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Very well pleased
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I was very pleased with the quality of the material and the graphics. The Native American Hoodie took almost 5 weeks to get here and I just noticed that it was missing the drawstring in the hood.I ejoy the originality of your products and will buy again.Thank youI don't have time to go through your quality questionaire.
Bottom Line Yes, I would recommend this to a friend
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Class leading performance and sleek, contemporary styling
Excellent dynamic and high static load performance
Less than half the friction of the nearest competitor
Removable becket pin for fitting of pre-spliced lines
** Line load through cleat not to exceed 175kg (385lb)
Core Blocks™ are a true all round solution. A tuned 2-stage bearing system provides excellent performance across the full working load range with an integrated thrust bearing feature and the resilience to handle high dynamic or static loads. Acetal sheave, alloy cheeks and stainless fixings complete the durable package. For reliability and a long service life, these blocks are the right choice for sheets, halyards and control line applications for cruising and racing.
Universal Bearing -
Dynamic and high static load performance
The Ronstan Universal Bearing incorporates our proven 2-stage bearing system
Stage 1 - Under moderate loads, Acetal ball bearings ensure minimum friction.
Stage 2 - Under heavy loads, where deformation of ball bearings alone would result in increased friction, a sliding Acetal bearing on a polished stainless steel race takes over, maintaining low friction performance.
Additionally the ball bearings are configured to act as a thrust bearing between the sheave and cheeks, preventing the sheave from rubbing on the cheeks and causing friction when the line lead in and out of the block isn't perfect. Particularly important for cheek blocks.
Alloy cheek plates Block cheeks are manufactured from the highest quality alloy for maximum strength. Material optimisation and the cut-away design minimises weight and allows easy fresh water rinsing of salt and debris from the bearings. Cheek design has been further styled with flaring at the block throat and reduced gap between the cheek and sheave, minimising rope wear. Applications
Ideal for mainsheet, halyard and spinnaker sheet applications on boats to 12m (40ft).
Various control line applications on larger yachts.
Alloy sheave models are available for use with wire.
Sheave: U.V. stabilised Acetal or anodised aluminium (AW models)
Cheek plates: Aluminium alloy
Ball Bearings: High compression strength carbon black Acetal
|Product Description
Convenient way to terminate control lines while also providing a textured grip for pulling. Recess in one side to contain the stop knot.
• Impact resistant, U.V. stablised Nylon.
Part Number: RF1316BLK

subset: commoncrawl


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Country Fair Theme Baby Shower
Lil Community: Country Fair Baby Shower
Lil Community: Country Fair Baby Shower
Step right up to the county fair! Buggerline shared these adorable photos from her baby shower in our Baby Shower Tips and Pics group.
Did you hear? We're showering babies with love! Our good friends at Serena and Lily and Oilily have partnered with us to give away a nursery and wardrobe worth $3,500! We're also giving away five great first place prizes! Want to be in the running? Click here to enter our giveaway and get set to share your baby shower with fellow party-givers in our Baby Shower Tips and Pics group in the LilSugar Community!
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June Turnbull, the Urchfont gardener who made international headlines when she stood up to local bureaucracy five years ago, has died following a short illness at the age of 84.
Mrs Turnbull was a noted local garden expert. Her own garden was a picture and she held a plant sale each year as part of the Urchfont scarecrow festival which raised hundreds of pounds for local good causes.
This was achieved despite the fact that she had been left severely disabled after contracting polio while pregnant with her second child.
But her disability never stopped her achieving great things and she was always to be seen whizzing around the village on her trike.
She transformed the neglected triangle at the junction of the village high street and the B3098 road from an eyesore of broken concrete and rubbish into a beautifully planted flower bed.
But while tending it one afternoon, she caught the eye of health and safety experts from Wiltshire County Council - as it was then - who were making a tour of the village.
They asked if she had a licence to carry out work on the highway and when she said she didn't, they barred her from working there.
They subsequently insisted that she wear a high-visibility jacket, put out "men at work" signs and have a second person standing by whenever she wanted go along and do a bit of weeding.
Mrs Turnbull refused to be cowed and, with the support of the parish council, took up cudgels against the ban.
When the Gazette & Herald brought this to public attention, it was taken up by the national press and Mrs Turnbull was interviewed on BBC TV's The One Show.
Her friend Peter Cook drove her to London to take part in the show.
The controversy went round the world, the story of a disabled older woman taking on faceless bureaucracy irresistible to TV networks in America, Australia and beyond.
Eventually, Wiltshire County Council capitulated and Mrs Turnbull was allowed to tend her beloved triangle as long as she wore a high-visibility tabard.
Though funeral arrangements had not been finalised at the time of going to press, it is expected St Michael's Church will be filled for the occasion.


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Of Shorts and Longs
Boy, the shorts are fearless here and the longs scared of their own shadows. The president and the Speaker said many right things. I am as cynical as anyone. I understand that the Speaker may not be in control of his own party. I recognize that the president has the upper hand after his big reelection.
But I do think that the Speaker did say that the Republicans would allow some revenue increases. And the president made the point that someone has to stick up for the 98%, and help them via taxes....92 more words left in this article. To read them, just click below and try Real Money FREE for 14 days.
There's no substitute for a trading floor to get great ideas, so Jim Cramer created a better one at Real Money and blogs there exclusively. We then added legendary hedge fund manager, Doug Kass, with his exclusive Daily Diary and best investing ideas. Staffed with more than 4 dozen investing pros, money managers, journalists and analysts, Real Money Pro gives you a flood of opinions, analysis and actionable trading advice found nowhere else, and allows you to interact directly with each expert.
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Game Time Start: 7:00 PM ET
Where: The Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, IN
Officials: J. Crawford, C. Blair, P. Fraher
Media Notes: Indiana Notes, Miami Notes
Television: FOX Sports Indiana / Sun Sports / SNET1 (Canada)
Radio: WFNI 1070 AM / WAXY 790 AM
NBA Feeds:*NBA Audio League Pass (available free to NBA All-Access members)
*NBA League Pass Broadband (subscription req'd)
REMINDER: Per PD policy, please do not share a link to, describe how to search for, request a link to, or request a PM about streaming video of a NBA game that is not coming directly through the NBA. Not even in a "wink-wink, nudge-nudge, know-what-I-mean" round-about sort of way. Thank you
Season Records: (W-L) 20-14 Home: 12-3
East: 10-6
23-9 Away: 7-6
East: 11-6
Upcoming Games: Jan 10 Jan 12 Jan 13 Jan 15 vs vs at at 7:00pm 7:00pm 7:00pm 7:00pm
Projected Starting Lineup: HIBBERT WEST GEORGE STEPHENSON HILL Projected Starting Lineup: BOSH DJANGO JAMES WADE CHALMERS
Danny Granger - left knee tendinosis (out)
Perpetually Disappointing Trader Joe Minimally Relevant Video:
Semi-Relevant Video:
Heat Index: Tom Haberstroh: Who's to blame for Miami's rebound woes?
It seems the Heat have a rebounding problem.
The defending champs rank in the bottom 10 overall in rebound rate and second to last
on the offensive glass. This has generated heaps of criticism toward both Chris Bosh
and the Heat's decision to embrace small-ball after winning the title with it.
But here's the thing: The Heat have already ditched small-ball, and when they did, they
became a worse rebounding team.
This is Miami's rebounding paradox. Sunday's game against the Washington Wizards
marked the one-month anniversary of Udonis Haslem's promotion to the starting lineup.
On Dec. 6, Heat coach Erik Spoelstra, looking to shore up the increasingly problematic
second unit, decided to insert Haslem into the starting five against the New York Knicks
and bring Shane Battier off the bench as he rehabbed from his strained MCL.
We can debate all day about the importance of starting lineups or the lack thereof, but
this was a landmark move in the Heat's season. Spoelstra, at least temporarily, put the
title-winning formula on hold by slotting two traditional big men next to LeBron James.
Spoelstra went "big" and by doing so, it accomplished a couple of things. One, it
allowed Joel Anthony to anchor the second unit's previously porous defense. So far,
that's worked out and the defense has improved.
Secondly, it gave the Heat an additional big man next to Bosh to help on the boards.
Haslem is known as the Heat's rebounding specialist. Earlier this season, he became
the franchise's all-time leading rebounder, and last season he ranked eighth in the NBA
in defensive rebound rate.
But the interesting thing is that Haslem's promotion has had the opposite effect on the
Heat. Since Haslem entered the starting lineup, the Heat have ranked 24th in rebound
rate. Before then: 21st.
Dig deeper and the issue becomes clear: The Heat's "big" starting lineup has gotten
crushed on the boards. The five-man unit with Haslem next to Mario Chalmers and the
Big Three has played 189 minutes together this season, which ranks 26th in the league,
according to NBA.com's advanced stats tool. Among the top 30 five-man units with the
most minutes in the NBA, that Chalmers-Wade-James-Haslem-Bosh lineup ranks 28th
in rebound rate, grabbing just 45.5 percent of all available rebounds. A 45.5 percent
rebounding rate would rank last in the NBA behind the Dallas Mavericks.
And it gets worse: That lineup gives up 19.3 second-chance points every 48 minutes --
easily the highest rate among those 30 lineups. It's actually the highest rate of any of
the top 50 teams in minutes.
You want to know which lineup ranks 17th in rebounding among those 30 most
common lineups?
The Heat's "small" starting lineup with Battier. Yes, better than the Haslem lineup.
How can this be?
There's a big difference between rebounding on the individual level and on the team
level. Individually, Haslem does very well on the boards; he averages 9.6 rebounds
per 36 minutes, which is the highest in Miami's rotation. But on a team level, the
Heat have actually done worse on the boards when he's on the floor this season.
You know who in particular has done worse with Haslem on the court? Bosh. In fact,
Bosh tallies 9.2 rebounds per 36 minutes with Haslem on the bench, according to
NBA.coms advanced stats tool. When he plays next to Haslem: 5.8 rebounds per 36
This is the opposite of the Bargnani Effect, the phenomenon when Bosh became an
all-world rebounder when he played alongside Andrea Bargnani (the anti-Mr. Clean on
the glass). When Bosh plays next to Battier in that starting lineup, he grabs 11.0
rebounds every 36 minutes. Those are numbers that Heat fans want to see from Bosh.
But Bosh's boards have been cut in half when he plays next to Haslem.
Does Haslem steal Bosh's rebounds? And why do the Heat's rebounding numbers suffer
when Haslem is on the court?
These are very good questions...CONTINUE READING AT HEAT INDEX
140 Characters of (Non-PD) Coverage
Mike Wells @MikeWellsNBA
Jared Wade @8pts9secs
Tim Donahue @TimDonahue8p9s
Tom Lewis @indycornrows
Brian Windhorst @windhorstESPN
Tom Haberstroh @tomhaberstroh
Ira Winderman @iraheatbeat
Joseph Goodman @miamiheraldheat


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Latest NewsSimpleFilter
Sept 14, 2003
Kosmo Systems Inc, along with Ashley IT are proud to present their spam detection service called SimpleFilter. It is so simple, there is absolutely no software to install and it works with virtually any email client on any operating system. Checkout www.simplefilter.com.
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Throughout KoZmo's short life and continuing today we receive tons of visitors looking for KoZmo.
So if you're looking for KoZmo, click here for what you're likely looking for.
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This is huge for the program.It's official: Jones to UC
E-mail | Print | digg us! | del.icio.us!
A month ago, Demetrius Jones was getting ready to start his first game at quarterback for Notre Dame.
On Thursday afternoon he walked into University of Cincinnati football coach Brian Kelly's office and told him that he wanted to play for the Bearcats.
"A whole bunch of things took place that weren't planned," Jones said. "That's the way it goes."
Jones, a 6-foot-4, 210-pound sophomore from Chicago, was the starting quarterback for the Fighting Irish's season-opening loss to Georgia Tech.
He completed 1-of-3 passes in that game for four yards and ran 12 times for 28 yards before getting benched. He decided to leave Notre Dame after he lost his starting job for the Sept. 8 Penn State game.
"It's a great school," Jones said of Notre Dame, "a tremendous atmosphere. It's just unfortunate the way it worked out."
UC coach Brian Kelly said he first learned of Jones' interest in UC 48 hours ago "when I got a paper on my desk. It was a release from Notre Dame giving us permission to talk to him."
Kelly had a prior relationship with Jones, whom he recruited out of Morgan Park High School in Chicago while he was the coach at Central Michigan.
When he contacted Jones, he suggested that Jones visit the UC campus to meet the coaches, check out the facilities and explore the academic opportunities before making a decision. Jones was at UC's practice Wednesday.
"My whole point of going to Notre Dame was the same reason I committed here," Jones said, "the atmosphere on campus, they've got top-notch facilities. They've got a head coach who's been coaching for 16 years, and the offense. I can put some of my best qualities on display. I just think it was a perfect fit."
Jones was a Parade prep All-American at Morgan Park and was rated No. 33 on USA Today's list of the top 100 prep players in the country. He was selected to play in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl prep all-star game.
"It's a new day for Cincinnati football," Kelly said. "We see ourselves as a national recruiting school. That's how we see ourselves, that we can get these kids to come and play at the University of Cincinnati.
"He's athletic. He can run it and he can throw it. In this day and age, we see that position requires more than a guy who can just drop back (and throw). He has to be able to do things with his feet."
Because UC has no scholarships available, Jones will have to pay his own way at UC, but only for fall quarter.
Kelly said UC has four or five seniors who are scheduled to graduate at the end of fall quarter. When one of their scholarships becomes available, it will go to Jones, who will have to sit out this year under NCAA rules for transfers.
Jones will face plenty of competition at UC. Junior Dustin Grutza returns next year, along with sophomore Tony Pike, sophomore Craig Carey and freshmen Chazz Anderson and Zach Collaros, both of whom are being redshirted this year.
In addition, senior Ben Mauk, the current starter, plans to apply for a medical hardship waiver that could give him another year of eligibility next season.


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I have been reading a few books, reading some discussions, following some links. I recently finished thirty hours of logged meditation following the breath. I have not attended any retreats or groups.
Is it possible to self-assess my skills and understanding and to self-prescribe a progression of books? What if I need to go deeper on a particular subject out of need for remediation or deeper understanding?
I see the book lists of recommended reading, but is a library enough for an education, without a curriculum or a teacher? A great book list would be one with suggestions in a recommended order or progression for self-study. But is even this enough?
I feel I have been very lucky to find and read Bhante Gunaratana's Mindfulness in Plain English, and Eight Mindful Steps to Happiness, as well as Thich Nhat Hanh's The Miracle of Mindfulness.
Other than re-reading these books (which I do, I enjoy, and I see the benefit), I need to know what I should read next, or if someone can assess whether I am even ready for anything next.
Suggestions welcome, and thank you, so much


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- Description
Introducing our latest cool-girl crossbody. Featuring a minimalist shape and unfussy studs, this moto-inspired essential is street style approved. Remove the chain strap for a clutch option, or wear it crossbody to go hands-free.
- Detail & Care
Details & Care
- 9"W x 6"H x 2.5"D
- Genuine leather
- 23" adjustable removable crossbody strap
- Custom silver hardware
- 1 exterior zipper pockets
- Top zipper closure
- 1 interior slip pockets
- Exclusive lining + dust bag
Reviews Write a review
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Armed Man Stopped In Ohio With Bombs In Car ID'd As Indy Guardsman
A man being held on $1 million bond in Ohio after police say they found bombs and other weapons in his vehicle has been identified as an Indiana National Guardsman.
The Columbus Dispatch reports that 43-year-old Andrew Scott Boguslawski is also a groundskeeper at a training center near Butlerville, in south-central Indiana. Lt. Col. Cathy Van Bree told The Dispatch he is an Indiana National Guard specialist who does intelligence analysis and has top-secret clearance.
She didn't immediately return a call Wednesday seeking more information.
He was stopped for speeding in Ohio Jan. 1, then was charged with illegally making or possessing an explosive device after nearly 50 bombs and four guns were allegedly found in his vehicle. No attorney was listed for him yet in Madison County.


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NetWellness is a global, community service providing quality, unbiased health information from our partner university faculty. NetWellness is commercial-free and does not accept advertising.
Monday, September 25, 2017
Urinary and Genital Disorders (Children)
Is VCUG necessary at this time
My daughter is 5 months one week and she had a fever for less than three days. It only went about 102 once and went up to 104.3 but dropped right away after we used tylenol. The fever subsided completely on its own on the third day. She had absolutely no other symptoms, urine didn`t smell, no pain urinating, feeding well and she was smiling and playing even when she had a high fever. We would never have known there was something wrong with her if she didn`t have a fever. We took her to the pediatrician and they were unable to check her urine by catheter because she has a mild labial adhesion. Instead they collected the sample from a urine bag (she urinated immediately and doctor said it was as good as a catheter sample). We are waiting for the cultures and she is currently on a 10 day antibiotic. She is completely normal and no temperature whatsoever. Do we need to do a VCUG now or can we wait and see if she has a second UTI? Dr. was shocked when he saw her because she did not look sick, didn`t feel sick and was extremely social. I`m wondering if babies with reflux tend to be very sick or have some outward symptoms? I`m also wondering if the labial adhesion possibly caused the UTI or maybe my husband and I need to be more diligent about cleaning her after soiled diapers? She is breastfed and her bowel movements are very liquidy and tend to creep all the way up the front. We are waiting to talk to the Dr. and are unsure how they would do the VCUG with the labial adhesion. I`m wondering if we can get the renal ultrasound and wait and see if she has another UTI before doing a VCUG. I don`t want to subject her to that test if I don`t have to as we may have to use estrogen cream to do so. I would be more than happy to take her into the office for regular urine samples. What do you think?
Thank you for visiting NetWellness. A question similar to yours has been previously addressed. The links below will connect you to that information. NetWellness may also have some general information available that you can access through our search feature. Feel free to write back if you still have questions or need an explanation.
NetWellness Staff


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- Overview
- Specs
- Reviews
Avid BB7 SL Disc BrakesWe spotted these mechanical disc stoppers at Eurobike last fall and couldn't wait to get our hands on them. Now that we finally have, we don't intend to let go any time soon.
The new and improved Avid BB7 SL disc brakes are a lighter and (in our humble opinion) better-looking iteration of the original Avid BB7s. They feature a forged, two-piece alloy body with a stylish, road component-inspired finish. Other details include titanium hardware for strength and lightweight, alloy-backed organic pads and a new, lightweight, heat-shedding HS1 rotor design. The calipers roll on precision ball bearing for silky smooth operation.
As much as we enjoy getting down and dirty with our equipment, we've never been big fans of fussy brakes. That's why the Avid BB7 SL's Tri-Align caliper centering system, with its hassle-free, turn-of-a-knob Speed Dial adjustment, is a winner as far as we're concerned. Set-up and adjustment is just about as easy as it gets. On the road and out on the cyclocross course, the mud-shedding capability and precise control were everything we expected. If you're thinking that disc brakes might be in your road or cyclocross bike's future, these are definitely worth considering.
The included HS1 rotor is compatible with standard 6-bolt hubs. All required mounting hardware is included. Brake levers and cables not included.
- Tri-Align Caliper Positioning System
- Alloy-backed organic pads
- Precision ball bearing actuation
- Easy, tool-free pad replacement
- Fully sealed
- One caliper included - order two calipers for Front and Rear
Learn More:
Check out our SRAM Brand Introduction.
Check out our Basic Guide: Introduction to Brakes.
Avid BB7 SL Disc Brakes
- fluid type:
- mount:
- International Standard/74mm Post Mount
- pad type:
- Organic
- rotor size:
- 160, 140
- weight:
- 276g (160mm)
- rating:
- 4
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STOCKHOLM, Sweden -- A one-of-a-kind vending machine on the campus of the Royal Institute of Technology this month got students into the holiday spirit by inviting them to sing their favorite Christmas carols for a free Coke.
The closed-front beverage vender, adorned with snowflakes, a Christmas tree and the words "Sjung for mig" (sing for me), was equipped with a karaoke machine and touchscreen panel. College coeds selected their favorite Christmas carol, picked up a microphone mounted in place of a payment system and started singing.
When they finished their song, they received a bottle of Coca-Cola, which was dispensed through the delivery door by a person concealed in the machine enclosure.
JMW kommunikation, Coca-Cola's Swedish communications agency in Stockholm, helped design the machine and oversaw the campaign on campus.
"We took turns and I sat there for a good two hours. It was lots of fun hearing all the singing and handing out bottles of Coke," JMW's Samuel Garlöv told Vending Times. "Because the machine was placed at the Royal Institute of Technology, it didn't take the students long before the figured out how the machine worked. But they liked the old-school manpowered function of the machine and started discussing how you would build a 2.0 version."
See the machine in action on YouTube.
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2013 Predictions
Isn't this what marketers are supposed to do this time of year?
I feel pressured to make predictions…so here it goes. My top 5 are:
The PC in Your Pocket
With the advent of Windows 8 and new touch screen PCs, the PC has become the new mobile device. Microsoft Windows now uses the same operating system across desktop, mobile phone and tablet devices. Web experience is now tactile. You will be able to swipe or tap anything on a screen. Thus, content needs to be visible, whether in tiles or other forms, not layered behind menus. Likewise, Web CMS applications need to be touch-enabled and provide a simple, yet powerful user experience on tablets and touch screen PCs.
Shape Up Your Site
With better analytics and marketing automation solutions marketers now have the tools to understand their customers and prospects and deliver the right message at the right time. Yet for most businesses, two percent is a great conversion rate on a landing page. In what other industry would a 98 percent fail rate be a success? Marketers need to refocus web marketing on the actual website. In 2013 marketers will deliver websites with the conversion tools of landing pages layered with segmentation and contextual targeting to make the entire website a high-performance marketing tool.
We'll Have Our Heads in the Clouds
In 2013, marketing organizations will think cloud first when selecting a new CRM systems. Why should marketing applications require heavy IT investments and expensive up-front licensing? It's very ironic that most Web CMS software, an application whose sole task is managing the Web, is still deployed on-premises. Cloud-based solutions lowers the management overhead, provides greater scalability, and lowers total cost of ownership. In 2013 marketing teams should look to vendors with proven success delivering cloub based marketing databases as a service.
Marketing Automation
The top, current CRM requirement for marketing programs is to ensure that your CRM system can support core marketing capabilities and requirements. Accordingly, we're seeing many businesses that are using cloud-based CRM looking to add two key marketing enhancements: campaign management, as well as lead management, including lead nurturing. See my post on the benefits of automation.
Social Media Monitoring
We've talked a lot about social media monitoring. The rationale is simple: If you don't know what customers are saying about your products and services on Facebook and Twitter, or taking appropriate steps to handle complaints, you're wasting a valuable opportunity to keep your current customers, while attracting new ones.
Of course, telling your boss that your winery needs to get social media savvy is preaching to the choir. But too many in management still don't "get" social, even though the business upsides are clear. A Harvard Business Review study finds that social media can increase employees' productivity by up to 25%–for example by enabling salespeople to connect with prospects via LinkedIn. The smart business money, across all customer-facing domains, is on social CRM.


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2008 Alumni Award recipients, l.-r.: NAU President John D. Haeger, NAU Alumni Association President Barbara McCloud, Albert L. Esparza, John E. Bridger, Sherman R. Frederick.
1977 BS Journalism
In a nomination submitted by highly respected representatives of the fourth estate and the judiciary profession, Sherman Frederick is described as surpassing the potential for reputability he demonstrated at NAU. An active member of the Society of Professional Journalists/Sigma Delta Chi, Frederick distinguished himself as one of the most dedicated and committed editors in The Lumberjack student newspaper's history. During his tenure, the paper won several regional and national awards for excellence -- which, according to NAU Professor-Administrator Emeritus Ray Newton, was a testament to the editor's "quiet but firm reportorial and editorial leadership, and his insistence upon accuracy, balance and completeness." Former NAU journalism faculty member Dr. David Bennett, '69 M.ED., now executive director of the Illinois Press Association, remembers Frederick as "a straight-A student, one of the best I ever taught -- yet he was humble and unpretentious."After graduating magna cum laude, Frederick was hired by the Las Vegas Review-Journal, where he quickly rose through the ranks to become city editor. While serving as editor for the highly-rated Hawaii Tribune-Herald, Frederick was offered the publisher's position at The Daily News in Alamogordo, N.M. His oversight resulted in such profitability and public acceptance that the Las Vegas Review-Journal eagerly "made him an offer he couldn't refuse." Tapped as the Review-Journal's editor in 1988 and then as publisher four years later, he held that position until 1999, when he became president of the Review-Journal's parent company, Vegas-based Stephens Media Group, one of the most prestigious publishing enterprises in the nation.Frederick's peers have honored him with a wealth of state, regional and national awards. A past president of the Nevada Press Association, he was recently inducted into their Hall of Fame; he has also worked assiduously with the Associated Press Managing Editors organization. But his greatest professional influence would appear to be in the moral and ethical sphere. Nevada Supreme Court Associate Justice A. William Maupin cites Frederick's "commitment to providing a forum for disseminating public information and framing debates of the great issues of the time...investigative pieces have often led to direct government action, even within the administration of the state judiciary." Maupin adds, "Please know that this very unique and respected individual reflects the highest traditions of what your university has tried to accomplish through its graduates."Loyalty to country and community and an unquestionable dedication to the exacting ethical standards of his profession: for achieving and transcending these hallmarks of personal and professional mastery, the NAU Alumni Association proudly names Sherman Frederick the 2008 Dwight Patterson Alumnus of the Year.
1994 MEd Counseling
Often, in the non-profit sector, a single-minded leader is so closely identified with an organization you can't imagine one without the other. Such an intrinsic symbiosis has been achieved by Albert Esparza, as founder, president and CEO of Si Se Puede Foundation (Yes, We Can!), serving more than 1,000 families and children who attend Title I schools and reside in Arizona low-income neighborhoods.The Si Se Puede Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit that advocates non-violent conflict resolution among young people by increasing positive behaviors through community service, educational/recreational activities, and parental involvement in the lives of their children. Programs include after-school reading and math tutoring, a Lego robotics program, youth soccer, Baile Folklorico, adult ESL classes, citizenship and GED classes, as well as workshops and presentations focusing on parenting, life skills and leadership.For the past 14 years, Esparza has orchestrated these programs singlehandedly; limited funding has not deterred him from expanding to meet the needs of the schools and communities he serves. In earlier years, when the agency still hadn't received funding, he spent his life's savings to keep the programs afloat, experiencing personal financial hardship. Esparza's nomination states that he "fondly recalls sleeping in borrowed offices, traveling by bus between communities...and on many occasions walking from school to school just to keep his program alive."Esparza earned his bachelor's degree from Arizona State University and his master's in counseling from NAU. He has served and chaired the boards of directors of both Chicanos Por La Causa and the Salvation Army Advisory Board, as well as the City of Phoenix Human Relations Commission, serving as vice-chair and co-founding the cultural diversity program, We're All on the Same Team. In 1999 the nationally recognized Commission honored Esparza for his work in civil rights. That same year he received the City of Mesa Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Spirit of Unity Award, followed by the City of Phoenix Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Living the Dream Award in 2001. He has been honored repeatedly by the City of Chandler as a volunteer and champion of diversity.According to the Si Se Puede website, Esparza attributes his work ethic and compassion for others to his role models and loving parents, Marcelino and Amada. As a guest speaker, he reminds his audiences that the community of a man and his influence on children are more important than all the material things he acquires. For his unparalleled insistence on universal education and personal accountability, the Northern Arizona University Alumni Association thanks Albert Esparza with the Dr. Cliff Harkins Distinguished Citizen of the Year Award.
1974 BS Management
Continuing their cherished annual tradition, NAU's beloved Joe and Marie Rolle have once again personally chosen the deserving recipient of their eponymous Spirit of NAU Award. This year the Rolle honoree is John Bridger, who has made his engagement in the life of the university a corporate commitment.John currently serves as executive director of the Thunderbirds, a public service group that voluntarily organizes the PGA tour's FBR Open, which many consider the finest sporting event in Arizona. In a tangible demonstration of his belief in this institution's value, John has created an NAU presence at FBR that resonates throughout the year, raising awareness of Northern Arizona University among luminaries from the Valley and throughout the U.S.As one pundit has attested, "it's so much easier to write a résumé than to craft a spirit." In John's case, his spirit is eloquently illustrated by his NAU résumé, from his undergraduate experience as part of signature university organizations such as Sigma Nu, Sophos, and Chain Gang, to his informed participation as a member of the NAU Alumni Association and Foundation Boards of Directors. John continues to advocate the university mission through his work with the W.A. Franke College of Business Advisory Board and as a supporter at the major gift level.John Bridger's personal and professional contributions epitomize the high standard of humanistic enthusiasm that the Rolles have modeled during their half century of stewardship, and the NAU Alumni Association gratefully recognizes him with our most heartfelt honor, the Joe and Marie Rolle Spirit of NAU Award.


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Lotus Engineering is an established industry leader in creating hybrid and electric vehicles incorporating a range of technologies.
Integration of new drivetrain solutions presents a perfect opportunity for Lotus Engineering's combined skills to shine. Hybrid and electric vehicles pose a unique set of challenges on many fronts, ranging from unconventional packaging, control systems, software and strategy through to wider-ranging manufacturing issues.
However, our electrical and electronic integration expertise extends far beyond propulsion systems into vehicle control systems, comfort systems, infotainment and creating advanced human machine interface systems. Niche and premium applications are often where emerging technology is first implemented to give vehicle users new functionality.
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So, our ability to integrate next generation technologies using a whole-vehicle perspective not only helps our clients deliver on their environmental promise, but also creates desirable, customer-focused vehicles.
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Proton Emas concept car installed with a series hybrid drivetrain
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Miami Heat superstar LeBron James has a message for fans and critics, alike: The show must go on.
James, who earlier this week said he might discontinue his high-flying pregame dunk display, on Thursday said he'll just ignore the negative comments he's getting instead, ESPN.com reported.
"I don't do it for anyone besides our team," James said Thursday about his pregame dunks, which have become an Internet sensation the past week.
But with the clicks have come criticism in recent days, from fans and some former players, for his unwillingness to compete in the All-Star Slam Dunk Contest.
"I don't care — I get criticized for everything," James said after practice, according to ESPN.com. "That's a small thing on my agenda, is that I'm getting criticized for what I do in warm-ups. Stop it."
The team streams the pregame routine on its website, and owner Micky Arison has used his Twitter account to encourage a usually late-arriving home crowd to get to the arena earlier.
"Everyone stop complaining about @KingJames in the dunk contest," Arison tweeted Wednesday. "If u want to see him dunk come to the @AAarena. & enjoy the show."
And, James reiterated, there will be a show.
"We came up with something to say, 'Let's get warmed up even more.' We're happy our fans love it, and we're going to continue to do it," he said. "It's something we enjoy. It's something that gets us up for the game."


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Upgrade your free Xbox Live account to Gold or add another year to your current membership, with this 12 month subscription card. Your Xbox Live Gold membership gains you access to instant streaming movies in up to 1080p high definition, streaming music, new game add-ons and early releases, exclusive discounts, and more!
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(FatWallet Deal Hunter staff posts are certified ad-free. No money, bribes, or candy have been accepted.)


text: Statehouse beat: State has over a billion in reserve By Phil Kabler February 24, 2013 Story Share Legislators shouldn't have been surprised by Auditor Glen Gainer's budget report showing that the state has nearly $1.5 billion put away in reserve accounts, budget surplus, as well as more than $350 million in unexpended reappropriations.Proportionally, the Legislature has been one of the leaders at socking away money, according to figures from the auditor's office.Between the House, Senate and Joint Expenditures, the Legislature has $75.7 million put away for a rainy day (or rainy season), equal to 305 percent of its $24.8 million budget for 2013-14.Most of the Legislature's money -- $55.7 million -- is in what is called the TRAFFIC account, a contingency fund that, like the state's $912.88 million in Rainy Day funds, could be tapped into in the event a natural and/or financial disaster caused a serious downturn in state tax collections.The Senate is sitting on $27.9 million in unexpended reappropriations, including a total of $10.97 million in funds for member and employee compensation, $5 million for current expenses, and $3.58 million for members' expenses.(That's more than four times the Senate's annual operating budget of $6.4 million.)The House, by comparison, only has $7.05 million socked away, with about $2.3 million for member and employee compensation, $2.89 million for current expenses, and $2 million for members' expenses.That's not quite equal with the House's $9.4 million annual operating budget.In addition to the TRAFFIC account, the Legislature has about $5 million squirreled away in its Joint Expenses account, including $2.09 million in the legislative computer system account.*** That most state agencies and departments have money in accounts that sit unexpended and roll over year after year is probably one reason Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin's proposed $75 million in cuts in the 2013-14 budget hasn't caused great howls of protest.Of course, the governor's office itself has $27.67 million put away in various accounts, including $24.9 million in the governor's civil contingency fund.Actually, the civil contingency fund had a balance of $32.4 million when the budget year began July 1, 2012, but the fund tends to shrink a little in election years -- those giant checks handed out around the state have to be paid for from someplace.(In 2000, then-Gov. Cecil Underwood not only tapped into contingency funds, but basically depleted them, handing out nearly $16 million in grants and awards in his ill-fated re-election bid.)*** The Department of Health and Human Resources has the most money in unexpended reappropriations, at $64.24 million. Then again, with annual general revenue appropriations at about $1 billion, it's second only to public education in terms of state expenditures.About $25.86 million of that is from various institutional facilities operations accounts surpluses. Odd, didn't the DHHR recently settle a lawsuit for failing to give court-ordered pay raises to employees at the state's two psychiatric hospitals?The Development Office has $28.58 million put away in various economic development assistance accounts that can be used to lure new business to the state.The Department of Agriculture has $9.9 million squirreled away, with $6.19 million of that in funds for soil conservation projects.Attorney General Patrick Morrisey, who last week asked the Legislature for $1.85 million in supplemental appropriations, inherited $385,135 in various surplus reappropriations.And, another relatively small agency that has more than a year's worth of operating expenses put away in unexpended reappropriations is the Division of Protective Services, the Capitol Complex police force. Protective Services has $3.79 million in reserve, with $3.44 million in various unclassified accounts. With an annual operating budget of $2.3 million, that would be enough to keep DPS going for more than a year and a half.***Finally, that the sales tax TIF bill for the University Town Centre (SB125) development appears to be fast-tracked is good news not only for the greater Morgantown area, but for Charleston as well.Part of the development will be a $15 million ballpark for the West Virginia University baseball team, and according to news reports, for the Pittsburgh Pirates' affiliate in the New York-Penn League, a short-season Class A league.Besides becoming the fourth professional baseball team in West Virginia, at a level above Rookie League teams in Bluefield and Princeton, and a level below the full-season Class A West Virginia Power, it would create a symbolic link between the state's pre-eminent cities.With the Power also being a Pirates' affiliate, there would be a connection between Morgantown and Charleston, with players regularly being promoted and demoted between the two teams.Conversely, Power fans will be able to make the short road trip north to scout next season's prospects, and Morgantown team fans will be able to drive south to see their former players competing at the next level.Since we have the Power in Charleston, maybe the Morgantown ball club could be named the Glory ...Reach Phil Kabler at email@example.com or 304-348-1220. Story Share Story Share Trending Now 1 Facebook founder visits Cabin Creek Health Systems 2 Safety shutoff disabled prior to June coal-mining death, report says 3 Huggins, WVU tap South Florida hoops talent 4 Teen pleads guilty to voluntary manslaughter in Oakes Field shooting 5 WVU hopes to get injured defenders back for TCU DNR proposes changes in bear-hunting season Previous Story Jam session (photo) Next Story


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Intergalactic police force recruits Ben and Grandpa Max...
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When Ben 10 first began, it seemed as though aliens appearing on Earth was a pretty rare occurrence. As time went on, however, the audience learned that not only had extraterrestrials been visiting for years, but there was an intergalactic police force known as the Plumbers that watched out for such things, and that kindly old Grandpa Max was a member! Tasked with protecting sovereign planets, keeping peace between alien species, and of course protecting the sanctity of the timeline, Plumbers are recruited from many worlds and races. They train in space stations (just recently Ben, Gwen, and Kevin spent some memorable time at one of these installations), and patrol the universe in sleek space ships while sporting high tech armor and gear. In fact, it is the symbol of the Plumbers that adorns the Omnitrix itself!
While the Plumbers have been a significant part of the show for a while, they havent quite made it into toy form until now. The new mid-2011 Ben 10 lineup includes two very specific Plumber toys, and of course they capture two of the organizations most famous members: Ben and Max Tennyson. In the 4 inch figure collection is the single carded Ben with Plumber Suit, while the vehicle+figure lineup gets the Plumber Space Ship with Grandpa Max! Both products feature the new white and green Ben 10 packaging scheme, featuring an image of the current Ben Tennyson and a silhouette of his original 10 year old incarnation.
Bens angular 4 inch figure card is very similar to the one used on the Haywire figures (see our review HERE) with the clear bubble showing Ben and his Plumber Suit components; theres even character art from the show of Ben in the suit at the bottom. The back panel shows off current 4 inch figures (Ultimate Kevin, Ultimate Swampfire, Ultimate Humungousaur, Ultimate Wildmutt, Rath, and Armodrillo). Each one comes with a mini-figure for use with the Revolution Ultimatrix, also shown on the back.
Meanwhile, the Plumber Space Ship set comes in a large window box. With more room available it really screams green with the busy background design of floating Omnitrix spheres and static energy. The back of the box really shows what the toy is capable of, with images of its six different modes (Crawler, Light Speed, Water, and more!). Theres also a small section at the bottom with other Ben 10 Ultimate Alien vehicles: Bens Motorcycle and Bens Mark 10 & Kevins Cruiser.
This Plumber version is a new figure that re-uses the head of the latest Ben Tennyson. His slightly thinner (and shorter) body is sculpted in the standard Plumber spacesuit bodysuit complete with forearm ring decorations, a minimalist belt, heavy gloves (with Ultimatrix built in), and what my dad would call moon boots. Like most of the other human figures in the 4 inch toy line Ben is sturdy and looks great with the style straight from the cartoon. Compared to his other figures, this Ben without his outer suit could almost be called Stealth Ben with a color palette of black with dark blue (rings and hips) and light gray (gloves and boots). Naturally, Bens face and neck are flesh-toned, and the usual bright green shows up on the Ultimatrix and the heros eyes. Ben has good articulation at the neck, shoulders, elbows, hips, and knees.
Of course, a dark suit does not a Plumber make, and thats where his accessories come into play. Packaged with Ben are three parts: chest, back, and helmet. The torso pieces fit over Bens chest and plug into each other with pegs, fitting quite securely. Part armor and part spacesuit, the addition looks really good on Ben with a nice sculpt and matching colors with some bold red circles to boot. Even better, the suit only slightly impairs Bens shoulder articulation. Finally, theres a translucent bucket-style helmet that fits over his head and plugs into the chest piece. Ben looks great with or without the helmet piece depending on how you want him displayed.
But Ben wasnt the first Tennyson to be a Plumber. Grandpa Max has been on the show since the very first episode, but until now hasnt appeared in the 4 inch toy line in the United States (there was a U.K.-only Max figure that may see a US release check out more info on that and much more in our interview with Ben 10 Brand Manager David Schmidt HERE) until now! With a somewhat youthful appearance reminiscent of the many flashbacks into his varied career, Max cuts an imposing figure in his Plumber Suit. He stands nearly a head taller than most of the other human figures, with a nice, beefy build.
Maxs Plumber Suit is similar to Bens, but with even more detail; the torso section has the same circles with midsection lines and belt pockets, while the arms have overlapping shoulder plates and elbow padding, and the legs thigh holsters and boots. The figure also has a very distinctive head sculpt that captures Grandpa Maxs Plumber glory days. The color palette is the same as Bens, with light gray, black, dark blue, and red for accents. Max also has similar articulation, though without the knees that Ben has.
Ready to travel anywhere in the universe in pursuit of justice, Max has the modular Plumber Space Ship, an interesting design with tons of customizability. Broken down into its components, the ship has a central/main body, two trapezoidal connectors, two outriggers/pods (that themselves divide in half), and a projectile-firing gun. Except for the latter, those parts can be attached in all sorts of different configurations, giving Max access to vehicles best suited for land, sea, air, or space.
The parts connect with interlocking posts and holes with satisfying snaps, and once assembled the different modes are sturdy and fun to play with. Check out the included pictorial instruction sheet for directions on building the six basic modes, but with some tinkering there are even more you can come up with on your own!
No matter how you configure your Plumber ship, it can mount the cannon on the hood; simply push on the back of the missile to fire it. Even better, the back half of the main body unfolds to reveal a pilot seat complete with flip up controls. Max fits perfectly into the seat, while other figures will work there too (like Plumber Ben)! But if you really want Max ready for trouble, attach the halves of the pods to his arms and outfit him in battle mode.
The new Plumber figures are excellent additions to the Ben 10 line and to fans collections. More figures of the human characters are always welcome, and these are perfect representations of the sci-fi space police aspect of the recent seasons. The two price points are convenient as well, with the inexpensive single packed Ben an easy buy and the larger Grandpa Max and Plumber Space Ship set perfect for a special occasion or the chance to splurge.
Review and Photos by Scott Rubin
Review Samples Courtesy of Bandai America


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UCONN MEN: UConn's Daniels has big game in victory
Published 12:00 am, Friday, December 7, 2012
STORRS >> DeAndre Daniels winced at midcourt when the first TV timeout came on Friday night, but it had nothing to do with admiring his team's (or his own) hot start.
Daniels was still bothered by lower back spasms that had first cropped up early in Tuesday night's loss to NC State and had his status somewhat questionable for Friday's bout with Harvard.
Fortunately for UConn, Daniels played through the pain, carrying the Huskies on his balky back through the first portion of the game. Shabazz Napier largely took care of the rest, doing just about everything but scoring down the stretch and helping UConn hold off the pesky Crimson, 57-49, before 9,113 at Gampel Pavilion.
"Great victory (Friday). I'll definitely take 7-2," UConn coach Kevin Ollie said, referring to his team's record. "Once again, this team showed their fight, showed their resiliency to come back. And our sixth man, our crowd, was unbelievable. I definitely want to praise them. I told Coach (George) Blaney after we came out at halftime, I don't know why (our team) can't get excited for this ... I wanted to play."
Daniels finished with a career-best 23 points on 9-for-12 shooting. He carried the Huskies with 15 first-half points, along with their first four of the latter half.
"It just all started with me talking with K.O. and telling him I need to be confident in myself, and be the person I used to be," Daniels, a 6-foot-9 sophomore, said. "At the start of the game, he was going to go to me early to try to get me going. I was able to knock down my shots, and my teammates were finding me."
Added Ollie: "DeAndre's a player. He's got to have that confidence to take it to the rim, be aggressive. That's what we wanted him to do today. I don't know if they thought his back was messed up or not, but he decided to play today."
Still, the Huskies - who kicked off the game on an 11-0 start and led 15-2 at one point - weren't able to break away from Harvard (4-4). The Crimson never led, but trailed by just three at halftime and were within a point (33-32) with a couple of chances to take the lead midway through the latter half.
Enter Napier, who was scoreless up to that point. His deft passing and pesky defense (along with a 3-pointer) engineered a 13-2 run that essentially put the game away.
Wesley Saunders' reverse layup with 14:30 left brought the Crimson to within a point. Daniels followed with a putback of a Niels Giffey miss, then scored inside off a nice bounce pass from Napier.
After a Steve Moundou-Missi inside hoop, Napier hit Giffey for a dunk on a 3-on-1 break. Tyler Olander scored inside, Napier hit a trey and Giffey slammed home an alley-oop pass from Napier on another 3-on-1 to give the Huskies their biggest lead (46-34) of the night.
"I'm a point guard, so I love passing the ball," Napier said. "I love getting steals, rebounds, assists. I don't really care too much about scoring, as long as my teams wins. That's all I care about. I get happy when I get a steal and throw an alley to GIff, I like to see somebody else happy. That motivates me to keep it going. That means I'm doing something well, and we're doing something collectively good."
Napier finished with nine assists, a team-high seven rebounds, four steals and just one turnover to go with six points - 11 below his season average. Ryan Boatright followed Daniels in the scoring column with 16 points.
Daniels' big night was a positive sign for UConn, which is trying to find a consistent third scorer to compliment Napier and Boatright, who combine to average nearly half (31.6) of the team's points.
"I can help those guys, take the load off them," Daniels said. "Everybody's going to be scouting them, trying to double-team them and get them off their game. I just need to step up and get the load off their back."
On Friday night, Daniels put the load squarely on his balky back. He only hopes his back doesn't keep nagging him throughout the season - or does he?
"If I keep playing like this, I'd like it to keep nagging me," he joked. "Hopefully, it doesn't, but we'll see."
RIM RATTLINGS: Ollie changed his starting lineup for the first time this season, starting Enosch Wolf at center over struggling Olander. Wolf was coming off a 12-point, nine-rebound effort against NC State on Tuesday.
"Just switching things up," Ollie said. "Enosch deserves to start, he's been playing well. He's been playing in key moments for us. I told Tyler just to fight to get that position back, because it's not etched in stone that he's the starter. I go by feel, by effort and by production. Enosch deserved to start. We'll evaluate it day by day."
Each player wound up logging 20 minutes on Friday. Wolf had four points and no rebounds, Olander four points and two boards.
*** UConn football coach Paul Pasquoloni, fresh from the Xavier-NFA championship game at Rentschler Field, sat two rows behind the Huskies' bench for the game.


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A Charlotte 3-year-old born deaf became the first child in the United States to have a brain implant to help him hear.
Cameras were rolling as Grayson Clamp heard his father's voice for the first time.
In the video, his face instantly lights up as his father tells Grayson he loves him.
"I've never seen a look like that today," said Grayson's father, Len Clamp. "I mean, he looked deep into my eyes. He was hearing my voice for the first time. It was phenomenal."
Read more about Grayson on the UNC Health Care and UNC School of Medicine website.
Copyright 2013 WGCL-TV (Meredith Corporation). All rights reserved.


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Jan. 22, 2013
McKinney Falls State Park to host CenTex Survival Fair
AUSTIN — Calling all wilderness survival experts-in-training! The CenTex Survival Fair will be held from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Feb. 23. at McKinney Falls State Park in Austin.
"I absolutely cannot wait for this event," said Amber Conrad, park ranger. "We'll have local food and bluegrass music as we educate people about outdoor safety through awesome activities like fire-building and a geocache challenge. You can't beat it."
Fair-goers will have the opportunity to meet first responders responsible for outdoor emergency services and learn about their jobs by crawling through fire engines, ambulances, rescue boats and other vehicles, seeing live demonstrations and trying on rescue equipment. Walk-in Take 10 CPR trainings will be available at the fair through Austin-Travis County EMS. Activities such as archery, flint knapping, atlatl throwing, a geocache challenge and live wildlife shows will be available all day.
The fair will feature a Go Fish! youth fishing workshop where children can earn their Junior Angler Education pins while learning to tie basic knots, identify fish and get a chance to catch their first fish. Children may start the 30-minute rotating station workshop at any point during the event. There will be a fishing contest with prizes for children and adults. Because fishing is free in all state parks, anglers do not need a fishing license to participate but must register for the contest before beginning to fish.
Activities and booths will be open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. with tacos, barbeque and fresh kettle corn from local vendors, as well as general concessions and live music throughout the day. Survival hikes on a one-mile loop will last about half an hour and leave the Smith Visitor's Center at 11 a.m., 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.
The CenTex Survival Fair is hosted by the park's volunteer group, the Friends of McKinney Falls State Park. Proceeds for this event support the group's Junior Ranger Summer Camp, an affordable outdoor day camp benefiting city youth ages 9-12 held annually at McKinney Falls. Registration for the camp begins in March on the group's website at http://www.mckinneyfalls.org/.
The CenTex Survival Fair event is free and open to the public after park entrance fees. State Park Pass holders and children 12 years of age and younger are admitted without charge. McKinney Falls is located in Austin's backyard just off U.S. 183. The park is completely within the city limits of Austin and features two natural water falls, miles of hiking and biking trails, campgrounds and the City of Austin's Tree of the Year "Old Baldy".
For more information about this event, or to register a group of 10 or more for special raffle entry, please contact firstname.lastname@example.com, visit facebook.com/centexSurvivalFair or follow twitter.com/MckinneyFalls.
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Conflict is never pretty, but most people could learn a thing or two about resolving it from the new book "Conflict – The Unexpected Gift: Making the Most of Disputes in Life and Work" (iUniverse, 2013).
Written by two experienced local mediators, Jack Hamilton and Elisabeth Seaman, the book compiles useful tips that have proven effective over two decades of trial and error.
"We're giving them the tools they can use in their own lives," said Hamilton, who teaches at Stanford University and co-authored the book with fellow mediator and business partner Seaman.
Sharlene Gee and Hillary Freeman also contributed to the book.
As a volunteer mediator with the Palo Alto Mediation Program, Seaman facilitated one of the breakout groups in a December 2012 meeting to gather input on five facilities-sharing scenarios for Bullis Charter School and the Los Altos School District.
Hamilton regularly gives talks for local groups, including a book discussion earlier this year at BridgePoint at Los Altos. He also headed a training session for volunteer mediators with the Los Altos, Mountain View and Palo Alto mediation programs.
Both Hamilton and Seaman have served as volunteer and professional mediators for 20 years.
Conflict is "a result of unfounded assumptions about each other. It's the assumptions that trigger the emotions," Hamilton said.
The book introduces a "Ladder of Assumptions": Step 1, Assumptions of the Facts; Step 2, Interpretations; Step 3, Motives; and Step 4, Generalizations.
"It's a metaphor for how the human mind works," Hamilton said.
Built into the book are methods for helping people identify and write their own ladders, he added.
"Some people see things as black or white," Seaman said. "Things are more generally complicated than that."
The first step to resolving conflict, Seaman said, is to "become aware of how our thinking processes work."
Next comes something that people in general don't do well – listen. The authors underline the importance of becoming an attentive listener. They offer a four-step process to improve communication: encourage dialogue by drawing the speaker out, clarify statements to understand more fully, restate to let the speaker know you're listening and summarize to review what's been said.
Good listening, they said, breaks down stereotypes and preconceived notions about the opposing party.
"When people come to mediation, they're breathing fire," Hamilton said. "(Mediation) enables disputants to get a sense over time of who that other person is."
For instance, Hamilton said that because his educational background and experience was greater than Seaman's, he figured her ideas would not be as good and thus more easily discounted.
"As long as I held her in that box, I would never have heard her good ideas," he said.
Seaman pointed to a case between two brothers who had a conflict over property, and, more importantly, did not get along with one another. Repairing the brothers' broken relationship took precedence before any agreement over property could be reached.
"What kind of relationship are you going to have when this (agreement) is over?" she asked the brothers.
Another four-word mantra the mediators espouse: Stop, Listen, Accept, Collaborate.
Hamilton said the book is "pretty much for anyone 15 or older. It's full of case studies."
Other helpful advice includes learning how to apologize effectively, finding humility and becoming more self-aware.
And the "Unexpected Gift" referenced in the title? That, according to the authors, is emerging from conflict a better person.
"There's a tinge of idealism here," Hamilton said, a bit tongue in cheek, of his reasons for compiling the book. "We're trying to build world peace one person at a time."
Hamilton is scheduled to teach a conflict resolution class Jan. 10 to March 7 at Avenidas in Palo Alto. For more information, call 289-5400.
"Conflict – The Unexpected Gift" is available for checkout at the Los Altos main library, 13 S. San Antonio Road. Los Altos Voices for Peace purchased and donated the book to the library.
To order the book and for more information, visit iuniverse.com.


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14:49 From in.com
Here is why Deepika is the best choice for the Smile Campaign!
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Jacqueline turns Yoga instructor for Family!
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When Shraddha Kapoor got emotional on stage!
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Kriti Sanon knows exactly what she wants and dons different outfits making a style...
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Turkey President, Erdoğan, spreading conservative propaganda by replacing jihad in school curriculum with Darwin's theory of evolution.
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Forthcoming Budget will have Stipulations for Simplified Direct and Indirect Taxation - MOS Finance
Minister of State for Finance, Mr. Arjun Ram Meghwal on Wednesday promised that the forthcoming budget would have stipulation and provisions that would lead to further simplification of tax administration and tax dispensation of both direct and indirect taxes to enable business community to render their transaction smoothly and effectively.
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Social Initiative Help India Learn Expands Reach to over 120 Schools with over 50 Volunteer Teachers On-Board
Develops smartphone based Maths videos in Hindi for underprivileged students
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UN Supports Better Welfare for Farm Animals Worldwide
For the first time ever in the history of the United Nations (UN), farm animals worldwide will be better protected following the adoption of groundbreaking global policy recommendations on animal welfare in farming at the UN Committee on World Food Security meeting in Rome.
from in.com
SevaChild India, Local Rishikesh and Dehradun NGOs Join Hands to Prevent Blindness in Children of Uttarakhand
Mumbai-based SevaChild India, along with the Rural Development Institute (RDI), Divine Shakti Foundation and Him Jyoti School for Girls came together to conduct a health, hygiene and sanitation awareness day on 17th October 2016 at the Mayakund slum. It was combined with the distribution of Vitamin A and Albendazole to children below the age of five.
from firstpost
AAP MLA Somnath Bharti arrested for allegedly assaulting Aiims security guard
In fresh trouble for Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), MLA Somnath Bharti was on Thursday arrested by Delhi Police for allegedly assaulting a security guard of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (Aiims)...
from firstpost
United Nations: A happy shouting ground for Pakistan, it was India's turn to holler back
Pakistan loves the United Nations, especially its annual General Assembly in New York. This provides it with an international platform to project its positions, often born of paranoia. Pakistan Prime ...


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Templar Studios (their website is brilliant) have launched an interactive Flash-based online game, Mutator on www.thetruth.com as part of the American Legacy Foundation's multi-platform anti-smoking campaign with creative directed by Arnold Worldwide of Boston and Crispin, Porter + Bogusky of Miami. The companies have worked together to provide the truth� campaign brand-extending entertainment content. Mutator uses humor and irony to engage users in an interactive environment. Players avoid glowing green radioactive puffs of smoke that are blown from above while they move across the screen. As a player comes in contact with more smoke, their character mutates into an alien-like form.
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With Game 1 of the 2012 World Series quickly approaching, there still are many questions surrounding the matchup between the Detroit Tigers and San Francisco Giants.
Sporting News took five of those questions to MLB Network analysts Mitch Williams and Bill Ripken. They will be part of MLB Network's MLB Tonight, which will air live on-site before and after every World Series game and will feature highlights, analysis and interviews.
1. How confident are you that the Tigers will avoid the rust that plagued them after a long layoff before the 2006 World Series?
Williams: "I'm very confident. This time, I think the pitching is just that much better than it was in 2006. I think their great starting staff can overcome any offensive slumps they could have. With that said, the Tigers lineup in 2006 did not have Miguel Cabrera batting third and Prince Fielder batting fourth. I think their offense will perform better this time around, too."
Ripken: "I think too much was made of 2006's layoff in the first place. In 2005, the Chicago White Sox had a long layoff, and then they swept the Astros. I think that it is convenient to fall back on, but I'm not really sure that's what happened in 2006. Let's look at the Yankees this year. Did they have a week layoff? No, but they looked rusty. I think rust can happen at any time and I think it's a convenient excuse. I don't think rust will play into this year's World Series."
2. Can the Giants afford to fall into an early hole in the World Series like they did in the NLDS and NLCS?
Williams: "No, I don't think they can. With the starting pitching the Tigers have, you're not going to be able to fall behind 2-0 and count on being able to rally for three consecutive wins against their starting staff. They're just too deep. They have too many quality pitchers that can stop a team's momentum."
Ripken: "No, they cannot. I think they need to keep pace in order for them to win the series. It's going to have to go 1-1, 2-2, or they have to get out ahead. They're not going to win three games in a row against the Tigers' starting staff. They have to keep it close."
3. How costly will it be that the Giants can't start Matt Cain or Ryan Vogelsong in Game 1 against Justin Verlander?
Williams: "It will be costly in the sense that they'll be in a 1-0 hole. However, I think the Giants are losing Game 1 to Verlander no matter what. It doesn't matter if they could start Cain or Vogelsong. So, you might as well save Cain or Vogelsong for later in the series when they can go up against Doug Fister, Anibal Sanchez and Max Scherzer and try to steal a game there."
Ripken: "I don't think it will be too costly. I think everybody thought it was a mismatch when Barry Zito took the mound in St. Louis for Game 5. Everybody thought the Cardinals were going to roll him and he went out and threw a gem. I guess you can never underestimate a competitor. Zito competes and he seems to be the consummate teammate. He's not pitching against Verlander, he's pitching against the Detroit offense. Nobody thought he could do what he did against St. Louis so if he goes out there and executes, he has a chance."
4. Who is the X-factor for each team?
Williams: "For the Tigers, it has to be Justin Verlander because they have to win every game that he starts. I believe he'll get three starts in the series. I'm willing to bet there is going to be at least one game rained out, which will allow him to get his proper rest. The Tigers depend on him so much that they need to take every game of the series he pitches.
"For the Giants, I think it's their closer, Sergio Romo. If the Giants get a lead to him in the ninth, he needs to make it stand up every time. You can't afford to lose a game you were on the verge of winning. Wins are very precious throughout the postseason, but especially the World Series. You're playing one of the top two teams in baseball."
Ripken: "For the Tigers, I think it's the catchers, Gerald Laird and Alex Avila. They have to do something. Combined, they only have six hits and one RBI in the postseason. For this team to win it all, they have to pitch in and help the club offensively.
"On the Giants side, it's tough to call the MVP of the NLCS the X-factor, but Marco Scutaro has to keep doing what he's been doing. He has been responsible for a lot of their offense in the postseason. He hit .500 in the NLCS and the series still went to seven games. He's not Buster Posey or one of their notable starting pitchers, but he's a good complementary player. Can he ride this Cinderella story and win the World Series MVP on top of it? We'll see."
5. If the Tigers win it all, will manager Jim Leyland walk away (a la Tony La Russa last year)?
Williams: "No, I don't think so. Jim still loves the game and loves being around it. I also believe he's emotionally invested in this group. If the Tigers offer him a contract to come back, he'll be back. Some guys are just lifers in baseball and he is one of them. I look at him like I look at Don Zimmer, another lifer. When he goes, he'll be in a baseball uniform."
Ripken: "No I don't think so. I know he took some shots this year, which I think were undeserving, but he still enjoys it. When you see his reactions and his emotions, it's genuine and he cares for that team. I think he still has a little bit left in the tank. I'm a fan of both Jim Leyland and Bruce Bochy. I certainly would be happy to see either of them win. It'd be good for baseball. Both Leyland and Bochy have that old-school type of mentality. They handle their players with respect. If Jimmy wins, congratulations to him, but come back."
World Series 2012
The Linemakers: Odds, props and picks
World Series 2012: Schedule, TV times


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Cheers all-
I'm a longtime Ulti player, but a good friend is getting me into disc golf. After playing a few times at local courses with my ulti-style discs, I'm ready to start learning how to throw the real things. Just so happens that my mother-in-law asked for a Christmas idea, so I'm looking at a couple starter sets.
The one I'm particularly interested in is a Nutsac bag with an Innova Sidewinder and Shark (both DX) and a Millenium Omega putter. The Nutsac may be a totally gimmicky thing, so feel free to flame me, but I like the satchel style and I really don't see ever carrying more than 6 discs, at least not in the next couple years. As far as the discs themselves, I'm sure it's a rather basic collection, but I'm suffering serious information overload, and these seemed relatively "safe" (I've thrown golf discs a total of about twice). The whole set is about $65 shipped. (Link: http://discsunlimited.net/disc_golf_bags_sets.html#fade-millennium)
SO, the questions: is it a decent deal? Will I be happy with the discs? Suggestions for a better package/starter set? Any feedback is welcome.


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Oct 19, 2012
Picking the Best Press Release Wire Service for Your Needs – An Insider's Guide
- Tagged in Press Release Tips, Social Media, SEO
- Leave a Comment
One of the most common questions PR people ask is "Which press release wire service should I use to issue my organization's news?"
I've spent 20 years working for various newswires, including managing the press release distribution product at PR Newswire and keeping tabs on our competitors. Simply put, I know the newswire business! So to help you find the best answer to that question "Which newswire service should I pick?" for your organization, here are some questions and criteria you can use to determine which wire service will work best for you.
Four questions to ask when selecting a press release distribution vendor:
First and foremost, you should question vendors about their coverage – in terms of both media and online channels – related to the specific business you're promoting. Things to ask potential newswire vendors include:
1) What web sites syndicate your content and will display my news? Pay attention to your industry niche, and ask the vendor to distinguish between people who receive content via RSS and the web sites that have actually agreed to syndicate (and display) content from the newswire.
2) How do you measure online distribution, and what type of reporting will I receive? Ask questions about what the numbers mean. Some numbers, like "impressions," describe potential audience, not actual views of the press release.
3) Which media do you reach, and how? Drill into how the vendor reaches the media that are of most importance to you. Don't forget niche industry media and bloggers! They are important sources of influence.
4) How do you measure media activity, and what type of reporting will I receive? It's always helpful to ask vendors what reporting they provide. Ideally, the reporting should match or describe the distribution you're purchasing.
Other factors to consider:
- Web site traffic: Compare the web site traffic and search engine referrals each vendor's web site receives. These numbers will reveal which newswire have stronger web sites – which delivers more visibility for your message. Don't assume the larger, more well established wires are lacking in online exposure. In most cases, they actually provide more visibility and have stronger web sites than newer, web-only companies.
- Social media: Look at social media presence, and the social shares of press releases generated by the vendor .
- Editing & SEO: The degree to which press releases are edited before they are distributed also varies by provider. Some provide no editing; some just check spelling; others do a full edit, finding and fixing mistakes in press releases, and may even provide SEO tips, too.
Dig deeper into pricing and options
All of the wires offer different price structures. Don't assume that the biggies like PR Newswire and Business Wire can't compete with smaller wires – we all offer packages ideal for small business PR efforts, as well as programs for agencies, public companies and a host of other kinds of organizations and enterprises. Once you have zeroed in on the vendor offering the distribution that is best aligned with your objectives, talk to one of their people about which service levels make the most sense for your organization.
Guide to sharing your press release
This simple guide will help you prepare all that you need for distributing your press release: Quick & Easy Guide to Sharing Your Press Release with the World
In addition to working for PR Newswire for almost 18 years, author Sarah Skerik also spent time with Reuters and the City News Bureau of Chicago. She got her start in news distribution at age 14, as a paper girl for the Burlington HawkEye, Iowa's oldest newspaper.
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Thursday November 15, 2012 6:17 pm
iPad mini LTE pre-orders are now being delivered
Posted by Andru Edwards - Categories: Apple, Handhelds
If you placed an early pre-order for the iPad mini Wi-Fi + Cellular, be on the lookout for FedEx, because deliveries are starting today. Even if your tracking information shows that tomorrow will be your delivery date, many are getting their Apple tablets a day early. We've got an image of a white iPad mini with LTE unboxed after the break. Let us know if yours arrived today in the comments, along with your thoughts on your new gadget! You can order the iPad mini from Apple.
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Seven Years Together: Music Unleashes the Ability to Work in Concert
February 13, 2014
Evan Greene, chief marketing officer at The Recording Academy/The Grammy Awards, Carisa Bianchi, president of TBWA\Chiat\Day LA, and Bob Rayburn, creative director at TBWA\Chiat\Day LA, shared how through open communication, trust, and a shared vision, the partnership yielded a 65 percent increase in ratings and made the Grammys the second-largest social media event behind the Super Bowl.
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Cigar Aficionado's Hall of Fame
Six men who dedicated their lives to building the cigar industry -- and improving the cigars we smoke
(continued from page 2)
Chairman, General Cigar Holdings Inc., New York City
Edgar Cullman has won a string of tobacco industry accolades, but his greatest pride comes from the consistency of his Macanudo cigars. Cullman, 84, has called the success of the brand "the most rewarding experience of my life" -- a weighty statement from a man with the following curriculum vitae.
In 1961, Cullman decided that the future lay in cigar making, so he assembled a group of investors and bought General Cigar Co. He was 43. At that time, General's main business was machine-made cigars, including White Owl, William Penn and Robert Burns. The company bought its first premium brand, Gold Label, in 1963, and the Temple Hall factory in Jamaica in 1969. The sale included Macanudo, a brand that wasn't sold in the United States at the time. Cullman launched Macanudo in 1971 with the slogan "the ultimate cigar." He purchased the U.S. rights to Partagas from Cuba's Cifuentes family in 1974, and the two brands have anchored General's premium cigar business ever since.
In 2000, Swedish Match AB acquired 64 percent of General Cigar, but Cullman and his son, chief executive officer Edgar M. Cullman Jr., manage the company. The elder Cullman still reports to his offices every day. His preferred smoke is a Macanudo Vintage No. IV, but on special occasions, he'll dip into his treasure trove of pre-Castro Cubans. And he enjoys his work. "I think it's the most romantic business," he says. "I love it. I love the business."
Founder, Davidoff et Cie., Geneva
Davidoff's father urged him to visit tobacco lands, and after stints in Argentina and Brazil, the 20-year-old landed in Cuba, where he spent two years on a tobacco farm. His Cuban years gave him an appreciation for Havanas, which he would spread like gospel for the rest of his life.
In 1929 Davidoff returned to Geneva and opened his own shop, which was unique in Europe for its cigar cellar. His trademark charm won him a loyal and elite clientele. He established the Davidoff brand in 1969, and in 1970 he sold his shop and brand to Swiss importer Oettinger Imex A.G. Davidoff and Oettinger increased the brand's worldwide presence and expanded into other luxury products. Davidoff acted as a sort of eminence gris, helping develop the Dominican Davidoff when production was moved there in 1990.
When Davidoff died in January 1994, the cigar industry lost a passionate champion.
"The cigar has been my life," he wrote in his 1967 book, The Connoisseur's Book of the Cigar. "I owe it everything: my pleasures and my anguish, the joys of my work as well as the pleasant leisure hours it affords, and, if I have acquired over the course of the years some bit of philosophical perspective, it is to the cigar that I am in debt."
Chairman, Tabacalera A. Fuente y Cia., Santiago, D.R.
Fuente mortgaged his home and cashed in on his retirement savings to start up in Santiago, which had yet to blossom into the cigar capital it is today. "I got a loan," he says. "I didn't even know when I'd be able to pay it." He had all of seven workers when he opened his doors in the Santiago free trade zone. At night, he and his family lived in a small home without air conditioning, a telephone or running water, and his car was a Datsun 120 Wide, one of the cheapest automobiles on the market.
Today, Tabacalera A. Fuente is one of the world's largest cigar companies and enjoys widespread demand for its cigars, especially its Fuente Fuente OpusX brand. Today, Fuente Sr. can drive anything he wants, but he still owns that Datsun. "I will never sell it," he says.
Former Co-Owner, Villazon & Co., Tampa, Florida
When the U.S. embargo was imposed on Cuba in 1962, Villazon & Co. was 100 percent dependent on Cuban tobacco. While other companies sold their inventories, Villazon, led by Frank Llaneza, began buying. The company flourished, a testament to the tenacity of a man once described in The Wall Street Journal as "the last grand old man of the cigar business as it was carried over from Cuba."
Llaneza was one of the pioneers in Honduras, and, along with men such as Angel Oliva Sr., literally carved farms from the wild. He created Honduras American Tobacco Co. in 1963 with the help of Oliva, making such powerhouse brands as Punch and Hoyo de Monterrey. The company is the largest cigarmaker in Honduras, with factories in Danl" and Cofradia.
Llaneza and his partner, Dan Blumenthal, sold Villazon to General Cigar Co. in 1997 for $81.4 million. Today, Llaneza has a quieter role in the company. Looking back, he is characteristically modest. "I was very lucky," he says. The truth is that his success was built upon vision and hard work.
Chairman, J.C. Newman Cigar Co., Tampa, Florida
Newman served in the Army Air Corps as an airplane mechanic during the Second World War, then joined the family business permanently. J. C. died in 1958, and Stanford took over. That year, he made one of the company's most important deals, acquiring the Cuesta-Rey brand. For the next two decades, J.C. Newman would be regarded as one of the best machine-made cigarmakers in the United States.
In 1986, with the cigar market uncertain, Newman bought out his relatives, then struck a fortuitous deal with the Fuente family. The Fuentes began making handmade cigars for the Newmans, and the Newmans later began distributing the Fuentes' cigars. The arrangement has been a boon to both families.
Stanford Newman often quotes his father: "If you make cigars of quality, you can stay in business for another 100 years, but if you make something cheap, somebody can always make them cheaper and you'll go out of business in six months." Still active in his ninth decade (his book, Cigar Family, was published by Forbes in 1999), Stanford works alongside his sons Eric and Robert, heirs to the Newman empire.
Founder, Oliva Tobacco Co., Tampa, Florida
Nine years later, Oliva founded the Oliva Tobacco Co., and those metaphoric seeds grew into a very literal tobacco empire, one that today provides the tobacco for many of the finest handmade brands in the world, including Arturo Fuente, Punch, La Gloria Cubana and El Rey del Mundo.
Throughout his life, Oliva relied on hard work and 20/20 foresight. In 1960, preparing for the imminent embargo, he agreed to acquire 3.85 million pounds of Cuban tobacco, which would sustain his clients through the next few years. At the same time, he began to cultivate land for alternative sources of tobacco -- first in north Florida, Connecticut and Honduras, and later, as his empire grew, in Ecuador, Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic. Among numerous other accolades, he received a Chamber of Commerce Service Award in 1963 for expanding the boundaries of the tobacco market.
"My business allowed me to do for my family the way I always dreamed," he said. When he died in 1996, at the age of 89, it was his family that succeeded him. His son John runs the company now -- and after him, John Jr., Oliva's grandson, stands ready to take over.
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The Global Pouch Forum is the largest conference focused on pouch formats in packaging and their growth prospects worldwide, attracting an audience of more than 400 attendees that continues to swell each year. The event is the key gathering place for top packaging professionals involved in every aspect of pouch production and the corresponding film, closures, materials, equipment and services needed for this fast-growing packaging segment.
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(UPDATED COVERAGE, 1:49 p.m., April 16) Canada's organic market was worth $3.7 billion in 2012, according to a new report.
The value of organics in Canada has tripled since 2006, and $3 billion of the 2012 total was in the food and non-alcoholic beverage category, according to research by the Ottawa-based Canada Organic Trade Association.
The report was made using association research and data provided by the Nielsen Co., Stats Canada and other sources, said Shauna MacKinnon, the association's projects and development manager.
The report also found that 58% of all Canadian reported buying organic products every week in 2012.
The report did not track the value of organic produce, but MacKinnon said that according to Nielsen, the value of fresh organic fruit and vegetables at conventional Canadian retailers was $335.6 million, 34% of all organic sales.
Association officials traced the growth in organics in part to government action on organics.
"At the industry's urging, the government implemented strict national standards and label requirements in 2009 to uphold consumer confidence in organic claims" Matthew Holmes, the association's executive director, said in a news release. "So it's tremendously gratifying to see this result in such strong market growth and continued consumer commitment to organic."
Organic usage was particularly strong in some provinces, according to the study. In British Columbia, for instance, two-thirds of consumers are buying organic groceries weekly. In Vancouver, it jumps to more than three-quarters.
"We are pleased to see growing consumer demand and impressive sales growth from mainstream retail to direct-to-consumer channels," Rebecca Kneen, co-president of the Certified Organic Associations of British Columbia, said in the release.
The Canada Organic Trade Association will have a detailed national market and consumer analysis available in September.