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A question for Mitt Romney
As a potential Romney voter, I have one question for the governor before I co-Mitt. Why are you, with your vast financial resources — upwards of a quarter of a billion dollars according to some reports — not using that money to create jobs?
You must realize that sequestering your money offshore in Swiss and Grand Cayman Island accounts makes you look like an economic traitor to the United States, especially in light of the fact that you have not invested in an American company in over ten years.
We have startups and innovative technologies in this country waiting for the seed money that will make them flourish and hire American workers. Rather than hearing you mount fusillades of words blaming the current president for not creating jobs, jobs, jobs, I for one would much rather have you and others with the means to do so grow new industries. That's what your wealth is supposed to be doing according to the conservative philosophy of taxation, which we have been suffering since the Reagan administration, when our debt troubles began.
Anthony Splendora
Milford, PA


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The more build-up you remove now, the less likely it is that you'll need a drain cleaner to unclog your drain later. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure!
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Read product label for additional information and precautions.
This consumer received rewards from expotv.com for providing their opinion of this

subset: commoncrawl


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You are Here:
/ Freeman Named Alabama NRCS Small Farmer of the Year Award
AUBURN, Ala., September 13, 2013 –
Thomas Freeman (center) and his wife, Mary, accept the 2014 Alabama NRCS Small Farmer of the Year Award presented by (l-r) Terry Cosby, NRCS Acting Southeast Regional Conservationist and Dr. William Puckett, Alabama NRCS State Conservationist.
Thomas Freeman of Colbert County was named the Alabama Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) Small Farmer of the Year for FY2014. A plaque and an engraved clock was presented to him and his wife, Mary, by Terry Cosby, NRCS Acting Southeast Regional Conservationist and Dr. William Puckett, Alabama NRCS State Conservationist, at the Federation of Southern Cooperative's 46th Annual Meeting, in Epes, Alabama, in August.
"People like Thomas and Mary Freeman make our conservation work rewarding," said Dr. Puckett. "We are pleased to honor them with this award."
The Freeman farming enterprises are diverse and include growing vegetables and raising cattle. To address his natural resource concerns, he sought technical and financial assistance through NRCS's Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) and the Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program (WHIP).
To grow fresh vegetables for his family and the community, as well as supply additional income, he received financial assistance to install a 72 foot by 30 foot Seasonal High Tunnel, or hoop house. In it he grows cabbage, savoy cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower and collards. The hoop house adds many benefits to the land including energy reduction, increased water quality (with reductions in pesticides and nutrient inputs and outputs), and improved soil quality.
They finished the hoop house last year and planted cool-weather crops this year. Freeman wants to add a heating system to grow tomatoes, squash, cucumbers, and other warm weather crops throughout the winter."
Freeman also owns a cattle operation with grazing land that needed many conservation practices. In the past five years, participating in USDA-NRCS programs, he installed cross fencing, a watering facility with a heavy use area, a well with pipeline, and planted grass in his pastures.
The Freemans enjoy sharing the farming knowledge they have acquired. They host field days, demonstration workshops, and other educational events on their farm. Thomas is a member of the county EQIP Work Group that makes decisions for the conservation activities of the local NRCS/SWCD office.
Farming and raising cattle is not Freeman's only job. He also delivers large trucks for Bennett International and is known for his good heart and soul singing. Freeman is quick to inform people that his God-given talent is singing. In addition to being a good steward of the land, Freeman also wants to spread the gospel through his singing as he travels the nation delivering trucks.
Matthew Copeland, Colbert County NRCS District Conservationist, says, "Mr. Freeman is living in harmony with nature and mankind. He is truly making an impact on the earth. He is working to make his Colbert County farm a better place than when he obtained it. That will carry over for generations to come."
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Speaking Engagements
Speakers and Events
For additional information or to book a speaker contact a Seminars Representative.
"Where the bishop is, there is the community, even as where Christ is, there is the Catholic Church."
~ Ignatius of Antioch (Smyrn., viii, 2) circa A.D. 110, laid down this principle on true union with the Church, versus schism; all the more impressive because his casual use of the word "Catholic" demonstrates the widespread acceptance of the term at a very early date.


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Author Archive
Breaking through, holding on, loving back. Welcome to October.
Mark Melancon was making his fifth appearance as closer for the Pittsburgh Pirates. It was July 31, "Thunderstruck" was playing at PNC Park.
Melancon, the Great White of the Pirates Shark Tank with Jason Grilli on the mend, retired St. Louis Cardinals sluggers Matt Holliday and David Freese with relative ease. They each grounded out to Neil Walker, who scored the go-ahead run on a Russell Martin single just a half inning earlier. There were over 31,000 fans at the park that night, myself included. Everybody was on their feet well before this moment, but with Daniel Descalso up to bat the energy grew louder and spread wider.
Strike 1.
"Let's Go Bucs"
Strike 2.
The claps turned into woos.
Strike 3.
The tears started to fall.
This was my first Pirates game in over two months. A drought much longer than my liking, way too long for my original expectation. They were missing from my life; a lot was missing from my life. But from that moment further, things started to slowly be pieced back together. I made a lifetime of mistakes over a few dreary months and the Pirates were going to help get me through it.
But they were a catalyst for these problems.
Those were happy tears on that late summer night, but there were plenty more of the sad, mad, depressed, distressed variety every day before it.
My dream came true, I was a resident of the Steel City, the capital of Appalachia, the Confluence, the Golden Triangle, my city.
Quickly, though, that dream became a nightmare. A nightmare, that strangely enough, I didn't want to wake up from.
I really didn't believe in depression or any form of mental illness until I I experienced it for myself. I was depressed in Pittsburgh, my city.
This story begins in December of 2012 with the Pittsburgh Pirates. Truthfully, with me, it always begins yet never seems to end, with the Pittsburgh Pirates. I was covering a pair of events for my former employer. The annual Pirates Caravan rolls into my hometown and for the past two years I was fortunate enough to talk to some players and coaches, write a few stories and get a leg up on their preparation for the upcoming season.
Josh Harrison, Gaby Sanchez, Neil Walker, Alex Presley, Pedro Alvarez, Bryan Morris, Clint Hurdle and Rick Sofield all visited Northeast Ohio, Western Pennsylvania and North Central West Virginia fans and wide-eyed local sports reporters, like myself. My father complimented my articles the next day and he consoled me the day after.
I was offered a job in Pittsburgh. A job that I thought I couldn't refuse. It would mean a career shift, a 9-5 (or so I thought) schedule and the task of fitting in a cubicle, but more importantly fitting in with a new group of people; coworkers.
However, I looked beyond all that. This was an opportunity to move to Pittsburgh. An opportunity. For me. To move. To Pittsburgh.
I couldn't pass up a chance to be in the heart of it all. Instead of driving an hour my entire life I could be within 10 minutes. That's 10 minutes away from PNC Park. I couldn't pass it up.
I hated leaving a job I loved, with coworkers I loved. But, man, it was Pittsburgh. So, I moved in January.
And hated it
Things just didn't work out in this new environment. Part of it was me. A lot of it was them. There were things I wasn't told, lies I was told and unfulfilled promises. I kind of new this at first, but I let it drag on longer than it should have. It was likely just the bleak optimism that I've had my entire life.
What is on me is my ability to adapt and I wasn't ready for it. I jumped at a chance to break free from the normalcy but I realized, maybe too late, the normalcy is what I need.
I lost that optimism, bleak or not, dropped 30 pounds and developed a poor attitude.
I wanted to go to Bradenton, Fla. for Pirates Spring Training. Again, always looking to jump at a chance, but it costs money — a lot of it — to fly to Florida, book a hotel, rent a car, buy tickets, purchase food, leave tips and all that other overlooked stuff that's necessary on a vacation. Meanwhile, I was already shelling out enough each month for rent in a North Hills apartment, paying monthly bills and catching up on college loans. I wasn't ready for it.
Opening Day rolled around in Pittsburgh. I wasn't ready for it. I lost that optimism, dropped an unhealthy amount of weight and that poor attitude was on display each day. I was depressed.
I worked a lot and didn't watch many Pirate games in April, May and June. I call that the dark ages of 2013, while most fans refer to it as the glory days. Pittsburgh was becoming a hot bed of Major League Baseball. All eyes were here on a scrappy, young team defying odds and climbing up the standings in a division, a league and a country.
I didn't care.
Relaxation tactics and counseling sessions were my getaway from the world. The stresses of a bad job that kept getting worse and I couldn't deal with what used to be fun. And, win or lose, the Pirates were always fun.
Three months without a Pirates game. Not just in-person. But on the radio and TV, too. My dad had dreams of visiting me in Pittsburgh, going to a game, then celebrating at my place 10 minutes away. That didn't happen. I didn't want it to happen. There was too much on my mind.
I needed to feel whole again. I needed to feel good about my work, surround myself with good people and slowly but surely build myself back up again. I needed to write again. With the support of family, friends and the blessing of a new boss I started to being those steps to being Matthew Peaslee again. I was writing, I was gaining weight and I was able to watch the Bucs. It's the normalcy. What I tried to run away from, I needed it to bring me back again.
Melancon's sure-fire steadfastness slowly started to erode with three blown saves in the past week. I like, I let some other chances slip away while I'm on my road to recovery. Melancon still records out, so does Grilli, since his return. Charlie Morton, A.J. Burnett and Francisco Liriano fend off the rough outings and hone in on their craft, too. Neil Walker gets on base, Starling Marte comes through in the clutch, Andrew McCutchen exudes his swagger.
So can I. With a fair amount of ups and a decent helping of downs. In the end, it all balances out and becomes normal again.
The Pirates secured their first winning season since 1992 on Sept. 9. They clinched a playoff berth for the first time in 21 years on Sept. 23. But July 31almost trumps those dates. It brought me back to normalcy.
There's still a lot of work left to be done, for myself and the Pirates. I'm worried about the future. But I'm slowly finding that sense of normalcy once again.
Though this isn't normal.
Oh, Atlanta
The fun never stops.
Settling in from my last baseball trip, that you read about in my last one, I'm gearing up for another on a more Major level.
Yes it has to do with the Pirates. No, it's not in Pittsburgh.
The Bucs are in Atlanta for a four-game weekend series and I'll be there for three of them.
History hasn't been kind to the Pirates playing in the ATL.
Mention the names Jerry Meals or Sid Bream to a Pittsburgh fan and you're asking for trouble. Rather, stinging images that ruined games and seasons, while adding plenty of agony to already troubled years.
July 26, 2011 and October 14, 1992. Nineteen years and nearly two months apart.
Two plays that have defined the Pirates' history.
The Pirates went 19-42 the remainder of the way, last year, after sitting at 53-48 after Jerry Meals called Julio Lugo safe for the Braves' 4-3 win in 19 innings.
Sid Bream's slide at home was a little more clear cut, but still a call that could've gone either way. Yet no baseball enthusiast would've guess what it would do to a franchise for the next 20 years. Since that National League Championship game 7, Pittsburgh has failed to reach the postseason. The Pirates haven't even had a winning season since Sid's slide.
An awful twist of faith, a string of mismanagement, bad luck or some kind of weird hex — whatever has haunted the Pirates the most — it hasn't made them win.
Atlanta owns a 93-61 advantage over the Bucs since that fateful NLCS.
Let's hope I can reverse the curse.
Photo credits: youjivenmeturkey.com, hedgeco.net nbcsports.com, fansided.com
Minor League trippin'
Probably my favorite thing about baseball is the story that can be told.
Being at a live game is one of the most entertaining events one can attend and everybody in the stadium is there for a reason. Last week, my brother Zach and I had both a reason and from it — had a story.
We went on a Minor League Baseball road trip to Buffalo, NY and Erie, PA.
Everything was set up perfectly. I had spent a few hours earlier in the week just scouring websites of various MiLB teams that are close to our home in Youngstown, OH. I first stumbled on Erie, with a game at 6:35 on Friday. Realizing that Buffalo was a mere hour and a half away, I checked the Bisons' site out of curiosity. Lucky for us, they had a game at 1:05, earlier that afternoon.
Oh yeah, we had a baseball state of mind.
It took us just three hours to get to Buffalo, arriving at about noon.
That close to Canada, ah we'll save that for later in the summer — really.
We found easy parking downtown, quickly bought tickets and we're ready for baseball game No. 1 at Coca Cola Field.
Built in 1988, it seats 18,000 people. The outside is very vintage, like an Ebbets Field. We were told it was meant to blend in with the other buildings of downtown Buffalo — and it really does. It can easily be mistaken for an office complex if you didn't know any better.
One step inside, though, with one glance at that jumbotron, you'll know you're here for baseball. Unfortunately, the San Diego chicken wasn't there that day. Perhaps more unfortunately, the Coca Cola Field scoreboard was recently unseated as the largest in the Minor Leagues. The Memphis Redbirds now hold that title.
We had two goals before the game started. Zach and I are kind of passed the autograph stage, but there were two people that we really wanted to sign.
Bobby Scales and Wally Backman.
Scales is a legend in his own right. My good friend Marc is a die-hard Cubs fan. Scales was a in the Chicago farm system for many years, but would only crack the North Sider's line up around September call up time. Anyway, Scales has a large following, for whatever reason, and Marc said getting an autograph from Scales would be a life changing moment. If we got him to sign something, he was going to display it in between his Muhammed Ali and Michael Jordan signatures.
There was Bobby, but he didn't sign. Not many guys stuck around to sign for us, or the maybe six others waiting. It was kind of like a Major League game when you can get close enough to yell at the players and they acknowledge, yet they usually disregard the opportunity to come over and sign. Truthfully, I don't blame them. These guys are a step away from the big leagues and they have every right to have a professional approach to the game. That's how AAA is, anyway. It's not a promotion-ridden, activity-infested production. It's as close to the MLB as it gets.
Still, some guys signed as soon as they saw a little kid, or elderly lady, hold up a ball.
Oh, and Wally Backman? No sign of him — until game time.
He didn't move from that position much coaching third base. And, much to our disappointment, there were no questionable calls for him to argue. If you've never seen him blow up on an umpire, YouTube "Wally Backman Home Run Ejection" or anything with his name in it. And, cover your ears, it gets quite vulgar — and hilarious.
Like I said before, Coca-Cola Field holds 18,000 people. Zach was not too impressed by the Friday afternoon attendance.
Yeah, this is a pretty cool portrait of myself. But look behind it and you can get a decent idea how how many fans showed up. It was spotty, at best, but I was impressed.
"There's nobody here," Zach exclaimed.
Actually, there was over 6,000 fans in attendance. Because it is a pretty massive stadium — for minor league standards — it can appear to be empty. In many other lower level fields — it'd be a sellout.
All of us there on the corner of Swan and Washington street on the sun-drenched afternoon were treated to a great game, itself, and quality entertainment.
When the starting lineups were announced and Zach and I penciled it into our scorebooks, I told him to watch out for DeWayne Wise. He was starting in CF for the Scranton Wilkes Barre, I mean Empire State, Yankees. Remember how he preserved Mark Buerhle's perfect game a few years ago with the White Sox? Well he nearly topped it, minus the implications, with this bring back of a sure-fire Bisons' home run. Very cool moment when the whole crowd stood up expected a dinger and I, honestly, had a hunch that Wise would go up and grab it.
Along with Wise, both rosters had notable players.
Decently regarded, Colin Curtis.
Omar Quintanilla, who has always flirted with the Mets roster.
Jordany Valdespin, who got "spun" around here:
Haha. He'll be on the Mets roster soon — this week actually.
Jeremy Hefner is in New York now, too. He got the start last Friday and picked up the loss.
Now, for the name game.
With quality Italian names like that, there has to be a…
I thought the outfield wall provided a nice homegrown touch, but we wouldn't have been in Buffalo with out some wings. The Bisons even threw in the celery and bleu cheese.
Bleu cheese got its first win of the season in the race. It wouldn't be a minor league game without one of these and don't worry — there's two more left.
Again, the Bisons' in-game production mirrored that of a major league game almost to the T. Which was refreshing, but not as charming.
They roll out three mascots. A pretty good number to keep potentially big crowds entertained — one would think. If Zach wouldn't have stopped really fast, we wouldn't have caught up with any of these three Bull-like creatures. The trio only appears during on-field t-shirt tosses, then rushes them back into a holding area. Never do they roam the concourses for pictures, hugs and high fives. If it wasn't for their visiting in the seating areas, many little kids are bored at games. That was certainly the case in Buffalo.
One guy, however, stood out in the aisles.
dConehead has been a character at Coca-Cola Field for many years.
As for the game, the Yankees picked up four runs in the fifth inning after the Bisons jumped out to a 3-0 lead after the first three.
Usually around the seventh inning stretch of any game I'm at, anxiety takes over and my few hours of relaxation and baseball is about to come to a close. Reality sets in. This day was different, around that same time of unrest, I felt happiness knowing that another nine inning spectacle was about to come.
Down 7-4 in the bottom of the ninth, Buffalo got one across but couldn't come from behind completely. The home team fell 7-5.
On to the next one.
Jeryry Uht Park in Erie, PA lacked the big city feel of Coca-Cola Field in Buffalo, yet it still had a pretty cool vibe. It was located in downtown Erie, but we didn't know we were even close to it, unlike Coca-Cola where it's visible right off the highway and in many angles of downtown Buffalo.
We entered about a half hour before the game and we were nervous. It was Justin Verlander poster night and we knew we'd be cutting it close because only the first 1,000 people received posters.
In all honesty, we were one of the first people through the gates. And the first 1,000 — didn't even show up. Plenty of posters were left at the end of the game.
During it, though, was a blast.
Zach and I were selected for an on-field contest. At the end of the first inning, we went on the field for the "Crazy Frog" race. From third base to home plate, we raced another pair of competitors — also Pirate fans! Let me tell you, 90 feet is further than you think, especially when you're leap frogging somebody. So as we tumbled our way down the line, fans actually cheered for us. To their dismay and ours — we lost.
The process of getting selected by the "Wolfpack" promo team and introduced by the on-field host, it reminded me so much of my summer, last year. As a minor league intern for the Mahoning Valley Scrappers, I was responsible for many of the promotional activities and contests, just like these kids were for more. Whether you're entertained by the production or not, a lot goes into it and time is limited between innings. I had a lot of respect for those interns and next time you're at a minor league game, try to understand what all goes into making it work. It probably won't seem like much — but trust me — it is.
Needless to say, Erie had much more of a homey, intimate and well, minor league feel.
With just one mascot — C. Wolf stole the show.
However, the SeaWolves were hosting the Baltimore Orioles AA affiliate, the Bowie Baysox. And I pleased to see former No. 3 pick and top prospect Manny Machado.
Those interns I praised earlier, yeah, they didn't do their homework. Whether they realized how highly regarded Machado is or not — he was named the Strikeout Player of the Game.
Well, their decision paid off as Machado whiffed in his very first at-bat.
We sat behind home plate, very first row, for much of the game. I though these pictures turned out pretty cool, too.
Also cool — and comfortable — for that matter is Jerry Uht Park, itself.
Except for that big wooded wall in left field. "What an eyesore," we thought right when we looked up. We thought there was no way that it's normally like that and a security guard confirmed that it is only temporary for an amazing cause. Jerry hut Park is right next store to Erie's sports arena that houses arena football, hockey and basketball. Actually, it's right beyond the Home Depot demonstration. Construction is under way for a 50 million dollar project that will add connected suites that will over look both left field and center court. A very productive and well-thought out idea that I'll have to check out when it's finished, next year.
The left field fence stands just 312 feet away from home plate and, sure enough, it was in play.
That hole two panel away from the orange bench wasn't there before John Murrian stepped to the plate in the bottom of the eighth. It was a two-run shot, part of a four-run inning, that gave Erie the come from behind, 6-2 win.
That'd be it for our marathon day. Zach and I will never forget this trip. It may have been crazy, our mother thought so, but that's what was great about it. We put life to the side for a day and focused on the great game of baseball. No worries, no cares, no deadline, no hurry.
A few days later, Zach handed the reigns over to my buddy, Andrew. Another day of minor league baseball was ahead for me and my lifelong friend.
We stayed in Ohio at Lake County for the Single A, Indians affiliated, Captains.
Francisco Lindor is their big name — Cleveland's first-round pick from 2011, No. 8 overall.
Lake County is just one step up from Mahoning Valley — where I spent my summer all of last year. Lindor, along with several others, joined me for their first taste of professional ball.
I also got the chance to hang out with a staple of Eastwood Field, photographer Jesse Piecuch.
I think Im tough stuff with my camera, but Jesse's is as fine as they come. And his photos — whoa, they are the best in baseball. Literally. The guy has a knack for the job.
In the afternoon sun, it was the perfect temperature for a game, with a slight breeze. I the shade, it was frigid. To keep even warmer, we migrated throughout Classic Park because we basically had the place to ourselves. Zach thought Buffalo was bad, I thought Erie was worse, but last Wednesday's Lake County crowd was the slimmest I've ever seen. We counted no more than 50 people.
Still, the show went on.
And Captain Tony observed from his perch in center field.
The Captains rallied for four runs in the sixth and led 5-4 going into the bottom of the ninth.
Ahoy, blown save ahead.
The West Michigan White Caps, a Detroit Tigers affiliate, teed off for four runs of their own. The rally was started by Colin Kaline.
Yep, that Kaline. Well, not exactly as in Al. But he is a spawn — Al's grandson.
He didn't come in with legendary numbers, but I'm sure it took Al a while to be Kaline-like, too.
I can't imagine pulling off a pilgrimage like this in any other sport. Basketball? Football? Hockey? No way anybody would hit three different games, of any level, within a 4-day span in those sports. They're all too similar. Baseball games are unique, their special. Every field is different. Every stadium is different. With the other aforementioned sports, it's all defined in the exact same matter everywhere you go. The football field is 100 yards long, the basketball hoop is 10 feet tall. Hockey is…always played on ice. Baseball presents its own special calling and only the patient and appreciative can answer the call to the game's adventures and journeys.
Believe in Opening Day
I start to tear up every time I watch the end credits of the Christmas movie, The Polar Express.
It's not even one of my favorite holiday classics, I may have only seen the entire thing once or twice. I definitely don't make it a point to sit down and watch it when December rolls around.
But I make sure I listen to the song.
Josh Groban's Believe takes me back to so many childhood memories. The warm feelings of Christmas morning with family all around and holding onto the wonder and amazement of believing in Christmas.
Well, I believe in Opening Day.
Both holidays, yes Opening Day is a holiday, evoke similar sensations of hope. People may get tired of hearing the same, "Hope Sprigs Eternal" and "There's nothing like Opening Day."
Yes, seeing is believing.
Not everyday you get to see all 25 big league guys introduced, honored and standing down the lines of a sun-drenched packed stadium. That's what makes Opening Day special, but it's surely not all.
Most of it starts outside the park.
There's swarming activity going on at every corner of the city. Pittsburgh was loaded last Thursday morning with fans, friends and foes. From the Strip District, to Downtown, to the North Shore parking lots — it felt like something special was about to happen. With wall to wall people walking around taking in the sights and tailgating, it was like a college football Saturday. With plenty of Phillies fans right neck in neck with us Pirates, it enhanced the football-feel — almost like a BCS bowl game.
Everybody is out and about in the hours before the gates open. Half the fun is just seeing who you'll run into.
Jon Anderson, one of the original MLBloggers and hit sensation with the mceffect.com.
Color commentator and former World Series champion Steve Blass.
It was hard not to get a little chocked up walking through the gates for the first time in months, even though it seemed like an eternity. There was still a light chill in the air, but the weather was perfect for an early April day.
Of course, a "Peaslee Pose" christened the new season.
As did this nice picture of Erin and I. The camera used for all these pictures is the one I received as a graduation gift last May. It's big, it's cool and I haven't really figured out how to use it yet. But one of the PNC Park ushers fixed the settings and got the lighting to work just perfect. Really, though, it's impossible to not take a beautiful picture in the most beautiful park in baseball.
Like I said before, the number of Pirate fans was rivaled by an extremely healthy slew of Philly people. I don't blame them for showing up in droves. However, I was surprised there was so many of them, considering it was Opening Day and during the week. Many made a weekend of it and I hope they enjoyed the better city in the great state of PA.
The new season is marking our first in a different section of the park. Section 315 is where I'll be found all summer long.
A perfect view of the skyline, jumbotron and all game action. Specifically, on Opening Day, those riveting pre game introductions.
Andrew McCutchen and Neil Walker, faces of the franchise are ready for a special year.
The game, itself, was just how I like it. Pitcher-dominated.
Erik Bedard impressed in his Pirates debut going seven innings, striking out four, while giving up six hits and allowing just one run — a Carlos Ruiz sacrifice fly where former Pirate Ty Wigginton scored on a bang-bang play at the plate.
He was upstaged by Roy Halladay who went a fantastic eight innings, giving up just two hits. The funny thing about those two hits — they came back-to-back by Alex Presley and Jose Tabata in the top of the first.
Jonathon Papelbon made his first appearance in a Philadelphia uniform and sent the Bucs down in order for the save.
How can you be disappointed in that? Arguably the best starting pitcher and closer in the game. The Phillies were without stars Ryan Howard and Chase Utley, but they still bring one of the most potent offensives in the game.
People come from far and wide for Opening Day. Maybe they won't make it back to another game until mid-July when they're buddies are celebrating a birthday and need an excuse to drink. They probably won't follow the team until then and, frankly, they won't care.
For one day, they do.
And that's what is great about baseball. It's a rebirth signaling summer, signaling sunshine, signaling warm nights, high fives, walk off home runs, complete game shut outs, diving catches and winning streaks.
It's cool and all when football, basketball and hockey season starts, yet they still don't draw the attention and gain the fondness of baseball Opening Day.
The remaining 161 games of the major league schedule won't be as eventful or have the pomp and circumstance, but that's what makes it great.
There are 161 more chances to make the season special and you have everything you need to enjoy them all — if you just believe.
The "Mc" that saved Pittsburgh
As story this good hasn't hit Pittsburgh since 1979.
Back then, a fictional basketball team hit the big screen. The Warner Brothers movie, The Fish That Saved Pittsburgh, was about a struggling team – The Pittsburgh Pythons. Playing in front of minuscule crowds at the now-ripped up Civic Arena, the Pythons were led by Moses Gurthrie (played Julius Erving aka Dr. J.). He was the star, one of the best in the league and the only worthwhile player on a forgotten franchise.
The Pythons were bad, we're talking Pittsburgh Pirates bad. Plenty of losing strung together with no real chance of ever getting better. Hopeless, downtrodden and demoralized, some players walked out on the team in Derek Bell-like fashion.
That's where the story gets good. Wacky, rather.
Ready to attempt anything for the slim chance that the Pythons get better, Guthrie and chief team advisers go seek the tutelage of a star gazer. The fortune teller, of sorts, tell them to gather a team similar to Guthrie's personal attributes if the Pythons wish to ever seek success. His astrological sign was Pisces, which is represented by a fish. The fortune teller advised them to assemble a team around the Pisces vibe, gathering players that all shared the zodiac sign of Pisces. Hence, the fish that saved Pittsburgh.
So, a ragtag group of less than-skilled players were signed by the team and, believe it or not, the Pythons who renamed themselves the Pisces in a true reshaping process, won the championships. It's a tale that can only come true in Hollywood.
Or is it?
The Pirates may have taken a page from the Pisces, whether General Manager Neal Huntington and other front office brass have talked to a psychic remains to be seen, but they may have sought the guidance of a Waynesburg University student — Jon Anderson.
He's had this blog called The McEffect for few years now. Started in homage to Nate McLouth and rising star Andrew McCutchen, the site is a popular source for Pirates news, stats and all kinds of information. Jon has turned it into its own social media empire that has received national recognition and hundreds of thousands of views.
Huntington must have taken notice.
Even though McLouth was traded in early 2009, McCutchen came up to the bigs and made his mark right away. Then, along came pitcher Daniel McCutchen, who was acquired from the Yankees and James McDonald, who was acquired from the Dodgers.
In a flashback to the 1979 silver screen, things got even wackier.
Michael McKenry was brought in last year to help with catching duties and this offseason, Pittsburgh traded with the Brewers for 3B Casey McGehee and brought back McLouth. It rose the Mc total to six during spring training.
Jon had the above shirts produced and they've drawn greater attention to the blog and the sheer ridiculousness of having six players with eerily similar names on the same team. They've been a hit, this off-season, with Pirates announcers giving them a shout out, WTAE news in Pittsburgh doing a story on him and in Flat Stanley-style, taking these shirts to cool place like Spring Training.
Bonus points for a picture with an actual Mc, like this fan with James McDonald.
If the Mc's aren't the reason to believe in 2012, the B's certainly are. Sticking with the name game, Huntington brought in catcher Rod Barajas, along with pitchers Erik Bedard and A.J. Burnett. Not a McEffect, but rather a bomb of B's, the signings were a viable fall back plan that further fuels the conspiracy.
It's been 33 years since a made up basketball team from Pittsburgh used some goofy formula to save their season and fix their losing ways.
Nineteen years have passed since the Pirates have finished a season with more wins than losses. Maybe it was just time — time to do something crazy of their own. If Pittsburgh does have its first winning baseball season since 1992, you have to think the Mc's are to thank.
It's like Jon said in his television interview, "what else would it be?"
photo credits: soulstrut.com, mceffect.com
Good feelings getting easier
Same old Pirates.
Unlucky old Pirates.
Poor old Pirates.
Last week, the Pittsburgh baseball club caught a bit of bad fortune when its prized offseason possession caught some rawhide off the eye.
Already tabbed to be the Opening Day starter for the Bucs, A.J. Burnett won't be making his black and gold debut until at least late May/early June as he recovers from his orbital fracture.
Frankly, nothing. For the Pirates, it was more about what could go right.
Andrew McCutchen helped everybody forget about losing one star by assuring that another is sticking around for a while.
The 25-year old superstar also help put to bed some scrutiny that the Bucco brass has built up over the years. Many fans thought this day would never come, some thought it, but never really held out hope. Cutch is secure, Cutch is home and he is going to be a Pittsburgh Pirate until 2018.
As risky as it is for a franchise like the Pirates to lock up a player for a long time, they did it the smart way.
Jason Kendall, Brian Giles and even a guy named Pat Mears were in this situation, too. They were promising players who got thrown a lot of money and never really produced. Through injury and lack of production, they never really quite lived to their billing and, frankly, weren't worth the payroll.
It's easy to say that McCutchen will be different, but the only guarantee is the $52 million he will accrue.
What does separate him, though, from the lackluster "stars" of the early-2000's is that he signed at a bargain.
McCutchen is just entering into the prime of his career. He may not light the world on fire to be a .300/30/100 player year in and year out, but he'll come close. He is highly regarded as a top-5 centerfielder in the big leagues and is developing into a true 5-tool guy with his speed, bat and skills in the field. McCutchen provides a sense of reliability and assurance because he has been the face of the organization and will continue to be for at least the next six years. Also, as Pittsburgh isn't the most lucrative location for top-flight free agents, the signing proves to doubting players that the Buccos mean business. A new wave is coming in and behind it is a committment to winning. If nothing else, it should at least ensure players give the Pirates a second look.
I guess what he does best is give the faithful a pretty good feeling…
And things are still getting easier.
Spring Training has come, baseball talk is in the air and my Pirates season tickets are in hand.
Maybe it was in honor of his extension which was signed the day before because Cutch's smiling face is planted on the Opening Day ticket.
Which, by the way, is just 26 days away.
If that doesn't give you a good feeling, I don't know what will.
Photo/video credits: rantsports.com, espn.com, yahoo.com, youtube.com (via NASHCENTER), captainsblog.info.
Pirates Tonight
As I was getting ready to leave for a Friday evening of work, I heard a welcoming sound.
It wasn't my mother telling me to hurry up and not forget my lunch — it was the glorious horns of Baseball Tonight on ESPN.
Jayson Stark joined Karl Ravech for the afternoon and led off with Pirates talk.
I was shocked too.
For the past few days, rumblings have been that A.J. Burnett was being swapped for the Pirates' Garrett Jones. Well, as of yesterday, Pittsburgh seemed to pull the plug on that deal. But work truly isn't done yet.
Stark said that there is mutual interest on both ends of sending Burnett to the Bucs. The Yankees appear to be desperate to let go of the pitcher who went 11-11 last year with a 5.15 ERA. Still, they're not going to let him go for free.
The Pirates have a host of prospects who may be on the block that would work well in this deal. 1B Matt Hague is said to be Major League ready, or, if New York wants a pitcher — the Pirates have Tim Alderson or Bryan Morris that would be well worth the Yankees' interest.
But with two polar opposite teams like the Pirates and the Yankees, money is the motive.
The driving factor for the Pirates would be for the Yankees to eat as much of Burnett's contract as possible. He is owed $33 million over the rest of his contract — Pittsburgh doesn't want to pay over $10 million of that.
After the Pirates failed to lure Edwin Jackson and Roy Oswalt to PNC Park, it may have been figured that they were done with their pursuit of a pitcher.
That's not the case.
Stark also commented that if the Burnett deal does fail — or even in addition to it if it does go down — Pittsburgh has its sights set on a pair of other well-known pitchers.
He first mentioned Joe Blanton.
Blanton is a 31-year old righty with a low-90's fastball and a notorious killer curve. He came to rise with the Oakland A's, but has since ruffled through a period of injures with the Phillies.
Secondly, Stark brought up John Lannan.
Lannan is 27 years old and has been floated around ever since Jackson decided to play with the Nationals, next year. He's a solid lefty who has been with the Expos/Nats organization for his entire career. He's an innings eater, which is something else Stark said the Pirates are interested in.
All of these developments have been pretty encouraging news for Pirate fans. The team needs a starter, desperately, to strengthen and solidify a shaky rotation. All three will certainly not be coming to Pittsburgh. One might, two might. Either way — any of them are upgrades.
However, it's easy to get caught up in what could be. Hearing news that West Virginia was for sure heading to the SEC rocked my world a few months ago. Unfortunately, that didn't happen yet the Mountaineers will be in good hands with the Big 12.
The same could happen here.
It's nice to be graced with a positive sighting and that's what this Friday afternoon held for the Bucco faithful. It may not be an SEC_like destination, but if two of theses solid starters are nabbed:
it'll be a Big12 landing for the Pirates.
Photo Credits: yankeeanalysts.com, thebiglead.com, espn.com
Visiting with the Bronx Bombers
It's early February, the Super Bowl just ended and we're riding out the seemingly endless winter months.
Even though at 52 degrees — it feels like springtime.
Still, with Opening Day just two full months away, the reality is that we all must play the waiting game for our pastime. Spring Training will soon fill the void and the Grapefruits and Cacti of Florida and Arizona will be ripe. But I like to prepare for baseball with some reflecting.
My favorite lyric of West Virginia's unofficial state anthem, "Take Me Home, Country Roads," is "all my memories gather 'round her." I have many memories with baseball. So many summer nights spent watching the game I love. Here's a tale of last summer's adventure with my family to New York City where we crossed yet another stadium off our list. Yankee Stadium would be our 27th of out 30 big league ballparks, but our day in mid-July started in Hoboken, New Jersey. The world-famous Carlo's Bakery was our breakfast stop. Made popular by the TLC show "Cake Boss" Carlo's is a bustling bake shop in the heart of Hoboken. The line to get in wrapped around the corner of the shop and you needed a number just to get in. Us, along with hundreds of other fans, waited just for the chance to sample some desserts and rub it in our friend's faces that we actually experienced it. After over an hour wait, we finally made it in. Part of the feeling of the bake shop was the crazy fans just there to catch a glimpse of it all — much like the Peaslee family. It was jam-packed in the tiny bakery. There was no sign of the infamous, Buddy, but there was plenty of merchandise with his face on it. We left with a nice haul of delicious cupcakes, cookies, pastries and a coffee mug. All for less than 30 bucks, not bad for a breakfast in one of the most famous reality TV show sets in one of America's most bumping metropolitan areas. As we ate on the drive over, our next stop was Yankee Stadium. It's more than a stadium, though. While new Yankee Stadium doesn't, I'm sure, have the charm of the old — it's a baseball mecca. There was an aura about it that I've never felt before entering a ballpark. I had the feeling that I was going to something special, that it was a limited invitation that only a select few receive. Maybe I just take for granted that I get to go see Pirates games whenever I want, but the Yankees aren't the Pirates. Love them or hate them, there is no in between. And there really is something romantic about the Yankees. They're the most successful sports franchise ever and, believe it or not, they're fans have earned a sense of entitlement. Yes it might be easy to be a Yankee fan, but there's a lot of history, tradition and a legendary aspect you have to uphold. It's a title that bears great responsibility. The sights and sounds were enough to give you chills. Although if you actually got chills, there's something wrong with your health. Temperatures reached the high 90 and I'm pretty sure they even cracked 100. Wrapping soaked paper towels around our neck came in handy and so did the many water stations like this one. Free, unlimited water was available throughout the whole game. It was the first time I've ever seen such a table at a game. Definitely thoughtful and, honestly, the staff was courteous and helpful around the large spacious concourses.
The Yanks hosted the Oakland A's on that hot Saturday afternoon. Zach, my brother, was all set in his Athletics attire. It was also kid's truck day. I thought it was a great promotion and judging by his reaction here, Zach didn't.
Our seats were in the last row, nearly behind home plate. Leaning up agains the final chain fenced was comfortable and a timely breeze cooled us off every once in a while. The best part of our seats was the perfect head-on view of the jumbo, and I mean JUMBO, jumbo-tron.
Hideki Matsui made his return to the Bronx after his first season away. He received a large ovation from the sellout crowd at each plate appearance.
He was only upstaged by Jorge Posada.
Recently retired here in the offseason, Posada played sparingly during the season and every time he was seen was special for the fans who cheered him throughout 17 years. He pinch hit for Gerald Laird in the eighth inning and got a base hit.
Some other special moments happened during inning breaks, too.
I was looking forward to this tradition from the start. During a sixth inning break, YMCA plays and the grounds crew dragging the infield dirt go insane. You won't find personalities like this anywhere else in the MLB. It was pretty cool to see them, and the fans, get excited.
Sundays are always reserved for the playing of God Bless America during the seventh inning stretch. Not in New York. Every game is an opportunity to honor the country and, even on a Saturday, they still played it before Take Me Out to the Ballgame. It was the most moving part of the game, because I'm sure a lot of the people in attendance were in some way affected by 9-11. The only thing that would've made it better would be if Ronan Tynan was there to belt it out.
Just the week before our trip, Derek Jeter blasted a home run for his 3000th career hit. Jeter-fever was still in the air.
Like I said before, everything about this ballpark is amazing. It's a pristine stadium big enough to house the masses of fans, but small enough to still let you know that the game on the field is the most important thing going on. I rank Yankee Stadium in the top five of my favorite ballparks, probably behind San Francisco's AT&T Park and, of course, Pittsburgh's PNC Park.
After a late rally in the bottom of the ninth, the Yankees still lost, 4-3.
We still had plenty of Saturday evening ahead of us and some of Sunday morning to check out the rest of what NYC had to offer. For my family, it was their first time in the city. Me, well I spent an evening there back in 2007, my freshman year of college. Along with some other friends, I took a bus trip to Piscataway, NJ for a WVU football game against Rutgers. That night, we had a few hours to roam about the city. This weekend was a nice refresher on the city that never sleeps.
A New York City Subway ride jumpstarted the rest of the night. An experience in itself, we were small fish in a big pond. It's crazy to figure it all out. Yet it was still a beginning gateway to the Big Apple.
We started with a great dinner at Mickey Mantle's Restaurant.
Just like Pit Bull said, go to Times Square and take a picture of me…
I ran into some more buddies at the FAO Schwartz store.
The Plaza Hotel, New York's most exciting hotel experience.
We didn't wake up early enough to see the Today Show live. But we were right there, live from studio 1A in Rockefeller Plaza on a Sunday afternoon.
What's the next best thing to exploring the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island? Posing by a sign for the two national landmarks!
While a mass —in Spanish — was going on, the back of St. Patrick's Cathedral was a bustling tourist destination. It was a beautiful worship place and the fanciest church I've ever been in. In shorts and t-shirts, we were surely underdressed for mass and late, no less. Nonetheless, ushers encouraged any Catholic tourists to go receive Holy Communion. So, we did.
With our vagabond shoes still longing to stray, our final stop of the evening was at the MLB Fan Cave. I tweeted (follow me @pittpeaswv!) mercilessly to its account to see if somebody would let us come take a tour to no avail. From the outside looking it, it looked like a cool place that any baseball fan would love to spend a season in..
Maybe next year I'll sen in my application to be the next Mike O'Hara and whoever wins for this season.
Until then, I'll enjoy my travels and I'm already planning 2012 trips.
Only Seattle's Safeco Field, Toronto's Rogers Centre and the other New York team, the Mets' Citi Field are left.
Let him have it
Ryan Bruan was the best Major League Baseball player in 2011.
There — I said it.
Ryan Braun is my most hated Major League Baseball player — ever.
That was a little bit easier to say.
On Saturday, Braun accepted his first National League MVP award after leading his Brewers to the playoffs, all while hitting 33 home runs. He also had a batting average of .332 and an unprecedented OPS of .994 with a solid .597 slugging percentage.
What will cloud his rather remarkable season, though, is shame.
Braun tested positive for a banned substance in December, after he was already named MVP. Us Pirate fans rejoiced at the news. Of course, it was an opportunity to point a finger and laugh and the man who has helped torment this fan base in all of his five seasons in the league. It affirmed the speculation that something most definitely has been up with this guy, and it's about time he was found out.
More so, it fueled the judgement of a doubting nation that the steroid-era is most certainly not over.
Braun has long been a players advocate saying that he is clean and could be tested at any time to prove he's truthful. Even with the confirmed allegations against him, he maintains his innocence. While it wasn't necessarily a steroid or a Performance Enhancing Drug he tested positive for, Braun still broke the rules.
Still, he got on base, hit the home runs and led Milwaukee through an exciting season and playoff run.
For that, he deserves to keep the award.
Defending the honor won't be so easy as Braun faces a 50-game suspension for, well, breaking the rules.
I'm not one to put an athlete on a pedestal, but they will always be looked up to. I don't not cheer for guys that are proven jerks, convicted felons or smug to the fans. I root for players, not people.
But, I don't pull for Ryan Braun.
The Brewers have long been Pirate killers. Since 2007, they are 38-4 against Pittsburgh. At the axis of the evil, Miller Park, Milwaukee won eight games when hosting the Pirates. There have been brawls, chin-music pitches thrown from each side and a 20-0 beat down within it all.
It has all been said and done, Braun is the 2011 NL Most Valuable Player, deservingly so. He also deserves a 50-game suspension for injecting/ingesting something that is illegal. He's appealing it, but to take a page from Braun's book when referencing getting beaned by Pittsburgh's Jeff Kastens:
"We'll see what the commisioner has to say about it."
photo credits: washingtonpost.com, espn.com
Back in black…and gold
According to the 2011 Latest Leaders, The Pittsburgh Peas was the 14th most read mlblog over the past year.
Not bad for not posting in about three months.
I always strived to post a few times a week. That was made a lot easier when I was in college with plenty of spare time to spill my thoughts on the Pirates, baseball and life in general. Heck, studying and writing important scholastic papers took a backseat to this blog.
But now I'm in the real world.
Regular posting started to slow down this summer when I had an internship with the Mahoning Valley Scrappers, a minor league affiliate of the Cleveland Indians.
There were long hours in a fast paced environement, but I showed up to an office each day that over looked a baseball field. Couldn't beat that.
Now, I'm back to writing — full time — at a newspaper. Sports writing as always been at the forefront of my career aspirations. I get to cover local sports with a much greater circulation than my college newspaper at WVU. I'm not sitting in a press box with top notch media from all over the country, but I still get to tell a story in my own words.
And now I'm really back to writing where I started with this blog.
The Pittsburgh Peas opened many doors for me, including the past two positions I've held. I've also connected with so many fans from all over the place, even meeting a few in person.
There are so many blogs out there that relay much of the same information on a team or story and I've prided The Peas on being much more than that. This is about my experiences, my thoughts and, most importantly, those with the Pittsburgh Pirates.
After all, this was the 14th most read blog for a reason.
So, I hope to get back into regular posting. I hated to see a gaping hole from October to December. With three years in the making, I let myself down for being a bit lax and letting The Peas fall by the wayside. We're still in the dead of winter, but so many good times are ahead.


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Tall Ship Celebration: Bay City returns this July 11 to 14! Shirley Roberts, formerly the Executive Director of the Bay Area Convention & Visitors Bureau and BaySail (a non-profit organization that owns and operates the tall ship Appledore IV), conceived the idea of Tall Ship Celebration in 1999. She has been the event coordinator and producer since then.
Today Shirley gives us a behind-the-scenes look at what goes into the Tall Ship Celebration.
Tall Ship Celebration is a magnificent beast and it's my job to wrangle her. She's very much like a giant octopus with many arms, each important and each moving in a different direction. The challenge is to get them all moving in unison.
The ships themselves are, of course, a critical part of what we do. The tall ship fleet that visits Bay City every three years is organized by Tall Ships America, a non-profit membership organization based in Newport, RI. But while Tall Ships America identifies the vessels that are interested in visiting the Great Lakes every three years, as a host port, we have to negotiate contracts with each of them individually (including such glamorous things as when and how often we will pump-out holding tanks).
In 2013, our major sponsors are Dow Corning, MLive Media Group, St. Mary's of Michigan, Dow Chemical, Consumer's Energy, First Merit Bank, Wildfire Credit Union, Independent Bank and The F. P. Horak Company. Together with these groups, we are letting people know about Tall Ship Celebration, to encourage them to put us on their summer calendars and of course to buy tickets. If you travel certain sections of I-75, I-69 and US-10 in Michigan, I know you've seen one of our billboards. It's hard to miss a 20 ft. tall ship on the side of the highway with canon fire off her port side. Like so many others who want to inform the masses, we've put a lot of time and effort into our website (www.tallshipcelebration.com), we regularly post updates on Facebook (find us and like us, please!), and this year we've commissioned our very own mobile app. It's ready now for Android users but we're still waiting for the folks from Apple to release it for i-Phones.
Because our marketing is so successful (I say with fingers crossed), we expect lots and lots of tall ship fans to arrive for the weekend. The more people you have congregated in one area, the more steps you put in place to make sure everyone is safe and that they all behave themselves. For TALL SHIP CHALLENGE® ports like Bay City, security and other regulations rise to a whole new level. The CHALLENGE® is a "Marine Event of National Significance" as designated by the Commander of the United States Coast Guard. And the Coast Guard no longer falls under the Department of Transportation; we're talking Homeland Security now. But the USCG is just the beginning of the alphabet soup. We also work with the BCES, BCPD, BCSP, BCSPMP, DNR, FBI, NOAA and others. If you're not a first responder or are not directly involved in providing emergency services, it can be difficult to communicate. But we've figured it out and I think now we work incredibly well together.
We also work incredibly well with a dozen local non-profit organizations that partner with Tall Ship Celebration to provide hands-on experiences for our guests. They manage activities ranging from face painting to building mini-tall ships to operating a pirate school. Craft activities compliment world-class musicians who this year will travel not only from other places in the US but from Ireland, Poland, Belgium, and the Netherlands just to be with us.
Add to that a million other things that need to be taken care of: tents, tables, chairs, banners, signs, golf carts, tread tracks, parking passes and badges, wrist bands, food concessions, volunteer orientation sessions, fencing, trash dumpsters, crew games, courtesy vans, parking lots, shuttle buses, VIP receptions, media interviews, paying bills, making deposits, launching new endeavors (looking forward to Ballads & Brews)…the list goes on and on. All of these things, big and small, amount to a grand event that happens three and a half days every three years. It's enough to keep you (or me) up at night.
I have become a master list maker. My favorite symbol is a check mark. I will stay focused and make check marks on my many lists. I will calm the arms of this magnificent beast and, one by one, I will get them working in unison.
I will declare in a state of sheer exhaustion "I'm too old. I can't do this anymore." And then like childbirth, I'll forget how painful it was and, remembering only the site of the beautiful ships lined up in the river and the rapt faces of the people who are drawn to the ships like magnets, I'll start saying things like "Next time when we do this…"
Will you be at the Tall Ship Celebration this year? Share with us below and visit michigan.org to learn more.
Shirley Roberts is a habitual multi-tasker who was the Executive Director of the Bay Area Convention & Visitors Bureau and BaySail (a non-profit organization that owns and operates the tall ship Appledore IV) when she conceived the idea of Tall Ship Celebration in 1999. She has been the Event Coordinator/ Producer since then, managing five successful maritime events and proudly welcoming hundreds of thousands of people to Bay City and the Great Lakes State.


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For Immediate Release
March 14, 2011
State Superintendent celebrates success of 17 Madison County Honor Roll Schools
Annual list recognizes improving and high-performing schools across state
Marine — The Illinois State Board of Education recognized 17 Madison County schools today for being named to the 2010 Illinois Honor Roll. The schools were honored during a school assembly at Marine Elementary School in Marine.
"These 17 schools reflect each category of the Honor Roll showing improvement and maintaining excellence over time," said State Superintendent Koch. "This kind of academic achievement requires that everyone at school and at home is working extraordinarily hard to keep growing and learning. We commend administrators, teachers, parents and students for their commitment."
The 2010 Illinois Honor Roll recognizes 834 schools across the state for their continued academic progress. The honor roll is divided into three categories – Spotlight Schools, Academic Excellence and Academic Improvement. Each award has unique criteria that best reflect the diverse circumstances of Illinois schools.
- Spotlight Schools – Recognizes 300 high-poverty, high-performing schools that are beating the odds to overcome the achievement gap.
- Academic Excellence Awards – 459 schools have sustained high performance over at least three years.
- Academic Improvement Awards – 93 schools are showing substantial improvement.
The Madison County schools received awards from all three categories and are listed as follows:
Roxana CUSD 1
- South Roxana Elementary School (Spotlight)
Triad CUSD 2,
- Marine Elementary School (Excellence)
- St. Jacob Elementary School (Excellence)
Venice CUSD 3
- Venice Elementary School (Improve)
Highland CUSD 5
- New Douglas Mid-Elementary School (Excellence)
Edwardsville CUSD 7
- Columbus Elementary School (Excellence)
- Woodland Elementary School (Excellence)
Granite City CUSD 9
- Niedringhaus Elementary School (Spotlight)
Collinsville CUSD 10
- Webster Elementary School (Spotlight)
- Summit Elementary School (Spotlight)
- Twin Echo Elem School (Spotlight)
Alton CUSD 11
- Gilson Brown Elem School (Spotlight)
Madison CUSD 12
- Bernard Long Elem School (Academic Improvement)
East Alton SD 13
- East Alton Middle School (Spotlight)
- Eastwood Elementary School (Spotlight)
Wood River-Hartford ESD 15
- Lewis-Clark Elementary School (Spotlight)
- Hartford Elementary School (Spotlight)
A complete listing of the 2010 Illinois Honor Roll Schools can be found online at http://www.ilhonorroll.niu.edu


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The Elder Scrolls IV: Knights of the Nine News
Displaying 1–7 of 7 articles
The World Of Skyrim: Beginner's Guide To The People And Places Of Elder Scrolls 5
The Elder Scrolls is a big series set in a big world. Look at it like this: the massive chunks we got to explore in Morrowind and Oblivion, and that we'll get to explore in this Friday's Skyrim, combine together to form roughly half of one continent, Tamriel, in the larger world of Nirn. It's a tremendous mythology that Bethesda Softworks has...
Minecraft "Scrolls" Case Going To Court
When last we heard of the conflict between Minecraft creator Notch's company Mojang and Bethesda, Notch had challenged Bethesda to a friendly game of Quake 3 to settle the matter of whether his company could call their upcoming game "Scrolls." Apparently, Bethesda does not feel this is an adequate solution to the problem... or they're...
More Rumors About Bethesda's MMO, Even Though It's Nothing Really New
It's not news that ZeniMax Media, the parent company of Bethesda Softworks and now id Software, is working on an MMO. The company has been hiring at ZeniMax Online to develop a "next-generation MMO" for some time. But the continued legal battles between Interplay and Bethesda over the rights to the Fallout brand have brought some...
Sessler's Soapbox: A Decade of Gaming
It's the end of the year. The end of a decade. The end of an era. What better time to sit down and look back at what the past decade of gaming has brought into our homes. Such is the subject of the last Soapbox of 2009. Adam sits down to talk about all the games and gaming trends that have come and gone since the year 2000. Some good, some bad,...
Bethesda Assures Fans Elder Scrolls V Is Coming...Eventually
Todd Howard's comments at QuakeCon last week -- at least, how we once understood them -- ruffled some feathers. I passed on some reporting done by Big Download this morning, who said Howard remarked that The Elder Scrolls V was not currently in development at Bethesda. Those comments were taken by some to mean Bethesda had moved on from Elder...
UPDATED: Bethesda Isn't Developing Elder Scrolls 5, Won't Rule Out MMO
Updated 5:22pm: Bethesda has since clarified these comments, promising a new Elder Scrolls are coming eventually, even if it's not coming anytmie soon. As someone who just became introduced to Bethesda Softworks' through Fallout 3, I've been curious to see if I could get into the next Elder Scrolls game, despite not being a fan of the fantasy...
Oblivion DLC Ending With New Pack
Oblivion is getting its last official add-on titled "Fighter's Stronghold". Here's how Bethesda describes it: Fighter's Stronghold provides the last of four themed domiciles (along with Vile Lair, Thieves Den, and Wizard's Tower) for the adventurer on-the-go. You inherit the rights to Battlehorn Castle, located on a lovely...
Articles 1–7 of 7
Sessler's Soapbox: A Decade of Gaming
50,690 Views | 05:15
CHEAT! Knights of the Nine
17,668 Views | 02:53


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The fire that spread through this home started in the kitchen. The cause - a toaster, according to fire officials. "It was just horrendous, just horrendous. What wasn't destroyed by fire was destroyed by smoke and water damage." And this fire, homeowners say, started in their dishwasher while they were out of the house. According to fire officials, this fire started in a microwave, even though the homeowners say it wasn't in use. Consumer Reports reviewed 69-thousand reports of house fires blamed on appliances between 2002 and 2009. Its investigation found a significant number were not caused by human error. "We found at least 23 percent are clearly attributable to problems with the appliances - mechanical, electrical, or design flaws. In some instances, the appliances turned on by themselves." Faulty appliances causing the most fires were ranges, followed by dryers, air conditioners, refrigerators, and dishwashers. Dan DiClerico "In the last five years, more than seven million dishwashers have been recalled due to defects that could cause a fire. And nearly eight million other appliances have been recalled for fire risks." To check if an appliance you own has been recalled, you can go to recalls-dot-gov. Why are there so many recalls due to fire hazards? Dan DiClerico "Appliances have gotten a lot more complex, so more can go wrong. And many recalled products are being manufactured abroad, the majority in China." Consumer Reports says until appliance design and quality are improved, homeowners are left to wonder if the appliances in their homes are safe. ."
Faulty Appliances 2/5/12
Published On: Feb 06 2012 01:31:43 PM CST Updated On: Feb 06 2012 01:32:48 PM CST
(Copyright 2011 by WKBT News8000.com)
The views expressed are not those of this company or its affiliated companies. Please note by clicking on "Post" you acknowledge that you have read the Terms Of Service and the comment you are posting is in compliance with such terms.


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By Roger, Pure Matters
Ok, guys, let's take a quick retrospective look at how fashion and fitness goals have changed over the years. We, as men, are very concerned about what we wear, how we look, and if our belt matches the color of our shoes. One of my early blog posts for Pure Matters touched on this particular topic.
I remember seeing photos of my parents while in high school and what dapper dressers they were in the 1950s. Folks took pride in their appearance back then. In my opinion, it was after that era things got a little off track. Luckily it wasn't off track for too long before the birth of "jeans" ushered in casual dressing. Jeans could be worn anywhere and with anything.
And about 15 years ago, we started to get our fashion and fitness groove back. Being in the fitness business over 20 years I've seen the shift first hand through everyday contact with my male clients. I have heard their cries (as well as their wives' cries!) to take control of their lives in every aspect and get with the fashion and fitness program.
Male clients were a scarcity in the late '90s and well into the millennium but things are different now. They are getting in shape and are open to taking directions and guidance from trainers.
It's 2012 and the workout possibilities for us are endless -- even golfers are getting with the program. Tiger Woods has pioneered the charge in that profession.
So guys: hit the gym, play golf, be active, and most importantly buy yourself a reversible belt (as my well-dressed wife did for me!)
Source: http://blog.purematters.com/fitness/body-image-a-mans-point-of-view


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An official visit to Marquette, Mich., over the weekend just solidified what Jacobs senior Jake Gierlak thought all along – Northern Michigan was the place for him.
Gierlak attended a football camp at Northern Michigan last summer and met members of the coaching staff. After Gierlak got a closer look at the Division II program with his weekend visit, he gave Wildcats coach Chris Ostrow-ski his commitment. Gierlak can sign his NCAA national letter of intent Feb. 6, the first day of the NCAA's signing period for football, soccer, track and field, and cross country.
"I liked the whole family atmosphere with the program and the direction [the coaches] are taking it," Gierlak said. "They started slow last year, but really picked it up."
The Wildcats were 4-7, winning three of their last five games.
Gierlak (5-foot-10, 170 pounds) caught 42 passes, No. 2 among area receivers, and was a Northwest Herald All-Area second-team selection.
Gierlak was a three-year starter for Jacobs coach Bill Mitz, who took the Golden Eagles to the playoffs three consecutive times. Mitz's son, Brian, is Northern Michigan's running backs coach.
"I think they liked my toughness," Gierlak said. "I'm not the biggest guy, but I'm always fighting for balls with kids who are bigger than me."
Gierlak started as a sophomore at cornerback and at wide receiver his last two seasons. Northern Michigan runs a spread offense and Gierlak says he was recruited as an athlete, so either of his positions will be an option.
"My freshman year [at Jacobs] I started hearing about kids going on to the next level and knew that's what I wanted to do," Gierlak said. "After my junior year, I talked to some Ivy League and some D-I schools. I went to the camp at Northern Michigan last summer and met the staff and really liked them."
Moscatello to Missouri school: Jacobs senior Anthony Moscatello will continue his soccer career next year at William Woods, an NAIA school in Fulton, Mo.
Moscatello, a 5-7 forward, was a four-year varsity player for the Eagles and was a team captain last season. Moscatello has played travel soccer with Sockers FC, the team for which he will play again this spring and summer.
• Joe Stevenson is a senior sports writer for the Northwest Herald. He can be reached by email at firstname.lastname@example.com. You also can follow him on Twitter @nwh_JoePrepZone.


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This is in response to your Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request. Specifically, you request the information listed below. Our response is in bold.
1) The current Peace Corps' staff directory (2010).
Enclosed please find the Peace Corps Alphabetical Employee Directory which consists of seventy-one (71) pages. After careful review, seventy (70) pages were redacted pursuant to 5 U.S.C. § 552(b)(2) which prohibits from disclosure records related solely to the internal personnel rules and practices of an agency. The remaining one (1) page is releasable in its entirety.
2) The current Peace Corps' political appointee list.
Enclosed please find a list of the Peace Corps' political appointees (1 page). No pages have been withheld. We are providing this at no cost to you.
3) The current list of all Peace Corps' consultants and or part time positions.
Enclosed please find a list of all Peace Corps' consultants and part-time positions (4 pages). No pages have been withheld. We are providing this at no cost to you.


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Sony has confirmed that the recent attack on the PlayStation Network has resulted in the accessing of untold numbers of user accounts and the personal information associated with those accounts. Sony has yet to identify how many accounts were compromised, and while "there is no evidence at this time that credit card data was taken," Sony admited that "we cannot rule out the possibility." So for the sake of assuming the worst and hoping for the best, here's a handy guide for what your next course of action should be.
According to its official statement released today, Sony identified that the following information was made vulnerable during the attack window of April 17-19:
- Name, address (city, state, zip), country, email address, birthdate, PlayStation Network/Qriocity password and login, and handle/PSN online ID.
- It is also possible that your profile data, including purchase history and billing address (city, state, zip), and your PlayStation Network/Qriocity password security answers may have been obtained.
Now, while a credit card number is not required to set up a PSN account, the information listed above could be used to access bank accounts, so even if you didn't attach a credit card number to your account, you're still not entirely free and clear. For now though, just let's just say your credit card info (minus the security code, per Sony's statement) and personal data have been compromised. What now?
First off, Sony has already sent user names and contact information to the three major U.S. credit bureaus:
- TransUnion: 1-800-680-7289; Fraud Victim Assistance Division, P.O. Box 6790, Fullerton, CA 92834-6790
- Equifax: 1-800-525-6285; P.O. Box 740241, Atlanta, GA 30374-0241
- Experian: 1-888-EXPERIAN (397-3742); P.O. Box 9554, Allen, TX 75013
So chances are if your account was compromised, your credit card company has been made aware of it. Still, here are the steps the Federal Trade Commission recommends you take to make sure you are protected against full on identity theft:
Place a fraud alert on your credit reports, and review your credit reports
- Fraud alerts can help prevent an identity thief from opening any more accounts in your name. Contact the toll-free fraud number of any of the three consumer reporting companies below to place a fraud alert on your credit report. You only need to contact one of the three companies to place an alert. The company you call is required to contact the other two, which will place an alert on their versions of your report, too. If you do not receive a confirmation from a company, you should contact that company directly to place a fraud alert.
- Once you place the fraud alert in your file, you're entitled to order one free copy of your credit report from each of the three consumer reporting companies, and, if you ask, only the last four digits of your Social Security number will appear on your credit reports. Once you get your credit reports, review them carefully. Look for inquiries from companies you haven't contacted, accounts you didn't open, and debts on your accounts that you can't explain. Check that information, like your Social Security number, address(es), name or initials, and employers are correct. If you find fraudulent or inaccurate information, get it removed. See Correcting Fraudulent Information in Credit Reports to learn how. When you correct your credit report, use an Identity Theft Report with a cover letter explaining your request, to get the fastest and most complete results. Continue to check your credit reports periodically, especially for the first year after you discover the identity theft, to make sure no new fraudulent activity has occurred.
Close the accounts that you know, or believe, have been tampered with or opened fraudulently
- Call and speak with someone in the security or fraud department of each company. Follow up in writing, and include copies (NOT originals) of supporting documents. It's important to notify credit card companies and banks in writing. Send your letters by certified mail, return receipt requested, so you can document what the company received and when. Keep a file of your correspondence and enclosures.
- When you open new accounts, use new Personal Identification Numbers (PINs) and passwords. Avoid using easily available information like your mother's maiden name, your birth date, the last four digits of your Social Security number or your phone number, or a series of consecutive numbers.
- If the identity thief has made charges or debits on your accounts, or has fraudulently opened accounts, ask the company for the forms to dispute those transactions:
- For charges and debits on existing accounts, ask the representative to send you the company's fraud dispute forms. If the company doesn't have special forms, use the sample letter to dispute the fraudulent charges or debits. In either case, write to the company at the address given for "billing inquiries," NOT the address for sending your payments.
- For new unauthorized accounts, you can either file a dispute directly with the company or file a report with the police and provide a copy, called an "Identity Theft Report," to the company.
- If you want to file a dispute directly with the company, and do not want to file a report with the police, ask if the company accepts the FTC's ID Theft Affidavit (PDF, 56 KB). If it does not, ask the representative to send you the company's fraud dispute forms.
- However, filing a report with the police and then providing the company with an Identity Theft Report will give you greater protection. For example, if the company has already reported these unauthorized accounts or debts on your credit report, an Identity Theft Report will require them to stop reporting that fraudulent information. Use the cover letter to explain to the company the rights you have by using the Identity Theft Report. More information about getting and using an Identity Theft Report can be found here.
- Once you have resolved your identity theft dispute with the company, ask for a letter stating that the company has closed the disputed accounts and has discharged the fraudulent debts. This letter is your best proof if errors relating to this account reappear on your credit report or you are contacted again about the fraudulent debt.
File a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission
- You can file a complaint with the FTC using the online complaint form; or call the FTC's Identity Theft Hotline, toll-free: 1-877-ID-THEFT (438-4338); TTY: 1-866-653-4261; or write Identity Theft Clearinghouse, Federal Trade Commission, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20580. Be sure to call the Hotline to update your complaint if you have any additional information or problems.
- By sharing your identity theft complaint with the FTC, you will provide important information that can help law enforcement officials across the nation track down identity thieves and stop them. The FTC can refer victims' complaints to other government agencies and companies for further action, as well as investigate companies for violations of laws the agency enforces.
- Additionally, you can provide a printed copy of your online Complaint form to the police to incorporate into their police report. The printed FTC ID Theft Complaint, in conjunction with the police report, can constitute an Identity Theft Report and entitle you to certain protections. This Identity Theft Report can be used to (1) permanently block fraudulent information from appearing on your credit report; (2) ensure that debts do not reappear on your credit report; (3) prevent a company from continuing to collect debts that result from identity theft; and (4) place an extended fraud alert on your credit report.
File a report with your local police or the police in the community where the identity theft took place.
- Call your local police department and tell them that you want to file a report about your identity theft. Ask them if you can file the report in person. If you cannot, ask if you can file a report over the Internet or telephone. See below for information about Automated Reports.
If the police are reluctant to take your report, ask to file a "Miscellaneous Incident" report, or try another jurisdiction, like your state police. You also can check with your state Attorney General's office to find out if state law requires the police to take reports for identity theft. Check the Blue Pages of your telephone directory for the phone number or check www.naag.org for a list of state Attorneys General.
- When you go to your local police department to file your report, bring a printed copy of your FTC ID Theft Complaint form, your cover letter, and your supporting documentation. The cover letter explains why a police report and an ID Theft Complaint are so important to victims.
- Ask the officer to attach or incorporate the ID Theft Complaint into their police report. Tell them that you need a copy of the Identity Theft Report (the police report with your ID Theft Complaint attached or incorporated)to dispute the fraudulent accounts and debts created by the identity thief. (In some jurisdictions the officer will not be able to give you a copy of the official police report, but should be able to sign your Complaint and write the police report number in the "Law Enforcement Report" section.)
It's also important to remember that since you can't access PSN, you can't change your PSN password, so if you always use the same passwords online, you might want to change those passwords immediately as well as just another precautionary measure. We'll be bringing you more news as it develops, so stay tuned. For now though, be sure to check out our PlayStation Network Hack FAQ: What We Know for all of the most recent info.


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Braised Beef Brisket with Spicy Jalapeno Sauce
Time Prep: 20 min
Total: 3 hr20 mins
Servings Total: 16 servings
What You Need:
¼ cup Zesty Italian Dressing
1beef brisket (3-1/2 lb.), about 2 inches thick
3cups sliced onions
3carrots, peeled, cut into 1-inch pieces
2jalapeño peppers, stemmed
½ cup water
½ cup Sour Cream
Make It:
- HEAT oven to 350°F. Heat dressing in large skillet on medium-high heat. Add meat; cook 5 min. or until evenly browned, turning occasionally. Transfer to roasting pan or 13x9-inch baking dish.
- SURROUND with vegetables. Add water; cover tightly with foil. Bake 2-1/2 to 3 hours or until meat is done (160ºF). Let stand, covered, 10 min.
- MEANWHILE, transfer vegetables to blender; blend until smooth. Add 1 cup meat drippings from bottom of pan; blend well.
- CUT meat across the grain into thin slices. Serve topped with vegetable sauce and sour cream.
Italian dressing
Beef brisket
Jalapeno peppers
Sour cream
Calories 160
Total fat 9 g
Saturated fat 3.5 g
Cholesterol 55 mg
Sodium 95 mg
Carbohydrate 4 g
Dietary fiber 1 g
Sugars 3 g
Protein 16 g
Vitamin A 40 %DV
Vitamin C 4 %DV
Calcium 0 %DV
Iron 8 %DV
Calories 160
9 g
3.5 g
55 mg
95 mg
4 g
1 g
3 g Protein
16 g Vitamin A


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Augusta, Maine police chief Bob Gregoire says the amount of panhandlers on the city's streets is growing, so he decided to take the matter into his own hands last week.
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Mobile home park faces foreclosureMay 15,2013BENNINGTON A Bennington mobile home park that has been under pressure from the town and the state of Vermont to fix problems with its water supply is now facing a foreclosure complaint.
The complaint against John Bushee Jr., owner of Sunset Farm Mobile Home Park, was filed April 30 in Bennington civil court by an attorney for Peoples United Bank.
The Bennington Banner reported the complaint said real estate taxes and a promissory note havent been paid, putting Bushee in default. The original promissory note was for $120,000.
Bennington records say the park owes $31,839 in property taxes, including interest and penalties, going back to 2008.
Lawyers in the case have declined to comment.
Last year the Town of Bennington reached an agreement with Bushee to fix a problem with the water system that supplies the park. The agreement calls for Bushee to install a new filtration system. He needs a permit from the Department of Environmental Conservation Drinking Water and Groundwater Protection Division for the system, but as of late last month it had not been granted.MORE IN This Just InBARRE TOWN Firefighters faced a collection of adverse conditions as a house on Granitville Road... Full StoryWILLISTON Police are asking for help identifying the man who tried to steal roughly $800 worth ... Full StoryNEWBURY Police said somebody stole booze and change from a Welch Road residence. Full Story
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Related Articles:
Creating Real Time 3D Graphics With OpenGL
Preparing to Build an OpenGL Application
The function registered as the Display (and usually Idle) callback is where control is passed whenever it's time to draw the next frame of the display. For our program this is the cbRenderScene() function, and it's also where our motion calculations are done.
Figure 1. With different drawing mode settings, a wide range of visual effects can be created.
If you take a look at the function, you'll see it first simply enables or sets different modes depending on several global variables. This is where lighting, textures, and blending are enabled and disabled as appropriate. Take a close look at the settings requests for the filtering; it only affects textures.
Next we're asked to work with the GL_MODELVIEW matrix, which lets us make transformations that work on the model, or objects, of our scene. Into this matrix we load the Identity matrix, which is simply a way of resetting things to the origin, so there's no rotation, translation or scaling. Lastly, we translate the model out Z_Off distance from the screen so it can be seen and rotate the model as appropriate.
Now we're ready to start the actual drawing. (Yippee!) The first thing we do is clear both the color (frame) buffer and the depth buffer. It should be pretty obvious why we do this, but it can be both amusing and enlightening to try not clearing either or both buffers. Some applications can even guarantee that they'll be painting the whole screen themselves, so you can save a few cycles by not clearing the color buffer; the depth buffer must still be cleared, however.
Figure 2. By turning double-buffering off, you can watch OpenGL draw each frame. Note that OpenGL draws from the bottom up, and each Quad is made up of two triangles.
After setting the normal, we next call glColor4f() with the RGBA settings for a red face with a 75% level of opaque. Lastly, to complete our first face, we make four calls to glTexCoord2f() interleaved with four calls to glVertex3f() to define the position of the texture on the polygon and the position of the polygon in our 3D world: the floor.
We next do the same type of thing for the top-most grey face, but note that the texture coordinates are different. The third face rendered, painted green, also has unusual texture coordinates, but this time they're non-regular. Compare the code to the visual results, and tweak to see what kinds of effects can be achieved. Both the grey and green faces are set to be 50% opaque.
The fourth face, blue, is the first face with the full texture being requested across its face, and it is adjusted to be only 25% opaque. The second-to-last face to be drawn demonstrates how OpenGL can smoothly blend colors across the face of a polygon, ranging from 90% red, green or blue in three corners to black in the fourth.
The last face, painted yellow, shows that the same kind of blending applies for the alpha-channel of a polygon. The yellow face ranges from full transparent at one corner to fully opaque at another. After we're finished drawing the yellow face, we call glEnd() to tell OpenGL we're finished drawing Quads (at least, for now).
After drawing the cube, we next want to render some text. However, we want it to stay on the screen at the same location, and not spin around with the cube (although that might be neat). To do this, we first reload the Identity matrix, so we're back to the origin again. Then we call glMatrixMode() with GL_PROJECTION, which tells OpenGL we want to work with our projection matrix.
Now, we've already got a nice projection matrix loaded, which we need to render our rotated cube. However, we also need to reset this with an orthogonal projection matrix to be able to render in the true coordinate system of the display. For just this type of situation, OpenGL lets you save matrices by using the glPushMatrix() call. After doing this, we can change the projection matrix as needed, and we can glPopMatrix() the saved matrix back later.
Next, we disable texturing and lighting in case they were activated, since lit or textured text isn't what we want. The color for the text is then set, including a 75% level of transparency, just for fun. Then our code simply renders a text string using sprintf(), which is then painted on the screen with a call to glRasterPos2i() and then another to ourPrintString(). The latter is a simple support function which loops through a string, calling the GLUT library to render a bitmap for each character as needed. Note that in the OpenGL system, (0,0) is the bottom-left of the screen.
The next section of code renders the frames-per-second value and the current frame count in a similar fashion as above. One extra bit of code first renders a small, mostly opaque dark rectangle for the FPS value to be rendered onto. This technique is often used to ensure that some important bit of text can always be seen, regardless of what might be rendered behind it.
After all the text rendering is complete, we call glPopMatrix() to recover our saved projection matrix. Then, since we've completed all the drawing we're going to, we call glutSwapBuffers() to display our just-drawn image to the user. It's at this point that we do our motion calculations, and then we make a call to ourDoFPS() in order to collect the FPS stats. Then we exit the function, returning control back to OpenGL.
Do that about 50 times a second or so, and you've got a pretty good idea what's involved in an OpenGL application loop. Obviously, for an application to be useful (or at least amusing), a great deal more should be going on in the scene. But what we've covered here is the core basis for most OpenGL applications.
Figure 3. A ha! Transparent objects must be drawn depth sorted, or errors may occur.
Even though they're now a rather universal extension to OpenGL, vertex arrays are beyond the scope of this article. The concepts covered here are still applicable, and discrete function-call methods are still common during prototyping.
I must also point out an intentional "bug" that's living in our sample program, which sharp-eyed readers may have already noticed. It has to do with transparent objects and how they must be rendered in descending distance from the camera (back to front) in order for them to appear correctly.
This isn't a problem when the objects aren't transparent, as the z-buffer is used to eliminate hidden surfaces (by OpenGL simply refusing to draw anything farther from the camera than what's already drawn). But in the case of transparency, each object contributes to the final image. Thus, the order in which the objects are rendered matter. To see this, turn on blending (which turns off z-buffering), and then rotate the cube so the red, green and blue faces are closest to you. These are drawn first, and so it will be clear something's not quite right when the faces "behind" these are next drawn on top of them.
Figure 4. Or you can cheat, and use an exclusively additive blend function.
OpenGL is the lowest-level, cross-platform, common hardware accelerated 3D API available. The demo program we've provided here should compile and run with only minor tweaking under any Unix with OpenGL or a clone installed. It should also work without much effort in a Windows- or Mac-based development environment, although we haven't tried that.
We've done our best to explore some of the more interesting and useful aspects of OpenGL with these articles and demo program, but in truth we've only scratched the surface of what can be done with the library. Interested readers are encouraged to visit the OpenGL.org site to learn more. The "OpenGL Programming Guide," published by Addison-Wesley, and the "OpenGL SuperBible," published by the Waite Group, are both excellent reference books as well.
XFree86 4.0 will soon be included in major Linux distributions, and when that happens it will deliver off-the-CD access to Linux users' 3D accelerated hardware. With such hardware becoming commonplace in even the least expensive machines, I look forward to an explosion in 3D applications under Linux in the near future. Could your software project use a 3D interface?
Chris Halsall is the Managing Director of Ideas 4 Lease (Barbados). Chris is a specialist... at automating information gathering and presentation systems.
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Peoples News robbed at gunpoint
PARKERSBURG – Parkersburg police officers and detectives continue to search for a man who robbed the Peoples News on Emerson Avenue Friday.
Police and K-9 units were called to Peoples News, 3601 Emerson Ave., around 3:30 p.m. Friday on a suspected armed robbery, according to police reports.
Officials said officers were dispatched to the scene when the Wood County 911 Center learned a male suspect was at large. The suspect was described as a 6-foot tall male who was dressed in all black and wearing a black ski mask.
The suspect allegedly entered the store, produced an unknown weapon and shoved the 19-year-old male employee to the rear of the building and onto the floor, said Sgt. Greg Collins with the Parkersburg Police Department. The store employee was allegedly struck in the face by the suspect, Collins said.
The man collected an undisclosed amount of money and fled on foot through the back alley, police said.
The suspect had not been arrested as of Friday night, police said.
"Numerous uniformed officers and a Parkersburg police canine searched the area with negative results," Collins said.
Police said detectives arrived on scene to process evidence, interview the employee victim and any potential witnesses. Collins said no surveillance cameras were in use at the store and detectives continue to investigate the incident.
The business resumed operations as soon as police left the scene, officials said.
Anyone with information regarding the incident is asked to contact Detective P.M. Edelen or any member of the Parkersburg Police Department at 304-424-8444. Anonymous tips can be left at www.parkersburgpolice.com.


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And now for something completely different...
John Cleese leads a fun-filled fall lineup at area theaters
By Carl Kozlowski , Jana J. Monji 08/27/2009
November may bring warm thoughts of Thanksgiving and the holiday season, but this year it will also bring belly-shaking laughter to those lucky enough to spend the night of Saturday, Nov. 14, at Glendale's historic Alex Theatre.
That night will mark a very rare live appearance by a master of comedy, the legendary John Cleese of Monty Python and "Fawlty Towers" fame, as he presents his latest (and perhaps last ever) work, "A Final Wave at the World (or, the Alimony Tour, Year One)" at the historic vaudeville palace for one night only. If you live in the San Gabriel Valley and are a fan of smart modern comedy, this is the fall season's prime event.
According to the Alex Theatre's Web site:
"Professor, Doctor, Doctor Cleese will be discussing his career in the zany and hilarious world of comedy, as well as his most pressing medical problems, his inability to find a suitable female companion, his mistrust of folk-dancing and his latest plan for world peace."
But what's it actually about? In keeping with Cleese's highly private personal life, no one — not even the Alex's PR maven, Elissa Glickman — seems to know.
"He's keeping it completely under wraps, but he is taking it to Long Beach and Thousand Oaks as well, so this is a project he's actually touring with," says Glickman. "His management contacted us and asked if we'd be willing to have him, and of course the answer was yes. The Alex Theatre has a long history with great comedy, ranging from vaudeville to a special show with Robin Williams and Jonathan Winters, so it's going to be a perfect matchup for classic comedy."
Cleese has been finding perfect matches for his talents for over four decades, having co-created "Monty Python's Flying Circus" back in 1969.
The troupe went on to success in film with "Monty Python and The Holy Grail," "Life of Brian" and "The Meaning of Life" before going their respective ways in the mid-'80s.
Cleese became the biggest star of them all in his solo years, earning an Oscar nomination for his screenplay of 1988's hit comedy "A Fish Called Wanda" and in dozens of films, including two turns as the weapons expert Q in the James Bond films "The World is Not Enough" and "Die Another Day."
Yet, despite these works and his hand in creating what many critics consider the funniest sitcom of all time, the mid-'70s show "Fawlty Towers," Cleese has largely retreated from major productions in the 2000s in favor of performing solo shows, doing voices for video games and retiring to his private estate in Montecito.
So grab him while you can, comedy lovers. Granted, his three divorces should guarantee this alimony tour will be a long one, but this is a rare treat.
John Cleese appears at 8 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 14 at the Alex Theatre, 216 N. Brand Blvd., Glendale. Tickets are $31 to $59. Call (818) 243-ALEX or visit alextheatre.org.
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"The Alimony Tour, Year One" ... LOL!
John's was a classic case that men are being warned against in the Don't Marry essay.
The Ministry of Silly Walks watch is coming out just in time for Monty Python's 40th anniversary. Get yours at DollTV.com (http://dolltv.com/content/Silly_Walks_Wa...).


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Your favorite classic style gets a little lift in the new Sixty Seven sandals. Featuring a molded footbed and adjustable two strap design you'll stride in comfort and style all summer long. The platform gives you added height to stand tall! Pair these sandals with everything from brightly hued maxi dresses to flirty cut off shorts.
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