text:
Septa walks slowly up to the maid and monitors the goings on for five minutes, attempting to discern what type of tavern the 'Formidably Maid' might be. After making up his mind he walks in and sits where the majority of people might be able to hear him and places a few coppers on the bar and points at one of the barrels of tapped ales.
He takes off his hat and puts it on the seat next to him, placing one of the coppers in it.
He begins a story with a voice that about a quarter of the people could hear him, planning on scaling his voice depending on those listining:
"The Palatine gleamed in the sunlight as she set out with a full crew, a long list of passengers, and a hull full of merchandise for the port of . . . ."
Septa is wearing his best tunic of white linen with red facing on the keyhole. sleeves and hem made by an old lover. Brown cotton pants and low leather boots with a hard bottom for walking. A natural brown leather belt with a brass tonged buckle, and a small ringed gold chain around his neck and two silver rings on each middle finger.
His gear is in a canvas bag at his feet. the sword on top easily grabbed.
Septa does well with his storytelling at the Formidably Maid tavern, in Port Peril.
In fact, he manages to make ....
1d4 ⇒ 1 silver pieces and a large glass of cheap spiced rum,
... as tips.
As Septa continues the performance, he notices an unusual, comfortable drowsiness settle over him.
When he begins to forget where he was in the tale and his has taken on an involuntary slur, his clouded mind comes to a realization that something is wrong.
Septa manages to take two steps,before he collapses.
A fuzzy, warm darkness surrounds Septa.
Regaining some amount of consciousness, Septa is greeted with a pounding headache, the sickly taste of cheap spiced rum still lingering in his mouth, a rhythmic creaking noise,and a hard wooden floor pressing against his cheek, a floor that sways as if he is still drunk.
He looks around to find himself, along with four others, sprawled on the floor of a large, windowless room.
Before Septa finds a lamp, he hears a storm of booted feet throwing open a hatch and running down a staircase at the far end of the room.
From the bottom of the staircase, seven men walk towards you. Six of the men wield saps while the man in front wields a whip.
The man in front wears a long pirate jacket, a scruffy beard and mustache accenting his scowl, a hand ax stuck through his belt.
"Still abed with the sun over the yardarm? On your feet, ye filthy swabs! Get up on deck and report for duty before Cap'n Harrigan flays your flesh into sausage skins and has Fishguts fry ye up for breakfast!" screams the man with the whip.
"Good sir! There has..."begins a male gnome, dressed in flamboyant purple silks, before the whip sparks a cry of pain from the gnome.
Two of the man with saps grab the gnome and shove him towards the staircase.
Septa "Groan" 's a bit pushing himself up push up style with knees bent. *Okay I am on a ship, I been grabbed, what am I wearing. What do I have with me?* Septa makes slow but steady progress to standing up.
Septa will put dodge if attacked with the whip for moving to slow and then move just a bit faster
Septa looks around, trying to find his bag, but finds no sign of it. In fact he finds his purse empty and turned inside out, and his silver Besmaran skull & crossed bone holy symbol is missing. He does have his armor, clothes and boots, however -- whatever
"Give him a bit of encouragement" says the man with the whip, who is currently busy 'encouraging' a tall lanky man, with a blue bandana on his head.
"Ay, Master Scourge" replies one of the other men,swinging a sap at Septa.
The man misses Septa, but gestures towards the staircase. Based upon the angle of the walls and the three large masts that extend through this deck, Septa surmises that he is on a Orlop Deck -- that is, a deck below the waterline -- of a large ship, with the staircase in the bow.
He also notes a smattering of hammocks and trunks in the darkness beyond the light of the lanterns.
Septa takes the sap on his back below where the shoulder and arm intersect, the hanging mail takes the blow, Septa stands and nods to the man with the sap and starts towards the stairs.
He attempts to take in the others that have woken with him.
The Gnome and man with the Blue bandanna and any others.
"Besmara awaits you and I" just a bit louder than under his breath. Mostly to sap man, but not specifically as he takes the first step.
The flamboyantly dressed gnome is already up the staircase. A dwarf in brown robes is following him.
Behind you, the tall thin man with the blue bandanna is staggering towards the staircase under as series of lashes from Master Scourge.
A female halfling in leather armor, who responded to the orders with some chosen foul language, received the attention of four men with saps, falling to the deck unconscious, and is now being dragged towards the staircase by her heels.
At the top of the staircase, Septa sees the gun Deck, a large open space, closed hatches lining the starboard and port sides,almost every square foot covered by cannons unlimbered for transport and at the very aft, several doors.
Two men with saps stand on the Gun Deck gesturing for Septa to continue up the stairs.
As Septa reaches the top of the stairs he shades his eyes at the light, taking a short time to attempt to conclude which direction they are heading and the speed over land by the sun and direction of waves and wind.
Prof: Sailor:1d20 + 8 ⇒ (18) + 8 = 26
Perception:1d20 + 4 ⇒ (15) + 4 = 19
Int:1d20 + 2 ⇒ (10) + 2 = 12
Septa rubs his necks where the black and red tattoo for Besmara is, making sure a couple of the crew can see it.
Seeing that there are five that have been pressed, Septa looks at the rest of the crew and tries to get an idea of how short they are.
Septa stands where he is told.
Coming to the top of the second set of stairs, Septa finds himself in a small cabin, a cabin under the foredeck, the cabin apparently set for five very slovenly officers.
Septa is directed out through two doors and finds himself on the main deck, between the fore and poop decks.
The five new crew members, including the unconscious halfling, along with an additional attractive human female in a leather bustier and tricorne hat, are all corralled near the main mast.
Fourteen crew members are spread about on the main deck and in the rigging above.
A cluster of people stand on the poop deck, keeping to the aft portion where they are difficult to see.
Septa sees a brown smudge on the horizon to the south, astern and port. From this, the position of the sun and the direction of the wind, Septa can surmise that the ship is headed North-North-West, he has been asleep for more than a day and that this ship is probably twelve to fifteen miles from shore. He knows that Port Peril lays on the south coast of a Jeopardy Bay.
The man with the whip, Master Scourge, walks up the stairs to the poop deck, says something and then returns back to the main deck.
Two men walk up to the railing of the poop deck.. One is a broad muscular Garundi man with a shaven head, long beard bound with gold rings and an eye patch. The other is a younger, balding man with a long ponytail, wearing a long coat and carrying a well used cat-o-nine-tails.
The Garundi man speaks:
"Glad you could join us at last! Welcome to the Wormwood! My thanks for 'volunteering' to join my crew. I'm Barnabas Harrigan. That's Captain Barnabas Harrigan to you, not that you'll ever need to address me. I have only one rule -- don't speak to me. I like talk, but I don't like your talk. Follow that rule and we'll get along fine."
"Oh, and one more thing. Even with you new recruits, we're still short-handed, and I aim to keep what crew I have. There'll be a keehaulin' for anyone caught killin' anyone. Mr Plugg! If you you'd be so kind as to make pirates out of these landlubbers, it'll save me having to put them in the sweat box for a year and a day before I make pies out of 'em."
"Aye, sir" says the younger balding man, Mr Plugg.
Captain Harrigan walks aftward on the poop deck, out of sight. Mr Plugg comes down the stairs to the main deck, walks up to each of the six clustered around the main mast, staring each on in the eye in turn.
Septa's tongue runs his tongue along his teeth and realizes where he tasted the oily nutmeg taste before -- the spiced rum that was bought for him in the Formidibly Maid. He also recalls the face of the man who bought it -- Master Scourge!
While Mr Plugg sizes up the new recruits,Master Scourge glares at the human female in the tricorne hat. A crew member whispers something to Master Scourge and he responds "She'd be a sweet treat, willing or un willing."
The woman hears this and reddens, but says nothing, turning her back to Mr Scourge. In turning, she faces Septa, and seeing his tattoo, she makes eye contact and raise an eyebrow.
Before Septa can react to her, Mr Plugg comes up and stares him in the eye.
Taking a step back, Mr Plugg yells "Who would like to play a little game?"
The Captain comes down and enters his cabin under the poop deck.
Mr Plugg shouts "I have a need for one and only one rigger. The other officers, human men and women, a female gnome and a female half-orc, lounge on the poop deck watching the happenings on the main deck.
Mr Plugg repeats "Who would like to play a game? Eh?"
No one else answers, but the crew members chuckle.
"Wake 'er up" Master Scourge says, gesturing towards the unconscious halfling. After the rough ministrations by several crew members, and a bucket of sea water poured over her head, she rouses and stands.
Seeing her on her feet, Mr Plugg continues "I need one -- and only one -- rigger. Whoever get's to the crows nest first get's the job."
He looks around at the new crewmembers.
"What are you waiting for?"
Before new crew can do anything, several thugs begin beating them with saps. Master Scourge, aims his whip for Septa.
1d20 + 6 ⇒ (18) + 6 = 24 vs AC17
Septa twists in a attempt to soften the blow, but it lands soundly on his shoulder and arm.
Thwack. . .
Knowing what they want, Septa turns and begins climbing up the rigging, attempting to hide his skill as a seaman, and just climb hand over hand with 3 points of contact on the ropes instead of two.
He tries to climb next to the woozy hobbit, in case she needs a hand.
Climb:1d20 - 4 ⇒ (19) - 4 = 15
The climb...
Your action?
It is a DC10 climb check for Septa to move 10' up the mast
please make one check at a time
After receiving their sap and whip blows, the female halfling falls unconscious again, the dwarf fails at his attempt to climb the mast and receives several more sap blows,
the foppish gnome moves 5' up the mast, the woman with the tricorne hat and the man with the blue bandanna move 10' up the mast.
please use the dice function
Septa scrambles up the first 10' feet, but he is unable to wrap his hand around a rope on the first spar, and falls back to the deck.
1d6 ⇒ 6 lethal damage
Make a bluff check
Your action?
The dwarf struggles in a futile manner but does not budge. A sap blow to the back of his head renders him unconscious, and he falls next to the halfling. The lady in the tricorne falls, blooding her nose when she hits the deck, but immediatleyt springs back to climbing the mast. The foppish gnome makes further progress to 10' above the deck and the man in the blue bandanna rise to 20' above the deck.
Septa passes out when his head hits a cleat as he falls from the main mast.
A few minutes of blissful peace is suddenly interrupted when a warm bucket of sea water is dumped over his head.
Blood flows down his forehead from the wound.
he knows has 6 pts of lethal damage and 1 pt of non-lethal damage.
Mr Pugg shouts "We have a winner!" pointing to the man in the blue bandanna, standing in the crow's nest. Around the bottom of th emast, all of the other new crew members are nursing various wounds.
A obese, dirty man in dirtioer apron is talkning to Mr Pugg.
still need a bluff check
The woman nods and turns her, left shoulder to you, where there is a tatoo of a galleon with skull figurehead, a common depiction of the Seawraith the supernatural ship & servant of Besmara. After making sure you had a good look at it, the woman turns and gives you a quick wink.
Across the deck, Master Scourge glares at you.
Meanwhile, finished talking, Mr Pugg yells towarsd the new crewmembers "Fishguts is needin' a new cook's mate. Which of ye' nows their way around a kitchen?"
Mr Pugg asks again "Who knows how to cook? Eh."
With no answers, Mr Pugg suddenly turns and addresses the female Halfling "You look to have a fair amount of flesh on dem' bones. You're cook's mate now. Follow Fishguits there and he'll show you your duties."
The bruised and dejected halfling follows Fishguts below deck.
"For the rest of ya', ye be swabs. Master Scourge take control of these lots and get 'em to work!"
"Ay, Mr Pugg!" responds Master Scourge.
Mr Pugg turns and heads towards the foredeck, but stops, turns and jabs a finger at Septa. "Master Scourge, that one gave half effort at the mast climb. It'll be three lashes of the cat at the bloody hour!"
Mr Pugg walks on, while Master Scourge turns to face Septa. With a smnile he says "Aye, Mr Pugg. It'll be my pleasure."
the three lashes is a result of not trying to keep up with the leaders and failing a bluff check to hide the fact
actions before duties?
Septa's head wound continues to bleed while Master Scourge hands out duties.
Throwing Septa a sandstone holy stone he says "And you will be swabbing the deck, where I can keep my eye on ya'."
The lady in the tricorne hat, the foppish gnome and three other crew members are assigned with Septa to swab the deck.
You can work diligently, try to meet and make friends with someone working on the main deck with you, sneak to a different part of the ship when Master Scourge isn't looking, during a break go down to the pursers office on the gun deck or shirk your duties and do something else.
You are kept busy enough that you can only find time to do one.
Also note that Septa is still severely injured.
"I was never a rigger Mr. Pugg, don't have the shouders or calves for it. I was always a crewman, under Capn' Marris."
[ooc] Diplomacy check to attempt to lighten Mr's Puggs mood toward me.
Diplo: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (16) + 8 = 24
Septa will take the stone and smile and get down to business, taking a moment to cast a cure light on himself when he thinks he can get away with it.
CLW 1d8 + 1 ⇒ (2) + 1 = 3
Septa will move around the deck, making friends with the other 'pressed' crewmen through winks and nods. When he has a moment with a break he will chat with the lady in the tricorn and introduce himself.
Septa wants to work hard enough to show Mr. Pugg he does work, but not heard enough to wear him out, its going to be a long trip.
Mr Pugg looks back, then turns away without saying anything.
Master Scourge raises his whip "Mr Pugg doesn't talk with the likes of you! Get to work and work smart or it'll be six lashes at the bloody hour!"
He swings at you with the butt end of a hawser
Your effort with Mr Pugg seemed to be an excellent attempt, but he seemed immune to your diplomatic overtures.
Mr Scourges hit
1d20 - 4171 ⇒ (13) - 4171 = -4158
Septa quietly whispers the memorized prayer for healing from Besmara, and the wound on his forehead closes just a bit.
From the side, a feminine voice repeats the very same prayer.
CLW 1d8 + 1 ⇒ (4) + 1 = 5
"Sandara Quinn. I too serve the Pirate Queen." says the Lady in the Tricorne.
Both of you sweat and struggle while continuing to scrub the deck with the limestone blocks. You are unsure if you are going to make it to the end of the day.
I need a strength or constitution check (your choice) vs Dc10 for the effects of the hard work
As I said before I want to shirk my duties a bit just enough to make sure I won't get worn out. I will plus a +2 to the roll
Septa will tell Sandra where he is from and what he does. Ask her if she knows where we are going and what the intentions are.
Septa also wants to make friends as much as possible with the other swabs, introducing himself under his breath and asking for their names and what they do.
Diplomacy1d20 + 8 ⇒ (18) + 8 = 26
Hard work save 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (16) + 2 = 18
Sometime during the day when Master Scourge is close and watching me I will attempt to chat with him. "How long did it take him to get this position on a ship, how long has he been with the Captain . . . " If he is opne I will start a story about someone that has his same or similar position on a ship.
Et cetera.
Diplo:1d20 + 7 ⇒ (18) + 7 = 25
Septa learns the names of the other swabs:
First their is the foppish gnome: "I am Conchobhar Turlach Shortstone, entertainer, professional gambler, bravo and renown man about town, you lazy ragamuffin! For what reason does a addled ruffian such as yourself address such a noble personage as myself? Begone!"
A female gnome, "Oh, I'm Giffer Tibbs. You better get back to work before Master Scourge sees you slacking."
Tilly Brackett is a human female. "I just trying to get by until it's Rum Ration time. Me love my rum!"
An older femael half-elf, with her grey hair cut into menacing stripes scowls towards Septa "What good ya' ga' doin' me, noob?"
Along with Sandara Quinn and Septa, these are the swabs assigned to swabbing the deck.
The other swabs, assigned to hauling lines and making repairs, are:
A tall Mwangi woman, Shivikah respond "I don' wan' no trouble swab. leave me be."
Arretta Bansion, a woman dressed as a whore "Master Scourge is goin' to crush you! HA hahaedha !"
"Yaeh! You and that stuck up Quinn woman are both goin' to be his b***h!" laughs the bald headed and fat Fipps Chumlet.
Jaundice Jape, a yellow eyed male Half-Orc, says nothing but smiles in agreement to Fipps' comment.
The last swab, you are told by Quinn is Jakes Magpie. "He chained up in the bilge, for taking a swing at Master Scourge yesterday."
When Septa approaches Master Scourge, he listens with a sneer on his face, saying nothing. His only response is to beat Septa across the shoulders with his whip. "Back to work!"
1d20 + 6 ⇒ (12) + 6 = 18 vs AC17 for 1d3 + 2 ⇒ (3) + 2 = 5 points of damage
For the purposes of the crew, once a person is the 'hostile' status, diplomacy can no longer affect them.
Similarly, once someone is 'helpful', they will stay Helpful no matter the effort of others.
Septa completes the days task and he is in relatively good shaped compared to his co-workers, compared to the other swabs, except for his wounds.
Just as the sun touches the horizon Mr P{ugg comes down to the main deck and orders "Bloody Hour!". Master Scourge pulls out a boatswain's whistle and pipes the tune Assemble the Crew.
The crew gathers on and above the main deck, while the officers gather on the poop deck.
Fipps and Jaundice Jape approach Septa, while Master Scourge gestures towards the main mast. "Take your position, swab, and take your lashes!"
Septa smiles widely and walks towards the main mast and reachs up and grips the ring.
If there is a pause he will turn and loudly say: "Well come on with it."
*I wish I could have drugged myself.*
Septa turns his face to the post and down to protect it and prays to Besmara to show that he is strong and tough.
Thanks for the names and descriptions
Taking in what is going on with the other officers are they all hostile with me?
Septa has not been anywhere close to any of the officers, other than Mr Pugg and Master Scourge, except for the Captain's Speech about not wanting any trouble from the new crew.
Master Scourge trades his whip for a Cat-o-nine-tales and takes up his position.
Fipps and Jaundice Jape wrap ropes around Septa's wrists and pull him close to the mainmast. Ex-whore Arretta roughly pulls off septa's armor and splits his shirt to expose his back, cackling manically the whole time.
Mr Pugg belows "Three lashes for not making a good effort on the tests."
Master scourge lays on.
1d4 ⇒ 4 HP lethal damage
1d4 ⇒ 3 HP lethal damge
1d4 ⇒ 1 HP lethal damage
Before Septa is released Master Scourge leans in and whispers "I don't like you! And trust me, you won't live through this cruise!"
Septa regains consciousness as Quinn is saying a prayer over him to Besmara.
1d8 + 1 ⇒ (5) + 1 = 6 HP healed by CLW
It's night time, a clear sky is filled with a brilliant full moon. The ship rocks gently, with all sails furled, resting at anchor.
All around their are pirates singing, drinking and generally having a good time. Even Quinn seems rosy cheeked and in grinning.
"I saved you dinnah, such as it is" she says lifting a wooden bowl containing thin soup with visible chunks of turtle that appears to have been hacked into pieces -- shell and all -- and a few soaking hard tack biscuits. "I guess that halfling isn't such a great cook's mate after all." Quinn says with a giggle.
Above Septa's head a bloody shredded body swings from the lowest yardarm.
Quinn follows your gaze, then explains "Jakes Magpie. They keelhauled him."
Jakes cyonotic face hangs limply over his shredded body.
It appears Jake drowned first, THEN recieve wounds totalling 24 pts of damage.
"Here!" says Arretta, shoving a ceramic mug into Septa's hand. "Cap'ns orders. Everyone must drink their rum ration." she says pouring Septa a large cupfull.
After drinking your rum ration, you can choose one of the following actions for the evening period: go to bed early, join one of the gambling games, try to entertain the crew, try to influence one of the crew, sneak into an area on the ship or try to steal something.
*It being Captains orders, I am not up on drinking it.*
Is there a place where I can sit and carefull spill the rum down the scuppers or some such, I dont want to drink it. I will take 20 :)
I think I will attempt to entertian the crew, that might have a better overall effect:
Preform: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (10) + 7 = 17
Septa doesn't think that anyone seen him pour out the rum.
He does see Mr Scourge grabs the gnome lady Giffer Tibbs "Dumpin' yer rum?! Second time? That'll be six o' the cat at tomorrow's bloody hour."
He drops Tibbs, who runs below shaken. Master Scourge laughs.
Septa takes his place amongst the crowd and begins his storytelling. He gathers a small crowd. He manages to entertain them, but not enthusiastically.
If you make a perform DC20 check, you would've gotten +4 diplomacy for the people listening for 24 hours.
The crew, mostly drunk, begin to stumble down to the orlop deck and into their hammocks, with the officers watching over.
As Quinn decides whether to sleep or sneak about, Quinn hands him a key. "For your duffle. Its the one with two red strips. I left you something in there -- I was able to talk the purser out of it. I just wanted to be helpful." She heads below to sleep.
Septa finds a foot locker with two read stripes, down on the orlop deck.
The key fits and inside he finds his silver Besmaran holy symbol.
There are piles of equipment strewn about the orlop deck, including lanterns and hammocks.
He does note that most of the crew has chosen to bunk in the aft of the ship, with Aretta Bansion, Fipps Chumlet, Jaundice Jape, Maheem (rigger), Slippery Syl Lonegan (rigger)and Tam 'Narwhale' Tate (rigger) the only ones sleeping in a cluster around the staircase.
It seems you rolled my preform roll, is that correct?
Septa will cast Mending on his linen tunic to correct the rip from the lashing earlier. Then if anyone else is injured from any lashing or otherwise he will cast Cure light wounds on them; If not he will do it on himself to bring himself to full health.
Septa will take some time to search through the equipment on the deck looking for any of his equipment. or anything useful.
He will loop his holy around his belt and hide the loop as best he can and hang it inside his pants.
He will much thank Ms. Quinn and ask where she is bunking so he can be near her to help if needed. He would prefer to bunk aft as that is the more comfortable area, but will follow Ms. Quinn if possible.
Septa will pray for the spell 'Cultural Adaptation' and 'Murderous Command'. His other spell is of course 'Obscuring Mist'.
His zero level spells will be 'Mending', 'Purify Food and Drink', and 'Spark'.
[spoiler = "about perform check"]
It seems you rolled my preform roll, is that correct?
I just used your roll in your Thu, May 10, 2012, 02:41 PM message
I think I will attempt to entertian the crew, that might have a better overall effect:
Preform: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (10) + 7 = 17
With your jacket, and skin, looking much better you look around for someone else who is injured.
The foppish gnome says "My very great thanks for your prayers" as you cast Cure Light Wounds.
"I'm bunking here" says Quinn as she jumps into a hammock in the middle of the group. Septa is able to find an available hammock hooks near her.
Between the fatigue from the hard days work and the effects of the rum, the crew quickly falls to sleep. After a few minutes, Septa drifts off too.
Septa will take some time to search through the equipment on the deck looking for any of his equipment. or anything useful.
Septa found eight 200' skeins of rope, ten hammocks, four lanterns, one pot of lantern oil, four sets of block and tackle, a broken chair, a large fishing net that needs repair (a large whole in the center needs to be mended), and six empty 5 gallon barrels. He also sights eight rats and a female tabby cat (nesting/hiding inside a barrel).
Septa wakes with a start, as the ship's bell is rung and several crewmembers enter the Orlop with lanterns in hand.
"Git up, ya' lazy worthless scum! Get up and get topside! Mornin' time! Another days work to be done!" shout the men.
Everyone jumps out of their hammocks, running as soon as their feet hit the deck, heading aftward for the staircase.
As Septa heads for the staircase, he sees four crewmembers waiting at the bottom: Aretta Bansion, Fipps Chumlett, Jaundiced Jape and Slippery Sy Lonegan. They all have lanterns, and are all unarmed, expcept for Fipps Chumlet who has a dagger hanging from his belt.
They hurry the other crewmembers up the stairs, but as Septa approaches Slipper Sy Lonegan pushes Septa in the chest, saying "In a hurry?"


text:
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subset: commoncrawl


text:
Five Steps for Gaining Control of Your Investments and Avoiding Mistakes
by Carl Richards
We just don't know what will happen next. It's a reality that can be hard to handle as an investor.
From fiscal cliffs and debt ceilings to unemployment rates and quarterly earnings, it can feel like we're just along for the ride. And this feeling that we lack control, combined with uncertainty about the future, can make it very difficult to behave when it comes to investing.
Your goal for 2013 needn't be finding the "best" investment or even the next Apple Inc. (AAPL). Instead, you (and your portfolio) should be better off if you focus on the things you can control and implement strategies that help you avoid classic investing mistakes.
1. Get Clear About Today
Does it really matter what the market did today if you don't understand your current financial reality? Too often we get caught up in the news around investing and forget that the primary source of investing success comes from having a solid financial foundation.
But if getting clear about our current reality is so helpful, why have
The best place to start is at the beginning by creating a personal balance sheet. Your goal is to discover where you stand financially right now. You don't need a fancy spreadsheet or even a computer for this exercise. Just grab a blank piece of paper and a pen. Then draw a line down the middle.
On the left side, list all your assets in detail: bank accounts, the fair market value of your home, investment portfolio, etc. For every asset, list it and its value.
On the right side, list all your liabilities: credit card debt, mortgage, school loans, etc. Again, get specific and list the actual amounts of each liability (Figure 1).
If you don't know the amount, call your bank, credit card company or your adviser. In this exercise, guessing isn't allowed, so ask the questions and get the real numbers on paper.
Then, add up all your assets and subtract all your liabilities. You now have your net worth.
What does it look like? If you're not happy with the number you see, you have two choices that will probably involve some hard work:
- Increase your assets, or
- Decrease your liabilities.
If you're wondering why I suggest starting with something so simple, it's because I keep crossing paths with people who don't know how their assets compare to their liabilities. And the reality is that if you don't know where you stand today, then how will you ever figure out where you want to be tomorrow?
2. Set Financial Goals That Matter to You (But Know They'll Probably Change)
When you invest, all that matters is your financial goals. Not your neighbor's goals, or those of the guy at work or your brother-in-law. But I often see one of two things happen:
- People don't set any goals because
- they're overwhelmed, or
- People get caught up in the goals of other people.
When you invest, you need to do it with your financial future in mind and not anyone else's (Figure 2). However, if you fall in the group where you're feeling overwhelmed, here are some things to keep in mind to help you set goals that matter to you.
These goals are guesses.
While it is important to admit these are guesses, you should still make them the best guesses you can. Be specific. Just saying, "I want to save for college for my kids," isn't enough. How about, "I'll find $100 to add to a specific 529 account on the 15th of each month"?
Even though you need to be specific, give yourself permission to be flexible. An attitude of flexibility goes a long way toward dealing with uncertainty. There is something very powerful about having specific goals but not obsessing about them.
These goals will change.
It's a continuing process, and it will change because life changes. But don't let this knowledge stop you from setting financial goals. You need to start somewhere.
Think of these goals as the destination on a trip.
You would never spend a bunch of time and energy worrying about whether you should take a car, train or plane without first deciding where you are going. Yet we spend countless hours researching the merits of one investment over another before we even decide on our goals. Why are you stressing about what stocks to pick if you don't have goals in mind?
Prioritize these goals.
Once you have them all written down, rank each goal in terms of importance and urgency. Sometimes you will have to deal with something that is urgent, like paying off a credit card bill, so that you can move on to something really important, like saving money for retirement.
This is a process.
If you set goals and then forget about them forever, that is a worthless event. This is a process. Since we've given ourselves permission to change our assumptions about the future as more information becomes available, we need to do it. Part of the process of planning involves revisiting your goals periodically to see how you are doing and making course corrections when needed.
Let go!
As important as it is to regularly review your progress, it's also very important to let go of the need to obsess over your goals. Define where you want to go, review your goals at set times and in between let go of them! Goals for the future are important, but so is living today. Find that balance.
3) Focus on What You Can Control
Obviously, it's easy to get distracted. And based on the questions I get, people are really distracted when it comes to money.
- Should I buy this stock?
- What do you think the market will do?
- Will Europe go down in flames?
- Will the economy ever recover?
- But what if instead of asking those questions, we asked just these questions:
- How much can I save?
- How is my portfolio allocated?
- Can I pick up some extra work this month?
- Can I start a little business on the side?
By asking just these questions we switch our focus to things we have at least some control over. We start to focus on our personal economy, instead of the global economy. Our personal economy becomes the filter for all the noise. Things like Europe, the market and individual stocks drop off our radar. Instead, we focus on information that helps us with the one thing we can control: ourselves (Figure 3).
Obviously with so much noise, it can be incredibly hard to get this focused. But the sooner you figure out the value of this filter, the faster you'll be able to make sense of the noise.
4) Understand Your Time Frame
We know the market will likely go up and down in the short term, yet people sometimes worry anyway about that fluctuation even if they don't need the money for 20 years. Here are a few reasons why you may succumb to this behavior.
You're not confident in your investment process.
If your portfolio is based on a thoughtful approach that relies on the best academic evidence we have, then it can be easier to stick with the long-term plan when things get scary in the short term. On the other hand, if what you own is a collection of random mutual funds instead of a well-designed, broadly diversified portfolio, it's easy to get spooked. You start to wonder if the reason you're losing money has something to do with the investment instead of just the normal ups and downs of the market.
You're watching too much news.
Counteracting this one is simple, but not easy. Turn it off! Go on a media fast. If you're confident in your investment process, what does the daily news about the markets do for you? Either ignore it, or get really clear about why you're tuning in. Is it to be informed so you can have an intelligent conversation at dinner parties? Is it because you find it funny? I have a friend who refers to the Money section of USA Today as the "Funny" section. Whatever your reason for watching or following the news, just make sure you're clear about it. If you're watching out of habit and it makes you anxious, just stop it!
You're listening to people with different time frames than yours.
Josh Brown has written about this issue on his blog, The Reformed Broker:
"Everyone has an opinion and there is a lot of smart stuff being said for long-term investors, short-term swing traders and day traders out in the Wide World of Market Punditry—but the trick is not just figuring out who's right, it's determining whether or not something is relevant to your time frame."
If you're an actual investor, and not a short-term trader, make sure the information you're worrying about matches your time horizon. If you're investing to pay for your kids' educations 12 years from now, why do you care (at all!) about the latest apocalypse du jour?
You're projecting the recent past into the future…forever.
This is a classic mistake, and one that is really easy to make. We are pattern-seeking animals and are notorious for looking at the recent past and thinking that it will last forever. We did it with tech stocks in the late 1990s, real estate in 2005 and now we're just positive the European debt crisis will never, ever end. But remember, things change.
You think we're all moving to the hills to grow our own vegetables no matter what we do.
I can't help with this one. Until I learn differently, I still believe it's in our best interest to be invested in a broadly diversified portfolio, since capitalism as we know it will not fall apart anytime soon.
Your timeline is your own. Not your neighbors', your co-workers' or your brother-in-law's. So do yourself a favor and make investing decisions based on what your time frame requires and not what the talking heads on TV are saying to fill a 24-hour news cycle. You'll sleep better and will hopefully feel a bit less like running to the hills (Figure 4).
5) Manage Your Behavior
At some point in our lives, most of us have done something that we knew ahead of time made no sense. (Just think back to your teenage years.)
After the fact, we'd shake our heads and wonder what we were thinking. Maybe it wasn't our fault. Maybe the science shows that there are times when biology works against us and makes it difficult to act rationally.
In the case of investing, both the science and the anecdotes seem to back up the idea that sometimes our biology gets in the way of our ability to assess risk. That matters a lot when you're investing, according to John Coates, who wrote about it at Time.com:
"…when we take risk, including financial risk, we do a lot more than think about it—we prepare for it physically. Body and brain fuse as a single functioning unit…[However] (e)ffective risk-taking morphs into over-confidence and dangerous behavior and traders on a winning streak may take on positions of ever-increasing size, with ever-worsening risk-reward trade-offs."
Even Warren Buffett, known to encourage investors to be fearful when others are greedy, and to be greedy when others are fearful, isn't immune to biology, according to Dan Ariely, a behavioral science expert:
"He is what behavioral economists call a sophisticate: someone who understands his irrationality and builds systems to cope with it."
Since irrational behavior appears to come naturally to us, we need to be like Buffett and build our own coping systems:
- Acknowledge our problem. Most of the time, the market is not the problem; we are. We buy high because it feels good or our gut tells us we're right. We sell low because we feel like we have to avoid extinction.
- Write the money story. Look back at your track record in terms of bad behavior and see what story it tells. The great thing about financial decisions is that we have evidence. We have tax returns, brokerage statements and online transaction details. Take the time to see what your story says about your experience and write it down. Did you buy tech stocks in late 1999? Real estate in 2007? Bail out of stocks in 2008 or 2009? Or did you have a disciplined process that helped you cope with biology?
- Establish guardrails. Think of it as building a preflight checklist. Those checklists aren't there because pilots aren't smart and experienced. They are there to prevent pilots from making a dumb mistake even though they know what they're doing. In other words, recognize that no matter how smart you are, you can still make mistakes if you don't install guardrails for investing. This could be as simple as a written statement (financial advisers call it an investment policy statement) that outlines what you will and will not do when it comes to investing. How much risk are you willing to take? When will you rebalance? How often will you reevaluate your plan? And who else is part of it? Knowing the answers to these questions can keep you from going off the road when trouble hits.
- Automate good behavior. Because bad investing behavior tends to be our natural default, we have to automate the opposite. Check the box to rebalance your 401(k) automatically if you can and ask for that option if it's not available. Arrange to have the money you want saved for education automatically pulled from your checking account monthly. Have a set day to review your spending and savings goals every month or quarter. Schedule a quarterly review of your investments. The things that get automated will vary from person to person, but they make fighting biology a little bit easier.
Remember: there is rarely a time when investing skill matters more than investor behavior. So make your behavior count.
Jeff Carlson from MN posted over 3 years ago:
The advice to create a personal balance sheet is priceless.
James Joslin from NC posted over 3 years ago:
Very good information. For all the noise in the marketplace and endless amounts of data, the main thing is to focus on our own behavior, timeframe, and investment needs.
Peter Jochems from CO posted over 3 years ago:
I'm a new member but a practicing CFP for many years. Great to see that the very basic net worth is used first. It really is the barometer of how one prioritizes their earned income, commits to savings, how dollars are spent, etc. it's pretty much the first thing I ask my clients to work on. Amazing how few really know the answer.
Larry Taylor from SC posted over 3 years ago:
Verg good advise, wish I a better way to really tell when the stock market topping out,
The volity swings so rapidly it makes my head swim.
Thanks AAII
Durai Raghavan from TX posted over 3 years ago:
I found this presentation useful but I was looking for more specific information but in that sense, was disappointed how thie article managed to stay on the sidelines. For instance, I being a retired person, am more interested in wealth preservation and it would have been great Mr. Richards talked about a few ways on how one can get this done
Ramesh Patel from OH posted over 3 years ago:
Lot of psychologizing and patronizing in the article although the whole piece is well organized. Little of practical use or application. Vague platitudes abound. As a previous comment noted, there is hardly much of specifics here as to how exactly all the principles as applied lead to actual investment success. A few examples of actual application can help.
S Jones-Hendrickson from VI posted over 3 years ago:
I find this to be a very powerful article, thought stimulating and a call for discipline. In the end, discipline will be the ultimate guide.
Robert Lyon from NC posted over 3 years ago:
Could AAII focus an article on investment behavior in retirement?
Winthrop Harewood from IL posted over 3 years ago:
GREAT article, thanks a million and one, for it.
Marvin Glenn from AR posted over 3 years ago:
This article reinforced my confidence in my cautious investment approach, and reminded me not to get too upset by missed opportunities.
Rudolph Heider from MO posted over 3 years ago:
article is too general. Need to show specific samples to be of use to the average person
Walter Curtis from WA posted over 3 years ago:
I'm in line with most of the above. As a retiree, I long for something with some specifics. This article certainly DID confirm that I am my own worst enemy. I've stopped watching CNBC and, having set up a reasonably balanced portfolio, try to only check my accounts on a monthly basis. My wife seconds that motion too!!
Floyd Wright from TX posted over 3 years ago:
Very helpful in my present situation. I am a retiree that needs to reexamine my financial positions. I agree that an article on retiree's preservation of investments would be very helpful.
Muriel Chandler from IL posted over 3 years ago:
As a retiree, I am looking for more information that will be helpful to me. I am eliminating CD's and I am searching for an upstart that may become another Apple. Guides to research new companies would be helpful and appreciated. Such things as how to do quick screenings of what and what not is important.
This a very good article and it causes me to want more written this clearly.
Dennis Roubal from MI posted over 3 years ago:
Great organizational advice. For those looking for specifics, that is what financial planners are for; to help you decide what you should do. It can't be covered in an article.
John Flynn from FL posted over 3 years ago:
Excellent advice... The only step missing is monthly cashflow broken down into: Income (Long Term vs Limited Term) and Expenses (Fix vs Variable needs). This will give you a how much risk you need to take in order to meet your future growth to live a comfortable retirement. Why take look for the next Apple if all you need is a good dividend portfollio?
Leslie Sublett from KS posted over 2 years ago:
You sound like clones.
Hildy Richelson from PA posted over 2 years ago:
It is good to set goals, but setting goals without a system to achieve them can be very discouraging. Unlike institutions, individuals have finite lives. If you can systematically save that is one step toward solvency. If you put your money into high quality bonds yielding 4% or better than you can predict how much you will have at any given time. Though you might not experience the highs of the stock market, you won't suffer the lows either.
Individual bonds are the only self-liquidating investment. You do not need someone else to buy what you are selling. They pay current interest that can be reinvested for growth or used as a paycheck substitute.
Richard Abbott from FL posted over 2 years ago:
I'm 84 years old and I use 115 minus my age in conservative balanced mutual funds, the rest in short to intermediate bond funds with 5 years cash in the money market to cover my expenses. I never sold anything in the 2008 through 2009 melt down. I'm up 165% since the lows in February, 2009. I did some re-balancing in the last 12 months by selling some stocks and placing the money in my money market.
I owe a lot to the AAII article in the January, 2009 edition that stated don't "panic", don't "sell" and "stay the course". This article in the AAII Journal saved me well over a $100,000!!!
Richard Abbott from FL posted over 2 years ago:
I'm 84 years old and I use 115 minus my age in conservative balanced mutual funds, the rest in short to intermediate bond funds with 5 years cash in the money market to cover my expenses. I never sold anything in the 2008 through 2009 melt down. I'm up 165% since the lows in February, 2009. I did some re-balancing in the last 12 months by selling some stocks and placing the money in my money market.
I owe a lot to the AAII article in the January, 2009 edition that stated don't "panic", don't "sell" and "stay the course". This article in the AAII Journal saved me well over a $100,000!!!
John Knox from AL posted 9 months ago:
I think it's a very good article. I also think one needs to have a cash flow sheet at least for a year in time and evaluate it every month. I inherently find keeping track of what I spend discomforting.
John Landry from TX posted 9 months ago:
I've used Quicken for a number of years for all of my bank, mortgage and brokerage accounts. The daily totals are all downloaded automatically, and I have only to check them to see my net worth for that day. The only problem with this easy access is that it leads to agony when the market and the net worth are down.
With automatic downloading there is no need to "key" in entries, and once a month I reconcile the accounts for the paper statements.


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"The work of Catholic Answers was instrumental in bringing me back to the Church. With the help of God's grace, I was then able to help bring my wife back too. Keep up the good work!"
~ Daniel, Harrogate, Tennessee
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"The civil authority has been, ever from the days of Herod, the enemy of Christ. The question, now pending, is whether the Church shall admit to ministry those only who, according to the dictation of the civil power, are fit for the office."
~ Bishop Hogan of Kansas City MO, excerpted from an address to parishoners after his arrest under the provisions of the Missouri Test Oath (which was subsequently struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court by just one vote)


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We are trying to make a night time bottle easier on my husband. Can we leave refrigerated milk on the counter for a few hours? We are thinking it might be quicker if we leave a little out on the counter between feedings.
I know there are schedules of how long milk is good for. None are specific to expressed milk refrigerated then left out.
Thank you
Any suggestions on a middle of the night feeding made easier would be great. My LO is not very patient for food(:


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Tuesday, May 23, 2006
Bake Sale Goodies
I had hoped this blog would encourage me to try more ambitious recipes. Indeed, I keep bookmarking elaborate dishes I want to try, such as this or this. Or I fantasize about trying my hand at baking bread.
But while I manage to steal of bit of time from my daily responsibilities to bake simple cakes, I can't seem to put everything on hold long enough to try something challenging. The vacherin was an exception, but I can't say I was encouraged by the result.
So without further apology, here are two more simple recipes. These were made for a bake sale, and as I've learned the hard way, you really don't want to make anything finicky or elaborate for a bake sale. It's not worth it and doesn't sell any faster. You make big batches, bake them in pans, chop them up and done.
I made lemon cake, maple pecan bars and brownies.
The brownies were a failure, (hence no photo), because I doubled all quantities except the sugar. While the flavor was good (not as cloyingly sweet), reducing the sugar seemed to make them very dry, despite the daunting quantities of butter used, and even though I baked them for less time than usual. So I learned something interesting: sugar provides moisture. Still, they sold well enough, marketed as "cakey brownies." That would be another rule for bake sales: anything chocolate sells.
The lemon cake was a success, and I'm definitely adding it to my regular repertoire. It makes a lovely-textured loaf, but also pretty stars (yay, another recipe to use with my silicone molds). I kept the stars for home consumption, as they were too time-consuming for the bake sale. Sure it's no effort to pour batter into a mold, but you can only bake a few at a time.
The maple pecan bars were quite good, but I felt there was a little something missing. I read in some recipe that a few teaspoons of lemon gives a little kick and undercuts all the sweetness, which I might try next time.
Recipe: Lemon Cake
Source: Les Cakes de Sophie, by Sophie Dudemaine
The recipe isn't very detailed so I'll add my thoughts as I go...
- 3 eggs
I would recommend these be at room temperature so they can incorporate as much air as possible when you beat them with the sugar
- 150g sugar (original is 170g)
- 160g flour
- 1 tspn baking powder
I'm not sure that's the right amount, since the recipe only said "1/3 de sachet de levure" I believe a "sachet" usually holds 12g, so 1/3 would be 4g of baking powder.
- 1/4 tsp salt (omit if you use salted butter)
- 150g melted salted butter
The recipe specifies salted butter, but I never have it on hand so I use sweet butter and add salt. I would like to try with a little less butter. Update: I tried with 125g, you wouldn't know the difference.
- 2 lemons.
1. Preheat oven to 180°C
2. Whip the eggs and sugar until the mixture turns white. I beat this for a good 4-5 minutes with an egg beater so the eggs really turn frothy and pale and form a ribbon.
3. Incorporate the flour and the baking powder.
I mixed the baking powder and salt in the flour first. I believe you don't want to beat the flour in so as not to deflate the eggs.
4. Mix the butter into the batter.
5. Prepare the lemons: Wash them, remove the zests with a potato peeler and cut them length-wise. Plunge them in a little boiling water for 5 seconds, drain them, then plunge them in ice cold water. Drain them and dry them.
6. Squeeze the lemons and delicately mix their juice into the batter along with the zests, with a spatula.
A word of warning. I must have been too delicate, as I found a fair amount of lemon juice and butter stayed at the bottom of my bowl, making the last muffins I made very greasy and sour. Perhaps this was because I made a double batch. But since the main cake came out well, it made me think it might be possible to reduce the quantity of butter somewhat, provided it all gets mixed in correctly.
7. Pour the batter in a buttered and floured loaf pan (about 26 centimeters long, though I think French loaf pans are a bit narrower than American loaf pans).
8. Bake for 40 minutes. Don't open the oven before the cake is fully set, as I did the first time I made this: opening the door and turning the cake around after 20 minutes made it deflate in the center. Not pretty, but still good.
Recipe: Maple Pecan Bars
Source: Bon Appétit/Epicurious
For the crust
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
For the filling
- 1/2 cup pure maple syrup
- 1/3 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
- 1/4 cup whipping cream
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups coarsely chopped pecans
Making the crust:
1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Butter 9x9x2-inch metal cake pan
Note: I lined the pan with parchment paper, which turned out to be a good idea, as the filling was very runny and slipped under the edge of the crust. I also made a double batch and used both a 9x9 inch pan and a 9x13 inch pan, which resulted in relatively thin bars. I had added flour to the crust, which was not a good idea, but it made more dough. If you want to do this maybe make 2 1/2 times the crust recipe.
3. Beat butter, sugar, and egg yolk in bowl using the electric mixer.
4. Add flour and salt; beat until moist clumps form. Gather dough together.
5. Press dough over bottom and 1/2 inch up sides of pan.
Note: I didn't bother pushing the dough up the sides of the pan since I had lined it with parchment paper.
6. Bake crust until golden, about 20 minutes. Cool.
Note: I thought dough was too moist so I added about 1/2 cup of flour if not more. I regret doing this, it made the crust a bit too dry.
Making the filling:
1. Combine first 4 ingredients in medium saucepan.
2. Bring to boil, stirring until butter melts and mixture is smooth. Boil filling 30 seconds.
3. Remove from heat; mix in vanilla, then nuts.
4. Pour hot filling into crust.
5. Bake bars until filling is bubbling in center, about 15 minutes.
6. Cool bars completely in pan on rack (filling will become firm). Chill at least 1 hour and up to 2 hours. (Can be made 3 days ahead. Cover and keep chilled.) Cut into 30 bars.
Note: Though I didn't chill the bars, I was able to slice them without difficulty. But this was perhaps because they were so thin.
7 comments:
- zorra said...
I like simple recipes!
- May 25, 2006 10:26 AM
- tanya d said...
Brownies are a difficult one to get right. My fav recipe right now is from Alton Brown. One note, I saw him make it on his TV show and he used natural cocoa powder, not dutched (though not mentioned in recipe).
Also, I attempted a dessert bisteeya, filled with an almond flavored rice pudding. I had quite a fight with phyllo, resulting in a few cracks here and there. But powdered sugar hides many flaw and it tasted pretty darn good.
- May 29, 2006 3:16 PM
- Astrid said...
Thanks Tanya for the recipe. I guess the advantage of cocoa is you can use a lot of sugar without getting quite as sweet a result. And it seems loads of sugar are necessary to achieve the real brownies effect.
About dutched or not dutched, I forget, which kind is the kind sold in Europe? (I would guess dutched...) I remember you had a post on that in your blog, I'll have to look.
I added Alton Brown's recipe here for handy reference:
Cocoa Brownies Recipe courtesy Alton Brown
Recipe Summary
Difficulty: Easy
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Yield: 16 brownies
User Rating: (5 stars)
Soft butter, for greasing the pan
Flour, for dusting the buttered pan
4 large eggs
1 cup sugar, sifted
1 cup brown sugar, sifted
8 ounces melted butter
11/4 cups cocoa, sifted
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup flour, sifted
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Butter and flour an 8-inch square pan.
In a mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat the eggs at medium speed until fluffy and light yellow. Add both sugars. Add remaining ingredients, and mix to combine.
Pour the batter into a greased and floured 8-inch square pan and bake for 45 minutes. Check for doneness with the tried-and-true toothpick method: a toothpick inserted into the center of the pan should come out clean. When it's done, remove to a rack to cool. Resist the temptation to cut into it until it's mostly cool.
Source: Food Network
- May 30, 2006 12:23 AM
- Claudia said...
I tried the Alton-Brown-recipe:
Cocoa Brownies
I think a bit more flour could make them better.
- February 25, 2007 2:08 PM
- Astrid said...
Thanks Claudia. I enjoyed your post on the subject.
- February 26, 2007 8:39 AM
omg these are some of the best recipes i have ever made. The food turns out beautiful and delishous. I have never found a better website than this i think this is a great idea and i love your recipies you inspire me so.
- June 06, 2007 1:52 AM
- Astrid said...
Anonymous - Wow, thanks!
- June 06, 2007 12:13 PM


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ASRM Bulletins
November 21, 2016
Find the election results confusing? Wondering what the Trump administration and the 115th Congress mean for reproductive medicine? We do, too. We can be sure of one thing though, there will be plenty of new players in the policy game. At both the federal and state levels, there will be new elected officials and staff who need your input when developing policies of importance to your professional life.
ASRM Bulletins
November 16, 2016
Yesterday, in McQueen v. Gadberry, the Missouri Court of Appeals affirmed the judgment of the trial court that, for the purposes of Missouri's dissolution of marriage statutes, frozen embryos are not children, but marital property of a special character (the Court's italics), deserving of special respect.
ASRM Bulletins
November 15, 2016
Washington, DC – The American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) is proud to announce that RESOLVE: The National Infertility Association will be awarding ASRM its Barbara Eck Founders Award for the Society's Access to Care initiative. ASRM's President, Richard J. Paulson, MD will accept the award at RESOLVE's Night of Hope Gala on November 15, 2016, at the Lighthouse at Chelsea Piers in New York City. As the organization that supports and provides a voice for people diagnosed with infertility, RESOLVE established the Hope Awards to recognize professionals, companies, volunteers, and the media who truly impact those struggling to build a family.
ASRM Bulletins
September 28, 2016
Both the House and Senate have now finally passed, and sent to President Obama for his expected signature, HR 5325, a bill which funds the government for the start of Fiscal Year 2017. The bill contains two provisions of particular importance to ASRM members.
ASRM Bulletins
June 24, 2016
In a new final rule published in Wednesday's Federal Register, FDA has amended regulations on donor eligibility, including the screening and testing of donors of particular human cells, tissues, and cellular ant tissue-based products (HCT/Ps).
ASRM Bulletins
June 23, 2016
At 3:00 am this morning and in the midst of a dramatic and hours long contentious sit-in on the House floor over the gun control debate, the U.S. House of Representatives passed legislation that would allow the Department of Veterans Affairs to begin to offer IVF services to wounded veterans. HR 2577, is a conference report to fund Military Construction, Veterans Affairs and related agencies and is a compromise between versions of the bill passed in both the House and Senate in the previous weeks. ASRM, working with RESOLVE and a coalition of veterans organizations, successfully lobbied those Members of Congress working to draft the compromise bill and urged them to retain the IVF provision, despite opposition from conservative groups with moral objections to assisted reproductive technologies.
ASRM Bulletins
May 24, 2016
Washington DC – The American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) today announced the hiring of Sue Gitlin, PhD as its new Chief Scientific Officer. Dr. Gitlin will join the ASRM staff in September for a transition period and fully assume her duties in 2017.
ASRM Bulletins
May 19, 2016
Today the U.S. Senate voted 89-8 to pass HR 2577, an appropriations measure funding Transportation-Housing and Urban Development and related agencies. The bill was combined with a measure to also fund Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, which included a provision giving the Department of VA the funds to begin providing IVF services to wounded veterans in need of assisted reproduction.
ASRM Bulletins
April 20, 2016
Please join RESOLVE: The National Infertility Association and ASRM President Dr. Owen Davis for RESOLVE's annual Advocacy Day event on May 11, 2016 in Washington, DC. RESOLVE's Advocacy Day brings infertility patients and professionals together to advocate on Capitol Hill for legislation important to our community. This year, RESOLVE hopes to bring more than 200 advocates from all over the country to speak with Members of Congress about infertility issues.
ASRM Bulletins
April 14, 2016
Today, the Senate Appropriations Committee passed an amendment to a funding measure to allow the Department of Veterans' Affairs (VA) to cover the cost of reproductive services, including IVF, for veterans who need infertility treatment due to injuries incurred in their service to our country. Active duty service members injured in this manner have access to IVF care, whereas a longstanding ban on IVF coverage at the VA prevents access for similarly wounded veterans.
Thousands of doctors, nurses, and other professionals in the field of reproductive medicine are advancing their careers with the latest news, continuing education, discounts, and networking opportunities. Here are 15 reasons you should consider joining ASRM:News and Education
•Access to the Society's journals, Fertility and Sterility and the Journal of Assisted Reproduction and Genetics •CME/CE credits in-person and online through ASRM eLearn® •Updates on the latest reproductive health policy news from our D.C. office •Access to printable Practice Guidelines and Ethics Statements
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•Access to an online member login account •Full access to the ASRM Membership Directory •Member discounts on job postings on the ASRM Career Center •Answers to CPT coding questions at the Coding Corner
Click here to learn more about how ASRM membership would benefit you.Member Services Department(205) firstname.lastname@example.com
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Episode 5 | TV-MA
Disoriented from the procedure's effect on his body, Ichise escapes from Doc's lab before he is fully adjusted to his new limbs and distorted vision. Then he gets a brutal greeting from Ishii on the streets—but he may have a follower on his side.
Official Site: www.funimation.com/shows/texhnolyzeHide Details


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Crews Clean Up Northeast Blizzard
By Jeff Brady • Feb 9, 2013
Originally published on February 9, 2013 5:51 pm
As crews dig out from a record-breaking snow storm in New England, there are new worries about flooding. The National Weather Service reported waves three stories high off the coast. NPR's Jeff Brady reports from Boston.


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Events » Adult Education Classes » Drawing Class
Drawing Class
The Ragpicker, c. 1865-1870
Édouard Manet
French, 1832-1883
Oil on canvas
76-3/4 x 51-1/2 in. (194.9 x 130.8 cm)
The Norton Simon Foundation
Drawing from the Masters: Capturing Emotion
Date: Friday, August 16, 2013
Time: 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm
Speaker: Roderick Smith
Type: Drawing Class
Join artist Roderick Smith for a series of drawing classes inspired by master works in the Norton Simon collections, from ancient India and Southeast Asia to modern-day Europe and America. Each session follows a different path through the Museum, exploring the fundamentals of art. Examine a variety of works with the goal of understanding the essential elements of composition and design.
Spend an evening examining how artists use formal techniques to convey emotion and beauty in their work. The sculptural works of Degas serve as an introduction to gestural drawing. The second half of the session is devoted to exploring how painters like Manet and Corot used simple designs and lighting to create captivating images.
Meets in Entrance Gallery | All levels of experience are welcome. Each class is $20 ($16 for members), and space is limited to 18 participants. All materials and admission to the galleries on the day of class are included. | Online registration is required. For further information, contact the Education Department at (626) 844-6980.


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2000 SPARCS Annual Report Download
The ARS00.EXE file contains compressed WordPerfect files that can be used to view or print the 2000 SPARCS Annual Report using Corel WordPerfect 8 or above.
The SPARCS Annual Report Series has been published since 1980. Each report contains a narrative description as well as standardized statistical tables, aggregated by many different data elements.
The 2000 SPARCS Annual Report contains a narrative, appendices, and 19 standardized statistical tables. The narrative describes the background of SPARCS, the data sources for the report, and the data displayed. A listing of tables is included, and one of the appendices lists data elements by table number.
The statistical tables include discharges, patient days, and average length of stay data aggregated by: age, sex, expected primary source of reimbursement, service category, disposition of patient, county of residence/hospitalization, discharge rate, federal DRG, average total charge of stay, principal diagnostic categories, surgical procedure categories, federal MDC, and total length of stay.
If you would like a copy of any of the SPARCS Annual Reports in hard cover, please contact the SPARCS Administrative Unit via e-mail at email@example.com or by calling (518) 473-8144.
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This will decompress the ars00.exe file into the Corel WordPerfect 8 formatted source files and an informational readme00.wpd file.
- Delete the ars00.exe file.
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MADISON, Wis. (AP) -- Newly released documents show Republican legislative leaders were looking at ways to increase the number of safe GOP districts and to protect conservative incumbents while redrawing political boundaries.
The Wisconsin State Journal reports Wednesday that emails and other documents in the legal file turned over to Democratic Senate Majority Leader Mark Miller shows Republicans were concerned about the political makeup of new districts when drawing them last year.
In one email, Republican state Sen. Leah Vukmir of Wauwatosa suggests keeping parts of her district that are Republican and jettisoning those that are more Democratic.
Republican Sen. Scott Fitzgerald who was in charge during the redistrict process says political advantage was not the goal, but he never said consideration wasn't given to incumbents.


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WASHINGTON, DC - Oriental Trading Company of Omaha, Neb., is voluntarily recalling its Sweetheart Rainbow Kids dolls because the arms and shoes can come off and present a choking hazard to young children. Neither the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission nor the Oriental Trading Company is aware of any reports of injuries involving the doll. The dolls, which are 5 1/2 inches tall, have rosy cheeks with freckles, striped caps, simple clothes and white plastic shoes. "Made in Hong Kong" is stamped on the doll's back. Some 45,000 dolls were sold nationwide between February 1986 and March 1988.Consumers should immediately take the dolls away from young children and return them to the place of purchase for a full refund. Anyone needing additional information may call Oriental Trading Company at 1-800-228-0475. Nebraska residents may call toll-free at 1-800-245-5749.
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission is charged with protecting the public from unreasonable risks of injury or death associated with the use of
thousands of types of consumer products under the agency's jurisdiction. Deaths, injuries, and property damage from consumer product incidents cost the
nation more than $1 trillion annually. CPSC is committed to protecting consumers and families from products that pose a fire, electrical, chemical or
mechanical hazard. CPSC's work to help ensure the safety of consumer products - such as toys, cribs, power tools, cigarette lighters and household
chemicals -– contributed to a decline in the rate of deaths and injuries associated with consumer products over the past 40 years.
Federal law bars any person from selling products subject to a publicly-announced voluntary recall by a manufacturer or a mandatory recall ordered by the
To report a dangerous product or a product-related injury go online to www.SaferProducts.gov or call CPSC's Hotline at 800-638-2772 or teletypewriter at
301-595-7054 for the hearing impaired. Consumers can obtain news release and recall information at www.cpsc.gov, on Twitter @USCPSC or by subscribing
to CPSC's free e-mail newsletters.
Times: 8 a.m. - 5:30 p.m. ET; Messages can be left anytime
Call to get product safety and other agency information and to report unsafe products.
Please use the below phone number for all media requests.
Phone: (301) 504-7908
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Alicia Keys Alicia Keys performs onstage during the 2010 BET Awards held at the Shrine Auditorium on June 27, 2010, in Los Angeles. (credit: Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images)
Amy Adams Actress Amy Adams arrives at the 2010 Vanity Fair Oscar Party hosted by Graydon Carter held at Sunset Tower on March 7, 2010, in West Hollywood, California. (credit: Craig Barritt/Getty Images)
Anne Hansen, Lance Armstrong's girlfriend Lance Armstrong's pregnant girlfriend, Anne Hansen, stands with Armstrong's first son, Luke, who carries their first one year-old son, Max, during a rest day of the 2010 Tour de France cycling race on July 20, 2010, in Pau, Southwestern France. (credit: Nathalie Magniez/AFP/Getty Images)
Bethenny Frankel TV personality Bethenny Frankel walks the runway at the Heart Truth Fall 2010 Fashion Show during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at The Tent at Bryant Park on Feb. 11, 2010, in New York City. (credit: Jemal Countess/Getty Images)
Christina Applegate Actress Christina Applegate attends the "Cats and Dogs" film premiere at Grauman's Chinese Theatre on July 25, 2010 in Hollywood, California. (credit: Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images)
Claudia Schiffer Claudia Schiffer attends the European premiere of "Kick Ass" held at the Empire Leicester Square on March 22, 2010 in London. (credit: Fergus McDonald/Getty Images)
Courtney Mazza TV personality Mario Lopez and his girlfriend Courtney Mazza arrive at Cosmopolitan Magazine's third annual Bikini Bash at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino May 24, 2010 in Las Vegas. (credit: Denise Truscello/Getty Images)
Danica McKellar Actress Danica McKellar arrives to premiere of Warner Bros. "Inception" at Grauman's Chinese Theatre on July 13, 2010, in Los Angeles. (credit: Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty )
Minea Blomqvist Pregnant Minea Blomqvist of Finland plays a tee shot during the second round of the 500,000-euro Dubai Ladies Masters golf tournament at the Emirates Golf Club on Dec. 10, 2009 in Dubai. Blomqvist is expecting her first child in April. (credit: Marwan Naamani/AFP/Getty Images)
Paula Patton Actress Paula Patton arrives at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards held at Kodak Theatre on March 7, 2010, in Hollywood. (credit: Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images)
Rebecca Gayheart Actor Eric Dane and actress Rebecca Gayheart arrive at the premiere of New Line Cinema's "Valentine's Day" held at Grauman's Chinese Theatre on Feb. 8, 2010, in Los Angeles. (credit: Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
Samantha Cameron Samantha Cameron, wife of new British Prime Minister David Cameron, leaves her house on May 12, 2010 in London. (credit: Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images)
Tiffany Fallon 2005 Playboy Playmate of the Year Tiffany Fallon arrives at a party to introduce model Hope Dworaczyk as the 2010 Playboy Playmate of the Year at the Rain Nightclub inside the Palms Casino Resort May 15, 2010 in Las Vegas. (credit: Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
World Cup Fan A pregnant supporter of Italy cheers at the 2010 World Cup Italy vs. New Zealand match on June 20, 2010, at Mbombela Stadium in Nelspruit. (credit: Pierre-Philippe Marcou/AFP/Getty Images)
Categories: Best of Entertainment Photo Galleries Shopping & Style


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Product Description
- An excellent 3CD box set of early studio and live recordings from San Francisco legends, Santana!
- Features early incarnations of the hit singles "Evil Ways" and "Jingo" PLUS ripping covers of "With A Little Help From My Friends," "Every Day I Have The Blues" and so much more!
- Packaged in our most attractive unibox with rare photos, liner notes, psychedelic bandana/wall hanger and more!
Santana, both the band and its eponymous leader, guitar virtuoso Carlos Santana, changed the American rock world forever, injecting Latin rhythms and percussion into the bluesy sound of '60s era rock. This unique collage of styles, sustained over an impressive 36-album career, earned Santana a venerated spot in the Rock N' Roll Hall Of Fame. And it all began in San Francisco, where Carlos and company honed their chops in performances at Bill Graham's Fillmore Theater, and later recorded a series of demos that would eventually land them their first recording contract with Columbia Records.
This remarkable 3CD box set documents those crucial early years, offering up glimpses into the fledgling incarnations of classics such as "Evil Ways" and "Jingo." Even more impressive is the raw, unbridled energy the band brings to favorites like "With A Little Help From My Friends" as well as a full disc of experiments in improvisation that brilliantly showcases the steady, confident hand of the legendary Carlos Santana!


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By Sharna Johnson: CNJ Staff
A fugitive wanted in connection with the shooting death of a 9-year-old Clovis boy more than a year ago has been spotted in New Mexico recently, area law enforcement officials said.
In response, Curry County Crime Stoppers officials more than doubled the reward for information leading to the capture of Noe Torres to $2,500, according to a press release from the district attorney's office.
Torres, 27, is being sought in connection with the September 2005 death of Carlos Perez, who was struck in the head by a bullet while sleeping. Police believe Torres fled to Mexico in the days following the shooting.
Torres, who should be considered armed and dangerous, the release said, was indicted on charges of first-degree murder in October 2005.
Police received reports he was spotted Tuesday at a home in Clovis near Horn and Manana streets, according to the district attorney's office.
State police were able to positively identify Torres after they encountered him and a family member at Santa Rosa Hospital on Dec. 1, a press release from the district attorney's office said.
He ran during the encounter, avoiding arrest, 9th Judicial District Attorney Matt Chandler said.
He was also sighted Dec. 10 in Albuquerque and around Thanksgiving in Clovis at a car wash on Llano Estacado Boulevard, the release said.
In the spring, federal marshals obtained a federal warrant on Torres for flight to avoid prosecution.
"We are positive that he will be captured soon," Chandler said. "We want to encourage him to turn himself, but in one way or another he will be captured," he said.
Senior investigator Dan Aguilar of the district attorney's office is the lead agent in the case. He said Torres is the missing piece to his case.
"He thinks he can run forever, but we're going to catch him. If he chooses to cooperate, he can fill in a lot of answers that we don't have yet. But that's going to be up to him," Aguilar said.
Four people have been arrested and charged with the slaying to date: brothers Edward, 22, Demetrio, 21, and Orlando Salas, 16, and David Griego, 30.
Orlando Salas accepted a plea agreement in May and was sentenced as a juvenile to five years in the custody of the Children, Youth and Families Department. Upon completion he will be paroled, officials have said.
The other three are still in custody at the Curry County Adult Detention Center awaiting a joint jury trial scheduled for March.
Aguilar said Torres has extensive ties to Clovis through friends and family.
"I've always thought it was just a matter of time that he would come back — we've gotten close a couple of times and the longer he's out there, the more careless I think he's going to be."


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As adults age and their physical abilities change, they may face environmental impediments in their home that make living independently a challenge. This fact sheet discusses universal design and visitability features that can improve residential safety and usability for older adults and people with disabilities.
Click here to download fact sheet (PDF).


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April 20, 2011 —
Most people probably don't think of Sullivan County as being on the cutting edge of much but, in the area of electronic waste, it has been. Way back in 2006, before almost any other county in the state, Sullivan County banned the dumping of electronic waste, such as televisions and computers, into the county landfill.
Since that time, the county has been charging residents $12 per unit to drop off televisions and computers at the transfer stations, which helped defray the cost of about $20,000 per year to get rid of the stuff. The electronic waste was collected by Advanced Recovery in Port Jervis, which recycles and refurbishes electronics. But that fee will soon be coming to an end.
That's possible because on April 1, New York State joined the list of 22 other states that require manufacturers, such as Dell, Sony and Panasonic, to be responsible for recovering nearly as many electronic products as they produce. The immediate impact has been a patchwork quilt of disposal systems as the companies move to comply with the law.
The Best Buy stores in New York, for instance, will accept any brand of television or computer regardless of where it was purchased or what brand it is. Unfortunately, there are no
Best Buy stores in Sullivan County.
Target stores, according to their advertising, will accept "iPhones, iPods, video games and cell phones for instant credit in over 850 stores nationwide." Again, however, there are no Targets in Sullivan County.
There is, however, a Staples store in Monticello, which also has a recycling program. However, the store only accepts Dell products for free; consumers are charged a fee to drop off other brands.
There are other options available, such as a company called We Recycle. Consumers can go to the website, http://www.werecycle.com [2], click the New York button and fill out a form. If there are enough interested people, the company will arrange for an electronic pick-up event in a given area.
Of course, the easiest solution for many people would be if they could simply drop off the old stuff with their garbageat the transfer station. At the Sullivan County government center on April 14, recycling director Bill Cutler told lawmakers about the new law and said, because of it, Advanced Recovery will now accept electronic waste from the county for free. In response, legislators said they would drop the fee charged to residents, and that should happen by April 21.
Mark Rea, president of Advanced Recovery, said the company keeps track of the amount of products it collects from the various manufacturers, and periodically reports the amount to them, which allows the companies to comply with the New York law.
New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Massachusetts already have similar laws, and in all probability all states will eventually adopt similar laws.
Rea cautioned, however, that there are still some items, specifically fluorescent tubes and batteries, that the company still takes for a fee.
All of this comes as the industry strives to push recycling even further. The Consumer Electronics Association on April 15 announced the first-ever industry-wide electronics recycling initiative to attempt to recycle one billion pounds of electronics annually by 2016, which would be a more than threefold increase over 2010.


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Philly Alumni JMU Men's Basketball vs. Drexel
Sun, 10 Feb 2013 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM
Join us for a fun-filled evening of basketball and cheering on the Dukes!
The JMU Philadelphia Area Alumni Chapter is organizing a group section for the game, and we'd love to see you there. Join us for an evening of JMU Athletics as we gather together to cheer on JMU Men's Basketball as they take on the Drexel Dragons.
We hope to see you there! Go Dukes!
Registration will close at 12pm on February 6th.
Sign up today!
Daskalakis Athletic Center
3198 Pennsylvania 3, Philadelphia, PA 19104


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"Shelly" was a big talker. She had an opinion about everything, whether she knew anything about it or not. And she was not shy about expressing those opinions.
"I don't care what anybody thinks" she told people who argued, and she would talk louder and faster to talk over those who were taken by surprise.
When confronted with her loud, opinionated style, she defended herself by saying that "everybody has opinions, they're just too scared to express them." "Shelly" either was arguing her side of the issue or defending her style full time, which left no time for listening.
It also turns out that although "Shelly" herself had never been much of a drinker, both her mom and dad had been. They had since passed away from complications involving excessive use of alcohol.
"Shelly," the youngest of three girls, had never been listened to, so she never learned to listen. She had learned only one speed, and that was fast forward. Her motto, although unbeknownst to her, was, "when in doubt talk louder." Her solution to all problems was to try harder to convince you she was right. In doing so, she alienated her remaining family, two husbands and all her friends. She managed a store, so her co-workers had to listen, and listen they did.
Her district manager had finally heard enough horror stories. With enough personal observation under her belt to be credible, she let "Shelly" go. In the exit interview, she told her she was "loud and abrasive." This finally got through to "Shelly," who, swallowing her immense pride, began a journey to find some solutions.
It started with a therapist and continued in an Adult Children of Alcoholics group. "Shelly" has learned, over time, that the way to be heard is to listen well to others. She has learned that life has more than one speed – and many different volume settings. If you asked her friends today, they'd tell you "Shelly" is the kind of person who you can tell anything. She really knows how to listen.
• Rick Atwater is a licensed clinical professional counselor.


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Portland Becomes First Salmon-Safe City
Mayor Hales issues Salmon-Safe challenge to other West Coast citiesRead More…
Phone: 503-823-4120
1221 SW 4th Avenue, Room 340, Portland, OR 97204
MONDAY, NOV. 25, 2013 – Portland Bureau of Transportation Director Leah Treat today announced that the City preserved 76 miles of streets from July through October, well on its way to meet Mayor Charlie Hales' goal of 100 lane miles paved this fiscal year.
"Our crews are working hard and making great progress," said Treat, who started as transportation director in July, following a national search. "We're using a new technique to preserve our streets as effectively and efficiently as possible. Preventive maintenance extends the life of our neighborhood streets and saves money by preventing the need to rebuild them later."
Since the start of the fiscal year on July 1, city crews have preserved 53 lane miles of streets using fog seal, a cost-saving technique that the city began using this year on less-trafficked neighborhood streets. In addition to fog sealing, since July 1 crews also have paved 23 lane miles, many on arterial streets that carry higher traffic loads.
City Commissioner Steve Novick, who oversees the transportation bureau, said he and the mayor set the goal of 100 miles of preventive maintenance for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2014.
"Preventive maintenance is a smart way to invest our tax dollars," Novick said. "The mayor and I have set a goal of 100 miles of street maintenance this year, through the end of June and I'm glad the maintenance crews are well on their way to meeting that goal."
Hales praised the effort: "From the start of the year, when we took office, we said we needed to prove to Portlanders that we could really take care of our streets, in a way the city hasn't for years, and without going back to taxpayers for additional funds this year. The PBOT repaving teams have proven they're up for that challenge."
Hales credited Novick, Treat and Toby Widmer, the interim transportation chief who handled the task for the first half of the year.
Using fog seal for preventive maintenance on local streets that are in fairly good shape costs $7,500 per lane mile. On streets in worse shape and that handle higher traffic, such as arterial streets, grinding and paving is more appropriate and costs about $150,000 per lane mile.
A lane mile is the equivalent of one lane, 12-feet wide and one mile long.
Both paving and fog sealing techniques will prevent potholes and also prevent deterioration to the point where a street needs to be completely rebuilt, a costly proposition at up to $3 million per lane mile.
To meet the 100 miles of paving goal this fiscal year, transportation maintenance crews will grind some streets during the cold winter months. But with rain and low temperatures, paving on some of those streets may not be feasible until weeks later. So the public may see some streets in rougher condition before the final paving work is completed.
Learn more about the bureau's Back to Basics paving program, including maps showing which streets are planned for maintenance: https://www.portlandoregon.gov/transportation/article/451483
THURSDAY, AUG. 22, 2013 – Meeting with work crews applying a fog seal coating on a Northeast Portland neighborhood street, Commissioner Steve Novick and Portland Bureau of Transportation Director Leah Treat on Wednesday announced that the city is well on its way towards meeting Mayor Charlie Hales' goal of restoring and paving 100 miles of city streets this fiscal year.
Since the start of the fiscal year on July 1, city crews have restored 24.5 miles of streets using fog sealant, a cost-saving technique that the city began using this year on less-trafficked neighborhood streets to extend their life and to prevent higher cost repairs in the long run. In addition to fog sealing, 10.5 miles have been paved since July 1, many of those on arterial streets that carry higher traffic loads.
"Our crews are on a roll," said Treat, who began her tenure on July 22 after leadership roles in Washington ,D.C., and Chicago transportation departments. "The Transportation Bureau is working hard to create a new local street maintenance program that is cost effective and restores badly needed services to neighborhood streets."
Fog sealing is a blend of liquid asphalt, recycled rubber tires and grit that can be spray-applied to streets but that requires people to stay off the newly treated pavement for up to eight hours. Treat and Novick on Thursday highlighted that work onNortheast 12th Avenue and Skidmore Street.
The fog seal initiative comes after the City Council in May restored authority to the Transportation Bureau to maintain neighborhood streets, a program that had been eliminated in 2009 for budgetary reasons but that left residential streets without any preventive maintenance.
"For too long, the City of Portland waited until our streets were broken down before fixing them. That's short sighted," Commissioner Novick said. "Our Back to Basics street maintenance program is changing that. The Mayor and I have set a goal of 100 lane miles of preventive maintenance by the end of June 2014. Crews are well on their way to accomplishing, if not exceeding, that goal."
Maintenance is smart economics, Novick added. "If you clean your teeth regularly, it's less expensive than having a root canal every six months. It works the same way for our streets."
Using fog seal for preventive maintenance on local streets that are in fairly good shape costs $7,500 per lane mile. On streets in worse shape and that handle higher traffic, such as arterial streets, grinding and paving is more appropriate and costs about $150,000 per lane mile.
A lane mile is the equivalent of one 12-foot wide lane, one mile long.
Both techniques will prevent potholes and also prevent deterioration to the point where a street needs to be completely rebuilt, a hefty cost proposition at up to $3 million per lane mile.
Both fog sealing and paving require dry conditions. City crews will continue restoring streets as long as the weather holds this summer season and next year to reach and exceed the 100 mile maintenance goal by the end of the fiscal year, June 30, 2014.
THURSDAY, JUNE 6, 2013 – Portland Mayor Charlie Hales and Steve Novick, Commissioner of the Portland Bureau of Transportation, donned hard hats and safety vests to help pave a section of Northeast Halsey Street.
It's all part of Back to Basics: Street Maintenance Projects for 2013-14.
The plan calls for 100 miles of planning street maintenance in the coming fiscal year. The bureau, known as PBOT, has established a website for people wanting to know when and where the paving projects are scheduled. All paving projects are subject to changes in the weather.
"It costs a lot less to maintain what we own, rather than to wait until it's in ruins and replace it," Novick said. "That's true of your car or your house, and it's true of the city's streets."
A city auditor's report from February chided Portland for not keeping pace with street paving. According to the audit, 44 percent of the city's streets are in "poor" to "very poor" condition.
"We're spending about $10 million per year to pave, and we need about $85 million per year, just to keep up," Hales said. "This back-to-basics approach is our first step for maintaining the city's biggest capital asset: Our streets.
Hales has asked for no new money from taxpayers but he predicted that new funds will be needed in the future. "Let's prove we can use the money we have now, wisely, before we go back to the residents for more," he said.
TUESDAY, FEB. 19 – An audit released this week by the city ofPortlandfinds a massive hole in the city's spending to pave streets.
"This audit is incendiary. It's a wake-up call," said MayorCharlie Hales. "It costs far less to maintain streets in good condition than it costs to restore neglected streets. As much as 10 times more. We have to act now."
The city's independent auditor, LaVonne Griffin-Valade, set the tone for the audit, calling the city's streets, "Portland's most valuable asset group at $5 billion in replacement costs" and adding, "The audit found that the city has not adequately protected the condition of street pavement."
The audit showed that 44 percent ofPortland's streets are in "poor" to "very poor" condition. An estimated $10 million per year is being spent to repair streets, but the audit calls for an additional $75 million, for a total of $85 million per year.
Hales said he will call upon the City Council to address the problem and to make it a priority for the 2013-14 budget, which is being debated now.
The mayor said he will craft a proposal that would:
• Create a transportation strategy with clear-cut goals and objectives.
• Change the prioritization from a "Worst First" policy – in which streets are allowed to deteriorate before receiving attention – to using the new Street Saver technology to help prioritize the order of street maintenance to both prevent this from happening in the future and continue to rehabilitate our worst streets.
• Provide annual estimates of future costs associated with street maintenance.
Upon taking office in January, Hales announced that Toby Widmer would come out of retirement to serve as interim director of the Portland Bureau of Transportation. Widmer will serve for six months while the city conducts a nationwide search for a transportation director.
Widmer's background is in street maintenance. He retired from the city ofPortlandinJune 2002 after approximately 28 years in service.
"Toby came up through the ranks," Hales said. "He was driving trucks and laying asphalt. He understands that street maintenance is his first priority."


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Homicide victims identified as West Haven father and sonFebruary 13,2014Police photo
Sylvester LabartinoStaff Report
State police arrested Sylvester Labartino, 70, of Hubbardton, this morning on two counts of second-degree murder.
Labartino is charged with the deaths of a father and son, identified by sister Michelle Charron as Shane and Chris Plummer of West Haven, in Labartino's residence at 578 Route 30 in Hubbardton yesterday afternoon.
He is being held at the Marble Valley Regional Correctional Facility for a lack of $1 million bail; and is scheduled to be arraigned at Rutland County Superior Court Criminal Division today at 12:30 p.m.
The investigation began soon after police radio dispatches Wednesday afternoon reported a 911 call about a possible shooting at the residence.
Troopers from the Vermont State Police Rutland Barracks, along with emergency medical personnel and officers from the Department of Motor Vehicles, Fair Haven Police Department and Castleton Police Department responded immediately and located the residence where the shooting occurred; they found two dead men outside the house.
Police began looking for a white Ford Bronco that belonged to Labartino; a short time later the truck was spotted traveling north on Route 30 in Castleton. Fair Haven Police Chief William Humphries said he stopped the Ford Bronco just north of North Road on Route 30.
Labartino was driving the truck; he was taken into custody and later to the Rutland State Police barracks.
The victims were taken to the Medical Examiner's office for autopsy; preliminary assessment at the scene found they had been shot.
Vermont State Police are asking for anyone who observed a white Ford Bronco II, bearing Vermont registration EMM973, during the afternoon of Wednesday, February 12, 2014 in the areas of Hubbardton, Castleton, or Fair Haven, to please contact the state police at 802-773-9101 or may submit an anonymous tip to www.vtips.info or send a text to "CRIMES" (274637) with keyword: VTIPS.MORE IN This Just InMONTPELIER A new report from a commission that studied the cost, availability and quality of... Full StoryVermont fish hatchery changes focus, looks inland
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