, or just plain cool, this is a chance for your dog to become the next canine celebrity.
Central Bark is looking for a doggy star to appear in their next regional promotional video campaign, to be launched this fall.
Central Bark USA is a national chain with centers located in the Milwaukee area.. This summer, Central Bark representatives will be on the lookout for a special Wisconsin dog that will star in the upcoming video production.
The idea is to take a great and or cute and or funny picture of your dog and enter it in the contest. Upload it along with a brief description of your dog to the Central Bark web site between now and Aug. 31, 2011.
A winner will be announced in early September, and then filming begins. In addition to the video production, the winning pooch and its owner will receive a prize package. Special prizes will also be awarded to the top doggy finalists.
Watch for Central Bark representatives spreading the word at many area parades, festivals, concerts, the State Fair, and other summer events during the next two months. To enter your dog visit: the site.
Echo, the Lake Geneva-area parrot who sang his way to the live semi finals on "America's Got Talent" with his rendition of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" got sent flying home on Monday.
That's show biz, Echo. So what are Echo's plans now, besides his daily act at the Dancing Horses Theatre & Animal Gardens? We talked with his trainer Sarah Hoeft and -- yes, with Echo-- and got the parrot's update.
Happily, Echo, who doesn't say much when he's not on stage, wasn't stressed out by his national TV role or by Hollywood glam. "It was more busy than in Wisconsin, but he had a great time," says Hoeft. The key to stress-free TV? Echo brought along his girlfriend, Binky.
So how did Echo feel his rendition of "Rainbow" went over? "All the shows are important to him, so he is pretty happy, he knows he did a good job." He knows because he got a treat of veggies, fruit and donuts after the show.
Dog days of summer are no joke. The extreme heat we're experiencing in Wisconsin right now can be deadly for pets.
Here are some tips on how to prevent pet heatstroke you can use right now from veterinarian and author Karen "Doc" Halligan.
She has appeared on Regis and Kelly, the Today Show, the Mike and Juliet Show, iVillage Live, Fox and Friends, Animal Rescue 911, Dog Tales, Dogs 101 and Cats 101 and is a judge on Animal Planet's hit reality show "Groomer Has It". She is also regular contributor to PARADE magazine. She is also the author of " What Every Pet Owner Should Know: Prescriptions for Happy, Healthy Cats and Dogs" (HarperCollins, 2007).
Says Halligan: "Dogs and cats are highly susceptible to heatstroke because they have limited mechanisms to cool themselves: panting and losing heat through their tongue, nose, and footpads. Certain types of animals are more prone to heatstroke than others. Dogs with flat faces like pugs, bulldogs, or Boston terriers have a difficult time panting and thus can easily overheat. Also, dogs with heavy coats; older animals; obese dogs and cats; puppies and kittens under six months; pets who are ill; and pets on certain medications are at an even greater risk for overheating during the summer months.
"Nearly every case of heatstroke is preventable. Exercising and being left in a car are the two most common causes of heatstroke in dogs and cats. Dogs like to keep up with you while exercising and may not readily tell you they're getting too hot until it's too late. On a 75-degree day, the temperature inside a parked car—with the windows open—can quickly climb to over 100 degrees and cause overheating.
Singer Rick Springfield not only likes to play gigs in Milwaukee, he likes to play ball. And the reason he likes to play at Miller Park is that he can donate the proceeds from his charity games to animal rescue efforts.
Now his good works have inspired a book and more good works. Waterford, Wis. writer and graphic designer Marla McKenna has her first children's book out July 26: "Mom's Big Catch" (Tate Publishing; $9.99)
It is a charming kids' book about how good luck sailed across a baseball park that looks a lot like Miller Park and indeed is inspired by actual events that took place at Miller Park.
Partial proceeds from the book will be going to the Linda Blair WorldHeart Foundation, and Rick Springfield will be matching McKenna's donation to the Foundation. "Their mission is to make sure that every animal they rescue is given a second chance at a happy life and a loving forever home," McKenna tells Animal Magnetism.
It's been too long in coming here: A dog gym
The Zoom Room has opened in Milwaukee at 1701 N. Humboldt Ave., and it's a great combo of gym, classroom, and place for pooches to hang.
Owner Gretchen Kabler tells us that The Zoom Room "focuses on the bond between the owner and their dog by offering an array of classes and activities for dog owners."
At the Zoom Room, owners will learn how to teach their dog everything from agility, obedience and therapy dog training, to scent tracking, shy dog training, and other activities. It's a workout for dogs, and gives pup parents a workout, too.
Take in live music and a glass of wine overlooking the great grounds at the new Wisconsin Humane Society Ozaukee Campus in Saukville. Hounds & Sounds kicks off Saturday, Aug. 13, and is the first event in an outdoor musical series to be held at the humane society.
The casual event includes wine, beer, food and live music. (Your doggies must stay home) There will, however, be plenty of adoptable pups and cats to meet. Tickets are $10 each. All proceeds go right back to Wisconsin Humane Society Ozaukee Campus to help shelter animals.
Here are the details:
Hounds and Sounds
Aug. 13, Sept.10, Oct. 1
For your convenience, the same email address and password can now be used to:


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English into Belorussian, Icelandic and Estonian
This project received 11 bids from talented freelancers with an average bid price of $59 USD.Get free quotes for a project like this
Skills Required
Project Budget$30 - $250 USD
Total Bids11
Project Description
I have a new project available – English into Belorussian, Icelandic and Estonian - of a 1200 word document. The file is available in word. Deadline is monday noon GMT. If you are currently available, then I`m looking to hear from you.
Only native speakers of Belorussian, Icelandic and Estonian need to apply!
Looking to make some money?
- Set your budget and the timeframe
- Outline your proposal
- Get paid for your work
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- Forbes
- The New York Times
- Time
- Wall Street Journal
- Times Online


text:
Fixed PriceBudget: $5
Start DateOctober 16, 2013
10 GRADUATES required
Looking for ambitious GRADUATES who can show-case their work, please look at the test below. Future work will include book cover design, book design, comic design, other character designs, CD cover design, 2D animation, etc. I also have a lot of content and research tasks, editing tasks, PA tasks, etc All tasks will be broken down, requirements agreed and full payment made on task completion.
Test Requirement
(Donation Payment to be made on agreed time-scales)
Technical Test - Customer Leads
Things to be covered
Clean and clear code showing separation of concerns (loosely coupled)
Basic documentation explaining how to use your application.
Using good coding practice
Tech Requirements
Visual Studio 2012 (You can download express edition)
C# knowledge (or background in any OOPS language)
Not Essential but nice to have
Design Patterns and the ability to refactor code.
TDD, NUnit testing
Mocq, Interaction Testing
CI, Automated Builds, Rake
I am willing to set up tasks for your training, which will allow you to learn, share in a collaborative team environment. I also have another test which is part completed which shows the Strategy Pattern implemented, full coverage of NUnit tests whilst I was refactoring code, done in true Test Driven Development (TDD) style.
This is a task for immediate start and with daily show-case of work in progress. I want to see how the task is coming along on a daily basis. I am happy to make a donation payment for this test to see whether I want to work with you on further tasks in the future. This can be shared by dropbox or google docs. Looking for graduates/ design mentors/ project managers/ web designers/ e-commerce developers, etc.
Documents attached:
Tech Test Document
Sample XML file
Thanks and regards,
About the Client
United Kingdom
Leicester 01:08 PM
Jobs Posted
67% Hire Rate, 1 Open Job
Total Spent
40 Hires, 4 Active
Avg Hourly Rate Paid
2 Hours


text:
Latin-Baroque Fusion Ensemble
RUMBARROCO's Mission We show the European influence on Afro-American and indigenous music in Latin America, as well as how the fusion of those types of music with European classical music produced new musical genres. We recreate, preserve, and popularize the diverse multicultural aspects of the rhythmic patterns that have been passed down from the Middle Ages to today. And for this purpose we have formed a Latin-Baroque Fusion ensemble of musicians using period, folk, and contemporary popular instruments. Rumbarroco also aims to promote awareness and enjoyment of the musical and cultural similarities and distinctions between Orient and Occident, and among Jews, Christians, and Muslims, as experienced through Latin-American music. We seek to unite today's diverse communities through the powerful transformative passion of the music we play. Finally, we employ music as a tool for cultural integration, especially for the empowerment of youth in their personal growth.
BUY TICKETS TO "LATIN-BAROQUE FUSION FAVORITES" IN AUGUST at 1720 HOUSE IN MARTHA'S VINEYARD
By giving to Rumbarroco, you are supporting the research discovery, preservation, and promotion of baroque and latin-baroque fusion performance.


text:
BERKELEY, Calif. - Nurses picketing Sutter Alta Bates Medical Center here Sept. 22 broke into boisterous cheers as AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka asked them, "Is anyone out there fed up with Corporate America?"
The nurses were among 23,000 of their co-workers holding a one-day strike at three-dozen Sutter Health and Kaiser Permanente facilities in northern and central California, as well as Oakland Children's Hospital.
Calling nurses "the last line of defense for patients," Trumka said nurses "have more responsibility in an hour" than executives have "in a year ... Sutter's here for the profits, you're here for the patients. Sutter wants to work the system, you want the system to work for everyone."
Trumka pledged that the AFL-CIO's 12.5 million members "are not just on your side, we're at your side. We thank you for having the courage and commitment to stand up for patient care and good jobs."
The nurses' union, the California Nurses Association/National Nurses United, says that despite amassing $3.7 billion in profits over the last five years, Sutter Health is insisting on demands that would limit nurses' ability to advocate for their patients, end paid sick days, forcing them to work while sick, and slash their health care coverage and retiree health benefits.
The nurses are also protesting dozens of cuts in services at Sutter facilities, including ending breast cancer screening for women with disabilities, closing or seriously cutting back psychiatric services, ending or cutting back care for children, threatening to close hospitals in underserved areas, and shutting down home health care services.
"I've been a nurse at Sutter Alta Bates here in Berkeley for 43 years, and I've never seen such vicious takeaways," Christine McCargar said in an interview. Noting that Sutter's profits are enormous, and most Sutter top executives have had raises of over 100 percent in recent years, McCargar said nurses "would be willing to negotiate in earnest if Sutter would take off the takeaways."
A handout at the rally listed 20 Sutter executives with salaries of more than $1 million a year - four of them over $2 million. CEO Pat Fry's pay was listed as nearly $4 million.
Pennie Torres, who said she'd recently been hospitalized at Alta Bates, part of the time on life support, said as she began to recover she'd noticed that nurses and other health care workers were having to work while they themselves were sick. "Don't let others have to suffer what I did," she said.
Nurses at Children's Hospital Oakland were protesting inadequate staffing there, as well as management's efforts to cut their health coverage, which they say would make it prohibitively expensive to bring their own children for care to the hospital where they work.
Kaiser nurses were striking in solidarity with other Kaiser workers who face deep cuts in health coverage and retirement benefits.
Also on the picket line were hospital workers from other disciplines.
Among the speakers was other Sutter nurses, including one who is also a city councilman in nearby Albany, as well as area Assemblywoman Nancy Skinner and San Francisco Labor Council head Tim Paulson.
As the rally came to a close, Children's Hospital nurse, and the rally's MC Martha Kuhl told the crowd, "We struck for one day. We're prepared to go back to work at 7 a.m. tomorrow." But, she said, the hospitals "have once again chosen to squander everyone's health care dollars" by hiring "replacement workers" for several days beyond that. "They should be ashamed for that," she said.
The strikers responded, "Shame on them! When you take on one of us, you take on all of us!"
Photo: Marilyn Bechtel/PW.


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105-454 - Fluke TL71 Premium DMM Test Lead Kit
Flexible silicone insulated leads are heat and cold resistant Distinctive comfort grip probes Recommended for V measurements CAT III, 1000V, 10A; CAT IV, 600V, 10A Mfr. #TL71
105-456 - Fluke TL80A Basic Electronic Test Lead Kit
Six piece set with zippered case Probes, alligator clips, and tip extenders for electronic applicatins Cat II, 300V rated Mfr. #TL80A.
105-498 - Fluke 2mm/4mm Test Lead Set
2mm threaded probes with removable 4mm banana-style spring contacts Flexible 1.5M silicone leads CAT III, 1000V, CAT IV, 600V, 10A
310-0126 - 1.75mm Battleship Gray PLA 3D Printing Filament 1kg (2.2lbs) Spool
Grey 1kg PLA 3D Printer Spool
Stellar Labs PLA is an excellent filament for 3D printing because the PLA glass transition temperature - where it becomes amorphous and moldable - is relatively low at 60-65°C. The actual melting temperature is higher at 190~220°C....
21-10190 - Black Gaffer Tape - 2" x 60 Yards
This handy tape is ideal for stage setup in many different settings like concerts or sporting events. Stronger than duct tape and provides easy-on, easy off adhesive yet leaves no residue behind.
21-8584 - FX-901 Cordless Soldering Iron Operates on 4 " AA" batteries
Portable and lightweight Battery operated, thus requiring no flame Enhanced and consistent power with superior heating element Long use with run time (above 600°F) of about 60 minutes using alkaline batteries, and about 120 minutes with Ni-MH batteries Quick and s...
Fast and efficient. Always helpful


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To the rich and growing literature of American decline we must add, Time to Start Thinking: America in the Age of Descent, by Edward Luce. Luce, the chief U.S. columnist for the Financial Times, is British but has spent many years in the U.S. (He wrote speeches for then-Treasury Secretary Larry Summers in the late 1990s.) Like a modern day De Tocqueville, Luce took some time off to travel around the U.S. for several months. And what he saw left him profoundly concerned for the future.
He saw a middle-class being hollowed out, declines in once-great cities like Detroit, the loss of manufacturing jobs, busted education systems, and a political system paralyzed by bitter partisanship and an inability to get things done. While not predicting America's collapse, Luce is "skeptical about America's ability to sharply reverse her fortunes."
It's ironic that Luce shares a last name with the one of the great champions of America's future—Time, Inc. founder Henry Luce. That Luce famously proclaimed that the 20 century would be an "American century." By contrast, Edward Luce has a tough time imagining how the 21st century will be kind to the United States. Luce doesn't believe the U.S. is going to pitch into a prolonged depression now. Rather, he sees the U.S. falling behind international competitors on a relative basis.
We must examine America's plight "in the context of the rise of others, and of the challenges posed by rapidly exponentially changing technology and globalization, and the challenges they pose to the middle class and their relative skill set in this world," Luce says.
The book, whose conclusions I don't necessarily share, is an, um, lucid, reported tour d'horizon. It provides an excellent snapshot of America in 2010 and 2011, a country grappling with serious issues and unsure about its place in the world. Luce introduces us to CEOs, economists, analysts and workers who fret about the future. We meet Dan DiMicco, the "fire-breathing chief executive" of steel maker Nucor, who rails against Washington's indifference to manufacturing, Segway founder Dean Kamen, and a host of officials in Michigan. Without ideology, nastiness, or partisanship, Luce presents a well-written, insightful critique of the American system. To my mind, he doesn't give sufficient credit to the private sector's ability to adapt and prosper in a changing world, to the policy successes we have seen, and to America's continual outperformance of the rest of the developed world. (Hello, Europe! How's that austerity thing working out for you?) Still, after I put down Time to Start Thinking, I did think it might be time to start drinking.
Daniel Gross is economics editor at Yahoo! Finance
Follow him on Twitter @grossdm; email him at firstname.lastname@example.com
His next book, Better, Stronger, Faster: The Myth of American Decline and the Rise of a New Economy
- Edward Luce
- Henry Luce


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Artist Dana Schutz at MIAD tonight
Artist Dana Schutz, known for her lushly painted grotesques and bizarre situations, is one of the most intriguing artists working in America today. Coming off of a critically acclaimed traveling retrospective, Schutz is visiting the Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design this week and will speak publicly about her work Tuesday evening.
Schutz once told an interviewer she was hesitant to translate her strange artistic visions from drawings into paint. She was worried the work might be garish or "hugely embarrassing." »Read Full Blog Post(2)
Ai Weiwei's cover for Time magazine
With this week's Time magazine cover, Chinese artist Ai Weiwei's incursion into the world of media and pop culture seems all but complete.
Free beer at Estabrook grand opening
The beer is free for a while. They'll tap a keg to open the Estabrook Beer Garden on June 20. Opening ceremonies begin at 5:30 p.m. and the keg is tapped at 6 p.m. with free beer while it lasts.
Expect to hear some German music during the occasion. The Estabrook Beer Garden, 4600 Estabrook Drive, between Hampton Avenue and Capital Drive. »Read Full Article
MmmHops is new brew from Hanson Brothers
Zack, Taylor, and Isaac Hanson have something new brewing.
Years after the Hanson Brothers famous earworm, "Mmmbop," the brothers are brewing MmmHops, a pale ale they made with a assistance from experts at Mustang Brewing, The company is based out of Oklahoma, the same state where the band grew up. »Read Full Article
Waterski Championship Returns
The Malibu Open Waterski Championship and Summer Festival returns to Veterans Park Lagoon June 21 and 22.
Waterskiing's top professional and junior athletes compete in traditional slalom and long-distance jumping for $64,000 in prize money. »Read Full Article
Wisconsin artwork to memorialize garment worker deaths in Bangladesh
The concrete pillars gave way and a garment factory in Bangladesh collapsed to the ground, crushing and killing more than 1,100 people and injuring about 2,500 more, mostly young women making clothes for major retailers in the West.
KT Tunstall to play Pabst Theater
Singer/songwriter/guitarist KT Tunstall will play the Pabst Theater, 144 E. Wells St., on Oct. 4. The native of Scotland, known for the hit "Suddenly I See," will tour in support of her new album due out in August.
Tickets are $24.50 for reserved seating and go on sale at noon Friday. See pabsttheater.org. »Read Full Article
On Tap Today: The circus is in town
The sounds of summer are back - especially if summer sounds like circus wagons and free tunes.
"A Circus Life," a new documentary about Charles "Chappie" Fox and the Circus World Museum's efforts to bring back hundreds of historic circus wagons, is showing at 7 tonight at the Landmark Oriental Theatre. Director Gene Gamache will be on hand at the screening. »Read Full Blog Post


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One of the most common issues that dividend investors face is the holding period for their dividend stocks. It seems that dividend investors are divided in two camps on the issue. One of the camps believes in active allocation of capital, where positions are continually adjusted depending on company performance, market performance or relative portfolio weights, to name a few reasons. In an era where it is possible to buy and sell dividend stocks within nanoseconds, holding on for more than a few years seems like eternity to some. The other camp is focused on the long-term holding of dividend stocks. The second camp believes in buy and hold investing, an arcane strategy, which is termed obsolete during bear markets, but is widely praised during bull markets. So what should the holding period of an enterprising dividend investor be?
Smart dividend investors should be able to synthesize the best features of both camps on the subject of buy and hold, in order to determine their optimum holding period. Extreme views such as buy and hold forever or buy and sell for five nanoseconds/years should be avoided. Investors should therefore hold stocks for as long as it makes business sense for them to hold on.
In most cases, it takes time for a position to work in your favor. This is particularly true for dividend growth stocks, where low current yields coupled with strong dividend growth result in substantial yields on cost after several years of patience. Investors who focus on stocks like Procter & Gamble (PG), McDonald's (MCD) or Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) despite their current yields, could generate sufficient dividend income streams over time. Thus, as long as these companies continue to perform well, by enjoying earnings growth to fuel dividend increases, they should be held and added to on any temporary price weakness. While investors should expect to hold on to their shares theoretically forever, in reality they might have to sell positions if things change. If circumstances do change however, and any of these stocks deteriorates to the extent of cutting dividends, then it should be sold, even if held for less than a few years.
When investors purchase dividend stocks, they should expect to hold on to them forever. As a result, investors should assess the viability of their dividend income stream sources, in order to ensure that they are not focusing on chasing hot ideas today, which might cost them in the future. Many investors chase high yield stocks for current income these days, particularly because in the current low interest environment it is extremely difficult to live off interest. The dangers to this strategy are two- fold. The first danger is that without an understanding of the business, investors might purchase an income producing asset which doesn't deliver sustainable distributions. Canadian royalty trusts such as Pengrowth (PGH) and Penn West (PWE)are examples of this idea. Most Canroys always seem to deliver high current yields, despite cutting dividend payments to the bone. This is because their stock prices have gone down over the past few years, right after Canada announced that it would be phasing out the structure in 2006. Investors who were short-sighted to only chase high yields for current income without understanding why such high yields were being paid in the first place, should have been better off purchasing long term treasury bonds instead.
The other issue with high yielding stocks such as MLPs, REITs or Utilities, is that when interest rates start rising again they could get out of favor with investors. When interest rates increase, investors would demand higher yields from the above mentioned types of stocks, which would push their prices down. In addition to that, since most of these types of companies grow exclusively by selling more shares ( units) or through additional debt offerings, their cost of capital would be increasing. This might even put current distributions at risk of a cut.
This being said, higher yielding stocks could have a place in your portfolio in order to generate current income until your dividend growth stocks generate high yields on cost.
The types of stocks which should be held forever, until proven otherwise, in a diversified dividend portfolio include:
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) engages in the research and development, manufacture, and sale of various products in the health care field worldwide. JNJ has been consistently increasing its dividend for 48 consecutive years. Annual dividend payments have increased by an average of 13.40% annually since 2000.(analysis)
McDonald's Corporation (MCD), together with its subsidiaries, operates as a worldwide foodservice retailer. The company is also a dividend aristocrat, which has been consistently increasing its dividends for 33 consecutive years. Annual dividend payments have increased by an average of 28.20% annually since 2000. (analysis)
Abbott Laboratories (ABT) engages in the discovery, development, manufacture, and sale of health care products worldwide. Abbott Laboratories has increased dividends for 38 years in a row. The company has managed to increase its annual dividend by 8.60% on average over the past decade. (analysis)
Colgate-Palmolive Company (CL), together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and markets consumer products worldwide. The company has rewarded shareholders with dividend increases for 47 consecutive years. Annual dividends have increased by 11.80% on average over the past decade. (analysis)
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (WMT) operates retail stores in various formats worldwide. Wal-Mart Stores has consistently increased dividends every year for 36 years. Annual dividends have increased by an average of 18.30 % per annum since 2000. (analysis)
To summarize, my holding period is forever, unless some unseen factor causes me to sell. After the sale I would typically try to allocate the cash to a new or existing position in the same sector, while keeping the income loss to a minimum. What is your holding period?
Full Disclosure: Long JNJ, MCD, ABT, PG, CL and WMT
Relevant Articles:
- A dividend portfolio for the long-term
- Dividend Investing Works in All Markets
- Highest Yielding Dividend Stocks of S&P 500
- Will higher taxes bring dividend stocks down?
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
Dividend investing timeframes- what's your holding period?
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Sikivu Hutchinson: Living in a culture in which they are reminded daily of their non-existence by a white supremacist heterosexist nation that deifies straight white beauty ideals and views affordable housing as a privilege, some LGBT homeless youth of color resort to destructive behaviors like survival sex and drug abuse.
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Household Income: Slip Slidin' Away
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Harsh Enforcement May Not Drive Unauthorized Immigrants Out
Seth Hoy: The idea that harsh state immigration enforcement policies are "working"—that is, forcing unauthorized immigrants to return home—just doesn't seem to hold water.
American Family Values, Invisible Lives
Sikivu Hutchinson: The numbers of LGBT families of color are increasing, especially in traditionally conservative regions like the South, which has seen a new black "re-migration" due to the massive ripple effect of job losses, foreclosures and gentrification in northern urban black communities.
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Andrea Nill: The creation of only one new Latino district in a state where Latinos are driving population growth and will soon be the majority amounts to anything short of Republican gerrymandering.
SB 1070 "Gets Tough" on Arizona's Housing Market
Seth Hoy: According to the Arizona Republic, housing experts anticipate that SB 1070 will not only drive illegal immigrants out of the state, but legal residents and potential new homebuyers with them—"departures from a state where growth is the economic foundation."
Why Counting Undocumented Immigrants in the 2010 Census Counts for a Lot
Not counting undocumented immigrants could slow recovery from the economic recession and lead to bad public policies based on incomplete and inaccurate census information.
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Question Your World: When Did We Start Using Bees?
Humans have had relationships with many animals including the current hot topic of the science world, honeybees. The bee population right now is experiencing some pretty drastic changes so knowing our relationship with them is more important than ever. With that said, let's tackle today's big question, when did we start using bees? Listen to this Question Your World radio report produced by the Science Museum of Virginia to learn more.


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If you think in terms of a year, plant a seed; if in terms of
ten years, plant trees; if in terms of 100 years, teach the people.
- Confucius
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Tomoe Kumashiro served as a Japan Outreach Coordinator from 2011-2013 at the University of Texas at San Antonio. She left several legacies and will be missed by her new found friends in the Alamo City. To read more about Tomoe Kumashiro
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It's hard to believe but in a week's time my kids are heading back to school. In these final days of summer we've crossed a few things off the summer list.
This week we went to an indoor trampoline park where the kids can literally bounce off the walls!
We also took a roadtrip down to Providence, RI to visit Mr. Lemon, a frozen lemonade stand on the outskirts of Providence College, where my partner in crime B went once upon a time.
It's worth the 25 minute ride – the frozen ices are that good!! B is a teacher, so this outing was a last hurrah for the whole crowd.
After Mr. Lemon, we pushed our luck and took the kids to lunch (it's all about the food for the big guys). My boys acted like complete hooligans and I cursed myself for saying out loud what a great summer it's been. NEVER SAY THESE THINGS OUT LOUD!!! What was I thinking?
This summer we didn't go on any big family trip or do anything major. My kids occasionally acted like a bunch of punks, their mother occasionally lost her temper, and we didn't cross everything off our big summer bucket list. But Mark was around a lot (the silver lining to searching for a new job!) and we managed to get in some good old fashioned fun between days at the beach, a couple of weekends at Lake Winnipesaukee, summer sports and playing in the neighborhood. I hope when my kids look back on summers like this, they will remember the simple pleasures and good times we had with family and friends fondly.


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Green Eggs and Ham?
Deadline is looming and I've lost this week's almost finished column. Can't tell you how often this happens: I fool around all week, suddenly scare up something that has caught my interest, write my fingers sore, proudly punch the "send" button, and voila!
Can't find my notes, can't even find where I was writing, and it's getting dark and Dave has worked himself into a state that I'll keep him awake if I don't come to bed RIGHT NOW.
I assure him it will be just a few minutes more and he doubts it, yet five minutes later I can hear his even breathing, and I know he is dead to the world (an expression that no longer has the charm that it did once.) I charge ahead, put a dubious title on it, and prepare to post it via email.
But now I can't locate the file itself or else the Internet is suddenly taking a nap.... Oh, well, why complain to you? I had all day – all week! – to write this fool thing. I deserve whatever lashes my muse has in mind.
So, since this is going to be balky, I opt to do the least I can in double time, and pray that cyberspace hasn't chosen me as poster girl for Unprofessional Scribner of the Year.
Desperate, I began free associating and started to see images like the one I cooked up just yesterday. I had flung myself across the bed and started watching what was going on in the trees just behind the house. It was a breezy day and that usual still-life of leaves danced as though electrified.
I very quickly became fixated on the whirling leaves, very dense and perfectly green, and a certain peace came over me. It appeared as though clusters of leaves would crowd closer to each other, seemingly grasping each other as though in greeting. The humidity was low and the sun was bright, and the emeralds were punctuated with pearls? diamonds? reflecting from pond's surface.
I lay there absorbing green (yes, when I could have been writing a column) until I felt perfectly at ease, and went to the kitchen to make dinner. Eventually the images slowed own and the back lot was still.
After dinner I wondered if the Internet could actually help. In a matter of minutes I had millions of green images, both artistic and scientific, the most startling being red. An early find was a page full of Green Eggs and Ham book-covers in that bold red Dr. Seuss used to enliven his palate for the rest of us.
Yum. There are dozens of green eggs and ham recipes, most of them involving spinach mixed into some sort of pastry and then arranged to look like eyes staring off a plate. Or the front of a human torso.
GE&H had a special interest for my young family as they learned to read. We'd read to them any Dr. Seuss book except GE&H. They had to apply their own competence in phonics to read it themselves. That made the escapades of that goofy cat the first in what must have been thousands of books they've read by themselves.
And now we have grandsons who lapped up GE&H with glee and moved on to the Hardy Boys series and National Wildlife Federation magazines and just about anything else they want to read. What a legacy.
Well, there you have it, a full column to fill that slot in The Citizen. There's good TV on this (Sunday) evening. If email doesn't fail me, I can still get a little supper put together for Dave.
And he won't have to worry about sleeping tonight....
[Sallie Satterthwaite of Peachtree City has been writing for The Citizen since our first issue Feb. 10, 1993. Before that she had served as a city councilwoman and as a volunteer emergency medical technician. She is the only columnist we know who has a fire station named for her. Her email is firstname.lastname@example.com.]
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SPANISH FORT, Alabama -- In Baldwin County the loss of Sheriff's Deputy Scott Ward and the wounding of Sgt. Curtis Summerlin has not only led to an outpouring of support for their families but for all the men and women who put their lives on the line day in and day out.
Spanish Fort Police Chief David Edgar is among those showing his respect. Through Facebook, Edgar is sharing a way everyone can continue to show their support for first responders.
"I have placed a blue 'candle' in the window of my house in honor of those who are watching and protecting day and night," he said on his Facebook page Wednesday night. "It is also there in remembrance of those who have given the ultimate gift of their life while doing so. Feel free to do the same if you're so inclined ... Just a little something to let those protectors know they are appreciated."


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Fitness Guru Anna Victoria Shares Her Perfect Day of Eating
Fitness Guru Anna Victoria Shares Her Perfect Day of Eating - HarpersBAZAAR.com
Kristin Cavallari's Favorite Total-Body Gym Routine
Kristin Cavallari Total-Body Workout - Celebrity Fitness: Kristin Cavallari's Full Body Workout Plan | Shape Magazine
A Rundown of How Gigi Hadid Stays in Top Model Shape
Gigi's body is amazing no matter what people say. If you are a fan and love our favorite supermodel just as much as we do, then learn all about Gigi's diet and fitness routine that proves she is truly a hard working model.
A Calorie-Burning Workout For People Who Hate to Run
A Calorie-Burning Workout For People Who Hate to Run. And guess what? No treadmill and no equipment needed!
The Super Intense Workout That Got Shailene Woodley in Fighting Shape for "Divergent"
The Super Intense Workout That Got Shailene Woodley in Fighting Shape for "Divergent" | Health News / Tips & Trends / Celebrity Health
Cameron Diaz Workout and Diet for The Green Hornet
You know, I just don't like this look. I know she is a bad ass, but for myself, I love a softer look. She's bulky and manly.
15 Celeb Trainers to Follow for Inspiration
There's a reason these fitness pros have impressive followings; They can motivate you to get moving from across the nation!
Exclusive: What Kate Hudson Eats in a Week
Kate Hudson, Pretty Happy, Celebrity diet, Healthy Eating
Fitness Tips from Celebrity Trainer Astrid McGuire
15JUL13 10-Minute Pilates Butt Workout | Celebrity Fitness | Class FitSugar. Whoa! This was def a challenging 10 minutes. You will def get results from this routine. Classic moves but difficult cuz you work one side for the first 5 mins. then the opposite side the last 5 mins.


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For information about business developments at Vorwerk, please see our interactive annual reports in the publications section.
Superior Products Directly to the Customer
Vorwerk & Co. KG was founded in Wuppertal in 1883. During the course of its 132-year history, the company, originally a carpet factory, has grown into a highly diversified, global corporate group. Vorwerk nevertheless remains a family enterprise to this day.
Vorwerk's core business is the direct selling of high-quality products. The Vorwerk product range includes household appliances (the Kobold vacuum cleaner, the Thermomix kitchen appliance, Twercs Tools, products from Lux Asia Pacific) and JAFRA cosmetics. The akf banking group, the Vorwerk carpet factories and the HECTAS Group as an associate company all belong to the Vorwerk entrepreneurial family. Superior products and a special customer approach are something all divisions have in common, and what makes Vorwerk so special.
Vorwerk provides jobs for 625,000 people worldwide, of whom 612,000 work as self-employed advisers and over 12,000 as employees. Vorwerk generated a Group sales totaling more than 3,5 billion euros in 2015 and operates in 70 countries.
|Total number of employees incl. akf bank group:
|Self-employed sales advisers "Household Appliances":
|Self-employed sales advisers JAFRA Cosmetics:
|Total Vorwerk workforce:
|Number of countries which sell Vorwerk products and services via business units and exports:
|Group sales 2015:
|€ 3,5 billion


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In Brief: Man stabbed in neck on Erie's east side
Man requires surgery after eastside stabbing
A man underwent surgery Friday after Erie police said he was stabbed in the neck during an incident on the city's east side.
The 26-year-old man, whose name was not released, told police that he was not in a fight and did not know who stabbed him in the 800 block of East Avenue. The man was taken to the hospital by private vehicle after the stabbing, which was reported Friday at about 1:15 a.m.
Police said an officer was in the 800 block of East Avenue and saw people running away. The officer was then dispatched to investigate a reported stabbing, police said Friday.
Police had no suspects in the stabbing Friday.
Armed men rob store in Vernon Township
MEADVILLE -- State police are looking for two men armed with a silver revolver who robbed a Country Fair store in Vernon Township early Friday morning.
Police said the men walked into Country Fair, 18163 Conneaut Lake Road, at about 2:30 a.m. and held two female employees at gunpoint while demanding money. They fled with an undisclosed sum of cash and were last seen running east toward Route 322 and Meadville, according to troopers.
One of the suspects was described as a black male who was 20 to 25 years old, 6 feet to 6 feet 2 inches tall and weighing 120 to 135 pounds. He was wearing a black hooded sweatshirt, bluejeans and gray shoes.
The other suspect was described as a black male who was 20 to 25 years old, about 5 feet 6 inches tall and about 135 pounds. He was wearing a black hooded sweatshirt, black pants and white shoes.
Next week's meetings
- Erie Planning Commission: Tuesday at 1 p.m. in Room 500, City Hall, 626 State St.
- Erie City Council: Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. in Bagnoni Council Chambers at City Hall.
- Erie County Council finance and personnel committees: Thursday at 11:30 a.m. in Room 114A at the Erie County Courthouse, 140 W. Sixth St.
- Erie County Convention Center Authority: Thursday at 3 p.m. in Room 110 at the Bayfront Convention Center, 1 Sassafras Pier.
- Erie City Water Authority: Thursday at 3 p.m. at 340 W. Bayfront Parkway.
-- from staff reports