text:
By Mike Rosenberg MediaNews
SACRAMENTO -- Let's say you were buried under an avalanche of debt for years and could only make the minimum payments on your credit card bills. But then you started cutting back your expenses -- and even got a raise at work. Suddenly, you were paying your bills on time, and even going out to eat a couple of times a month.
But then you find a huge stack of bills in your desk drawer from years past, and the first payments from that no-money-down car loan come due. Then your adjustable mortgage rate starts going up. And you realize things aren't as rosy as you first thought.
That's one way to look at the situation facing California lawmakers and Gov. Jerry Brown as they celebrate a balanced budget that even
includes a small surplus, all while staring down a mountain of future bills that amounts to more than twice the total of this year's general-fund budget -- more than $200 billion worth.
"There's no question we've come a long way," said Mike Genest, a government finance consultant who was finance director under Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. "But no matter how good the picture looks right now, it's not good enough to deal with" the long-term debt.
Bolstered by tax hikes approved by voters in November and savings from cuts over the past half decade, the $96.3 billion budget approved by the Legislature on Friday and finalized Saturday includes no spending cuts for the first time since the Great Recession began in 2008.
Instead, it features billions of dollars more for education and a few hundred million dollars extra for social services such as mental health and dental care for the poor.
"I think it's a dramatic improvement from just two short years ago, when the governor came into office and had to close a gap of more than $27 billion," said H.D. Palmer, the governor's chief budget spokesman. "We're probably on the most stable fiscal footing we've been on in a decade."
Brown has also already helped knock down part of what he has coined "California's Wall of Debt" from $35 billion two years ago. But it still stands at $27 billion -- enough money to run the Cal State, UC, state prison and state court systems for a year.
The debt is largely the result of massive borrowing over the past several years, mostly under Schwarzenegger, just to keep the budget balanced over the short term. So Brown and the Legislature plan to put aside billions of dollars per year to chip away at the debt -- largely using new tax revenues approved by voters in November and by restraining spending on new programs. They project the debt will shrink to less than $5 billion by 2017.
But perhaps the most daunting challenge facing the state is an additional $196 billion worth of future employee costs for which the state has not set aside money. These "unfunded liabilities" are the result of retired state employees -- and future retirees -- who are owed pension and health care benefits. The health care cost, in particular, is expected to rise significantly in coming years, and the annual cost to the state budget to pay for retired employees' benefits already tripled to about $6 billion from 2002 to 2012.
The nonpartisan Legislative Analyst's Office projects that the unfunded cost just for retired teachers' pensions, which is currently $71 billion, would carve a $2.6 billion hole into the budget by 2016, continuing for three decades. The retiree health care cost, which is unfunded by $64 billion, would cost the budget an additional $1 billion per year, the Legislative Analyst's Office says. This is largely because of lucrative union deals that were handed out during the boom times in the late 1990s.
"The day of reckoning is coming," said Bob Williams, president of the conservative nonprofit State Budget Solutions. "They continue to underfund pensions. They just keep kicking the ball forward."
But Palmer noted that Brown last year helped push through pension reform for new employees. And this year, the spokesman said, Brown supported a directive from the state retirement board to pay down retiree costs faster starting next year, saving money over the long run.
Even still, those efforts have only put a dent in the pension problem -- and because they only apply to new employees, the savings will take decades to materialize. Employees who scored better retirement plans under previous administrations can still retire at younger ages and receive better benefits than employees hired after the new pension rules went into effect this year.
Another top concern among state leaders is California's "rainy-day fund," which has been nonexistent in four of the past five years. But officials are promising a $1.1 billion reserve one year from now -- the highest in six years.
The fund was $10.1 billion during the housing bubble in 2006 and $8.7 billion at the height of the dot-com boom in 2000. But each time, state leaders quickly burned through that money by starting up new programs, which politicians have vowed to avoid this time.
"To me, the main story of this budget cycle is that Jerry Brown learned the lesson of 2000, which is, don't assume the upturn is going to go on forever," said Steven Levy, director of the Palo Alto-based Center for Continuing Study of the California Economy. "The really bad times are over. The key thing is not to make the same mistakes as before and put all the increases into the operating budget."
Brown and legislative leaders have made it a goal to set aside additional reserves until reaching 10 percent of the budget, which would currently be about $10 billion, to help weather the next recession. Had such a policy been in place before the Great Recession, the state could have avoided about half the cuts it had to make, said Assembly Speaker John Pérez, D-Los Angeles.
Pérez's plan -- to deposit funds from spikes in capital gains revenue during boom years into a new rainy-day fund -- could go before voters next year.
The state might need some of that money when the Proposition 30 tax hikes on the wealthy passed by voters in November expire after seven years.
One hopeful sign came in January, when Standard & Poor's raised the state's credit rating from A- to A. But the long-term funding obligations remain high, with no clear path toward completely balanced books.
"Over the long haul," former finance director Genest said, "we have real problems."
Contact Mike Rosenberg at 408-920-5705. Follow him at Twitter.com/RosenbergMerc.


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JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - A 63-year-old Austin, Texas, man was sentenced this week in Jacksonville to a year and a day in federal prison for mail fraud and trafficking in counterfeit goods and services.
The court also ordered Elod Tamas "Nick" Toldy to pay $59,653.97 in restitution to the victims of the offenses.
According to court documents, from 2008 until April 2010, Toldy used his electronics firm Pioneer Breaker and Control Supply in Austin to market counterfeit circuit breakers through eBay. Undercover agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations purchased numerous counterfeit circuit breakers from Toldy bearing the names "Zinsco" and "Stab-lok." "Zinsco" is a trademark held by Connecticut Electric Inc. "Stab-lok" is a registered trademark held by American Circuit Breaker Corporation.
On April 21, 2010, HSI agents executed a federal search warrant at Pioneer Breaker and Control Supply and seized more than 20,000 counterfeit electronic products. A subsequent search warrant executed in Laredo, Texas, resulted in the seizure of an additional 77,000 counterfeit circuit breakers. Agents also seized 60,000 counterfeit labels bearing the trademark for United Laboratories. The manufacturer's suggested retail price for the legitimate products that were the subject of the counterfeiting scheme was more than $4.7 million.
"Trafficking in counterfeit goods is a serious problem. In this particular case, an individual was marketing counterfeit circuit breakers to unsuspecting consumers, which poses significant safety implications," said Sue McCormick, special agent in charge of Homeland Security Investigations Tampa, which oversees the agency's Jacksonville office. "In light of the holiday shopping season being right around the corner, I urge consumers to protect themselves. Buy from legitimate retailers. Otherwise, you may put your health and safety at risk."
Copyright 2012 by News4Jax.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

subset: commoncrawl


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As the weeks pass, it looks more like there might be several serious contenders down the road for the team everyone thinks (and knows) is No. 1, Alabama.
The Gators' 44-11 win against South Carolina was its most impressive to date. Oregon and Kansas State looked like world-beaters in their victories. Now, the Crimson Tide gets undefeated Mississippi State in what could be a gauge for just how good this Alabama team is—or better yet, how much better it is than everyone else.
MORE: Bowl projections | Week 8 recap | The best photos
Our Sporting News college football team breaks down their top 25 polls.
Alabama is No. 1, and there might not be a real No. 2.
Then again, Oregon looked spectacular—on both sides of the ball—at Arizona State. And Florida was equally impressive vs. South Carolina, as Kansas State was in a romp at West Virginia.
We're not ridiculous enough to put anyone but the Crimson Tide in the top spot. But it is worth positing that the teams right behind them are good enough to share a field with the defending national champions. This is a great season in college football—with a whole lot of football left.
1. Alabama
2. Oregon
3. Florida
4. Kansas State
5. Notre Dame
7. Southern Cal
8. Oregon State
9. Oklahoma
10. Ohio State
11. Florida State
12. Texas Tech
13. Clemson
14. South Carolina
15. Mississippi State
16. Georgia
17. Stanford
18. Wisconsin
19. Penn State
20. Louisville
21. Texas A&M
22. Michigan
23. Rutgers
24. Boise State
25. Ohio
We're beginning to see a clear line of teams that can find a way to the BCS National Championship Game. Alabama, Florida and Oregon still control their destiny, while Kansas State, Notre Dame and a small group of one-loss teams need help.
Florida plays Georgia in Jacksonville next weekend, Notre Dame travels to Oklahoma and unbeaten Mississippi State plays at Alabama in games that will continue to weed out the contenders.
1. Alabama
2. Florida
3. Oregon
4. Kansas State
5. Notre Dame
6. Oklahoma
8. Oregon State
9. Southern Cal
10. Georgia
11. Florida State
12. Mississippi State
13. Ohio State
14. Clemson
15. Texas Tech
16. Louisville
17. Stanford
18. South Carolina
19. Texas A&M
20. Penn State
21. Rutgers
22. Boise State
23. Michigan
24. West Virginia
25. Ohio


text: Outgoing ethics director, Kirk, granted job exemption By Phil Kabler December 6, 2012 Story Share CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- West Virginia ethics commissioners on Thursday approved an employment exemption for their outgoing executive director, Theresa Kirk, allowing her to seek a job in the private sector, and later met in executive session to discuss a transition plan for the agency. "This is what she wants to do at this stage in her career. I hate to lose her," commission chairman Kemp Morton said before the vote for Kirk's employment exemption.Kirk, who has been executive director of the commission since February 2009, and was its legal counsel for more than five years before that appointment, said earlier this week that she feels it's time to make a change after more than nine years at the commission.Commissioners did not take any action after the executive session. Kirk said she plans to stay on at the commission for 60 to 90 days to assist in the transition and to help commissioners prepare their legislative agenda for the 2013 regular session.Additionally, the commission approved four other employment exemptions in order to allow four ranking state employees to obtain private-sector employment. They include Tax Commissioner Craig Griffith, Deputy Attorney General David Stuart, gubernatorial deputy chief of staff Erica Mani and Department of Environmental Protection attorney Joe Jenkins.Also Thursday, the commission:• Conditionally approved allowing a local health department to serve as a pass-through on a grant from a private foundation to a private nonprofit corporation that is promoting public-health issues.The pass-though arrangement, believed to be with the Cabell-Huntington Health Department, was needed because the nonprofit has temporarily lost its tax-exempt status as a 501(c)(3) organization.The propriety of the pass-through arrangement prompted an extended discussion Thursday."Even if we find a legal loophole, I think we're creating an unethical thing here," Commissioner Douglas Sutton said. "We're creating a standard, which we've never done, that the end justifies the means," added deputy counsel Marty Wright.Others said the pass-through would not constitute an unethical use of public office for the private gain of another. They also concluded there would be no financial benefit to the local health department, although the program would benefit public health in the region.Ultimately, the commission concluded that the pass-through would not violate state ethics law, but advised the health department to seek a separate legal opinion to determine if the arrangement violates any other state or federal laws.• Approved draft legislation to be introduced next session. That includes proposed legislation to modernize West Virginia's Open Meetings Act.Under the law, state agencies and other public bodies must publish notice of meetings at least five days prior to the meeting date.The Secretary of State's Office maintains a meetings-notice page on its website that can be updated instantaneously, but the current law also requires that the meeting notice be published in the State Register, which is printed each Friday, but has a Wednesday publication deadline. That means that, if an agency determines on a Thursday that it needs to hold a meeting the following Wednesday, it could comply with the five-day-notice requirement using the website.However, under the existing requirement that the meeting notice also must be published in the State Register, that meeting would have to be postponed for a week.Under the proposed change, publication on the secretary of state's website would be sufficient to comply with the public-notice requirement.Reach Phil Kabler at firstname.lastname@example.com or 304-348-1220. Story Share Story Share Trending Now 1 City of Milton tries to revive Morris Memorial property 2 Mitch Vingle: WVU's Lyons watching bombshell merger news 3 Former Boone school board members indicted 4 Morgantown coal operator Laurita indicted in alleged campaign finance scheme 5 Consultant says Yeager Airport needs to extend runway Putnam man gets maximum sentence for sexually abusing teen Previous Story Lavigne's attorney files new petition with Supreme Court Next Story


text:
Posted 5 years ago
(310 items)
I would like to share a few more metal detector finds from over the years.
Canada, one cent, 1899
Canada, ten cents, 1909
Canada, five cents, 1898
Canada, five cents, 1917
Canada, five cents, 1903
I detected a yard where an old house was torn down years back and there were old foreign coins buried all over the yard. I always wondered if some kids got into their parents coin collection and had a little fun.


text:
TWO Devon County Council contractors remain in hospital in critical and serious conditions after they were injured in a collision with a van while working on a dual carriageway in Tiverton.
The men, aged 48 and 40 and both from Tiverton, were airlifted to Derriford Hospital in Plymouth following the incident on the A361 around 11am on Tuesday.
The 48-year-old remains in Derriford Hospital in a critical condition, while the 40-year-old is in a serious condition in the Royal Devon & Exeter Hospital.
The van driver, a 43-year-old man from Tideford, near Saltash, Cornwall, was arrested at the scene on suspicion of dangerous driving and later released on bail until May 20.
Both contractors were carrying out repairs in a closed lane for South West Highways on behalf of Devon County Council.
It is understood the van was travelling in an open lane when the collision occurred. Another 22-year-old worker, also from Tiverton, suffered minor injuries that did not require hospital treatment, while a fourth man was treated for shock at the scene.
The road was closed for around six hours following the incident. A Devon County Council spokesman said: "We have been notified of an incident on the A361 involving two members of staff from Devon County Council's highway maintenance contractor SWH, who were working on a closed lane of the highway. We are awaiting further details but our thoughts are with the staff and their families at this time."
Ben Pyle, managing director of South West Highways, added: "Everyone at SWH is distressed about the incident and our thoughts are with our colleagues and their families."
Any witnesses to the incident are asked to call Devon and Cornwall police on 101 quoting log number 208 290113.


text:
DHARMA Van, Jeep and Hurley's Camaro among auction highlights...
For a great selection of film, comic and TV action figures and collectibles, check out BigBadToyStore.com, BriansToys.com, ToyWiz.com, PastGenerationToys.com, Urban-Collector.com, ZoloWorld.com, MonkeyDepot.com, HobbyLinkJapan.com, and Sekaido.com.
For a great selection of film, TV and pop culture t-shirts and apparel, check out TShirtGurus.com and 80sTees.com.
To insure your action figure collection, get in touch with our sponsor Collectibles Insurance.
The DHARMA Van, Hurley's Camaro and the DHARMA Jeep, three iconic symbols from the ABC television series, LOST highlighted the just completed two-day LOST: The Official Show Auction previously reported to you HERE. Profiles in History conducted the auction in partnership with ABC Studios. Buyers from over 50 countries to competed to purchase their own piece of the show, with winning bids far exceeding anyone's expectations.
Highlights include:
· DHARMA Van: $47,500
· Dial mechanism & mirror array from the Lighthouse: $27,500
· Island time-shifting frozen wheel: $22,500
· DHARMA Jeep: $20,000
· Hurley's Camaro: $20,000
· Daniel Faraday's journal w/extensive handwritten notes: $20,000
· Swan Station Computer: $16,000
· "Pilot" script signed by J.J. Abrams & Damon Lindelof $15,000
· Season Six production artwork: $15,000
· Season One production artwork: $14,000
· Desmond's fail-safe key with "Joe Inman" dog tag; $11,000
· Jack's death costume from the series finale, "The End": $9,000
· Large section of Oceanic Flight 815 wreckage: $9,000
· Charlie's "DS" ring: $9,000
· Locke's Compass: $8,000
· Baby Aaron's crib: $8,000
· Fragment of Jacob's tapestry: $6,500
· Hurley's winning Mega Lotto Jackpot ticket: $5,500
· Jack's Pilot episode costume" $3,000
· Sawyer's paperback copy of "Watership Down": $2,750
· Sawyer's improvised reading glasses from Season Three: $2,250
· Set chair for Matthew Fox "Jack": $1,200
Profiles in History's next Hollywood memorabilia auction is scheduled for December, 2010. Hollywood Treasure, a new television show which follows Profiles in History's owner Joseph Maddalena on his worldwide search for lost pieces of Hollywood history, premieres on Syfy November 4, 2010.
Source: Edited Profiles in History PR


text:
Dallas -- Davaco, a provider of high-volume programs and implementation services for global brands, is relocating its Canadian office to a new space in Woodbridge, Ontario, effective Nov. 1.
The company's new office is located at 525 Rowntree Dairy Road, Unit 1, Woodbridge, Ontario, L4L 7K6.
In other news, Davaco announced that the company has added Karin Sumrall as the director of operations. Sumrall, a licensed architect and veteran retail and restaurant professional, will oversee the management and execution of high-volume programs for Davaco's restaurant division. She reports to Don Williams, VP operations.


text:
Despite lacking a creative director this season, Jil Sander's in-house design team has managed to create a collection of minimalistic menswear pieces for the Fall/Winter 2014 season. Staying true to the label's streamlined designs, the collection consists of suits with long slender double-breasted jackets, color-blocked sweaters, loose anoraks, sporty jackets and much more.
Jil Sander Fall/Winter 2014 Collection
Highsnobiety Style
Highsnobiety Style
What To Read Next


text:
A FORMER bursar of a Hampshire special school accused of fraud broke down at her trial saying a member of the public was accusing her of being a liar.
Linda Whittaker sobbed as she told her counsel: "I'm finding it upsetting that a person behind you is accusing me of being a liar."
The trial at Winchester Crown Court was suspended for 20 minutes and when it resumed Judge Jane Miller QC addressed the crowded public gallery: "It was the person sitting behind the police officer. Please don't speak to anyone else or make facial expressions."
Whittaker, 65, denies two charges of fraud against Osborne Special School in Winchester with the alleged fraud totalling £70,000.
The trial has heard that Whittaker submitted numerous timesheets between 2008 and 2012 for herself and a friend, Patricia Hickman.
But Whittaker, of Lovedon Lane, Kings Worthy, said the overtime was all genuine and needed to cope with the demands and pressures of the job.
She told the jury that as well as being bursar, the senior finance manager at the school, she was also clerk to the board of governors.
Officially she was contracted to work 37 hours a week but said she had never seen a document that stated the post holder would always work more than 37.
Whittaker said she undertook other roles at the school such as cleaning walls before an inspection, escorting the children, driving the bus, cleaning up and looking after upset pupils. She always worked more than 37 hours.
She took work home and went into school at weekends.
At one point she approached the then-head Rod Wakelam. "From the day we moved into Osborne the staffing was cut. My workload was the same but with reduced support. It meant I had to work even longer. I told him I couldn't cope with the long hours. I was working almost a 12-hour day."
Patricia Hickman came in to help her.
Asked by her counsel David Reid, whether there was any reason to think she not entitled to make the claims, she said: "Not at all."
Both Mr Wakelam and from 2008 his successor Sonia O'Donnell signed the timesheets and never questioned the hours they were claiming overtime for, said Whittaker.
The trial heard that timesheets between April 2008 and March 2010 had disappeared from the school archive. Whittaker said she had nothing to do with their disappearance.
She said she had had no financial training. "I learnt it on the job."


text:
09 May 2012
Jason Beck reported on Tuesday evening that Alex Avila injured his left patella tendon during Monday night's loss to the Seattle Mariners. Avila, who suffered from soreness in both knees at the end of last season, implied that playing through the pain wouldn't risk further injury.
"I can't do anything more to it," Avila said. "It's just a pain tolerance issue. It's not going to require surgery or anything like that."
So Gerald Laird, who caught in his stead last night (and got a hit!), will probably be getting more than his usual share of work in the coming days or weeks. It's tough to have to see Avila sit out while the team is struggling on offense, but I'm sure Jim Leyland (rightly) figures that it's more important that he gets healthy and remains pain-free for the stretch run.But there's another interesting aspect to this story. According to both Leyland and Avila, Alex kept the injury (and the increasing pain) to himself during Monday's game instead of reporting it to either the skipper or athletic trainer Kevin Rand. I'm almost certain that Leyland would have lifted Avila from the game if he knew he was hurting, and I can't help but think a healthy Gerald Laird would have been better equipped to handle Octavio Dotel's wildness (one wild pitch was charged as a passed ball against Avila).
Would Monday's game have ended differently if Avila had told someone he was hurting? It's impossible to know for sure, and either way Avila is still probably far down the blame ladder for that one, but there's no way it could have been worse.
We already found out that Daniel Schlereth was hiding an injury while pitching (horribly) for the big club earlier this year. I'm not going to shout and scream that there's some sort of injury cover-up problem for the Tigers, but this isn't how professionals should act. The players need to be a man and tell someone when they're hurt. At the very least it allows the manager to make a proper decision.
Matt Snyder is the editor of The Tigers Den. He can be reached on Twitter @snyder_matthew.


text:
BP Comment Quick Links
|Strength of Schedule Report
December 12, 2012
Skewed Left
Giancarlo Stanton and Being Alone in the Lineup
The heavyweight of the 818 is pissed. So said Giancarlo Stanton's Twitter feed after most of his remaining brothers from what was still a pretty bash-less offense were taken away from him in the Marlins-Blue Jays swap.
Lonely in the offense last year despite the presence of Jose Reyes and John Buck plus partial seasons of Omar Infante and Hanley Ramirez, Stanton became even lonelier after the trade. His extreme power in a poor lineup and a difficult home run ballpark for normal human beings will give him an outside shot at the highest percentage of a team's home runs hit by one player in the expansion era.
No, there's no reason he should replicate Babe Ruth's swatting 29 of the 1919 Red Sox's 33 home runs. But the expansion era mark for non-strike years currently belongs to Mike Schmidt's 1980 season, in which he hit 48 of the World Series champion Phillies' 117 home runs. No player since the turn of the millennium has hit more than a third of his team's home runs, while Albert Belle's 1991 output of 35.4 percent of the Indians' home runs was tops in the '90s. So breaking Schmidt's mark is a long shot for Stanton despite the rather barren offense around him.
Even with the now-departed Ramirez's 14 home runs, Buck's 12, Reyes' 11 and Infante's eight, and more notably, even with his sitting out 39 games of an injury-disturbed season, Stanton still hit the highest percentage of his team's home runs of any team leader in 2012.
Give him a full healthy season and a roster devoid of pop, and he will likely lead this chart this time next year by an enormous margin rather than the 1/100 of 1 percent by which he topped Cabrera.
So the question becomes when you have one major home run threat in your lineup, where you put said threat. It's actually a question that new Marlins skipper Mike Redmond answered in his press conference at the winter meetings.
"I see him hitting fourth," Redmond said, adding that Logan Morrison would likely bat fifth.
"We're definitely going to need somebody to hit behind (Stanton) but more importantly, we're going to have to try to get guys on base in front of him and give him those opportunities to drive runners in."
And he's right about that last part, but where are three guys on the rest of this roster who can get on base enough to keep Stanton down at fourth in the lineup with ~18 fewer plate appearances per year than batting him third?
Juan Pierre almost surely will take one of the top-of-the-order spots because he's Juan Pierre. With Redmond hinting at Rob Brantly and Adeiny Hechevarria hitting down in the order, that leaves two more top-of-the-order spots for Justin Ruggiano, Donovan Solano, and however they upgrade third base over the current situation of maybe Todd Zeile.
This will be the key to salvaging anything from this offense, but don't be stunned if Stanton moves up should it become a wasteland.
The statistical liturgy of The Book argued well that a team's best hitter should bat second or fourth rather than third, basically to avoid the two-out, nobody-on situations that come with a no. 3 hitter where singles, doubles, and walks are often wasted. However, if there is one type of "best hitter" who should be a decent fit at no. 3, it would be Stanton, especially in easier home run environments on the road.
Two outs, nobody on is a time for a home run when an inside-the-park hit isn't all that helpful and an out isn't all that harmful—easily the least negative of any of the run/out situations, so if there were ever a hitter who could be given those 18 extra plate appearances, it might be the slugger. Stanton finished one plate appearance short of qualifying for rate stats titles last year, but if he had made the list, his on-base percentage would have been in the bottom two percent among modern-era players who slugged at least .600 that season.
Batting Stanton fourth is a nod to our image of a "cleanup" hitter as it was envisioned in our schoolyard days and as it works out on many differently constructed teams.
But last year, he hit 12 home runs from that batting order position. Of the 12, 11 were solo shots and one came with a man on first base.
It might only get lonelier.
Deleted scenes from the home run distribution research:
Zachary Levine is an author of Baseball Prospectus. Follow @zacharylevine
3 comments have been left for this article.
BP Comment Quick Links
As a young fan, I remember anticipating the arrival of the clean up spot when the Astros' "Big Bopper" Glenn Davis would swing for the fences. Kind of a similar situation to Stanton with a slugger in the middle of a small ball lineup playing in a cavernous ballpark with a silly homerun scoreboard celebration.
Dec 12, 2012 09:10 AM
Zachary Levine
BP staff
Yeah, Davis is another one right up there. Hit 34 homers in 1989 and nobody else on the team hit more than 13. The Astros tried a ton of different guys batting 3rd but never moved Davis from 4th.
Dec 12, 2012 10:14 AM
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text:
it´s not only importand which translation of the Pali-Conon is well done.
The quality of translation depends on the qualifikation in Pali, from the translater.
As i know from the translation of Kai Zumwinkel, that he´s translating a version of Pali-Canon that is based on fairy-tales und sagas.
The second german edition is from K.E. Neumann. For being adoctor of indology und several travellings to cloisters in Shri Lanca and London, he also
embodied the historicals facts that were found out of this time.
In his language he is very precise.
I don´t know no Englisch translation so i can´t esteem the value of these translations.


text:
SWINDON Town Ladies suffered extra-time heartbreak against Gillingham in the third round of the Women's FA Cup on Sunday.
Competing in the third round for the second time in the club's history and missing top scorer Abby Picton, the Robins were narrowly defeated 1-0 by their higher-division opponents at Cinder Lane.
Both Catherine Reid and Michelle Rich went close for Swindon in the regulation 90 minutes and the hosts defended superbly for much of extra time.
However, in the final 15 minutes Town captain Kim Reeves got injured and Gillingham scored from a corner with just four minutes left.
Town boss Glyn Evans said: "I'm very proud of all the players who gave everything for club and this shows we can compete with teams in a higher league."
In girls' football, Swindon Spitfires Under 13s charged into the semis of the Oxford Mail Girls League Cup. They finished top of Group B thanks to a 7-0 mauling of Carterton Town.
Ellie Scott scored twice in the first half and Spits ran riot after the break, with Helena Butcher (2), Ellie Lancaster, Katie Donovan and Natalie Goodright all finding the net.
Spitfires Under 14s thrashed Summertown Stars 8-1 with goals from Daniella Granato (3), Megan Larkin (2), Abby Fuller, Katie Dellow and Serena Sanghera.
Spitfires Under 16s were sunk 2-0 at Derry Hill in the Wiltshire Girls' League.
New players are wanted by Swindon Spitfires, especially those between the age of six and eight. Anyone interested should contact Bevy on 07789 501551.
Meanwhile, Swindon Town Ladies Under 15s were well-beaten 4-1 by Tilehurst Panthers in Group A of the Berkshire League Cup.
Tilehurst took the lead in the first half when the centre forward was released and she calmly slotted past the keeper.
The hosts were boosted by their goal and were passing the ball around confidently, and found a second goal soon after.
In the second period Swindon changed their shape and Georgie Gibson came into midfield.
The visitors were more of a threat and got their reward when Amy Joliffe pressured the keeper and she sliced into her own net.
However, that was as good as it got for Swindon as Tilehurst came strong again, adding two further goals to their tally.


text:
Fresh fruits and vegetables are bargains compared with processed foods, according to a study that debunks the perception of pricey produce as an "urban myth."
Washington, D.C.-based Center for Science in the Public Interest evaluated 20 popular snacks and 19 side dishes, half of which were fruits and vegetables.
The report found that the average price per serving of the fruit or vegetable snacks was 34 cents, while the unhealthy packaged snacks cost about twice as much, 67 cents.
For example, a half-cup serving of apple cost 26 cents but one Fruit by the Foot roll cost 45 cents.
"Very few Americans are actually eating recommended amounts of fruits and vegetables — and most of us would do well to consume fewer packaged convenience foods and snacks, which are often higher in calories, salt, and sugars," Margo Wootan, director of nutrition policy at the center, said in a news release.
Government guidelines recommend that the average person eat two cups of fruit and two-and-a-half cups of vegetables a day. Wootan said consumers can accomplish that economically, with recent estimates by the U.S. Department of Agriculture putting the daily cost to consumers between $2 and $2.50 per day.
The report found that healthy vegetable side dishes cost 27 cents per serving, while less healthy packaged side dishes cost 31 cents per serving.
The study is more evidence to disprove the notion that eating healthy foods is unaffordable, said Kathy Means, vice president of government relations and public affairs for the Newark, Del.-based Produce Marketing Association.
"PMA continues to battle that myth, armed with our own research, USDA's findings, and this new information from CSPI," she said on PMA's Field to Fork blog .
The study also touts the low-calorie advantages of fruits and vegetables, noting that the calories per serving were 15 to 260 calories lower per serving than less healthy options.
In looking at the barriers to increased consumption of fruits and vegetables, the CSPI study notes that low calories may be considered a liability by some consumers, even though most Americans need to consume fewer calories. Bigger expenditures on marketing efforts for less healthy foods compared with fruits and vegetables also puts fruits and vegetables at a disadvantage.
"Marketing could give increased perception of value to produce and increase consumer familiarity with how to prepare and consume different types of fruits and vegetables," according the report summary.


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Jewtopia, a new film by Bryan Fogel, is a loose adaptation of the hit play and coffee-table book.
For someone whose first Hollywood feature film debuted this weekend, Bryan Fogel has disarmingly modest goals. "I hope to be able to make a film again, I hope people like it, and I hope I can pay my rent," the 41-year-old from Denver says.
Considering he is on his fifteenth interview of the day, Fogel is remarkably upbeat and engaged. The writer/director of Jewtopia is at the end of a decade-long journey that started with a 10-minute scene at a one-act festival in Los Angeles and has culminated in a 90-minute film starring the likes of Jennifer Love Hewitt, Jon Lovitz, Jamie-Lynn Sigler and numerous other actors whose names don't begin with the letter "J." It's no surprise he is in such a good mood.
Fogel recalls that when he came up with the idea for what became Jewtopia, there was no thought of it being anything other than a way to increase his visibility as an actor in Hollywood. "But then the scene went over huge at this one-act festival. That scene became the play. People loved it and it became a hit. Then it went to New York and became a hit and spawned a bestselling book. Then came the movie, which is very loosely based on the play. It was an organic progression — each success built on itself," he says.
The story of Jewtopia is an unabashedly politically incorrect one. A gentile named, appropriately enough, Christian, wants nothing more than to marry a Jewish woman so that he doesn't ever have to make another decision in his life (this is actually one of the descriptors on the movie's posters). Having met the girl of his dreams — a rabbi's daughter no less — he enlists the help of Adam, a friend from elementary school and the only Jew he knows. Meanwhile, Adam is dealing with his own marriage-related issues, as he tries to overcome his fears of becoming a man and assuming the responsibility of ensuring the continuation of the Jewish people by marrying a second-generation gynecologist so obsessed with her not-yet-conceived child's safety that she is having a panic room constructed in the nursery.
Parents of all religions are affectionately skewered in the film, and the film does play fast and loose with stereotypes of religion, culture and gender. There are some genuinely funny moments within the broad sketches, like when Adam gives Christian a crash course in acting Jewishly in a restaurant — ask to be moved away from the draft, ask for the music to be turned down, create your own entrée, etc.
Fogel is quick to say that the film is not at all autobiographical, even though it is drawn from his own Jewish life. "Everything in the movie comes from a love of who I am and my love of my family and culture — from how I was raised. It's just great to have success by finding comedy in who you are."
Opening Sept. 20
Playing at AMC Plymouth Meeting and other area theaters


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Fiber Types, Training, and Hypertrophy
I decided to make a thread of some of the things I've posted about this subject.
I got into this notion of isolating fiber types through different reps and speeds but once I began to learn about how muscle fibers are actually recruited I dropped it.
This excerpt is the kind of thinking this leads to and, indeed, this is exactly the kind of thing many personal trainers have been brainwashed into thinking:
Originally Posted by Jason R. Karp, M.S
Train according to genetic predisposition
For maximum results, try to train your clients according to their genetic predisposition. For example, someone with a greater proportion of slow-twitch fibers would adapt better to a muscular endurance program, using more repetitions of a lighter weight, or cardiovascular exercise at low intensity for longer periods. Likewise, someone with a greater proportion of FT fibers would benefit more from a muscular strength program using fewer repetitions of a heavier weight. Of course, the client¹s goals and needs should be considered as well. You wouldn¹t want to train a 40-year-old female client to develop larger muscles if that¹s not her goal, even if she does have a greater proportion of FT fibers.
Except for the part about training based on goals, the rest is complete bullshit. EVERYONE can grow some muscle. Its SUCH BS it pisses me off.
Fiber Types, Training, and Hypertrophy
From the Hypertrophy-Specific Training Series
By Bryan Haycock, Editor-in-Chief
The issue of fiber type that continues to resurface in the discussion of different training methods. Some people insist that in order grow to get maximum growth, muscles must be trained according to fiber "types". A look at what determines a fiber's "type" should help clear up the issue and help you make a decision as to its relevance to training specifically for muscle growth.
"Fiber types" and how they are classified.
Muscle fibers were first classified according to their "function". Fast-twitch and Slow-twitch are the two basic types. It was later discovered that the twitch (twitch = contraction) characteristics were the result of different kinds of contractile proteins. Some proteins were good at contracting quickly, and were also dependant on "fast oxidative" pathways (ATP, and fast glycolytic pathways). The other type, slow-twitch, has contractile proteins that were different than those in fast-twitch fibers, and were dependant on "slow oxidative" pathways (beta-oxidation, fatty acid oxidation).
The two distinct metabolic profiles of fast- and slow-twitch fibers, give them distinct fatigue profiles. Fast-twitch fibers fatigue rapidly because their fuel source, ATP, is depleted rapidly. I use the term "depleted" loosely. Slow-twitch fibers fatigue slowly because their fuel source (fatty acids) take a long time to deplete.
There is another factor in the fatigability of fast- and slow-twitch fibers. The amount of power they are able to generate. Because fast-twitch fibers contract quickly, they are able to produce more "power" than slow-twitch. So fast twitch fibers use their available more quickly because the "motor-units" are larger. A motor-unit is a group of fibers connected to a single motor neuron. Keep in mind that power is a function of work over time.
The purpose of each different type of fiber?
Fast-twitch fibers are used to move your body mass quickly. This is important for running, jumping, and reflex movements (e.g. pulling your hand away from a hot stove). This requires short burst of relatively high force (but with low precision). Slow-twitch fibers are used to support the body posturally. This requires long/sustained contractions of relatively low force (but with high precision).
You will find a high proportion of slow-twitch muscle in the calves, and trunk (spine) and in the forearm predominantly. This makes sense when you think about it. Your calves, which contain your toe and foot muscles, are constantly working to balance your body while standing and walking. They are contracting constantly when you are standing. Your trunk muscles hold you upright when you are standing or sitting unsupported. Your forearms house your finger and hand muscles. These are used to hold things. Holding requires constant contraction of your finger muscles.
Isolating fiber types in training.
Forget about the notion of isolating fiber types while training for hypertrophy. You can't isolate fiber types per se when lifting a weight sufficiently heavy to cause muscle growth. Let me explain. Your brain activates muscle fibers in a specific sequence and manner based on the kind of movement it desires. This progressive activation of muscle fibers is called recruitment. Small "motor units" (motor neuron-muscle fiber unit with a low threshold of activation) are activated first to produce precise movements. These small motor units use slow-twitch fibers.
If activation of the inductive small motor units is insufficient to produce the desired movement, the brain activates progressively larger and higher threshold motor units. These larger motor units involve fast twitch fibers.
So, slow-twitch fibers are recruited first, followed by fast twitch fibers, based on the needed amount of strength (force or power). Because of this recruitment pattern, you could theoretically isolate small slow-twitch fibers, but you couldn't isolate fast twitch fibers because your brain activates slow-twitch first during any contraction. The greater the force of contraction, the greater the number of fast twitch fibers will be activated, but only after all slow twitch-fibers are activated.
So picture in your mind a dial that goes from 0 - 11. The numbers indicate how much force you want the muscle to generate, 0 being none and 11 being maximum intensity contraction. ON the dial, going from 1-5 the body will activate an increasing number of small motor units (slow twitch fibers) until it has activated them all. From 5-11, the small motor units will remain activated, but the body will add to them, large motor units (fast twitch fibers) until the desired muscular force is achieved. You progressively fine motor control as the amount of force goes up. This is a manifestation of the recruitment pattern just described.
Fiber type and muscle hypertrophy
Both slow twitch and fast twitch fiber are able to hypertrophy when exposed to overload. In a study by Hortobagyi, muscle fiber size of the quadriceps were compared after 36 sessions (12 weeks) of maximal isokinetic concentric or eccentric leg extensions. Type I fiber areas did not change significantly, but type II fiber area increased approximately 10 times more in the eccentric than in the concentric group.
There is a tendency for fast twitch fibers to experience more damage from training, thus fast twitch fibers tend to hypertrophy "more readily" to heavy resistance exercise. Nevertheless, both fast and slow twitch fibers hypertrophy. If you look at a bodybuilder's cross section of muscle fibers, you will find both fiber types hypertrophied, this being due to the inclusion of both concentric and eccentric contractions under load.
In conclusion fibers are classified into two different types, fast and slow. The distinction between the two types of fibers is based on both their contractile properties, as well as their metabolic properties. Slow twitch fibers, associated with small motor units, are activated first when a effort is applied against an object. Once all small motor units have been activated large motor units, involving primarily fast twitch fibers are activated.
All exercises performed by a person trying to build muscle are, of necessity, performed using sufficient weight to activate all slow twitch fibers and most fast twitch fibers. Both slow and fast twitch fibers will then hypertrophy. Fast twitch fibers will hypertrophy first, and to a greater extent, due to their susceptibility to cellular micro-trauma during the eccentric portion of every rep.
When trying to grow muscle, it is worthless to try to adjust the program to "stimulate" or "isolate" any specific type of fiber. Recruitment patterns involved in lifting weights heavy enough to cause hypertrophy activate all fibers, both fast and slow.
Cope, T. C, and M. J. Pinter. The size principle: still working after all these years. News Physiol. Sci. 10: 280-286, 1995
Hortobagyi T, Hill JP, Houmard JA, Fraser DD, & colleagues. Adaptive responses to muscle lengthening and shortening in humans. J. Appl. Physiol. 80(3): 765-772, 1996
About the Author
Bryan Haycock M.Sc. is an exercise physiologist and NPC judge. Bryan has been bodybuilding for over 20 years and holds certifications with the NSCA, ACE, and is a member of the American College of Sports Medicine. Bryan is currently the Editor in Chief of ThinkMuscle.com and is the founder and CEO of LifeStyleMgmt.com. Bryan is a highly sought after authority on the physiology of muscle growth and fat loss. Bryan also specializes in the management of type-II diabetes through diet and exercise.
Muscle Fiber Recruitment
Muscle Fiber Recruitment Again
Dr. Darden's Fiber Recruitment (originally posted by Madcow
I haven't read through these yet but I'll post anything by Kelly Bagget:
Understanding Muscle Fiber Type by Kelly Bagget
Fiber Type II: Becoming a Fast Twitch Machine by Kelly Bagget
I never saw much reason to concern myslef with the fiber type and recruitment crap you see every now and again.
To me, even if it were fact, it would only serve to explain what I've been doing all along. And that never really concerned me.
besides you know how I feel about hypertrophy anyway.
^^^^Good for you!
If you research and read like I do, you'll know that there are many so-called experts out there who COMPLETELY ignore the reality of orderly recuitment and tell people the only way to do it is to fatigue this fiber through a certain rep in order to "get" to that fiber, etc., and so on. There have been workouts posted here advocating that very thing. Or you even have people saying that certain individuals can't gain muscle at all due to predominant fiber type.
Check out the shit a ABCBodybuilding.com., for example. And people could easily be taken in by it, because it sounds sciency and smart.
I have been asked these questions myself. The purpose of the posting was for those people who may be drawn in by such thinking. Not just beginners, I've seen more experience people drawn in by it to. For most of us, as you say, it is not something you need to think about. But I put this here to show people the way it DOESN'T work, as much as anything else.
BTW, I put hypertrophy so more people might actually read the stuff :biglaugh: . Someone has to post the non-flashy nuts and bolts things. Your muscles work the same way when your strength training.
Here is an example of what I'm talking about:
Another example of this has to do with rest periods. Someone at some point quoted Arnold's book on this. Part of it is the idea that if you allow your muscles to recover too much between sets you will not be able to "recruit" all your fibers. It's just that recruiting a fiber doesn't mean you've "stimulated" a fiber. Hence more than one set, in a nutshell.
hahah i was actually agreeing with you eric.
I've never heard it said that some people cant gain because of fiber bias, thats a new one to me.
^^^LOL, your wording through me off :) . I wasn't sure which side of the coin you were playing!
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As losers of three-straight games, the youthful Indiana Pacers have hit a rough patch for the first time this season. They went 26 games before losing back-to-back contests and their skid worsened on Saturday night when the Denver Nuggets came into Bankers Life Fieldhouse and extended their losing streak to three games.
Things wont get easier for the Pacers as the Miami Heat come to Indianapolis on Tuesday night, but after that the schedule will get easier for the remainder of the month.
Brutal Schedule To Turn Favorable
Indiana is in the midst brutal stretch of seven games against teams with winning records that can be extended out to 12 of 14 only the New Jersey Nets and Minnesota Timberwolves (both wins) were below .500
Starting with their Feb. 3 game at Dallas and ending Tuesday against the Heat, the Pacers will have played seven teams with a combined record of 113-75 and a winning percentage of more than 60%.
Over the 14-game stretch that ends against the Heat, Indianas opponents have a winning percent of more than 57%. So far, the Pacers are 7-6 in those games.
While they cant let up, they will get a bit of a break beginning on Wednesday at Cleveland. After dealing with the Heat, theyll face seven-straight opponents that appear headed for the draft lottery. From Feb. 15 to Mar. 3, their opponents have a combined winning percentage of just 22% -- including the two worst teams in the NBA (Charlotte and New Orleans) twice each.
The Starting Five Effect
When Jeff Foster and George Hill are healthy, Frank Vogel has no problem playing 10 players. Louis Amundson gets more time when Foster is out (chronic back issues), while Lance Stephenson and A.J. Price are seeing more minutes with Hill (chip fracture in ankle) sidelined.
A relatively large rotation would lead you to believe that the Pacers have a strong bench, but that hasnt necessarily been the case this season.
Tyler Hansbrough (9.4 points) is their leading scorer off the bench, which ranks him 43rd among reserves. Hill flirted with double-figures at one point, but he is out indefinitely and was often either hot or not before his injury against the Nets last month.
Not surprisingly, Indianas starting five of Darren Collison, Paul George, Danny Granger, David West and Roy Hibbert is their most effective group. According to 82games.com, the group is +99 this season. The next best group is just +22 with Hill in place of George.
The Pacers have been blessed with good health this season, as their projected starting five has begun 26 of their 27 games (Granger missed a single contest). Of the 240 minutes available per game, Collison, George, Granger, West and Hibbert play roughly 67% of the time (160 total minutes). The reliance on the starting five isnt too great in terms of minutes. The Bulls, for example, have one of the NBAs deepest rosters but their Fave Five has played 66.3% of the time when Derrick Rose is healthy.
The issue for the Pacers is offensive effectiveness. The starters score 67.8 points per game, which represents 72% of the teams total. There is a significant enough breakdown in offensive efficiency that the starting five are scoring a disproportionate number of points in relation to their minutes.
One would expect that a starting five, presumably the teams five best players, would be better offensively than the second unit, but the contrast has been rather stark.
Mr. Jones And The Second Unit
The bench is averaging 26.4 points per game on 40.3% shooting over a five-game stretch in which the Pacers have lost four games. The percentage is poor, but the scoring itself is not. The real indicator is the plus-minus numbers this season.
The starting five are all in the positive, while bench contributors like Amundson, Hill, Tyler Hansbrough and Dahntay Jones are all under water. Jones, who gets some run with a variety of starters but plays mainly on the second unit, is a horrendous -75.
At this point, his ineffectiveness cant be an aberration. He has essentially been the teams eighth-man and has moved up to seventh with Hill injured. Jones has the lowest PER (9.9) among the teams rotation players and only Hansbrough has a lower TS% and eFG%. His offense has never been his area of strength, but his defense hasnt been consistently good enough to offset that.
Jones was a very good signing for the Pacers in July of 2009 when he left the Nuggets for a four-year, $11 million contract, but at this point he is hurting them more than he is helping them
I was going to post the schedule. After the HEAT, our next games are
@ Cleveland
vs New Jersey
vs Charlotte
vs New Orleans
@ Charlotte
vs Golden State
@ New Orleans
Acording to the "schedule" we should really go 7-0. Of course being expected to win and wining , can be different things at times
After this run, schedule gets much tougher, so we REALLY REALLY need to take care of business!!!


text: 2007 Economic Club Luncheon February 9, 2007 12:00 AM FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: CONTACT: Paul Brian Director of Communications Chicago Auto Show 630.424.6069 email@example.com http://chicagoautoshow.com Economic Club Addressed by Toyota President James E. Press, president of Toyota Motor North America, Inc., spoke to nearly 1,000 guests at the Economic Club of Chicago's special auto show luncheon. Chicago's business leaders listened intently as Press addressed the current state of Toyota and offered a plan for the automotive industry's continual success. Press contends that by the end of 2007, Toyota will be the world's largest auto maker. The company's achievement stems from its dynamic principles, great dealers, effective production system and fantastic product. "The quality, durability and 'poundability' of our products is responsible for our success," Press said. In addition to its renowned cars and trucks, Press said Toyota prides itself in corporate social responsibility. The auto manufacturer respects the local community and its residents by funding numerous math and science education programs and hosting a national program to promote driving safety. "Preserving the environment is a main goal and responsibility of Toyota," said Press. "Toyota is working to decrease the dependency on fossil fuels by developing fuel efficient engines and hybrids. The manufacturer stresses that all automobile companies should focus on environmental issues and safety. "Auto makers should compete in the showroom, but cooperate in the laboratory," Press said. "I hope we can see the immense value of working together." -END- Back to News


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Fold & Clip Badges - Tall, 3 per sheet
Avery Blank Templates Microsoft Word
Great for creating custom and personalized ID badges
Compatible Products:
Reviewed by 1 customer
- Clean Perferations
- Color Laser Handled Stock
Best Uses
- Trade Show
This review is from AVERY Fold & Clip Badges - Tall, 3 per sheet:
I was exhibiting at a conference on cancer research. We were offered a complete day to host speakers from around the world. I wanted our event to have some distinction, so we created a company logo'd ID badge for staff and speakers. This helped brand the event within the event. Product worked great.


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Hand impresses while waiting for roster fate
Part of no-no in Panama, lefty has 0.75 spring ERA, could make rotation, 'pen
JUPITER, Fla. -- Brad Hand was part of a combined no-hitter against the Yankees on Saturday in Panama, but the left-hander is unsure if he will be on the Marlins' Opening Day roster in a couple of weeks.
Out of options, Hand is fighting for a spot either in the rotation or bullpen. If he is not part of the team's plans, the lefty will likely be a trade piece.
Hand is certainly making a case to open the season in Miami. He has an 0.75 ERA and has struck out 15 in 12 innings, while walking just two. Against the Yankees, the 23-year-old struck out six in five innings.
"That's the best I've seen him," manager Mike Redmond said. "There was a tremendous atmosphere, 27,000 people in Panama. He was in complete control."
Hand, Steve Cishek, A.J. Ramos and Arquimedes Caminero combined on the Spring Training no-hitter in a 5-0 Miami win.
The Marlins arrived back in Jupiter around 11:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, and on Monday, it was business as usual. The club is in the process of putting together its roster, and Hand is firmly in the mix for a rotation spot with Tom Koehler and Kevin Slowey. All three are candidates to start or pitch in long relief.
It appears the club may only be able to carry two, not all three.
"I can't really control anything," Hand said. "I've just got to keep going out there and pitch. Obviously, I'm trying to make this ballclub and I want to be part of this team. I've just got to go out there and pitch, and whatever happens happens."
Hand stepped up in a game that featured an energized atmosphere. Pregame, they had a tribute to Mariano Rivera, and the Yankees were the fan favorites.
"I've never pitched in winter ball, but they said that's what winter ball was like," Hand said. "They did a little ceremony for Mariano. I was out there in the outfield warming up. 'Enter Sandman' came on, and he came in from right field to throw the first pitches. Everybody was going crazy.
"It was like regular-season feel, when you've got 30,000 fans yelling and screaming. We got there at 4 o'clock and people were out there already."
When it came time to play, Hand was certainly ready. In the past, the lefty has had issues with command, but he's been able to throw strikes this spring.
"My changeup has been working really well this spring," he said. "That's been the biggest part of where I've struggled, getting behind hitters, walking guys. That's one of the big things I've been working on, getting ahead and staying ahead.
"I feel like last year I really made some big moves, and I was really starting to throw a lot more strikes. Walks were down. I started getting ahead. Maybe a little bit of confidence, going out there saying, 'Here it is.' Throw it middle-down and let them hit it."
Joe Frisaro is a reporter for MLB.com. He writes a blog, called The Fish Pond. Follow him on Twitter


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Pool games for baby: Humpty Dumpty
Learning to swim is a big milestone in a baby's life. Take away the fear from your baby with songs. Learn the cues and watch baby as he learns too. Soon your baby will be jumping in without you. Get him prepared with this learning game.
Number of players:
What you need:
- a shallow pool; waist deep for mum or dad is fine
- a supervising adult
- foam mat (if available)
Sit the child on the edge of the pool or a foam mat if available.
Hold the child's hands and sing:
Humpty Dumpty sat on the wall,
Humpty Dumpty had a great fall,
Count 1, 2, 3.
On three, pull your child into the water. If your child is still a little weary of putting their head under the water, do not let them slip below the surface. If they are alright to slip under, let them go in a free fall fashion and upon lifting them up, turn them around and help them paddle back to the edge of the pool.
Notes: This exercise teaches the babies to feel the sensation of free falling into the water and to return to the edge rather than keep trying to go further into the pool.
If your baby is not yet confident in going under the water, you will soon notice that this excercise will help to boost their confidence levels.
Sing to the tune of Humpty Dumpty.
Learning benefits of play, craft and activities:
- Benefits of crafts for kids
- Craft ideas to make for babies
- Why reading is important
- Your child's development milestones
- Why play makes kids smarter
- The importance of outdoor play
- Types of play
- How craft helps unplug kids from screentime
Find more inspiring kids' craft ideas
- How-to videos for kids' crafts
- Make a melted crayon masterpiece
- Easter crafts
- Christmas crafts
- Fun kids craft ideas
- 30 fun things to do with kids (including craft)
- Dress up ideas kids can make
- Crafts to make from the recycling bin
- Fairy-inspired craft ideas
- Great ideas for paper crafts


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Banks 64 Aleutian Class — By Capt. Bill Pike — January 2002
The Next Generation
|Part 2: Grand Banks 64 continued
The Aleutian's performance on the pancake-flat patch of Pacific west of Long Beach was way more rousing than I'd expected. In fact, the average top end of 23.9 mph was outrageously untrawlerly, a development attributable to both the complicated Fexas hull form, which combines planing and displacement characteristics in a single running surface, and the considerable oomph of twin 800-hp Caterpillar 3406Es. Out-of-the-hole performance was, if not exactly head-snapping, at least attention-getting (check out the acceleration curve on the following page). Turning characteristics were pleasing–despite a long, true-tracking keel, the hull form banks inboard instead of disconnecting outboard. And not only did the boat achieve an optimum planing angle of about 4 degrees with gusto, it did so without obfuscating visibility forward. Then finally, sound levels at the lower helm, even at WOT, were very low, thanks to Aquadrive shaft couplers, extra-soft engine mounts, and lots of lead-loaded vinyl insulation in the engine room, all of it behind crisp perforated-aluminum panels.
Returning the Aleutian to the face dock was a piece of boathandling poetry, thanks to the visibility already mentioned and a Morse remote on a long cord that puts both engines and a gutsy 25-hp American Bowthruster bow thruster at the walkaround disposal of the skipper. I prefer hydraulic as opposed to electric thrusters, by the way, primarily because they endure long periods of usage without overheating.
Once we got tied up, my examination of the Aleutian's finer points started with the machinery spaces, accessed via a lovely Freeman watertight door on the forward end of the lazarette, which is in turn accessed through a lounge seat along the rear of the cockpit. Three groovy features stuck out. First, while all the electrics were top-notch, I was especially impressed with the inverter system, which consists of two big Trace units (in the lazarette, actually), a whopping bank of six Trojan 8L-16 golf-cart-type batteries, and a dedicated 11.5-kW Onan genset, one of two Onan units onboard my test boat.
Second, in addition to duplex Racors for the mains and gensets, there was a mammoth centerline-mounted Racor RVSF-1 prefilter/separator on the forward firewall, capable of filtering, polishing, and even centrifuging fuel from any or all of the five fuel tanks.
And third, most details of construction I could see were fairly unusual for Grand Banks. For instance, firewalls, watertight bulkheads, and soles were of Airlite-cored fiberglass, not plywood-cored as in other models, and there was a separately molded, preformed, solid-glass grid of six stringers (and numerous athwartship members) strengthening the hull–we're talking an all-glass boat here. Moreover, Phillips said the 64's topsides are cored with pricey Airex instead of balsa, and the superstructure and decks are cored with Airlite.
The Aleutian's interior was just as noteworthy. As you can see from the photos here, the basics are traditional, with top-shelf joinery, a flawless finish, and crème de la crème ancillaries, although there are some striking departures, namely the first-ever use of carpeting, the openness of the layout already noted, and on the lowest deck, the large, central office area (with settee, desk, and day head) that separates the amidships master from the VIP forward. The design emphasis? Livaboard comfort, not population density.
My overall opinion of the 64 Aleutian Class solidified about sunset, as I drove the ol' rental car back to the hotel, taking a route that treated me to the very same vision of the Queen Mary I'd enjoyed earlier in the day and the very same sense of relevancy. Whether considered from the vantage point of construction, layout, styling, or performance, this new Grand Banks is about as close to the New Age as trawler-types get. But like the great liner that now calls Long Beach home, she's also, paradoxically enough, a veritable icon of seafaring tradition.
Grand Banks Yachts Phone: (203) 845-0023. Fax: (203) 845-0024. www.grandbanks.com.
This article originally appeared in the January 2003 issue of Power & Motoryacht magazine.


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10 Ideas for Pendant Lighting Fixtures
"I typically try to use one pattern in each room that has all the colors in the room," designer Jay Jeffers says. "It's a great trick because in a bedroom it could be as big as a comforter or as small as a pillow." The centerpiece in this Sonoma bedroom is the 19th-century Italian headboard, upholstered in Osborne & Little's Tamara.
But how do you know when you have too many patterns? "It's like women and accessories. Put them all on, then take one off and you're good."
The willowy canopy and Fabricut's Strondak curtains give the master bedroom of a Georgia beach house an airy and tranquil but secluded and intimate feel. "Most people love a canopy bed, and sleeping under all that white voile is dreamy," designer Jim Howard says.
5 Most Popular Pins on Pinterest This Week: A Colorful Outdoor Daybed, A Powdery White Fireplace, and More


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Gonzalez ready for season after final spring start
FORT MYERS, Fla. -- Right-hander Miguel Gonzalez made his final start of Spring Training during the split-squad Orioles' 5-4 win against the Red Sox on Wednesday. He allowed four runs on seven hits -- including two homers -- over five innings.
The only clean inning Gonzalez had was the fifth. He gave up back-to-back home runs to Xander Bogaerts and Will Middlebrooks to lead off the fourth.
"The first inning was good, and then I started struggling a little bit towards the end," Gonzalez said. "But I made some good pitches when I needed to. It was a rough one out there. Fastball was cutting a lot. Couldn't really find it, but towards the end, it was better. Last two innings were better even though I gave up a couple of home runs.
"It was just one of those days," he said.
Gonzalez, who earned the win, improved to 2-0 with a 3.54 ERA in six spring games, five starts. He didn't get to his desired pitch count, but Gonzalez was satisfied with the 79 pitches (47 strikes) he threw.
"Yeah, the pitch count was fine," he said. "We wanted to get up to 90, but I was getting behind guys, walking a couple guys, hitting guys. But overall, it was better."
Gonzalez is set to start for the O's during their series against the Tigers in Detroit.
"I'm ready, ready to go," he said. "I'm excited for Spring Training to end and to start the season."
Brittany Ghiroli is a reporter for MLB.com. Read her blog, Britt's Bird Watch, and follow her on Twitter @britt_ghiroli. Maureen Mullen is a contributor to MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.


text: Hoshizaki America's ice machines manufactured in Peachtree City, Ga., now feature a label with QR Codes specific to make, model and serial number. Customers and service technicians can use their smartphone to scan the QR code for convenience. The scan is a direct link that automatically pulls up a mobile Web page specific to equipment


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Whitley, Yanks suffer rain-shortened loss to O's
Righty chased in fourth; game halted in fifth, called after lengthy delay
BALTIMORE -- When Chris Davis punched an opposite-field home run out of Oriole Park at Camden Yards to put the O's ahead of the Yankees in the fourth inning on Sunday, it just seemed like a blow.
The Yankees, in need of a win to take two of three from the Orioles and cut their division lead to three games, still had five innings to make a comeback. After 4 1/2 innings, the wind picked up and the rain started falling in Baltimore. A delay began.
An hour passed. Then two. With 4 1/2 more innings separating baseball from the All-Star break, there was an urgency for the two teams' five All-Stars to make their way to Minneapolis for the festivities. Midnight came and went, most of the 34,483 in attendance left and eventually, the umpires called it. The Orioles won, 3-1, and the two teams hadn't even played five innings.
"My preference would be you come back and finish it," New York manager Joe Girardi said. "I know when you go to a city one time and it happens then you have to live with it. It would be changing what they've done in the past, but I think it's something to look at. If we're coming back, why don't we finish it?"
Davis' home run off Chase Whitley served as the decisive blow, and Kevin Gausman technically picked up the first complete game of his career. The Yankees got through their lineup just two times before the umpires opted to get the All-Star break started.
"We didn't have a chance to come back," Whitley, starting in place of Masahiro Tanaka said. "That's a tough one."
Making his 11th start of the season -- and first since July 4 -- Whitley lasted just 3 2/3 innings and allowed three runs on five hits.
For the first few innings, Whitley gave an admirable follow-up to fellow rookie Shane Greene's performance on Saturday. Greene shut out the Orioles for 7 1/3 innings in a winning effort. Whitley kept Baltimore off the board for the first three innings Sunday despite a pair of hits and a walk before things came undone in the fourth.
He walked Nelson Cruz to lead off the inning, and surrendered a go-ahead home run to Davis. Four batters and two hits later, Whitley's night was done and New York couldn't dig out of a two-run hole in the following half-inning.
"We knew we were trying to dodge a bullet there," Davis said. "Obviously glad we started it, got to where it was official. That's one of the few games we've played lately that we scored early, too. Which is huge."
Whitley's start was the 45th by a Yankee rookie this season, except 18 of those were by the 25-year-old Tanaka.
Of course, this was supposed to be Tanaka's stage. Two days before the All-Star Game, which he arguably had pitched well enough to start in, his Yankees would play in the final game of the first half.
On Thursday, New York placed Tanaka on the disabled list with a partially torn UCL. At best, he'll return in six weeks. At worst, he may not pitch again until 2016. Instead, it was Whitley's turn, and across the diamond another rookie outdueled him.
Making his seventh start of the season, Gausman (4-2) needed 78 pitches to get the win, with a leadoff home run by Brett Gardner as the only blemish on a four-hit outing.
"Runs in these series, they're pretty big," Gausman said. "You give up one in the first, I think it was the fourth pitch of the game, it's frustrating. Honestly, I think it kind of woke me up a little bit."
The Yankees finished the first half with a sour ending to a 6-5 road trip.
"You lose a game in your division, an important game," Girardi said. "Whenever you have a winning trip on the road, you consider that a pretty decent trip, but it could've been a really good trip."
David Wilson is an associate reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.


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Topic: Gemzar
I was wondering if anyone has any experience with the chemo Gemzar? I have seen some post on here about it but not a lot of detail. My mother is currently taking Gemzar today will be her 3rd treatment of 4 before she has a scan done the 23rd of August. She is experiencing tiredness and a lot of stomach pain she has also ran a fever of 100.9 on some days. Her appetite is all but gone; we have to just beg her to drink any fluids. Are these normal side effects? She sleeps a lot more now than she did a few weeks ago.


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Here's a question every CIO will find familiar: How can I get more business value from IT?
Virtualization is certainly a step in the right direction. Virtualization can make the data center more responsive to changing conditions and more scalable and flexible in the pursuit of business goals—in short, more business agility. And, if implemented effectively, virtualization can also reduce costs.
However, there is a big difference between an idea and its implementation. And for organizations interested in taking advantage of virtualization to create more business value, there are certainly better and worse ways to go about it.
Because each organization has a unique context—characterized by a unique set of assets, processes, strengths, weaknesses and business risks—each requires a unique strategy to leverage virtualization to maximize their results.
IBM can help customers improve their business agility by leveraging the latest virtualization technologies with integrated service management. IBM can help in four distinct areas or virtualization priorities that CIOs can use to create a tailored virtualization strategy for their specific organizational needs.
Each priority can build on the others. And while many organizations will get excellent results pursuing these priorities sequentially, they can be pursued in any combination depending on the customer's particular needs and priorities. Collectively, all four can help drive down costs, drive up performance, and enhance business agility.
And together, they help ensure that the benefits of a virtualized infrastructure are not merely an abstract possibility, but an operational reality—a reality that's been tailored for the best business outcome.
Priority: Consolidate resources
This is probably the most familiar to many of today's organizations because it reflects the reality of most of today's data centers: thousands of lightly used systems, in some cases utilized 20% of the time, but each continually drawing power and generating heat.
Consolidating onto fewer, systems, with higher utilization levels can deliver better business results. This type of an IT architecture can make the data center less physically complex, saving valuable floor space, while also minimizing the possible points of failure. The direct result: by consolidating systems, IT becomes more efficient and reduces ongoing operating costs.
Virtualization is a key technology to effectively consolidate. Furthermore, the extensive physical resources of each host (processing power, memory, or storage) can be allocated among those virtual servers flexibly, in proportion to changing business requirements. This means that application and service performance can scale to meet demand.
Priority: Manage workloads
The management challenge can often increase through virtualization. Where one application or service was previously supported by one physical system—a relatively simple paradigm—that may no longer the case. Now, there may be hundreds of virtual servers per system, and there may be hundreds of system images associated with those virtual servers.
Managers may need more time to track problems to root causes, or implement new strategies than they did before. The increased complexity can generate unexpected costs over time, diminishing the potential benefits promised by virtualization.
Organizations need to simplify the overall management challenge via best-in-class, centralized tools that are specifically designed for a virtual infrastructure, allowing managers to easily track status levels, perform everyday tasks, and implement any required form of change, all within an integrated systems management dashboard.
Priority: Automate processes
Automation can deliver lower operational costs, and deliver a faster response time in a consistent manner by minimizing the need for human intervention. While complex, sophisticated tasks will certainly require a dedicated human intelligence, they should be the exception, not the rule.
As a simple example, consider the sequence of events involved in provisioning a virtual server with an appropriate stack of software: OS, applications, middleware, drivers, data, and other elements. An automatic provisioning process can be dramatically faster than a manual provisioning. It can also be completely consistent from case to case. This means that the potential of any service or application failing due to inadvertent configuration errors can be minimized.
Automation can enhance a virtualized infrastructure in many such respects. For instance, service level agreements that specify performance levels can more easily be met if they are dynamically fulfilled through automated processes. Achieving regulatory compliance with government mandates can be simpler and less expensive. Crucial processes such as disaster recovery, involving predictable actions based on known resources, can certainly be faster and more complete if automated, meaning the organization can minimize the adverse business impact of a disaster.
In short, automation can help make virtualized infrastructures more efficient, cost-efficient, responsive, and available.
Priority: Optimize service delivery
The pinnacle of a virtualized infrastructure allows organizations to optimize the delivery of services that are tightly aligned with the organization's—usually by empowering the business user to determine and control their IT priorities as directly as possible.
An example of this type of a delivery model is cloud computing. Utilizing a cloud computing infrastructure can cut the time required to translate a new idea into an actual running service. The time can be dramatically reduced from weeks to hours.
The result dramatically increases an organization's business agility with a lower price tag—both today and tomorrow.


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I've started considering putting a slightly faster disc in my bag, because I feel like I'm starting to throw well enough to experiment with faster disc. My fastest driver at the moment is a Saint, and I'm looking for something slightly faster (10-11) and stable/slightly overstable. I'm looking at 4 discs in particular- wraith, flow, DD and Surge. I don't want to make a wrong decision, because it is really windy where I live, and a good workhorse driver for me would have to fight some wind almost every day (I have an Archon for that rare calm day). Can anyone tell me which of these drivers will fill that role best, or even suggest another one they've thrown that can perform well under these parameters?
P.S. I know a lot of people will want to say "Destroyer", but I've thrown Destroyers several times, and I just can't fall in love with them. I'll throw one if it's the absolute best disc for the job, but I'd rather try something else first.


text: We are the WPP advertising micro-network that harnesses creativity from diverse cultures to develop world class brand communications. Each of our 8 agencies is one of the best in class in its local market, managed by the entrepreneurs who founded the business. Our diverse cultures offer a greater range of divergent thinking and produce surprising creative solutions for our clients.


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|March 24, 2007, 05:05 PM
Join Date: December 11, 2006
Location: Charleston, WV
Posts: 32
food plot
i just bought a 2.5 lbs bag of forage rape and turnip brassica seed for a food plot, i just wanted to hear your guys opinions on this seed mix and if anyone's had any experience with it, and between spring or fall which season is better for it.
|March 24, 2007, 06:38 PM
Senior Member
Join Date: April 18, 2005
Location: Endless Mts,NEPA
Posts: 379
Not sure about the rape but the brassica will not get hit hard by the deer until after it has been hit by frost. The leaves become sweet after they have been frozen one or twice, I think it has something to do with the starches in the plant being broken down into sugars and carbs.
Brassica is planted in the north in the late summer for consumption in the late fall and early winter, at least in my neck of the woods. Once the frost has hit though the deer move in and mow it down.
|March 24, 2007, 07:18 PM
Senior Member
Join Date: May 19, 2005
Location: Valdosta, GA
Posts: 953
Save that for your winter plot. Plant your spring and summer plots with beans and corn. I get the cheapest bean I can find because in a couple weeks it's going to be gone. Experiment with added seeds like watermelons and such till you find what else they like. I plant three times in the spring and summer and then just before season starts plant my brassicas and greens. Don't expect the deer to touch your greens until after the first frost. It's always a good idea to establish a clover too. The deer here like white clover better than crimson and the good thing with clover is it will come back year after year. My peas came up with the rain we got this week and already one of my plots is about 1/4 eaten. Don't expect peas to last long.
|March 25, 2007, 01:41 PM
Join Date: December 11, 2006
Location: Charleston, WV
Posts: 32
so what do you guys think i should plant in the spring that would be cheap and effective.
|March 25, 2007, 03:25 PM
Senior Member
Join Date: May 19, 2005
Location: Valdosta, GA
Posts: 953
Peas or beans and a little corn mixed in.
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PSP Wallpapers | PS3 Wallpapers
Submitted by: Zmoney240
This is a Ipad Wallpaper wallpaper. This Ipad Wallpaper background can be used for your PS3 or other widescreen devices including a computer as long as the resolution matches. You can find several other widescreen wallpapers in our large selection of PS3 wallpapers, possibly including other Ipad Wallpaper wallpapers and backgrounds.Short Link for PSP/PS3 Browser: http://www.psxextreme.com/s/1387
| Purple Dragon PS3 Wallpaper | Let's Go Mets Wallpaper |
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The blizzard that hit the Midwest in the first week of March showed one reason why a lot of retail and foodservice buyers like the flexibility on orders and deliveries that regional and local processors of fresh-cut produce can provide.
"There are probably a lot of products sitting on the shelf because people can't get to the store," said Gina Nucci, director of healthy culinary innovation for Mann Packing Co., Salinas, Calif., and a member of United Fresh Produce Association's Fresh-Cut Processor Board, in early March.
Adaptability to weather patterns isn't the only attraction. Foodservice items often come with shorter expiration dates, requiring quick turnarounds.
"A restaurant can put in their order for unique, shorter shelf-life items — like a special fresh-cut bell pepper and onions — at the end of the evening and get it the next day because it's going to be run at a regional processor out of inventory," Nucci said.
Mann Packing, Salinas, Calif., remains as active as ever in source-based processing, but since 2011 some of its fresh-cut is done at F&S Produce Co. in Rosenhayn, N.J.
"Fresh-cut started out local and regional, then swung toward more source-based," said Bob Swartwout, vice president of sales for Shelby, Ohio-based processor, re-packer and wholesaler R.S. Hanline & Co. Inc.
"Source-based isn't going anywhere," he said, "but there's a lot more opportunity for the regional and local fresh-cut supply to increase as customers seek to reduce the time between processing and actual consumption.
"We're seeing a swing toward more regional and local supply to augment what's already there from the source-based processors, to provide more variety in cut sizes, pack sizes and even combination packs."
It's become common for foodservice distributors to have fresh-cut operations. Chicago's Testa Produce and New York's Baldor Specialty Foods are examples. Another is J. Kings Food Service Professionals Inc., Holtsville, N.Y.
"Everyone's doing that," Nucci said. "Each customer wants a smaller cut, something unique. When you're making smaller batch runs you have that flexibility in a smaller operation."
Proliferation of varieties within commodities has also reduced run times and quantities.
"There's more specialization, which is hard for the source-based guys to do," Swartwout said.
Beyond convenience and flexibility, quality also motivates the regional shift.
"A lot of items lend themselves to source-based processing," said Swartwout, citing lettuce and carrots as two examples.
"But the U.S. food distribution chain is so elongated compared to other parts of the world that often flavor or quality may get lost in the shuffle a bit with the extended shelf life."
"Now some of that is getting pushed back down to the regional or even the local level," said Swartwout, another member of the Fresh-Cut Processor Board.
"And people want more just-in-time fresh-cut capabilities from local and regional suppliers."


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Others have exited with no-hitter
HOUSTON -- Robbie Ross was the sixth Rangers pitcher in club history to leave a game with a no-hitter going. The other four.
• On Sept. 22, 1973, Sonny Siebert exited a game against the Royals with a no-hitter through five innings. The Rangers ended up losing in 14 innings.
• On Opening Day of 1985, Charlie Hough had a no-hitter through six innings. But he also walked eight and allowed two runs against the Orioles in Baltimore. The Rangers lost 4-2 on a day when it snowed.
• In Bobby Witt's second Major League start on April 17, 1986, he pitched a no-hitter through five innings against the Brewers, allowing eight walks and striking out 10. He also had four wild pitches. The Rangers won, 7-5.
• After an abbreviated Spring Training because of a labor dispute, Nolan Ryan started for the Rangers on Opening Day in 1990 and had a no-hitter through five innings before coming out having thrown 91 pitches. The Rangers won, 4-2.
• The closest the Rangers came to completing a combined no-hitter was on Aug. 23, 2010. Rich Harden had a no-hitter through 6 2/3 innings against the Twins. After walking five and striking out six, Harden left the game having thrown 111 pitches. Matt Harrison finished the seventh, Darren O'Day set the side down in order in the eighth but Neftali Feliz gave up a single in the ninth in a 4-0 victory.
T.R. Sullivan is a reporter for MLB.com. Read his blog, Postcards from Elysian Fields, and follow him on Twitter @Sullivan_Ranger This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.


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SHEPHERDSVILLE - Faced with an annual debt service payments of $2.1 million for the next 20 years before turning on the first light or paying the first employee, Shepherdsville city officials knew they would have to do something to generate revenue.
However, customers may be shocked to see that the "something" could mean rate increases approaching 100 percent starting next month.
The Shepherdsville City Council will meet at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, June 29, to decide both the sewer rates, as well as finalizing its 2011-12 budgets.
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Third-ranked Florida plays host to No. 9 South Carolina on Saturday in a game that features the likely champion of the SEC East. The Gamecocks are coming off a hard-fought, but eventual loss to LSU—the same team the Gators upended 14-6 in the Swamp two weeks ago.
On the line
Control of the SEC East Division. Both Florida and South Carolina control their destiny in the race. If Florida beats South Carolina, and then beats Georgia in Jacksonville next week, it clinches the East no matter what happens on Nov. 3 against Missouri. South Carolina clinches the East by beating Florida and Tennessee and Arkansas at home.
MORE: Sporting News' midseason report: Top 50 story lines | All-Americans
Sideline view
South Carolina: We've heard a lot about key injuries this week for the Gamecocks—specifically, to the team's two best players. TB Marcus Lattimore has a hip injury, and DE Jadeveon Clowney is nicked up, and both missed time in practice this week. Don't be fooled: both will play.
Lattimore won't start, but expect him to get a majority of the carries with the game on the line. Senior Kenny Miles is a capable backup, and will allow the Gamecocks to continue running power sets. Expect Clowney to start, too.
Bottom line: QB Connor Shaw must make plays in the passing game. He struggled at times in last week's loss to LSU.
Florida: It may look boring, and it certainly doesn't look as fancy as Florida teams of the past, but winning ugly works for the Gators. It's power football with TB Mike Gillislee and QB Jeff Driskel. Florida has been so successful in the power run game, it hasn't needed Driskel in the passing game. Will Muschamp continues to proclaim he has faith in the Gators' passing game and that Florida can throw the ball if need be.
Performance on the field shows otherwise: The Gators ran the last 25 plays against LSU two weeks ago, and Driskel averaged only 3.9 yards per attempt last week against Vanderbilt. It's pretty simple for the Gators: An elite defense keeps the team in games until the offense wears down the opponent with a power run game.
Bowl projections: BCS games | All the bowls
Critical matchup
Receivers vs. secondaries for both teams. Here's where South Carolina has the critical edge. Both defenses will slow down the run games, and put the game into the hands of the quarterbacks and receivers. The difference between Driskel and Shaw is negligible, but the difference in receivers is significant.
The Gamecocks have players—specifically, WRs Ace Sanders, Damiere Byrd and Bruce Ellington—who can take small hitch or curl or drag plays and turn them into big gains. Florida has TE Jordan Reed, who has caught only five passes in the last two games (and only 21 for the season). If Shaw doesn't make poor decisions and force throws, this will be the difference in the game.
South Carolina won an ugly game last year in Columbia, and Spurrier called the 17-12 victory one of his best at South Carolina. If the Gamecocks win this game, it will move to the top of that list.
Sunday ticket
This game is full of defensive players who will be high picks in the NFL: Clowney, only a sophomore, and South Carolina DE Devin Taylor and Florida DE Dominique Easley and DT Sharrif Floyd lead the way. More than 10 players combined from these defenses will be high round picks in the NFL when they leave school.
Pick: South Carolina 20, Florida 16
MORE WEEK 8 PICKS: Sporting News selects the winners of the 10 biggest games


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NEW YORK — Skin care products that offer multiple benefits in one bottle are increasingly catching the eye of time-starved and money-crunched shoppers, according to new research by Mintel.
"The facial skincare category is expected to see an uptick in growth thanks to improving economic conditions and emerging segments," stated Shannon Romanowski, beauty and personal care analyst at Mintel. "Consumers are gravitating toward multifunctional products that allow them to get more benefits while saving them both time and money. "Natural" and "free from" claims are important, and the level of consumer demand means that they have almost become expected in this category. Therefore, improved functionality and multiple benefits garner higher levels of consumer interest, suggesting opportunities for eco-friendly brands to tout natural ingredients as a way to support product efficacy."
The study revealed that 42% of consumers seek products with multiple benefits, 37% say they only purchase products from brands they trust and nearly a quarter (24%) are looking for facial skincare products that are "free from" certain ingredients.
When using facial skincare, most consumers are looking for basic functionality like cleansing (64%) and treating dry skin (41%). However, the number of facial product users wanting to improve the texture of skin has increased significantly since 2012. Some 36% of facial skin care users report improving skin texture as a reason for using facial skincare in 2013 as opposed to 21% in 2012.
"The idea of improving skin texture is resonating across all age groups, indicating a growth opportunity for the category. Improving skin texture speaks to women and men alike, as the idea of a more perfect and flawless complexion is broadly appealing," Romanowski added.
Anti-aging skin care is the largest segment in the facial skin care category, holding nearly 40% share of the market. However, after years of growth, the anti-aging segment declined by 2.2% between 2010 and 2012. Facial cleansers and moisturizers collectively account for 41% of category sales and drove virtually all growth in this timeframe. Meanwhile the acne treatment segment saw minimal sales gains between 2010 and 2012. Consumers tend to age out of this segment, generally keeping sales very consistent.
Study: Multi-benefit, 'free from' claims help fuel facial skin care market
NEW YORK — Skin care products that offer multiple benefits in one bottle are increasingly catching the eye of time-starved and money-crunched shoppers, according to new research by Mintel.


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While it may seem like a luxury, you will soon find that having power reclining furniture and its customized position capability is a necessity for your home. Customized motion means that you can stop the recliner seat and back with simultaneous movement at whatever position best suits you, whether you need to soothe back pain or sit up and eat a snack while you watch TV. Gentle, power motion is suitable for all levels of mobility, and is as easy to use as a single touch.
Place this recliner a bit closer to the wall and easily reserve some extra space for moving around your room. Wall recliner mechanisms slide slightly forward instead of straight back when you move to angle the back cushion. You can place this model of recliner as close as 2-3 inches from the wall and you won't have to worry about reclining back and damaging the wall behind your chair.
We'll specially make a sofa or chair in the fabrics you want, and get it to you faster than those other suppliers. We're always working to reduce lead times and bring the product to to your home faster, usually in as few as 21 days. Check with the store to find a lead time adjusted for your location.
Open a hidden, velcro-sealed flap in the seat back and you can adjust the amount of premium cushioning fiber for better comfort. The wear and tear of aging furniture is no longer a problem when you can renew the cushion's plushness by adding more polyester fiber fill.
This brand was tested to have a softer, plusher seat feel than even the big name brands. High density polyurethane foam is wrapped in high-loft polyester fiber, creating a soft but durable cushion. These cushions will provide you with years of that brand-new feel.
Make your recliner less cumbersome by removing the back(s) when you are moving in or out of your home. Locking brackets safely join the reclining seat(s) and back(s), ensuring your recliner will be stable when you use it.
The wide seat of this chair-and-half is a great place to unwind, but the relaxation capability of this chair only gets better. It looks like a chic, contemporary armchair, but it is actually a power recliner in disguise. Power recline is activated by touch plate buttons on the outside of the arm.
The Tanya Contemporary Power Recliner with Wood Feet and Stationary Arms by Best Home Furnishings at Darvin Furniture in the Orland Park, Chicago, IL area. Product availability may vary. Contact us for the most current availability on this product.
It's easy to find furniture that pleases everybody with the chic recliners from the Tanya collection. For those that crave comfort and those that demand high style, the Tanya collection has both, with a unique reclining design that mimics the look of a stationary sofa. It's so clever the way the seats look like removable cushions but conceal the plush, full-support chaise legrest of a recliner. Easy-to-use power recline is included on each piece with metal touch buttons in an antiqued brass finish. Finally- recliners that you'll be glad to show off to your friends!
The Tanya collection is a great option if you are looking for furniture in the Orland Park, Chicago, IL area.
Browse other items in the Tanya collection from Darvin Furniture in the Orland Park, Chicago, IL area.
This item has been tagged as: Recliner, Reclining Chair, Glider Rocker Recliner, Rocking Recliner, High Leg Reclining Chair, Lift Recliner, Pop - Up Recliner, Reclining Chair and Ottoman, Motion Recliner, Standard Recliner, No - Rock Recliners, Wall Recliners, Easy Chair, Living Room Chair, Living Room Furniture, TV Chair, Chair Recliner, Massage Chair, Massage Recliner, Swivel Rocker Recliner, Massaging Recliner
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