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Sunday was amazing. Our days got longer. The high was 68! We worked in the yard and house and ended our day with a sunset cruise!
I posted this masterpiece on Instagram last week for #tbt. It's something I drew when I was 4 years old…my mom expecting my younger sister Angela!
12 weeks versus 20 weeks. I took the 20 week pic yesterday after spin class. What a change!
How far along? 20 weeks
Baby's size: about the size of a banana and about 10 1/2 inches long from head to toes
Total weight gain: 10 pounds
Symptoms: I had the strangest thing happen today. I was sitting in the passenger seat of the car waiting for my fiance to come outside and my feet and legs got extremely tingly and right after noticing that I got very dizzy and lightheaded. For some reason instead of sitting still and relaxing I felt like I should go inside and lay down. I made it to the kitchen and almost fainted. Luckily Travis caught me and helped me to the sofa. I felt better after shutting my eyes for a few minutes but I still called my doctor's office to see what they thought. They asked about how much water I had been drinking and what I had for breakfast. They mentioned that maybe my blood pressure and iron needed to be checked. Because I have had a healthy, normal pregnancy so far they decided that I didn't need to come in and asked me just to monitor it and call back if/when it happens again. I have an appointment Friday for an ultrasound and next Monday for my regular check up so I'm not bothered about not being seen like I would be if my next appointment were a couple weeks away.
Clothes: I didn't take my regular weekly pic today because I haven't felt well since the almost fainting episode. I'll tell you about my clothes from my Sunday boat trip. My plaid button up is Superdry brand (non-maternity). My tank is the same from last weeks update, a maternity ribbed knit jersey tank from Old Navy. My shorts are Target (non-maternity) and in case you wondered they aren't buttoned or zipped…thanks belly band!
Workouts – Last week (Mar 3 – Mar 9):
- 1 hour spin class
- 1 hour prenatal yoga class
- 4 miles on the elliptical
- and another 1 hour spin class
Last week: We bought our current home last November knowing that it needed some updating. Our first 2 projects are getting hardwood floors installed and having the entire house painted. Last week we had 3 different contractors out to measure and quote for flooring. We're excited to make a decision and get started with the reno! Also, as of Saturday we are finally experiencing constant spring whether. I've been digging old plants out of my potting containers outside, picking up sticks, trimming dead palm tree branches and just enjoying being in flip flops.
Cravings: Whole Foods brand of "cheerios" with milk or almond milk and best with banana and granola. Lemon hummus…I accidentally bought it but it was a good accident….it's delish and SO good with rice crackers. Any kind of yogurt. After grocery shopping, I usually have 6-8 different flavors in the fridge. Avocados on toast. Avocados on chicken. Avocados in general. Stoneyfield organic creme caramel frozen yogurt. I'm proud that I can make a pint last 3 nights 🙂
Drinking: Decaf. Water. Zevia Ginger Ale. Coconut water. Unsweetened iced tea with fresh lemon.
Looking forward to: My ultrasound on Friday is top of the list. We also ordered our crib today to celebrate the 20 week mark. We decided on the Babyletto Hudson crib in white. I also got an organic crib mattress to go with it. Both are from All Modern. Free shipping and they will be here by Monday!


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No longer are the days when you have to be connected to the computer, game console or even bring a separate hand held game device when you are on the road or out and about. Be assured if you end up waiting in line or being delayed by unforeseen circumstances you can easily keep yourself entertained with these 5 free mobile gaming apps from Apple.
1) NinJump by Backflip Studios As one reviewer said, "ninjas + squirrels = awesome!" This free game has an overwhelming 9074 5 star ratings out of 15840 reviewers. The goal is to climb as high as you possibly can while avoiding other climbing and flying animals and ninjas who want to knock you to your doom.
2) Glow Puzzle by Nexx Studio This brain teaser type game includes 20 free levels. The goal is to connect all the dots with a single path and not retrace any of your steps.
3) City Story by TeamLava Create the city of your dreams right on your mobile device. Include your favorite landmarks, cafes, hotels, bakeries and more. As your city grows so will your population.
4) Cake Maker – Free by Sunstorm Interactive Just as the title says, Cake Maker is your very own place to design and decorate virtual cakes for any occasion. After creating your cake you can even post it to your Facebook page if you are especially proud. This free version has a sampling of the items you will find in the paid version.
5) Lasers Free by Brisk Mobile Inc. Lasers Free is now the full version of lasers with all 50 levels available. The goal of this mental challenge game is to direct the lasers light to activate all the diamonds on the level.

subset: commoncrawl


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If you or your child are dealing with a skin disease of any kind, Dermatology Associates of Concord has the technology, experience, and talent to take excellent care of you. We want you to look and feel more comfortable in your own skin, and we have a long history of success with adults and children. In fact, we've been serving the greater Boston area since 1972, and we now have three dermatology offices to serve you in Concord, Cambridge and Waltham Massachusetts for your Total Skin Health™.
Our highly qualified dermatologists specialize in medical dermatology. We offer skin cancer screening and provide full treatment for all types of skin disease, including Mohs micrographic surgery, which offers the highest cure rate for skin cancer. We use advanced methods to improve your skin condition – ask us about laser and light therapy and phototherapy during your appointment.
In addition, our cosmetic dermatology services can refine your skin's appearance, remove acne scars, and reverse the signs of aging and sun damage. We offer BOTOX®, Voluma, Juvaderm, Restylane®, and other fillers along with chemical peels, and sclerotherapy for spider veins.
For all of your skin care needs, make an appointment at one of our three convenient locations today! Call the scheduling department of Dermatology Associates of Concord at (978) 254-1600 to make an appointment for any of our locations. You can also request an appointment online or download our registration and history forms.
Copyright © All rights reserved.
and more. We also offer procedures such as sclerotherapy, cosmetic injectables, dermal fillers, peels to reduce the appearance of age spots, wrinkles, bulging veins and minimize scarring from burns and reduce facial sagging (jowls) and other skin problems. We serve Middlesex County, Massachusetts and the areas of Concord, Cambridge, Lexington, Waltham, Weston, Watertown, Arlington, Belmont, Medford, Somerville, Brookline, Newton, Bedford, Acton, Carlisle, Massachusetts.


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That's how it goes down in my house, anyway.
I have a handful of high-brow proclivities. Jane Austen, however, is not among them. In fact, I've waxed previously that an earlier P&P rewrite — Seth Grahame-Smith's Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, with its staggering, brain-starved "unmentionables" terrorizing the Hertfordshire countryside, its grand and gracious reimagining of those tedious Bennet hens as brilliant warriors expertly schooled in the deadly arts — did in fact cash the check its presumptive jacket copy wrote when it proclaimed it would "transform a masterpiece of world literature into something [I'd] actually want to read."
The day I heard whispers that Hollywood might be remaking my beloved Flash Gordon was another situation altogether, but before I hoist myself on my own petard I'll bring the topic back 'round to Jane Austen. Or, more appropriately, Mitzi Szereto, whose latest take on the Meryton contingent is entirely bereft of zombie blood and viscera.
It does, however, double-down on ejaculate.
The idea of spinning lady Jane on her head, says Szereto, had been percolating for some time, probably since digesting the undead version. "I got such a kick out of the concept." Austen's rich characters "took on a life of their own as I wrote; everybody's predilections are perfectly matched to their personalities. I mean, is it truly beyond belief for Caroline Bingley to be some birch-wielding harlot? Or for Lydia Bennet to be a raging nympho? Anyone who can't figure out what [she] was getting up to with Mr. Wickham [in the original] has to be extremely naïve or extremely stupid."
Sex & Sensibilities
"I've asked around," she wrote, "and no one is interested in commenting."
It's unsurprising such devoted fans of Austen would be exceptionally polite. Members of the unsanctioned brigade of self-proclaimed purists, however, were after Szereto with all manner of pitchforks via prose (a.k.a., disparaging Internet thread comments). Szereto was actually quite surprised at the level of vitriol.
"It never even occurred to me," she admits. "I guess I gave people more credit than they deserved, reckoning they might have a sense of humor and some literary knowledge to realize that authors have forever been remaking old works into something new…. I'm not the first to tackle Pride and Prejudice, and I doubt I'll be the last."
She acquiesces it was likely the sexual content that set those torches blazing. "I wouldn't mind if people just flat out don't like my book, but to condemn it without having read it is just plain ludicrous and silly."
In fact, said ire prompted her to write a piece in the Huffington Post as a countermeasure. Much of what ensued, she says, had to be removed by HuffPo's moderator. "That just reinforces my argument," she adds.
While Henry Sayers, who teaches literature and humanities at a Denver-area university, was happy to lend his thoughts, workplace politics precluded him from using his real name. Revisions of the classics aren't his thing. "But philosophically," he says, "I have nothing against it…. What is appealing is that it allows [an author] to have their way with characters he or she may have fallen in love with. Pride and Prejudice is the mother lode of character mines."
Though these reinvented Bennet sisters came of age in a different light than Austen's, Sayers says it's obvious Szereto was an admirer of the original. "That's easily this work's greatest strength," he says, citing a passage:
To Lydia's delight, a number of fingers had begun to make themselves familiar with the place of her womanhood and even the more illicit neighbor of her backside, and this served to greatly advance her bliss…
"It's pitch-perfect and in many ways far sexier than reading something [in courser language]. Not only is Szereto graceful, but there's something to be said for the fact that you actually have to read it — and even think a little — to really understand what's happening. There's mental stimulation to go along with the erotica."
Creating that seamlessness was a major priority for Szereto — and she's received praise for her effort, even from critics of the project overall. "It was my goal to have the novel read as if Jane wrote it in its entirety," she says. She immersed herself in the original and watching its many film adaptations to acclimate to the era's language, even paying a visit to Austen's home in Hampshire to commune with her a bit.
"I found that being in the house in which she spent many years of her life … really gave me a sense of time and place and a sense of Jane Austen herself. It's wonderful that there are organizations that keep places such as this alive and available for anyone who wishes to see and experience it."
Jane Errs?
Mostly, Nancy found Hidden Lusts funny. "How apt that she made Bingley and Mr. Collins gay. How screamingly funny Lydia becomes. You can just imagine her disappearing with all the soldiers!" But, she says, after a while, it stirred some anger. "It's one thing to imagine the scenes that are taking place out of our view — Mr. Collins in the linen closet, Elizabeth and Darcy fooling around in the woods — but a whole other to have them do things that people just don't do. Proposing to someone with your penis hanging out? Absurd … and not sexy."
Even so, she takes no issue with it — or any other rewrites for that matter. "Who am I to say how a person works his or her own creativity? [But from now on], I'll stick with the lyricism and beauty of the original."
Austen Then and Now
She's been accused by some of being arrogant for her belief that Austen would have enjoyed her update, but stands firm. "The woman had a wicked sense of humor and a talent for satire — and Pride and Prejudice was loaded with both." She also believes that if she'd been permitted, Austen would've made it sexier, as well.
"She was quite a liberated woman for her time…." Szereto notes, "but living in a period when the writing of books was primarily a man's domain…. women writers just weren't taken seriously by critics — not that this has changed significantly," she notes. "Had she been a man, she quite likely could have gotten away with a lot more. It was a matter of keeping her 'respectability.'"
Sayers believes it's the foundation of Pride and Prejudice —"people living as social creatures in search of acceptance, love and finally happiness"—is something to which we can all relate, making it an ideal base for a reimagining, sexual or otherwise. "For those of us who are open-minded enough to understand that no desecration is intended—it's a lot of fun! Who hasn't read a great book or seen a movie and thought, 'It was good, but I'd have done it this way.'?"
Michael, 41, is a writer/editor by trade — often a paid book critic — with a Bachelor's in English and half a Masters. "It was the prospect of having to take a Jane Austen-related class that drove me out of grad school," he says bluntly. What did he make of the "porning" of Jane?
"May as well," he says. "Can't be any worse than the original. Now if they'd just make a triple-X film version starring Emma Thompson and Hulk Hogan, directed by Ron Jeremy — Harold Robbins, scriptwriter."


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ESPN analysts predict Rockies won't contend this season
SCOTTSDALE — The Rockies have gone from sexy pick to the kid in the corner at the dance. A year ago, ESPN analysts Orel Hershiser and Bobby Valentine raved about the Rockies, picking them to reach the postseason.
This season? Not so much.
"I don't think they have a chance to make the playoffs with that rotation," said Curt Schilling, who won World Series rings with the Diamondbacks and Red Sox.
Pitching was the primary concern for John Kruk, Barry Larkin and "Baseball Tonight" host Karl Ravech. The Rockies are counting on Jeremy Guthrie, Jhoulys Chacin, Juan Nicasio, Drew Pomeranz and possibly Jamie Moyer, who pitches today in his latest push to make the club.
"Our guys are being nice to the Rockies. There's no team that should worry more about its starting pitching in baseball than the Rockies," Ravech said. "In your division it pales in comparision to Arizona, Los Angeles and San Francisco."
Added Larkin, who believes the National League West will be one of the game's toughest dvisions, "They are getting older…It's not always about your team but who you are competing against."


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Daniel Martin Moore
DMM is a singer and songwriter (and a great many other things arguably less relevant to this particular piece of text) from Cold Spring, Kentucky. On the strength of an unsolicited demo he sent in January of 2007, Sub Pop released Stray Age in October of 2008, a quietly striking album and Daniel's debut full-length. And, in February of 2010, Sub Pop released Dear Companion, an album written and performed by Ben Sollee and Daniel Martin Moore together, and produced by Jim James from My Morning Jacket and Monsters of Folk. Part of the intention with Dear Companion was to draw attention to the problem of Mountaintop Removal (MTR) coal mining, but the music stood on its own as well (Filter: "This is one painfully beautiful record"). Between the release of Stray Age and now, Daniel's been busy, touring with Ben and Jim (including a July '10 performance at the Newport Folk Festival), opening for Iron & Wine, The Swell Season and My Morning Jacket, appearing on NPR's World Café, doing the things associated with writing, recording and releasing music. 2011 brought us, In the Cool of the Day, an album of spiritual recordings hearkening back to his family & childhood. 2011 also saw the launch of DMM's newest project, a record label called, Ol Kentucky, which possesses the clear aim of bringing some great tunes to some discerning ears. In May of 2012, his most recent record, Farthest Field, a duo-project with Joan Shelley, came into the world.


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Over a period of time, plaque and calculus can build up on the teeth. The saliva in our mouth contains millions of bacteria. These adhere to the tooth surface forming plaque. Calcium within the saliva is then deposited on these bacteria to form calculus (scale). This hard deposit once formed cannot be removed by regular brushing.
It is important that calculus is removed as it is full of bacterial toxins which cause inflammation of the gums. If left in situ, calculus will cause the gums to recede from the teeth leading to eventual tooth loss.
Most of us at some point will need to have our teeth scaled. Scaling is the dental method used to help smooth the surface of the teeth so that bacteria are less able to adhere to the enamel surface.
Your teeth will be scaled by either your dentist or a dental hygienist. They will use hand scalers and/ or an ultrasonic scaler to remove the calculus build up.
Once all the calculus is removed and these teeth are clean, your dentist/ hygienist may use a polishing instrument to further clean and smooth the teeth. This will be with a brush or a rubber cup containing a prophylactic paste.
Scaling is an NHS Band 1 Treatment and the frequency at which this procedure will be prescribed by the dentist will vary according to your level of oral hygiene.


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Tres Días En Roma
Paperback, 250 Pages
Price: $21.27
Prints in 3-5 business days
En la antiguedad, Roma era la ciudad ha-cia la que iban todos los caminos. Haci-endo gala de ser la Ciudad Eterna, duran-te tres días, las vidas y caminos de unos cuantos desconocidos se cruzarán en la Ciudad de las Siete Colinas, cambiando por completo sus vidas.
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Product Details
- 9781291975529
- Copyright
- Iñaki Santamaría Carbajo (Standard Copyright License)
- Edition
- Primera
- Publisher
- Iñaki Santamaría Carba
- Published
- May 23, 2018
- Language
- Spanish
- Pages
- 250
- Binding
- Perfect-bound Paperback
- Interior Ink
- Black & white
- Weight
- 0.95 lbs.
- Dimensions (inches)
- 6 wide x 9 tall
- Product ID
- 23655832
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Jun 2019
As part of the SchwarmBatterie® offering, we also control KOSTAL PLENTICORE plus inverter with BYD Battery-Box.
"Flex is a side product", says Jorrit Lucas in an interview with Energeia. Learn more about our strategy and product vision in this article.
May 2019
Another milestone reached with our e-boiler project: Eneco issued a press release on the successful rollout of more than 2000 e-boilers.


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1465 W County Hwy 30a, SANTA ROSA BEACH
Prime Gulf Front property in Deer Lake Beach. Spanning over a total of 6,300 sqft, this beautiful waterfront residence abounds with large open concept spaces and endless sweeping views of the emerald waters and breath taking view of the surrounding state preserved dunes that can be enjoyed from many areas of the home's designed layout. This three story is beautifully designed with outdoor space that is made complete with a pool, hot tub, and 2 outdoor showers. You will have plenty of areas to relax and entertain with this 5 bedrooms 4.5 bath. The home entryway is highlighted by beautiful grown landscaping. Entering the first floor you will find the elevator servicing all 3 floors along with 1 guest bedroom, fitness room, sauna, steam room, bath and laundry room.the covered deck of the side of the 3 story home spans the width of the home offering ample outdoor living space and entertainment. On the 2nd floor you will find the open concept tiled main living area along with 1 more bedroom and full bathroom. You continue to the 3rd floor and find the elevator opens to a large foyer which leads to a bedroom with 1/2 bath and hallway leading you to a beautiful master bath with garden tub and plenty of room to roam. At the end of the hallway you will enter the expansive master bedroom with more sweeping views and large balcony to sip a cup of coffee as you rise in the morning or enjoy a a cocktail in the evening. The property has some areas that are tiled, some bedrooms are carpeted and others are covered in pine hardwood.
This property is unique in that it sits next to the Deer Lake State Park which allows you to enjoy about a mile of state park beach area. The property has a PRIVATE road (no public access) making it a unique location in this area. Eastern Lake is also about 3 blocks from the property and you may stroll to it and enjoy paddle boarding in tranquil waters.
BBQ Pit/Grill, Beach, Deed Access, Exercise Room, Laundry, Pets Allowed, Pool, TV Cable Available, Waterfront, Whirlpool, Elevators, Sauna/Steam Room
Phone Available, Public Sewer Available, Public Water Available, TV Cable Available, Community Sewer, Electric Available
Garage, Garage: Attached, Oversized, Covered
GULF, Lake, Shore: Beach, Shore: Seawall, Unit Waterfront, Coastal Dune Lakes
Pool - In-Ground, Private, Pool - Gunite Concrt, Pool - Heated, Community
Floor Hardwood, Floor Tile, Furnished - All, Kitchen Island, Lighting Recessed, Washer/Dryer Hookup, Window Treatment All, Breakfast Bar, Ceiling Crwn Molding, Ceiling Raised, Fireplace, Fireplace Gas, Floor WW Carpet New, Lock Out, Newly Painted, Pantry, Shelving, Split Bedroom, Elevator
Auto Garage Door Opn, Cooktop, Dishwasher, Disposal, Dryer, Microwave, Refrigerator, Refrigerator W/Ice Maker, Smoke Detector, Washer, Fire Alarm/Sprinkler, Freezer, Oven:Self Cleaning, Security System
Ceiling Fans, A/C: High Efficiency
Frame, Roof Metal, Concrete, Siding Stucco, Trim Wood
Balcony, Columns, Deck Covered, Deck Open, Fenced Back Yard, Fenced Privacy, Hot Tub, Patio Open, Pool - In-Ground, Porch Covered, BBQ Pit/Grill, Fenced Lot-Part, Patio Covered, Pool - Gunite Concrt, Pool - Heated, Porch Open, Sauna/Steam, Separate Living Area, Fireplace, Summer Kitchen
Coastal Setback, Cul-De-Sac, Dead End, Flood Insurance Required, Level, Survey Available
DISCLAIMER: Information Deemed Reliable but not guaranteed. The information being provided is for consumers' personal, non-commercial use and may not be used for any purpose other than to identify prospective properties consumers may be interested in purchasing.
All listings are provided courtesy of the Emerald Coast Association of Realtors, Copyright2019, All rights reserved.
Listing information last updated on December 15th, 2019 at 11:00pm CST.


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Children's knitted socks ages 18-24 months
These socks are hand knitted using traditional methods on five double pointed needles. They are made using a durable and comfortable 4 ply yarn comprising of 75% wool and 25% polyamide ensuring comfort and strength.
The socks have been knitted in a comfortable ribbed pattern allowing for comfort and stretch. They would make an ideal gift for toddlers.
Sizing: 18-24 months approximately
Length from cuff to heel: 5 inches
Length from heel to toe: 4.5inches
Wash and care instructions:
Although these socks can stand a 40 degree cycle, it is best to wash at lower temperatures (30 degrees) or on a wool wash. You can also hand wash these socks for good results. Hand knitted socks will sometimes need gentle re-shaping when wet or damp and should lay flat to dry.
A great little gift for small feet
Shipping & delivery
This item will be posted to you by Karly Jade within 3 days of receiving payment.
|Shipping destination
|Additional items
|United Kingdom
Italy, Greece, Cyprus, Germany, France, Spain, Finland, Belgium, Portugal, Poland, Ireland, Sweden, Denmark, Netherlands, Austria, Latvia, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Isle of Man, Jersey, Guernsey, Gibraltar
|USA and Canada
|Rest of the World
Returns Policy
You have 14 days, from receipt, to notify the seller if you wish to cancel your order or exchange an item.
Unless faulty, the following types of items are non-refundable: items that are personalised, bespoke or made-to-order to your specific requirements; items which deteriorate quickly (e.g. food), personal items sold with a hygiene seal (cosmetics, underwear) in instances where the seal is broken.
Additional terms
All items will be sent via second class mail to the UK and Europe and via Airmail to the rest of the world. The price includes postage and packing of the items. Please contact me if you wish to discuss alternative delivery options.


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The Northern Virginia Community College Board will meet on Monday, Jan. 31 from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. in the large boardroom in the Brault Building at 4001 Wakefield Chapel Road in Annandale.
Committee meetings on the budget, building and sites, curriculum, and community relations will be held prior to the start of the full board meeting.
Items on the agenda include reports on ACCT New Trustee Governance Leadership Institute, VCCS Annual Meeting, and Department of Labor Interns, as well as updates on local government outreach, budget and SACS reaffirmation.
Northern Virginia Community College is the largest institution of higher education in the Commonwealth of Virginia and one of America's largest community colleges. NOVA enrolls more than 75,000 students at its six campuses in Alexandria, Annandale, Loudoun, Manassas, Springfield and Woodbridge, and through NOVA Online. For more information about NOVA and its programs or services, call 703-323-3000 or visit the College's Web site, www.nvcc.edu.


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Here's a roundup of some of the top weekend business headlines from across the state:
Birmingham Business Journal: Birmingham top city for millennial renters
Millennials have shown strong tendencies toward renting since the end of the Great Recession, but finding affordable rental housing and apartments has been a challenge in some of the nation's largest metros.
Birmingham, however, gives this generation more access to affordable rental properties than many of its peer metros, according to a report by Bloomberg.
The report cited six cities that had the largest share of rental listings that millennials could afford, and Birmingham was No. 5 on that list.
Just over 80 percent of the available properties listed the metro area are deemed within reach for most millennials, the report said.
The top metro was St. Louis, followed by Birmingham, Kansas City, Missouri, Richmond, Detroit and Indianapolis.
Birmingham Business Journal: Garry Drummond now the richest individual in Alabama
There is a new name holding the enviable title of wealthiest person in Alabama.
Garry Drummond, 77, whose net worth is an estimated $980 million, is now the richest individual in Alabama, according to a recent Forbes report.
Drummond takes the spot formerly occupied by Marguerite Harbert, who died in March, as the richest individual in the state.
H.E. Drummond – Garry's father – started the H.E. Drummond Coal Co. in Sipsey, Ala. in 1935, taking a $300 loan from Walker County Bank in Jasper and providing three mules as collateral on the note, according to the company's website.
Garry Drummond began at his father's business in 1961, after graduating with an engineering degree from the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa.
He became CEO in 1973, and has seen the coal firm grow into the largest privately-owned company in Alabama.
Forbes reported that Drummond Co. has $3 billion in sales used for electricity and steel production.
The company has coal reserves totaling more than 2 billion tons in Alabama and Colombia.
Birmingham Business Journal: AM/NS Calvert to invest $88M in Mobile facility
While other Alabama steel producers are reeling amid one of the worst downturns in the industry's history, one firm is investing in its Mobile County operations.
AM/NS Calvert LLC – which is a combined subset of ArcelorMittal and Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corp. – will invest $88 million in its north Mobile County facility in an effort to increase its presence in the automotive industry, according to a report from AL.com.
Mobile County's Industrial Development Authority on Thursday approved tax abatements totaling $8.5 million during the 20-year impact period.
The requests represent about half a dozen different projects that are slated to begin immediately. The projects will be completed in phases through the close of 2016.
The estimated capital investment of $87,556,015 includes about $77 million in machinery and equipment, in addition to incorporating about $24 million in local construction and engineering services.
The project is expected to create six new jobs over the course of three years, with average annual salaries of $65,000.
Luxembourg-based ArcelorMittal is the largest steel producer in world, and has felt the pinch of the steel downturn.
However, while the company has acknowledged the market downturn, ArcelorMittal said in France, the company has hired 700 workers since reconfiguring the Florange steel plant, which could signal a resurgence in the steel market as the company expands.
ArcelorMittal USA employs more than 20,000 workers at 27 operations across 13 U.S. states.
NYTimes.com: Time Inc. to Move Test Kitchens to Alabama
Time Inc., the nation's largest magazine publisher, is moving almost all its recipe testing and other food editorial production for its 29 domestic magazines and websites to Birmingham, Ala., where it is building a food studio with 28 test kitchens, a dozen photography studios and a private dining room.
The multimillion-dollar investment in the complex is part of a renewed commitment to food coverage for the nation's largest magazine publisher, whose publications include People, Real Simple, Essence, Sports Illustrated and Travel & Leisure. Though some test kitchens in New York will close as a result, the move is seen as an expansion that will add about 44 jobs.
"Excuse the pun, but the appetite for trusted, quality food content I don't think has ever been richer than it is right now," said Evelyn Webster, an executive vice president. "It's not just people for whom food has always been a reflection of their lifestyle. It's this whole new breed of enthusiasts who are coming into our market."
The company struggled after Time Warner spun it off a year ago and it went public. It trimmed operations and personnel and looked for ways to preserve its print heritage while staying competitive on an increasingly cluttered and constantly changing digital playing field.
The food studios will fill 40,000 square feet in one of three buildings on a 28-acre campus that Time Inc. sold last year to Samford University. It is leasing back the building that will hold the studios, as well as the offices of Southern Living, Cooking Light and Coastal Living, which are already produced there.
At the same time, Food & Wine, which Time Inc. bought in 2013 and whose profile soared when it teamed up with the television show "Top Chef," will have its own new test kitchen and studio in New York when the company moves downtown from its longtime perch in the Time & Life Building in Rockefeller Center this year.
Sunset, the company's magazine dedicated to cooking and gardening on the West Coast, is also getting new offices and kitchens in Oakland and Sonoma Counties in California. Time Inc. sold the midcentury Sunset headquarters in Menlo Park, Calif., which was designed by the architect Clifford May, for an estimated $78 million in 2014. The moves are part of an increased emphasis on quality recipes, polished food websites and increased cooking coverage in both traditional and digital media. It comes after a fallow period in publication test kitchens that was punctuated by the closing of Gourmet magazine and its kitchens in 2009 and the shuttering of The San Francisco Chronicle's elaborate wine cellar, rooftop garden and test kitchen in 2013.
Now, new professional kitchen spaces are being constructed that allow publications not only to test recipes but also to produce photographs and videos that can be adapted to web, print and social media.
"It's almost like a new form of test kitchen that acts as testing, entertainment and studio space," said Amanda Hesser, a former food writer at The New York Times Magazine and a co-founder of the website Food52, which in February moved into a custom-designed office in Chelsea that has two test kitchens.
The website, which now has 52 employees, started in Ms. Hesser's Brooklyn apartment and catered to content generated by home cooks. It has grown to produce cookbooks and sell kitchenware and home furnishings.
The new test kitchen model — a marked turn from both the old workhorse test kitchens at newspapers and the show kitchens of the Martha Stewart media empire — springs from blogging culture, Ms. Hesser said. Homey images of dishes in process, culinary mistakes and even children running through an untidy kitchen gained currency as food blogs became more popular.
"It gave readers a sense of reality and context that traditional publications had moved away from," she said.
"We're part of this great shift back to the place where people are making the recipes instead of making it seem like the food is untouchable," she said.
That is very much how Bon Appétit, the Condé Nast food magazine that moved temporarily into the kitchens of the defunct Gourmet, uses its new airy, professionally equipped 2,126-square-foot commercial kitchen in 1 World Trade Center, where Condé Nast has moved.
The Washington Post plans to build a new test kitchen when it moves to new headquarters next year that will include equipment for videos and photography, said Joe Yonan, the food and dining editor.
In Birmingham, the new studios will open in January. In addition to editorial content, the studio will hold chef demonstrations, private dinners and events for loyal readers. The company will also use it to produce native advertising, which are ads that resemble news articles, and live events with advertisers.
But recipe testing customized for each magazine will be at the heart, Ms. Webster said.
Although there is plenty of user-generated food content on the Internet, readers in focus groups consistently say well-tested recipes from professional cooks are important, she said.
"I will tell you there is a role for both," she said. "But really, when you've got 12 people coming around for a dinner party or you've got to make dinner five nights a week for your family, you kind of want to know you can rely on something."


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Tox began a few years ago, in the wake of Edward Snowden's leaks regarding NSA spying activity. The idea was to create an instant messaging application that ran without requiring the use of central servers. The system would be distributed, peer-to-peer, and end-to-end encrypted, with no way to disable any of the encryption features; at the same time, the application would be easily usable by the layperson with no practical knowledge of cryptography or distributed systems. During the Summer of 2013 a small group of developers from all around the globe formed and began working on a library implementing the Tox protocol. The library provides all of the messaging and encryption facilities, and is completely decoupled from any user-interface; for an end-user to make use of Tox, they need a Tox client. Fast-forward a few years to today, and there exist several independent Tox client projects, and the original Tox core library implementation continues to improve. Tox (both core library and clients) has thousands of users, hundreds of contributors, and the project shows no sign of slowing down.
Tox is a FOSS (Free and Open Source) project. All Tox code is open source and all development occurs in the open. Tox is developed by volunteer developers who spend their free time on it, believing in the idea of the project. Tox is not a company or any other legal organization. Currently we don't accept donations as a project, but you are welcome to reach out to developers individually.
This website and other infrastructure such as wiki, blog, etc. are maintained by some of the long-time contributors of Tox. If you have a legal question, or if you notice something is wrong with tox.chat servers, or you find an outdated information on the one of tox.chat websites -- you can send an email to our distribution list. Please note that this list is not the right place to ask for general user support. All such emails would simply be ignored. Please use our mailing lists or the Reddit forums for general user support.
For the reference, here is the list of the said long-time Tox contributors running the infrastructure:


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Exposure is composed of three variables that have tremendous impacts on each picture. One of the greater challenges to the photographer is to bring to life still image. To help our brain appreciate what is happening using various exposures settings.
Our eyes, when looking at a subject, can isolate the subject from its surrounding. We still see around the subject but our attention is locked on what we are looking at.
Another aspect is that our eyes are seeing action as its happening. You've looked to a car on the highway and you saw the spinning wheel being blurred while the rest of the car is clear and sharp. This is one of the capabilities of our eyes combined with our brain.
When we are looking at a picture, everything is static and nothing really moves. So if we are looking at a picture of a Helicopter in the sky taken at 1/4000s, the blades of the helicopter will not move and our brain would think that this helicopter is falling. Should the blades had move they should have been blurred.
In this picture, the person is waving its hand. This is clear. Should I have taken this picture at 1/250s instead of 1/50s, the hand would be totally stopped and our brain would not understand why this girl had its hand up there.
When we understand how our brain work and what need to be fed to our brain in order for it to appreciate what's happening in the picture, we are making leaps and bounds forward in our photography.
Additionally taking this picture at 105mm on an APS-C sensor at f/4.5 helped tremendously blur the background which did mimic the way our brain is isolating subject when we look at somebody waving his hand.
Technical details:
Canon EOS 7D
Canon ESO ef24-105mm f/4L IS at 105mm
1/50s at f/4.5
Do you ever use Exposure speed creatively to help the brain of your audience appreciate what is happening?
Thanks for reading. If you found this article interesting, please use the options below to share it with your friends. Your comments are always really appreciated.


text: Washington, DC – With Interior Secretary Salazar's Chief of Staff, Tom Strickland, and Blacks In Government [BIG] Department of the Interior Chapter's President, Kim Lambert, leading the discussion, Interior representatives and a delegation of BIG chapter officers met on Tuesday afternoon, July 13th. Taking sharp issue with current Interior policies, BIG has found continued underrepresentation of minorities and policies that deny equal opportunity in a fall White Paper entitled "Critical Personnel Issues Affecting Black Employees in the Department of the Interior". In response to BIG's findings and recent discrimination findings by others, Interior outlined a series of changes and time frames at the meeting. Key among those changes now pending are:


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Iran: New photo exhibition marks 150 years of humanitarian action
30-06-2013 News Release 13/117
Tehran (ICRC) – The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) opened a photo exhibition in Tehran today, commemorating the organization's 150-year history of providing humanitarian assistance and protection for people suffering the effects of armed conflict or other violence.
"The nature of conflict has changed greatly over the past 150 years, raising new challenges for humanitarian work," said Pierre Ryter, head of the ICRC's mission in Iran. "For example, violence against patients and health-care workers is a huge yet under-reported humanitarian issue affecting untold numbers of people in need of treatment. Another challenge is raised by family members who are separated from each other in the chaos of armed conflict, which generates terrible anxiety. The ICRC works to ease the suffering caused by these and many other consequences of armed violence."
Also launched today is a new and comprehensive textbook on international humanitarian law written by Dr Mohammad-Reza Ziaee Bigdeli, emeritus professor of international law from Allame-Tabatabaee University. An expert in this field, Dr Bigdeli has contributed to numerous academic events focusing on international humanitarian law organized by the ICRC and the Iranian National Committee of Humanitarian Law.
"The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is the world's largest humanitarian network, made up of millions of volunteers and professionals working to help the neediest," said Mr Ryter. "Together with our partners within the Movement, here in Iran in particular with the Iranian Red Crescent Society, we will continue to seek ways to meet current and future challenges."
For further information, please contact:
Mojgan Mohammad, ICRC Tehran, tel: +98 21 22 64 58 21-4 or +98 919 830 11 61


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For my third burger during National Burger Month (my second was the turkey burger at 8oz) I stopped in at Westside Tavern. Like the movie theater above it, the restaurant is huge at over 10,000 square feet and room for 300 diners. And like you might expect, it was packed on this Saturday night. It's the perfect spot to grub, given some extra time on your schedule because of a long wait for a table, before or after a movie. Although, in a rush, they do have a large bar area you can grab a seat and order in a hurry.
The menu is upscale tavern food. A cheeseburger, lamb french dip, grilled cheese, and a Nueske's ham and fried egg sandwich range from $13-$16. Entrees like a flat iron steak, ale battered fish and chips, grilled fish, and a short rib pot roast are priced from $16-$24. They have a good selection of classic cocktails with fresh juices, craftsman beers, wines by the glass and affordable bottles of white and red wine from $18-$70.
The burger, surprisingly good, is served on an slightly sweet and airy egg bun. The patty was perfectly cooked to order, juicy, topped with a thick slice of Tillamook Chedder, caramelized onions, arugula, and a tangy mayo. The fries, a mix of regular and sweet potato, were your standard fried sticks and nothing special. The extra side of in-season grilled asparagus, with grilled onions and large parmesan shavings were a perfect marriage of salty and sweet.
Would I return? Perhaps, if the stars aligned and I happened to be seeing a movie here instead of the Arclight. But for now, my quest for more burgers beckons me.


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Posts filed under 'Why'
Please remember that this is the time of year that dogs get heat stroke. Do not leave him in the car-even for a minute-even with the window open. If the heat doesn't kill him, it can cause brain damage.
Where I live, the car seat can brand your bottom with the stitching pattern and you can get burned from your steering wheel. If you can't take the dog in with you then leave him at home.
Be aware that breeds with flat faces, those who are ill and dogs with long fur are especially at risk. (And any dog can burn the pads of his feet on hot sidewalks or in parking lots.)
I am having my annual internal debate of whether or not to cut my dogs hair for summer. Many people are opposed to ever cutting a Coton's hair. I have heard the argument that the fur is insulating and will never grow back the same.
But common sense tells me that wearing a fur coat when the heat index is 105 and the humidity is high is dangerous. I get hot just thinking about it. 🙂
Here are some of the symptoms of heat stroke in dogs:
Rapid, shallow panting
Red tongue
Rapid heart rate
Vomiting or diarrhea
Hose the dog off, throw him in the car and call the vet on the way. It is always an emergency. You cannot give your dog oxygen, I.V's or monitor him at home.
It's much better to have hawt dogs than hot dogs!
Are you wondering whether making your own dog or cat food is worth it? Just look at the length of this list! Please note the premium brands that are on it and read more about the class action suit here.
This is serious and it makes me wonder what is still lurking in commercial foods. Remember, this industry is unregulated.
What our pets eat is something that we can manage in a world where so many other things seem beyond our control.
Information like this makes me renew my commitment to providing wholesome food for all our pets.
Anyone have any good cat food recipes?
OVERHEARD-Hair Salon
Customer-"My husband says I have buffalo hair."
Stylist-"What happened?'
Customer-"I used to give myself home perms."
Do they still make those?
They will drag you down to their level and then beat you with their vast experience there.
Southern women do not appreciate "critters" in their gardens.
She really thinks that I cannot see her. (telephoto lens)
This is going to be an on-going project. What is your "pet" peeve? That is, peeves concerning pets.
I think we all know that I am the peeve princess! Sometimes, it seems like I don't like anyone's animals but my own. But, I don't let it concern me. I used to feel the same way about children. 🙂
My friend who doesn't "do computers" wanted to be first. She hates it when people kiss their dogs on the mouth. I agree! People! Have you seen where those mouths have been?
Mine is the most obvious. I hate when people let their dogs run loose. Don't they care what happens to them? Which leads me to my next peeve.
Dogs who go in my yard. If I see them coming, I tell the owner that I have just applied a chemical to my yard.
I watch these people through my window let their dogs (always huge) go through my grass into the garden, trampling the flowers and then scorching them with urine. Thanks guys and what is your address? Let me just slip on my handy hazmat suit when I want to garden.
And don't even get me started on cats in my garden!
Leave your pet peeves in the comments.
I chose our veterinary clinic because it was AAHA certified. I wasn't impressed with the facilities but the owner/vet seemed competent enough and he was supposed to be available at all times for emergencies. Not only was he not available when we needed him this weekend (See UPDATE), he NEVER RETURNED OUR CALL!
I don't think that there is anything left to say. He promised a standard of care that was not there. I will not take that risk again. He's history.
ADDENDUM– I think Little-Bit is O.K., but I will be following up with our new vet.
ADDENDUM AGAIN- The vet and his staff called me numerous times on Monday and Tuesday. Awkward. The excuse given was that the answering service had taken down my number incorrectly. Don't most answering services have caller ID? I am not changing my mind. Choosing a new vet is never easy, though…
HAPPY ENDING–Well, the answering service sent a transcript of their recording and they had written my number incorrectly as well as my name. I also received an written apology from the operator who had made the error. So I have rescheduled Black Cat's check-up for this week and we will continue with this practice. Let you know how that goes.
WELL, NOT SO MUCH- Black Cat got carsick in every possible way on the short drive over and then almost escaped. They made me sign something agreeing to pay $25.00 if I cancel an appointment. Then we spent over $300 for a yearly checkup for a healthy cat. We were there almost two hours but part of that was B.C.'s fault as they had to clean her up. I'm sure, if I look closely at my itemized bill, that I was charged for that.
Himself met the vet and didn't like him either. We really can't put our finger on why that is. Something about his demeanor.
I don't see this relationship working out long term, do you?


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Here's a quick snippet showing how to save a setting back to the web.config file. You are best wrapping this block in a try/catch in case the ASPNET user (or equivalent) does not have write access permissions to the file.
Configuration config = WebConfigurationManager.OpenWebConfiguration( "~/" );
AppSettingsSection appSettings = config.GetSection( "appSettings" ) as AppSettingsSection;
if ( appSettings != null )
if ( appSettings.Settings ["mySetting"] != null )
appSettings.Settings.Remove( "mySetting" );
appSettings.Settings.Add( "mySetting", text );
config.Save( ConfigurationSaveMode.Modified );
Wednesday, 8 July 2009
Save Settings to Web.Config file
Posted by Neil Pullinger at 02:35
Labels: ASP.NET, C#, Web.config
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Cloud Storage is getting hot day after day and we see multiple new services coming out, the leaders being dropbox,BOX,Google Drive,Sky Drive,Sugar Sync. When we have multiple accounts with multiple services accessibility becomes an issue.Jolidrive service from Jolicloud solves this problem.Jolidrive unifies all your cloud storage content from multiple services in one simple and beautiful interface accessible from anywhere. Visit http://www.jolicloud.com/ and …Read More »
Home >> Tag Archives: cloud storage
Tag Archives: cloud storage
Get 50GB of free Cloud Space for life time
Do you have a iPhone or an iPad running with iOS6 or iOS7. BOX Cloud Storage Service is running an promotional offer from January 15, 2014 to February 15, 2014 where they provide 50GB of free Cloud Space for life time.This offer is valid for new and existing BOX Cloud Storage users with personal, free accounts. In order to redeem the …Read More »


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Bus from Lucknow to Allahabad
A convenient mode of travel while commuting from Lucknow to Allahabad is by taking a bus. The time taken to complete the bus journey is dependent on traffic, roads and climatic conditions.The bus companies adopt safety measures while running their buses from Lucknow and Allahabad. The smooth availability of bus service creates travel convenience for many people travelling from Lucknow to Allahabad.
If you are also looking for return checkout, please ensure to check Allahabad to Lucknow Bus.


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November 6, 1989, Section C, Page 14Buy Reprints
Vicki L. Been, an associate professor of law at Rutgers University, and Richard L. Revesz, an associate professor of law at New York University, were married yesterday at the Burden Mansion in New York by Rabbi Margaret Wenig.
The bride, 33 years old, is a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. William L. Been of Naturita, Colo. Ms. Been, who will keep her name, graduated with high distinction from Colorado State University and from the N.Y.U. School of Law. She was a law clerk to Associate Justice Harry A. Blackmun of the Supreme Court of the United States. Her father and her mother, Carolyn Been, founded A to Z Industries, a maker of mining equipment in Naturita. The bride's previous marriage ended in divorce.
Mr. Revesz, 31, the son of Nora M. Revesz of New York and the late Nicholas Revesz, graduated summa cum laude from Princeton University, where he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa, and from the Yale Law School. He was a law clerk to Associate Justice Thurgood Marshall of the Supreme Court. His mother recently retired as a vice president and the head of private banking in New York at the Banque Nationale de Paris. His father was a founder of Revesz y Rado, makers of medical supplies in Buenos Aires.


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|This article is about the UK VHS. You may be looking for the US VHS/DVD.
Thomas Comes To Breakfast and Other Stories is a UK VHS featuring six second series episodes narrated by Ringo Starr. It was originally released in a Watch and Play video pack with a colouring book and pens.
- Percy and Harold - Harold the helicopter is being a nuisance. He thinks railways are out of date.
- Percy Takes the Plunge - Thomas gives Percy a warning about Danger Signs.
- Bertie's Chase - Thomas is late, Edward is impatient and the passengers are cross. Dashing Bertie races to the rescue.
- Thomas and Trevor - Trevor is asked to help Thomas build the Fat Controller's new harbour. At first Thomas has his doubts.
- Thomas Comes to Breakfast - Thomas shows off to Percy and Toby and finds himself an unwelcome guest in the Stationmaster's house.
- Thomas and the Missing Christmas Tree - The Fat Controller's is planning a big celebration, but Thomas goes missing on an important mission. The engines come to his rescue.
- This was the last Watch and Play Thomas VHS released by The Video Collection.
- This is the last UK VHS to have Nameboard sequences.
Community content is available under CC-BY-SA unless otherwise noted.


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The amount of water that can be held by the substrate in a given container with a specific irrigation method is the effective water-holding capacity (EWHC). It may be desirable to maintain the moisture content of the medium below EWHC in order to regulate plant growth or reduce the risk of soil-borne diseases.
Overall, it is important to irrigate thoroughly. The amount of water applied must be sufficient to re-wet the entire volume of growing medium. If the medium is dry and not enough water is applied, only part of the mix will be re-wetted.
In irrigating thoroughly, the method of delivery plays an important role. With top-down irrigation, water will be pulled downward by the force of gravity. As it moves downward, some will be held by the growing medium.
Usually, some water will escape from the bottom of the pot before the medium is thoroughly wet. At the same time, water collects at the bottom of the pot and then moves back up. This can easily be seen if a saucer is placed under a pot with a very dry growing medium. When water is applied to the surface, it will quickly flow through to the saucer, but it then moves back up into the medium.
The relationship between the amount and rate of application of water and the amount retained can be rather complex, but generally, the slower the application, the higher the proportion that is retained. Applying small amounts of water repeatedly with pauses between applications (pulsed irrigation) allows for greater water retention and reduced leaching.
Irrigation System Breakdown
In the most basic terms, an irrigation system consists of three components: a source of water; a delivery system to get it to the growing medium; and valves to control water flow. The goal for any irrigation system is to deliver water to the growing medium as uniformly and efficiently as possible.
Irrigation systems can be divided into two basic categories depending on how water is delivered to the growing medium. Top-down systems deliver water to the surface of the growing mediu
Top-down systems can be divided into three sub-categories: hand watering, which may target individual containers or larger areas; overhead systems such as sprinklers or booms, which deliver water as a spray covering an area; and drip or trickle systems, which deliver water to individual pots.
Hand Watering
Hand watering is most efficient for plug trays and flats, small containers that are tightly spaced. Hand watering is least efficient for potted plants, when they are at final spacing and the canopy is closed, because it is harder to get the water to the growing medium, and it takes longer to deliver water to each container.
Even with careful application by experienced workers, as much as 50 percent of the water that exits a hose ends up on the floor. Efficiency and uniformity can be greatly improved by using water-saver saucers or trays that catch much of the water that would otherwise miss the pot. These trays retain water so it can be absorbed from the bottom up.
Boom systems are useful for plug trays and flats. Mist nozzles can deliver water consistently at a low rate, resulting in uniform wetting and good water retention. The spray is under low pressure so compaction and washout is minimized. However, drips and uneven spray can take a toll on small containers such as plug trays.
Booms can also be used for larger containers, especially when pots are still tightly spaced. Booms typically have selectable nozzles for different spray patterns, allowing them to be used for misting during propagation and for higher-volume delivery for irrigation. They can be programmed to make repeated passes over the same area or to shut on and off while passing over different areas in their path. Shutting off some nozzles on a boom allows for selective irrigation within a block, like when spot-watering pots on the perimeter of a block that dry out more rapidly than the interior.
Sprinkler systems are often used for outdoor production areas. Uniformity is a problem outdoors, as sprinklers are designed for turf or field irrigation and don't distribute water evenly, especially in windy conditions. Furthermore, considerable amounts of water can be wasted as runoff, depending on pot spacing.
Sprinkler systems can be used for irrigation inside the greenhouse, as well. As with booms, different nozzles can be used for propagation mist or potted plants. Like all overhead systems, they are most efficient with tight spacing and an open canopy.
Drip Systems
Drip systems deliver water from individual emitters. In drip tape, the emitters are incorporated at regular intervals in the tape. Drip tape is widely used for irrigation of cut flower crops in soil beds but can be used in a simple setup for containers. The tape is stretched in long runs at the height of the pots, which are placed under the emitters. Drip tape is also pressure compensated, which means water does not come out of emitters until the tube is uniformly pressurized. This ensures a uniform flow rate from all emitters. A pressure regulator is used to avoid excess pressure that could burst the tape.
The most familiar form of a drip system uses flexible "spaghetti tubing" to deliver water to individual containers. The delivery end of the tubing has a weight or stake to hold the tubing in the pot. Pot weights may be designed to shut off individual tubes when not in use, thus conserving water. In large containers, it can be difficult to spread water across the entire surface. Here, individual "spray stakes" are used for better water distribution.
A pressure-compensating outlet ensures uniform flow rates from each emitter. Multiple outlets can be connected to the same pressure compensator. If the length and diameter of the tubing from each outlet is the same, then the flow rates will be uniform. If a multiple outlet system has tubes of varying lengths, then a flow restriction device at the end of each tube is needed to obtain uniform flow rates.
Pressure-compensated drip systems can be used for pulsed irrigation. For example, if the normal irrigation run time would be 30 minutes, the system can be run for six cycles of 5 minutes on, 10 minutes off. Irrigation systems controlled by soil moisture sensors can be programmed to pause long enough for soil moisture to equilibrate after each pulse.
Hanging baskets present a special problem for greenhouse irrigation. When baskets are hung on a transport system, drippers won't work. A sophisticated system equips each basket with a funnel to ensure that the water ends up where it's intended.
There are many overall advantages of top-down watering. For example, hand watering requires no installation of special equipment, so it is often used by seasonal operations. Hand watering is also the most flexible system. Very large potted plants, hanging baskets and plugs and flats may not be suitable for flood systems, so top-down watering must be used.
There are, however, limitations to top-down watering. For example, overhead systems result in wet foliage, which is conducive to foliar diseases. The water itself may be damaging to sensitive flowers and bracts. Plus, water and fertilizer residues may be left behind on leaves and flowers, which can be unattractive to consumers. Hand-watering requires labor each time plants need water. Drip systems require less labor on a day-to-day basis but require recurring labor to set up and maintain. Drip emitters can also clog, leading to non-uniform irrigation.


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Bread – Downers
July 29, 2013
Readings for Monday, July 29, designated by the 1979 Book of Common Prayer: 2 Sam. 2:1-11; Acts 15:36-16:5; Mark 6:14-29; Psalms 56,57,58,64,65
There is a television show called "Saturday Night Live" which has a comedic routine called "Debby Downer," who, no matter where she is or she is with, will take the opportunity during every good time and celebration to bring up some disaster which has overtaken the nation, the city, the neighborhood, friends of the people she is with, or even herself if it comes to that. No matter the joy, there is always something wrong.
Like all comedy, it is built upon an aspect of our makeup. While we are having fun or enjoying ourselves, we don't want to hear about problems. In fact, if we can maneuver it, we will never deal with problems.
Look at all of the effort we make to hide problems. We package food in nice little containers, and disguise behind closed doors the death of chickens, cows, and pigs required to have that food. We typically don't talk about death at all. We trend toward dialogue through computers, even finding love on dating sites, so that we can avoid the face to face terror of having to deal with the down and dirty. We use drones to conduct wars, so that whatever killings there are become mere images on a television screen, which can be turned off with the push of a button. We even soft-pedal our Christianity, speaking of a God of love rather than, an equally true, God of wrath. We flock to churches which teach a "prosperity gospel," where you can have everything you ever wanted if you believe in Jesus, rather than the good news of truth, where we are steeped in sin and degradation from our conception, saved by the mercy of a holy God who required Jesus to die for our sins so that we could even show up before Him without being destroyed.
But we don't want to talk about sin, or death, or loss, or casualty, or storms, or disasters, because, "Man, what a downer!" We so much don't want to be Debby Downer to our friends or family who live in La-La Land that we avoid the discussion altogether.
And when we behave this way, we substitute the joy of the gospel, of being stolen from the pits of hell by a gracious, forgiving God, for the hollow happiness of modern life in the world, sheltered by our technology, by our desire to be positive and upbeat, by our foolishness, and by the machinations of the enemy. In the comedy routine, the friends are living happily in the moment and, when interrupted by Debby Downer, just want to push her out of the way.
Every one of our readings today has aspects of downers. In Second Samuel, David has just been made king of Judah in an uplifting ceremony, and he immediately confronts a puppet king being established in Israel, with whom he must war in order to recover the land promised by God. In Acts, Paul and Barnabas get into a big fight over Mark which is so big that they go their separate ways. In Mark, John the Baptist is beheaded in order to fulfill an oath given in a drunken moment. Uplifting, right? No, these are downers which happened to God's chosen people. These are the concrete results of a broken world. Yes, we know that God uses these for good … but in the moment, for the participants, there is little happiness.
But there can be joy. See, the gospel truth is that we are all downers, lost in sin, lifted up by the sovereign decision of a God who loves us into a relationship with Him, not earned by us but earned by Christ on the cross for us. And because, while we were still downers, God acted to save us, we can have joy in all circumstances, whether "down and out" or "up and away."
Who are Christians? Debby Downers, saved by grace, transformed and transforming into people who, despite knowledge of the truth of themselves, rise in Christ to victory over the day. This is not a prosperity gospel; it is a reality gospel. But it is a gospel which does not shake in the earthquakes of life, which recognizes in both the negatives and positive of the world the same truth – we have victory in Christ.
It's Monday, and so by definition we are probably acting like downers, or at least feeling like it. But we don't need to hide or fear the problems. We know they are there. But we also know that, even if we die today, we live forever. Therefore, there are no downers but only opportunities to live life fully, completely, abounding in love, smiling, because we know that, in Christ, we have won.
Carpe diem! Seize the day!
Bread – Calm
July 24, 2013
Readings for Wednesday, July 24, designated by the 1979 Book of Common Prayer: 1 Sam. 25:23-44; Acts 14:19-28; Mark 4:35-41; Psalms 49,53,119:49-72
There once was a fool who insulted a man bound to be king, and the king was angry and gathering his army of men, decided to eliminate the fool and his followers. Seeing the disaster to befall her family, a woman confronted the future king and said to him, "Blame me, for I am the one at fault," even though there was no fault in her at all because she did not know what the fool had done. And the future king acknowledged her gift, thanked her for keeping him from revenge, and did not kill the fool or his followers. Later, God took care of the fool as he deserved.
The story above is the story of Nabal (whose name means "fool"), Abigail, and David (on his way to becoming King David) from our reading today in 1 Samuel.
But it is in a sense our story as well. God came to us and we, the fools, insulted Him. Someone else, a person without fault in the circumstances, goes to apologize for us and the king stays his hand and a temporary calm came to the situation. However, God will not be mocked and, if we do not repent and put our faith in the King Himself, God will take care of us in a way we will not like, at a time of His choosing.
Fast forward to the New Testament. In our reading today in Mark, Jesus is asleep in a boat which is in rough waters. The disciples become full of fear and wake Him up, asking Him why He doesn't care for their safety. He rebukes the wind and wave and calm is restored. The disciples are in awe and wonder who is Christ, for He has just commanded the forces of nature. In a sense this question is an insult to the King, because man, the fool, dares to question whether God has power over creation, which He created.
When we are in the midst of storm and seeking calm, what can we learn from these examples from Scripture today? Well, for one we can realize our part as the fool. We are the ones who do not recognize who God is, we do not recognize His power and authority, we do not recognize His abilities. We are often the ones who create the mess, who create the storm. Even if we do not create the storm, as fools we increase its intensity through over-reaction, fear, or avoidance. Then there is something which happens to interrupt the flow of events. In the story of Nabal, it is the self-sacrifice of Abigail. In the case of Jesus and the storm, it was the disciples asking Jesus for help and Him rebuking nature. Then there is the action of the king. In David's case, he found Abigail's apology sufficient. In Jesus' case, the action to interrupt nature and the action to bring calm are the same action, because God is both the sacrifice and the King.
But there is another element in this as well. Nabal and Abigail were married. Even though Abigail had nothing to do with the insult to David, her action to ask the King for calm was in a very real sense Nabal's request as well. Nabal created the storm; Nabal through Abigail asked the king to substitute calm for the storm. In the boat, it wasn't the disciples who created the storm but it was the disciples who asked for peace.
Do you want calm? Ask the King. After all, He is the one in control.
Bread – Speechmaking
July 22, 2013
Readings for Monday, July 22, designated by the 1979 Book of Common Prayer: 1 Sam. 24:1-22; Acts 13:44-52; Mark 4:1-20; Psalms 41,44,52
For many people, the thought of getting up among a group of people, whether large or small, to make a speech is a fearful thing. We get butterflies in our stomach, a headache, ours brains are filled with cotton, and our mouths with stones. We stumble and mumble and make little sense and then sit down with great embarrassment, knowing that whatever important we had to say was lost in our inability to deliver the goods. There are in fact organizations built up around giving speeches, training us to be more outgoing, more organized, more pointed, and more self-confident. The Toastmasters come to mind, but I am sure there are other groups as well. Speechmaking is a an act best left to others with more talent, right?
Wrong. The truth is that we make speeches all day long. We argue our points, explain our positions, explain the good, deconstruct the bad, and generally talk to people, recommending movies, recipes, cars, good jobs, television programs, stocks, golf clubs, shoes, dresses, etc. The audience may not be large, but there is an audience. There are the people who are listening, of course, but there are the people those people will talk to, there is ourselves (any speech given to others is also given to ourselves), and there is God. So, right there, even if you are just speechmaking to one person, you are talking to at least an audience of three.
In our readings today, we are introduced to at least three different kinds of speeches. The first is by David, when he steps out from the safety of the cave to stand in front of Saul, who wants to kills him, to simply speak the truth, that Saul has nothing to fear from David. The second is by Paul and Barnabas, who proclaimed God's Word in Antioch, a place which was both receptive and rejecting. The third is by Christ Himself, who spoke a parable about sowing seed and its reception by various kinds of ground.
Whether we call these speeches confessions, proclamations, or parables, they all have the same elements. First, God's man is the speaker. Second, the truth is told. Third, the audience has the potential, always sitting on a knife's edge, to either be welcoming or hostile to the truth. Fourth, the speaker does not know how the audience will react. Fifth, one possible reaction of the audience results the speaker's death, imprisonment, loss, damage, rejection, etc. Sixth, what is not affected by the audience, no matter how welcoming or rejecting, is the speaker's joy. [see "The Jews … stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and drove them out of their district…And the disciples were filled with joy…" Acts 13:50-52]
Whether or not you want to give speeches or think you can give speeches, God sends us out into the world every day as His ambassadors to give speeches about Him, His kingdom come in Jesus' death and resurrection, and His kingdom to come in Christ's return.
So, knowing that we are going to give speeches whether we want to or not, I would think that we would want to give good speeches. This requires us to be a man or woman of God, clothed in Christ's righteousness and not our own. It requires us speak the truth as given to us by God in His Word and by our actual circumstances (see David in our reading today from 1 Samuel). It requires us to speak to the audience that is before us, but not particularly care about the quality of the reaction we get. It requires us to not really care about the reaction we get, as long as the truth be told.
How then can we be good speechmakers? In our own power, we can't. We can't because we cannot be God's man or woman in our own power (salvation is of the Lord), because we cannot deliver the truth without knowing the truth and without our wills being steeled by our knowledge of our place in eternity, and because we, as people, care about being liked by our audiences and do not take rejection well. In our own power, if we are rejected by our audience, we will not leave the place with joy in our heart.
How then can we be good speechmakers? When we are saved by God, disciplined by God, instructed in God's Word, look to God for approval and not man, know that our safety is in God's hands, and know our place in eternity. When we are infused and empowered by the Holy Spirit. When we are clothed by Christ, with Christ, and in Christ. When our armor is not of our fashioning or invention but is of God's manufacture. When we come to truly understand that although the speech is ours to give, the result in the audience is God's to deliver.
Wow, it sounds like I have just described Superman. Maybe I have, but I think it is more likely that I have just described a Christian. Have I described you?
Bread – Opportunity
July 16, 2013
Readings for Tuesday, July 16, designated by the 1979 Book of Common Prayer: 1 Sam. 19:1-18; Acts 12:1-17; Mark 2:1-12; Psalms 26,28,36,39
God is in control, which means that we are not. This simple statement has been the source of much fighting and gnashing of teeth as we debate, then, whether we have free will or not, or the degree to which God exercises His control or not. When it comes down to God orders things according to His plan, but we have responsibility, our minds want to short-circuit (or at least mine does), pointing out to us that there truly is a limit to our understanding because we are not God. I realize that saying there is a limit to our understanding may be blasphemous to the modern mind, but it is true.
We have examples of this in today's reading. From 1 Samuel, we have Saul committing to kill David and then being talked out of it by Jonathan. However, later in the same passage, Saul again changes his mind because "…a harmful spirit from the Lord came upon Saul, as he sat in his house with his spear in his hand." 1 Sam. 19:9. A modernist might well say that this passage is an example of ancient thinking, where physical or mental maladies were attributed to gods (God) rather than to natural causes, and that we understand much better today medicines, the brain, etc. I tend to read the Bible plainly, and this "harmful spirit" is said by God-ordained Scripture to have been "from the Lord," so why would I want to change that. The truth is that God intervenes in bringing about Saul's bad intent and, later in our reading today in Mark, brings about healing by Jesus because Jesus forgave the paraplegic's sin and told him to walk. He brings these things about in His sovereign authority for His sovereign purposes, and who are we to argue with that (even though we don't understand it and don't like it).
But the more dramatic example is from our reading in Acts today. Herod decides to go after the Christians, kills James and puts Peter in prison to kill the next day in a public spectacle. James dies with the sword, but Peter who is chained between two guards with guards at the gates of the jail is released miraculously by the intervention of a God-sent angel. Why? Was James the brother of John and an apostle a lesser person than Peter? No. Very simply, we don't know why and we won't know why. God was finished with this James the brother of John and an apostle (another James, the brother of Jesus, takes on the apostleship role), but not finished with Peter. God caused the "bad" (from our perspective), the death of James, and the "good" (from our perspective), the rescue of Peter from the jail and from certain death.
So, why is this Bread called "Opportunity?" It is simple. If you are reading this, you are alive. Are you alive because of you or because of the grace of God? If God's plan for you was over, then you would be over (in the present, but as a Christian, alive for eternity in Christ). But you (and I) are here, meaning simply that God's plan for us continues in the present. What a gift! What an opportunity!
How will we exercise our free will today to use God's gift of a new day for His glory and His honor? Will we use this opportunity wisely or will we squander it?
Yes, what we do and how we do it is God's plan, but it is also our responsibility. How will we exercise that responsibility so that, when we lay our heads down tonight, we will hear the words from God "well done, good and faithful servant."
Carpe diem. Seize the day. Seize the opportunity.
And not just in your own power, for the same God who gives us today, gives us this opportunity, gives us the power, love, and self-discipline to use it well. Come Holy Spirit!
Bread – Obedience
July 8, 2013
Readings for Monday, July 8, designated by the 1979 Book of Common Prayer: 1 Sam. 15:1-3,7-23; Acts 9:19b-31; Luke 23:44-56a; Psalms 1,2,3,4,7
What Christian among us would, if the Lord commanded him or her to give away everything they owned, their house, their cars, their cash, their incentive stock options, their mutual funds, their furniture, their annuities, their cash value in their life insurance, their retirement funds, would immediately and without hesitation do so? I wouldn't. I would like to say that I would, but I would be likely to hold back something (probably, most) for a "rainy day." Surely if we received such a command from God, we would (and He would) understand that what He really meant was to give up those things that really cause us to sin, like sugar, coffee, chocolate, and maybe that extra house that we spend all of our time and attention on. And the reason He really meant that was that our witness to the world would be compromised if we could not buy plane tickets to go on mission, had to accept charity from others who needed it more, did not invest our talents wisely (at least deposit them at interest – isn't that what Jesus said?), and couldn't show others that the prosperity gospel works.
You are probably smiling now because in my list of rationalizations, I probably hit on at least one you yourself have used to justify some response of quasi-obedience.
Our motives are not bad. In fact, they may well be good because it is true that we are more able to give generously from wealth than from poverty, at least according to our definition of "generously." But good motives from our perspective do not lead to obedience to God's commands. And half obedience may be some obedience but it is not the sold-out obedience which Christ asks of His disciples. Our obedience is not of the quality or quantity desired by God. Mine isn't, and I'll let you speak for yours.
This is the unmistakable lesson from the prophet Samuel today in our readings. God has told Saul, the king whom God has appointed over Israel, to battle the Amalekites and destroy (devote to God for destruction) every one of them and everything they own, including all of their animals.
And Saul did this, sort of. What he did was to kill everything which was "despised and worthless." But he kept the good stuff. He kept the king and the "best of the sheep and of the oxen and of the fatted calves and the lambs, and all that was good, and would not utterly destroy them." 1 Sam. 15:8-9. And he did all this so that he and Israel would have the good stuff to sacrifice to God. He did such a good job that he built himself a monument. 1 Sam. 15:12b In his mind, he had completely and totally obeyed God's command to him, saying to Samuel at the end "Blessed be you to the Lord. I have performed the commandment of the Lord." 1 Sam. 15:13b When confronted by Samuel, Saul was confused and again repeated what he knew was true, that he had obeyed God – "I have obeyed the voice of the Lord. I have gone on the mission on which the Lord sent me. I have brought Agag the kind of Amalek, and I have devoted the Amalekites to destruction. But the people took of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the best of the things devoted to destruction, to sacrifice to the Lord your God in Gilgal." 1 Sam. 15:20-21. It was clear to Saul that he had obeyed the Lord's command as He surely intended it, and that he (Saul) had good intentions and desires. It was clear to Saul that what he had done in response to God's commands was good and was what the Lord wanted.
But not true. God Himself said to Samuel "I regret that I have made Saul king, for he has turned back from following Me and has not performed My commandments." `1 Sam. 15:10-11a In response to Saul's protest that he had obeyed God, Samuel repeated God's actual command (not the one Saul heard). In response to Saul's argument that he had reserved the good things from destruction so that they could be sacrificed to God, Samuel said – "Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to listen than the fat of rams." 1 Sam. 15:22
God said to do one thing. That thing which God commanded did not sit well with Saul's modern sensibilities. Saul heard what he wanted to hear. Saul went out and obeyed the parts of the command which he understood should be obeyed and rejected the rest. Saul developed a rationale, which made sense to him and probably to others as well, as to why he had obeyed and why it was better in the end. Samuel reminded Saul that what Saul thought about God's commands was irrelevant and his arguments so much smoke and mirrors to disguise his disobedience to God and his obedience to the way he thought he should go and his obedience to the way the world thought he should go.
We are no different from Saul. God has made us king over something – our house, our family, ourselves, our job, our money, our food, our education. He has commanded us in great detail about how we should act as king. But what we don't like or what society tells us we should not like, we do not do. We rationalize why, of course, using our great powers of reason and persuasion, but the only person we persuade is ourselves. God is not persuaded and He is not fooled, and He is not happy.
"Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice."
The next line is not in our readings today, but is important – "For … presumption is as iniquity and idolatry." 1 Sam. 15:23a. When we change God's commands to our liking, we presume that we know best. We take our role as king and elevate it to a role as God. And presumption is as bad as every sin there is, because our elevation of ourselves to the place of God, our disobedience, is why we are such poor kings.
Maybe today I can be obedient in one little thing. And then tomorrow, maybe one more little thing. Maybe I can, in the power of the Holy Spirit. But that is the only way. Come Holy Spirit.
Bread – Weaponless
July 5, 2013
Readings for Friday, July 5, designated by the 1979 Book of Common Prayer: 1 Sam. 13:19-14:15; Acts 9:1-9; Luke 23:26-31; Psalms 140,141,142,143
Christians have, in the west, lived for many generations more or less in control of government and, as a result, their lives. This has resulted in a certain national attitude among Christians of self-sufficiency (I can do it, I can earn it, I can reason it, I can achieve it, I am good) which in turn has weakened the radical dependence upon God which He requires of His disciples in order for them to receive the full measure of the gifts He has in mind for them.
However, things are changing as the rising tide and philosophies of worldly people have lapped away at Christians' power base, slowly eroding it from the inside (as Christians become less disciples of Jesus [who they cannot change] and more the disciples of their particular tribe [which they can change to their fancy]) and the outside (as Christian thinking becomes less acceptable as the norm of behavior and thought).
Sooner or later, we will find ourselves like the Israelites and the Philistines. In our reading today from the prophet Samuel, the Philistines have taken away from the Israelites everything which could be used as a weapon. "Now there was no blacksmith throughout all the land of Israel, for the Philistines said, 'Lest the Hebrews make themselves swords or spears.'" 1 Sam. 13:19 In other words, the Israelites were weaponless. They had no guns, no tanks, no missiles, no bombs, no swords, and no spears. They lacked the weapons of conventional warfare. They could not launch a revolution against their pagan taskmasters because they had nothing to fight with.
In the midst of these circumstances, Jonathan and his support team of one said, "Let's go start a revolution." (not quite, but you can read it for yourself). Then Jonathan said that the reason was "It may be that the Lord will work for us, for nothing can hinder the Lord by saving by many or by few." 1 Sam. 14:6
In this is a critical lesson for us – the Lord does not require us to have our self-made special weapons in order to do His will; He merely requires us to do His will with what we have. He provides whatever weapons and circumstances are necessary for victory, if victory is what He has in mind.
Of course, I am referring to weapons made by man, weapons of steel and chemicals, artfully designed, manufactured, and used by us. I am not talking about the kinds of weapons God gives us to use in their place – love, charity, hope, joy, faith, peace, long-suffering, perseverance, truth, His righteousness, His wisdom, His power, His victory over death.
There may well come a time, sooner than later, when our guns are gone, are knives are dulled, our access to power is denied, our freedom is shackled, and our places at the head of the table are replaced by others. It is not too soon to begin thinking about what we will do in that evil day. Will we retreat to our corners, living in the margins? Will we rely on our own plans, warehouses, and things to bring victory? Or will we just show up, remembering that "nothing can hinder the Lord by saving by many or by few?"
To find out how we might answer that question tomorrow, we need to ask ourselves how we will answer it today. There will be a time today (there always is) when we will confront the prince of this world weaponless. We will then have a choice – flight, fight, or follow (Christ).
If we are going to prepare for tomorrow, we must begin by practicing today. Flight, fight, or follow (Christ). The choice is ours, every minute of every day.


text:
Cahill should be England captain, not Kane – Robson
Gary Cahill should be named permanent England captain instead of Harry Kane, according to Manchester United great Bryan Robson.
The Three Lions are yet to appoint a full-time successor to Wayne Rooney, who retired from international football in August, with boss Gareth Southgate having rotated the captaincy in matches this year.
Cahill is one of the favourites to take on the armband, along with Tottenham star Kane and Liverpool's Jordan Henderson, all of whom are in the squad for this month's final World Cup qualifiers against Slovenia and Lithuania.
England 9/2 to beat Slovenia 2-0
But Robson, who captained United and England during a glittering career, says it would be better to keep Kane free of the responsibility.
"I have never been an advocate of strikers being captain," Robson wrote in The Daily Mail.
"There is a clamour for Harry Kane to lead England and I understand that. He's scoring goals, full of confidence and works his socks off but I wouldn't make him captain.
"It needs to be a centre-half or midfielder as they are closer to the main action and in a better position to assess the team shape.
13 - Harry Kane now has 13 goals for club & country in September 2017; his best ever goal tally in a single month of his career. Unstoppable pic.twitter.com/Bt0mrkDJjP— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) September 30, 2017
"The important basic in football is to stay switched on, it's all about what you do next. When a striker misses a chance there's a moment when his head may go down or he ponders what he should have done.
"Behind him, the team need to be in position to regain possession and a centre-half is best placed to shift people into place. Generally, that's not something a striker thinks about. That's why, for me, the captain should be Gary Cahill.
"I had Gary for a three-month spell on loan at Sheffield United when he was 21. Even then he was a good talker and organiser, and he's a quality defender.
"He's worked alongside one of the best captains in John Terry and has taken over his mantle at Chelsea. He's got experience, 57 caps, and when he talks to younger players he will command their respect.
"When I was England captain, my first concern was to get my own game right; only then can you encourage or criticise others – lead by example.
"Don't get me wrong, Kane can inspire those around him, but I'd leave him to concentrate on scoring."
England need only a point from their last two qualifiers to guarantee a place at the finals in Russia next year.


text:
A Box Full of Floppies
Comment (1) Visits (18525)
The weather has warmed up here in Tucson so I started my Spring Cleaning early this year and unearthed from my garage a [Bankers Box] full of floppy diskettes.
IBM needed a way to send out small updates and patches for microcode of devices out in client locations. IBM had drives that could write information, and sent out "read-only" drives to the customer locations to receive these updates. These were flexible plastic circles with a magnetic coating, and placed inside a square paper sleeve. Imagine a floppy disk the size of a piece of standard paper. The 8-inch floppy fit conveniently in a manila envelope, sendable by standard mail, and could hold nearly 80KB of data.
I've been using floppies for the past thirty years. Here's some of my fondest memories:
So while this unexpected box of nostalgia derailed my efforts to clean out my garage this weekend, it did inspire me to try to get some of the old files off them and onto my PC hard drive. I have already retrieved some low-res photographs, some emails I sent out, and trip reports I wrote. While floppy diskettes were notorious for being unreliable, and this box of floppies has been in the heat and cold for many Arizonan summers and winters, I am amazed that I was able to read the data off most of them so far, all the way back to data written in 1989. While the data is readable, in most cases I can't render it into useful information. This brings up a few valuable lessons:
So what will I do with the floppies I can't read, can't write, and can't format? I think I will convert them into a [retro set of coasters], to protect my new living room furniture from hot and cold beverages.
technorati tags: IBM, Centennial, Patent, Floppy, Disk, Diskette, Apple, Chiat/Day, Pima Community College, Macintosh, iMac, Franz Kurath, Pearson Kurath Systems
Finger on the Pulse
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Regardless of what you do, it is important to keep your finger on the pulse of what is going on around you. Let me recap the different jobs I have had within IBM:
It was in this same concept that US Representative Gabrielle ("Gabby") Giffords launched a series of "Congress on your Corner" meetings. These were open air townhall meetings that allowed her to present her priorities and plans for the future, and to get feedback from her constituents. Last Saturday, at one such event here in Tucson, she was shot in the head. The shooter then proceeded to shoot another 20 rounds at others before being tackled to the ground by two volunteers. He had another 70 bullets left, so it could have been much worse.
Congresswoman Gifford survived, but six died, including a US Federal Judge, a Pastor at a local church, and a 9-year-old girl, who ironically was born on Setpember 11, 2001, the date of another US tragedy. The girl had just been elected to her student council, and came out to learn what government was all about. Another dozen people were wounded.
The last time I saw Gabby in person was last October 2010, at a charity auction to benefit the local Boys and Girls Club of America. She was shaking hands with everyone. I wished her good luck on her re-election campaign, which she won a few weeks later by a slim margin of some 4,000 votes.
(People have asked me if I knew her in high school. Gabby and I both attended University High in Tucson, rated one of the top 25 high schools in the USA. She would have started her freshman year months after I graduated, so I don't remember ever crossing paths.)
Having spent much of my childhood in Central and South America, I have witnessed my fair share of gun violence, military coups, and government take-overs. Of course, in a democratic government, there is a more peaceful way to resolve your differences. In my younger days, I was a lobbyist for local and state government here in Arizona for various causes and issues. I have met and dealt with many politicians. While many people are still in shock and awe over Saturday's tragedy, consider the following:
While everyone immediately was quick to blame this tragedy on everyone from [Sarah Palin] to Mexican drug lords, it appears the shooter was merely a frustrated college student, acting alone, and is now in custody awaiting trial. He was attending Pima Community College and had his run-ins with the college police there as well. He had applied to join the US Army, but his application was rejected.
In the early 1990s, to help me prepare to become a public speaker, IBM loaned me out to teach at the local schools. I did four semesters of high school, and then taught a year of Computer Science 101 at Pima Community College. (Yes, I have all the teaching credentials to do this.) I found this experience to be great training for me to practice my speaking skills. However, I took a lot of abuse. I had disruptive students, angry students, frustrated students, and students that would threaten me if they did not pass the class. One by one, they would drop out of my class, leaving me with only nine students finishing my class with a passing grade.
Sadly, community colleges across the country carry a stigma that they are not as good as a full four-year University. The students I met at Pima Community College were here because they could not find decent employment with just a high school diploma, weren't smart enough or rich enough to attend the University of Arizona, and just didn't know what to do with their lives. Some who graduate manage to get jobs as technicians and medical assistants, while others use this as a stepping stone to transfer over to the University of Arizona or other specialized training program.
I am sure there is much more to learn about this incident. Politicians can expect to take some abuse for the decisions made, their actions or lack of action on various issues, but nobody deserves being shot. Congresswoman Giffords was just trying to put her finger on the pulse of her district, to understand the concerns of her constituents so that she could represent us properly in her third term in office. Instead, we have doctors at the University Medical Center keeping their finger on her pulse. So far, things are hopeful, she is able to respond to commands such as "wiggle your toes" or "hold up two fingers".
I wish her a quick recovery.
technorati tags: IBM, Pima Community College, Gabrielle Giffords, Tucson Arizona


text: For the better part of 30 years, Brendan Baker has been involved in the automotive aftermarket and racing industry in some capacity, including the last 11 years at Engine Builder magazine. Brendan's aftermarket career started in high school working for an auto parts store in Akron, Ohio. He has worked many areas of the aftermarket from counterman to technician and earned his certification as a racing mechanic in 1989. He has worked for several racing schools and teams at various levels, including being an owner/driver of his own semi-professional racing team for several years. Brendan studied Journalism and Computer Science at Kent State University and lives in Akron, Ohio with his wife Lori and dog Kylie. In his free time he enjoys riding his motorcycle and racing go-karts.