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December 23, 2013
A Christmas bike miracle
Enough about me already ... here's a feel-good holiday bike story...
Sue Olander stared and stared in disbelief at the spot where her beloved bicycle, which she called Attitude Adjuster, should have been.
It just had to be there.
But her Trek Madone was really and completely gone, stolen by a dastardly bicycle thief.
"I was shaking and I couldn't think; I thought I would throw up," Sue said. "My world started spinning on me; I couldn't get my phone out of my back pocket to call my husband to tell him someone had stolen my bike."
It was October 20, and Sue had just finished riding the Columbus Fall City Ride and was at North Market with 30 or so other cyclists, many from the Westerville Bicycle Club, of which Sue is a member.
They'd locked up their bikes, gone inside to grab something to eat, and came back out, ready for the ride home.
Also stolen was the bike of Gina Smith, Sue's friend. They had been locked together, with a single lock.
"Someone cut through it," Sue said. "They left the lock there, and one of my gloves. They took my helmet and mirror and one of my gloves. They took Gina's helmet and her seat bag."
Gina's seat bag had the keys to her car and apartment inside, adding to her problems.
In most cases, that would have been that … the bikes would have been lost forever, eventually sold via the internet to someone with no idea they were buying stolen merchandise.
But Sue was determined to get Attitude Adjuster back and solicited the help of her friends.
"I had a team of people trying to find it," she said of the daily cyber search she and her husband, Gary, conducted, along with Gina, Larry Graham, Craig Clark, Hans Monning, Jodi Dzuranin and Joanna Pallos. They were a band of highly motivated, cyberspace bike detectives.
"I had nightmares and anxiety attacks about losing my bicycle," said Sue, who works for the state, setting up vaccines for children without health insurance. She commutes daily by bike from her home in North Columbus to her Downtown office.
Sue and Gary had lovingly upgraded her Trek with several hard-to-find components and she rode Attitude Adjuster almost every day, 3,800 miles in 2012 and about 2,200 this year.
And when she rode her Trek, her mood was instantly better, hence the Attitude Adjuster nickname. Her Trek was more than a collection of carbon and components, "it's like it's your baby," Sue said.
Her miles were down this year due to some medical issues.
"I was at my mom's for Christmas and their dog bit off half my nose," Sue said of the December 2012 incident that required several subsequent procedures and surgeries to correct.
"It's been a rough year," she said. "I've had six surgeries since January 2."
More than ever, she needed Attitude Adjuster. And now her bike was gone.
And then, one day, she got a text from Larry.
"He said I think I found your bicycle," Sue said.
Larry had found it on Craigslist. Sue checked the description and photo on the website and, sure enough, it was Attitude Adjuster.
"Gary said to call the police," said Sue, who did just that. "But I got the runaround, they gave me two numbers to call and I left messages but didn't hear back."
Sue asked Gary to call the police and give it a try, which he did, and his persistence paid off. The police were on the case, contacted the bike seller and set up a meeting.
"The guy (who had her bike) said he wasn't comfortable having people come to his house, so they met him at the parking lot of the Steak 'n Shake on Polaris Parkway," Sue said. "There were two cops going, to make the fake buy."
Sue doesn't know the details of how the bust went down or the subsequent criminal charges, but the police got Attitude Adjuster back and were also able to recover Gina's bike when they eventually went to the seller's house.
" He said he got them from his mechanic," said Sue, who doesn't buy the story one bit. "I don't know if he was released or went to jail, but he was in police custody."
Sue got her bike back on Dec. 18.
"I was jumping up and down and clapping and crying and was shaking," said Sue, who thinks of it as her Christmas miracle. "It's an amazingly happy ending."
She and Larry (L) Gary (in the photo with Attitude Adjuster) and their bikes went on a celebratory ride on Sunday, as the rain stopped for a few hours and it was sort of warm out.
Sue also has some advice for others who have had their bikes stolen, an occurrence that is unfortunately all too common.
Write down the registration number and take photos of your bike, especially things that are distinctive to your particular bike.
"And keep checking Craigslist and get a team of people you know and trust to ask for help finding it," Sue said.Posted by Steve Wartenberg on December 23, 2013 03:21 PM
December 19, 2013
Groundhog Day, the Wartenberg Wheel and Words Without Friends
A few thoughts from my on-the-mend brain….
I haven't worn pants, other than sweat pants, in 47 days … and I'm loving it. Perhaps this will become my look, my bold fashion statement, when I'm better and back at work. I can pull it off. Then again, my bosses at the Dispatch may frown upon my clothing choice.
We live in a very loud world.
I never realized this until after I suffered a traumatic brain injury. Suddenly, all the little clinks and clanks, conversations, laughter and background music I never noticed become a series of never-ending explosions that make my head ache.
For example, a metal spoon and ceramic bowl filled with cereal equal a cacophony of calamitous clanks, especially those last few spoon fulls.
The solution: use a plastic spoon! Seriously Susan, please use a plastic spoon. We can wash it and reuse it, so it won't be bad for the environment.
Susan and I went out for my first restaurant meal late last week, to the Northstar Café in Clintonville. We didn't get there until almost 2 p.m., figuring the lunch rush would be over, it would be less crowded and quiet.
We were wrong.
The Northstar was still packed, the piped-in background music was loud and a sea of voices from very direction quickly engulfed me and started slapping me around. High-pitched laughter was the worst offender. A woman sitting near us had the world's third highest-pitched laugh and her friend was some sort of super comedian in the middle of a hilarious routine. I couldn't understand what the funny lady was saying (the voices from so many different directions combined to sound like a swarm of bees invading my brain), but she was on a roll and her friend's laughter was drilling a hole in my brain. My prayers were answered, and a few minutes after our food arrived … they left.
I don't really have a point here about all the noise, other than the fact that the world – and especially restaurants – are really loud. I do finally understand what my 80-year-old father is talking about when he says he hates crowded restaurants and can't hear what anyone's saying over the buzz of so many conversations.
Speaking of a visit to the doctor's office, of which I'm now quite the expert, you'd think the spine, head and neck guys would have much better and more comfortable chairs in their waiting rooms. Seriously dudes, most of us who come to see you are in some sort of physical discomfort and would greatly appreciate more comfy seats in the waiting rooms.
Tina and Linda/Dennis were kind enough to send boxes of delicious Harry and David Royal Riviera pears. And in each box, one, and only one, of the pears was wrapped in foil.
The directions said their lineage can be traced back to 19 th Century France and were brought to Oregon in 1897 where the climate is perfect for pears.
But there was no mention of why one, and only one, pear is wrapped in foil.
Does anyone out there know why?
I was flipping through the channels a few days ago and came across Groundhog Day, which is one of my favorite movies. I watched for a few minutes and suddenly realized: "Hey, I'm stuck in my very own version of Groundhog Day!"
It's day 46 of my recovery and every day is pretty much the same as the one before. Unlike Bill Murray, I don't sleep very well, can never get comfortable and toss and turn all night. Unlike Bill Murray, I don't get woken up every morning by the alarm clock and Sonny and Cher's I Got You Babe. I get woken up by our hungry cats, who nudge and head butt us as soon as the sun comes up. They keep at it until we give in, and get up and feed them. And by "we," I, of course, mean Susan who is stuck doing almost all the household chores. She feeds the cats and makes the coffee, I get the newspaper, and we read about what's happening in the outside world as we sip away. I then spend the rest of the day watching TV, napping, eating, playing Words With Friends, trying to write without much success, with an occasional trip to the doctor's office, supermarket or a restaurant tossed in to break up the monotony. Then, it's 11 p.m., and time to try and fall asleep sleep and start the cycle of frustration and tossing and turning, trying to get comfortable, all over again.
And like Bill Murray, I have taken up the art of ice sculpture, but the darn chain saw keeps breaking my ice cubes.
While waiting in a doctor's examining room recently (a big part of my Groundhog Day), we noticed several serious- and scary-looking medical devices lined up on a table. Fortunately, the doctor didn't need to probe and poke at me with any of them. Interestingly – and coincidently – one of the devices, the one all the way on the right in the photo, is called the Wartenberg pinwheel or sometimes the Wartenberg neurowheel. It was designed by Robert Wartenberg (no relation that I know of) and is rolled across the skin to test your nerve reactions.
Speaking of nerves, the ones in my chin are messed up, according to Dr. Fleming, my ENT (ear, nose and throat) and J (jaw) specialist.
While my jaw didn't break in the crash, it was swollen and bruised badly and covered in road rash. I still can't open my mouth all the way and my teeth and jaw remain numb.
"A blow that hard can cause nerve damage," Dr. Fleming said, adding it could six or eight months for the nerves to regenerate and feelings to come back, whether or not I use the Wartenberg pinwheel.
Speaking of my injuries, I'm still discovering new ones … more than six weeks in...
I was in the shower the other day and felt a swollen spot on my left side, just above the hip, that I hadn't previously noticed. It was a band, about four or five inches long and maybe two inches around, about the size of a Snickers or Almond Joy. It didn't hurt unless I touched it … so I immediately stopped touching it (I'm not an idiot).
I asked Susan about it and she said yes, there was a huge bruise there right after the accident that my doctors had taken note of.
"It's so much smaller now," she said. "And all the black-and-blue have gone away."
"Oh, I don't even remember it," I said.
I have played hundreds of games of Words With Friends in recent weeks, and freely admit I've become addicted.
However, I no longer play my friends.
When I play it is all-out brain therapy and the waiting around for my friends to play their words ruins the whole rapid-fire therapy aspect. Plus, I'm inpatient. How dare my friends have lives and not be on call 24/7 and respond within seconds after I play AXER for 58 points to surge into the lead.
I now play against myself.
This way I can play an entire game in 20 minutes or less. I call it Steve's Super Speedy Restorative Words With Friends Brain Therapy (or Words Without Friends when I'm in a hurry) and it has helped improve my ability to concentrate and stay focused for longer and longer periods of time. Not to mention my vocabulary.
The goal, or at least my goal, when I play against myself, isn't so much to win, for obvious reasons. Instead, the goal is for each player to score 300 or more points. This requires a different strategy than when you play another person, a strategy that rewards patience and setting stuff up now for later on in the game.
I've mastered the 300-300 game, and have gotten to 400-300 a few times. Now, my sights are now set on hitting the 400-400 mark.
When I do, I will celebrate with a delicious and foil-wrapped pear from the mountains of Oregon.Posted by Steve Wartenberg on December 19, 2013 10:54 AM
December 12, 2013
Art (museum) therapy
It was Wednesday morning, Day 39 of my recovery, and I absolutely, positively had to get out of the house. And soon.
I was totally stir crazy after eight days of weather-induced confinement, interrupted only by my morning march out to the front porch to slowly and carefully grab the Dispatch, praying it was close to the front door and that it wouldn't hurt too much when I bent over to pick it up. Bend with your legs, Steve, not your back.
This, by the way, is one of the few household chores I can still do. I actually miss doing household chores, or maybe it's the ability, coordination and strength to do them I actually miss.
My version of stir crazy includes plenty of problems sleeping. I'm tired and starting to get a bit cranky, and by a bit cranky, I mean off-the-charts, super-diva cranky. I'm antsy and anxious and spend a lot of time walking excruciatingly slow laps around the house, trying to exercise my legs and tire myself out so I can fall asleep. I'm sick of playing endless games of Words With Friends and watching reruns of Castle, Big Bang Theory and Modern Family.
But what? What could we do? Where could Susan and I go? I needed a place that was warm, but not too crowded or loud. I wanted to walk and burn off some energy. Something interesting to do while we were there would be a bonus.
A walk around the neighborhood was out of the question as it was 12 degrees and the sidewalks remain covered in a snowy, icy mess that just won't go away. My legs are still a bit weak and wobbly, and my brain and balance are better but not quite back to normal. The thought of walking in the ice and snow made me nervous. And a little scared. I kept picturing myself splayed out on an icy patch of sidewalk, moaning, unable to get up, and Susan trying to lift me back up to my feet. She slips on the stupid ice and now we're were both on the ground, moaning, trying to get up.
"We could go to the mall?" Susan suggested.
"Too much noise and loud, Christmas music and too many people racing around with packages that could knock me over," I said.
"How about a movie," Susan suggested.
"Too loud and I'll be trapped in my seat for two-plus hours. What if I can't get comfortable? It could be torture."
That's right: I'm not exactly a pleasure to be around these days. Poor Susan. Fortunately, she has the patience of a saint.
"And I don't want too many people seeing my head," I said of my scalp, which is shaved in a buzz cut and still covered in scabs and other disgusting stuff.
Susan suggested the library and the supermarket, ideas I shot down for various reasons that had to do with noise, crowds and my fear of Stephen King novels.
"How about the art museum," I suggested. "We haven't been there in a long time."
"Perfect," Susan said and minutes later she pulled the car up, to within three feet of the front porch. Holding the railing in a death grip, I inched my way to the car, slowly got in, buckled up, grimaced, and off we went.
"I hope they have comfortable seats at he museum, I'm going to need to rest a few times," I said.
Fifteen minutes later we were in the parking lot behind the Columbus Museum of Art. Due to the giant addition they're building, you have to walk a bit to get to the entrance. They did a good job of shoveling, but there are – or at least look like there are – a few icy patches.
"Oh crap," I said nervously.
Doing my best impression of a really old and infirm person, I walked slowly and cautiously to the entrance without coming close to slipping. This walk is my greatest athletic achievement since my bike and I were struck from behind by a car on Nov. 3.
"OK, we're here, I'm exhausted, let's go home," I joked as we walked inside the museum.
Susan laughed. I think.
None of my doctors or therapists mentioned the Columbus Museum of Art, but I recommend it as a great place for battered and bruised people recovering from traumatic body and brain injuries to come and spend an hour or two once you're somewhat back on your feet. We went on a weekday, which meant it wasn't crowded and the museum isn't so big that it's overwhelming and exhausting for someone with limited energy.
There's an exhibit of works by Columbus native George Bellows that's excellent. It fills three galleries, and there are very comfortable and well-cushioned chairs in the first gallery that have outstanding lumbar support (I have compression fractures of three vertebrae) … and provide great views of his famous boxing paintings. I rested here four times.
There's also an interesting Lego exhibit. One of the artists made a bicycle out of green Legos. It was really cool, but also made me a little nervous to think about riding again once spring arrives and the ice and snow finally melt. The way the winter and weather are going, this will be August 20.
"I'm glad you took me to the art museum, thanks," I told Susan as we drove home. "Let's maybe go out to lunch on Friday. I think I'm ready."
This will be my first meal at a restaurant since the crash and another big step forward in the recovery process.
"OK, where do you ant to go?" Susan asked.
"I don't know. Some place quiet, but all the good places will be packed and loud. Maybe we could go late, after the lunch rush is over. And I need a place with comfortable seats or my back will start hurting."Continue ReadingPosted by Steve Wartenberg on December 12, 2013 09:15 AM
December 02, 2013
The recovery continues (slowly)
It's Day 30 of my recovery and I'm at the point of: "Enough already!" I don't want to be in pain or on meds any more. I want to be back to normal, back to work, back to the life I led before 11:45 a.m. on Nov 3. But as so many people have told me: "Steve, you need to be patient." I understand what you're saying, but it's hard. Really hard.
I've been boosted by the outpouring of support I've received from scores of people, including several letters from cyclists who have been in accidents. These letters have saddened and inspired me. I'm sad because way too many riders have been hurt in accidents. Actually, I don't think accident is the correct word if a distracted or impaired driver hits you from behind. I'm tempted to go with attempted vehicular manslaughter instead. I'm inspired by the courage and determination of all these cyclists. The following are several of their messages, interspersed with some of my thoughts and observations on the recovery process.
The take away from the letters is simple: Please, please, please pay attention when you drive a vehicle. Distracted and/or intoxicated driving (and drivers) seems to be the common theme in these stories. It doesn't have to be this way. Here's another tragic example from today's Dispatch.
You can also check out the comments from my last blog post, as several other cyclists commented on accidents.
Dion Peachey
Hi Steve: I had a similar accident on the morning of Oct.13 on Riverside Drive. I was riding north with a friend and a car hit me from behind and sent me and my bike flying over top of my friend Zach's head and 47 feet through the air to where I landed. I also don't remember the accident, even though I wasn't knocked out.
Like you, I ended up at Riverside Methodist Hospital where I received exceptionally good care. I had a broken left humorous (upper arm) and torn rotator cuff, seven broken bones in my face and major road rash on the back of my right thigh and calf. I had two surgeries for my arm and face and ended up with a plate and seven screws in my arm and two small titanium plates under my right eye.
So many parts of your story sound the same as mine. Reading your words saddened me and comforted me at the same time. I felt deep sadness and pain for what you went through, but I also chuckled as I identified with so many things you shared. Even cards with cats doing crazy things! The part I identify with the most is how extremely blessed I am to be alive. God had his hand stretched out to where I landed and didn't want to take me yet and the same is true for you.
Peace and hope to you as you continue to recover. Maybe we can get together for a ride next spring or summer!
The brain is a strange and mysterious organ, and mine has been acting a little differently since my accident on Nov. 3. My sense of smell went through the roof. While I was in the hospital, I could smell lunch and baked goods from 100 yards away. I also had a heightened awareness of the slightest trace of perfume, body odor or bad breath on the people who visited or attended to me. The slightest hint was like a siren song of odors to my recovering brain. All this has died down in recent weeks, so don't feel self conscious if you visit.
I'm also more acutely aware of noise, especially loud noises coming from more than one direction at the same time. High-pitched voices are like chalk on a blackboard, and overly perky people are annoying. This too has gotten better over time, although the other night I was watching TV and someone on some show was blowing a whistle, over and over again. Each and every time he blew that stupid whistle it was like someone was hitting me in the head with a tiny hammer. Speaking of TV, I watch a lot of it now. And I hate all the violence, even the slapstick comedy violence. "That's not funny any more" or "I don't like that" is what I say to Susan whenever any of this is on a show. A recent episode of NCIS started off with a Marine out on a run. She was struck from behind and killed by a car. Gibbs and his crew had to find the killer. "I can't watch this," I told Susan.
Donna Bush
Steve, You will recover. After having a cycling accident in 1991 … with a major head injury and significant hearing loss ... I recovered. It took me several years after the accident to get the courage to venture out on my bike alone. But you will recover and begin to enjoy cycling again ... you will.
I'm trying to reduce the number and amount of pain medications I'm taking, but it's been rough. Once I get below a certain medication level, stuff starts hurting: my head throbs, my shoulders ache, areas in my hips and knees that didn't hurt previously begin to hurt. I'm able to deal with this better during the day than at night. In fact, most nights, I fall asleep quite easily, around 11 p.m., only to wake up at about 2 a.m. in a bit of pain. I take a pill, fall back asleep and wake up again at about 5 a.m. I'm restless, so I get up and out of bed, go downstairs and watch an hour's worth of Sportscenter. This usually does the trick, and I go back up to bed and sleep for a few more hours.
Brad Young
Hi Steve … I too was hit by a vehicle while I was on my bike, on 9/1/13. I suffered some of the same injuries that you received (head cut open, broken ribs, punctured lung, multiple scrapes/scratches). And, like you, I was fortunate to have my helmet on! It broke into pieces like yours. I too have no memory of the incident and recall very little from the first week in the hospital (thankfully).
All that said I wish you the best in your recovery. From the 11/25 article, I just read, it sounds like you are doing better … awesome! I too felt like my wife got the worst of it. She had so much more to deal with than I did.
I am back to work part time now and hope to get to full time by Christmas. I have had some troubles as a result of my brain injuries. I wish you a speedy recovery and look forward to your future articles. We both have something to be very thankful for this Thanksgiving!!!
While I was in the hospital and during my recent string of doctor's appointment, way too many people have commented on the severity of my injuries. They say I'm lucky to be alive, let along walking and on the road to recovery. One nurse said the scars/scabs on my head look like the map of Yellowstone National Park. It has something to do with their shape, which resembles a figure 8, she said. I'll have to take her word on that, as I'm not about to Google map Yellowstone to see for myself. Not yet.
I'm not sure if this is what I need to be hearing from all these people. Yes, they're right. I'm so lucky to be alive and lucky that I seem to be on the road to recovery and making strides forward every day. I understand this. But it's still tough to hear, over and over. I haven't been able to come to grips with the fact that I almost died, that's just too monumental a reality to deal with. And I keep thinking about Bob Lennon, the DeSales teacher who was hit from behind while riding his bike … and died from the injuries he sustained. The driver took off, leaving Bob broken and bleeding by the side of the road. This is exactly what happened to me. Why do I get to live, while Bob (and others) died?
Leah Rozen
Dear Mr. Wartenberg: Twenty-five years ago, while cycling from chateau to chateau in the Loire Valley in France, I was hit by a car. Like you, a helmet saved my life. I had multiple fractures of my right arm and left leg and was cut up, bruised and swollen. My face looked like an apple that someone had used as a tennis ball.
I spent 11 days in a French hospital (yes, the food is much better than in U.S. hospitals), where I underwent two major orthopedic surgeries, and my parents had to come over and fly me back to America on a stretcher. I then spent three months in a hospital bed in their living room. Six and nine months after the accident, I underwent bone grafts for fractures that weren't healing, and then later had another two surgeries to remove all the metal screws and shafts that had been holding bones together.
Bottom line: I didn't walk without crutches or a cane for a year but, eventually, it all got better. Just know that it takes a year or two to fully recover. And do your physical therapy! It makes a huge difference.
Getting back on a bike is going to be the very scariest thing you ever do. Ever. But you will. I went back to France two years later and finished the ride that I had started. And I'm still riding and still loving it.
Day 16 was the day I got to go home! That's a big step in the recovery process, but also a bit anticlimactic. You think: I'm going home, that means I'm all better and will soon be back to normal. And then you get home and realize: I'm not better yet, and normal is still a long way away. Our house seemed smaller, but the stairs to the second floor (and our bedroom) seemed a lot longer, steeper and narrower than I remembered. I hold that railing in a death grip whenever I go up or down.
On Day 17 I went to see one of my many doctors and his PA (physician's assistant) said it was time to take out the staples and stitches in head. "Will it hurt?" I asked. "Not much," she said. She lied and it hurt like hell, especially when she had to dig through layers of scabs to get to staples. She tok out more than 30 staples.
Day 20: Susan discovers more staples in my head, hidden beneath scabs. At least 10 more. "Crap!" I said, "that's going to hurt."
Day 23: Back to see another doctor, Dr. Fleming, who said my scalp wounds are healing nicely, but could require some minor touch up work in a few weeks. "Can I take out the rest of the staples?" he asked. "Yes," I said, knowing better than to ask if it would hurt. I took a few calming breaths and prepared myself for the worst. However, it didn't really hurt at all. Dr. Fleming has taken out thousands of staples, and all this experience added up to a smoother, easier and mostly pain-free experience.
Day 27: I was going to take a nap, but this was the day our neighbor decided to have a tree surgeon come in and cut down – with an extremely loud chain saw – the large tree in their backyard. Every time that chain saw went on, the hair on the back of my neck stood at attention and my brain started pounding. The cutting lasted about an hour and a half … and was finally over. Nap time!
Darin Hadinger
I just read the article about you being hit on your bike. I am so sorry to hear that. I've been hit on mine in Dayton before, a van doing 40+ passing me over double yellows in an intersection while I was attempting a left turn. My head smashed his windshield, took his mirror and bumper off, I was laying on it in the intersection. He was cited with unsafe lane change. Long story short … he walked.
Continue ReadingPosted by Steve Wartenberg on December 02, 2013 09:46 AM


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Related Reading
eBay Hacks
Editor's note: This week we're showcasing excerpts from the recently released eBay Hacks. These three hacks have a common thread--they all deal in some manner with hacking the view of eBay from your browser. In the first hack, tap into eBay's massive database right from your own address bar; in the second, learn how to use Cascading Style Sheets to change the look of your eBay page; and in the third, find out how to control the view of other eBayers' pages with your own browser. If you enjoyed these hacks, you'll find 97 more such tips and tricks in the book.
Tap into eBay's massive database right from your own address bar.
eBay is essentially a massive database. Every time you view an auction page, you're just looking at a single database record. Every time you search, you're performing a query. But even if you're not familiar with DB lingo, you can play with eBay's URLs to tweak what you see.
Many pages on eBay use a standard CGI (Common Gateway Interface) format, which is nothing more than a program name followed by a command and one or more parameters:
cgi.ebay.com is the name of the server,
eBayISAPI.dll is the filename of the program,
ViewItem is the command to execute, and
item=3128013703 is a parameter. Any additional parameters are separated by ampersands (
In this case,
3128013703 is the auction number. Simply replace this with another valid auction
number, press Enter, and you'll see the corresponding auction page. This is
typically quicker and more convenient than using the Search page to open an
auction by its number.
TIP: Some sellers reference other auctions by simply including the auction number in their descriptions, usually because they don't know how to make links (see Hack #40). To view the auction by its number, simply copy and paste the number into the URL, replacing the one that's there.
A typical search page URL looks something like this:
Here, I searched for "avocado green", which you can see in the parameter
satitle=avocado+green. Most searches will probably have more parameters, some more self-descriptive than others.
The real value in tweaking the URL is the ability to add or change options
otherwise unavailable or inconveniently located in the search interface. One of
the most useful of these is the self-evident
sorecordsperpage option. Although you can choose this option
by going to Search → Advanced Search → Results Per Page, this can be cumbersome,
and you can't add it to an existing search you've already built. Instead, simply
type the following at the end of an existing search URL:
Note the required ampersand (
&) to separate this parameter from the one that precedes
it. (In the old days, you could have up to 200 items on a page, but eBay has
since reduced the limit to 100; anything higher will simply be ignored.) Here
are some of the other parameters that are worth typing:
Number of search results to show per page, max=100
Show only auctions above or equal to a certain price
Show only auctions below or equal to a certain price
Restrict results to specified categories; see the next section
Exclude results from specified categories
Show (1) auctions only or (2) Buy-It-Now listings only
Show only listings that accept PayPal
Although there's no way to specify a category directly in the search field, there is a quick way to convert a standard search to a category-specific search without having to drill down through layers of category links. (See Hack #11 for the long way.)
eBay has thousands of categories (more than 15,000 at the time of this writing), each identified by a unique category number. Although there's no obvious rhyme or reason to the numbering scheme, you may eventually learn the numbers of your favorite categories. The category number is easily found in the URL of the category listing; for example:
Here, the category number is
19116. (You can also get
the number of any category by viewing the complete list at
listings.ebay.com/aw/plistings/list/categories.html.) To convert a standard
search to a category-specific search, simply type the following at the end of
the search URL:
You can specify multiple category numbers by separating them with plus signs, something you can't do by clicking links on search pages.
TIP: Categories are typically restricted to a single nationality. For example, a given category number at ebay.com won't be recognized at ebay.de, even though ebay.de may have an equivalent category that goes by a different number. See Hack #15 for details.
If you click "View seller's other items" on any auction page, you'll see a listing of all current auctions by that seller. Although you'll find even fewer options here than on the average search page, there are two important URL options you can tweak.
A seller's auction listing URL looks something like this:
Related Articles:
Selling with eBay's New Auction Page -- In July 2003, eBay completely redesigned its standard auction page, the page that shows the details of any particular sale item. For sellers, these changes may have repercussions that ultimately affect their bottom line. In this article, David Karp, author of eBay Hacks, discusses several approaches eBayers can implement right away to help them communicate more effectively to customers about their auctions, and bring in the cash.
By default, only current auctions are shown here, but you can change the
since parameter from
-1 to any number up to
30 to view past auctions up to 30 days old. You can
also change the
rows parameter to specify how many auctions to show on a page; the maximum is 200.
It shouldn't take long to discover that typing either of these parameters into the URL is far quicker and more convenient than going to Search → By Seller, typing the seller's name, specifying the age and number of auctions to show, and clicking Search. But you probably saw that coming.
Use Cascading Style Sheets to change the look of more than just the description.
 tag, introduced in Hack #40, allows you to set the font for any block of text.
But it won't have any effect on text outside the
 structure, which means you can
never control the appearance of any text outside the description area (e.g., the rest of the auction page). Instead, you'll have to use Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) if you want to apply your styles to the entire page.
The following code, for instance, will turn all text on the page green:
 structure &callout1; sets
apart our CSS definitions, which will take effect regardless of where the code
is placed on the page. Next, a single CSS definition &callout2; lists the
HTML tags to modify with our new styles. In this case, we are applying our
styles to all
 text, as well as to any text inside
 tags,
	 tags (used for tables), and
 tags (used for links). If you don't want to modify link colors, for instance, just remove
,a from line &callout2;.
The actual styles applied are listed between the curly braces
{ }, separated one per line for clarity. This includes the font size, the typeface, and, of course, our glorious green color
&callout3;. The
!important keywords ensure that our
styles override any other styles defined elsewhere in the page, which is why
even the section headers and the light gray text in the "Time left" section are
overpowered by our choice.
If you feel that making all text the same color is a little drastic, you can customize it further:
body,font,td {
font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica !important;
color: blue !important;
a {
font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica !important;
color: orange !important;
This sets all ordinary text blue, except for links, which will appear orange
(this will look pretty awful, by the way). Note the absence of
font-size style, which will ensure that the original size of all text is preserved.
TIP: For a complete list of all the CSS styles you can use, you'll need dedicated CSS documentation such as Cascading Style Sheets: The Definitive Guide (O'Reilly), or the official W3C CSS specification (www.w3.org/Style/CSS/).
You can also use this technique to alter other aspects of the page. Don't like the blue shading section headers? Well, you can do something like this:
td { background-color: white !important; }
You may find this particular solution somewhat extreme, since it removes the shading used in every table on the page. But it will give you a taste of the power of CSS.
See Hack #41 for further auction-page hacking.
You'll eventually encounter an auction that has been hacked up pretty well, possibly by a seller with even worse taste than you. Fortunately, you may still have some control over the pages you view with your own browser.
TIP: Have you ever opened a page with a text/background combination that rendered the page nearly impossible to read? Here's a quick fix: just press Ctrl-A to highlight all text on the page. This will make all text appear white on a dark blue background, which will likely be a significant improvement.
You can set your browser preferences to favor your own color choices over those made by web site designers, but this can be a pain to turn on and off as needed. Instead, you may wish to set up a user stylesheet, a set of carefully constructed preferences and rules that will trump any crazy code like the stuff at the beginning of this hack. User stylesheets are supported by Netscape 6.x/Mozilla 1.x and later, and Internet Explorer 5.x and later.
Probably the best source for information about user stylesheets is Eric Meyer's CSS Anarchist's Cookbook. There, you'll find ways to "wreck" tables, disable banner ads, and render font coding pretty much useless, all worthwhile pursuits for the anarchist in each of us.
From time to time, bidders will contact you with special requests, such as those suggested in Hack #26 and Hack #27. How you respond to such requests and how you decide to conduct business is entirely up to you, but you'll want to be careful about some of the steps you take. As a seller on eBay, you'll have to walk a fine line between protecting yourself from dishonest bidders, not upsetting your honest bidders, not violating eBay policy, and not wasting large amounts of your time.
TIP: See who you're dealing with by taking a moment to look at their feedback and investigate their history, a process explained in Hack #53. That way, you'll know whether you should trust the bidder or add the bidder to your Blocked Bidder list (see Hack #54).
For instance, an impatient bidder might want to use Buy-It-Now on one of your auctions, even though the item has received bids and the option has disappeared from the page. The following are a few different approaches to dealing with this type of request, each with its own advantages and disadvantages:
Assuming you know the value of your item (see Hack #33), you should be able to look at the current bids - as well as the relative success of your competition - and predict how much you're ultimately going to get for your item. Your auction may indeed be on track to fetch a higher amount than your original Buy-It-Now price, in which case you'll want to politely tell the bidder that you prefer to let the auction run its course. Naturally, you'll run the risk of not getting as much as the bidder is offering, or, at the very least, driving the bidder away by making him wait.
If you cancel all bids on an auction, the Buy-It-Now price will reappear, and the bidder in question can buy the item. Unfortunately, this approach is not without risks. First, you'll need to get the timing right; if the bidder isn't quick enough, someone else may place a bid and the Buy-It-Now price will once again disappear. But what's worse is the possible flight risk; if the bidder doesn't end up using Buy-It-Now, you've essentially canceled a bunch of honest bids on your item for no reason.
You can also make an under-the-table deal with the bidder, agreeing to end the auction early for a certain dollar amount. But this, too, is fraught with peril. First, eBay may consider this to be a violation of their "fee avoidance" policy, and as a result may suspend your account. Second, since it is an off-eBay transaction, it won't be covered by eBay's fraud protection policies, and neither you nor the bidder will be able to leave feedback.
WARNING: As a seller, you should never solicit an off-eBay transaction from your bidders, either in your auction descriptions or in any eBay-related emails. There are several reasons for this, not least of which is that it's a common practice by scammers and spammers (see Hack #20) and may unsettle otherwise interested customers. It would also violate several eBay policies put in place to protect bidders. This doesn't mean that you can't agree to such requests from bidders, only that you should be careful about how you proceed.
Probably the safest approach is to create a second listing, identical to the first. When it's ready, send the URL to the bidder and instruct him or her to use the Buy-It-Now option promptly (before anyone else bids). Only when that auction has closed successfully should you cancel bids on the original auction and end it early. This way, you and the bidder can complete the transaction officially and enjoy the protection of eBay's buying and selling policies. And if the bidder backs out, you can simply end the superfluous listing or modify it to accommodate a different item.
Although the preceding example is the most common request of this sort, it's not the only one you'll receive. Bidders often contact sellers to ask for alternative colors, versions, etc., as well as related items and accessories, and a cooperative seller can stand to make quite a bit of extra money. Just be careful about how much you reach out to bidders.
If you're selling shoes, for example, it's generally acceptable to mention that you have other sizes and colors, either in other auctions (see Hack #47) or for sale in your online store. But this is different from posting a "dummy" auction whose purpose is to simply direct customers to your off-eBay store. Bidders won't buy it, and eBay won't tolerate it.
David A. Karp is the author of the bestselling Windows Annoyances series of books and the founder of Annoyances.org. He writes for PC Magazine and his latest books include eBay Hacks and the eBay: The Missing Manual.
Return to the Web DevCenter.
Copyright © 2009 O'Reilly Media, Inc.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Kolkata Mary Ward Social Centre Newsletter"Not all of us can do great things, But we …Read More »
Loaves and fishesHere is an article by Br. Bill Firman from Solidarity …Read More »
Members and co-workers are responding to today's needs in diverse ministries: education, pastoral & spiritual programmes.
Read More ...
Education is a critical need in our world today and continues to be a major focus of IBVM ministries in schools, colleges, universities and informal settings
Read More ...
Justice, Peace
Integrity of Creation
Justice, human rights and social needs must be at the heart of all ministries and so justice, peace and integrity of creation must be nurtured as part of the IBVM identity, being, formation and living.
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Mary Ward International
Mary Ward International (MWI) works in every province and region to support the life and mission of the Institute throughout the world
Read More ...


text:
City insists housing agency pony up for inspections
BARRE Barring a successful legal appeal, Barres largest landlord will be required to pay full freight under the citys rental housing inspection program.
City councilors this week rejected the Barre Housing Authoritys bid to remain exempt from an inspection program that the organization says will force it to incur an unwanted annual expense for a redundant service.
That argument was at the heart of a protracted and sometimes spirited discussion of a complete rewrite of the ordinance governing the decade-old inspection program.
The debate spanned several hearings and produced conflicting legal opinions on the citys ability to compel the public housing authority to participate fully in the program. That will mean paying the full annual registration currently $30 per unit and submitting to inspections.
Since the programs inception BHA has been exempt from city inspections and has been charged $6 per unit. The federally funded organization is responsible for nearly 325 units of public housing in Barre, meaning the fee hike translates into more than $7,500 a year in increased costs.
Before soliciting a word of testimony it was pretty clear the council was ready to adopt the revised ordinance and move on.
Councilor Michael Boutin made that motion at the start of a brief public hearing that saw BHA Executive Director Charles Chip Castle halfheartedly renew his objection to the revised ordinance.
Noting lawyers for the city and the housing authority had agreed to disagree on the issue, Castle said he remained convinced the BHA should not be subject to an ordinance establishing minimum standards for rental housing in Barre.
We believe that the housing authority is distinctly different from other private landlords, or other nonprofit organizations, he said, suggesting the proposed fee was akin to a tax and barred by both state law and a 48-year-old agreement between the city and the housing authority.
You can hammer and pound away at a square peg, and if you hammer hard enough and long enough you just might get it to fit in a round hole, he said. We believe this fee is equivalent to a tax.
Mayor Thomas Lauzon disagreed, defending a revised ordinance that he said would strengthen the inspection program and suggesting it was unfortunate that some might mistakenly conclude the council doesnt support the housing authority.
If I didnt have faith in our staff and I didnt believe that this was good public policy and it didnt make our community as a whole safer, I wouldnt be supporting it, he said.
Councilors unanimously approved the proposed ordinance and briefly discussed phasing in the increase in the annual fee paid by the housing authority over three years to soften the blow. However, the idea was quickly abandoned when Lauzon said he didnt believe the council had that authority.
@Tagline:david.delcore @timesargus.comMORE 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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text:
I absoluty hate the idea.
I think for my guild (and tbh alot of guilds will feel the same about it) it will ruin alot of the social aspect of the game. 25's are for alot of guilds just for the fun and not even for the loot. Missing out on the fun on vent ect. That would be such a shame. Since well, same loot, 15 less people to screw up. Easy choice.


text:
What just happened???...
Speaking of empty seats in the GRANDSTANDS......you need to read the marketing idea for empty grandstands...I hope and pray someone didn't pay good money for this idea!!
ISC to continue cutting track seats: International Speedway Corporation already has decreased the capacity of its tracks by 17 percent from 2007-2012, cutting capacity from 1.1 million to 909,000. And it pledges more cuts. Daytona International Speedway, which once had 168,000 grandstand
seats and currently seats 147,000, will seat a mere 101,000 (not including suites) by 2016. ISC, whose stock is primarily controlled by the NASCAR-owning France family, told financial analysts last week that it plans to decrease capacity at several more racetracks. Other tracks cutting capacity points to at least a 25 percent reduction from 2007. Company officials said seats without views of pit road don't deliver as good of an experience. Or seats too far from many of the midway areas or the prerace activities don't allow fans to take advantage of those amenities.
In order to create urgency and worry among ticket buyers, ISC will cut the number of seats available. They don't want fans to wait on the weather. They want fans nervous that if they don't buy early, at best they will end up disappointed with their seat, or at worst, out of luck because the race sold out. ISC's answer is to decrease the number of seats. In some ways, that is an
acknowledgment that fewer people attend live sporting events overallpurchasing habits of sports fans have changed and packed grandstands at facilities that can hold 125,000 will never again exist.(Sporting News)(7-10-2013)
Short version......less seats, higher prices that will make them want to rush to the Box office and pay twice as ,much for the same seat they sat in last year.......how stupid do they think WE are??
I give up........


text:
Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies
The John Charles Polanyi Prizes, 2013
Oct 11/12
Matthew Smith, ext. 2916
In honour of the achievement of John Charles Polanyi, recipient of the 1986 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, the Government of the Province of Ontario has established a fund to provide annually up to five prizes to outstanding researchers in the early stages of their career who are continuing to post-doctoral studies or have recently started a faculty appointment at an Ontario university. In 2013, the prizes have a value of $20,000 each and are available in the areas broadly defined as Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, Literature, and Economic Science.
Prizes are intended to recognize outstanding researchers in the early stages of their career - either entering postdoctoral studies or having recently started a faculty position. Eligibility requirements include normally being a resident of Ontario and having received the doctoral degree between Sept. 1, 2009 and April 30, 2013. Refer to the announcement (related documents, below) provided by the Council of Ontario Universities, as well as the OCGS website for more information.
The internal deadline for applications to the Faculty of Graduate & Postdoctoral Studies is December 1.
Contact Matt Smith, Assistant Dean, FGPS with questions and names of potential applicants.
View all Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies news
View all Laurier news


text:
I searched through the boards a bit but couldn't find much about this. I'm sure this has been asked before!
I want to start building a back up supply for my LO. I'm home with him now for the next 10 weeks, so I don't need a lot, but I wanted a supply for emergencies or when I go out, etc. Eventually I am going back to work and am hoping to pump then or at least do formula and some BF too at that point.
Anyway, I've started pumping a bit after every few feedings to increase my supply. I don't get much at a time, maybe 1/2 ounce, which my LO eats now since I am using a supplemental nursing system to help him along. I want to pump a full bottle at a time to store, if I can. When is best to do this? He eats every 2-3 hours, so I don't know when to pump when I'll have the most milk and I don't want to effect his feedings.
Any advice is appreciated! Thanks!


text:
Journal Junction for March 14
Editor's note: Journal Junction offers the public a forum to applaud successes, discuss issues, point out problems and review the events of the day in a constructive manner. Journal Junction comments should be limited to two to four sentences and be no longer than 80 words. Longer comments should be submitted as "Letters to the Editor,"?which is a separate forum. The Journal's classified ads section offers help to those with lost or found items. This is a sampling of comments received today. Any others, subject to editing, are published in the online Journal Junction at www.journal-news.net under opinions.
From Hedgesville:
About the ribbons in Hedgesville. The people who live there just love ribbons and love to see them swaying when the wind blows. Peaceful, don't you think?
From Stoer's Corner:
Somebody, someday soon, is going to leak the crime scene photos of the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre. And when the American people see what bullets from an assault rifle fired at close range do to a little child's body, that's the day the jig will be up for the NRA.
From Opequon Hill West:
I suggest the Martinsburg caller who thinks my comment about young voters having elected Obama "silly" should read the actual election results which are easily found. Sixty percent of young people voted for Obama; 36 percent voted for Romney. The Huffington Post states, "Mitt Romney lost the youth vote by a huge margin, and with it, he lost the presidency." I suggest the Martinsburg caller should work on educating her peers.
From Martinsburg:
These Republican carpetbaggers are getting ridiculous. This Mooney fellow gets asked to resign from his chairmanship of the Maryland Republican Party, so he rents a house in West Virginia so he can get a new job as a Congressman from here? Are you serious?
From Martinsburg:
Efforts by Gov. Tomblin and the West Virginia legislature to include "stakeholders" in the government education boondoggle fail to include the very largest block of true stakeholders: "customers" (children and their parents) and the patient, docile taxpayer-lambs who are being fleeced. When non-readers "graduate" from high school, the "education establishment" should bow their heads in shame.
From Frederick, Md:
To the Martinsburg caller who compared a rifle to a bicycle in regards to safety: No wonder West Virginia school systems have a poor reputation. What a dumb comparison!
From Kearneysville:
Make sure and check your store receipts against the prices you should have been charged. I recently tested three stores, 10 items each, and every store had errors with their scanners. CBS News recently had a story about Safeway and their high number of errors. Buyers beware.
From Martinsburg:
To the person on handguns: It's not the guns, it's the person using them. Just like a car. They can kill with a car. It all depends on the person at the time.
From Inwood:
To the one inquiring about a Seder service on Easter: New Hope Church in Inwood (meeting at the Inwood Performing Arts Company) will be hosting a Seder at 10 a.m., presented by Chosen People Ministries. All welcome.
From Martinsburg:
We did away with sooty smokestacks years ago. Bellowing black smoke up the chimney as a way of indicating the papal vote seems environmentally ignorant, but I guess the church is pretty out-of-touch on a lot of things, isn't it? Just send out a tweet and get on with it.
From Martinsburg:
I hope the rally on Sunday at 2:00 will raise awareness of the problems with sending our local mail to Baltimore.
From Jefferson County:
To the person from Harpers Ferry inquiring about Seder services open to the community: There will be one held at Covenant Church in Shepherdstown Thursday, March 28, at 7 p.m.
From Falling Waters:
I care, and agree, with Mr. Thompson's letter to the editor regarding the trash lining roads and every other public and private area in West Virginia. Step over the state line to Maryland, Pennsylvania or Virginia and you just do not see that. Is it the attitude of people who live here, or poor state/county management? Whatever, it is a real turnoff. At this rate, West Virginia will never rise above its stereotypes.
From Shenandoah Junction:
Am I the only one outraged by what is going on in Washington? We need to keep writing our Congress people. Silence is a choice and I choose not to be silent.
From Martinsburg:
I see the new attorney general who lived in Washington is getting rid of the consumer protection side of things and promoting the companies he lobbied for in Washington. Guess we get what outside money bought once again.
From Berkeley County:
Hey Paul Ryan and Republicans! The American people voted against your budget last November. Think of something other than more tax cuts for the rich.


text:
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text:
Events » Talks & Tours » Tour
Self-Portrait, c. 1636-38
Rembrandt van Rijn
Dutch, 1606-1669
Oil on panel
panel: 24-7/8 x 19-7/8 in. (63.2 x 50.5 cm); framed: 32-1/2 x 27-1/2 in. (82.6 x 69.9 cm)
The Norton Simon Foundation
Northern Baroque: Rubens, Rembrandt and Other Dutch Masters
Date: Saturday, April 06, 2013
Time: 1:30 pm - 2:30 pm
Educator: Staff Educator
Type: Tour
Join a Museum educator for a one-hour tour exploring northern baroque masters in the Norton Simon collection.
Meets in Entrance Gallery | Free with admission. | Please note that space is limited to 25 participants. Sign up at the Information Desk no later than 15 minutes prior to the tour.


text:
Remembrance of a Legend…
Where were you 30 years ago today?
Getty Images
Well, many of you probably weren't even born yet. But those of us who were most likely will remember August 2, 1979…particularly Yankees fans. The day saw the untimely demise of #15, the Yankee Captain, Thurman Munson.
As a teenage Yankees fan, Thurman had been my hero. While I have always credited Jim "Catfish" Hunter and the legend of Lou Gehrig as the primary reasons I became a Yankees fan despite growing up in the Midwest, it was the tough and tenacious Munson that quickly became my favorite player.
Thurman was his own man and he wouldn't let anyone push him around. Not George Steinbrenner, not Billy Martin, not Reggie Jackson, not Carlton Fisk. I will always remember the 1976 World Series…not for the series sweep at the hands of the Big Red Machine but how Thurman wouldn't quit. He hit .529 in the series, and at one point, had six consecutive hits. His performance laid the foundation for the championship years of 1977 and 1978.
I had known about Thurman's interest in airplanes, and how he viewed it as a way to reach his family in Ohio more often. Selfishly, I was hopeful that he'd never leave the Yankees in the late 70's/early 80's, but I had become increasingly fearful that he would leave at the end of his contract to sign with the Cleveland Indians (to be closer to his home). Unfortunately, I never saw that day come and will never know if Thurman would have truly left or if he would have stayed to finish his career in pinstripes.
On August 2, 1979, I was in high school and employed by a local grocery store in a small Iowa town. I was working when one of our customers told me that they had just heard Thurman Munson was killed in an airplane crash. I vividly recall just standing there with a blank look of disbelief frozen on my face. My hero had just died…
It is a loss that I personally will never forget. I think about Thurman every August 2nd, and I see his spirit continue to thrive in present day Yankees like Derek Jeter, Jorge Posada, and Mariano Rivera.
Doug Kanter/AFP/Getty Images
Today was a day to remember Thurman and we continue to owe him a debt of gratitude for the way he wore pinstripes. Thanks for the tremendous memories, Thurman. You are still my hero…
For a great article about Thurman Munson, please read Moss Klein's article in The Star Ledger, entitled Catcher Thurman Munson, The Captain, was the Heart and Soul of the NY Yankees. It's an excellent read.
The Yankees were able to beat the Chicago White Sox today, 8-5, to avoid being swept in the four game series which began last Thursday.
Mike Carlson/AP
Melky Cabrera became the first Yankee since Tony Fernandez in 1995 to hit for the cycle. Melky went 4-for-5 with 4 RBI's and 2 runs scored. He staked the Yanks to an early lead with a three-run homer in the second inning.
Tannen Maury/EPA
In the 9th, needing only a tripe, Melky hit a liner off the right field wall. Trying to do his best impression of Brett Gardner, Melky sped around the bases and just beat the relay throw to third for his first triple of the season and completed the cycle.
Nam Y. Huh/AP
It wasn't a great game for CC Sabathia (perhaps he was still disappointed that his buddy, Victor Martinez, now calls Fenway Park home), however, he gutted it out and stayed in the game into the 8th inning. Mark Buehrle, fresh off a perfect game just two starts ago, was the loser.
Nam Y. Huh/AP
With the win, the Yankees remain a ½ game ahead of the Boston Red Sox in the AL East. The Red Sox throttled the Baltimore Orioles today, 18-10.
Nick Wass/AP
Hey Julia, just 4 more days until the showdown resumes. From what I can tell, the Yankees have finally figured out a way to beat a team called the Sox! Life is good!
With today's game, Derek Jeter has now played in 2084 games, which ties Babe Ruth for fourth place on the list of most games played with the Yankees.
AP file
My wife and I attended the San Francisco Giants game against the Philadelphia Phillies today at AT&T Park. It was a beautiful day for a game. The weather forecast was cloudy and 59 degrees, however, after early cloudiness, it was all sunny skies and 66 degrees. The Giants prevailed, 7-3, with Barry Zito getting the win over Cole Hamels.
AT&T Park is one of my favorite ballparks, and today was definitely a treat…
Okay, I did have to make sure that I kept an eye on a certain American League score…
…but I managed to watch the Giants win a great game!
Late in the game, a Dodgers fan walked up the stairs to leave the game. The crowd booed and hissed unmercifully while the Dodgers fan just soaked it all in and waved his Dodgers cap with pride. After the Dodgers fan had exited, a Boston Red Sox fan made the same exit except this time, no one said anything at all. The Red Sox fan was ignored as he quietly left the stadium. Ah, I love being back in the Bay Area…
5 Comments
As a Red Sox fan living in the Boston area – the death of Thurman Munson was felt deeply. Yes, there was no love lose between he and Carlton Fisk, but Red Sox fans had to admire Munson's love of the game. His impact on the game will never be forgotten.
Great pictures from the game! Only 66? Okay – the weather might be a little more bearable on the West Coast! lol And of course they didn't boo a Red Sox fan! Members of RSN are just loved everywhere we go that doesn't have "New York" in its name! LOL And I'm not sure that an 1-11 record really shows that the Yankees have figured out teams named "Sox". GAME ON SCOTT!! The Red Sox bats are hot and they are ready to send balls flying out of Yankees Stadium. I see you owing me – again!😉
So glad you got to go to a game at AT&T Park. It looks beautiful. (Nice pics!) I can't remember if you've already read Marty Appel's new biography of Munson, but if not it's certainly worth your time. It covers a lot of his career that you already know about, but it also delves deeper into his family life and the details of the crash. Here's hoping the Yankees take two in Toronto.
Hi, Scott …
Nice tribute in honor of our "Captain" Thurman Munson !!!
I cannot believe it's been 30 years already since Thurman Munson's tragic death … I remember that sad day well, and it was a very sad day for all Yankees fans and baseball fans alike !!! … Munson was the leader of the New York Yankees, and along with Carlton Fisk and Johnny Bench, they were the best catchers of that era !!! … It is a great injustice that Thurman Munson is not in the "Hall of Fame" yet … And, since Bench and Fisk are already in the Hall, Munson also belongs with them in Cooperstown, NY !!! …
Just like Lou Gehrig and Derek Jeter, Thurman Munson is a "true" Yankee, and, all three Yankee "captains" are the true example of what a Yankee captain should be !!! … Jeter will be a first ballot Hall of Famer when his playing days are over; I hope one day in the future, Thurman Munson will also grace the special hallowed walls of the Hall of Fame, right along side: Gehrig, Bench, Fisk, Jeter, and all the other "greats" of the game, because in my mind, there is no doubt "Thurman Munson is a Hall of Famer" !!!
This upcoming week will be very big involving the pennant race in the AL East … I look forward to: Red Sox vs. Rays; Yankees vs. Roy "Doc" Halladay in Toronto; and, of course, the huge four-game series between the Yankees and Red sox at Yankee Stadium !!! … "Playoff Baseball In August" !!! … It will be fun to watch, as it doesn't get much better then that !!!
Enjoy the games this week, Scott !!!
And, I look forward to your wager with Julia … [I offered a suggestion for a possible wager between both of you, as per Julia's open request on her blog. It is open for Julia's and your consideration, so feel free to use any part of the suggestion, or not at all, if you decide on another wager] … Of course, I'll be rooting for the Yankees !!! … The Yanks are playing much better then the last time both teams met, so I expect the 0-8 record to be reversed in the final 10 games both teams play, with the Yankees winning at least seven of these games !!! … But, let's start with our first win in Game One [on Thursday, August 6th], and then go from there !!!
"Go Yankees" !!!
Take care, Scott !!! … Have a great day !!!
— Jimmy 27NYY Curran, "BY&L"
— http://baseballtheyankeesandlife.mlblogs.com/
Scott, I remember of Thurman's crash quite vividly, also, even though I was relatively young at the time. Because I was a Red Sox (and Fisk) fan even at that time, I remember not liking Thurman very much. Later on I came to respect the way Thurman played the game, and it strikes me that the reason Fisk and Thurman didn't like one another (on top of the Red Sox/ Yankees dynamic) was that they both were very much alike–gritty, hard-working, gutsy players who were the engines of their respective teams. I imagine I'd think the same way had Fisk died as Thurman did. (I also have been to that airport several times, as my wife is from Akron). On the day Thurman Munson is laid to rest today, I tip my hat in Thurman's direction.
Laid to rest 30 years ago today, I should say. And Jimmy's right, Munson should, like Fisk and Bench, be in the HOF. He is one of those players who, when you watched them play, you would think, "That is what a Hall of Famer looks like". Munson belongs there.


text:
Citing lack of sufficient evidence, a judge in Tunisia freed Ali Harzi, the only suspect in the attack that killed four Americans. NBC's Brian Williams reports.
A man linked by officials to the attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi has been conditionally released by a Tunisian judge, an adviser to Tunisia's justice minister said Tuesday.
The adviser, Kamel Ben-Jaballah, told NBC News that Ali Harzi, 26, was released from custody by the investigative judge yesterday.
Harzi, however, remains "technically under investigation" and his release is "temporary," Ben-Jaballah said, adding that Harzi is subject to a travel ban that forbids him from leaving greater Tunis.
New timeline of Benghazi attack reveals quick response
Harzi's lawyer said that his client, who is Tunisian, was released for lack of evidence.
Harzi's release appears to be a setback to the investigation of the Sept. 11 attack on the consulate that killed four Americans, including Ambassador Christopher Stevens, information management officer Sean Smith and security personnel Tyrone Woods and Glen Doherty.
The investigation in Libya has been stalled due to the weak central government in the face of the powerful militias, some of which may have been involved in the attack.
An independent panel's report on the Benghazi diplomatic mission attacks cites management failures at senior levels in Washington that resulted in "grossly inadequate" security. NBC's Andrea Mitchell reports.
Harzi was one of very few people in custody in relation to the attack. U.S. officials told NBC News in December that Egypt had also arrested a member of the group Islamic Jihad for possible links to the attack, but in general they lamented a lack of cooperation from local governments in their investigation and said most suspects remained free.
The attack became a political bombshell in the United States, with critics of President Barack Obama's administration saying that more should have been done to protect the embassy, particularly after officials had requested extra security.
A scathing report cited "systemic failures" within the State Department and was at least partially responsible for the resignation of the assistant secretary of state for the Bureau of Diplomatic Security. Three other officials were relieved from duty after the report was released.
Harzi's lawyer, Anwar Oued-Ali, said the presiding judge had "conditionally freed" his client Monday night and that he must remain nearby in case he is needed. The lawyer described the release as "correcting an irregular situation" because, he claimed, authorities never had any real evidence.
Benghazi coverage from NBC News
Harzi was originally detained in Turkey, and in October was extradited to Tunisia, where authorities had said he was "strongly suspected" of being involved in the attack. His lawyer said he was officially charged with "membership of a terrorist organization," a charge punishable by six to 12 years in prison.
In December, FBI officials questioned Harzi for three hours in the presence of a Tunisian judge.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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