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An Auckland game development studio which created three top-selling titles last year has more than quadrupled its staff numbers in less than three years and says it has no plans to slow down.
Since starting with 15 developers in August, 2010, Parnell-based Gameloft has grown to 85 employees and is about to hire another 20.
Studio director Patrick Wagner said the success of its three games last year - My Little Pony, My Littlest Pet Shop and Wonder Zoo - had led to rapid growth in the company.
"Those three games collectively brought in the same revenue in the space of three weeks as the studio made during the entire previous year," he said.
Sales last year were "in the millions", he said.
My Little Pony was one of six kiwi-made games to hit top 10 iPhone download charts in the US in 2012.
The New Zealand studio is a subsidiary of its French-owned global parent, a leading developer and publisher of games for mobile phones and consoles.
Headquartered in Paris, Gameloft has 28 subsidiaries around the world, employs 6200 people and last year made sales worth about 250 million euro (NZD$400 million).
Wagner relocated from Paris in 2011 and said New Zealand had been a perfect place to establish a business.
"We set up here because there are very good 3D artists and animators in New Zealand," he said.
"When it comes to 3D, we have some very strong hitters in the industry."
My Little Pony screenshot from Official Teaser Trailer
Largely responsible for that was a thriving kiwi film industry, which had nurtured a hotbed of talent, he said.
"When Weta are doing a movie they need everyone in the country to work for them but these 3D artists are still there when the movie's finished."
Kiwis were generally well-trained and did not get flustered by tight deadlines, he said.
The country also offered an attractive tax system compared to countries in Europe.
About 30 per cent of Gameloft's local team are Kiwis, with the remainder from more than 20 different countries.
"We get people from all over the world because New Zealand in a very attractive place to live," Wagner said.
"We want to hire more New Zealanders - the more locals we can get the better."
He was looking forward to a flood of graduates emerging from new game development degrees being run by providers like the Media Design School in Auckland.
"They're still in the first year of the degree so we need two more years before we can hire those graduates.
"I would be willing to hire all of them."
Gameloft recently received a $600,000 research and development grant from Callaghan Innovation to help the company pay salaries for employees working on its 'engine' - the skeleton of a game which allows it to run.
Wagner said that grant had directly enabled Gameloft to hire 12 more people at the end of January.
A number of other game development studios were also doing very well in New Zealand, such as PikPok and Small Worlds, he said.
"These companies weren't there 10 years ago so the industry's growing."
In 2011, Gameloft NZ attracted controversy when a former employee complained of excessive work hours.
The NZ Labour Department found no evidence of breaching health and safety laws.
"All creative industries work long hours and we're no exception but in 2011 we were severely short staffed after losing a few key positions," Wagner said.
"We worked on it. There were some things we needed to work on and we have needed to get the right number of staff."
There are around 450 game developers in New Zealand.
The global game development industry will generate spending of about USUS$97 billion this year and US$115 billion by 2015, according to research by Gartner.


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"Shield" Black + Gold Leather Bracelet
Sold out
Adjustable wrap-around leather bracelet.
"Shield" Black + Gold Leather Bracelet
The center piece of the We Are All Smith leather bracelet is a mini stainless steel hook which employs the famous Wichard Torsion spring. Widely used by sailors (in an array of different constructions and sizes) these sailboat hooks are crew favorites as they allow one hand operation so that the other hand is free to hold on to the boat. Most commonly used in boats to attach the luff edge (the forward leading edge) of the sail to the mast.
One size fits all.
Clasp: 14k Gold Plated Stainless Steel
Handmade in the USA.

subset: commoncrawl


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'Venus And Serena': Champs Atop Their Game
What's left to know about Venus and Serena Williams? Probably not much that the tennis titans would be willing to share, given how heavily exposed they've been already, and how eager the press has been to wedge the sisters into ready-made narratives about race, celebrity and the daughters of a Svengali.
The lively if slightly worshipful new documentary Venus and Serena breaks little new ground in this regard. And maybe it doesn't matter, given the size of the personalities who leap out of the well-rehearsed, up-from-Compton tale of two sisters who took a white, upper-middle-class sport by the ears and shook it hard on their own terms.
For that part, producer-directors Maiken Baird and Michelle Major rely heavily on well-known news footage, sprinkled with commentary from celebrities like Bill Clinton, John McEnroe and Vogue editor Anna Wintour, who say pretty much what you'd expect them to say about the sisters' agile grace and disciplined professionalism under pressure.
Comedian Chris Rock nails the sisters' boisterously uncompromising personal style and pride in their race: "Their braids are not country-club black," he says. "They are black-black."
In part that sense of self and heritage, so evident when the Williams women exploded onto the tennis scene in their early teens, comes from the flamboyant father who, for better and worse, shaped their careers. Born into abject poverty in Louisiana, Richard Williams moved to Los Angeles and built his own security company before devoting himself to shaping a gold-plated career for his daughters. We see him admit in a television interview to not being terribly interested in tennis for its own sake.
"I wanted for both of them to become No. 1 in the world," he says, grinning. That worked out pretty well, but Venus and Serena is also long on the details of how Williams supported, protected, bullied and prodded his two girls into becoming champions.
Barely into adolescence in footage dating back to the early '90s, the girls seem none the worse for the intense, unorthodox training regimen their father put them through, which included ballet, jazz and throwing rackets (and, later, pole-dancing), in addition to the rigors imposed by a fleet of top-tier coaches, none more demanding than Richard himself.
A serial womanizer who fathered so many kids that one sister can't remember all their names on camera, Richard makes for great copy. But Baird and Major also scored interviews with the Williams sisters and other family members, and Venus and Serena is most compelling as a portrait of domestic solidarity. Given the possibilities for friction in a clan divided by parentage, talent, wealth distribution, and the loss of one sister in a Compton shooting, that's either pretty astonishing or a diplomatic gloss on the Williams family's internal politics.
Certainly they come across as an intensely loyal gang. Long divorced from Richard, Venus and Serena's mother, Oracene, remains central to their lives and careers, and the source of their faith as Jehovah's Witnesses. We see her patiently seeing off idiotic questions from a reporter about "grunting" on the court, and commenting delightedly on the several women who co-exist within Serena — including a homegirl they call Taquanda, who periodically emerges to yell at recalcitrant umpires.
There's unqualified support from sisters and half-sisters unfazed by an interviewer's attempt to draw them out on the question of bloodlines and conflict. "We're black," says Venus and Serena's older sister Isha, firmly. "We don't do that."
As for Venus and Serena themselves, they seem as tight as two peas in a pod, which is remarkable for siblings compelled by their careers to be partners and rivals all at the same time. Romantic attachments come and go, but Venus and Serena are essentially a couple who live together, work out together, play together and, to judge by this film, would rather spend time in each other's company than be with anyone else. Together they have somehow figured out how to overcome the fact that Serena, a force of nature who has taken her father's competitive aggression more fully onboard than has her older sister — has achieved more success on the court.
Venus and Serena focuses mainly on the 2011 tennis season, when both were recovering from serious illnesses: Serena suffered a pulmonary embolism, while Venus was diagnosed with Sjogren's syndrome. Despite all this, and the fact that the two have hit their early 30s, their astonishing "comebacks" separately and together at Wimbledon and the Olympics make for a triumphalist ending any sports documentarian would pray for.
That's fun, and watching the sisters' beauty and casual physical grace on and off the court is always a trip. Yet some will come away thinking that the Williams family has grown so skilled at managing their public image that perhaps no filmmaker will ever get between the cracks.
Me, I wanted to know what these two remarkable young women will obsess about once the whole world has stopped watching, whether they will always be together — and what it would really feel like to be one of their much less famous siblings. We'll probably never know, except in someone else's future fiction feature.
Copyright 2020 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.


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Yes, I know it's been FOREVER since I updated my blog. I'm still getting caught up on some old and new blocks of the month. This seems to have been the Summer of UFOs for me.
But everyone needs a little something to spark their creative juices. I am totally in love with Bonnie & Camille's upcoming fabric collection, Ruby. I bought a fat eighth bundle. I made this. Bliss. Oh wait - that's their last collection! I love the addition of grey to this new line and I love the brighter green.
The pattern is Basket Case by Cluck Cluck Sew. Leaving off the borders (which would mean waiting until October for Ruby yardage to hit stores!), the quilt measures 50 by 70 - perfect width to use a white Minky dot on the back and have a cozy, snuggly quilt.
And next I've pulled out ANOTHER old UFO - I have all the blocks done and now I just need to put it together with the pieced sashing. I forgot how pretty these blocks are!


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To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people exist, that is all.
Oscar Wilde
To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people exist, that is all.
Be yourself; everyone else is already taken.
I am so clever that sometimes I don't understand a single word of what I am saying.
There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.
Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving.
I speak to everyone in the same way, whether he is the garbage man or the president of the university.
Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow. The important thing is to not stop questioning.
We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars.
Anyone who lives within their means suffers from a lack of imagination.
Where there is love there is life.
My life is my Message.
There is more to life than simply increasing its speed.
Nobody realizes that some people expend tremendous energy merely to be normal.
Live to the point of tears.
Do not wait for the last judgment. It comes every day.
I have no idea what's awaiting me, or what will happen when this all ends. For the moment I know this: there are sick people and they need curing.
Good friends, good books, and a sleepy conscience: this is the ideal life.
The fear of death follows from the fear of life. A man who lives fully is prepared to die at any time.
Life is short, break the rules
Don't part with your illusions. When they are gone you may still exist, but you have ceased to live.
There was never yet an uninteresting life. Such a thing is an impossibility. Inside of the dullest exterior there is a drama, a comedy, and a tragedy.
He who has a why to live for can bear almost any how.
Art is the proper task of life.
Perhaps I know best why it is man alone who laughs; he alone suffers so deeply that he had to invent laughter.


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Walking along Lisbon's tree-and-poo-lined streets, in deliciously sweltering days that make you sweat when you think, with warm nights, stunning sights, carnivourous meals, sangria and incredibly hospitable hosts... I am reminded again why I travel.
And in my first experience as a Couchsurfer - I have hosted a few times, never before guested - I can certainly recommend it. For those who aren't familiar, www.couchsurfing.org is an international site where users can either stay or host for free in their own homes. Of course, a bottle of wine or a dinner or a gift is a basic courtesy to extend to the host.
The daunting idea of having a complete stranger in your home (or you in theirs) is made much less daunting by having users complete extensive profiles of themselves, along with references from people they've met via their travels.
You can also filter your preferences when searching for a place to stay (i.e. age range, gender, etc) and make explicit guidelines for people looking to surf at your place (i.e. no smokers, female/male only, no Republicans, etc.). It's also a great way to see a city outside of the normal tourist-greased conveyor belts.
And so it is that I have to mention Rita and Raquel, two Portuguese sisters who are my first ever hosts (and I am their first guest).
I normally have a strict rule to not mention details of my personal encounters on this blog, but these girls deserve special mention. I didn't know people like this still existed. Sweet, polite, charming, fun, incredibly helpful... If all couchsurfing experiences are like this, hotels will go out of business.
They have quickly helped make Lisbon one of my favourite cities. More as the week progresses...


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State mandated plan for Torrington, focuses on furthering education, developing a career path
Torrington >> Students in the Torrington school district will now have the opportunity to explore career opportunities in-depth, as part of a new state-mandated plan that focuses on furthering a student's education and developing a career path. The School Improvement Subcommittee, established by the Board of Education, discussed implementing the plan on Wednesday night.
The Student Success Plan (SSP) or Secondary Program Opportunities, which started this year, is designed to help students plan for their future and figure out what they want to be when they grow up. The new plan takes effect when a student enters sixth grade and continues until his or her high school graduation day. Torrington school officials developed the SSP using state guidelines during the 2011-12 school year, and put it in place for 2012-13.
"It's a structured opportunity at a younger age to explore a variety of careers," Assistant Superintendent Sue Domanico said, during her presentation to the board on Wednesday, during the subcommittee meeting.
Domanico said the SSP is made up of three core components -- academic development, career development and social, emotional and physical development.
According to the state Department of Education website, the academic plan allows a student to choose courses based on interests and a career of interest, to encourage students to want to learn and develop the knowledge and skills needed to be successful throughout high school as well as a chosen career field.
The academic component of the SSP also involves a "Capstone" project that demonstrates what the student has learned during his or her school career, that is conducted in his or her senior year. The Capstone project could be any topic the student chooses that shows their accomplishments, such as a portfolio, a performance or demonstration.
"We're making a conscientious effort to help children dream of what they might want to be," Superintendent Cheryl Kloczko said.
The second component, career development, allows students to explore their interests through elective courses and activities as well as internships to help gain "real world" experience, according to the state Department of Education website. The career development component also helps students prepare for college.
"Colleges want students to have 'real world' experience ... not only have knowledge but apply it," said Kloczko.
However, Kloczko said, internships can be available for students who are not interested in attending college but want to pursue a trade.
"Community partners are interested in working with students -- as part of work force development," she said. "We are encouraging guidance counselors to do an exit survey (with graduating seniors to find out what their plans are)."
The last component, social, emotional and physical development, gives students the opportunity to fully engage themselves in school as well as take necessary risks for the best academic performance, the state's website explains. In other words, if a student is doing well in school, he or she will be happier and more confident.
Kloczko and Domanico said SSP's give students more choices, plans and certainty.
"Students find interests, develop plans and work with professionals," Kloczko said.
When a student enters the program in sixth grade they are assigned to a faculty advisor as well as in the high school, according to Domanico. In the high school, students are assigned to a small homeroom with a chosen adult who can get to know high school students, she said.
Also, Domanico said, once a month high school students have an extended homeroom period that allows them to explore their interests with a teacher with whom they can identify.
While in middle school, students participate in mentoring activities where they learn life skills and organizational skills, Domanico said. Teachers also teach lessons that help develop interests, skills and independence, she said.
The high school students also use a computer program called "Career Cruising" where each student has an account where they can further search their career interests and complete career surveys. The career surveys help a student decide whether a career is right for them.
For seniors who haven't gone through the whole SSP process, Domanico said they are able to utilize "Career Cruising" with tools to help with the college search process.
"The SSP is about helping students plan for the future. Public schools are investing in students for when they become taxpayers and citizens," Kloczko said.
Reach Nikki Treleaven at (860) 489-3121 ext. 324


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IN THE last days of the Keating empire a fellow named Bill Kelty gave a spectacular speech. ''If they want a fight, if they want a war, they'll have the full symphony, all the pieces, all the clashes and all the music,'' Kelty threatened. ''I am not sure it will be the 1812 Overture, but I will tell you what, Paul, it will not be Mahler either.''
Kelty was Paul Keating's close mate, the head of the ACTU. The 1996 election was only a couple of weeks away, the one that would make John Howard prime minister for near on 11 years.
The promise of war in the streets against Howard and his industrial relations agenda, even one as colourful as a full symphony with clashing cymbals, didn't do much for Keating's chances, which were long gone anyway.
Australians don't tend to rise up to Napoleonic cries to the barricades. They'd got it out of their systems at Gallipoli and the Western Front.
But Kelty, at least, was railing against Labor's political opponents. And it turned out he was being prescient. Howard a decade later faced the full symphony when he got around to enacting his WorkChoices legislation, inspiring Australians to march on him and his troops and overwhelm them.
This week another union leader decided it was time to sound a war cry.
Paul Howes, addressing his Australian Workers Union at that well-known workers' paradise, Jupiter's Casino, on the Queensland Gold Coast, chose a different target to that identified back in 1996 by Bill Kelty.
He took aim at his own side. There was no stirring music to it. It was an off-key lament about the enemy within.
''Nothing upsets me more lately than opening newspapers on a daily or weekly basis and reading anonymous quotes from 'senior Labor sources' undermining our Prime Minister, undermining the leadership of our movement and this country,'' he offered.
''What a bunch of gutless pricks they are that they can't put their names to what they are saying.''
Precisely, despondent Labor supporters might echo. Except, of course, this was Paul Howes speaking. Howes is the author of a book about himself. It's called Confessions of a Faceless Man.
Within its pages is the following paragraph concerning the lead-up to the death of former Labor leader Kevin Rudd's prime ministership.
''The phone rang and on the other end was a senior member of the federal ministry, telling me that the challenge to Kevin Rudd's prime ministership was on and could I please make my mind the f--- up about whether we'd support it and let him know in half an hour.''
A ''senior member of the federal ministry''? Howes couldn't bring himself to name him or her even in his own confessional. The allegedly tell-all paragraph continues:
''… the key 'plotters', or so they have been called - the 'faceless men', whom I was about to join - wanted me to come on board; they wanted an outside voice, a leader of the movement, backing their decision to give the process an air of legitimacy.''
There it is. This ''leader of the movement'' had accepted the invitation of an anonymous Labor minister to provide ''an air of legitimacy'' to a secret plot to get rid of a Labor prime minister, although to be fair, he put his name to his subsequent efforts. Thus was sown what has become a long, bitter harvest.
And now, suddenly, 2½ dreadful years later, he's seen the light. Those now plotting in the shadows to get rid of a Labor prime minister are ''gutless pricks''. You could hardly go past this example of high unctuousness if you were trying to diagnose the disease that is eating Labor's liver.
Howes is accurate, of course, even if he might not be the perfect figure to deliver the message. No matter how hard Julia Gillard or Wayne Swan might work on economic, health, education and taxation policy in an attempt to place their government in some form of competitive position, a noxious swamp of internal dissension bubbles below.
One of the more ghastly and elaborate metaphors being offered around Parliament House by the Rudd-friendly and Gillard-disdainers concerns, of all things, a cult horror-movie series called Saw.
The fact that these movies, from a genre known as ''torture porn'', are watched almost exclusively by pimply-faced kids who need to get out more, may, of course, say something about the state of political activism within modern Labor.
The analogy being whispered among the merciless, anyway, is drawn from the first of the Saw movies, in which a couple of unfortunate fellows awaken in a dank bathroom to discover that each has his right leg chained to a stout pipe secured to the wall.
They face a hideous test. One of them must kill the other by evening, they are informed. But there is the chance of escape for both: two hacksaw blades.
There is a choice. Avoid the agony and die, or remove their own feet and live. There is no halfway.
This ornate metaphor for Labor's dilemma has been dreamt up by one of Labor's own warriors, a fellow who has been around since the days of Keating and who has thus seen a bit of gore.
He is one of those Howes identifies as an anonymous source, although he has treated at least half the Labor caucus to his grim view for a year now, and it has been shared around by plenty of them.
The message needs no interpretation. The government is shackled and must either endure the pain of cutting itself free - of Julia Gillard, of course - or perish slowly.
But even this take-no-prisoners guerilla, handy with numbers, has no idea whether Kevin Rudd will ever get the opportunity to re-emerge from exile and replace Gillard. The Saw movies, he points out, often feature the trapped who simply can't bring themselves to embrace the dread option of removing their own limbs in a bid for deliverance.
Others put it more directly. There are too many who just can't bear Kevin Rudd.
Alternatively, Ms Gillard's greatest shield might prove to have been forged at the moment when Paul Howes and his mates completed the plot in mid-2010. Having got rid of one prime minister and installed another, to dubious benefit, it is entirely possible Labor has scared itself out of another such manoeuvre.
The Labor government could, of course, hope for a latter-day true believer to summon a vision of a symphonic cannonade against the actual opposition in an election year. It may not have worked all those years ago, but it lifted Paul Keating's spirits no end, and sounded rather more heroic than calling your own colleagues gutless pricks. If you fear you're going down, you may as well have the orchestra playing.
Tony Wright is the associate editor and special writer for The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald.


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Posted 10 years ago
(120 items)
This is a Tribute to the 1929 $5 Gold piece. It's only 10mil gold & the rest clad. Only 2,250 were made in Proof condition. This is # 1133. From my Dads Estate..... See pic #4...... I don't know my mill's.......How many mill's is a Full Gold coin? Thanks for lookin!


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Since 1981, Rho Ventures has been investing in innovators seeking to redefine the status quo. Rho Ventures' multi-stage investing strategy focuses on high-growth companies in large markets that are disrupting traditional value chains. With a broad mandate, our investments span new media, communications, healthcare, information technology and energy technology sectors. Learn More
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Learn More
Rho Fund Investors focuses on commitments to venture capital, buyout and special situations funds. Our fund investments include commitments to established private equity funds as well as promising new managers. Learn More


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Nationwide tuition debt now tops $1 trillion – surpassing credit card debt as the biggest source of unsecured debt for Americans.
That staggering figure has prompted the U.S. Education Department and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) to team up to help students and their parents better understand the true cost of college.
On Monday, Secretary Arne Duncan unveiled a standardized 'Shopping Sheet' which breaks down the total estimated annual costs (tuition, fees, housing, books and supplies, transportation, and other expenses) as well as what options are available for repaying any loans a student takes out.
The Shopping Sheet comes as campuses in the UNC system will be raising tuition and fees an average of 8.8 percent for the 2012-13 school year.
"Students should know before they owe," said CFPB Director Richard Cordray. "But unfortunately, we have heard from so many student-loan borrowers who say that they simply did not understand what they signed up for. The Financial Aid Shopping Sheet gives students real numbers and a clear format that makes sense of a huge financial undertaking that too often is complex and confusing."
The Education Department is hoping the easy to understand worksheet is adopted by colleges and universities nationwide as part of their financial aid award packages starting in the 2013-14 school year.
To download a pdf copy of the Shopping Sheet, click here.


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GOP Puts Social Security in Play in Fiscal Cliff Talks
The choice is whether to reduce the retirement benefit by a little now or a lot more later.
Because of House Republicans, Social Security is now part of the negotiations over the fiscal cliff and the broad approach to spending cuts over the next few decades.
SEE ALSO: Kiplinger's Social Security Solutions
The Republican idea is to change the inflation yardstick that determines the annual cost-of-living increase for Social Security payouts. Such a move would probably peg inflation this year around 1.7% instead of 2%. To budget cutters, it's a big deal, saving about $110 billion over 10 years. For retirees, though, it means getting a $1,900 check monthly instead of $2,000.
This idea isn't new. Michael Boskin, chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers under President George H.W. Bush, led a commission in 1996 that concluded that the current measurement overstates inflation. But labor unions and AARP worked hard to block use of a new yardstick. Even so, change seemed likely until President Bill Clinton's encounters with intern Monica Lewinsky. Bipartisan cooperation ended when the Republican-controlled House brought impeachment proceedings against Clinton.
Since that time in the late 1990s, change in Social Security moved offstage, and there have been no serious efforts to attack deficits and the national debt until now.
Those who oppose changing the inflation measure or other ideas, such as raising the retirement age two years, assert that Social Security is sound: After all, it's supported by a trust fund. But that's not the case.
The retirement program operates on a year-to-year basis. Talk of a "trust fund" is symbolic, referring to paper IOUs written by the Treasury every year. It collects all taxes, including payroll revenue, and writes checks for all government spending.
The mountain of IOUs is huge: about $2.7 trillion over the past 30 years. Congress and the White House know all this. For years until his retirement in 2005, Sen. Ernest Hollings (D-SC) attacked the "raid" on Social Security during annual hearings on the budget.
After a 1984 commission raised the tax rate on wages and pushed the age from 65 to 67 for full benefits, there was a cash surplus each year until 2010. The Treasury now borrows to repay the IOUs -- $49 billion in 2010 alone. With fewer workers and more retirees, the amount will continue to increase until the IOUs in the Treasury are depleted, sometime around 2033. Then? Nothing really changes. Treasury would continue borrowing, adding to the deficit, which in turn would increase the national debt.
Because the tax revenue and benefit checks have always been mixed together, many lawmakers want to reduce cost-of-living increases, push the retirement age beyond 67 or raise taxes on upper-incomers to lessen the impact on the annual budget deficit. That's why Social Security is on the table. Many seniors feel cheated, contending that they're merely getting their tax payments back. And there are enough senior citizens to block changes for a few years.
Social Security's finances aren't as complicated as changing Medicare, or formulating a new approach to defense and national security, or deciding how much to shrink the third of the budget that goes to all the other stuff government spends tax dollars on. But Social Security payments represent about a quarter of all federal spending. That's why the issue is back in the spotlight.
Change is coming because there's no alternative. If nothing is done, Social Security won't dry up. But today's teenagers will collect about 75% of the current annual benefit. That's the choice. Make a few changes now that are phased in over a couple of decades, or do nothing and eventually make big cuts.
Haven't yet filed for Social Security? Create a personalized strategy to maximize your lifetime income from Social Security. Order Kiplinger's Social Security Solutions today.


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Antitrust Case Filings
Antitrust Case Filings
To filter the list of cases, select desired options from the left navigation pane.
View the list of NAICS and SIC industry codes used by the Division. To view all industry codes, visit Census.gov.
Displaying 1 - 1 of 1
|Case Open Date
|Incident Date
|Case Type
|Federal Court
|Industry Code
|U.S. v. Empire State News Corp., Inc.
|September 26, 2003
|New York, Northern District
|Book, Periodical, and Newspaper Wholesalers


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Endives with Serrano Ham, Cabrales, and Clementines
An authentic Spanish salad courtesy of Jose Andres, chef-owner of the restaurant Jaleo, in Washington.
2 tbsp. extra-virgin Spanish olive oil
1 tbsp. Sherry vinegar
1⁄2 tsp. salt
2 endives
8 slices Serrano ham
4 Spanish clementines or 2 oranges, peeled and sliced
1⁄4 cup sliced almonds, toasted
1⁄4 cup crumbled Cabrales cheese
1 tbsp. chopped chives
1. Prepare dressing: In a small bowl, whisk oil, vinegar, and salt until well blended.
2. On each individual serving plate arrange 5 endive leaves. Drape each serving with 2 slices Serrano ham; arrange clementine slices on plates. Sprinkle with almonds, Cabrales, and chives. Drizzle with dressing.


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Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. @ Sunway Pyramid
(OB.K2, OB.K3, OB.K3C & OB.K3D), [Oasis Zone] Oasis Boulevard, Sunway Pyramid Shopping Mall, No.3, Jln PJS 11/15, Bandar Sunway, 46150 Petaling Jaya, Selangor Darul Ehsan
Weekdays: 11am-11pm, Weekends: 11am - 12am
Credit Cards Accepted
Like my momma always said, " Life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get."
This phrase went viral in the 90s when the movie took became a major hit around the world. With similar excitement and warm reception, Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. has also become a global hit with multiple franchises all over the world.
Available at major shopping complexes such as Sunway Pyramid, The Curve and Citta Mall, Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. takes pride in delivering "good ol" meals such as their popular Shrimper's Heaven, Cajun Sandwich, "I'm Stuffed!" Shrimp, BBQ Beef Back Ribs, Mama's Southern Fried Chicken, Run Chicken Run Pasta and their widely known dessert, Alabama Mud Pie.
Known far and wide as Forrest Gump's little kitchen, this place will surely bring happy thoughts, good laughs and a full stomach to all its fans.
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Hear the Food Gal on KQED's Forum
If you missed yesterday's "Restaurant Roundup" on the airwaves of KQED's "Forum" program, you missed out.
But not to despair.
You can catch the nearly hour-long podcast to hear what yours truly, along with Restaurant Reviewer Michael Bauer of the San Francisco Chronicle and Jonathan Kauffmann, San Francisco editor of Tasting Table, dished about Bay Area restaurants, chefs and dining trends.


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Whether it be turbine manufacturers investing to develop products for the offshore market, vessel operators ordering new ships, or financial institutions, all need to know that governments are backing the business for the long haul and will not turn away when the economic climate looks less than rosy.
It is therefore a testament of businesses' faith in the future of offshore wind that, as this special report shows, big investments are indeed being made. While 18 months ago, the sector was concerned about a future shortage of turbine installation vessels, many companies, including newcomers to the industry, have placed orders for ships, several with options for more.
An increasing number of turbine manufacturers are jostling to get in on the act by developing machines aimed specifically at the offshore market. And existing players are coming up with ever-bigger designs, typically around 6 or 7MW in capacity.
Cabling conundrum
A potential fly in the supply chain ointment, however, is a shortage of export cables for hooking up wind farms to the onshore grid. As our feature finds, suppliers are holding back their plans to expand cable production until developers provide the commitments that would give them confidence to make the necessary investment.
Turbine makers Siemens, GE, Gamesa and Mitsubishi plan to open new manufacturing or research facilities — mostly in the key offshore market of the UK. Although, as with the cable suppliers, some of these plans are likely to depend on firm orders from developers.
Offshore market leader Vestas announced last month that it is considering a new offshore turbine factory in Kent, south-east England, but only if the government can provide stability in the market and a long-term political and regulatory certainty.
Yet hard on the heels of Vestas' announcement, a government-commissioned report by the Committee on Climate Change has threatened to shake confidence in the UK sector. It states that if lower-cost alternatives can be found, the UK's offshore wind ambition for 2020 can be reduced. Maria McCaffery, CEO of industry voice RenewableUK, has urged the government not to lose its nerve but to "stand four-square" behind offshore wind: "The UK's world-leading offshore sector needs confidence, not doubt and prevarication."
No such doubts seem to exist in Germany. Chancellor Angela Merkel is looking to wind, offshore in particular, to plug the energy gap as the country phases out nuclear power in the wake of Japan's Fukushima disaster. The government is proposing a bill to cut red tape for the offshore wind consenting process to help it meet its 10GW renewables target for 2020.
Germany believes mass deployment of renewables such as offshore wind will drive down costs and less will be spent on imports from Russia and other energy-producing countries. Germany's relatively low onshore wind speeds mean offshore wind is set to compete with onshore wind sooner than in windier countries.
Costs pose chicken-and-egg problem
The fact remains, however, that costs for installing wind farms offshore are around double those onshore — an extra cost only partly compensated for by higher wind speeds and better energy yield at sea. Bringing down the costs of offshore construction is the biggest challenge. A global survey of major offshore players by financial consultants PwC says the sector is in a classic "chicken and egg" situation: "To get the cost base down it needs economies of scale. To get economies of scale it needs to make a convincing case that costs can come down."
The survey does find optimism among government bodies, with some 60% expecting the technology to be economically viable without subsidies within 15 years. Equipment manufacturers and contractors are more cautious: just 42% foresee a real-terms fall in costs.
Ronan O'Regan, director, PwC Renewables and Clean Tech, points out that much of the offshore costs come from heavy engineering, steel and other raw materials. "Recent trends in commodity prices suggest that these cost components will remain volatile," he warns.
The good news is that confidence in the sector has improved among financial institutions, with 66% saying investment risk in offshore has decreased over the past two years, so the cost of borrowing should come down.
"This improved confidence needs to translate into an increase in new equity investment and lending to offshore developers, if much of the pipeline of development projects is to reach commercial operation," says O'Regan.


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My friends, We are glad to present you a free game Little League World Series Baseball 2008 for Nintendo DS.Little League World Series Baseball 2008 Redeem Code Free
The first officially licensed Little League video game to hit next-generation consoles. Players will bat, pitch and field their way from local sandlot slugger to Little League World Series Champion. Featuring eight U.S. and eight international teams, extraordinarily deep character customization, World Series Mode, and a variety of skill based challenges, Little League World Series offers an exciting, authentic baseball experience. Motion-sensing controls on the Wii make it accessible for Little League players and parents alike, while the DS version gives players the freedom to get on the diamond anywhere.


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Officials confident bodies are missing Iowa girls
- Hunters found bodies Wednesday
- Investigators move toward reclassifying the case as homicide
- The cousins disappeared July 13 near a recreational lake in Evansdale
EVANSDALE, Iowa -- On the same day law enforcement officials voiced confidence that they had found the bodies of missing Iowa cousins Lyric Cook-Morrissey and Elizabeth Collins, one of the girls' younger sisters got her ears pierced.
"She wanted her ears pierced just like Elizabeth's," said Sarah Staebell, a close friend of Elizabeth's parents, Drew and Heather Collins.
Like the girls' family members, community residents searched for ways to honor the pair's memory. More pink ribbons blossomed around town -- pink was the girls' favorite color -- and residents and visitors hung commemorative ornaments on Christmas trees in the girls' honor.
Meanwhile, dozens of law enforcement authorities joined in the grim task of searching for clues to their deaths. Authorities said they believed the bodies found Wednesday in a Bremer County park were those of Lyric and Elizabeth based on evidence at the scene. The park is about 25 miles northeast of Evansdale, where the girls were last seen alive, riding their bicycles.
Autopsy results have not yet been made available to authorities and forensic identifications are not complete, Black Hawk County Sheriff's Department Capt. Rick Abben said at a news conference Thursday.
"We have no one else missing in this area, two bodies were found, and the bodies were smaller in stature," Abben said. He declined to elaborate on other evidence.
Hunters alerted authorities Wednesday of their find at the Seven Bridges Wildlife Area.
Abben said the families have not seen the bodies.
After the girls' disappearance on July 13, authorities and volunteers combed a 12-square-mile area, including Evansdale and surrounding fields and wooded land.
Abben said he was not certain whether the wildlife area in Bremen County had been searched. Abben said law enforcement in counties surrounding Black Hawk, including Bremer, were asked to search. But because the park isn't along a major road, it may not have been covered, he said.
Abben would not provide a timeline for how long the bodies may have been in the park, the condition in which they were found, or the cause of death. He also would not provide any information on a possible suspect or suspects.
He ended the news conference after six minutes.
Lyric and Elizabeth's grandmother reported seeing them on their bicycles about 12:15 p.m. on July 13. Those bikes and Elizabeth's purse and cellphone were found about four hours later along a recreational trail at nearby Meyers Lake. Lyric was 10 at the time; Elizabeth was 8.
The investigation is still classified as an abduction, though it could soon change to a double homicide, Abben said.
"I would say that we're looking that way at this time," Abben said. "We have two bodies, but we're going to rely on the state medical examiner to tell us what they think."
An official from the state medical examiner's office was on the scene Thursday, Abben said, and local, state and federal police drove in and out of the park through the day.
Local residents Thursday said they felt both the pain of sorrow and the comfort of knowing Lyric and Elizabeth are no longer suffering.
"It's just a devastating thing to have happen. This is not the outcome we prayed for," said Linda Wachal.
Now the questions turn to what happened, who was responsible, and whether other children may be at risk.
Julie Morrow used to watch Lyric and Elizabeth ride their bicycles near her consignment store. Now it's rare to see children outside alone, she said.
"You want to feel relieved that there's closure, but hearing that news, it was like it happened all over again," she said.


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The zoology collection numbers around 1.2 million specimens comprised of insects, arachnids, shells, birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians and fish.
The vertebrate collections include approximately 79,000 specimens and are rich in specimens over a hundred years old. However, significant early invertebrate holdings were largely destroyed in May 1941 during the blitz. The subsequent proactive acquisition of specimens has allowed the museum to assemble a nationally important, relatively modern collection of around 1.1 million insects and other invertebrates. The vertebrate collections have also expanded in modern times.


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The Broadband Home Central website is produced by Sandy Teger and Dave Waks and is provided as a resource for the Broadband Home community.
Our focus is residential broadband in all its ramifications. Rapid and competitive deployment of broadband to and within the home is enabling the creation of new products, services, content and applications. "Fat pipes," content, and the home infrastructure must all work together seamlessly to create compelling value for consumers.
We both now have blogs, and have started taping video interviews when we attend industry events. Visit the Videos and Blogs page to subscribe to our blogs and view our videos.
We posted fifteen video demonstrations to accompany our articles on Cable Show 2009.
There are many interesting conferences and events related to various aspects of the broadband home.
The stories in our June issue are based on interviews at the Consumer Electronics Show (held in Las Vegas) with some updates from the Cable Show in Los Angeles in May.
See more about these shows we have singled out to attend, either as speakers or just to keep up to date on what's new and important.
We use our home and our vacation condos as testbeds for current and emerging technologies for home networking, multimedia and communications. In this section of our website, we describe qualitatively what its like to use these technologies at home. We also share the quantitative results of our tests.
The section About Our Broadband Condo describes how we are preparing our Florida vacation condos for the digital future.
The Wi-Fi Evaluation section includes our evaluation of many flavors of Wi-Fi, including the beginnings of the new generation of Wi-Fi based on MIMO—another leap forward in both throughput and range. The HomePlug Evaluation section has the results of our in-home tests of the first-generation HomePlug adapters.
Broadband homes have both broadband Internet access to the home and a broadband distribution network in the home. These broadband homes hold the key to future Internet applications.
Many homes with broadband modems are installing home networks and home gateways to share broadband with multiple PCs.
It's more than PCs and Web browsing. New technologies allow broadband to carry telephone, video and audio services, and distribute them around the home.
Click here to learn more about the emerging Broadband Home.
Our newsletter subscribers and website visitors represent a cross-section of the global broadband home community. Click here to view current demographics of our subscribers and visitors.
We encourage companies and organizations mentioned in our newsletter and on our website to provide reciprocal links to our site. Click here to view graphics and URLS for these links.
Visit the RSS Feeds page to subscribe to feeds for our monthly report and for changes to our website.
Each issue of Sandy and Dave's Report on The Broadband Home looks at key broadband applications and technologies.
The June 17, 2010 issue is now available. We report on recent developments in home networking over existing wiring based on G.hn, HomePlug and MoCA; the integration of personal technologies into Ford cars; the drumbeat around 3D TV; and the US National Broadband Plan.
If you'd like to subscribe to our free monthly report, click here to receive the current issue immediately and future issues as they are published.
If you're already a subscriber and would like to change your preferred report format, email address, or any other information related to your subscription, please visit our Change/Unsubscribe page.
We write a regular feature "Two Sides to Every Story" for Broadband Library, a quarterly publication that goes to all members of the Society of Cable Telecommunications Engineers (SCTE). Our columns appear on facing pages to present contrasting viewpoints on a cable/telecom industry topic.
Our Broadband Library page includes a link to the current issue of Broadband Library and the full content of our columns from past issues.
If you need assistance in planning broadband products, services or infrastructure, we can help. We bring years of practical, real-world experience in creating technology and market solutions for large and small companies.
For the past fifteen years, we have focused our consulting services almost exclusively on the Broadband Home community.
Please visit BroadbandGurus.com for more information on our consulting services.
We write articles for several print publications, and have given many presentations at conferences. Click here to view our recent presentations and publications,and here to view our quarterly column Two Sides to Every Story in Broadband Library..
We're always updating this website to make it even more useful as a tool for the Broadband Home community. The What's New page provides an ongoing reference to the changes we've made.
Click here to visit our index of links to web sites which contain useful information about applications, content and products for the Broadband Home.
We're gratified by the press coverage of our website and from our participation in recent projects. Here are pointers to the coverage, and to press releases related to the projects.
Promote your products and services to the global residential broadband industry. Advertise on the Broadband Home Central web site and in Sandy and Dave's Report on the Broadband Home, our monthly newsletter. Click here for more information.


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Doug McDermott's Shooting Improves Offense and Draft Stock
Doug McDermott's impact on Creighton goes beyond the 23.2 points and 7.6 rebounds he averages. (Al Tielemans/ Sports Illustrated)
Ryan Kelly helps Duke win without ever touching the ball and Creighton's Doug McDermott should be a first round pick. The principle that ties these two statements is a theory driven by the advanced stats movement: having four shooters on the floor dramatically increases a unit's efficiency. That's how Ryan Kelly helps Duke when shooting the ball poorly or without shooting it at all. And it's the reason that a smart NBA team will take Doug McDermott in the tail end of the first round; both of their contributions have as much to do with floor spacing as with achievement.
It's easy to get seduced by Ryan Kelly's scoring ability and think that his biggest contribution to Duke is points. It isn't. Ryan Kelly improves Duke in subtle ways. The first is obvious; his ability to shoot spreads the floor and opens up driving lanes for his guards. But his impact goes far beyond that. His presence changes the types of lineups that head coach Mike Krzyzewski can put on the floor without sacrificing floor spacing. Without Kelly, Coach Krzyzewski is forced to go small when he wants shooters on the court, as big men Mason Plumlee and backups Josh Hairston and Amile Jefferson aren't threats from the perimeter. To play two of these bigs without Kelly means sacrificing floor spacing, and to go small with Tyler Thornton means sacrificing defense and rebounding. Kelly eliminates this catch-22. His shooting allows the backup bigs to get on the court, and his defensive ability protects Duke's mediocre perimeter defenders along the back line, allowing Coach Krzyzewski to have his team play his trademark, tight man-to-man defense.
NBA teams are figuring out the value of shooters upon their teammates. Former Magic Coach Stan Van Gundy's success with Rashard Lewis at the power forward position around Dwight Howard has led to an increase in "stretch fours;" players like Ryan Anderson and Ersan Ilyasova are getting fat contracts due to their ability to stretch defenses, and limited players such as Matt Bonner and Steve Novak are the new sweethearts of stat geeks everywhere due to the high efficiency offenses show with four shooters on the court. This bodes well for Doug McDermott, a gifted collegiate scorer whose primary NBA-level talent is his quick release and deep range. McDermott is a tweener at the NBA-level, not quick enough to guard threes and not strong or explosive enough to guard 4s, but with NBA teams investing in the new SVU system, they have new tools to measure the value of a shooter in ways traditional stats can't.
These new tools promise to unlock the value of shooters, and dramatically increase the draft stock of players that can stretch the defense such as Ryan Kelly and Doug McDermott. At the college-level, that effect is more difficult to measure. There is a smaller sample size and good players spend less time off the court so it's difficult to compare their "on/off" numbers. But there is every reason to suspect that the effect is larger; with fewer quality shooters at the college level there is likely an even greater gain to be had from a pure-shooting big man. It's easy to see how a point guard can affect the team without scoring, but McDermott and Kelly open up the floor in different ways. They demand defensive attention without so much as touching the ball. So when Duke's Seth Curry slices into the paint for a floater, or Creighton's Greg Echenique has time to take three dribbles in the post, take a glance at the spacing created by Ryan Kelly and Doug McDermott. Because NBA scouts sure will be.


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Homo Economicus: an uncertain guide
As humans, we face a constant internal conflict between immediate gratification and more prudent living. This conflict is also apparent in society. How can we ensure that the homo economicus within us takes the decisions that best affect our lives, and economies?
References and recommended sources
More OECD Observer articles on economy
By Daniel Cohen, Professor of Economics at the École normale supérieure and Vice President and founding member of the Paris School of Economics.
©OECD Yearbook 2013
Related Documents


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When John Harvey, of the Bristol Cream family, built Fourways in 1727, his Bermuda home quickly gained a reputation for extravagant dinner parties, after which guests were welcome to spend the night rather than brave a long ride back to town by horse and carriage. While, 270 years hence, you are more likely to arrive by car or motor scooter, none of the Old World hospitality or indulgence has been lost in the house's conversion from walled garden estate to inn and cottages.
When you enter, greeted by a stately grandfather clock and maître d' clad in the local uniform of Bermuda shorts, blazer with necktie, and knee socks, your own mood will be easily transported to a more civil time. From the look of the photos that line the entrance hall, many notables (George Bush, Richard Nixon, Tony Curtis and a host of distinguished Britishers included) have enjoyed the same sublime sense of decompression. The effect only intensifies as you move into the dining room, a half-timbered hall of cedar and coral stone, with great stone archways, where the scent of island flowers and the tinkle of piano keys mingle. Diners can also choose to eat outside on the hedged terrace.
But a tropical-colony atmosphere alone does not a great restaurant make. What puts Fourways into its own realm on this island is, of course, not on the walls but the menu. One can only hope that those early settlers might have dined so well on Mr. Harvey's largesse. The meal starts with a selection of breads that are so well thought of that the management opened a separate location in Hamilton, called The Pastry Shop, to sell its baked wares. Chef Stephen Young creates a bill of fare of French dishes with an eye toward including the local ocean bounty. A crab and salmon ravioli appetizer ($16.95) is a meal in itself and arrives as one huge tart, about four by four inches, stuffed with meat flavored in basil and shallot cream. While the escallop of veal in lemon-lime butter sauce ($38.25) is the dish for which Fourways is best known, the house also likes to trumpet an addition of vegetarian meals and in general lighter foods (read: salads and fish). A couple favoring an occlusion diet, however, may prefer to order the Chateau Briand ($84) and be left alone with their beef and a tureen of béarnaise sauce.
If ocean islands are doomed to making do with shortages of the finer things, you wouldn't know it by the wine selection here. Sommelier Daniele Cremonini keeps 9,000 bottles in 375 selections in the semiterrato cellar that has received the Wine Spectator Best of Award of Excellence. The list is particularly strong in Bordeauxs, with some wines dating back to the turn of the century. In all, there are probably two dozen selections priced between $1,000 and $3,500, but the restaurant also introduces many New World selections for those whose budgets are limited to the $30 to $50 range. Fourways has also instituted special wine evenings for regular clientele.
Though travelers don't face the same transportation limitations that used to cause guests to bunk in at Fourways, you can still stay over in one of the 11 cottage apartments. The Paget property is in an inland area once called Amen Corner for the church that stood here. Fourways takes its name from the entrances facing north, east, west and south that graced the original estate.
Even if you're not staying, you can repair after supper to the redoubtable Peg Leg Bar or the more genteel Long Room for drinks, tea, or coffee and cigars. Despite erratic availability of Havana cigars, the humidor usually has three or four selections of Cohibas and Montecristos, as well as something from Hoyo de Monterrey, Punch and Romeo y Julieta, according to the manager, Gerry Ivers. Davidoffs fill out the non-Cuban side of the menu. While Bermuda isn't known for inexpensive cigars (or anything else economical for that matter), Fourways keeps prices (approximately $8 to $55) fairly close to those eight miles away at Hamilton's retail outlets. As you relax, Siglo III in hand, by the colonial fireplace of the Long Room, with its paintings of clipper ships, this may be the only thought that connects you with the modern world outside the walls of Fourways.
No. 1 Middle Road
Phone (809)236-6517; Fax (809)236-5528
Dinner About $90 per person, without wine


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UPPER MONTCLAIR, N.J. – Joel Lindpere has been talking about this moment since March. Now that it's playoff time, the Estonian international, who is in his first year in MLS, is approaching his goal — winning MLS Cup.
With that, he's not going to let a little groin pain get in his way.
On Friday, following the 2-0 win over New England, Lindpere felt slight pain during regeneration, which has hampered him as the Red Bulls prepare for the playoffs.
"I'm a man," Lindpere said. "I most likely am tough enough to play with this small injury. I can play through the pain."
READ: Lindpere nominated for Newcomer of the Year
Lindpere has done just light training over the past few days, but missing Saturday's postseason opener in San Jose (Telefutura, 10 p.m. ET) isn't an option — especially when the club's in the midst of a worst-to-first turnaround.
When Lindpere joined the Red Bulls, he was fully aware the club was coming off one of the worst seasons in MLS history, finishing dead-last.
However, he said wasn't intimidated by a challenge and that sporting director Erik Soler had filled him in on the team's rebuilding status as he courted the midfielder.
"I knew that last year we weren't very good," Lindpere told MLSsoccer.com. "I understood that this was going to be a challenge and lots of hard work to get the club to a decent level."
But even an optimistic Lindpere couldn't have imagined how everything would unfold for New York. The Red Bulls finished first in the Eastern Conference and are holders of the third-best regular-season record. The team is now a favorite to advance to MLS Cup for just the second time in franchise history.
Lindpere, however, claimed to have seen hints of his club's bright future early on.
"I think after the first few games, we won five of our first six games or something very much close to that," Lindpere said. "That's when I knew that we could do well; we could make the playoffs and be a good team — a very good team."
The season started with Lindpere powering home the first goal in Red Bull Arena history in a exhibition win over Brazilian club Santos. The following week, in the season opener against Chicago, he tallied the lone goal in New York's 1-0 win.
Last Thursday night, Lindpere's regular season came full circle, scoring the second goal in the win over New England. After the match, head coach Hans Backe praised Lindpere, who has played in every position in the midfield and been a vital cog for the team all season long.
WATCH: Lindpere doubles Red Bulls' lead
"He's been our most consistent player this season," Backe said "I would say every game, his work ethic is phenomenal."
Kristian R. Dyer can be reached for comment at firstname.lastname@example.com and followed at twitter.com/kdyer1012
Ready to launch: MLS Matchday 2010, The new official MLS iPhone app. It's FREE! Download it here!


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Thursday, July 09, 2009
800s, 1200s, Tempo Runs, Heart Rate Training..Oh My
I haven't really used it since. I sprayed mosquito spray on the face and it is now all scratchy, but still readable. I never took the heart rate monitor out of the box or the ANT stick until today..over a year later. Yeah.
This morning Topaz and I ran our usual 5 fun miles on the trail, taking it easy, knowing I was going to try my first tempo run this afternoon. I took out my Garmin box and read the instructions for the heart rate monitor and the foot pod as it has been forever since I used the foot pod. Of course the watch shows a low battery signal. No matter, I was taking it for a spin as soon as I dropped off Tyler at work.
I looked up a quickie heart rate calculation at Runners World. By plugging in my last 5K race pace, last month at the Princeton 5K at 26 minutes I came up with a tempo run at 8:33 minute mile pace. Don't laugh. I'm not real fast. For the max heart rate I did the 220-44 and came up with 176. Ta da. Now this should be my max heart rate. Well, after my tempo run today there is no freaking way that 176 is max for me.
I'll have to try the method of running 3x800, 1 200 recovery and another 400 full boar to figure out max heart rate I guess. (I should have brought this along with me when I ran at the track on Tuesday. Yes! Another track workout; this time all 800s :) I read this somewhere, is this a good enough way to figure max heart rate? At least it is more individualized than the standard 220-age. I mean come on. We are all different. Don't tell me all 44 year olds are going to have the same max heart rate.
I ran the certified Big Lake 8K course this afternoon. Apparently I don't know how to toggle between pace from the foot pod and heart rate or the 50 isn't capable of this feat. I was stuck at heart rate and recalled that 156 heart rate would be 'tempo' if 176 was max .
OK, so maybe the 405 with the 8 hour battery would be a good item to purchase for speed workouts. I'm seeing the light.
The first 3 minutes HR was 150 to 171, then stayed 171 to 173 for the next 36 minutes. I saw 176 as I ran up a hill and I wasn't dieing or gasping so I really don't think it was max. 39 minutes for 8K, not full out, just a quick pace that I was able to sustain..but couldn't sustain for an hour and half I'd imagine. 39 minutes was plenty. Now I have a starting point.
How do most of you figure your heart rate? Do you train with a HRM? I'm never too old to learn.
Heading up north to the beautiful Superior Hiking Trail for three days of long slow running with friends. BETA IV!
5 comments:
- JojaJogger said...
There is a book by John Parker called "Heart Monitor Training For the Compleat Idiot". His method of figuring your max heart rate is to find a hill and sprint up it, then jog back down. Repeat 5 or 6 times, by the 4th to 6th time you should be reaching your max heart rate.
- Londell said...
Now the 310XT is the same price at the 405... a little bigger but a 20 hour battery life.
- johnmaas said...
I've trained with a HRM for about 4 years now. Learned a lot.
Your description of 171-173 for 36 minutes tell me you are at or slightly faster than "tempo" pace which is usually 90% of max HR.
If I were to guess, I would say your max HR is 188-190.
It just plain sucks to push yourself to max HR, but the methods you described will do it if you really push hard. Be prepared to embrace the pukey feeling, though.
- SteveQ said...
There's many many ways to calculate what your max "should" be and all are only approximate. The way I found my true max was to pick out the longest steepest hill I could find (Buck Hill at the time) and charge up it as hard as possible. When forced to walk, I'd pause a second and charge on again. A couple of tries and I hit maximum. (And it was fun!)
- Steve said...
For as much of a techo-geek I am, I don't train using a HRM. Perhaps someday I'll get one.


text: The Hudson Valley's Orange County has plenty to offer its visitors with activities, entertainment, nightlife, dining options and history. Search through our extensive event listings to find out what's going on during your visit. Plan your next trip to Orange County around one of the many exciting and unique events happening throughout the year.


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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 results
This conference report produced by the TNTD/Action againt Terrorism Unit, includes some background information, summary of discussions, as well as the list of challenges and recommendations.
This report, produced by the SPMU, contains an executive summary , summaries of each sessions, an agenda and a list of participants of the workshop that took place on 20-21 October 2010 in Vilnius, Lithuania.
This report, produced by the SPMU, contains summaries of all sessions and conclusions of the regional workshop that took place in Tashkent, Uzbekistan on 20-21 November 2008.


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Make sure you take younger kids to this creative movement for babies and toddlers, guaranteed to entertain them!
Children are full of vitality and vigour and leave us in no doubt that they need to move, and that we need plenty of energy to keep up with them!
At these creative movement sessions they will get the space, the freedom and the time to move in ways that support their development and stimulate their imaginations.
No booking is required for this event. It's free! Just turn up!
Mon 13th & 27th June (1pm – 3pm)
1 – 3pm
Rich Mix


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1936 Ford Truck - Billy's Truck
Who You Callin' A Rat?
It sounds like every ZZ Top song you ever heard: Tush, La Grange, Tube Snake Boogie... and yes, the MTV ones too. That voice, that drawl, it's the sound of Billy F. Gibbons. "The little '36 was parked in Louisville, Kentucky," says Billy as he throws his mind back to when he first spotted his Ford. "It was alongside some of Kirby Stafford's pals' rides, all ratted out and raunchy."
Kirby Stafford has a long history of hot-rod building that goes back to the late '50s. "It's funny, when I think back to building Billy's truck," laughs Kirby. "At the time, eight other guys who owned property, or worked on Dillehay Street, had ol' style hot rods or were building them. People started calling us Dillehay Rats, just like they did back in the '50s." Kirby's just fine with this nod to the past, just so long as you don't call his ride a rat. "We really don't call our rods rats," he confirms. "We've developed a reputation for building dependable cars and trucks that have just the right look. In fact, I probably put 3,000 miles on Billy's truck the summer I finished it. It's real reliable and starts up first time, every time."
Rat or not, whatever it is they put in the water on Dillehay Street, the lil '36 certainly caught the interest of Billy F. Gibbons. Billy was visiting the Street Rod Nationals in Louisville, Kentucky, when he first saw the Ford. But what is it that gets a man, who owns one of the greatest dream garages on the planet, to slam down his checkbook and fire up his ballpoint? "Well," says Billy, "It's the entire package of the rig; ice cooler in the bed, surfboard on the roof-cool piece. It stands for a driving experience where you don't have to care about where you park or locking the doors. Find some asphalt and go."
Stripped back to its basics, the Ford runs a '53 Ford flathead engine with an S-10 transmission, 6-inch drop tube front axle, and an 8-inch Ford rearend with buggy springs and air shocks. The body was channeled six inches over the frame, which itself has been Z'd four inches at the front and 14 inches in the rear. The cab features all-original steel, a five-inch chop, the chassis and bed were shortened 18 inches, headlights from a '33 Ford were bolted into place, and a custom-painted '68 Hanson long board was mounted on a wishbone frame. Stickers on the rear window are from World War II fuel rationing.
Driving Billy's Truck
Sliding into the truck's Jaguar driving seat it's hard not to turn your head to the right and look for a bearded man in a hat and cheap sunglasses riding shotgun. But alas it is not to be.
Sliding into the truck's Jaguar driving seat it's hard not to turn your head to the right and look for a bearded man in a hat and cheap sunglasses riding shotgun. But alas it is not to be.
The steering wheel feels good while the shifter has a high angle inside the cab. The engine starts right on the button and there's plenty of pedal space, even for the big-footed. Finding the gears isn't a problem, but it's not a speed- shift quick change. But it's not supposed to be. Give it a bit of gas and the engine thrumps and chuffs happily. The truck pulls away cleanly and it's clear to see how and why Kirby put so many miles on it in the early days. It's big fun to drive, as comfortable as it can be, even for a six-footer and cruises along no problem. Billy must love wheeling this thing around.
But of course, it's so much more than just a collection of well chosen parts and Billy knew it. Kirby remembers that day at the Street Rod Nationals very well. "I think what really grabbed Billy's attention was the surfboard I'd mounted on an old wishbone. Billy was riding 'round the showground in the back of a convertible. I saw him straight away-he's kind of hard to miss. He stopped the car and you could tell he was looking at the truck. He got out and started asking questions about it and before I knew it, we'd come to a deal. We hung out together for a few hours that day. It was pretty neat."
Just like the rest of us, Billy is always on the lookout for a new car, or project, but trucks weren't on his mind the day he met Kirby. "Not a bit," laughs Billy, remembering that day at the fairground. "Yet the stance and from-a-distance glance kept bringing us back." But does the little Ford stack up next to landmark cars such as the Eliminator Coupe and Cadzzilla? "Without a doubt!" says Billy. "Straight pipes out of a flathead manifold can set you free." Gibbons' enthusiasm for these cars and the scene really is a life-affirming thing and he clearly gets a huge kick out of owning the little Ford. "It feels great and at the same time it's a welcome challenge that'll keep you on point. It's about creating a vehicle with just the right stance and profile. Up 'til now the unfinished raspiness and rude roughness this truck stands for was something one formerly used to attempt to overcome. Out of all the cars we've built and added to the collection this one is a genuine delight cuz it's a rugged and carefree go-anywhere kind of a rod. It's a gas!"
You get the feeling that Billy and Kirby's paths would have crossed, no matter what. Both men have an innate sense of what a car should look like, how it should sit, move and what it should represent. "The future is now and anything goes," says Billy when quizzed about the state of hot rodding in 2010. "The real enjoyment of making one's personal statement is wide open. Run what'cha brung." And so say all of us.
Special thanks to: Billy F Gibbons, Kirby Stafford (dillehaystreet.com) and Tony Thacker


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Any year is a good year to be a dwarf if you're under five feet tall and often get labeled as a 'person of short stature'. But 2012 is the year where we get to celebrate the Year Of The Dwarves. Forget dragons – dwarves are the thing that will save you from danger. Or boredom. Or box office ruins. Especially if you're a filmmaker with a high-profile project coming out this year.
This year we get four major live feature productions – three on the big screens and one on television – where diminutive, smaller-than-the-rest-of-the-poulation men with fierce fighting prowess, wisdom of the ages and/or excellent comedic timing steal the show from their normal-sized counterparts. There's going to dwarves for all seasons if you care to turn your eyes into what Hollywood has to offer us in cinema and TV. And there is a rock solid guarantee that you will not be disappointed with this new breed of action heroes.
Earlier this year, in one incarnation of Brothers Grimm's fairy tale of Snow White called Mirror Mirror (directed by Tarsem Singh) 'the little people' had the honor of outwitting a handsome and statuesque heartthrob with long legs not once, but twice, before helping him to get the girl. Sometime later, in a land called Westeros, a dwarf slapped a bratty young king and put him in his place while politicking around the king's court while bedding the beautiful ladies. This summer, eight rebellious dwarves fought in a revolution with yet another Snow White in the Kirsten Stewart-starring Snow White And The Huntsman. And at the end of this year when J.R.R. Tolkien's first masterpiece comes to live in Peter Jackson's The Hobbit, there won't just be one pint-sized action hero with big feet adventuring in Middle Earth. This action hero gets 13 Dwarf companions. THIRTEEN!
And will you look at the people who are playing these dwarves: Martin Klebba. Ian McShane. Toby Jones. Ray Winstone. Nick Frost. Richard Armitage. And the Biggie: Peter Dinklage.
Emmy- and Golden Globe-winning Peter Dinklage, mind you. This is your cue to affix the title Lord Honorable or add The Grand Duke Of Awesome in front of his name. Also, it wouldn't be remiss to bow and curtsy before him.
There is so much talent from anyone playing dwarf characters on screen that it's virtually impossible for us to not acknowledge them as The Awesomest People Ever this year. Tyrion Lannister has always been everyone's favorite Game Of Thrones character (including Charles Dance's, who plays Tyrion's dad Tywin). The seven dwarves had the funniest lines and scenes in Mirror Mirror. The eight dwarves, who were actually normal-sized actors rendered by special effects to transform into short Narnia-esque creatures saved Huntsman from utter pointlessness. With this track record, plus their own reputable fame from the already-legendary book, Martin Freeman's Bilbo and his merry band of dwarves can only amaze us further in The Hobbit. What else is there to say?
A toast, then, to celebrate the best characters in the fantasy genre this year. Not dragons, not sorcerers, not even kick-ass princes with swords as long as their limbs… but dwarves. Short, rowdy and carefree people who love a good time, save you from evil rulers and will fight with you and for you to the end. Here's to the dwarves!
Dwarf: 1
Peter Dinklage as Tyrion Lannister
Dwarves: 7
Danny Woodburn as Grimm
Martin Klebba as Butcher
Sebastian Saraceno as Wolf
Jordan Prentice as Napoleon
Mark Povinelli as Half Pint
Joe Gnoffo as Grub
Ronald Lee Clark as Chuckles
Dwarves: 8
Ian McShane as Beith
Johnny Harris as Quert
Bob Hoskins as Muir
Toby Jones as Coll
Eddie Marsan as Duir
Brian Gleeson as Gus
Ray Winstone as Gort
Nick Frost as Nion
Dwarves: 13
Richard Armitage as Thorin Oakenshield
Graham McTavish as Dwalin
Ken Stott as Balin
Aidan Turner as Kíli
Dean O'Gorman as Fíli
Mark Hadlow as Dori
Jed Brophy as Nori
Adam Brown as Ori
John Callen as Óin
Peter Hambleton as Glóin
William Kircher as Bifur
James Nesbitt as Bofur
Stephen Hunter as Bombur


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The "Holiday Season" – that time from Thanksgiving through New Year's – is supposed to be happy times filled with get-togethers between friends, neighbors, and family. They are a time of celebration and joy; a time to remind us all of the brilliant, wonderful things life has bestowed upon us.
Unfortunately, for many people, this special time of the year turns out to be a time when joy is replaced with sadness, love with anger, and contentment with anxiety. The demands on each of us during the "Holidays" are enormous. Not only are we expected to continue to work each day, but now we must figure out a way to find some extra money from an already thin economy and bank account to attempt to keep up with the Joneses in gift buying.
We begin to lose sleep, eat poorly, and stop whatever exercise we were doing prior to the holiday arriving. All this "change of lifestyle" moves us closer and closer to the "Holiday Blues." Add to that the often found situation of our elders living alone, without their life-long spouse, and you have a situation primed for disastrous effects.
With that in mind, below are 10 Tips for Fighting the Holiday Blues by Mark Sichel, published in Psychology Today (2009):
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Please pass along our thanks to Tim, Chris, Linda, and Theresa for all they have done.
Please pass along our thanks to Tim, Chris, Linda, and Theresa for all they have done.


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Nicasio shows encouraging signs as Rox gain ground
Right-hander earns second straight victory for first time in career
DENVER -- The Rockies' offense returned in Saturday night's 9-3 victory against the Cubs, though that's not exactly news. But right-hander Juan Nicasio winning his second straight start was new and different.
Nicasio (6-4) held the Cubs to one run on three hits in five powerful, if not totally efficient, innings at Coors Field in front of 45,616, which witnessed him win consecutive starts for the first time in his 42-start career.
"The thing I liked about Juan tonight was he didn't have his best command early, he labored a little bit," Rockies manager Walt Weiss said. "He settled in enough to keep them in check and only give up one run through five."
All-Star Carlos Gonzalez clubbed his 26th home run of the season; Todd Helton added three hits, including his 578th career double (tying with Wade Boggs for 18th all-time); and Dexter Fowler had a two-run triple and drove in three runs as the Rockies finished with 13 hits. They had gone 11 games without scoring more than five runs, although they had played most of the games on the road and faced a parade of top pitchers.
Saturday's performance came on the heels of the Rockies being dominated for 7 1/3 innings by Cubs starter Jeff Samardzjia in a 3-1 loss Friday night in the opener of a 10-game homestand out of the All-Star break.
"We do a good job of putting the tough losses behind us and showing up the next day like nothing happened, having short memories," Helton said. "It's been said lately that July is the toughest month, and it truly is. But the teams that can remain focused and energized are the teams that put themselves in good position."
But Nicasio was the revelation of the night.
The performance was not at the level of his last start, when he held the Dodgers scoreless on three hits in seven innings in his return from a two-start demotion to Triple-A Colorado Springs. But Nicasio didn't fall into the traps that he did during his beginning to the season, when he tried to be perfect instead of relying on his power.
"When I went down to Triple-A, I told a couple people I needed to clear my mind," Nicasio said. "Before, when I'd have a lead, I'd be careful. Now, I throw a fastball in the middle. Whatever, hit it. Just throw a fastball down."
Nicasio struggled through a 28-pitch first inning and walked Junior Lake to open the second. But from there, he passed a couple of key tests that could mean Nicasio, whose career started with injury-shortened seasons in 2011 and '12, can be counted on as the Rockies (47-51) attempt to make up ground in the National League West.
The Rockies moved to 3 1/2 games behind the NL West-leading (but slumping) D-backs and, possibly more importantly, three behind the second-place (but surging) Dodgers.
Cubs leadoff man Luis Valbuena hit his ninth homer of the season with one out in the third, but Nicasio put down the inning with no further fanfare.
"In the first inning, I felt a little lazy with my shoulder and my elbow," Nicasio said. "After the second inning, I was feeling good, more command of my fastball. I worked a little faster."
The Rockies scored three runs in the fourth against Cubs starter Carlos Villanueva, who gave up seven runs and nine hits in four-plus innings and owns an 11.57 ERA in 13 appearance against the Rockies. Helton singled, Wilin Rosario doubled and Nolan Arenado pushed Helton home with a grounder. Nicasio drew a walk, then Fowler tripled on a full count for a 3-1 lead.
"I tried some things different today," Villanueva said. "It seemed to work somewhat the first couple innings, but it's a team that's given me trouble throughout my career for some reason."
The Fowler triple broke the game open, but the two-out walk to Nicasio made the damage possible.
"That kind of changed the game around a little, walking him on a 3-2 slider and throwing Fowler a 3-2 fastball," Cubs manager Dale Sveum said. "That's a little backward. It turned the whole momentum around in the whole game."
Nicasio didn't give away the lead. He put down No. 8 hitter Welington Castillo on a fly ball, struck out Villanueva and forced Valbuena to ground out.
At 93 pitches on a team that doesn't like starters throwing more than 100, that was it for Nicasio. While the Rockies would rather see him go deeper, there still wasn't the meltdown that would occur during the early days of the season.
That's why he was demoted to Colorado Springs in the first place. Nicasio, who skipped Triple-A when he was called up in 2011, worked with Sky Sox pitching coach Dave Schuler, whom Nicasio knew from the low minors.
"Schuler spent 10 days working with me, throwing bullpens and long toss," Nicasio said. "He showed me video from [Double-A] Tulsa and high-A ball. He told me, 'Before, you had good extension. Now you're not finishing pitches.' I'm working on that."
Gonzalez's leadoff homer into the second deck in right opened a four-run fifth.
"That was a good swing," Gonzalez said. "Soon as I hit the ball, I knew that was out of the ballpark. I didn't know where it was going to land, but it was going to go pretty far."