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I have broadcast thousands of baseball games over my career. Somewhere between 1700-1800 nights at ballparks all across the fruited plains. Every season has ultimately ended in a loss, until Thursday night, September 13, 2012. That was the night the Pawtucket Red Sox ended a 28 year drought. For the first time since Ronald Reagan occupied the Oval Office, The PawSox reign as the champions of the International League. Being there was a surreal experience.
As a broadacster, you're really not part of the team itself, but you are recognized as a part of the entourage. You stay in the same hotels, eat at the same restaurants, ride the same busses and hang on every win and loss. One of the greatest things I've ever seen was the final out, a sharply hit ground ball hit up the first base line, smothered by Andy LaRoche. Andy waved off pitcher Josh Fields, stepped on the bag and the celebration began.
International League President, Randy Mobley made the presentation of the Governors' Cup, symbolic of the I.L. championship to PawSox President, Mike Tamburro, General Manager, Lou Schweccheimer, Manager, Arnie Beyeler, and Red Sox Director of Player Development, Ben Crockett. As the trophy was being hoisted, PawSox players orchestrated a well-choreographed attack of champagne on the brass. The air was filled with foam and bubbles and plenty of smiles. Over the course of a 144 game season, there are a lot of games that don't matter. This one clearly did. I know a lot of the people there thought about Ben Mondor, the late owner of the PawSox, Arnie Beyeler mentioned him, saying he appreciated the help Ben must have given his club, smiling down from above.
There has to be a catchy nickname for the Champion PawSox. This club, lead by Nelson Figueroa, who won the clinching game in the regular season, the first round of the playoffs and in the championship round, as well, defied the odds. A team decimated by promotions and defections and trades, had no business contending. Portland Sea Dogs, veteran free agent types and a few remaining from our opening day roster, banded together and won it all. In the long and storied history of the Pawtucket Red Sox franchise, these guys will forever be known as the PawSox team that won it all. For some, it may be the highlight of their career, for others, perhaps a stepping stone to greater heights. It can never be taken away.
The PawSox rampaged through the I.L. playoffs, going 6-1. That includes the first sweep in franchise history in the playoffs, taking three in a row from the completely overmatched Cahrlotte Knights. There is a bit of unfinished business. Tuesday night, the PawSox will face the winner of the Pacific Coast League title, either Omaha or Reno. It's a one game, winner take all event, the Triple A National Championship. It will be played in Durham, North Carolina. Win or lose, this has been a special season. We are the Champions!
This is the latest version of "The Catch". If you're a Willie Mays fan, it may have come in 1954. If you are a San Francisco 49er fan, it may have been Montana to Clark. If you are PawSox fan, this might be your Holy Grail. Jason Repko made the catch of the season the other day at McCoy, leaping over the leftfield wall to rob Kosuke Fukudome of a Grand Slam. It was a miraculous play by a very gifted defensive player. "The Catch" got, not only our attention, but the attention of the folks at the "Today Show", "Good Morning America" and ESPN, to name a few. Repkos' gem is currently a three time winner of the SportsCenter Top Ten, Best of the Best. This means it has been deemed the best play in sports for three days in a row. That includes ML baseball, NFL, US Open Tennis, Golf, Soccer and the 2012 Paralympics. Very impressive.
Repko takes us through what he saw off the bat of Fukudome. "I knew it was going to be somewhere in the vicinity of being near the wall. I didn't know it was going to be a homer. I had a pretty good read on it. Running back, I knew I was going to try to make a play on it. I was running pretty quick and jumped up. Instantly, as I was catching the ball, I looked to see where I was. I was already up on the wall. I knew I was going over. Luckily, I stretched my right hand over to brace myself and I was able to twist myself onto my feet. Not hurt…so it was good stuff." Repko scratched his arm on the play, so he checked that as he realized there were runners on base and that was the first out. He still can't explain why he jumped back onto the playing field before making his throw. One run scored, but only one as he got a thunderous ovation at McCoy.
A great defensive player, Jason ranked his heroics. "That's right up there with some of my best, I think. I've made catches like that before, but the wall has never been four and a half feet high, so that adds to it, flipping over into the bullpen." What flashes through your mind at a moment like that? "More than anything, it was trying to prevent myself from falling on my face. As funny as it sounds, I've looked behind that fence before to see if anything was back there. Pre-planning in my head. This was months ago when I first got here. If something like this happens, am I safe doing what I did. Everything looked good back there, so that's what made me feel free about going for it."
Repko says the acclaim and notoriety has resulted in tons of tweets, texts and facebook messages. "It's been pretty cool." Repko isn't the first PawSox player to make the coveted top 10 in 2012. In May, Lars Anderson peaked at #4 when his home run hit his picture on the giant video board at McCoy. Repko has taken it to a new level. Already a three day winner, this could receive an ESPY nomination as play of the year.
As a conspiracy theorist and a guy who likes a little controversy now and then, I jokingly asked Jason if he really made the catch. His eyes bugged out and he quickly and emphatically replied. "Of course I did. The umpire asked me the same question." If you don't believe Jason, just check out the bullpens' reaction. In unison, they raised their arms. You can't stage that.
In the end, "The Catch" may be overwhadowed by the Governors' Cup playoffs and a possibhly an I.L. crown, but those who saw it, won't soon forget it.
It occured to me the other day that no one has heard Daniel Bard speak in quite a while. Probably not since he first joined the PawSox to iron out his mechanics and then rejoin Boston. Things didn't quite work out that way. The PawSox are in the final week of the regular season, hunting down the Wild Card berth and Bard is a mainstay in the Pawtucket bullpen. Bard was asked to assess 2012, both on the field and personally. "I've learned a lot, to say the least. It's been a crazy season. Not what I expected if you talked to me back in February. At the same time, it's part of my journey, part of my career. I'm confident I'm going to come out a better person, a better pitcher. I know I've learned a lot and I feel like I'm in a pretty good place right now. I finally have a sense of comfort out there. I feel like I'm back in control. I'm anxious to see what the future holds."
Bard says he can't afford to waste time thinking "what if I hadn't moved into the starting rotation". He was, after all the best setup man in the American League, if not all the Majors. "I think it's natural to wonder what might have happened if I'd moved back to the pen when (Andrew) Bailey went down. I think it happened for a reason. The way things played out, I think I've been put through these trials to make me better or make someone else better. It hasn't been all fun at times, but I think you can learn something from every situation."
Bards' 2012 season has been a microcosm of the year the Red Sox have endured. Nothing has gone the way anyone planned. When asked about the blockbuster deal that sent Adrian Gonzalez, Carl Crawford, Josh Beckett and Nick Punto to the Dodgers, Daniel admitted to being stunned. "I don't think it's really sunk in yet, just how big that trade was and just what an impact it will have on our season and our future. It's going to change the landscape of baseball in a lot of ways. It was something the Red Sox kind of had to do. After this year, they had to make a fresh start. I'm glad I'm still here to be a part of it and see what happens next year. Still, it's sad to see those guys go. I was good friends with all of them. I wish them all the best out there. It will be interesting to see what they (The Red Sox) do with all the freed up finances."
Despite his struggles at times this year, Bard has remained strong and has never entertained the idea of giving up. "I never thought of shutting it down. I've stayed healthy all year. When you're healthy, you can keep going out there and working on things. I've been blessed to stay healthy. For me, it's just a matter of taking it one day at a time. Each outing, each day. Whether it goes the way I planned or not. Each day I get a fresh start. Don't let the last day beat you. I try to get it out of my system. It doesn't matter today, what you did yesterday. That's how I try to approach it." Bard adds that he rarely loses sleep over a tough outing, but it's not because he doesn't care. "No, I rarely lose sleep, whether it's going good or bad. I've had some frustrating drives home, but I always try to leave it at the ballpark. I don't let baseball become the most important thing in my life, and that keeps things in perspective for me."
As a 23 year old coming up through the Boston system, the right hander regularly threw in the upper 90s. His fastball these days is more often in the 91-95 mph range. Daniel isn't concerned. "If you look back to the Spring, I'm over 100 or 110 innings. That's more than I've thrown in the last three years. In the beginning of the season, I think it was mechanics. I feel I've corrected that and cleaned it up for the most part. My velocity isn't where it was a couple of years ago, but then again, I'm not as young as I used to be. I feel good. My arm feels good."
Bard is eager for the offseason and getting a fresh start in Fort Myers in February. First he has other things he looks forward to. "I want to spend a lot of time in a deer stand (hunting) and after a couple of weeks, get back to working out and get back into the flow of things."
Despite his travails, Bard has handled the entire season with class and dignity. He has been nothing but a true professional. The kind of guy you want to root for.
Sometimes the ideas for these blogs flow freely. Other times, I sit and stare at the screen of my laptop for a long time. This morning, it was the latter. I am amazed that we are on our final road trip of the season. After we finish n Charlotte, we head further south to Gwinnett to face the Braves in Georgia. Despite massive personnel changes, the PawSox are still chasing a postseason berth. A few nights ago against Rochester at McCoy, the Sox starting lineup featured exactly one player from the Opening Day lineup from manager Arnie Beyeler. Che-Hsuan Lin was the only man in the starting lineup from April.
Off the top of my head, here's who isn't here anymore. (In no particular order) Lars Anderson (Columbus), Aaron Cook, Mauro Gomez, Daniel Nava, Ryan Lavarnway, Will Middlebrooks, Pedro Ciriaco, Clay Mortenson, Andrew Miller, Scott Podsednik, Junichi Tazawa (Boston), Brandon Duckworth, Doug Mathis (Japan), Justin Germano (Cubs), Ross Ohlendorf (Padres), Luis Exposito (Orioles), Josh Kroeger (releaased), Chorye Spoon (released), Justin Thomas, Darnell McDonald (Scranton). Those are just the guys I remember while sitting in the lobby of the hotel in Pineville, N.C. Yesterday I rode to the ballpark in a shuttle with 11 players. Not one of them was an original member of the 2012 PawSox.
We may make the playoffs. We might not. It's that close. These days, Alex Hassan (leg) and Reynaldo Rodriguez (hand) are on the disabled list. Various ailments and injuries have also sidelined Jose iglesias (knee), J.C. Linares (hand), Will Inman (finger). With this knowledge, you probably agree that manager Arnie Beyeler has done a miraculous job keeping the club in the hunt. All 5 starting pitchers from the team that started out 45-25 are gone. The DH, first baseman, second baseman, third baseman,catcher, rightfielder are all gone as well. After the amazing start, the PawSox dropped 9 straight. The last six weeks or so, they've played .500 ball. This last week, the PawSox have dropped 5 of 7. We were great, terrible, and average. The same team? Yes, but not really.
At this very moment, Nate Spears, Lin, Tony Thomas, Jason Repko and Alex Wilson are the healthy holdovers. Thomas has played very well despite months on the disabled list. Newcomers like Dan Butler and Mike Rivera behind the plate, Andy LaRoche and Jon Hee in the infield and Josh Fields and Pedro Beato in the bullpen, along with the "new" starting rotation of Zach Stewart, Chris Hernandez, Billy Buckner, Nelson Figueroa and Daisuke Matsuzaka, who are holding down the fort.
You aren't cheering for the same guys today that you rooted for in April. However, there is a common denominator. They all wear, or wore the Pawtucket Red Sox jersey, and that's what makes them your boys of summer.
Sometimes the ideas for these blogs flow freely. Other times, I sit and stare at the screen of my laptop for a long time. This morning, it was the latter. I am amazed that we are on our final road trip of the season. After we finish n Charlotte, we head further south to Gwinnett to face the Braves in Georgia. Despite massive personnel changes, the PawSox are still chasing a postseason berth. A few nights ago against Rochester at McCoy, the Sox starting lineup featured exactly one player from the Opening Day lineup from manager Arnie Beyeler. Che-Hsuan Lin was the only man in the starting lineup from April.
Off the top of my head, here's who isn't here anymore. (In no particular order) Lars Anderson (Columbus), Aaron Cook, Mauro Gomez, Daniel Nava, Ryan Lavarnway, Will Middlebrooks, Pedro Ciriaco, Clay Mortenson, Andrew Miller, Scott Podsednik, Junichi Tazawa (Boston), Brandon Duckworth, Doug Mathis (Japan), Justin Germano (Cubs), Ross Ohlendorf (Padres), Luis Exposito (Orioles), Josh Kroeger (releaased), Chorye Spoon (released), Justin Thomas, Darnell McDonald (Scranton). Those are just the guys I remember while sitting in the lobby of the hotel in Pineville, N.C. Yesterday I rode to the ballpark in a shuttle with 11 players. Not one of them was an original member of the 2012 PawSox.
We may make the playoffs. We might not. It's that close. These days, Alex Hassan (leg) and Reynaldo Rodriguez (hand) are on the disabled list. Various ailments and injuries have also sidelined Jose iglesias (knee), J.C. Linares (hand), Will Inman (finger). With this knowledge, you probably agree that manager Arnie Beyeler has done a miraculous job keeping the club in the hunt. All 5 starting pitchers from the team that started out 45-25 are gone. The DH, first baseman, second baseman, third baseman,catcher, rightfielder are all gone as well. After the amazing start, the PawSox dropped 9 straight. The last six weeks or so, they've played .500 ball. This last week, the PawSox have dropped 5 of 7. We were great, terrible, and average. The same team? Yes, but not really.
At this very moment, Nate Spears, Lin, Tony Thomas, Jason Repko and Alex Wilson are the healthy holdovers. Thomas has played very well despite months on the disabled list. Newcomers like Dan Butler and Mike Rivera behind the plate, Andy LaRoche and Jon Hee in the infield and Josh Fields and Pedro Beato in the bullpen, along with the "new" starting rotation of Zach Stewart, Chris Hernandez, Billy Buckner, Nelson Figueroa and Daisuke Matsuzaka, who are holding down the fort.
You aren't cheering for the same guys today that you rooted for in April. However, there is a common denominator. They all wear, or wore the Pawtucket Red Sox jersey, and that's what makes them your boys of summer.
There are certain people that make you feel good, no matter what. Daniel Nava is one such person. The outfielder is back with the PawSox for a Major League rehab assignment (wrist). He has distinguished himself this season in Boston, after not even getting an invitation to Major League camp this past Spruing Training. Nava, who went 0-1 with a couple of walks on Sunday, talked about his ailing wrist. "The status is, I'm good. They're better. I'm here to see some pitches and get some at bats, and hopefully get back to Boston quick."
Nava made a huge splash in 2010. In his very first Major League at bat, on the very first pitch he saw in the Bigs, he crushed a grand slam off Joe Blanton of Philadelphia. Nava says this time around is different. "I think anytime you do something for a second or third time, you have a better understanding of what to expect. Things just weren't a shock. You knew what was coming. What to expect and what not to expect."
Nava doesn't let the praise he's received from management and media alike, go to his head. "Of course it feels good. It serves as motivation to continue the hard work. Let's keep it going. Don't get lackadaisical. Arnie (Beyeler) and I had a conversation when I first got called up this year about that and it was something that stuck with me."
Nava has had a birds' eye view inside the Boston clubhouse for most of the season. He maintains that the Sox are still very much alive despite their struggles. "This team is still built to win. It's a really good team. The positive is that you go day by day to get a win any way you can. That can be the best thing. I don't think that anyone on the team has thrown in the towel. It has been a grind. Every day is a grind, whether we've played well or not, it's been challenging with all the injuries. There's nothing left to lose, so hopefully we can get things going back in the right direction."
Daniel adds with all the added scrutiny, the rumors and innuendo swirling about the Sox, his teammates are handling it well. "A lot of the guys are used to it. They've been around the game. They're savvy veterans. You learn to separate that from what happens on the field. This is the time to prove the doubters wrong and hopefully we can make a playoff push."
Tradition dictates that a M.L. player on a rehab, buys his minor league teammates a meal, or "spread" after the game. Knowing Nava and his health conscious habits, infielder Jon Hee joked that it would probably come from "Whole Foods." "Yeah, he'll get us a salad bar." Hee laughed. Nava laughed harder when he heard Jons' comments. "What's wrong with that?" Nothing…..I guess.
If Tuesdays' game between the PawSox and Scranton was any indication, this is going to be some stretch drive. The two teams atop the North Division battled it out and the PawSox took it 9-7. Pawtucket jumped out to a 9-0 lead and hung on for dear life. Believe it or not, with 20 games remaining on the 2012 schedule, there are 8 left against the Yankees. That includes a doubleheader on Wednesday night at McCoy. It's a two game swing every night, meaning if the PawSox lost last night, they'd trail SWB by three games. Instead, it's just one game. It's shaping up to be a fun final couple of weeks. And by the way, just for good measure, the PawSox close out the regular season with 4 at home against the Yankees. Talk about drama. There are a couple of very familiar faces on the Scranton roster. Manny Delcarmen and Darnell McDonald.
One name that has become familiar to Sox fans, is Alex Hassan. The native of Quincy Mass. has had a very good first season in Triple A. He offered his thoughts. "It's been pretty good. I've definitely had some ups and downs but this has been the most challenging level for me so far. It has forced me to make adjustments for the better. I've had my struggles, but those are what make you better in the long run." Hassan got off to a slow start in April, going 0 for his first 17. "It was really tough, but that's the name of this game. It's a game built on failure, especially if you're a hitter. There are going to be some tough times in this game, but that's ok. Everyone goes through it. It's tough but if you're going to play baseball, you have to accept it and persevere."
When enduring a tough stretch, Hassan says there is really only one person that can help him. "It's me. A lot of people will say stuff to try to help, but ultimately it's me that has to make the decisions and have a good attitude. It's hard to do. The coaches here are really supportive, but it's in your hands. Ultimately, it's up to you."
Hassan adds that he tries to be a good teammated to those who have followed him up from AA Portland. "Just be supportive. They're all good players, so I don't need to help them with that part. We're always there for each other." That could come in handy as they round the final turn.
First, let me tell you that it's amazing that I haven't smashed my laptop into a thousand pieces yet. It's on its' last legs and seems to take great delight in devouring a blog that I've tried to post, or blanking out on me just as I'm about to do the scoreboard on the post-game show. As soon as the season ends, I will get a new one, and I will indeed, take a sledge hammer to this one. As you might imagine, I'm about to write the same blog for the second time and I ain't happy.
(Deep Breath) Kind of amazing that the PawSox are still in the thick of the playoff chase. My friend Brendan McGair of the Pawtucket Times wrote a story the other day about the amazing turnover on the 2012 Pawtucket roster. I haven't counted, but according to Brendan, there are just 7 players left on the roster from Opening Day. Yet, Pawtucket is in a seesaw battle with Scranton and Lehigh, as the three teams duke it out for the postseason berths. Should the Sox make the playoffs, expect the roster to be further compromised, with the likes of Iglesias, Gomez and others going up to Boston to help them in their quest for fourth place in the A.L. East.
As I was sitting outside the hotel this morning, I chuckled as a taxi pulled up and picked up Daisuke Matsuzaka and his entourage. What a waste of money this guy has been. The brass in Boston has to be licking its' chops, counting the days until they are rid of him and his exorbitent salary. He will pitch in Rochester, leave and then rejoin us in 5 more days to start and throw another one of his patented 85 pitches in three innings. Never a Cy Young, but most definitely a sayonara.
Long, seemingly endless bus ride on Thursday night to Rochester after being swept at home by Syracuse. After 5 hours on the bus, mercifully, we stopped on the NY state thruway. "Sbarro" was still open and horrible pizza never tasted so good. I felt like I was at an outdoor cafe in Tuscany, I was so hungry. To that point, I had a box of Cheez-It crackers in my backpack, that I gladly shared with my buddy, Jose Iglesias.
Went for coffee this morning and was amazed to see a guy get thrown out of Tim Hortons. Apparently he had been sitting at his table for a long time without buying anything. Intensely fixated on his laptop, the manager asked if she could get him anything. He said he was all set. A few moments later, she asked again. When he said no again, she asked him nicely to pack up because the paying customers could use his table. When he ignored her request again, she enlisted the help of a Rochester police officer. The guy started arguing with the cop when he made it clear that he should leave immediately or risk arrest. You really have to be a "bust-out" to get kicked out of a Tim Hortons. The vagrant continued his argument on the street. I figured I better take off before I was next to go.
I can't push my luck with this computer. I'm going to try to publish this blog before it disappears. If you hear a loud scream from Rochester, you'll know why,
It's rare enough to have a Hall of Famer at the ballpark, but this weekend we had two of them at McCoy. Wade Boggs was in the house for his induction into the International League Hall of Fame. Across the field in the visitors' dugout, sat Ryne Sandberg, Lehigh Valley manager and Cooperstown teammate of Boggs. In fact the two former infielders were inducted into the Baseball Hall together in 2005. When Boggs spoke to the throng in Pawtucket, he made certain to acknowledge Sandberg.
Sandberg is finishing his second year as Iron Pigs manager. He was, at one time a candidate for the PawSox' position. "I enjoy it here in Lehigh Valley. We have a tremendous fan base, so the atmsphere is always great. We have a good group of guys here. I enjoy what I'm doing and this is a good place to do it." Sandberg is thought to be the only man in I.L. history who was elected into the Hall before he became a league manager. In fact, it was his enshrinement that got him thinking. "When I got into the Hall in 2005, going through that process, I figured out that I really wanted to be back in unioform, in some capacity. After coaching in Spring Training as an instructor for 8 years, I made up my mind that I wanted to try this in 2007 in A Ball. My reflection back on past coaches and managers and the game in general, is really what helped me decide. I'm thrilled about it."
Sandberg returns to Cooperstown every summer for the induction ceremonies. He says the Phillies are very good about giving him the time off. He looks forward to reuniting with his brethren annually. Last summer, outfielder Brandon Moss played for Ryno in Lehigh. The former PawSox standout told me that you'd never know the manager was a Hall of Famer. Sandberg considers that a compliment. "I talk to our guys on a daily basis, about how we're all in this together. I'm out here to help them get better. Sweat and do all the things I need to do to help them. If that's the message, that's great. That's how I went about my business as a player and I continue to do so as a manager. I take a lot of pride in preparation. Pre-game work. Quality work. Work hard and have fun."
As a Hall member, Sandberg hears the ongoing debate about steroid users and whether they should be included in Cooperstown. He doesn't shy away from offering an opinion. "The conversation needs to be had. It was a big part of the game. However long it went on, those were baseball games that were played. I think it's going to be very tough to put any of their plaques up in the Hall of Fame. It's up to the sportswriters and baseball. It's going to be a tough road to travel. These players played and I don't think you can disregard this part of history. If there's a compromise to recognize these players, OK. But remember, The Hall is about stats. It's about character and integrity and playing the game the right way. Players that boosted their stats by breaking the law and going against the rules…I think that will speak for itself."
The July 31, non waiver trade deadline has come and gone. Sometimes it doesn't matter. This time it did. Scott Podsednik was shipped off to Arizona with Matt Albers for former Pawtucket reliever Craig Breslow. A loss, certainly, but Scotty "Pods" hadn't been around that long. The one that hit me was bittersweet. Lars Anderson was traded to the Indians. Lars has been in the Sox organization since Day 1. Six years. At one point, Baseball America rated him the top prospect in the organization. He never quite lived up to the pressure or burden of such a billing. You can't judge him by that. At age 24, Lars has a tremendous upside that I think will benefit Cleveland.
It was a poignant moment at Frontier Field in Rochester. Heavy rain was falling and the guys were milling around the clubhouse, monitoring Twitter for the latest rumors. Manny Delcarmen, the Scranton pitcher, who of course, is a Massachusetts kid with a Red Sox World Series ring was chatting with Daniel Bard and me when word about Lars got out. Manny knows how quickly you can fall out of favor and be traded. Sometimes it's hard to come to grips with changing teams and uniforms. Manny's been gone a while now. He knows what lies ahead for Lars. Bard, who has struggled this season, had to be contemplating his own future, as well.
As always, Anderson was philosophical when talking about his future. "I'm really excited, man. I had an awesome six years in the Red Sox organization. I feel like I'm ready for something new. A change of scenery is going to be good. Something to energize me. A place where there's more of an opportunity to fulfill my dream of playing in the Big Leagues on a more regular basis. All that is there in Cleveland. It feels good to be wanted by a team and I'm excited to get started."
Exactly a year ago, Anderson was traded to his hometown A's. When pitcher Rich Harden failed his physical, the deal was cancelled, leaving Lars back at McCoy Stadium. It was a difficult situation for him. One he handled as deftly as a hot smash to first base. "There's no other way to go about it constructively. It stung as little bit."
In exchange, Boston gets a 27 year old knuckleballer, Steven Wright. Wright converted to the knuckler a couple of seasons ago. The Sox have tried over the years to find another Tim Wakefield with guys like Charlie Zink and John Barnes. Nothing personal, but I've never been a fan of the pitch. I can remember sitting in my crib, as a baby, just ripping Hoyt Wilhelm. Ok, so maybe that is a bit of an exxageration, but you get the point.
Lars leaves behind a lot of good friends. He leaves behind a best friend, Ryan Kalish. Anderson had to take a deep breath before talking about leaving Kalish in Boston. "We talked about this possibility last night when he got called up to Boston. We may never play together again." Anderson paused. "Who knows? Maybe we will. Ryan and I will remain friends. We'll probably live in the same city during the offseason and train together."
Lars had no inkling that he'd be dealt. Nor did he envision his landing spot. The Columbus Clippers. "I was completely blindsided. I had heard nothing. I was getting ready to play tonight. When Arnie (Beyeler) told me, I was surprised."
Anderson isn't worried about making new friends. Playing first base comes with some advantages. "I get to chat with all the guys that reach base when we play them. So we kind of know each other a little. It's not totally unfamiliar."
As I told Lars, I was having a tough time reading him. I'm certain there had to be a range of emotions swirling around him. He clarified for me. "I'm really pleased with this." I will miss Lars. I got acquainted with his mom Diane and his dad, George. I even enjoyed conversations with his grandparents over the years. I watched Lars mature from a kid into a thoughtful young man. It has been my pleasure. Good bye and good luck, friend.


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Posted by: Hombre_de_ningun_lugar« on: August 28, 2012, 01:27:53 PM »
Thanks! I know I don't have many important bands, some of which I didn't listen to. I hope I'll add them sooner or later. And I'll take into account your suggestions.
You're welcome and actually I think you included many important bands, especially from the 60's. I just mentioned those few groups that I consider as essential, especially Buffalo Springfield.

subset: commoncrawl


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October 25, 2012 —
At the end of the meal, my phone is gone. I look around the table. I pat my pockets. Check my bag. No way! I hadn't even gotten up from dinner and someone had swiped my phone from right under my nose. Everyone in the restaurant is sympathetic. My friends help me make one final search around the table. No luck.
It had all started with a bit of iPhone 5 envy. Emily got one the day they came out a few weeks ago and it was light and fast, sharp and cool. Unfortunately, I am not due for an upgrade for six months so I wasn't getting a new iPhone without paying some crazy exorbitant fee.
No big deal really, mine works totally fine, but I wanted to cheer myself up. I remembered seeing a very cool leather iPhone case when we were interviewing a high-profile defense attorney in Texas. I did some goggling, found a similar one and ordered it. It'd spiff my old iPhone 4 right up, I thought.
A week or so later, it arrived at the office. I opened it and slid it over my phone. I wondered about the functionality but was going to give it a try. It definitely looked sharp.
That night, I joined Emily and two friends at a restaurant for dinner. At a certain point I took my phone out of my bag and showed Emily the new case. She looked at it, wondered about the functionality, and gave it back to me. I put it down in front of me on the table. We went back to talking and laughing. I ordered another drink.
At the end of the meal, I looked down and the phone was gone.
This happens to me all the time, probably daily. Suddenly my phone is not where I thought it was. Usually I find it 30 seconds later in my jacket or back in my bag. This did not happen and after a few minutes of looking I started to have a sinking feeling that it had been stolen.
As soon as you think you've been wronged, your brain switches modes. Now, you look around the room trying to figure out if the perpetrator is still there. Now, any one of these people could have my phone in their pocket. I stare at the manager and then a guy sitting at the bar. They notice me and look back confused.
Emily has the idea to search "find my phone" and track my phone via GPS, from her phone. We all huddle around her and stare down at the screen. A blue dot pops up a few blocks away. We head into the night, rushing after that dot on the screen, rushing to find the person who stole my phone and that beautiful new case.
We catch up to the dot on St. Marks Place between Second and Third and we stop outside the building where we see it lingering. We are right next to a head shop and I am quickly convinced that the man behind the counter has my phone.
"Hey," I say, somewhat aggressively, staring right at this guy.
"Hey," he says reluctantly.
"Do you sell iPhones?" I ask.
"What? No," he says as I realize I am acting crazy. I explain what's going on and he laughs and promises that he hasn't seen anyone come in recently and tells me he will keep an eye out for my phone.
Back on the street, Emily and the rest of the group are gone. I look up and down St. Marks and don't see them. I wait a couple of minutes. Still, I don't see them. Across the street is a pay phone; it's been a long time since I've needed one and I am very happy see it. I go to the nearest bodega to get change.
"Not right now," the guy says.
"Really?" I am holding out a dollar to him. "Come on, man, I need to use the phone."
"Too busy," he says.
I am irritated but look around for the cheapest thing they have. A blow-pop. I hold it up to the guy smiling.
"Twenty-five cents."
I hand him the dollar. After the night I have had, the three quarters and irritated look from the cashier are nothing but sweet victory. I cross the street to the pay phone, put in a quarter and dial. It rings. Emily answers and they are just up the block. Success.
We chase the dot around the vicinity but never catch it. Eventually Emily's phone dies and we all head home.
On the way home, I start to wonder if perhaps the phone is just in my bag. It is certainly possible; I convince myself that the tracker could have been just a little off and we were basically just chasing my bag.
The next morning I check and the tracker is in Queens, confirmation that the phone was stolen. It's still shocking to me that they were able to take it with me sitting there. Very sly.
My insurance covered it and so a new iPhone 4 is on its way to me as we speak. It was still cheaper than getting an iPhone 5 without an upgrade. I think I'll forget about a case for a little while. I bet that stupid thing is why they stole it in the first place.


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A super pitcher of lemony margaritasAP Photo
A pitcher of Meyer lemon margaritas is a refreshing balance to rich food.
Ilong ago fell in love with the clean, crisp, sweet taste of Meyer lemons. And recently, Mexican foods guru Rick Bayless reminded me why.
The Meyer lemon (named for Frank Meyer, who discovered them over 100 years ago) is a cross between a lemon and possibly some variety of orange. Thin-skinned, they often mature to a yellow-orange color and are slightly less acidic than common lemons. I like that because the lower acid makes it so much easier to appreciate the vibrant taste of these lemons.
And I'm particularly fond of using them in drinks. That's just one reason I've fallen in love with Bayless' new cookbook, "Frontera: Margaritas, Guacamoles and Snacks." In it, he has a recipe for Meyer lemon margaritas that uses tequila that has been infused with the zest of the lemons for four days.
Last summer, I experimented with infusing tequila with a split vanilla bean and rich roasted coffee, but I never considered citrus. This book was the perfect excuse to try more infusing.
When I read through the recipe, I realized that it was natural to use citrus to infuse tequila, and how special the Meyer lemon zest would make it and the margaritas. Thoughts of limoncello with a Mexican twist immediately came to mind. I love having the infused tequila on hand, which makes masterful margaritas, of course. But it's also delicious all on its own to be enjoyed as sipping tequila.
Besides the creative recipes, the best part of this cookbook is that Bayless provides two recipes for every margarita — a single-serve cocktail and a pitcher version. And I thought the latter would be perfect to get a Super Bowl party going. Not only is it a fun drink, but the tangy lemon flavor is perfect for cutting through all the rich, heavy foods we usually eat during the big game.
For ease, the entire recipe can be made in advance and refrigerated. That way when your guests arrive all you have to do is fill a cocktail shaker with ice, shake the drink to get it icy cold, and serve. You also could just serve it poured over crushed ice.
Meyer Lemon Margarita
Servings: 8
1½ cups Meyer lemon tequila (see recipe below)
1 cup fresh Meyer lemon juice (4 to 5 lemons)
¾ cup triple sec
½ cup Meyer lemon simple syrup (see recipe below)
6 cups ice cubes
8 lemon twists, to garnish
In a pitcher, combine the tequila, lemon juice, triple sec and simple syrup. Cover and refrigerate until chilled, about 2 hours.
When ready to serve, fill a cocktail shaker half full with ice and pour in 1 cup of the margarita mixture. Shake, strain into two 6-ounce martini glasses and garnish each with a twist. Repeat for the remaining margaritas.
Meyer Lemon Infused Tequila
Makes one 750-milliliter bottle
8 Meyer lemons
750-milliliter bottle 100 percent blue agave blanco tequila
Using a vegetable peeler, remove the zest (colored layer of skin only) from the lemons in large strips. Place the zest in a large glass jar, then add the tequila and cover tightly. Let stand for 4 days to allow the flavors to blend, tipping the jar back and forth a couple of times a day.
Strain out the zest, and the tequila is ready to use. Stored in a glass container or its original bottle, it will keep its vibrant color for 1 to 2 months.
Meyer Lemon Simple Syrup
Makes 1 cup
2 Meyer lemons
1 cup sugar
½ cup water
Use a vegetable peeler to remove the zest (colored layer of skin only) from the lemons in large strips.
In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine the zest, sugar and water, stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Let the mixture reach a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool. Strain out and discard the zest. Cover and refrigerate until needed. Keeps for several weeks.
Recipes from Rick Bayless and Deann Groen Bayless' "Frontera: Margaritas, Guacamoles and Snacks," W.W. Norton & Company, 2012)MORE IN Food & Dining
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A combination of edges and circles, Kisai Maru Wood features an intuitive time display in mirrored LCD, framed by a custom designed natural wood case.
Creative and functional, Kisai Maru Wood includes time, date, alarm, backlighting and animation.
Maru means circle in Japanese and it's the orbiting rings on the display which give the watch its name.
The inner facing hand points to the hour, the outer facing hand points to the minutes. It's just like a conventional clock. See the explanation on the right of the page for more detail.
The date is read in exactly the same way, the inner hand points to the month, the outer hand points to the day. Beneath the mineral crystal lens, the mirrored LCD features a color tint that brings the display to life.
Kisai Maru Wood has been carefully crafted from 100% natural wood in very limited quantities. There are three models to choose from, red sandalwood with a dark sandalwood accent, maple wood with a red sandalwood accent and a new option, sandalwood with a maple wood accent.
The faceted surfaces on the wood casing taper at precise angles creating a modern appearance that contrasts with the simplistic time display.
Like all wood watches from Tokyoflash Japan, a clear coating has been applied to Kisai Maru Wood for protection.
As well as time and date, Maru Wood has an alarm and EL backlighting, so you can easily view the time at night.
The watch also features a custom designed animation which causes the display to spin and rotate once every five minutes, a function which can be turned on or off. See the video demo above to see this in action.
The links that make up the strap are individually made so the strap can be adjusted like a normal watch to fit your wrist perfectly. The watch uses a standard CR2025 watch battery which will last at least 12 months and can easily be replaced.
Due to the natural qualities of wood, the color and grain may be slightly darker or lighter than shown in the photos.
Being made of a natural material, Kisai Maru Wood is light and comfortable to wear and every single watch has a unique color and grain pattern.
Each part of Kisai Maru Wood has been individually designed and manufactured, including the case, strap and uniquely programmed display.
In February 2010, Tokyoflash Japan opened its Design Studio Blog to showcase concept designs and request ideas for new watch designs from fans. The idea for Kisai Maru's display was submitted by Sam Jerichow from Germany. This is the eighth concept submitted by a fan to become reality.
Find out more about the original concept on the Tokyoflash Design Studio Blog.
Blog reader & watch designer Sam Jerichow says:
When I made my early sketches for the display, I was trying to give analog time telling a new guise. Then I actually designed a pocket watch for my new generation digital analog display.
When I saw the first images of the wrist watch, I was surprised how good it looked and how nicely the display has been embedded with the circle in the case and the all-around-the-wrist line in the strap. I am the proud owner of a satin sienna and a dark wooden Maru.
Seeing Maru's circles and edges in wood now is very nice. What a cool idea!! The simple design goes well with the grain of this light and warm material. Can't wait to wear a plaid shirt with my new Maru for a subtly geeky lumberjack look hehe.
The name Maru, that I gave the original concept, was translated in a fantastic way. Thank you Tokyoflash! I'd also like to thank my fans who say what they like and what they don't ;) - the support is great!
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Tagged in: LCD Watches | Unisex Watches | Easy Watches | Under $110 | Light Watches | Wooden Watches |


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Expert Q & A Answers About ED causes
My boyfriend is on blood pressure medication and can't get it up. How do I talk to him about it?
I am a 56-year-old post-menopausal woman with a healthy interest in sex. I have begun a serious relationship with a 66-year-old man, who is on medication for blood pressure and SSRI medication. He knows that the blood pressure med affects his sex life, but he acts as if there's no problem. He hates the idea of Viagra and doesn't want to talk about it. I love him and we talk about spending our lives together...but I want to be able to have sex. How can I get through to him?
As my wife goes through menopause, we're trying to keep a good sex life. What can we do?
I am a 44-year-old male, and my wife and I have enjoyed a very good and regular sex life for about 14 years. However, I've had intermittent erectile dysfunction for the past four months...and I think it's because my 50-year-old wife is going through menopause. It seems like sex is a chore for her and this puts me off. Then I get anxiety and I can't keep an erection. What should I do? I don't want to stop having sex with my wife as we get older.


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Popular relationship author, Matthew Hussey, enlists adorable kids to promote his new book, Get the Guy. Turns out mature conversation and tiny voices are a recipe for a viral video on YouTube.
Any teenage girl or woman can attest to the fact that "girl talk" can often veer from light conversation to relationship quandaries in split seconds. In that time, much advice is offered but the solution may never be reached.
Enter Matt Hussey, a relationship expert and matchmaker whose book claims it holds "Secrets to the male mind".
You'll have to read and test out his methods to find out if it's true, but it's undeniable that he made a smart move by partnering up with Woodhead Entertainment to produce his short video.
Watching these young girls mocking very realistic conversations was found to be hilariously adorable by some and just inappropriate by others.
Either way it earned, over 327k views overnight.
You be the judge.


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Postdoctoral Fellows
Important change to NSERC's Postdoctoral Fellowships program
Aug 29/12
NSERC reduces the maximum number of applications an individual may submit in a lifetime to its PDF program.
In recent years, NSERC has seen a growing disparity between the number of applications submitted to the Postdoctoral Fellowships (PDF) program and the number of awards available. As a result, NSERC has decided to reduce the maximum number of applications an individual may submit in a lifetime to its PDF program from two to one.
Read this important announcement from NSERC regarding a change to their Postdoctoral Fellowships program.
Tri-Council Postdoctoral Fellowship competition deadlines are fast approaching. Need more information?
Read here.
|Related Information
|Important change to NSERC PDF program
View all Postdoctoral Fellows news |
View all Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies news
View all Laurier news


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Deutsche Bank makes move in rates sales
Deutsche Bank has hired one of the most senior European figures in Morgan Stanley's fixed-income sales business to act as global head of rates sales.
Chris Yoshida, who was head of European rates sales at the US bank, resigned last week, according to four people familiar with the matter. Morgan Stanley declined to comment. Yoshida did not return calls seeking comment.
He will join European rival Deutsche Bank as global head of rates sales, and will relocate to New York, three of the people said.
His appointment and move to the US are significant, coming after a number of changes in Deutsche Bank's fixed-income business.
In February, the German bank appointed Rich Herman, the previous head of the institutional client group, which houses the bank's giant sales force, as co-head of fixed income and currencies. He moved to New York as part of the change in role.
Speaking to Financial News earlier this month, Herman said of the US market: "If you're going to make an attack, this is the perfect place for us."
Yoshida has spent more than a decade at Morgan Stanley, joining from Goldman Sachs in 2003.


text: Building the Pyramids (4) TV-14 Play video Select your TV provider to log in to have full access to videos Select your TV provider See all providers Don't see your TV provider? Learn more You can access this video on the free HISTORY® app. *You must verify your TV provider towatch this video on the App Your Parental Control settings do not allow you to view this content. Building the Pyramids (4 min) TV-14 The ancient Egyptians built the pyramids using engineering techniques that are still a wonder of the world.


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13 July 2012
It is so much an Oliver Stone film, in fact, that it plays sort of like the marijuana-themed version of his screenplay for the 1983 Scarface. Sort of - mostly in all the bad ways, like how it's torn apart between critiquing or outright vilifying the lives of it protagonists and at the same time wallowing in how stupendously plush their surroundings are. Or not even really that, it's more like you can see, if you squint, what a cutting, satiric version of this story would look like, but in the event, Stone has mainly contented himself with creating a high-energy commercial for the lives of beautiful, entitled twentysomething drug lords.
The film, as adapted by Stone, Shane Salerno & Don Winslow, from Winslow's book, starts out with a piece of narration - the first line is "Just because I'm telling you this story, doesn't mean I'm alive at the end of it", thereby making it incredibly clear that the speaker will, in fact, be alive at the end of it - that gets the film off on the worst conceivable footing: for one thing, the speaker is a singularly blank young woman named "O" (Blake Lively), which she has cut down from the dour & Shakespearean "Ophelia" (I choose to read this is an homage to the ineffective Othello adaptation O), and it is with the most waterlogged of sinking feelings that we realise we're expected to anticipate the long, long time we're going to spend with her as our authorial voice with anything other than the dread of physically tangible boredom; for another, Lively's vocal performance is abysmally bad, deliberately stripped of affect in an attempt to give the film a sort of post-modern detachment, I imagine, but it really just sounds like she was a non-native speaker who learned her lines phonetically; for a third, the three writers, whose sense of dialogue is at all times fairly suspicious in its melodramatic largeness, give O some of the most unfathomably stupid things to say, and it seems awfully clear that we're meant to take this as literary or poetic or some such, and not the sign of a terrible undiagnosed brain trauma. At one point, she introduces us to one of her two boyfriends, a violence prone veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan, thusly: "He was always trying to fuck the war out of him. I had orgasms. He had wargasms." I am paraphrasing the first part, but just by a little; anyway, it's the second part that puts in a strong bid for Worst Thing Said in a Movie in 2012.
That boy is Chon (Taylor Kitsch); her other boyfriend, and his partner, is Ben (Aaron Johnson). They are best friends and partners in growing and distributing what is held by connoisseurs to be the best marijuana grown in the States for certain, and probably in the whole world; and not only is there no jealousy between them over O, it would appear that vigorous and friendly threesomes are a regular occurrence in their lives. Indeed, one of the few genuinely interesting things Savages manages to do is predicate its entire dramatic structure on three-way relationship, presented unambiguously and almost idly as something we're meant to be totally in favor of. The drama, incidentally, is that a cartel based in Baja, Mexico, spearheaded by the icy Elena Sanchez (Salma Hayek), wants to form a lopsided partnership with Ben & Chon's friendly, liberalish pot commune (Ben sinks most of his profits into projects in the developing world and is compared, teasingly but favorably, with Bono). When they decline, she goes batshit, having her thugs Lado (Benicio Del Toro) and Alex (Demián Bichir) kidnap O and hold her over the boys in a most nasty and villainous way; they, in turn, wage war on Elena's operation, and things get awfully complicated, so I won't describe any of it, except to say that even at 131 minutes, Savages is painfully over-stuffed and at the same time dreadfully slow-moving.
So from this grand messy scheme of dealing and double-dealing, of kidnapping and torture and execution, of close-knit threesomes and desperate maternal love, we get all sorts of themes that pop up and look like they're going to be developed: the obligation First Worlders have of doing good deeds in the Third World; the moral hypocrisy of those who talk about doing good in the Third World when they life like kings from the most obnoxiously overladen fairy tale; how a noble, pure thing like love can turn basically decent people into monsters to preserve their loved ones; how we all use words like "savages" to demean the people we don't like because we think it gives us ethical authority over them; how you, like, shouldn't trust Mexicans, because they're, for serious, all in the drug trade, man. Politically laden words and phrases skip across the screen like a Where's Waldo puzzle for The Nation subscribers, because Oliver Stone makes Serious Movies About the State of Things.
None of this ends up taking hold, possibly because there's simply too much going on to hang onto any one thing for very long (and maybe that's supposed to be reflective of how crazily out of control the situation ends up for the protagonists, but it's not even satisfying then), and certainly because Stone tries to hang this grand operatic course of events and deep human emotions around the necks of three woefully uninteresting characters, played by Lively and Johnson as complete ciphers, too fuzzy to have any personality besides the clichés they represent - Kitsch manages to outshine his two co-leads by a huge amount, and thus carve out a bit of dignity for himself in a summer that has been inordinately bad for him so far, but being the best of a triangle involving such consistent nonentities as Blake Lively and Aaron Johnson isn't the kind of thing that sends a young actor to bragging.
The movie makes some feints at calling them out on their bland, rich-kid shit, but then not really, and the film sort of glamorises their lifestyle and tries to distract us from the fact that they are criminals by arguing that marijuana is probably going to be legal really soon, so they're just ahead of the curve. And also by disastrously name-dropping Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, because those people were also glamorous, gorgeous law-breakers - that they were played by better actors and given better things to say in a more entertaining plot is something we are presumably meant to ignore.
We are, in effect, being given a serving of lifestyle porn built on an "I would do anything for love" scenario with a violent drug-trade thriller wrapped around the edges; and it's the edges where the film comes to life, whether because Elena and corrupt DEA agent Dennis (John Travolta) are the two most complicated and well-played characters in the movie (that Hayak and Travolta handily outclass Del Toro and Bichir tells us most of what we need to know about the kinds of figures the latter pair are given to play), the only moments where there's any insight into how people work anywhere in the whole project, or because Stone is at his best as a director when he just gets to play with the medium (and that, at least, has been true pretty much as long as he's had a career). A lengthy action sequence involving a raid on one of Elena's safe houses is unabashedly terrific glossy thriller filmmaking; the way that Stone and cinematographer Dan Mindel capture Southern California beach life as bright color and hard sunlight and a bunch of flat surfaces is the closest the film comes to actually commenting on the things its depicting, rather than just depicting.
It's not the work of an untalented man, then; but even worse, a talented man with no direction or shape for his talent to work. For good or ill, the Stone of the late '80s and early '90s was driven and purposeful, and even his flightiest conceits all came from a place of intense conviction. Savages is a film that doesn't know why it exists, and therefore can't even be appealing as empty action, because of the lingering relics of it trying to be serious and meaningful. It goes everywhere and gets nowhere. That would be annoying in any movie; it is dumbfounding from such a message-addled director as Oliver Stone. But what could you expect at this point?
6 comments:
- Andrew Testerman said...
I approve of the usage the word "waterlogged" to describe a character named Ophelia.
- WBTN said...
"Wargasms"; that's enough to question how Stone ever got a Screenwriting Oscar. I think this review sums up most of my feelings about the movie, but I think it's worth mentioning how needless the double ending is; to me, it's probably the biggest indicator of how aimless and frustrating this movie is, with Lively's last narrated statement,about 'savages' in the dictionary, being the rotten cherry on top.
Also, this is the second time I've noticed a movie with Aaron Johnson using the "narrator-might-be-dead" plot-point (Kick-Ass), and that was also guilty of name-dropping other, better movies.
- The.Watcher said...
"He was always trying to fuck the war out of him. I had orgasms. He had wargasms."
Ew. I think I have eye cancer. I only ever really liked 2 movies by Stone; Platoon, which is a legitimately good movie, and Any Given Sunday, which is gaudy as all hell but for some reason appeals to me. I think it may be because it was the only movie ever to make American football seem even a little bit interesting to me.
Plus, you really can't go wrong with James Woods screaming at Pacino and Foxx throwing up all over the place. Savages, however, had a trailer bad enough to make me ignore the movie in cinemas on principle, even IF it turned out to be actually good. Which, of course, it didn't.
- Zev Valancy said...
Does the movie ever get around to explaining what the hell kind of name "Chon" is?
- Jeff Goldblom said...
Del toro gave a creepy performance and was also so extremely cold and vile that he was sort of funny. first time he puts his disturbed eyes to psychotic use. If Von Sydow,Strep,Close,McTeer can get nommed for films that aren´t fresh,can Benicio? My fav along with The greys Frank Grillo so far. Salma and Johnson came through,Kitsch....how does he get good roles? He worked fine on TV,clearly not on the big screen.
He´s been overlooked for Things we...and Che. He and the cinematography(working with sound,I´d sayits an cellent job.)are worthy of noms.
Its a mess but a mess that constanly entertains,occassionally makes you sick and impress visually. i thought it was good tension,that doesnt have eto mean I was rooting like hell for the kids. And the nding isnt really a cop-out. Inception was a copout. The....spoileeerrr...."happy"ending is clearly a blonde,stonerchicks last,romantisized thoughts. hence the rewind. It went bad. 4/5.
- Brian said...
This is a movie I saw in the theater with my best friend (who, incidentally, is a veteran of both Iraq and Afghanistan) and his wife, not because any of us were particularly interested in seeing it, but because we don't get to see each other as often as we'd like, we'd spent a day together hanging out, and decided to go to a movie, and it was the next thing starting that we could all three agree on (I angled for Moonrise Kingdom, a film that never played anywhere near where I live, but neither of them were at all interested. *sigh*)
There are a few moments of pure brilliant film-making spread throughout, but good lord are they few and FAAAAAARRRRRRR between. Travolta had a lot of fun, at least... The violence worked the way it should... Um... Yeah, I'm running out of nice things to say, and that ending... Oh lord that ending. Fucking hell. Why did I read this review and get reminded of this film, making me think of that fucking ending?


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Absolut Art Bar at Palais de Tokyo
Interview with Manish Arora about his film Holi Holi (supported by The Absolut Company), premiered at the Asvoff 6 coctail preview:
- Can you tell us what Holi is all about and what your film aims to show?
Holi is one of my favorite festivals in India where people come together and play with color. However, there has been an old tradition that doesn't allow widows to wear colors. They are supposed to wear white clothes for the rest of their lives after their husband died, especially in small towns like Veranasi where the festival takes place. It is rather sad and I take it as a comfort zone: how could someone not be allowed to touch color. Things suddenly changed recently. I've read an article in March saying they would be allowed to wear colors for the first time in 2013. This led to the idea of making this movie.
- We would have expected something more psychedelic or pop considering the tone of your collections. How come it isn't?
This is due to the story! I wanted to respect it and then, go into colors.The film becomes more colorful after 30/40 seconds. But I wanted people, especially the ones from the rest of the world, to get the point about widows in white!
- Was it important that this first movie project was related to India?
I think also my future works will! I cannot forget where I come from as this is my advantage. Obviously, when you look at my last show, it sounds like Art Deco but the workmanship is Indian. My pop-up store now at Galerie Joyce is all about my culture.
- Do you consider it a challenge to collaborate with a film director? Were you in a fusional relationship or did you have to find compromises in the creative process?
We used to be very good friends when I was 20, so it should have helped, but we lost each other. And it happened recently that we were seated next to each other on the same flight from San Francisco to Paris. I told him about my project and he's the one who called me back and wanted to make a fashion film. He had a different approach: hand-held camera and fast filming. I had to convince him to make it as a big landscape.
- In what aspects was Bishi a key element in this film?
I wanted someone with a strong presence, the power of a real woman. If not, the film would have been more ordinary. Bishi is a performer, her movements are so elegant in the movie. She has Indian origins too. She could support the whole cultural background. A regular model would have been totally lost in that.
- Was it a special experience for her?
She obviously felt it and therefore it works! Even if conditions were hard because she never lived in India : there are floods at this period, she had to wear a corset for hours, starting at 4 am. But at the moment we were filming she could say : "Oh my god, I can feel it, like the feeling of a goddess...". She's a messenger to me, saying to rest of the world: "okay, let them wear colors..."
- What was the involvement of the Absolut Company here? What was it about your idea that they liked?
They decided to support us because they considered the topic relevant about the liberation of women. They like unconventional and atypical projects. For them, it was more than just another fashion project...
- How do you perceive the work of The Absolut Company with art and artists in general?
I think it is one of the very rare supporting companies that is always related to arts, all is about art. The way they promote themselves is also creative. They have succeeded in the idea that now people expect from them what will be the next creative initiative, and not the next product or campaign.


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If you experience a medical emergency
(i.e: heart attacks, loss of consciousness, large loss of blood, serious accidents,
or seizures):
Automated External Defibrillators (AED)
These devices are deployed in many buildings across campus and in ETSU Public Safety vehicles. AED locations are listed on all outside building doors. They are easy to use, although training in CPR/AED is strongly recommended. In the event of a medical emergency:
Avoid heat related medical emergencies by: Avoiding extensive sun exposure and strenuous activities, drink plenty of water,
Heat Stroke: Symptoms are high body temperature; red, hot, and dry skin; rapid, strong pulse; possibly unconsciousness.


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Are there enough 'conscious consumers' to make an impact?and nutritionists, who rate more than 165,000 products, including personal care items, household cleaners, food, toys, appliances and electronics. Each product gets a numerical rating from 1 to 10 in three categories — health, environment, and society; the ratings are then made available on GoodGuide's Web site, on Facebook and on smartphones.
'We're going up against millions of dollars of marketing,' says GoodGuide's founder.product scores. "Basically, all of the consumer products companies are calling us up and want to interact," O'Rourke says. While it's difficult to trace any specific change to GoodGuide, Johnson & Johnson and Procter & Gamble have reformulated their shampoos to reduce toxins, including 1,4-dioxane. And Clorox created Green Works, a line of cleaning products on which it has partnered with the Sierra Club.
When shopping online, customers can now see how products perform on issues they care about.pollution from factories in Vietnam when he came across a leaked internal document about a Nike shoe supplier. It showed that workers were exposed to carcinogens that exceeded legal standards, suffered from respiratory problems, and were forced to work 65 hours for just $10 a week. He provided his findings to The New York Times and posted a report on the Internet, setting off a controversy that led to a turnaround at Nike, which is now seen as a corporate leader on environmental and social issues.
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Richard Childress Racing
Recent News
Truck Series Preview for Iowa Speedway
July 9, 2013
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series News and Notes
Race: American Ethanol 200
Date: Saturday, July 13, 2013
Location: Iowa Speedway
Richard Childress Racing at Iowa Speedway ... Richard Childress Racing has 10 previous NASCAR Camping World Truck Series starts at Iowa Speedway collecting one pole award, one victory, four top-five and six top-10 finishes. The Welcome, N.C.-based organization holds an 11th-place average starting position, coupled with an 8.7 average finishing position and has completed 99.8 percent (2,001 of 2,005) of the laps contested.
RCR's Camping World Truck Series History ... In 290 Camping World Truck Series starts, RCR has earned 28 wins, 37 pole awards, 110 top-five finishes and 179 top-10 finishes. RCR also earned the inaugural series championship in 1995 with Mike Skinner, and again with Austin Dillon in 2011. The organization has an average starting position of 9.6 and an average finishing position of 10.3.
Points Racin' ... With eight Camping World Truck Series races completed in 2013, Ty Dillon is third in the driver championship point standings, trailing the leader by 40 markers, while Brendan Gaughan is seventh in the standings, 52 points outside the top spot. The No. 3 team is fourth in the owner championship point standings and the No. 62 team is eighth.
Social Media ...To keep up-to-date with the latest news, information and view exclusive content, visit RCR's Twitter page - @RCRracing, RCR's NASCAR Camping World Truck Series team Twitter pages - @RCR3TDillon and @RCR62BGaughan. RCR's Camping World Truck Series driver Twitter pages - @tydillon and @Brendan62.
Catch the Action ... Flag-to-flag coverage of the American Ethanol 200 presented by Enogen at Iowa Speedway is scheduled to be televised live on Saturday, July 13 beginning at 8:30 p.m. Eastern Time on SPEED and broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
Ty Dillon
No. 3 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet Silverado
This Week's Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet at Iowa Speedway ... Ty Dillon will pilot chassis No. 025 from the Richard Childress Racing stable in Saturday's NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Iowa Speedway. This Chevrolet was previously run as a No. 2 machine for RCR. During the 2012 off-season, it was transformed into a No. 3 Chevrolet and will make its first paces with Dillon this weekend.
Iowa Nuggets ... This week's 200-lap event marks Dillon's fifth appearance at the Newton, Iowa-based facility. Dillon has two previous starts at the 0.875-mile track in the Camping World Truck Series where he garnered one top-five and two top-10 finishes. He also holds one victory, one pole award and two top-five finishes in the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards at Iowa Speedway.
Winner, Winner ... Dillon and the No. 3 Bass Pro Shops team earned the victory two weeks ago in the Camping World Truck Series race at Kentucky Speedway. The 21-year-old driver drove through the field from the 22nd position and passed NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver Kyle Busch for the lead on lap 125. Never looking back, Dillon took the checkered flag in the Bluegrass State marking his first Truck Series win of the 2013 season.
Welcome Home ... Rear-tire carrier Justin Voss returns home this weekend as the Camping World Truck Series heads to Iowa Speedway. Voss hails from Parkersburg, Iowa and currently calls North Carolina home. The 2013 season marks Voss' fourth year at RCR. During the week, Voss works in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series shop as a fabricator and travels with the No. 3 team on the weekends as the rear-tire carrier.
Meet the Driver ... Dillon is schedule to participate in a question-and-answer session at the Team Chevy Stage on Saturday, July 13 beginning at 2 p.m. Central Time. Following the Q&A session, Dillon will sign autographs with fellow Camping World Truck Series drivers at an autograph session held under the Turn 4 grandstands at Iowa Speedway.
Nationwide Racing ... Dillon spent the off weekend in the Camping World Truck Series schedule at Daytona International Speedway with the RCR NASCAR Nationwide Series team. The Truck Series regular piloted the No. 33 Hunt Brothers Pizza Chevrolet to a 27th-place finish after being involved in a last-lap incident at the superspeedway.
You've had some success at Iowa Speedway in the ARCA Racing Series presented by Menards and run twice here in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. That must give you confidence heading into this weekend's race? "Yes, that gives me and my team a lot of confidence. I've always liked coming to Iowa (Speedway). The fans are great here and the racing is awesome. We're really trying to ride the momentum from the win at Kentucky Speedway two weeks ago. It was a huge confidence booster for the team. I know we can work hard and get us back to victory lane this weekend in Iowa."
Brendan Gaughan
No. 62 South Point Hotel & Casino Chevrolet Silverado
This Week's South Point Hotel & Casino Chevrolet Silverado at Iowa Speedway ... Brendan Gaughan will pilot chassis No. 009 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Camping World Truck Series in the American Ethanol 200 on Saturday afternoon. This Chevrolet was last utilized in 2012 by the No. 22 team at Bristol Motor Speedway and driven to a fourth-place result.
Racing in the Corn Fields ... Gaughan's lone start at Iowa Speedway came in 2011. Starting from the 19th position and finishing 16th, the Las Vegas native went on to complete 100 percent of the laps contested.
South Point Hotel & Casino ... Opened in December of 2005, the South Point resort was the first megaresort located south of McCarran International Airport and the Las Vegas Strip. The facility consists of a 25 story hotel tower and 90,000 square feet convention center located on a 60 acre site along Las Vegas Boulevard in Enterprise, Nevada. South Point Hotel offers a total of 2,163 rooms and 160,000 sq. ft. meeting and convention space; the largest of any hotel in Las Vegas that is not on the Strip. For more information, visit www.southpointcasino.com or call 1-866-796-7111.
Popcorn! Get Your Popcorn! ... In 2012, more than 10,000 buckets of popcorn were served to event attendees in the South Point Arena.
Get Your Sharpie Ready ... Fans will have an opportunity to meet Gaughan and other Camping World Truck Series drivers during a NASCAR autograph session on Saturday, July 13 from 2:30-3:15 p.m. Central Time under the Turn 4 Grandstands.
In the Rearview Mirror: Kentucky Speedway ... Gaughan and the No. 62 South Point Hotel & Casino Chevrolet team brought home a 27th-place finish in the UNOH 225 at Kentucky Speedway after starting from the fourth position and overcoming mechanical issues early in the race.
What are your thoughts on racing at Iowa Speedway? "I haven't run a lot of laps at Iowa Speedway, but it's a really fun track to go to. I had the privilege to be teammates with Rusty Wallace, and race for him, so I had the opportunity to watch him build that track and see everything that went into constructing it from the ground up. Iowa is really like the racing version of "The Field of Dreams", if you build it, they will come. The fans in Iowa are amazing. Those fans are proof that if you give them a good deal and a great show, they will be there for each event. I'm looking forward to heading back to see what the No. 62 South Point Hotel & Casino boys and I can accomplish there."


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With multiple concert venues on site, the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas pairs world-class entertainment with the convenience and splendor of a Las Vegas casino. No matter which concert venue you attend, the Cosmopolitan strives to provide a uniquely intimate setting in which to experience the top musicians in the "Entertainment Capital of the World." Experience the grandeur of this modern Las Vegas landmark by securing Chase Rice tickets for the December 5 concert in 2016.
Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas Seating Information
The majority of the venues at the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas offer only general admission ticket options. Two such venues are The Belmont (formerly the Chelsea Ballroom) and the Boulevard Pool. The Belmont is an indoor venue, while Boulevard Pool is an outdoor concert space.
By contrast, The Chelsea at the Cosmopolitan features mostly reserved seating. Directly in front of the stage is a general admission floor area. Behind this stands the main level of reserved seating with Sections 101-103 curving around the rear of the theater. The gallery stands a level above the ground, featuring Sections 201-206. Along the sides of the theater is a host of VIP gallery boxes that run the length of each wall. The seating layout is subject to change depending on the artist in attendance, so be sure to review the seating chart to see how the venue will be arranged for the Monday, December 5 show.
Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas General Information
Age limits may vary from artist to artist, so it is best to check directly with the venue about specific policies for Chase Rice. No outside food and drink, large bags, or signs are permitted in any of the Cosmopolitan venues. Small personal cameras are often permitted without flash; however, the Cosmopolitan never allows professional cameras.
Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas Parking Information
The Cosmopolitan offers both self-parking structures and valet parking. Typically, self-parking is free, while opting for valet parking may incur an extra fee.
Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas Gate Times
Depending on the concert and the venue, doors may open between one to two hours before the start of the performance by Chase Rice.
Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas Accessibility
Parking areas at the Cosmopolitan have designated accessible spaces, but valet parking is also an option at the venue entrance. Accessible seating is normally available at each of the venues, but different artists may have different stage setups that alter accessible seating arrangements. To be certain you're receiving the best available accessible seating for Chase Rice--and to arrange any unique accommodations--contact the venue box office directly.
available, priced from $
Charts may not be drawn to scale.


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Our Bulldog, Oylve Oyl, gets a little upset when we leave her home alone. One day she decided that she was going to sample some of our delicious chocolate brown leather couch (which is not very old). Now, Olyve thinks she owns the couch and we would really like to have a nice relaxing couch for the rest of the family to enjoy. We love our ugly dog but not our ugly couch!
I've been a bad girl!
By: pjammer55Subscribe Channel: Home & Garden Location: Watertown, NY
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says ... on Sunday, Oct 4 at 10:59 PM
I think they're both a sad scenario.30124682
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says ... on Tuesday, Sep 29 at 6:25 PM
This is not an ugly dog contest; Oylve is very cute, guilty maybe but very cute. The couch on the other hand was ugly before the stuffing was chewed out! This IS the winner of the ugliest couch contest.29870237
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says ... on Tuesday, Sep 29 at 10:59 AM
Oylve Oyl is definitely ugly and so is the couch now that she has chewed the corner so the stuffing is coming out. She also looks very guilty.29844699
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A blog about my journey with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis and Immune Dysfunction Syndrome including HHV 6, EBV, C. Pneumonia, Bartonella, Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome, and Biotoxin Illness
Saturday, August 22, 2009
Stopping Valcyte
I haven't had any labs drawn for the past TWO MONTHS I've been on Valcyte because my doctor didn't think I needed it.It is a dumb thing to do and I don't recommend it. Here's why: My local doctor who is familiar with Valcyte ran the above tests. I got the results this morning. My liver values (AST and ALT) are very high! What is scary for me is because I haven't had labs for the past two months (since June 2) I don't know how long those values have been elevated so I don't know how much damage has been done to my liver.
The other thing is my blood sugar was also elevated and the test stated I have prediabetes. I know of others on Valcyte who have had that happen.
If I hadn't had these tests I would have continued to take Valcyte for the next well two months now all the while causing damage to my liver which could have led to some really bad consequences.
I'm grateful it will be my local doctor handling this. If it was my ME/CFS doctor I don't know that I would have heard anything from him. I would hope so but his doctor skills lately have been...well, sloppy is the word that comes to mind. I fully expect that my local doctor will have me in his office early next week to run more tests to determine the extent of any damage. I'm also confident he will closely monitor my liver values to make sure they go down.
I just can't believe it. I've been feeling extra fatigued along with feeling like my liver is swollen. The swollen liver feeling has been there for at least a month. I've also had pain there but thought it might be gallbladder stuff. I wonder if this is also why I've been having water retention and a general lack of appetite.
This morning I woke up after another night of not sleeping (couldn't go to sleep until after 12, then was up from 3 to 6, then awake again at 9). I had this feeling not to take Valcyte this morning so I didn't. When I checked my email my lab results were there.
This just confirms my decision and gut feeling to change my ME/CFS doctor. I will probably go to another doctor at the same clinic. The other doctor has a solid reputation.
I do think there was Higher Power at work to have led me to the local doctor who ran the tests I needed.
I have no idea what to do in the meantime. Do I take the rest of my medications? I guess I'll look up each one to see if they are processed in the liver.
So my treatment with Valcyte is officially over. I just pray I don't have permanent damage to my liver.
16 comments:
- Sue Jackson said...
Wow...so sorry to hear about this, Terri. Kind of scary, huh? I had a similar experience on Valcyte, where my white blood cell counts dropped so low that my doctor immediately took me off it. It's a rough drug.
Did I tell you about milk thistle? It helps the liver process all the meds and improves liver function (also a very inexpensive supplement) - maybe it could help you heal. My son and I both take it, just because of all the meds we take.
And since you did respond to Valcyte somewhat, maybe once your liver heals, you can try another anti-viral. I've taken Lavtrex or Famvir for almost 2 years now, with absolutely no side effects - they're both much gentler.
Sounds like you're making the right decision about the doctor - ongoing lab tests should be mandatory for anyone on Valcyte. Good thing you have this local doctor, too!
Hang in there - rest and recover and take care of yourself.
- August 22, 2009 at 1:03 PM
- cfswarrior said...
Hi Sue-
Thanks so much for your support. I was hoping to hear from you because you have quite a bit of experience with antivirals.
I have some Milk Thistle but haven't been using it regularly. I'll start using it today on a regular basis.
Yes-I thought ongoing tests were mandatory for anyone on Valcyte.
It is kind of scary to have this happen. Sounds like the situation with your white blood cells dropping was scary also.
Once my liver heals I'll ask a doctor about Lavtrex (haven't heard of that one) or Famvir. Am also wondering about Valtrex?
Thanks again for your feedback and support. It means a lot.
- August 22, 2009 at 1:14 PM
- Renee said...
I am so sorry to hear you now have abnormal liver levels. Your other CFS doctor really has been putting your health at risk. Yes, Terri, is does nound like a higher power intervened for you. You are in my prayers for complete healing of your liver and prediabetes state.
- August 22, 2009 at 1:28 PM
- Sue Jackson said...
ha ha....please pardon my horrible typing!! I meant to say Valtrex - I've never heard of Lavtrex either! I can type pretty fast but not too accurately - never learned touch typing, so my style is rather random - sorry about that!
- August 22, 2009 at 3:12 PM
- Pris said...
Thank god you saw this doctor. Yes, VERY irresponsible. Treat your liver with care and just allow it to heal. Hugs and I'm pulling for you@
- August 22, 2009 at 6:05 PM
- cfswarrior said...
Hi Renee-
Thank you so much for your prayers and support. It really feels like a Higher Power intervened because I just happened to run into this doctor who got me in his office the next day.
I'm a bit in shock at how much this CFS doctor put my health at risk. I have no idea what he could have been thinking.
- August 22, 2009 at 6:38 PM
- cfswarrior said...
Hi Pris-
A big thanks to you too for your support. I guess I just need to trust that my liver will heal.
Thanks for the hugs and support. They mean a lot.
- August 22, 2009 at 6:39 PM
- cfswarrior said...
I had good laugh about the Lavtrex! Maybe we just came up with the new perfect antiviral!
Nothing had come up in my google search for Lavtrex...
- August 22, 2009 at 6:41 PM
- Jo said...
So sorry to hear you've been going through this.
The liver is very good at healing itself I have heard. Amazing that your intuition told you something was wrong.
Sending you warm thoughts for healing. . . .
- August 23, 2009 at 5:52 AM
- Laurel said...
So glad you had those tests done! A bit scary! You may want to copy those results and send them to your other doctor. :-)
Glad you will be stopping the Valcyte. I have my fingers crossed for you with Valtrex. I've been on it a year now, I think -- no side effects. And it did help with my cognition some, as you know.
Hopefully your liver will heal quickly once you stop the drug. The liver is pretty good at rejuvenation, I think. And hopefully you'll then feel a bit better, too!
- August 23, 2009 at 7:29 AM
hello. i dont think you would have permanent liver damage from a few months of inflammation. how elevated were your enzymes?
mine are elevated too and i am worried but i am continuing on the valcyte.
my doctor recommended: siliphos, LiverLonger, dandelion root. i think NAC is also good.
this is very difficult....
best of luck
- August 23, 2009 at 8:25 AM
- cfswarrior said...
Hi Jo-
Thanks for the healing thoughts and for your continued support-they both mean a lot.
I have always had a powerful intuition but have ignored it far too long. Yesterday was one of those times I decided to listen to it. I need to do that all of the time.
It's good the hear the liver will heal again.
- August 23, 2009 at 1:50 PM
- cfswarrior said...
Hi Laurel-
Yes-it has been a little alarming! I plan on sending my other doctor a copy of those results. I'm going to ask him to prescribe Valtrex and then move on to another doctor.
It's good to hear that you've been on it for a year with no side effects! I sure hope it helps clear up some of my cognitive issues. My EBV levels are really high.
I hope my liver heals quickly also. I found out that Dandelion tea can be helpful along with Milk Thistle (as Sue stated).
- August 23, 2009 at 1:54 PM
- cfswarrior said...
Hi Sue-
I think you are one of the patient experts on Valcyte!
My ALT was almost triple and AST double what it should be. My BUN was on the low side.
How elevated are yours? What does your doctor say about it? Hopefully I'll be able to talk to a doctor tomorrow. This is all new to me.
It is difficult. My mom died of cancer that metastasized to her liver and my dad has two cancers so I'm also worried about the whole liver cancer aspect of Valcyte. Do you know anything about that?
Thanks for commenting on my blog and for the liver help supplements. I'm going to get all of them today (except for Milk Thistle which I have).
Feel free to email me at firstname.lastname@example.com
- August 23, 2009 at 2:01 PM
- magdalene74 said...
hi, i just found your blog googling high ast/alt levels and me/cfs... im not on any treatments for me/cfs cause im breastfeeding yet my ast/alt levels are also double and triple normal..is it possible this is an aspect of the disease and not the drug alone? also im not online alot but i am on facebook too my email is firstname.lastname@example.com if you like...typingis screwy now broken spacekey makes life more difficult than it is lol
- August 24, 2009 at 3:05 PM
- cfswarrior said...
Hi Magdalene-
Thanks for stopping by my blog! I know high ALT and AST levels can also be caused by a fatty liver. Have you ever had an ultrasound of your liver/gallbladder?
It might be helpful to see if your doctor can order one to see what's going on.
I'm pretty sure mine is caused by Valcyte.
Oh no-the broken spacebar key, lol. That can make life difficult. The "c" key has been sticking on my computer...
Let me know if you figure out what it is...
- August 24, 2009 at 5:00 PM


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Cat Cora, the first female Iron Chef on the Food Network's Iron Chef America, has a culinary background that includes schooling at the Culinary Insittue of America and cooking in France. She's also the author of Cat Cora's Kitchen and Cooking from the Hip. But it's her Greek heritage that helped bring alive the 2002 comedy, My Big Fat Greek Wedding, for her. It's a story about a 30-year-old Greek woman who works in her family's Chicago restaurant, Dancing Zorba's. Her father wants her to ...
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"I don't want to end up like my father," my Narrowsburg neighbor tells me. His 98-year-old father lives alone in his own home, reliant on family to bring him meals and keep him company. His life savings went to pay for nursing home care for his ailing wife and he retired from yard work last year at age 97.
My aunt sits in her gracious home in Manhattan, waited on by a private staff, alone except for them and visits from friends and family members. A stroke victim, she cannot work or read. Her care will decimate her assets before long, and she will have to sell her home at a time she is least able to manage.
My mother died in a semi-private room in a Bronx nursing home. She had squandered or been swindled out of the proceeds of the SoHo loft she shared with her husband before his early death. Ultimately destitute and infirm, she was cared for by the state at the end.
My uncle points an imaginary gun to his head when the question of his plans for the end of life arise. We choose not to believe him and, as far as I know, he owns no weapon. His own father managed to wrangle a calm and orderly exit to a long life, attended by a younger wife who ran the household like a drill sergeant but kept him out of nursing homes. His excellent health care was covered by the U.S. Army, to which he had dedicated a large part of his life.
A friend's father recently made the transition from the family home to an assisted living facility—"facility" is such a cold word—at age 92. His care is guaranteed for life and he is near the community he knows and loves.
We all carry these stories, examples of the way to live or not to live to the end of our natural lives. They inform the choices we make, if we are fortunate enough to have choices.
My husband and I recently decided to put our Manhattan loft on the market, ending a nearly 40-year run of vibrant family life in the rambling 3,000-square-foot home my husband built with sheetrock and two-by-fours from the initial investment of a relative pauper. My husband will continue to run his business in the city, so we can't sever our ties completely. We will find a smaller place, in a not-so-trendy neighborhood. By downsizing now, we hope to live debt-free and give our children a head start on their futures. We also want to spend some time together as a couple again, rather than as roommates with our adult children. In Manhattan, as in most places outside of Detroit, the cost of living is too high for those starting out. Most people we know are in the same situation. We baby boomers gave birth to the boomerang generation, who move back home after college unable to pay the high rents in desirable urban areas.
We worried at first that our children would balk at this move, having lived happily as loft rats. But they too are watching the lives of people around them and taking note of the responsibilities that fall to adult children. If we can tie up loose ends before it's too late, it will be easier on them in the end. Many more choices are ahead of us as we age. Life is ultimately tragic, ending as it does, even more so if you have lived it well, as we intend.


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"Longmire," a contemporary crime thriller set in Big Sky country, is based on the Walt Longmire Mystery novels by best-selling author Craig Johnson.
The series stars Australian actor Robert Taylor (The Matrix) as Walt Longmire, the charismatic, dedicated and unflappable sheriff of Absaroka County, Wyoming, along with Katee Sackhoff ("Battlestar Gallactica"), Lou Diamond Phillips ("Numb3rs"), Bailey Chase ("Damages"), Cassidy Freeman ("Smallville") and newcomer Adam Bartley.
In season three of "Longmire," Walt finds himself reeling from a series of devastating traumas. His best friend, Henry Standing Bear (Phillips), is going to prison on murder charges. Deputy Branch Connally (Chase) has been shot by a mysterious "white warrior," and Vic Moretti (Sackhoff) is unsure if she has shaken a stalker from her past. Walt is forced to shoulder all of these burdens and try to find a way to set the world right again, but one person knows he can't do this alone - his daughter, Cady (Freeman). She will fight in court to try and clear Henry's name while Walt continues to unravel the dark, mysterious secrets of Absaroka County. The deeper Walt digs into all these mysteries, the closer he'll get to uncovering the real bloody hand behind his wife's murder.
In the season three premiere, Walt deals with the aftermath of Henry's arrest and Branch's shooting. The search for the shooter, however, is complicated by Branch's insistence that it was someone known to be already dead.
"Longmire" is produced by The Shephard/Robin Company in association with Warner Horizon Television. Greer Shephard ("The Closer," "Nip/Tuck"), Michael M. Robin ("The Closer," "Nip/Tuck"), Hunt Baldwin ("The Closer," "Trust Me") and John Coveny ("The Closer," "Trust Me") serve as executive producers.
About the Author
Craig Johnson is the author of eight novels in the Walt Longmire mystery series, which has garnered popular and critical acclaim. The Cold Dish was a Dilys Award finalist and the French edition won Le Prix du Polar Nouvel Observateur/Bibliobs. Death Without Company, the Wyoming Historical Association's Book of the Year, won France's Le Prix 813, and Kindness Goes Unpunished, the third in the series, has also been published in France. Another Man's Moccasins was the Western Writers of America's Spur Award Winner and the Mountains & Plains Book of the Year, and The Dark Horse, the fifth in the series, was a Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year. Junkyard Dogs won The Watson Award for a mystery novel with the best sidekick. All are available from Penguin. The newest in the series, As the Crow Flies, is available in hardcover from Viking. Johnson lives in Ucross, Wyoming, population twenty-five.
Visit Craig Johnson's official page at Penguin Books.
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If you're one of the millions of people who tuned in to make Longmire A&E's #1 original series premiere of all time, we've got great news for many of you: this amazing crime drama, set in Big Sky country, is based on a series of best-selling books! Penned by best-seller Craig Johnson, there's a good chance that many of you have already read a lot of these books. But if you love the show and haven't read any of them - or if you love the show and haven't read them all - the A&E Longmire Book Shop is the place to go buy one or all of them right now!


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INGREDIENTS:5 California avocados, diced 1 ½ qts. buttermilk 1 Kirby (hot house) cucumber, peeled, cut into chunks 24 Thai basil leaves 24 mint leaves 1 tsp. salt (or to taste) ½ cup finely diced red onion ½ cup Roma tomato, seeded and diced 1/3 cup green onion, thinly sliced 12 Thai basil flowers, with leaves DIRECTIONS:Puree avocado with next 5 ingredients; cover and chill at least 3 hours to marry flavors. Reserve. Shortly before service, fold together red onion, tomato and green ...
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