text: Really, it's about your participants. When you review the Group Fitness Instructor Exam Content Outline you'll notice that the two largest categories are Group Instructional Methods (37%) and Group Leadership (29%). But if you think about it, that makes sense. Group Fitness is about leading a group of individuals through an exercise routine. Yes, I know, that's the most basic explanation, but it emphasizes the two main concepts of leadership and instruction. Just like with preparing for the personal trainer exam. GFI candidates will find that the background information like anatomy, nutrition, kinesiology and all that are important but the practical application of knowledge is just as important. As you are studying, remember that the ACE GFI exam is intended to lay the foundation of your GFI knowledge. It focuses on the fundamentals – how to select music, how to cue, how to introduce levels of intensity to an exercise – rather than on the specifics of any given modality (step, yoga, cardio boxing). Group Instructional Methods (Domain 2) is basically 'how do you tell your participants what to do?' If you look at the exam content outline you will notice words such as lead, motivate, educate, observe, and provide feedback. These are all things you do during class. This is not the pre-planning of your routine or music choice. Instead, it is figuring out how to work around different learning styles and level of skill, how to help participants with appropriate goal setting, and how to instruct participants on changing the intensity level of their exercise to best suit them. Your instruction – what you tell your participants to do – should help them to achieve their individual health and fitness goals. Along with being able to direct your participants in what to do, you also have to get them to do it! This is where we talk about Group Leadership, Domain 3. If you review your Exam Content Outline you will see words like lead classes, safe and effective, identify hazards, foster a comfortable environment, and create a positive experience. Part of your job as the group fitness instructor is to provide a great class experience. This is more than just playing upbeat music and having awesome choreography. As the leader of the class you are in charge of the environment. You are responsible for making sure the room is safe for your participants – appropriate temperature and noise levels for example. Safety also involves offering exercise modifications for participants who need different intensity or lever arm adjustments (sounds like what we just talked about in group instruction!) So how are you supposed to make sure participants have a positive experience? Make it about them. Look at issues of adherence and motivation and ways to build rapport and enhance communication. Are there ways you can build community in your classes? Are you making yourself available to participants who have questions? These are things that sometimes take a little work before you are comfortable in that one to one interaction. You can study adherence and motivation but do you know how to apply them to a group of exercise participants? This is the practical aspect of your group fitness certification exam. As you study for your Group Fitness Instructor certification exam you have a lot of material to cover. Rather than just reading through each chapter and hoping it sticks, look for ways you can apply the knowledge. Ask yourself, does this information help me design a class? Does this information help me teach a class? Does this information help me lead a class? Working with your class participants is the biggest part of the GFI certification exam and covers a wide variety of topics. If you have questions as you are studying, just give us a call at 1-888-825-3636 x782. One last question…Do you know the difference between a participant centered teachings or an instructor centered teaching? If not…check your manual!


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Deadly flu strain striking young, healthy people
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - Doctors believe the virus that's hitting Colorado hard this flu season is the same H1N1 strain from the 2009 pandemic.
According to El Paso County Health Department Medical Director Bill Letson, this flu season is the worst since the 2009 flu season. This year, it's not just the elderly or very young who are susceptible.
"What's unusual this year is there are young, healthy adults showing up in the hospital with influenza which usually doesn't happen," Letson said.
The reason behind that is complicated, according to Letson, but one reason is that the virus is relatively new. Since the H1N1 virus has only been around for about five years, our bodies have not had a chance to build natural immunities against it, Letson said. Most seasonal flu viruses have been around for decades and the average, healthy adult has built at least some immunity to it which can lessen the symptoms of influenza. Since that's not the case with H1N1, the potential to make someone ill to the point of hospitalization or death is more apparent.
One Colorado Springs woman knows the deadly effects of H1N1. In 2010, it almost took her life.
"My blood pressure was bottoming out and my heart rate was over 150," Melodee Ryan told KRDO NewsChannel 13. "I was literally dying."
Ryan has a low white blood cell count which weakens her immune system. Doctors told her that contributed to pushing her to the verge of death.
"The doctors came in and said, 'Sir, your wife is dying. You should prepare for her funeral," Ryan said.
But against the odds, Ryan survived the flu. It took her about six months to recover.
A total of 160 people have been hospitalized in El Paso County because of the flu in the 2012-2013 flu season. There have been no deaths reported in El Paso County. In Pueblo County, two people have died this year.
Doctors say it's not too late to get vaccinated. This season's flu vaccine includes the H1N1 strain. KRDO's medical expert, Dr. John Torres, says that you can still get the flu after getting the flu shot, but your symptoms won't be as bad.
"It prevents hospitalizations and probably most importantly, it prevents deaths," Dr. John said.

subset: commoncrawl


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Staff & Student News

Research & Publications

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In the last week of October, Associate Curator Janet Voight (Zoology/Invertebrates) published a paper in the journal Zoomorphology that reports a fundamental difference in the mouth muscles of deep-sea octopuses. With a critical illustration by Janet's intern, Meghan Rock, a student at California State University Monterey Bay, this short paper suggests that the two apparent clades of octopuses that are broadly sympatric worldwide in the deep sea avoid competition due to this difference. One of these octopus groups, species of the genus Muusoctopus, is in most respects very much like shallow-water octopuses. The other, Graneledone spp., looks different, with bumpy skin, a single row of arm suckers and, it turns out, different mouth musculature. Octopuses, being mollusks, are "supposed" to use their radula, their toothed tongue, to rasp their food into their mouths and, in octopuses' case, big muscular palps move it from the entry of the mouth to the esophagus. The anatomy of the mouths of species of Muusoctopus makes it apparent that they likely do just this. Species of Graneledone, however, have exceptionally short radulae and a new, never-seen-before, vertically oriented muscle under the floor of their mouth. Based on anatomy, Janet hypothesized that contraction of this vertically oriented muscle, which Janet named the buccal abductor, expands the posterior part of the mouth to create negative pressure; in doing so, it draws the food into the esophagus. So, both octopuses put food in their mouths that winds up in their esophagus, but the process is a bit different. Could this difference be enough to prevent competition between these octopuses and allow them to coexist in the food-limited deep sea? Gut contents from octopuses of Graneledone suggest that they eat bigger chunks of prey than do the other octopuses (including snails, shells and all). Part of the reason why scientists publish their work is to present a hypothesis for others to test, and reject. Janet's paper outlines what she discovered, and what she thinks it means. Images above: Left: a photo taken by a camera mounted on the crewed research submersible, ALVIN, of a Muusoctopus at about 2400 m depth. This octopus appears in most ways to be similar to shallow-water octopuses. Right: Photo of an octopus of the genus Graneledone in the North Pacific Ocean at about 2600 m depth by a camera mounted on the crewed research submersible, ALVIN. Note the bumpy skin and relatively massive head

Curator Gary Feinman and Adjunct Curator Linda Nicholas (both Anthropology) coauthored two papers regarding community organization and economy in prehispanic Mesoamerica. The first paper, entitled "The Late Prehispanic Economy of the Valley of Oaxaca, Mexico: Weaving Threads from Data, Theory, and Subsequent History," appeared in Research in Economic Anthropology.

The second, "Compact versus Dispersed Settlement in Pre-Hispanic Mesoamerica: The Role of Neighborhood Organization and Collective Action," appears in The Neighborhood as a Social and Spatial Unit in Mesoamerican Cities, edited by M. Charlotte Arnauld, Linda R. Manzanilla, and Michael E. Smith, and published by University of Arizona Press, Tucson. Each paper draws heavily on Gary and Linda's decades of archaeological studies in the Valley of Oaxaca, expanding their field research findings to address broader and more comparative themes.

Resident Graduate Student Jon Mitchell and Assistant Curator Ken Angielczyk (both Geology) co-authored a paper with Dr. Peter Roopnarine (California Academy of Sciences) that appeared online at the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences on October 29. The paper, entitled "Late Cretaceous restructuring of terrestrial communities facilitated the end-Cretaceous mass extinction in North America," used a computer model to examine how disturbances to a community (such as a die-off of plants caused by an asteroid impact) can propagate through the community's food web, causing additional species to become extinct. Jon and his colleagues found that the same-sized disturbance caused more extinction in North American communities that existed in the final two million years of the Cretaceous (i.e., closer to the extinction) than in communities from the preceding 13 million years. This difference in vulnerability likely stems from climatic and environmental changes going on during the Late Cretaceous, which caused mixing of previously separated terrestrial communities and ecological reshuffling. Although a mass extinction almost certainly would have still occurred if the asteroid had hit at an earlier time, their results indicate that it likely would have been less severe. In addition to providing new insight into the end-Cretaceous extinction, their results emphasize that seemingly innocuous changes in community structure and function, such as those caused by anthropogenic climate change and habitat degradation, can have serious consequences when unexpected disturbances occur.

MacArthur Curator Bruce Patterson (Zoology/Mammals) attended the 42nd Annual Meeting of the North American Society for Bat Research. He presented a paper with Research Associate Paúl Velazco (Zoology) entitled"Diversification of the Neotropical Yellow-shouldered bats (Phyllostomidae: Sturnirini),"describing their efforts to elucidate this widespread, abundant and diverse group of bats. Their analysis of three mitochondrial and two nuclear genes indicates that the 14 species listed for the genus Sturnira in the last world checklist (2005) represent only two-thirds of its diversity, and three of these species are new. Bruce also co-authored a presentation by University at Buffalo graduate student Solon Morse entitled "Some Like It Hot—Evolution and Ecology of Novel Endosymbionts in Bat Flies of Cave-roosting Bats (Hippoboscoidea, Nycterophiliinae)," which focused on the novel and unique pupiposition habits of a bat fly that recently acquired a new bacterial endosymbiont. (See header image)

A. Watson Armour III Lab Manager Kevin Feldheim, Intern Michelle LeCaptain and Research Assistant Kellie Murdoch (all Pritzker Molecular Lab), Research Associate Nobby Cordeiro (Zoology/Botany), and colleagues from New Jersey and Tanzania published a paper describing molecular markers developed for a threatened African trees species, entitled "Isolation and development of 13 new, polymorphic microsatellite loci for a threatened, understory tree, Mesogyne insignis, (Moraceae) from the Eastern Arc Mountains," online in Conservation Genetics Resources. These markers will be used to study the population structure of this tree species in a fragmented landscape.

Research on our Invertebrates Division land snail collections by Dr. Rebecca Rundell (Zoology Curator Rüdiger Bieler's former Ph.D. student at The Field Museum and the University of Chicago and now an Assistant Professor at State University of New York, SUNY-ESF) shines a spotlight on extinction in land snails on Pacific islands. In the latest (October) update to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, Rebecca contributed 52 land snail species threat assessments using Field Museum collections as part of a new initiative to better understand the extinction crises in the Pacific. Of the three groups included in this collaborative effort—freshwater fishes, reptiles and land snails—land snails were found to be the most highly threatened, with 70% of assessed species falling into a threatened category. Half of these species are considered Critically Endangered. One of Rebecca's primary study areas, lowland tropical forests in the Republic of Palau, not only contain many highly threatened species, but according to the study also have the highest percentage of land snail species found there and nowhere else: 90%!

Research Associate Nobby Cordeiro (Zoology/Botany) and Resident Graduate Student Carrie Seltzer (Zoology/UIC) published a paper describing the first record of the Servaline genet Genetta servalina from the East Usambara Mountains of Tanzania in the Journal of East African Natural History. This record, based largely on numerous camera-trap photographs from within and around Amani Nature Reserve, is the northernmost East African record of this enigmatic species. This is a surprising new distributional report given that the species has escaped detection by scientists working intensively in this mountain range since the late 1800s. The paper is available here. <stro... above: Servaline genet Genetta servalina photograph from a camera-trap in Amani Nature Reserve, Tanzania (photo by Carrie Seltzer)

Research Associate Nobby Cordeiro (Zoology/Botany) just returned from the 13th Pan-African Ornithological Congress in Arusha, Tanzania, where together with colleagues he presented two posters, one on climate change and bird distributions on Mt Kilimanjaro over a 20-year period, and another on the distribution and abundance of a critically endangered species, the Long-billed tailorbird Artisornis moreauii. He also participated in a symposium on landscape modification, presenting the effects of forest fragmentation on interspecific interactions of mixed species bird flocks.

Fieldwork & Collections

The Division of Mammals welcomes Venezuelan scientist Eliecer Gutierrez, now based at the Smithsonian Institution, for a two-week study of Neotropical deer. The Museum's collections from the Andes are particularly strong, and this region includes some of the world's most striking deer, including the Chilean pudu (image left), one of the world's smallest. The Neotropical radiation is ultimately derived from North American immigrants that colonized South America during the Great American Biotic Interchange 3–12 million years ago. MacArthur Curator Bruce Patterson (Zoology/Mammals) is collaborating with Eliecer and others on some of these studies.

During the week of October 15th, Assistant Collections Manager Janeen Jones (Zoology/Invertebrates) attended the 7th Annual North American KE Emu User Conference and Natural History Special Interest Group at the Peabody Museum, Yale. Emu is the Electronic Museum management system Database used in C&R for collections management and on-line collections data. The meeting was well attended by the Smithsonian, New York Botanical Gardens, American Museum of Natural History and The Henry Ford Museum among many others. GBIF/ IPT toolkit integration, upgrading Darwin Core fields and Filtered Push development were among the many topics discussed. Presentations covered many topics from experiences implementing Emu, to uses of the tool in exhibit (real and virtual) development. The final day of the meeting covered new features in the latest version to be released in January 2013 as well as new tools and features being developed longer term.

Public Education & Media Coverage

Associate Curator Janet Voight (Zoology/Invertebrates) gave a Special Keynote address at the Biology Club's annual Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Symposium at Malcolm X College in Chicago on October 23. Giving a lecture between those of Vincent T. Turitto, Professor of Biomedical Engineering and Director, Pritzker Institute of Biomedical Science and Engineering at IIT and Dr. Mona Khanna, chief Medical Reporter for Fox News Chicago, Janet, as usual, offered something completely different. In the spirit of the event, Janet talked about her career in deep-sea research, and how she got to where she is today, as well as the opportunities the Field Museum offers, especially in the way of internships. She encouraged everyone to see the Romance of the Ants exhibition then in its last days, as that exhibition shows just what one can achieve with enough determination and drive.

Robert A. Pritzker Assistant Curator of Meteoritics and Polar Studies Philipp Heck and Collections Manager Jim Holstein (both Geology), along with Francois Tissot, Nicolas Dauphas and Levke Kööp from The University of Chicago presented at the 2nd Annual French-American Science Festival at Northwestern Hospital on October 29–30. This program, hosted by the French Consulate in Chicago, promotes scientific collaboration and education for middle school and high school children. Using meteorites from The Field Museum collection, the presentation focused on why meteorites are important to science and highlighted current research being conducted at The Field Museum and the University of Chicago.


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I dont want to play the Giants again that is for sure. I know we will get smoked if we play the Giants again. I feel we matchup well with Atlanta and Chicago if we make the playoffs.
The Packers are a very good team. VERY GOOD. I honestly don't know how we did this to them. I kept thinking to myself... "Is this the same Giants team that laid an egg vs the Bengals?"
The Giants are no guarentee to make the playoffs. A win vs the Redskins will pull us so close but we certinly can lose to the Saints, Atlanta, and the Ravens too so these games are no gimmies.
The Packers have a much easier schedule and can very easily take that division. Chicago with Cutler is iffy at best. I have no faith in Cutler.
If I look into the crystal ball, I see The packeres as the 3rd seed, Atlanta as 1st seed, San Fran as 2nd seed, Giants as 4th seed, Bears as 5th seed, and either Seattle or Washington as the 6th seed.
This would set up Green Bay vs Washington and Giants vs Bears in first round. Yeah I'm way ahead of myself but that;'s what I'm seeing.
Football has been very, very good to us.
After losing seasons 2013-15, the giants put up 11 wins in 16.. they are on way Back
But for now we can console ourselves with this fact-
# of Super Bowl victories since 1985:
1-Chicago, St. Louis, Tampa Bay, Indianapolis, New Orleans, Seattle
2-Washington, Green Bay, Pittsburgh, Baltimore
3-San Francisco, Dallas, Denver
4-New York Giants!!!
Let's make it 5 in 2016 so we can be on a LINE NE again!!!
***Stat provided by "Schloss22"***
Sorry, GB winning streak came courtesy of asides from the Texans, playing 4 extremely bad teams in the Rams, Az, Jags & Lions. Not exactly a murderers row there. What happened when they finally played a really good team? They got exploded! Now they got Minny 2x, da bears, Lions & Titans left with only the Bears as the only legit tough team left on their schedule. See em beating Lions & Titans, splitting with Minny & losing to the Bears. So they finish 10-6 & as their reward, they get us in the WC rd. Don't really think they want that at all.
GB is good, no doubt, but they can't hang with the more tougher, physical Ds such as us, SF & Seattle whom sacked Rogers 12 times & laid down the smackdown on him. GB is a finesse team & cannot win the battle of the trenches vs the big bad physical Defenses I just mentioned.
Losing our O coordinator Philbin killed us alot. Our offense is 20th in the league right now and it shows. I will consider the season a success if we win just one playoff game.
Matthews is the best linebacker in the game and Rodgers is the best qb in the game right now.


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After a disastrous season, the new coach at the Warriors will have no shortage of things to fix. Michael Burgess highlights the areas in most urgent need of repair.
1. Master the mental game
Even in the good times this year (and there were some) one thing remained constant across every Warriors match: an inability to concentrate for 80 minutes, or even for long periods, which inevitably proved fatal on the scoreboard. It was evident from the first match in Eden Park sunshine; the Warriors were the better side but Manly snuck home, mostly as a result of Warrior fadeouts. We don't expect State of Origin-like intensity the whole match but we do expect more. There is no quick fix. The All Blacks made it a priority four years ago and only now feel they have a handle on this difficult science. They have gone as far as to adjust the language used on field (and before a game), where the focus is on being specific descriptive language rather than motivational platitudes. While there is an acknowledgement some Warriors need more help in this area than others, there needs to be serious, concentrated work on the mental side of the game on an individual and collective basis.
2. Find a football manager
As much as the new coach is important, the appointment of a football operations manager is just as vital. It was a major element lacking around Mt Smart this year. Someone like Andrew Gee (Broncos), Alan Thompson (Bulldogs) or Frank Ponissi (Storm); a person who is the link between the strength and conditioning, medical, sports science and football departments as well as a sounding board for the coaching staff and management. Warriors chief executive Wayne Scurrah says a football manager will be appointed in conjunction with the new coach, though a decision is yet to be made as to whether the role would sit next to or above the coach in the chain of command.
3. Revive off-field resources
Heading into 2013, there can be no more cutting corners in terms of off-field resources. Apart from staff, investment is needed in the areas of recovery, rehabilitation and sports science. At the Bulldogs, one of Des Hasler's staff is specifically employed to work on recovery and rehabilitation, the club fully aware of the value of getting players back on the park as quickly as possible. It may be just down to luck but the Bulldogs have been strangely unaffected by long-term injuries this year. Not all of this is the Auckland club's fault; the facilities available at dilapidated Mt Smart can't be compared with the state of the art equipment available at the Roosters, Storm or Bulldogs. As an example, the Warriors still have their icebaths in giant plastic bins while many other clubs have purpose built baths within their change area. Owen Glenn and Eric Watson signalled their intentions in this area in July and the investment can't come soon enough.
4. Advanced Australian fare
While the development focus is noble (and potentially successful) there still needs to be a core of good Australian players at the club over the next two to three seasons. At times this year there were just three Australians in the side and that simply isn't enough. Their background of tough, competitive, high quality football from their school days through to the juniors produces an invaluable mix and there is a decent correlation between imports and success. In each of the seven years the Warriors have made the top eight, they averaged nine Australians in their NRL squad. The Australian influence was undeniable in their most successful campaigns - 10 in 2002 (grand final), six in 2003 (preliminary final), 10 in 2008 (preliminary final) and eight last year (grand final).
There will be just five Australians at Mt Smart in 2013 (Dane Nielsen, Todd Lowrie, Jacob Lillyman, Feleti Mateo and Nathan Friend) which is the lowest number since 1997 (two) and 1998 (one).
5. Rebuild the Vulcans
The Vulcans are the forgotten team of the Warriors but one of the keys to the future. If we learnt anything from 2012, it is that the step from under-20s to first grade is a massive one, to be attempted with utmost caution. The template was seen in 2010 and 2011, when Ivan Cleary resisted massive pressure to throw Shaun Johnson into the NRL, consistently maintaining that he wasn't ready. He was eventually used in round 13 of 2011, after spending more than 18 months in the NRL squad. Even though it is not as glamorous as the Toyota Cup, the Vulcans need to be the bridge between the Juniors and the NRL.
6. Find the next Maloney
Granted, this is easier said than done. James Maloney was a gamble that paid off spectacularly (he arrived at Mt Smart with just four NRL games to his credit) while others such as Joel Moon, Denan Kemp and Matt Jobson less so. But it seems logical (and easier) to target young Australian players on the cusp of first grade who are dying for a shot at the NRL. Like the halfback stuck behind Johnathan Thurston at the Cowboys, or the five eighth waiting for Benji Marshall to move on at the Tigers. The Warriors would have to improve their Australian scouting network but it seems more viable and significantly cheaper than trying to lure top Australians here once they have made it.
7. Focus on fitness
Being one of the fittest teams in the NRL should be a minimum requirement. The Warriors have experimented with different pre-season options before (in 2004 they focussed on bulk and size, in 2009 on wrestling and strength). This year they seemed to struggle aerobically, especially late in games, after they failed to build the fitness base at the start of the season, switching into a skills focus a month earlier than normal.


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MA in Media Arts & Worship (MA/MW) Advising
The Advising Center wants to help you make informed decisions as you progress toward graduation. MAMW (formerly MAMC) students often ask three questions:
- 1. How do I meet my 23-hour residency requirement?
Due to the availability of necessary Media Arts and Worship electives, students should be aware that it is not possible to earn the MAMW without completing a significant portion of the degree on the Dallas campus.
Additionally, 23 credit-hours of the MAMW degree must be completed in a classroom on the Dallas campus. Please see our Residency and Time Limits for more information regarding residency.
DTS provides several opportunities for students seeking to complete the MAMW to earn residency credit:
Dallas Courses
Courses are offered in day, evening and weekend formats at our Dallas campus. Please see the DTS course schedule for current and future course offerings.
Intensive Courses
DTS offers one and two-week-long intensive courses during our Summer and Winter sessions each year. Students complete pre and post coursework, and attend lectures for one to two weeks. See the DTS course schedule.
- 2. How do I choose my electives?
Students must select 15 total Media Arts and Worship elective hours from among approved electives. For a current listing of approved electives, see the most recent catalog.
Students in the MAMW program should seek guidance from professors in their department regarding the courses that will best prepare them for their desired ministry context.
- 3. How do I complete my Media Arts Apprenticeship (formerly Internship)?
The Media Arts Apprenticeship (MW102) is the capstone experience of the MAMW program, which includes the development and enhancement of media-related communication skills and/or worship design and implementation in a ministry context. Students should select their apprenticeship site and mentor in conversation with professors in the Media Arts and Worship department after the completion of 30 credit hours.
This page provides basic information. Academic Advisors are happy to come alongside you as you journey with the Lord. Schedule an advising appointment today!
MAMW Timeline
The following timeline is designed to serve as a guide as you progress through seminary. For particular questions please contact the Advising Center.
0 – 15 hours into the program
- Begin Spiritual Formation (SF100 or SF110)
- Meet with Advising Center to create a degree plan
- Enter a planned graduation date
- Plan to meet residency hours
- Meet with MW faculty to select electives
16 – 30 hours
- Meet with MW faculty regarding MW102 Apprenticeship
31 – 45 hours
- Check in with the Advising Center regarding progress toward degree completion
- Begin Apprenticeship
- Complete Graduation Application
46 – 67 hours
- Pay attention to all graduation related emails and announcements
- See Placement Office and MW faculty for ministry opportunities
- Participate in Commencement!
Department Information
- Location
- Walvoord - 1st Fl
- Hours
- M--F: 8:00am-4:30pm
- Phone
- 214-887-5080
- firstname.lastname@example.com
- Advising Center
- Entering Students
- FAQs
- Degree-Specific Advising
- Financial
- Academic


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Airlie Beach News & Events:
Whats on this New Years Eve 2011 / New Years Day 2012 in Airlie Beach
Event Description :New Year Eve Fireworks on the Airlie Beach Foreshore at 9.00pm and 12.00midnight
Big 4 Adventure Whitsundays, Airlie Beach
This New Year's Eve is the ever-popular Pool Party for all the kids and family
New Year's Day recovery "Pancake Breakfast"
Capers at the Beach Bar & Grill at the Airlie Beach Hotel, Airlie Beach
This New Years Eve at Capers at the Beach Bar & Grill at Airlie Beach Hotel will have live music supplied by "Under the Radar", starting from 10.00pm. This is a great place to relax and enjoy time with friends and family with "NO COVER CHARGE". The award winning cuisine will compliment a great night out. For dinner reservations please call 07 4964 1888
Magnums Hotel, Airlie Beach
This New Years Eve at Magnums Hotel, Airlie Beach, party with 3000 people from around10.00pm through to 5.00am in 3 rooms of live entertainment. Presenting Lady Lauryn, Grand Theft Audio and LA Walker headlining a huge rock lineup into 2012. Tickets can be purchased from Magnums Hotel, Airlie Beach, please call 07 4946 6188 for more information.
Whitsundaze New Years Day 2012 at the Magnums Hotel, Airlie Beach
New Years Day, settle in to Whitsundaze New Years Day Festival from12noon to 3.00am, with 18 acts over 15 hours of music, on 3 live stages. Tickets are available for $25.00 pre-sale from various Airlie Beach venues or $30.00 at the door. For more information please call Magnums Hotel, Airlie Beach on 07 4946 6188.
New Years Eve Summer Fling 2011 at the Down Under Bar & Grill, Airlie Beach
Opening this New Years Eve at 10.00am - Entry after 5.00pm will be $10.00 with loads of free giveaways and prizes. Live music supplied by Sean Robertson from 5.00pm, with 3 DJs Sugarlips, Jay Berry and Chris Leverington through till the early hours of the morning. For more information please call Down Under Bar & Grill, Airlie Beach on 1800 24 22 73
New Years Day Seedy Sundaze Session 2012 at the Down Under Bar & Grill, Airlie Beach
Open New Years Day from midday for the Seedy Sundaze Session with the grill open both days, offering the Pint/Meal deal from 12.00 noon till 9.00pm. For more information please call Down Under Bar & Grill, Airlie Beach on 1800 24 22 73
Glitz and Glamour New Years Eve at the Beaches Bar & Bistro, Airlie Beach
Opening this New Years Eve from 5.00pm till 2am with live music supplied by Michael Caruana from John Butler Trio with his all star band The Sugar Lumps. Pre sale tickets $15.00, available until Wednesday 28 December, on the door $20.00
Proudly brought to you by Toscana Village Resort, Airlie Beach Accommodation.


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As new car sales hit a pre-recession 100,000 by the end of last year, used import vehicles also had a successful 2012.
Last year, 81,827 used imports sold alongside 100,795 "New Zealand new" vehicles.
"Even though used import numbers are well short of their level of the mid 2000s, they still play a strong part in the local market and help give it an overall look and feel that is a bit different to the one that most of the public perceive," said Motor Trade Association spokesman Ian Stronach.
While most rely on the strength of their New Zealand new sales to underpin their overall performance, some vehicle types rely almost entirely on used import volumes, Stronach said.
Heading the top sellers was the Toyota Corolla, in its numerous nameplates, with its sales of more than 10,000 split almost half and half between New Zealand new and used imports.
Another traditional front-runner, the Suzuki Swift, was another that enjoyed good appeal with sales delivered almost evenly between the two sources, reported the MTA.
Strong used import sales helped the Mazda3/Axela into third place.
Among nameplates benefiting from strong sales as used imports was the Nissan Tiida, Mazda2/Demio and Mazda 6/Ateza ranges along with traditional import stalwart Subaru Legacy.
The Toyota Hilux and Ford Ranger, on the other hand, rely solely on their "New Zealand new" sales to propel them into the top 10 in the commercial segment.
The only model built by a non-Japanese manufacturer was the Ford Ranger, in 10th place.


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Discussion in 'Photo & Video Gallery' started by moogvo, Apr 27, 2012.
Anyone got any custom interior work? Custom or otherwise, post pics of your insides!
Here is a glimpse of mine. Real wood, custom box for 2 10's and amps mounted behind the rear seat along with a x over.
Left mine alone, aside from the Cal Trend seat covers and L.E.D. lights. Definitely made a change!
the inside just as I got the truck yesterday. you can see the rear cargo box that was in it from GM, and my steering wheel cover. thats all I have done for now. Not sure what else I will do.
Drake, were did you get those LED lights at? i may look at doing that at some point.
[MENTION=44531]Sierraowner5.3[/MENTION] I bought the kit from RECON. It was about $60 (not including shipping), and was a direct replacement for the incandescent bulbs. Literal plug and play. No wiring, no muss, no fuss. Here's the site if you're interested!
hey thanks man. ill look at that down the road me thinks.
Got some work to do but here it is.
Separate names with a comma.


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A friend of mine in Italy sent me this photo, taken a local market. She said a man selling honey was using it as a display. It appears the bees have used panes of glass to build comb on. I've never seen anything like it. Anybody like to comment on it?
Italian bees on glass.jpg


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REDLANDS - A compromise has been reached between the Monte Vista Estates residents and a new homeowner who wanted to build a structure that would have obstructed neighbors' views.
With Jerry Bean abstaining because of a conflict of interest, the four voting council members deadlocked on Oct. 16 on whether to grant a demolition permit that would have amounted to a go-ahead on the remodel plans Rod Canada submitted to the city.
The city Historic and Scenic Preservation Commission had recommended approving the permit in a 6-1 vote on Aug. 9.
On Tuesday, newly elected Councilwoman Pat Gilbreath would have provided the deciding City Council vote. She had given no indication of her leanings.
Canada had hoped to build a 3,800-square-foot-home where a 1,692-square-foot home now stands.
Mock-ups based on the dimensions in the plans show the proposed home would block views neighbors enjoy of Redlands, San Bernardino and Highland. Many of the homes in the neighborhood are designed around the views.
Julie Biggs, attorney for the residents of Monte Vista Estates, said she and Canada's attorney, former Redlands Mayor Kasey Haws, reached a compromise Tuesday afternoon at about 2 p.m.
Canada has drawn up new plans, which include only about a foot and a half elevation of the roof from where it is now. This represents about a 5<MD+,%30,%55,%70>1/<MD-,%0,%55,%70>2foot compromise on Canada's part.
Councilman Paul Foster had drafted a resolution during the summer in support of the Monte Vista homeowners' efforts to protect their views, but Councilman Bob Gardner dismissed the issue as a neighborhood squabble and urged the residents to work it out for themselves.
Establishing an ordinance that would protect Redlands homeowners' views in general has not been officially discussed.


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Collaboration between facilities engineers and infection-prevention personnel is key
Hospital-acquired infections (HAIs) are a leading cause of death in the United States, killing more people than AIDS, breast cancer, and automobile accidents. In 2010 alone, HAIs contributed to more than 99,000 deaths—one death every 6 min—and costs of up to $57,000 per patient, with an increase in length of hospital stay of about 10 to 15 days.¹ The financial consequences of HAIs never have been higher. Reduced reimbursements, low patient-satisfaction scores, negative ...
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This Means War: My Pre-Shop at Maison Martin Margiela For H&M
Hallae Khosravi | Posted 01.20.2013 | Canada Style
Read More: Bloor Street, Candy Wrapper, Toronto, Fashion, Shopping, Designer, H&M, Mmm, Maison Martin Margiela, Fast Fashion, Margiela, Style, Pre-Shop, Preshop Margiela for H&m, Margiela for H&m Toronto, Duvet Coat, Canada Style News
I won entrance into the pre-shop for the highly coveted Margiela collection at H&M the night before it opened to the public. We had four in our group, but it was everyone for themselves on the second floor. I did quite well climbing through racks and saying "sorry" compulsively to trick people into thinking I was polite and not a blood-hungry Margiela fiend.


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Skillet On The Cover Of "Parent Life" Magazine
Husband and wife John and Korey Cooper are featured in April's edition of Lifeway's Parent Life magazine. Their interview and article centers around the parents' day to day life with raising their 2 kids while on the road most of the year. Check out a portion of the article below.
"The good side is that I get to be with my kids all the time," says John, Skillet's lead singer/bassist and founding father. "The hard side is that they have an unusual schedule and are in a new place all the time." But as with any job, when it comes to family life, it has its pros and cons. "In some ways, it's not as much stability for them. But I don't have to leave to go to work for 10 hours a day." Wanting to remain the main influence throughout their kids' formative years, Korey and John decided to bring education in-house. "We homeschool on the road. And by 'we,' I mean my wife," the high-voltage frontman laughs. Along for the ride, his bride of 12-plus years can be seen exerting her alternative flair as the band's keyboardist and contributing vocalist every night. But Mrs. Cooper's daily appearances begin long before the stage is set. Like any other working mom, Korey has the family's daily routine down to a science. "Being a singer, John needs sleep or he'll lose his voice. So I have morning shift," she says, which includes her daughter's schooling. "We'll all go to lunch together, then John will take the kids to the park for the afternoon. I get a break before we have dinner. Sometimes the kids come to the show. Sometimes they go to bed. It just depends what schedule has evolved from the road."


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$1.5 million Decker Foundation grant to upgrade Binghamton University Health Services
A $1.5 million gift from the Dr. G. Clifford and Florence B. Decker Foundation will fund renovations and upgrades to Binghamton University's Health Service, enhancing health care services to students and strengthening relationships with local health care agencies. The building will maintain its current footprint, but once renovations are complete, the Decker Student Health Services Center at Binghamton University will serve students more efficiently.
"The Decker Foundation has been a strong supporter of Binghamton University for many years as we developed our outstanding nursing programs," said President Lois B. DeFleur. "This gift is another example of Decker's commitment to the University and the entire community. These funds will enable our University Health Service to provide more efficient and comprehensive programs and we are grateful to the Decker Foundation."
"This gift exemplifies the mission of our foundation," said Gerald E. Putman, executive director of the Decker Foundation. "Dr. Decker had a passion for health care and higher education -- what a fitting way to combine the two. "The renovations and upgrades will provide additional clinical sites for Decker School of Nursing students as well as resident physicians from local hospitals," Putman said.
Renovations will be phased over time so service to students will always be available, said Johann Fiore-Conte, administrative director. "The manner in which health care is delivered has changed substantially over the years, and our building was constructed decades ago to provide care very differently from the way we do now," she said." We'll have a larger waiting room with a learning kiosk for students, more examining rooms and new diagnostic equipment."
Another exciting aspect of the upgrade for Fiore-Conte is the conversion to an electronic medical record system and an up-to-date practice-management system. "Our goal is to continue to provide excellent care and service in more efficient ways, including the way information is stored and accessed and the way we implement our business practices," she said. "One benefit will be the ability for students to access online appointment scheduling and our ability to forward e-mail reminders to them."


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[quote user="JPizzack"][quote user="Morehead State"][quote user="JPizzack"][quote user="Morehead State"]
BTW...I'm so friggin sick of all this Manningham hate. Some posters are acting like jilted lovers because the kid wants to go somewhere where he can play more and make more than #3 WR money. Which his talents definately warrant.

Some of these guys are like 6 year old girls for God's sake.

I hate it too. Whatever though, these people don't understand. Theythink EVERY player is greedy, and that everyone has to, and WILL stay a Giant forever. It wasn't even Manningham's fault that Cruz EXPLODED this year, and he didn't get the ball as much as he would have if Cruz wasn't a stud.
He deserves to have his big shot, and a chance at money. I don't see the problem here. We are blessed with 2 pro-bowl quality receivers. What's not to love about that??

even this claim that he was too supid to know the offense. Its all crap. The guy was the only Giant to show up and play well at the end of 2010 when Nicks and Smith were hurt.

He's a legit player in this league and has been a good Giant.

youre right...he was. he was great for us exactly when we needed him to be. when players were hurt, and in the biggest game of his career. I wish him nothing but the best....except against us, and then i hope he fails lol.

Its funny to me that ppl are bitter he's leaving, but then just call him stupid. lol....soooo which do you want exactly, ppl?!?
For the record, no he was not an intelligent person. But he was most likely the best athlete on our team. His overall ability, and the fact that he stays healthy. huge plus side!!

Most football players aren't exactly rocket scientists.


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Tim The Yowie Man's top 5 things to do with kids
08 October 2013 , 10:08 AM by Jo Laverty
1. The tunnel walk - Box Vale Track walk at Mittagong - best kids walk I've ever done! It's flat, there's lots to see and do and it has a great tunnel! In fact I did it again with the girls last weekend. Wicked walk, kids love it! Bit of a drive but worth it.
2. Visit a bomb shelter. Travel back to war time Canberra and snoop around an historic air raid shelter. When Australia came under threat during World War II, Gallipoli veteran, Harry Calthorpe, was taking no risks. He not only installed black-out blinds and taped the windows (to minimise injury from splintered glass) of his Canberra home, but he also built a bomb shelter in his backyard. The shelter was recently restored and can be viewed when visiting Calthorpes' House which is a now a museum, showcasing life in Canberra in the early 1900s. Open weekends 1pm - 4pm. www.museumsandgalleries.act.gov.au/calthorpes/ Kid's lap it up.
3. Visit a natural playground. There's a lot of fuss about the great new playground at the arboretum, but why not get back to nature and go to a natural playground? The Birrigai Time Trail at Tidbinbilla is an easy walk for kids and features a really cool crawl through ancient rocks. Also check out where Aboriginal people used a nearby cave. Cool, hey?
4. Pizza 'n Art. What kid doesn't love pizza and drawing? Well, dine amongst a sculpture garden and feast on delicious wood-fired pizza in a converted 1920s homestead on the outskirts of Canberra. Strathnairn Homestead was originally part of a land grant awarded to 19th century explorer Charles Sturt. In the early 20th century it became a mixed farm and now is home to an arts association which provides opportunities for young artists in a rural setting. Sit outside and let the kids run amock, or even better ask for some butcher paper and let them draw/scribble. Artists of the future! Strathnairn is located at 9 Stockdill Drive in Holt, about a 20-minute drive from the city. The gallery, shop and cafe are all located within the homestead and are open Friday to Sunday 10 - 4.30pm. Free entry to the gallery. Bookings essential for Sunday pizza, Ph: 6254 2134 or www.strathnairn.com.au
5. Be a spy at the National Capital. Canberra has a reputation for being a hotspot for spying, however not all espionage activity concerns matters of national security. At Jerrabomberra wetlands you can spy on birdlife from five purpose-built timber bird hides which allow you to get up close to the birds without scaring them away. Wedged at the eastern end of Lake Burley Griffin between Kingston and Fyshwick, the wetlands, once part of an ancient floodplain cover over 200 hectares and are now of international significance. In the hides are posters of most of the 170 species of birds that have been recorded here, including some migratory species which fly from as far away as Japan and China. If you look closely in the still pools of water, you might even spot a platypus too. The main car park for the wetlands is on Dairy Flat Road, Fyshwick, a 10-minute drive from the city. The wetlands can also be accessed from the Lake Burley Griffin bike track circuit. The birds are most active around dawn and dusk. Free entry. Like a series of big cubby houses for the kids. Take the bike and go for a ride into Kingston for an ice cream afterwards.
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The comments to this entry are closed.


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Radiation Therapy for Cancer of the Esophagus
Radiation therapy is the use of high-energy radiation to kill cancer cells. It is often combined with other types of treatment, such as chemotherapy (chemo) and/or surgery, to treat esophageal cancer. Radiation therapy may be used:
- As part of the main treatment of esophageal cancer in some patients, typically along with chemo (known as chemoradiation). This is often used for people who can't have surgery due to poor health or for people who don't want surgery.
- Before surgery (and along with chemo when possible), to try to shrink the cancer and make it easier to remove (called neoadjuvant treatment).
- After surgery (and along with chemo when possible), to try to kill any areas of cancer cells that may have been left behind but are too small to see. This is known as adjuvant therapy.
- To ease the symptoms of advanced esophageal cancer such as pain, bleeding, or trouble swallowing. This is called palliative therapy.
There are 2 main types of radiation therapy.
External-beam radiation therapy: This type of treatment focuses radiation from outside the body on the cancer. This is the type of radiation therapy most often used when trying to cure esophageal cancer.
Before your treatments start, the radiation team will take careful measurements to determine the correct angles for aiming the radiation beams and the proper dose of radiation. Radiation therapy is much like getting an x-ray, but the radiation is stronger. The procedure itself is painless. Each treatment lasts only a few minutes, although the setup time – getting you into place for treatment – usually takes longer. Most often, radiation treatments are given 5 days a week for several weeks.
Internal radiation therapy (brachytherapy): For this type of treatment, the doctor passes an endoscope (a long, flexible tube) down the throat to place radioactive material very close to the cancer. The radiation travels only a short distance, so it reaches the tumor but has little effect on nearby normal tissues. The radioactive source is then removed a short time later. Brachytherapy can be given 2 ways:
For high-dose rate (HDR) brachytherapy, the doctor leaves the radioactive material near the tumor for a few minutes at a time, which may require several treatments.
In low-dose rate (LDR) brachytherapy, a lower dose of radiation is put near the tumor for longer periods (1 or 2 days) at a time. The patient needs to stay in the hospital during this treatment, but it can usually be completed in only 1 or 2 sessions.
Brachytherapy is most often used with more advanced esophageal cancers to shrink tumors so a patient can swallow more easily. This technique cannot be used to treat a very large area, so it is better used as a way to relieve symptoms (and not to try to cure the cancer).
Possible side effects of radiation therapy
Side effects of external radiation therapy can include:
- Skin changes in areas getting radiation, ranging from sunburn-like to blistering and open sores
- Nausea and vomiting
- Diarrhea
- Fatigue
- Painful sores in the mouth and throat
- Dry mouth or thick saliva
These side effects are often worse if chemotherapy is given at the same time as radiation.
During treatment with either external radiation or brachytherapy, the radiation kills the normal cells in the lining of the esophagus, which can make swallowing painful. This happens shortly after starting treatment but typically improves within a few weeks of finishing.
Most side effects of radiation are temporary, but some less common side effects can be permanent. For example, in some cases radiation can cause a stricture (narrowing) in the esophagus, which might require further treatment. Radiation to the chest can cause lung damage, which may lead to problems breathing and shortness of breath.
Talk with your doctor before and during treatment about what side effects you can expect and what can be done about them.
For more general information about radiation therapy, please see the "Radiation Therapy" section of our website or A Guide to Radiation Therapy.
Last Medical Review: March 20, 2014 Last Revised: February 4, 2016
American Cancer Society medical information is copyrighted material. For reprint requests, please see our Content Usage Policy.
Treating Esophagus Cancer
- Surgery for Cancer of the Esophagus
- Radiation Therapy for Cancer of the Esophagus
- Chemotherapy for Cancer of the Esophagus
- Targeted Therapy for Cancer of the Esophagus
- Endoscopic Treatments for Cancer of the Esophagus
- Treating Cancer of the Esophagus by Stage
- Recurrent Cancer of the Esophagus
- Palliative Therapy for Cancer of the Esophagus


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The Government major prepares students to be outstanding public servants, whether in foreign policy, domestic policy, the academic sphere, or the intelligence community. Each government track gives students a strong emphasis in classical learning and their core government classes, and hands-on training in their field of interest. Students also develop a Biblical understanding of their field and how to work in it.
The Government major is comprised of the following credit allowances:
Unless they choose to specialize in a track, students pursuing a Government major will take courses from the four following disciplines: American Politics & Policy, Economics, International Politics & Policy, Political Theory, and Political Philosophy. Click here to see a list of courses and Recommended Course Sequence for the Government Major with no track
Regardless of track, every student majoring in Government must take 12 credits of primary content courses that provide an overview of the field of Government and introduce the student to key subfields: American Political Institutions, Comparative Politics, International Relations, and Political Science Research Methods.
A key distinctive of Patrick Henry College is its focus on apprenticeship training. Government students are required to choose several apprenticeship opportunities comprising half of their major program (23 credit hours).
Each type of apprenticeship experience is unique. While apprenticeships are largely initiated by the students, PHC Government faculty are engaged in the learning process and provide oversight and direction to the apprenticeship experience. Government majors, especially policy and SI students, have a unique opportunity to participate in their chosen fields within the greater Washington D.C. community, including the White House, Capitol Hill, government agencies, think tanks, non-profit and faith-based organizations, and a variety of county and local government agencies and organizations.


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$7.40/10 Lb bag of C & H at Albertsons in Camarillo, Calif.
It's time to compare prices at Smart and Final.
I need to call SWEETNER PRODUCTS in Los Angeles and get a quote on their Bev Sweet.
Can some of you post the price of sugar in your locality?


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Town Square
Do we really need more housing in Palo Alto?
Original post made by diana diamond, Palo Alto Online blogger, on Jul 29, 2006
The answer: probably not.
We've built a lot lately – 800 High, Classic Hyatt, a senior housing project at Page Mill Road and El Camino. And there's a lot more on the drawing boards – a new 52-unit low income housing project planned for Alma Street, the redevelopment of the Hyatt Rickey's property that will mean 185 new homes, at least 59 apartments and houses at Alma Plaza site, a proposed 352 units at 901 San Antonio Road, the site of the Taube-Koret Campus for Jewish Life, and just this past week, the council approved a "Pedestrian and Transit-Oriented Development" district that would allow a greater number of apartments, retail and limited office space near the California Avenue train station..
Providing more housing in Palo Alto has been our mantra. We have heard about our jobs/housing imbalance for years, and somehow felt guilty that we couldn't house all the people who worked here.
But recently I think people realize we may be crowding out other things we need – like more room for retail, and places for automobile dealerships. The old Sun property that will be used for the Taube-Koret Campus could have been one such auto spot – but we weren't even thinking in those terms two or three years ago. And a couple of years back residents near Alma Plaza were fighting the expansion of Albertson's grocery store. Now, somewhat ironically, those same residents are saying they want fewer houses on that site, and more space for a big grocery store.
I have problems with the housing densification plan around California Avenue. Some of the council members, notably Mayor Judy Kleinberg and Vice Mayor Yoriko Kishimoto, were eager to approve of it, because they really like the idea that people living there could take a train or bus to work. "I'm a big fan of walkable, bikeable Palo Alto," Kishimoto said.
Fine, and yes, transit-oriented housing also sounds so politically correct. But there have been no studies that I have been able to find that shows that people who live in these units near train and bus depots actually use public transportation to get to work. Just because one's house is near the tracks doesn't mean one's job is also near the tracks, or that they will use public transportation. Most of us don't.
I recently mapped out how long it would take a Palo Altan living in Midtown to get to work in downtown San Jose, via public transportation. The minimum amount of time, presuming every bus, train or light rail car was sitting there, waiting for a person to step onto it, was 1 hour and 20 minutes – one-way. It takes about 28 minutes to drive to downtown San Jose.
So maybe it's time we take a deep breath, forget about a 10-year-old comprehensive plan, look at our housing inventory, and decide what our new housing needs are in this community.
a resident of Palo Verde
on Jul 29, 2006 at 4:01 pm
Enough of housing ... Palo Alto needs to concentrate more on bringing in new businesses to supplement the tax dollars. More and more businesses are closing shops; look 10 yrs down the line - where is the money going to come from other than property taxes ?
We all know that one of the desirable features of PA is its excellent schools ... which ofcourse need money to keep up the standard. More housing means more students, so more schools are essential - and at this point, I cannot help wondering what is going to happen 10 yrs down the line?
Why do common people - not city office holders - see these as problems? Why do the city officials not think these are problems? Where is the disconnect ?
a resident of Barron Park
on Jul 29, 2006 at 4:44 pm
Douglas Moran is a registered user.
There are statistics for expected use of mass transit. For Caltrain in San Mateo, ridership is about 3% of the households. Commuters are upper-income. Presumption is that they live predominantly in single family homes because if they wanted to live in high-density housing, they would have chosen to live in SF rather than on the Peninsula. This information is from a Caltrain manager at a seminar sponsored by PA's Planning Dept.
High-density housing in Mountain View that is close to both a Caltrain station and a light rail station is reported to have generated 9% ridership (9% of dwelling units generate a Caltrain/LR commuter, not 9% of workers).
Although there have been repeated suggestions to take a ridership survey of the high-density buildings near Palo Alto's Caltrain stations, none has been performed.
In presentations, PA Planning Dept staff tend to use the 3% figure while mentioning the 9% figure.
a resident of College Terrace
on Jul 29, 2006 at 5:12 pm
Good points. You left out the part that increased housing causes increaded demand for services from the City. Double whammy. We get less in tax revenue, and more in service obligations. We are becoming a bedroom community.
Maybe we should give up on the retail tax as a primary source of City income.
a resident of Midtown
on Jul 29, 2006 at 6:22 pm
A slight correction to what Diana says we want at Alma Plaza. We don't want a big grocery store; we want one bigger than proposed. It's like Goldilocks -- 35,000 sq ft was too big, 7000 is too small, and 12-15,000 is just right. What is needed at Alma is enough retail to make the center viable and useful to the surrounding neighborhoods.
a resident of College Terrace
on Jul 29, 2006 at 7:25 pm
From this chronology, the public pendulum began its swing back immediately after the May, 2005 approval of the Mayfield Development Agreement (250 to 345 housing units), when on two occasions before the City Council Elaine Meyer of University South, used her entire three minutes of public comment to simply read a partial list of housing developments in the pipeline.
Jocelyn Dong then fleshed out the trade-offs in the housing boom in her two "Palo Alto Weekly" articles on June 8, 2005: "Here Comes Housing" and "The Cost of Housing."
Web Link
Web Link
This was the first examination of this trend in the press.
Then at the end of September, the community umbrella organization Palo Alto Neighborhoods (PAN), produced an excellent event on the issue, "What Will The Housing Boom Cost Us?". A panel of 5 directors from the city and school district answered tough cost vs. benefit questions from 5 neighborhood leaders in a forum moderated by Council Member Ladoris Cordell.
Unfortunately the transcript or notes of this event have not been posted.
Web Link
This was the backdrop for Council Member Jack Morton's surprising and successful charge in October to eliminate housing as an option from one of the industrial zones (i.e., the General Manufacturing, "GM" zone). Up until that moment, housing had been an allowable option in almost every zone: industrial, commercial or residential.
In January, a well-attended and influential talk in Palo Alto, "Winds of Change," by former Santa Clara County planner Don Weden, laid the intellectual groundwork for the concept of "smart growth," exemplified here in last week's council vote on the Pedestrian and Transit Oriented District (PTOD). An interesting alignment of environmentalists, developers, and affordable housing advocates, the goal of smart growth is to build dense housing, with incentives for affordable units, in walkable, mixed-use neighborhoods, close to mass transit. In Palo Alto that means the areas around the California Avenue and University Avenue train stations and along El Camino Real.
Web Link
Web Link
Monday's votes on PTOD demonstrated that this approach has strong support on the council. Council Member Morton once again raised a spirited charge about housing "densification" and its impacts. The final PTOD vote was a close 5-4, but Council Members John Barton and Dena Mossar were voting in protest to the removal of Fry's and surrounding sites in an earlier amendment. Their comments before the vote indicated they strongly support the PTOD smart growth concept.
Council Member Larry Klein's successful push to remove Fry's from PTOD and direct staff to come back with the best zoning to retain Fry's is a positive step in reversing retail disincentives in areas that should remain commercial. Monday night's Council study session with Staff on revenue creation and expense reduction (7 p.m. in Chambers or on Ch. 26) will tell us if there is more.
But as for housing development overall, ... despite the recent pendulum shift, in a city in which every zone but one still allows housing, and "Planned Community" zones remain an option, for better or worse, almost anything remains possible.
Fred Balin
a resident of Barron Park
on Jul 29, 2006 at 8:44 pm
Douglas Moran is a registered user.
That Diana Diamond - an opinion leader and insider during this change in perspective (on the need for housing) - is unsure about how it came about suggests that it was just one of those things that acquired critical mass (reached a tipping point, ...).
I had been pushing for this perspective for many years and was also very surprised when it gained traction and became a major issue in the 2005 Council election.
For those interested in history (or tipping points), I have a web page (Web Link) that the more relevant events (from my perspective and experience as a neighborhood leader).
a resident of Palo Verde
on Jul 30, 2006 at 9:20 am
Well, I don't know about all this. After all, they say we have a Jobs - Housing Imbalance, and that's a bad thing. You see, you take ABAG's 99,000 jobs in 2005 for Palo Alto and it's "sphere of influence" (i.e., all of Stanford University to Junipero Serra, including two major medical centers), and then you compare that to Palo Alto's houses. Then we're pretty "imbalanced." If we could only donate the Univ & their 2 Med Ctr's to another town, then THAT town would be imbalanced, and we would become a veritable bedroom community,
in need of more jobs in Palo Alto, not more houses.
But then there's that citizens' evaluation that their City Council took to get a read of public opinion so they could represent them most effectively. Would someone please remind me of the date of that opinion poll.....I've forgotten.
Then, supposedly with too much work to do in Palo Alto, we want to build dense housing at the Caltrans Station, so workers can go work somewhere else without driving.
As for schools for the un-acknowledged kids that come with new housing, well that's just a potential worry for another day. Kind of an unfunded committment.
Alice in Wonderland, in Palo Alto.
a resident of University South
on Jul 30, 2006 at 10:24 am
Fred Balin is correct. I read the list of housing in the pipeline to the Council without comment, thinking the facts were so compelling, there was no need for me to comment.
They ignored it.
So I read the list again a few weeks later. Apparently Councilmember Freeman was listening and asked the Planning Dept. for a report.
The Weekly's Jocelyn Dong picked it up and did a great job sorting through the morass. (June 8/05)
I have been a housing advocate, but in recent years I've become very disillusioned as housing advocacy seemed to turn into something like zealotry. The housing advocates have formed an unholy alliance with big developers and the Chamber of Commerce, helping them push through incompatible, oversized projects. They are not interested in any negative effects.
Last week I heard several councilmembers sing the old refrain about the need for more housing.
By my count in the past 9 years close to 4,000 units were approved or are in the pipeline.
-Elaine Meyer
a resident of Palo Verde
on Jul 30, 2006 at 9:18 pm
There is NO housing shortage in palo alto. There is a shortage of cheap housing for low- and lower-middle income people. This will ALWAYS be true as long as capitalism is running Palo Alto's housing market.
If some philanthropist wants to buy 1000 housing units and rent, sell, or give them to lower-income people at WAY below their market value, things here will change.
But building additional expensive houses and apartments here will not solve our alleged housing shortage--it will only bring new people into town, people who will drive on the same increasingly-crowded streets and use the same increasingly-crowded recreational facilities.
The only winners are the developers.
Palo Alto Online blogger
on Jul 31, 2006 at 10:07 am
Diana Diamond is a registered user.
To John, a resident of College Terrace (see blog above):
You suggested housing was a double whammy because "increased housing causes increased demand for services from the City."
I read an interesting op-ed piece in the Silicon Valley Business Journal the other day that suggested new housing isn't necessarily economically bad for a city because the assessed valuation of the new home (or newly purchased home) is considerably more than the old home or an empty lot, and taxes each year are also considerably more, so the city does benefit financially. Also, Palo Alto now charges an array of impact fees on new homes -- a traffic impact fee, library impact fee, etc. and the city gets a fair amount of money from new housing.
I need to check further with the city as to how much revenue a new home brings in the first and subsequent years, but it is an interesting thought and contrary to the commonly held belief that new housing is a further drain on city services.
I do agree that new housing can mean more traffic.
a resident of Midtown
on Jul 31, 2006 at 1:09 pm
I'm not sure why someone with low income would want to live on Alma near downtown. So they can buy their groceries at Whole Foods and their clothes at the Stanford Shopping Center? They will have affordable housing and unaffordable everything else.
a resident of Palo Verde
on Jul 31, 2006 at 3:15 pm
Hi, Diana D.
Pleases let us all know what you find out about cost / benefit of new housing. Please
include ALL support costs.
Since a pro-development City always said costs exceeded revenues, and it was
obviously painful for them to do so, we citizens assumed that part was true without
independent analysis.
Hope to hear more from you on this.
a resident of Palo Verde
on Jul 31, 2006 at 4:11 pm
P.S. to Diana:
Obvious costs include: Charleston Road mods ( 8 Mil ? ), due to > traffic, but also similar
road repairs / mods all around town: increased schools and land acquisition costs, paid forhow ? ; increased police costs and ? indirect crime costs, if applicable ; library-expansion costs ; park acquisition costs (and where is the land to be acquired?) ; more city staff to service increased population ; etc.
Subtle costs include: aesthestic degredation of the city; lessened air quality ( as RWC
residents move here from RWC where their jobs are so their kids can get into local schools, for example) ; lessened desireability of Palo Alto as a tourist mecca (consider what 800 High Street looks like to a visitor) .
a resident of Barron Park
on Jul 31, 2006 at 4:12 pm
Douglas Moran is a registered user.
On cost/benefit of housing:
The economic models I have seen for the costs of housing assume an expanding city, not a built-out city such as Palo Alto. In a built-out city, you need to factor in *opportunity costs*, not just the cost of land. For example, the soccer fields at El Camino and Page Mill were part of a deal to add housing. That site had long been considered for a hotel whose room tax would have flowed to City coffers and whose customers would have increased business for nearby restaurants, increasing sales tax revenue. That Palo Alto sacrificed the opportunity to collect such revenues is not factored into the calculations (admittedly, opportunities are hypothetical, prone to abuse, and hard to assign values to).
The second problem with the existing models is that they assume that new residents do most of their shopping in the city in which they live and thus the City benefits from increased sales tax revenue. However, a significant complaint by Palo Altans is that they already have to drive to other cities to do their shopping. Consequently, replacing sales tax generating commercial sites with housing has the opposite effect on revenue from what the models predict.
Aside: Standard development practice for cities is to surround themselves with a belt of retail, especially with big box stores on major arteries. This captures residents' sales tax dollars before it leaves town and sucks in dollars from residents in surrounding cities (and keeping any traffic problems at the edge of the city). Palo Alto could have turned the old Sun site (San Antonio and 101) into a sales tax revenue source, but decided to convert it to housing. Despite the potential of El Camino for harvesting sales tax revenue from commuters, Palo Alto has forced some conversions to housing and refuses to support retail, thereby encouraging property owners to convert to housing.
On development fees for new housing, Palo Alto says that it assesses one-third of computed cost of impact - explanation to complicated - and controversial - for here.
Finally, remember that there are lies, damn lies, and statistics.
a resident of another community
on Aug 1, 2006 at 5:47 pm
If you look at ABAG's projections for job/housing growth in Santa Clara County, other communities are providing far more housing units for each job than Palo Alto.
From the report:
"Based on the ideal jobs/housing balance of 1.5, Palo Alto should have a total of 78,693 housing units by 2025 to house its workers. It is projected that Palo Alto will fall short of this by over 50,550 units."
In 2000, cities like San Jose provided far more housing for each job with a ratio of 1.55 (jobs/housing) compared to Palo Alto's 4.12 (jobs/housing). Palo Alto needs to do much more to house its fair share of the valley's workers.
See www.abag.ca.gov/planning/interregional/pdf/projections/IRP_Projections-Santa_Clara_County.pdf
a resident of Palo Verde
on Aug 1, 2006 at 7:29 pm
This is for Steve, who describes ABAG's Jobs - Housing ratio. Remember that ABAG lumps Stanford plus two major regional medical centers into "Palo Alto" when calculating "Palo Alto" jobs. Our "sphere of influence." Call them if you don't believe me. I have. That's why I said above that P.A. would look totally different if we could attribute S. and the 2 Hospitals to "Stanford" or another town.
In reading stat's for different towns in ABAG reports, you will
see RWC, Menlo Pk, Palo Alto, Mtn View, Cupertino, Los Altos. But no Stanford ! That's because those jobs are added to Palo Alto's and become all ours to worry about. 2005
ABAG shows 99,000 jobs for P.A. plus Stanford with its two medical centers. Analyzing
job types, you will note that in the field of Education and Medicine (lumped together), there is a massive excess for P.A. plus Stanford. 35,000 more than Menlo Park or other nearby towns. That's our burden for having Stanford under our wing in ABAG's eyes.
Palo Alto has about 64,000 jobs. Stanford University plus the 2 medical centers
have about 35,000 jobs. So unless one wants fuzzy math to support housing here,
then let's all use approx. 64,000 as the measure of jobs here in 2005. Not 99,000.
But 64,000. Then, we can approach the other problem of how many new houses in P.A.
house P.A. WORKERS. That's a long discussion by itself.
a resident of Meadow Park
on Aug 2, 2006 at 12:44 pm
The proposed 352 units at 901 San Antonio Road, the site of the Taube-Koret Campus for Jewish Life, has added a 300 student high school and a 400 capacity event center to the housing. Also, they are eligble to go above the 50' height limit to "variable heights", no heights specified except the 100 foot tower with art work. I'm wondering if one reason to push housing in Palo Alto is the extras you get for building housing.
I questioned Joe Simitian about the inappropriate size of the Taube-Koret Campus for Jewish Life/Bridge Housing. It is located at the end of the school commute corridor. The corridor is under construction to improve the safety of the corridor due to development before the Taube Center, before HP housing, before the Elks Club/Rickey development, before Alma Plaze, E. Meadow and possible development of the day care center near the corner of Middlefield and San Antonio roads. He said the size of the project is up to the Palo Alto city council. Does anyone know if the state audits school commute corridors? The Taube-Koret Campus was the perfect idea until the high school, the event center, the lack of height limits, lack of size constraints made it too big for the location. It will overwhelm the local neighborhoods as well as the school commute corridor.
Do the residents of Palo Alto approve of 100 foot towers built by private groups within the city? This is inappropriate advertising, inappropriate size and height.
This private group bought land that is contaminated, on a congested school commute corridor with additional large developments planned for this area. Local neighborhoods and the people who use the school communt corridor are paying the price, not the Taube-Koret Campus for Jewish Life/Bridge Housing.
a resident of Midtown
on Aug 2, 2006 at 2:57 pm
Are people buying in transite friendly areas willing to limit their job search to transit accessible companies? D.D. did homework that few do. By the timetable it was an hour and 20 minutes in the real world it was 2-1/2 hours. She drove, as would anyone with an option.
a resident of South of Midtown
on Aug 4, 2006 at 6:47 pm
This is all too little, too late.
Most of the "neighborhood leaders" writing on this thread were bred in a policy environment of "let's please everyone" over the last two decades. Theirandwringing is mostly for naught, as we have already given up the possibility of big box retail.
What's ironic is that Fred Balin and Doug Moran, two "neighborhood leaders" who support retail development, lobbied to have developer rights limited in an effort to "guarantee" that Fry's remain in Palo Alto.
So now we are going to be negotiating with Fry's in a way that has already shown them our cards. Not very savvy. At the same time, we've taken away the right of the developer who owns the Fry's proprty to do innovative housing and/or retail housing mix on the Fry's site.
I see a lot of naivete and posturing for positions that are just BEHIND the development curve here, mostly by people who want to be City Council members, or who think of themselves as "influencers".
They're exactly the wrong people for the job, as the demeanor and tone of their arguments is old school.
Here's the future of Palo Alto. Are you ready?
1) High senior residential turnover leading to buy-in at continuing inflated values bolstered by the perception that there is more "value" to be had in Palo Alto.
2) A slow diminution of services from a decreasng tax base. Attrition will impact City Staff - it will shrink considerably over time.
3) The insinuation of chic high end retail and eateries. Palo Alto will become the destination for THAT kind of retail. It will be enough to keep a select number of city services running at high levels, in addition to revenue from new housing taxes.
4) An increase in the need for rprivate organizations to fund services,which will be OK, because the coming demographic will readily support this kind of civic involvement.
5) A steady fading away of "pleasing everyone", and listening endlessly to the Monday Evening Quarterback a la carte. Already, with this City Council, we're seeing the beginning of that trend. Thank goodness!! Why? Doing so will let the city run smoother, without endless delay on little decisions...it will also speed up big decisions.
6) Housing will continue to be built, because housing profits trump retail, especially when retail developers continue to have to run the gauntlet to develop their own property. That siad, we need to get out from under the Keenan, Rapp, Baer troika, who think that Palo Alto is their sole domain, and who pretty much control a lot of the development agenda here. We need toattract new development blood, or risk givnig away the farm to developers who have had their day, and should now fade into the sunset with their profits
All this will require aggressive action taken by policy makers - is that possible? Maybe. As far as transit oriented developoment, policy makers can look for ways to incentivize citizens who use transportation systems that they - the policy makers - help create...affordable, convenient transportation that gets a traveler where she wants to go.
We had better learn a thing or two from Europe and other dense places on earth, instead of fooling around with housing development as currently contrived.
Here's hoping for MORE housing in PALo Alto, the more people we have here in the coming demograhpic, the better will be local services, the better will be business innthe coming chic retail environment, and the better will be private contributions slated toward public services, including schools. that's not so bad. When they need a new set of towels, or a TV, a trip to a municipal neighbor will do just fine. When a municipal neighbor wants a special meal or gift, Palo Alto will be the destination.
a resident of Ventura
on Aug 5, 2006 at 5:56 pm
As a regular rider of public transit, I'm well aware of how poorly this area is served. Still I was surprised by Diana Diamond's claim that the trip from Midtown PA to Downtown SJ takes a minimum of 1 hour 20 minutes. I beg Ms. Diamond to publish the calcualation used to arrive at that figure!
Using the Midtown map at Web Link, I chose Middlefield and Colorado as a point near Midtown center, and calculated these times:
Board southbound VTA bus 35 at 6:44, arrive Mt. View Caltrain at 7:06
Board Caltrain at 7:07, arrive San Jose Diridon at 7:24
Total time: 40 minutes (exactly half the time Ms. Diamond calculated!)
From there, connect to Light Rail at 7:32 to other downtown locations:
Convention Center, arrive 7:38. Total time: 54 minutes
First and Santa Clara, arrive 7:42. Total time: 58 minutes
Civic Center, arrive 7:49. Total time: 65 minutes
For those who start work later:
Board northbound VTA bus 35 at 7:37, arrive at PA Caltrain at 7:51
Board Caltrain at 7:58, arrive San Jose Diridon at 8:25.
Total time: 48 minutes
Connect to 8:32 Light Rail:
Convention Center, arrive at 8:38. Total time: 61 minutes.
First and Santa Clara at 8:42. Total time: 65 minutes.
Civic Center at 8:49. Total time: 72 minutes
So the worse time I can come up with is still 10% less than Ms. Diamond's "minimum" time!
Even more disturbing is Ms. Diamond's presumption that deciding whether to drive or not is a simple calculation to determine which saves us a few minutes. Although the Gore film has led to a backlash claiming global warming is a myth (and so we can all keep driving), all political persuasions agree that the US must reduce its dependence on oil. It's revealing to note that during previous wars the role of US civilians was to conserve resources, yet during this Iraq oil "war" (actually invasion and occupation), after the death of thousands of US soldiers, a columnist can glibly thumb her nose at conservation efforts - because they add a few minutes to her commute!
Quite sad.
a resident of College Terrace
on Aug 6, 2006 at 2:41 pm
With regard to Diana's investigation on the cost recovery of impact fees for new housing, my notes from last year's PAN-sponsored forum on housing cited earlier in this blog include a question from Ellen Wyman to Planing Director Steve Emslie as to whether impact fees and taxes fully pay the costs of housing development.
The response was: "[It is] not 100% cost recovery... fees are set at less than 100% ."
It would very helpful to an educated debate to get the full details behind this statement so everyone can tally the score.
The recent council adoption of the Quimby Act enables parkland dedication fees for new sub-divsions so this may narrow the gap.
Other related items of interest from my notes, include:
- The possible future need to reclaim Cubberly as a school facility if student overflow cannot be handled by portable units.
- While Palo Alto has the highest per capita ratio in the Bay Area for open space, we are under our recommended Comprehensive Plan standard of 2 acres per thousand residents for neighborhood parks (1.2 per 1,000) and district parks (1.7 per 1,000).
Palo Alto Online blogger
on Aug 6, 2006 at 6:25 pm
Diana Diamond is a registered user.
JunSo the worse time I can come up with is still 10% less than Ms. JunyaDiamond's "minimum" time!
Even more disturbing is Ms. Diamond's presumption that deciding
Junya wrote:
whether to drive or not is a simple calculation to determine which saves us a few minutes. Junya o the worse time I can come up with is still 10% less than Ms. Diamond's "minimum" time!
Junya -
Thanks for all your calculations. I did the same, and still come up with 1 hour 15 minutes.
The person I was looking at had to be at work at 10 a.m. So if she took a bus from Midtown, according to the schedules I read, it would take some 30 minutes or so to get to the Caltrain Station. Plus it is a five-minute walk to the bus stop, and one has to allow a good 3 minutes extra to get there a bit earlier, in case the bus comes early. Plus there is a four-minute walk from the light rail to work.
I think if you factor those in, you will come to a 2 or 3 percent difference -- and we are both presuming every public transportation vehicle is always on time.
I would love to have people save gas and use public transportation. But if you are talking about a one-hour round trip commute versus and 2-1/2 hour commute, that is a huge difference in a person's life.
The solution may be to get a more user-friendly public transit system.
a resident of Ventura
on Aug 7, 2006 at 1:01 am
Diana -
Thank you for clarifying your comments about using public transportation. I do appreciate your openness. Now that you've revealed the basis for your calculations, wouldn't you agree that your comments were somewhat misleading?
You began with: "Just because one's house is near the tracks doesn't mean one's job is also near the tracks, or that they will use public transportation. Most of us don't". And then, to prove your point, you choose a commute where neither the house nor job is near the tracks, travel during off-peak hours (10AM!), pad the time with early arrival (which contradicts your presumption that the bus will be "sitting there, waiting"), and then declare that this is the "minimum amount of time" under conditions that are implied to be ideal! As I said, I am well aware how poorly this area is served by public transportation. You could have easily chosen valid examples, so I don't understand why you have instead chosen to play fast and loose with your facts.
Unfortunately, you still seem to believe that there is no more to this question than a schedule calculation. If you want to talk about "a huge difference in a person's life", let's talk about the difference between arriving to work stressed out from a solitary commute and complaining about stiffness and back pains, traffic, pollution, and high gas prices - and compare that with arriving to work rested and relaxed, ahead of the curve because you downloaded email and leisurely read it during your sociable commute, and have prepared your agenda and strategy for the day. Diana, you're calculating an utterly false economy.
Of course, you are not alone in this delusion. But I am happy to see the tide is shifting, as I see more of my co-workers choosing to leave their cars home. This is an inevitable consequence of the reality of our times. This is not 1955: Dinah Shore is Dead. Forget about seeing the USA in your Chevrolet. You could face this reality, and use your media outlets to agitate for public transportation that serves our needs better - or you can continue to comfort your readers as they wallow in the past, make excuses to keep driving, and are left behind as an irrelevant artifact of Old America: isolated, self-centered, extravagantly wasteful, sick, and dying.
a resident of Ventura
on Aug 7, 2006 at 1:02 am
Diana -
Thank you for clarifying your comments about using public transportation. I do appreciate your openness. Now that you've revealed the basis for your calculations, wouldn't you agree that your comments were somewhat misleading?
You began with: "Just because one's house is near the tracks doesn't mean one's job is also near the tracks, or that they will use public transportation. Most of us don't". And then, to prove your point, you choose a commute where neither the house nor job is near the tracks, travel during off-peak hours (10AM!), pad the time with early arrival (which contradicts your presumption that the bus will be "sitting there, waiting"), and then declare that this is the "minimum amount of time" under conditions that are implied to be ideal! As I said, I am well aware how poorly this area is served by public transportation. You could have easily chosen valid examples, so I don't understand why you have instead chosen to play fast and loose with your facts.
Unfortunately, you still seem to believe that there is no more to this question than a schedule calculation. If you want to talk about "a huge difference in a person's life", let's talk about the difference between arriving to work stressed out from a solitary commute and complaining about stiffness and back pains, traffic, pollution, and high gas prices - and compare that with arriving to work rested and relaxed, ahead of the curve because you downloaded email and leisurely read it during your sociable commute, and have prepared your agenda and strategy for the day. Diana, you're calculating an utterly false economy.
Of course, you are not alone in this delusion. But I am happy to see the tide is shifting, as I see more of my co-workers choosing to leave their cars home. This is an inevitable consequence of the reality of our times. This is not 1955: Dinah Shore is Dead. Forget about seeing the USA in your Chevrolet. You could face this reality, and use your media outlets to agitate for public transportation that serves our needs better - or you can continue to comfort your readers as they wallow in the past, make excuses to keep driving, and are left behind as an irrelevant artifact of Old America: isolated, self-centered, extravagantly wasteful, sick, and dying.


text:
courtesy of my kids!
courtesy of my kids!
When your ship comes in, make sure you are willing to unload it.
Bee Sting Honey - So Good, It Hurts!
Is that pressure treated wood I see above the paint job? I try to keep that stuff away from the bees at all costs.
Nice job. That's how I paint my 4-way mating nucs, with each side unique so the queen can find her way home.
But with no kids around, I cheat and use a brush.
My kids work for toys or promise of candy
Nice looking paint jobs, Drew!
-- Herb
What kind of Paint do you have the kids use? I wonder, only because I worry about all that great art work coming off because of the exterior exposure.
small cans of exterior paint, one season outside in OR so far so good.
I guess I have to go to a paint store to buy a bunch of small cans of different colored paints. Lowes doesn't carry the small cans here....so far as I can tell, and I have not wanted to purchase quart cans of 9 different colors, due to the cost.
We just used acrilic paint from the craft store and then put a clear coat over it. If it means that they have to do it again next year, then they will have more fun. Each bottle cost either one or two dollars depending on the size.
The painting of the hives were the bribe.
jeffzhear: you don't have to get many cans of paint. I get white exterior and ask for the Home Depot guys to fill up film cannisters with tint. Then they get to mix the colors themselves.
Ribster, ohhhhhh, ty....I need to find some small containers and maybe I can get the guys at lowes to give me a bunch of colors to tint the white! Great Idea. Again TY


text:
The Imbiber: 5 Ways to Master Bar Conversations
Master any bar conversation with these 5 tips.
It's been observed that there are only seven unique plot lines in the world, and all books, movies and plays are just variations on those themes. The same is true for barroom conversations, except there are only five. (There used to be six, but when Bukowski died he took one to the grave with him.) As someone who gets paid to go out to bars, I've had plenty of opportunities to observe these types in action. And since I'm on the road a lot of the time, I'm going to most of these places for the first time, often by myself. This has only fueled my rabid curiosity for talking to strangers. I'm not looking to become best friends with these people, I just want to hear what comes out of their mouths after I get them going. Boozy repartee is the lifeblood of any spirits scribe worth his margarita salt, and I am, if nothing else, a professional. (It says so on my organ donor card. Well, what it actually says is "anything but the liver." Same thing, really.)
Here, then, are the five unique types of barroom conversations, and my hard-won advice on navigating them successfully:
1. Boy Meets Girl
There is a big difference between picking up a woman in a bar and meeting a woman in bar. To achieve the latter—almost always a more rewarding experience—you need to stay off the rehearsed lines and get into some genuine, off-the-cuff banter. The most important part of making that happen, however, is the groundwork you lay in the bar before the conversation starts. The main thing you need to do is build a Coalition Of The Thrilling, which is to say, a third-party group that can validate how awesome you are to the object of your ardor. This means becoming what I call "Liquor Fabulous." It all starts with the bartender. Get his or her name when you walk in, write it on your hand and tip well (this does wonders for helping a barkeep remember your name). Now you just need to strike up a conversation with the other well-lubricated patrons around you (see conversations two through five below). Once you have a decent Coalition built, when you do get a chance to chat up the hottie who just walked in, everyone will know your name and think you're the funniest bastard that ever lived. She'll never know what hit her.
2. Be Somebody!
Somebody else, that is. Somebody a lot cooler than you. For instance, a few months back I had a grand old time in the lobby bar at the The Morrison Hotel in Dublin, regaling the locals with the story of the time I was forced to turn back just 500 feet from the summit of K2. I grew somber as I recounted how rapidly and unexpectedly the weather conditions had deteriorated. And then when my Sherpa lost his footing and broke his ankle, well, I had no choice but to strap him to my back and turn around. Fortunately, I'd brought along a pair of Telemark skis.
"Now keep in mind it was no easy task securing Tenzing to my back, given that I was already carrying little Timmy," I said, tossing back the remainder of a tall glass of Redbreast whiskey.
"Little Timmy?" someone asked. I think her name was Siobhan.
"Yes," I whispered, my voice cracking ever so slightly. "From the Make-a-Wish Foundation."
And then the tears came. Oh, how those tears came. I'm pretty sure I got laid that night.
3. Say What?
Between the noise in the joint and the spirits in its patrons, conversations tend to drift miles from their intended destinations. Let them. Life is too short to not find out what's out there in left field. Last weekend, hunkered down at The King's Head, my favorite local pub, I got into a debate over who would win an imaginary fight between a drunk and a stoner. Not the most interesting topic, I'll admit, which is why I was happy when it went off the rails and into a ditch. My dance partner in this mess was a spiky-haired, 20-something Club Dude who had apparently downed a bunch of E earlier in the evening. No doubt this helped the conceptual slipperiness of what followed.
"Before considering this question we must first establish the identities of the parties under the influence," I said, in as professorial a manner as I could manage in a semi-inebriated state.
Club Dude nodded in agreement. "For instance, take noted puffer Chris Robinson, frontman for the Black Crowes. Dude weighs about a buck-05, if he's soaked with bong water. Let's put him up against another Crowe, say Russell. Chris would wind up on his back faster than a one-legged hooker."
Club Dude concurred. "Russell Crowe is one nasty drunk. I partied with that guy once at my buddy Todd's place in Malibu. Kept rambling on about what a bad-ass he was cuz he wrote Fast Times at Ridgemont High and shit."
"Sounds like a nasty scene, but I will say one thing for Cameron Crowe, he knows how to write a tune," I added, picking up this rapidly mutating football and running with it.
"Yeah, what's that song, 'Mister Jones?' I love that shit." he replied, revealing a taste in music as appalling as his taste in hair product.
"Yeah, I'd do Sheryl Crow in a hot minute," I fired back.
"Me, too, bro," he laughed, tossing an arm around me. "Me, too."
4. The Parasite
This maneuver has the highest degree of difficulty of the bunch. Even seasoned tavern talkers have a hard time pulling it off consistently. I'm talking about the black art of injecting yourself into someone else's conversation. If you're game to give it a go, note that your success relies almost entirely on brevity and timing. When you butt in uninvited, you've got five, maybe ten words with which to make an impression and be invited in. If they're not delivered at precisely the right moment, you're toast. It's just "Hey, David Bowie wore tights," and out. Lean back, say no more. Worked like a charm for me once with a couple of British magazine editors in Budapest. Tried something similar in Miami, though, and fucked it all up trying to quote the chorus to "Velvet Goldmine." Again, brevity and timing, my friends. Just don't forget what a raging bitch karma can be. Do this enough and you're bound to find this technique coming back at you from the other direction. When your conversation is the one being butted in upon, it can either be the beginning of a beautiful friendship or a the end of a potentially magical night. If you sense you're about to end up on the wrong end of a rag session about some lush's hag of an ex-wife, just remember these magic words: "Before we get into that, can I tell you about my personal relationship with Jesus Christ?" Works every time.
5. The Diplomat
Engage in enough conversations with drunken strangers, and trouble is bound to rear its ugly head. Maybe you made an impolitic remark about the Mets' chances in this year's world series and the biggest Mets fan in the world now has strong opinions about the manliness of your shirt. In fact he'd like to butch it up a bit by decorating it with, say, your blood. It may seem as though the conversation has moved past the verbal rebuttal phase and into "let me make that point another way" territory, but there are still a number of ways to achieve a non-violent resolution:
a) Apologize and offer to buy the next round. This should settle things down, at least momentarily. Hell, one of his friends may even concede that you have a point, and claim this is the year the Royals finally turn things around. Don't let the fleeting feeling of brotherhood lull you into a false sense of security. You need to get out of Dodge at your earliest opportunity, because eventually shirt guy will forget all about that conciliatory whiskey sour you bought him (ironically, he'll forget because of that whiskey sour you bought him) and remember that you referred to his hero David Wright as a "poor man's A-Rod."
b) Apologize, offer to buy the next round, and excuse yourself to take a leak. Then sneak out and stick them with the tab. A strategy for the thrill seeker.
c) If all else fails and you're in clear and present danger with no line of escape, try throwing up on yourself. It'll be messy and embarrassing, sure, but think about it—not even Mike Tyson would hit a man who just puked himself. And take it from someone who knows: your lunch washes out a lot easier than blood.